*---== STReport International Online Magazine ==---* """"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" "The Original 16/32bit Online Magazine" from STR Publishing """""""""""""" March 12, 1993 No.9.11 ========================================================================== STReport International Online Magazine Post Office Box 6672 Jacksonville, Florida 32205 ~ 6672 R.F. Mariano Publisher - Editor ----------------------------------------- Voice: 904-783-3319 10 AM - 4 PM EST Support BBS Network System * THE BOUNTY BBS * * TURBO BOARD BBS SYSTEM * FNET 350 ~ Fido 112:35 ~ Nest 90:21/350.0 904-786-4176 USR/HST 24hrs - 7 days 1200 - 19.2bps V.32 - 42 bis 16.8 Dual Standard FAX: 904-783-3319 12 AM - 6 AM EST ----------------------------------------- FNET.. 18 : ///Turbo Board BBS Support...1-416-274-1225 FNET.. 75 : Bloom County BBS.............1-415-965-9347 FNET. 350 : The Bounty **...1-904-786-4176 FNET. 489 : Steal Your Face BBS..........1-908-920-7981 _____________________________________________________________________ > 03/12/93 STR 911 "The Original * Independent * Online Magazine!" """""""""""""""" - The Editor's Desk - CPU Report - PORTFOLIO NEWS - Picswitch 1.01 out! - MOTOROLA 68060 - MEGAPAINT NO UG - Amiga Report - DELPHI MTOS CO. - Brochu goes MAC! - BT SPEED-UP - CTFEST'93 NEWS - STR Confidential -* TWO PIECE FALCON TO DEBUT at CeBit!?! *- -* FIRST BATCH OF US FALCONS FOR GOOD DOOBIES? *- -* FALCONS030: NOW IN APRIL ?!? *- ========================================================================== STReport International Online Magazine The Original * Independent * Online Magazine -* FEATURING WEEKLY *- "Accurate UP-TO-DATE News and Information" Current Events, Original Articles, Tips, Rumors, and Information Hardware - Software - Corporate - R & D - Imports ========================================================================== STReport's BBS, The Bounty, invites BBS systems, worldwide, to participate in the Fido/NEST/Atari F-Net Mail Network. You may also call our BBS direct at 904-786-4176, and enjoy the excitement of exchanging information relative to all computers, worldwide, through the use of excellent International Networking Systems. SysOps, worldwide, are quite welcome to join the STReport International Conferences. The Crossnet Code is #34813, and the "Lead Node" is # 350. All BBS systems are welcome and invited to actively participate. Support your favorite computers; Join Today! ========================================================================== CIS ~ DELPHI ~ BIX ~ NVN ~ GENIE ~ FIDO ~ FNET ~ NEST EURONET ~ CIX ~ CLEVELAND FREE-NET ~ INTERNET ========================================================================== ============= * ATARI EDITION * ============= COMPUSERVE WILL PRESENT $15.00 WORTH OF COMPLIMENTARY ONLINE TIME to the Readers of; ST REPORT INTERNATIONAL ONLINE MAGAZINE """"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" "The Original 16/32bit Online Magazine" NEW USERS; SIGN UP TODAY! CALL: 1-800-848-8199 .. Ask for operator 198 You will receive your complimentary time and be online in no time at all! WHAT'S NEW IN THE ATARI FORUMS (March 12) VERSION 1.0.1 of PICSWITCH The long-awaited update to PicSwitch is available for download as file PICSW1.LZH in LIBRARY 14 of the Atari Arts Forum (GO ATARIARTS). This version is completely overhauled, with an easy-to-use enhanced-GEM interface with customizable windows, Mac-like controls, and pop-up menus. Supports 20 different image formats, now including GIF, IMG, Spectrum, Prism Paint, PCX, and IFF. COMPUSERVE LOWERS CONNECT-TIME RATES Hourly connect-time rates are now lower for Standard Pricing Plan members when using extended services. The new charges are $6/hour for 300 bps, $8/hour for 1200/2400 bps and $16/hour for 9600 bps access. The monthly membership fee, which includes unlimited connect-time in more than 30 basic services, has increased $1 to $8.95 (this pricing change is not applicable in all countries). FundWatch Online by Money magazine, a powerful mutual fund screening and reporting service, is now part of basic services, which also includes CompuServe Mail, The Electronic Mall, news, weather and sports, member support services, reference and travel services. Rates for Alternative Pricing Plan members will remain at $6.30/hour for 300 bps, $12.80/hour for 1200 and 2400 bps, and $22.80/hour for 9600 bps. Also, the Membership Support Fee under the Alternative Pricing Plan increases 50 cents to $2.50. Members currently under the Standard Pricing Plan will automatically be billed at the new rates starting 28-Feb. For more information on the new rates or to join the Standard Pricing Plan, GO CHOICES. COMPUSERVE CUTS EUROPEAN SURCHARGES Members can now access via European CompuServe nodes and pay no communication surcharges during non-prime time (19:00-8:00 local time). The resulting $2.20/hour savings is in addition to the reductions in connect-time charges available for all members on the Standard Pricing Plan. For European access numbers, GO PHONES. FORUM MESSAGE CAPACITY INCREASED CompuServe has enhanced its forum software to allow an increase in the size of messages. The maximum message size was formerly 96 lines or 2,000 characters. With this change, the size increases to a maximum of 10,000 characters. Also, the message board capacity has been increased. NEW CENTIPEDE GAME FROM SCOTLAND! Download file CENTPD.LZH from LIBRARY 2 of the Atari Arts Forum (GO ATARIARTS) for an excellent shareware version of Centipede from Scotland. This game is FULL of bugs (Spiders, Flies and of course, Centipedes!) Great sound, great graphics, great fun! COLOR ONLY. RTS/CTS FLOW CONTROL FIX Download file SERFX2.LZH from LIBRARY 2 of the Atari Productivity Forum (GO ATARIPRO) for Serial Fix 2 - RTS/CTS flow control with any TOS. This patch for properly handling RTS/CTS flow control in the ST's serial port works on all TOS versions from 1.00 to 4.01. It also includes the TOS14FIX.PRG code for TOS 1.04 and 1.06 users. Use with Atari's eXtensible Control Panel (XCONTROL). SCREEN SAVERS Download file SAVER1.LZH from LIBRARY 4 of the Atari Productivity Forum (GO ATARIPRO) for a package of 6 shareware screensaver modules for Warp 9, by John Dillenburg. Modules included are Freckles, Pyro Deluxe, Random Lines, Roaming Shapes, Random Shapes, and Fractal Symmetries. LASERJET 4 DRIVER FOR PAGESTREAM 2! Download file NEWPRT.LZH from LIBRARY 11 of the Atari Vendors Forum (GO ATARIVEN) for the New HP LaserJet 4, HP DeskJet 550c, HP DeskJet 500c, and PostScript printer drivers for Pagestream 2. OPERATE PORTFOLIO FROM PC Operate your Portfolio by using the keyboard and screen of your desktop PC? Check out the file BIG.ZIP from master programmers BJ Gleason and Don Messerli, now available in LIBRARY 2 of the Atari Portfolio Forum (GO APORTFOLIO). THE ATARI PORTFOLIO FORUM ON COMPUSERVE HAS BEEN DESIGNATED AN OFFICIAL SUPPORT SITE BY ATARI CORPORATION "GO APORTFOLIO TO ACCESS THE ATARI PORTFOLIO FORUM" """"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" > From the Editor's Desk "Saying it like it is!" """""""""""""""""""""" We say we don't care about the delays at this point in time but the real truth of the matter is it really does bother us. It bothers to the point of sheer exasperation! After all, wasn't it Sam in one of his marathon online extravaganzas who made it a strong point to tell the users things would change and that the Falcon would be ontime, shipping and everything would be different. As Bill Cosby sez in his "Moses" skit. "Riiiight!" We now hear that the delay is due to a rather elusive chip. That's a good one but... we've heard that before too. Shall we start with the Blitter or go further back? Really, a few folks say 'leave Atari alone', stop picking on them'. They mean well, but I fear they have no idea about the message that would send to Atari. Using past experience as a guideline, it would give Atari the perceived indication of "its ok, don't worry about the delays all is well in the userbase". We all know this is not the case. Some are bound to jump up and say; "well if we all know then it stands to reason that Atari knows it too". Could be, but when we see statements made by Atari's mouthpiece about a shipment of Falcons going to Germany and being "sold out in a matter of hours!!!" ....that's nice sounding but did anyone stop to think about how many Falcons were actually shipped there to begin with? Was it 1000? 500? According to our information it was less than two hundred. That makes the "sold out ganzamagilla" much less than it appeared to be at the time it was boastingly exclaimed. In fact, it magnified a rather low number of units being delivered. Truly a marvelous use of words. Again, if the same creative efforts were placed in production and marketing, the Falcon would, in all probabilities, be shipping 'round the world by now. Once again we hear all the hype about many, many, people interested in signing up as _new_ Atari dealers ... really? One can't help but wonder how these newfies are going to be held onto when they find they bought into delays, excuses and eloquent word usage. The bottom line is at hand once again... instead of describing all the reasons for delays etc.. get the job done already. The credibility of the company is now the last bastion of defense. Or, is it? Is there really any credibility left? Please, don't tell us anymore about the labor, show us the baby already! Ralph @ STReport International Online Magazine """"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" STReport's Staff DEDICATED TO SERVING YOU! """""""""""""""" Publisher - Editor """""""""""""""""" Ralph F. Mariano PC DIVISION AMIGA DIVISION MAC DIVISION ----------- -------------- ------------ Roger D. Stevens Charles Hill R. ALBRITTON STReport Staff Editors: """"""""""""""""""""""" Dana P. Jacobson Michael Arthur John Deegan Lucien Oppler Brad Martin Judith Hamner John Szczepanik Dan Stidham Joseph Mirando Steve Spivey Doyle C. Helms Lloyd E. Pulley, Editor Emeritus Contributing Correspondents: """""""""""""""""""""""""""" Michael Lee Richard Covert Scott Birch Brian Converse Oliver Steinmeier Tim Holt Andrew Learner Norman Boucher Harry Steele Clemens Chin Neil Bradley Eric Jerue Ron Deal Robert Dean Ed Westhusing James Nolan Vernon W. Smith Bruno Puglia IMPORTANT NOTICE """""""""""""""" Please, submit letters to the editor, articles, reviews, etc... via E-Mail to: Compuserve.................... 70007,4454 Delphi........................ RMARIANO BIX........................... RMARIANO FIDONET....................... 112/35 FNET.......................... NODE 350 NEST.......................... 90:21/350.0 GEnie......................... ST-REPORT """"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" STR'S "BELIEVE IT? OR.. WHAT?" <>###############################<> "There is no comparison! The Atari Falcon is far superior to the PC platform." Sam Tramiel, 08/92 "My new office, which has a better view than my old one, is so far quite satisfactory. And Richard Miller is in my old office. The Forbes article was a mish-mash and misconstrued article full of half truths. We are anxiously awaiting the release of the Atari Falcon to bring us back to the forefront. The article has given us some laughs, but otherwise has not affected us." Sam Tramiel, 08/92 "As I said before, all marketing announcements will be made at Duesseldorf. I will not comment on future models of the Falcon. WE ARE TALKING TODAY ABOUT A MACHINE..... WHICH WILL BE SHIPPING NEXT WEEK." Sam Tramiel, 08/92 "I've just returned from Asia, where I saw the first Atari Falcon production coming off the lines. Let's hope this new offering will make it in North America. I know that the specs are great." Sam Tramiel, 08/92 "We have not yet even given the machine to the FCC. And we are only applying for Class B approval. According to our "experts", it should pass Class B." Sam Tramiel, 08/92 "...... We are not working for Wall Street but to make money for our shareholders and only think long term." Sam Tramiel, 11/92 psssst. FYI.... The Shareholder's equity is fine.... NOT! The Stock is hovering around $1.12 CHRISTMAS '92 has COME and GONE... FALCONS ....anyone? By the Way.... Does the Falcon work well with any... of the SLM Laser Printers?? NOPE! NOT YET! """"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" > ONLINE WEEKLY STReport OnLine The wires are a hummin'! """"""""""""""""""""""""""""" PEOPLE... ARE TALKING ===================== On CompuServe ------------- compiled by Joe Mirando 73637,2262 Howdy neighbors. I was just amusing myself with a mental picture of Alexander Graham Bell (did you know that this past Thursday was the anniversary of the invention of the telephone?) typing "Watson, come here. I want you" into a keyboard and sending it via modem to someone in another country instead of using his now famous invention with someone in another room. Hey, I didn't say that it was profound or anything, just that it amused me. Well, at any rate, there are plenty of questions and answers waiting for us in the Atari Forums on CompuServe so let's get busy (no circular arm movements, please). From The Atari Productivity Forum ================================= Speaking of other countries, Chris Gray reports from Belgium: "My local Atari dealer says he expects to start receiving Falcons in a week's time. But first he has to go to a _compulsory_ seminar Atari Benelux. So that's the situation in Belgium. Thought you'd all be dying to know..." Master Sysop Bob Retelle tells Chris: "Chris... that sounds pretty positive... especially the part about the dealer having to attend a seminar... Sounds a lot better than just dumping a machine as advanced as the Falcon is on a dealer and hoping he'll be able to fully explain all its features..! Be sure to let us know when you actually get to see a Falcon at your dealer..!" Well, the news just keeps getting better. Larry Green adds: "In the UK, some of the bigger PC (dedicated) shops in London have the Falcon the their window! They seem pretty keen on the machine, never ever thought that I would see an Atari badge in their showroom!" Meanwhile, Haj Baxter asks: "For anyone who might know something like this, Say you're working in a ram disk and you leave reading a file or doing a program. (go ahead, say it.) When you bail out, the screen immediately redraws the ramdisk but it takes forever (in dog milliseconds) to read the disk and redraw the A/ window. Is there some command that will tell the re-draw to ignore the disk and just deal with the ram disk?" Again, Sysop Bob Retelle jumps in to save the proverbial day: "The desktop is always restored to the same condition it was in when you last left it.. if you ran the program from the A: drive, then the desktop will redraw the A: window that was open.. I know the feeling you were talking about, of having to wait while the floppy disk is re-read so the desktop can display its window, but the only way I know of to avoid that happening is to close the window." Jim Ness adds: "I haven't tried it, but the recent Fat Cache upload here may allow an immediate update of the floppy window, if it truly caches the fat of ALL drives." Phil Jensen answers the FatCache question: "Sorry, but for reasons of safety FATCACHE does not do anything