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| (((((((( | Z*Net International Atari Online Magazine | (( | ----------------------------------------- | (( | January 17, 1992 Issue #92-03 | (( | ----------------------------------------- | (((((((( | Copyright (c)1992, Rovac Industries, Inc. | | Post Office Box 59, Middlesex, NJ 08846 | (( | | (((((( | CONTENTS | (( | | | * The Editors Desk...........Ron Kovacs, Terry Schreiber | ((( (( | * Z*Net Newswire........................................ | (((( (( | * Pacific Rim Computer Show..............Terry Schreiber | (( (( (( | * Gribnif Sofware Update...................Press Release | (( (((( | * Atari Corp Official Announcement.........Press Release | (( ((( | * Perusing GEnie...............................Ed Krimen | | * 520STFM 1 Meg Upgrade....................Stephen Brown | ((((((( | * New World Order.........................Mike Stepansky | (( | * Z*Net Archives............December 1987 - January 1988 | ((((( | | (( | | ((((((( | ~ Publisher/Editor............................Ron Kovacs | | ~ Editor.......................................John Nagy | (((((((( | ~ Z*Net Newswire Ltd..........................Jon Clarke | (( | ~ Contributing Editor.....................Bruce Hansford | (( | ~ PD Software Reviews.....................Ron Berinstein | (( | ~ Reporter....................................Mike Brown | (( | ~ Assistant News Editor.......................Mike Davis | | ~ Z*Net Canadian Correspondent...........Terry Schreiber | | |----------| $ GEnie Address....................................Z-NET | ONLINE | $ CompuServe Address..........................75300,1642 | AREAS | $ Delphi Address....................................ZNET | | $ Internet/Usenet Address..................status.gen.nz |----------| $ America Online Address........................ZNET1991 | | | Z*NET | * Z*Net:USA New Jersey...(FNET 593).......(908) 968-8148 | SUPPORT | * Z*Net:Golden Gate......(FNET 706).......(510) 373-6792 | SYSTEMS | * Z*Net:South Pacific....(FNET 693).NZ....(644) 4762-852 | | * Z*Net:Pacific .(INTERNET/@status.gen.nz)(649) 3585-543 | | * Z*Net:South Jersey.....(FNET 168).CCBBS.(609) 451-7475 | | * Z*Net:Illinois (Garage)(FNET 621).......(618) 344-8466 | | * Z*Net:Colorado (Mile High)(FNET 5)......(303) 431-1404 | | * Z*Net:Florida (Twilight Zone)(FNET 304).(407) 831-1613 | | Fido Address 1:363/112 ======================================================================= * THE EDITORS DESK by Ron Kovacs, Terry Schreiber ======================================================================= Z*Net is continuing to attempt bringing weekly issues to locations near you in an attempt to keep communication costs down. We have added another FNET node to our growing family of distribution points and encourage you to call. Mile High BBS, one of the long running Atari boards in the country. 303-431-1404. The new committee of WAACE has announced dates of the 1992 WAACE Atarifest for October 11-12, 1992. Z*Net's John Nagy will be reporting live from the NAMM show Saturday via CompuServe's AtariArts Forum. The online conference will take place at 7pm eastern, 4pm pacific. Please make plans to attend. - Ron I recently came across some messages that caught my attention and normally would just chalk up to the norm. Hypothetical questions follow. If you were a GM for XYZ Meats and supplied MacDonalds with their meat patties does that mean you can't eat at Burger King? If you are a car salesman and sell Toyota does that mean you can't drive a Suzuki? If you sell MacIntosh computers can you not own a IBM compatible? This issue came to light recently when a certain magazine published a column questioning the integrity and motives of Bob Brodie. Bob, recently open a BBS system called Z-Net Golden Gate. Although Bob is a key figure at Atari he is also a grown man very capable indeed of making decisions and judgement calls - that is the reason he was hired by Atari in the first place. His decision to affiliate with Z-Net is his own choice and his own business. Z-Net is naturally proud to have Bob onboard distributing the magazine each week and playing an active roll in the F-Net. Give 'er hell Bob! - Terry Schreiber ======================================================================= * Z*NET NEWSWIRE ======================================================================= ST-INFORMER CONTINUES WITH NEW EDITOR Last week, Z*Net presented exclusive reporting on the breakup of ST- INFORMER Magazine's editorial staff in an ownership dispute. Since then, Rod McDonald, publisher of ST-Informer, has secured a new editor and writing staff. Brian Gockley is the new editor-in-chief. Brian was already a regular writer for ST-Informer before the departure of the editorial staff last week, as well as being the coordinator for last year's Connecticut Atarifest. The January ST-Informer issue was delayed by the reorganization, but now has been printed and is in the mail to subscribers and dealers. Writers for the magazine say that the revised February ST-Informer deadline is less than two weeks away, inferring that ST-Informer will be back on a normal release schedule shortly. The new ST-Informer will have a newsprint book-look, similar to that established by AtariUser magazine. A number of the pre-existing columns will be presented, but not all with the original authors. A few high- profile writers have postponed their participation in the revised ST- Informer, unwilling to declare their alignments until the dust settles. No further word has come from former editor Mike Lindsay and company, who have promised to create a new Atari magazine since leaving McDonald and associates. FEBRUARY ATARIUSER FEATURES ATARI DEALER LIST The February issue of AtariUser Magazine is preparing for shipment this weekend and should be at dealer and user groups in the last week of January. Editor John Nagy says that this issue was revised at the last moment to include an extensive 6-page spread of addresses of active Atari computer dealers from across the USA. "There's been lots of talk about how there are no dealers left, and we know differently. It's time that others did too," said Nagy. The list will be circulated and shared with anyone who cares enough help refine and update the list, which was developed and verified by AtariUser staff during 1991. The list is more complete and accurate than that used by Atari Corp itself until now. It will be uploaded to the telecom services after the February publication date. The February issue of AtariUser also has a comprehensive overview of DTP option on the Atari platform, and a user comparison of PageStream and Calamus. ATARI INVEILS NEW MUSIC DIVISION Formalizing a unit in operation since January 1991, Atari Corp has announce the inception of a new business division named Atari Music. James Grunke will lead this new division and commented, "Atari has always done a good job making computers with a lot of power and benefits for the money. Until this year, however, our developers and retailers were understandably unclear on Atari's position in the US music industry." When asked why he waited to announce a division that had been in defacto operation for almost a year, Grunke stated, "In order for Atari to be taken seriously in the US market we have to demonstrate over time a consistent ability to deliver. After doing that for a year - even in small ways - I beleive our actions will now be perceived for what they are: evidence of a serious commitment to becomming a better partner with our developers and