TCE Demo 2/TCE_DEMO_CD2.iso/demo_cd_.2/mags/diverse/scriba21.arj/scriba21/DATA.BIN/F003.DOC

Text File | 1993-04-05 | 55KB | 1,071 lines

072010303050000144002006006010000
11
2Page #1
F0110000001
9[..◆.◆..◆.◆◆◆◆.◆◆...◆..◆.◆....◆....◆....◆....◆....◆....◆....◆....◆....◆.]0110
ÇFrom:[e-mail](JackW.Wine)
Subject:MotorolapressreleaseofAtariFalcon030
Summary:MotorolachipspowerFalconafterburners
Organization:UniversityofHawaiiatManoa
Date:Thu,24Sep199201:46:19GMT


MOTOROLA'S56001PROVIDESAUDIO/VIDEOFEATURESFOR
ATARI'SFALCON030PERSONALINTEGRATEDMEDIACOMPUTER

BOSTON,Mass.,September23,1992-MotorolaInc.'sMicroprocessorand
MemoryTechnologiesGrouptodayannouncedthatits56001digitalsignal
processor(DSP)performskeyaudio/videofunctionsonthemotherboardof
thenewAtariFalcon030(tm)personal-integrated,mediacomputer.The
Falcon030isafull-scalecomputerthatusesthe32MHz56001toprocess
andmanipulatecompact-disc-qualitydigitalaudioandvoicesignals
which,combinedwithAtari'sintegratedsoftware,makestheFalcon030a
complete,personalintegratedmediacomputer.

"Motorola's24-bitDSPscontinuetobethechoiceformanufacturersthat
wanttoembedcompact-disc,digitalaudiofunctions,"saidBryantWilder,
Motorola'sDSPoperationsmanager."The56001givesAtari'sFalcon030an
impressivefeaturesetthatisshowingtherestoftheindustrywhere
personalcomputersareheading."

DSPsarecapableofperformingfunctionssuchascompactdiscquality
sound,voicemail,voiceannotationandrecognition,videocompression,
facsimiletransmission,high-speedmodem,arrayprocessingandhigh-speed
numericprocessing.Othermajorcomputermanufacturersthatusethe
DSP56000familyontheirmotherboardincludetheNeXTComputerSystemand
SiliconGraphicsIRISIndigo(tm)RISCPC.

Atari'sFalcon030PersonalIntegratedMediaComputer
----------------------------------------------------

Atari'sFalcon030isdesignedforpersonal-integratedmediafunctions
includingvideo,audio,animation,telecommunicationsandgraphics.The
AtariFalcon030usesthe56001DSPtoprocesscompact-discqualityaudio
andvoicesynthesiscapabilities.The56001operatesindependentofthe
centralprocessor,Motorola's68030,andcompletesavarietyoftasks
withoutslowingthesystem.WithintheAtariFalcon030,Motorola's56001
drivesdigitalaudiofunctionsincludinggraphicequalization,channel
manipulation,reverberationandsurroundsound,allwhichprovidethe
userprofessionalaudioeffectsfortaskssuchasvideosoundaugmenting
andrecordingcapabilities.

"Atari'sFalcon030,withthehelpofMotorola's56001DSP,isbringing
professional-levelrecordingandaudiomanipulationcapabilitiestothe
consumer,"saidSamTramiel,Atari'spresidentandCEO."Motorola's
56001providesasinglechipsolutionfordigitalaudioandvoice
capabilitiesoptimizingtheFalcon030asapersonal-integratedmedia
computer."

Motorola'sDSP56001
-------------------
Motorola's24-bit,32MHz56001processes16millioninstructionsper
second(MIPS)andperforms96millionoperationspersecond(MOPS).The
56001recreatesCD-qualitysoundbecauseitsarchitectureishighly
parallelandits24-bitwordwidthgeneratessoundupto144decibelsof
dynamicrange.The56001differsfromotherDSPsinthatitprocesses
Çsignalsin24-bitdatachunksprovidingthroughputofmorethan100
millionoperationspersecond.

Motorola's24-bit56000architectureisimportantsincemostanalog-to-
digitalconverterchips,whichconvertanalogsignalsintodigitalbit
streams,translateanalogsignalsintherangesof14to20bitsata
time.Theextrabitsinthe56000architectureallowadditional
calculationstobeperformedonthesedigitalsampleswhilemaintaining
theinputsignalaccuracy.

AtariCorporation(AMEX:ATC)isaworldwidemanufacturerandmarketerof
palmtopthroughdesktopcomputersystems.Thecompanysellsitssystems,
peripheralsandsoftwarethroughauthorizeddistributors,resellersand
integrators.

###

MOTOROLA'S68030MICROPROCESSORSPOWERATARI'SFALCON030
PERSONALINTEGRATEDMEDIACOMPUTER

AUSTIN,Texas,Sept.23,1992-Motorola'sHighPerformance
MicroprocessorDivisiontodayannouncedthatits68030providesthe
processingpowerforAtariCorporation'snewAtariFalcon030,the
industry'sfirstpersonalintegratedmediasystem.TheAtariFalcon030
isafull-scalecomputerbasedonthepowerful68030andisspecifically
designedforpersonalintegratedmediafunctionsincludingvideo,audio,
animation,telecommunicationsandgraphics.UsersoftheAtariFalcon030
cancreatehomevideoscompletewithtextandmusic;canrecordlead
vocalsonafavoritemusicalrecording;cannarrateandscoreafamily
photoalbumandcanexecutemanymoreexcitingapplications.

TheAtariFalcon030alsoincorporatesMotorola's56001digitalsignal
processor(DSP)toprocessandmanipulatecompact-disc-qualitydigital
audioandvoicesignalswhich,combinedwiththe68030'sprocessingpower
andAtari'sintegratedsoftware,makestheAtariFalcon030acomplete
personalintegratedmediasystem.Thisannouncementisanexampleofhow
microprocessorsareenteringthehomethroughtheburgeoningavailability
ofconsumerizedcomputingdevices.

"WiththeintroductionoftheAtariFalcon030,Atariisraisingthe
standardsofconsumerizedcomputingtoanewlevel,providingintegration
oftext,musicandimageswithunparalleledlevelsofquality,
performanceandprice,"saidJimReinhart,Motorola'smanagerofM68000
marketingandapplications."Therobustprocessingcapabilitiesofthe
68030makeitanidealmicroprocessorforsuchagraphically-based
productastheAtariFalcon030."

"TheAtariFalcon030,withthehelpofMotorola's68030and56001DSP,is
bringingproduction-qualitygraphics,professional-levelrecordingand
audiomanipulationcapabilitiestotheconsumer,"saidSamTramiel,
presidentandCEOofAtari."TheprocessingpowerofMotorola's68030
allowstheAtariFalcon030tobeapowerfulfull-scalecomputer,giving
usersaccesstoanewworldofapplicationswhileremainingaffordable."

