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ST REPORT WEEKLY ONLINE MAGAZINE Monday, SEPT. 19, 1988 Vol II No. 53 =========== APEInc., P.O. BOX 74, Middlesex, N.J. 08846-0074 PUBLISHER GENERAL MANAGER Ron Kovacs R.F.Mariano ======================================================= ST REPORT EDITOR: Thomas Rex Reade PO Box 6672 Jacksonville, Florida. 32236-6672 Headquarters Bulletin Boards ST Report North ST Report South 201-343-1426 904-786-4176 ------------------------------------ ST Report Central ST Report West 216-784-0574 916-962-2566 CONTENTS ======== > From the GM'S Desk..................> A CONFERENCE WITH THE PRESIDENT... > INSIGHTS, Atari's Future............> ST Pro GEM #4..................... > Shakespeare and FUJI................> Garbage on the Line............... > Of Special Note.....................> ST REPORT CONFIDENTIAL............ ========================================================================= EXCLUSIVELY ON: COMP-U-SERVE ~ GENIE ~ DELPHI ~ THE SOURCE ========================================================================= From the General Manager's Desk, Greetings.... Happy New Year to all our Jewish friends! Perhaps at this time of year Atari has chosen the best time to have a LANDMARK conference on CIS. In fact, we at ST REPORT believe so strongly that this is the right time, we have included many points to ponder about the future of the ST and Atari in general throughout this issue. We have done this so you have a concise source of good subject matter to build worthwhile questions for the "BIGWIGS" at Atari. Please make sure you ask YOUR question and do remember that NO question is a stupid question ....only someone who says a question is stupid is dumb! This is a rare opportunity for the Atari Userbase, Usergroups and potential business users. Use it to your best advantage! Ask those Questions that have been nagging you....the answers may surprise you. ONLY IN AMERICA! God, I love to brag about the USA! R.F.Mariano ------------------------------------------------------------------------- A CONFERENCE WITH THE PRESIDENT =============================== ATARI TOP EXECS TO ATTEND PUBLIC FORUM -------------------------------------- The Atari Forums on CompuServe will be sponsoring a world-wide electronic Teleconference with Sam Tramiel, President and Chief Operating Officer, Sig Hartmann, Executive Vice President and Software President of Atari Corporation and Neil Harris at the keyboards on Monday, September 26 at 9:00pm EDT. Your participation in this conference is welcomed and encouraged! The Presidential Conference is going to be held in CompuServe's Electronic Convention Center(tm). The Electronic Convention Center(tm) was designed specifically for special conferences of this nature and can have as many as 300 people participating simultaniously without causing the slightest speed decrease. In addition, the Electronic Convention Center(tm) offers the capability of holding a more structured conference, making it possible for you to ask your questions and be answered by the respondants without any interruptions. Top performance is absolutely guaranteed! Lastly, the Electronic Convention Center(tm) offers additional conveniences (discussed later in this text) that will make your participation in this conference amazingly easy. If you've participated in other national conferences of this type before and have been underwhelmed at the way it was conducted and the performance of the service during 'heavy' usage, this conference is your opportunity to experience the communication power of a professional-quality global information network. ACCESSING THE CONVENTION CENTER ------------------------------- As mentioned above, the Presidential Conference will be held in CompuServe's Electronic Convention Center(tm) -- NOT the conference area of the Atari 16-Bit Forum. To access the Convention Center, type GO CONVENTION at any CompuServe command prompt. When you type GO CONVENTION, CompuServe will display the following menu: Electronic Convention Center(tm) INFORMATION/RESERVATIONS 1 Instructions 2 List Conferences/Make Reservations 3 Review/Cancel Reservations 4 Conference Etiquette Enter choice ! Choice 1 allows you to view the complete instruction guide for using the Convention Center. Choice 2 and Choice 3 allow you to list upcoming special conferences and any advance "reservations" (NOT NECESSARY FOR THIS CONFERENCE!) you might have made. Lastly, choice 4 provides some information on the etiquette followed by participants in an electronic conference. On Monday, September 26, at 8:30 PM EDT (a half hour before the Presidential Conference is scheduled to begin), the Convention Center menu will appear as shown above with the addition of menu choice 5 which will allow you to enter the Presidential Conference. An example of how the Convention Center menu will appear from 8:30 through the end of the conference on September 26 appears below: Electronic Convention Center(tm) INFORMATION/RESERVATIONS 1 Instructions 2 List Conferences/Make Reservations 3 Review/Cancel Reservations 4 Conference Etiquette JOIN CONFERENCE IN PROGRESS 5 Atari President's Conference Enter choice ! All you will need to do is select choice 5 in order to join the conference. Once you select choice 5, CompuServe will prompt you to enter your name: What is your name? John Doe Enter your name and press a <CR> as shown in the above example. If you enter the conference area before 9:00 PM EDT, you can chat briefly with other early arrivers until the moderated conference begins. ASKING A QUESTION ----------------- Once the moderated conference begins, only the moderator and guest speaker will be allowed to openly communicate at all times. Other participants must signal that they would like to ask a question or make a comment by using the /QUESTION (or /QUE) command. Once you issue the /QUE command, CompuServe will add your name (in order) to the queue. When it is your turn to speak, CompuServe will beep your terminal and display a message explaining that it is your turn and you may now ask your question. If you attempt to openly communicate before it is your turn to speak, the Convention Center will send you a reminder that in order to ask a question or make a comment, you must enter the /QUE command and wait for your turn. If you issue the /QUE command and change your mind about asking a question, you can enter the /UNQUE command to remove your place from the queue. USING THE BUFFER ---------------- The Electronic Conference Center(tm) makes it possible for you to compose or upload your question or statement into a buffer area, followed by giving you the option of editing the text using standard CompuServe EDIT commands (explained in detail in EDIT.TXT, available in LIBRARY 1 of the Atari 16-Bit Forum). Then, you can send your pre-composed buffer when it is your turn to speak in the conference. Here are the commands you will need to know in order to use the buffer feature of the Convention Center: /BUFFER EDIT - Brings you into "edit" mode where you can compose, ASCII-upload, or edit your text. /BUFFER SEND - Send buffer to all participants. OTHER COMMANDS YOU SHOULD KNOW ABOUT ------------------------------------ The following list of commands are available to you in the Convention Center: /BUFFER EDIT Edit text buffer /BUFFER SEND Send text buffer /BULLETIN Display short bulletin /COMMANDS Show list of commands /DAY Show date and time /DISPLAY Change message display /ECHO Show input /EXIT Exit the conference /NOECHO Do not show input /HELP Command help text /NAME Change your name /NOSEND Refuse private "sends" /OFF Log-off /SEND Send a private message /STATUS User/guest count /WHO Show last speaker /USERS List users /LOOK Question status (how many people are in the queue) /QUESTION Question request /UNQUEUE Cancel a question If you have any questions, please feel free to post a message to the Sysops of the Atari Forums. Otherwise, hope you found this introduction file useful and we're looking forward to seeing you at the big conference! ************************************************************************** NOTICE NOTICE NOTICE NOTICE NOTICE NOTICE NOTICE NOTICE NOTICE NOTICE FOR A LIMITED TIME ONLY COMPUSERVE WILL PRESENT $15.00 WORTH OF COMPLIMENTARY ONLINE TIME to the Readers ST REPORT ONLINE ELECTRONIC MAGAZINE NEW USERS SIGN UP TODAY! Call any of the St Report Official BBS numbers (Listed at the top of ST REPORT) or Leave E-mail to St Report, Ron Kovacs or Rex Reade Be sure to include your full mailing address so your Compuserve kit can