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*---== ST REPORT INTERNATIONAL ONLINE MAGAZINE ==---*
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"The Original 16/32bit Online Magazine"
December 13, 1991 No.7.49
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__________________________________________________________________
> 12/13/91: STReport #7.49 The Original 16/32 bit Online Magazine!
-------------------------
- The Editor's Desk - CPU REPORT - LOTUS SHIPS FOR MAC
- BORLAND DOWN - PHANTOM TYPIST? - SANTA'S HELPERS
- CODEHEAD & QUICK ST - ARTIFEX CARD - STR Confidential
-* TOS 2.06 UPGRADE VIA TEC FOR ALL! *-
-* MA BELL GETS MESSAGE! *-
-* WHISTLEBLOWER BBS ANNOUNCED! *-
* HAPPY HOLIDAYS TO ONE AND ALL! *
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WHAT'S NEW IN THE ATARI FORUMS (December 13)
"HIDDEN" TREASURES...
DO YOU HAVE THIS FILE? Proque replacement desktop (similar to many
commercial desktop replacement systems). Proque allows you to designate
over 100 programs which can be run from its desktop with a single mouse
click. Also includes many useful utilities. File: PROQUE.ARC in Library
4 ("Utilities").
NEW VERSION OF ARCSHELL
Charles Johnson has uploaded his newest version of ARCSHELL, version 3.1,
to LIBRARY 4 of the Atari Productivity Forum (GO ATARIPRO). This version
has significant new features and supports the latest version of Questor's
LHARC utility.
LZH EXTRACTOR
If you've been having trouble with .LZH files reporting errors ("bad
CRC"), or even if you haven't ... download the NEW .LZH utility that
will work with files compressed with the newest version of LZH. Get
L_201I.LZH from Library 4 in the ATARIPRO Forum.
NEW IN ATARI VENDORS FORUM (GO ATARIVEN)
Now available in LIBRARY 16 from CODEHEAD SOFTWARE -- a textfile and demo
version of their exciting new product MIDI-SPY. (Can my ST really play
background music while I use my word processor?)
NEW VERSION OF B/STAT AVAILABLE...
Version 2.42 of B/STAT is now available in LIBRARY 5 ("Applications") of
the Atari Productivity Forum (GO ATARIPRO). B/STAT is a graphics and
statistical analysis program. It requires 1 meg minimum of memory and a
double sided drive. It will use GDOS if present but does not require it.
B/STAT may not be distributed in FRANCE due to commercial availability.
ATARI PORTFOLIO FORUM (GO APORTFOLIO)
Its finally here! The first test version of PortCIS-- an automatic
navigator program for the Portfolio-- is available for testing and
comments. See file PRTCIS.ARC now in LIBRARY 1.
The second half of the forum programming marathon has begun. In the first
half, we accumulated 87 new files -- almost triple the original estimates!
A big thanks to our three marathoners, BJ Gleason, David Stewart, and Don
Messerli, and all the other forum members who have participated in the
program.
Our intrepid programming marathoners need your help! We need ideas for
the team to work on. If you've ever needed custom programming done, you
know how expensive it can be. Here's a golden opportunity for you to get
custom programs written for free! Please submit any ideas you have to our
programmers by posting a message in section 15 *WISH LIST*
THE ATARI PORTFOLIO FORUM ON COMPUSERVE
HAS BEEN DESIGNATED AN
OFFICIAL SUPPORT SITE BY ATARI CORPORATION
"GO APORTFOLIO TO ACCESS THE ATARI PORTFOLIO FORUM"
***********************************************************************
> CPU STATUS REPORT LATE BREAKING INDUSTRY-WIDE NEWS
=================
Issue #49
Compiled by: Lloyd E. Pulley, Sr.
-- Analysts Says PC Sales to Increase
Despite sluggish holiday retail sales in other areas, Roger Lanctot,
research director at Personal Technology Research of Providence, N.J.
says that "retail sales of personal computers and peripherals are
exploding." He added, "Sales in October were up 50% over last year and
early figures indicate that sales kept pace in November."
Lanctot said low prices and good availability are behind the brisk
sales, but that another factor has been the poor economy of late.
"A personal computer is an extremely practical gift that can be used to
earn extra money or even help hang onto a job," Lanctot said.
-- IBM Develops High-Speed Transistor
IBM has developed a lateral bipolar transister that has triple the speed
of conventional transistors. IBM said the device could be used in high-
performance, low-power, compact computers.
IBM attributed the new transistor's speed to a lateral design, which
decreases capacitance and resistance.
-- IBM Predicts 5-8% Revenue Growth in 1992
A Senior Vice President of IBM said that after the companies 1991 de-
cline, thathe expects the company to post a revenue growth of 5-8% in
1992. However, the same executive noted that Taiwan, Korea and China
will probably see double-digit growth in 1992.
-- Lotus 1-2-3 Ships for Mac
Lotus 1-2-3 for the Macintosh will be available within two weeks at a
suggested retail price of $495.
1-2-3 for Macintosh features in-cell editing, direct manipulation of
worksheet elements and desktop customization. It is also file and macro
compatible with other versions of 1-2-3, including DOS, Windows, Unix,
VM, VMS and MVS. 1-2-3 for Macintosh can read and write Microsoft Excel
sheet files and translate Excel macros.