TheMotorola68030integratesadvancedfeaturesintoafull32-bit
microprocessordesign,optimizedforlow-cost,memory-basedapplications.
Itsburstfillfunctionalityprovidesanefficientbusandmemory
interface,enablingthe68030tosubstantiallyincreaseoverallsystem
throughput.Thiscapabilityisespeciallywell-suitedformultimedia
personalintegratedmediaproducts,suchastheAtariFalcon030,that
Çrequirelargeamountsofinformationtobecontinuouslytransmittedfrom
externalmemorytotheprocessor'sdualinternalcaches.Theefficient
memoryinterfaceresultsincostandtimesavings,allowingtheAtari
Falcon030toachieveexcellentprice/performanceratios.

Availableimmediately,theAtariFalcon030ispricedunder$1,000,making
itidealforuserswhowantapowerful,efficientandcost-effective
devicetoharnesstoday'smyriadtechnologies.

AtariComputerCorporationisaworldwidemanufacturerandmarketerof
palmtopthroughdesktopcomputersystems.Thecompany,adivisionof
AtariCorporation(AMEX:ATC),sellsitssystems,peripheralsandsoftware
throughauthorizeddistributors,resellersandintegrators.

###

AtariFalcon030isatrademarkofAtariCorporation
IRISIndigoisatrademarkofSiliconGraphics,Inc.

EDITORIALCONTACT:
Motorola,Inc.
JoanMacNeil
CunninghamCommunication,Inc.
(408)982-0400

AtariCorporation
AnneEllingsen
RedgateCommunications
(415)777-3911

READERCONTACT:
MotorolaDSPMarketing
(512)891-2030


=========================================================================
From:[e-mail](StevenSelick)
Newsgroups:comp.sys.atari.st
Subject:BostonComputerSocietyshowsFalcon030!
Date:24Sep9202:29:24GMT

Well,IjustgotbackfromdowntownBoston,wheretheBostonComputer
SocietygavethefirstpublicappearanceoftheFalcon030tothepublic
(me).Iforgotanotepad,sothesenotesaredirectfromthebackof
businesscards...pleasebearwithmeifIgetanamemispelled...:-)

BobBrodiestartedoffthemeeting,andimmediatelyintroducedSam
Tramielaftersomeboringbusiness.Samspokeforabitonthehistoryof
Atari,andsuch,andthenbroughtoutRichardMiller,theheadofthe
Falcondevelopmentteam.Hewentintoallofthegorydetailsoftheguts
ofthemachine,allofwhichhavealreadybeenconfirmednumeroustimes
alreadyonthenet.

Perhapsthemostexcitingpartofthenightwaswhentheyannounced
severalsoftwarepackagesthatwillbebundledwitheveryfalcon...

Falcon2d2-softwarefromAtaritostartusingthe8channeldirectto
diskstuffimmediatelywhenyougetyourmachine!YeahAtari!!!Wesawa
briefdemoofthisprogram...veryimpressive!

ÇSystemAudioManager-attachsampledsoundstoanysystemcommand,
includingadifferentsoundforeachkey(notethatthesearehandledby
thedspchipanddonotdetractfromnormaloperations!)

AudioFunMachine-Thisisacutedspprogramtoshowthecapabilities
ofthedspchipforsoundprocessing.Itdoesreverbs,andaDISTORTION!
Verycoollittleprogram.

Calapt-calendar/appointmentutility
ProCalc-Calculatorprog
TalkingClock-youfigureitout!

2GAMESespeciallydesignedtoshowofftheFalcon!
LandMinesandBreakout!

Thepricestheygavewereconsistantwithnetpostings...$799forthe1
meg,and1,299forthe4meg/65megversion.

TheseitemsaredirectfromSamTramiel:

November-startshippingfirstunits
Decembershippinginquantity(forx-masIsuppose...)
January-reliefquantitiesforbackorderswillbeshipped.

Thencametheq/asection,andsomeinterestingfactscameout...

Thereareosciliscopeprogramsusingthedspintheworks...dofft'sand
allonyourwaveformsin"nearrealtime"

TheyplayedaTinaTurnervideomadeinAustraliaof"You'retheBest".3
minutevideotook100megofharddrivespacewhichincludedvideo&
audio.Theyuseda14megmachine,andsaiditwouldnotyetworkona4
megmachine,buttheyhaveacompressionalgorithmintheworksthatmay
makeitwork...theyalsosaidthevideowas24framespersecond.

AcompanycalledSackinGermanyhasafunctioning386sxboardreadyfor
production.

SamTramielsaidthat"NeXTdevelopersarecomingtousandaskingfor
developementsystemsbecausetheyexpectthatwewillsellmorefalcons
in1monththanNeXTsellsinayear!...Wesurehopeso!"

HealsosaidthatAmigadevelopers,unimpressedwiththe4000arealso
comingtoAtarifordevelopmentkits.

HesaidtheJaguarwouldbeoutinthesummerof93,andwouldnot
commentonitfurtherbecausethiswasa"Falconmeeting"

Theyforgotthemultitaskingosdisk...typical...

Theromswillhavedifferentlanguagesburnedrightinthemtoallow
Ataritoshipcomputerstodifferentcountrieswiththesameroms.The
diskwillbefor"minorupdates,andlanguagespecificmaterial"whatever
thatmeans.Theromswillbe4megworth!

TheFalconwillactualldisplaySTmonochromemodeonastandardSC1224
colormonitor!Intotal,theysaidthattheFalconsupportsover130
differentscreenmodesandresolutions.

Attheend,theyplayedacompletesampleofBoston's"Foreplay/Long
ÇTime".Sampledat50khz,ittook96megofharddrivespace.

TheyalsomentionedthatAtariwasworkingonsoftwaremodulestoread
andwritedifferentfloppydiskformats,includingthemacGCR!Somebody
askedifDaveSmallhadspectreworkingyet,andSamTramielresponded
"Well...Isawhiminourofficeslastweek..."butdidnotknowwhathe
hadaccomplishedyet.

Whenaskedwhytheychosethe16mhz68030insteadofafasterone,Sam
Tramielsaidthatwithalloftheseparateprocessingcenters(68030,
dsp,blitter,optionalco-processor,etc)thattheyfeltthemachineto
becomprabletomachineswithfaster"workhorseprocessorsthathaveto
handleeverything".Hesaidmuchfastermachineswouldbeappearing"very
shortly".

Well,that'senoughtypingformeforonenight...That'sallIcan
remember.Oh...theygaveawayafalconasadoorprize,andIdidn'twin
it...darn!