be immediately mailed to you! **** Expires 09-30-88 **** NOTICE NOTICE NOTICE NOTICE NOTICE NOTICE NOTICE NOTICE NOTICE NOTICE ************************************************************************** SPECIAL SUPRA MODEM OFFER!!! ============================ CompuServe's Atari Forums have made very special arrangements with Paramount Products Inc. to offer the members of our forums the chance to upgrade your system to 2400 baud service at a very special price. For a limited time, CompuServe subscribers may purchase the SUPRA CORP. 2400 baud Hayes-compatible modem for the very **LOW** price of just $139.95 !!!!! These are brand new, not reconditioned units, with the full SUPRA CORP. warranty. The SUPRA MODEM uses the Hayes Smartmodem 'AT' command set and operates at 300-1200-2400 baud. It's an outboard unit (not an internal plug-in card) allowing ease of transfer to other computers. Connection is thru the standard RS-232 interface. (Just plug it into the back of your ATARI ST). To take advantage of this special offer, Phone the 800 number listed below or write to: Paramount Products Inc. 1405 S.E. Pacific Blvd. Albany, Oregon 97321 ***** Phone orders: (800)444-4061 ***** Price: $139.95 + shipping UPS ground: add $4.00 UPS Blue label: add $8.00 C.O.D.: add $2.25 MasterCard or VISA accepted Orders will be shipped the next business day If you've been accessing CompuServe at 1200 baud, this is a great way to lower your total online bill since CIS does *NOT* charge a premium for 2400 baud access. (You can get the same amount of information or download the same amount of programs in approximately 1/2 the time as 1200 baud users!) This modem will PAY FOR ITSELF in just a few sessions. -------------------------------------------------------------------------- INSIGHTS INTO THE FUTURE OF THE ATARI ST ======================================== by Michael Arthur In the computer user's quest for more sophisticated machines that will do more, function better, and be easier to use, many options have appeared throughout the brief history of the microcomputer. For many, the answer, for some reason, has been IBM machines. For them, the future lies in many developments, like OS/2, but mainly in the 386 chip, which will carry them into the 1990's. Some, though, have forsaken this route for a new type of user interface, using a new mechanism called a mouse, and using menus and windows and dialog boxes to use their machines much easier than what was previously available. Many of these people have chosen the Macintosh, which has the best implementation of this new way of using a computer, and has a pretty bright future, as Apple is VERY financially secure, and as products like Hypercard and the Mac II give performance that is equal or better than the IBM machines, resulting in that many people have stopped using them whenever possible, and do not prefer IBM's to the Macintosh. One thing about the Macintosh, though, is that is oftentimes too expensive for many people, and lacks features necessary in computers in all but the most expensive Macintosh, the Mac II. Many peripherals (mostly the ones made by Apple) and most of the software is also expensive, turning many people to look elsewhere. Some of these people have chosen the Amiga, with its amazing graphics, and built-in multitasking. The Amiga, though, does NOT have a Mac-like user interface that is preferable, and has a text-based user interface that is even worse than what was in IBM's. Also, its multitasking operating system crashes a LOT, another thing that is never preferable. So many people look elsewhere, and see the Atari ST. It is VERY fast, has a user interface that is very good, which, although not better than Mac Finder, is good enough for most people. It also has many emulators out for it, a built-in MIDI interface, which makes it the ONLY choice for many professional musicians, and more built-in memory than ANY other computer. But after getting an ST, they find out that the ST also isn't perfect, and that their fears about Atari itself may not be unfounded. Things like Federated, Atari's relations with its dealers, Atari's record of Vaporware, and the shoddy Developer's Kit (something NEVER seen in companies like IBM; Atari says that upgrades, newsletters are sent very often to developers buying one, but....) have caused many otherwise loyal ST owners to openly protest Atari's actions. These people have been called Atari Bashers, the most vocal of them said to be in a group called the Gang of Five. Such actions, though disagreeable and embarrassing to most ST users, who both hate to hear such negative things and despise having to SAY these things about Atari are forced to do so because it is the only way, (apparently), to obtain any kind of reaction from Atari that is evident. Even now, while Atari does an admirable job of keeping quiet about developments, ST users are being treated to excellent goodies both from Atari and third party developers and companies. Here are few of the fine treats to expect from Atari in near future..... --- ----------- ----- ------ IF any of the information presented is inaccurate, please remember the limited resources available for this article. Also, because of the lack of space, this article only focuses on the Atari hardware/software areas and developments that are certain to have an effect on the ST's future. THE ATARI ST COMPUTER LINE -------------------------- The ST, right now, has only support of 4 Megabytes, uses only an 8 MHZ 68000, and supports graphics which, although they allow the ST to run at its fast rate, leaves much to be desired. Atari HAS announced a 68030 add-on to the ST, known as the EST, though. It has 4 megs of RAM on board, uses a VME bus, supports the SUN Network File System, has SCSI/DMA ports, uses XWINDOWS with UNIX Version 5.3, and comes with an 80 Megabyte Hard Disk. It supports resolutions of 1280*960 in monochrome (and maybe 16 colors), a 1024*768 display with 256 colors at the same time, and a 640*400 mode using the entire palette of 16 million colors, at the same time. The prototype is running at 16 MHZ, but it will sooner or later support 20-24 MHZ and up. It will cost around 3500-5000 dollars, and will be officially announced at Winter Comdex. This will be one of the first computers of ANY kind to use the 68030, and the FIRST microcomputer to use it. But in the long run, it might not become that popular. After the initial reviews saying how powerful it is, how it supports more colors than previously seen in micros, and how reliable it is, (IF Atari wants it to sell, and if they are wise, they will boast about it's reliablity and make sure the public knows....also, a GENEROUS warranty program is definately in order. 1 - 3 years! 1) Provide an adequate staff of knowledgable people for Customer Support who know more than just a general briefing given by a "marketing experts"! The only other solution would be to have a well-known third party who already makes and supports UNIX for several machines provide UNIX support, and cause the current staff of Technical Support to reflect the above type of knowledge concerning the hardware and software. This is mentioned because the NEW Technology will require expert Technical Support, and what Atari has in place at this time is totally inadequate and cannot properly fill this need. 2) Advertise HEAVILY for this machine so people will consider it. We ALL know that Atari is not a household name in business computing, therefore it is encumbent upon Atari to properly promote the entire ST product line. At least, it's ABOUT TIME! On these grounds, it might be hypothesized that Atari might not have a chance, and is wasting its time, but this computer WOULD show the business world that Atari makes much more than game machines. IF Atari does a FEW things right, then the EST might have a shot at the VERY lucrative workstation market, and even become associated with the 68030 like the Mac II is with the 68020. Portable ST ----------- Atari has also "hinted" at a Portable ST, which will have a 20 Megabyte hard disk, and a megabyte of memory. The Portable will probably come with features like a MIDI port, built-in floppy drive, the blitter chip and the new TOS ROMs. The display will come from another company, like Zenith, simply because "manufacturing LCD panels, where EVERY pixel must be operable, can strain the fabrication facilities of many companies." This is taken from the September issue of Byte, on page 246. And, while "prototypes are one thing, production runs are quite another", meaning that while