retailers." STBOOK FIRST TO ADDRESS MUSIC MARKET The Atari STBook is also an interface with direct-to-disc recording systems such as Hybrid Arts' Digital Master, with an average hard disk access time of 19ms and 40, 80, or 120 MB of storage, composers can create, save, edit, and play long and complex compositions with power and speed. The STBook has onboard MIDI ports, rs232; parallel; and a floppy disk/DMA port. COMPUTER CHRONICLES AT NAMM The PBS program with over 700,000 viewers will be filming at noon at the NAMM show on Saturday. The will be focusing on Atari in the MIDI field and Atari Music. Also planned is another Press Conference and full details on the event next week in Z*Net! ATARI SIGNS UP GENERAL ELECTRIC SERVICE NETWORK Atari officially announced at NAMM that it's products will be serviced by the 250 strong General Electric Service Center network though the United States and Canada. Ted Maciejewski, Atari's National Service Manager stated that product-specific service programs are currently being developed by Atari and GE, and are expected to be fully implemented by March 1992. Programs will also be implemented to address the service needs of MIDI musicians and dealers. Mail-in service will also be available with normal ten-day and optional one-day turnarounds. ATARI COMPUTERS: FIRST WITH FOSTEX CONTROL From adding onboard MIDI ports in 1985 to offering computer control of three Fostex multitrack recorders in 1992. Available in 8, 16, and 24 track configurations, these Fostex reel-to-reel analog multitracks allows users of Atari sequencing programs such as Dr. T's Omega, Steinberg/Jones' Cubase, and C-LAB's Creator and Notator, to operate all the machines controls from within the MIDI sequencing environment. A system consisting of an Atari 1040ST, Fostex R8 8-Track, MIDI/SMPTE converter, and sequencing software starts at $4500. NEW PRODUCTS FROM Dr.T's A new Audio/Video production kit for the Atari ST has been announced. This package includes the Omega music sequencing and editing environment, Hitman cue sheet production tools, and Phantom SMPTE syncronizer. Omega features direct support for the Fostex R8 MIDI automated tape recorder. This package, with an R8, allows users to take complete integrated MIDI control of their studio through their computer. Pricing for the Audio/Video production kit is to be announced. Available in mid February. Dr. T's has has also made new software distribution agreements with Soft-Kat, Britannica and Ingram Micro for it's line of MPC and music related titles for PC, Mac, and Amiga. Other music and multimedia related products now available through these distributors include Intro+ (MIDI starter kits for Mac and PC), Adventures in Musicland, Music Mouse (seminal music composing tool for Mac, Amiga, and the Atari ST), and assorted Amiga music software titles. Z*NET CANADA BBS UPGRADED If you have been wondering what happened to the Z-Net Canada BBS over the last two months it has been down for an upgrade. The new system is run on a 386-40 DX with a 1.2 gig harddrive and Archiver tape backup. The system is being configured to run on FoRem PC a user interface familiar to anyone on the F-Net. The board will support F-Net, Fido and hopefully a Usenet feed through Binkleyterm. Although primarily a PC board, all back issues of Z-Net, Z-Net PC and Z-Mag will be available for download. The system will also carry about two hundred megs of Atari public domain and shareware. Look for it to be back online about February 1st. ATARI PLANS DEALER CONFERENCE Atari Canada plans a dealer conference to run concurently with the TAF show. Atari will be offering dealers the option of attending and picking up the tab through dealer co-op. This is the second time Atari has held a Canada wide conference. ======================================================================= * PACIFIC RIM COMPUTER AND COMMUNICATION SHOW by Terry Schreiber ======================================================================= A & L Electronic ABSO Blue Prints Limited Academy of Learning Active Brownlee Business Machines Ltd. Allied Custom Cable Ltd. Anixter Canada ANO Office Automation Antares Electronics Applied Electronics Limited Atlas Travel Avnet Computer Azcom Information Systems Inc. B.C. Tel Education Development Barry Smith Systemswriter Services Ltd. BC Cellular BC Unix Users Group Bird's Eye Project Management BTI -Multi Express Borland International, Inc. Bytewide Marketing Inc. C-TRON Systems Corp. Cabco West Ltd. Cable & Wireless Telecom Canadian Information Processing Society Canadian Standards Association Cannect Computer Consulting Canon Canada Inc. Cantel Inc. Cara Information Systems Ltd. Cardz Computer Inc. Chartered Accountants of B.C. Clean Up Systems Cognos Inc. Coles Book Stores Ltd. Color Image Canada Inc. Command Records Services Ltd. Compu-Power Controls Inc. Compucable Communications Can. Ltd. Compulys Data Inc. Computer Learn Compuvision Technologies Inc Conti Computer Systems Corel Systems D.H Unwin & Associates Ltd. Daemon Database Research Darius Technology Ltd. Darrell May Consulting Dasco Data Products Ltd. Datapro Canada Davis Technical Resources Ltd. Dell Canada Corp. Desktop Solutions Devcom Network Solutions Digital Communications Associates Digital Equipment of Canada Ltd. DRM Automated Systems Consultants Inc. Epson Canada E.T. Communications Inc. Easy DOS it Computing Egghead Discount Software EISA Technology Inc. EMJ Data Systems Ltd. Faradyne System Group Inc. First Image Computer Graphics System Focustronics & Co. Fujitsu Canada Inc. Future Tech Systems G.W. Computer Systems (Canada) Inc. Garegon Systems Glenayre Communications Golden West Group Great Plains Software Hampton Power Products (1984) Hepting & Associates Ltd. HRS Software Inc. Hunt Personnel/Temporarily Yours/Hunt IBM Canada Ltd. Image Software Independ Computer Cts Assoc. Infopoint Information Technologies Information Access InfoWare Sales & Marketing Inc. Intel Corp Interchange Interworld Electronics Computer Investors Group IWILL Corporation JL Plastics Kelly Temporary Services Kenchenten Associates Limited Kentech Computer (HK) Ltd. Kay Computer Ltd. Kicks Computer System Inc. Kodak Canada Inc. LapTECH Librex Computer Systems Inc. Logical Methods Software Ltd. Lotus Development Canada Limited MacWest Computer Society Marcomp-Marine Computers Consultant Master Page Matrix Professional Video Systems Inc. Mega Toner Cartridges Microsoft Canada Mindtech Computer Solutions Mitsubishi Electric Sales Canada Inc. Moco Canada Monarch Motorola Multitech Electronics Murray Multimedia National Business Reference&Dev. Corp. National Computer Products NeXT Computer, Inc. Nexus Pacific Management Northwest Digital Ltd. Optical Storage Systems Ortronics Inc. Pacific Ram Distribution Corp Pacific Ribbon & Carbon Co. Panasonic (Matsushita Electric) Peripherals: A high Technology Co. Photo Ident Card Systems Plantronics Platinum Software Plesman Publications Ltd. PMP Software Services Ltd. Polaroid Canada Positive Presentations Practical Peripherals Primax Computer Corporation Printech/Five Star Promark Software Inc. Q By Javell QMS Canada Inc. Qualitas Inc. Quarterdeck Canada Quayle Computer Associates Quest Inc. Ralph's Radio Ltd. Raven/Datatrain Reach Industries Real Trading Co. Ltd. RJ Norman & Associates Sayson Technologies SCO Canada Inc. Sharp - Minitronics Shield Importing Ltd. SIDUS Systems Inc. Smart Technologies Inc. Software Exchange Service Software Publishing Corporation Standard Computronics Ltd. Strachan Computers Ltd. Sunflex