:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: :: Volume 3 - Issue 11 ATARI EXPLORER ONLINE 12 September 1994 :: :::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: :: :: :: ATARI .............. News, reviews, & solutions ............ ATARI :: :: EXPLORER ............ for the online Atari .......... EXPLORER :: :: ONLINE ................. Community .............. ONLINE :: :: :: :: Published and Copyright (c) 1993-1994 by Subspace Publishers :: :: All Rights Reserved :: :: """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" :: :: Publisher ........................... Michael Lindsay EXPLORER :: :: Editor .................................. Travis Guy AEO.MAG :: :: Assistant Editor GEnie................ Ron Robinson EXPLORER.1 :: :: Assistant Editor CompuServe.......... Albert Dayes AEO.1 :: :: Assistant Editor Delphi......... Andreas Barbiero AEO.2 :: :: Assistant Editor Internet........ Timothy Wilson AEO.8 :: :: Atari Asylum ... [Closed] ...... Gregg Anderson AEO.7 :: :: Unabashed Atariophile ..... Michael R. Burkley AEO.4 :: :: Atari Artist ................... Peter Donoso EXPLORER.2 :: :: Jaguar Junkie ............... Tal Funke-Bilu EXPLORER.5 :: :: User Group Coordinator ........ Ron Whittam EXPLORER.4 :: :: UK Correspondent ............. Lea Anthony :: :: :: :: Contributors: :: :: """"""""""""" :: :: Michael Forget, Greg Kopchak :: :: Adam Urbano, David A. Wright :: :: :: :: :: :: Telecommunicated to you via: :: :: """""""""""""""""""""""""""" :: :: GEnie: AEO.MAG :: :: CompuServe: 70007,3615 :: :: Delphi: AEO_MAG :: :: Fnet: AEO Conference, Node 319 :: :: AtariNet: AEO Conference, Node 51:1/10 :: :: :: :: Internet mailing address: aeo.mag@genie.geis.com :: :: FTP recent AEO issues from: rahul.net:pub/wilsont/AEO :: :: Search gopherspace under "aeo" for back issues :: :: :: :: Internet subscription service: stzmagazine-request@virginia.edu :: :: (Internet subscription requests ONLY!) :: :: :: :::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: Table of Contents * From the Editors ........................................... Remember us? * Digital Briefs ....................... Computer, high-tech and videogame industry news. * Rare Gems ......................................... Quotes worth quoting. * Brutal Sports Football Rreview ................. Hack, slash, SCORE! Tal goes over Telegames' first Jaguar title. * Jaguar Tackboard ................... Development list - Brodie on Jaguar status - Bumpersticker Photo Contest Winner - KN info - Press Releases. * Jaguar Focus Group Market Research ....... How would you like to be part of a marketing group that is asked what Jaguar products you would like to see? Here's a report. * Videogame Profiteering ................. How do videogame manufacturer's control their profit machines? * Atari Artist .................. CT show report - New hardware & software for the creative Atarian! * Andreas' Den ........................ Publishing, software and standards. * Binary <-> ASCII Conversion ............. ESS-Code's author explains how to store and retrieve (and EMail) binary data as text! * The Unabashed Atariophile ................... PD and Shareware files for _your_ Atari computer. * Seattle FilmWorks ....................... They're not Photo CDs, but you CAN put your photos on disk. * Developing News ..................... ORA Announces TrueImage ... and Papyrus Gold NeoDesk 4 Ships Put your Falcon in Overdrive Take the Fast Path from TraceTech Avant Vector 2.0 * Shutdown ............................ Around the world and up your block. --==--==--==--==-- ||| From the Editors ....... Atari Explorer Online: The Next Generation ||| Travis Guy / | \ GEnie: AEO.MAG Delphi: AEO_MAG Internet: aeo.mag@genie.geis.com ------------------------------------------------------------------- Hello everyone, we're back! After a year and a half of running AEO, I was advised by a close friend inside Atari to take a vacation. It wasn't an easy thing to do, but after enjoying the splendors of NW Florida for a month, I can now say that I'm well rejuvenated, and ready to go. Reading online discussions for the past month, I've got a few things I want to get off my chest regarding the Jaguar "Game Drain". I took a few weeks off, hoping that things would be rolling by the time I got back. Personally, I am not happy that KN/CD/CF/etc. aren't in production yet... but I know that they (and more) will be in production VERY SOON. New versions of a few games were shown inside Atari last week, and the people who saw them have commented on how much better things look than they did at CES. Can AvP look and sound better than it did on the AEO video? YES. How does KN compare to 3DO's Way of the Warrior? (Close to twice the animation frames than the CD-based WOTW.) Can CF be a Virtua Racing killer? Looks like it. (On another subject, I'm glad to report that television advertisements HAVE STARTED airing on cable in the US. Don't have cable? Don't have a cow, man - the ads will also appear on selected network shows.) Writing a "perfect" piece of software takes time. Once the ROM masks are burned (or the CD master is cut), it's difficult to justify going back and redoing something. Atari's crackerjack testing department noticed a few =minor= flaws in Alien vs Predator during the past few days. As a result, the roll to production was brought to a momentary halt, as fixes were added and tested. I have been assured (as of 5pm CDT today) that "AvP production is imminent. (Soon.)" I am glad that Atari are holding their programmers to a high degree of quality. As far as I can discern, videogame programming is a little bit of science, a little bit of math, and a little bit of art. No one can "force it to happen" any quicker than it does. No Jaguar programmer can be bribed into coding faster and with less bugs than he or she currently is. Only a handful of developers have had development systems for over a year. Neither Atari nor any of the programmers benefit from NOT having a game ready. It is not in anyone's interest to have dissatisfied customers. Think about it people. This Holiday season will be an Jaguar owner's dream. Count on it, Veronica. --==--==--==--==-- ||| Digital Briefs - Industry News ||| By: Albert Dayes / | \ CIS: 70007,3615 GEnie: AEO.1 ----------------------------------------------------------------- =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= //// Technology Update =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= //// Airspace Management in 3D - US Air Force Special Operations """""""""""""""""""""""""""""" Command has selected E-Systems Dynamic Airspace Management System as the standard tool for airspace management. DAMS is a 3-dimensional airspace planning, scheduling and deconfliction software program for use on commercial workstations. It dramatically increases the ability of the airspace manager to detect flight path conflicts and more efficiently allocate flight time. //// Wings Discovered?? - Discover Magazine named Aviation Partners a """"""""""""""""""""""" finalist of the magazine's annual awards ceremony for Technological Innovation in the Aviation and Aerospace category. Louis B. Gratzer, Ph.D., chief aerodynamicist for Aviation Partners and the person responsible for the design of the SPIROID Winglet invention accepted the award. The SPIROID Winglet innovation is an aerodynamic device comprising a uniquely shaped spiral surface which can be mounted on aircraft wing tips to improve efficiency and performance in all flight situations. This is accomplished by the SPIROID reducing drag by more than 10 percent relative to the basic airplane. In addition to better fuel consumption, SPIROID also promises reduction in noise because of better climb and descent performance and reduced vortex (wake turbulence) which safer flights around congested //// BattleZone 21st Century? - Motorola Government and Systems """"""""""""""""""""""""""""" Technology Group (GSTG) has been awarded a contract with estimated value up to $44 million from the Department of Defense for development of the 21st Century Land Warrior Generation II Soldier system. The Generation II Soldier is an advanced head-to-toe fighting system with data, communication and protective equipment designed for ground forces. It will provide night vision, friend or foe identification and enemy position knowledge, and other capabilities designed to give soldiers enhanced fighting and survival ability. //// 50 years of Data Communications - ACM's Special Interest Group """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" in Data Communications - SIGCOMM - has given Paul Green, of the IBM Thomas J. Watson Research Center, the group's prestigious lifetime achievement award for his outstanding contributions to the field. Green's work in data communications theory, protocols, architectures and technology spans 50 years, making a major contribution in each of five decades: the first spread-spectrum system in the 1950s, channel-adaptive receivers in the 1960s, peer-centralized networks in the 1970s, protocol conversion in the 1980s and most recently, all-optical networks with IBM's wavelength-division multiplexing project in the 1990s. //// TI Loses Patent Fight with Fujitsu - Texas Instruments today """"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" announced it will appeal the Tokyo District Court's ruling that Texas Instruments Japanese Patent 320,275 - known as the Kilby Patent - is not infringed by Fujitsu in its manufacturing of 1-megabit and 4-megabit dynamic random access memories (DRAMs) and 32K erasable, programmable, read-only memories (EPROMs). Speaking of the court's decision, Richard J. Agnich, TI senior vice president and general counsel said, "We are disappointed. The inventor, Jack Kilby, his invention of the integrated circuit and the resulting patents have been recognized by industry and academia in Japan and throughout the world, and by legal systems throughout the world outside of Japan. "We are deeply disturbed by a patent system that keeps a major invention tied up in the Japan Patent Office for 29 years, and, when the patent is issued, in effect claims that it covers old technology and does not pertain to products made today," said Mr. Agnich. "The decision by the court calls into question the availability of intellectual property protection in Japan. TI has manufactured and operated in Japan for 30 years. We have had Japanese lawyers and patent professionals working with the Japanese Patent Office and the courts for decades. We have played by Japanese rules, seeking to obtain recognition for the Kilby invention within the framework established by Japan." Fujitsu filed suit against TI in 1991 asking the court to declare that the Kilby Patent does not pertain to its products. TI filed a "Kari Shobun" (injunctive relief) action to stop the use, production and sale by Fujitsu of products that infringe TI's '275 Kilby Patent. Because of the similarity of the two cases, the court heard them together. The court ruled that Fujitsu's production of 1-megabit and 4-megabit DRAMs and 32K EPROMs does not infringe the Kilby Patent. //// Pizza on the Internet - The Santa Cruz Operation (SCO) and Pizza """""""""""""""""""""""""" Hut announced "PizzaNet," a pilot program that enables computer users, for the first time, to electronically order pizza delivery from their local Pizza Hut restaurant via the worldwide Internet. =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= //// Computer News -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= //// Software Patents for free? - The Software Patent Institute (SPI) """"""""""""""""""""""""""""""" announced that it has become an independent non-profit corporation. "Being independent will allow SPI to redouble and focus its efforts on building its on-line database of software technologies and its courses for patent examiners and others," says Bernard Galler, chair of the Board of Trustees. "After two and one-half years of being a project at the Industrial Technology Institutein Ann Arbor, Michigan, we are ready to move to the next stage of making our efforts available to the United States Patent & Trademark Office (USPTO), patent professionals, the software industry, and the general public." //// Reality is Virtual - RPI Advanced Technology Group announced """"""""""""""""""""""" availability of an industrial, wearable virtual reality and visualization product incorporating voice command, VGA resolution glasses, a wearable computer, noise cancellation headphones, wireless interface and telecommunications. The device, PortaVis, consists of the world's smallest head mounted display and a wearable mini-computer. Twenty-year old technology foundry, RPI, produced the first consumer virtual reality headsets and is now providing complete systems to the growing marketplace for visualization and networked use. Applications for the system include security guards with nightvision and intruder maps projected in their field-of-vision; warehouse directories that show exact items and their locations; training systems that assist in facility layout prior to hammering the first nail; police in-the-field tactical displays that show the positions of all officers, suspects and tactical data; wireless military infantry vehicle-side support; medical training systems showing actual surgical data overlaid on the patient; high-end walk-through entertainment environments and various other deployments. //// 300 MHz Semiconductor - DEC reported a major breakthrough in """""""""""""""""""""""""" semiconductor technology with the introduction of the world's first commercially available microprocessor capable of issuing more than one billion instructions per second (BIPS). In announcing the accomplishment, Digial's President and CEO Robert Palmer said the Alpha AXP 21164 chip (over 9 million transistors) is also the computer industry's most powerful and the first to break the 300MHz barrier. //// Computers burned? - The U.S. economy has wasted $1 trillion """""""""""""""""""""" over the past decade on computing resources it hasn't used, and - says Charles B. Wang, one of the world's leading experts on business computing - these losses will continue unless business leaders overcome their techno-illiteracy with techno-vision. Chairman of $2.1 billion Computer Associates International and author of the forthcoming book "Techno Vision - The Executive's Survival Guide to Understanding and Managing Information Technology," Wang called "The misuse and abuse of technology a screw-up of tragic proportions." //// PostScript Added - The Adobe and Aldus merger was approved by """"""""""""""""""""" shareholders making it the fourth largest software maker. The previous lawsuit involving Aldus was settled recently paving the way for this over 400 million dollar merger. //// Syquest goes Mad! - Syquest licensed MAD magazine's boy called """""""""""""""""""""" Alfred. "We chose the Alfred character because he's a cultural icon that represents the epitome of 'ignorant bliss,'" noted Ronald Brown, vice president of corporate marketing for SyQuest. "Additionally, with the line 'What - Me Worry?' and his reputation for being overly optimistic, Alfred is the perfect tie to the dangers of not backing up data," added Brown. //// Computers Paid More than Humans - Nearly 40% of the 908 computer """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" professionals responding to Computerworld newspaper's eighth annual salary survey said their companies offer pay-for-performance compensation plans tied directly to job, company or information systems (IS) department performance - and of those whose companies don't offer such plans, 41% wish they did. //// Yearly Windows - Microsoft announced Windows(TM) 95 as the """"""""""""""""""" official name for the next major release of the Microsoft(R) Windows(TM) operating system, previously known by its code name, "Chicago." The name Windows 95 was chosen to make it easier for consumers to identify the most current version of Microsoft Windows. //// The Crime Network Online - Science Applications International """"""""""""""""""""""""""""" Corp (SAIC) has won a major contract to design and develop the FBI's Interstate Identification Index computer system. This system is an on-line criminal SAIC will provide IAFIS with criminal and civil subject search capabilities, criminal history file maintenance, response generation, ad hoc queries of the criminal history file and storage and retrieval of criminal subject photographs. It also will provide access to federal, state and local law enforcement agencies via the National Crime Information Center network. Under the eight-year contract, the SAIC team will design, implement and provide operations and maintenance support for the Interstate Identification Index. The contract has an estimated value of $27.6 million. =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= //// Video Games =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= //// 3D0 Set to Follow Jaguar to 64-bit Realm - The 3DO Company plans """"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" to introduce the M2 Accelerator, an add-on upgrade designed to provide current owners of the 3DO Interactive Multiplayer system with the power and punch of true 64-bit performance. As part of this strategy, the company announced that it is working with IBM, Motorola, and Matsushita Electric Industrial, Co., Ltd., to develop a new, state-of-the-art, 64-bit multiprocessor that will include a PowerPC microprocessor specifically designed for this kind of application, and multiple custom graphics and sound processors designed by 3DO. IBM and Motorola plan to engineer and manufacture the PowerPC microprocessor for 3DO. //// Sega Downloaded - Beginning Aug. 22, over 200 video games for """""""""""""""""""" the Sega Genesis system will be available in unlimited quantities in 10 Columbia area Blockbuster Video stores. The Game Factory system (designed by NewLeaf Entertainment) stores video game software electronically at retail stores and then it downloads on-demand onto specially-designed reprogrammable video game cartridges. Once a game has been programmed onto a cartridge, it looks and plays just like a standard video game cartridge. //// Another 3DO Cut - Matsushita Consumer Electronics announced on """""""""""""""""""" August 31, a price reduction of 20 percent on the Panasonic FZ-1 REAL(TM) 3D0(TM) Interactive Multiplayer(TM). Effective immediately, the manufacturer's suggested retail price will be $399.95. //// TWI is Active Everywhere - Time Warner Interactive announced the """"""""""""""""""""""""""""" creation of the TWi Forum on America Online. The forum is available 24 hours a day, free of charge to America Online subscribers and will serve as an information source and meeting place for TWI customers and others interested in what the company is doing. Establishing the TWi Forum on America Online is the first step for Time Warner Interactive, which has plans to set up similar forums on CompuServe, GEnie, eWorld, Delphi, ImagiNation and Prodigy. --==--==--==--==-- ||| Rare Gems ||| Compiled by: David A. Wright / | \ Internet:centaur@hartford.com ---------------------------------------------------------------- The following are the "Rare Gems (sm)" selections for August 21 to 27, 1994. "Rare Gems" is a service mark (sm) of Rare Breed Noninc. and David Alan Wright. (Internet: CENTAUR@HARTFORD.COM) Compilation copyright 1994 by same. All Wright's rights reserved. Each weekly or monthly collection may be distributed freely as long as this notice is retained. Multiple collections, such as CD-ROM, print, electronic, and other publications, may not be distributed without further authorization. All quotes covered by "fair use" of copyright law. May cause mass hysteria. --:Dave === Beware what you preach. The gullible have limits. --Unknown "Oh boy... What's the world coming to?" "My house, to collect money." --"Momma" strip by Mell Lazarus Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry and narrow-mindedness. --Mark Twain It is easier to live through someone else than to become complete yourself. --Betty Friedan Don't let your opinion sway your judgment. --Samuel Goldwyn The trouble with life in the fast lane is that you get to the end in an awful hurry. --Unknown The journey is the reward. --Tao saying The following are the "Rare Gems (sm)" selections for August 28 to September 3, 1994. "Rare Gems" is a service mark (sm) of Rare Breed Noninc. and David Alan Wright. (Internet: CENTAUR@HARTFORD.COM) Compilation copyright 1994 by same. All Wright's rights reserved. Each weekly or monthly collection may be distributed freely as long as this notice is retained. Multiple collections, such as CD-ROM, print, electronic, and other publications, may not be distributed without further authorization. All quotes covered by "fair use" of copyright law. And the award for best plot device in a crime drama goes to... O.J. Simpson's knife! --:Dave === If they like it, it serves four; otherwise, six. --Recipe by Elsie Zussman No man should travel until he has learned the language of the country he visits, otherwise he voluntarily makes himself a great baby - so helpless and ridiculous. --Ralph Waldo Emerson A marvelous creature. A model of specialization... Who else could suck an ant up his nose and enjoy it? --About anteaters, "B.C." strip by Johnny Hart Saving is a very fine thing. Especially when your parents have done it for you. --Winston Churchill I am debarred from putting her in her place - she hasn't got one. --Dame Edith Sitwell A good ninja is hard to find. --Unknown I met a lot of people in Europe. I even encountered myself. --James Baldwin The following are the "Rare Gems (sm)" selections for September 4 to 10, 1994. "Rare Gems" is a service mark (sm) of Rare Breed Noninc. and David Alan Wright. (Internet: CENTAUR@HARTFORD.COM) Compilation copyright 1994 by same. All Wright's rights reserved. Each weekly or monthly collection may be distributed freely as long as this notice is retained. Multiple collections, such as CD-ROM, print, electronic, and other publications, may not be distributed without further authorization. All quotes covered by "fair use" of copyright law. I could tell you more, but then I'd have to kill you. -- :Dave === Trust me, but look to thyself. --Irish proverb There are no whole truths. All truths are half-truths. It is trying to treat them as whole truths that plays the devil. --Alfred North Whitehead The man who fears no truths has nothing to fear from lies. --Thomas Jefferson Today the real test of power is not capacity to make war but capacity to prevent it. --Anne O'Hare McCormick Always remember to pillage before you burn. --Unknown There is no such thing as inevitable war. If war comes it will be from failure of human wisdom. --Bonar Law Those who foresee the future and recognize it as tragic are often seized by a madness which forces them to commit the very acts which makes it certain that what they dread shall happen. --Dame Rebecca West --==--==--==--==-- ||| Review: Brutal Sports Football ||| By: Tal Funke-Bilu / | \ Delphi: AEXPLORER GEnie: EXPLORER.5 ------------------------------------------------------------------ Well folks, it's been a while since the last regularly scheduled AEO, but I made it... about 4000 miles, 6 hours of video tape, a ton of orders, a new Tempest high score (4,513,945), a new job, new pad, and a huge crush on a new girl! Oh yeah, and a new game to add to my Jaguar library... all that and I still find time to write for my favorite online mag. ;) Seriously though, here is the official AEO review of the first 3rd party game to surface for the most powerful home entertainment system ever created, Atari's Jaguar. Brought to you by Telegames, Brutal Sports Football (BSF) captures the essence of rugby, football, and good ole smear the queer and throws them all together in to one sport. To call BSF a sport is rather ironic, since most sports have rules by which you abide by. BSF as you might already know, has no rules. The game starts off with a tip off by the referee much like basketball, and then, for the next seven minutes, it's a free for all. Use a variety of methods ranging from punching, stomping, passing, kicking, diving, jumping, blocking, slashing, hacking, freezing, decapitating, tackling, shocking, etc. to find a way to put the football into your opponent's goal. Yet before the game begins, you must choose your team. Assassins, lizards, goats, rhinos, warlords, and many other compilations of barbarous savages adorn your screen as you decide who (or what) you will use to wreak havoc against the opposition. Before you make that choice, you must determine how you will use your arsenal... whether it be in a single elimination Knockout tournament, a quick and simple Unfriendly match, or an entrance into actual League play; the choice is yours. In both Knockout and Unfriendly play, your team starts out at full health at the beginning of each match, while after each League game you have the option of using moneys won during play to "rebuild" your team. You can acquire new heads, more health, and even a speed increase for the next game. Now that we have all of the "pre-game" activities out of the way, let's see what the game is really like. [] GRAPHICS: For better or for worse, BSF's graphics have been one of the most talked about aspects of this game. The general consensus has been that BSF has 16 bit graphics. Well, they might not be 64-bit-in-your-face-this-is-what-the-Jag-can-do graphics like Alien Vs. Predator, but they definitely aren't bad. I'd say they're average. You have nice character animation, nice scrolling, nice body parts flying, nice blood. It is all NICE, nothing amazing, but very nice. Everything is happening at the same time which also contributes to this game's niceness. I didn't notice any slowdown, even though I had practically ten different guys on the screen all doing different things, with about two or three heads bouncing in different directions and blood spurting all over the place. I love a good decapitation! The bottom line? The graphics are nice, not superb, and not 16 bit like the many net-perfectionists make them out to be... just nice. Rating - 7 [] PLAYABILITY: This is definitely the strongest point of BSF. It is one of the most fun games I have played, especially in two player mode. Granted, the computer is fun, but hey, we all know that you eventually figure out a way to beat the computer. Nothing can beat a good seven on seven Unfriendly tournament with a group of friends. The controls are very responsive. You move your players, and they go where you want them to. They dive where you want them to, and jump like you expect them to. The power-ups are a perfect addition to game that is already great fun to play. Swords, axes, and shields add another dimension to basic punching and stomping, while other power-ups like Lightning and Ice Cubes can be used effectively towards the end of a game to alter the expected outcome. The bottom line? The game is responsive and has enough cool power-ups to keep your interest much longer than a normal sports game. Rating - 9 [] SOUND: Nothing great here. The music during gameplay is OK, and the sound effects are slightly better. There are a few grunts and thuds that would be very cool if their volume was increased, but f/x control in BSF was one feature that was missing. The crowd reacts to different tackles, punches, etc in different ways, and is definitely a good addition. Again, the sound effects are nice, while more would have been a good addition, they definitely aren't bad. The bottom line? The sound doesn't stand out, nor does become annoying... it sort of blends into the game, a feature I was not disappointed in. Rating - 6.5 [] VALUE: While I will be the first to tell you that BSF is a very fun game and should definitely be played before it is discounted, I will warn you that I don't feel it is worth the $69.99 price tag. Sorry Telegames, with games like AvP, Kasumi Ninja, and Checkered Flag coming out at the $69.99 price range, it is hard to see paying that much for BSF. Maybe for Brutal Sports Baseball if they beef up the graphics and sound, but right now BSF looks like a $50 - $60 game. The bottom line? Buy it with a friend. Rating - 4 [] OVERALL: BSF's playability is definitely the high point of this game. So much in fact that it makes you realize that you don't need the flashy graphics and sounds to make a fun game. The bottom line? While the