Atari might have a prototype of the Portable ST ready and all might be well, when it comes time to produce the LCD screens, not even the new Atari Factory in Houston might be able to do it right at a cost that would make it feasible, and Atari will get another company to custom-make the panels for the Portable ST. The Portable ST's screen will probably use a rear-lighting, or backlit, LCD panel, to make it more readable, EVEN in bad lighting. LCD screens can display 640*400 screens, but ALSO support 320*200 and 640*200 resolutions, without colors, of course. Possiby, this ST will be able to switch from Low to Medium to High Resolution, and able to run both Low/Medium Resolution AND High Resolution software, with Patched TOS ROMs to make it work. IF Atari is wise, they will seriously consider using an LCD screen that displays colors as shades of blue-gray upon a white background, instead of the (MUCH) worse looking amber screens. They would also cost about the same as amber screens.... If Atari chooses to have a detachable keyboard, a smaller version of the keyboard used for the Mega ST, maybe having a numeric keypad, which is often lacking in Laptop keyboards....they would have the "LAPTOP" market in the basket! Since the Macintosh became popular, Mac Users have wanted VERY much to have a Portable Macintosh, for the same reasons that ST users have wanted a Portable ST. One or two of these have shown up, but often they have cost around 4500-5000 dollars, near the price of a Mac II. The ST is STILL the ONLY computer to emulate a MacIntosh, thanks to Dave Small, and since the Portable ST will have a Cartridge Port, it could be optionally sold with Spectre 128 (the Mac Emulator made by Dave Small that uses 128K ROMs) and advertised to the Mac crowd as the ONLY Portable computer that can use Mac software. This would cause a VERY large group of people to become ST Users, and would give the ST a LOT more credibility and market penetration among business users. Atari Abaq ---------- Transputer Futures and the Helios Operating System -------------------------------------------------- The future of the Abaq seems very interesting. It is obviously aimed at Universities and research facilities, who have used Transputers, and other parallel processors, mainly as "calculating engines", with a PC as a front-end and would more likely use Reduced Instruction Set Computer (RISC) Chips in day to day operations. Two versions of the Abaq are planned. One will be an add-on for the Mega ST, which would handle I/O operations, especially for the 40 Megabyte hard disk that will be included, and the other will be a stand-alone machine, with a case similar to the Mega ST's, with an ST motherboard underneath the Abaq motherboard. The Abaq supports 4 display modes. Mode 0 will support a 1280*960 display with either 16 colors or monochrome,and Mode 1 has a 1024*768 display with 256 colors at the same time. Mode 2 has a 640*400 display, but has two separate screens instead of one, for quick, seamless animation. When it is released, hopefully December, (with software available) the Abaq will have 4 slots, for expansion cards to be made by Atari. ED. NOTE: We have it on reliable info that Atari plans to release the -------- ABAQ (Transputer) in EUROPE (UK) FIRST!!! They will come in two configurations, one a Transputer "Farm" card,having 4 Transputers in it, and a memory expansion card, having 20 MEGABYTES of DRAM chips, resulting in that you could have 84 Megs of Ram, or 17 Transputers, with all slots filled, or combinations using 3 Farm Cards and 1 memory expansion card to have 13 Transputers and 24 Megs of RAM. Since one Transputer runs at 10 Million Instructions Per Second (MIPS), having 4 Farm Cards, or 17 T-800's, would let the Abaq have 170 MIPS of computing power, qualifying it as a low-end Supercomputer, for around 15 to 25 thousand dollars, a cost MUCH lower than the $100,000 computers that provide power similar to the Abaq's fastest configuration. Helios Operating System ----------------------- The Abaq itself is impressive, but its operating system, Helios, makes it revolutionary, and the future of the Abaq depends on the popularity of Helios. One of its features (and the main goal of Helios) is to allow Abaqs be networked in a way that all of the Transputers in all of the machines could potentially be available to ALL users, meaning that if you had 4 Abaqs in a network, and 3 Abaqs were idle, the fourth one could use the Transputers in the other three to FURTHER speed up its operations, the 3 Abaqs acting as "compute servers". To make it as familiar as possible, Helios is designed to resemble Unix as much as possible. It's shell is JUST like the Unix C-Shell, using all Unix commands, and Helios emulates Unix system calls to the point where MUCH Unix software can be ported by little more than recompiling it. Meaning that the Unix software on the EST could be easily ported to the Abaq, so one computer's software market could theoretically support the other's, or at least that the Abaq could quickly develop a large software base. The Abaq will use XWINDOWS, implementing GEM on top of it for a graphic user interface, adding an entirely new dimension to Unix, and making the learning curve for the less-experienced user relatively little. Both parallel processors and RISC chips are said to be the future of computers, and the Transputer uses both of these technologies. The Abaq is the first computer to use this chip with a standard operating system, and has virtually no competition in computers using either type of chip. It is, without a doubt, for the high-end of the market, who would need this type of power available, and who would more likely have a use for this state of the art technology. It will definitely be found in universities and research facilities, and will be able to grab this end of the market WAY before any other company comes out with a similarly priced (as in the $10,000-$15,000 range) computer having any type of parallel processor, perhaps even becoming a leading computer in this area. In fact, it might even find its way into the segment of the market that the EST is aimed at. Helios will help to make the Transputer's popularity possible, although it will not be exclusive to the Abaq, as several companies, such as supercomputer firms, will also use it in their Transputer machines. Even Commodore is working with a German Institute to make a Transputer equipped workstation, with an Amiga 2000 to handle I/O operations. This does not figure to be any competition, as it will not be out for a while, and even now it is reportedly not as good as the Abaq. CD-ROM - Atari PC-5 -------------------- The Atari CD-ROM is supposed to be out at around November, costing 599.95 retail. At this time, a few software companies will announce CD-ROM products for the Atari ST, and it seems that the reason this product has been held over so long is that after Atari finished developing it, around April, they sent developer kits to certain companies, and it is the wait for both these companies and the upcoming Atari Factory that have kept the CD-ROM from being put out. But they were not idle during this time. They have provided support for CD-ROM standards, like High Sierra, and made an interface card, so IBM's and compatibles will be able to use it. The PC-5, Atari's 286 clone, will probably not come out until early next year, and when it is out, it won't sell that well, as IBM clones are now a dime a dozen, and NO ONE is likely to buy an Atari PC unless Atari sells it for an extremely low price, well below the competing IBM Clone prices, combined with spectacular features (VGA, 2 Megs of LIM/EMS RAM) and HEAVY advertising, all of which would not make Atari that much profit, and which would drain resources that would be best spent on the Atari ST. The AMY chip is still in production, and will probably not be seen in any Atari product until late 1989! By that time it will most likely be passe! The Atari Laser Printer has the potential of being popular, but ONLY with the Imagen Postscript Module that Atari is planning to include as an option. It would be MUCH better to increase the price of the SLM 804, by maybe 200 dollars, but to include the Ultrascript Module as standard. Some people need only a "dumb" laser printer, but MANY will want Postscript compatibility, almost ALL will want to have both at a good price, and it seems that IF Atari can get it out and advertise for it, then Atari might still get the market share that they lost by letting it become vaporware. ST Game