Enjoy,
-Steve<[e-mail]>
=========================================================================
From:brunos@mafalda(BrunoSchmidt)
Newsgroups:comp.sys.atari.st
Subject:Re:Falcon030:Higherres.simple!
Date:24Sep9214:41:53GMT

Incomp.sys.atari.starticle<annius.717330698@freyr>youwrote:

>>Excerptsfromnetnews.comp.sys.atari.st:22-Sep-92Re:Falcon030:
>>Higherres...JackW.[e-mail](1570)
>
>>>800x600256colorsuselessthan30MB/ssothatmightbepossible
>>>and1024x80016colorstakesabout24MB/ssotheFalconmight
>>>handlethattoo.1024x800monois6MB/ssoifpossiblewouldbe
>>>great.
>
>1.WhatIreadsomewhereisthatit'stheVGAbandwidththatcaused
>thelimitiationsoftheVidel.
>
>2.Ifyoureducetherefreshrate(to,say,40Hzfornon-interlaced)
>youwillgetaslightlyhighermaximumresolution.
>
>3.IfitISjustthememorybandwidththenwe'dbetterwaitforthe
>040(butIbetthatonewillhavethehigherresolutionsbuilt-in)

Hi,IThinkoneimportantthinghasbeenforgotteninthisthread...
youcanchangetheclockgeneraterforthegraphicssubsystem,thusyou
couldsayincreaseitfrom32Mhzto60Mhz...andthereforgethigher
resolutions...aslongasyoustaywithinthebandwidth,theFalconwill
notslowdown...ifyoudon't,themachinewillslowdown,butyoucan
stillhavehighresolutions(thiswasexplainedtomebythegermanatari
repinchargeofdevelopers,whosenameIforget,aswellasaperson
fromOverscan,thecompanywhichmakesmodsforSTsandTTs).

Bye,Bruno.
=========================================================================
Newsgroups:comp.sys.atari.st
From:[e-mail](GeoffSwan)
Subject:FalconinAustralia
ÇOrganization:MegadataP/L,NorthRyde,Sydney,Aust.
Date:Fri,25Sep199200:00:06GMT

GreetingstoalltheOZandNZnetters,
TheFalcon030isscheduledforreleasehereinAustraliainearly1993
andapparentlywillcostlessthanA$1000attheentrylevel,whichison
parwiththeUS$799wehearonthenet.Ibelievethemarketingwillbe
donethroughtheretailersratherthananofficialannouncementand
organisedshow.
Sla/ngofo/ill,
RiskyB.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
GeoffSwan(research&development)_--_|\[e-mail]
MegadataPtyLtd/\
2/37WaterlooRd,NorthRyde,\_.--._/+6128050899
NSW2113,Australia.v(Fax)+6128874847

=========================================================================
Newsgroups:comp.sys.atari.st
From:[e-mail]
Subject:Re:BostonComputerSocietyshowsFalcon030
Date:Fri,25Sep9212:07:28PDT

StevenSelickdidanexcellentjobofreportingontheintroductionof
theFalcon030attherecentmeetingoftheBostonComputerSociety.I
wasalsothere,andhaveafewadditionalcomments.

-therewereabout125inattendanceinthehall

-therewasoneFalconinthelobbydemoingaMIDIapplication.The
fellowusingitsaidhewasfromDr.T,andjustgotthemachinetwo
daysago.Ithad4meg.

  -therewere3Falconsnearthefrontstage.Alllookedlike
productionmachines.

-theterm"personalintegratedmedia"wasmentionedseveraltimes,
andwillprobablybeusedmanytimesinthefuturebyAtari

-speedwise,theFalconisequivalenttoa25-30Mhz386machine

-a19.2KbpsmodemisnowbeingimplementedfortheFalcon

-withabox,theFalconwillbeabletodoCDphotoapplications
(nothingonwhowillmaketheboxorwhatwillbeinit)

-oneofthedemosshownontheprojectionscreenwasa20channel
equalizer.BillRehbockwasadjustingthechannelsinrealtimeso
theadjustmenteffectcouldbeheard.

-thetwogamestocomebundledwiththeFalcon,LandMinesand
Breakout,willutilizetruecolormode

-voicemail(fromaNeXTprogrammer)andvideophoneapplications
"arecoming"

-JamesGrunkementionedthatafterspending$400onamonitorand
$800foranadapter,onecoulduseall8stereochannelsatonce,
makingthecostabout$300perchannel.(assumesa$1300Falcon)

Ç-whyonly16bitsfortruecolor?Theyfelt16bitswassufficient
andchallengedanyonetoseethedifferencebetweenitand24bits
inrealworldimages

-Atariwill"definitely"haveaUS800numberforuserhelp(didn't
saywhenthough)

-alittleboxtointerfacetheDSPtothephonelineisbeing
developed,andshouldbeavailablebythefirstquarterof93

-inmanyrespectstheFalconismorepowerfulthantheVideoToaster,
containing98%ofitsfunctionality.ThecostoftheFalconplusany
associatedsoftware/hardwarewillbelessincostthantheVideo
Toasteritself.

-a1MegFalconisaviablesystem,sincetheoperatingsystemtakes
onlyasmallamountofRAM(fromBillRehbock)(hedidn'tsayhow
much,butIbelievehedidusetheword"miniscule".

-386DXand386SXboardsarenowbeingworkedoninGermany(Ithink
hesaid486also)

-theSpectreboardwillfitwithintheFalcon,forthosewhoare
worriedaboutthelackofanexternaldrive

-theFalcondocs,withDSPinfo,areavailabletoanyonefor$80-
justsendthechecktoAtari

-theMotorolaDSPassemblerandlinkerisbeingshippedtoFalcon
developers

-videorecordingwillbepossiblewithexternalhardware(theysaid
itwouldhavetakentoomuchextrahardwaretoincludedirectvideo
inputontheFalcon)

-theaudiencewasgenerallypassiveduringthepresentation,butthe
TinaTurnervideowassoimpressivethatitgotaroundofapplause
(no,youcan'tgetit-itsheavilycopyrightedweweretold)

-BillRehbock,oneofAtari'sFalcontechnicalexperts,mentionedto
methathehasaCompuserveaccountandgenerallymanagestoanswer
hismaileverynite

Attheendoftheformalpresentation,everyonegatherednearthefront
stagetoseethe3Falconsdoingaslideshowintruecolor.Onemonitor,
anAtari1435,lookedespeciallygood.Oneslideofababysurroundedby
stuffedanimalslookedsogoodIwastemptedtoreachoutandtouchthe
fuzz!

Insummary,yesIwasimpressed,andIplantobuyonewhentheyare
generallyavailable(adeveloperfriendofminealreadyhashisorder
in).

Andno,Ididn'twintheFalcondoorprizeeither(sigh...)
=========================================================================
From:[e-mail](MarkLavi)
Newsgroups:comp.sys.atari.st
Subject:AtariFalconatBCSShow-EyewitnessReport!
Date:25Sep9221:48:10GMT

ÇWednesday,September23rd,1992.