with floppy drives. It was more hassle than Tim or I wanted to deal with to take care of invalidating all cached blocks on change of media. (I'm one of those who thinks that the Mac scheme of having to ask the system to eject your floppy, annoying though it may be at times, is preferable.)" Dick Paddock tells Phil: "Interesting thought, the Mac approach. I always believed the computer version of the old saying, "the job's not done until the paperwork is finished," the fat update being the paperwork in this case. So what does the Mac do when the power drops? I realize that the power dropping DURING a write of any kind to the disk is disaster, but what if the job isn't done yet? The chances of that are much greater in the Mac's case, for sure." Mike Mortilla from ZNET Online tells Haj: "There is a set of utilities from Atari which are available in this {forums library, one of which is the CACHEXXX.PRG that you run from the AUTO folder. Once you read the directory (depending on memory available and how you set up the program) it remembers the directory and the desktop pops up in a flash! You might need TOS 1.4 to use this, but there might be a prog for your TOS. Jim Ness, I think, suggested a similar solution." Clive Parker of ST Format comes up with an easier way around the slowdown: "Run the program from the RAM disk and close the A:\ window before you start the program. If the A:\ window is closed before you start the E not try to reread the directory of disk A.." Well, I guess we've all seen it: A new user, being unsure about what all these new initials mean, asks about running DOS programs on an ST. (at this point the band breaks into a rousing rendition of The Beach Boys' Wouldn't It Be Nice). Don Katzman posts: "Sorry to ask a novice question here, but is there any way to let an ATARI STE series machine support Microsoft DOS applications (or even the OS itself? If so, how-and what version of MS DOS are supported?" Another mainstay of the ST forums here on CompuServe, Albert Dayes of Atari Explorer Magazine, tells Don: "A product like Ad-SPEED which is an intel cpu on a daughterboard. It plugs into the 68000 cpu slot I think. Or there is another external one that plugs into the dma port on the back of the Atari. I assume that both support at least DOS 3.3 and above." Dick Paddock adds: "If you can get it, Talon's SuperCharger (the one Alan mentioned, the external plug-in) ships with DOS 4.01. At least the one I have did. Strangely, I haven't tried DOS 5.0 on it. Must give it a try sometime." *** Editors Note: I cannot recommend installing DOS 5.0 on the SuperCharger. I have tried it several times and each time it has wiped out my hard drive partition (and once, the entire drive. Thank goodness for backups). *** What is it about the human mind that causes us to constantly compare "ours" and "theirs"? I don't know what it is, but it happens millions of times every day and not just in the computer world. But since this is a computer-users column, I'll stick with that. Intel's latest chip, the Pentium (also called the '586 or P5) is supposed to have some amazing capabilities. Tim Rule tells us: "I don't know from any reliable source but several clone manufacturers have been blabbing about how you will be able to upgrade their now 486 machines to P5 and then dual P5. There has certainly been some investigation into running these chips in parallel, though that may be just what it is, two separate processors running together. This concept is not new, we had it even with the BBC computers, popular in the UK a while back. Either one processor acts as a slave for the other, being delegated tasks, or a third unit oversees and delegates the whole lot. The motorola technology is different, the 060 will be able to connect up to other units, including other 060's, all co-operating together. This concept is that of the transputer, parallel processing, including but not exclusively running several tasks simultaneously. There is quite an important difference. Think of how a computer can run two tasks simultaneously. You could have one processor doing printing whilst another runs a wordprocessing application. But in this case the one doing the printing may not be fully employed, having to wait for the printer to catch up, and the other will spend a lot of the time waiting for input from you. In a transputer situation processor time would not be wasted in this way as both units are co-operating to run both applications. I don't know if the intel P5 will include transputer capabilities or not." Sysop Bob Retelle tells Tim: "I haven't read any of the details yet on how the P5 will be interconnected in large installations, but one short overview I read said that it will be used in applications ranging from "simple" one CPU desktop computers to large mainframe computers using arrays of Pentium chips. I'd assume that there would be some kind of true multiprocessor capability designed in to give it transputer-like power if it's going to be used like that..." Tim Rule also had a technical question about MultiDesk Deluxe from CodeHead Technologies: "I don't know how multidesk works but aren't you going to get terribly fragmented memory if you load an ACC on top of a program. When you exit the program the ACC will still be using a chunk of memory, right in the middle of the free memory for the next program you want to run. Result, no memory block large enough for your new program. Even if you have loads of RAM, the memory will eventually get unusable. One thing I can think of, but depends on how multidesk works, is that if Multidesk grabbed a block of memory at bootup, like all ACCs, and then used it to load other ACCs into. If this is the way it works than I won't get it as I can't spare RAM to be used like this. I tried an ACC which then loads other ACCs like this myself. It grabbed a configurable buffer size at bootup and then you could load other ACCs into this. I didn't like this so I tried getting the ACC to load a program which used malloc to grab a memory block and load in another ACC to that. The result, apart from loads of bugs, fragmented memory." Sysop Bill Aycock explains the genius of MultiDesk: "MultiDesk Deluxe basically grabs a hunk of memory (you specify the amount) at bootup, and loads ACCs into it. However, it doesn't need to grab enough to load all your ACCs at once... You can load ACCs two different ways, as Resident or Non-resident. There's a separate area for each type. Resident ACCs are loaded when MD starts up, and remain, er, resident . However, NON_resident ACCs are only loaded on demand... they go into your non-resident buffer, you use them, and when you exit the buffer is available for the next ACC you want. So really, all you need to do is reserve enough memory for the largest ACC you want to use. (I haven't seen many that want more than 100k.) It seems to be the most flexible way to handle ACCs, and of course it's a solid, mature product that works right." Tim also posts: "Dunno if Atari thinks they can make a res change on the fly but I don't. Atari programmers don't stick to conventions enough. Every program running which uses the screen or vblank interrupt would have to be informed of the change and would have to have code to handle it, re-initialising screen redraw routines etc. On a Mac you could expect that sort of compliance with the rules but Atari didn't even bother to include the res change message in GEM. If they had done that in the beginning, an event to change res, then there would now be third party res change utilities and I am sure Atari would have included it in TOS 2. You could try an on-the-fly which would work from the desktop without any programs loaded, but you'd need to disassemble the desktop code and work out patches for each ROM version. There would be trouble with ACCs though." Alex Kiernan puts it well when he posts: "Under GEM a 101% legal program couldn't be expected to cope with an on-the-fly res change, think about the way resource files are loaded... On a rsrc_load() character co-ords get changed to pixel co-ords which are by their nature rez dependent. Perhaps you could cope with TT medium to ST high, but say ST high to ST medium would blow things away big time. Given a res-change message you could probably do it, but I s'pect it'd be real hard work. On the Mac you don't have to worry about bizarre pixel aspect ratios, (almost?) every device has a 1:1 pixel ratio." From The Atari ST Arts Forum ============================ Hal Doughterty tells us how to view all of those nifty GIF picture files: "If you download the PhotoChrome program you can convert all the .GIF files you can find. If you want some other pictures, just let me know and I'll upload the 4096 color Amiga files or the 256 color .GIF files. You can see them on the ST with about 90% of the effect on the other computers. They get squeezed down from 640-400 to 320-200, but they don't lose as much as you would expect." On the subject of Atari "crippling" or "hobbling" certain models to prevent user/dealer hardware upgrades, Bob Retelle posts: "I...have never seen the "modified" Mega 2 motherboard... I'm going on "eyewitness" reports from people who have said that the board was identical to the previous boards, but with the second bank of RAM positions removed, one of whom used to be the local "Atari Fixit Wizard"... (I knew things were bad when I went to a computer swap show and he was selling all his Atari diagnostic tools... :( I suppose it really doesn't matter one way or the other... but... considering the number of units sold, if it WAS to force buying a Mega 4 instead of upgrading a Mega 2, I wonder if they ever made back the costs of the modification..." From our "Blast From The Past" department, Dazzz Smith mentions: "...Sir Clive Sinclair's quote when he was talking about the just released Sinclair ZX81, "It can be used to run a power station". This was of course a new computer with a full 1k of memory built in!" Aidan Heritage tells Dazzz: "And it was my first computer - How well I remember it. Tell you one thing, the programs for it were amazing - and made sensible use of memory. With only 16K to play with (and then only if you had a ram pack) you had to use memory with care. These days, the smallest utility seems to guzzle memory!" From The Atari Vendors Forum ============================ From our "The Grass ISN'T Always Greener On The Other Side Of The Fence" department Charles Carpenter posts: "I have recently switched from a TT030 to an IBM 486 compatible with Windows. I soon realized how spoiled I became as a PageStream user and am having difficulty figuring out which Windows program comes close. Does anyone here have experience on the Windows platform who might be able to steer me in the right direction...?!" Mike Mortilla of ZNET Online tells Charles: "You could always buy a gemulator (a board that allows you to emulate an ST). Not only could you keep PageStream, but all the other great stuff that can only be had with TOS." Charles replies to Mike: "I've looked into that. I need to learn about product to recommend to others. I might be able to get along with a Gemulator and PgS just fine, but would not feel comfortable recommending a board which emulates another computer which will run a certain DTP product. The business operation I'm dealing with would not understand what the heck was going on and would certainly not recommend my services to others. Thanks for your suggestion, but it wasn't the type of information I requested." John Amsler asks Charles F. Johnson of CodeHead Technologies about Megapaint: "Are there any modules, utilities, or whatever that will allow MegaPaint II to import/edit TIFF files? Are there any plans for such upgrades in the future?" Charles replies: "Sorry, there's no module to import TIFF graphics into MegaPaint. That is on the to-do list, but to be honest the sales of MegaPaint have been so disappointing that new modules have a pretty low priority at present. (And by the way, our last word from the German developers was that they planned no more upgrades to the Atari version.)" John replies to Charles' reply: "That's what I was afraid of. Of course, if they're already adopting the position of "no more upgrades" then there's no reason for people to buy the product in the first place! (But I understand their position, believe me.) MegaPaint II is a magnificent (and FAST) program. Is there anything like it on the Mac or IBM? Maybe, but at the same cost as the MegaPaint II? It seems like Atari computers are getting "orphaner" every day." Charles tells John: "Yes, that's correct. Unfortunately, we aren't the developers of the program; we simply imported it and distributed it. But we did expect at least a little bit better sales than it has had. (We barely paid for the ads we ran.) You're right, it's really powerful and REALLY fast. The developers of MegaPaint now have a Windows version of the program on which they're concentrating their energies." John adds: "That sounds EXACTLY like what happened to ChessMaster, Falcon, WordPerfect, and a host of other software: no ST sales, so the developers say, "To hell with you Atari; hello, MS-DOS!" It's sickening: such an outstanding machine, its potential wasted, its glory stolen by such a PC [_P_iece of _C_rap ]. (Oh, yes, I know you guys were the importer and not the developer. And, like I said, I understand the developer's position: if there are no sales, there will be no development.) THANKS!!, to you and John, for sticking with supporting the Atari users during these "dark" times." Charles finishes up with this post: "It's hard to blame anyone for wanting to make a living, and put food on the table. This is something that's getting increasingly harder for Atari developers to do. I'm very glad that I have an alternate source of income (as a professional musician). Atari's made a real mess of things in the US." Nathan Potechin of DMC (the Calamus people) posts: "I am currently working on a new customer mailout, to bring everyone up to date. Believe it or not, many registered Calamus owners do not own modems. ;-) Although I will not discuss the products in depth until their release, I can say that we will be releasing: Outline Art 3.0, Mask Module, Curve and Line Module, update to Dataformer, 350 new original typesetters fonts from the world-famous Berthold Font Foundry, Toolbox Module with a new Clipboard extension, MT-Scan for Microtek Scanners, HPIV printer drivers, Service Bureau announcement, HP550C printer driver AND an import driver for Kodak Photo CD, all 5 formats. A few other products may or may not be ready by the time we do this mailout so I'll most likely save them for the next." From The Atari Portfolio Forum ============================== Mark Gordon posts: "I was given a new portfolio as a going away present (I just moved to St. Louis). I know this is a subjective question but I want to know what people feel are the essential peripherals to make the portfolio useful. For example; ac adaptor, parallel port, serial port, ram card(s), memory expansion, programs, etc. Also, should I get the expanded spiral manual? Also, also, can I use rechargable batteries? Also, also, also, any stores in St. Louis that carry these things our do I have to go mail order." David Stewart tells Mark: "In my humble