Machine --------------- Atari IS going to make an ST Game Machine, that will be a stripped down ST with Cartridge-based games to be played on an ordinary TV. Look for it to hit the markets during the first quarter of 1989. If you MUST have the 68000 game machine... NAME IT SOMETHING TOTALLY ALIEN TO THE ST LINE! There is VERY little difference between the terms, "ST Game Machine, and.. "The ST IS a Game Machine"!!!! "TOS has a future" ------------------ A quote, from Neil Harris. While this is about as obvious as saying that IBM has a future, it DOES confirm many things about the future of TOS. This fourth revision of TOS that Atari is developing will be out by the first of the year, at a cost of $70.00-90.00. ST REPORT ISSUE # 51 has all the ALLEDGED features listed....graciously provided by Atari. EXCEPT ONE IMPORTANT FEATURE FOR HARD DISK SYSTEMS: read & write to more than twelve partitions of more than 16mb max per partition! ------------------------------------------------------------------------- ANTIC PUBLISHING INC. COPYRIGHT 1988 REPRINTED BY PERMISSION. Professional GEM by Tim Oren Column #4 - The Resource file Welcome to the fourth installment of ST PRO GEM. We are about to delve into the mysteries of GEM resource structure, and then use this knowledge to create some useful utilities for handling dialogs. As with the past columns, there is once again a download file. You will find it under the name GEMCL4.C in the ATARI 16-bit Forum (GO PCS-58). The first and largest part of the download contains a C image of a sample resource file. To create this listing, I used the GEM Resource Construction Set to create a dummy resource with three dialogs including examples of all object types, then enabled the C output option and saved the resource. If you have access to a copy of RCS, I suggest that you create your own listing in order to get a feel for the results. Then, using either listing as a roadmap to the resource, you can follow along as we enter... A MAZE OF TWISTY LITTLE PASSAGES -------------------------------- While a GEM resource is loaded as a block of binary information, it is actually composed of a number of different data structures. These structures are linked together in a rather tangled hierarchy. Our first job is to map this linkage system. The topmost structure in a resource file is the resource header. This is an array of words containing the size and offset within the resource of the other structures which follow. This information is used by GEM during the resource load process, and you should never need to access it. (The resource header does not appear in the C output file; it is generated by the RSCREATE utility if the C file is used to recreate the resource.) The next structure of interest is the tree index. This is an array of long pointers, each of which addresses the beginning of an object tree. Again, you wouldn't normally access this structure directly. The GEM rsrc_gaddr call uses it when finding trees' addresses. This structure is called "rs_trindex" in the C output. If you look at the contents of rs_trindex you will notice that the values are integers, instead of the pointers I described. What has happened is that RCS has converted the pointers to indices into the object array. (If you actually used the C file to recreate the resource file, then the pointers would be regenerated by RSCREATE.) Now you can follow the link from rs_trindex to the objects stored in rs_object. Take (for instance) the second entry in rs_trindex and count down that many lines in rs_object. The following line (object) should start with a -1. This indicates that it is the root object of a tree. The following objects down to the next root belong to that tree. We'll pass over the details of inter-object linkage for now, leaving it for a later column. There are a number of different fields in an object, but right now we'll concentrate on two of them: OB_TYPE and OB_SPEC. The OB_TYPE is the field which contains mnemonics like G_STRING and G_BOX indicating the type of the object. The OB_SPEC is the only field in each object which is a LONG - you can tell it by the L after the number. What's in OB_SPEC depends on the object type, so we need to talk about what kinds of objects are available, what you might use them for, and finally how they use the OB_SPEC field. The box type objects are G_BOX, G_IBOX, and G_BOXCHAR. A G_BOX is an opaque rectangle, with an optional border. It's used to create a solid patch of color or pattern on which to place other objects. For instance, the background of a dialog is a G_BOX. A G_IBOX is a hollow box which has only a border. (If the border has no thickness, then the box is "invisible", hence the name.) The favorite use for IBOXes is to hold radio buttons. There is also one neat trick you can play with an IBOX. If you have more than one object (say an image and a string) which you would like to have selected all at once, you can insert them in a dialog, then cover them with an IBOX. Since the box is transparent, they will show through. If you now make the box selectable, clicking on it will highlight the whole area at once! The G_BOXCHAR is just like a G_BOX, except that a single character is drawn in its center. They are mostly used as "control points": the FULLER, CLOSER, SIZER, and arrows in GEM windows are BOXCHARs, as are the components of the color selection gadgets in the RCS. The OB_SPEC for box type objects is a packed bit array. Its various fields contain the background color and pattern, the border thickness and color, and the optional character and its color. The string type objects are G_STRING, G_BUTTON, and G_TITLE. G_STRINGs (in addition to being a bad pun) are for setting up static explanatory text within dialogs. The characters are always written in the "system font": full size, black, with no special effects. We have already discussed many of the uses of G_BUTTONs. They add a border around the text. The thickness of a G_BUTTON's border is determined by what flags are set for the object. All buttons start out with a border thickness of one pixel. One pixel is added if the EXIT attribute is set, and one more is added if the DEFAULT attribute is set. The G_TITLE type is a specially formatted text string used only in the title bar of menus. This type is needed to make sure that the menus redraw correctly. The Resource Construction Set automatically handles inserting G_TITLEs, so you will seldom use them directly. In a resource, the OB_SPEC for all string objects is a long pointer to a null terminated ASCII string. The string data in the C file is shown in the BYTE array rs_strings. Again you will notice that the OB_SPECs in the C file have been converted to indices into rs_string. To find the string which matches the object, take the value of OB_SPEC and count down that many lines in rs_strings. The next line is the correct string. The formatted text object types are G_TEXT, G_BOXTEXT, G_FTEXT, and G_FBOXTEXT. G_TEXTs are a lot like strings, except that you can specify a color, different sizes, and a positioning rule for the text. Since they require more memory than G_STRINGs, G_TEXTs should be used sparingly to draw attention to important information within a dialog. G_TEXTs are also useful for automatic centering of dialog text which is changed at run-time. I will describe this technique in detail later on. The G_BOXTEXT type adds a solid background and border to the G_TEXT type. These objects are occasionally used in place of G_BUTTONs when their color will draw attention to an important object. The G_FTEXT object is an editable text field. You are able to specify a constant "template" of characters, a validation field for those characters which are to be typed in, and an initial value for the input characters. You may also select color, size, and positioning rule for G_FTEXTs. We'll discuss text editing at length below. The G_FBOXTEXT object, as you might suspect, is the same as G_FTEXT with the addition of background and border. This type is seldom used: the extra appearance details distract attention from the text being edited. The OB_SPEC for a formatted text object is a pointer to yet another type of structure: a TEDINFO. In the C file, you will find these in rs_tedinfo. Take the OB_SPEC value from each text type object and count down that many entries in rs_tedinfo, finding the matching TEDINFO on the next line. Each contains pointers to ASCII strings for the template, validation, and initialization. You can find these strings in rs_strings, just as above. There are also fields for the