of Canada Supply and Services Canada Symnatec Canada Targus Canada Ltd. Technical Logistics Support Ltd. Technoprint Software Inc. TeleSystems Texcan Cables Ltd. The Computer Paper The Financial Post The Maximizer Specialist The Westrheim Group (TWG) Thomas & Betts Corp. Toshiba of Canada Totally "Hairy" Trade Works Trilan Technologies Ltd. Trillum Truger Technologies Inc. U.S. Robotics, Inc. Unibind of Western Canada Inc. Uniform Network Computer Clinic Unitel Communications Inc. Vancouver Cellular Vancouver Community College Vancouver Netware Users Group Vancouver NeXT Users Society Vancouver PC Users Society Vancouver School Board Views West Marketing Viewsonic/Express Micro Vision Presentations Inc. Vista Laser VTECH Laser Computers Ltd. Wardrobe Playspaces Inc. Westech Information Inc. Westwill Enterprises WordPerfect Corporation Zentronics This was the Pacific Rim Computer and Communications Show a miniturized Comdex held yearly in Vancouver British Columbia. Noticably missing from this list was Apple Computers, Commodore Computers and Atari Computers although Atari was present at last years show. In order not to bore all those people not interested in products for other machines I have written two reports. This report contains info that could be helpful or generic to the Atari user. The full report will be published in this weeks Z-Net PC, Issue #23. The first area checked out is natually our own booth. Doug Smith of Roland Music introduced me to some new MIDI gear last week to be shown at NAMM this week. The Roland SCC-1 and Musicator software. The SCC-1 is a new sound card that has a built-in MIDI interface and produces 337 different sounds and instruments. It contains the whole library of MT- 32 sounds plus hundreds more. A stand alone version will be available shortly for the Atari Computer. Musicator is one of the best packages I have seen on the Blue boxes to date. I don't profess to be a musician but this package has sequencing and notation as well as a sound mixer graphical interface for mixdowns and is simplicity in itself to use. With the crowds we drew you would think that this was the first time MIDI had been connected to a DOS box. We were showing it on a Sharp PC-6300 (386 notebook that weighs less than 4lbs) using a docking station for handling the card. Practical Peripherals was showing its new 9600 baud modems. When asked if they were aware of the new Supra modems announced in a press release last week - they were not. I supplied them with a copy of the press release the next day - their response - but is it shipping? That was a question I couldn't answer but by the look on their face, the Supra is a far better value for the money. Panasonic demonstrated their new color printers. These units were big and printed a full three feet wide. The demonstration they used printed a picture in two parts each being three feet wide by six to eight feet long - a landscape that anyone would be proud to hang on their wall. IBM was demonstrating a 600 DPI color laser printer that printed so sharp and clear that you actually think it is a decal on the paper. Canon showed their newest entry - a color bubble jet printer. Optical Storage Systems demonstrated the Panasonic WORM laser and CD ROM drives. Atarians will be glad to know that both take a standard SCSI interface and should easily connect to the ST/TT computers, although a software driver might be needed. Attendance for the three days was very brisk a rough guess would be 15- 20,000 with both attendees and exhibitors pleased with the event although some people were disapointed in not seeing their favorite computer system in attendance. ======================================================================= * GRIBNIF SOFTWARE UPDATE Press Release ======================================================================= January 15, 1992 Crazy Dots Video Display Adapter Gribnif Software has announced the imminent North American release of their new "Crazy Dots" video display adapter for the Atari Mega ST, Mega STE, and TT/030 personal computers. The Crazy Dots video display adapter allows the Atari computer to drive a variety of VGA, Multi-Sync, and other high end color and gray scale displays. The adapter supports resolutions up to 1,664 x 1,200 pixels, and can display up to 256 different colors or gray levels at once. Developed by TKR in Germany, the adapter is the fastest of its kind, offering the ability to switch the display's physical resolution from within any GEM program. Its numerous features include: o Display up to 256 colors or grey levels from a palette of 16.7 million in any resolution from 320 x 200 up to 1,280 x 800 pixels. o Extended resolution support up to 1,664 x 1,200 pixels in monochrome, four, eight, and sixteen color modes. o Software uses an exclusive "line-a-emulator", for maximum software compatibility (depending on the selected display mode). o Mouse controlled hardware panning, which allows for the display of any virtual resolution, regardless of the monitor's maximum physical resolution. o Connects to any Multi-Sync displays via a regular 15-pin VGA connector. o Uses Tseng Labs's powerful ET-4000 graphics controller. o Includes one full megabyte of display memory, with full Blitter access. o Complete math co-processor support. o Megabus model includes a bus "pass through" and socket for an optional math co-processor. o Includes a special "Video Application Slot" for future expansions options, including: ECL adaptor, Genlock, and True Color display. Crazy Dots is available in two models. The "Crazy Dots Megabus" model, designed to fit into Atari's original Mega ST2 and Mega ST4 computers, is available for $949. The "Crazy Dots VME" model, designed to fit into Atari's Mega STE and TT/030 computers, is available for $999. To place an order, or for more information, please contact Gribnif Software directly: Gribnif Software P.O. Box 350, Hadley, MA 01035 Tel: (413) 584-7887, Fax: (413) 584-2565 ======================================================================= * ATARI CORPORATION OFFICIAL ANNOUNCEMENT ======================================================================= January 15, 1992 I am pleased to announce that Atari is making all of the released TOS development information available to the general public. We are making the kit available to fulfil the needs of programmers that already have purchased a third-party development package, Atari owners that are curious about the 'nuts and bolts' of The Operating System, and anyone else that wants to have a detailed understanding of TOS software development. If you wish, you may purchase the entire kit for $150.00 (U.S.) and also get one year of technical support from Atari via the private Atari Developer Roundtable on GEnie, 6 issues of the bi-monthly Developer Newsletter, ATARI.RSC, and one year of on-going developer kit upgrades. If you wish to renew after one year, there is a fee of only $40.00. If you wish information on only certain aspects of Atari TOS computers, we also sell sections of the kit separately. The items that are available range from every issue of the developer newsletter since 1985, to the release notes for the exciting new STBOOK. Every detail a software or hardware developer could want is outlined, including MegaSTE /TT VME Bus specifications, STE DMA sound, FSM GDOS programming information, and more. Please see the order form for details. You must purchase the $150.00 full kit to be eligible for on-going support. I'm sorry, but at this time, you may not purchase a part