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*---== STReport International Online Magazine ==---* """"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" "The Original 16/32bit Online Magazine" from STR Publishing """""""""""""" May 21, 1993 No. 9.21 ========================================================================= 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. 690 : PASTE BBS....................1-206-284-8493 FNET. 460 : The Atari ST Connection......1-209-436-8156 FNET. 350 : The Bounty *<Home of STR>*...1-904-786-4176 FNET. 489 : Steal Your Face BBS..........1-908-920-7981 _____________________________________________________________________ > 05/21/93 STR 921 "The Original * Independent * Online Magazine!" """""""""""""""" - The Editor's Desk - CPU Report - PORTFOLIO NEWS - REFUND-O-RAMA - NOVA CARD INFO - NINETENDO WINS AGAIN! - MOTOROLA - NEW CHIPS - THE ATIGA! - CT FEST'93 - BLUE RIDGE FEST'93 -H-WARE REGISTERS - INTEL SHIPS PENTIUM -* JAGUAR TO TAKE PRIORITY? *- -* IBM UNVEILS OS/2 2.1 *- -* "FALCONWAIT" The USERS WAIT & WAIT & WAIT! *- ========================================================================= 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 phone The Bounty BBS direct @ 904-786-4176, and enjoy the wonder & excitement of exchanging information relative to 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 participate. Support your favorite computer! Teleconference 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 (May 21) SPEED OF LIGHT GIF VIEWER! Download file SPOFLT.LZH from LIBRARY 14 of the Atari Arts Forum (GO ATARIARTS) for a new Speed-of-Light .GIF file viewer. Shows all colors, squash the picture to fit the screen or just scroll it, adjust flicker, color quality/levels, etc. NEW PRINTER DRIVER FOR DESKJET Download PrintAll Version 1.1 (file PRTALL.LZH in LIBRARY 9 of the Atari Productivity Forum -- GO ATARIPRO). A Printer driver program for the HP Deskjet 500 and 500C. Prints multiple file formats in color or black-and-white in multiple sizes and orientations. Latest version adds Prism Paint PNT support, Tiny low and medium-res .TNY and Sun Microsystems' "Rasterfile" .RAS support. Also numerous bug-fixes and speedups, ability to cancel without quitting and cancel long operations. This version supercedes PrintAll 1.0. New "CMYK" output options simulates Deskjet 550C output on 500C printers! SHAREWARE FROM DOUBLE CLICK IN ATARIVEN Double Click Software has decided to release DC Xtract Plus as SHAREWARE! Included in the LZH file are DC Xtract Plus 2.1v and a doc file. Download file XTRPLS.LZH from LIBRARY 13 of the Atari Vendors Forum (GO ATARIVEN). Double Click Software has also decided to release DC SEA as SHAREWARE! Make ARC/LZH/ZIP/ZOO into a self-extracting file. Download file DCSEA.LZH from LIBRARY 13 of the Atari Vendors Forum (GO ATARIVEN). MANY NEW FILES IN ATARIPRO! Lots of new files in the Libraries of the Atari Productivity Forum (GO ATARIPRO). Type BRO LIB:ALL to check out the most recent entries!! REVISED PRINTER DRIVERS FROM SOFTLOGIK SoftLogik has made the following two files available for download from LIBRARY 11 of the Atari Vendors Forum (GO ATARIVEN): PS2299.ARC - PostScript printer driver for ImageSetters and Color PostScript printers version 2.2.99. This is a temporary driver that fixes problems with v2.2.11 printing to Linos and Color PS printers. PS2211.ARC - Newest PostScript printer driver version 2.2.11. This driver is good for users printing to PostScript lasers. For users needing to print to Color PS and high-rez imagesetters, you should use the v2.2.99 driver. THE ATARI PORTFOLIO FORUM ON COMPUSERVE HAS BEEN DESIGNATED AN OFFICIAL SUPPORT SITE BY ATARI CORPORATION "GO APORTFOLIO TO ACCESS THE ATARI PORTFOLIO FORUM" "ENJOY CIS' ATARI FORUMS WHERE CENSORSHIP IS A DIRTY WORD!" """"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" > From the Editor's Desk "Saying it like it is!" """""""""""""""""""""" The month is almost over, next weekend is Memorial Day Weekend its the official beginning of summer. Beaches open and the suntan oil flows as freely as the cold suds. For the next sixty to ninety days most folks are going to forget about computing to a large degree in favor of the great outdoors. This I am sure, is looked upon with a breath of relief by certain folks at Atari. Perhaps this is the breather Atari needs to establish its proper priorities and put and end to the vendettas, obsessions and decadent politics. We shall see. Ok, so the real question remains... where are the consumer versions of the Falcon? All those big numbers of machines that were promised to be here? I asked. Is everyone happy now? While most of the users are trying to find rays of hope for Atari's future and the dealers are trying to keep interest levels peaked when it comes to the Falcon, what do we find? Rumors persistently surface about the whigs at Atari playing ridiculous head games. For a company whose trying to tell everyone "they've got the whole thing figured out and under control", they certainly seem to be very busy aiming at their own feet! In fact, from all outward appearances, it would seem they're behaving more like a cornered, wounded beast. Striking out at most anything that's near them. The snubbing of worldwide services as witnessed last week by McNamee's behavior is a classic example of how not to win friends and influence people. Beside's that... weren't we all taught to never put all the eggs in one basket? Additionally, Atari's Tramiels can't be behind all the friction taking place in the Atari userbase, they simply don't have enough time to scheme up all that's happening. Or, do they? Perhaps, they ought to be made aware of just how much PR damage is being done by the offensive and arrogant behavior of a few of Atari's more visible online reps. Hang in there my friends, by the end of the summer we'll certainly be seeing vast changes in this platform. Hopefully they'll be beneficial to all of us. Ralph.... """"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" STReport's Staff DEDICATED TO SERVING YOU! """""""""""""""" Publisher - Editor """""""""""""""""" Ralph F. Mariano PC DIVISION AMIGA DIVISION MAC DIVISION ----------- -------------- ------------ Roger D. Stevens Robert Glover 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 About the scathing Forbes Magazine Critique of Atari; "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 About marketing plans and the future.... "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 A fantastic observation, considering the date it was made... "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 Again, the dates of the statement conflict with the facts now known.... "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 $0.81 CHRISTMAS '92 has COME and GONE... AS HAS... JANUARY 1993, FEBRUARY 1993... FALCONS ....anyone? By the Way.... Does the Falcon work well with any... of the SLM Laser Printers?? NOPE! NOT YET! Wanna bet there won't be any? Better yet... Which _MAJOR_ US Software Developers & Publishers are producing NEW Software for Atari's FALCON??? Besides, who _needs_ a CARTRIDGE PORT anyhow! """"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" > CPU STATUS REPORT LATE BREAKING INDUSTRY-WIDE NEWS """"""""""""""""" Computer Products Update - CPU Report ------------------------ ---------- Weekly Happenings in the Computer World Issue #21 By: John Deegan JUDGE BACKS NINTENDO OVER ATARI - In San Francisco, U.S. District Judge Fern Smith has backed Nintendo of America's contention that Atari Games infringed its patent for the security system for the Nintendo Entertainment System. Judge Smith granted Nintendo's motion for summary judgment, finding that Atari, a unit of Time Warner Inc., had infringed Nintendo's patent. Earlier, the judge issued an injunction against Atari after finding its representatives had misled officials at the U.S. Copyright Office to obtain Nintendo's copyrighted source code for its video-game cartridges. Atari Games vows to appeal a federal judge's ruling it infringed the patent for the security system in the Nintendo Entertainment System. Editor's Note: Atari Games is not connected with Atari Corp. MOTOROLA PLANS NEW CHIPS - Motorola Inc. plans to introduce three new microprocessors for portable computers that it says will provide a range of price and performance options demanded by low-power products such as video games, home entertainment systems and pocket organizers. Motorola Vice President Bob Growney, general manager of Motorola's Paging and Wireless Data Group, is quoted as saying, "Our goal of anytime, anywhere communications requires specialized technology." In addition, Vice President Jack Browne said Motorola expects its chips to supply at least a third of the personal communicator market, estimated by some industry analysts to reach $500 million by 1995. IBM UNVEILS OS/2 2.1 - IBM has unveiled OS/2 Version 2.1, an enhanced version of its 32-bit operating system for Intel-based personal computers. OS/2 2.1 supports Windows 3.1 applications, and features 32- bit graphics and longer battery life for mobile PC platforms. It also is more powerful and faster than version 2.0. OS/2 2.1 will be generally available June 14 at a list price of $249. A 90-day promotional offering of $99 for CD-ROM versions and $119 for diskette versions is available to users who order an upgrade through IBM's toll free number -- 1-800-3IBM-OS2 . In addition, OS/2 users who upgrade to 2.1 will receive a $30 rebate by filling out a coupon in the 2.1 box and mailing it with the first page of their 2.0 manual. NEC OFFERS 64-BIT RISC CHIP - A new 64-bit microprocessor is being introduced by Japan's NEC Corp. which says the chip's low power consumption will bring desktop computing power to portable systems. Supposedly the VR4200, based on MIPS Technologies Inc.'s RISC (reduced instruction set computing) architecture, consumes less than 1.5 watts, "making it suitable for portable PCs that run off batteries and have limited cooling systems." NEC says the chip will enable notebook users to run application programs under Windows NT, the new operating system Microsoft Corp. plans to put on general release later this year. STUDY TO EXAMINE LINK BETWEEN VIDEO GAMES AND EPILEPSY - British researchers have announced they will launch a study to examine whether there is a link between video games and epileptic seizures in children. The study, funded by the Department of Trade and Industry, aims to establish the degree of risk posed by the games to people who are photosensitive to flashing lights and to determine if the games trigger fits in children with no previous history of epilepsy. Photosensitivity, reacting chemically or electrically to light, is usually identified only when a person has a seizure. Researchers will estimate the number of new cases of photosensitive epilepsy in Britain per year and describe risk factors such as time of day, tiredness, duration of play, distance from screen and type of screen. They will also compare the effects of computers and video games on people with photosensitive epilepsy, as well as the effects of television, flashing lights or computer graphics. INTEL SETS PRICES AND SHIPS PENTIUM CHIP - Intel Corp. has set prices for its Pentium microprocessors of $965 each for the 66-MHz version and $878 each for the 60-MHz version in 1,000-unit quantities prompting several announcements from computer manufacturers about new models featuring the state-of-the-art chip. Intel is now shipping production versions of the chips and expects to ship hundreds of thousands of the Pentium microprocessors this year and cross the one million mark in 1994. Among those announcing new computers based on the Pentium was Compaq Computer Corp., whose chief of European operations, Andreas Barth, predicted the new chip will tap fresh markets for Compaq. Other companies introducing Pentium-based computers today include Unisys Corp., NCR Corp., AST Research Inc., Dell Computer Corp. ZIFF DISCONTINUES PC SOURCES - Magazine publisher Ziff-Davis Publish- ing Co. says it will discontinue publication of PC Sources and change the format of its Corporate Computing, making it a monthly newsletter published by its subsidiary, The Cobb Group. CHIP MARKET TO GROW 20 PERCENT - The Semiconductor Industry Associa- tion predicts the worldwide chip industry will grow 20% this year to $71.9 billion by the end of the year. SIA is quoted as projecting the growth being led by the North American market, which will see a 28.1% gain in 1993 shipments to $23.6 billion. AT&T OFFERS NEW MODEM CHIPS - A new, high-speed modem chipset has been announced by AT&T Microelectronics. AT&T says the chips provide reliable data communications over the existing cellular phone network and make it easy for vendors to provide interfaces between modems and cellular phones. AT&T signed a patent license agreement with Spectrum Information Technologies Inc. last month under which AT&T V32Cell modem chipset customers "can design and sell modems based on the V32Cell chipset without concern about infringing Spectrum's patents," Reuters reports. AT&T Microelectronics is the only chipmaker able to provide modem chipsets covered under Spectrum patents. ________________________________________________________ > ONLINE WEEKLY STReport OnLine The wires are a hummin'! """"""""""""""""""""""""""""" PEOPLE... ARE TALKING ===================== On CompuServe ------------- compiled by Joe Mirando 73637,2262 Well folks, its that time again... time to take a look at some of the mounds of helpful information that magically appear on CompuServe every week. I'll warn you right here that this week's column is going to be shorter than normal because of increased demands on my time (I just HAD to watch the final episode of CHEERS tonight). So, without any further delay, let's look in on the forums (or is that fora?) on CompuServe... From the Atari Productivity Forum ================================= Our first post this week comes from none other than the big cheese himself, Ron Luks. For anyone who doesn't already know, Ron is the Man-In-Charge in the CompuServe Atari area. He posts: "Now that my daughter, Jennifer, has reached the ripe old age of 2 years, she has developed an interest in 'daddy's computer.' I would like to encourage this interest as much as possible. She's still a bit too young to take advantage of the currently available children's software, though. Right now, the best I can do is to boot up a program like FLASH and let her type randomly into the capture buffer (where she can't do any harm to my system. [g]). However, the characters on the screen are pretty small and have no sound effects that would interest a very young toddler. What I'm looking for is a program that will accept any keyboard input and put the characters on the screen in a 'greatly enlarged format.' (i.e.