1-2-3 for Macintosh runs on any Apple Macintosh with a hard disk, 2MB of
RAM under System 6.0.4 or later; or 3MB of RAM under System 7.0 or
later.
-- Telebit Offers Low-Price Upgrades
Telebit has announced a new program called 'Loyalty Pays' where existing
customers can buy the new V.32 T3000 modem for $499 and get an upgrade
to Telebit's Packetized Ensemble Protocol (PEP) free.
PEP is a proprietary scheme for dividing a phone line into 511 separate
channel, increasing data carrying capacity, especially on poor quality
lines.
Models that qualify for the program include the T1000, T2000, Trail-
Blazer Plus, T1500, T1600, T2500, T3000, and QBlazer.
The program runs through May 31, after which the T3000's price is due to
rise to $949, with the PEP upgrade costing an additional $199.
-- Quicktime Expansion Available This Month for Mac
Apple Computer Inc. says the new $195 QuickTime 1.0 extension to the
Macintosh System 7 software will be available this month.
QuickTime allows third-party developers to integrate data such as sound,
video and animation across all applications. The developer's kit
includes software, third-party digitizer components and utilities.
-- Magnavox Ships Inexpensive 20-inch Monitor
Providing a real bargain for users needing a combination of high reso-
lution and large screen size, Magnavox has begun shipping a low cost
20-inch SuperVGA monitor
The Magnascan/20 is a Macintosh and IBM standard compatible monitor that
will automatically adapt to horizontal scan frequencies ranging from 30
to 64 kilohertz and refresh rates from 50 to 90 times per second. The
dot pitch is only 0.31 mm, about average for a 14-inch monitor and
impressive in a unit of this size.
The maximum resolution of the new monitor is 1280 by 1024 in non-
interlaced mode, making it compatible with VGA (video graphics array),
8514/A, XGA, SuperVGA, and extended VGA modes. The power supply is
autosensing and will run on AC voltages between 98 and 264 volts
worldwide.
The Magnascan/20, with a list price of under $2,000, carries a one-year
parts and labor warranty, boasts a 50,000 hour MTBF (mean time between
failure) rating, which is much higher than the average large screen
monitor.
-- National Semiconductor Reports 2nd Quarter Profit
National Semiconductor Corp. has reported net earnings of $5.9 million
($.03 per share) for the second quarter ended Nov. 24 compared with
earnings of $3.5 million ($.01) for the same quarter in 1990. The
company credited recent efforts to consolidate manufacturing for the
boost in profits.
-- Borland Stock Tumbles
Following downgrading by two Wall Streen analysts, Borland International
Inc. shares tumbled this week. After climbing from a 1991 low of $27.875
Borland's stock had reached a high of $83.25 last week but dropped $2.25
on Monday, $3.75 on Tuesday and $4.875 on Wednesday.
-- Xerox to Cut Workforce by 2,400
Xerox Corp., in an effort to reduce overhead, plans to cut its worldwide
workforce by about 2,400 of it's approximate 101,000 employees before
the middle of 1992. The cuts will be made through normal attrition and
both voluntary and involuntary layoffs.
--Whistleblower BBS Debuts
Government whistleblowers who spot instances of fraud, waste and abuse
have a new way to tattle their tales: a computer bulletin board.
Anyone with a computer and modem can call 202/225-5527 and tell Uncle
Sam how his tax dollars are being squandered. Messages, which can be
posted anonymously or with a name, can be left any day at any hour.
Congressional investigators will read messages daily and check out
complaints.
The Whistleblower Bulletin Board allows investigators to keep in contact
with the whistleblower. "The most important feature of the board is the
ability to receive computer files and messages in an environment that
permits continuing communications, while fully protecting the identity
of those providing information," said Rep. Bob Wise (D-W.Va.).
Even the private group that provides lawyers for government whistle-
blowers who face retribution -- the Government Accountability Project --
approves of the BBS. "I think it's an excellent idea, because most of
the mechanisms within the executive branch are not working well," said
Louis Clark of the GAP.
***********************************************************************
:HOW TO GET YOUR OWN GENIE ACCOUNT:
_________________________________
To sign up for GEnie service:
Set your communications software to Half Duplex (or Local Echo)
Call: (with modem) 800-638-8369.
Upon connection type HHH (RETURN after that).
Wait for the U#= prompt.
Type: XTX99587,CPUREPT then, hit RETURN.
GEnie costs only $4.95 a month for unlimited evening and weekend access to
more than 100 services including electronic mail, online encyclopedia,
shopping, news, entertainment, single-player games, and bulletin boards on
leisure and professional subjects. With many other services, including
the biggest collection of files to download and the best online games, for
only $6 per hour.
MONEY BACK GUARANTEE! Any time during your first month of membership if
you are not completely satisfied, just ask for your $4.95 back.