opinion as owner of the company, I think that Re:Port newsletter is invaluable for a Portfolio user ... but after that, you'll probably want a parallel interface at the very least, so you can hook up to a printer and a PC. Also, a RAM card of any size (preferably as big as you can afford) is a definite must-have. After that, a PC Card Drive is the best for transferring files if you have a desktop PC. If you'd like more information on how to order any of these things, leave me your address in email, and I will send a brochure and a mail-order price list." Mark Reeves adds: "This is just my opinion, get a serial interface, once you get it going, it is much much better and faster and more useful than the par. interface. Avoid the recharge batteries, not really worth it and the lower voltage 3.75 vs 4,5 for fresh batteries may cause problems. Get a power adapter, very useful. Do not get any ram cards get one of the 524k flash cards from optrol, best since sliced bread (I'm biased) in that respect. This card has 524k of flash memory, 128k of ram, 10 year data retention time, and never needs batteries, and its the same price as a 128k ram card. If you need more info let me know.." Sysop Ron Luks talks about the status of the Portfolio in the "Technological Meat Market": "Atari has not abandoned the Portfolio. You can still get parts and service and Atari sells some commercial software for it. We have a wealth of software available for downloading from this forum, as well as a steady stream of new files from overseas. Thats the good news. The bad news is that while Atari has not dropped the Portfolio, they seem to have no interest in enhancing or improving it or replacing it with more powerful models. They seem to have adopted the low end niche market and are competing strictly on a price basis. As newer, more powerful models come out from the competition, Atari just sells the Portfolio cheaper. I also know of no NEW pieces of software especially for the Portfolio under development by Atari Corp. I'd say that if the Portfolio satisfies your needs in its present state, its a good value. If you are looking for a product that will grow with you as your needs/desires grow, or if you are looking for a product with a clear upgrade path, thats a very weak aspect of the unit... The keyboard on the Portfolio is one of the very best-- at any price. Understand, there are better keyboards, but not in this size range. I rate the keyboard as the Portfolio's best feature. Battery life if pretty good. It depends on use, of course, and which peripherals are connected to it, but you can get a couple of weeks out of a set of batteries." Well folks, that's it for this week. C'mon back next time and sit back in that comfortable chair, kick your shoes off, relax a bit and listen to what they are saying when... People Are Talking _______________________________________________________________ > AMIGA REPORT ALIVE & WELL! STR InfoFile """"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE March 11, 1993 New Online Magazine Debuts for the Amiga! A new online magazine for the Amiga line of personal computers will debut on Friday, March 19. The magazine will contain much of which you would find in a real, paper based magazine reviews, columns, editorials, letters, etc. We will also publish highlights of the major topics of discussion from the online services, and cover the newest uploads. Amiga Report will be a weekly publication, released each Friday evening. It will be available on most of the major online services, (GEnie, CompuServe, Delphi, NVN). Additionally, Amiga Report can be obtained from The Bounty BBS, Home of STR Publications, 904-786-41767 USR DS 16.8 and on the Amiga Report headquarters BBS, The Nova BBS FidoNet node 1:362/508, 615-472-9748 USR HST. Amiga Report is the sister publication of STReport, a long running online magazine for the Atari ST computers. Both magazines will be published by Ralph F. Mariano of STR Publications, who is also the founder of STR Publications and senior editor of STReport. The staff of Amiga Report includes Robert Glover (Editor), Micah Thompson (Technical Editor), Mike Troxell (Graphics/Animation Editor), and Tom Mulcahy (Contributing Editor). *********************************************************************** IMPORTANT NOTICE! ================= STReport International Online Magazine is available every week in the ST Advantage on DELPHI. STReport readers are invited to join DELPHI and become a part of the friendly community of Atari enthusiasts there. SIGNING UP WITH DELPHI ====================== Using a personal computer and modem, members worldwide access DELPHI services via a local phone call JOIN -- DELPHI -------------- Via modem, dial up DELPHI at 1-800-695-4002 then... When connected, press RETURN once or twice and... At Password: type STREPORT and press RETURN. DELPHI's Basic Plan offers access for only $6.00 per hour, for any baud rate. The $5.95 monthly fee includes your first hour online. For more information, call: DELPHI Member Services at 1-800-544-4005 DELPHI is a service of General Videotex Corporation of Cambridge, MA. Try DELPHI for $1 an hour! For a limited time, you can become a trial member of DELPHI, and receive 5 hours of evening and weekend access during this month for only $5. If you're not satisfied, simply cancel your account before the end of the calendar month with no further obligation. If you keep your account active, you will automatically be enrolled in DELPHI's 10/4 Basic Plan, where you can use up to 4 weekend and evening hours a month for a minimum $10 monthly charge, with additional hours available at $3.96. But hurry, this special trial offer will expire soon! To take advantage of this limited offer, use your modem to dial 1-800-365-4636. Press once or twice. When you get the Password: prompt, type IP26 and press again. Then, just answer the questions and within a day or two, you'll officially be a member of DELPHI! TOP TEN DOWNLOADS (3/10/93) --------------------------- STREPORT 9.10 ATARI EXPLORER ONLINE SPEED OF LIGHT GIF VIEWER FRACLAND.LZH STZIP 2.2 INSECT.LZH DMBANNER COMPUTER COMPARISON ATARI POWER USER MAGAZINE TERADESK 1.30 All of the above files can be found in the RECENT ARRIVALS database for at least one week after the posting of this list. Please Note that in the case of online magazines, only the most current issue in the database at the time of this compilation is considered for the Top 10 list. Also, for all files, a submission is eligible for the Top 10 list for only four weeks after its original uploading. DELPHI- It's getting better all the time! *********************************************************************** > MTOS CONFERENCE STR Feature From DELPHI's Atari Advantage """"""""""""""""""""""""""" Official Transcript - MTOS Formal Conference DELPHI's Atari Advantage Tuesday, March 9th, 1993 .Gordie> Welcome to DELPHI's Atari Advantage, and tonight's special Formal Conference. The topic tonight is MultiTOS, and we have with us some Atari staffers who can tell us everything we want to know about MTOS. I'd like to welcome John Townsend back to DELPHI after an absence of a couple years. And, I'd like to welcome Eric Smith to our friendly little community for the first time. And, it's always nice to have Bob Brodie with us. For those of you who don't get out much, Eric is the author of MiNT, the basis for MultiTOS. MiNT originally stood for MiNT is Not TOS, but has evolved into MiNT is Now TOS. John is a longtime TOS programmer, and between the two of them, they know MTOS better than any other two people. Maybe any other 5 people... I want to remind everyone that this is a Formal Conference tonight, so you'll have to use the /q command to ask a question or make a comment. That said, let me turn things over to Bob, who will give us an overview of MTOS, and how it works. Bob? .Bob @ Atari> Once again, I'm delighted to be here on Delphi! It's been quite a while since COMDEX when I last participated in a formal live CO here! Our correspondent for Atari Explorer Online Magazine, Andreas Barbiero has been instrumental in encouraging us to arrange tonight's CO here on Delphi, along with Gordie Meyer of the Atari Advantage SIG. Thanks to both of you for your efforts at making this evening possible!! Tonight, I'm pleased to welcome two of the engineers from our software group, Eric Smith and John Townsend to join us online to discuss MultiTOS. I know that you're all very anxious to hear as much as possible about the capabilities of MultiTOS, and Eric and John are well equipped to answer those questions about MultiTOS. As many of your may know, Eric developed a program called MiNT (which stood for Mint is NOT TOS). Originally, MiNT didn't multitask with GEM applications, but rather gave users a multi-tasking environment to operate TOS applications from. MiNT is now incorporated into MultiTOS, and has changed dramatically since Eric first wrote it. Obviously, we were impressed enough with his efforts to offer him a position within Atari! Tonight, Eric is using the Ataritech account here on Delphi. John Townsend has been with Atari over five years now, and has been an important member of the software engineering group during the last 3 years of his tenure with us. John has also been one of our stalwart online support people as well, and I know that he's excited to be here with us tonight on Delphi!! John is using the AtariCorp account tonight! Before we begin with the MultiTOS portion of our CO, I'm sure that you are all very interested in the status of the delivery schedule for the Atari Falcon030 here in the US. We have had a small setback in the manufacturing of the unit. One of our suppliers is running about 10 days behind in providing us with a couple of components that we need for the US machines. This means that the machines will probably arrive in late March to early April. We expect to be able to provide our dealers with demo units this month, and quickly follow that up with a better supply of units that can be sold to the public. All of the units that we will have during the month of March will be configured with four megs of ram, and sixty-five megabyte hard disks. The reception that we've had for the machines has been nothing short of sensational!! The phone has been ringing constantly, with many, many people interested in signing up as Atari dealers. As you might expect, a significant amount of interest is coming from the music field, as few other computer systems can match the digital sound capabilities of the Atari Falcon030 right out of the box!! We have enough orders in hand that we expect to be sold out quickly. This is the same type of reception that the Falcon030 has gotten in the rest of the world, for instance in Germany, where it was literally sold out in a matter of hours!!! Much of our efforts here in Sunnyvale over the course of the last month has revolved around finalizing plans for dealer agreements. It is our hope that we'll be able to restore the value of an Atari dealership, and help the dealers be able to be more profitable. We will be soon going over the new arrangements with all of our current dealers, as we release the pricing, and other sales related information to our current dealers. This means that we will be speaking to every one of our existing dealers, either directly ourselves or via one of our rep firms. Among the very firm requirements that we will have is that the dealer must have a storefront in order to sell the Atari Falcon030. Now, we'd like to tell you a little bit about MultiTOS! After all, that's the main thrust of our visit tonight here on Delphi is to discuss MultiTOS with you! MultiTOS provides your Atari computer with multitasking, the ability to run more than one application at a time. Since your computer spends much of its time waiting for user input, multitasking makes more efficient use of processing power--when one application, say, your word processor, is waiting for input, the rest of your computer's attention is turned to other tasks. MultiTOS includes several important features that make multitasking reliable and efficient. Adaptive prioritization gives the most processing power to the most important program running-- the word processor you're typing into receives higher priority than the processor-hungry compression program running simultaneously in the background. Memory protection prevents one program from interfering with another active program's data in memory. And if one program quits unexpectedly or "crashes," MultiTOS protects other applications, which continue to run; only in the most extreme circumstances will you need to restart your computer. MultiTOS runs existing, correctly-written TOS programs--as many as your computer's memory allows. Some programs are already being upgraded to take advantage of MultiTOS features, and more programs written especially for MultiTOS are on their way, from Atari and third-party companies. MultiTOS can run as many programs simultaneously as will fit in memory; GEM programs, Desk Accessories, and TOS programs can all peacefully coexist under MultiTOS. You can move from one to the other, using whichever you need. When one program is busy, you can set it aside and work on something else until it's done. When you finish with a program and exit it, the memory it occupied is freed for other tasks. All running programs share the screen, each putting up its own windows; with several programs running, windows may overlap or be hidden altogether by one another. The application that receives input, like keystrokes, from you is called the foreground or topped application, and other programs running simultaneously are background, or untopped applications. Unlike TOS, MultiTOS allows you to operate any window's gadgets to move, resize, or scroll the window, even if the window is not topped. When you click within a window (but not on its gadgets), that window is topped, and so is the application that owns it. The topped application's menu bar is displayed, unless it doesn't have a menu bar--in that case, the menu bar is unchanged. Running GEM programs under MultiTOS is straightforward: simply double-click the program's icon. The MultiTOS Distribution Kit includes two simple GEM programs, "Clock" and "Lines." Double-click on CLOCK.APP, and an analog clock appears in a window, but the Desktop's icons and menu bar are still visible. Double-click on LINES.APP, and a graphics demonstration appears in a window. Resize the Lines window so that you can see the clock and some of the Desktop. Both programs and the Desktop are running simultaneously! From here, you can run still other programs, or perform Desktop operations like file copies. As with TOS, you can access your Desk Accessories from the "Desk" menu. Unlike TOS, MultiTOS can load Desk Accessories as you need them. Double-click on a ".ACC" file to run it, just as you would another GEM application. You may want to keep only the essential Accessories loaded at all times, and load others when needed. You can do this by putting your ".ACC" files in a directory other than the root of drive C:\. TOS programs present a special problem for multitasking, because they usually assume they are the only programs running, and that they have the whole screen to themselves. Since TOS programs