- if she hits the "B" key, I would like it to put the letter "B" on the screen approximately 2-4 inches tall.) Ideally, I would like SOME kind of sound effect to accompany the keypress. I'm not fussy. It doesn't have to be unique for each keypress although it would be nice if there were 3 or 4 different sounds (boom, ploosh, snap, bang, pop, etc.) for the alpha keys, something else for the numeric keypad, and something else for the spacebar/return/shift keys. I would ask that the program function on my Mega STe (TOS 2.06) as well as any regular ST, Mega STe, and if possible the Falcon (that's not necessary as I don't currently have a Falcon). I would want the program to function in all available resolutions (Low, Med, High ST resolutions that is) because I frequently switch between monitors and don't want to reboot when she comes into my office to 'play.' In other words, a very, very, very basic program for infants/toddlers. If it had mouse support (made a nice sound when either of the mouse keys were clicked), that would be a nice additional touch, but not critical. An additional (but not necessary) touch would be to have the background color change (in Low or Med res) every time she pressed a key. I would have written just such a program for my old 8-bit computer in Atari Basic but my daughter seems to want to play on the same computer that Daddy uses everyday. (She *really* loves the mouse for some reason, too. Maybe its because I have the microsoft mouse on my Mega STe?) I don't care what language the program is written in, just as long as it is a single, stand alone file, and works on my vanilla system. The author is welcome to retain all rights to the program. Although I cannot pay a significant amount of money for the effort, I am willing to offer a $100 payment for the program for my copy, and would hope that the author would be willing to distribute it as shareware via the CompuServe libraries. If the author does not already have a free account on the Atari Forums (sorry Bill), I am willing to offer a period of free access to the Atari Forums as well. (Blatant exploitation of the service for the benefit of my darling 2-year old. What father wouldn't do the same? [g]) To avoid the possibility of multiple people working on the same program, I will ask that anyone interested in the $100 fee drop me an EMAIL before starting the project. (I don't want to have a situation where I owe 10 people $100 for essentially the same program). I will give the 'approved' author the 'go ahead' based upon his/her proposal. It is my hope that some programmer will respond affirmatively to the call for a program that will support the 1-3 yr. old infant who loves to 'climb into Daddy's lap and pound on the keyboard...' which will encourage that child to develop an interest in computers at the earliest possible age. I would love to know that such a program was developed for an Atari computer." I guess that this post is proof-positive that even Sysops need help sometimes, huh? None other that the intelligent, well-spoken, informative, and ever-helpful Albert Dayes of Atari Explorer Magazine tells Ron: "The MegaWriter demo has enlarged characters about 1 inch high. This demo is in the library and its based on ST-Writer." ST Informer editor, Connecticut AtariFest Coordinator, and all-around good guy, Brian Gockley posts to Ron: "Sheesh, 2 years old already! I loved that year, and it keeps getting better!" I just wonder if Brian was talking about his children, or himself. I'm sure that, after reading this, he will have something to say to me, but what the heck. "literary license" has to count for something, doesn't it? Sysop/Programmer Bill Aycock tells Ron: "That sounds like a good project!! I've also noticed that I can entrance my 2-year-old nephew for a pretty good while by playing .WAV sounds with the Windows Sound Recorder. (It plays the sound, but - this is the kicker - it also has a 'window' with a graph-like doohickey of the sound, so it changes right along with the loudness or waveform or ?.) Hopefully someone else will answer your call, though... I'm still trying to recuperate from the final leftovers from my illness. (Along with the virus, strep throat, post-viral syndrome, and whatnot, there's apparently also been something like an ulcer keeping me company since Feb. No fair!) Plus the fact that I've never tried anything with the ST's sound. :-)" Meanwhile, Chris Morgan tells us: "I have a little problem on my hands and hope that this is the correct forum to be in...... I brought my mum in NZ a Atari a couple of year ago, with the Discovery Package. This included 1st Word, she has used this a lot (normally to write to me in the UK). Now the request has been for a spell check as well....The problem begins. I know that 1st Word Plus had the spell check, but I can't get any info on the machine requirements etc...I have a feeling that it requires 1meg of memory.... If anyone has any ideas I would be most grateful...." Again Albert Dayes of Atari Explorer Magazine jumps in and answers: "You might consider Spelling Sentry by Winter-Tree. The cost is under $100. Wintertree Software Inc 43 Rueter Street Nepean, Ontario Canada kj2 3z9 (613)-825-6271 CIS ID #: 72060,3056 From what I remember one can set how much ram the program/desk acc will use." Chris thanks Albert: "Thanks for the reply. I will keep this in mind. If I cant get 1st + to work I will look into this...." Dick Paddock tells Chris: "I have 1ST Word Plus, and just experimented a bit with it. With 392K available memory, it won't load the dictionary (with a small document, as well) but with 462K available, it will load. So if she's not loaded memory down with AUTO's and ACC's, she should be able to do it on a 520ST(e)." Chris tells Dick: "Thanks for the prompt reply. My mum is what most of us would call a technophobe (spelling). I doubt that she has anything loaded other than the minimum..... Sounds like you have answered my problem...." Andrew Wright posts: "I'm currently trying to compile a list of ST compatible CD-ROM drives. Does anyone have one connected or know of one that works? The only way I know is using ICD's The Link and a SCSI compatible drive but I ran into a problem with a Hitachi drive that didn't provide the necessary power for the interface. Any help would be appreciated - as well as other ways of connecting them." Greg Wageman tells Andrew: "The Link gets its operating power from the TERMPWR line (terminator power, pin 26). Most SCSI devices that I have seen have a jumper option on board to set whether or not the device applies power to this line. Probably the Hitachi drive you tried was jumpered not to power TERMPWR." " Alex Kiernan tells Andrew: "As far as TTs go (i.e. with built in SCSI) I've had three drives now, a Hitachi, a Toshiba, and a Chinon, all of which worked absolutely fine using the MiNT CD-ROM driver. All of these worked fine on Falcon too, BTW." Andrew tells Alex: "The problem is the power to The Link - the TT and Falcon should be fine but the blasted Link thing needs 5V on pin 26. I could open it up and feed power in somehow but knowing my luck... Incidentally, what is the MINT CD-ROM driver? I tried the ICD Pro ones. I haven't got any CD-ROM drivers in my copy of MultiTOS (:-)). BTW, TruePaint gets better and better - I borrowed a Falcon from Compo for a review and I've being having great fun. One thing I'd like to see, though, would be a way of altering the amount of JPEG compression, say from a dialogue box." There has been some question in recent weeks about the Falcon030's ability to use 16 bit color mode (some have said that 16 bit mode would require an add-on card). Bill Devonshire posts: "From what I have seen of the Falcon specs and schematics there is no reason why we cannot use the 16bit TRUE color mode. There is no indication of requiring a special outboard "card" to make the use of this color output possible. There is some juggling required with monitors,however, due to the fact that the higher color, higher resolution screens are interlaced. They are also interlaced to be TV compatible, so that we Falconers can output high quality video to our TV's and VCR's without flicker. You will require some out board genlock equipment to do professional video mixing. But, the True color output is integral to the Falcon's design. Don't forget as well that some clever developers have already created 800x600 output for the Falcon and you can already get close to 800x600 with the built-in overscan video mode of the Falcon. As far as colors are concerned, think about a Spectrum-F(alcon) program. Interestingly enough, the video output for the Falcon is very well designed and hints at upgradability to 24 bit color output. This machine, although many will make you think it isn't, IS very powerful, and does maintain the Power without the Price motive. It is a multi-processor based computer, multimedia ready. You cannot get that type of machine anywhere for the same price/performance ratio." Alex Kiernan adds: "Indeed I note that FalconScreen is now up to 900x700 although at 40Hz the display is too flickery to use. At 832x624 though (about 52Hz IIRC) its very usable and has a standard 31kHz or so line rate (aka VGA)." And, a news flash from Albert Dayes: "I just read an interesting message in (GO NEWSGRID). Atari has licensed SuperMac's advanced video compression technology called Cinepak. Cinepak is used by Apple (in Quick-Time), Creative Labs (on the PC side) and also on 3DO." Jim Ness tells Albert: "It WAS an interesting announcement. The fact that it was Atari who licensed the compression technology, rather than some Atari dev, indicates to me that the primary use will be for the Jaguar games machine. For Falcon uses, Atari has concentrated on helping 3rd party devs release audio and video products, rather than doing it inhouse. For Jaguar uses, Atari seems to be doing a lot of work inhouse. Of course, having licensed SuperMac's product for Jaguar use, they could very well expand it to some Falcon product, later on. But, I don't find it likely that they'll release some high-performance video product by themselves. It just wouldn't fit their normal methods, for computer products. I think the license agreement also show how aggressively Atari is pursuing the high-performance games market. As I've said before, the games market is their best chance for survival. If they can make a profit there, there's a chance the computer products will live on, too." From the Atari Vendors Forum ============================ David Van Slyke asks: "What's going on with Atari? I've been away for awhile - my work requires I use IBM's with Windows. I still cherish my two Atari 800's and will never part with them. Is Atari still in business? I used to receive Atari Explorer but it disappeared without warning. I'd like to think I could still buy some new Atari hardware. What's the outlook?" Ron Luks tells David: "Atari Explorer has suspended publication recently and we are awaiting information from Atari Corp as to its status. Atari Corp is very much in business, but their plans are currently in a state of flux. The latest information we have is that they are not shipping/manufacturing any of their current line of computers (ST/STe/TT) but are focusing on the new Falcon. However, while Falcon shipments to end consumers have been promised since last fall 92, to the best of our information, no units have been shipped (as of today) yet. Reports of dealer demo units have been posted by the director of communications on other networks but not on CompuServe. What's the outlook?? Depending on who (whom?) you ask, it ranges from "very exciting and extremely positive...." (Atari Corp) to "dead, finished, washed-up, kaput...." (certain members of the press and independent Atari observers). As is usually the case, I suspect the real truth lies somewhere in between. Personally, I was somewhat encouraged after talking to some VERY knowledgable atari vendors earlier this week. In their opinion, Atari is trying very hard, and finally making some moves in the right direction, but only time will tell if it is "too little, too late" or whether the company can be turned around. I do think the true situation will become much clearer in the next month or two. You may feel free to circulate this message as posted. Depending on who (whom?) you show it to, I have no doubt it will be labeled as "just another unfair bash over the head of Atari Corp..." or "sugar coating the real, deplorable situation in the atari marketplace..." One thing you can say for certain is that the members of the Atari community cannot be criticized for their lack of personal passion (one way or the other) about the atari platform." John Zangrando tells Charles F. Johnson of CodeHead Technologies: "I just finally got my Hotwire and Multifile. I was asking CodeKeys to do the job of Hotwire. Everything is very impressive. It will take me a little time to get fully into these programs but I already don't know how I lived without them for two years." Charles replies to John: "Glad to hear things are working out! Don't hesitate to ask if you have questions." From the Atari Portfolio Forum ============================== From our "Well-Deserved-Recognition" Department: "LOCAL COUPLE SELECTED AS "PERFECT COUPLE" --John McCormick, Western Regional Director of "America's Perfect Couple" has announced that Mr. and Mrs. Donald A. Thomas, Jr. of Manteca, CA have been selected to represent Manteca, CA at the "California's Perfect Couple" competition to be held July 3 and 4 in Sacramento, CA. Mr. and Mrs. Donald A. Thomas, Jr. were selected on the basis of their commitment to marriage and their positive outlook on life. They will be competing with nearly 100 couples from across the state for the chance to become "California's Perfect Couple" and win an all expense paid trip to "America's Perfect Couple" competition in August in Houston, Texas. "America's Perfect Couple" will win a prize package valued at over $10,000 and includes a second honeymoon trip to a tropical location." For anyone who doesn't know, Don is a very active guy here on CompuServe as part of his job in customer service at Atari. He can be found quite often in the Portfolio area, giving advise and info to those who want it. Congrats to the Thomas's. And what a prize to shoot for, huh? A trip to a tropical location. It sure beats the heck out of slogging around Orlando, being pulled in every possible direction at once by over-eager kids. ;-) JF Davignon asks: "Does anyone know if there is a good source of Portfolio related hardware in Canada (preferably in Montreal or Quebec city) or are the bargains all south of the border? If none comes to mind, an outfit that will ship to Canada?" Dave Stewart of Re:Port tells JF: "I will ship to Canada, so long as you pay for the system in US Dollars (via a Postal Money Order). My price list is in the libraries ... search on REPORT. If you wish, I can send you a printed price list and order form; just leave your address in email!" Well folks, that's it for this week. Thanks to everyone who takes the time to reply in this message base, and Congratulations again to Don Thomas. Tune in again next week to hear what they are saying when... PEOPLE ARE TALKING __________________________________________________________ > OH YEAH?! STR Feature The grass is greener? """"""""""""""""""""" BIG IRON LAMENT =============== Compiled by Lloyd E. Pulley, Sr. From the Jerry Pournelle RT on Genie - Written by Steve Clayworth... Here I sit, a dinosaur Coding on a Cretaceous machine, Fearful of a meteor Taking aim on this sad scene. The little rats are taking over. The PC's, workstations, networked systems, All around, they wait and hover, While the light of mainframes dims. I still cherish this terminal dumb, Where a mouse is a rodent, and not a device For navigating a GUI slum. I shant point 'n click; it isn't nice. Alas, poor Cobol, I knew you well, But C and Windows are now the rage. Once in splendor I did dwell, Now I rust in an old glass cage. "Take some classes", the converts say. "Orient on objects", the pundits utter. "But VM and CICS still fill my day", I often tell them in a timid mutter. What's this, they're putting on my table? Oh, no, a box, with screen and keyboard; This four-eighty-six, with dangling cable Hooked to a server. Oh, save me, Lord! Okay, okay, I'll give it a try. I'll read the manuals, I'll be a good lad, But don't think I like it, I say with a sigh, As I try out this game--, hey, not bad! *********************************************************************** 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 <RET> once or twice. When you get the Password: prompt, type IP26 and press <RET> again. Then, just answer the questions and within a day or two, you'll officially be a member of DELPHI! TOP TEN DOWNLOADS (5/20/93) =========================== STREPORT 9.20 - MAY 14 ZNET9315 - MAY 07 AEO: VOLUME 2 - ISSUE 10 GEM-VIEW VERSION 2.23 DC XTRACT PLUS 2.2 M-DISK 6.94 BRODIE9.ARC MASTERBROWSE 1.0 PIR_BBS.LZH HANGMAN ACCESSORY 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! *********************************************************************** > REFUND-O-RAMA! STR FOCUS! A SIGN OF THINGS TO COME? """"""""""""""""""""""""" A SIGN OF THE TIMES! ==================== by R. F. Mariano The following posts were gleaned from both Delphi's and GEnie's Atari areas to indicate a trend that's been slowly developing in the Atari community. It appears that a number of complaints are beginning to surface relative to a number of developer and dealer time frames in delivering their products. At this point in time, after having had first hand experience in these