of the kit, and later "upgrade" to the support level. Developers that are currently not registered with Atari, and have a commercial product on the market, or have a product in development, or have any other special needs requiring direct unlimited telephone support should sign up under the Atari Commercial Developer Program. There is an additional fee for this program, but there is no renewal fee required as long as you continue product development and support. (Educators, universities, and businesses may fall into this category.) Please contact Gail Bacani on 408-745-2022 for more information on the Commercial Developer Program. The complete order form follows, outlining all of the documentation that is available. Please note that several items include disks containing software relating to the documentation. We want to assure that you get the most out of your Atari Computer experience! Sincerely, Bill Rehbock, Director of Technical Services, Atari Corp. Atari TOS Developer's Kit -- Order Form -- January 4, 1992 ________ $150.00 Complete Developer's Kit, including all documents and and disks. Includes 1 year of support via Atari-RSC Developer Roundtable on GEnie, on-going developer kit updates for 1 year, and 6 issues of ATARI.RSC, the bi-monthly developer newsletter. ________ $40.00 One year renewal fee -- 1 year of support via Atari-RSC Developer Roundtable on GEnie, on-going developer kit updates for 1 year, and 6 issues of ATARI.RSC, the bi-monthly developer newsletter. Document and Disk Packages ________ $10.00 Atari.RSC Newsletters (Dec. '89, Jan. '90, Feb. '90, Mar. '90, Apr. '90, May '90, June '90, July '90, Aug. '90, Sept. '90, Oct. '90, Nov. -- Jan. '90-'91, Apr. -- May '91, June -- July '91) The Atari Forum (Mar. '88, May '88, July -- Aug. '88, Sep. -- Dec. '88 Fuji Stripe Newsletter, pages 3 -- 7 (undated) Q & A Bulletins (Feb. '86, Mar. '86, Apr. '86, May '86, June '86, Feb. '87) ________ $20.00 Atari GEMDOS Reference Manual Table of Contents (Apr. 4, 1986) Introduction (5/22/86) Calling, filenames, fileops, processes, vectors, errors (4/4/86) GEMDOS functions by number (undated) Funcs (4/10/86) except pages (9), (21), and (25) (1-23-89) and page (13) (3/7/90) Prg (4/4/86) Pexec Cookbook (6 Sept. 1991) Hitchhiker's Guide to the BIOS (Nov. 26, 1985) New pages: 5, 7, 12, 16, 38, 56, 75 (1-23-89) New pages: 15, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 37a (3-5-90) AHDI 3.00 Release Notes (April 18, 1990) Atari CHKDISK3 Documentation (April 22, 1990) TOS Developer's Kit Disk #4: HDX / System Utilities / STE Programming Examples / CHKDISK3 ________ $40.00 GEM Programming Guide Volume 1 -- VDI (Third Edition: January 1989) Volume 2 -- AES (Third Edition: January 1989) GDOS/FSM GDOS Developer Guide (10/91) GEM Resource Construction Set (undated) TOS Developer's Kit Disk #2: MicroEMACS / Source Code Examples / RCS ________ $40.00 Gem DOS Programmer's Tools (undated, copyright 1989) Command Shell AS68 MADMAC Reference Manual (ver. 1.00) & update (ver. 1.07) ALN Docs. (8/12/88) and update sheet (90/01/24) AR68 (Archive Utility) (undated) DUMP SIZE68 DB Docs. (Release 2, 90/01/24) Motorola S-Record Format TOS Developer's Kit Disk #1: Alcyon C Compiler / ALN Linker TOS Developer's Kit Disk #3: MADMAC / DB Debugger / Programming Utilities / CHKDISK3 ________ $15.00 Engineering Hardware Specifications (7 January 1986) Intelligent Keyboard Protocol (26 February 1985) Chip specifications: 6850 ACIA, MC6850 (undated) 68901 MFP (undated) AY-3-8910 PSG (undated) Programmable Sound Generator Manaual (February 1979) GIACCESS (page 1, March 7, 1990; page 2, 1-23-90) WD 1770/1772 Floppy Disk Controller (undated) Atari Monitor Summary Specifications (May 14, 1986) 128K ROM cartridge schematics (1-2-85) Blitter Chip (17 June 1987) ________ $25.00 STE Hardware Developer Addendum STE features list Genlock and the STE Video Modifications How to Implement Fine Scrolling on the STE STE Digitized Sound Developer Information TT030 Hardware Reference Manual VME Bus Specifications for TT030 and Mega STE Products Rainbow TOS Release Notes STE TOS Release Notes TT030 TOS Release Notes STBook Expansion Bus Electrical Specification TOS Developer's Kit Disk #4: HDX / System Utilities / STE Programming Examples / CHKDISK3 TOS Developer's Kit Disk #5: Demonstrator/eXtensible Control Panel $____________ Subtotal $____________ Tax (CA 8.25%, IL 6.75%, TX 8.25%) $____________ Total Check #:______________ Date:_____________ Company Name:___________________________ Contact:____________________ Ship to:____________________________________ ____________________________________ ____________________________________ ******* Make sure you return both pages of the order form. ******** Please allow 2 - 4 weeks for processing. Make checks payable in U.S. funds to Atari Corporation. Direct all orders to: Atari Corp. 1196 Borregas Avenue Sunnyvale, Calif., U.S.A. 94086 Attn: Gail Bacani ======================================================================= * PERUSING GENIE Compiled by Ed Krimen ======================================================================= In the "Atari Corporation Online" category (14) from the "Atari's new TOS 2.06" topic (8) Message 227 Sat Jan 11, 1992 B.REHBOCK [Bill@Atari] (Forwarded) If you are interested, please place your orders for TOS 2.06 now. Dealers that are on-line on GEnie were notified as of Thursday night that they will be available. They should be on their way to dealers toward the end of next week. The retail price on the Two-Chip set is $60.00 These are 32-pin EPROM packages. There are some STE's with 28-pin masked ROMs that are either soldered in or in 28-pin sockets that will have to be removed and have 32-pin sockets installed. I am giving advanced notice to dealers and end-users, so that no one is suprised when they open up their STE to "pop the chips in". A very good percentage of the STE's in the field have the 32-pin EPROMs, and it will be just a swap. When going from the 28-pin package to the 32-pin package there are solder pads that need to be altered. Instructions will ship with the ROMs. By the way... the 1.44 megabyte drive kits are on their way too. (Sorry that this part is a little off topic :-) The price on the upgrade kits are: $139.00 for the MegaSTE --- $149.00 for the TT The kits include: 1.44 meg floppy drive, AJAX High-Density Controller, and the corresponding TOS, either 2.06 (MSTE) or 3.06(TT) -Bill Rehbock, Atari Corp. Permission is granted to reprint this posting only if it appears in its entirety. """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" In the "The Software Library and Other Utilities" category (2) from the "Superboot" topic (28) Message 91 Sat Jan 11, 1992 G.W.MOORE [Gordon Moore] at 19:44 EST Hi Super Boot Users! Version 7.2 of Super Boot has been completed and has already been uploaded. The major goal of this release was to make Super Boot compatible with all models of ST's and STE's and all versions of TOS and in all built-in resolutions. Some of the new features: o Fixed bug where 4 hidden programs (SUPERBT,SUPERBTA,STARTGEM,HEADSTRT) were being removed from the file list but Super Boot would not substitute in other programs in their place. So if you had 25 AUTO programs but only 1 column selected to display them (1 column = 19 files), Super Boot would only show 15 instead of 19 of the files on the file selection screen o Fixed bug where STE's had 00/00/28 date on files like DESKTOP.INF which are copied in Super Boot. o Increased Cold Boot time factor to allow for longer