don't know how to share the screen, MultiTOS does it for them, by giving them their own "screen," within a window. When you double-click a ".TOS" or ".TTP" program, MultiTOS runs another program, "MINIWIN," which sets up a window in which the TOS program runs. MINIWIN lets you select the size of the window TOS programs are given, and the font they use. You can change this information by choosing "Configure..." in the leftmost menu when running a TOS program. Note: TOS programs assume they're using a "monospaced" font, where all characters are the same width. MINIWIN allows you to choose "proportionally spaced" fonts, where a "w" is wider than an "i," for example. If you choose a proportionally spaced font, the program may look strange, but is otherwise fine. When several applications are running, the topped application presents its menu bar and receives your keystrokes. The others are in the background, where you can still move and resize their windows, but you can't click on their menus or give them keyboard commands. MultiTOS provides several ways to manage all the applications you may have running, and to choose which of them is topped. The leftmost menu in the menu bar is called the "Desk" menu, because that's what it's called when the Desktop is topped. When another MultiTOS-friendly application is run, and the application has its own menu bar, the application's name replaces "Desk" in the menu bar--this is one way to tell which program is topped. Some older applications will not do this, but will otherwise work fine. The Desk menu contains the names of all installed Desk Accessories and below, the names of all applications currently running, with the topped application indicated by a checkmark. You can top another program by clicking on its name in this menu; its windows (if it has any) spring to the front, and its menu bar (if it has one) appears. You can run as many programs as your available memory allows, but there are reasons why you may not want to. Often, there is very little difference in system performance with several programs running, since many of these programs are just waiting for input. When programs are actively processing, or reading and writing data on a disk, they consume more of your Atari's processing power. You may be tempted to leave things running in the background because it's so easy, but if they make too many demands on the system, performance will suffer. It's best to shut down any programs you're not planning to use, just as you would exit them in TOS. This makes the most memory and "computing horsepower" available for the programs you really need. Experiment, and see what combinations of programs work well together. Shut programs down with MultiTOS the same way you would with TOS: save whatever you're working on, then select "Quit," click the "close" gadget on a window, type "exit," or whatever. This gives the program a chance to save and close any files it has open and exit cleanly, returning your computer to its normal state. As always, it's best to save your work and exit from all running applications before restarting or turning your computer off. Occasionally, a program may "hang" in a state where it is no longer running correctly, but does not exit. When this happens, you can shut the program down from the Desktop. Select "Install Devices" under the "Options" menu, then open drive U:\, and then the "PROC" folder. This folder contains "files" that represent all the programs currently running under MultiTOS, along with parts of MultiTOS itself. To stop or "kill" a program, simply drag it to the trash. Be very careful with this technique. Kill only programs which have not responded otherwise, or are otherwise behaving incorrectly. Be careful what you throw away, because it is possible to shut down a part of MultiTOS itself, after which it can be difficult to recover without restarting. If you aren't sure what something is, don't kill it. Although Atari has made every effort to accomodate even ill-behaved TOS programs, you may occasionally encounter programs that are not compatible with MultiTOS. These programs may "crash," (exit unexpectedly) or "hang," (keep running without accepting input, refusing to exit). Usually when this happens, MultiTOS continues unharmed, along with any other programs running at the time of the crash. Sometimes, if a program crashes in an especially spectacular way, it can interfere with other parts of MultiTOS operation, or other programs. If you see error messages on your screen, or if you notice peculiar behavior from other programs, save your work and reboot your computer. Try to isolate the problem to the particular program and action that caused the crash, and report the problem to the program's authors or publisher. When you encounter a program which doesn't run under MultiTOS under any circumstances but you need to run nevertheless, you can temporarily disable MultiTOS, and restart your computer with TOS. To do this, save any work in progress, shut down any running applications, and restart your computer. You can use the Reset button, or hold down and and press . Immediately after restarting, hold down the left key. You will be asked, "Load MultiTOS? (y)es (n)o." Press the key, and your computer will start up without MultiTOS. With the power of MultiTOS comes responsibility. Since some older programs expect to be the only thing running, they may not guard against some things which can happen "when their backs are turned." You can avoid these problems by not using one program or the Desktop to interfere with another active program. For example, don't move configuration or open document files for your word processor while it's running; the program may assume the files are in their original place, and behave unpredictably. Similarly, be careful with programs that manipulate disk data directly; don't run a hard disk defragmentation program in the background and save a file to the same disk, or the results could be unpleasant. As more MultiTOS-aware programs become available, these problems will be minimized. It was hoped that we would be able to simply upload MultiTOS to the online networks, and "allow nature to take it's course." During the course of that discussion, it was pointed out that we have an arrangement that requires the payment of a royalty for each copy of GEM that we sell, which makes the uploading of MultiTOS impossible to do. Pricing on MultiTOS hasn't been set, but it would not be unreasonable for you to expect it to be selling at a suggested list price of $75 US. At this point, we're ready to take on all your questions about MultiTOS, or any other Atari specific topic that you might want to ask about. .Gordie> Okay, I've got about 4 questions up already, so if anyone else has one, use the /q to get it in. Bill has a question about pricing... .Bill in ATL> Thanks Bob, I am indeed excited about the MultiTos as everyone else. And was curious as to whether the dealers would be the first or would that be strictly a distributorship handling affair. ga .Bob @ Atari> The first people that we will be dealing with is the dealers. We are crafting a separate agreement with the distributors. ga .Bill in ATL> Thanks, and I hope to be one of those shortly. .Gordie> Next is a question from Hudson about TOS versions... .Hudson> Will Multi_TOS work with all versions of TOS? .Eric @ Atari> It should work, but we haven't tested it with TOS 1.0. We strongly recommend that users upgrade if they're still using such an old version of TOS. ga .Gordie> Joseph has a question about recruiting converts to MTOS... .Joseph T.@ATA> Would you consider supporting the idea of, if necessary, helping ensure that MultiTOS can work on an Atari emulator running on an Amiga? I'm certain that if it was done, there'd be plenty of "Workbench's" ditched in favor of a better OS and more powerful computer, I know this because the SysOp of a local Amiga BBS seems very interested in the Falcon, particularly the DSP and the MultiTOS operating system.... I love my ORPHANe, STill!!!! >>> .Towns @ Atari> I don't think so ;-) .Joseph T.@ATA> Why not? .Bob @ Atari> I don't think so either,... .Joseph T.@ATA> Think of it, stick 'em with something they can't touch unless they get the real thing!!!! .Towns @ Atari> Why should we bother supporting Hardware that we don't sell? .Joseph T.@ATA> And, couldn't you sell MultiTOS in a way that it'd be an upgrade of GEM, and perhaps bypass royalties? ga .Towns @ Atari> Royalties isn't the issue. It's licensing. Atari can't just give away other people's property on an online service. .Gordie> Next up is a question from Dana. If it'll go through after he left... .Gordie> Okay, it didn't go. I'll ask it. What are the minimum requirements to run MTOS, and what's the maximum number of programs that can be run? .Eric @ Atari> MultiTOS will run on any ST, STe, TT, or Falcon. We suggest that users have at least 2 megabytes of memory and a hard disk, but it will run on a 1 megabyte system with a floppy disk. You can run as many programs as memory will hold. ga .Gordie> Thanks, Eric. Next is a question from Nick about disk space... .Nick> I understand that MultiTOS is disk-based. How much space will it occupy on a hard drive (approximately)? .Eric @ Atari> It takes up about 800K or so. (Actually a bit less; it will fit on a double sided floppy.) ga .Nick> Does MultiTOS work equally well with programs whose flag bits are set to load and/or allocate from ST RAM (on a TT), as with those set to use TT RAM? .Eric @ Atari> Yes. ga .Gordie> Sam has a question about an expansion buss. SSINCLAIR> emulation. I would like to know what other options are or will be available this year that you might be able to disscuss. .Bob @ Atari> I didn't see that entire question, but I take it that you're asking about what emulation modes will be available for the Atari Falcon030. There is a firm commitment from one of our developers in Holland, COMPO, to produce a 486SX PC Board to go into the Direct Parallel Processor slot on the Atari Falcon030. As well as our good friend, David Small, who is hard at work on his version of a Mac emulator to go into the same slot. ga SSINCLAIR> I am not interested in emulation,what other options ga .Bob @ Atari> I'm afraid that your question is not coming across clearly, I think it would be best if you sent me email on the subject, and outline your question clearly. I'll be happy to respond to it in email, in extensive detail. ga .Gordie> Okay, how about Hudson with a question about software... .Hudson> Since software sells hardware, maybe you can give a little insight on the players (Microsoft, NeXT) that you've rounded up to produce some high profile software for the Falcon and other Atari Computers. Thanx in advance ga. .Bob @ Atari> We presently don't have anything in the queue with MicroSoft, or NeXT. We do have some other very interesting discussions underway with other developers, especially on the game side of things. However, since those products are still in development, in wouldn't be prudent to mention those names at this time. ga .Gordie> Can you comment on rumors about video manipulation software (Toaster-type) from anyone? ga .Bob @ Atari> Are you referring to the post from the German non devs in Germany that was on Usenet a couple of weeks ago? .Gordie> I was thinking about someone a little closer to home, actually... Lexicor? .Bob @ Atari> Ah, gotcha! Lexicor has a number of very interesting products in line for the Falcon030. For example, Phoenix Render...which looks very fast, and is very, very fast! I've heard that Lee Seilor has plans for a product (working title of Toaster Roaster) which should blow the doors off of the Video Toaster. GA .Gordie> LOL! I asked because that kind of thing would fit in perfectly with the concept of Personal Integrated Media that Atari has developed. ga (Which, by the way, is a big enough subject for a whole other CO...) .Bob @ Atari> Which we'll be happy to do at another time with Lexicor. .Gordie> How about one from Paul about the MTOS manual... .Paul> What type of manual will accompany MultiTOS? Will it be just a user's guide, or will it have some meat in it? I.E. technical/programming info? .Eric @ Atari> The guide that comes with MultiTOS is for users (it's similar to the manuals that come with other Atari products). We will have extensive documentation for developers. ga .Paul> Great. Thanks. .Gordie> Now, one from Bill on support... .Bill in ATL> Bob, What type of support can the new user to the Atari platform reasonably expect Atari Support via an 800 number? .Bob @ Atari> Bill, I think I have the gist of your question now. We have had discussions about adding an 800 number for customer support. At this point, the dealer is still going to need to be the forefront of the support effort, and as business improves, we'll be able to add additional support mechanisms, like 800 numbers. ga .Gordie> That seems to fit in with the requirement that dealers have a storefront. .Bob @ Atari> Exactly, Gordie. We're very set on that requirement, too. ga .Gordie> Okay, Chris has a question about the expansion bus... CMILLAR> You mentioned that the expansion bus is a "Direct Parallel Processor" slot. Does this mean that a 486 emulation card would allow DOS and TOS apps to be run concurrently? .Bob @ Atari> To be honest, Chris, I don't see anything to prevent it. But I have only seen it demo'ed with one or the other running. You sure started a discussion here in the office with that one. I have seen the PC Card, as did Gordie, at COMDEX. ga .Towns @ Atari> The slot wouldn't prevent such a thing, but the emulator software would have to support it. That's up to Compo. ga .Gordie> Next up... Andre with a question on multiple resolutions at the same time... AMWILLIAMS> Can programs needing to be run in different resolutions be run at the same time? .Towns @ Atari> Sorry.. When you are running programs under MultiTOS, they must all be running in the same resolution. Does that answer your question? AMWILLIAMS> yes .Towns @ Atari> Atari encourages its developers to make their applications work in any resolution ;-) .Gordie> Run in, or be launched from? .Towns @ Atari> same thing, Gordie. ga .Gordie> Next is Richard with a question about larger IDE drives... BONDSERVANT> Will larger IDE drives w/software be available from Atari or Dealers later? Thanks for coming here @ Delphi tonight. .Bob @ Atari> Hi Richard, there will be larger drives available from Atari, as well as many other PC vendors that sell standard IDE 2.5" mechanisms. We're planning on getting 80, 120, 200 meg units. and they will come with Speedo GDOS, and MultiTOS on each of the drives that we will be selling here at Atari, to add an incentive to purchase the drives from us. :) Thanks for the welcome... I enjoy being online here, and only wish that there was more time to be online. :) .Gordie> If the hypothetical 2 piece cased Falcon were to come out, would it still be restricted to a 2.5" drive? Hypothetically? .Bob @ Atari> Gordie, sorry...we can't comment on non-existent product. .Gordie> Somehow, I had a feeling you'd say that... Next is JJ with a question about Falcon numbers... .