matters, one can only hope that common sense and patience be brought to bear in these tough times. The accusation that "such and such" or "so and so" is a _rip-off_ is an outrage. Until such time as it can be proven beyond a shadow of a doubt in a court of law, these accusations are a complete menace to the Atari platform and other, financially stable developers. Sure, there's serious delays and broken promises involved, but one must understand the conditions under which these situations develop. from Delphi's Atari area 54924 19-MAY 19:45 General Information Fast Technology From: BCHOPICK To: ALL FAST TECHNOLOGY RIP-OFF! I would like to let all of you know the troubles I have experienced with FAST TECHNOLOGY. As you know, FAST TECHNOLOGY sells hardware accelerator cards for the ATARI line of computers. In APRIL of 1992 I ordered a TINYTURBO030 for my MEGASTE. The ad claimed 6-8 weeks delivery. I waited and waited and waited! Of course the check was cashed immediately (APRIL 28th, 1992). I called once a month and everytime got the same thing. DELAYS! DELAYS! DELAYS! Finally in March of 1993 I was fed up with the delay nonsense and demanded a refund. Jim Allen said that he was having financial trouble and could not issue a refund til the end of the month. I thought nothing of it and figured that since I have waited this long for the product, why not a couple of weeks for a refund. Well. Here we are May 10th (2 months later) and no refund. Calls to FAST TECHNOLOGY only lead to frustration. All you get is an answering machine and no return phone calls. It sure looks to me that JIM ALLEN does not know how to handle a business. And I feel sorry for all the other people he is dragging along the same path. Of course, I have already contacted the Better Business Bureau of Pennsylvania. They said that I would have to fill out some forms and they will get right on it. I am not happy with the situation at all. And for a man who keeps such a high profile in the ATARI COMMUNITY, it is pathetic! Robert A. Chopick GENIE: R.CHOPICK DELPHI: BCHOPICK WORK: 717-288-6140 From GEnie's Atari Area Atari-ST RoundTable Category 18, Topic 11 Message 1 Wed May 19, 1993 R.CHOPICK [Bob] at 20:12 EDT FAST TECHNOLOGY RIP-OFF! I would like to let all of you know the troubles I have experienced with FAST TECHNOLOGY. As you know, FAST TECHNOLOGY sells hardware accelerator cards for the ATARI line of computers. In APRIL of 1992 I ordered a TINYTURBO030 for my MEGASTE. The ad claimed 6-8 weeks delivery. I waited and waited and waited! Of course the check was cashed immediately(APRIL 28th, 1992). I called once a month and everytime got the same thing. DELAYS! DELAYS! DELAYS! Finally in March of 1993 I was fed up with the delay nonsense and demanded a refund. Jim Allen said that he was having financial trouble and could not issue a refund til the end of the month. I thought nothing of it and figured that since I have waited this long for the product, why not a couple of weeks for a refund. Well. Here we are May 10th (2 months later) and no refund. Calls to FAST TECHNOLOGY only lead to frustration. All you get is an answering machine and no return phone calls. It sure looks to me that JIM ALLEN does not know how to handle a business. And I feel sorry for all the other people he is dragging along the same path. Of course, I have already contacted the Better Business Bureau of Pennsylvania. They said that I would have to fill out some forms and they will get right on it. I am not happy with the situation at all. And for a man who keeps such a high profile in the ATARI COMMUNITY, it is pathetic! Robert A. Chopick GENIE: R.CHOPICK DELPHI: BCHOPICK WORK: 717-288-6140 ---------- Atari-ST RoundTable Category 18, Topic 11 Message 2 Wed May 19, 1993 LEPULLEY [Lloyd Pulley] at 21:52 EDT Bob, I'm sorry to hear about your problem. I've always gotten everything that I ordered from Jim. Have you tried leaving him E-Mail? He seems to stop by around midnight (EDT) to take part in Topic 2 - maybe he'll see your E-Mail during one of his visits and take care of your problem. Lloyd E. Pulley, Sr. ---------- Atari-ST RoundTable Category 18, Topic 11 Message 3 Thu May 20, 1993 J.ALLEN27 [FAST TECH] at 17:27 EDT I would like to apologize to Mr Chopick, and the other people awaiting refunds. I told him in March I was in financial difficulty and that hasn't changed. There have been almost no sales since February, and what few T25's and one Turbo030 that has been sold all went to pay refunds. There are 4 people still waiting, all here on GEnie. In the last 4 months I have had to borrow money to pay the phone bill and GEnie bill, and have not been able to call back everyone who calls in, the phone bill was running $700/month and with no sales I simply cannot generate those kinds of bills any longer. I have taken on an engineering job that will get me back on my feet in the next 'couple weeks, and I will be able to clear up the remaining refunds near the end of the month, all I can ask is your patience. As it is, I do not even have the funds needed to ship the Tiny030's, but I will be able to do that too in a few more days. So for folks awaiting Tiny030's, please don't panic and all ask for refunds, the boards are nearly done and ready to go and I'm desperately working to get them shipped as soon as possible. If I were If I were able to I would give the refunds immediately, but there is simply no money, at all. I have a stack of bills totalling over $6000, so I have not even been able to pay my own personal bills for 4 months, the only bill I have paid is the phone, GEnie, my health insurance, and my car insurance. I I were going to go out of business the first thing I'd do is drop the phone, and the GEnie, it is because this is only a temporary difficulty that I have borrowed from relatives to maintain them. I remember, a few months back, when a user...not even a customer...came into the Fast Technology topic, and chastized me and complained that people were waiting for Tinys. At that point 12 people cancelled thier orders, and I refunded thier orders, and it cleaned out my remaining cash reserves. It left me broke, which I still am. I hope that this topic will not do the same, I can't imagine it getting worse, but the world can suprise you. All I can ask is that users waiting for their Tiny030's hang in for just a week or two more. Thank you, James C. Allen, Fast Technology ---------- Atari-ST RoundTable Category 18, Topic 11 Message 4 Thu May 20, 1993 R.CHOPICK [Bob] at 20:44 EDT Jim, I am sorry for your situation and I HOPE it IMPROVES. BUT! Not answering the phone and NOT getting back to CUSTOMERS who you have TAKEN money from is SIMPLY bad BUSINESS. I am a MANAGER of a computer store and believe me in a market with such LOW profit margins the thing that MAKES or brakes you is CUSTOMER SERVICE! You DON'T take someone's MONEY and ignore phone calls. Anyway. CALL ME TOLL FREE 1-800-456-5689! BOB CHOPICK ---------- Atari-ST RoundTable Category 18, Topic 11 Message 6 Thu May 20, 1993 DARLAH [RT~SYSOP] at 21:44 EDT Jim may get a bit 'emotional' at times but honest, I have always found him. Sorry to hear about your problems. It appears in this economy most people are feeling it. Please keep us aware of your progress. Sincerely, >>Darlah ---------- Atari-ST RoundTable Category 18, Topic 11 Message 8 Fri May 21, 1993 ALGORHYTHM [DanielKeller] at 05:56 EDT No, I won't add my testimonial on Jim's character to this list, but only because I haven't personally dealt with him. I will say this, though: Bob, I can understand your frustration at not being responded to.....I've been through a similar situation with another ST-based company, which is still not resolved to my satisfaction. BUT---I think it's very important to choose your words carefully, since what you say in a public forum can have a profound effect on the business and careers of people who are dedicated to a difficult market. This is particularly true if you elect to START a topic with the expressed intent of flaming on someone....undoubtedly, there are companies that deserve this treatment. But judging by the (A) many testimonials in his favor, and (B) more importantly, his quick response to you here, I doubt if he's one of them. Best of luck, Jim. ---------- The most important point to remember is the damage such inflammatory posts can cause. As Jim Allen states; "I remember, a few months back, when a user...not even a customer...came into the Fast Technology topic, and chastized me and complained that people were waiting for Tinys. At that point 12 people cancelled thier orders, and I refunded thier orders, and it cleaned out my remaining cash reserves." Folks, this is exactly how it occurs, the mere fact that mention is made of possible problems a "run on the company" usually happens. The next most severe incident is to find the electronic banking services are dropping the charging merchant's credit card acceptance privileges because of too many "charge-backs" (customer refund requests). Not to mention the problems that can arise when the charges to customer credit cards are made through other merchant account terminals than that of the actual seller. These problems can all pop up at once when public complaints are made to the bank where the credit card was issued. The electronic banking services can spot a problem long before it becomes a public spectacle. They will act immediately if elements of the merchant agreement are not being followed as outlined in the agreement. Especially the clause prohibiting the posting of sales for another merchant on a contract terminal unless of course, its previously agreed upon. All it takes is one customer complaint in this type case. It is a breach of contract and can cause immediate cancellation of the accepting/charging merchant's terminal access privilege. Its really smart to use either email or all the patience one can possibly muster in these situations as its in the best interests of all other involved parties to do so. It'll give the merchant the much needed additional time to satisfy his outstanding orders, while allowing the merchant to continue doing business thus, helping the already meager cash flow in this dying, if not dead, Atari marketplace. It makes no sense to try and force the merchant out of business by making a "loud public outcry or spectacle" of the situation. Although, in recent months this seems to have been the case. As a result, certain folks will be satisfied and others well.. they'll be satisfied but it will take more time than originally anticipated. Hopefully, these matters will be dealt with swiftly and to everyone's satisfaction. The only recognizable problem noticed at this time, is the viability of third party products designed and ordered over a year ago. After all, the company itself (Atari) is busily introducing a new computer line, (the Falcons), which is excessively late and the platform itself is losing developers left and right. Perhaps a systematic approach to refunding those users who ordered and pre-paid for product as opposed to trying to fulfill the "original" orders would be the "right thing to do". Bob Chopak, of Computer Garden, posted the messages above concerning his pre-paid order. STReport acknowledges he has been more than patient and should have at least been given a return call or two. When we called Mr. Chopak for an interview he was quite accommodating and straight forward. It seems his biggest complaint was that he, like many of others with similar complaints, was not kept informed of the progress of his order nor were his telephone calls returned. As STReport continues to receive information relative to this situation, we shall keep the userbase informed of the progress being made in resolving the problem. STReport adds, that we fully expect Mr. Chopak and the others who have registered complaints to be completely satisfied in as short a time as possible under the present prevailing market and economic conditions. _______________________________________________________________ > CT FEST'93 STR SHOW NEWS The Summertime Atari Event! """""""""""""""""""""""" 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! CONNECTICUT SHOW TO FEATURE ATARI'S LATEST ENTRY ================================================ HARTFORD, Conn. (April 12) More than 1,000 Atari computer enthusiasts are expected to converge here June 12 and 13 at Connecticut AtariFest '93, and are certain to debate whether the star of the show -- THE LONG-AWAITED FALCON030 COMPUTER -- lives up to its advance billing. 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). The Falcon030 is a perfect low cost tool for the professional artist, with 8 track, 16 bit musical capabilities, truecolor graphics and a 32 bit DSP chip. The Falcon will be bundled with several music programs, including a 4 track 'Direct to Disk' editing and recording program, a sound sampler and an all purpose productivity package called AtariWorks. The Hartford show will likely be one of the first encounters the general public has with the new machine and software leading designers have produced for it. Atari was performing quality control tests on the latest production models shipped to the Sunnyvale headquarters in mid-April. The two-day event will feature more than 40 exhibitors, including several of the top names in music software development and MIDI equipment. Tentative music exhibitors include Barefoot Software (formerly Hybrid Arts), Digital F/X, Steinberg/Jones, Pro Musica, Compo Software and others. The show, sponsored by ACT Atari Group, will be held at the Windsor Court Hotel, just off Interstate 91 at exit 42. Connecticut AtariFest'93 promises to showcase the work of several musicians and will include some live music sessions. Other vendors will demonstrate new equipment and software that will be of interest to musicians whether they're on or off the job. Among them, organizers have received tentative nods from A&D Software, ABC Solutions, Baggetaware, Barefoot Software, Compo Software, Computer Studio, Derric Electronics, East Hartford Computer Repair, Gribnif Software, ICD Inc., MegaType Software, Soft-Logik Publishing, Toad Computers, Wizztronics. Last year 14 user groups participated, and that number is expected to grow by June. A Home Business and Entertainment Expo that will focus on high-tech gadgetry designed for home use is also planned. Central activities will include a New England Lynx Tournament for the gamester in the family, a Portfolio corner for the on-the-go palmtop computer user, and other technology such as VCRs, lap/palmtops, voice messaging systems, satellite receivers, CD-ROM, fax-modems, large screen TV, printers, audio-video components, cellular phones, office supplies, video games or add-on units and accessories. 