BOSTON--AtariCorporationdebutteditsFalcon030totheAmericanpublic
attheBostonComputerSociety'sgeneralmeetingintheNewEnglandHall.
Overtwo-hundredmembersfiledintothehall,wherealarge,fifteenfoot
videoscreenprojectedFalcon030GENLockedvideodirectly,audiowas
directlyoutputtothehall'samplifiedsystem.ThreeworkingFalcon's
satatoptablesinfrontofthestage.

Afterinitialopeningandwelcomingprocedingswithanawardtovisually
impairedcomputingleaders,MikeNewhall,DirectoroftheBCSAtariST
UsersGroup,introducedtheAtariCorporationpresentation.SamTramiel,
PresidentandCEOofAtari,beganthepresentationoftheFalcon030by
statingAtari'snewgoalofPersonalIntegratedMediaforconsumbers.He
statedthatAtarihadgonethroughtransitionsandconsolidation,andnow
waspoisedforgrowth.

HediagrammedamapofthemarketAtariisinterestedin,whichlooked
likethis:
+--------------------------+-----------------------------------------+
|PersonalComputers|TraditionalEntertainment/VideoGames|
|Apple|Nintendo,Sega|
|Business------------------+-------------------------------------Home|
|Microsoft,IBM|Phillips,CableTV,Sony|
|Multimedia|InteractiveTV|
+--------------------------+-----------------------------------------+
Inthecornersweremarketcategories,eachboxhadsomecompaniesthat
representedthemarketforexamples(I'veputinsomeIremember).
Tramielnotedthatalotofthemarketcategorieswereoverlapping,and
companieshavebeguntoenterintonewmarkets.Tramieloutlinesalot
ofstatisticsshowingmarketpenetrationoftelevision,CDplayers,
personalcomputers,etc.intoAmericanhouseholds.Nowtheindustrycan
providecomputersthatcanhandlecurrentconsumeraudioandvideo,Atari
wantstodeliverafullfunctionedcomputerforareasonableprice.
AtariwantstotapthemarketwiththeFalconseriesofcomputers,which
exceedstereoCDaudioqualitycapabilities,whichcomefullyequiped
(justopentheboxandplugitin),haveanexistingsoftwarebase(the
entireAtariST/TTserieslibrary),andwhicharepricedwell(theFalcon
030coststhesameamountofmoneyasallthevideo/audioaugmented
hardwareaddonsrequiredonpersonalcomputerotherplatformsalone).

RichardMiller,VicePresidentofResearchandDevelopmentwasthenext
tospeak.[InotedhisBritishaccentandaskedhimifhewasfromAtari
UKwhenIspoketohimafterthepresentation.HecamefromPerihelion,
whichwasinvolvedintheAtariTransputerWorkstationOS,andthendida
briefstintatAtariUK.Bytheway,hesaidtheATWisadeadproject.]
Mr.MillerledthedevelopmentoftheFalcon030systemarchitechture,
andheenvisionedacomputerthathismothercouldutilize.Shedidn't
wantaPC,oraMac,shewantedacomputerthatcouldmaketea,answer
thetelephone,turnonthelights,andmailherletters.Millerthen
statedthatcustomerswantthemostsophisticatedtechnology,highest
quality,andlowestprice."Youcanneverunderestimatetheconsumer,"
Millersaid,sothecomputershouldbejustasgoodastheconsumer'sCD
playerortelevisionataudioandvideo,respectively.WithaCDplayer
aslowas$100,acolortelevisionaslowas$200,andaFAXmachineas
lowas$200,etc.,consumerswantthesameperformanceandcombinedprice
foracomputerthatcandoallofthesethings.

TheFalcon030achievesthisforconsumerswithitspoweratalowprice.
TheFalcon'spowercomesfromitsdistributedprocessorarchitecture:
Ç-CPU:Motorola68030(32MHz)centralprocessorunit
-GPU:Blittergraphicsco-processor(16MHz):64millionpixelper
second-DMA:DMAengine:fastmemoryaccessto/fromSCSI,audio,
peripherals,etc.
-DSP:Motorola56001(32MHz/16MIPS)DigitalSignalProcessorunit
Optionallyavailableisthe:
-FPU:Motorola68881/2FloatingPointmathematicco-processorunit
-3rdparty:286/386SXCPUforIBMPCemulation
AtariansareusedtotheCPU/GPU/DMAfromtheST/TTseriescomputers.
ThenewBlitterhassomenewfunctionsandrunsattwicethespeedofthe
STEBlitter.ChipsocketsfortheoptionalprocessorsareontheFalcon
030,Ibelieve.SACK(ofGermany)isworkingonthe286/386SXemulation
now.

Thedigitalsignalprocessor(DSP)performsfunctionsentirelyinthe
digitaldomain,providingananswertoanalogsignalprocessing's
problems.ImmediateapplicationsofDSPareaudioprocessing:sixteen
bandgraphicequalization,echo,reverb,chorus,flange,compression,
distortion,surroundsound,pitchshifting,synthesisofsound/music,
speechgenerationandspeechrecognition.[Mostexistalreadyonthe
Falcon,Atariisworkinghardonthespeechrecognition,accordingto
Tramiel.]DSPalsoloansitselftotheseareas:arrayprocessing,
opticalcharacterrecognition,videocompressionanddecompression,etc.
AtariwillutilizetheDSP'shighperformacemodetocreateavirtual
19.2Kbaudmodemandavirtual9600baudfull-duplexFAX.FutureAtari
Falconapplicationsincludeanalldigitaltelephoneansweringmachine
andvoice-mailforthehome.[Thesetoo,arebeingworkeduponbyAtari,
developers,andother3rdparties.]

ThevideosectionoftheFalcon030iscapableof:
VESAvideooutputat72Hz,640by480pixels,Genlock,digitalChromakey,
videooverlay,PALandNTSCbroadcastsignals,1/2/4/8-bitgraphics,and
overscan.[Sorry,hewentquicklythere,andI'mnot100%sureofallof
thedefinitionsofsomeofthefeatures.]Thesevideocapabilitiesloan
themselvestotheseapplications:televisionpictureinpicture,video
effects,CDPhotos(justaddaCDROMplayer).

TheaudiosectionoftheFalcon030iscapableof:
16-bitdigitalaudioat50kHz,eight-trackdigitalrecordingandplay⑨
back,stereo16-bitCODEC,aninputforanexternalmicrophone,anda
headphoneoutputjack.

TheFalcon030alsohasthefollowingoutputports:
stereoaudioout,SCSIIIport,DMAport,DSPport,MIDIIN/OUTports,
LocalTalkLANport,RS-232-Cport,andtwoenhancedjoystickports(for
lightguns,etc.).TheFalcon030containsMultTOSoperatingsystemina
fourmegROMandisavailablewith1,4,or14megabytesofRAM.