**JJ**> In light of the recent second shipment of falcons to Germany that is bouncing around the internet, what kind of numbers can we expect to see on the first shipment to the US? .Towns @ Atari> Shipments of Falcon's bouncing around the internet? Wow! ;-) .Bob @ Atari> Hi JJ, first of all, I doubt that the Falcons are on the Internet although the idea of it is really interesting... .Gordie> Think of the money you'd save... .Bob @ Atari> Second, we're not confirming or denying how many shipments we have made to any of the countries that we do business with. Our initial shipment for Falcons in North America will be for dealer units and perhaps some review units, or perhaps even some support people ( Hello, Gordie! ). After that, there will be a good supply of units going out for sale. Overall, we're really pleased with the amount of demand that we are getting for the product, and very pleased that there is good press as well. ga .**JJ**> ok, thanks. done .Gordie> And now one from Hudson on advertising... .Hudson> What is Atari planning planning for advertisement (Print as well as TV, etc.) to help hype the US debut (selling debut at least:))? .Eric @ Atari> Just a sec... .Bob @ Atari> OK, I ran out to check with Garry Tramiel our GM for the US to make sure that I had everything down right for this answer, and apologize for the delay in responding. At this point, as we have started re-signing our dealers, we are making arrangements er...that should be provisions for advertising plans by our dealers via a market development fund. Then, as production continues to ramp up, and we can supply the demand that we will create with the advertisements, we will be doing print ads on a national basis. I don't forsee TV at this point, it's a truly extraordinary expense. Although via the market development fund program, we'd be pleased to do things like local cable TV ads, which can be done in some areas of the country for a very, very reasonable amount of money. ga .Gordie> Aw, gee. I was hoping to see Atari Falcon030 ads on ST:TNG, ST: DS9 and B5... .Bob @ Atari> I'm hoping to still see B5, Gordie! :) .Gordie> Next is one from Joseph, on a pause mode in MTOS... .Joseph T.@ATA> You mention that tasks should be turned off if unused, is there a feature that allows you to "turn off" a program, yet it still be ready and waiting to resume, sorta like a pause mode? .Eric @ Atari> Joseph: You can just "ignore" a program. Every program has its windows on the same screen, so you can very easily switch between programs. They're all ready and available all the time. If the program isn't doing anything, it won't take up any processor time. Does that answer your question? ga .Joseph T.@ATA> I think so, but can MTOS pause or shut it down and leave it intact while doing nothing, with MTOS in control? ga .Eric @ Atari> The MultiTOS desktop is always available, so in some sense MTOS is always "in control". The Desk menu has a list of all accessories and applications, and you can switch to a different application by selecting it from the menu (or by clicking on one of its windows). ga .Gordie> Andreas had a question... .Andreas@AEO> Eric, I was wondering if you could expound on the need for an 030 to run MTOS and the less-than-stellar results that can happen from running MTOS on a 68000. GA .Eric @ Atari> On a 68000 based machine (like an ST or STe) there will be no memory protection (since the 68000 doesn't provide this feature). On a 68030 (a Falcon or TT) programs can be protected from one another. .Andreas@AEO> Just so no-one has any doubts or misunderstandings. .Eric @ Atari> That generally means that badly behaved applications will crash only themselves on a 68030 machines, whereas on a 68000 they can cause trouble for other applications that are running at the same time (or even crash the system). Plus, if you have several applications running at the same time, the extra speed of the 68030 will really help :-). .Andreas@AEO> On my Mega STe, programs would run nicely together several times in a row, and then when a spurious bit of data would be encountered... blammo! It was STILL a REALLY nice experience to have several programs ALIVE at once, and have those Atari Falcon030 icons around. I know all the hackers out there will be happy to run it on their venerable STs!!! .Eric @ Atari> ATARIPOWER7: There is no "pause" feature such as you describe built into the desktop, but the OS could support this if a 3rd party supplied it. .Bob @ Atari> Thanks for your comments, Andreas... the icons ARE really neat. .Gordie> Okay, Andre has a question about MTOS and the SST... AMWILLIAMS> I hear that its better to run MultiTOS on a 68030 rather than a 68000. If this is true do you know of any problems with using MultiTOS with the SST board ( P.S. I love my Mega St ). .Eric @ Atari> MultiTOS should work fine on 68030 boards. I don't know about the SST specifically, but I'm sure it would be OK. (I know that some of our developers were running MultiTOS on 68030 equipped ST's.) ga .Gordie> Bob T. has a question about Atari & the KCAC show... .BobT> DONE .Gordie> .Bob @ Atari> Well Bob... We're really excited about the amount of interest that has been exhibited by our user groups for the show schedule this coming summer. KCAC is planning on having a terrific show, as our many other groups throughout the US. At this point, because our plans for CES are unclear, it's difficult to project what our exact participation will be at ALL the shows upcoming this summer. In particular, June looks to be a VERY busy month, with events in Indy, Asheville, and Kansas City. From time to time, I do like to spend a weekend at home (and my family still likes it, too), so we'll see what happens. I certainly want to take this opportunity to encourage everyone to get out to as many of these events as they possibly can...in particular the KC Show, as it is their very first effort at a show. I wish you every success! ga .Gordie> And don't forget to bring lots of money! The developers can use it! (End of unabashed plug) The Georgia Catfish has a question about DELPHI support... .Bill in ATL> Bob, as director of Communications would it be impractical to ask for a more frequent presence here on DELPHI even though The "G" is the Official Atari Online service? .Gordie> And no, I didn't prompt him to ask that... .Bob @ Atari> Actually, it's not unreasonable to ask, but at this point I cannot commit to it. With the workload of the dealer agreements and dealing with the press, I actually haven't been posting on any of the online services very much at all. Part of the reason that we have obtained the extra accounts for use on Delphi is to have another group of people that we can send online to provide you with the support that you deserve. We certainly enjoy being on Delphi...but you are also correct when you note that GEnie is our number one online service. I expect our arrangement with GEnie to remain a VERY long term one, but will make every effort to be on Delphi as much as time permits. At this point, the ATARIMUSIC account has been assigned to one of the Music staff, and Mike Fulton from Developer support will be using the AtariTech account here. So, we are TRYING...but one of the more precious commodities that we have here at Atari right now is PEOPLE, and TIME. We must be certain that we use both of them as wisely as possible. ga .Gordie> Wimp has a question about the Falcon market... WIMP> What do you see as the demographics of the Falcon market? And what platforms do you see as competition for the Falcon? .Eric @ Atari> There really is no competition .Bob @ Atari> The intent of the Falcon is to finally penetrate the home market with a machine that brings the promise of multimedia to the home user, and provides them FINALLY with a reason for them to purchase a computer. Many thousands of people (unlike you and I) still fail to find a compelling reason to purchase a computer. We believe that the Falcon030 will give those people a new reason to consider purchasing a computer. In addition, there are some compelling professional applications that will make people that have specific professional needs (like MUSIC) that will place the Atari Computer line in the limelight of the computing world. WIMP> so you think the Falcon can compete with the Mac and PC clones on their turf? .Bob @ Atari> Re Competition...the part of me that is the company man says there is no competition...we have the superior product! On the other hand, the realist in me says that the competition is the PC Clones....and they are not doing anything that is in any form technically innovation in their hardware. All of the innovation is coming in software. This is where we have an advantage...we have innovative hardware, and compelling software applications as well! ga. .Gordie> Richard has another question, this time about prices... BONDSERVANT> any news on prices on the various Falcons concidering the market changes since fall?:-) .Bob @ Atari> The MSRP for the Falcon is unchanged since fall, with the exception of the additonal pricing for two models: The Atari Falcon030 with four megs of ram, and no hard disk will retail for $999, and the 14 meg with 65 meg hard disk will retail for $1899. We have also expanded the accessory line to include things like SCSI-II cables, hard disk drives, and added a composite video adapter for people (like G44!) to use with their monitors. ga .Gordie> Glenn has a question about the Falcon as a Studio in a Box... .Glenn> I read an article about how you can plug a guitar in and use it as a de facto multi effects machine, and record direct to disk and master to DAT. What kind of software is complete for this type of application and what is planned? For comparison, the SGX-2000, the top of the line guitar processor, is nearly as much as what the Falcon costs, and it is not a full fledged computer. By touting the Falcon's ability to be a "studio in the box" it would certainly get people to buy, me included, since as long as the applications are there, conforming to some MS-DOS or MAC standard (a business concern) is not important. .Bob @ Atari> Glenn, thank you for your question! You're referring I believe to the article in BYTE Magazine, where Tom Halfhill of BYTE described plugging his electric guitar directly into the Atari Falcon030, and using Musicomm, from COMPO Software to do all of the special effects that he did. BTW, Musicomm's list price is just $69! In addition to Musicomm, you can probably do similar effects with things like the Audio Fun Machine, which is one of the eight software titles that we bundle together with the Atari Falcon030. ga .Glenn> Is the Falcon capable of multitrack recording without an interface? What is needed? .Bob @ Atari> Yes, it can record two tracks out of the box. For more than two tracks, you need an external box connected to the DSP port, like the product that Singular Solutions is offering. The Atari Falcon030 ships with a product called FalconD2D that will allow you to do direct to disk hard disk recording. With the addition of the external boxes, you can do up to eight tracks at the present, although technically it is possible to do 16 tracks. One of the limitations on the number of tracks is the speed of the hard disk (actually, the access time of the HD). As the HDs get faster, it will be easier for our developers to create more tracks to be recorded at once. ga .Gordie> Okay, we've been going for almost 2 1/2 hours. Time to wrap it up. I'd like to thank John, Eric and Bob for their time tonight. I learned a few things, I know, and I hope they enjoyed themselves as much as I did. Closing comments, guys? .Bob @ Atari> We're very excited to have been here with all of you here tonight and look forward to the opportunity to come back again in a few months to discuss things with you. I hope to be online more often, and if there is anything that you wanted to ask tonight and didn't have a chance to, please send EMAIL to me. Eric is just using the AtariTech account for the night...and I will be happy to forward any of your questions on to him for his review. Thanks again for coming....and good night! .Towns @ Atari> Good Night everyone! .Eric @ Atari> Thanks for having us here! .Gordie> This party is over! *************** This transcript is copyright 1993, DELPHI and DELPHI's Atari Advantage SIG. Permission to reprint is granted, as long as the transcript is left intact and unchanged. ************* Some minor editing of the transcript was done to facilitate readability, and correct minor spelling and grammar errors. Portions were omitted to enhance readability, and to cover up any glitches DELPHI was having. -- Gordie Meyer ______________________________________________________________ > BT to ADD SPEED STR InfoFile High Speed Dialer, Wireless & Digital """""""""""""""""""""""""""" BT SPEEDS UP CUSTOMER ACCESS TO ITS U.S. DATA NETWORK ===================================================== New Services to Include Higher Speed Local Dial, 950, Wireless and Switched Digital Access San Jose, California, March, 1993 With the goal of offering the widest array of access methods to meet customer-specific application requirements, BT North America today announced plans to introduce diverse new wire and wireless services by year's end. The new domestic services will provide the company's two million daily users with faster and enhanced access methods to its U.S. data network, the largest public network in operation. The new capabilities will enable customers to cut costs of on-line network usage up to 30%, while giving users the ability to access network applications and transfer data at rates of up to four times the speed that can currently be achieved. Among the new services to be introduced are high-speed (14.4 kbps) local dial, uniform number access (800 and 950), wireless (cellular and radio), and switched digital services. The move to higher speeds and wireless access methods is in anticipation of customer requirements for faster data communications and network access for the growing number of mobile users, driven by continued proliferation of portable computing devices. "While ATM, ISDN and SONET garner much of the industry's attention, millions of users are looking for better and faster ways to access their network applications," said Ron Bamberg, vice president of Business Development and Strategic Planning for BT North America. "Network access is the most critical and core component of any network service offered by a carrier or service provider." Bamberg continued: "BT's strategy is to not only maintain a leading role in the area of network access, but to deliver targeted services best suited for specific network applications. No one access service can satisfy all the various requirements our customers have to get to their network applications. Therefore, we will continue to introduce a variety of new products which best address each individual requirement." LOCAL HIGH SPEED DIAL SERVICES Starting in September, BT will become the first value-added network (VAN) provider to deploy a U.S. service enabling users to access its data network, through a local phone call, at speeds of 14.4 kbps (V.32bis). Nationwide coverage of the 14.4 kbps service is expected by 1995. International Data Corporation (IDC), Framingham, MA, estimates that between 1991 and 1996 the compound annual growth rate for 14.4 kbps modem shipments will exceed 45 percent. In addition, BT