*---== ST REPORT ONLINE MAGAZINE ==---* """"""""""""""""""""""""" "The Original Online ST Magazine" ------------------------------- April 28, 1989 Volume III No.85 ========================================================================= ST Report Online Magazine ½ ------------------------------ Post Office Box 6672 Jacksonville, Florida 32236 ~ 6672 R.F. Mariano Publisher - Editor _________________________________________ Voice: 904-783-3319 10 AM - 4 PM EDT BBS: 904-786-4176 12-24-96 HST FAX: 904-783-3319 12 AM - 6 AM EDT _________________________________________ ** F-NET/FIDOMAIL NODE 350 ** Our support BBS carries ALL issues of STReport¿ and An International list of private BBS systems carrying STReport¿ for their users enjoyment ------------------------------------------------------------------------- > Issue: #85 STReport¿ ------------------- - The Editors' Podium - CPU REPORT - EYEWITNESS REPORT >"World of Atari Show"< - Extended Coverage of the Anaheim Festivities - LUCASFILM'S Battle Hawks Reviewed! - 16Mhz and 4096 Colors Available for STs and MEGAs! - PIRACY IS THEFT - PLAIN and SIMPLE p.II - ST REPORT CONFIDENTIAL ========================================================================= AVAILABLE ON: COMP-U-SERVE ~ DELPHI ~ GENIE ~ THE SOURCE ========================================================================= > The Editor's Podium¿ STReport does listen and we do care about what our readers want in their Online Magazine. Therefore, we extend to all our sincere thanks for all the supportive E-Mail and suggestions from folks both online and off. You can expect changes to be made here at STReport as we are concerned with the wishes of our readers and continually strive to improve the magazine. We take STReport Online Magazine very seriously just as we do the positive success of Atari Corp. Your help is greatly appreciated. The piracy article last week was the first in a series concerning piracy and how it effects us on a daily basis, how we can minimize it's harmful effects and (probably the most controversial) the various forms that piracy comes in, both blatant and subtle. We stated we would identify the individuals in the userlog of the Happy Pirate Ship BBS that was recently busted, it appears that there were a number of very well known folks in that list (besides XORG). We have decided that, in the best interests of the Atari ST community and to allow those folks in that list the benefit of doubt, we will not, after all, reveal the names. STReport has been taken to task many times in the past for instigating controversial and heated discussion of rather volatile issues, we feel that we have many things to learn about communication via the printed word and eagerly accept all criticisms. We will give sincere consideration to all realistic suggestions and make an honest effort to implement the better ideas. Admittedly, since the issues and facts we present are real, and can, at times, be unsettling we realize it is only human to see vociferous and emotional reactions being presented. However, the fact remains the things we present are actually happening and need to be addressed. Hopefully, as we learn how to better present these particular items there will less mis-interpretation and more understanding of the issues at hand. We are trying to bring you the very latest and accurate information possible. Please bear in mind though, in keeping the tradition of the confidentiality of our sources, there still is no way we will reveal the identity of our confidants unless, of course, they instruct us to do so. In regards to the being biased toward certain products, we are only human and as such, some favoritism is bound to show through, for this we apologize. We will, in the future, attempt to be as unbiased as possible. In the same breath however, we wish to point out that we have never proceeded with purpose of mind to showcase one product and not another. In the very issue in question, #84 we dedicated well over 10k to the MAC emulators by Gadgets by Small, the first, a conference on GEnie and the second a positive review of the Spectre 128 Cartridge. How convenient it was that the few critics saw fit to ignore this minuscule fact. It appears that biased opinions can selfishly come from many directions. Again, to those of you who called, wrote and used E-mail to show your support ..many thanks, and we will continue to present all the information. Ralph..... ************************************************************************ :HOW TO GET YOUR OWN GENIE ACCOUNT: --------------------------------- To sign up for GEnie service: Call: (with modem) 800-638-8369. Upon connection type HHH (RETURN after that). Wait for the U#= prompt. Type XJM11877,GEnie and hit RETURN. The system will prompt you for your information. THE GENIE ATARI ST ROUNDTABLE - AN OVERVIEW ------------------------------------------- The Roundtable is an area of GEnie specifically set aside for owners and users of Atari ST computers, although all are welcome to participate. There are three main sections to the Roundtable: the Bulletin Board, the Software Library and the Real Time Conference area. The Bulletin Board contains messages from Roundtable members on a variety of Topics, organized under several Categories. These messages are all open and available for all to read (GEnie Mail should be used for private messages). If you have a question, comment, hot rumor or an answer to someone else's question, the Bulletin Board is the place to share it. The Software Library is where we keep the Public Domain software files that are available to all Roundtable members. You can 'download' any of these files into your own computer by using a Terminal Program which uses the 'XMODEM' file-transfer method. You can also share your favorite Public Domain programs and files with other Roundtable members by 'uploading' them to the Software Library. Uploading on GEnie is FREE, so you are encouraged to participate and help your Roundtable grow. The Real Time Conference is an area where two or more Roundtable members may get together and 'talk' in 'real-time'. You can participate in organized conferences with special guests, drop in on our weekly Open COnference, or simply join in on an impromptu chat session. Unlike posting messages or Mail for other members to read at some later time, everyone in the Conference area can see what you type immediately, and can respond to you right away, in an 'electronic conversation'. >>>>> SPECIAL CONFERENCE PLANNED <<<<< Computers, BBS and the Law....ON GENIE - May 3rd., at 7PDT - 10PDT a Formal Conference featuring: Jonathan D. Wallace, Esq. Author of: "SYSLAW - The Sysop's Legal Manual" ************************************************************************ > CPU REPORT¿ ========== Issue # 19 by Michael Arthur Remember When.... Hal Hardenberg of DTack Grounded Software, after making DBasic, a VERY fast and versatile language for the ST, decided to try an unusual marketing strategy to differentiate DBasic from the other versions of Basic available for the ST, and gave away the DBasic program for free, and chose instead, to charge 40 dollars for the manual? CPU INSIGHTS¿ ============= NeXT Performance ---------------- Ever since it was announced, one of the main disadvantages of the NeXT computer is that it was only going to be sold to universities and other institutions of higher learning. Recently though, it was announced that NeXT Inc. had made an agreement with Businessland, a major chain of computer stores, which gave Businessland sole rights to sell the NeXT systems to the general computer market. While no one knows exactly how much Businessland will sell the NeXT computer for, this event merits another look at the NeXT, in order to both see the features it provides for the business market, and to speculate on how much of an impact it will have on the burgeoning low-end workstation market, as well as the high-end microcomputer market.... The NeXT system is based on a 25 MHZ version of the Motorola 68030 chip, using a 25 