graphics aren't mind blowing, and the sound isn't special, the game is a blast to play. My brother and about six of his friends had a six and a half hour BSF session last weekend, so I know I'm not the only one who feels that way! Rating - 7.5 What else in Atariville? Well, if AvP isn't already in production, it should be by the time you read this, and when it is you will see it posted across many different forms of bandwidth. Whoever said Halloween was being a little over pessimistic ;) Speaking about AvP, how would you loyal Atarians like to be treated to the 1st AvP review? That's right, the first review of AvP in its FINAL FORM. Don't wait for it to hit the shelves for reviews, don't wait till next month's issues of mags with reviews of unfinished EEPROMs - get it here, in the virtual pages of AEO. Sound good? Keep reading the only online mag recommended by Atari Corporation itself! You know, if you guys are really cool, I might be able to snag some killer screen captures of some stuff that hasn't been seen before! You know, I also remember doing some sound files for T2K... I'm sure that could all be arranged. No promises, you'll just have to wait and see....;) --==--==--==--==-- ||| Jaguar Tackboard ||| Confirmed information about Atari's Jaguar / | \ Compiled from online and official sources ----------------------------------------------------------------- =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= //// Independent Association of Jaguar Developers =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= The IAJD (Independent Association of Jaguar Developers) has started accepting members on GEnie. The IAJD is a private group where confidential discussions can be freely held. (Category 64 of the ST RoundTable is the IAJD meeting place.) Consequently, membership in the IAJD is limited to Jaguar developers who are registered with Atari Corp. To apply for membership, send EMail to ENTRY$ on GEnie (or if you're not on GEnie). Regular EMail correspondence with the IAJD should be sent to IAJD$ (again, or if you're not on GEnie). =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= //// Internet Jaguar Mailing List =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Anyone with Internet EMail access can join the discussions on the Jaguar mailing list. To "subscribe" to the list, send an EMail to the following address: Leave the subject line blank. In the body of the EMail, include this line: subscribe jaguar-l FirstName LastName (Where "FirstName" is your first name and "LastName" is your last name.) To send mail to be read on the Jaguar list, address your letter to: . It will go to the list server and be sent to the over 200 readers of the list. IMPORTANT: If your mail server charges you by the character or by the letter, please be aware that the Jaguar list can generate dozens, and up to a hundred EMails in a day. =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= //// Developer / Game List 1.15 =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= //// Editor: The following developers, licensees and game titles have been confirmed to the best of AEO's ability as of September 9, 1994. Entries in the "S"tatus column reflects any "e"rrors, "u"pdates, "n"ew titles, new "d"evelopers, or "?"uestionable listings since the last AEO list. Titles in brackets (e.g. [Cybermorph]) have been completed and are available in the US. Expected dates are dates that have been provided by the developer. Expected Date or Titles S Developer/Licensee Rating under development " """""""""""""""""" """""" """"""""""""""""" 20th Centrury Fox Interactive u 21st Century Software Q3/94 Pinball Dreams 3D Games - Rainbow Warrior - MORE e 4Play - StarBattle Accent Media Productions - Varuna's Forces CD-ROM Accolade - Al Michaels Announces Hardball - Brett Hull Hockey - Charles Barkley's Shut Up and Jam Acid Software Activision - Return to Zork CD-ROM Alfaro Corporation Limited All Systems Go Q1/95 Hosenose and Booger CD-ROM Q1/95 Video Jukebox (cart multiplexer) - BIOS Fear CD-ROM - (IR controller station) American Laser Games - Mad Dog McCree Anco Software Ltd. - Kick Off 3 (for Imagineer) - World Cup Anthill Industries Argonaut Software - Creature Shock CD-ROM (For Virgin) Atari Corp. - Battlezone 2000 - Chaos Agenda CD-ROM - Club Drive *5* [Crescent Galaxy] - Highlander - MPEG 1 and 2 carts - Space War (was Star Raiders 2000) u 12/94 Tiny Toons Adventures - VR Helmet MORE Atari Games Corp. - Arcade Games Using Jaguar Attention to Detail - Battlemorph: Cybermorph 2 CD-ROM - Blue Lightning CD-ROM *7* [Cybermorph] (For Atari) Audio-Visual Magic B.S.A. Bando Svenska AB Beris Bethesda Softworks Beyond Games Inc. 12/94 Battlewheels Q3/94 Ultra Vortex BitMotion Software Bizzare Computing Black Scorpion Software Borta & Associates Brainstorm - [x86 Jaguar Development System] Brandlewood Computers Ltd. Bullfrog Productions Ltd. Q3/94 Syndicate (For Ocean) Q3/94 Theme Park (For Ocean) Cannonball Software Celebrity Systems Inc. Clearwater Software Computer Music Consulting Condor Software Cross Products Ltd. - [Jaguar Development System] Cybervision CyberWare DAP Data Design Delta Music Systems Inc. - Nanoterror - Droppings Denton Designs Ltd. Dimension Technologies Diskimage Domark Group Ltd. - F1 Racer DTMC - Lester the Unlikely - Mountain Sports - (Miniature Golf) u Eclipse Q4/94 Iron Soldier (For Atari) Electro Brain Corp. Electrom Elite E-On Eurosoft Extreme EZ Score Software Inc. Factor 5 Flair Software Ltd. Frankenstein Software Funcom Productions a/s GameTek Inc. Genus Microprogramming Inc. Gremlin Graphics Ltd. 10/94 Zool 2 - UNKNOWN TITLE (racing) - MORE? H2O Design Corp. Hand Made Software - Kasumi Ninja (For Atari) u Q4/94 Jack Nicholas Cyber Golf CD-ROM (For Atari through Accolade) High Voltage Software 10/94 White Men Can't Jump (for Trimark) - Ruiner (pinball) Hisoft Human Soft Ltd. ICD Inc. - Cat Box (AV & comm expansion box) id Software - Doom: Evil Unleashed *8* [Wolfenstein 3D] i-Space iThink - (3D simulation) Imagineer Company Ltd. Imagitec Design Inc. *6* [Evolution Dino-Dudes] *6* [Raiden] - Freelancer 2120 CD-ROM - Bubsy in Clawed Encounters of the Furried Kind (For Accolade) - Dino Dudes 2 Interplay - BattleChess CD-ROM - MORE? Jaleco - Cisco Heat - Bases Loaded - MORE CD-ROM JVC Musical Industries - Valus Force Krisalis Software Ltd. - Soccer Kid Kungariket Multimedia Limelight Media Inc. LlamaSoft *10* [Tempest 2000] (For Atari) n - Defender 2000 (!!!!! :-) (For Atari) - MORE MINTER! Loricel S.A. Lost in Time Software Malibu Interactive Manley & Associates Inc. Maxis Software Media Technology Scandinavia Merit Industries Inc. Michton Inc. Microids 1995 Evidence 12/94 Commando Microprose - Gunship 2000 - MORE SIMULATIONS MidNite Entertainment 10/94 Air Cars 10/94 Dungeon Depths Q1/95 Assault u Millenium/Teque *7* [Brutal Sports Football] (For Telegames) Miracle Designs Nebulous Games Neon-Buttner Network 23 Software NMS Software Ltd. Ocean Software Ltd. 12/94 Apeshi- (working title) 1995 Lobo CD-ROM Odyssey Software Inc. -unnamed- - -unnamed- Photosurrealism - Galactic Gladiators Phobyx Pixel Satori PIXIS Interactive - Neurodancer CD-ROM Rage Software Ltd. - Rally u Rainmaker Software Inc. - Nerves of Steel (was Tunnel Rat) - Virtual Warriors ReadySoft Incorporated - Dragon's Lair CD-ROM - Dragon's Lair II CD-ROM - Space Ace CD-ROM u Rebellion Software Ltd. 10/94 Alien vs. Predator (For Atari) u 10/94 Checkered Flag II (For Atari) - Legions of the Undead (For Atari) - Hammerhead Rest Energy Riedel Software Prod. Scangames Interactive Sculptured Software Inc. Selgus Limited Shadowsoft Inc. Sigma Designs Q4/94 "Jaguar on a PC" PC card u Silmarils Q3/94 Robinson's Requiem CD-ROM Sinister Developments Soft Enterprises Softgold Gmbh Software 2000 Software Creations Software Development Systems Spaceball Technologies Inc. Steinberg Soft-und- Hardware Gmbh Tantalus Entertainment Tantalus Incorporated Team Infinity Team 17 Software Ltd. Tecnation Digital World Techtonics Telegames - Casino Royale - European Soccer Challenge u Q3/94 Ultimate Brain Games - Super Off-Road - World Class Cricket Teque London Ltd. Thrustmaster Tiertex Ltd. - Flashback (for U.S. Gold) Time-Warner Interactive - Rise of the Robots Titus Trimark Interactive Twlight U.S. Gold Ltd. UBI Soft International - RayMan - MORE (American Football) V-Reel Productions - Arena Football - Horrorscope Virgin Interactive Entertainment Ltd. - Cannon Fodder - Dragon - Demolition Man Virtual Artistry, Inc. Virtual Xperience - Indiana Jags (platform) - Zzyorxx II (vertical shooter) - Burn Out (m/c racing) Visual Concepts Visual Impact Wave Quest Inc. Williams Brothers u Williams Entertainment 11/94 Troy Aikman NFL Football Q4/94 Double Dragon 5: The Shadow Falls WMS Industries Zeppelin Games - Center Court Tennis Pts Stars AEO Ratings """ """"" """"""""""" 10 ***** GAMING NIRVANA!!! - You have left reality behind... for good. 9 ****+ Unbelieveable GAME!! - Your family notices you're often absent. 8 **** Fantastic Game!! - You can't get enough playtime in on this. 7 ***+ Great Game! - Something to show off to friends or 3DOers. 6 *** Good game - You find yourself playing this from time to time. 5 **+ Ho-hum - If there's nothing else to do, you play this. 4 ** Waste of time - Better to play this than play in traffic. 3 *+ Sucks - Playing in traffic sounds like more fun. 2 * Sucks Badly - You'd rather face an IRS audit than play this. 1 + Forget it - ... but you can't; it's so badly done, it haunts you. 0 - Burn it - Disallow programmer from ever writing games again. =-=-=-=-=-= //// Quotes =-=-=-=-=-= //// Atari's former Director of Communications, Bob Brodie had this to say recently: [] Well you're certainly welcome to your opinion, but opinions all stand up a little bit better with a good dose of facts...something your post seems to be a tad shy of. :-) Yes, Atari is slow in getting things out the door. But you're overlooking a couple of things. First, when Atari had their initial press conference announcing the Jaguar, they showed prototypes of everything. Very few units (probably less than 12) were in the hands of developers. Some of the tools were still under development...indeed; the entire CD system was still in development. Puts quite a kink in the plans for devs that wanted to do strictly CD ROM development, doesn't it? Basically, it is reasonable to expect a quality title to take 9-12 months to be developed. It's also reasonable to add say 45 days of slack time to any announced date, as no software from any company is ever ready on time. Plus, in the case of the Jaguar, you had to factor in another 30 days just for the developers to learn how to write Jaguar software since it was a brand new machine! We saw some nasty cases of "creeping featuritis" at Atari, as our programmers learned how to do a lot of things better/faster/ more effectively. This inevitably lead to coders wanting more time to re-do portions of the game so it would be better. My discussions with some of the software houses indicates that Atari isn't alone in suffering with this creeping featuritis. :-) Jags began shipping in quantity in NY and SF in November of last year. Some developers held off signing on until they saw that Atari was indeed going to push the Jaguar in the target areas. And, Atari did! They not only did national print advertising, but ran an effective TV campaign for the Jaguar, and supplemented that with co-opt print ads for major retailers, like Nobody Beats The Wiz, Toys R Us, Electronic Boutique, and The Good Guys. Having seen Atari do what they said they would, plus some of the cool demos from games like AvP, Tempest, and other, developers began signing on in good numbers in early '94. So we're just about in the time frame where a lot of the games (probably 20-30) should be complete. The downside is that the games are getting finished too late to get coverage for the Holidays from most of the mainstream gaming pubs. GamePro has over a 90 day leadtime...their Christmas issue is probably already done. Same thing with Video Games, EGM, Electronic Games, and the other pubs...about the only mag that will be able to do a really quick turn around on their coverage of the Jaguar will be Die Hard Game Fan. Their cut off is about 3 weeks prior to printing. Which is part of the reason that they always seem to have the news first. Although I'm no longer at Atari, I stay in contact with my friends there. And right now AvP is very close to release. And it looks fabulous! Is it a system seller? Absolutely!!! Just as Mario and Sonic made Nintendo and Sega household names, I believe that AvP will make the Jaguar a success. =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= //// AEO Jaguar Bumpersticker Photo Contest Winner =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Before AEO went on hiatus, we announced a photo contest whereby readers would send in a photograph of their Jaguar bumpersticker on their vehicle to be randomly picked to receive an AEO at SCES 94 video AND a "really cool" Atari Jaguar in-store display banner. We were stunned at the amount of photos received. You people certainly want to show off your Jaguar support! A large enough container was used to hold the photographs, and the drawing was held by an impartial panel. (My elderly parents, TJ & Nellie.) The winner of the AEO video and Jaguar banner is: Ken Baum, of Jenkintown, PA. Congratulations to Ken, and to all of those who entered, our thanks! We're brainstorming for another cool giveaway - keep reading the virtual pages of AEO for our next contest. =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= //// Kasumi Ninja Overview =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= The story takes place on the small island of Kasumi in the West Pacific Rim. For many generations, the island has been the source of some of the greatest Ninja Warriors. The existence of the island and its inhabitants is a secret, and the secrecy has been maintained with the help of the Ninja Gods. An invisibility mist shrouds the island, making it undetectable, even by modern technology such as satellites and radar. The Ninja Gods ensure that no ships find it by diverting their course. Recently, one of the eldest Ninjas, Gyaku, went berserk and killed all of the other elders on the island. It is said that Gyaku is possessed by spirits from the Demon World. Now, the Evil Ninja Gyaku has proclaimed himself Lord of Kasumi Island. The Ninja Gods have chosen you, a neophyte Ninja, to defeat Gyaku and re-claim the Dragon Cloud Temple, where Gyaku is planning his overthrow of the Island. The Dragon Cloud temple is said to have a portal to the Demon World, and with such awesome power, Gyaku could not only rule Kasumi Island, but he could very well rule the world. The Gods cannot help you directly, but they can help you as the Ninja to gain more confidence and skill. This is done by your Ninja character assuming the persona of a great fighter from one of the world's fighting races. Fighting as all of the characters, and defeating all of the different characters will prepare you for your final confrontation with Gyaku. Eventually, you must find your way through the Labyrinth beneath the Dragon Cloud Temple, and defeat Gyaku. Before you do that, defeated opponents will each give you clues and items to help you find your way through the maze. Then, via the underground Labyrinth, you must find your way to the Portal. The way will be dangerous, but with the help of the Ninja Gods, you can make it to face Gyaku, and destroy him before he unleashes his Demon Minions. =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= //// Kasumi Ninja Characters =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= The characters will be explained in order starting to the right of the long hallway the player sees at the character selection screen. //// The Orange Ninja: Habaki Habaki is the Eldest of the two Ninja brothers (by 10 minutes). of the Kiri-ga-kure family. The Ninja Gods have chosen Habaki to face Gyaku because he shows great promise as a Ninja Warrior. Habaki is very adept at the Ninja skill of Teleportation. //// Chagi: The Kickboxer In his nation, Kick Boxer Chagi is undefeated. He has taken the art of Kick Boxing and Martial Arts to their very limits. The Ninja Gods have chosen his persona because of his great speed and agility. //// Alaric, King of the Goths The reason the Ninja Gods have chosen Alaric, King of the Goths, is well known. Alaric was one of history's most feared and ferocious fighters. Alaric helped to bring down the mighty Roman Empire, and conquered great portions of Central Europe. Alaric is feared, because he possesses an exploding Bamboo Stick which he found in battle. Alaric uses this Bamboo Stick to keep his people loyal, as well as to defend himself. //// Thundra, The Amazon Queen Now living on the island of Mazos near Somothrace. Thundra is the Amazon that led her race to Victory over the Gargarians, and negotiated the original treaty between the two races. The Ninja Gods have chosen her because of her close relation to the animals of the jungle. This relation has helped to make her an agile and powerful warrior. //// Danja, The Urban Gang Leader Danja grew up to become the leader of a gang of fighting women. They spent many years cleaning up their turf of lower street life. Danja fights using the dirtiest street tricks she can come up with. She is well respected by her sisters in the neighborhood. Danja has spent most of her life learning to use the Bolas as a powerful, and devastating weapon. She has developed an exploding tip for the bolas that has proven to be deadly in combat, and, through elimination, made her the leader of her gang. //// Pakawa: The Comanche Indian Warrior Pakawa is the Chief of the Comanche fighting tribe Tu-Wee-Kah. The Tu-Wee-Kah were equivalent to the Greet Berets in their time. They were the ones that were sent in first, to stealthily attack the opposition, and disable key warriors. The rest of the tribe would then attack. Pakawa is very adept with his hunting blade. He has collected many scalps to prove his bravery, and fighting skill. //// The Green Ninja: Senzo Senzo is the younger of the Ninja Twins. The Gods have chosen him because of his great speed, and agility with the Ninja art of throwing Fireballs. //// Angus McGreggor: The Scottish Brawler Angus is a burly fighter from the Highlands. He has spent his life mastering the Caber Toss, and is known to use this special skill against unwary opponents in battle. Angus has also learned the fine art of tossing fireballs, although his delivery is somewhat unorthodox. Beware the Glasgow Kiss! //// Gyaku: No Information =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= //// Jaguar Press Releases =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Contact: Diane Carlini Ron Beltramo Edelman Public Relations Atari Corporation (415) 433-5381 (408) 745-8852 Terry Grantham Telegames, Inc. (214) 228-0690 ext.901 For Immediate Release //// ATARI ABOLISHES ALL RULES - //// SCORES TOUCHDOWN WITH NEW "BRUTAL SPORTS FOOTBALL" Title Is First Of Many Third-Party Games For Award-Winning, 64-Bit Atari Jaguar SUNNYVALE, Calif. (August 22, 1994) -- Imagine no rules on the football field as you decapitate your opponent as he runs toward the goal line. The only game you'll experience it on is Brutal Sports Football and the only video game system you'll play it on is Atari's award- winning Jaguar. The first of many third-party video games, Brutal Sports Football also is the first sports-related, fast-action game developed for the 64-bit Jaguar system. Initially released for sale in mid August, with national availability in September, Brutal Sports Football represents a hybrid in video games -- coupling the sporting elements of rugby with the blood-and-guts mayhem of the most popular video games. The product is designed for action gamers and football fans who are tired of the same old set of moves and rules. The new rules are simple ... there are none. Players simply pick up the ball and run for their video game life while avoiding the head-hunting opposition. "Brutal Sports Football was our chance to work with the most sophisticated video game platform on the market, the 64-bit Jaguar," said Telegames' Terry Grantham. "We've been developing software for Atari hardware since 1982 and believe this is our most innovative product yet." Brutal Sports Football, retailing for $69.95 at consumer electronics and toy stores nationwide, is the first of numerous games Telegames is developing for the Jaguar platform including World Class Cricket, Ultimate Brain Games, Casino Royale, and Operation Starfish (James Pond 3). Atari's Jaguar game system has approximately 30 software titles planned for release before the holiday season. Popular titles in the works include Alien Vs. Predator, Dragon - The Bruce Lee Story, Doom, Busby, Troy Aikman Football, and Kasumi Ninja. "We've challenged our software designers to develop games that use the full technological capacity of the 64- bit Jaguar," said Atari Corporation President Sam Tramiel. "This means players can look forward to some incredible titles in the near future because our developers are not constrained by less-sophisticated 16-bit or 32-bit technology." More than 150 independent developers currently are working on Jaguar-compatible products. Since its release in November 1993, Atari's Jaguar game system has been named the industry's "Best New Game System" (Video Games Magazine), "Best New Hardware System" (Game Informer) and "1993 Technical Achievement of the Year" (DieHard GameFan). The Jaguar is the only video game system manufactured in the United States. Atari Corporation, based in Sunnyvale, Calif., designs and markets 64-bit interactive multimedia entertainment systems and video games. # # # Jaguar is a trademark of Atari Corporation. Atari is a registered trademark of Atari Corporation. Other products named may be trademarks or registered trademarks of their owning companies. Contact: Ron Beltramo Atari Corporation (408) 745-8852 //// VIDEO GAMERS NEED NOT WAIT 'TILL LATE 1995 TO EXPERIENCE //// 64-BIT POWER Wolfenstein 3D, Alien Vs. Predator, Kasumi Ninja and Doom Among Many Hot New Titles Available by Christmas on the Award-Winning, 64-bit Atari Jaguar SUNNYVALE, CA (August 29,1994) -- Sega, Nintendo, 3DO and Sony continue to tell game enthusiasts that they must wait until late 1995 to experience advanced video game technology and performance. But the Atari Jaguar, the world's first 64-bit multimedia home entertainment system, already is available. "By Christmas 1994, Jaguar fans will be playing 30-50 new game titles on their 64-bit systems while our competitors continue to play catch up and beg their followers to be patient," said Sam Tramiel, Atari president and CEO. "Its nice to know American companies are once again leading the way in technology." The Atari Jaguar is the only video game system manufactured in the United States. Jaguar, the most powerful multimedia system available, was recently named the industry's Best New Game System (Video Games Magazine), Best New Hardware Systems (Game Informer) and 1993 Technical Achievement of the Year (Die Hard Game Fan). Jaguar also recently was given the European Computer Trade Show Award for Best Hardware of the Year. "We still have the best hardware on the market. And now we have great titles rolling in." said Tramiel. "So if you can buy 64-bit power today for under $250, why should you wait until 1995 to spend close to $500?" said Tramiel. In September, Atari will launch an aggressive advertising campaign highlighting the great gameplay made possible by the Atari Jaguar's 64-bit power. One of the campaign spots stresses the immersive, 3D nature of Jaguar games by focusing on upcoming title Alien Vs. Predator. "The 3D graphics and texture mapping take full advantage of the Jaguar's technological superiority and create an experience that is out of this world," said Tramiel. Atari Corporation, based in Sunnyvale, Calif., designs and markets 64-bit interactive multimedia entertainment systems and video games. ### Jaguar is a trademark for Atari Corporation. Atari is a registered trademark of Atari Corporation. Other products named may be trademarks or registered trademarks of their owning companies. //// JAGUAR PHOTO CONTEST What would you do to promote the Jaguar? Do you have an idea that could be expressed on film? STReport wants to see it. And, we're ready to reward the person (or group) with the best idea, in picture format. That's right, just send us a photograph of how you would promote the Jaguar! You'll also need to send us your name and address, of course. 1st Prize will be an official Atari Jaguar tee-shirt AND an official in-store promotional Jaguar banner! 2nd prize will be a Jaguar tee-shirt (identical to the one above). 