plans to become the first VAN to offer service which supports the CCITT V.fast recommendation (see note to editors), which provides for access speeds of 28.8 kbps. The company is currently in the process of rolling out a nationwide 9.6 kbps dial service which is expected to be fully deployed in over 520 local access sites by December, 1994. To date, over 120 sites have been completed. "Our applications have become response-time sensitive," said Allen Watrud, manager of Telecommunications for CUNA Mutual Insurance Group, the world's largest provider of credit insurance for credit unions and their members. "Getting our remote users to the network is one of the most important aspects of providing them with the information they need to do their jobs more effectively." Watrud continued: "With thousands of users dialing into our network every day, we are constantly looking for ways in which we can reduce overall access and on-line costs while increasing the users' productivity. Higher speed dial services represent a solution to our requirements." CUNA's telecommunications group currently supports approximately 3,000 remote users through local dial public network services. The new dial services will support the industry-standard CCITT V-series recommendations for data compression (V.42bis) which will effectively quadruple data throughput rates. For example, a customer accessing the network with a compression capable 9.6 and 14.4 kbps modems could realize data throughput rates of up to 38.4 and 57.6 kbps respectively. "New communications and modem technologies are emerging which allow for faster transmissions over existing analog architectures," said Jeff Zanardi, manager of Access Services for BT North America. "These technologies coupled with new bandwidth-hungry applications are driving network access More? speeds to increasingly higher levels." UNIFORM NUMBER ACCESS Already a leading provider of uniform number and toll-free access through its 800 service, the company will upgrade this service to support 14.4 kbps access by September. In addition, to better meet customer application requirements for uniform number and toll free access, BT will reduce its 800 rates to as low as $9 per hour. By the third quarter, BT will also begin offering 950 (Feature Group B) service to its electronic transaction service (ETS) customers. "We don't see 950 replacing local dial access or 800 services," said Zanardi. "A local call will always be the most cost-effective means for users to access any network. Rather, we are positioning our 800 services to address the needs of customers whose applications require UNA and toll-free features. 950 services will be positioned to address point- of-sale applications and electronic transactions which require short call set-up times. 950 is best suited for these types of applications." WIRELESS ACCESS BT is currently evaluating a number of cellular and radio network access alternatives and, by year's end, plans to introduce services utilizing wireless technologies. These include the use of IBM's CelluPlaN II technology and services from Cellular Data Inc. (CDI), of Palo Alto, California. Additionally, radio access will be provided to users through RAM Mobile Data. Discussions are currently underway to link RAM's nationwide radio networks and BT's data network. These new wireless services will provide users with the ability send and receive electronic mail and other time critical information, as well as access transaction applications. The Yankee Group expects revenues from mobile data network services to reach nearly $2.5 billion by the end of the decade. E-mail has been identified as the primary application for which users require wireless network access. Currently there are more than 20 million e-mail users in the United States. SWITCHED DIGITAL SERVICES In addition to high-speed asynchronous dial and wireless services, BT North America is currently evaluating the provision of switched-digital services. Initially these services will be provided to users at speeds of 56 kbps as backup for dedicated digital connections (X.25 or frame relay) or as an alternative for sites which cannot justify dedicated circuits. Higher speed digital services with speeds up to T1 are also planned. These higher speed services can also be used for cost- effective, low-speed video conferencing applications. ### BT (NYSE:BTY and BTY.PP) is a leader in worldwide telecommunications. It operates one of the largest networks in the world and offers a wide range of international services. BT has annual revenues over $24 billion and employs a staff of approximately 165,200 in over 33 countries. ### Note to Editors: ---------------- BT's global data network is the world's largest public data network. In the U.S., the network provides users local access from over 1,000 cities through 4,500 points of presence located in 520 unique access locations. For more information contact: BT North America Public Relations 408 922 7583 *********************************************************************** :HOW TO GET YOUR OWN GENIE ACCOUNT: _________________________________ Set your communications software to Half Duplex (or Local Echo) Call: (with modem) 800-638-8369. Upon connection type HHH (RETURN after that). Wait for the U#= prompt. Type: XTX99587,CPUREPT then, hit RETURN. GEnie costs only $4.95 a month for unlimited evening and weekend access to more than 100 services including electronic mail, online encyclopedia, shopping, news, entertainment, single-player games, and bulletin boards on leisure and professional subjects. With many other services, including the biggest collection of files to download and the best online games, for only $6 per hour. MONEY BACK GUARANTEE! Any time during your first month of membership if you are not completely satisfied, just ask for your $4.95 back. GEnie Announcements (FREE) 1. February Billing complete. To check yours, type..............*BILL 2. Disney Music Trivia RTC - Win Prizes in.......................FLORIDA 3. IDITAROD Continues--Left Coast RTC...March 14.................ALASKA 4. Foster Homes for CATS; Special Guest In.......................PET 5. Teen Career Night on Law Enforcement at.......................FAMILY 6. March BIRTHDAYS Collect Your Gift on March 15.................BIRTHDAY 7. Everything Commodore owners want to know about CPM............FLAGSHIP 8. Interested in a freely available Unix clone...................UNIX 9. Book-on-demand UPDATE on the..................................PSRT 10. Sample Report-Writers from MATRIX now in.....................ASTROLOGY 11. BBS phone numbers (lots of them) all sorted by area code in....MUSTANG 12. VAX LOVERS UNITE ... visit the DEC Category in...............MAINFRAME 13. NASA Today and Tomorrow, find out what they're up to in the....SPACERT |"""| |"""| |"""""""""""""""""""""""| | | | ||"""""| | Your | | T ||"""""|| L || R | | Computing RT | | H || || A || O | | Resource! | | E || G || M || U | | ~ | | || E || P || N | | GEnieLamp Magazine | | || n || || D | | Electronic Publishing | | || i || || T | | Ed_NET | | || e || || A | | Bookettes! | | || || || B | | Online Magazines | | || || || L | | ~ | | || || || E | | Home Of The | | || || || | | Digital Publishing | | || || || | | Association! | |"""||"""""||"""||"""""| |"""""""""""""""""""""""| |B33||B34.4||B35|| B64 | | C65.4132 | |===||=====||===||=====| |=======================| Your RT Hosts: John Peters [GENIELAMP] Jim Flanagan [JFLANAGAN] & Mike White [M.WHITE25] Welcome to the SoftLogik RoundTable, supporting P A G E S T R E A M For the Atari ST and Commodore Amiga. Your Sysops: NEVIN-S, JIM.MORALES and FRED.M ### ################### ### ####################### Welcome to the ICD RoundTable! ### #### #### ------------------------------ ### ### ### ### Providing support for all ### ### ### ### ICD products ### #### ### #### ### ########### ########### Your host: Doug Wheeler (DOUG.W) ### ######### ######### GEnie Information copyright (C) 1991 by General Electric Information Services/GEnie, reprinted by permission *********************************************************************** > CPU STATUS REPORT SPECIAL REPORT; COMPARING THE NEW HARDWARE ================= A REALISTIC LOOK AT THE FALCON030 ================================= Information compiled by Ken Baum 1992/93 Here is a technical comparison between Atari's new Falcon 030, Commodore's new Amiga 1200 and Apple's new Performa 400. All of these machines are aimed at the home computer user in price and power. They each feature their own Multitasking Graphic User Interface (GUI) operating system, which is not compatible with MS-DOS. Each of these computers has their own software library. They are all based on Motorola brand CPU's. You won't find "Intel inside" any of these machines, unless it's in the form of an emulator board! Atari Falcon CBM Amiga 1200 Apple Performa 400 ------------ -------------- ------------------ CPU 68030 68EC020 68030 speed(Mhz) 16 14.32 16 MIPS 3.84 2.5 3.84 data path(bit) 32(16used) 32 32 address space(bit) 24 24 24 instruction cache 256 bytes 256 bytes 256 bytes data cache 256 bytes no 256 bytes FPU optional optional optional socket on board yes no no type 68881/68882 68881/68882 68881/68882 DSP yes no no type 56001 N/A N/A speed(Mhz) 32 N/A N/A MIPS 16 N/A N/A MEMORY & EXPANSION ram(base model) 4MB(16bit) 2MB(32bit CHIP) 4MB(32bit) max ram 14 MB 10 MB(>w/3rd party) 10MB type proprietary proprietary/PCMCIA SIMM rom 512K 512K to 2MB 512K DISK DRIVES floppy 3.5" 1.44HD 3.5" 880K 3.5" 1.44HD format Atari\MS-DOS(SAME) Amiga w\MS-DOS Mac w\MS-DOS hard internal internal internal type 2.5" IDE 2.5" IDE 3.5" SCSI size 65MB 40MB 80MB I/O PORTS mouse/joystick 2reg 2analog 2 reg 1 mouse serial RS-232C RS-232 2 MAC parallel BI-directional Centronics no video-out analog RGB\VGA analog\RGB\VGA analog RGB\VGA composite\RF composite\RF audio-in stereo 1/8"mini no mono RCA -out stereo 1/8"mini stereo RCA mono RCA external floppy no yes yes internal IDE yes yes no external SCSI yes SCSI II no yes midi in, out/thru no no DSP yes(1 MHZ trans) no no network Localtalk LAN no Appletalk LAN EXPANSION internal bus exp cpu expansion slot Processor 128K cartridge PCMCIA 2(16bit) Direct Slot DSP port SOUND resolution 16bit\50Khz 8bit\50Khz 8bit\22Khz channels 8 4 1 input yes\stereo no yes\mono output stereo stereo mono internal speaker yes no yes VIDEO resolution -minimum 320x200 320x200 640x480 -maximum 640x480 1280x400\640x960(i) 640x480 palette(colors) 262,144 16.8 million 16.8 million maximum displayed 65,536(640x400) 256,000(all res) 256 overscan yes yes no MISC clock yes no yes keyboard type attached full attached full detached full OPERATING SYSTEM type multitasking gui multitasking gui multitasking gui location rom\disk rom\disk rom\disk PRICE retail $1299.00 $1099.00 $1450.00 street N/A $850.00 $1150.00 SOFTWARE(included) Atari Falcon 030: MultiTOS 4.0-operating system SpeedoGDOS-scalable font extension w/14 Bitstream fonts. Falcon D2D-audio direct to disk recording & editing Atari Works-integrated word processor, database, spreadsheet. Audio Fun Machine-DSP digital audio FX System Audio Manager-record & assign sounds to system event. Various Accessory programs: calculator,calendar,Talking Clock games, etc. CBM Amiga 1200 AmigaDOS 3.0-operating system CrossDOS-allows reading & writing MS-DOS format disks *Deluxe Paint IV AGA-full featured 2D paint & animation *Final Copy-full featured word processor Various Utility Programs:Calculator,screenblanker etc. (*indicates a limited time offer) Apple Performa 400 System 7.1-operating system Symantec Greatworks-integrated word processor,database, spreadsheet,charting,paint & telecomm program At Ease-program launcher Teleware M.Y.O.B.-checkbook & cardfile program T/Maker Clip Art-business graphics Various Accessory programs:calculator,alarm clock,games etc. FINAL NOTES: The Atari & Commodore machines are housed in a single case. They DO NOT have detached keyboards. The Atari Falcon is in the same case as it's predecessor the 1040STE, and the Amiga 1200 is in a restyled case similar to the Amiga 500. Also, each of these computers is available without a hard drive for less money. However, models with hard drives were used for comparison purposes. These configuraions are those as supplied by the manufacturer. Individual dealers may offer other configuration options. The Apple Performa 400 has a separate keyboard, it is in the same case as the MAC LCII(In fact, that's exactly what it is!). The Atari & Commodore machines can operate at many different screen resolutions and would require a multisync monitor for optimum flexibility. Also, the Commodore Amiga 1200's maximum resolutions are interlaced(i). It's maximum non-interlaced resolution is 640x480. Both the Atari Falcon & Commodore Amiga 1200 will also overscan, giving them more resolution in that mode and making them suitable for Desk Top Video (DTV). The Apple Performa would require an analog VGA type monitor. The Atari Falcon is the only computer here with a DSP (digital signal processor) chip. revision 1.1 Information compiled by Ken Baum 1992/93 E-mail on GEnie or Delphi: Sources: Amiga World, Amiga Format, AtariUser, ST Format, MACWorld GEnie & Delphi. __________________________________________________________________ > OUTLINE ART 3.0 STR InfoFile * NEW * Upgrade to Outline Art! """""""""""""""""""""""""""" PRESS RELEASE February 25, 1993 Contact: Nathan Potechin DMC Publishing is proud to announce the release of Outline Art 3.0. This long-awaited upgrade to the original Outline Art standard includes all the features that made the original famous, plus color, eps/ps export, macro keys, user-definable UNDO, context-sensitive help which explains each and every feature and more. Two variations of this program are currently available, in two megabyte or four megabyte configurations depending upon your existing hardware. When placing your upgrade or order, please indicate your specific Atari computer. To all of our existing registered owners of Outline Art, the introductory upgrade charge until May 30, 1993, is US $49.95 or $59.95 Canadian. The introductory retail price of Outline Art 3.0 is US $149.95 or $175.00 Canadian. Effective immediately, the new price for the industry-standard Outline Art 1.0 is US $89.95 or $109.95 Canadian. The July/August 1992 issue of Atari Explorer carried the winners of the second annual Outline Art contest. The contest attracted entries from professional and amateur Outline Art users, worldwide and is indicative of the position long held by this vector graphic drawing program from DMC. (Note: All winning entries are available for downloading from our library #30 in the Atari Roundtable Library on GEnie.) The 4 Megabyte DEMO version of Outline Art 3.0 is now available for downloading. Although Save and export functions have been disabled, and the context sensitve help has been left out, the program is entirely functional and will give you a complete preview of the capabilities that have made DMC's Outline Art famous. For further information, please do not hesitate to contact your nearest Atari Dealer or DMC directly. We will be pleased to answer any questions you might have. Nathan Potechin, President DMC Publishing DMC Publishing 2800 John Street, Unit 10 Markham, Ontario