MHZ Motorola 68882 Floating Point chip for math-intensive operations, as well as the Motorola 56001 Digital Signal Processing chip, which runs at 10 MIPS (Millions of Instructions Per Second), and enables the NeXT to not only handle real-time signal/array processing required in scientific applications, but can be used as a 10-band graphic equalizer for compact-disk quality digital sound. The NeXT also comes with a 17-inch MegaPixel Display, with a 1120*832 monochrome resolution supporting 4 gray scales, and 8 Megabytes of SIMM DRAM's standard on the CPU motherboard. Using VLSI technology, the entire CPU board (consisting of 45 support chips, the main Motorola processors, and 8 Megs of RAM standard, along with sockets for 8 additional Megs of SIMM RAM chips) has been compacted into a single NuBus board. The NeXT comes with 2 serial ports, one SCSI port, an Ethernet Port, a DB-15 DSP port for sending and receiving digital data, a DB-9 serial printer port, two ports for the NeXT optical disk and a NeXT hard drive, and a version of the NuBus Expansion Bus running at 25 MHz, compared to the Mac II's 10 MHz version of the NuBus. The SCSI Interface has a peak 4 Megabyte/Per Second transfer rate. The NeXT system has 4 slots. One is used by the NuBus CPU board, and the others are left available to the user. The case itself is a black cube, measuring a foot wide on each side. The display, keyboard and two-button mouse are also black. The display has an integral adjustable height and tilt stand, and is connected to the CPU box with a single 3 meter cable which transmits the 100 MHz video, power, sound, keyboard and mouse data. The back of the display has connectors for the keyboard and mouse, along with a speaker, microphone and headphone jacks and gold-plated RCA stereo jacks. In order to differentiate itself from other computer systems, NeXT chose to innovate in four main areas: A mainframe on two chips: ------------------------- The architectures of both workstations and personal computers contain inherent bottlenecks to higher performance that cannot be resolved by faster processors alone. To manage the flow of information within the system to yield peak efficiency, NeXT designed the ICP and OSP, two proprietary VLSI (very large-scale integration) chips that endow the system with mainframe-like capabilities. The Integrated Channel Processor (ICP) manages the flow of data among the central processing unit (the 68030), main memory and all peripheral devices. By offloading the 68030 and ensuring the efficient flow of data within the system, the ICP allows the 68030 to run at its full rated capacity of 5 MIPS. The ICP provides 12 dedicated DMA (direct memory access) channels, including channels for Ethernet networking and for disks, monitor, printer and other peripheral devices. The single ICP chip replaces several hundred chips performing similar functions on a mainframe computer, and it raises sustained system throughput to a level impossible with either current personal computer or workstation architectures. The other VLSI chip, the Optical Storage Processor, controls the 256 Megabyte Optical Disk, making possible this new storage technology. The Optical Disk combines the vast storage capacities, removability, and reliability of laser technology with the fast access and full read/write capabilities of Winchester (magnetic) technology. (Note: A full description of the NeXT's Magneto-Optical Tape Drive is in CPU Report Issue # 10.) NextStep: --------- Although UNIX provides powerful capabilities and is the most prevalent operating system for higher education and research, the complexity of UNIX-based computers has put them beyond the reach of almost everyone except scientists and engineers. At the same time, developing graphical application software has traditionally extracted an inordinate amount of time and expertise. NeXT includes an unequaled amount of software in the price of every NeXT Computer System. The NeXT uses Mach, an advanced multitasking operating system developed by Carnegie-Mellon University, which is compatible with Berkeley Unix Version 4.2/4.3, a standard operating system in most higher learning institutions. Mach also has support for multiprocessing (to be implemented in a future revision of the NeXT software), virtual memory, and the TCP/IP Networking protocol (both of which are currently supported by NeXT). The NeXT system also uses Sun's Network File System, in order to provide "network-ready" capability for workstation use. In addition, the NeXT Computer System includes NextStep, a complete software environment consisting of four components: The Window Server, the Workspace Manager, the Application Kit and the Interface Builder. NextStep solves the two major problems with UNIX-based systems: that they are too complex and difficult for most non-programmers to use, and that they require developers to spend an inordinate amount of time and expertise creating applications. For users, NextStep makes the power of Unix available through the Workspace Manager, a new Window-Based Graphical User Interface resembling X/Windows or Open Look, which allows most Unix operations to be done without a degree of knowledge in traditional Unix commands. However, for Unix "gurus", or longtime Unix users, the WorkSpace provides the standard Unix Command Line Interface through a special window called the Console. Embedded inside the Window Server is the Display PostScript system, an implementation of the Adobe PostScript language which was designed to be a standard imaging model for graphical displays. Display Postscript not only handles the displaying of windows and graphics on the screen, but is also device-independent, meaning that when NeXT comes out with a color display for its system, or a higher resolution monitor, all NeXT software will automatically use its capabilities. For 3-D graphics, NeXT Inc. intends to support the Renderman display system, a versatile and powerful standard for three-dimensional imaging developed by Pixar Inc., NeXT's sister company.... For developers, NextStep includes the Application Kit, a set of interacting software "objects" for building applications. A large part of this is Interface Builder, a completely new kind of software development tool. Like HyperCard, Interface Builder works graphically, letting the developer construct an application by choosing from a palette of available objects and using the mouse and keyboard to modify the objects as needed, define the layout and establish connections between objects. Unlike HyperCard, however, Interface Builder can be used with standard programming languages, generating binary code to be used for a NeXT program. This process permits the rapid construction of graphical user interfaces and makes application development accessible to a much larger community. This new environment should also cut the time used in coding the user interface of a program from 90% to 10% of the total coding time. With the application builder Jobs said it would go to zero. The environment is based on the object oriented Objective-C language. You can modify existing programs with subclassing and inherit much of the base application. The NeXT Computer System comes with many Development Tools, including the Allegro CL Common Lisp language, Objective-C 4.0 (an object oriented version of C), the standard Berkeley Unix utilities, a GNU C Compiler, the GNU Debugger, GNU Emacs, the Interface Builder, a window-based text editor, and a terminal emulator. The NeXT also comes with three object-oriented software kits: The Applications Kit, the Sound Kit, and the Music Kit, which have pre-made objects having useful features that can be integrated into your own NeXT programs. Also, there are a number of software libraries available that can tap the capabilities of the Motorola 56001 DSP chip, including Fast Fourier Transforms (FFT's), spectral filtering, and other scientific applications. Personal Optical Storage and the Digital Library: ------------------------------------------------- A