3rd prize will be a "JAG RULES!" rubber stamp which is normally available exclusively from Artisan Software! Photographs will be judged and prizes will be awarded by the Atari/Jaguar editor of STReport, Dana Jacobson. All photographs must be received by September 20, 1994. The winners will be announced in STReport online magazine, in the issue scheduled to be released on Friday, September 23, 1994. To be eligible, please submit a clear photograph (color preferred) of your idea. Also include your name and address with the photo! All photographs submitted will become the property of STReport; they will not be returned to you. Contest is valid in the United States and Canada only. Employees of Atari Corporation and staff members of STReport or Amiga Report are not elegible to win. This contest is void where prohibited by law. Send your photograph, your name and address to: Jaguar Photo Contest STReport Online Magazine 1121 Saratoga Street East Boston, MA 02128-1225 USA Again, 1st prize includes a Jaguar tee-shirt and a Jaguar banner! The tee-shirt is 100% cotton. It's a black crew-neck shirt with the Atari Jaguar name on the chest. On the back is the famous Jaguar logo. The banner is the same as you've seen at your favorite Jaguar dealer. What? You haven't seen one? Well, it measures 4 feet wide and 2 feet tall! The Jaguar logo consists of those piercing yellow Jaguar eyes above the dark red Jaguar, claw marks and all! These banners are collector's items which are almost impossible to get anywhere! Rumor has it that this one may have been discovered in a rare cache somewhere in the bowels of Sunnyvale. And it can be all yours! Show it off proudly on the wall of your room or fly it out your window! All of your friends will want one, but only you will have one. It's awesome! JAG RULES! The 2nd prize consists of the Jaguar tee-shirt, as described above. The 3rd prize is the official "JAG RULES!" rubber stamp! Use a bright red ink pad (not included) for a vivid 2.25" by 1.5" image of JAG RULES in the impact of the Jaguar logo type style. Use it as an economical way to advertise your enthusiasm of the Atari Jaguar. Stamp your letters and your envelopes. Stamp your arm as a tattoo. Stamp your money. Stamp school notebooks and post-its. Writing a letter to your favorite software company? Stamp it! Sending a birthday card to your best friend? Stamp it! Dropping a postcard to your brother at school? Stamp it! Let everyone know you're a Jaguar gamer. After all, in the empire of high technology entertainment systems, JAG RULES! For an example of the JAG RULES logo, call the CATscan BBS. Dial 209/239-1552. Download file: JAGRULES.ZIP. File is ZIP'd and requires PKUNZIP to decompress. Or, call your favorite online service to find it! Need a tip to help you start thinking of some ideas? Drop us a line in E-Mail to either DPJ on Delphi, 71051,3327 on Compuserve, D.JACOBSON2 on GEnie, or Internet mail at dpj@delphi.com. Or, call us at Toad Hall BBS at (617)567-8642 and leave a private message to Dana Jacobson. Are you still here? Grab that camera and start taking some pictures! One of them may just be the winner! Credits: STReport and its staff would like to thank Atari Corporation for its generous donation of the banner and tee-shirts. ======================================================================= Tradenames herein are trademarks or registered trademarks of their owning companies. Permission hereby granted to re-post this contest text, in its entirety, anywhere that you feel it would be appropriate - your favorite BBS, user group newsletter, magazine, etc. Please spread the word! --==--==--==--==-- ||| Atari Jaguar Focus Group Market Research ||| By: Adam Urbano / | \ Internet: adamu@Garg.Campbell.CA.US ----------------------------------------------------------------- On August 18, Viveros and Associates Inc, a marketing service firm, held a research forum dealing with the Atari Jaguar which I was invited to attend. It is in forums like these that companies test out their marketing strategies, find out about the public's opinion on product, and basically find out how to go about taking a market by storm. I could have saved Viveros a huge portion of time by telling them to advise Atari to just release Alien Vs. Predator . These forums last for about three hours, and during that time the company tries to find out about the public's opinion through a wide variety of tactics. First off, well before the forum begins, the attendee is sent a letter containing a questionnaire. The basic premise of this is to get a feel for the persons views of gaming: likes and dislikes, knowledge, and views towards the Jaguar in an unbiased fashion. Questions asked of me ranged from "What systems do you own?", to "What systems will be released in the next year?". Also asked were questions on favorite games of all time, opinions towards the best and worst features of ALL the systems, views on the possibility of many new hardware items, and opinions on favorite video game print and TV ads. Upon arriving and checking in, the first thing I noticed, besides the free food, was the massive quantities of Jaguar boxes that are in the back room. It obviously took quite a large quantity of time for all the workers involved in this forum to set it up. There are only 10 people invited to attend each session (one person did not show up for our group). This seems to be a low number until it is realized the massive amount of questions and discussions that go on during the three hours. After everyone arrived it was time for the session of 12-17 year olds to begin. In case anyone out there was wondering (or cares) I am 16, and I was probably the oldest person in our group. First off we entered the conference room, which consisted of a table with 10 chairs at the side and one at the end for the mediator, a desk for the note taker, 3 walls full of kiosks and Jag Hardware, and one giant mirror wall. It was pretty darn obvious that it was a two-way mirror with people watching. We began the forum by introducing ourselves, and giving our gaming stories (what systems we owned, favorite games, etc.) Collectively we owned all current systems with the exception of the 3DO. Everyone owned at least one 16 bit system, about four out of the nine owned a Jaguar, and 3 or 4 of us owned all of the major players. From this point on I will try to give the major opinions of the group, and from what kind of people they came from (i.e. Jag owners, Non-Jag owners), since our opinions may very well guide where the company heads in some respects. At the very least it will tell what people think of the Jaguar. This portion of the forum shed some light on our gaming opinions. Fighting games seemed to still be the big thing, although all of us "older" attendees agreed that that genre was beginning to get old. This was followed by sports games, and adventure games. The younger crowd at the group (about two 12 year olds and a couple 13 year olds) agreed that they liked the fighting games such as Mortal Kombat 2, "because they were violent and bloody", while everyone else seemed to be geared towards strategy, move combos, and ground-breaking graphics. After the introductions it was on to America's favorite pasttime, commercials. The basic format was to watch a commercial, answer a question form asking opinions/ratings on it, and then watch the next one. The first commercial was the already seen Tempest 2000 commercial with the fifties-ish characters in the foreground. Everyone seemed to love the lengthy game clips in the commercial, and the music in the game. (Who doesn't?) The 50's people were a toss up, the younger kids seemed to find them cute, while the older kids could care less. We all felt there needs to be a HUGE disclaimer saying "ACTUAL GAME MUSIC". I still hold strong on the fact the game sells itself, everyone there loved it (again, who doesn't?), but I think the game really has to be played to be appreciated, screen clips just do not do it justice. The next commercial is an Alien Vs. Predator specific one. It involved an intermixing of shots of a scared, sweaty game player, and game screen shots. The ending shows the boy with his mom's hand on his shoulder. After the camera cuts away from the boy it shows an Alien's arm holding out the mom's arm. Neat feature... the "DO THE MATH" slogan is intermixed by showing some graphics of a medical scanner with the slogan popping on. Everyone felt the commercial was funny and very well done, but again, the game sort of sells itself. There were a few suggestions on this one though; the game shots seemed short, in the one to two second range, and we felt longer clips would be better. (Some of the shots of the game player could have easily been cut.) About three or four of the people there felt that the game looked choppy. I was sort of, lightly, left with that impression after they mentioned it, but the shots where SO short it was tough to tell. Everyone wanted the game though (hint, hint, wink, wink, nudge, nudge). Finally we came to the "school teacher" commercial. This one begins with a teacher on the blackboard showing the 16 bit Genesis, 32 bit 3DO, and 64 bit Jaguar in a bit comparison. She would ask students (all of which where adults in suits and ties) questions as to which had better stats or which system was better and they would respond, with "duh" or "hmm". This one was obviously the "Kids, do you know what a Jaguar is?" commercial, designed to give them basic knowledge. Intertwined were VERY short clips of Kasumi Ninja, Checkered Flag Doom, and AVP. there were more but those stood out in my mind. All of these games looked EXCELLENT, and there was no doubt about their smoothness. The younger kids loved this one. They felt it was hilarious. I still don't find it directly funny, but it is when one realizes the similarity to the Sega commercials. It was mentioned that someone did not like the negative comments towards other systems. I for one could care less about that part, but since this is an introduction to the Jag commercial I mentioned they could throw in some specs for good measure, it would fit the commercial perfectly. EVERYONE felt it needed longer screen shots. After this we all filled out surveys on our opinions of possible hardware add-ons. These included virtual reality, voice modem, networking, CD-ROM, skeeball, steering wheels, and flight yokes. Keep in mind we where told all of these are products Atari is THINKING of doing. (Not INTENDING to do.) We then tested the steering and flight joysticks. The steering wheel was excellent, it had perfect tension on it, and it even had a pedal mechanism and gearshift. Everyone liked it, but the shifter was garbage, 2 gears, and very flimsy. The flight stick was also great, it was the Thrustmaster weapons control system from the PC. It seemed well built and it has buttons for every possible situation, and another "joystick" on top to change views. The only problem was that there has yet to be a console game that demands this type of hardware, hopefully that will change. Next up, after a fun-filled restroom break, was the product testing time. During this we were given no prices, so we would remain completely objective. (The prices came later.) We would rotate to each of the stations, spend about five minutes at each, come back and fill out a questionnaire, and then discuss at the end. The stations were Virtual Light Machine, a video puzzle game, skeeball, and Club Drive with voice modem. Since I am a constant reader of rec.games.video.atari (on the Internet), I knew of all these beforehand, so it was a little less of a surprise to me than the others. First up for me was Virtual Light Machine on the CD-ROM. I assume that from reading AEO everyone has already heard of it so I'll skip the explanation. The interaction had yet to be worked in but we could switch between the 90 or something displays. It was technologically great. Everything anyone may have heard of it is true, it is gorgeous. But, onto the group's opinion. As a whole it was found to be boring. No one said they would pay money for it because they were uninterested. I personally think some of that would be different if the interaction had been built in. After discussion it was agreed it was MUCH better than any comparable play system on the other CD-ROM systems. And it was EXCELLENT if one didn't already have a CD player. If one would play a CD, it was great to just leave the VLM on. Another factor that really hurt it was that they where never told about price. But everyone did say IF it were built in to the CD-ROM they would love to have it. But since I read AEO, I knew it was built-in from the start. Next up was VidGrid; a potential CD-ROM pack in. This was a puzzle that played music videos in a 1/4 box in the middle of the screen. The video could be broken up into 1 to 32 pieces and is randomized. The goal is to pick up each of these blocks with the pointer and move the piece until the video is put back together, BEFORE the video ends. For added difficulty the pieces can be flipped at the start. The music video constantly played and it even continued in the squares one picks up. There was a wide selection of musical groups, Aerosmith, SoundGarden, classic rock, etc., about 8 songs. It was viewed as relatively fun, but it was agreed it would have to have both a wide selection of music/upgrade and a cheap price. Next is a prototype skeeball machine. The premise is to roll a ball up a plastic ramp and have the Jaguar keep score. We all felt it really had no use for the Jaguar, and really just disliked the idea. They seem to be taking the "multimedia" a bit too far. Club Drive, ahh Club Drive. The game itself was said to be 90-95% complete. It is a pure blast. And the voice modem was great also. No slowdown, and it delivers a crisp clear voice. There really isn't much to say except, wow. We then finished with the testing and got into the heavy duty discussion on items and the Jag in general. All the discussion happened in a pretty haphazard and random way, so I'll attempt to give it some order. First off we discussed the products on the list. Everyone wanted virtual reality, and the price mentioned was $200.00. No one cared about the price, we all wanted it. The CD-ROM was mentioned at $200.00, but people's decisions to buy it were based around several things. Everyone wanted a pack in. Something that was graphically impressive was number one on the list, number two was some sort of a classics disk. There also needed to be a fairly large assortment of games for it to be a "must have". The skeeball was mentioned at about $50, we talked it down to about 20, but were still inactive. The driving wheel was said to be $129.95. We all thought this was a bit steep for a controller, especially given the historical track record for accessories. The price we felt was more reasonable was around $100 or possibly less. If there was some sort of a pack in game though, we all felt the $130 price was great. Some people mentioned that there would have to be something that was REALLY a great racing game, like Daytona, making it a "must purchase". But it was felt there needed to be at least 4 or 5 racing games out before it becomes a great value. A light gun was suggested by us with a possible price of $20. As long as there are some games, that seemed pretty good. Now for what we felt to be the major letdown. The possible mentioned price for the voice-modem was $200.00. We ALL felt this might be a little steep for this sort of an add-on. The price would have to be at most $150.00 or more ideally $100 for us to bite. But again, a pack in would change that all. On the upper side though, the price for the network connection was $20.00. We felt this was GREAT, especially since you can connect more than 2 people. The final portion of the forum was to get a general idea of the public's perception of the Jaguar. From this I could tell that the video game magazines were really hurting Atari. The kids knew of only a few of the games in development, and ALL of those came from magazines like EGM. It seemed everyone there read Electronic Gaming Monthly, and thus knew VERY little of the games to come out. NONE of them even knew of games like Battlemorph. Everyone knew that Atari had 150 developers, but they said that only about 30 of them were making games. A lot of them where also upset with Atari's release dates as they were printed, and delayed. It seems to me ALL magazines should print the AEO developers/games list. It was the general opinion that the biggest thing hurting Atari was the lack of games. Walking into a software store and seeing 2 new games in 7 months discouraged us all, but we all seem encouraged by Atari's goal of 30-50 titles out by Christmas. I hold firm that if they try, REALLY try, the 30-50 goal can be reached. I'll end this article with some of the more positive things said, I don't want you to go away unhappy, you know! Everyone agreed that the Jaguar IS a 64 bit system, even after being drilled on not believing everything that they hear. Everyone agreed on the enormous potential that the Jaguar has, and the only thing stopping it from being the king of the jungle is the lack of software. I personally (and I think, everyone else there), had a great time. It was a great chance for me to give input on my favorite game machine. The only thing that could have made it better would have been me stuffing a Jag CD-ROM and a Club Drive EPROM in my pocket.... 8-) --==--==--==--==-- ||| Profits: Videogame style ||| By: Andreas Barbiero / | \ Delphi: ABARBIERO GEnie: AEO.2 --------------------------------------------------------------- The video game, once considered a fad, has grown into a multi-billion dollar industry. The video game industry is unique in many ways, but has some similarity to other entertainment media such as books or music. High turnover, a short title life-span, and a are the major driving factors behind these markets, and entertainment software is possibly even more competitive than any other consumer entertainment products. At an estimated $6 billion marketplace, with 13 different platforms in as much as 50 million homes, the competition to have games that sell, and quickly is enormous. Out of over 700 reported games released for all video game platforms only 20% of these games sold the magic number of over 100,000 units. This is only for the game console market, and it is considerably larger than the computer game market. The Software Publishing Association estimated that North America sold about $342 million in gaming software for 1992. So now we know the numbers, and with so many games released, and so few big winners, what do the numbers really mean? Who controls all the dollars? Recently in Game Developer magazine, a small sidebar illustrated the money trail that gives a game cartridge life in the hands of a user. The top two hardware manufacturers are Japanese, and through typical Japanese monomania they have cornered the market. This is not just in owning the lion's share of hardware sold, but the entire process of making a game. Sega and Nintendo own the mechanism that manufactures a cartridge for their systems - the actual cart, label, manual, box, and even warranty cards are all made and assembled in Japan. They also own the rest of the system. Until last year, all licensees were limited to three releases a year, and they had to be approved by Sega and Nintendo's evaluators. Games that scored well enough for these folks would not be counted though. So say you have a sure million-seller and you want to put your hot little cart in the hands of 14 year old game-players everywhere. A 50,000 unit shipment of a 12megabit cart like Street Fighter II with battery-backup costs $25 or more per unit. It takes three months for to get it manufactured, and you have to buy your carts, paid up front! So after four months, the carts go to the store, and after six months, your $1.25 million dollar order, floated for over six months, you get paid. New players are challenging the existing structure. Both Atari and 3DO have a totally new method of licensing and software development. The high pressure retail market is the same, slow selling titles will not be given precious shelf space. Video games need to sell, but the market will go where the money is. Even with a lower initial installed user-base making the profit more accessible and the costs lower to developers, other developers will come running. CD-ROMs are much cheaper as they can be made in small quantities locally. There is far less risk with 5000 CD-ROMS vs. a million dollars for the minimums demanded by the Japanese. Atari is following the same pattern, away from the Japanese model. This will allow a small group to develop software, even on cart for the Jaguar, at a lower cost and give the user a larger selection of software than just stuff from the people who could front a million or two dollars in hack for six months. Having the hardware made my IBM is a bigger step than it first may seem. Modern consumer electronics in the past twenty years have gone offshore, the Japanese have conquered the audio/video market by a combination of appealing to American greed, illegal dumping, and corporate strategic partnerships. Every item that can be made in the USA is a step to staunch this hemorrhage. And even items made by a Japanese firm in the USA is not that great a deal when the profits are going overseas and taxes are only paid minimally here in the US. The few numbers of jobs provided by these companies are actually minimal recompense for the loss of American manufacturing firms. When all the cards are counted, the hardware manufacturer that makes access to their technology as easy as possible and can control the quality of software to assure gameplay first and profiteering second will be able to take back the fire from Nintendo and Sega. --==--==--==--==-- --------------------------------------------------------------------------- -- --==--==-- Delphi Sign-Up Information --==--==-- -- -- -- -- To enroll as a Delphi subscriber, modem call 1-800-365-4636. Press -- -- [Return] until you see "Password:", then type IP26 [Return] -- -- -- -- Answer all of the questions, and you'll be cleared for Delphi -- -- access in a few days. If you have questions about Delphi services, -- -- give a voice call to Delphi Member Services at 1-800-544-4005. -- -- -- -- --==--==-- Delphi Sign-Up Information --==--==-- -- --------------------------------------------------------------------------- --==--==--==--==-- ||| Atari Artist ||| By: Peter Donoso & Fadi Hayek / | \ GEnie: EXPLORER.2 ----------------------------------------------------------------- ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ]=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-[ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- [ ATARI ARTIST ] -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ]=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-[ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ Very much alive... and kickin'! That's the prognosis for ST/STe/TT/ Falcon users for the remainder of '94, well on into '95... and beyond. Though the continuing development of next-generation Atari computers is anybody's guess at this point, (the torch looks to be falling in the direction of third-parties - a course which, in the overall scheme of things, could well be a tremendous boon to Atari lovers everywhere in the form of both greatly- improved user support and the real possibility of some exciting new directions for the platform) there certainly is no shortage of new and exciting software for Atari computers of all ages. Though the emphasis continues to be centered around the Atari model which offers the most possibilities for a variety of applications (the Falcon 030), a number of companies have started to adopt a more universal, feature-enabled approach in their development of new products for the market. While most features of a program remain accessible to ST/STe/TT users, some additional options that require greater processing power may only be available to Falcon 030 users. This is a really smart approach that benefits everyone. Developers are able to market their product to the widest possible audience, while users end up benefiting through the availability of continued new product. A by-product for all concerned is that the platform stays alive and robust. This notion, of producing products which offer a roster of power-packed features for the largest group of users while tailoring certain options to the individual abilities of a particular model, looks to be the industry's smart choice for generating both present and continued future sales. In other developments, serious discussion has begun among developers on adopting a set of programming standards for all applications! Initial discussions have begun on the subject of key commands and whether to use those most often favored by German programmers or those used by the mjority of the computer world. Of course, the common Copy, Cut and Paste functions generally all use the X-C-V keys, but then some programs use these in conjunction with the Control key while others favor the Alt key. On other functions, such as Close - Ctrl/W (as in Close File) the two camps seem to be somewhat divided bewteen Germany and the rest of the world (is this some kind of karmic thing or what?). The German standard is Ctrl/U, so go figure! At this point, any movement in the general direction of standardising our user interface is welcomed news indeed! Once the key command standard is set, the next item on the agenda is developing a program that will automatically alter all their present GEM-based programs' key commands to adopt to the final arrived at set of standards, Regular readers of Atari Artist have heard us rant on a number of occasions about the lack of common standards for our favorite platform - an approach that gave Macintosh computers' claim of being "user-friendly" so convincing, and one which Microsoft enviously recognized as the one singular must-have for their new Windows-driven DOS GUI! It just makes sense that the basic functions of all programs within a specific platform should all share a set of common procedures! Back to the issue of hardware versus software. Hey, let's face it, any intelligent, observant person will see that it's really the software - not necessarily the latest doubling or quadrupling of a chip's processor power - that provides a major portion of the fuel to push an otherwise "less- powerful" computer into overdrive! As far as I'm aware, Atari is the ONLY platform which has software-based accelerators, and they work as well as any clock-increased upgrade - without ever having to open up your machine! One need look no further than such innovative German companies as Steinberg, Digital Arts and DMC to see what amazing stuff can be done as a result of employing tight, ingenious, programming with a minimum of code. Hard drive storage requirements for individual DOS/Windows-based programs is unbelievably HUGE! No question about it - programming plays a mucho major role! Without software - hey, ANY computer's just a box, and that's the irrefutable bottom line! Keeping that in mind ,the following list is certainly solid proof that Atari users can expect to be fed an ever- increasingly powerful mixture of fuel into their favorite computer for years to come. Just look at what's either recently been released or right around the corner! //// Word Processing The evolution of word processing presses onward for greater flexibility and improved user interfaces, as evidenced by the upcoming release of Papyrus - a very promising program which brings a number of DTP capabilities to a feature-packed w.p. environment. There are also some impressive updates coming for a number of popular Atari staples. Write On 2, That's Write 3 and Protext 6.5 are all salted to be released in the next few months. //// Font Management Compo's Speedo G-DOS 5, which, as of this moment, has actually physically landed at Atari dealers nationwide, offers Atari computers a significant increase in font choices. In addition to the huge selection of Speedo fonts, users can now use the same true-type and Adobe post-script Type 1 fonts available to Windows and Mac users. This is indeed a major improvement to an already great font management system, giving Atari-based DTP users greater job opportunities in being able to provide clients with a customer's specific font requirements. //// Multi-Tasking The number of choices Atari users have for multi-tasking on their favorite machine continues to grow. MagiC (formerly called MagiX) looks to be a very versatile - and fast! - environment. Black Scorpion's very hot-looking DEXtrous incorporates multi-tasking capabilities while offering some very slick GUI file and graphic features. Ease is an alternate desktop with a difference - it allows for assembly of an Launch Applications menu, as well as simultaneous display of primary icon, combination icon/text, and two-column text-based windows which displays file name, extension and Kbyte. A new version of MINT is due to be released in the next month or so, and is rumored to bring some faster routines to Atari's Multi-TOS. //// File Management Utilities Utility programs such as Kobold bring a significant increase to file copying and management. Harlequin 3 and Mortimer Deluxe have brought two popular accessories which perform a host of functions while taking up only one Desk slot up to full Atari model compatibility while adding even more features. Powerful hard disk utilities such as Diamond Edge and Diamond Back have followed suit. //// DTP There's no question that desktop publishing has never looked better! Digital Arts has revamped its Didot Professional DTP package, and is soon set to release it's latest incarnation as DA's Layout TC. Calamus SL is also due for a significant and major update with the coming release of v. 2.0, Gut'n'berg, BlowUp's fully-featured Speedo-supported document processor, is also expected to see a late fall release. //// Image Processing One of the hottest new Atari areas of software development, image processing shows no signs of slowing down, as reflected in the number of both recent and soon-to-be releases. Admittedly, it took a while for the Atari world to catch up to its Macintosh/PC relatives in this area, but that's all well in the past now! In addition to the awesome power of Digital Art's DA's Picture, we will soon have the equally powerful Chroma Studio24, as well as HiSoft's TrueImage. Image Copy 3 is around the corner, and if no one told you otherwise, you might feel hard-pressed to believe that such powerful editing utilities as Eclipse and Spectra are, in fact, PD Shareware programs. //// Painting /Drawing Artistically, the much-anticipated release of Arabesque 2 is just around the corner. If you were even the least bit impressed with the original mono version of this wonderfully versatile, must-have raster/vector drawing program, you'll be knocked out by this new color version! Elsewhere, DA's Vector is now Vector Pro, while Chagall continues to garnish rave reviews. Rainbow, EZ Art Professional and PixArt round out the addition of some incredible new paint programs to a roster of already impressive products. //// Music /MIDI /Digital Recording On the music end, things just get better and better. Musicom 2, Trackcom and Clarity Falcon all extend the capabilities of the Falcon 030, while the latest version of Cubase Audio 2.0 puts Atari's flagship bird light-years ahead of ANY other computer on the market - period! Sixteen tracks of digital audio right out of the box with the addition of only a fast external hard drive and a full compliment of RAM - two ingredients which are already a must-have requirement for any kind of serious digital-audio processing, no matter what the computer platform - along with a host of very powerful, detailed satellite modules and utilities make for THE most affordable digital music recording computer platform the world has ever seen. And let's not forget Logic, and Logic Audio, Emagic's excellent successor to the immensely-popular Notator sequencing /notation software. Soon-to-be released