GEnie Announcements (FREE)
1. November GEnie Billing completed. To review yours, type:...*BILL
2. Don't Open until December 23, 1991 at 6:00PM................OAG
3. The Civil War Goes High-Tech................................GENEALOGY
4. RTC+ PRIZES: Discover GEOWORKS- tool for small business.....HOSB
5. Sharing Holiday Gift Ideas..................................HOBBY
6. GAME DEMOS....try before you buy............................SCORPIA
7. Special Conference Friday about Bulletin Board Systems......UNIX
8. Twice a month -- check the GEnie Online Newsletter..........GENIEUS
9. 50 YEARS LATER - From Pearl Harbor to Today.................MILITARY
10. Christmas at Disney World and a great deal more check out...*FLORIDA
11. Mac Users... get answers in RTC from experts in.............MAC
12. Win FREE connect time with the college bowl games...........BOWL
13. New VERY BEST APPLE II Disk Arrives in ------------->.......A2
14. Lumeloid & Lepcon -- SOLAR ENERGY BREAKTHROUGH or Mirage....PSRT
15. Science and Technology Issues in the Space and Science RT...SCIENCE
FROM THE ST RT
Join us in welcoming Fair Dinkum Technologies to our ST BB. Two new
products are now shipping, Crossword Creator II and Word Search Creator,
"perhaps the fastest, easiest to use and most complete puzzle creation
utilities ever created for the Atari ST TT". Check out file #21790. Hutch
will be supporting his product in Category 29 (ST and Education) Topic 4.
GEnie Information copyright (C) 1991 by General Electric
Information Services/GEnie, reprinted by permission
***********************************************************************
> THE FLIP SIDE STR Feature "... a different viewpoint..."
=========================
A LITTLE OF THIS, A LITTLE OF THAT
==================================
by Michael Lee
----------------
Some info about the ST Book - From Ed Krimen - Cat. 14, Topic 7, Msg 151
- from the ST Roundtable on Genie...
And here's a little info I picked up from Usenet about the ST Book,
from the designer himself:
Article 3023 (1 more) in comp.sys.atari.st.tech:
From: trh@atari.uucp (T R Hall)
Subject: Re: ST Notebook (was Re: help with info)
Message-ID: <1991Nov19.183749.7331@atari.uucp>
Date: 19 Nov 91 18:37:49 GMT
Deferences: <fido_2_281/202.12_2916f1bf@linn.fidonet.org>
<15823@uhccux.uhcc.Haw aii.Edu>
Organization: Atari Corp., Sunnyvale, CA
jww@uhunix.uhcc.Hawaii.Edu (Jack W. Wine) writes:
1) Was the Notebook ever operated from completely powered-up
condition to zero power? How long did it last to go to both extremes
and how did it behave during that time?
Yes, it has; with _*NO*_ power management at all, with the Screen
a highly detailed, dithered image, and with the hard drive
spinning-up every five minutes and running for a minute [running a
FlightSimulator Demo, if you want to know]...
The STBook ran for over five hours, before fading away [because
power management handles Save-and-Resume, it of course didn't
happen]
With power management, the people at the Shows have been getting 8
to 10 hours, and I still have a few tricks left to extend the
power even further (just software, so y'all will have them in good
time)
2) Does the Notebook have a SCSI bus?
No, but the ACSI/FDD (what I call Pseudo-ACSI) connector has all
of the ACSI signals, so ACSI-to-SCSI convertors can be used.
3) The 2.9 kg weight includes the weight of the battery pack?
1.9 Kg, actually, and yes, it includes the Nicad-battery pack. The
machine is some 200-300 grams lighter with an alkaline pack.
4) Does the case have any mechanical weak points? I read that Toshiba
made the Notebook for Atari and was wondering how well they did it.
Toshiba is assembling units for us, but we did the design. The one
area I would point to as weak is the cover "clasp" (i.e. that
holds the unit closed). The "hinge point" for is is not the
strongest, _and_ it doesn't move in quite the way you would expect
(i.e. it barly moves at all). This cause excessive force to be
used, and the hinge points can break. This is being worked on. It
should be noted that the hinge has never been broken by those who
knew how it worked; it has always been broken by some #$!#!@&*
coming up, grabbing it, and yanking it open, saying some like
"Here..Gimme...Lemme See.. Yeah, I know how..."
----------------
The FPU part number from Ken Shafer on Delphi...
The part# for the MSTE FPU is MC68881FN16B. Thats a 16 Mhz fpu, with
PLCC packaging.
----------------
A thread from CIS about new systems from Atari in 1992 - From Bob Brodie
(Atari) on CIS...
Seriously, it's not a real big secret that we have a number of new
machines scheduled for 1992. It's going to be a very exciting year,
and we look forward to it. I was up in the lab with Greg Pratt, Bill
Rehbock and Leonard Tramiel last week and got a glimpse of the
future...and I like it a lot.
From Jim Ness on CIS...
The impression I got from the Greg Pratt speech was that new machines
would not necessarily replace old machines (to paraphrase: he said
that if you view the product line as a triangle, the older machines
would continue to trickle toward the bottom as new machines entered
at the top).
His analogy was a good one, because it helps control the tendency of
people to not buy today's machines, while they wait for tomorrow's.
If today's TT remains a viable "mid-triangle" product, while
tomorrow's 68040 machine is introduced, it will continue to sell.