optional background and border details, and for the length of the template and text. As we will see when discussing editing, the most important TEDINFO fields are the TE_PTEXT pointer to initialized text and the TE_TXTLEN field which gives its length. The G_IMAGE object type is the only one of its kind. A G_IMAGE is a monochrome bit image. For examples, see the images within the various GEM alert boxes. Note that monochrome does not necessarily mean black. The image may be any color, but all parts of it are the SAME color. G_IMAGEs are used as visual cues in dialogs. They are seldom used as selectable items because their entire rectangle is inverted when they are clicked. This effect is seldom visually pleasing, particularly if the image is colored. G_IMAGE objects have an OB_SPEC which is a pointer to a further structure type: the BITBLK. By now, you should guess that you will find it in the C file in the array rs_bitblk. The BITBLK contains fields describing the height and width of the image in pixels, its color,nd it also contains a long pointer to the actual bits which make up the image. In the C file, the images are encoded as hexadecimal words and stored in arrays named IMAG0, IMAG1, and so on. The last type of object is the G_ICON. Like the G_IMAGE, the G_ICON is a bit image, but it adds a mask array which selects what portions of the image will be drawn, as well as an explanatory text field. A G_ICON may also specify different colors for its "foreground" pixels (the ones that are normally black), and its "background" pixels (which are normally white). The pictures which you see in Desktop windows are G_ICONs, and so are the disks and trashcan on the desktop surface. With the latter you will notice the effects of the mask. The desktop shows through right up to the edge of the G_ICON, and only the icon itself (not a rectangle) is inverted when a disk is selected. The OB_SPEC of an icon points to another structure called an ICONBLK. It is shown in the C file as rs_iconblk. The ICONBLK contains long pointers to its foreground bit array, to the mask bit array, and to the ASCII string of explanatory text. It also has the foreground and background colors as well as the location of the text area from the upper left of the icon. The most common use of G_ICONs and ICONBLKs is not in dialogs, instead they are used frequently in trees which are built at run-time, such as Desktop windows. In a future article, we will return to a discussion of building such "on-the-fly" trees with G_ICONs. Now, let's recap the hierarchy of resource structures: The highest level structures are the resource header, and then the tree index. The tree index points to the beginning of each object tree. The objects making up the tree are of several types, and depending on that type, they may contain pointers to ASCII strings, or to TEDINFO, ICONBLK, or BITBLK structures. TEDINFOs contain further pointers to strings; BITBLKs have pointers to bit images; and ICONBLKs have both. PUTTING IT TO WORK ------------------ The most common situations requiring you to understand resource structures involve the use of text and editable text objects in dialogs. We'll look at two such techniques. Often an application requires two or more dialogs which are very similar except for one or two title lines. In this circumstance, you can save a good deal of resource space by building only one dialog, and changing the title at run time. It is easy to go wrong with this practice, however, because the obvious tactic of using a G_STRING and writing over its text at run time can go wrong. The first problem is that you must know in advance the longest title to be used, and put a string that long into the resource. If you don't you will damage other objects in the resource as you copy in characters. The other problem is that a G_STRING is always drawn at the same place in a dialog. If the length of the title changes from time to time, the dialog will have an unbalanced and sloppy appearance. A better way to do this is to exploit the G_TEXT object type, and the TEDINFO structure. The set_text() routine in the download shows how. The parameters provided are the tree address, the object number, and the 32-bit address of the string to be substituted. For this to work, the object referenced should be defined as a G_TEXT type object. Additionally, the Centered text type should be chosen, and the object should have been "stretched" so that it fills the dialog box from side to side. In the code, the first action is to get the OB_SPEC from the object which was referenced. Since we know that the object is a G_TEXT, the OB_SPEC must point to a TEDINFO. We need to change two fields in the TEDINFO. The TE_PTEXT field is the pointer to the actual string to be displayed; we replace it with the address of our new string. The TE_TXTLEN field is loaded with the new string's length. Since the Centered attribute was specified for the object, changing the TE_TXTLEN will cause the string to be correctly positioned in the middle of the dialog! Editing text also requires working with the TEDINFO structure. One way of doing this is shown in the download. The object to be used (EDITOBJ) is assumed to be a G_FTEXT or G_FBOXTEXT. Since we will replace the initialized text at run time, that field may be left empty when building the object in the RCS. The basic trick of this code is to point the TEDINFO's TE_PTEXT at a string which is defined in your code's local stack. The advantages of this technique are that you save resource space, save static data by putting the string in reusable stack memory, and automatically create a scratch string which may be discarded if the dialog is cancelled. The text string shown is arbitrarily 41 characters long. You should give yours a length equal to the number of blanks in the object's template field plus one. Note that the code is shown as a segment, rather than a subroutine. This is required because the text string must be allocated within the context of the dialog handling routine itself, rather than a routine which it calls! After the tree address is found, the code proceeds to find the TEDINFO and modify its TE_PTEXT as described above. However, the length which is inserted into TE_TXTLEN must be the maximum string length, including the null! The final line of code inserts a null into the first character of the uninitialized string. This will produce an empty editing field when the dialog is displayed. If there is an existing value for the object, you should instead use strcpy() to move it into text[]. Once the dialog is complete, you should check its final status as described in the last article. If an "OK" button was clicked, you will then use strcpy() to move the value in text[] back to its static location. Although I prefer this method of handling editable text, another method deserves mention also. This procedure allocates a full length text string of blanks when creating the editable object in the RCS. At run-time, the TE_PTEXT link is followed to find this string's location in the resource, and any pre-existing value is copied in. After the dialog is run, the resulting value is copied back out if the dialog completed successfully. Note that in both editing techniques a copy of the current string value is kept within the application's data area. Threading the resource whenever you need to check a string's value is extremely wasteful. One final note on editable text objects: GEM's editor uses the commercial at sign '@' as a "meta-character". If it is the first byte of the initialized text, then the field is displayed blank no matter what follows. This can be useful, but is sometimes confusing when a user in all innocence enters an @ and has his text disappear the next time the dialog is drawn! LETTERS, WE GET LETTERS ----------------------- The Feedback section on ANTIC ST ONLINE is now functional and is producing a gratifying volume of response. A number of requests were made for topics such as ST hardware and ST BASIC which are beyond the intended scope of this column. These have been referred to ANTIC's editorial staff for action. So many good GEM questions were received that I will devote part of the next column to answering several of general interest. Also, your requests have resulted in scheduling future columns on VDI text output and on the principles (or mythology) of designing GEM application interfaces. Finally, a tip of the hat to the anonymous reader who suggested including the actual definitions of all macro symbols, so that those without the appropriate H files can