Atari-based voice answering systems from both HiSoft and Compo will offer Falcon users voice mail, as well as the ability to put together full production OGM messages and announcements - voice, music and sound effects - totally in the digital domain! //// Just the Beginning...! By the first quarter of '95 complete video editing packages, such as DA's Movie and Titan's video editing package (still to be named), said to have a number of similar features to a special video-oriented version of the soon to be released Chroma Studio 24. You'll also be seeing some easy-to-use 3-D modeling/ rendering programs that will let you create objects and perform texture mapping, ray tracing and animation without having to get bogged down in mathematical formulas and computations. So hang in there, all ye who have doubts - it looks to be a great future for Atari computer owners everywhere! This issue, we cover a number of new releases in a variety of categories: music, paint/drawing/image processing. We also take a first-hand look at two of the digital voice mail systems for the Falcon which are in the final stages of development. And now - away we go.... -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- = = - - -=-=-=- [ SHOW NEWS ] -=-=-=- - - = = -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= //// 1994 CONNECTICUT ATARI FEST =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= The major Atari eastern regional show was once again held recently in Connecticut at the Bridgeport Holiday Inn. Sponsored once again by the ACT Atari group ([A]ffiliated [C]onnecticu[T]), this marked the show's fourth successful year. With the sad demise of the Washington W.A.C.C.E. show and the announced cancellation of this year's traditional west coast Glendale Atari show (due primarily to personal difficulties for a number of the show's traditional organizers) this show was certainly one of the largest Atari shows of the year, and arguably a contender as THE strongest Atari show in the country for 1994. If you missed it... shame on you! For those unable to attend, here's a brief run-down of the show. The two-day event featured a total of 23 developers and vendors, many of whom were offering a number of great specials and show deals. Door prizes consisting of either software packages or free online time for Compuserve were given away every hour, and a grand prize at the end of each day was an Atari Jaguar entertainment system, all donated by Atari Corp. In addition, a major Jaguar competition consisting of five stations running such popular games as Tempest 2000, Cybermorph, Crescent Galaxy and Raiden, along with the latest (and very cool-looking) additions to the Jaguar game roster Brutal Sports Football and Wolfenstein 3D ran every hour over the course of both days. Each event winner received a prize and when the dust finally cleared on Sunday the one left standing got to walk away with a complete Jaguar system, also donated by Atari Corp. //// SHOW HIGHLIGHTS [] WIZZTRONICS picked up steam after getting a late start, hoping to have finished Falcon Racks to sell at the show. Unfortunately the spray shop was unable to meet the show deadline, though Steve Cohen was able to get a finished face plate complete with black anodizing and silk screened lettering for display. The final revised panel has slots for ventilation and an additional 5 1/4" opening for mounting either a Syquest or CD-ROM drive. The rack includes a 230 watt power supply, capacity for two internal hard drives, along with two external rear SCSI ports and an internal DEKA 2 keyboard interface for using any XT/AT compatible PC keyboard. Steve Cohen was swamped with orders for the rack case at the show. Wizztronics has already shipped 25 units and will begin shipping their second batch this week, 15 of which were show orders. Also for sale was the external version of their DEKA 2 unit, handsomely packaged in a light grey sand-textured plastic case. Wizztronics handed out their eye-catching flyer announcing the nearly-completed Barracuda 040 Accelerator Board, whose ultimate release continues to be held up in awaiting Atari's response to the final leg of a seemingly interminable round of contract negotiations. Steve was also besieged with showgoers ready to plunk deposits down sight-unseen on the piece - a remarkable showing of the level of trust Steve has managed to garner from the Atari community as a result of his unrelenting instance on customer satisfaction. It's this same continued commitment which prohibited him from taking any deposits until the piece is a reality and ready to ship - but that didn't stop him from taking names and phone numbers. Though it seems like everyone here in both the US and Europe are growing increasingly anxious to get their hands on the Barracuda, no one is showing more strain than Steve himself, who has been meeting each new setback and developmental frustration with a tenacious showing of perseverance and "can do" attitude. Make no mistake about it, the Barracuda will not only make it to market, but certainly blow everyone away with its outstanding quality construction, blistering performance and open-ended design for plug 'n play future expansion! Wizztronics P.O. Box 122 Port Jefferson, NY 11776 (516) 473-2507 [] GRIBNIF SOFTWARE was showing off their long-awaited release of NEO-DESK 4 - and all I can say is WOW! The number of new and improved features is truly impressive, including expanded powerful file search capabilities, menus for each individual open window, grouping of folders, files and programs from any number of hard drive partitions, all of which can be launched with one key command when running under a multi-tasking system such as GENEVA or Multi-TOS. Though all the improvements would take a couple of pages to list, the one that stuck in my mind as being the most impressive was it's ability to perform multitasking-like file-related functions, such as Copy or Move, in the background - REGARDLESS of whether Neo-Desk is running within a multitasking environment or not!!! No matter what ST model you've got, you owe it to yourself to check out Neo-Desk 4! I was really hoping to see a pre-release demo of ARABESQUE 2, but no such luck. Rick Flashman did assure me that they have a contract in place for US distribution when it's ready - possibly by as a soon as the first quarter of '95. Gribnif Software P.O. Box 779 Northampton, MA 01061 (413) 247-5620 / 247-5622 Fax [] OREGON RESEARCH showed off PAPYRUS, their feature-packed word processor/document formatter, and TRUE IMAGE, a very easy to use and powerful image editing program. Demonstrations for these programs drew a healthy crowd and attendees were duly impressed by the abilities of both programs. I also finally had a chance to check out the new features of HARLEQUIN 3, their multi-featured desk accessory which does just about everything but walk the dog. Now fully Falcon-compatible, I was awed enough to run all the way back home to NYC for my Harlequin 2 disk so as to qualify for the upgrade! Oregon Research Associates 16200 SW Pacific Hwy Suite #162 Tigard, OR 97224 (503) 620-4919 / 624-2940 Fax [] LEXICOR SOFTWARE captured a considerable portion of my time on Sunday. Phase 4 maven Yat Sun started off with by putting a totally re-worked PRISM PAINT II through it's paces - wow! In my opinion the new floating icon-based multi-layered interface (somewhat reminiscent of Arabesque) really makes accessing the program's host of features much easier. Then he showed me XENOMORPH 2, which boasts a slew of new and improved features, including over 120 new texture maps and a user-creatable texture map feature. Next came RAYTRACER, an amazingly fast! and easy-to-use raytracing program which requires no math! He rendered a sphere with all of the program's options selected and configured in under four minutes! Yat began to look like a magician pulling one rabbit out of his hat after another. MORPH was introduced as the only program (pay attention StrataVision and 3-D Studio Mac users) which is capable of morphing 3-D texture-mapped objects in an animation. I saw a demo which squeezed the mouth of a horizontally-floating pitcher, as if it were a blow-fish which used an invisible jet of air to propel itself by expanding and contracting its abdomen. Wow! Then I watched Lexicor's GENESIS generate topographically rendered planets right before my eyes. The included accompanying TERRAIN program also did some pretty impressive imaginary landscapes. Phase 4's SYSTEMS UTILITIES disk includes KINETICS, which plays .DLT and .FLM animations, as well as their OVERLAY.ACC, which allows one .FLM to be overlaid on another for generating some interesting possible effects. Rounding out the list were two other programs. CYBER COLOR, allows any CYBER SCULPTURE object to color individual surfaces, offering full 360 rotation of the object and application of a full palette of colors. In addition you can also add an unlimited number of new surfaces without having to import your object back into CYBER SCULPT. CYBER COLOR can also run as an accessory. ANM LINK provides the vital link for transferring your animations from CHRONOS over to XENOMORPH 2 for texture mapping. I was very impressed with how these programs were able to work together, albeit as separate applications. This "unified" separateness made me wish Lexicor had taken an integrated environment approach, giving users the opportunity to access any and all of these programs as "modules" - an idea I think would make the overall system more attractive to both first-time as well as experienced users - much like CALAMUS SL and CUBASE - and one which I strongly feel warrants serious consideration. That said, these programs now seem to bridge a number of gaps which I felt were impeding the ideal of being able to bring a 3-D object from beginning inception through animation and texture mapping and on to to the final process of creating a truly impressive- looking finished product. Speaking of truly impressive (is that beginning to sound like a looped sound-bite? Observant, aren't you!) after all of this I took a short breather before descending into DAs PICTURE. All I can say is if you've been looking for Adobe PhotoShop to be released on the Atari - it's here! Though HiSoft's True Image is well-suited for the beginner and intermediately experienced user, and offers a number of powerful features, DAs PICTURE can take you way beyond into the finer points of both photo retouching and image manipulation. Lexicor will be distributing all of DAs products, including DAs VECTOR, VECTOR PRO and LAYOUT. Lastly I got a chance to see BLOWUP 030, a screen resolution enhancer similar to SCREENBLASTER, but which offers a more sophisticated configuration utility program and hence a somewhat more flexible range of resolutions. I was impressed (There's that word again...Hey, my dog ate my Thesaurus, ok?) so much so that I bought one right there and then... well, I'll let your imagination take it from there. Lexicor Software 58 Redwood Road Fairfax, CA 94930 (415) 453-0271 [] IT'S ALL RELATIVE were demoing PHOTO SHOW PRO 2.2, their great- looking photo CD display program which allows you to easily assemble multimedia presentations combining stills, graphics, titling (using G-DOS/Speedo fonts or the 24-bit .BMP format images created in true-color for MS Windows) along with any ,AVR sound file. There's a selection of twenty different special fades, dissolves, wipes and transitions which can add special effects, including image overlays, and it supports VGA, RGB and standard TVs. It also features a special Corel mode for producing shows using the Corel series of photo CD images, and the disk includes a driver for Multi-TOS, along with drivers for a large number of CD manufacturers. You can easily write scripts for creating specific effects and pics to coincide with sound and graphics display, and either directly access any Kodak Photo CD, which use the Kodak PCD format, or assemble them straight from your hard drive using the FTC 16-bit true color format. All I can say about the finished demos they had running were... wow! They also have the CD AUDIO PLAYER which turns your CD ROM player into a CD music disc player, complete with a control panel which has all the familiar features found on most CD players and it will let you assign song names to each track, which you can save, assemble into a multi-disc data base and recall later to create your own custom sequence lists! ART FOR KIDS is their appealing and easy to use drawing application which takes full advantage of the TT/Falcon models, combining a lot of whacky paint effects with crazy sounds and animation, hidden pictures that suddenly appear and a host of special stamps. ExtenDOS 1.21 makes plugging in any CD ROM player into any Atari ST/STe (using The Link from ICD) /TT/Falcon a breeze and easy to use. If you're thinking about getting a CD ROM unit, you NEED this extension! Avoid the horror stories of using Multi-TOS and getting weird garbage and corrupted files on your hard disk. ExtenDOS makes CD ROMs a plug'n play experience. It's All Relative also has a generous selection of inexpensive CD ROMs, both Atari-specific and generic, including the hard-to-get German PD/Shareware Volumes I & II, which contain a ton of easy-to-use programs never seen anywhere else! They have a number of great photo CDs, as well as clip art and Windows programs. It's All Relative 2233 Keeven Lane Florissant, MO (314) 831-9482 [] ICD INC. had the pre-release demo of their awesome CATBOX, the ultimate JAGUAR accessory which allows for RGB output to a monitor, S-Video output, composite and ComLynx for multi-networked capability. In addition you have RCA stereo outs. The CATBOX PLUS adds two headphones jacks with volume controls and an RS422 serial network port for future networking features. ICD 1220 Rock Street Rockford, IL 61101 (815) 968-2228 [] STEINBERG-JONES rep Greg Undo was showing CUBASE AUDIO FALCON 2.0 with 16 tracks of digital audio, along with their STUDIO MODULE, FDI SDIF optical digital in/out interface and SA-8 eight-channel output. Steinberg / Jones 17700 Raymer Street Suite 1001 Northbridge, CA 91325 (818) 993-4161 or 993-4091 [] MAJICSOFT was showing M.A.G.E., their programming enhancement tool for GFA BASIC which adds over 200 commands, along with a cool game called NERTZ - solitaire with an attitude! Majicsoft 741 Bultman Drive Colony Sq. Sumter, SC 29150 (800) 845-3070 [] FOUCH SOFTWARE were showing off the latest version of their MAILING MANAGER 2 which makes it easy to perform mail merges with a number of Atari word processors and text editors. Fouch Software 1823 West 8th Street Erie, PA 16505 (814) 455-1294 [] A & D SOFTWARE, home of the indispensable Universal Item Selector, has managed to pick up a number of titles from various developers. They now carry Digital Horizons' excellent series of MIDI educational music products. Now called MIDI MUSIC LESSONS, they include NOTE WIZARD, CHORD WIZARD, RHYTHM TIME and SCALE MASTER, and can be bought as a complete package for only $69 - originally the average price for each program by itself! They've also picked up Phil Comeau/Wintertree's GRAM SLAM, GRAMMAR EXPERT, and SPELLING SENTRY. The WINTERTREE THESAURUS program, which was schedule to debut at the show, was unfortunately held up for some final bug-fixes, and will be released by September. Also shown was MEGA CHECK 2, the check printing/accounting/report program which has many new features added. A & D Software 280 Peach Street Merlin, OR 97532 (800) 800-2563 Orders / (503) 476-0071 Voice [] BINARY SOUNDS, the new distributor of the SMPTE/EDIT TRACK series, was there showing these and the rest of the former Hybrid Arts/ Barefoot Software line of Atari MIDI music products. They plan to continue support and development, and are currently working on a new notation program for use with SMPTE/EDIT TRACK. Binary Sounds 431 Oakdale Stafford, TX 77477 (713) 776-9118 [] BEST ELECTRONICS' Brad Koda brought his usual two huge suitcases, the contents of which he spread out amongst four tables, filled with but a small sampling of his huge inventory of Atari products. Brad did a brisk business, but I really would have loved to have seen the reaction of airport security as he put them through the x-ray machines and then had to explain all the stuff he had in those two bags. Best Electronics 2021 The Alameda, Suite 290 San Jose, CA 95126 (408) 243-6950 //// SHOW A GREAT SUCCESS! Show attendance numbered a little more than 400 over the two days, down slightly from last year, but almost everyone there was a serious buyer, and the dealers I spoke to - TOAD, COMPUTER ZONE, MICRO COMPUTER DEPOT, SOFTWARE SPECTRUM and EAST HARTFORD COMPUTER REPAIR all said it was financially even better than last year and well worth the trip. Co-Master of ceremonies Brian & Angela Gockley did a fabulous job and worked hard to make sure that every exhibitor's requests and stomachs were well attended to. Rounding out the roster of leading people who made it all look easy were ACT's Doug Finch and Berne Paist. Can't wait for Connecticut '95 - be there! -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- = = - - -=-=-=- [ MUSIC NEWS ] -=-=-=- - - = = -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= //// EMAGIC UPDATE ON LOGIC / LOGIC AUDIO FALCON =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Officially released in Europe in July, Logic Audio Falcon is now available here in the U.S. However due to a number of market and hardware problems which directly relate to running Logic Audio on the Falcon, Emagic has had to rethink its position on the future of the Falcon version Audio Logic. So as not to panic users, lets start out by stating unequivocally that Emagic's Logic sequencer /notation program for the Atari will continue to receive both tech support and development for years to come. Though the response for Logic Audio on the Mac platform has been quite strong, the Falcon version has initially had far less of a response than was originally expected. Emagic maintains that the program itself is rock- solid, and works fine on Falcons that have had the timing fix. More on this later. //// Great Deals All Around Emagic is offering a number of special upgrade offers for both owners of C-Lab Notator /Creator /Alpha products and current Logic owners. For those C-Lab product owners who have been thinking about upgrading to Logic, Emagic is offering a special incentive price of $200. You get to keep your old sequencer software AND upgrade to the full version of Logic 2.0! This is the complete package, which includes Emagic's LOG3 MIDI interface, offering 3 additional MIDI ports, a built-in key which allows you to run both Logic AND Notator SL 3.2 and its own built-in cartridge extension port to plug in your Export or other C-Lab modules. Emagic will also provide Notator SL 3.2 free of charge to any user upgrading to Logic who requests it! In addition, any upgrade from those former C-Lab products to any version of Logic also includes a video tutorial on using Logic - a regular $39.95 value - free! C-Lab product owners of the above mentioned 3 programs also have the option of upgrading to the Windows or Mac versions of Logic for $150. Logic Atari owners can do the same for $100, and either Atari product owner also has the option of upgrading directly to the Mac version of Logic Audio for only $299! //// Logic Audio Falcon Deal Of A Lifetime! Now here's the real kicker! Present owners of the Atari version of Logic can upgrade to Logic Audio Falcon 2.0 FREE!!!. You heard me right - Logic owners who are lucky enough to own a Falcon can have all the MIDI-generated power offered by Logic AND 8 tracks of digital audio, as well as a number of DSP-related digital audio features, FREE OF CHARGE!! If you want the manual for the program, it's $30 - certainly reasonable. This also means that any C-Lab product owners who update to Atari Logic will also be eligible for this free upgrade to Logic Audio Falcon. What gives? Well, the down side is that, as of now, Emagic will not be offering tech support to Logic Audio Falcon owners and, also as of now, is making no promises as to future development of Logic Audio Falcon. As mentioned earlier, this in no way affects the Atari version of Logic, which will continue to receive both tech support and future development. The timing problem, which a number of U.S. Falcons have, requires a hardware fix in order to run Logic Audio (as well as Cubase Audio). This, in addition to Atari's uncertainty over continued computer development has made it financially and economically impossible for Emagic to continue development and support for Logic Audio Falcon. Though Atari owners reap immediate benefits from these developments, we feel it's really a shame. Such an excellent and promising product as this should really not be ending as soon as it barely begins. Apart from excellent notation and MIDI tools, the program offers a number of unique DSP processing features: simultaneous digital audio pitch shifting and time expansion/compression in one pass; audio-to-MIDI groove templates, which allow you to capture any audio track and save it as a groove template. Of course, Emagic will be watching closely to see whether enough response - translated as a large-enough user base - will warrant a reconsidering of their present decision. As is often the case with most software, it's fate is really in the hands of its users. Emagic can be reached at (916) 477-1051 /Fax 477-1052 /24-hour product information 477-1053 =-=-=-=-=-=-= //// TRAKCOM =-=-=-=-=-=-= Trakcom is a mono sample sequencing program for the Falcon030. Although it does not support direct recording (but supports loading and saving Musicom and FalconD2D formats, as well as common .AVR and .WAV formats) it does offer some powerful sample editing features. Trakcom allows you to set the start, end and loop points for a sample, make it louder or softer, fade in and out, reverse it, or change the tuning. The program supports up to 10 tracks of digital audio, the maximum number being sample dependent. A maximum of 6 tracks will allow you to maintain a CD semblance of quality, while increasing the number to the maximum of 10 will decrease the rate to around 25Khz. Although lacking the cross-fade capabilities of Sound Tools, it does have a number of features in common. Samples can be assembled into a play list which is laid out as a series of columns. Each column represents a track, and along the left side is the common display of time which governs all tracks. If you simply want to play a set of samples in sequence, you only need work within one column (track). However, if you'd like to mix samples together during playback, Trakcom offers a fairly easy to use interface, though not exactly musical in the way you set things up. Patterns are determined by the number of steps, called "lines" and subdivided into "shifts", while tempo is measured in lines per second. You can cut, copy and paste samples and patterns, and mute tracks, and change sample rates on the fly. Trakcom will be available in September from Compo (415) 355-0862, and is expected to retail for somewhere around $70. -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- = = - - -=-=-=- [ HARDWARE NEWS ] -=-=-=- - - = = -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- //// Digital Audio Answering Systems I would doubt that anyone who has owned a phone answering machine has not wanted to heave it out the window at some point during the tenure of it's functioning life. Maybe it never responded to your outside commands to retrieve messages, or it kept swallowing important messages that you would only find out about two weeks later, or it simply enjoyed eating cassettes for dinner. Sure, there are those sophisticated digital phone answering machines out there now, but they're not cheap, the amount of allotted recording time they offer is pretty short, and manufacturers still don't seem to see the value of including an Audio In jack on any of the models presently out there to facilitate transfer of an OGM production message from your multi-track or stereo cassette tape player or your Atari Falcon 030 computer. Well, within the next six months not 1, not 2, not even 3, but 4 - count 'em - 4 systems systems will be out, from such prestigious companies as HiSoft, Compo and BlowUp. Let's, as my old walk-up tenement residence's superintendent use to say, "gib ah louk" at what each system has to offer. =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= //// T'PHONE / VOICEMAIL =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Compo's T'Phone + VoiceMail system consists of a hardware box which contains two standard phone plugs - one for plugging into the wall, the other for attaching your phone, although if you have extension jacks elsewhere in the room, you don't need to plug a phone directly into the box - a three-foot cord which gets plugged into your Falcon's modem port, two wired mini jack cables which plug into the Falcon's mic and speaker ports and a set of mic/speaker thru ports which allow you continued access to those ports for other uses. If you're in front of your computer all day, you can plug a headset phone into these jacks - cool! If you use a modem, you'll also want to get an A/B box to avoid plugging and unplugging your modem all the time. The software includes the T_Phone accessory ,which offers you access to your computer's phone set-up - pulse or tone, mute, a button for playing a sound file - eminently suited for playing pre-recorded music - as well as a host of sampled phone rings. The T_Phone program holds a number of pre-recorded messages that lets you know the hard drive is full, that the outgoing recording has been disabled, acknowledgment of receiving a remote code before retrieving your messages, before incoming messages are replayed and when there are no messages. You can enable the familiar toll-saver feature, as well as determine the number of rings before the machine picks up to indicate that you have one or more messages. In addition, you can set an independent sample rate and volume for playing your outgoing message and recording your incoming messages, determine how many seconds of recording time for an incoming message as well as the number of seconds of silence to be detected before the program automatically disengages the line. You can also configure your own remote access code (up to six-digits) and if installed in your Auto folder T_Phone.PRG will automatically reload it's saved configuration and start up in answer mode when power resumes as the result of a power outage! The VoiceMail feature will be an additional add-on option which will allow you to set up a number of mailboxes and voice menus to allow callers to navigate through a set of menu options, as well as assign specific call-in codes to allow access to or restrict any number of mail-boxes. The system is very open-ended, powerful and extremely flexible, allowing for number of business applications as well as home use. The T_Phone is slated to be available here by the end of the year, retailing for somewhere around $250, while the complete system for will be somewhere in the neighborhood of $450. =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= //// TRUE ANSWER ??? =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Though HiSoft hasn't decided on a final title, one would think TrueVoice to be the perfect choice - that is if it wasn't for the fact that AT&T already has dibbs on it, having claimed it for their own digital voice system. Whatever it's called, the Hisoft product looks to be a very promising and powerful system for home and the small business owner. Not quite as developed as T_Phone, preliminary reports indicate that it will offer multiple mail boxes. a phone book, and such features as reset or saving individual messages for later monitoring. Although no hardware interface has yet been revealed, one would suspect that it would contain similar features to Compo's design. Price is rumored to be less than Compo's, due to it's simpler-featured home-owner /home business orientation. =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= //// TasS DIGITAL ANSWERING SYSTEM =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= BlowUp is due to release TasS, a hardware /software package which offers some unique features as a digital answering machine. The hardware end of it will consist of an interface box which will interface with the Falcon's audio input/output