BillReincock,DirectorofApplicationSoftware,showedtheaudience
bundledsoftwarewitheveryFalcon030.HestatedthattheFalcon030
hasbeenindevelopershandssinceMay1992.Someofthethingsthatthe
Falcon030candoisaddresstheneedsoftheconsumerwhowantsto
createvideoandaudio,asevidencehecited"America'sFunniestHome
Videos"andthepopularityofthecamcorder.TheFalcon030loansitself
tohomevideotitling,videopresentationsforbusinessoreducation,
etc.

ThefirstpieceofsoftwaredemonstratedwasFalconD2D,abasicaudio
samplerandwaveformeditorwhichcansampledirectlytotheharddrive
forrecording.Samplewaveformsmaybeloadedandgraphicallyedited,
Çspliced,etc.Thenwaveformsmaybearrangedintoasmallcuelist
sequencerforflexibleplayback.

ThesecondpieceofsoftwarewastheAudioFunMachine,basicallya
digitalaudioeffectsprocessor.Thereweretwo,fullcolorequalizers
(oneforleftandrightinputeach)whichwereadjustiblefilters
manipulatedwiththemouse.Usingtheexternalmicrophoneinput,youcan
applythe10bandEQfiltersinrealtimeaswellasaddthefollowing
effects:"surroundsound"ambience,concerthallreverberation,phase
shifting,distortion,etc.Youcanalsoedittheeffectswaveforms.

ThethirdpieceofsoftwaredemonstratedwastheSystemAudioManager,
whereonecanassignsounds/samplestosystemevents,eachfunctionkey,
andanykeyonthekeyboard.Thesoundsplaywithoutanysystem
slowdown,youcanuseAtarisamplesfromtheD2Dprogramorimport
MicrosoftWindows*.WAVfilesandMacsounds.

Additionalbundledsoftwarementioned:CALAPT-acalendarandappoint
mentschedulerprogram[alaPortfolio,Iimagine],ProCalc-afull-
featuredscientificcalculator,TalkingClock-displaystimeand
announcesthetimeatusersetintervals,andtwogames:Landminesand
Breakout.

TheFalcon030canoutputtotheVCRdirectlytheuser'sown3-D
animations(viaLexicorsoftware,etc.),titles,etc.tocreatehome
videos."TheFalcon030istheonly16-bittruecolorcomputerinits
class,"saidReincock.Withalowcosttelephonelineinterface(onthe
way,1stquarter1993,byaScottishcompany:it'llbethesizeofa
cigaretteboxanditwillhaveinternationaltelephoneportsonit,
accordingtoTramiel)thiscanleadtoFAXingandlow-costvideophones
throughtheFalcon030.

TheFalcon030usestheGEMdesktop,basedonDigitalResearch'sDRIGEM,
foritsgraphicaluserinterface.Theiconsarenowanimatedandcolor,
thedesktopiscustomizable.[FromwhatIsaw,animatedmeansthis:when
youselectanicon,itdoesnotreverseitselftoshowitishighlighted,
itchangestoanewicon.Eg:thetrashcanopens,thefilefolderhasa
filepopup,thediskopensitsshutter,etc.]WiththeOSinROM,there
isnopossibilityforviruscorruptionoftheOSorwaitfortheentire
OStobootoffoftheharddrive.

MultiTOSispreemptivemultitaskingwithadaptiveprioritization,soas
tomakethecurrentuserprocessappeartohavenoslowdown.Itis
compatiblewithexistingsoftware[aslongastheydidn'tuseillegalOS
tricks!],itallowsformessagesandpipes:thisyeildsinterprocess
communication.Itusesahierarchicalfilesystemwithloadabledrivers
forcompatiblilitywithUNIX/Macdevices,theforthcomingAtariCR-ROM
player,etc.MultiTOSwillhaveotherdiskextensionsforfuture
expansion.

JamesGrunke,DirectorofInternationalMusicMarketing,wasthelastto
speakatthepresentation.Heoutlinedthisperiodashistoricformusic
andAtari:

1985-AtariCorporationwasthefirsttorealizethepotentialofMIDI
andplacedMIDIIN/OUTportsontheirSTseriesofcomputers.
1986-Atariwasthecomputercompanytomarketdirectlytomusicians,
itplacesanadvertismentinKeyboardmagazine.
1987-AtariwasthefirstcomputercompanytoattendtheNAMM
convention.(NAMM=NationalAssociationofMusicMerchants,I
Çbelive.)

AtaricomputerswerealsothefirsttodirectlysynchronizetoSMPTEtime
code.Today,Ataristillholdsfifteenpercentshareofthemusicmarket.
TheOShasrocksolidtiming,essentialformusicandMIDIsequencing.
WithfeatureslikestereoCDaudio,theDSPMotorola56001chip,theSCSI
IIportforaccesstosamplers/harddrives,andtruecolorvideo,the
Falcon030hasstandardsthatmusicianswant.TheAtariST/TTseriesof
computersalsohasamaturemusicsoftwarebase.

WhereaMaxIIciwith5MbyteRAM(streetpricing)plussoftware($1000)
costs$2500perstereotrack,theFalcon0304/65with4MbyteRAMand65
Mbyteharddriveatfulllistprice($1299)costs$849perstereotrack.
Withanadditionalhardwareexpansiontobringsystemcapabilitiesupto
eightstereotracks,whichincludesXLRinputsplusDACandclockchips,
theAtarisystemcomesto$1699+$800HWexpansion:itcosts$312per
stereotrack.

Thedemonstrationconcludedwithasummaryofspecifications,pricing,
andavailability:dealerswillrecieveademonstrationFalconin
November,buttherealproductionrolloutofFalcon030'swillbein
January,1993.Atariwillbeginaregionalrollout,whenthatis
completednationaladvertisingshallfollow.SamTramielsaidthatback
in1987,Atarisold10,000unitsamonthandranintotheJapan/US
dynamicRAMtroubles.AtarinevercamebackintheUSmarket,it
developedandexpandedtheEuropeanmarketsincethen,butnowAtari
wantstocomebackintotheUSmarketwiththeFalcon030.

Aquestionandanswersessionfollowed:theLANportisLocaltalk,which
ishardwareidenticaltoAppleTalk,itisnotETHERNET,butthatwill
proabablybeaddressedby3rdpartydevelopers.DVIboardsarecurrently
beingworkedonby3rdpartydevelopers,hopefullyunder$500.00.ASEUB
digitalinterfacescanbedone:achipfordigitalbandwidthoffloadmay
benecessaryinanexternalinterface.Videooverlayisaccomplished
witha3rdpartyGENlockdevice,itcanbecontrolleddowntothepixel.
TheDSPportwillbeabletoaccessexternalanalogtodigitalchips,the
portcansupportonemegabyteperseconddatarates.