Digital Library can contain complete reference works, books, images or musical scores. The Digital Library included with the NeXT system has the Webster's Ninth New Collegiate Dictionary (including definitions, pronunciations using actual sound, and illustrations) Webster's Collegiate Thesaurus, the Oxford Dictionary of Quotations, and the Oxford University Press' William Shakespeare: The Complete Works. Also included is full documentation for all bundled software, user manuals, and manuals for NeXT programmers. All of this information can be accessed VERY quickly. Also, in order to support full Digital Libraries, as well as to have all of NeXT's software, development tools, and applications available in the NeXT system, the NeXT Computer supports Canon's Removable/Erasable Magneto-Optical Tape Drives, which allow 256 Megs of Data to be stored on one NeXT Cartridge.... Maximized Overall Processor Output: ----------------------------------- To accomplish this, the NeXT had to maximize the 68030 chip's memory accessing abilities. To do so, the NeXT uses the 68030's read-burst mode, in which 128 bits of data can be accessed in 9 clock cycles, instead of the normal 12 clock cycles. Also, the Motorola 68882 Math Chip allows applications to better perform at math-intensive tasks, while not utilizing the 68030 chip, and the 56001 DSP chip allows other tasks requiring its special capabilities to function more efficiently by not relying on the 68030 chip. Not only does this speed up application performance, but the use of these coprocessors relieves much of the burden that the 68030 would normally have to carry, and allows it to run at its peak rate of 5 Million Instructions Per Second (or 5 MIPS).... Bundled Applications, Market plans, and the PRICE for it all The NeXT Computer System also includes a rich set of bundled application software. These applications include WriteNow, a word processor program that is owned by NeXT Inc., and distributed for the Macintosh by T/Maker Inc., a powerful SQL (Structured Query Language) Database Server from Sybase, Jot, a personal text database manager, and a version of the standard Unix E-Mail system, which has a graphical front-end that can attach voice mail to normal E-Mail. Also, WolfRam Research Inc.'s Mathematica, a revolutionary software system available for the Macintosh that can perform all types of mathematical computations, including symbolic algebra and calculus, will come standard with the NeXT system. NeXT has built its business plan and products to meet the needs of higher education. The company determined these needs through close collaboration with leaders at college and university campuses nationwide, uncovering the gaps between current and ideal computer technology for this marketplace. During 1989, NeXT will market its computer system directly to several dozen of the nation's top institutions and software developers, and while Microsoft has announced that it will not support the NeXT computer, many others, including Lotus Corp., have praised the NeXT system. NeXT Inc. expects to appeal to higher education on the strength of its technology tools and through the personal business relationships the company has established with the higher education community. Price and Availability ---------------------- (All prices quoted are for higher education) NeXT computer: $6500 NeXT PostScript Printer: $2000 330 MB winchester disk: $2000 660 MB winchester disk: $4000 The system's basic hardware configuration includes the NeXT Computer, a one-foot cube that houses all of the computer's highly integrated silicon chips onto a single NuBus board, the 256 Megabyte Optical Disk for editable storage and retrieval of vast amounts of information, the 17-inch MegaPixel Display, and the NeXT 400 dpi Laser Printer, which is the first low-cost laser printer to provide 400 dots per inch (dpi) resolution. NeXT has already shipped systems to its key customers and developers, and expects to ship systems with final software by June of 1989, so as to make them fully available for college students, universities, other institutions, and a broader base of software developers. Other available options to the standard configuration include 4 Megabyte SIMM RAM expansion modules, an Ethernet kit, blank Magneto-Optical Disks, and printer toner cartridges. While the NeXT system has always received praise for the many innovations it will eventually bring to the computer industry, not many people saw it as viable for a workstation standard, since NeXT Inc.'s main emphasis was on the educational market. Since it will now be available as a regular computer system, many pundits are starting to point out another aspect of the NeXT that, while not being as obvious as market potential, is far more insidious.... When it was introduced in 1983, Apple's Lisa computer, just like the NeXT system, brought many innovations to the computer industry, such as graphical user interfaces and bit-mapped displays. However, because of many factors, like the Lisa's prohibitive cost, and some design flaws in its makeup, it did not become widely popular. In fact, now it is only remembered as the precursor to the Apple Macintosh, which was originally designed to be a low-cost version of the Apple Lisa.... In many ways, one could say that the NeXT system is another "Lisa", since it also has brought many innovations to the microcomputer industry, such as WorkSpace, the first graphical user interface to be available for Unix, Magneto-Optical Cartridge drives, and an object-oriented programming environment. However, just like the Apple Lisa, there are some aspects of the NeXT system which could use improvement. For example, the NeXT's Magneto-Optical drive is relatively slow (as well as VERY expensive), many developers question whether they will be successful in selling NeXT applications, as well as the NeXT's lack of a color display. Given this, one could see the need for a low-end version of the NeXT, which provided many of its capabilities without some of its less beneficial aspects. Seeing this need, NeXT Inc. has decided to make a lower-priced NeXT system, which will have 4 Megs of RAM standard, come with a smaller monitor and resolution, and will not have some of the things (read: luxuries) provided by the standard NeXT System. This "small" NeXT will cost around $3000 - $3500 dollars, and (at least in the educational market) will be targeted towards college students. However, since Businessland is thinking of selling the standard NeXT system for around 10,000 dollars, which is about 1 1/2 times the educational market's price for a standard NeXT, one could easily speculate that the general computer industry will be able to purchase a "small" NeXT for around $5000.00, or the current price for a 20 or 25 MHZ 80386 IBM clone.... NeXT Inc. has also indicated that it is rectifying the NeXT's current deficiencies, as production models of the NeXT's Magneto-Optical Drive are expected to be much faster than the Beta revision models that were shown at the NeXT's introduction, a future revision of the NeXT software will support shared libraries, and NeXT has said that it will provide color display capabilities for the NeXT system in the future.... But ponder, if you will, this question: 1) Will the NeXT computer be edged out in the business market because of more established companies like IBM or Sun coming out with similarly priced systems? CPU Systems Roundup¿ VII ======================== Plug-n-Play, Standards R Us, and the Art of Non-Obsolescence When deciding to buy an IBM Compatible system nowadays, PC Users have a LOT of choices to make. First, one could either get a system using the standard (but dated and obsolete) PC AT Expansion Bus, or use the newer IBM MicroChannel Expansion Bus, which has not yet become a solid standard in the IBM world. Then, one must decide whether the system will use the 8086, 80286, or 80386 chip, and whether it will run at 8 MHZ, 16 MHZ, 20 MHZ, or 25 MHZ. And this doesn't even include whether to use VGA, EGA, or CGA