ports, and will also contain a standard phone jack plug. The wild thing about the system is that users will not have to keep their Falcon on in order to receive calls! When a call comes in, TasS will automatically turn the Falcon on. Although exactly how this will be done has not been revealed, one assumes that a switched outlet in the back of BlowUp's unit will facilitate this, much like the ones which allow a TV to be turned on at the same time as a cable box. The Falcon then assumes the role of appearing to be like any regular answering machine, and will shut down when finished. Configuration software bundled with the unit will also allow the computer, when running under a multi-tasking system, to record incoming calls while it's busy doing other tasks. Voice mail, with multiple boxes will also be possible, and TasS will support both modem and fax transmissions as well - something the other systems might well be wise to consider. The system is rumored to cost under $200 US! =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= //// DIGITAL STOREFRONT =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= A company called Pleiades Research has announced the release of their Digital Storefront voice mail for the Falcon 030. The hardware has phone, speaker and -yes! - microphone jacks! The unit boasts "unsurpassed telephone line voice quality" and offers "unlimited" mail boxes and multi levels, each of which can be custom configured with a variety of features. Other features include adjustable incoming and outgoing message lengths, password protection and message time-stamping as well as forwarding. Remote features enable message retrieval and remote outgoing message changing. While you're working on your system, you get on-line status of incoming calls as well as the ability to screen calls, and calls can be recorded while using a multi-tasking operating system as a background operation if you're in another application. You can access a window to review and playback your messages, and apply system sounds, such a phone ringing, to various operations. This system is supposedly shipping now, and has a retail price of $295. (713) 488-2134 / 488-0427 Fax. =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= //// PSI DIGITAL INTERFACE =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Germany's BlowUp, well-know for their BlowUp 030 resolution extension product for the Falcon, has a pulled a neat little trick from out of their sleeve with the release of their PSI unit. A pocket S/PDIF interface which plugs into the DSP port of the Falcon, the small unit provides a direct digital interface for connecting either a DAT or a CD player containing a digital out AND it can be used with Cubase Audio! price is somewhere around $325 US. =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= //// PAK 68 /33Mhz Accelerator For ST/STe =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= The German Atari community has always been somewhat of a world unto itself, producing many unique and amazing products that do all kinds of sophisticated things on Atari computers. What becomes available to the greater world at large for purchase really comprises about a third of the German market's Atari hardware /software product line. If you ever have the chance to attend a German Atari computer show, you'll know what I mean. One of the hardware items which has sold in Germany for quite awhile is the PAK 68/3, a 68030 running at 33 Mhz with an additional 32Kb external RAM cache on-board. though not quite available here in the states, the fact that it will soon be for sale in Great Britain brings it one step closer across the Great Pond, as it were. The size of the board requires a 1040ST/Ste or Mega STe owner to re-install their computer in some form of external case, but a Mega ST case can accommodate the board with certain limitations. Some minor alterations may need to be done to the housing, and if you're using the Mega's bus slot, you need to confirm that the installed card isn't taking up valuable space. //// System Requirements Although you need at least TOS 2.06 to use the PAK 68/3, TOS 3.06 is the far better choice, and there is a specially-patched version of 3.06 which will be available which will allow the PAK's 68030 to take advantage of the 68030's full 32 bit-wide bus and PMMU (Paged Memory Management Unit) support. This also facilitates multi-tasking mode memory protection and support for additional virtual memory via clever use of your hard drive's free disk space. There's even room on the board to allow for a 68882 math co-processor, and for those users who run critical programs that require 1.02/.04, the board's design provides for the option of installing switchable TOS versions to drop it back down to the old familiar 8Mhz speed. And now that I've mentioned speed, with a PAK board installed your ST/STe's increased speed will definitely put a heapin' "hurtz" on any regular TT or Falcon, leaving them standing by the proverbial processor highway with their "bits" still in their mouths. //// Bench Marks Although specific processor calls and functions will vary percentages, RAM and ROM access are increased by over 500% when compared to either machine, while VDI Text will only show a modest increase of 2% over a Falcon and 19% over a TT. Some calls, like VDI Scrolling are slower than either machine, but the overall CPU differential is somewhere around 250% faster than a Falcon and a little over 125% faster than a TT. The board is being supported by Systems Solutions (081-693 3355), who is offering three kits: the basic PAK 68 /3 with TOS 2.06 is around $525 US, while the special TOS 3.06 EPROMS will add another $90 or so. The full package, with the addition of the 688882 math co-processor kicks the final price up to around $750, NOT including the new case assembly that would be necessary for 1040ST/STe and Mega STe (and possibly Mega ST) users. No matter how you cut it, racing your machine can be an expensive proposition, but then, if you've ever ran a program with and without Warp 9 or NVDI, you know what the speed bug can do to you once you've been bit. To par-a-phrase - speed thrills! Ya payse ya money, ya takes ya jalopy out for some amazing dances! -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- = = - - -=-=-=- [ VIDEO NEWS ] -=-=-=- - - = = -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- =-=-=-=-=-=-= //// Expose =-=-=-=-=-=-= Titan Designs has announced the imminent release of Expose, their true-color video digitizer for the Falcon which will offer the ability to make high-resolution real-time video captures. The board plugs into the Falcon's internal expansion slot, while the RGB input connection requires a slight cut in the Falcon's casing near the cartridge port. Though Titan plans to bundle editing software with their board, they've tested the product with a special version of Black Scorpion's Chroma Studio 24, which the board will also fully support. 256x160 seems to be the best resolution for doing high frame-rate frame grabs, but 512x512 interlaced grabs can also be done, which the board converts to 512x380 on the fly for aspect ratio-corrected screen display. On a VGA display at 300x200 pixels, Chroma 24's "forced-fit" feature dithers the 512x380 grab, which, though they slow the process down somewhat, yield a picture with considerably more detail than the otherwise non-interlaced picture. The board also offers a PIP (Picture-in-Picture) display,which can be handy for lining up a live camcorder or simply adjusting the incoming feed until it's optimized to your requirements. Effects include multiple exposures, a morphing studio set of tools, a variety of masks and brush effects, image mapping to a rotating geometric surface, as well as handling 24-bit color single frame grabs and image enhancing up to 1024x768. One of the main application is certainly animation, and Expose' will be able to facilitate that at a number of different rates. Seconds here refer to the number of frames: 512x380 rez @ 7 per second; 512x256 @ 10 per second; 256x160 @ 17 per second; 128x80 @ 25 per second. All grabs are in real-time, and animations can be saved in industry-standard FLI format. Of course, all of this is going to require a large hard drive and the full 16 yards of memory. With Titan's Graffiti Genlock and Improv Pro titling software, you'll have a full-video production studio running from your Falcon that will really be able to go to town with some impressive results! -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- = = - - -=-=-=- [ GRAPHICS NEWS ] -=-=-=- - - = = -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- =-=-=-=-=-=-=-= //// PIXART 2 =-=-=-=-=-=-=-= An impressive paint program which boasts providing access, as well as displaying, up to a whopping 16.7 million colors, offers a number of powerful paint/drawing features. Using superior dithering routines, the program can convert images from color to monochrome, as well as convert from 24 to either 16 or 8-bit color. Maximum possible resolution is an awesome 32,000x32,000 pixels (in true color mode, of course!) and can easily handle Kodak CD format files. A flexible 1-pixel increment zoom feature allows for extremely detailed editing. It even comes in its own paint-can packaging! Available, for now, exclusively in Britain... but not for long! =-=-=-=-=-= //// Quill =-=-=-=-=-= Billed as a free-hand drawing program, Quill is specially designed to take particular advantage of the Tabby graphics tablet. It's singularity stems from the fact that it offers users a number of different pen "nibs" to simulate realistic results that, when used with the Tabby, offer far greater control over your work than with any other program which is designed around using a mouse. The software runs as either a program or an accessory in either ST high or medium rez, as well as on all Falcon resolutions except for true-color. You don't HAVE to have a Tabby to use the program, but you really can't get a real sense of the degree of sensitivity and control which the program offers with a mouse. You can alter the nib shape, size, structure and amount of "ink flow" while such features as Rotate and Squash Nib allow you to move your controller until you achieve the exact effect of shape and angle that you're looking for. Once a line, or series of lines have been executed, you can edit any or all of them, one stroke at a time if you so desire. A smoothing feature is also available for applying to a momentarily unsteady hand. One of the more interesting applications for the program, in conjunction with the Tabby graphics tablet, is the ability to trace original art right on the screen and edit it from there! Realistic-looking signatures can also be accomplished and then saved for import into word processing and desktop publishing programs. Strangely, though the vector features allow for a lot of control in composing and editing your work, Quill presently only saves in an .IMG bit-mapped format, though the program does allow for exact scaling in it's native vector mode beforehand, and the next update will add the ability to save in, as well as import a .CVG format. Geared primarily for artist, especially those who may have a difficult time resolving the transition from pen and paper to the virtual work surface of a computer screen, Quill shows to have great potential as THE drawing program for fine illustration work. Well, that's it for this edition. Next issue we'll have more of the latest in all your favorite subjects. Until next time, this is Pete Donoso & Fadi Hayek reminding you that... -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- = = - - [ "Today is the Tomorrow you dreamed about Yesterday." ] - - = = -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- --==--==--==--==--==--==--==--==--==--==--==-- == == -- C R E D I T S -- == == --==--==--==--==--==--==--==--==--==--==--==-- ATARI ARTIST endeavors to bring you the latest news on what's happening in areas that involve the ARTS. Music & MIDI, video, and a host of graphic categories covering drawing, painting, animation, graphics, raytracing & texture mapping as well as related graphic-editing & rendering programs, all of which are either new arrivals or soon to be released both here and in Europe. We keep a somewhat loose publishing schedule, which roughly translates to around once a month. ATARI ARTIST's staff consists of myself, Peter Donoso, and my partner, Fadi Hayek. We both live and work in New York city. If you have any questions or suggestions concerning anything related to the contents or subjects mentioned here in ATARI ARTIST, you can leave E-Mail for either Fadi or myself on GEnie at EXPLORER.2, and we'll get back to you just as soon as we can. --==--==--==--==-- --------------------------------------------------------------------------- -- --==--==-- CompuServe Sign-Up Information --==--==-- -- -- -- -- To sign up for CompuServe service, call (voice call) (800) 848-8199. -- -- Ask for operator #198. You will be sent a $15.00 value CIS membership -- -- kit for free. -- -- -- -- --==--==-- CompuServe Sign-Up Information --==--==-- -- --------------------------------------------------------------------------- --==--==--==--==-- ||| Andreas' Den ||| By: Andreas Barbiero / | \ Delphi: ABARBIERO GEnie: AEO.2 ---------------------------------------------------------------- //// The future of publishing, best of software, and a call for standardization. Its a sad thing, but the increase of online Atarians has left the print magazines in a bad position. I am not going to say they are obsolete, or not worth subscribing to, because they do serve a purpose and are worth the money. Atari Explorer Online never meant to replace them, and with the current state of technology, cannot replace them. Having a print magazine to take with you is invaluable, and much easier to read on the go. Nevertheless, the inherent costs, time and effort that it takes to get a print magazine on the shelves is getting harder and harder. The natural cost effectiveness of an online magazine is beginning to make the difference. There is little turn around time for an online magazine which makes the information more "timely," and it costs almost nothing more to produce 100,000 copies than it does to produce the first. It is not free for us to make that first copy, as our phone bills can prove. If there is anything you would like to see, don't hesitate to mail us. Atari Explorer Online itself grew out of Atari Explorer magazine which unfortunately felt the cuts at Atari early on. The survival of Atari is, and was, reliant upon making the needed cuts. Atari Explorer Online is in the process of trying to go more "commercial." We are not trying to charge the readers of AEO, but are thinking of getting an improved interface going and selling advertising space. In a shrinking marketplace I do not think that anyone would object to a few ads advertizing things that you would want to buy. But then again, as a responsible magazine, we will only give you, our readers, what you want, What are your thoughts? The computer market is so bad right now that Commodore could not survive on its own, and reading a Macintosh magazine feel strangly like the Atari magazines in 1989. There is a feeling of desperation there, developers are leaving for the Windows platforms and new software is coming in more slowly than ever. In an environment where Apple is feeling like it is left out, where would that leave Atari? Sitting right behind Commodore in liquidation, that's where. The Falcon030 and anticipated future machines were left in the lurch when it was realized that the Jaguar was going to be the only chance at big-time profitability in the near future. Fortunately, Atari has some strong points left in the computer corner. The first is a good OS that is not as demanding upon system requirements as operating systems on other platforms. There are a few things that need to be updated, and I have been seeking inputs from people on Delphi and the Usenet as to what they would like to see in a new incarnation of TOS. If there is anything else that YOU would like to see in TOS, leave me EMAIL and I will be compiling a list of features and forwarding it on to the TOS group. With every game that is released, and every Jaguar that is sold, the resources at Atari will be freed up for computer ends. Atari Works has been in Beta 2.0 for quite some time and hopefully Pradip will be done with his Jaguar assignments and move back to Atari Works. As it stands, Atari Works is a good program, and with the addition of SpeedoGDOS v5 from Compo and Atari, the additional font types are a great boon to Atarists. All we need to make it perfect is direct importation of other computer file formats. So far, with Rich Text Format, (RTF) you can create a file in AtariWorks, export it in RTF and import it into a word processor on a PC and maintain ALL the characteristics of the original file. There is something else I have been meaning to talk about for some time now, and it is the Usenet. On Delphi, from within the Atari Advantage area, you can directly and easily read just about EVERY newsgroup out there. Not only are there the Atari related areas, but there are groups on just about every topic imaginable. I and my wife not only read comp.sys.atari.st, and the related groups, but rec.pet.birds, rec.pet.cats, alt.tv.red-dwarf, alt.politics. usa.republican and alt.food.fat-free! We read a few more irregularly, and always end up finding something that we wish we had the time to add to our list. OK, this is not hard... trust me! From the Delphi interface all you need to do is go into the Atari Advantage area, type USE, to get into the Usenet, and then you have a list of options. The Atari areas are available quickly by pressing a number associated with the group you want to read, and there you are! With a list of message threads to read from you can scroll throught the messages and reply to them without needing to type in any long addresses or anything other cryptic information. If you want to access a newsgroup that is not included in the default menu, you can select a private list of favorites. Type in the group you want to access, and after reading a few messages you find you like it, with the SAVE command you can add it to your private 'favorite' group. This feature alone is worth the $1 an hour the 20/20 plan asks. Soon to arrive is direct, easy FTP (File Transfer) and other Internet functions! //// Things you might have missed! In addition to everything new coming for the Jaguar, there is a hell of a lot of software available for the ST that may have passed you by in the past years. One of the biggest maker of graphic adventure games has been Sierra On-line. The line of products for the Atari was never as large as that for the PC, but some of the most memorable adventure games were produced by this software house and even though they are in a closeout status, large quantities are available and fit the personality that prefers to have a bit of intellect thrown in to their gaming. I have played the Kings Quest series, and found them to be quite good, and even compared with newer games the graphics as well as the puzzles hold up really well. One game that I have recently been sent by STeve's software, and consequently a recent "Golden Oldie Pick" is a game that I let slip by when it was new, Sierra's Codename:ICEMAN. This is a secret agent- oriented game with the same classic puzzle elements as the Kings Quest series with a bit of real-time action in a high tech submarine thrown in. The game runs on my TT030, and is disk-based. Being floppy only is the only holdback for this game as even after being exposed to the Jaguar and having been playing DOOM! for a few weeks, I still found myself drawn back to ICEMAN. I reccomend it for those turned off by arcade games and if you even liked the text only adventure games, this one has all the same intellectual quality with the added bonus of animated graphics and music. Next issue should see a review of the new version of Cyberdrome, the hoverjet simulator. If you ever wondered about how to piece together that perfect Falcon030 system, I wil go over some dream power-systems for you.... power with all the trimmings. --==--==--==--==-- ||| The Art Of Binary <--> ASCII Conversion ||| By: Michel Forget / | \ Internet: mforget@elfhaven.ersys.edmonton.ab.ca ----------------------------------------------------------------- //// Editor: Michel Forget is the author of ESS-Code, a //// shareware binary <-> ASCII conversion program //// for the TOS series of Atari computers. He wrote //// this article to explain the basics behind this //// method of file transfer for those who have never //// used binary <-> ASCII transfers. Computer networks can only transmit ASCII information. This is the One Law that we must all live with when dealing with computer networks such as the Internet, UseNet, or BitNet. This means that no binary information (pictures, sound, databases, applications, or archives) can be transmitted through a network. I can hear the screams arising; "False! Liar! It cannot be so!" You are absolutely correct, of course. The One Law is annoying, but easily circumvented. The secret lies in converting the binary information into ASCII information before allowing the network to process it, then converting the ASCII information back to binary information when it is received. The four most common methods of performing this conversion will be discussed in this article. UUEncode/UUDecode ----------------- SYNOPSIS -- Speed: Very Fast Expansion: Poor (25%-30%) Segmentation: Yes Reconstruction: Automatic This method of conversion is one of the first to gain popularity, and is thus one of the most widely accepted/used conversion methods to date. It is supported on every computer platform, and provides reasonably good error checking. It is very fast, but not very efficient. The main advantages of using this conversion method are the speed, the ability to break up the output generated into small segments, and the ability to automatically reconstruct the segmented output. The main (perhaps only) disadvantage of using this conversion method is that it generates output that is 25% (or more) larger than the original binary information. BTOA-Encode/BTOA-Decode ----------------------- SYNOPSIS -- Speed: Slow Expansion: Good (20%-25%) Segmentation: No Reconstruction: Manual While this method of conversion is popular, it is not as widely used/accepted as UUEncode/UUDecode. It is vastly slower than UUEncode/ UUDecode, but it generates more compact output. The main advantage of using this conversion method is that it provides slightly better error checking that UUEncode/UUDecode. There are numerous disadvantages, though, such as the lack of automatic segmentation or reconstruction. SHIP-Encode/SHIP-Decode ----------------------- SYNOPSIS -- Speed: Average Expansion: Good (20%-25%) Segmentation: Yes Reconstruction: Semi-Automatic While this conversion method is not as widely accepted/used as any of the other conversion methods, it is used extensively on HP-UNIX platforms. It is faster than BTOA-Encode/BTOA-Decode, and offers a nearly identical expansion rate, but has very light error checking. It can create segmented output, and has semi-automaic reconstruction of segmented output. There are two variations of this conversion method; the 'Fast' conversion algorithm is somewhat faster than the default conversion algorithm, but (oddly) has a nearly identical expansion rate. MIME-Encode/MIME-Decode ----------------------- SYNOPSIS -- Speed: Fast Expansion: Average (20%-30%) Segmentation: Yes Reconstruction: Automatic This conversion method is rapidly becoming more popular than any other conversion method to date. It is fast, but has a low expansion rate. This conversion method, like UUEncode/UUDecode, has very good error checking. It can generate segmented output, and reconstruct that output with no user intervention. One of the main advantages to using this conversion method is that it is supported on nearly every computer platform; UNIX, Macintosh, IBM, Amiga, Atari, and others. //// The Exact Figures Conversion Utility: ESS-Code 6.0 (Shareware) / Electric Storm Software Archive #1: COMA_210.ZIP Orginal UUE BTOA SHIP MIME -------------------------------------------------------- Size | 256,695 | 355,276 | 321,079 | 321,422 | 343,520 | Time | MM.SS.XX | 00.28.57 | 02.00.24 | 01.28.50 | 00.52.38 | -------------------------------------------------------- Archive #2: EGEMSOZX.LZH Orginal UUE BTOA SHIP MIME -------------------------------------------------------- Size | 166,715 | 233,505 | 211,131 | 211,235 | 225,937 | Time | MM.SS.XX | 00.20.55 | 01.20.59 | 00.59.41 | 00.36.45 | -------------------------------------------------------- Archive #3: LPR_UTL3.ZOO Orginal UUE BTOA SHIP MIME -------------------------------------------------------- Size | 117,911 | 165,181 | 149,080 | 149,412 | 159,961 | Time | MM.SS.XX | 00.15.11 | 00.58.59 | 00.43.22 | 00.26.52 | -------------------------------------------------------- //// Conclusions Each of the four conversion methods is acceptable, but your specific situation may indicate which of the four conversion methods is best for you. The average user will probably prefer to use UUEncode/UUDecode, since it is the fastest of the four conversion methods, and offers automatic segmentation and automatic reconstruction of segmented output. People who use UNIX often should probably consider using MIME-Encoding; it is very common on UNIX systems, and is rapidly replacing all other conversion methods. If you are paying for data transfer by the kilobyte, though, SHIP-Encoding is probably the best solution for you. It creates extremely compact output, and offers automatic segmentation and semi-automatic reconstruction of segmented output. The error checking is light, but this is usually not a problem. --==--==--==--==-- ||| The Unabashed Atariophile ||| By: Michael R. Burkley / | \ Delphi: MRBURKLEY GEnie: M.BURKLEY1 ----------------------------------------------------------------- It's been awhile since I've written an Unabashed Atariphile article. I've been busy with things Atari, with things Church, and with things Family. My family went on vacation and I didn't even take my STE with me (the campsite didn't have any electricity!). We had a great time at Rock Point Provincial Park in Ontario, Canada. That is a recommended park in my book! A few days after that we had to drive to Saugus, Massachusetts for another family time. On the way we had to dump out the coffee can we were using for "calls of nature." I didn't know it at the time, but when we stopped at the side of the New York Throughway, my wallet dropped into the grass. A couple of hours later I noticed it was gone, but I had no idea where it had gone. After a quick search of the car, and then a call to the credit card companies to cancel our credit cards, and we were on our way again. Ten days later I was back in Niagara Falls. I had gone that afternoon to the Motor Vehicles Department and gotten a new license. After dinner that night the phone rang. It was a person asking for Michael Burkley. It seems he had stopped by the side of the road for his own personal "call of nature" and seen my wallet lying on the ground. It was even nighttime when he saw it! Now that was something! It even had my travel money still in it (and the pictures, license, credit cards, car travel records, etc...) still in it. I'm thankful for honest people! You will notice in this article that I am beginning a new practice. From now on I will be telling you from where I have downloaded my described files. In no way does that mean that those are the only places where those files are available; just that that's where I found them. Enough people have bugged me about "where can I find...." that I've decided to make this change. I hope you find it useful. Finally.... Hello to David Gutierrez, a Christian missionary ministering in both rural and urban Mexico. David gets AEO from an Atari BBS in Mexico City, and he contacted me just a few days ago. Thanks for your work David! So far I've received other notes from people in Peru, Australia, England, France, Israel, and Canada (of course!). My kids enjoy seeing the stamps from around the world (I do, too)! Enough of this for now. On with the file descriptions! [] AMERICA is a detailed .IMG file by Bill Bencivenga which shows the Statue of Liberty in the top left, the quote "America, one nation under God" in the top center/right, in the middle a list of problems which both plague and are welcomed by our society, and a biblical quote about calling on the Lord God at the bottom. GEnie. [] AMERICA2 is a detailed 300 dpi .IMG file created in PageStream by Bill Bencivenga. It shows the American Flag in the top left corner and the Christian Cross in the bottom right. In between is a poem which has its roots in "America, the Beautiful." The poem, by Peter Marshall, Jr. (or at least quoted by him) laments the hypocricy of much of the thought and practice in our nation and calls us all to repentance. GEnie. [] ARAHOFF is a Hebrew/English word processor by Dr. Sandford Aranoff (and many more files - see below). This is a completely bi-lingual word processor has most of the features of any other wordprocessor (a good one, that is!). It allows you to type in English, Hebrew, or a mixture of both, even on the same line. In addition, it can measure typing speed (in English or Hebrew) in words per minute, and gives elapsed time. Hit ^H, and the keyboard becomes the standard Hebrew keyboard, with the cursor moving from right to left. Hit ^E, and it becomes English. You can output your work as an ASCII file compatible with other programs that print fancy text, such as 1ST WORDż or WordUPż, including, of course, Hebrew with the proper justification. Hebrew text can be created with Dutch proportional spacing, for input to WordUPż. If you wish, it can print mailing labels, too. This is an excellent GEM based, multiple windowed editor for creating text with both English and Hebrew. Although originally written for Hebrew, it turned out that this is a fine general-purpose editor. It permits the fast typing in of your ideas. The text can then go to other editors or desktop publishing programs to be printed beautifully. Here's just one example of how you can combine both English and Hebrew on one line (actually, two lines in this case!): ŘÇÄĚ ,ĆŇË ×ÇĐËŇĹÎĆ ×ÇŐÉ ×ÇËĎĚ×Í ÚËÂ×Î ASCII ÜĂÇÔĂ ĘÍŇ ů .