AtarireadiedademonstrationoftheFalcon030'svideocapabilities.
Approximately2-3minutesofamusicvideohadbeensampledintothe
Atariandsavedtotheharddrivepreviously.TheFalcon030wasableto
pulloffthe92megabytesofvideodataoffoftheharddriveanddisplay
thevideoas24framespersecondinfullscreen,true-colormodewithCD
stereoaudioINREALTIME.Thiselicitedquiteanapplausefromthe
audience.Therewasnocompressioninvolved,performancewasbased
solelyontheBlitterand030processors.

WhenaskedaboutthereasonforAtari'schoiceof16-bittruecoloras
opposedto24-bitcolor,theresponsewasthattheeyecanseeaboutone
millioncolors,and24-bitallows16millioncolors:the16-bitcolorwas
agoodcompromisefortherealworldandbroughtFalconexpensedown
withoutcosttoperformance.MS-DOS3.5"floppyfilecompatibilitywas
confirmed.WhenaskedaboutFalcondevelopers,Atarireportedthatthere
hadbeenanoverwhelmingresponsefromoldSTdeveloperswhowerecoming
backtoAtari,interestingly,alotofNeXTdevelopersarecomingoveras
well.SomeAmigadevelopersclaimedthey'dratherdevelopontheFalcon
030thantheA4000platform.Atarisaidthey'dliketogetinto
universities,butwouldhavetocomeinthroughthe"backdoor"with
DesktopVideoandDesktopRadioandmusicapplications.

ÇInexpensivethirdpartyframegrabberandscannersarecoming.The
FalconisLogitechFotomancompatible.AtarienvisionstheFalconto
have98%oftheVideoToastercapabilitiessoon,andforsignificantly
lessthantheVideoToasteralone.YouwillbeabletousemultisyncVGA
monitorsontheFalcon,butmakesurethattheycan"godown"toNTSC
broadcastspecificationsfortrue-colormodes.MultiTOSwillbe
partiallydiskbasedforextensions,theOSisa4MbyteROMcontaining
allofthelanguages/keyboardlayoutstofurtherenhancecompatiblitity
throughouttheworldfordevelopers.

The1040STstylecasewasusedforproductionexpediency,it'sadarker
grey/lightbrowncolorwithdarkgreykeys.ButSamTramielsaidthis
wasthe"beginningofexciting,differentmachines...morebirds"inthe
Falconseries.[NewAtaricomputerswillbenamedafterbirds,videogame
consolesaftercats.Eg:Lynx,Jaguar(whichprobablywillbebasedon
theFalconandhaveallofitsresolutionmodes,plussomeperipheral
compatibility,ie:joysticks,lightpens,AtariCD-ROM,etc).]Atariwas
askedaboutcustomersupportandserviceforthehardware:Atariis
workingtore-establisholddealersandwillhavea1-800tollfree
number.

WhenpressedaboutFalcon040s,theaudiencewastold"beforeyousee
486'semulatedontheFalcon030."TheQ&Asessionendedhere,andAtari
gaveawayadoorprize:aFalcon030!

IfolloweduptoSamTramielandaskedhimafewthings,Atariistalking
toKodakaboutPhotoCDdevelopment,Phillipswantsdevelopmentofan
AtariFalconofaCD-Icard(butnomentionwasmadeofwhowoulddo
thesethings).AtariisworkingonaninexpensiveCD-ROMplayer,
connectedviatheDMAorDSPportasopposedtoSCSIII.

[Thisconcludesmyreport,butIhaveanotherreportbasedontheBCS
AtariSTusergroup'svisitbyBobBrodieandBillRehbockwithtwo
Falconsthenextday.It'scoming!Itriedtokeepthisarticleina
formalstyle,butIdroppedoutofittowardstheend.Ihopeyou
appreciatemyefforts,I'msure99%oftheinformationiscorrect,asI
heardit,andhavepointedoutplaceswhereIwasn'tsureofthings,so
thisshouldbealegitimateguideforyoulearnabouttheFalcon.]
--
\\Thisisacopyofthe.signaturevirus,passiton.
//Ifyouwantsomethinginterestingtoread,fingerme.
\\Internet:[e-mail](BostonUniversity)
//Compu$erve:72545,1236
=========================================================================
From:[e-mail](MarkLavi)
Newsgroups:comp.sys.atari.st
Subject:FalconatBCSAtariSTusergroupmeeting!
Keywords:AtariFalcon030UserGroupMeeting
Date:25Sep9223:06:32GMT

Thursday,September24,1992.

CAMBRIDGE--TheBostonComputerSociety'sAtariSTUserGroupfollowedup
tothepreviousday'sAmericanintroductionoftheAtariFalcon030
computerwithavisitfromBobBrodie,DirectorofCommunications,and
BillRehbock,DirectorofApplicationsSoftware,ofAtariCorporation.
TheywereinthecompanyoftwoFalcon030's,muchtothedelightofthe
usergroup.

Basicspecificationsandconfigurationswerecoveredasfollows:
Ç
Configurations:AtariFalcon030-(1megRAM,noharddrive)=$799.
Falcon4/65(4megRAM,65megharddrive)=$1299.
Alsoavailable:(14megRAM,(65megHD?))=???.

Processors:M68030(16MHzCPU),M56001(32MHzDSP),Blitter(16MHz
GPU),andDMA.

DSPspecs:M56001(16MIPSor~96MOPS=Millionsofoperationsper
second).

26pin__________[8-bitbusforinstructions]
DSPSerialPort/
---------------=>[Motorola56KDSPChip]----------=>(SSIout)
(SSIin)\
\_[RAM]32kWords,25nanoseconds.
2
MoreabouttheDSPport:aSony/PhillipsISport(soundDMA)
CODACcoder(digitaltoanalog(DAC)andvice-versa).One
megabytepersecondINandOUTsimultaneously,thisallowsfor
expansionofstereoinputsfordigitalsamplingoradditonal
MIDIports,etc.

Video:True16-bitcolor=65,000colors,VGAgraphics.
VideotoolderSTmonitors(eg:SC1224)withadapterinteface
(coming),
Output:tonewerSTandTTmonitors,toNTSCtelevisions,andtoVGA
monitors.
Upgrades:Dealerswillbeabletoupgradea1MbyteFalcon030to4or
14MByteswithaboardfromAtari(coming).The2.5"IDEhard
drivecanbereplacedeasily(forrepair/upgrade).

Compatible:Falcon030ismorecompatiblewithAtariSTsoftwarethanthe
AtariTTbecauseithasaBlitter.All14MbytesofRAMare
unifiedmemorytothevideoandcpuviaMABbus:thusno
TT/STRAMsegments.

Busspecs:(asbestasIcanrecall!)
COMBEL/GLUE/Blitter(chipsformemoryfunctions)-32
bitswide.
VEL(Videochip)viaMABbus-32/16bitswide.(Allmemory
canbethoughtofasahugevideobufferormemorycanbe
accessedasvideoandinstructionsatthesametime,I
believe.)
DMA(handlesSCSIIIports,Audio,etc.)chipbus-16bits
wide.
M68030CPU-16bits.