graphics.... Although many of these choices are based on economics, the most difficult aspect of this decision is that once a system is purchased, one cannot upgrade to a more powerful system without selling the old computer and looking for a new one, since many PC Accelerator boards are not completely IBM compatible, and most PC Clone makers will not allow users to trade in their old computers so as to upgrade to the new system. But a solution to this dilemma has come from Wells American Corp., a company who became known in the 1970's for manufacturing the Superbrain CP/M computers, as well as other Multiuser systems.... Dubbed "the world's first and only multi-processor, convertible bus microcomputer", the CompuStar is a new type of IBM Clone which uses a radically different, modular design to allow a PC User to literally custom-configure their own IBM system. The CompuStar base system comes with a keyboard, a 26 inch aluminum case, and a Wells American I/O Module, which has 2 serial ports, 1 parallel port, mouse/keyboard connectors, a disk drive controller, and a VGA chip which lets it support IBM VGA, EGA, CGA, and Hercules graphics. Costing $1195.00, this is the basis of a CompuStar system, to which the other options are added, through the use of Modules. Unlike the usual PC, which has one expansion bus on the motherboard, TWO Expansion Bus Modules (a Primary Module, and a Secondary Unit) can be installed into a CompuStar. Wells American is currently making two models of Bus Modules: an IBM AT Expansion Bus Module, which comes with seven AT Expansion Slots, and a PS/2 MicroChannel Bus Module, having five MicroChannel Expansion Slots and one AT Expansion Slot, which requires a special PS/2 Adapter Module. These Bus Modules can be "mixed and matched" in a system, enabling a CompuStar system to either have 14 AT Expansion Slots (with the use of two AT Bus Modules), 10 MicroChannel Slots and two PC AT Expansion Slots (using two PS/2 Bus Modules) or 8 AT Expansion Slots and 5 MicroChannel Slots, if you use one AT Bus Module and 1 PS/2 Bus Module. And given that although IBM's MicroChannel Bus may become a future standard, literally thousands of PC AT Boards are now available, and that besides the CompuStar, there is currently only ONE other PS/2 Clone now shipping.... After a PC User has chosen their system's Expansion Bus options, the next choice is in microprocessors. To this end, the CompuStar uses what is called a CPU Module, which contains the main processor, a socket for a math coprocessor, and 8 sockets for CompuStar Memory Modules, which contain 1 Megabyte of RAM each for system memory. Wells American currently makes a number of CPU Modules, including a CPU Module using a 10 MHZ 8086 chip, a 20 MHZ 80286 CPU Module, and CPU Modules for 16 MHZ, 20 MHZ, and 25 MHZ versions of the 80386 chip. However, to enhance the flexibility of this method, CompuStar users can trade-in the CPU Module they currently own for a more powerful one, and (if they have owned the module for less than one year) use the old module's list price as a credit towards the purchase of the new module. This means that the upgrade path for a CompuStar User is not only easier than with other computer owners, but could be a lot less expensive in the long run.... Wells American also sells a wide array of accessories for the CompuStar, including a Zenith flat-screen VGA Monitor, tape backup systems, and a variety of Maxtor hard drives, including a 1 Gigabyte Magneto-Optical Removable/Erasable tape drive. Of course, most PC Users would tend to wonder if the CompuStar's price corresponds to its flexibility. Here are Wells American's list prices, so you can judge for yourself: - CompuStar Base System: $1200.00 - PC AT Expansion Bus Module (Primary Unit): $200.00 - PC AT Expansion Bus Module (Secondary Unit): $175.00 - MicroChannel Expansion Bus Module (Primary Unit): $295.00 - MicroChannel Expansion Bus Module (Secondary Unit): $250.00 - MicroChannel Adapter Module: $995.00 - 10 MHZ 8086 CPU Module: $295.00 (with 512K of built-in RAM) - 20 MHZ 80286 CPU Module: $695.00 - 16 MHZ 80386 CPU Module: $1695.00 - 20 MHZ 80386 CPU Module: $1995.00 - 25 MHZ 80386 CPU Module: $2495.00 - CompuStar 1 Megabyte DRAM Module: $435.00 - Zenith flat screen VGA Monitor: $895.00 - 42 Megabyte Hard Drive: $595.00 Even if the above prices seem a tad bit too expensive for the average PC User, just consider what a CompuStar 80286 System using 1 PC AT Bus Module would cost compared to a similarly configured Compaq 286 system. If you want to get more information on Wells American's CompuStar, they can be reached at 1-803-796-7800.... -----===----- CPU REPORT CONFIDENTIAL¿ ======================= Mountain View, CA Adobe Systems Inc. has recently introduced a version of ----------------- its Illustrator 88 Postscript-based drawing program for Microsoft Windows. However, while it costs $695.00, or 200 dollars more than its Mac counterpart, and comes with basic features like autotracing and freehand drawing, it oddly lacks many other features found in Illustrator 88 for the Macintosh, such as full color separations.... Cupertino, CA RasterOps Inc. is shipping the Colorboard 118, a new ------------- graphics accelerator board for the Mac II which runs the Mac's QuickDraw graphics routines at speeds up to 62 times faster than a normal Mac. This board is aimed at image processing and CAD applications. Cost: $2300.00 RasterOps is also developing a card which will allow the Mac to use Adobe's Display Postscript graphics system, presumably through specially written applications. But while Apple has publicly denounced Display Postscript, saying it will continue to improve its QuickDraw system, many other Mac software developers are VERY interested in Display Postscript.... Los Gatos, CA Award Software has started shipping a ROM-based version ------------- of Digital Research's DR-DOS operating system in a ROM chipset, called the Award ROS. This package will allow all types of IBM Clones, especially Laptops, to have almost all of the 640K of RAM supported by DOS for use in applications, as well as better operation than a disk based DOS. Many IBM Clone makers are also considering DR-DOS and the Award ROS because Digital Research is letting OEM's license it for 50-60 percent of what Microsoft's licensing fees are for MS-DOS.... DR-DOS is a FULLY MS-DOS compatible operating system which not only supports 512 Meg Hard Disk partitions, but allows for password protection of files and subdirectories, and supports Novell Netware, currently the most popular IBM LAN System. It also comes with the GEM/3 Desktop as an option.... DR-DOS has many features found in IBM's PC-DOS 4.0, such as LIM EMS 4.0 Extended Memory drivers which let IBM programs support up to 16 Megs of RAM (using bank switching), and a 32-bit FAT, or File Allocation Table. Previous versions of DOS only used a 16-bit DOS File Allocation Table. Strangely, though, DR-DOS cannot run Microsoft Windows/386. But since Windows/386 won't run with IBM PC-DOS 4.0 either.... -------------------------------------------------------------------------- > W.O.A. STR Spotlight¿ ==================== CAVALCADE OF STARS ================== by Rocky Sgro For the past few years, the Los Angeles area has had Atari shows and festivals that attracted a fair number of people. This year, with the added excitement of Disneyland as a tourist attraction and a large number of new product debuts, World of Atari drew a response of better than ten thousand attendees for the two day show. The setting, the Convention Centre at the Disneyland Hotel, provided outstanding facilities to the attendees of World of Atari 1989. Parking was plentiful and fairly inexpensive. We parked at the Disneyland Park and rode the Tram to the hotel. ST World sponsored the show, they prepared a very nice brochure detailing the locations of the booths, reviews and advertisements of the products on display. Now for the BIG NEWS, Spectre GCR, Dave and Sandy Small's new product, was shown out of the