ŮËŐÓÖ ÇÎĚ ŐĹÇĐÎ ĆËĆ× ×ËŐĂŃĆ .1ST WORDż Ç WORD-UPż Docs included. Shareware. (note: This program takes a LONG time to initialize. Don't worry - your computer hasn't crashed!). This file is at least ST--STE compatible, but it doesn't really work with Geneva - if you go to the menu line it bombs. Toad Hall. Now here are all the other files in this archive! 4PAK_V1 by Yaron Kidron is a TOS/PRG file compactor. You can pack your files by around 60% and still run them. It also unpacks them. BLANKS by Dr. Sandford Aranoff is a small program which will convert TABs to spaces and blanks to indent spaces in your documents. This is useful in converting ASCII text to 1st Word/Wordwriter format (avoiding the inability of those wordprocessors to re-format imported ASCII text. ST--STE and Geneva compatible (at least). CIRCLES by Dr. Sandford Aranoff is a program which draws straight lines that look like circles! Actually what it does is a form of string art, drawing straight lines between points about a center. You can make some excellent screen views this way! You input two numbers and the program goes from there. ST--STE and Geneva compatible (at least). Shareware. Toad Hall. COPIES by Dr. Sandford Aranoff is a small program which allows you to easily and safely copy files from one place to another. The date stamp is the same as the original. This program copies to a .BAK file, renaming it only when the copy was successful, to insure that the original file was not lost. Docs included. Shareware. ST--STE and Geneva compatible (at least). Toad Hall. GAUSS by Dr. Sandford Aranoff is a program which solves up to 20 linear equations simultaneously. Shareware. ST--STE and Geneva compatible (at least). LISTPAS by Dr. Sandford Aranoff is a program which prints a listing of Pascal routines. Each procedure starts a new page. Each page has a heading, with the date and routine name. Can be killed and restarted. MULTREG by Dr. Sandford Aranoff which performs multiple regression calculations. PROBLEMS by Dr. Sandford Aranoff is a program which gives the user a variety of arithmetic problems. The user can choose the level of difficulty and type (addition, multiplication, etc.). It will then output the time you spent working and the results of your testing. Shareware. ST--STE/Geneva compatible. STATIST by Dr. Sandford Aranoff is a program which performs linear regression. A plot appears, with the regression line shown. It can be used to plot two dependent variables: e.g. given a plot of gold vs. time and Swiss Franks vs. time, it can give a plot of gold vs. Swiss Franks. Shareware. TABS by Dr. Sandford Aranoff is a small program which will convert TABs to three (or whatever) spaces in your documents. This is useful in fixing Pascal 2 files for printing. ST--STE and Geneva compatible (at least). Shareware. Whew! What a lot in one archive! I hope you like it! [] AWSAMPLR is a series of eight Atari Works documents, four designed to help you in creating your own macros (learn how to do that! It can make your work SO much easier to have repetitive tasks done automatically!) and four which either show font samples or ways to best use the fonts you have. He tells you some interesting work-a-rounds to fix some AW bugs. By Bob Semaan of SemTek Development. 158K uncompressed. Toad Hall. [] COLUMS_D by Pineau Rodelphe is a Falcon only version of the game Columns. Actually, it's a demo, but I don't know how limited it is (it looks as if it plays fully, but is limited in levels). It provides you with 640x480x256 resolution (usable with either a VGA, RGB/TV monitor), and great quality music! Limited docs (enough to tell you how to control the pieces as they fall). Delphi. [] CUBASE is a PageStream 2 formatted article entitled, "Cubase Audio Falcon." It tells about the new Audio/MIDI program from Steinberg/ Jones' and correlates the text with pictures illustrating the features of the program. This seems to be a great product with many amazing features! Uncompresses to 246K! Toad Hall. [] DIAMF030 is a set of programs by RUIZ Patrick for your Falcon 030. The first is Diamonds, which should run on any ST--Falcon, but someone threw away the non-Falcon version, so it will only work on a Falcon. What does Diamond (dated April 4, 1994) do? It is a short "just for fun" program based on the game of Life (with the difference that adjacent color cells affect each others color rather than causing them to multiply or die). This version does not use the DSP chip, but it's still fast (12 generations per second!). VIBRAX is an .ACC .MOD player for the Falcon (according to the author it's the best one!). It uses the DSP .MOD routine from the BITMasters to play the .MODS at full quality with a minimum amount of CPU time. Use it while playing Diamonds! Finally, he includes two versions of the Game of Life (one color the other mono). Dated June 23, 1993, these programs work on any ST--Falcon and show you the standard program of Life where cells determine whether adjacent cells divide or die depending on a simple set of rules. It makes for some beautiful pictures! Docs included (for all programs). Delphi. [] DICWORDS is a HUGE ASCII list of words which you can use to add words to your favorite spelling dictionary. You can load this 1.47 meg ASCII file into your word processor and add words to your user-definable dictionary to your hearts content! You can use this with Spelling Sentry, Marcel Word Processor, Calligrapher, Atari Works, Thunder!, That's Write, etc., etc.. Yikes! What a lot of words! GEnie. [] DOMINOS is a mono-only game of dominoes. Dated 1991, this program will run on my TOS 1.0 and TOS 1.62 machines, but I can't select the dominoes I wish to place on the board. The play is against the computer. A demo mode is available, but it really doesn't show much. Online docs are in German. I'd like to play this so can anyone help me out? According to the uploader it's ST--Falcon compatible. Uncompresses to 148K. Delphi. [] ESSCD61 is ESS-Code v.6.1, the MIME-Encoding/Decoding, UUE/UUDecoding utility (and BTOA, and SHIP files, too) by Michel Forget of Electric Storm Software (the programmer of MasterBrowse, an excellent desktop text SHOW replacement and general file viewer - see MB45_BIN). This file (dated June 29, 1994) will allow you to quickly (very) and easily (it uses GEM with keyboard shortcuts to everything and more) convert binary files to ASCII text files or return ASCII text files to their original binary state. This version now support the MIME conversion method which is rapidly replacing all other conversion methods. ESS-Code can now handle MIME-Encode/MIME-Decode requests from the operating system, or when ESS-Code is called as an installed application. This will allow you to both send and receive binary files (non-text files) through the InterNET using the most compatible methods! It includes an expanded command line interface for those of you who like such things, and the manual can now be read online. Compatible with TOS 1.0 through MultiTOS (Geneva, too), with online help, and much more. The author has put a lot of work into this program. Color or mono. Shareware (register this and you get an optimized and personalized version of this program, free registered versions of MasterBrowse and his other shareware programs and $5 in coupon discounts from Suzy B's Software!). Delphi. [] FALCNBUG is a set of two .IMG pictures detailing hardware flaws in the Falcon and how you can fix them. How can you fix them? Get this file and take it to your dealer to do it! Actually, you could probably do it (voiding your warranty) if you are handy with a soldering iron. Docs are included in the pictures. Delphi. [] FALCNSX2 is the FalconSX accessory Ver 1.0 by Boyeau Stephane. This small and useful .ACC will allow you to set all the hardware settings of your Atari FALCON and more. These are: * CPU & BLITTER clock rates (8/16Mhz) * BUS type (Falcon bus or STE bus) * CPU CACHE activation/deactivation * Sweep freq. of the VIDEL 78/50Hz * Internal IDE Harddrive ON/OFF * Sound VOLUME * Sound CONNECTION in BACKGROUND (ADC to DAC for ex.) * RESET the Sound sub-system * See the COOKIE Jar * Have short INFORMATION on a Cookie * Have a look to the system CRASH page * LOCK your computer while not working with it * Have information on space used on drives This version is Shareware and is limited in that you can't save your preferences. Falcon only. Docs included. Delphi. [] FACLPL16 is the Falcon-only Pro-Tracker Replay, v.1.6 by Martin GRIFFiths (dated early July, 1994). This player will give you a 50kHz base play rate via a DSP replay routine. It will play 4/6/8/or 10 channel Protracker MOD files and will even provide you with Tempo/interpolation controls. This version fixes a bug due to the program packer used by the author and a bug which prevented correct recognition of DigiTracker files. Shareware. Delphi. [] FIRSNARE is Fire Snake by Mr RUIZ Lionel. This is a two player game for any ST/STE (maybe TT but not Falcon) with a color monitor (low res.), two joysticks, and at least 300K free RAM (dated March 26, 1994). This game is easy to play and win at - easy that is if you have fabulous reflexes and ingenuity! Use the joysticks to move your fire snake about the playing field (your view is from above) eating all the goodies (while avoiding the deadly mushrooms and other obstacles). The program and docs are in French, but you can figure them out! Well done. Shareware. Delphi. [] FMTERM1M is the F.M Terminal (Falcon only!) v.1.00M by Brian Freeman (downloaded July 20, 1994). F.M.Terminal is a small GEM telecomm program designed to work exclusively on a Falcon030. All Falcon video modes from ST medium and up are supported. Uses Alan Hamilton's XYZ201 program (not included) for downloads. vt-52 is the normal TOS mode, but F.M Term is ANSI compatible if ANSI_ST (by Mark Matts) is run from the Auto Folder. 16 auto-dialer and 10 macros slots available. Online help. Not MultiTOS compatible. Docs are included. This program does just about what you would expect a "Not very many bells and whistles, but good solid stuff" program would do. I don't have a Falcon, but that's the impression I get from the docs. GEnie. [] GCC256B is v.2.5.8b of the Gnu project's C and C++ language compiler for Atari TOS. This file doesn't have any docs, but you can search for previous uploads of this compiler and find docs there. The previous version I have (v.2.5.0) was nearly 100% AT&T 1.2 compatible so I would assume that this is the same (or better). This file uncompresses to over 2.68 meg, so you'll need a hard drive to use this. Sorry I can't tell you more, but I know nothing about C or C++ programming and I have no idea how these work! [] GIP is "The Greyscale Image Processor" v.1.0 by Stephen Found (dated May 1993). G.I.P. can be used to enhance images (for DTP use for example) and process images with filters. You can use G.I.P. on any ST-Falcon computer. It will allow you to load these following file formats (with no restriction on image size, except the amount of available RAM): TIFF Version 5.0 (.TIF) (Classes B,G & P) Compuserve GIF (.GIF) PC Paintbrush (.PCX) Degas (.PI1) (.PI2) (.PI3) Degas Elite (.PC1) (.PC2) (.PC3) Monochrome IMG (.IMG) Hyperpaint IMG (.IMG) AIM Greyscale (.IM) AIM Colour (.COL) Once you've loaded the files they are converted to a 256 level greyscale image. The image is also converted to the Atari display format so that it can be displayed on the screen. Load up to four images at once. You can save as either IMG or TIFF (normal or LZW compressed) files. All Falcon res. supported. MultiTOS and Geneva compatible. G.I.P has 3 built in output formats, Hewlett Packard Laserjet, Deskjet and Encapsulated postscript. Output may be directed through the serial or parallel ports, or can be output to a file for later printing. Docs (and online help) included. Shareware. [] GMNI999 is Gemini v.1.99 (beta version 2), the do-everything replacement desktop by Stefan Eissing of Germany (dated Dec. 31, 1994). This is a huge utility (uncompressing to 1.7 meg!), but you don't need it all to run the desktop. This set of programs will give you color animated icons, the ability to place programs on the desktop, intelligent install applications ability, run TOS programs in a window (even without Geneva/MultiTOS/Mag!X), support for small icons (like mac), a recoverable trashcan, and more. Using this desktop will give you a Mac-like feel with all the advantages of the Atari series of computers (now that sounds like a "honey of a deal!"). This file is all in German (program and docs) but if you get GMNI_ENG (see below) and use it the program will be in English. Shareware. Delphi. [] GMNI_ENG is a file by Eric Chapman (dated March 18, 1994) which contains English translations of two Gemini 2 (actually Gemini v.1.999 - the beta v.2.0) files, GEMINI.RSC and GEMINI.MSG. They should be installed in place of the original German files of the same name, and together they provide a complete English interface to Gemini 2 (see GMNI1999 recently uploaded on Delphi). [] GO_UP is v.1.00 of a graphics arcade-style game by Rdiger Wurth from Germany. It is based on the popular "LodeRunner" game where you attempt to avoid running into a wall, your "trail" or the trail of another player. For 1-4 players, this game is joystick or mouse controlled. English docs are by Bill Rayl of the former Atari Interface Magazine. Mono only. The game interface is now in English. Delphi. [] GPSP is ten .PC1 (Degas low res compressed) pictures of the 1994 Spanish Grand Prix. Captured from video by Richard Maddox using his VIDI-ST, these pictures aren't that crisp, but they are interesting, especially if you have any interest in auto racing. Viewing these pictures you can get a real sense of how fast those people and machines really go. Toad Hall. [] GVWFAX03 by John McLoud is a module for GEM View which will allow you to display FAX files from the COMA FAX program. The docs are in German. Shareware. Delphi. [] HEART is a scene file for POVRay 2. It shows a heart on a pillow. This .POV file just uses some of the default include files with POVRay, so there is no need for new include files. Delphi. [] HEXMIN12 is Hexmines v.1.2 by Jean-Etienne DOUCET (dated Jan. 6, 1993). Hexmines is a game where you have to locate mines (or bombs) in a field: pretty original, isn't it? What is new is that the tiles forming the mine field are hexagons instead of squares: this little detail changes the game greatly. You can control the number or lives allowed, the field size, the number of empty zones when starting the game, and the mine density (for some reason or another I do best with the low density, but maybe you'll like the medium or high better!). Mouse controlled. Low res. color only. ST--Falcon compatible. Delphi. [] JAGCES is the first issue of JagMag! I don't know the author's name (FIZSOFT on Delphi), but he did a good job of describing a pile of games he saw at the 1994 CES. I enjoyed reading this and finding out about some of the Jaguar games that are coming (more ways to spend my money - yikes!). [] JPEG220 is a very fast GIF/JPG viewer for the Falcon v.2.20 by David R. Oldcorn (uloaded in June 1994). The author of this program is also the author of Starball, that superb pinball game for the ST--Falcon. You can start it in any res. and it will automatically display your images in true color mode (a slideshow mode is available). This version has switched from using the Falcon's 68030 chip for all the decompression and viewing of images to using the DSP chip for fast JPG viewing (previously this was only in the registered version). Not satisfied with GIF/JPEG pictures, this program will also read Degas, Spectrum and Targa pictures and can convert these pictures to TGA or JPG formats. Docs included. Shareware. GEnie. [] JULIA is an .MPG animation named Julia. You can view this using MPEGplay for the Falcon. According to the upload description on Delphi this animation shows a "silver thingy in the center of a room... the camera rotates around it as the silver blob changes shape from a sphere to some odd object, and back." [] KANDY173 is Kandinsky v.1.73 by Ulrich Rožgoderer (dated May 19, 1994). This Shareware Vector/GEM metafile drawing program is excellent. Now completely translated into English, this program allows you to create vector graphics which can be printed out at the highest resolution of your printer with no image degradation (can't say that about bit mapped files!). Import Easy Draw GEM vector graphics, GEM/3 files, create Bezier curves, do LOTS more (I'm amazed at all the features and options of this program!). The registered version of the program provides you with written docs, allows you to rotate text and objects, do landscape printing, and export images in PostScript format! Those are the only limitations! It works on color and mono ST--Falcon's (a TT & Falcon with FPU specific version is included), even those with only 1/2 meg of RAM! and with a variety of graphic boards. The program is very fast on image re-draws (nice!). It has some excellent GEM sample files included. Kandinsky allows you to create text that consists of BGI fonts, the vector fonts from Borland (ten BGI fonts included). It seems to be very easy to use. GDOS/SpeedoGDOS/GDOS clone compatible (while needed to save and print files they are are not needed to run the program). MultiTOS, Geneva, and Mag!X compatible. Check it out! Shareware ($30 US, and worth it!). GEnie. [] KNOCKOUT by the Mugwumps is a Falcon only demo (dated July 4, 1994). This is a huge file (2.58 meg compressed, but only slightly more uncompressed) so be prepared to spend some time downloading it. It is entitled "Cycedelic Knockout!" (sic.) This piece of code runs on all Falcon 030s with internal or external harddisk and all types of monitors except monochrome! It requires all four meg of your Falcon's RAM. Check out the cursor keys and see what happens! I have to get a Falcon so I can do a better job of reviewing these Falcon files! Delphi. [] LOCK is the Lock .CPX v.1.0 by L Hendry (dated March 6, 1992). This .CPX allows you to prevent other people from using your computer while you leave it unattended by locking it out until the correct password is entered. It can also prompt for a password during the boot sequence to prevent unauthorised access then. It will even prevent access to your hard drive if you Autoboot your hard drive. Requires XCONTROL to be useful. Docs included. Shareware. Delphi. [] LPMUD312 is LPmud v.3.12. It is a dungeons type game, but that's about all I can say about it. It seems that it is designed to be played via modem (it talks about "calling back" but there is no specific description of the game and its theme in the file. There are lots of docs, but they are in the form of brief online helps. This file is huge, taking up over 1.6 meg of space uncompressed (it requires a Hard drive, and at least 2 meg of RAM to run). It also requires that MiNT be running (by itself). The author (unknown to me since I can't find his name anywhere) mentions that he wanted to write a better game than "Abermud," but I don't know what that is! Your goal is to become a wizard, and to negotiate past all the monsters and through all the rooms. This archive is set up to run from partition E. This file is NOT in a self-extracting format, so you will need a LZH (lh5) compatible archiver to uncompress it. See the Utilities section for the appropriate utilities. Delphi. [] MACRE142 is Macrec v.1.42 by Frank-Oliver Dzewas (dated June 14, 1991). This is a .ACC/.PRG combination which will allow you to record and play back at will a variety of mouse and key combinations from within your programs. This is very nice for complicated and repetitive functions. CodeKeys from CodeHead Technologies does the same thing (but only better, and that's all in English!). This program and its docs are in German. Color or mono. ST--Falcon and Geneva compatible. Delphi. [] MRCEL234 is the updated (features added, bugs squashed) GEM-based Marcel Word Processor v.2.3.4 (dated July 26, 1994). Marcel has loads of features, like auto-reformatting, instant-access writer's note pad (saved with file, but not printed or exported), easy accented-letter entry, easy keyboard selection of clauses, sentences, and paragraphs, word erase, and hundreds of other features, many not found in other word processors. You can import text from all sorts of programs, from ASCII, 1st Word/WordWriter, WordPerfect v.4.1, and Rich Text Format (RTF) (and export in 7 or 8 bit ASCII, RTF, and 1st Word), you can select and see various type styles (italic, bold, etc.) right on screen, mark blocks, scroll through text (very fast!), auto-reformat your paragraphs, easily select pre-installed page designs (like letter, legal, business, term paper, etc.), insert date and time into your texts and much more. Spell checking (the American and British dictionaries are described below, and now you can add your selected words to them!), printing (in a wide variety of printers including Epson and compatibles, HP DeskJets and LaserJets, the Atari Laser and PostScript), and literally 100's of other features. Marcel is an excellent program with a very nice "feel." Tutorial included. Color or mono. Not limited in any way from the registered version (you get the manual and free support on registering (only $10 in North America, and you get a $5 coupon for Suzy B's Software). Requires at least 512K of RAM (1 meg recommended), a DS disk drive (it works great on a hard drive, too!), and a ST med. res. display or higher. Any ST-Falcon, MultiTOS and Geneva compatible. Check this one out! GEnie. [] MARCEL_A is the American usage Spelling Checker file for use with Marcel 2.3.3 (see MARCEL23). Using Marcel and this file will allow you to quickly spell check a huge number of words. Now you can add your most used (and misspelled) words to the dictionary. The dictionary can either be loaded into RAM (which takes some time initially, but is faster in the checking) or from disk (which is faster at the start but slower in the checking). One thing I like about this dictionary and Marcel is that it correctly identifies hyphenated words (checking each half separately). Delphi. [] MARCEL_B is the British usage Spelling Checker file for use with Marcel 2.3.3 (see MARCEL23). Do yourself a favour and use Marcel and this file to quickly spell check a huge number of words. Now you can add your most used (and colourfully misspelled) words to the dictionary. The dictionary can either be loaded into RAM (which takes some time initially, but is faster in the checking) or from disk (which is faster at the start but slower in the checking). One thing I like about this dictionary and Marcel is that it correctly identifies hyphenated words (checking each half separately). Delphi. [] MB45ABIN is MasterBrowse v.4.5a by Michel Forget of Electric Storm Software (dated July 4, 1994). The author has really added A LOT of new features to this version (actually v.4.5a is has two bug fixes from v.4.5 - if you have any previous version I recommend that you get this). If you don't, really get this! Master Browse is an EXCELLENT program which completely replaces the desktop's SHOW routine for any ST--Falcon. It will allow you to search, mark blocks of text (a new easier way to do this in v.4.5), cut and paste using the Atari Clipboard, print out your selected text(s) in a multiplicity of ways, and piles more features (in part the docs are so extensive simply because there are so many features! If you want a text file viewer to do something, this probably already has that feature!). MasterBrowse can be configured to call an alternate viewer for special types of files, such as pictures or sound files. It is _Fast_ and smooth, and can take full advantage of GDOS/SpeedoGDOS, the features of MultiTOS, MultiGEM, Mag!X, and Geneva, as well as the alternative desktops such as NeoDesk, TeraDesk, and Gemini. Another nice feature is that MB supports Peter Seitz' View Protocol, which allows other programs to instruct MB to display a file instead of using their own default viewers. A REALLY nice feature new in this version is that MB will emulate the TOS 1.4 Item Selector for all of you TOS 1.0 and 1.2 users out there. Keyboard (user configurable) or mouse controlled. Online help (using the ST-Guide .ACC). It has an easy-to-use installation program. Shareware ($15). SUPPORT SHAREWARE AUTHORS! (If you register this program you get a $5 credit towards... well, read the docs and find out!). Color or mono. This will work on floppy or hard drive systems. Delphi. [] MINT110S is the C source code for MiNT v.1.10 from Atari (dated 1994). MiNT if you remember, is the official "Multitasking Operating System Extension for the Atari ST." There are no docs, but there is a file listing changes made in MiNT from the previous version. The uncompiled source code is freely distributable, but there is a limitation in that you cannot distribute the compiled program. Don't do it, because if you do future versions of MiNT won't be released this way! Delphi. [] MONO26 is the Monochrome PUT Maker And File Converter/Merger v.2.6 by Thomas Hopper (dated July 18, 1994). This compiled GFA Basic SHAREWARE program loads Degas mono images as well as GFA PUT and Screen files, and cuts portions of them with a GEM rubber box. It will then save the cut portions of these images in a GFA PUT file. It will also save any of these imported images to a disk file in either GFA SCREEN or the uncompressed Degas format. Lastly, it will merge a PUT file from either the memory or the disk to the image currently in memory. Mono only. Docs included. Shareware. TOS 1.0-2.06 compatible (at least). I found this on TOAD Hall. [] MORPHER1 is an FPU requiring demo of Lexicor Software's new program, Metamorphosis 24. According to Lexicor, this is the first 2 Dimensional Morpher for Atari ST/TT/Falcon. This demo requires the use of the FPU chip so it will work on any ST(E)/TT/Falcon/Clone (up to 256 colors) with one of those chips and at least one meg of RAM and a 640x400 display (ST High) or higher. Metmorphosis 24 can morph between two same TIFF pictures and create an intermediate morph of the two images. After having loaded your source and target frames you can not only produce single frames but tween whole keyframe animations in 24bit (files are always saved as 24 bit Truecolor pictures no matter the res. in which you run the program). This program provides you with an easy and user friendly interface (GEM based), four levels of morphing depth, all the tools