boot up in TOS 2.05 and greater. Cold Boot detection should now work correctly on all models. o Allow colors from expanded STE color palette. Two buttons were added on the color selection screen (color monitors only) called "512 Palette" and "4096 Palette". Click on "4096 Palette" if you have an STE machine for expanded color. o Changed final update screen to show selected F-key and other miscellaneous data such as if Super Boot was bypassed, if it timed out waiting for a keypress, etc. o 8 character root filename of DESKTOP.INF is now user-specifiable to allow for NEWDESK.INF or anything else that comes down the pike. o Fixed #Z line for TOS 1.4 and greater to be line # 5 in the .INF file instead of the first line, to prevent 2 #Z files in the same .INF file (in case resaved). o Made F-keys for default configuration user selectable. o Pictures and Sound Files can now be shown sequentially. The SEQUENTIAL method shows pictures in order (still one picture each boot) so that you will be sure to see them all. If you were using RANDOM before you probably noticed that you might see one picture several times and others you might never have seen. o Monochrome color selection should now work correctly and the menu is more informative. o Other minor bug fixes.... File is SPBT72.LZH and is about 120K. On other matters.... I think this is the first message I've ever posted on this matter, but I would just like to remind everybody that if you are using Super Boot and have not registered your copy, please take the time to register it. Make yourself a note or whatever, I know its easy to forget or postpone it. It's pretty clear from the consistent number of downloads from one version to the next that not everybody who is using it has registered. You only have to register once, I wouldn't think of asking someone to register again for a newer version. And to everyone who has registered, thank you very much for supporting Super Boot. Gordon Moore """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" In the "Telecommunications" category (8) from the "Flash II" topic (2) Message 61 Wed Jan 15, 1992 J.TRAUTSCHOL [jtrautschold] at 22:39 EST Jeff... No cast in concrete date yet! But we're definitely getting closer. The majority of the manual is finished and being imported into PageStream as I write. I've finished the design of the packaging and am sending that off to a service bureau tomorrow for output. The program itself has been "locked" so to speak...we are adding no new features...only finishing up with bug fixes. I just spent the last two weeks banging away as hard as I could at *all* of the script commands (old and new .DO stuff) to see if I could break any (I did!) and Paul Nicholls is now working on fixes. We're still shooting for a 1st Quarter 1992 release and I'm pretty sure we'll make it. I'm making plans to attend the Toronto show the first weekend of April and I *definitely* plan on having product there for the show! John T. """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" In the "Atari Corporation Online" category (14) from the "Mega STE" topic (14) Message 194 Mon Jan 13, 1992 R.JONES82 at 03:33 EST Just a word to some of you St users that are thinking of jumping ship to another platform. I just got off the phone with a buddy of mine that sold his St and bought an Amiga because of the plentiful software and better games. He told me his is missing his St already. He said while most games on the Amiga are only better in the sound department the utilities and wordprocessing on the Amiga were much harder to use. said the Hardrive seemed slower and the Floppy access was way slower on loading programs. Said the Amiga desktop is clumbsy and hard to use. I've talked to other people who said the same thing about their IBMS So hang in there guys, the grass may be greener right where we are. """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" In the "Atari Corporation Online" category (14) from the "The GEM Clipboard?" topic (16) Message 8 Sat Jan 11, 1992 B.REHBOCK [Bill@Atari] at 03:46 EST Yes, applications do need to be written to take advantage of Operating System Services. Ok, here is the deal, I will personally send a can of Jolt Cola to every U.S./Canadian developer that adds proper SCRP_READ/ SCRP_WRITE support into their commercial applications in 1992. The application must also otherwise adhere to the GEM/TOS standard. (Proper menus, windows, respect for desk accessories, etc.) I will consider shareware/freeware if it's really good. To apply, send a copy of the application to: Atari Corporation 1196 Borregas Ave. Sunnyvale, CA 94086 Attn: Bill Rehbock/Jolt Cola Offer -Bill """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" In the "Hardware" category (4) from the "HDrive-1.44MB HDFD for the ST, from Opi" topic (17) Message 47 Wed Jan 15, 1992 WUZTEK.OPI [Paul Wu] at 06:54 EST Rob, HDrive is compatible with ALL TOS versions. The only difference with a TOS 2.06 is that you'll be able to format a HD under the format disk option on the Desktop. If you have an older TOS, you must format HD diskette with our program or other software such as Diamond Back II which supports High Density disks. On the note of disk drives, we may be selling a version of HD disk drives with the same face plate as the Atari disk drive "real soon now". This drive will only fit in newer STe and TTs. The price will be a little higher than our Teac drive and will require our new HDrive+ controller board which will contain a special chip. More on that later. """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" In the "Atari Corporation Online" category (14) from the "Notebook and Pad?" topic (7) Message 210 Wed Jan 15, 1992 B.REHBOCK [Bill@Atari] at 03:58 EST The external floppy that will be available for the STBOOK is powered by 4 AA batteries, has a single cable that connects to the STBOOK, and automatically draws power from the AC adapter that is connected to the 'BOOK if it's there. The price of the external floppy will be very competitive. Exercise: Run Windows on a $2000 20MHz 386SX Laptop. Show a friend the STBOOK side-by-side against it. Ask them which one feels faster. (This obviously works best if the friend has never seen an ST before.) """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" In the "Atari Corporation Online" category (14) from the "Mega STE Hard Drive" topic (20) Message 11 Sat Jan 11, 1992 B.REHBOCK [Bill@Atari] at 03:59 EST I will be releasing the new hard disk formatting and boot utilities hopefully next week to the public. Thanks to Atari's "not releasing it to mere mortals" right away, it went through two last revisions to work out the kinks before a general release. It has not been made to support the Supra/ICD partitioning scheme. There are good reasons for this, but I am sorry that I am unable to go in to detail at this time. You will all really, really like the new driver! Whoever is having the MSTE hard drive problem, please check or have your dealer check to see if the drive has the termination resistor packs installed. If the packs are installed, remove them and see whether or not the problems persist. You should also have him check the drive cable, as well as the host adapter connection to the motherboard. -Bill@Atari """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" And finally, In the "Lynx - The Game Machine" category (36) from the "General Lynx Info and Discussion" topic (5) Message 117 Mon Jan 13, 1992 E.SCHOFIELD at 01:38 EST ======================================================================= Announcing