case. It appears all of the undocumented features have been removed or documented. Dave remarked that it runs much better and faster than he expected. The GCR will retail at 299.95 and will start shipping on or about August 1. The GCR reads and writes as fast as a Mac Plus and it will run on both Mac and Spectre format. For the owners of Spectre 128 Carts, Gadgets by Small will allow a 100.00 rebate for the Spectre 128 cartridge turn-in. Avante Garde Systems also was showing their new PC Ditto II hardware, a step up from PC Ditto to be sure. The new board also has a socket for the 8057 math co-processor. The hardware will be fitted internally patching through the 68000 chip (average install time 15 min). The clock of the emulator is an astounding 3.0 (Norton SI) and close to 10 ala IBM. It is fully IBM XT compatible at AT performance levels. The initial price of the new PC Ditto II is 299.95. Avante Garde will however offer to the existing owners of Ditto a 50% discount towards the purchase of PC Ditto II. PC Ditto II is expected to ship around the end of June. Happy Computing discounted the Discovery Cartridge 100.00 and offered it for the amount of 155.00 for the standard version and 220.00 for the #2 option model. In addition, Happy was debuting their new device the the Q*VERTER, at 179.95. This new device from Happy will provide fast, reliable conversions of Mac disks to and from Magic Sac, Spectre and Gem format. It also provides access to high density disks (using the high density drives). The Q*VERTER must be used with drives that have a through port or with the internal drive. The Q*VERTER will begin shipping in May. Some of the other hardware shown were the Bernoulli Boxes, Streaming Tape Backups and Astra had a virtual plethora of goodies to make even the most experienced user drool. A fantastic space age touch screen sale/inventory system was shown, more on this later.... SIG HARTMANN Vice President from Atari had what appeared to be 100x the enthusiasm of any of the show's attendees. The effect of his symposium at the show was immediately seen in the positive reactions on the part of the users ..Sig was definitely telling them what they wanted to hear in his detailing the "Future of Atari". The turnout was excellent and the amount of business far exceeded last year's Glendale Show was a remark that was heard over and over again. Sig Hartmann emphasized that fact that the show was organized and put on by Richard Tsukiji of ST World Magazine and that he hoped the shows planned in the future would be as successful. Mr. Hartmann also stressed the fact that Atari is fully engaged in reviving it's US Market by enlarging the Dealerbase and stirring interest and involvement of the consumers/users. When asked about the competition from the Amiga, Sig noted that the Amiga is a games and graphics oriented device. He also stressed the point that Atari is a Technology oriented corporation and, as such, is aimed at few games, more business and associated fields for their computer lines. The Atari, he continued, can be used in the home, factory and office environment much like the MacIntosh and other business oriented computers at 1/3 the cost. The special offering by Atari for the Mega4, laser printer, 40mb hard disk, PostScript & 50 Fonts and ST Publisher for $3995.00 is really quite a bargain when compared to the prices one would find for just a Laser printer alone, he noted. The Show shutdown for a short while at about 6pm, enough time for a shower and dinner, as the Concert began at 7:30pm Many thanks are extended by both myself and the Editor of STReport for the gracious welcome extended to STReport by ST World in providing the complimentary tickets by Mr. Richard Tsukiji. The concert began at 7:30 and..the ST began doing things even I had not seen before. Micheal Pender of the Moody Blues hosted the show and featured special guests Mick Fleetwood of Fleetwood Mac and Jimmy Hotz (Developer of the Atari/Hotz keyboard). The show ran for a little over two hours and absolutely cemented the fact that the Atari ST computer line is the premier line in the midi field. The highlight of the evening was the presentation of a GOLD RECORD to Atari Corp.'s Frank Foster on behalf of the recording industry in recognition of the superb performance of the ST in all it's functions in the chase scene and the sound track of the movie "Colors". The rack mounted ST that is "responsible" was in use at the concert. A member of the L.A. Usergroup gave a marvelous solo guitar performance accompanied only by the rack mounted ST and it was lovely. All in all, World of Atari, nestled in the Disneyland setting, coupled with the enthusiastic support of the hardware and software developers and dealers provided Southern California with a show to remember, perhaps even the finest so far.... I thank the editor of STReport, Ralph Mariano, for requesting me to represent STReport at the WOA show and write this article. Also my sincere thanks are extended to all the great folks who allowed me to interview and videotape them. * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * | | | SPECIAL OFFER ----====---- SPECIAL OFFER | | | | A VIDEO TAPE - T-120 - WORLD OF ATARI SHOW | | | | $12.95 ea | | Shipping and Handling Incl. | | | | See all the fun and faces! Attend the Concert! | | | | See why you should be at the NEXT show yourself! | | | | Send $12.95 for each copy of the VHS tape to: | | | | STReport Online Magazine | | PO Box 6672 | | Jacksonville, Florida 32205-6672 | | | | The Video tape was made by R. Sgro. | | | * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * NOTE...this is not a commercial venture the 12.95 represents the cost of the tape, duplication, mailer, postage and insurance. -------------------------------------------------------------------------- > WOA GEnie STR FOCUS¿ =================== ON SITE COVERAGE BY GENIE ========================= Reports forwarded with permission Category 11, Topic 14 Message 2 Sun Apr 23, 1989 PSINC [Mark S.] at 12:55 EDT The World of Atari show, seen through the eyes of Mark Sloatman --------------------------------------------------------------- There were two, count 'em _two_ accelerator boards for the ST. One by Fast systems has a ram cache (32K) and a 16mhz 68000. It's switchable from normal to high speed. Looks great (all surface mount) and cost: $399.00. The other one is from JRI, it only costs $99.00! Haven't seen it, but looks like it will sell well. They also have a 4096 color board, takes another video shifter. It goes for $49.95 without the shifter. The Atari looks great with all those colors. Of course software has to be modified to show them. It has a example program. Seymour Radix announced a VCR backup hardware/software product, but it was not ready for the show. It will go for $249.95. Gadgets by Small demoed the GCR, looks like it will be out in August. It' s going to be a hot product. We're doing the plastic case, so it will look nice. I did see it working, it's a real product. Dave Small's new addition (Jessie?) was cute, and liked attention just like her Dad.;-) PC DItto II made it's debut, it's a PCB that's internally installed in the ST, that has a header that fits over the 68000. It runs at about 10mhz I think, I'm not sure it uses a 8088 or a 80286. When I get to talking to Bill we rarely discuss our products . As far as software goes the neatest I saw was a hack that allows one to change resolution without rebooting! We are evaluating it. The codeheads at Codehead brought out Hotwire and Midimax. There's a demo of Hotwire in the DL's here so I won't elaborate, Midimax is a great program that provides "midi macros". You can store any number of Midi events and play them back with a single key. It is a DA, so you can use it along with sequencers etc. As far as the show goes, I was a little disappointed, with all the hype that was generated about it. There is no way that 15,000 people were going to show up, indeed the show could not have contained them if they did. At one point they