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, STReport's Dana Jacobson and Joe Mirando 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 Forums. E-mail can be directed to B.GOCKLEY or D.FINCH7 on GEnie or to 75300,2514 or 76337,1067 on CIS. _____________________________________________________________________ > LONG NOTES STR Feature Casual but profound observations.. """""""""""""""""""""" THE NOTEBOOKS OF LAZARUS LONG Issue #1 Compiled by Lloyd E. Pulley, Sr. Various real-life sayings (some attributed, some not) that could fit in- to the Notebooks of Lazarus Long. From the Jerry Pournelle RT on Genie Experience is the best teacher. But her pop quizzes can be MIGHTY tough. If you're going backwards, the odometer always reads zero. A single daisy, hand delivered, is better than a dozen roses delivered by the florist. Never offend people with style when you can offend them with substance. You can prove anything if you make up your data. You can prove _almost_ anything if you are allowed to exclude data that don't fit. A dog does not bite the hand that feeds him. That is the principal difference between a dog and a man. A gentleman is one who never inflicts pain. ---Cardinal Newman. ...unintentionally. ---Oscar Wilde Just because you ignore the facts, does not mean they cease to exist. "Solutions are the larva of new problems." ---Jim Wells, 1993 Knights in shining armor are easy targets. Children generally survive their parent's best intentions. The concept of an "inalienable right" is a legal fiction. No religion endorses the concept, and Darwin certainly never heard of it. Statistics are like a Bikini What they revel is very nice What they conceal is even more important. Oliver Wendell Holmes told us that taxes are the price we pay for civilization. We want a refund. Always place your clothes and your weapons where you can find them in the dark. You can lead a man to knowledge, but you cannot make him think. Turning the other cheek works, until you run out of cheeks. Turn the other cheek and get two purple hearts. We'd be in serious trouble if we got all the government we pay for. Today's bugs are tomorrow's program features. If all you have is a hammer, you have to treat every problem like a nail. If you torture the data enough, it will confess. "You know, some day an American politician is going to do what he thinks is right, instead of what the pols tell him. And it's going to look revolutionary." ---Michael Crichton Life's tough, but it's tougher if you're stupid. Here lies a technophobe, No whimper, no blast; His life's goal accomplished, Zero risk at last. "A mind is like a parachute. It's only useful when it's open." Take off and nuke it from orbit - it's better to be sure. If you're coasting, you're going downhill. A job not worth doing is not worth doing well. "There are three kinds of lies -- lies, damned lies and statistics." The only thing faster than the speed of light is the speed with which a rumor travels. A good leader fixes the problem -- not the blame. ---Colonel F. Porciello, USAF Never use one hydrogen bomb when two will suffice. When it is not necessary to make a decision, it is necessary not to make a decision. --- Lord Falkland Never miss an opportunity to keep your mouth shut. *********************************************************************** :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. .________________________________________________________________________. |============= Welcome to the... ==================== Reference =========| |""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""| | ###### ###### ## ## ## ## ###### BULLETIN BOARD.... M605;1 | | ## ## ####### ## ## ## RT CONFERENCES.... M605;2 | | ## ### #### #### ## # ## ## ## ## ### SOFTWARE LIBRARY.. M605;3 | | ## ## ## ## ## ## ## ## ## | | ###### ###### ## ## ##### ###### PRODUCT SUPPORT... M606;1 | | THE GENIE MACINTOSH USERS GROUP ROUNDTABLE MACPRO RT......... M480 | !________________________________________________________________________! ___ ___ ____ __ __ ___ to the |\ |\ | == |\ | _\ | || \/ || == | |/\| || _|| | | | | O || || _| J E R R Y P O U R N E L L E | || |_ | |__| |__ | || |\/| || |_ |__/\__||___||____/____/|____||/ |/ |___| RoundTable ================================================================ Your Host and Chief Sysop Jerry Pournelle.....JERRYP [Chaos Master] First Assistant Sysop Gary R. Utter..........GARY.UTTER [RT Manager] Second Assistant Sysop Timothy Pleasant..............T.PLEASANT [RT Archivist] Third Assistant Sysop Bill Dooley..............Bill.Dooley [RT Assistant] Chief Librarian R.B. (Brad) Andrews...............R.B.ANDREWS [RT Librarian] ================================================================ GEnie Information copyright (C) 1991 by General Electric Information Services/GEnie, reprinted by permission *********************************************************************** > NEW GENIE RULES STR InfoFile GEnie Services Usage Policies & Guidelines """""""""""""""""""""""""""" About GEnie Services Usage Policies and Guidelines (Revised May, 1993) It is the intent of GEnie Services to permit the open discussion of issues in its bulletin boards, real-time conferences and chat areas. However, in order to maintain proper decorum in the use of GEnie Services, to protect the integrity, good will and mass appeal of GEnie Services, and to prevent violation of the legal rights of others, it is necessary for GEnie Services to have and to ensure compliance with certain criteria relating to the use of GEnie Services. Those usage guidelines are set forth in the on-line GEnie Services Policies and Guidelines files which are available for subscriber access. These Policies and Guidelines are subject to change by GEnie Services at its discretion. In addition to the on-line GEnie Services Policies and Guidelines, individual system operators ("sysops") may also establish supplemental usage guidelines for application with respect to the use of the specific GEnie Services areas which they manage, provided that such supplemental guidelines are not inconsistent with the GEnie Services Policies and Guidelines which are then in effect. Such supplemental guidelines must also be adhered to. It should be noted that GEnie Services is not a communications common carriage service, and that GEnie Services is not legally obligated to allow its facilities to be used for the wholly unrestricted expression of ideas. GEnie Services reserves to itself and to its sysops discretion with respect to what is permitted to appear in open files and libraries on the Service. It is intended, however, to have this discretion exercised in a reasonable and responsible manner, in accordance with the stated usage policies and guidelines. John F. Barber General Manager, GEnie Services GEnie SERVICES USAGE GUIDELINES (May 1993) The following criteria apply to the use of GEnie Services: 1. BULLETIN BOARDS, REAL-TIME CONFERENCES AND CHATLINES. The orderly management of Bulletin Boards, Real-Time Conferences and ChatLines is the responsibility of the sysop retained to administer that Bulletin Board, Real-Time Conference or ChatLine. Subject to such management responsibility, the following usage guidelines apply with respect to Bulletin Board postings: a. Postings in each Bulletin Board should be limited to information which is relevant to that Bulletin Board. A sysop may exclude irrelevant information from his/her Bulletin Board; may move a posting to a more appropriate topic area in his/her Bulletin Board, or may direct a subscriber to another, more appropriate Bulletin Board. b. The content of any statement or information which is transmitted for posting in a Bulletin Board should be suitable for publication and should not violate the legal rights of others. The posting of such statement or information will not be permitted if it is reasonably considered to fall within any of the following categories or to be otherwise harmful to GEnie Services' business interests: (1) Material which is obscene, indecent, or a blatant expression of bigotry, racism or hatred. (2) Material which is otherwise grossly repugnant to community standards. (3) Defamatory or abusive statements. (4) Unauthorized copies of copyrighted material. (5) Threats to harm oneself or others. (6) Statements made for the purpose of harassment. (7) Statements which advocate conduct or action which would be illegal or harmful to GEnie Services or others. (8) Statements made in furtherance of an illegal or fraudulent scheme or activity. (9) Statements which are inconsistent with decorum and good taste. (10) Advertising statements, except in the Classified Ads section of the Service. Moreover, the use of offensive or threatening nicknames or "handles" to identify the submitters of postings will not be tolerated. The standards which apply with respect to the permissible content of Bulletin Board postings also apply with respect to Real-Time Conference and Chatline communications. Threats of harm to oneself or others, and other statements concerning illegal conduct, may be reported to appropriate law enforcement authorities for investigation. 2. SOFTWARE LIBRARIES. Subscribers are not permitted to electronically upload the following types of material to GEnie Services Software Libraries: a. 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It will be governed by the law of the State of Maryland, excluding its conflict-of-laws rules. Each party waives the right to a jury trial in any suit based upon or arising out of this Agreement. c. Any action of any kind by either party arising out of this Agreement must be commenced within two (2) years from the date the right, claim, demand or cause of action first arises. d. This Agreement and the applicable GEnie Services Price Schedule contains the complete and exclusive understanding of the parties with respect to the subject matter hereof. No waiver, alteration, or modification of any of the provisions hereof will be binding unless made in accordance with the provisions of Section 6 hereof, or expressly agreed to in a writing signed by the party sought to be bound. _________________________________________________________________ > THE ATIGA! STR Feature 'Tis a spoof, but worth a chuckle... """""""""""""""""""""" The Atiga! From the ST RT on Genie - Cat. 18, Topic 23, Msg. 173 - posted by D.Engel. I found an interesting new development has transpired. I presume that the industry-wide terror generated by Gene's announcement of the Irata Noclaf030 has spurred these two unlikely partners to team up... - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Date: 11 May 93 19:54:20 GMT From: noao!asuvax!cs.utexas.edu!swrinde!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu! howland.reston.ans Subject: It could happen... To: Info-Atari16@naucse.cse.nau.edu SUNNYVALE CA: In a groundbreaking move, Atari Corporation and Commodore have announced a joint venture into the personal computer arena. The former competitors claim to have realized the futility of trying to compete against each other for "niche" markets and have decided instead to "team up and have a go at Big Blue." The new computer is called the "Atiga", and is said to combine elements from both the ST and Amiga lines, as well as several new features. For starters, the new machine will be based on the Intel 80286 processor. "The 68000 family is dead," claims Atari's Bob Brodie. "The original plan was to make the Atiga PC compatible, but about halfway through the project Jack Tramiel decided on a new operating system based on the HP-41 handheld calculator." Text is entered in a modified RPN (Reverse Polish Notation) in which words are entered first and then all punctuation is added at the end of a sentence. "It's much faster when you get used to it," claims Brodie. In addition, the Atiga is said to borrow sound and MIDI capabilities from the Amiga line and graphic capabilities from the Atari ST. "We wanted to build on the Amiga's success in the music market and the ST's popularity with video production companies," said a Commodore spokesman. The Atiga will be available in two configurations. The first is a one piece model with integrated monitor, keyboard and CPU. The one piece model ships with no RAM, though an Atari spokeperson mentioned that he thought that RAM boards might be provided by third party manufacturers at some future date. The second configuration features a CPU and a unique Direct To Brain (DTB) interface. Although still in early testing, the DTB interface is connected to the user via two probes and I/O is established through a combination of brainwaves and biorhythms. One probe is attached to a collar fitted around the user's tongue, but spokepersons would only giggle when asked where the second probe was connected. When asked about the RAM configuration the spokespersons replied "Yes, that's correct," and broke into hysterical laughter. In an unusual move, the two companies have announced the availability date of the computer to be three weeks ago, with production scheduled to begin by next fall. In the meantime, a media blitz is planned to start immediately with print ads in supermarket tabloids and video spots in trailers for adult videos. "We're really excited about this one," said the Commodore spokesperson. "Yes sirree Bob." "What?" replied Brodie. ********************************************************************* *Jonathan Whitcomb, Alcatel Network Systems, Raleigh, North Carolina* * UUCP: whitcomb@aur.alcatel.com GEnie: J.WHITCOMB3 * ********************************************************************* __________________________________________________________ > BLUE RIDGE ATARIFEST'93 STR SHOW NEWS "The Summertime Atari Event!" """"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" 1993 Blue Ridge ATARIFEST """"""""""""""""""""""""" FOR IMMEDIATE DISTRIBUTION """""""""""""""""""""""""" The Blue Ridge Atari Computer Enthusiasts (BRACE) and Computer Studio invite you to participate in the Fourth Annual Blue Ridge AtariFest in beautiful Asheville, North Carolina. Show dates and times are: Saturday July 24, 1993 10am - 6pm Sunday July 25, 1993 Noon - 5pm Just as in previous years, we have arranged for FREE Booth space for Atari developers!! (We're only requesting the donation of a door prize). We can promise both developers and show-goers an energetic and exciting show with as enthusiastic a crowd of Atarians as you'll find anywhere, plus the support of Computer Studio in the mall. We're once again taking over the Courtyard Shop (mall) area at Westgate Shopping Center for the show (location of Computer Studio), plus the use of vacant store spaces for seminar sessions. Seminar sessions will be 45 minutes in length, and developers are welcome to conduct a seminar on their product line or approved topic of their choice (seminar sessions are limited, so first come, first served). This year's show dates also coincide with Asheville's annual Bele Chere street festival, when downtown Asheville is closed to vehicular traffic and becomes what must be one of the largest street fairs in the country. Westgate Shopping Center is one of the primary Park-and-Ride shuttle centers for transporting people to and from downtown, and we've arranged to have the shuttle service pick up at the front entrance of the mall and drop off at the rear entrance, so everyone taking the service from Westgate WILL walk through the AtariFest exhibition area sometime during the day. This will be a great opportunity to showcase Atari and Atari related software and peripherals, and introduce them to people who aren't already Atari owners. Bringing in NEW blood is the key to the growth of this platform, and this will be our opportunity to begin that process with a captive audience. Additional discussions of the show, as well as confirmations of your participation, are welcome in GEnieMail and in the Blue Ridge AtariFest topic 13 in Category 11 here on GEnie. HOPING TO HEAR FROM YOU SOON. HAPPY ATARI COMPUTING. IT'S HAPPENING IN ASHEVILLE! Where: Westgate Shopping Center - Asheville, N.C. Take any major highway into Asheville (US 19-23, US 26 or I-40) to the I-240 loop, then take the "Westgate/Hilton Inn Drive exit" into the Westgate Shopping Center parking lot. When: 24-25, July 1993 Time: 10:am to 6:pm SAT 12 Noon 'til 5pm SUN Points of contact: Come for a day or come for the weekend, but do come and enjoy yourself. Great Smokies Hilton Resort Hilton Inn Drive (704)254-3211 Toll-free reservation phone number 1-800-733-3211 Radisson One Thomas Wolf Plaza (704)252-8211 Rate: $62.00 per room (1-4 people) ====== Additional Hotel / Motel Information =========== Days Inn I-26 and Airport Road (704)684-2281 I-40 Exit 55 (704)298-5140 Econo Lodge US 70 East, I-40 Exit 55 (704)298-5519 Holiday Inn 275 Smoky Park Hwy (704)667-4501 Toll-free reservation phone number 1-800-HOLIDAY Red Roof Inn I-40 and US 19-23 Exit 44 (704)667-9803 Toll-free reservation phone number 1-800-843-7663 Budget Motel I-40 Exit 44 (Enka-Chandler) West Asheville Exit (704)665-2100 Best Western Asheville Central 22 Woodfin St (704)253-1851 ========= Local Bed & Breakfast lodging Information ========= Aberdeen Inn 64 Linden Ave (704)254-9336 Albemarle Inn 86 Edgemont Road (704)255-0027 Applewood Manor 62 Cumberland Circle (704)254-2244 The Bridle Path Inn Lockout Road (704)252-0035 Cairn Brae B & B 217 Patton Mountain Rd (704)252-9219 Carolina B & B 177 Cumberland Ave (704)254-3608 Cedar Crest Victorian Inn 674 Biltmore Ave (704)252-1289 Corner Oak Manor 53 St. Dunstan (704)253-3525 Cornerstone Inn 230 Pearson Dr (704)253-5644 Flint Street Inn 100 & 116 Flint Street (704)253-6723 The Lion and The Rose 276 Montford Ave (704)255-7673 The Ray House B & B 83 Hillside St (704)252-0106 Reed House 119 Dodge St (704)274-1604 The Wright Inn 235 Pearson Drive (704)251-0789] (1-800-552-5724) A more complete listing of Bed & Breakfasts can be obtained through the Asheville Area Chamber of Commerce. Reservations should be made immediately, as July is the height of our tourist season. =========== CAMP GROUNDS ================ (reservations are a must during this time of season): Mount Pisgah: About 20 miles southwest of Asheville on the Blue Ridge Parkway at mile post 408.6 (National Park Service). 