========================================================================= INFO-ATARI16 Digest Tue, 23 Jan 90 Volume 90 : Issue 84 Today's Topics: Atari TT: Threat to IIcx? How to get TOS 1.4??? Mark Williams C Overscan stuff ST Format, TOS 1.4 moans directed at Atari UK (was: HAPPY NEW YEAR, ALL!) TOS io redirection bugs TT. More rumours? ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: 22 Jan 90 19:58:38 GMT From: fozzy!hendrick@uunet.uu.net (Bill Hendricks) Subject: Atari TT: Threat to IIcx? Message-ID: <840@fozzy.UUCP> As a loyal ST'er, I wanted to pass along the following: What follows is a quote from Macintosh News, January 15 1990, "The Mac's Factor" by Rick Doherty (page 13)... --- Begin quote --- ATARI TT: THREAT TO IIcx? Late this month, Atari Corp. will begin shipping its under-$2000, 16MHz, 68030-powered TT computer. Priced at about one-third of Apple's price for the IIx and IIcx, this second-generation Atari machine could be a threat to Macintosh markets with the addition of the $300 GCR Macintosh ROM adapter from Gadgets By Small. Equipped with the GCR cartridge and borrowed Mac SE ROMs, the TT will be able to run the vast majority of Macintosh software at a fraction of Apple's Mac IIx and IIcx pricing. Still, Atari is not well known for successful U.S. distribution. Indeed, while the TT labored through FCC testing in December, it was shipping in volume in Europe. There, the machine is already a favorite of German industry and could impact Mac sales in a country that is already below other European companies in per capita Mac sales. Stateside, Atari's lackluster distri- bution could make the TT little more than a 68030 curiosity. It's priced at three to four times the average Atari 68000-based ST system. By selling the T, storefront resellers will put pres- sure on their already limited resources. --- End quote --- Regards, Bill ------------------------------ Date: 22 Jan 90 16:30:16 GMT From: uvm-gen!pegram@uunet.uu.net (pegram r) Subject: How to get TOS 1.4??? Message-ID: <1383@uvm-gen.UUCP> I inadvertently lost the Atari phone and address info, supplied by either Ken B. or Alan Pratt, that allows ST owners without a nearby dealer to get the TOS 1.4 ROMs. Would someone please email me the info?? thanks, Bob Pegram (pegram@griffin.uvm-gen.uvm.edu) or RFD 2, Box 2843 Vergennnes, VT 05491 ------------------------------ Date: 23 Jan 90 15:22:57 GMT From: cs.utexas.edu!asuvax!hrc!force!covertr@tut.cis.ohio-state.edu (Richard E. Covert) Subject: Mark Williams C Message-ID: <483550e1.14a1f@force.UUCP> In article <20044@watdragon.waterloo.edu>, swklassen@tiger.waterloo.edu (Steven W. Klassen) writes: > In article <756@nadia.UUCP> marauder@nadia.UUCP (Stefan Hess) writes: > >Somebody told me that MW has stopped development of MWC on the ST. Does > >anybody know if this is true ? I would hate it if there wouldn't be an > >ANSI version of MWC. > > Steven W. Klassen +-----------------------------+ I called MWC a couple of months ago to report a bug problem (which turned out not to be a bug after all :-) ) and asked about an ANSI version of the MWC ST C compiler. I was told then that the programmer who wrote the ST was a contractor who went on to bigger and better theings. Then, I was asked if I wanted to write the ANSI compiler! Well, I turned them down, and haven't anything since. But, seeing as MWC started selling source code to their Libraries in 1989, it seems that they need whatever profit they can derive from the ST market, even if it means selling source code. If things get much worse, they might even sell source code to the compiler itself!! (that's just a joke folks!!) But, I am not surprised that MWC hasn't produced an ANSI C compiler, or even a C++ compiler for the ST market. After all, it appears that Turbo C has the German ST market all wrapped up, and the German ST market is the ONLY healthy market left for the ST. The US market has died and gone to MacHeaven or to PCHell or wherever!! All this is not to say that I don't like the MWC compiler. I still use it and buy the updates whenever they are sold. I currently use version 3.09. But, I am considering getting GCC as it is more ANSI compatible and I can get source code to it!! (GCC is the GNU C compiler and has been ported to the ST). As far as the TT goes, who knows if we will ever see it in the USA, so who can tell if MWC will support it. Good luck folks! -- Richard E. Covert, Lead Engineer of Software Tools Group AG Communications Systems, Phoenix AZ (602) - 581-4652 TCP/IP: covertr@gtephx UUCP: ?ncar!noao!asuvax | uunet!zardoz!hrc | att?!gtephx!covertr ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 23 Jan 90 12:52:09 MEZ From: ONM07%DMSWWU1A.BITNET@CUNYVM.CUNY.EDU (Julian Reschke) Subject: Overscan stuff Message-ID: <9001231152.AA12454@freya.dmswwu-ether> In article <10712@stag.math.lsa.umich.edu> zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!math.lsa.umich.edu!hyc@tut.cis.ohio-state.edu (Howard Chu) writes: > Ah, that's what I thought. Yeah, this scrolling problem is quite a > hassle. You can also see it in TOS 1.2 ROMs (like I had when I bought > my Mega. I think it's just the blitter code that's at fault. Also > had this problem with older versions of TurboST.) TRUE. And I hope Atari will fix this someday... > I've found, much to my dismay, that the GEM VDI function vro_copyform > (and the corresponding Line-A function) clips at 640x400. This has > been kind of a pain; I suspect that there are more functions with this Definitively NOT TRUE. I use Overscan all the time and all my software runs with the standard VDI calls. --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Julian F. Reschke, Hensenstr. 142, D-4400 Muenster, Tel.: 0251/861241 eMail: ONM07@DMSWWU1A.BITNET ------------------------------ Date: 23 Jan 90 06:26:34 GMT From: att!chinet!saj@ucbvax.Berkeley.EDU (Stephen Jacobs) Subject: ST Format, TOS 1.4 moans directed at Atari UK (was: HAPPY NEW YEAR, ALL!) Message-ID: <1990Jan23.062634.25733@chinet.chi.il.us> In article <6350@sdcc6.ucsd.edu> cs163wed@sdcc10.ucsd.edu ( ) writes: > [attribution lines, but no text deleted] > >Looks like after Atari lose the US, Atari will lose the UK too! People who don't sign their names lose the privilege of being flamed privately. Did your folks have any children who lived, sdcc10, or was their best effort a blob that just gloats at live people's problems? Steve J. ------------------------------ Date: 22 Jan 90 17:37:21 GMT From: umn-cs.cs.umn.edu!nis!pwcs!stag!daemon@ub.d.umn.edu (Dale Schumacher) Subject: TOS io redirection bugs Message-ID: <1990Jan22.173721.12285@stag.UUCP> [neil@cs.hw.ac.uk (Neil Forsyth) writes...] > I may be getting TOS 1.4 soon (though don't hold your breath folks:-). > TOS 1.4 has the I/O redirection handling bugs fixed so you can redirect the > output from any program. But developers have to use 'isatty' stuff so that > their programs work on 1.0 and 1.2 so there is not really a big win here for > them. Likewise with Malloc. Allan's message about bugs with multiple processes having the same file open (which is the root of at least some of the redirection bugs) clearly said that this bugs exists IN ALL TOS VERSIONS. This includes TOS 1.4. And I've verified that redirection bugs DO still exists in TOS 1.4. The IS good news, however. By exploiting a "feature" of the Pexec() mechanism relating to the h-blank vector, we seem to have a robust work-around for most of the redirection problems. This technique has been in use only for a week or so, but it does appear to allow nested redirections of stdin/stdout, which enables programs like uucp mail software to operate via chained "pipes" (really temporary files). We've tested the new code with a calling sequence like... uuxqt -> rmail -> lmail -> rmail -> uux ...where each process is invoked from it's parent via popen(), and thus receives data via redirection stdin. This kind of calling sequence will fail miserably using normal Fdup/Fforce redirection. I'd be willing to post the technique to the net, but I would like to get confirmation from Allan or Ken that the "Pexec/H-blank trick" will continue to work in future TOS versions. On a related point, there has been some movement to correct a long-standing inconvenience in TOS regarding stderr. Handle 2 is connected to the AUX port by default, but I support it's use as a redirectable stderr. To force this to work properly, C start-up code should check to see if handle 2 is a tty. If is IS, then Fforce() it to -1 to attach it to the console. This is harmless if it already IS attached to the console, and makes sure you don't confuse your serial i/o device if it's still attached to AUX. If handle 2 IS NOT a tty, leave it alone, since that should indicated that someone has redirected it. \\ / Dale Schumacher 399 Beacon Ave. \\ / (alias: Dalnefre') St. Paul, MN 55104-3527 >< ..!nic.mr.net!bungia.mn.org!syntel!dal United States of America / \\ "The power of accurate observation is commonly called cynicism / \\ by those who have not got it." -George Bernard Shaw ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 23 Jan 90 03:17 EDT From: Jacob Baltuch Subject: TT. More rumours? Somebody was quoting "Macintosh News" about the TT starting to ship States side "late this month... for under $2000" I don't know but mac news could be just as gifted a rumour mill as as any. Besides the "under $2000" noun clause seems so ridiculous... Wouldn't such a price threaten Mega sales? (Notice the question mark? It's just a question ok? I didn't graduate from Harvard Business School) Any source closer to Atari would care to comment? I mean, late this month can't be later than within 7 days, so if this has any substance to it, at least dealers should know by now. Jacob ------------------------------ End of INFO-ATARI16 Digest V90 Issue #84 ****************************************