were messing with the sound system and it was shrieking "Godzilla Killer Noises" and had everyone covering their ears! Great for sales. It was not a "Atari World" (on the scale of Amiga Expo, MacWorld etc.). It was a normal Atarifest, although with better than normal turnout. I asked most of the vendors what they thought, their reponses ranged from "seems like Glendale all over again" to "looks great so far!" Not wanting to end on a negative note, Most of the dealers were there, and sales seemed to be brisk. For an Atarifest, it was a success I'm sure. Oh, BTW Tweety Boards were selling like hotcakes! Mark Category 11, Topic 14 Message 3 Sun Apr 23, 1989 DARLAH [RT~SYSOP] at 13:26 EDT Here are some show tidbits that I have gathered from Sandy. I am not sure on spelling re: names so please don't take me to task. Time has been limited for Sandy thus this is all we have. Attendance seems to be at 7,000 for the 1st day of attendance. Atari Booth was REAL cramped. It is a corner booth thus access was to say very interesting. JRI is selling their genlock. They also are selling a color board with a 1200 pallet (68 on screen at the same time). Price unknown. They are selling their accelerator board for $100 In Sandy's opinion, if you have a Mega and a reason for GEnlock, it looks very good. They demo'd Genlock at the concert last night. Sam Tramiel showed STACY but when he tried to turn it on, he found out the batteries were dead. He said availability will be in July. He said August or September for the TT. Though Sandy did not get a real close look to STACY, she said it appeared to be wider than her Sharp portable. It had the same exterior color but keyboard is light creme or grey. Sam appeared surprised when he found out the batteries were dead when demoing. The LCD screen seemed to be more tv shape than the Sharp screen, but as Sandy stated, that was her impression from a distance. If Sandy remembered right, the LCD screen in it now is not the finished version. Atari will be selling the HOTZ Box with an Atari label on it. The concert last night had Mike Pender from the Moody Blues MC'ing the show and starring Jake Flader from the fusion group MAZE performing two songs from his solo album he is working on. Marc Ritter and Greg Whelchel from the POINTER SISTER's band did a short demo of how midi is used to lay down tracks. The show emphasized "ATARI and the MIDI commitment.". The score from the movie Colors went GOLD and Atari was presented with the GOLD record. The OSCAR winning BEST original score for the movie "Maligo Beanfield" was scored on an Atari. There is a movie out called "Simpatico" (Sandy was not sure of spelling) that was scored in his livingroom using the Atari. The music is in the easy listening Category. Sandy's comment, "not bad." It is supposed to be on the charts now. The author is James Lee Stanley and he performed two of the tracks at the concert. Jimmy Hotz gave a HOTZ box demo with the help of Mick Fleetwood from Fleetwood Mac. They asked for 2 volunteer drummers from the audience who never touched a keyboard. In Sandy's opinion, the HOTZ demo was interesting, but it did not explain the box or how it works at all. It is a device for people that hear the music in their head, but can't play an instrument. A clip from the movie "Colors" was shown while two guys who did the score, talked about doing it. GBS was showing their GCR. Sandy Small stated that they have a tremendous amount of pre-orders in the mail already. Her gesture made one think that they already had 3 to 4 inches of stacked preorders. It looks like this is one popular item. The booth was set up with speakers along side a real Mac. We presume they were comparing the two. Avante Garde was displaying PC-DITTO II at the show. No advanced orders are being taken at this time but it looked impressive. Sam emphasized that Atari is BACK in the US market. He explained that the chip problem was the reason they left ..but they are BACK to stay. ICD was showing their tape backup system. This girl is getting one. Ultrascript is being shown. Sandy stated that the postscript output was impressive but she needed to check if it was a 9 pin or 24 pin. The demo was done on a NEC P5200 . <-- Anyone know anything about this printer??? Sandy is going to check what dot printers they support. Gribnif was showing their latest NEODESK which displayed icons much like the MAC. If you are a ICON person, this version seems like a must. Seymour/Radix is showing a hard drive backup that goes to your VCR and uses standard VCR tapes. The price is $249.95. It backs up to 360 megs at 8 megs a minute. It uses standard RCA cables. Happy Computers is debuting a new product called Quick*Verter. Quick*Verter must be used with drives with a thru port or with an internal drive. It is toted as being a fast and reliable conversion of Macintosh disks, to and from Magic Sac, Spectre and GEM format. It also provides access to high density drives using high density drives. Shipment begins in May and list price will be $179.95 CODEHEAD was selling all their products with two different varieties of T- SHIRTS. Hey Codehead....can we buy them too??? :-) Sierra-Online is there showing videos of sections of their games. Wuztech is showing their monitor for all 3 resolutions (Omnimon). Megamax is there................ In the Atari booth is GEnie of course and Deskset, Megafile 44 (removable HD), Calamus. Astra systems, Westco Electronics debuted their Storage System One (SSI) 21.4 Bernoulli system (Ataris' is 44megs). Michtron was showing the MicroDeal line and was selling Tailspin rather quickly. Tailspin gives you the ability to create graphic adventures with using sound files from ST-Replay. They were also showing their full line. Reeve Software is showing Diamond OS though Sandy did not get a chance to really look at it. Beckemeyer Development is at the show. Sandy did not get a chance to view what they had to offer. Denny Hayes has a FAX Modem. It works as modem and fax receiver that runs at 1200 baud. It could replace your 1200 baud modem. If remembered right, this is a port over from the IBM world. GEnie was getting a great deal of interest even though access was tough. My hands off to Sandy for an excellent 1st time solo job. More on Denny Hayes Fax item....It is great unless you need to use it to send invoices and such that are only on hardcopy. In that respect, one would have to have a scanner. It sends graphics in several formats as long as they are not hardcopied only. One could send say a Degas picture etc. It warns you when you have incoming data and asks you where to send it. It could go to your printer, screen or be saved as a file. You can also set it up in the background as an accessory. Sounds like this one has my interest. :-) Category 11, Topic 14 Message 5 Sun Apr 23, 1989 DARLAH [RT~SYSOP] at 13:42 EDT Amended total for show according to Rich Tsukigi(sp) is 7400. ------------ Category 11, Topic 14 Message 6 Sun Apr 23, 1989 DARLAH [RT~SYSOP] at 13:51 EDT Ultrascript supports Deskjet, Epson FX/LX/LQ/LQ950 and compatibles. The Show price was/is $160.30 plus tax. Category 11, Topic 14 Message 7 Sun Apr 23, 1989 S.XAVIER [Sandy] at 15:07 EDT Amended report on the JRI ST4096C board. It has a color palette of 4096 colors available with the ability to put 64 colors on the screen at a time. (I think I got it right this time...I don't get out of my cage for very long at a time to check on things ) S.Xavier, aka Sandy Wilson, did a great job for all of us!! ----- ED: Remember to get your copy of the VHS Tape of this show, see offer above.. -------------------------------------------------------------------------- > Battle Hawks STR Review¿ ======================= Battle-Hawks: 1942 ================== by William Y. Baugh This weeks review comes courtesy of Lucasfilm Games; a company I grew to love on the 8-bit with Ballblazer and Rescue on Fractalus. Well, they're making a grand appearance on the ST with recent releases of Zak McKracken and now Battle-Hawks: 1942. BH is a superb arcade/simulation