690 acres. Elevation 5000'. One of the nicest campgrounds in Western North Carolina. 67 tent sites, 70 RV sites. For reservations: P.O.Box 749, Watnesville, N.C. 28786; phone (704) 235-9109. No showers. Groceries and restaurant. Nature program. 14 day stay limit. Lake Powhatan: 4 miles south of Asheville on State road 191, 3.5 miles west on SR 806. 30 acres. 98 tent/rv sites. Reservation available thru Mistix 1-800-283-CAMP. Disposal station. No showers. Swimming; lifeguard; fishing; nature trails; bicycles. 14-day stay limit. While in the area, you might want to consider a little sightseeing, and include a visit to the Biltmore House here in Asheville (the largest single family residence ever built in the U.S.--its a "castle"). A visit to the Biltmore can be a full-day's activity as you will want to view the house, visit the winery, and walk some of the grounds and gardens. Hours: The House 9 am to 6pm The Gardens 9am to 7pm Conservatory 9am to 5:30pm The Winery Monday-Saturday 11am to 7pm Sunday 1pm to 7pm Other areas of interest include; the Thomas Wolf home (adjacent to the Raddison), the Blue Ridge Parkway and Folk Art Center. A drive up the Blue ridge Parkway to enjoy the higher elevations and incredible views of our mountains. Perhaps a hike up to Mount Pisgah and look back down to Asheville(you can see Mt. Pisgah from most anywhere in Asheville). A short drive from Mt. Pisgah will take you to Sliding Rock (for those of you travelling with kids who are still kids at heart), the Cradle of Forestry (first forest school in the country), waterfalls, trout hatchery, etc. For the adventurous, white water rafting on the Natahala River near Bryson City (approx one and a half hours from here). There's obviously loads more to see and do around Asheville (in addition to the Blue Ridge AtariFest and a visit to Computer Studio :-). If any of y'all would like maps and additional tourist info of the area I might suggest contacting the Chamber of Commerce: Asheville Area Chamber of Commerce 151 Haywood Street P.O. Box 1010 Asheville, NC 28802 704-258-6111 FAX: (704)251-0926 ___________________________________________________________________ > LEXICOR SUPPORT! STR InfoFile LEXICOR'S PHASE-4 TO INCLUDE GEMVIEW!! """"""""""""""""""""""""""""" LEXICOR SOFTWARE PRESENTS: The NOVA Graphics Card ====================== Hi It's me again Yat Siu from Lexicor Software Europe. I have a happy announcement to make! Lexicor Software is glad to announce that they have acquired distribution rights to the NOVA Card. The Nova Card comes in essentially 5 different versions. Lexicor Software Products that run on the NOVA Card are: XENOMORPH-3D (works 100%) all functions Cyber Color (works 100%) all functions Prism Paint (works 100%) v.1.1, 1.5 and the soon to be released 2.0 CHRONOS-3D Newest Version (works 100%) You can even RENDER in any rez at 8bit GENESIS (works 100%) Render 24 (works 100%) Utility Disk I haven't checked all the utilities but nearly ALL appear to work. And since it has an own VDI Driver, most Atari Applications that are written cleanly should work just fine. Now to the availability and the prices, Lexicor users get a special price as I understand and for those who buy our Software bundled, they too will get a special price. I have listed them into Lexicor and Non Lexicor and listed the price respectively below. I hope the formatting works now! :) Type of NOVA Card Prices:LEXICOR User Prices:NON-LEXICOR Description of CARD: NOVA Mega 32K 300 U$D 360 U$D 32,768 Colors for any Mega ST BUS Nova Mega 16M 400 U$D 490 U$D 16,7 Million Colors for your Mega ST BUS Nova VME 32K 429 U$D 560 U$D 32,768 Colors for any Mega STE or TT VME Nova VME 16M 529 U$D 699 U$D 16,7 Million Colors for any Mega STE or TT VME Super NOVA 999 U$D 1199 U$D Excellence and brilliance! Requires a VME Bus Mega STE or TT If you own an ST or a regular STE (eg.1040, 520) then with a special adaptor you can connect the Mega BUS versions on your ST, STE. Price of the adaptor however is to date not known. Transport (shipping) is not included, please add another 30-40 dollars depending on how quick you wish to have a delivery. Prices are Subject to possible change but unlikely. To the specs of the Card now: All the NOVA Cards, 16M, 32k VME or Mega BUS have this in common: 1.Max Pixeltakt: 90 Mhz 2.Video RAM 1 Megabyte 3.Ramtype DRAM 4.Have Virtual Resolutions 5.Automatic Rez Switch 6.Upgrade Possibility 7.VDI for its Colors (16M have 24bit VDI, 32k have 32K VDI) 8.All have a Videomode Generator 9.All go up to 1024*768 in 72Hz in 2/16/256 Colors The Max rez in 16,7 Million colors for the 16M VME is 640*480 and the MegaBUS is 640*400. The Max rez for BUS version is 1024*768 and for VME version is 1088*832 at 70 Hz. The Max rez at 32k colors for BUS version is 768*512 and VME version is 800*600. The SUPERNOVA is a dream Card for a dream Price!!! Max Mhz is 135 MHZ with 16,7 Million colors at 800*600, 32k colors at 1024* 768, Absolute Max at 256 Colors max is 1280 * 1024. Ram type is VRAM unlike the NOVA standard DRAM and has 2 Megabytes of VRAM. It has everything that regular NOVA's have AND has a hardware speedup, making it even quicker! Naturally, Virtual Resolutions possible! This is a very, very fine card and is to my knowledge the cheapest available Graphics Card for your Atari. The Crazy Dots which we so promoted before is still a fine card, but proved to be less compatible than the NOVA making for Lexicor Software the NOVA Card be the preferred choice. Please, as this is a service of Lexicor Europe which needs to import and may run out of stock, consider a maximum delivery time of 6 weeks, depending on your preferred choice of delivery (Ground, Air, UPS or FEDEX?!). We will have stock, and it should not take so long....I am only being careful! :-) Yat Siu #: 39629 S11/LEXICOR Software 13-May-93 03:14:03 Sb: #39608-#Lexicors New NOVA card. Fm: LEXICOR Software 75300,763 To: Greg Wageman 74016,352 Greg, Sorry I missed answering your question on Gemview. Yes Gemview does work and Lexicor is adding Gemview to it's "Free" shareware software with permission of the author Dieter...We offer as many of you know some very nice Freeware and shareware software with our full Phase-4 commercial package. Of course any one wanting just the disk must call in and pay for the disk and copying, as the case with any other shareware service does. For more info just send E-Mail. We will be posting extensive upgrade list in our Lib in the coming days, with many new products and information from all over the World. This will include both Hardware and software. The best thing about NOVA is starting at the least expensive around the $300 range to get TT graphics from 1040/STE Megas etc. All our software is 100% compatible, and fully supported by us. Then the at the $400.00 level we are talking Falcon colors but much higher res...like 800X600 from 16Mil...I like this one a lot. and finally to go all out at a reasonable price for 24 bit...try $500 + a few. that sure beats $1,500 for 24 bit! and if you really need super high res, add 2Megs of VRAM for $400. and you are still $500 below any thing else with the same graphical horsepower. There is of course a catch in all this and that is the speed of the base machine. more colors and more res means slower graphics, but we will be teaching solutions and professional approaches that will help a lot. The fact is that for most of us blinding speed which no one really has anyway is not the real point. It is you can have the whole nine yards with out the pain of over paying. There will be plenty of sales information in the libraries soon. We hope this brief announcement has been of some use! Just one thing more. we caution all Atari users who are considering investing in Graphics Cards from any source to check with Lexicor or look up our compatibility list. There are some Card makers who claim compatibility which does not exist. We have had several reports from lexicor product owners who were assured by such manufactures that the product was compatible, and it was not. In one case the claim came from a manufacture who was selling a card we have never seen, that no Lexicor author had ever had or ever tested his software on let alone done any compatibility programming. So please be careful when you are shopping, one of these complaints came from a user who was unable to get a refund. And now has a very expensive Graphics Card that is of no use in doing the animations he had dreamed of doing. Thanks again for the question. Lee ____________________________________________________ > NVN WANTS YOU! STR InfoFile Another Network Supports Atari! """"""""""""""""""""""""""" NVN - THE NEW KID ON THE BLOCK! =============================== The Atari computer platforms has support on yet another top notch telecommunications service! National Videotex Network (NVN) maintains an area just for our favorite computers. Type GO ATARI 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.* NVN now offers Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT). For a $2 per month service charge, customers may have their NVN online charges automatically debited from their personal checking accounts. Please contact Client Services for this new feature! For more information about either of these plans.. Please, give us a call at; 1-800-336-9096. *** 9600 BAUD USERS! *** *** $6/hour non-prime time - $9/hour prime time *** 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. NVN Highlights -------------- 1. For the newcomers.... 2. *** RECEIVE A $10 USAGE CREDIT FOR EACH NEW MEMBER YOU BRING US!! *** 3. Get your copy of DOS 6.0 Upgrade - FREE -! 4. HALF PRICE SALE for Training files for all of April. No fooling... 5. TV Buffs! Win a free hour online in the Television Forum during April! 6. The Fishing Forum needs anglers to test new fishing lures...FREE!!! 7. Check out the new Technology & Quality Management Forum... 8. Win free connect time and other prizes playing Fantasy Baseball! 9. Connect with other Teens - Wednesday nights at 9:00 pm (EDT)... 10. TAX TIME...ARGH!!! Type <GO ACCOUNTING> for immediate relief! 11. Expand your knowledge of law from the comfort of your home... 12. Refer to NVN for all of your reference needs... 13. Enjoy NVN services while saving time and money! _______________________________________________________________ > HARDWARE REGISTERS STR InfoFile ST/STe/MSTe/TT/F030 Register Listing """"""""""""""""""""""""""""""" .---------------------------------------------------. |Atari ST/STe/MSTe/TT/F030 Hardware Register Listing| `---------------------------------------------------' Version 5.0 - 5/15/93 By Dan Hollis Copyright (C) 1993 MicroImages Software -------------------------------------------------------------------------- This document may only be copied unmodified, in its entirety. This document may only be copied freely, and may not be sold. I make no guarantees as to the accuracy of this document. I cannot be responsible for the use or misuse of information contained within this document. Use at your own risk! In any case, every effort has been taken to ensure this document is as complete and accurate as possible. -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Corrections, additions, or comments should be sent to me. I can be contacted at the following addresses: ForemNet : Dan Hollis @ node 3 (Atari-OH!) InterNet : dhollis@bitsink.uucp Snail : Dan Hollis P.O. Box 580448 Houston, TX 77258 Address Size Description Bits used Read/Write -------+-----+--------------------------------------------+---------- ##############ADSPEED Configuration registers ########### -------|-----|--------------------------------------------|---------- $F00000|byte |Switch to 16 Mhz |W $F10000|byte |Switch to 8 Mhz |W $F20000|byte |Turn on high speed ROM option in 16 Mhz |W $F30000|byte |Turn off high speed ROM option |W $F40000|byte |Unknown |W $F50000|byte |Turn off cache while in 16 Mhz |W | | >> Write 0 to an address to set it. << | -------+-----+--------------------------------------------+---------- ##############ST MMU Controller ########### -------+-----+--------------------------------------------+---------- $FF8001|byte |MMU memory configuration BIT 3 2 1 0|R/W | |Bank 0 (Bits 3-2) Bank 1 (Bits 1-0)| | |00 = 128k 00 = 128k | | |01 = 512k 01 = 512k | | |10 = 2m 10 = 2m | | |11 = reserved 11 = reserved | -------+-----+--------------------------------------------+---------- ##############SHIFTER Video Controller ########### -------+-----+--------------------------------------------+---------- $FF8201|byte |Video screen memory position (high byte) |R/W $FF8203|byte |Video screen memory position (mid byte) |R/W $FF820D|byte |Video screen memory position (low byte) |R/W (STe) $FF8205|byte |Video address pointer (high byte) |R $FF8207|byte |Video address pointer (mid byte) |R $FF8209|byte |Video address pointer (low byte) |R $FF820E|byte |Offset to next line (overrides $ff820f) |R/W (F030) $FF820F|byte |Width of a scanline (width in words-1) |R/W (STe) $FF8210|word |Width of a scanline (width in words) |R/W (F030) $FF8265|byte |Horizontal scroll register (0-15) |R/W (STe) -------+-----+--------------------------------------------+---------- $FF820A|byte |Video synchronization mode BIT 1 0|R/W | | 0=60hz, 1=50hz -' || | | 0=internal, 1=external sync ---'| -------+-----+--------------------------------------------+---------- $FF8240|word |Video color palette register 0 |R/W : | : | : : : : | : $FF825E|word |Video color palette register 15 |R/W | | ST color value xxR3R2R1xxG3G2G1xxB3B2B1| | |STe/TT color value R2R1R0R3G2G1G0G3B2B1B0B3| -------+-----+--------------------------------------------+---------- $FF8260|byte |Shifter resolution BIT 1 0|R/W | |00=320x200x4 bitplanes (16 colors) | | |01=640x200x2 bitplanes (4 colors) | | |10=640x400x1 bitplane (1 colors) | $FF8262|byte |TT Shifter resolution BIT 2 1 0|R/W (TT) | |000= 320x200x4 bitplanes (16 colors) | | |001= 640x200x2 bitplanes (4 colors) | | |010= 640x400x1 bitplane (2 colors) | | |100= 640x480x4 bitplanes (16 colors) | | |110=1280x960x1 bitplane (1 color) | | |111= 320x480x8 bitplanes (256 colors) | -------+-----+--------------------------------------------+---------- $FF827E|???? |STACY Display Driver |???(STACY) -------+-----+--------------------------------------------+---------- $FF8400|word |TT Palette #0 |R/W (TT) ..... | | | $FF85FE|word |TT Palette #255 |R/W (TT) -------+-----+--------------------------------------------+---------- ##############Falcon030 VIDEL Video Controller ########### -------+-----+--------------------------------------------+---------- $FF820E|word |Offset to next line (overrides $ff820f) |R/W (F030) $FF8210|word |VWRAP - Linewidth in words |R/W (F030) $FF8266|word |SPSHIFT BIT 8 . . . 4 . . . .|R/W (F030) | |Truecolour mode -----------' | | | |Bitplane mode ---------------------' | $FF8282|word |HHT - Synchro |R/W (F030) $FF8284|word |HBB - End of line |R/W (F030) $FF8286|word |HBE - Start of line |R/W (F030) $FF8288|word |HDB - Left overscan |R/W (F030) $FF828A|word |HDE - Right overscan |R/W (F030) $FF828C|word |HSS - Synchro |R/W (F030) $FF828E|word |HFS |R/W (F030) $FF8290|word |HEE |R/W (F030) $FF82A2|word |VFT - Synchro |R/W (F030) $FF82A4|word |VBB - End of image |R/W (F030) $FF82A6|word |VBE - Start of image (count in half lines) |R/W (F030) $FF82A8|word |VDB - Top overscan |R/W (F030) $FF82AA|word |VDE - Bottom overscan |R/W (F030) $FF82AC|word |VSS - Synchro |R/W (F030) $FF82C2|word |VCO BIT 2 1 0|R/W (F030) | |Halve pixel width (double pixels) -----' | || | |Skip line (interlace) -------------------' || | |Line doubling -----------------------------'| -------+-----+--------------------------------------------+---------- ##############DMA/WD1772 Disk controller ########### -------+-----+--------------------------------------------+---------- $FF8600| |Reserved | $FF8602| |Reserved | $FF8604|word |FDC access/sector count |R/W $FF8606|word |DMA mode/status BIT 2 1 0|R | |Condition of FDC DATA REQUEST signal --' | || | |0=sector count null,1=not null ----------' || | |0=no error, 1=DMA error -------------------'| $FF8606|word |DMA mode/status BIT 8 7 6 . 