Canada L3R 0E2 Tel: (416) 479-1880 Fax: (416) 479-1882 GEnie: ISD Compuserve: 76004,2246 Delphi: ISDMARKETING ____________________________________________________________ > CT FEST'93 STR SHOW NEWS """""""""""""""""""""""" THE CT ATARIFEST '93! ===================== JUNE 12 & 13, AT THE WINDSOR COURT HOTEL WINDSOR, CT. (JUST ABOVE HARTFORD) Free Parking! Low Room Rates! More Vendors! More Floor Space! Yep, that ACT Atari Group is running another major NorthEast computer event. Last year's successful CT Fest had over 700 attendees, which merited a larger location, so we've moved a mile away (exit 42 on I-91) into bigger and better quarters. We're just as convenient to reach as ever, and only two hours from Boston or New York! The new hotel has excellent room rates ($35.00 per room), free and plentiful parking, easy access from Interstate 91, I-95, I-90, I-84, I-80, an in house Sports Bar, a bigger ballroom and is located just 1 mile from Bradley International Airport (free shuttle service for hotel guests). We expect that an even greater number of vendors this year, surpassing the excellent turnout of the past shows. We already have tentative commitments from A&D Software, Gribnif Software, Barefoot Software, Toad Computers, Computer Studio, Baggetaware, Derric Electronics, E.Hartford Computer Repair, MegaType Software, Wizztronics and GFA Software Technology. Last year we had FOURTEEN user groups, this year we should have even more (We also expect an exciting 8 Bit contingent)! We'll have our annual New England Lynx Competition, with multiple Comlynxed competitions underway at all times. Last year's winners took home prizes ranging from games to accessories to complete Lynx Systems! Bring your best player and join the fun. We'll have the Portfolio Corner, staffed with industry pundits and filled with every imaginable palmtop peripheral! Last year we had a few Portfolios disassembled at the booth, a real insight into surface mount technology! For those of you with an eye towards seminars, we'll have them in abundance, last year's question and answer session with Bob Brodie drew standing only crowds! In addition, we had John Eidsvoog's walk through the Codehead graphic tools, Jeff Naideau of Barefoot Software showing off EdiTrack Platinum, Dave Troy of (Guess[ribbet]) Computers and many, many others. And to top things off, come out and see the Falcon 030 in all its glory. By then we expect to see some rad new programs out and some really excitement! All in all, we hope to have the best Northeast show yet, and we look forward to your participation. Make your plans now for the most exciting Atari Weekend this spring! For further information, call Brian Gockley at 203-332-1721 or Doug Finch at 203-637-1034. We can also be found on GEnie in Category 11 or on Compuserve in the Atari arenas. E-mail can be directed to B.GOCKLEY or D.FINCH7 on GEnie or to 75300,2514 or 76337,1067 on CIS. _____________________________________________________________________ > NVN WANTS YOU! STR InfoFile Another Network Supports Atari! """"""""""""""""""""""""""" National Videotext Network (NVN) has recently added an Atari ST Forum to it's growing lists of available services. The Atari ST Forum is ready and waiting for you! The future of NVN will be one which continues to remain sensitive and responsive to market needs. Additional services and advances in electronic information will continue to be added, to provide unique and interesting services on an on-going basis. NVN service offerings can be broken into three categories: Basic, Premium, and Premium Plus. **************************************** **************************************** ** 9600 BAUD acious! ** ** For users with 9600 baud modems ** ** SAME PRICE AS 2400 BAUD! ** ** TRUE on line savings! ** **************************************** **************************************** Basic Services -------------- Most of the Basic services are available 24 hours a day with no connect time charges beyond the basic membership fee. However, a select group have functions for which transaction fees are charged. Basic services are accessible through a flat rate charge of $5.95 per month. Premium Services ---------------- For Premium services, Members pay connect charges for the amount of time spent in a particular service. Premium services are accessible Monday through Friday for a connect time charge of $9.00/hour from 8 am to 6 pm, and $6.00/hour from 6 pm to 8 am; and on Saturday and Sunday for a connect time charge of $6.00 all day (6 pm Friday til 8 am Monday), central time zone. 9600 Baud access is available at no additional cost! Think of the advantages of downloading at 9600 baud for 9.00 hr Prime Time or 6.00 hr non-prime time! Order an extended NVN Membership of 6 or 12 months, pay for it in advance and receive a bonus in connect time at no additional charge. Choose from two subscription plans: 6-Month Membership Pay just $30 for a 6-month Membership and receive a usage credit that entitles you to $15 of connect-time in the Premium services of your choice. Your total savings using this plan would be over $20!* 12 Month Membership Pay $50 for a full year's Membership and get even more free time on-line. We'll give you a $25 usage credit to use in your favorite Premium services or try out new ones. You could save as much as $45.* For more information about either of these plans, give us a call at 1-800-336- 9096. *Both extended Membership options, including free usage credits are nonrefund-able/nontransferable. Members are responsible for all Premium charges over the $15 or $25 usage credit. You can join NVN one of two ways. By voice phone 1-800-336-9096 (Client Services) or via modem phone 1-800-336-9092. You will be issued an Account # (usually within 24 hours) National Videotex Network and the Atari ST Forum will be waiting for you. _____________________________________________________________ > STReport CONFIDENTIAL "Rumors Tidbits Predictions Observations Tips" """"""""""""""""""""" - New York City, NY MOTOROLA HAS 68060 ALL SET TO GO! ----------------- Reportedly, the 68060 is quite capable of overpowering the PowerPC. While much attention has been focused on the prowess of the upcoming PowerPC RISC processor, Motorola has been quietly working on a powerful successor to the 68040, the 68060, that will outperform the first PowerPC to be released, the PowerPC 601. Motorola's 68060 will perform in the range of 100 million instructions per second (MIPS), compared with the 29 MIPS of a 68040 with a 33MHz clock rate. Because the 68060 will be faster than the PowerPC 601, the 601 will be relegated to a mid-range Mac, while the 68060 will get a glamour job in a line of high-end Macs in early 1994, according to industry sources. The 68060 employs super-scalar execution, that is, the ability to perform two instructions per clock cycle. Motorola plans volume shipments of a 50MHz 68060 in early 1994, with a 66MHz chip to follow. Motorola skipped development of a 68050 in favor of the more radical 68060 design. - Baltimore, MD NEW FALCON TO DEBUT AT CeBit! ------------- Mr. Super Snoop is hard at work again! This time its reported that there will be a TWO PIECE Falcon presented for the first time at this year's CeBit Show in Germany. Coined the "Mega Falcon" for now, it is reported to be the two piece FALCON most everyone has requested. Also slated to appear, is the "consumer version" of the Falcon having no Hard drive, Cart Port, DSP and being a one piece unit. _______________________________________________________________ > MUSIC DEVELOPERS STR InfoFile A comprehensive listing..... """"""""""""""""""""""""""""" A.D.G Productions 4342 West 136th Street, Suite 9 Hawthorne, CA 90250 USA Tel: +1 310 379 1568 Fax: +1 310 379 1568 -Blues & Jazz Compositions, education -Contemporary Styles, education ACS 8 avenue Gilkmans 95510 Taverny France Tel: +33 16 130 409095 -Proteus Patcher, editor Alfred Publishing Co. Inc. 16380 Roscoe Blvd. P.O Box 100003, Van Nuys, CA 91410 USA Tel: +1 818 891 5999 Fax: +1 818 893 5560 -Basic Adult Piano Theory Level 1, education -Basic Piano Theory Levels 1-2, education -Basic Piano Theory Levels 3-5, education -Practical Theory Series, education -Music Achievement Series, education Alpha Systems 1012 Skyland Dr. Macedonia, OH 44056 USA Tel: +1 216 467 5665 -Jam Master, sample player -Digisound Professional, sample player -Digisound, sample player -Beat Box: sample player Allen & Heath 5639 S. Riley Ln. Salt Lake City, UT 84107 USA Tel: 801 268 8400 Fax: 801 262 4966 -GS3V, VCA, fader operations Arobace 2 rue Piemontesi 75018 Paris France Tel: +33 1 42 235044 Fax: +33 1 42 511244 -Digital Impact, sampler editor Audio Light P.O.Box 893, Los Gatos, CA 95030 USA Tel: +1 408 395 0830 Fax: +1 408 974 9077 -Music Studio 88, entertainment Barefoot Software 19865 Covello Street Canoga Park, CA 91306 USA Tel: +1 818 727 7143 Fax: +1 818 727 0632 -EditTrack Gold, sequencer -EZ-Score Plus v1.2, notation -HybriSwitch, multitasking -Ludwig, composition -MIDIPlexer, hardware peripheral -SMPTETrack Gold, sequencer Bradley Forthware P.O. Box 4444 Mountain View, CA 94040 USA Tel: +1 415 961 1302 Fax: +1 415 962 0927 -Formula, composing Chro-Magic Software Innovations 516 N. Jackson, Joplin, MO 64801 USA Tel: +1417 623 7393 -Guitaristics, education -Pianistics, education Codehead Technologies P.O. Box 74090 Los Angeles, CA 90004 USA Tel: +1 213 386 5735 Fax: +1 213 386 5789 -MIDI Spy, desk sequencer -MIDIMax, MIDI mapper Command Development 11846 Balboa Blvd., Suite 135 Granada Hills, CA 91344 USA Tel: +1 818 362 3550 Fax: +1 818 361 2389 -D50/M1 Command, editor/librarian -Offspring for the SY77, interface Communications Resources 754 N. Bolton Ave. Indianapolis, IN 46219-5902 USA Tel: +1 317 356 6946 -Synthview DW-8000, editor/librarian -Synthview K1 Capture, editor/librarian Composers Desktop Project 11 Kilburn Rd. York YO1 4DF UK Tel: +44 904 613299 Fax: +44 904 432450 -Composer Music Workstation, advanced E/A Comus 67 boulevard Jean Baptiste Oudry 94000 Cretil France Tel: +33 1 43 394055 Fax: +33 1 43 398039 -Big Band, arranger CoveSystems 50 Cove Woods Rd. Oyster Bay, NY 11771 USA Tel: +1 615 459 2960 Fax: +1 615 371 1251 -Sound-Off Audio Digitizer, sample player Datamusic 4 Sharon Court, Alexandra Grove London N12 8NX UK Tel: +44 81 4453935 Fax: +44 81 4469699 -Fractal Music v2.4, fractal composition Desert Software PO Box 123, St. Helens Merseyside WA9 5LD UK Tel: +44 514 307400 Fax: +44 514 307400 -Vivace 1.1, Module 1 & 2, sequencer -Vivace 1.0, Module 3, notation Digigram Parc Technologique de Pre Milliet Montbonnot, 38330 St. Ismier France Tel: +33 16 76 524747 Fax: +33 16 76 902111 -Studio 24, sequencer Digital F/X 755 RavenDale Drive Mountain View, CA 94043 USA Tel: +1 800 274 4339 Tel: +1 415 961 2800 Fax: +1 415 961 6990 -Digital Master EX, direct to disk 4 channel - 16 track audio recorder and editor Digital Horizons 24403 E. Welches Rd. Welches, OR 97067 USA Tel: +1 503 622 4034 Fax: +1 503 622 3933 -Final Cut, sequencer -Scale Master, education -Rhythm Time, education -Note Wizard, education -Chord Magic, education -Music Lights, player Digital IO 2554 Lincoln Blvd. #122 Marina del Rey, CA 90291 USA Tel: +1 310 398 3993 Fax: +1 310 822 1360 -D2D, sample editor Dr T's Music Software 100 Crescent Rd. #1B Needham, MA 02194 USA Tel: +1 617 455 1454 Fax: +1 617 244 5243 -Hitman, cue sheet -X-OR, patch editaor -Tunesmith, composing -Tiger cub, sequencer -Tiger, sequencer -T-Basic, utility -Samplemaker, sample editor -Roland Mt-32, patch editor -Roland D-110, patch editor -Roland D-50, patch editor -Realtime 1.2, sequencer -Phantom, synchronizer -Oberheim Matrix 6/1000, patch editor -Music mouse, composing -MIDI Recording Studio, sequencer -M, composing -Lexicon PCM-70, patch editor -Korg M1, patch editor -Korg DS-8, patch editor -Korg DP-3000, patch editor -Keys, composing -KCS Omega*, sequencer -Kawai K-5, patch editor -Kawai K-3, patch editor -Kawai K-1, patch editor -Tempo Master MPE -FX-Pac-1(LXP1, SPX90, DSP128, Midiverb) -4-op Deluxe, patch editor -Fingers, composing -ESQapade ESQ-1/SQ-80, patch editor -EMU Proteus/XR, patch editor -DX Heaven, patch editor -Copyist Professional-DTP, scoring -Copyist Apprentice, scoring -Casio VZ Rider, patch editor -Casio CZ Rider, patch editor * Supports Fostex Machine Control Electronic Arts 1820 Gateway Dr. San Mateo, CA 94404 Tel: +1 415 571 7171 -Music Construction Set, player Electronic Courseware Systems 1210 Lancaster Dr. Champaign, IL 61821 USA Tel: +1 217 359 7099 Fax: +1 217 359 6578 -Aural Skills Trainer, education -Early music Skills, education -Functional Harmony Series, education -Keyboard blues, education -Keyboard Chords, education -Keyboard Extended Jazz Harmonies, education -Keyboard fingerings, education -Keyboard Intervals, education -Keyboard Jazz Harmonies, education -Keyboard Kapers, education -Keyboard Namegame, education Electronic Courseware Systems cont. -Keyboard Tutor, education -MIDI Jazz Improv Series, education -Musical Stairs, education E-Magic Ensoniq Corp Worldwide Headquarters 155 Great Valley Pkwy P.O. Box 3023 Malvern, PA 19355-0735 Tel: 215 647 3930 (custemer service) Fax: 215 647 8908 -Unitor 2, interface -Notator*, sequencer -Export, interface -Creator SL, sequencer * Supports Fostex Machine Control Esat Software 57 rue du Tondu 33000 Bordeaux France Tel: +33 16 56 693523 Fax: +33 16 56 984345 -HMS Soundtracker, sequencer Expose Software 26 boulevard d'Anthenes 13001 Marseille France Tel: +33 16 91 058978 Fax: +33 16 91 058979 -AudioSculpture, software tone generator Fostex Corporation of America 15431 Blackburn Ave. Norwalk, CA 90650 Tel: +1 310 921 1112 Fax: +1 310 802 1964 -Fostex Machine Control, machine control Gajits Music Software I-Mex House, 40 Princess Street Manchester M1 6DE UK Tel: +44 61 236 2515 Fax: +22 61 2364044 -Companion Editor Librarians, patch editor -The Hit Kit, composition -The Sample Series, sample librarian -Sequencer One, sequencer Geerdes Midisystems Bismarckstrasse 84 D-1000 Berlin 12 Germany Tel: +49 30 316779 Fax: +49 30 3121828 -Softworkstations 1strack, editor & sequencer -StarTrack, sequencer Grand Mesa Research PO Box 266 Eads, CO 81036-0266 USA Tel: +1 719 438 5419 -CK: MIDI! 2.0, utility Hollis Resaerch Ltd. The Moat House, Fort Road St. Peter Port Guernsey, Channel Islands UK Tel: +44 481 728286 Fax: +44 481 728286 -MIDIman, patch editor -Trackman 2, sequencer Hotz Instruments Technology P.O. Box 828 Newbury Park, CA 91319-0828 USA Tel: +1 805 492 5553 Fax: +1 805 493 4650 -Hotz MIDI Translator, MIDI translator Interval Music Systems 12335 Santa Monica Blvd. #244 Los Angeles, CA 90025-2519 USA Tel: +1 310 478 3956 Fax: +1 310 478 5791 -GenWave, sample editor -Synth Editor/Librarian, patch editor J. Beer Software 877 N. Paulina Chicago. IL 60622-5069 USA -Walking Bass, education -Jazz Expert System, composing JCD Software 67 rue Gambeta 95400 Villiers le Bel France Tel: +33 134 730987 Fax: +33 134 696031 -Cle de Sol, education -Feeling Partner, education JLCooper Electronics 12500 Beatrice St. Los Angeles, Ca 90066 USA Tel: +1 310 306 4131 Fax: +1 310 822 2252 -Nexus Plus, 2X8 switcher with merge -Nexus, 3X8 MIDI switcher -PPS-2 SMPTE/Smart FSK Synchronizer -PPS-100 SMPTE-MIDI Sychronizer -PPS-100Q SMPTE/MIDI Synchronizer -Media