set in the Pacific during WWII. It covers the pivotal sea battles of the Pacific; Battle of Midway, Battle of Coral Seas, Battle of East Solomons and the Battle of Santa Cruz Island. Even though these are naval battles, the outcomes were determined by airpower. In BH, you have the opportunity to fly the carrier-based aircraft of that time, in 16 different scenarios. One time you may choose to escort wounded bombers out of the battlezone to saftey; or you may choose dive bombing or torpedo raids on the Japanese carriers. Each scenario is well thought out and in most cases, historic. There is one scenario in which you are wingman with Lt. Richard Best as he descends on his infamous bombing run on the carrier Akagi. Other scenarios deviate from the actual outcome of the battle and take on a "what if" plot line. For example, you may go on a dive bombing run on the carrier Hiryu, which was missed in the initial attack of the Americans on the Japanese fleet during the Battle of Midway. The Hiryu in turn, launched a counterattack on the American fleet and sunk the Yorktown. If you strike, and strike hard, you may change the course of history. No matter which one you choose, they are all quite enjoyable (if not frustrating...). Once the game is loaded, you are presented with a great drawing of a F4F Wildcat landing on a carrier with selection boxes blended in on the left. Moving between the boxes is accomplished by mouse or keyboard. I recommend using the keyboard during any of the pregame selections in that the mouse is a little awkward. From the selections, you may choose the training mode where you may try all of the missions, but with out the worry of being shot down, crashing, etc.. In the actual mission mode, you fly the same missions as in the training, but these are the real thing. When selecting the missions, you have the four battles mentioned earlier with four scenarios per battle, with a brief description of each scenario shown separately as you scroll through them. After selecting the mission, you are then taken to the briefing room where you'll receive a more in depth view of your mission along with the chance to change the parameters of the mission. You may choose a better plane then the one offered, change fuel consumption, select amount of ammunition, starting altitude, armor of the plane and the experience level of the enemy fighters. These factors allow you to either make the mission easier or harder. As with other simulations, BH keeps track of your kills and successful missions, giving you promotions and awards at the end of a completed mission. If you change the parameters, you forfeit the chance to receive any commendations. Once you have the set the mission to your liking, its time flame some zeros. First thing you'll notice (of course) is the cockpit. As with the planes of that period, the dash is simple with gauges for airspeed, fuel, artificial horizon, etc. You may select differing views of the sky by pressing the corresponding keys on the numeric keypad. Also, during bombing or torpedo runs, you have a tail gunner. Control of the plane is accomplished with the mouse; and I must say, accomplished very well. The game is VERY responsive. It only slows down noticibly if there are around four planes and a burning ship in view at the same time and you are firing your guns. That is to say, it doesn't happen often and usually doesn't last long. Another thing you'll notice right off is that you are immediately in the action, no waiting around for the fun to start! The graphics are great! With flaming planes, pilots bailing out, tracers, exploding ships, flak; this game has it all! You even have a nose camera to view your great air battles at later time. It's a great instant replay in that it allows you to view your latest battle at any perspective and allows you to see whether that bomb or torpedo struck the ship. The missions last anywhere from a minute to 15 depending on how long you stay alive and how many planes you have to shoot down. This brings up the unrealistic side of the game. You are the "main character" in these scenarios. You may have other planes in the air with you, but you are responsible for the entire mission along with your six. Lets say you select the mission to escort two bombers on their run. Two zeros attack, you veer off to take the lead plane, but the other sneaks by and downs the two bombers! (This happened to me). Well, you were doing your job, and the other planes do defend themselves (though not well), so you are reprimanded for a failed mission. There are other worse-case scenarios, but this just shows that you, by your lonesome, are responsible for everything. I currently have 60 kills(!) and am at Lt. Commander ranking. You may even get 9 kills in one mission! That's a little on the unrealistic side. But then again, the game is not a simulation on its own, but a very enjoyable arcade/simulation. Presently, with all this information flying around, there is one more surprise...you may play the game as the Japanese also. This creates a truly fascinating twist to the game and allows you to view the battles from the "other side". Game play stays the same but your planes and the controls do change when you play the Japanese along with rankings, awards, etc. Now, to make a great program truly fantastic is the addition of the most complete, accurate and just plain easy to read manual that I've ever seen. It's actually a shame to call it just a manual, a "Brief History of the Pacific Naval Battles" may be more in line. There are loads of historical pictures with fascinating stories to back each one, along with useful information and tips to help you along with the game. This could truly set a standard for computer manual writing. Battle-Hawks comes on two unprotected (manual protected) single-sided disks. You may either install the program on your hard drive or put both disks onto one double-sided disk. I run the program off of my hard drive and have had no problems. The program will boot from medium resolution with a full compliment of auto programs and accessories to fight with; and will exit cleanly back to the desktop. In closing, if you are looking for a truly fascinating WWII fighter game, I suggest this game highly. I think we owe Lucasfilm a huge thank you for writing for the ST and for producing such high quality software as this. Hopefully, we will see many more in the future. -------------------------------------------------------------------------- > PIRACY STR FOCUS¿ ================ PIRACY IS THEFT - PLAIN and SIMPLE ================================== PART II In the beginning, there was a computer, (8bit), rather expensive with little or no imaginative software readily available, so, naturally, the enterprising software publishers decide to take advantage of the rather virgin territory of the early Atari 8bit software market. Out came all the fancy, cellophane wrapped, superbly illustrated packages that simply enticed just about every new '800' owner to open the wallet and "go for it". The years were sweet and innocent then..the Cowboys and Denver were going to be in the Superbowl and just a few seasons before Miami had the perfect season. The software publishers back then also had a party of sorts. The reputation of the "fancy package - garbage program" came into being. Thus, the first real excuse for software theft was "justified" in the Atari community. It was a sad day for all concerned. Now comes the days of the ST and the idea that "Well, the youthful pirates are all grown up and we have a whole new crop of newfies", seemed to pop up. How many can remember the cost of some of the very early programs for the newly released ST computer? It really was rip-off city! The very same graduates from the 8bit days were given cause to pirate all over again, only this time, it appeared, with a vengeance. Thoughtfully, we say the time has come to re-evaluate the entire picture and all of us must say; "Is the try before you buy really needed?" Even we at STReport have to