4 3 2 1 .|W | |0=read FDC/HDC,1=write ----' | | | | | | | || | |0=HDC access,1=FDC access ---' | | | | | | || | |0=DMA on,1=no DMA -------------' | | | | | || | |reserved ------------------------' | | | | || | |0=FDC reg,1=sector count reg ------' | | | || | |0=FDC access,1=HDC access -----------' | | || | |0=pin A1 low, 1=pin A1 high -----------' | || | |0=pin A0 low, 1=pin A0 high -------------' || | |unused ------------------------------------'| $FF8609|byte |DMA base and counter (High byte) |R/W $FF860B|byte |DMA base and counter (Mid byte) |R/W $FF860D|byte |DMA base and counter (Low byte) |R/W -------+-----+--------------------------------------------+---------- ##############TT-SCSI DMA Controller ########### -------+-----+--------------------------------------------+---------- $FF8701|byte |TT-SCSI-DMA Address Pointer (Highest byte) |R/W (TT) $FF8703|byte |TT-SCSI-DMA Address Pointer (High byte) |R/W (TT) $FF8705|byte |TT-SCSI-DMA Address Pointer (Low byte) |R/W (TT) $FF8707|byte |TT-SCSI-DMA Address Pointer (Lowest byte) |R/W (TT) $FF8709|byte |TT-SCSI-DMA Address Counter (Highest byte) |??? (TT) $FF870B|byte |TT-SCSI-DMA Address Counter (High byte) |??? (TT) $FF870D|byte |TT-SCSI-DMA Address Counter (Low byte) |??? (TT) $FF870F|byte |TT-SCSI-DMA Address Counter (Lowest byte) |??? (TT) $FF8710|???? |TT-SCSI-DMA Continue Data Register High Word|R/W (TT) $FF8712|???? |TT-SCSI-DMA Continue Data Register Low Word |R/W (TT) $FF8714|???? |TT-SCSI-DMA Control register |R/W (TT) -------+-----+--------------------------------------------+---------- ##############TT-SCSI Drive Controller 5380 ########### -------+-----+--------------------------------------------+---------- $FF8781|byte |Contents of SCSI-Data buses |R/W (TT) $FF8783|byte |Init-Command Register |R/W (TT) $FF8785|byte |Transfer Start Register |R/W (TT) $FF8787|byte |Target-Command Register |R/W (TT) $FF8789|byte |Bus Status Register |R/W (TT) $FF878B|byte |Status Register |R/W (TT) $FF878D|byte |Command Data from SCSI-Bus |R/W (TT) $FF878F|byte |Reset Interrupts+Parity error/ |R/W (TT) | | Start Init-DMA-Action | -------+-----+--------------------------------------------+---------- ##############YM2149 Sound Chip ########### -------+-----+--------------------------------------------+---------- $FF8800|byte |Read data/Register select |R/W | |Port A (register 14) BIT . 6 5 4 3 2 1 0| | |Reserved --------------------' | | | | | | || | |Monitor jack GPO pin ----------' | | | | | || | |Centronics strobe ---------------' | | | | || | |RS-232 DTR output -----------------' | | | || | |RS-232 RTS output -------------------' | | || | |Drive select 1 ------------------------' | || | |Drive select 0 --------------------------' || | |Drive side select -------------------------'| | |Port B - (register 15) Parallel port | $FF8802|byte |Write data |W -------+-----+--------------------------------------------+---------- ##############DMA Sound System ########### -------+-----+--------------------------------------------+---------- $FF8900|byte |Buffer interrupts BIT 3 2 1 0|R/W (F030) | |TimerA-Int at end of record buffer --' | | || | |TimerA-Int at end of replay buffer ----' | || | |MFP-15-Int (I7) at end of record buffer -' || | |MFP-15-Int (I7) at end of replay buffer ---'| -------+-----+--------------------------------------------+---------- $FF8901|byte |DMA Control Register BIT 7 . 5 4 . . 1 0|R/W | |1=select record register ----+ | | | || (F030) | |0=select replay register ----' | | | || (F030) | |Loop record buffer --------------' | | || (F030) | |DMA Record on ---------------------' | || (F030) | |Loop replay buffer ----------------------' || (STe) | |DMA Replay on -----------------------------'| (STe) -------+-----+--------------------------------------------+---------- $FF8903|byte |Frame start address (high byte) |R/W (STe) $FF8905|byte |Frame start address (mid byte) |R/W (STe) $FF8907|byte |Frame start address (low byte) |R/W (STe) $FF8909|byte |Frame address counter (high byte) |R (STe) $FF890b|byte |Frame address counter (mid byte) |R (STe) $FF890d|byte |Frame address counter (low byte) |R (STe) $FF890f|byte |Frame end address (high byte) |R/W (STe) $FF8911|byte |Frame end address (mid byte) |R/W (STe) $FF8913|byte |Frame end address (low byte) |R/W (STe) -------+-----+--------------------------------------------+---------- $FF8920|byte |DMA Track Control BIT 5 4 . . 1 0|R/W (F030) | |00 - Set DAC to Track 0 ---------+-+ | || | |01 - Set DAC to Track 1 ---------+-+ | || | |10 - Set DAC to Track 2 ---------+-+ | || | |11 - Set DAC to Track 3 ---------+-' | || | |00 - Play 1 Track -----------------------+-+| | |01 - Play 2 Tracks ----------------------+-+| | |10 - Play 3 Tracks ----------------------+-+| | |11 - Play 4 Tracks ----------------------+-'| -------+-----+--------------------------------------------+---------- $FF8921|byte |Sound mode control BIT 7 . . . . . 1 0|R/W (STe) | |00 - 8 bit Stereo -----------+-+ | || | |01 - 16 bit Stereo ----------+-+ | || (F030) | |10 - 8 bit Mono -------------+-' | || | |Frequency control bits | || | |00=6258hz frequency ---------------------+-+| | |01=12517hz frequency --------------------+-+| | |10=25033hz frequency --------------------+-+| | |11=50066hz frequency --------------------+-'| | |Samples are always signed. In stereo mode, | | |data is arranged in pairs with high pair the| | |left channel, low pair right channel. Sample| | |length must ALWAYS be even in either mono or| | |stereo mode. | | |Example: 8bit Stereo : LRLRLRLRLRLR | | | 16 bit Stereo : LLRRLLRRLLRR (F030) | -------+-----+--------------------------------------------+---------- ##############STe Microwire Controller (STe only!) ########### -------+-----+--------------------------------------------+---------- $FF8922|byte |Microwire data register |R/W (STe) $FF8924|byte |Microwire mask register |R/W (STe) | +--------------------------------------------+ | |Volume/tone controller commands(Address %10)| | |Master Volume 10 011 DDDDDD| | |Left Volume 10 101 xDDDDD| | |Right Volume 10 100 xDDDDD| | |Treble 10 010 xxDDDD| | |Bass 10 001 xxDDDD| | |Mixer 10 000 xxxxDD| | +--------------------------------------------+ | |Volume/tone controller values | | |Master Volume : 0-40 (0=-80db, 40=0db)| | |Left/Right Volume : 0-20 (0=80db, 20=0db)| | |Treble/bass : 0-12 (0=-12db, 12=+12db)| | |Mixer : 0-3 (0=-12db, 1=mix PSG)| | | (2=don't mix,3=reserved)| | +--------------------------------------------+ | |Procedure: | | |Set mask register to $7ff | | |Read data register and save original value | | |Write data register | | |Compare data register with original value, | | |repeat until data register returns to | | |original value to ensure data has been sent | | |over the interface. | | +--------------------------------------------+ | |Interrupts: | | |Timer A can be set to interrupt at the end | | |of a frame. Alternatively, the GPI7 (MFP | | |mono detect) can be used to generate | | |interrupts thereby freeing up Timer A. In | | |this case, the active edge $FFFA03 must be | | |set by or-ing the active edge $FFFA03 with | | |the contents of $ff8260 as follows: | | |$FF8260 = 2 (mono) or.b #$80 with edge | | |$FF8260 = 0,1 (colour) and.b #$7f with edge | | |This will generate an interrupt at the START| | |of a frame, instead of at the end as with | | |Timer A. To generate an interrupt at the END| | |of a frame, simply reverse the edge values. | -------+-----+--------------------------------------------+---------- ##############Falcon030 DMA/DSP Controllers ########### -------+-----+--------------------------------------------+---------- $FF8930|word |DMA Crossbar Controller |R/W (F030) | +--------------------------------------------+ | |DMA Output BIT 3 2 1 0| | |0 - DMA in, 1 - all others ----------' | | || | |00 - 25.175Mhz clock ------------------+-+ || | |01 - External clock -------------------+-+ || | |10 - 32Mhz clock ----------------------+-' || | |0 - Handshake on, 1 - Handshake off -------'| | +--------------------------------------------+ | |DSP Output BIT 7 6 5 4| | |1 - Connect, 0 - disconnect ---------' | | || | |00 - 25.175Mhz clock ------------------+-+ || | |01 - External clock -------------------+-+ || | |10 - 32Mhz clock ----------------------+-' || | |0 - Handshake on, 1 - Handshake off -------'| | +--------------------------------------------+ | |External Input BIT 10 9 8| | |00 - 25.175Mhz clock ------------------+-+ || | |01 - External clock -------------------+-+ || | |10 - 32Mhz clock ----------------------+-' || | |0 - Handshake on, 1 - Handshake off -------'| | +--------------------------------------------+ | |ADC Input Bit 12| | |0 - Internal sync, 1 - External sync ------'| -------+-----+--------------------------------------------+---------- $FF8932|word |DMA Crossbar Destination Select |R/W (F030) | +--------------------------------------------+ | |DMA-In BIT 3 2 1 0| | |0 - DSP out, 1 - All others ---------' | | || | |00 - Source DMA Output ----------------+-+ || | |01 - Source DSP Output ----------------+-+ || | |10 - Source External Input ------------+-+ || | |11 - Source ADC Input -----------------+-' || | |0 - Handshake on, 1 - Handshake off -------'| | +--------------------------------------------+ | |DSP-Input BIT 7 6 5 4| | |0 - Disconnect, 1 - Connect ---------' | | || | |00 - Source DMA Output ----------------+-+ || | |01 - Source DSP Output ----------------+-+ || | |10 - Source External Input ------------+-+ || | |11 - Source ADC Input -----------------+-' || | |0 - Handshake on, 1 - Handshake off -------'| | +--------------------------------------------+ | |External Output BIT 10 9 8| | |00 - Source DMA Output ----------------+-+ || | |01 - Source DSP Output ----------------+-+ || | |10 - Source External Input ------------+-+ || | |11 - Source ADC Input -----------------+-' || | |0 - Handshake on, 1 - Handshake off -------'| | +--------------------------------------------+ | |DAC Output BIT 13 12| | |00 - Source DMA Output -----------------+--+| | |01 - Source DSP Output -----------------+--+| | |10 - Source External Input -------------+--+| | |11 - Source ADC Input ------------------+--'| -------+-----+--------------------------------------------+---------- $FF8934|byte |Frequency Divider External Sync |R/W (F030) -------+-----+--------------------------------------------+---------- $FF8935|byte |Frequency Divider Internal Sync |R/W (F030) -------+-----+--------------------------------------------+---------- $FF8936|byte |Record Tracks Select BIT 1 0|R/W (F030) | |00 - Record 1 Track ---------------------+-+| | |01 - Record 2 Tracks --------------------+-+| | |10 - Record 3 Tracks --------------------+-+| | |11 - Record 4 Tracks --------------------+-'| -------+-----+--------------------------------------------+---------- $FF8937|byte |CODEC Input Source from 16bit adder BIT 1 0|R/W (F030) | |Multiplexer -----------------------------' || | |ADC/DAC -----------------------------------'| -------+-----+--------------------------------------------+---------- $FF8938|byte |CODEC ADC-Input for L+R Channel BIT 1 0|R/W (F030) | |0 - Microphone, 1 - Soundchip L R| -------+-----+--------------------------------------------+---------- $FF8939|byte |Channel amplification BIT LLLL RRRR|R/W (F030) -------+-----+--------------------------------------------+---------- $FF893a|byte |Channel reduction BIT LLLL RRRR ....|R/W (F030) -------+-----+--------------------------------------------+---------- $FF8941|byte |Data Direction BIT 2 1 0|R/W (F030) | |0 - In, 1 - Out -----------------------+-+-'| -------+-----+--------------------------------------------+---------- $FF8943|byte |Data BIT 2 1 0|R/W (F030) -------+-----+--------------------------------------------+---------- ##############TT Clock Chip ########### -------+-----+--------------------------------------------+---------- $FF8961|byte |Register select |???? (TT) $FF8963|byte |Data of selected clock chip registers |???? (TT) -------+-----+--------------------------------------------+---------- ##############Blitter (Not present on a TT!) ########### -------+-----+--------------------------------------------+---------- $FF8A00|word |Halftone-RAM, Word 0 |R/W (Blit) : | : | : : : : | : $FF8A1E|word |Halftone-RAM, Word 15 |R/W (Blit) $FF8A20|word |Source X Increment Register |R/W (Blit) $FF8A22|word |Source Y Increment Register |R/W (Blit) $FF8A24|long |Source Address Register |R/W (Blit) $FF8A28|word |Endmask 1 |R/W (Blit) $FF8A2A|word |Endmask 2 |R/W (Blit) $FF8A2C|word |Endmask 3 |R/W (Blit) $FF8A2E|word |Destination X Increment Register |R/W (Blit) $FF8A30|word |Destination Y Increment Register |R/W (Blit) $FF8A32|long |Destination Address Register |R/W (Blit) $FF8A36|word |Words per Line in Bit-Block |R/W (Blit) $FF8A38|word |Lines per Bit-Block |R/W (Blit) $FF8A3A|word |Halftone Operation Register |R/W (Blit) $FF8A3B|word |Logical Operation Register |R/W (Blit) $FF8A3C|word |Line Number Register |R/W (Blit) $FF8A3D|word |SKEW Register |R/W (Blit) -------+-----+--------------------------------------------+---------- ##############SCC-DMA ########### -------+-----+--------------------------------------------+---------- $FF8C01|byte |DMA-Address Pointer (Highest Byte) |R/W (TT) $FF8C03|byte |DMA-Address Pointer (High Byte) |R/W (TT) $FF8C05|byte |DMA-Address Pointer (Low Byte) |R/W (TT) $FF8C07|byte |DMA-Address Pointer (Lowest Byte) |R/W (TT) $FF8C09|byte |DMA-Address Counter (Highest-Byte) |R/W (TT) $FF8C0B|byte |DMA-Address Counter (High-Byte) |R/W (TT) $FF8C0D|byte |DMA-Address Counter (Low-Byte) |R/W (TT) $FF8C0F|byte |DMA-Address Counter (Lowest-Byte) |R/W (TT) $FF8C10|byte |Continue Data Register (High-Word) |R/W (TT) $FF8C12|byte |Continue Data register (Low-Word) |R/W (TT) $FF8C14|byte |Control register |R/W (TT) -------+-----+--------------------------------------------+---------- ##############SCC Z8530 SCC (MSTe/TT/F030) ########### -------+-----+--------------------------------------------+---------- $FF8C81|byte |Channel A - Control-Register |R/W (SCC) $FF8C83|byte |Channel A - Data-Register |R/W (SCC) $FF8C85|byte |Channel B - Control-Register |R/W (SCC) $FF8C87|byte |Channel B - Data-Register |R/W (SCC) -------+-----+--------------------------------------------+---------- ##############MSTe/TT VME Bus ########### -------+-----+--------------------------------------------+---------- $FF8E01|byte |VME sys_mask BIT 7 6 5 4 . 2 1 .|R/W (VME) $FF8E03|byte |VME sys_stat BIT 7 6 5 4 . 2 1 .|R/W (VME) | |_SYSFAIL in VMEBUS ----------' | | | | | | ||program | |MFP ---------------------------' | | | | | ||autovec | |SCC -----------------------------' | | | | ||autovec | |VSYNC -----------------------------' | | | ||program | |not used ----------------------------' | | || | |HSYNC ---------------------------------' | ||program | |System software INT ---------------------' ||program | |not used ----------------------------------'| | +--------------------------------------------+ | |Reading sys_mask resets pending int-bits in | | |sys_stat, so read sys_stat first. | -------+-----+--------------------------------------------+---------- $FF8E05|byte |VME sys_int BIT 0|R/W (VME) | |Setting bit 0 to 1 forces an INT of level 1 |Vector $64 | |INT must be enabled in sys_mask to use it | -------+-----+--------------------------------------------+---------- $FF8E0D|byte |VME vme_mask BIT 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 .|R/W (VME) $FF8E0F|byte |VME vme_stat BIT 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 .