At some point, the 1040STE has to get back into Toys-R-US and similar
outlets, so you can introduce more people to the bottom of the
triangle. However, for that to happen, there have to be lots of games
bundles, and a very very low price.
Reply from Bob Brodie (Atari) on CIS...
I think that you have paraphrased Greg intention quite well. Further,
he did say that our goal was for the products to "cycle through" for
a period of time. The period of time is a variable...perhaps 3-5
years in my estimation.
That lends credance to his remark that the TT will be the backbone
for the next several years, just as the STE is today.
----------------
Have you ever needed to replace your internal SF314 drive? Here's a
thread from Delphi that might give you some help. From John Duckworth
on Delphi...
I have a quick question for anyone who can help. I need to replace
my internal drive on my 1040 STfm. If I could find an Atari SF 314
drive, is it exactly the same as my old internal? In other words,
could I just pop it out of the external case and replace my 1040
drive?
Reply from Norm Weirness on Delphi...
Atari used many different manufactuers to make the SF314 and they
don't all have the same shaped disc slot. Your best bet is to pickup
a new TEAC 3.5" floppy mechanism and use it.
You will find that all the new drives are only 1" high, rather than
1-3/4" like to old one. I have been able to add about 1/4" spacers
(or a stack of washers) between the drive and the column supporting
it, and the screws were long enough to reach. However, you'll likely
have to alter the shape of the slot a bit. Just cut a rectangular
opening. The plastic is soft, and the new drives have a wide facing
that can fit flush against the inside of the ST case.
The TEAC mechanisms are double-sided - model FD-235F, and high-
density - model FD-235HF. It may be impossible to find the old ones,
they are all high-density now, but they only cost $50 or less, and
yes they work.
When you open the ST, you will see that there are two connections to
the floppy, a small power plug and a 34-pin ribbon cable. The power
cable is no problem, but in some models you have to twist the cable a
half turn before connecting to the TEAC. Notice the one edge of the
cable is colored, usually red, as opposed to the rest, which is gray.
That edge is pin 1. Look on the PC board of the floppy, right next to
the 34-pin connector, and you should find printing indicating where
pins 1 and 2 are (the end furthest from the side plate). Just be sure
the red edge of the cable connects at the pin 1 side of the mating
one.
Reply from GEORGECYR on Delphi...
The 1040 ST fm uses a 1/3 height drive I believe, so be sure that
whatever drive you use fits that, or maybe you can cut the posts to
install a 1/2 height drive. But Be careful. Mine had a Mitsumi 3.5
inch drive 1/3 hgt that was incompatible with the Epson drive in an
SF354 drive. They wouldn't swap out.
----------------
Some CD-ROM information from Bill Rehbock (Atari) - Cat. 14, Topic 28,
Msg. 128 - from the ST Roundtable on Genie...
We have done the generic CD-ROM driver that allows any Sony CDU-541
compliant (I'm using an Apple CD ROM right now) CD ROM drive to be
used with the TT via SCSI. To get all 8 bits of a SCSI command byte
out ACSI, you need an ICD host adapter and a slightly modified CD ROM
driver that shuffles the command byte across ACSI to the ICD H/A. We
are working with ICD to make sure this becomes a reality quiclky.
----------------
Some Flash/STalker information from Dan McNamee (Atari) - Cat. 17, Topic
3, Msg. 41 - from the ST Roundtable on Genie...
The reason that Flash doesn't have problems at higher speeds while
Stalker does is that Flash has it's own custom RS232 routines that go
directly to the serial port hardware, which can be a bad thing if
anything there ever changes.
Stalker, on the other hand uses standard GEM calls which, while
slower, will always work. Since it is using GEM calls, the more TSRs
and ACCs you have loaded, the slower the system gets, the faster the
buffer fills and overflows and therefore the more characters lost.
So if you are running at 9600, set it to use RTS/CTS (or both, which
is what I use) and only have AUXINIT active in the auto folder, and
only STalker (an maybe STeno) as accessories. On a TT or an acceler-
ated ST you might be able to get by with more.
----------------
Some misc. information from Bob Brodie (Atari) - Cat. 14, Topic 14, Msg.
177 - from the ST Roundtable on Genie...
Yes, the Mega STE-1 exists. Make sure that your dealer knows that you
want to put in your own hard disk, so he gets the kit for you. Also,
the disk in the Mega STE is a 3-1/2" mechansim. Make sure that you've
got the same size of unit.
The difference between a 1040STE and a Mega STE are significant. On a
Mega STE you get a detachable keyboard (very nice one, too!) a LAN
port, (works great with the Universal Network!), multiple serial
ports, a VME Slot, and the New Desk top. The New Desk top is a major
improvment over the old desktop, giving many more features, and
adding a lot of functionality to the system.
On the Mega STE, ram upgrades are very easy, as are hard disk up-
grades. Just open the hard disk bay, and you have access to SIMMS,
hard disk, etc. No more taking apart the machine. :-)
And of course, the Mega STE runs at 16Mhz with a 16k cache. Not too
shabby at all. You can also slow it down to a true 8 Mhz to run
timing sensitive software, like Spectrum 512.