you need, toggle rip on/off, Multitos/ Geneva/Mag'X Compatibility and Support, TIFF support, and optional FPU support. A tutorial file and pictures are included. This demo is save disabled. Delphi. [] MORPHER2 is a demo of Lexicor Software's new program, Metamorphosis 24. According to Lexicor, this is the first 2 Dimensional Morpher for Atari ST/TT/Falcon. This demo does not require the use of the FPU chip so it will work on any ST(E)/TT/Falcon/Clone (up to 256 colors) with at least one meg of RAM and a 640x400 display (ST High) or higher. Metmorphosis 24 can morph between two same TIFF pictures and create an intermediate morph of the two images. After having loaded your source and target frames you can not only produce single frames but tween whole keyframe animations in 24bit (files are always saved as 24 bit Truecolor pictures no matter the res. in which you run the program). This program provides you with an easy and user friendly interface (GEM based), four levels of morphing depth, all the tools you need, toggle rip on/off, Multitos/ Geneva/Mag'X Compatibility and Support, TIFF support, and optional FPU support. A tutorial file and pictures are included. This demo is save disabled. Delphi. [] MOST2 is the M.O.S.T. viewer v.2.0 by Brian J. Grier (uploaded July 13, 1994). This exciting file is a "teaser" of better things yet to come (He's working on a program to access the Compton's Encyclopedia - and he'll release it if enough people register this version!). It is a shareware program which will allow you to read Compton's New Media M.O.S.T. CD-Roms (and possibly even some older non-M.O.S.T. CD's). This version now supports Compton's V2 MOST titles and supports the use of the Hyper-linked database found on the Compton's CD's. You can get a version which will support pictures and sound (and use the dictionary on every M.O.S.T CD-ROM) by registering. ST--Falcon compatible (you must supply the CD, player, and the CD-Driver). Docs included. It's great to see more and more support for CD's coming to the Atari World! Support shareware authors! Docs included. This program should work on all Atari ST--Falcons, but it hasn't been tested with TOS 1.0 or 1.2 machines. GEnie. [] MSPYDEM3 is a useable demo of CodeHead Software's MIDI Spy v.1.2 (dated Sept. 12, 1993). This .ACC is a unique MIDI sequencer that records, plays, and copies your songs in the background. With MIDI Spy installed, you'll never lose another valuable musical idea because your sequencer wasn't ready to record - MIDI Spy is always listening. You can call it background operation or you can call it MIDI multi-tasking, but what it gives you is freedom and power! As a musician, it's never easy to remember to push that button BEFORE you start recording. Many times you'll just start playing without realizing you're about to create something you should capture. Plus, there's always that stigma attached to the "red light" that tends to inhibit your talent. With MIDI Spy, you can forget about these things. You don't have to be a recording engineer. You don't have to anticipate your moments of inspiration. And you won't feel the pressure of the red light. In fact, you'll even forget MIDI Spy is installed, until you're ready to replay your creations. Even if you aren't a musician, you can use MIDI Spy to play songs in the background while you are doing something else (of course you can do that even if you ARE a musician!). MIDI Spy will load and save standard MIDI sequence files, allowing you to load its songs into other MIDI sequencers. Just plug in your keyboard or sequencer and play away! Limited docs included. This demo includes several inhancements and bug fixes over their v.1.1 release. This demo is limited to a ten minute lifespan, so be sure to keep your compressed file handy--or at least long enough to go out and buy it! The CodeHeads are great guys! Let's support them, especially now. GEnie (I just found this stored away in a corner of my hard drive where it's been stuck for almost a year!). [] M_READ21 is Mountain Reader II v.2.1 by Anthony Watson (uploaded Aug. 8, 1994). The author continues to improve his work! This version fixes some bugs in the previous version. MRII, which is the successor to Mountain QWK, is the first offline message reader for the Atari which allows you to use both QWK and Bluewave message formats. This allows you to call up any BBS which supports either of those formats, download all the messages which you have previously indicated you desire. That saves a lot of time and money for you right there, but there's more. MRII allows you to _answer_ all of those messages offline, composing them "just so" and then uploading them all as a packet which the BBS then distributes appropriately. Now that saves A LOT of time and money! This version have been drastically improved (and older versions were excellent, too). It features a 3-D interface, an internal editor with clipboard support (or use your favorite external editor), a hypertext help system, offline conference configuration, user lockouts, full bulletin support with ANSI emulation, offline file requests, and much more. This demo version is only limited in that you cannot save your configuration files. Docs and online help included. Shareware. Requires at least one meg of RAM (two is better). Floppy or hard drive (Hard Drive is MUCH better!). ST--Falcon and Geneva/MultiTOS/Speedo GDOS compatible. Color or mono. The author provides excellent and active support of his shareware, as this version 2.1 shows (v.2.0 was only uploaded in mid-July). Contact him with a problem and he will fix it! [] M_STONES is Magic Stones v.1.04 by Emanuel M”cklin. Magic Stones GEM based, Multi-tasking aware, .PRG/.ACC and three different games in one. It is Tetris, Bitris (similar to Tetris, but it is a two player teamwork oriented game, and Columns. Keyboard controlled. All three of these games are excellent! They can be played on any ST--Falcon in color or mono modes. Delphi. [] NEO3T25Z is a set of SuperZap *.ZAP files which will allow you to modify NeoDesk v.3.03 to automatically change the speed of the Fast Technology Turbo25 ST accelerator board (revision-C) for installed applications. I have the Turbo25 board and I have NeoDesk, and they are both wonderful! Docs included. GEnie. [] NIBE by Marc BOURLON is coded like a demo, with excellent graphics and pretty good sound, but it's actually a remake of game which has become known under many titles (Snake and Slither to name two). The docs are dated June 27, 1994 (though really written in 1991) this game has you trying to control a small (and ever growing) snake, moving about the screen eating all the apples on each level and avoiding banging into a wall or into another part of the snake. I found this the best version of this game I've seen. I knew I could do better if I tried it "one more time!" The ST version has some nice sounds, but the Falcon version (also included) doesn't. Docs included. It's very easy to control with the joystick or keyboard (you can choose which keys to use). Color only. You have to reset to quit in the ST/STE version, but that's not necessary with the Falcon version. Uncompresses to 262K. Recommended. Delphi. [] OCTA096 is The Octalyser v. 0.96 MOD file editor by Christian Dahl, Davor Slutej, and Tord Jansson. The Octalyser can handle 4, 6 or 8 channels and basespeeds at 16, 20, 25, or 50 kHz and now includes the ability to set the sample-basespeed to this standard. This program supports ALL ProTracker Effect Commands, and will work on any STE--Falcon030. To get the most speed out of this program Octalyser uses its own non-GEM interface, but it allows access to desk accessories (or when using MultiTOS, to multi-task). You can run external programs, load and save MOD and AVR sound files (saving is disabled unless you register), and more. Also included with this is information about UCDM, the Software Soundchip by Tord Jansson. Nine UCDM players are included with this archive. The players, when used with Octalyser, will allow you to play sound files with a wide variety of speeds, sound quality, machine specificity, and more (all so you can match your sound play to specific use). Keyboard and mouse controlled. All of this is Shareware. Color only. Docs included. Geneva compatible. Delphi. [] OMEN25D is the demo release of the OMEn v.2.50 operating system by Craig Carmichael, Pres. of Esquimalt Digital (dated July 9, 1994). OMEn is the Open Multitasking Environment, (OMEn). While this graphically oriented OS is still developing, any programs developed for this release will remain compatible with future versions. It is a cross platform operating system, with upcoming releases for the Mac, Amiga, PC (with a 680x0 card), and the Power PC. What that means is that a program written on any of those platforms will run, without modification, on any of the others! Now THAT could lead to some interesting software! This demo will give you a hint of how OMEn works, and will show you how easy it is to program OMEn applications (it's component-ware, so you don't need to "invent the wheel" each time, components are developed which do one thing well and are then used after that in many applications), and much more. Sample applications, sound and picture files are included. Docs and online help included. I think OMEn is an exciting development in the Atari world. Check it out! The author sent this one to me, but you can find it on GEnie. [] PBUG1_21 is Peacebug v.1.21 by Emanuel M”cklin (dated May 25, 1994). Peacebug seems to be an amazing tool for you programmers out there. It is a background debugger which will run on any ST--Falcon computer with support for the MC68000/10/20/30/40/MC68881/2. It is reset resident, reset proof, and fully symbolic with a programmable interface, mouse and keyboard controled. This new version supports the Falcon video hardware and has special links with Sysmon and Templmon. It also includes a special version just for coders which defaults to the "cheat" mode, making things more convienient for them. Full docs included (a combination of German with enough English sprinkled in to make sense for you programmer types). There are also totally English docs for several of the support utilities of which many are included. 584K uncompressed. Delphi or GEnie, I don't remember! [] PLATDEMO is the new demo of Edit Track Platinum from Binary Sounds (formerly Barefoot Software). I don't know much about MIDI but I've heard about Edit Track Platinum. Platinum is more valuable than Gold and from all I hear this program is better than gold. Fully useable except that you cannot save your files. Examples included. No docs, except ordering information. A MIDI sequencer is required. Uncompresses to 800K. Delphi. [] POVBUDDY is POV Buddy by Brian K. Freeman (the author of F.M Terminal for the Falcon). Uploaded by the author on July 20, 1994, this program is a fully working, GEM based shell for POVRay, the PD cross platform raytracer. While this shell doesn't include all of the POV functions, since the author doesn't use them all, if you give him a yell (and maybe send him some cash!) he will add those you wish. This doesn't run on my STE with Geneva, so I'm not sure if it is a Falcon only file (the author developed it on a Falcon). No docs explaining how to use it. GEnie. [] RIPPLE is an .FLI animation created using POVRay 2. Unfortunately, it will not work with MoviePlayer, the FLI player for all Atari from BrainSTorm, but it will work on FLI players for the Falcon. It is an animation of a rock falling into a pool of water and the ripples which follow. Delphi. [] SAFE2 is SafeCracker II by Mike Starnes. This is a game which I haven't figured out how to play, or if I have figured it out it's totally unwinable. In this game, you are an Art thief who has broken into a gallery to steal the Mona Lisa. Unfortunately for you the painting is guarded by a sophisticated alarm system. You are presented with three boxes the first of which has a number in it (randomly chosen between 10 and fifty, inclusive). You have to guess which number is the correct number (scroll through the available numbers using the joystick). You get one error and then you're busted. That's one chance in twenty of getting the correct number for just the first box - totally random. If you do happen to guess right (by clicking the fire button when the correct number is displayed) you go on to the next box and repeat the procedure, and so on to the third. You can figure your odds of winning! I don't understand. There seems to be no skill, not _game_ here at all. Can someone tell me differently? Also, one of the Degas picture files is of zero bytes length, but that doesn't seem to effect the play of this game (maybe if you won?). Oh well! Docs included. ST--STE and Geneva compatible (at least). Color only. Toad Hall. [] SPOFLT31 is the Speed-of-Light (SOL) image processor/viewer v.3.1 by Stuart Denman (dated June 9, 1994). SOL used to be just a fast (according to the author, the fastest) GIF viewer for the ST--Falcon, allowing you to display 256 colors at once (even on an ST) and allowing a color palette of tens of thousands on an STe/TT. Now SOL is more than that! It is now the fastest (again, according to the author) JPEG viewer for the Atari line (for machines without a DSP chip). This version also adds more image formats (now including GIF, JPEG, .PI?, .PC?, .PNT, and .IMG pictures), more image processing features, and many other impressive tools, including the most extensive color map editing capabilities available on Atari systems. This version includes the author's Filtered Image Scaling (FIS). FIS is a technique is used to smooth out images that have been enlarged or reduced. This is a powerful feature of this version and is only enabled in the registered version (though some sample pictures are included so you can see how it works). Low Rez color on ST/STe, TT medium, and all Falcon resolutions, too. Also included in this file are color and mono icons for use with the TOS 4.01 or higher desktop and a neat little graphics and sound demo the author had lying about. Docs included. SHAREWARE. Delphi. [] STARBASE is a well done .GIF file of the USS Enterprise NCC-1701-D approaching Starbase 133. The planet is at the bottom of the picture and the Moon looms huge in the background. That Starbase is BIG! Delphi. [] STELLO11 is Stello v.1.10 by Claus J. Pedersen. This Othello clone is more than that. GEM based, ST--Falcon and MultiTOS/Geneva compatible, this program has the potential to beat you every time (and with a nice interface, too!). You can play against the computer, have the computer play against itself, or play against another human (you can also watch two other people play!). You can configure the computer to play with time and computational depth limits you impose (a good idea to do if you want to win!), or just let it play until it sees the best move. Stello will play in English, German and Danish (docs are in English). It also allows you to place background pictures on screen (several included). You can ask it to suggest moves, print out a listing of the game, move back and forth through the game moves, switch sides, and much more. One very nice thing about this program is its documentation. The author tells how he came to write the program, and how writing the program expanded his understanding and appreciation of the game. I recommend this file. Shareware. Color or mono (higher Falcon and video card res. supported, too). 645K uncompressed. Delphi. [] STF60 is a review of the July issue of ST Format by George Richard Yamagata. Connected to STeve's Atari Sales where you can buy ST Format, George packs this review with lots of interesting information. It makes me want to go out and buy the magazine! ST Format is a wonderful British ST-Falcon-Jaguar magazine which I heartily recommend to you. Some of the topics covered are: George's comments on 3 recent loses from the Atari world, examination of STF60's NEW ST GAMES theme and reasons to buy this mag. The 7 programs and over 30 files on the coverdisk; the 2 new hardware, and 3 new productivity reviews are summarized. Read more about MOUSE KA MANIA, file management, using QUARTET, DIY, word processors, STF's past history, and more. I found this on Toad Hall BBS. [] STFTPINF is a listing by Hallvard Tangeraas of Oslo, Norway of the InterNet FTP sites for the Atari ST/TT/Falcon series of computer (dated May 26, 1994). Sites are listed world-wide, and detailed instructions for downloading files are included, too! Recommended if you want to access the InterNet. Toad Hall. [] STGUID_E is a hypertext system for the ST/TT/Falcon (dated April 20, 1994). This looks like and excellent and easy to use system, but while the program and support files are in English, the docs are in German. With ST Guide, you can create all sorts of simple to fancy HyperText learning tools. I wish the docs were in English it looks so interesting! Color or mono. Geneva compatible. GEnie. [] STIS2 is the STIS 3-D (Stereoscopic Image System) v. 2.0 by Phillip W. O'Neal (dated May, 1994). STIS 2 is part of a wave of picture viewing which is sweeping the country (well, that might be a little exagerated, but I see STIS pictures in bookstores, on coffee tables, and on the pages of my Sunday comics. STIS images are those funny, blurry, multi-colored "pictures" which, if you can't see them, you are convinced that everyone is just trying to make you look like a fool by getting you to stare at them. But it's true, there are actually pictures there! STIS will allow you to make them yourself! With this program you can change an uncompressed .PNT/.TPI (Prism Paint/True Paint) image that you create or find into a stereoscopic 3-D image (sample pictures included). STIS will run on any ST, TT, FALCON, ect., and create 3-D images any size (limited by memory) and any number of colors. This is an amazing program! I recommend that you also get STIS v.1.0 which allows you to create STIS pictures with Degas pictures. Here's how I view STIS pictures: I press my nose right up to the monitor and to relax. As my eyes relax the picture becomes blurry. I then take my nose off the glass about two inches and relax again. After a little bit I begin to see depth in the picture. That gives me something to focus on and the picture appears. The pictures aren't all that crisp, but they are astounding! Color or mono. Docs included. Delphi. [] STNEWS9 is Vol. 9 Issue 1 of _ST News_ (dated March 11, 1994) by Richard Karsmakers, the author of the Ulimate Virus Killer and more. It is chock full of interesting articles, software, film, music and book reviews. Assembly Language GEM programming tutorials, an article by Jeff Minter, an in-depth preview of Chromastudio 24, lots of "cheats" for adventure games (Time Quest, Demons Seed, Gold Rush, Hero's Quest II, and more), an article by Atari Benelux' Wilfred Kilwinger explaining how to get the most from MultiTOS, information about the latest viruses and letters from a virus programmer, a fun look at the number "42" and several interesting programs. This is JAM packed with material and I recommend it to you. Color. ST--TT(in ST res)--Falcon and Geneva (but not MultiTOS) compatible. This file has two portions in the archive, a ZIP compressed archive (STZIP24 included) which contains programs several interesting programs--trust me, they are!) and another several files which are the magazine proper. This second portion can be put on a floppy drive by itself, setting the first portion on another disk. Otherwise you will need to format a 900K formatted disk (83 sector, 11 tracks) which some drives can't do. But uncompress it to a hard drive and run it from there. It's a lot easier! What? No Hard Drive? You REALLY need to get one - the bigger the better. It makes a tremendous difference in your productivity on your ST/STe. Delphi. [] STTNG is a .GIF picture of the Star Trek: The Next Generation Logo. Toad Hall. [] STTNG_EN is an .IFF Blueprint-type drawing of the Enterprise D from Star Trek, The Next Generation. The view is from directly above. I found this in the Delphi Science (SC) area. [] STOSFX30 is STOS FIXER v.3.0 by Robert Quezada (dated May 10, 1994). This program will take your STOS programs, Run-time or compiled, and allow you to update them for any TOS release (almost - see below). It's a very handy thing to have when you have a nice STOS program that won't run on your TOS! Now MultiTOS and Falcon compatible. In order to update programs to run on TOS's higher than 1.62 the original program must be at least compatible with TOS 1.62 (this is due to other, unfixable, problems with the pre-STE compatible STOS program). Once you update a program for your TOS it will no longer work for lower TOS versions (you can fix any program again for other TOS versions by running STOS Fix again). Color or mono. The program must not be compressed for this to work (so get the New De-pack v1.1 - NDP11 by Mike Watson to uncompress any packed programs). ST--Falcon compatible. Docs included. [] TCFQ0594 is the TCP/IP Atari FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions which tells much about TC/PIP (Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol). TC/PIP is the common name for a family of over 100 data-communications protocols used to organize computers and data-communications equipment into computer networks.related. Read this and find out about how networking of multiple Ataris is coming along. Pretty interesting. Off of the Internet and GEnie. [] TERA_139 is Tera Desktop V1.39 by Wout Klaren (dated April 8, 1994). The Tera Desktop is a replacement of the ST (and TT/Falcon) desktop. This desktop offers many of the same features as NeoDesk, DC Desktop, and the Atari NewDesk (TOS 2.06 and above), and then some. With this program (which uses about 140K of RAM) you can place files and programs on the desktop as icons, and view files in a window (one nice feature is that you can select the size of the font, small, normal, large, and very large, used in displaying text - both in the file viewer and in the windows). Buttons in dialog boxes can be selected with the keyboard! There are really too many features to be listed here. It will work with any TOS (both ST and TT/Falcon versions are included) and from a floppy or Hard Drive (Hard Drive is definitely recommended). It can be run from the AUTO folder or from the desktop. Color or mono. Docs included (now program and docs are in English, French, and Dutch - you choose). One nice feature is the ability to view .IMG and Degas pictures. This version improves the ability to start programs, allowing some to work that didn't work before (that's the only listed improvement over v.1.38). I recommend that you check this program out! Geneva compatible. GEnie. [] TLCBOOK5 is TLC Address Book v.5.00 by Tom Hayslett (dated March 31, 1994). This version is more than an update, it's an uplift! He has taken all the suggestions and implemented them all! What is this program? It is really two databases in one! One is a standard address book that has _fast_ loading, sorting (on up to three fields at once), searching, merging, and saving of data (as many entries as your system's memory can hold). The other (fully integrated with the first) keeps track of birthdays, anniversaries, and other important dates and events (now even 21st century dates can now be handled). It allows you to easily support any printer (the default is an Epson compatible printer and a config. file for an HP Laser is included as well, but you can easily make your own drivers). You can also print your data to disk for mail merging and the like. It also supports several page sizes, printing of phone and address books, mailing labels, date books, and date labels. You can now merge multiple address books. GEM interface with "Hot Keys" for most functions. All ST/TT res. except ST and TT low. ST/STe/TT compatible. Docs and online help. SHAREWARE (not crippled at all so it's really up to you to be honest!). I would recommend that you download TLC_BOOK (v.4.03 from May of 1993) which contains an Okidata config. file and TLC_View v.1.0 (dated May 26, 1993). TLC_View is a program or accessory (just rename it) which will allow you to load and view you TLC Book address databases into a GEM window without leaving the GEM program you are using (very handy when you are working with your word processor). So, download them both and you'll get them all! GEnie. [] TRAINS is two high quality .IMG silhouettes of old fashioned steam trains. The first is of an engine, coal car, passenger car, and caboose. The interesting thing about this .IMG is that it is vertical with the engine pointing downward. The second .IMG is of an engine and its coal car. The train is pointing to the right. Delphi. [] TRAXX1 is a set of nine quality .MOD files from the House Adonis International TraxX (a European .MOD distribution group). They welcome you to send them your own quality MODs, along with advertising of your group. They will make sure they get passed out far and wide. This archive uncompresses to just over one meg. Uncompress using STZIP26. GEnie. [] TTART17 is TT Artist, the TT GEM Screen Saver v.1.7 by Massimo Farina (dated June, 1994). This file is a very nice PD screen saver designed for use with the TT (I've heard that it beats out any Mac, PC, or Unix screensaver around). It takes advantage of all available colors, and provides you with a wide selection of animated display modules from which to choose. One of its modules is an amazing fractal generator. It can produce fascinating and complicated fractals that are beautiful to behold - rapidly, too! There are many more modules included, and this version is more multi-tasking friendly than before. Docs included. Tested on TT and CyReL M16-1280 graphics card. Not compatible with ST med & low resolutions. Shareware with a 14 day unrestricted use feature (then you can register it through Cybercube Research). TT required. GEnie. [] TUWIEN is Tuwien v.1.22, a complete UUCP Package from the TU University of Vienna for the Atari ST. There are no docs, but source code and a variety of programs and accessories are included. Some of the programs state that an "ethernet card is not installed" when I run them, implying that there is an ethernet card for the ST. Hmmm.... An .IMG file entitled ADAPTER.IMG is included. That's all I can tell you about this file! ST--TT compatible. Toad Hall. [] UNARJ241 is UnARJ v.2.41 by Insh_Allah and Mr. Ni! (the Great) (dated Aug. 31, 1994). This version implements almost all of the options available in ARJ (the compression method created by R. Jung). It's fast, too - up to five times faster than the previous version by these authors. The program and docs are in English with German translations. ARJ files are mostly found in the IBM world, but when you need an uncompression utility, you need one! ST--Falcon/MultiTOS compatible. GEnie. [] UVK_6_0D is a working demo of the Ultimate Virus Killer v6.0GB by Richard Karsmakers and Douglas Communications (dated Feb. 8, 1994). This demo comes from Europe, but the program is now being distributed in North America by Oregon Research Associates (the people who saved my bacon by fixing my trashed SyQuest disk - the one that had seven weeks of downloads that I hadn't backed up - by using their Diamond Edge software). The limit in the demo is that while you can detect viruses, you cannot kill them, and that while you can immunize your disks against further virus infection, you can only do so to one disk each time you start the program, you can look but not repair commercial bootsectors, and it advertises itself, and some other minor limitations. This program will allow you to check for link viruses (the kind that modify your programs), identify/ restore commercial boot sectors (they appear as viruses on most virus programs), and will alert you to odd vectors in your ST's operating system. A list of features is included, but no docs (but none are really needed). I recommend this program! Unfortunately it is necessary. Color or mono. ST--Falcon compatible. Toad Hall? I don't remember. [] VIEWPROT is a series of text files and sample programs by Peter Seitz and Dieter Fiebelkorn (the author of GEM View) which define and illustrate the View Protocol. The View Protocol was developed by these two programmers to make it possible for a GEM application to display files (using an external viewer) without being forced to implement a viewer for the various file formats itself, and to provide a uniform method of