|R/W (VME) | |_IRQ7 from VMEBUS -----------' | | | | | | ||program | |_IRQ6 from VMEBUS/MFP ---------' | | | | | ||program | |_IRQ5 from VMEBUS/SCC -----------' | | | | ||program | |_IRQ4 from VMEBUS -----------------' | | | ||program | |_IRQ3 from VMEBUS/soft --------------' | | ||prog/autov | |_IRQ2 from VMEBUS ---------------------' | ||program | |_IRQ1 from VMEBUS -----------------------' ||program | |not used ----------------------------------'| | +--------------------------------------------+ | |MFP-int and SCC-int are hardwired to the | | |VME-BUS-ints (or'ed) | | |Reading vme_mask resets pending int-bits in | | |vme_stat, so read vme_stat first. | -------+-----+--------------------------------------------+---------- $FF8E07|byte |VME vme_int BIT 0|R/W (TT) | |Setting bit 0 to 1 forces an INT of level 3 |Vector $6C | |INT must be enabled in vme_mask to use it | -------+-----+--------------------------------------------+---------- $FF8E09|byte |General purpose register - does nothing |R/W (TT) $FF8E0B|byte |General purpose register - does nothing |R/W (TT) -------+-----+--------------------------------------------+---------- ##############Mega STe Cache/Processor Control ########### -------+-----+--------------------------------------------+---------- $FF8E21|byte |Mega STe Cache/Processor Control |R/W (MSTe) -------+-----+--------------------------------------------+---------- ##############STe Extended Joystick/Lightpen Ports ########### -------+-----+--------------------------------------------+---------- $FF9210|???? |Paddle 0 Position |R (STe) $FF9212|???? |Paddle 1 Position |R (STe) $FF9214|???? |Paddle 2 Position |R (STe) $FF9216|???? |Paddle 3 Position |R (STe) $FF9220|???? |Lightpen X-Position |R (STe) $FF9222|???? |Lightpen Y-Position |R (STe) -------+-----+--------------------------------------------+---------- ##############Falcon VIDEL Palette Registers ########### -------+-----+--------------------------------------------+---------- | | BIT 33222222 22221111 11111198 76543210| | | 10987654 32109876 543210 | | | RRRRRR.. GGGGGG.. ........ BBBBBB..| $FF9800|long |Palette Register 0 |R/W (F030) $FF9804|long |Palette Register 1 |R/W (F030) : | : | : : : | : : $FF98fc|long |Palette Register 255 |R/W (F030) -------+-----+--------------------------------------------+---------- ##############Falcon DSP Host Interface ########### -------+-----+--------------------------------------------+---------- $FFA200|byte |Interrupt Control Register |R/W (F030) $FFA201|byte |Command Vector Register |R/W (F030) $FFA202|byte |Interrupt Status register |R (F030) $FFA203|byte |Interrupt Vector Register |R/W (F030) $FFA204|byte |Unused | (F030) $FFA205|byte |DSP-Word High |R/W (F030) $FFA206|byte |DSP-Word Mid |R/W (F030) $FFA207|byte |DSP-Word Low |R/W (F030) -------+-----+--------------------------------------------+---------- ##############MFP 68901 - Multi Function Peripheral Chip ########### -------+-----+--------------------------------------------+---------- | |MFP Master Clock is 2,457,600 cycles/second | -------+-----+--------------------------------------------+---------- $FFFA01|byte |Parallel Port Data Register |R/W -------+-----+--------------------------------------------+---------- $FFFA03|byte |Active Edge Register BIT 7 6 5 4 . 2 1 0|R/W | |Monochrome monitor detect ---' | | | | | | || | |RS-232 Ring indicator ---------' | | | | | || | |FDC/HDC interrupt ---------------' | | | | || | |Keyboard/MIDI interrupt -----------' | | | || | |reserved ----------------------------' | | || | |RS-232 CTS (input) --------------------' | || | |RS-232 DCD (input) ----------------------' || | |Centronics busy ---------------------------'| | +--------------------------------------------+ | | When port bits are used for input only: | | |0=Interrupt on pin high-low conversion | | |1=Interrupt on pin low-high conversion | -------+-----+--------------------------------------------+---------- $FFFA05|byte |Data Direction BIT 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0|R/W | |0=Pin becomes an input | | |1=Pin becomes an output | -------+-----+--------------------------------------------+---------- $FFFA07|byte |Interrupt Enable A BIT 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0|R/W $FFFA0B|byte |Interrupt Pending A BIT 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0|R/W $FFFA0F|byte |Interrupt In-service A BIT 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0|R/W $FFFA13|byte |Interrupt Mask A BIT 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0|R/W | |MFP Address | | | | | | | || | |$13C GPI7-Monochrome Detect -' | | | | | | || | |$138 RS-232 Ring Detector ---' | | | | | || | |$134 (STe sound) Timer A -----' | | | | || | |$130 Receive buffer full -------' | | | || | |$12C Receive buffer empty ---------' | | || | |$128 Sender buffer empty -----------' | || | |$124 Sender error -------------' || | |$120 (HBL) Timer B ---------------'| | |1=Enable Interrupt 0=Disable Interrupt| -------+-----+--------------------------------------------+---------- $FFFA09|byte |Interrupt Enable B BIT 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0|R/W $FFFA0D|byte |Interrupt Pending B BIT 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0|R/W $FFFA11|byte |Interrupt In-service B BIT 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0|R/W $FFFA15|byte |Interrupt Mask B BIT 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0|R/W | |MFP Address | | | | | | | || | |$11C FDC/HDC -' | | | | | | || | |$118 Keyboard/MIDI ---' | | | | | || | |$114 (200hz clock) Timer C -----' | | | | || | |$110 (USART timer) Timer D -------' | | | || | |$10C Blitter done ---------' | | || | |$108 RS-232 CTS - input -----------' | || | |$104 RS-232 DCD - input -------------' || | |$100 Centronics Busy ---------------'| | |1=Enable Interrupt 0=Disable Interrupt| -------+-----+--------------------------------------------+---------- $FFFA17|byte |Vector Register BIT 3|R/W | |1=Software End-of-interrupt mode (Default)| | |0=Automatic End-of-interrupt mode | -------+-----+--------------------------------------------+---------- $FFFA19|byte |Timer A Control BIT 3 2 1 0|R/W $FFFA1B|byte |Timer B Control BIT 3 2 1 0|R/W | +--------------------------------------------+ | |0000 = Timer stop, no function executed | | |0001 = Delay mode, divide by 4 | | |0010 = . . 10 | | |0011 = . . 16 | | |0100 = . . 50 | | |0101 = . . 64 | | |0110 = . . 100 | | |0111 = Delay mode, divide by 200 | | |1000 = Event count mode | | |1xxx = Pulse extension mode, divide as above| | +--------------------------------------------+ $FFFA1F|byte |Timer A Data |R/W $FFFA21|byte |Timer B Data |R/W -------+-----+--------------------------------------------+---------- $FFFA1D|byte |Timer C & D Control BIT 6 5 4 . 2 1 0|R/W | | Timer Timer| | | C D | | +--------------------------------------------+ | |000 = Timer stop | | |001 = Delay mode, divide by 4 | | |010 = . . 10 | | |011 = . . 16 | | |100 = . . 50 | | |101 = . . 64 | | |110 = . . 100 | | |111 = Delay mode, divide by 200 | | +--------------------------------------------+ $FFFA23|byte |Timer C Data |R/W $FFFA25|byte |Timer D Data |R/W -------+-----+--------------------------------------------+---------- $FFFA27|byte |Sync Character |R/W $FFFA29|byte |USART Control BIT 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 .|R/W | |Clock divide (1=div by 16) --' | | | | | | || | |Word Length 00=8 bits ---------+-+ | | | | || | | 01=7 bits | | | | | | || | | 10=6 bits | | | | | | || | | 11=5 bits ---------+-' | | | | || | |Bits Stop Start Format ------------+-+ | | || | |00 0 0 Synchronous | | | | || | |01 1 1 Asynchronous | | | | || | |10 1 1.5 Asynchronous | | | | || | |11 1 2 Asynchronous ------+-' | | || | |Parity (0=ignore parity bit) ----------' | || | |Parity (0=odd parity,1=even) ------------' || | |Unused ------------------------------------'| $FFFA2B|byte |Receiver Status BIT 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0|R/W | |Buffer full -----------------' | | | | | | || | |Overrun error -----------------' | | | | | || | |Parity error --------------------' | | | | || | |Frame error -----------------------' | | | || | |Found - Search/Break detected -------' | | || | |Match/Character in progress -----------' | || | |Synchronous strip enable ----------------' || | |Receiver enable bit -----------------------'| $FFFA2D|byte |Transmitter Status BIT 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0|R/W | |Buffer empty ----------------' | | | | | | || | |Underrun error ----------------' | | | | | || | |Auto turnaround -----------------' | | | | || | |End of transmission ---------------' | | | || | |Break -------------------------------' | | || | |High bit ------------------------------' | || | |Low bit ---------------------------------' || | |Transmitter enable ------------------------'| $FFFA2F|byte |USART data |R/W -------+-----+--------------------------------------------+---------- #############Floating Point Coprocessor (in MSTe) ########### -------+-----+--------------------------------------------+---------- $FFFA40|???? |FP_stat Response-Register |??? (MSTe) $FFFA42|???? |FP_ctl Control-Register |??? (MSTe) $FFFA44|???? |FP_save Save-Register |??? (MSTe) $FFFA46|???? |FP_restor Restore-Register |??? (MSTe) $FFFA4A|???? |FP_cmd Command-Register |??? (MSTe) $FFFA4E|???? |FP_ccr Condition-Code-Register |??? (MSTe) $FFFA50|???? |FP_op Operanden-Register |??? (MSTe) $FFFA54|???? |FP_selct Register Select |??? (MSTe) $FFFA58|???? |FP_iadr Instruction Address |??? (MSTe) -------+-----+--------------------------------------------+---------- ##############MFP 68901 #2 (MFP2) - TT Only ########### -------+-----+--------------------------------------------+---------- $FFFA81|byte |Parallel Port Data Register |R/W (TT) -------+-----+--------------------------------------------+---------- $FFFA83|byte |Active Edge Register BIT 7 6 5 4 . 2 1 0|R/W (TT) | +--------------------------------------------+ | | When port bits are used for input only: | | |0=Interrupt on pin high-low conversion | | |1=Interrupt on pin low-high conversion | -------+-----+--------------------------------------------+---------- $FFFA85|byte |Data Direction BIT 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0|R/W (TT) | |0=Pin becomes an input | | |1=Pin becomes an output | -------+-----+--------------------------------------------+---------- $FFFA87|byte |Interrupt Enable A BIT 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0|R/W (TT) $FFFA8B|byte |Interrupt Pending A BIT 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0|R/W (TT) $FFFA8F|byte |Interrupt In-service A BIT 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0|R/W (TT) $FFFA93|byte |Interrupt Mask A BIT 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0|R/W (TT) | |MFP Address | | | | | | | || | |$17C ------------------------' | | | | | | || | |$178 --------------------------' | | | | | || | |$174 ----------------------------' | | | | || | |$170 ------------------------------' | | | || | |$16C --------------------------------' | | || | |$168 ----------------------------------' | || | |$164 ------------------------------------' || | |$160 --------------------------------------'| | |1=Enable Interrupt 0=Disable Interrupt| -------+-----+--------------------------------------------+---------- $FFFA89|byte |Interrupt Enable B BIT 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0|R/W (TT) $FFFA8D|byte |Interrupt Pending B BIT 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0|R/W (TT) $FFFA91|byte |Interrupt In-service B BIT 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0|R/W (TT) $FFFA95|byte |Interrupt Mask B BIT 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0|R/W (TT) | |MFP Address | | | | | | | || | |$15C ------------------------' | | | | | | || | |$158 --------------------------' | | | | | || | |$154 ----------------------------' | | | | || | |$150 ------------------------------' | | | || | |$14C --------------------------------' | | || | |$148 ----------------------------------' | || | |$144 ------------------------------------' || | |$140 --------------------------------------'| | |1=Enable Interrupt 0=Disable Interrupt| -------+-----+--------------------------------------------+---------- $FFFA97|byte |Vector Register BIT 3|R/W (TT) | |1=Software End-of-interrupt mode (Default)| | |0=Automatic End-of-interrupt mode | -------+-----+--------------------------------------------+---------- $FFFA99|byte |Timer A Control BIT 3 2 1 0|R/W (TT) $FFFA9B|byte |Timer B Control BIT 3 2 1 0|R/W (TT) | +--------------------------------------------+ | |0000 = Timer stop, no function executed | | |0001 = Delay mode, divide by 4 | | |0010 = . . 10 | | |0011 = . . 16 | | |0100 = . . 50 | | |0101 = . . 64 | | |0110 = . . 100 | | |0111 = Delay mode, divide by 200 | | |1000 = Event count mode | | |1xxx = Pulse extension mode, divide as above| | +--------------------------------------------+ $FFFA9F|byte |Timer A Data |R/W (TT) $FFFAA1|byte |Timer B Data |R/W (TT) -------+-----+--------------------------------------------+---------- $FFFA9D|byte |Timer C & D Control BIT 6 5 4 . 2 1 0|R/W (TT) | | Timer Timer| | | C D | | +--------------------------------------------+ | |000 = Timer stop | | |001 = Delay mode, divide by 4 | | |010 = . . 10 | | |011 = . . 16 | | |100 = . . 50 | | |101 = . . 64 | | |110 = . . 100 | | |111 = Delay mode, divide by 200 | | +--------------------------------------------+ $FFFAA3|byte |Timer C Data |R/W (TT) $FFFAA5|byte |Timer D Data |R/W (TT) -------+-----+--------------------------------------------+---------- $FFFAA7|byte |Sync Character |R/W (TT) $FFFAA9|byte |USART Control BIT 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 .|R/W (TT) | |Clock divide (1=div by 16) --' | | | | | | || | |Word Length 00=8 bits ---------+-+ | | | | || | | 01=7 bits | | | | | | || | | 10=6 bits | | | | | | || | | 11=5 bits ---------+-' | | | | || | |Bits Stop Start Format ------------+-+ | | || | |00 0 0 Synchronous | | | | || | |01 1 1 Asynchronous | | | | || | |10 1 1.5 Asynchronous | | | | || | |11 1 2 Asynchronous ------+-' | | || | |Parity (0=ignore parity bit) ----------' | || | |Parity (0=odd parity,1=even) ------------' || | |Unused ------------------------------------'| $FFFAAB|byte |Receiver Status BIT 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0|R/W (TT) | |Buffer full -----------------' | | | | | | || | |Overrun error -----------------' | | | | | || | |Parity error --------------------' | | | | || | |Frame error -----------------------' | | | || | |Found - Search/Break detected -------' | | || | |Match/Character in progress -----------' | || | |Synchronous strip enable ----------------' || | |Receiver enable bit -----------------------'| $FFFAAD|byte |Transmitter Status BIT 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0|R/W (TT) | |Buffer empty ----------------' | | | | | | || | |Underrun error ----------------' | | | | | || | |Auto turnaround -----------------' | | | | || | |End of transmission ---------------' | | | || | |Break -------------------------------' | | || | |High bit ------------------------------' | || | |Low bit ---------------------------------' || | |Transmitter enable ------------------------'| $FFFAAF|byte |USART data |R/W (TT) -------+-----+--------------------------------------------+---------- ##############6850 ACIA I/O Chips ########### -------+-----+--------------------------------------------+---------- $FFFC00|byte |Keyboard ACIA control |R/W $FFFC02|byte |Keyboard ACIA data |R/W $FFFC04|byte |MIDI ACIA control |R/W $FFFC06|byte |MIDI ACIA data |R/W -------+-----+--------------------------------------------+---------- ##############Realtime Clock ########### -------+-----+--------------------------------------------+---------- $FFFC21|byte |s_units |??? $FFFC23|byte |s_tens |??? $FFFC25|byte |m_units |??? $FFFC27|byte |m_tens |??? $FFFC29|byte |h_units |??? $FFFC2B|byte |h_tens |??? $FFFC2D|byte |weekday |??? $FFFC2F|byte |day_units |??? $FFFC31|byte |day_tens |??? $FFFC33|byte |mon_units |??? $FFFC35|byte |mon_tens |??? $FFFC37|byte |yr_units |??? $FFFC39|byte |yr_tens |??? $FFFC3B|byte |cl_mod |??? $FFFC3D|byte |cl_test |??? $FFFC3F|byte |cl_reset |??? -------+-----+--------------------------------------------+---------- $FA0000| | | : | |128K ROM expansion cartridge port |R $FBFFFF| | | -------+-----+--------------------------------------------+---------- $FC0000| | | : | |192K System ROM |R $FEFFFF| | | -------+-----+--------------------------------------------+---------- 68000 Exception Vector Assignments Vector Number Address Space Assignment ---------------+---------+-------+-------------------------------- 0 |0/$0 |SP |Reset:Initial SSP 1 |4/$4 |SP |Reset:Initial PC Reset vector (0) requires four words, unlike other vectors which only require