The 1040 STE does NOT have a VME slot.
Among the products that take advantage of the VME slot specifically
for Atari computers are a number of graphics cards. These cards will
allow you to run in enhanced color modes, like 800x600 with 256
colors. There is a catalog put out by the VME Trade Association
(VITA) that list over 3,000 VME cards. The functionality of the cards
varies from additional serial cards, to ram boards, to graphics
cards, HPIB interfaces, and on.
----------------
DeskJet Upgrade info from G.HAUER - Cat. 4, Topic 3, Msg. 22 - from the
ST Roundtable on Genie...
Here's the "official" info I took from an HP upgrade brochure I
called for:
Upgrade for DeskJet 500 : $450
DeskJet Plus: 550
DeskJet 550
All upgrades require that you send your machine to HP. They DON'T
upgrade your machine. Instead, they send you the new DeskJet 500C,
which is fully IBM compatible. (The DeskWriter C is for Apple folk.)
For more information, call HP at (800) 752-0900. (That number may
refer you to another number -- I can't remember. It's been a few
weeks since I called for the brochure.) The mailing includes all the
paperwork for upgrading to the 500C.
Soooo, for me the question is -- as always -- now or later? Should I
take the upgrade route while it's available ('though HP has a reputa-
tion for long-term upgrade availability) or should I wait until the
street price gets low enough for me to have two of the critters?
For anyone at HP reading this: it would be wonderful if the brochure
included an actual printed sheet for the 500C.
----------------
Some Good News and Bad News from ERSOFF on Delphi...
Good News and Bad News ..........
KEYBOARD MAGAZINE is giving away $30,000.00 worth of Atari gear (TT,
STe, Mega STe, MIDI stuff, Hard Disk Digital Recorder by Hybrid Arts,
software, etc.) in the January 1992 edition.
And now the Bad News .........
The drawing won't be until 10-31-92 (according to the contest rules
in the magazine... oh well)
Good Luck Everyone !!!!!!!!!
----------------
Until next week.....
"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
IMPORTANT NOTICE!
=================
As a reader of STReport International Online Magazine, you are entitled to
take advantage of a special DELPHI membership offer. For only $29.95 ($20
off the standard membership price!), you will receive a lifetime subscrip-
tion to DELPHI, a copy of the 500-page DELPHI: THE OFFICIAL GUIDE and over
$14 worth of free time.
NOTE: Special offers can be found in your favorite Atari magazines:
START CURRENT NOTES ST INFORMER
ATARI INTERFACE MAGAZINE
SIGNING UP WITH DELPHI
======================
Using a personal computer and modem, members worldwide access
DELPHI services via a local phone call
JOIN -- DELPHI
--------------
1. Dial 617-576-0862 with any terminal or PC and modem (at 2400 bps,
dial 576-2981).
2. At the Username prompt, type JOINDELPHI.
3. At the Password prompt enter STREPORT.
For more information, call DELPHI Member Services at 1-800-544-4005, or at
617-491-3393 from within Massachusetts or from outside the U.S.
DELPHI is a service of General Videotex Corporation of Cambridge, Mass.
SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT
--------------------
Beginning September 1, 1990, DELPHI will begin offering a new plan
that will save you money! The new plan is called the 20/20 Advantage
Plan and it features 20 hours online for just $20 a month! The $20 is a
monthly fee that covers your first 20 hours online via direct dial into
one of DELPHI's two direct-access lines, or via a special Tymnet 20/20
Access code. It also gets you additional hours at just $1.20 per hour.
And you get free access to several services on DELPHI as part of the
Advantage Perks.
Other telecom services may have additional charges. Canadian Tymnet
users have an additional telecom charge. Office Time access (7 a.m. to 7
p.m., weekdays) may have an additional charge. And of course, other
restrictions may apply. But this is still an amazing deal!
For more information, contact DELPHI at 1-800-544-4005 and ask for
Member Services.
DELPHI- It's getting better all the time!
"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
> Ma BELL STR Spotlight Ma Bell is a MEAN MUTHA!
=====================
ABOUT THE C & P BELL MEETING
============================
by Neil Bradley
Compuserve 72337,146
BBS (804) 464-4994
(14.4K Dual-standard HST)
"FNET" node 564.
A few observations of my own from last Thursday's meeting with C&P
telephone. As I said before, the C&P reps expected about 20-25 people.
When they arrived, there were well over 200 people. The reps were quite
amazed to say the least.
THE MEETING WAS CONDUCTED AS FOLLOWS:
The host (a FidoNet Sysop) introduced the "speakers".
See AlsoIn the Mid-Atlantic And New EnglandHansard Transcript 2024-Apr-15 | Legislative Assembly of Ontario The speakers were;
1) 2 Reps from C&P, the Vice President in charge of Business Accounts and
The president of the Norfolk Va C&P office. The VP was the one that\
sent the letter.
2) 5 other sysops of local bbs'. Three were "fidonet" sysops, one was a
"PAY" bbs sysop, and one was a local non-networked bbs sysop.
Each principle speaker was introduced and invited to give a 5 minute
speech on what he/she wanted to say. C&P was first.