a new quarterly Lynx newsletter: PAGS - Portable Atari Gaming System PAGS is a quarterly newsletter which caters to the Atari Lynx portable gaming system. Each issue of PAGS will feature 6-10 new game reviews, editorials, news & information, and hot new gaming tips. PAGS is a non-profit newsletter and is produced by Eric Schofield, John Karakash, and Charles Wells. Reviews and comments from readers are welcome. Readers who write reviews for PAGS will be compensated as well. For every 4 articles which appear in PAGS, the reviewer will receive a $10 gift certificate to Babbage's or Electronics Boutique. All reviews must be 250-500 words in length and should discuss graphics, sound, difficulty, playability, and lasting appeal. The release schedule for PAGS in 1992 will be March, May, August, and November. Reviews must be submitted by the 20th of the preceeding month of release. Reviews must be typed or word processed and can be sent to our address. We will also accept f-mail through GEnie. The files must be in ASCII format and the mail address is E.SCHOFIELD. A 1 year subscription to PAGS costs $12. Please send either a personal check or money order to PAGS. PAGS P.O. BOX 37692 RALEIGH, NC 27627-7692 """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" ======================================================================= * ATARI 520ST FM 1 MEG UPGRADE by Stephen Brown ======================================================================= Having recently upgraded a 520ST FM to 1 Megabyte memory successfully, I wanted to let others know how I did it. There are several warnings that I want to give you first though: 1) This upgrade will void your warranty. 2) This is NOT a beginner's project! Even though the following should take you step by step through the process, I have to assume that you know the basics of working on a printed circuit board. There is no way to warn you about every situation that might arise in the upgrade process. For example, do you know how to control the solder flow? What do I do if I break something? What if after I get it all back together it doesn't work???? You have to be aware that YOU are trading off the chance of damaging your Computer for the monetary savings of upgrading yourself and learning the joy of Hardware Hacking. For myself, I think the experience is well worth the risks. The items that you will need are: 1) 16 256K 150ns Dynamic Rams (cost around $3.50 a piece) 2) 16 16pin Soldertail DIP Sockets (cost around $2.00 total) 3) 16 .1uf Ceramic Disc Capacitors (others can be used, but this is what I used. around $2.00) 4) A coil of core resin solder (Radio Shack # 64-001. $.89) 5) A 25 watt soldering iron (Radio Shack # 64-2070. $4.95) 6) Phillips screwdriver and a small regular screwdriver. 7) Small pliers 8) Wide masking tape 9) Paper bag 10) A prying implement. I used a carving fork but a thin pry bar should work as well. OK..OK..stop laughing!!! Your sitting there saying "He wants me to take a crowbar to my ST!! "; One interesting problem I came up against trying to take the Motherboard out of the case bottom; was that it was "glued" onto the posts that support the disk drive. More about this later. 11) A #61 drill (This size matches the DIP Socket legs nicely.) 12) A Flexible Shaft Drill. (Undoubtedly, the hardest item to come by. A jeweler, woodworker or many other craftspersons might let you borrow one. You do have a friend in one of these fields don't you? A RENT-ALL place might have one also. I don't recommend any other type of drill; the flexible shaft allows precise drilling.) 13) 6 to 10 ft piece of wire to ground yourself. 14) Small scissors or wire cutters. (To trim excess capacitor leads.) Are you ready to start? OK Step by step now. 1 - Ground yourself with the wire. If you remove the center screw in the electric wall socket plate and wind one end of the wire around the screw and then screw it back into the wall. Now wrap the other end of the wire around your bare wrist. 2 - Turn your computer over and take out all the screws. There aren't any screws under the label. 3 - Carefully flip the computer over and remove the cover. 4 - Lift up the keyboard and fold it over to the right and lay it down. Using the pliers, gently pull off the connector. 5 - You will see 2 metallic shields; 1 covering the power supply and the other at the back of the drive area. Remove screws to detach the shields. There is also a small RF shield to remove in the area where the UNDO key would be. You'll notice that these are metal screws (closer threads) and most of the rest will be regular screws. Don't mix em up when you put everything back together or you might strip the holes. 6 - Look at the Disk drive connectors... The larger connector just pries off to the left with the small screwdriver. The smaller connector is a locking one; you have to pry up the top flap so the locking tab will slide out when you pry the connector off; again it slides off to the left. Lift up the Drive and set aside in a safe place. 7 - Now you have to take out the Power Supply board. There are 2 screws holding it in place and you have another locking tab type of connector. After all of these have been removed, you'll notice that the Power Supply board has 2 tabs that slide it into place on the Motherboard; just work the board free keeping these tabs in mind. Put the PS Board in a safe place. 8 - Twist the little metal holding tabs that hold the metallic RF shield down and remove all the rest of the screws that hold the metallic RF shield in place. These screws also hold the Motherboard to the bottom of the case. 9 - As you have probably noticed, the RF shield does not want to come off easily. It is hanging up on the back side of the computer.... In order to get the RF Shield off it's CROWBAR TIME! 10- This will hereafter be known as THE INFAMOUS STEP # 10. If you look at the posts that the Drive was resting on, you'll probably notice they look like they are supposed to stay attached to the Motherboard. But if you carefully look under the Motherboard in that area (A flashlight helps here), you'll see the posts are attached to the bottom of the case too! ATARI applied a solvent or glue where the case post meets the Motherboard post. This bond has to be broken somehow..... In my case, I took a long carving fork (You know the one that hangs on the wall next to the spatulas and soup ladles?) and reached under and popped the posts free. The large spoon that hangs next to the potato masher might work even better! Seriously though, if anyone out there knows of a better way to accomplish this let us know. 11- Now that the Motherboard is free from the case, you should be able to work it free from the back slots in the case. 12- Take off the RF shield. Set it aside. The bottom of the Motherboard has another RF shield on it with an insulating liner between it and the Motherboard. Gently pry up the front of the Motherboard with the screwdriver and you can then work it free from the bottom RF shield. Set the bottom RF shield and insulating liner aside. 13- Now enjoy the beauty of your well designed Motherboard. 14- You should be able to identify the area where the new socketed rams will go right above the existing rams. The capacitors go between the rams. (If you can't find this area, you have either don't have a 520ST FM or have no business attempting this upgrade!) The existing 512K is that row of chips closest to the front of the computer. 