follow along. As a result of this suggestion, the definitions for this column and the previous three are included at the end of the download. Future articles will continue this practice. STRAW POLL! ----------- I'd like to make a practice of using the Feedback to get your opinions on the column's format. As a first trial, I'd like to know your feelings about my use of "portability macros" in the sample code. These macros, LLGET for example, are used for compatibility between 68K GEM systems like the ST, and Intel based systems like the IBM PC. This may be important to many developers. On the other hand, omitting them results in more natural looking C code. For instance, in the download you will find a second version of set_text() as described above, but without the portability macros. So, I would like to know if you think we should (A) Keep the macros - portability is important to serious developers, (B) Get rid of them - who cares about Intel chips anyway, or (C) Who cares? I'll tally the votes in two weeks and announce the results here. STAY TUNED! ----------- As well as answers to feedback questions, the next column will discuss how GEM objects are linked to form trees, and how to use AES calls and your own code to manipulate them for fun and profit. In the following installment, we'll look at the VDI raster operations (also known as "blit" functions). >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> Sample C output file from RCS <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< /* (Comments added) */ BYTE *rs_strings[] = { /* ASCII data */ "Title String", "Exit", "Centered Text", "", "", "Tokyo", "", "Time: __:__:__", "999999", "", "Time: __:__:__ ", "999999", "New York"}; WORD IMAG0[] = { /* Bitmap for G_IMAGE */ 0x7FF, 0xFFFF, 0xFF80, 0xC00, 0x0, 0xC0, 0x183F, 0xF03F, 0xF060, 0x187F, 0xF860, 0x1860, 0x187F, 0xF860, 0x1860, 0x187F, 0xF860, 0x1860, 0x187F, 0xF860, 0x1860, 0x187F, 0xF860, 0x1860, 0x187F, 0xF860, 0x1860, 0x187F, 0xF860, 0x1860, 0x187F, 0xF860, 0x1860, 0x187F, 0xF860, 0x1860, 0x187F, 0xF860, 0x1860, 0x187F, 0xF860, 0x1860, 0x183F, 0xF03F, 0xF060, 0xC00, 0x0, 0xC0, 0x7FF, 0xFFFF, 0xFF80, 0x0, 0x0, 0x0, 0x3F30, 0xC787, 0x8FE0, 0xC39, 0xCCCC, 0xCC00, 0xC36, 0xCFCC, 0xF80, 0xC30, 0xCCCD, 0xCC00, 0x3F30, 0xCCC7, 0xCFE0, 0x0, 0x0, 0x0}; WORD IMAG1[] = { /* Mask for first icon */ 0x0, 0x0, 0x0, 0x0, 0x7FFE, 0x0, 0x1F, 0xFFFF, 0xFC00, 0xFF, 0xFFFF, 0xFF00, 0x3FF, 0xFFFF, 0xFFC0, 0xFFF, 0xFFFF, 0xFFF0, 0x3FFF, 0xFFFF, 0xFFFC, 0x7FFF, 0xFFFF, 0xFFFE, 0xFFFF, 0xFFFF, 0xFFFF, 0xFFFF, 0xFFFF, 0xFFFF, 0xFFFF, 0xFFFF, 0xFFFF, 0xFFFF, 0xFFFF, 0xFFFF, 0xFFFF, 0xFFFF, 0xFFFF, 0xFFFF, 0xFFFF, 0xFFFF, 0xFFFF, 0xFFFF, 0xFFFF, 0xFFFF, 0xFFFF, 0xFFFF, 0xFFFF, 0xFFFF, 0xFFFF, 0x7FFF, 0xFFFF, 0xFFFE, 0x3FFF, 0xFFFF, 0xFFFC, 0xFFF, 0xFFFF, 0xFFF0, 0x3FF, 0xFFFF, 0xFFC0, 0xFF, 0xFFFF, 0xFF00, 0x1F, 0xFFFF, 0xF800, 0x0, 0x7FFE, 0x0}; WORD IMAG2[] = { /* Data for first icon */ 0x0, 0x0, 0x0, 0x0, 0x3FFC, 0x0, 0xF, 0xC003, 0xF000, 0x78, 0x180, 0x1E00, 0x180, 0x180, 0x180, 0x603, 0x180, 0xC060, 0x1C00, 0x6, 0x38, 0x3000, 0x18C, 0xC, 0x60C0, 0x198, 0x306, 0x6000, 0x1B0, 0x6, 0x4000, 0x1E0, 0x2, 0xC000, 0x1C0, 0x3, 0xCFC0, 0x180, 0x3F3, 0xC000, 0x0, 0x3, 0x4000, 0x0, 0x2, 0x6000, 0x0, 0x6, 0x60C0, 0x0, 0x306, 0x3000, 0x0, 0xC, 0x1C00, 0x0, 0x38, 0x603, 0x180, 0xC060, 0x180, 0x180, 0x180, 0x78, 0x180, 0x1E00, 0xF, 0xC003, 0xF000, 0x0, 0x3FFC, 0x0}; WORD IMAG3[] = { /* Mask for second icon */ 0x0, 0x0, 0x0, 0x0, 0x7FFE, 0x0, 0x1F, 0xFFFF, 0xFC00, 0xFF, 0xFFFF, 0xFF00, 0x3FF, 0xFFFF, 0xFFC0, 0xFFF, 0xFFFF, 0xFFF0, 0x3FFF, 0xFFFF, 0xFFFC, 0x7FFF, 0xFFFF, 0xFFFE, 0xFFFF, 0xFFFF, 0xFFFF, 0xFFFF, 0xFFFF, 0xFFFF, 0xFFFF, 0xFFFF, 0xFFFF, 0xFFFF, 0xFFFF, 0xFFFF, 0xFFFF, 0xFFFF, 0xFFFF, 0xFFFF, 0xFFFF, 0xFFFF, 0xFFFF, 0xFFFF, 0xFFFF, 0xFFFF, 0xFFFF, 0xFFFF, 0xFFFF, 0xFFFF, 0xFFFF, 0x7FFF, 0xFFFF, 0xFFFE, 0x3FFF, 0xFFFF, 0xFFFC, 0xFFF, 0xFFFF, 0xFFF0, 0x3FF, 0xFFFF, 0xFFC0, 0xFF, 0xFFFF, 0xFF00, 0x1F, 0xFFFF, 0xF800, 0x0, 0x7FFE, 0x0}; WORD IMAG4[] = { /* Data for second icon */ 0x0, 0x0, 0x0, 0x0, 0x3FFC, 0x0, 0xF, 0xC003, 0xF000, 0x78, 0x180, 0x1E00, 0x180, 0x180, 0x180, 0x603, 0x180, 0xC060, 0x1C00, 0x6, 0x38, 0x3000, 0x18C, 0xC, 0x60C0, 0x198, 0x306, 0x6000, 0x1B0, 0x6, 0x4000, 0x1E0, 0x2, 0xC000, 0x1C0, 0x3, 0xCFC0, 0x180, 0x3F3, 0xC000, 0x0, 0x3, 0x4000, 0x0, 0x2, 0x6000, 0x0, 0x6, 0x60C0, 0x0, 0x306, 0x3000, 0x0, 0xC, 0x1C00, 0x0, 0x38, 0x603, 0x180, 0xC060, 0x180, 0x180, 0x180, 0x78, 0x180, 0x1E00, 0xF, 0xC003, 0xF000, 0x0, 0x3FFC, 0x0}; LONG rs_frstr[] = { /* Free string index - unused */ 0}; BITBLK rs_bitblk[] = { /* First entry is index to image data */ 0L, 6, 24, 0, 0, 0}; LONG rs_frimg[] = { /* Free image index - unused */ 0}; ICONBLK rs_iconblk[] = { 1L, 2L, 10L, 4096,0,0, 0,0,48,24, 9,24,30,8, /* First pointer is mask */ 3L, 4L, 17L, 4864,0,0, 0,0,48,24, 0,24,48,8}; /* Second is data, third */ /* is to title string */ TEDINFO rs_tedinfo[] = { 2L, 3L, 4L, 3, 6, 2, 0x1180, 0x0, -1, 14,1, /* First pointer is text */ 7L, 8L, 9L, 3, 6, 2, 0x2072, 0x0, -3, 11,1, /* Second is template */ 11L, 12L, 13L, 3, 6, 0, 0x1180, 0x0, -1, 1,15, /* Third is validation */ 14L, 15L, 16L, 3, 6, 1, 0x1173, 0x0, 0, 1,17}; OBJECT rs_object[] = { -1, 1, 3, G_BOX, O-LINED, 0x21100L, 0,0, 18,12, /* Pointers are to: */ 2, -1, -1, G_STRING, NONE, NORMAL, 0x0L, 3,1, 12,1, /* rs_strings */ 3, -1, -1, G_BUTTON, 0x7, NORMAL, 0x1L, 5,9, 8,1, /* rs_strings */ 0, 4, 4, G_BOX, NONE, NORMAL, 0xFF1172L, 3,3, 12,5, 3, -1, -1, G_IMAGE, LASTOB, NORMAL, 0x0L, 3,1, 6,3, /* rs_bitblk */ -1, 1, 6, G_BOX, NONE, O-LINED, 0x21100L, 0,0, 23,12, 2, -1, -1, G_TEXT, NONE, NORMAL, 0x0L, 0,1, 23,1, /* rs_tedinfo */ 6, 3, 5, G_IBOX, NONE, NORMAL, 0x1100L, 6,3, 11,5, 4, -1, -1, G_BUTTON, 0x11, NORMAL, 0x5L, 0,0, 11,1, /* rs_strings */ 5, -1, -1, G_BUTTON, 0x11, NORMAL, 0x6L, 0,2, 11,1, /* rs_strings */ 2, -1, -1, G_BOXCHAR, 0x11, NORMAL, 0x43FF1400L, 0,4, 11,1, 0, -1, -1, G_BOXTEXT, 0x27, NORM, 0x1L, 5,9, 13,1, /* rs_tedinfo */ -1, 1, 3, G_BOX, NONE, OUTLINED, 0x21100L, 0,0, 32,11, 2, -1, -1, G_ICON, NONE, NORMAL, 0x0L, 4,1, 6,4, /* rs_iconblk */ 3, -1, -1, G_FTEXT, EDIT, NORM, 0x2L, 12,2, 14,1, /* rs_tedinfo */ 0, 4, 4, G_FBOXTEXT, 0xE, NORMAL, 0x3L, 3,5, 25,4, /* rs_tedinfo */ 3, -1, -1, G_ICON, LASTOB, NORMAL, 0x1L, 1,0, 6,4}; /* rs_iconblk */ LONG rs_trindex[] = { /* Points to start of trees in */ 0L, /* rs_object */ 5L, 12L}; struct foobar { /* Temporary structure used by */ WORD dummy; /* RSCREATE when setting up image */ WORD *image; /* pointers. */ } rs_imdope[] = { 0, &IMAG0[0], 0, &IMAG1[0], 0, &IMAG2[0], 0, &IMAG3[0], 0, &IMAG4[0]}; /* Counts of structures defined */ #define NUM_STRINGS 18 #define NUM_FRSTR 0 #define NUM_IMAGES 5 #define NUM_BB 1 #define NUM_FRIMG 0 #define NUM_IB 2 #define NUM_TI 4 #define NUM_OBS 17 #define NUM_TREE 3 BYTE pname[] = "DEMO.RSC"; >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> Title change utility <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< VOID set_text(tree, obj, str) LONG tree, str; WORD obj; { LONG obspec; obspec = LLGET(OB_SPEC(obj)); /* Get TEDINFO address */ LLSET(TE_PTEXT(obspec), str); /* Set new text pointer */ LWSET(TE_TXTLEN(obspec), LSTRLEN(str)); /* Set new length */ } >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> Text edit code segment <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< LONG tree, obspec; BYTE text[41]; rsrc_gaddr(R_TREE, DIALOG, &tree); /* Get tree address */ obspec = LLGET(OB_SPEC(EDITOBJ)); /* Get TEDINFO address */ LLSET(TE_PTEXT(obspec), ADDR(str)); /* Set new text pointer */ LWSET(TE_TXTLEN(obspec), 41); /* Set max length */ text[0] = '\0'; /* Make empty string */ >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> Sample 68K only source code <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< VOID set_text(tree, obj, str) OBJECT *tree; WORD obj; BYTE *str; { TEDINFO *obspec; obspec = (TEDINFO *) (tree + obj)->ob_spec; /* Get TEDINFO address */ obspec->te_ptext = str; /* Set new text pointer */ obspec->te_txtlen = strlen(str); /* Set new length */ } >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> Symbol definitions <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< /* Window parts */ #define NAME 0x0001 #define CLOSER 0x0002 #define FULLER 0x0004 #define MOVER 0x0008 #define INFO 0x0010 #define SIZER 0x0020 #define UPARROW 0x0040 #define DNARROW 0x0080 #define VSLIDE 0x0100 #define LFARROW 0x0200 #define RTARROW 0x0400 #define HSLIDE 0x0800 #define WF_KIND 1 /* wind_get/set parameters */ #define WF_NAME 2 #define WF_INFO 3 #define WF_WXYWH 4 #define WF_CXYWH 5 #define WF_PXYWH 6 #define WF_FXYWH 7 #define WF_HSLIDE 8 #define WF_VSLIDE 9 #define WF_TOP 10 #define WF_FIRSTXYWH 11 #define WF_NEXTXYWH 12 #define WF_NEWDESK 14 #define WF_HSLSIZ 15 #define WF_VSLSIZ 16 /* window messages */ #define WM_REDRAW 20 #define WM_TOPPED 21 #define WM_CLOSED 22 #define WM_FULLED 23 #define WM_ARROWED 24 #define WM_HSLID 25 #define WM_VSLID 26 #define WM_SIZED 27 #define WM_MOVED 28 #define WM_NEWTOP 29 /* arrow messages */ #define WA_UPPAGE 0 #define WA_DNPAGE 1 #define WA_UPLINE 2 #define WA_DNLINE 3 #define WA_LFPAGE 4 #define WA_RTPAGE 5 #define WA_LFLINE 6 #define WA_RTLINE 7 #define R_TREE 0 /* Redraw definitions */ #define ROOT 0 #define MAX_DEPTH 8 /* update flags */ #define END_UPDATE 0 #define BEG_UPDATE 1 #define END_MCTRL 2 #define BEG_MCTRL 3 /* Mouse state changes */ #define M_OFF 256 #define M_ON 257 /* Object flags */ #define NONE 0x0 #define SELECTABLE 0x1 #define DEFAULT 0x2 #define EXIT 0x4 #define EDITABLE 0x8 #define RBUTTON 0x10 /* Object states */ #define SELECTED 0x1 #define CROSSED 0x2 #define CHECKED 0x4 #define DISABLED 0x8 #define OUTLINED 0x10 #define SHADOWED 0x20 #define G_BOX 20 #define G_TEXT 21 #define G_BOXTEXT 22 #define G_IMAGE 23 #define G_IBOX 25 #define G_BUTTON 26 #define G_BOXCHAR 27 #define G_STRING 28 #define G_FTEXT 29 #define G_FBOXTEXT 30 #define G_ICON 31 #define G_TITLE 32 /* Data structures */ typedef struct grect { int g_x; int g_y; int g_w; int g_h; } GRECT; typedef struct object { int ob_next; /* -> object's next sibling */ int ob_head; /* -> head of object's children */ int ob_tail; /* -> tail of object's children */ unsigned int ob_type; /* type of object- BOX, CHAR,... */ unsigned int ob_flags; /* flags */ unsigned int ob_state; /* state- SELECTED, OPEN, ... */ long ob_spec; /* "out"- -> anything else */ int ob_x; /* upper left corner of object */ int ob_y; /* upper left corner of object */ int ob_width; /* width of obj */ int ob_height; /* height of obj */ } OBJECT; typedef struct text_edinfo { long te_ptext; /* ptr to text (must be 1st) */ long te_ptmplt; /* ptr to template */ long te_pvalid; /* ptr to validation chrs. */ int te_font; /* font */ int te_junk1; /* junk word */ int te_just; /* justification- left, right... */ int te_color; /* color information word */ int te_junk2; /* junk word */ int te_thickness; /* border thickness */ int te_txtlen; /* length of text string */ int te_tmplen; /* length of template string */ } TEDINFO; /* "Portable" data definitions */ #define OB_NEXT(x) (tree + (x) * sizeof(OBJECT) + 0) #define OB_HEAD(x) (tree + (x) * sizeof(OBJECT) + 2) #define OB_TAIL(x) (tree + (x) * sizeof(OBJECT) + 4) #define OB_TYPE(x) (tree + (x) * sizeof(OBJECT) + 6) #define OB_FLAGS(x) (tree + (x) * sizeof(OBJECT) + 8) #define OB_STATE(x) (tree + (x) * sizeof(OBJECT) + 10) #define OB_SPEC(x) (tree + (x) * sizeof(OBJECT) + 12) #define OB_X(x) (tree + (x) * sizeof(OBJECT) + 16) #define OB_Y(x) (tree + (x) * sizeof(OBJECT) + 18) #define OB_WIDTH(x) (tree + (x) * sizeof(OBJECT) + 20) #define OB_HEIGHT(x) (tree + (x) * sizeof(OBJECT) + 22) #define TE_PTEXT(x) (x) #define TE_TXTLEN(x) (x + 24) -------------------------------------------------------------------------- SHAKESPEARE and FUJI ==================== by Rex Reade "All the world is a stage ........"Shakespeare was perhaps more a prophet than we would like to admit or is it that human behavior hasn't really changed all that much from his era to ours? These are heavy points to ponder. Seemingly, the ideals of that era and the upcoming events in the Atari community are indeed similar.... Will Atari, when they go "CENTER STAGE" on Sept 26, 1988 ~ CIS 9pm EST -------------------------------------------- and before the whole world, act like the "Wizard of Oz"! All noise and self righteous justification. Or, Will they follow the simple and uninvolved method of telling the truth without all the corporate fluff and fodder. How refreshing that would be after the "announcements and statements" of the last few weeks. Hopefully they will take the latter course. We realize that the leadership of Atari is only human ...DO THEY? Atari will have the "Golden Opportunity" to practically right all the wrongs and reinstill the enthusiastic support of it's userbase. Of course, it is up to them and them alone. As far as we are concerned, what Atari does with this upcoming conference (Sept.26 - CIS) will tell the whole world what they think of the US Userbase and it's future. One thing is certain, Atari can make the conference a marvelous event that will have considerable bearing on the future of the Atari in the United States Marketplace. Folks, consider these questions..Feel free to use them in the conference 1 - Why Europe first, when you got your start here in the USA??? 2 - We in the USA have more bux to spend why do you ship to Europe? 3 - Is the pursuit of profits so strong as to require the administration of a "death blow" to the US Market? 4 - What are the real plans for the US market, if any and do you plan to use a different name on the new line of computers? 5 - If the STGS is a reality, will you ensure the "protection" of the integrity of the ST line by a name change etc..? We cannot under any circumstances provide all the questions nor would we even try. We have included some samples that will make 'em think before they leap <grin> ....Do not forget to ask about FEDERATED and the deal there for the users and the INDEPENDANT DEALERS. Above all else, please refrain from the hysterical "hero worship" we have seen in the past...ask sensible questions, avoid personal attacks..(this means against Atari and it's people) they ARE Atari ......let all the issues concerning Atari and creating unrest in your area be brought forward. REMEMBER, ATARI USERS.... THIS IS YOUR GOLDEN OPPORTUNITY TOO! Rex........... The Presidential Conference September 26, 1988 -- 9 P.M. EST COMP-U-SERVE ps: If you are not a user of CIS, NOW is the time to take advantage of the special offer and join CIS. (the information is in this issue) -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Garbage-On-The-Line ------------------- The Prince of Darkness Comes Forward ==================================== by Linda Woodworth "Yo, CJ, it's me..... Satan! You Summonded?" A little over a month ago, the FoReM F Netting BBSs started "getting hit" by a mysterious phantom Mailer. HellFire BBS Node 666. This is easy enough to do, and when talk began in the SysOp Bases, I became intrigued. ..................... Who was this Satan of Node 666 ?? THEN, an FNetted/FMail file came thru the Net to all SysOps. SEREG.ARC. Satan had cracked the protection scheme on Jon Radoff's on line game, Space Empire. It gave the ability to run Space Empire to it's full abilities. Many SysOp's were upset... some were amused, all types of comments were to be heard. I became even more fascinated. Did Satan actually run a Board, was he "one of us", many questions and why's began running around. What were his reasons for hitting bords randomly in the night. Time was running out... the New Mailer was going into effect, and unless he was a registered SysOp with Dave Chiquelin, <the Mailer author> we would lose our communication link. A message came through saying Satan was "going after the New Mailer next". I sent out a message to all nodes, asking him to log on my board so we could talk. A few thought I was nuts, and was making a pact with the devil. Is this why I had a monitor die ?? About two days after the message went out, Satan logged on. In fact, I had a couple Satan's. But I had the one I wanted... I asked his permission to do this interview, and we began a fasinating dialog. I also called the number he left upon logon. 