The first speaker was the C&P president. He talked briefly about what
the contents of the letter was about. The letter was sent to 15 local
sysops after C&P received an "anonomyous tip" that BBS's were running a
business, and a list of 15 boards was enclosed in the letter. That
prompted the letter to be written to 13 of the BBS's. (The other two were
not in operation anymore).
The speaker then went on to say that "We are not out to cut out the
little guy, or to force people to shut down. Additionally, the Newspaper
article had several inaccuracies in it. According to my computations,
MOST of the local BBS operators will pay perhaps $3-$5 more than what they
are paying now. In fact, a large number of you probably would pay LESS!"
He then stated that he expected 20-25 people, as all he brought were 25
copies of the rate comparison charts between Business & Commercial Rates.
The president then stated that the reason C&P was there was to "find
out information" about what is going on. He stated that both himself and
the VP that were there HAD NEVER used a bbs, and were ignorant of what was
going on. He said that several Sysops had contacted him and that his
knowledge was growing. He then asked for some information from the
crowds. "I want to know what is going on, and who is here." He called
for shows of hands of people.
(The numbers I give here are MY OWN estimates from what I saw.
I have no idea what numbers he wrote down.)
"How many people here are Sysops?" ~ 200 (95%+ of the people)
"How many people here use BBS's?" ~ 250 (100% of the people)
"How many of the Sysops here have 2 or less phone lines?" ~ 200 (95%)
"How many of the Sysops here have 3-5 lines?" ~ 10-20 (2%)
"How many of the Sysops here have 6+ lines?" ~ 2-4 (1%)
"How many of the Sysops charge NO FEE for their BBS?" ~ 200 (95%+)
He then stated "These numbers are very interesting, thank you". The
VP came up and talked about why he did not return all the phone calls he
has received. He stated that there were just too many, and they were all
asking the same thing. He apologized and said that he would be
contacting several BBS sysops and request that they put all the info he
gives them on their boards for further dissemination.
The audience was then handed 3x5 cards and told to put down any
question that they may have for the panel (C&P), and that the questions
would be asked by the host later in the session. (Just about everyone
returned a card to the moderator!)
The next speaker was one of the FIDOnet sysops, who discussed about
the users he has, how many calls he receives, the FIDOnet network system
operation, etc. He ended up by saying that if the business rates were
given to him, he would shut down.
The next speaker was another FIDOnet sysop, who is the "lead" of the
"Handicapped Echo" message base. He went on at great lengths about how
the BBS and the FIDOnet "brought him out of his hole" that he was in
because of his handicap. He talked about several people that met through
the BBS's, including a White Male/Black female who were quite surprised
when they met face to face, and then realized that race didn't really mean
that much after all! He finished by saying that if they charge him
business rates, even that small increase in costs could force him to
shut down, which would deny him the "livelihood" of his existence and
contact with the outside world.
The following speaker was a sysop of a multi-line PAY bbs. He said
that he received the letter, and immediately took advantage of the
REDUCTION in costs of his phone bill. Because his board does NOT
network and generate outgoing calls, he could reduce all the phone lines
to the very cheapest business rate, even cheaper than what he pays for
now.
The next speaker was the last FIDOnet Sysop, and he expressed his
concern that if C&P classified his BBS as a "business" for phone rate
purposes, he wondered if that would generate a listing in the business
section of the local phone book. C&P replied that it would. He then asked
how did the local city governments determine what a business was? One way
for sure was to LOOK IN THE PHONE BOOK! That means, if his BBS was listed
in the phone book, the city government would then get involved and try
to make him get a Business Licence, and pay Business Taxes! He then
stated that, according to local laws, if if business lost money three
years in a row, the city could classify it as a "hobby"! What would C&P
say then? The speaker then asked the crowd "How many of you LOOSE money
on your bbs?" Just about everyone held up their hands and then clapped.
The speaker told C&P that if he was changed to business, he would NOT
continue as there was NO WAY he could afford to pay business taxes and
get a business license.
The final speaker was a non-networking 2-line BBS that generates the
local "Free BBS List". The requirements to get on this list are simple:
All BBS's belonging to the list have to 1) Charge NO FEES to get FULL
access to the bbs, and 2) Display on their opening screen that they are
a member of the -=FBBS=- list. He talked about his user base and the
fact that he has over 1000 ACTIVE users (Active on his bbs being that
the user calls at least once every 45 days). He said that he personally
runs a computer business, and that he has a bbs IN his business that he
pays business phone rates for! He said that his bbs in his house had
nothing to do with his business. He then went on about how could the
Phone Company determine what a business was on the BBS except to get on
the bbs and SEE! The USE of the BBS was what should determine what the
rate was, not the fact that there was a bbs or a modem on it! (the
audience clapped and cheered at this point).
There was about a 5 minute break at this point.
After the break, the moderator told the crowd that due to time
constraints, there would be only 3 people from the audience allowed to
speak and they would be limited to 2 minutes each. After that, the
moderator would read some questions from the numerous cards. He said that
all the cards would be given to the C&P representative, and their answers
would be made available on the local bbs's here.
The three speakers were all from local computer groups, and they all
basically said that the loss of the bbs's would be a detriment to the
industry and hobby as a whole.