Control Station, multimedia controller -DataSynch, MTC synch for Alesis ADAT -CS1M, control station -MixMaster, MIDI mixer -MSB Plus Rev. 2, 8X8 MIDI patch bay -MSB Plus, remote software -MAGI II Console Automation Systems -FaderMaster, MIDI command controller -Synapse, MIDI patch bay -Synapse Remote, MIDI patch bay processor Johnsware 5802 42nd Avenue Hyattsville, MD 20781-1632 USA Tel: +1 301 927 1947 -MIDIBoss, MIDI mapper -MPatch, editor/librarian -MSBehave, editor/librarian -MXMaster, editor/librarian -SDDemon, editor/librarian -Tune Up, patch editor -K3Master, patch editor -DSPatcher, patch editor -CZLIBII for Casio CZ 101, patch editor -APatch (for Audio Matrix), patch editor Legend Software Systems 3508 34A Avenue Edmonton, AB T6L 5E8 Canada Tel: +1 403 450 0736 -The Final Cut, sequencer Live Collection 18 Bld. Vincent Auriol 75013 Paris France Tel: +33 130 409095 Fax: +33 144 245550 -Lizard, editor/librarian Mark of the Unicorn, Inc. 1280 Massachussette Ave. Cambridge, MA 02138 USA Tel: +1 617 576 2760 Fax: +1 617 576 3609 -Mixer 7S, MIDI controlled mixer Michtron 3201 Drummond Plz. Newark, DE 19711 USA Tel: +1 302 454 7946 Fax: +1302 454 1403 -Replay Professional, sample player -Replay 8, sample player -Quartet, sample player -Playback, sample player -Master Sound, sample player Microdeal Ltd. P.O. Box 68 St. Austell PL25 4YB UK Tel: +44 726 68020 Fax: +44 726 69692 -Concerto, sequencer -Quartet, sequencer -Replay VIII, sample editor -Replay Professional, sample editor -Stereo Master, sample editor -Stereo Replay, sample editor Midiman 236 W. Mountain St., Suite 108 Pasadena, CA 91103 USA Tel: +1 800 969 6434 Fax: +1 818 449 9480 -TransMidi, interface -Synchman, interface -Synchman Plus, interface -Synchman Pro, interface -Synchman Pro MTV, interface -Synchman Remote, sync controller -SMPTE Time Window, sync controller -MIDI Time Window, sync controller -Fineline, mixer -Minimixer, mixer -MIDI Drummer II -Atari Guide To Sequencers, book Midisoft Corp. 15263 N.E. 90th St. Redmond, WA 98052 USA Tel: +1 206 881 7176 Fax: +1 206 883 1368 -Midisoft Studio, sequencer Mind Over Midi Productions 9131 Capella Dr. #302 Burnaby, BC Canada V3J 7K4 Tel: +1 604 444 4424 -Slave Driver, mapper -Lexicon LXP-1/5 Editors, patch editor Mobile Ohm Development 4363 Coopers Creek Drive Smyrna, GA 30082 USA Tel: +1 404 333 9124 -Drum Kitz:Alesis D4 Editor/Librarian Musicode 5575 Baltimore Dr. #105-127 La Mesa, CA 92042 USA Tel: +1 619 469 7194 -YS100/200,B200,TQ5, D54454, WT11 -V50 Voice Development System -TX81Z/DX11 Voice Development -K1 Voice Development System -K4 Voice Development System -DX21/27/100 Voice Development patch editor Musikhaus Kahlenberg Dorstener Str. 180 D-4690 Herne 2 Germany Fax: +49 0 22 23 15 67 -K4 ISC-Interactiv Sound Creator, patch editor Oktal International 315 Rene Levesque Est. Suite 110 Montreal, Quebec H2X 3P3 Canada Tel: +1 514 844 3428 Fax: +1 514 255 4981 -Multitude Jr. 1.0, sequencer -Multitude Pro 1.0, sequencer -Multitude Pro/Score 1.0, sequencer/notation Paradigm Software Products 1369 concord Place, Suite 3-B Kalamazoo, MI 49009-2657 Tel: +1 616 372 5972, Ext. 472 -Omni-Banker ST, librarian PG Music, Inc. 111-266 Elmwood Avenue Buffalo, NY 14222 USA Tel: +1 416 528 2368 Fax: +1 416 577 4704 -Band in a Box, composer Pixel Publishing 641 Caledonia Rd. Toronto, Ontario Canada M6E 4V8 Tel: +1 416 785 3036 Fax: +1 416 785 6416 -Super Librarian, universal librarian Pro MIDI Systems P.O. Box 13 Laurier, WA 99146 USA -Pro Midi Player, player Quinsoft c/o Patchworks Distribution 211 Frederick Road Hastings, East Sussex TN35 5AU UK Tel: +44 424 436674 Fax: +44 424 434338 -The Advanced Four-Op Librarian -The FB 01 Librarian -The Juno 1/2 Editor, patch editor/librarian -K4 Editor, patch editor/librarian -The M1 Toolkit, librarian/utilities -The Matrix Editor, editor/librarian -The MKS 70 Editor, editor/librarian -Proteus Editor, editor/librarian -The Quadraverb Toolkit, utilities -Trax v1.5, recording studio manager -VZ-Ed Editor, Casio VZ editor/librarian Roland Corporation U.S. 7200 Dominion Cr. Los Angeles, CA 90040 USA Tel: +1 213 685 5141 Fax: +1 213 722 0911 -Tentrax, sequencer Rythm'n Soft Zone industriel des peupliers 18 ter rue des trembles 38100 Grenoble France Tel: +33 16 76 405270 Fax: +33 16 76 333808 -Big Boss 24/Big Boss Plus, sequencer -Live Teaching System, education -Midnight, sequencer -Mister Jam, sequencer -Piano Solfeo, education Scorpion Systems Group 836 Page, San Francisco, CA 94708 USA Tel: +1 415 428 2685 -sYbil, mapper Sirensong Software 1717 Acatrraz Ave. Berkeley, CA 94708 USA Tel: +1 510 428 2685 Fax: +1 510 655 3664 -Solo Sampler Plus, education -Solo Sampler, education -Rhythm Sampler, education -Now Hear This, education Soft Arts P.O. Box 127762, Goethestrasse 81 D-1000 Berlin 12 Germany Tel: +49 30 313 7610 Fax: +49 30 313 9595 -DDD-1 Drumworks, editor librarian -DSM-1/DSS-1 Workstations, editor/librarian -Live, sequencer -Live Basic, sequencer -LXP-1, editor/librarian -MIDI Sample Translator, sample translator -Pan, education -Proteus X-Rayer, editor/librarian -Quick Step 01/W, editor/librarian -Score Perfect, notation -Score Perfect Professional, notation -Soundsystem S 612, sample editor -Soundsystem X 7000, sample editor Sound Quest 1573 Eglinton Ave. W. #200 Toronto, Ontario, Canada M6E 2G9 Tel: +1 416 234 0347 Fax: +1 416 322 6451 -K1 Quest, editor/librarian -M6/1000 Quest, editor/librarian -M1 Quest, editor/librarian -D-5/10/20/110 Quest, editor/librarian -CZ Quest, editor/librarian -SQ-80 Quest, editor librarian -OP-4 quest, editor/librarian -MT-32 Quest, editor/librarian -DX11 Quest, editor/librarian -Midi Quest, editor/librarian Steinberg/Jones 17700 Raymer St. Northridge, CA 91325 USA Tel: +1 818 993 4091 Fax: +1 818 701 7452 -Cubase*, sequencer -Cubase Lite, sequencer -Cubeat 2.0, sequencer -Tango, composer -Twelve, sequencer -Switcher, utility -The Ear, education -Synthworks TX81Z -Synthworks Wavestation -Synthworks FB-01 -Synthworks ESQ -1 -Synthworks DX/TX -Synthworks D-10/110/20/MT-32 -Synthworks D-50 -Synthworks K1 -Synthworks M1 -Synthworks MT-32 -Synthworks Proteus -Synthworks SY-77 editor/librarian software -D/A Board (16 bit Avalon board), hardware -Pro-24 III, sequencer -SMP24, interface -MIMIX Fader Automation System, mixer -Midex +, interface -Midex, interface -Masterscore, notation -Desktop Mixing DMP-7, mixing -Avalon, sample editor * Supports Fostex Machine Control Stuyts Engineering BV 1 Krom 7a, 2011 JM Haarlem The Netherlands Tel: +011 31 23 324609 Fax: +011 31 23 311135 -ST-Sound Track, sample editor Synergy Resources 745 N. Bolton Avenue Indianapolis, IN 46219-5902 USA Tel; +1 317 356 6946 -Synthview DW-8000, patch editor -K1 Capture, editor/librarian Take control Institue of Research and Development Vincent Dr. Birmingham B15 2SQ UK Tel: +44 214 154155 Fax: +44 214 154156 -Music DTP, notation Take Note Software 285 Divisadero #3 San Francisco, CA 94117-3226 USA Tel: +1 415 431 9495 -Take Note 2.0, education The Digital Muse 82 Tachbrook Street London SW1V 2NB UK Tel: +44 718 289462 Fax: +44 718 341099 -Prodigy, sequencer -Rave, sequencer Trifolium Wilhelmsstr. 5 D-3500 Kassel Germany Tel: +49 561 773077 Fax: +49 561 27963 -Analyser, audio spectrum analyser -BlueNote, sequencer/notation -Rhytm Crack, composer -Sound Editors, editor/librarian Vivatv 2 passage Flourens 75017 Paris France Tel: +33 1 43 440572 -Amadeus ST, notation Wintertree Software Inc. 43 Rueter Street Nepean, ON K2J 3Z9 Canada Tel: +1 613 825 6271 -Beat Egger, drum machine driver -MIDIMagnet, desk accesory -MIDIX32 Standard MIDI File Player/Converter """"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" STReport's "EDITORIAL CARTOON" """""""""""""""""""""""""""""" > A "Quotable Quote" "The More things change...." """"""""""""""""" "WILL THE FALCON SOAR WITH EAGLES??? or, CONTINUE TO ROOST WITH TURKEYS?!?" A BAD April Fool's JOKE """"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" > ABCO SPECIALS! STR InfoFile * 1992 SPRING Prices! MORE Products! * """"""""""""""""""""""""""" ------------------------------------ ** EFFECTIVE IMMEDIATELY! ** NOTICE: ABCO will BEAT OR MATCH * ANY * Advertised or Invoiced price * WE WILL NOT BE UNDERSOLD!! ABCO COMPUTER CONSULTANTS ========================= P.O. Box 6672 Jacksonville, Florida 32236-6672 Est. 1985 _________________________________________ Voice: 904-783-3319 10 AM - 4 PM EDT BBS: 904-786-4176 12-24-96 HST FAX: 904-783-3319 12 PM - 6 AM EDT _________________________________________ HARD DISK SYSTEMS & DESIGNS TO FIT EVERY BUDGET _________________________________________ All systems are complete and ready to use, included at NO EXTRA COST are clock/calendar and cooling blower(s). *-ALL ABCO HARD DISK SYSTEMS ARE FULLY EXPANDABLE-* (you are NOT limited to two drives) - Available for all Platforms - -* ICD LINK & ADSCSI PLUS HOST ADAPTERS USED EXCLUSIVELY *- WE PAY SHIPPING & INSURANCE!!! >UPS!< (Prepaid Orders - Cont. USA) *_*_*_* *** NEW!!! ULTRA MODERN "SUPER STYLE" ABCOFILE CASE *** DELUXE 2 bay Cabinet W/65w Auto PS & Blower $119.00 <<>> Case & ICD LINK or ADSCSI PLUS Host [Hard Disk Ready] $259.95 -STAND ALONE PRODUCTS- Model Description Autopark Price ================================================== SGN4951 51Mb Y CALL! SQN1096 85mb Y CALL! SQN2055 130mb Y CALL! SQN1296 213mb Y CALL! SQN4055 340mb Y CALL! ================================================== Standard "Shoebox Cabinet style is also available Call for pricing applicable to IBM - MAC - AMIGA IDE - SCSI - ESDI MODERN TOWER CABINETS AVAILABLE Call for Info! PLEASE NOTE: The above is partial listing only! Many other configurations available. 20mb - 3.5gb NOTICE - NOTICE - NOTICE - NOTICE """"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" SPECIAL PURCHASE! * 83mb - 1345mb * Hard Disk Mechanisms Call for SUPER PRICING!! Limited Time Only!! IDEAL FOR USE IN: IBM - MAC - AMIGA! FULLY ASSEMBLED SCSI DRIVES w/o ICD LINK Available ADD $35.00 for 4 BAY SUPER CABINET w/250+w PS EXOTIC TOWER CABINETS AVAILABLE Call for Info! PLEASE NOTE: The above is partial listing only! FAST TECHNOLOGY ACCELERATOR UPGRADES AVAILABLE & INSTALLED ***** >> ABCO proudly offers: ATARI PRODUCTS << MAC PRODUCTS - AMIGA PRODUCTS - PC PRODUCTS Call for ABCO's * HIGHLY COMPETITIVE PRICING! * ABCO COMPUTER SYSTEMS * STILL THE BEST VALUE! ***** If you don't see what you want listed here, call us. Odds are, we either have it or, can get it for you! * GUARANTEED * AT THE BEST POSSIBLE PRICE! * "WE SERVICE WHAT WE SELL" ****** SPECIAL - SPECIAL ****** * SYQUEST 44MB (#555) >> ABCOFILE "44" & "88" * * REMOVABLE MEDIA DRIVES * --->> LIMITED TIME SPECIAL! NOW ONLY 44MB $ CALL! <<--- SCSI port READY 88MB $ CALL! with ICD Link add 80.00 COMPLETELY ASSEMBLED AND READY TO RUN! ONE Cart Included! 44mb CARTS: $ 69.50 88mb CARTS: $ 109.50 44mb MECH ONLY: $ 319.95 88mb MECH ONLY: $ 419.95 ****** SPECIAL - SPECIAL ****** * TWIN SYQUEST 44MB REMOVABLE MEDIA DRIVES ... PROGRAMMER'S DELIGHT * SPECIALLY PRICED ** $ CALL! ** Includes: * TWO * cartridges! * SYQUEST 44MB REMOVABLE MEDIA DRIVE AND HARD DRIVE COMBINATIONS * - Syquest 44 Model [555] and the following hard drives - ** 50mb SQG51S $ CALL! 105mb SQG105S $ CALL! ** Or, YOUR choice of Hard Disk Mechanism! LOWBOY - STANDARD - DUAL BLOWER CABINETS CUSTOM CONFIGURATIONS AVAILABLE Listed above are a sampling of the systems available. Prices also reflect various cabinet/power supply configurations (over sixty configurations are available, flexibility is unlimited) * IBM/MSDOS - AMIGA - ATARI - APPLE/MACINTOSH * ALL UNITS COMPATIBLE WITH --> SUPERCHARGER - AT/PC SPEED - GCR LARGER units are available - (Custom Configurations) *** --> COMPLETE IBM CLONE SYSTEMS AVAILABLE! <-- *** CUSTOM BUILT TO YOUR SPECS! CALL FOR PRICING & AVAILABILITY 386/486 25 MHZ - 33Mhz - 50Mhz - 66Mhz From $839.95 **** SPECIAL SPRING OFFER **** 486 64K CACHE, 4MB RAM, 174MB HD, 1.2FLOP, 1.44FLOP 1MB SVGA CARD, 101 KEYBOARD, DOS 5.0, WINDOWS 3.1 & MOUSE $1350.00! - W/NI 14" 28DP SVGA MONITOR; $1550.00! *>> NO REPACKS OR REFURBS USED! <<* Atari SLM 804, SLM 804PCV Laser Toner Kits Memorex 2108, 5287 Oasys Laserpro 5287, 5308, Express 830, Express Series II Silver Express, Gold Express ** $41.95 shipping Included ** Atari SLM 605 Laser Toner Kits AT&T 593, CAF Laser, DSI Laser, DTP Systems, Epson EPL-6000 Facit P6060, Fontx Syslaser, Harris3M 2006, M-Tally MT905 Microtek Turbo PS, OAS Laserpro Executive, Packard Bell 9500 TEC LB 1305, Toshiba PageLaser 6 ** $41.95 shipping included ** (TWO Toner Carts Incl.) Panasonic Laser Toner Kits Panasonic KX -P 400 series, Panafax UF-750 Facsimile ** $41.95 shipping included ** -- ALL TONER KITS * IN STOCK * -- * Toner Starter Kits-$62.95 * * Replacement (804) Drums-$187.95 * ABCO is PROUD to announce the acquisition of the exclusive U.S.A. distribution rights for ** Bitblit Software's ///Turbo Board BBS. ** This fine Atari ST BBS system software and user support is available through ABCO to all Turbo customers in the USA. Call for current pricing. ALL POWER SUPPLIES UL APPROVED Now Available BUSINESSES, - LEASE TO OWN WITH AT&T - -* 12 month FULL Guarantee *- (A FULL YEAR of COVERAGE) WE PAY SHIPPING & INSURANCE! >UPS!< (Prepaid Orders - Cont. USA) QUANTITY & USERGROUP DISCOUNTS AVAILABLE! _________________________________________ DEALERS and DISTRIBUTORS WANTED! please, call for details COD, Personal and Company Checks accepted. ORDER YOUR NEW UNIT TODAY! CALL: 1-904-783-3319 Customer Orders & Service 9am - 8pm EDT TUES thru SAT __________________________________________________________ > DEALER CLASSIFIED LIST STR InfoFile * Dealer Listings * """"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" --------------- ABCO COMPUTER CONSULTANTS ========================= P.O. Box 6672 Jacksonville, Florida 32236-6672 Est. 1985 1-904-783-3319 """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" COMPUTER STUDIO =============== WESTGATE SHOPPING CENTER 40 Westgate Parkway - Suite D Ashville, NC 28806 1-800-253-0201 """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" SAN JOSE COMPUTER ================= 1278 Alma Court San Jose, CA. 95112 1-408-995-5080 """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" CompuSeller West ================ 220-1/2 W. Main St. St. Charles, IL Ph. (708) 513-5220 """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" (Dealers; to be listed here, just drop us a line.) """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" STReport International Online Magazine -* [S]ilicon [T]imes [R]eport *- """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" STR Online! "YOUR INDEPENDENT NEWS SOURCE" March 12, 1993 Since 1987 copyright (c) 1987-92 All Rights Reserved No.9.11 """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" Views, Opinions and Articles Presented herein are not necessarily those of the editors/staff of STReport International Online Magazine. Permission to reprint articles is hereby granted, unless otherwise noted. Reprints must, without exception, include the name of the publication, date, issue number and the author's name . STReport and/or portions therein may not be edited in any way without prior written permission. STReport, at the time of publication, is believed reasonably accurate. 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