1-800-HELFIRE. No connection. The first set of questions I asked Satan, was if he ran a board, and if the Space Empire cracker had a trojan in it <like some had said>. NO to both. Satan set up HellFire as a "mock" BBS, implemented the Mailer to call the boards. The first thing Satan said to me was this... "HellFire BBS is as real as a 3 dollar bill, the 666 is just something I came up with to fit in with the SATAN bit. I don't really worship the devil or anything. It's just somethin' controversial and gets people all "fired up". I didn't have any real purpose behind the SE ripoff program other than to prove it could be done. As for the long sex file, that wasn't all mine. A few friends helped to 'come' up with some ideas for it." A little devilish humor ?? They had some good ideas too..... <grin> There was NO Trojan in the SEREG, as I had that checked out... Satan's had his ST for apx. 10 months, and he told me he "liked freaking people out and trying to cause things such as the FNet to deviate from the normal -- the NEW Mailer provides a new challenge for me..." <the new Mailer provides a challenge for all SysOps too - grin> I felt like I was straddling the fence. Talking with Satan on one hand, and Dave Chiquelin, on the other. I really was selling my soul... but to who ?? <grin> Hi Boris !! Thanks for trusting me with the background information on the protection for the New Mailer. Satan continued to log on for the next two weeks. I didn't get to find out all the information I wanted... but life isn't over, yet. Perhaps I will do a follow up sometime. I hope he got some satisfaction out of the deviation from the norm, and puts his twenty years and obvious talent to use to help us all. Satan had his turn at the limelight, and yes, I am giving him more... but I've talked enough with him to know he isn't after doing trojan's or considerable continued mayhem. I must give the devil his due, as I had a problem on The Chip, and he took the time to let me know. <Thank You> I have the feeling he is a person doing some experimenting with life. His messages were to the point, consistant, and full of humor. Jon Radoff is upset however. But, then we could get into the "cast the first stone" type of thing. Right now, I'm not going to touch that one with a ten foot pole. It COULD raise the devil! I did find out Satan had no pact on my soul, as he has enough souls to last a few centuries. Seems like there were a lot of souls for sale a few years ago. Hmmm... I had yet another monitor go out just last night!! The last time I heard from Satan was on Sept 6, 1988 at 9:08 PM <MDT> "Well, my days at mayhem are over. No more FNetting from the mysterious HellFire BBS, no more cracking. I have accomplished what I wanted, to make waves. Some major tidal waves. Now that that's done, I don't need mysterious fnet mail or code breaking programs." The Satanic Force was exciting and I thank all SysOp's who allowed my messages to remain on their boards. -------------------------------------------------------------------------- OF SPECIAL NOTE: =============== >From:(David Small) Subject: New Data Pacific Newsletter Keywords: magic sac, dp, translator Date: 26 Aug 88 Data Pacific has released a new newsletter in the last few days that deserves a warning. It's full of distortions, half-truths, is misleading, and contains some flat false information. It's going to confuse a lot of people, so I'm trying to spread the word. For instance, the newsletter contains columns from people who no longer work at dP (most of dP's staff quit in March-April, including me). It talks of a new tech person, "Mike", who does not exist and who always has been a pseduonym for Joel when taking tech calls. More subtly, the newsletter implies that dP is having me look into a 128K ROM version of the Magic Sac. This is false; I have nothing to do with Data Pacific(except for one contract job -- version 6.1 of Magic Sac, in exchange for a LaserWriter). dP (Joel) agreed long ago to stop using my name to try to sell their products; they've broken their promise. The newsletter says Dan Moore (dlm@druhi here) "worked overtime" to produce Mover 1.7. The truth is, Dan did Mover 1.7 for a flat $150 fee in July. He was paid by check after dropping off the disk; his bank later told him that Joel *had stopped the check*. In short, dP is selling a version of Mover 1.7 that they flat stole from Dan. If you appreciate any of the contributions Dan has made to the ST world, such as the Twister disk format, Meg-a-minute backup, Protect accessory, and others, you could return him the favor by refusing to buy dP's disk until they remove Mover 1.7 from it, and letting them know why. Dan's had a rough month; he broke his hand recently, and is in a cast to his elbow (any get well cards sent via email would be greatly appreciated), by the way. In my opinion, DP is attempting to present an image that things are as they were during the good days, while selling off as much stock as possible, with this newsletter -- then they're getting out. How else to explain them putting Apple's own Switcher and FONT/DA Mover on their "public domain" disk -- other than dP isn't planning on being around long enough for Apple to catch them (and rightfully so; Hertzfeld worked hard on Switcher). I'd like it made clear I have nothing to do with Data Pacific anymore; I answer dP related questions out of courtesy to my old customers, and nothing more. The same is true for Dan Moore. The tactics Data Pacific is stooping to, in my opinion, to milk a little more money from the Magic Sac before folding up are shoddy in the extreme, and I think it's a shame my name is still associated with this company. Hence, this note. As for me, I have a new company, Gadgets By Small, Inc, and we're planning on releasing our first product (the Spectre 128) on Sept. 16, at the Atari Glendale Atarifest show. Since dP has broken it's word (again) to give me access to their customer mailing list, which I built, I can't put out the word about the Spectre 128 upgrade to the Magic Sac except by the networks. For the record, and to answer a previous questions, I left Data Pacific in March of this year, when it became clear that (a) Joel was not going to honor our agreements, and (b) when I found out the FCC number being put on the Translator units had been forged, and Joel had no plans to ever [having the] FCC certify the unit. Believe me, I want no part of trying to slip one past the FCC.(Every Translator unit shipped bears this same false number.) I wouldn't be party to this; neither would Dan, when he heard. (Thanks to our friends from Supra for checking the number at the FCC BBS and telling us what had happened!) I plan to carry on support of dP buyers with my new company, here and on other networks, as a courtesy to the people who shelled out money for the Magic Sac, but via a new company (Gadgets), as well as "push the envelope" further on Mac emulation with the Spectre 128 product. I don't want to advertise here on the net publicly; please drop me email privately if you're interested (hplabs!well!dsmall or dsmall@well); I don't think the local community would appreciate a few hundred "Yes, please send me info" notes here in comp.sys.atari.st. Thanks for reading a rather long note; I plead that I'm used to getting paid by wordcount <grin>. -- Thanks, Dave Small Gadgets by Small, Inc. -------------------------------------------------------------------------- ST REPORT CONFIDENTIAL ====================== Sunnyvale CA. Seems Atari wants ALL the usergroups to re-register, it is ------------ a good idea, if you need the forms, call Cindy at Atari. Sig Hartmann has the right idea, "Let's be straight forward and only human with the users". Great Idea! Sunnyvale CA. Sam Tramiel, President of Atari along with Sig Hartmann ------------ Vice President of Atari will hold a formal conference on Compuserve in the Convention Center Sept. 26 9pm EST all interested parties are invited to attend. Houston TX. Still NO AGREEMENT on the site for the new Atari Factory... ---------- Glendale CA. Data-Pacific, obvious by their absence, is history, ----------- according to an informal survey conducted among spectators at the show. Spectre 128 was a SMASH HIT at it's introduction and GBS had a sell-out show! Codehead Software was another major attraction showing G+PLUS and MASTERDESK along with Charles and John. Reportedly they had nothing left to sell either. Great news guys! Reading PA. According to a prominent mail order house Soft Logic is ---------- shooting for an end of the month release of the "Professional" version of it's DTP package. Hope so, cause this mail order house sez if not, they DROP the whole line! Ontario CAN. Seems there is a Demo of "Calamus" making the rounds, only ----------- problem is ...it's in GERMAN!! -------------------------------------------------------------------------- THIS WEEK'S QUOTABLE QUOTE ========================== There is always an easy answer to every human problem..... NEAT, PLAUSIBLE and WRONG! -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Reprint permission granted except where noted in the article. Any reprint must include ST-Report and the author in the credits. Views Presented herein are not necessarily those of ST-Report or of the Staff. All items and articles appearing in ST-REPORT are copywrite (c)APEInc. --------------------------------------------------------------------------