After the 3rd speaker was finished, the President of Norfolk C&P stood
up and stated that "I am suspending all further action on this matter
pending more research." At that point, the president was given a 2-3
minute standing ovation from the crowd. He further said that, "I will
have the VP contact each of the sysops that received a letter in order
to arrange switching back to their previous service without charge".
The moderator then read several of the questions from the cards he
received. One was from a 16-year old Sysop asking how could he be running
a business on his C-64, he didn't even really know how to run one!
At that point, the meeting was forced to end due to the closing of the
meeting room (in the public Library).
The moderator and C&P representatives both stated that they would be
working with the local sysops on this subject, and that all would be
kept informed. Additionally, the President of the Norfolk C&P was offered
and accepted the use of a modem to hook up to his computer to use! He
would then call several of the local BBS's to see for himself what is
going on!
===================================================================
AUTHORS COMMENTS.
1. I will be receiving a verbatim transcript of the meeting from another
bbs later this week. I did NOT take notes, so all the above is from
my memory, and there very well could be inaccuracies in what I am
reporting.
Please do not take all the quotes as exact until I get the transcript.
I submitted this article now as I feel that people want to know what I
remember hearing, and the impact of the meeting.
2. The way I see it, the two big impacts on this are;
A.Business licenses - how would this fit in?
B.Fidonet/other "Networking" boards. They are the hardest hit. The
business rate for 'unlimited local calls' is ~$55.00/month compared to
~$20.00/month. Boards that do NO networking, or only call out long
distance would SAVE money, as the 'measured' rate for a business is
~$18.
C.The determination of what is a "business" and how does the telephone
company qualify what a "business" is.
______________________________________________________________
> CODEHEAD NEWS! STR Support * BLOCKBUSTER NEWS FROM THE CODEHEADS!! *
==========================
For immediate release
CodeHeadQuarters
Thursday, December 12, 1991
CODEHEAD TO TAKE OVER QUICK ST SUPPORT!
---------------------------------------
NEWSFLASH!
As of January 1, 1992, CodeHead Software will be taking over
worldwide development and distribution of the popular Quick ST 3.0
software accelerator!
Darek Mihocka, the original creator of Quick ST, is selling the flagship
product of Branch Always Software in order to spend more time developing
a PC based Atari ST emulator.
According to Darek, "The response to my emulator demo at the Chicago
Atarifest was very positive. In order to bring the emulator to market
in a timely fashion, it became clear that I couldn't do that while at
the same time trying to develop new versions of Quick ST. Both products
would ultimately suffer. In the capable hands of CodeHead Software,
Quick ST will continue to exist and be improved upon, and ST and TT
users can look forward to a long life for the product that speeds up
their machines. It's a win-win situation for everyone."
Quick ST 3 is a program that intercepts GEM's screen output routines,
and replaces them with highly optimized assembly language code that is
much faster. Windows pop open, graphics appear instantly, text zaps
onto the screen at high speed, and everything you do with your computer
takes less time. It's an indispensable utility for all owners of Atari
computers, since the built-in screen output routines are written in
slow, inefficient C code.
CodeHead Software is well-known for their line of utility and
productivity solutions (and now graphics software as well), and Quick ST
is a logical extension of that line. Charles F. Johnson, co-owner of
CodeHead, said, "We're quite excited about Quick ST, and are looking
forward to supporting this excellent product; and since we've purchased
the source code, you can also look forward to further development of the
program." Quick ST is now the only US-made screen accelerator that is
still being actively supported.
CodeHead will also be handling updates from older versions of Quick ST.
You can upgrade to the latest version by returning your original Quick
ST 2.x master disk to CodeHead Software along with a check or money
order for $20. Owners of Softrek's Turbo ST (any version) may also
upgrade to Quick ST 3 by sending in your Turbo ST master disk and
$20.00.
The retail price of Quick ST 3 is $34.95; to order, contact your local
dealer or call the CodeHead order desk at 213-386-5735. Mastercard,
Visa, and American Express accepted.
""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
A BRAND NEW COMPUTER FOR $140 --
CODEHEAD ANNOUNCES THE TOS EXTENSION CARD!
------------------------------------------
How would you like to have a BRAND NEW COMPUTER, with system software
that makes it the equal of anything else on the market ... for less
than $140?
Well, now you CAN!
CodeHead Software is proud to announce the TEC -- the TOS Extension
Card! This amazing little circuit board, developed by Germany's Artifex,
allows you to use the very latest version of Atari TOS (2.06) in your
existing 520ST, 1040ST, or Mega ST!
That's right! Now, you can have the same excellent new system software
that owners of Mega STes and TT030s are enjoying, without spending
megabucks for a whole new computer system. In fact, the price for this
upgrade, including the board, is only a little bit more than the price
to upgrade from TOS 1.0 to TOS 1.4!
The TEC is a tiny card that will fit in ANY model of ST computer,
regardless of design. It is compatible with existing upgrades, such as
monitor interface boards or processor cache cards. The low price
includes the ROMs containing TOS 2.06 -- and there sure are lots and
lots of new goodies in those little chips!