15- The next step is to "mask off" the area where you'll be drilling the holes so that no drilling scraps will short out anything later. In other words, cut up the paper bag so that you can tape it to the board around the drilling area. Use as big a piece as possible so that there will be no seams for drillings to slip into. 16- Now comes the drilling of 288 holes (16 for each Ram and 2 for each capacitor.) The drilling is pretty much straightforward; just drill thru the center of each solder hole and don't tilt the drill. Take your time. Occasionally clean the scrap off the drill and work area. After all the holes are drilled, flip the board over and thoroughly clean up the scrap and burrs around the holes. 17- Insert a DIP socket from the top of the board, flip over and solder all the legs. You'll find that if you place the soldering iron tip to the side of the leg and apply the solder to the iron and leg simultaneously, it flows perfectly. After all the DIP sockets are in place, pull the legs of the capacitors though their holes and snugly seat the capacitors next to the rams. They do look high but the RF shield does fit over them. Solder the capacitors in place and snip off the excess wire. 18- Check all the solder joints!!!! Make sure every leg has been soldered and hasn't shorted out against another one. 19- Get your new Rams and notice that there is a notch on the top of each one at one end. This notch should face the back of the computer when you insert each Ram into it's DIP socket. 20- Now you have to put the computer back together. After you have the computer back together, power it up and test it out. If you don't have a Ram testing program, power up a Ram sensitive program like a word-processor or after loading ST Basic type ?fre(0); if you get 712592, congratulations!! If you power up and you get garbage or nothing or upon checking your memory you only have 512K, you'll have to open the computer up again and check all your solder joints and everything else. There is a possibility that you had purchased a bad Ram or 2 but not likely. If all else fails, you can reach me on GEnie at the EMAIL address of S.BROWN7. Even though I warned you you were taking a chance on upgrading yourself, I might be able to help. ======================================================================= * NEW WORLD ORDER Created by Mike Stepansky ======================================================================= For years, I have been hearing about some of the entertainment software sales for the ST are dipping and to some extend, hurting the software developer's living. The worse scenario, as we know it, would cause some of the programmers to give up and move on to the PC or Mac platform to make a living. While I thought about that for couple of hours on my bed, I realized that I do have the energy to create a solution to a problem for SPA or officials in the field (where? who to contact?) to CURB this terrible pirating plagues in the ST community. So, I finally decided to put myself in a thinking mode....and asked myself "what really makes the ST user wanting/vying to copy games and pass it down?". It takes some timely research in my mind as I go to bed in the wee morning. ta-da! (the sound of trumpet with St. Michael, the Archangel, falling down to the earth to save the Atari developers, please don't ask me if I am the extraterrestrial being like in the Book of Revealation!) :-) Guess what? I think I have a brilliant SOLUTION to stop this piracy in the Atari ST/TT community. (No joking!). I have two solutions. The first one is very easy. Second one is a lengthy, technical one. Are you ready? Here we go.... 1) Develop games in a cartridge format! That is what Jaguar game console and perhaps Falcon computers are for - to eliminate the piracy in the 1990s! Unfortunately, I have seen some 8-bit games that were copied (somehow) out of the cartridge format. Kaboom! and Space Invaders were the only ones I know of and still have them in a file format!!!! 2) Secondly, I realized that, almost always, most ST/TT pirates (or even casual users) want to have a copy of those games and enjoy it. Now, notice my line here: "enjoy it". Of course, "to enjoy it" one must "RUN" (execute) the program in order to play it. That is where my second solution to the problem of ST piracy technically. I need your help to make my protocol really works in the Jaguar and Falcon system! First of all, let's make a realistic scenario about a "good" ST user who wants to buy ST software in his local Atari dealer. When he asks a dealer for a demonstation (ie. Space Pac-Man, the one with blackholes moving around the maze). It sounds great, he buys it and then go home and open the box up. To his surprise and his puzzle, all he gets is a registration card and a beautiful fun-reading, colorful manual for this Space Pac-Man. Impatiently, he would sign it up in the card and mail it right away. <BTW, the only thing he did was to jot down HIS COMPUTER's 24-pin jumpers setting (enough for more than 2,000,000 ST users out there in the USA alone) and perhaps his ID verification number. It might sound like a credit card security, yes - it is! Think about that! 24-pin creates a combination of up to 16.7 million ID code, one for each computer (ST/TT should have one - grin!).> Then perhaps 5 days later, he would receive it in a mail package, carefully protecting the disk. With his shaky hands, he boot up HIS (note emphasis here) computer to play it, either by clicking it on the file menu or even AUTO boot itself. Hours after hours, he would enjoy playing with it. So much for the non-technical part here...of course, ST user/player don't want to deal with the technical part supposedly. (can you say a 40 years old religous person or 9-yrs old dumb kids?) Now, if his brother, the ST piratee, copy this game without any problem overnight. Then, he visits over his friend house (or upload BBSes to raise access level or huge credits in return for more pirated games) to enjoy this great Space Pac-Man. Now here is the technical part which starts to show up..... To sysop's or the downloader's amazement and with frustration, the Space Pac-Man failed to execute the program, although there are existing required files (ie. proper pathnames, folders, proper spelling). He might download this 300K file over the modem again (1200 baud or even 300 baud)....UnLZH it....RUN it again....no go - period. "What the HELL #%$^&* went wrong?!?!", said the pirate user, with his grim and mean, sly-looking face, thinking his BBS system has a virus... ha ha ha - wrong buddy boy! MY BLACK STEALTHY SECRET?? It is because the program (the one who has the original disk) examines the ID code, perhaps embedded in TOS ROM, and those tiny 24-pin jumpers setting in HIS computer (owner). When the program finds and matches the code in the computer - it RUNS, execute the game flawlessly. Of course, changing the jumpers inside the computer will void the warranty and also won't RUN the game, unless he switch it back where it was. It is like a Key inside the computer - like a fingerprint - all jumper has its own combo pattern. Now, here is what we all have been waiting for: the pirated user, in the story above, later finds out that the program requires the proper combination (ID) of the 24-pin jumper setting in his brother's computer. So, without the permission of his brother, he might open up and copy down the jumper codes and UPLOAD to the BBS or pass down to somebody else who reads the codes and tries to look for that code in the pirated version of Space Pacman..... Again, up to that point, my solution will still