admit that based on what we are told about certain dealers and of course the sad fact that most software simply MUST be mail-ordered, yes ..TRY BEFORE YOU BUY IS NEEDED in some form of a demo or otherwise. Perhaps others will follow in Codehead's, SoftLogik's, ISD's and a few (very few) other's footsteps and begin to realize that a strong market for software is out there, and all that's needed is a little creative marketing to get it going. ON ANOTHER NOTE: --------------- We were especially alarmed by a certain industry executive who found it very easy to let us know that in certain respects; "one must realize that many of the users who buy Atari computers have just enough dollars for the hardware and really cannot afford to purchase the software". Understandably, this individual emphasized he would deny having said this to us. We think this type of thinking is a cleverly masked statement that allows for software theft in the Atari marketplace. Thankfully, this is not the case and should never be! Take a good look at what this guy is saying, we feel it may point to why there has not been a real effort at cleaning up the ST arena. Oh sure, the software developers want it cleaned up and most third party developers also want it done. Atari Corp. has realized this also and is actively involved in educating the userbase about the old adage of "you get what you pay for". But, based on his remark, it becomes quite easy to see where, at one time in the past, the premise that the Atari market in USA was not to be taken too seriously. That kind of thinking bordered on becoming an insane journey of self destruction. Granted, there are a number of younger and not so well heeled users in the Atari arena. However, we at STReport refuse to sell them short, they may be young and not have a pocket full of bux, but they ARE well educated and have a very high degree of "street smarts". The young people of today fully understand that to have the quality up to date software for the ST we all must share the cost and allow the developers and publishers their rightful profits. The majority of these young people are willing to go out and earn the dollars to do so. Which leads to our most recent observation, the ranks of Pirate BBS' nationwide, has actually decreased. The migration to the Amiga is one major factor, another is the education process undertaken, and lastly, the prospect of identification and exposure to the rest of the computing community is becoming a very strong factor. We never realized how many would jump up and holler "if you print that userlog...." or, "oh no, they're (STReport) gonna attack me"! Folks, we never realized how rapid the reaction would be by those in the Happy Pirate Ship's userlog. Indeed, the threat of exposure and disgrace looms large on the horizon for the 'two-faced phonies' out there. Let us hear some of your ideas on this subject. Send your letters to Ron Brunk or Lloyd Pulley. -------------------------------------------------------------------------- > DATAVID STR Tech Notes¿ ====================== by Martin Bethel Is there a place for the ST in the video production process? It would appear so by the way the good folks in the UK continue to forge ahead with new and innovative products for use in the ST marketplace. The latest in the video market is the DATAVID ST, a fine, well made add-on device that enables the ST to produce an outstandingly perfect composite video picture that is more than suitable for output to tape for commercial uses. In terms of both picture quality and stability, the Datavid ST provides a very significant improvement in quality. As to it's potential in the marketplace, one can only hope that more people will take an interest in the use of the ST in the video production process, which in turn will provoke other developers of hard and software to exploit the ST's DTV power in a way, that, as yet has really been tapped, except perhaps the notable exception, Cyber Studio. The picture of the past was somewhat dark, now, with the advent of the resurgence of Atari in the USA the brightness has returned to the picture and made it better than ever. -------------------------------------------------------------------------- > ST REPORT CONFIDENTIAL¿ ====================== - Sunnyvale, CA **** ATARI WISHES SUCCESS FOR ALL SHOWS **** ------------- After the dust had settled in Anaheim, Atari execs expressed the wishes that all the Atari oriented shows nationwide should be a resounding success. Also made clear was Atari's intentions to support these shows either by their presence or by supplying the necessary promotional materials to assist in making the shows a success. - London, UK **** KEMPSTON RELEASES HAND HELD SCANNER **** ---------- Complete with easy to use GEM based software, DAATAscan allows images to be scanned from newspapers, photographs, books etc. then saved to the most popular and widely supported graphics formats. Conversion routines are also supplied for Degas, Neochrome, TIFF and MSP formats. Bundled with this hand held scanner is Hyperpaint, the official UK Atari ST Graphics package. -Greenfield, Bedford UK **** HISOFT ANNOUNCES SPECTRE 128! **** --------------------- HiSoft confirmed the availability of Spectre 128, the MacIntosh emulator. It is available with or without the MAC 128k ROMs which have become increasingly more difficult to obtain (one reason for the delay in the UK). Hisoft will also handle the GCR which, for the UK is a few months away at this time. HiSoft plans to offer a "Spectre Superpack" of all the drivers and accessories developed for use with Spectre/GCR. - Pittsburg, CA ***** JRI LEADS THE WAY ONCE AGAIN! ***** ------------- Two new and highly praised products were added to the fine lineup from John Russell Innovations this past month, the J.A.T.O. Board and the ST 4096C Board for the Atari ST and MEGA Computers. The JATO board is a unique 8/16 mhz 68000 processor board that speeds up data processing within the 68000 CPU to 16mhz while maintaining the standard 8mhz timing with the other computer processing chips. The ST 4096C board expands the color pallette of the ST and MEGA computers from 512 to 4096 colors and is supplied with sampled software. - Jacksonville, FL **** STReport Expands Format - Adds Personnel **** ---------------- As of this past week, Ron Brunk and Lloyd Pulley have joined STReport. Mr Brunk, a Chemical Engineer and avid ST enthusiast, will head up our special features department both for our Online edition and our Hard Copy Edition. Additionally, Rocky Sgro will assume the duties as our West Coast Representative, Mr. Sgro, who provided our coverage of the Anaheim Show, is well known in the ST community and we welcome his ability and experience to the staff of STReport. Mr. Pulley, a businessman, famed for authoring Megamatic and Megamatic Jr., will manage the new "STReport Mail Call" planned to debut within two weeks. Send your mail to Lloyd - c/o STReport, via E-Mail/FNET/FIDONET or USPS to ST.REPORT PO BOX 6672, JAX FL. 32205. -------------------------------------------------------------------------- > A "QUOTABLE QUOTE"¿ ================== "TRUTH IS THE MOST VALUED COMMODITY KNOWN TO MAN" and "MORE MEN HAVE DIED IN THE PURSUIT OF TRUTH THAN GOLD" "1989 - ATARI'S QUEST" ------------------------------------------------------------------------- ST-REPORT¿Issue #85 "Your Independent News Source" April 28, 1989 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED ½ copyright 1989 ------------------------------------------------------------------------- Views, Opinions and Articles Presented herein are not necessarily those of ST Report¿ or CPU Report¿. Reprint permission granted, unless noted otherwise. All reprints must include ST Report or CPU Report and the author's name. All information presented herein is believed correct, ST Report or CPU Report, it's editors and staff are not responsible for any use or misuse of information contained in this publication. -------------------------------------------------------------------------