TTHasTTRAMburstmode,canexecuteprogramstwiceasfastdue
advantages:toits32MHzM68030.Largerchassisaccomidatesfor
expandibleVMEcards,etc.3.5"HardDrivecanbeeasily
replaced/upgraded,ithasbetterpotentialcapacitythethe
Falcon0302.5"HD.

FalconFinallyhasafaninthere!CheaperthanTT.HasSTE
advantages:enhanced15-pinjoystickports(acceptslightpens)hastwo
pinsforanalogsignals?(MistakenlyleftoffoftheMega-
STEsandTTs.)

Localtalk:LANis100%hardwarecompatiblewithAppleTalkLAN(buts/w
Çprotocolhastofollowtouseit!).

HDYes,theyareunlimitedontheFalcon.NewAtariHDXtools
partitions:arecomingfortheFalcon.

Genlocking:3rdpartyGENlockdevicesexist(AtariusedtheJRIdevice).
Inordertododesktopvideooverlaying,here'sthehardware
hack:


--=>RGB]
Atari--[OUT]--=>Composite]-------=>[Genlock][Video]
Video--=>Overlaybit][Box]<=-Video-----[Sourceor]
Signal--[IN]<=--VerticalSync]<=-[]<=-DotClock-[Camcorder]
<=--ExternalDotClock]/
[toMonitor]

TheGenlockBoxcontainsanAnalogMultiplexerandRasterScaleChips.
TheAtarijust"paints"anareain"overlaybit"color,whichtheGenlock
boxrecognizesandusestheexternaldotclocktosyncthevideosignal
tothatoverlayareaviathemultiplexerwhichcanseteachpixel
(raster)onthescreen.Thus,theGenlockjustpatchesinthevideo
signalontotheAtarisignalandthenoutputsittothemonitor.Some
morework(andchips)areneeded,sotheimagecanbescaledandmoved
around,requiringsomemoreI/OfromtheAtaritotheGenlockboxfor
truescalable,movablepicturesinaGEMwindow.

Onthewaystuff:

SLM804andThirdpartycompaniesarealreadyworkingonDMAtoSCSIlink
SLM605:tousetheAtariLaserPrinters,soAtarihasleftthemtodo
it.German3rdpartycompanyisworkingonaddingbufferRAM
intoSLM804interfaceforextraperformance.

AtariUNIX:iscompleted,but030performancewasslow.Whenitcomeson
the030itwillbetext-basedonly.Theyarewaitingfor040
tohaveafullblownwindowedAtariUNIX.

FSM-GDOS:Itisreallycoming!!(November,hopefully.)Atariworked
withQMSoriginally,butthatdidn'tturnoutwell.So,
AtariapproachedBitstream.ThenewBitstreamSpeedoscaler
isfasterthanQMS'sscaler,willworkwithPostScriptType
IandBitstreamfonts.Bitstreamfontsareplentiful(800+)
andavailable(likeEggheadS/W)inIBM-PC3.5"floppy
format,whichcanbereadbyanyAtarifloppydrive.
BitstreamisupdatingtheirfontpackagingtosayAtari
compatible.

SUTRA:(Workingtitleonly!)AnAtarimultipurposeapplication,much
likeLotusWorks:ithasadatabase,wordprocessor,
spreadsheet,etc.

Spectre:DaveSmallhashisFalcon030,he'stinkering!

FrameMatrixFrame(fromathirdpartyinGermany)hasachieved
Grabbing:eightframespersecondthroughthecartridgeport,anice
hack.Thisareawillberefinedandimprovednowthatthe
Falconexists.
Touchscreen:AlreadyexistsontheST,shouldbefurtherdevelopedon
Falcon.
Ç
[Aok,that'sasummaryofeverythingthathappened.Forgivemeforany
errors,especiallythemisspellingofBillRehbockonthepreviousBCS
GeneralMeetingreportwhereAtaridebuttedtheFalcon030tothepublic

--Ididn'trunthe
--
\\Thisisacopyofthe.signaturevirus,passiton.
//Ifyouwantsomethinginterestingtoread,fingerme.
\\Internet:[e-mail](BostonUniversity)
//Compu$erve:72545,1236
=========================================================================
September26,1992:Downloadedfrom'AMIBOT',theAmigaIRCFileServer..

ATARIINTRODUCESFIRSTCOMPUTERSYSTEMDESIGNEDFORPERSONALINTEGRATED
MEDIA

AtariFalcon030(tm)bringshigh-endcapabilitiestothemarketforless
than$1,000.

Boston(September23,1992)AtariCorporationtodayannouncedthefirst
availablepersonalintegratedmediasystem,theAtariFalcon030computer.
Fromeducationtoentertainment,personalintegratedmedia(PIM)hasthe
potentialtochangeconsumers'livesasdramaticallyaspersonal
computerschangedbusinessoffices.Thesystemwillbeavailablein
NovemberatauthorizedAtariDealersacrossthecountry.

Afullscalecomputerbasedonthepowerful16MhzMotorola68030
microprocessor,theAtariFalcon030isspecificallydesignedforpersonal
integratedmediafunctions.Itgiveseveninexperiencedusersthe
abilitytocombineandmanipulatevideo,audio,animation,
telecommunications,textandgraphics.Thesystemisoptimizedforthese
functionsandincorporatestechnologyusuallyreservedforhighend
productionsystems.

"TheAtariFalcon030isanidealentryintothenewandgrowingpersonal
integratedmediamarket,"saidSamTramiel,Atari'spresidentandCEO.
"It'sapowerfulsystemthatgivesusersaccesstoawholenewworldof
applications.Yetthesystemremainseasy-to-useandaffordable."

ConsumerswillbeabletousetheAtariFalcon030asacolorvideophone,
communicatinginsoundandpictureswithotherAtariFalcon030users.
Thesystemmakesitpossibletocreatehomevideoscompletewithtextand
music,recordleadvocalsonafavoriterock'nrollclassicwiththe
originalsmusiciansplayingalong;narrateandscoreafamilyphoto
album,produceavisualfamilytree,inventandplayanadventuregame
setinachildhoodhome;andmuchmore.

AtariFalcon030usershaveimmediateaccesstoadvancedPIMcapabilities
thankstothefollowingfeatures:

|||Atari'sGraphicEnvironmentManager(GEM)andbuiltingraphicsco-
processor
|||Atruecolormodethatincludesmorethan65,000colors,twicethe
capabilityoftheAppleMacIntoshLCII
|||Theindustry'sonlystandard-equippedMIDIinput/outputports
|||16-bitstereosound-inputandoutput-forthehighestquality
reproductionsavailableatsampleratesupto50kHz
|||Built-incompositeandRFvideooutputsforeasyconnectiontovideo
cassetterecorders
Ç|||Externalvideosyncforhighqualitygenlocking
|||Overlaymodeforeasyvideotitlingandspecialeffects
|||SoftwareforPIMapplicationssuchasdesktopvideoproductions,
animations,musicandentertainment.