BAR the pirated users/ d/l'ers to change the jumper sequence code in the "pirated" Space Pac- Man in order to RUN it. Why??? Simple. The codes must be in a compressed format and thus, making it very difficult for the hacker, or even the most advanced hackers to find that multiple/double "garbled" jumper sequence codes somewhere in the program. (BTW, compressed format must have the equivalent binary codes to match the computer's jumper to make the program exectuble - not copy-protection scheme!) Result: he/she gives up and buy the software! This is it! I realized it sounds VERY GOOD....but then I discovered what happens if you want to SELL the computer but KEEP the original software? No big problem here! All you have to do is to return that copy of card and original disk to the software developer AFTER you examine the new jumper sequence codes inside the used/new computer you got from your friend. Of course, this required a minimum fee for the developer to "patch-out" the older code in the program into the NEW ones so that it ONLY CAN BE EXECUTE ON YOUR ATARI COMPUTER and nobody has this CODE!! "What about the Pirated user side?", you might asked. He/She still can NOT run and play this game, and can not crack/search multiple compressed code in the program, even if he/she is using the DISASSEMBLY program. Since he has a non-original disk (pirated disk), he would NOT dare to attempt to send this disk to the developer or he/she will be arrested by the SPA or FBI, whichever the course of action is the most imminent to halt this pirated user and destroy the pirate disk. If he didn't send it to developer, he would have NO CHOICE but to format it and keep it as a blank disk. A forceful one at that!!! The ONLY WAY the pirated user will KNOW the jumper set code is to STEAL or Open up his relative's computer(s). If he got that Space Pacman from the BBS, it is UNLIKELY he will ever find out "WHO" (full name) uploaded this "number 1 program of the year" Space Pacman and "WHAT" the codes sequence are from the "source" computer somewhere in the USA. Again, if your cousin opened the computers up and messed up the jumper codes, it is their fault for being a pirate user...it's their problem. Tough one at that again! What if any user, be it good guys and pirated users SPREAD the words around in the BBS about the owner's computer's codes sequence?? That will happen but it is useless and IMPOSSIBLE for the hackers to find the compressed code in the program. That is a double-backup security here!! (grin) I think this is it! The only drawback in my solution would be "trading the software"...which means that each software has to go with the computer....that is the second part I am trying to figure it out. But I think this problem should be solve easily....how? By joining the ST/TT User Group or ST/TT Club to tryout/play those games a bit longer than the dealer before you might considered buying one! What do you think of my "curbing piracy" solution? In summary, the user's security registration card and a proper sequence of 24-pin jumper code setting might be only solution to curb the piracy. Although it is NOT a 100% cure but it will elevate the problem of piracy within the ST communities as we know it. But I doubt that some hackers out there can beat my solution....let's make a bet! Perhaps, my solution could be somewhere around 95-98% cure. I don't know...I will have to wait and see what you guys think my idea. ======================================================================= * Z*NET ARCHIVES ======================================================================= ANTIC PUBLISHING INC., COPYRIGHT 1988 REPRINTED BY PERMISSION. ATARI GETS TOUGH ON TV BY Gregg Pearlman, ANTIC ASSISTANT EDITOR In the wake of a Christmas season in which Atari Corp.'s video game sales were more than twice those of the same period last year, Atari plans to keep the ball rolling by launching a major first-quarter national television advertising campaign featuring six new commercials, according to Michael Katz, president of Atari's electronics division. The commercials will be aired in the top 30 markets in children's and prime-time viewing hours and will include syndicated and cable programming. Katz said that first-quarter spending will be comparable to what Atari spent in the fourth quarter of 1987 when the company sold out of two of its three game systems, the new XE Game System and the older 7800. The new Atari 2600 commercial, like the previous one, uses rap music while heavily promoting the new games available for the 2600. The new XE commercials include a testimonial/endorsement commercial presented by the presidents of four computer game companies; a commercial comparing Atari's baseball game with Nintendo's; and three more promoting the range of new games for the XE. Atari also announced new playable, self-running point-of-sale display units for the 7800 and XE systems, available at no charge to retailers. ATARI NEWS** ATARI PC: MYTH OR FICTION? January 6, 1988 -- "I'm sure that I will never see" "Atari's duplicate PC..." That song's been sung for months. There's been little evidence of the IBM clone Atari started showing a year ago. But according to a classified advertisement in the San Jose Mercury News, Atari is seeking a "Production Development/Sustaining Engineer for our growing line of PS2/PCAT/PCXT systems." So keep on your toes -- it may not be far away after all. ATARI NABS COUNTERFEITERS December 17, 1987 Agents of the U.S. Customs and U.S. Marshals Services seized 2,000 counterfeits of Atari's 2600 video game system at Terminal Island in the Port of Los Angeles on December 17. The imitations were manufactured by Fund International Co., Ltd., of Taiwan, and distributed in the United States by P.S.D. Inc. of Canoga Park, California. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ To sign up for DELPHI service, call (with modem) (800) 695-4002. Upon connection, hit <return> once or twice. At Password: type ZNET and hit <return>. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ To sign up for GEnie service call (with modem) (800) 638-8369. Upon connection type HHH and hit <return>. Wait for the U#= prompt and type XTX99436,GEnie and hit <return>. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ To sign up for CompuServe service call (with phone) (800) 848-8199. Ask for operator #198. You will be promptly sent a $15.00 free membership kit. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Z*Net International Atari Online Magazine is a weekly publication covering the Atari and related computer community. Material published in this edition may be reprinted under the following terms only. All articles must remain unedited and include the issue number and author at the top of each article reprinted. Reprint permission granted, unless otherwise noted, to registered Atari user groups and not for profit publications. Opinions present herein are those of the individual authors and does not necessarily reflect those of the staff. This publication is not affiliated with the Atari Corporation. Z*Net, Z*Net News Service, Z*Net International, Rovac, Z*Net Atari Online and Z*Net Publishing are copyright (c)1985-1992, Syndicate Publishing, Rovac Industries Incorporated, Post Office Box 59, Middlesex, New Jersey, 08846-0059, Voice: (908) 968-2024, BBS: (908) 968-8148, (510) 373-6792. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Z*NET: Atari ST Online Magazine Copyright (c)1992, Rovac Industries, Inc... ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~