communication between the application and the viewer (so that the application can use any viewer, rather than just one particular viewer). Presently there are already several applications that can be used as viewers. They are GEM-View (Dieter Fiebelkorn), 1st-View/1st-Guide (Guido Vollbending), and ShowImage (Peter Seitz). When installed as accessories, these applications can be instructed (by other applications) to view files. If you are a programmer then this file is for you! The docs are in English. GEnie. [] W_QUEST4 is the complete and updated version (as of Nov. 1993) of Word Quest 2 v.4.00 by Donald A. Thomas, Jr. of Artisan Software (the Atari JOIN THE REVOLUTION guy, and current director of Atari Customer Service). This program is an EXCELLENT Crossword Puzzle program that allows you to create complex puzzles with a minimum of effort. I bought it when it cost $24.95 and was quite pleased with it (I use it a lot at church). Puzzles and answers may be printed out from the program to a laser printer or dot matrix printer (via a screendump) or to a Neochrome or Degas picture file. Five puzzles included. Mouse or keyboard controlled. You can use this program for so many different purposes: education, advertisement, as an "ice-breaker," and... just for fun! This program seems the same as the commercial version, but it's not... it's BETTER! Various bug fixes, incompatibility problems, speed increases, and more have all been implemented. It even improves over the original shareware release of Sept., 1993). This new version adds the ability to enter international characters for broader appeal, a selection of sort formulas and almost every interactive module now offers a comprehensive GEM-based dialog box for accelerated productivity. Color or mono (in ST rez.). TOS 1.0--Falcon compatible. Online help and docs included. Found on TOAD Hall BBS. [] W_VT52 is the "BareBones W_VT52 Library Demo" of ShareWare C library routines for text display to GEM windows by Erin Monaco of Databasement Software. This library is really a stripped-down version (perfectly usable as is though) or a much larger library of functions. This file includes two demo programs showing the functions of each of his W-VT52.LIB functions as they are being used. The library comes with its complete, commented, source code for porting/modification purposes. Each function call as well as tips are provided in the included header file. Support Shareware authors! GEnie. [] XF2 is PC Xformer v.2.0 - The Atari 400/800 Emulator For MS-DOS Compatible PCs by Darek Mihocka (dated June 20, 1994). This program won't do you any good on any ST--Falcon. It is for those of you with "PC's" only. PC Xformer 2.0 is a free emulator for MS-DOS users who wish to run their old Atari 400/800 software. Some 8-bit software and docs are included as well. A 286 machine and VGA monitor are required. Run your 8-bit programs at up to 7+ times standard speed (with a Pentium chip)! I downloaded this from Toad Hall. [] ZX_SP207 is a new and improved version of the Spectrum Emulator v.2.07 by Christian Gandler (dated Oct. 25, 1993). If you have an ST(E)/TT/or Falcon 030 and a hankering for that old Spectrum Sinclair Computer, then this file is for you! This program emulates a SINCLAIR ZX-Spectrum/48 computer, a Z80-machine with integrated BASIC- interpreter, 48 KB RAM, equipped with joystick (Kempston, Interface 2) and optional Interface 1 with up to 8 microdrives (Sinclair-specific "mass"-storage devices). It includes full emulation for the keyboard, Screen-Display, including border, cassette-tape-interface and sound-generation. A joystick joystick interface is emulated, so most Spectrum games will work with a joystick attached to the joystick-port of the Atari. There is an option to emulate the notorious interface-1 together with these microdrives. The ZX-printer is NOT emulated, but as a compensation it is possible to route RS232-data from the emulated interface-1 to the printer-port of the Atari. The emulator must be run in the low or high ST screen resolutions (the Low gives you all the ZX-Spectrum colors while the High uses graylevels to mimic them). If you have a standard unaccelerated ST this program will be a bit slow, but if you have a 16 MHz machine you can get near full-speed emulation in some cases and 60% overall. A T-25 is much better and a TT, or Falcon will give you full speed in most cases. PILES of configuration features. You will also need at least one meg of RAM (more is better) and a Double-sided floppy or Hard drive. There is a four part tutorial program on using this emulator included, as well as numerous programs and complete source code. Detailed docs and source code included. This program is a labor of love for the programmer, and it shows. Delphi. Michael All of these files can be found on one or more of the following on-line services: GEnie (M.BURKLEY1), Delphi (MRBURKLEY), The CodeHead BBS (213-461-2095), and at Toad Hall, now the official BBS of the Boston Computer Society (617-567-8642) (Michael R. Burkley). Drop me a line! Michael lives in Niagara Falls, NY. He is a former Polyurethane Research Chemist and is presently the pastor of the Niagara Presbyterian Church. --==--==--==--==-- --------------------------------------------------------------------------- -- --==--==-- GEnie Sign-Up Information --==--==-- -- -- -- -- 1. Set your communications software for half duplex (local echo) -- -- at 300, 1200, or 2400 baud. -- -- -- -- 2. Dial toll free: 1-800-638-8369 (or in Canada, 1-800-387-8330). -- -- Upon connection, enter HHH. -- -- -- -- 3. At the U# prompt, enter XTX99436,GENIE then press . -- -- -- -- 4. Have a major credit card ready. In the U.S., you may also use -- -- your checking account number. -- -- -- -- For more information in the United States or Canada, call 1-800- -- -- 638-9636 or write: GEnie, c/o GE Information Services, P.O. Box -- -- 6403, Rockville, MD 20850-1785. -- -- -- -- --==--==-- Atari's Official Online Resource! --==--==-- -- --------------------------------------------------------------------------- --==--==--==--==-- ||| Seattle Filmworks Pictures on Disk - Service Offer ||| By: Greg Kopchak - It's All Relative Software / | \ GEnie: GREG --------------------------------------------------------------- Have you ever wanted an easy inexpensive way to get a photograph digitized and into your computer? You say you can't afford a high resolution color digitizer or a Falcon and Photo CD capable CDROM player? Seattle FilmWorks (SFW) now offers a "Picture on Disk" process where they will process normal film to prints or slides and send you digitized images of your pictures on disk. Included with your pictures is DOS software for viewing the photos and saving your graphics conversions to disk. Since I have access to a PC, and was curious how well the process worked, I sent off a test roll of film to evaluate the process. About two weeks later, my "Pictures On Disk" returned. The actual prints that came back with the disk were of better quality than what you would get from the corner drugstore or Kodalux processing and were closer to custom prints than I expected. The digital "Pictures On Disk" were saved in a compressed format on one 1.44 meg DSO format floppy disk. Installing the images to a hard disk turned these compressed images into a non-standard file that appears similar to a GIF with a 8K header attached. The digitized images are stored in 320 by 200 in 256 color format. The DOS software was somewhat of a disappointment in that full screen images were done by doubling pixels in both the X and Y axis with no interpolation or dithering. They showed on my DOS machine 640 by 480 screen in a very blocky manner. After installing the PhotoWorks software that came as a free bonus with the pictures, the viewed images in 320 by 200 looked much better. Converting the images to 256 color GIF format left me with an exact copy of the image in "Pictures On Disk" format. While not close to Kodak Photo CD in image quality, the 320 by 200 GIF images looked good on the Falcon using JPEG220.PRG (My registration for this one will be going out tomorrow). SOL31.PRG yielded images of similar quality but working with the user interface is painful. For ST viewing we used GIFCOLOR.TTP and the 16 color images still looked pretty good. The GIFSCALE.TTP yielded a 8 shade monochrome image that looked better on a TV than a SC1224 monitor. The 16_SHADE S.PRG for the STe that runs as an installed application yielded a very good monochrome image on both a TV and SC1224 monitor when run on the STe. DMJ-GIF did a great job turning the GIF images into Spectrum format images for viewing on an STe. DMJ-GIF works best with images that have horizontal planes of interest as the Spectrum process comes up short when dealing with many vertical planes of interest due to the colors per scan line limitation of the process. The cost for a 24 exposure roll was $9.95 for processing and prints and $3.95 to get the pictures on put on disk plus handling. They can also digitize your negatives to disk for a somewhat higher char ge (contact SFW for details). You don't need a CD player to view your photos - the images are returned to you on a PC standard 1.44meg floppy disk. The results of my experiment have been uploaded to GEnie (SWF_GIF.ZIP) for those interested in seeing the results for themselves. The quality of the images is of course much lower than that available from Kodak Photo CD. The Kodak Photo CD is a process designed for use with tomorrow's hardware. "Pictures On Disk" is a process to make best use of what is available today at a very good price. A summary comparison of the two technologies follows: COMPARISON OF: Kodak Photo CD Pictures On Disc ==================================================== Colors 16 million 256 Image Size 3072 by 2048 320 by 200 Medium Photo CD floppy disk Cost 24 Exposure about $29.00 $14.80 Return Time 1-7 days 2 weeks Avg. Image Size 4 meg 40 k in native format Quality of Prints Fair (Kodalux) near custom returned Free Film none private brand (SFW) ============================================================= There are currently no native Atari viewers for the images in their "Pictures On Disk" format. So you do at this point need access to a DOS compatible with a VGA card to convert the images. You don't have a PC? (we can't blame you :-) For anyone who does not have access to a PC interested in trying the process, we will convert a 24 exposure "Pictures On Disk" to GIF format onto a ST disk for $4.00 to cover cost of disk and mailing (ST and STe users add $2.00 for DS/DD disks). If you would like us to help with your conversions, send your "Pictures On Disk" floppy to: Randall Kopchak It's All Relative 2233 Keeven Lane Florissant MO 63031 ... and we will turn your "Pictures On Disk" around in one or two days. For more information on the "Pictures On Disk" process contact Seattle FilmWorks at (800) 445-3348 or write them at Seattle Film Works, 1260 16th Avenue West, Seattle WA 98119. For Kodak Photo CD and other imaging solutions for the Atari or Microsoft Windows systems, contact It's All Relative, 2233 Keeven Lane, Florissant MO 63031. It's All Relative is not associated with Seattle FilmWorks in any way. All trademarks are those of their respective companies. --==--==--==--==-- ||| Developing news! ||| Items of interest from TOS platform developers and supporters / | \ ------------------------------------------------------------------- ------------------------------------------------------------------- =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= //// ORA Announces TrueImage =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= TrueImage is a brand new 24 bit Image Processing package for the Atari ST, STe, TT, and Falcon 030 computer. Using the same EFMS image loading system as TruePaint, TrueImage can import and export images in a wide variety of popular formats. TrueImage can load and convert between bitmap, color, and grey scale formats and has an impressive array of palette manipulation, dithering, halftone and error diffusion effects. True Image also stores all pictures internally as 24 bit files, so even if you perform manipulation on a mono monitor, you can still import the picture into a DTP document and have a service bureau print it out in full colour! True Image has powerful masking capabilities to allow you to cut, copy, and paste/combine portions of several images into a beautiful composite. A wide array of effects and filters are also available for image manipulation and picture enhancement including: Sharpen, Blur, Diffuse, Emboss, Mosaic, Find Edges, Add Noise, De-Speckle, Invert, Threshold, Brightness, Contrast, etc. True Image is compatible with all Atari ST/STe/TT and Falcon030 computers with at least 2 mb of memory and a floppy drive. A 4 mb of memory and a hard disk is recommended. TrueImage is available now and retails for $99.95. For more information call Oregon Research at (503) 620-4919. =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= //// ... and Papyrus Gold //// NeoDesk 4 Ships //// Put your Falcon in Overdrive //// Take the Fast Path from TraceTech //// Avant Vector 2.0 =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Papyrus Gold IS THE writers tool we've all been waiting for! Papyrus goes way beyond the standard definition of Word Processors and Desktop Publishers to define a new class of application: the Document Processor. Powerful features like drag and drop editing, tables and embedded spreadsheets, automatic Table of Contents and Index creation, vertical and horizontal character micro- spacing, American English and British English dictionaries, embedded graphics, drawing tools, Popup Style lists and complete SpeedoGDOS support put Papyrus in a class by itself. And the printed output... well, it's a work of art! From a letter to your Mother to embedded spreadsheets and graphics for that quarterly report, Papyrus has the power and flexibility to fulfil every writers requirements! Papyrus Gold is compatible with any Atari ST/STe/TT or Falcon 030 with a minimum resolution of 640x400 (ST mono) or higher. It requires at least 2 mb of memory and 2 floppy drives or a Falcon 030 with 4 mb of memory and GDOS 1.1 or SpeedoGDOS . The recommended configuration is 4 mb of memory, a hard disk, and SpeedoGDOS 4.2. Papyrus retails for $249.95 and is available now. A fully functional demo disk is available for $5 applicable towards purchase, competitive upgrades are also available. Call Oregon Research at (503) 620-4919 for a more information. =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= //// NeoDesk 4 Ships =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Gribnif Software is proud to announce the completion of the most recent upgrade to the original desktop replacement for Atari computers, NeoDesk 4. The wait is finally over. NeoDesk has hundreds of features, so here are just some of the more popular ones in the new version: o A completely new "look and feel", including 3D windows, enhanced dialog handling, and the ability to have multiple dialogs open at once. All this works on any Atari computer with any ROM version. o Multicolored icons - each icon can have up to 16 colors, and can even appear completely different when selected. o Icon Editor - This multiple window Icon Editor lets you edit and modify custom icons for any file or folder. The editor can read many popular icon formats, including ones from other platforms! o Any Degas, Neochrome, Tiny, IMG, or BMP picture can be viewed (by double-clicking on it) or can be used as the desktop background. Desktop pictures can even be "tiled". o Each directory window has its own menu bar, making it much easier to find frequently used options. o Each window has its own "parent directory", Show Info, and trashcan icons. o Items can be selected from the keyboard, including a search mode. o File Groups - Now you can arrange commonly used programs and data files together in the same window, even when they are physically contained in drastically different locations! Their names can even be changed, using up to 20 characters. o Font Control - NeoDesk 4 gives you the power to redefine what fonts and point sizes are used within its windows, and even for the text underneath icons. o Disk copy, file operations, and floppy disk formatting can all occur "in the background", allowing you to use your computer for other tasks at the same time. o Search Files - Easily search your system for one or more files, based on their name, size, date, or attributes. A file group can even be created containing the results. This is just one example of the powerful Filtering options which are also available for file operations. o Compatible with all Atari computers, in all resolutions, including third-party graphics cards. NeoDesk 4 is available for just $69.95 plus $4.15 S&H. Owners of NeoDesk 3 can upgrade to the new version for $25 + $3 S&H by sending us both original NeoDesk 3 master disks. Backorders are being filled right now, and may take 2-3 weeks to complete. (Shipping amounts listed apply to orders shipped within the USA only. Please contact us for other areas.) Gribnif Software P.O. Box 779 Northampton, MA 01061-0779 USA Voice: (413) 247-5620 Fax: (413) 247-5622 =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= //// Put your Falcon in Overdrive =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= ANNOUNCING OVER/Drive for the ATARI FALCON 030. Tired of that SLOW 84 meg internal drive? Want More storage space and a MUCH faster drive? OVER/Drive 3.5 IDE is now available without hard drives!!! This means more savings for you, and you get the exact drive you want. O/D 3.5 IDE is an external case measuring 8.125" Long, 4.5" wide, 1.5" high, and a special cable that connects to the Falcon motherboard. O/D gets it's power from the Falcon motherboard so there are no power cables to mess with. The drive cable can be removed from the O/D case in seconds to make for easy transport. OVER/Drive 3.5 IDE is very easy to install, no soldering, and can be done in 15 min. There is a physical connector for a 2nd IDE drive and we are told that ICD is working on adding this feature to their great ICD PRO tm software. This will let any Falcon owner use 3.5 IDE drives. Why use 3.5 IDE drives? 3.5 IDE drives are bigger, Faster, and Cheaper than either the 2.5 inch IDE or 3.5 SCSI drives. 1 Gig 3.5 Ide's are going for $475, you just can't get a better price! The IDE port is faster than the SCSI 2 port! A Quantum 240 on my Mega gets 1249K/sec 18ms, but on the Falcon's SCSI port, the best the drive will do is 1012K/sec 25ms, and drops to 739K/sec 48ms in 256 color mode. This is THE upgrade for Falcon's with no internal Drives! Why waste money on drives that cost up to $3.00 a Megabyte, when you can get a faster drive at better than half the price? We also sell a volume control either internally or externally for the Falcon's internal speaker for $12, a real life saver! Watch for the up coming review in Genie Lamp by Richard Brown! Cost for the OVER/Drive case and cable in normally $99.95, but we have a limited offer till Nov 30th for $89.95 + $4.50 for shipping. Please Email or call for more information: Email B.AEIN Ben Aein 301-251-0997 Tell your Friends about OVER/Drive AND FEEL THE SPEED! Formula-1 Systems =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= //// Take the Fast Path from TraceTech =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= ==================== | Fast Path v1.0 | | Press Release | | August 15, 1994 | ==================== Trace Technologies is proud to introduce FastPath. Shipping date: AVAILABLE NOW! ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ "A Straight Line- The shortest distance between two points." "FastPath- The shortest distance between two paths." Fast Path v1.0 - The Indispensable Path Selection Utility! Are you struggling with the system file selector, clicking here and there to get to your word processing folder or that favorite game? Sure, using an alternative file selector can be better, but have you found yourself wishing it had more predefined paths and extenders? Wish no more! FastPath, a demoware program by Keith Gerdes and Trace Technologies, works in conjunction with your system/alternative file selector, giving you unparalleled power and flexibility when it comes to quickly getting to the directory you need. When you need to get somewhere fast, you need the speed of FastPath. o Provides 34 user-definable paths in an attractive graphical user interface. Call FastPath as needed or have it automatically appear before the file selector. Select a path via the mouse or keyboard and you're instantly there, reaching distant points of your hard disk with ease. Paths can be defined, copied, moved, deleted or edited with point-and-click ease. Displays the current path being sent to the file selector along with the file selector prompt and filename specifications. o Remembers the last 4 paths used in the file selector, for instant recall. Combined with the above, you have 38 paths at your disposal. o Provides 38 user-definable extenders, one of which can be passed to the file selector to narrow the range of files displayed. o Save your favorite paths and extenders to disk for future use. o Full mouse and keyboard control. o Convenient Help screen. o FastPath can access CodeHead's powerful file maintenance utility, MaxiFile III, by a simple keypress if MaxiFile is resident as a desk accessory. o Works in all color or monochrome graphic resolutions with a minimum screen size of 640x200. 100% assembly. Uses as little as 22K of RAM. Compatible with all TOS versions and ST/STe/TT/Falcon models. o Strong support from one of the oldest developers for the Atari ST whose current product line includes Data Diet, Squish II, Data Rescue, Load Aladdin, TOS4TRAPv1 -and soon to be released- Missouri, Fast Menu and the Falcon030 Toolkit. o A demo version is freely available on online services. NOTE: Some features are not available in the demo version. The full version can be purchased for only US$10. Consult the next section for details. ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Purchasing FastPath: [NOTE: Canadian users- please see specific FastPath order info below.] Send US$10 plus shipping & handling. S&H: $3 in the U.S., $5 priority mail in the U.S., or $5 outside the U.S. Texas residents must add 8.25% sales tax. Please make payment by check (issued by a U.S. bank), U.S. funds money order (drawn on a U.S. bank), or postal money order. [NOTEs: GEnie gifts of time are not accepted. And no credit card order capability.] Payable to: Trace Technologies or Keith Gerdes Send to: Trace Technologies [FASTPATH] PO Box 711403 Houston, TX 77271-1403 What else do you get for your investment? -> Tech support and bug fix updates! -> Plus special discounts on future products. ==== Canadian users ==== In order to save you money and offer you quicker turnaround, I started a registration service with Howard Carson, a member of the Toronto Atari Federation User Group. Howard will take care of processing all Canadian orders- including user registration, money transactions and software distribution. Please note, tech support and all other support will still be the sole responsibility of TraceTech. The Canadian registration fee is $20 Cdn, total amount. Send all Canadian registrations to: Howard Carson #601-2904 St. Clair Ave. East Toronto, Ontario Canada M4B 1N7 And make all Canadian payments to: Howard Carson Howard accepts personal cheques and current account cheques drawn on Canadian banks and trusts, as well as MO's, drafts and cash. He will try to service registrants within 72 hours (for cash, M.O and draft/certified cheque customers), and within 10 days for personal cheque customers. '72 hours' and '10 days', refer to the actual elapsed period before an item is mailed/registered/applied (as appropriate). ==== Other currencies ==== If you wish to setup a distribution point for other currencies, please contact me. ==== Order Survey ==== 1) File selector(s) currently in use? 2) TOS version? 3) Computer model? 4) High density disk drive? This survey is optional and no item is mandatory- skip any you find objectionable. Your answers will simply be filed away for future reference. ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Customer support is available via: Phone: (713)771-8332 [weekdays 1PM-5PM Central Time] GEnie: Category 2, Topic 12 or K.GERDES Internet: k.gerdes@genie.geis.com ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Products mentioned are copyright by their respective owners. ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Reprint notice: Reprint permission is granted as long as it is done in entirety. =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= //// Avant Vector 2.0 =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= CodeHead has obtained a limited supply of Avant Vector 2.0 (the font version) and is offering it at a special price of $150. Avant Vector 2.0 has all of the features of Avant Vector 1.2 plus the ability to load Calamus and Adobe Type-1 fonts and save Calamus CFN font files. Avant Vector 2.0 also provides text-wrapping to a path. You may type in a string of text using any loaded font and Avant Vector 2.0 will convert the text to vector objects and display it on any path you choose. Owners of previous versions of Avant Vector may upgrade to Avant Font 2.0 for the price of $30 plus shipping. Avant Vector 2.0......$150.00 Upgrade price...........30.00 They are here now...in our hands, but supply is limited. We regret that there is no demo version of Avant Vector 2.0. NOTE: At this time, there is no additional documentation available describing the font features. The 2.0 manual is the same as that of Avant Vector 1.2. Shipping charge is $3 US, $4 Canada. We accept Visa, Mastercard, and American Express. CodeHead does not currently maintain regular office hours, although you may leave a message on the answering machine. Faster response can be obtained through GEnie E-Mail to J.EIDSVOOG1. Please allow 2-4 weeks for delivery. For further information, contact: CodeHead Technologies P.O. Box 74090 Los Angeles, CA 90004 Voice: (213) 386-5735 FAX: (213) 386-5789 GEnie: J.EIDSVOOG1 Compuserve: 76004,2232 Delphi: EIDSVOOG --==--==--==--==-- ||| ||| Shutdown ............................ Power off, EXIT, BYE, Logoff / | \ ------------------------------------------------------------------ We welcome feedback from all of our readers; feedback both positive and negative. Whatever you think of our efforts, we sincerely would like to know. Our EMail addresses are sprinkled throughout each issue - with the new Internet gateway into GEnie, you can reach us through the Internet also. Append "@genie.geis.com" to any of our GEnie addresses. Until the next issue of AEO, I remain, Your Editor Travis Guy Internet: aeo.mag@genie.geis.com --==--==--==--==-- (This issue printed on recycled photons) --==--==--==--==-- DNFTEC --==--==--==--==-- #1 Wide_left > 2*(Wide_right) --==--==--==--==-- No Inflation Necessary --==--==--==--==-- Atari Explorer Online Magazine is a bi-weekly publication covering the entire Atari community. Reprint permission is granted, unless otherwise noted at the beginning of the article, to registered Atari user groups and not for profit publications under the following terms only: articles must remain unedited and include the issue number and author at the top of each article reprinted. Other reprints granted upon approval of request. Send requests to . Opinions presented herein are those of the individual authors and do not necessarily reflect those of the staff, or of the publishers. All material herein is believed accurate at the time of publishing. --==--==--==--==-- Atari, ST, Mega ST, STE, Mega STE, TT030, Atari Falcon030, TOS, MultiTOS, NewDesk, BLiTTER, Atari Lynx, ComLynx, Atari Jaguar, Atari Portfolio, and the Atari Fuji Symbol are all trademarks or registered trademarks of Atari Corporation. All other trademarks and identifying marks mentioned in this issue belong to their respective owners. --==--==--==--==-- Atari Explorer Online Magazine "Your Source for Atari News" Copyright (c) 1993-1994, Subspace Publishers * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * :::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: A E O ::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: :: Volume 3 - Issue 11 ATARI EXPLORER ONLINE 12 September 1994 :: ::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::