NoothercomputerprovidesthislevelofperformanceandPIMcapabilities
atamoreeconomicalprice.

ApplicationsHighlights

PIMtechnologywillmakethousandsofnewcapabilitiespossible.There
arealreadyhundredsofsoftwareapplicationsavailablefortheAtari
Falcon030,makingiteasyforuserstoaccomplishavarietyofnewgoals.

MovieQualityVideo

WiththeAtariFalcon030,userscanexplorenewavenuesinhomevideo,
frominsertingtitlesandcreditstoprofessionalqualityediting.They
cancreatemusicvideos,cartoons,andschoolpresentations.

TheAtariFalcon030offersstateoftheartgraphics,truecolor16-bit
modeallowingupto640x480resolutionandadisplayofupto65,536on-
screencolors.Itacceptsexternalvideosynchforhighquality
genlocking,andusesauniqueoverlaymodeforeffortlesstitlingand
specialeffects.Inaddition,userscanobtaincompositevideosignals
directlyfromtheFalcon030.

HighQualityVideo

Ataritakesthemusic-industrystandard-MIDI-onestepfurther.The
onlycompanytoprovideMIDIasastandardsystemcomponent,theAtari
Falcon030alsoincorporatesMotorola's56001digitalsignalprocessor
(DSP)forthehighestqualityaudioandspecialeffectscapabilities,
allowinguserstoremoveleadvocalsandcreatetheirownKarokemachine
orrunmusiceducationsprograms.

TheAtariFalcon030providesuserswithfeaturesthatareusually
restrictedtoexpensive,high-endmachines.Butwithoutanyadditional
equipment,AtariFalcon030userscanrecordontwostereotracksandadd
graphicequalizationandspecialeffectssuchassurroundsound,
harmonizing,reverberation,andecho.

PricingandAvailability

TheAtariFalcon030isasimpletousecomputerthatdoesn'trequireadd-
onboardsorothercostlyoptionalhardware.TheAtariFalcon030already
includesexactlywhatusersneed.Themachineoffersawealthofports
forcommunicatingwithexistingperipherals,andapplicationsoftwarefor
theAtariFalcon030isreadilyavailable.

Pricedat$799with1MBofRAM,theAtariFalcon030isidealforusers
whowantapowerful,efficient,andcost-effectivetoolthatcantake
advantageoftoday'stechnologies.Thesystemwillbeavailablein
NovemberthroughauthorizedAtaridealers.

AtariCorporation(AMEX:ATC)isaworldwidemanufacturerandmarketerof
palmtopthroughdesktopcomputersystems.Thecompanysellsit's
systems,peripherals,andsoftwarethroughauthorizeddistributors,
resellersandintegrators.

ÇAtariisaregisteredtrademarkofAtariCorporation.AtariFalcon030,
TOS,MultiTOS,NewDeskandBLiTTER,aretrademarksofAtariCorporation.
MotorolaisaregisteredtrademarkofMotorola,Inc.

AtariFalcon030Specifications

Contact:SueBaelenorAnneEllingsenRonSmithorBillRehbock
RedgateCommunicationsAtariCorporation
(415)777-3911(408)745-2000
(415)777-0896-Fax(408)745-2088-Fax

SystemArchitecture
-------------------

|||Motorola68030operatingat16Mhz
|||On-chipdemand-pagedmemorymanagement
|||Seperateon-chip256-byteinstructionanddatacaches
|||Independentaddressanddatabusesforincreasedperformance
|||Pipelinedarchitecture
|||32-bitdata/addressbus
|||1,4or14MBRAMconfigurations
|||512KinternalROM;128Kexternalcartridge

Sound
-----

|||Eight16-bitdigitalaudioDMArecordandplaybackchannelswithup
to50kHzsamplingrate
|||Stereo16-bitdigitalDMAaudioinput/output
|||SDMAsound/DMAco-processor

DigitalSignalProcessor
------------------------

|||Motorola56001DSPoperatingat32MHz
|||96MOPSperformanceat32MHz
|||32Kwordsof0wait-statestaticRAM
|||DSPconnectorallowseasyconnectionoflow-cost19.2Kbaudfax/data
modems,voicemailsystems,direct-to-diskdigitalaudiorecorders,
JPEG/MPEGimagecompression,etc.

Graphics
--------

|||640x480resolutionand256colorsinSuperVGA
|||Truecolor16-bitmodeallowsdisplayofupto65,536colors
|||Acceptsextermalvideosyncsignaltoallowhigh-qualitygenlocking
|||Overlaymodeforeasyvideotitlingandspecialeffects
|||Optionaloverscan
|||262,144possiblecolors
|||Hardware-assistedhorizontalfinescrolling
|||BLiTTERgraphicsco-processor

ExpansionBus
-------------

|||Internaldirectprocessorslotfor386SXPCemualtion,DMAco-
processors,etc.
|||Optionalprocessorsocketforotherco-processors

ÇStandardPorts
--------------

|||SCSIIIportwithDirectMemoryAccess(DMA)
|||High-speedLocalTalk-compatibleLANport
|||ConnectorforanalogRGBcolor(VGAorST)orcompositevideo
|||RS232Cserialport
|||Bi-directionalparallelport(alsosuitableforimagescanners)
|||Cartridgepoet(128Kcapacity)
|||MIDIin/out
|||Minaturestereopluginput/output
|||Four9-pinjoystickconnectors
|||Two15-pinenhanceddigital/analogcontrollerandlightpen
connectors

DataStorage
------------

|||1.44MBfloppydiskdrive
|||MS-DOS-formatcompatibility
|||OptionalinternalIDEharddrive

UserInterface
--------------

|||StandardQWERTYkeyboardlayout.Lowprofile,sculpturedergonomic
design
|||94/5keys;10functionkeys.Seperatenumericandcursorkeypads
|||KeyboardprocessortoreduceCPUoverhead
|||2-buttonmousesuppliedasstandard

SystemSoftware
---------------

|||Pre-emptivemultitaskingwithadaptiveprioritization(MultiTOS)
|||Inter-processcommuicationthroughMultiTOSmessagesandpipes
|||TOSoperatingsysteminROM
|||Hierarchicalfilesystemwithsubdirectoriesandpathnames
|||Icon-basedgraphicaluserinterfacewithself-explanatorycommand
functions
|||Onlinehelp
|||Multiplewindowuserinterfacewithiconsanddrop-downmenus
|||NewDeskdesktopandeXtensibleControlpanelallowscustomizationby
user
=========================================================================