STOS and the Atari Falcon
                           =========================

                  by Richard Davey (fog@walusoft.centron.com)

     If  you  are  a STOS  coder  and  would like more  compatibility  with
     your programs  then here are a  few  hints  and  tips I have made with
     regard  to the Atari Falcon030.

     = STOS compiled programs do not recognised the mouse or joystick ports
     on the  Falcon.   There  is a program called STOSFIX (enclosed)  which
     will update  your  program  by putting in the new joystick  tables  so
     it  is compatible with the Falcon.

     =  Never  use  Mad  Max   format   music   as   it  kills  the  Falcon
     dead.  Recommended music types are  Megatizer  (the most STOS friendly
     format) and of course the normal  STOS  music MBK's (yuk!).  Digi Drum
     music is a no go area.    I'll   compile  a list of music formats that
     work on the Falcon  if anyone asks.

     =  Sampled sounds,  contrary  to  popular  belief,   work  fine on the
     Falcon.  Replay 8 and Maestro  both  sound  wonderful,  I cannot vouch
     for the Master Sound sample player though.

     = Spectrum 512 pictures look  like  a  TV  tuned  to a dead  channel!!
     Avoid using them where possible.

     =  Raster-bars do work but  you  have  to  understand that if they are
     based on  vertical frequency timing you  can  expect them to appear in
     the  wrong  places.    I  found  the  Missing  Link  palette splitting
     routine works,  even at 16mHz, so use this where possible.

     =  Packers.   Never use Atomik Packer if  you want your program to run
     on the  Falcon.   Only  ICE  PACKER  v2.4 (enclosed) works faultlessly
     on  the Falcon,  you  can pack  data  files  with  this also,  it is a
     very  friendly program indeed.

     = Disk Access.   It is always  better  to  make your program check for
     files within the  current  directory  rather  than  specifying  a disk
     drive.   This way  Falcon owners  can  use  the programs on their hard
     drive  without  the need to hunt around  for  a floppy to put in drive
     A: whenever they want to run your program!

     =  When running STOS on  a  Falcon  never  have  NVDI installed as  it
     forces the  entire input screen  into  a  small  window and screws the
     whole  system up!

     = Timing routines based on  the  internal  clock (TIMER not TIME$) are
     going to  be  a  little  different  on  the  Falcon.   In fact if  you
     have  sprite animation  based  on  the  TIMER  command you can be sure
     that  the  Falcon, running at twice the  speed, will not play ball and
     the screen will look a mess.

     = It is safe to jump from LOW  to  MED resolution as much as you like,
     the Falcon will adapt accordingly.

     = Tried and tested Extensions on the Falcon:

     Extension                               Result
     ------------------------------------------------------------------
     Stars                                   Works 100%
     Maestro                                 Works 100%
     Compact                                 Works 100%
     Missing Link                            Works 90% (music=no go)
     Extra                                   Works 100%

     =  Soundtracker music.   TCB  Tracker  does  not  work.   STOS Tracker
     (abk) does  not work (as far as  I know).   The ProTracker program (by
     Griff  of EI)  does not work.    If you really want soundtracker music
     running  then the  best thing to do  is have a boot program that loads
     the  module   into  the   DSP   and  plays  it,   then  executes  your
     program.   The  module  will usually play  fault  free over the top of
     any sound effects you  might   have  in   your   program.   If  anyone
     wants a program to do this  (DSP  play  a module) then let me know.

     =  That's it for now,  if anyone  has something they would like to add
     to this list then _please_ email me on the above number or write to me
     at  :

     Rich Davey, 10 Oak Drive, Portishead, Bristol, BS20 8QS.