two words, and is located in the supervisor program space. ---------------+---------+-------+-------------------------------- 2 |8/$8 |SD |Bus Error 3 |12/$C |SD |Address Error 4 |16/$10 |SD |Illegal Instruction 5 |20/$14 |SD |Zero Divide 6 |24/$18 |SD |CHK, CHK2 Instruction 7 |28/$1C |SD |cpTRAPcc, TRAPcc, TRAPV Instruction 8 |32/$20 |SD |Privilege Violation 9 |36/$24 |SD |Trace 10 |40/$28 |SD |Line 1010 Emulator (LineA) 11 |44/$2C |SD |Line 1111 Emulator (LineF) 12 |48/$30 |SD |(Unassigned, Reserved) 13 (68030)|52/$34 |SD |Coprocessor Protocol Violation 14 (68010)|56/$38 |SD |Format Error 15 |60/$3C |SD |Uninitialized Interrupt Vector 16-23 |64/$40 |SD |(Unassigned, Reserved) |95/$5F |SD |- 24 |96/$60 |SD |Spurious Interrupt Spurious interrupt vector is taken when there is a bus error during interrupt processing. ---------------+---------+-------+-------------------------------- 68000 Auto-Vector Interrupt Table ---------------+---------+-------+-------------------------------- 25 |100/$64 |SD |Level 1 Int Autovector (TT VME) 26 |104/$68 |SD |Level 2 Int Autovector (HBL) 27 |108/$6C |SD |Level 3 Int Autovector (TT VME) 28 |112/$70 |SD |Level 4 Int Autovector (VBL) 29 |116/$74 |SD |Level 5 Int Autovector 30 |120/$78 |SD |Level 6 Int Autovector (MFP) 31 |124/$7C |SD |Level 7 Int Autovector ---------------+---------+-------+-------------------------------- 32-47 |128/$80 |SD |Trap Instruction Vectors |191/$BF |SD |(Trap #n = vector number 32+n) ---------------+---------+-------+-------------------------------- Math Coprocessor Vectors (68020 and higher) ---------------+---------+-------+-------------------------------- 48 |192/$C0 |SD |FFCP Branch or Set | | | on Unordered Condition 49 |196/$C4 |SD |FFCP Inexact Result 50 |200/$C8 |SD |FFCP Divide by Zero 51 |204/$CC |SD |FFCP Underflow 52 |208/$D0 |SD |FFCP Operand Error 53 |212/$D4 |SD |FFCP Overflow 54 |216/$D8 |SD |FFCP Signaling NAN 55 |220/$DC |SD |(Unassigned, Reserved) ---------------+---------+-------+-------------------------------- 56 |224/$E0 |SD |MMU Configuration Error 57 |228/$E4 |SD |MC68851, not used by MC68030 58 |232/$E8 |SD |MC68851, not used by MC68030 ---------------+---------+-------+-------------------------------- 59-63 |236/$EC |SD |(Unassigned, Reserved) |255/$FF |SD |- ---------------+---------+-------+-------------------------------- 64-255 |256/$100 |SD |User Defined Interrupt Vectors |1023/$3FF|SD |- ---------------+---------+-------+-------------------------------- _____________________________________________________________ > STR Mail Call "...a place for the readers to be heard" """"""""""""" STReport's MailBag """""""""""""""""" Messages * NOT EDITED * for content ----------------------------------- from CIS' Atari area #: 85769 S17/Community Square 14-May-93 13:10:57 Sb: #85757-More RAM 4 Mega? Fm: LEXICOR Software 75300,763 To: Greg Wageman 74016,352 Greg, We have to stop meeting like this people will start to talk....Snicker What Huuumor? Me? Check next monday for a post update on Prices and release date! Also we will have an indepth compatibility thread... I think just to make it real easy, we will have a recommended list of Graphics hardware, and a compatibility and use recommendation list. something along those lines. I could see where Lexicor posting any information about cards it doesn't like for what ever reasons, like compatibility price, support, features vs. practical use could be taken the wrong way. A conclusion that could be drawn on such an issue could be if Lexicor does not recommend a product, then it just means that lexicor does not recommend it. Nothing more and nothing less. I guess you might say that there is no reason why some one must make recommendations or support a given product if they are not interested. So for now we have lots of work to get ready...... BTW People: Please, don't send in any more checks for NOVA cards until next Friday...We were not prepared for the many orders you sent! We have some work to do before we can start including lay in a stock of cards. All those of you who have already ordered, for which we thank you for your trust...an envelope full of cash...shutter) we will call you in person and take care of the over and underpayments, and get you the paperwork on you orders. And thanks again. OH yes and BTW Mr. LUKS your loaner NOVA will be set aside as soon as it comes in. Lee from Delphi's Atari area... 54916 19-MAY 11:58 General Information ST Magazin 6/93 From: OCS To: ALL The June issue of the German Atari magazine "ST Magazin" came out today. A few things that I thought would be interesting for some of you: 1) The Medusa 68040 board is now available from the Swiss developer. For 3050 marks ($1,900) one gets a 60 MHz board with 8 meg RAM in a tower case with integrated power supply. If someone is interested in ordering the board, I will post the address of the developer in Switzerland. 2) The back cover of the magazine is a one-page ad for Calamus for Windows NT. There is no Atari ad (for the Falcon or the Lynx or any other product in the magazine). 3) A while ago we discussed benchmarks and Bill Rehbock's report during an online conference saying that the speed of the Falcon 030 was clearly demonstrated with a fractal benchmark at CeBIT. My criticism that this benchmark did not represent the truth (i.e., the Falcon is _not_ faster than DEC Alpha PCs or Apple Macintosh Quadras _in general_) was countered by someone (Andreas?) saying that everyone would know that. Well, not everyone, apparently. The "News from Online Sources" section of the magazine proudly repeats Bill Rehbock's words and creates the impression that the Falcon 030 is a hell of a lot faster than the Alpha-based machine and all other machines used by DEC to show the speed of the Alpha. I just hope the readers of ST Magazin aren't as dumb as the author of the article, otherwise Atari will have major problems to explain why MultiTOS is rather slow (without screen accelerator) on the super-number-crunching Falcon. 4) No word about an computer show in Berlin as a replacement for the AtariMesse in Duesseldorf. However, there was an "Atari show" in Berlin on May 9/10, organized by some of the exhibitors from the Atari CeBIT booth. Some 40 developers and dealers were supposed to be there, but I haven't heard a report about it yet. If that was what Bob Brodie referred to in his GEnie conference in early May, it was not a major event. There wasn't even a press announcement prior to the event (i.e., no one knew about it). Oliver From GEnie's STRT The DOUBLE STANDARD continues... <sigh> Category 18, Topic 26 Message 20 Wed May 19, 1993 LEPULLEY [Lloyd Pulley] at 01:06 EDT I found the following post on another network. Since I corrected the spelling <g>, the author gave permission for it to be reprinted.... #: 39693 S14/ST REPORT 14-May-93 19:11:52 Sb: #Products Received ! Fm: LEXICOR Software 75300,763 To: SYSOP*Keith Joins 76702,375 (X) Notice: Lexicor over some months complained about goods ordered from ABCO which were not delivered. AS promised and in keeping with both the policy of Lexicor and my (Lee Seiler)'s word I now state that Lexicor has finally received the goods ordered. The New and exactly as advertised. Lexicor is satisfied that ABCO has fulfilled it's obligations. Lexicor will send confirming documents to all concerned parties and with draw all complaints regarding the goods ordered. Lexicor has no other direct knowledge of any kind that Ralph/ABCO has not taken care of other customers with complaints against Ralph/ABCO et- al. Lexicor is pleased that ABCO has kept its commitments and trust that this policy will continue. Lexicor will have no further comments about consumer problems. Fair is Fair ! Ralph, thank you for taking care of our request. Lee Seiler CEO LEXICOR Software. This message may only be copied and plastered everywhere on condition that the spelling is corrected! ------------ Category 18, Topic 26 Message 21 Wed May 19, 1993 POTECHIN [Nathan] at 10:49 EDT I have to wonder why Lee didn't simply post this message himself. I remember Lee saying that when he was finally taken care of by ABCO he would mention it publicly at it appears that he did so but not here where he was so vocal? This IS the same Lee that shared the burning UPS truck story with us, is it not? This is even the same Lee that had UPS officials standing by a few months back when he finally did receive a package from ABCO to verify that the goods were actually in the container, isn't it? I am glad that Ralph was able to take care of Lee's order, albeit a year or so later. I am pleased to see Lee honor his word to publicly post if/when ABCO did take care of it. I am just a bit surprised that Lee didn't post here and find the post above a touch overdone under the circumstances. Meanwhile, it looks like Ralph/ABCO is finally filling all those backorders. Or is this a selective thing? And if so, what would cause Ralph/ABCO to finally clear up his mess with Lee/Lexicor? Sincerely Nathan @ DMC ------------ Editor Note: ------------ Finally Nathan?? What FINALLY?? Pretty cute! Are you serious? Or, seriously biased! WHO HAS CONSUMERS WAITING OVER A YEAR? Is this another of your, "ever so famous", catchy phrases?!! Truth is, you are very much aware of the efforts being taken by ABCO to satisfy ALL of its customer complaints. I might add that of the 18 or so complaints its now down to just a few left to go. As for Lee Seilor's not posting that message on GEnie's ST RT, that also is a question YOU most certainly can answer and answer thoroughly RIGHT??? So why the LOADED question? More HEADGAMES?? In reply to your interrogatory about shipping containers. Yes, the goods were delivered in the very same package you were describing. That was taken care of on January 07, 1993. As you are also very much aware of..... BTW, "better trim those eyebrows"! Category 18, Topic 26 Message 26 Thu May 20, 1993 D.D.MARTIN [Swampy] at 02:49 EDT Very unlike Lee not to post in this BB. I haven't seen a post from him in several weeks. I thought he had a new product he was going to announce RSN so maybe he's busy getting it out the door. I'm glad he and Ralph/ABCO settled up. Thanks for reposting his message Lloyd. Hugs...Swampy ------------ Category 18, Topic 26 Message 27 Thu May 20, 1993 POTECHIN [Nathan] at 08:30 EDT Lloyd: In your very own special fashion you are trying to draw a comparison between a Developer that has been working for a year to design and build a very special hardware enhancement for the Atari computer, and has clearly run into a great deal of difficulty doing so, and Ralph Mariano at ABCO Computer??!! Let's think about this for a minute. Wasn't this a couple of Syquest catridges that Lee says he finally received? Any further information you could share with us on the status of the ABCO backorders, posting for Ralph, would be greatly appreciated. Thanks. Nathan ------------ Editor Note: ------------ There you go again Nathan, just full speed ahead with the blinders on full blind. When the smoke clears from all the outcry you know as well as I there will be far higher dollar figures involved in the other areas yet you find it "comfy to drag me into the fray. Its ok though, I'm so used to the DOUBLE STANDARD, that I'd feel left out with out your attention being bestowed upon me. DUH! NEXT!!! BTW, Lloyd does not post for me in any way shape or form. But then who is it YOU really post for? Category 18, Topic 26 Message 28 Thu May 20, 1993 LEPULLEY [Lloyd Pulley] at 21:54 EDT Nathan, >>In your very own special fashion... You also do pretty good in 'your very own special fashion'. I enjoyed your "posting for Ralph" comment - when NOTHING was further from the truth. My post #25 made it very plain I was only repeating information that he told ME. Nothing was said about "posting for Ralph". Just to remind you... As far as ABCO 'finally filling all those backorders', when I talked to Mr. Mariano a week or so ago (on the 'clone' subject), I asked him about them. He said there were only 2-4 left outstanding and he was taking care of them as he could. ...please tell me where in that statement was anything said about "posting for Ralph" or where Ralph said to post the information for him? Yes, I _did_ draw a comparison between the two, a fair comparison IMO. Both ran into financial difficulties (according Jim's post) which caused them to not be able to take care of their customers in the fashion they'd wish to. You're right, it was only two Syquest catridges that Lee received - so? Not all people are rich Canadian developers - sometimes just the price of two Syquest carts is more than we can afford (from the tone of Jim's post, they might strain his financial resources right now - just guessing). _I_ understand why there's a difference between the two in your mind, and if I was in your position, I might feel the same. Lloyd E. Pulley, Sr. ------------ Category 18, Topic 26 Message 32 Fri May 21, 1993 LEPULLEY [Lloyd Pulley] at 09:56 EDT Joey, I didn't ask him about specific complaints, just the complaints in gener- al (i.e, "Ralph, when are you going to take care of those complaints?"). If I start asking about specific complaints, or know too much about spe- cific complaints, some will accuse me of 'speaking for Ralph', 'being a part of ABCO', etc. etc. Dorothy, I never drew any comparisons as to how each handled their complaints - I believe I've stated many times in the past _I_ would have handled ABCO's complaints differently than Ralph did.....just as _I_ would have handled Jim's complaints differently than he did. (NOTE: This is NOT saying that either handled them incorrectly, only that I would have handled them di- fferently.) No, I simply stated that each experienced some of the same conditions - i.e., no Atari market - that lead each not to be able to take care of their customers in the way they'd like to. Lloyd E. Pulley, Sr. ------------ """"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" STReport's "EDITORIAL CARTOON" """""""""""""""""""""""""""""" > A "Quotable Quote" "The DOUBLE STANDARD Dominates...." """"""""""""""""" "DON'T DO AS WE DO....... DO ONLY AS WE SAY YOU SHALL DO!" or, "WHAT'S GOOD FOR THE GOOSE IS NONE OF THE GANDER'S BUSINESS!" ... Timothy O'Bleary esq. """"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" > DEALER CLASSIFIED LIST STR InfoFile * Dealer Listings * """"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" --------------- ABCO COMPUTER CONSULTANTS ========================= P.O. Box 6672 Jacksonville, Florida 32236-6672 Est. 1985 1-904-783-3319 ATARI-AMIGA-PC-CLONES-MAC HARDWARE, SOFTWARE & SUPPLIES """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" COMPUTER STUDIO =============== WESTGATE SHOPPING CENTER 40 Westgate Parkway - Suite D Asheville, NC 28806 1-800-253-0201 Orders Only 1-704-251-0201 Information Authorized Atari Dealer """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" MEGABYTE COMPUTERS ================== 907 Mebourne Hurst, TX 76053 1-817-589-2950 Authorized Atari Dealer """"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" SAN JOSE COMPUTER ================= 1278 Alma Court San Jose, CA. 95112 1-408-995-5080 Authorized Atari Dealer """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" CompuSeller West ================ 220-1/2 W. Main St. St. Charles, IL., 60174 Ph. (708) 513-5220 Authorized Atari Dealer """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" (DEALERS; to be listed here, please drop us a line.) """"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" STReport International Online Magazine -* [S]ilicon [T]imes [R]eport *- """"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" STR Online! "YOUR INDEPENDENT NEWS SOURCE" May 21,1993 Since 1987 copyright (c) 1987-92 All Rights Reserved No.9.21 """"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" 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. STR, STReport and/or portions therein may not be edited in any way without prior written permission. STR, STReport, at the time of publication, is believed reasonably accurate. STR, STReport, its staff and contributors are not and cannot be held responsible for the use or misuse of information contained herein or the results obtained therefrom. """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""