What TOS 2.06 Can Do for You
----------------------------
TOS 2.06 is a MAJOR upgrade to the ST's operating system; it's a vastly
more significant upgrade than from TOS 1.0 to TOS 1.4 (Rainbow TOS).
The most noticeable change is the new desktop, which has many of the
features of the popular commercial alternate desktops (and some unique
features too!), but with two BIG advantages: it does not use large
amounts of RAM, and it does not need to be loaded from disk.
Some of the features of the TOS 2.06 desktop:
o Programs, files, and folders can be placed directly on the desktop
and started with a double click.
o Up to 20 programs or documents can be assigned to the ST's function
keys and started with a single keypress.
o Data files can be "dragged" and dropped on program files, which
starts the program and automatically loads the document! Some
programs even support multiple document files in this manner.
o Each file on your disk can have its own unique icon, or you can use
a common icon type for each type of file. New icons can be created
and added to the system.
o Keyboard commands for almost everything! And not only can you
control the new desktop with the keyboard (as well as the mouse),
you can also redefine any of the key commands to suit your own
tastes!
o A powerful file search function, that lets you find and select files
that match your specified criteria.
o Window management is considerably enhanced; scrolling has been sped
up, and selected files can remain selected even if you scroll the
window to a different area of the file list.
o Up to seven desktop windows can be open at once, and you can open
directory windows with simple key presses -- even change a window to
show a different drive without closing and reopening it.
o The "View" menu now has an "unsorted" option, for showing the actual
order of files and folders in a directory.
o Any character in the "upper half" of the ST's font can be typed in
by holding the Alternate key and typing its ASCII number on the
numeric keypad.
o Many of the special functions of the desktop (like copying,
renaming, etc.) can now operate in "batch mode", to let you quickly
rename or show info for a group of selected files, for example.
o The bootup sequence now includes a graphic display of the Atari Fuji
logo, and a memory test, and a configurable bootup delay that allows
hard drives time to power up. It's also possible to bypass the AUTO
folder entirely by holding Control during bootup.
o Internal changes in the TOS program code result in very noticeable
performance improvements in many areas.
o ...and of course, lots more. This list barely shows the tip of the
iceberg, in fact.
The TOS Extension Card
----------------------
Because the new TOS 2.06 is located at a different address and requires
more space in the ROMs, you can't simply pull out your old ROMs and plug
in the new ones. This is where the TEC comes in!
The TOS Extension Card can be installed in any model of ST within
minutes. Its size is a mere 2.5" x 2.5", and its unique design allows
it to be placed almost anywhere inside the case of the computer. This
means that it will even work if you have a hardware accelerator, MS-DOS
emulator, or graphic card already installed. Some simple soldering is
required to install the base model of the TEC; any authorized dealer
should be able to handle it easily.
There are also two other configurations of the TEC that are 100% plug-in
solutions, requiring no soldering:
o The TECbridge BUS card, which plugs into the processor bus of the
Mega ST.
o The TECbridge CPU, for computers which have socketed 68000 chips.
This option plugs into the CPU socket, and requires that there be
enough room above the CPU within the case.
The Price
---------
The retail price of the TOS Extension Card is $139.00. This price
includes the TEC board, Atari's official TOS 2.06 ROMs, a disk
containing the official Atari system utilities (including the new
XCONTROL Control Panel), and a manual describing the installation of the
TEC and the new features of TOS 2.06. The TECbridge BUS and TECbridge
CPU options are priced at $155.00.
The TEC will begin shipping on January 10, 1992 (maybe even sooner,
depending on how long it takes to translate the manual); advance orders
are being accepted now. Of course, we won't charge your credit card or
cash your check until your order has been shipped. To place an advance
order for the TEC, call the CodeHead order desk at 213-386-5735.
Mastercard, Visa, and American Express accepted.
CodeHead Software
P.O. Box 74090
Los Angeles, CA 90004
Tel 213-386-5735
Fax 213-386-5789
_____________________________________________________
> STR Portfolio News & Information Keeping up to date...
================================
THE ATARI PORTFOLIO FORUM
=========================
On CompuServe
by Don Messerli 72500,1671
The underlying theme in the forum for November and December is the
programming marathon. As the original three programmers: BJ Gleason, Don
Messerli, and Dave Stewart uploaded a program a day between them, a
momentum began to build. Many programmers and creative forum members have
uploaded programs, text files, pictures, and animations.
The marathon has been a tremendous success. However, as they come
into the home stretch, our faithful marathoners need your help to get them
to the finish line. THEY NEED IDEAS. Many great ideas have been
submitted. Of course, not all can be done in short order. Rest assured,
these "more involved" programs will probably be completed after the
marathon is over. So, let's hear your ideas and wishes for Portfolio
programs. Don't let the marathoners "hit the wall".
The much anticipated PortCIS Compuserve Navigator has arrived. Jim
Ness has written a communications program that logs onto CompuServe, reads
your mail (or the mail you specify), and captures the descriptions of any
new files in the libraries automatically. This is all controlled by a
script that you write using a simple scripting language. An example
script is included to get you up and going. This program, besides from
being very useful, has accomplished a couple of firsts in the forum. It
is the first full application written in PowerBASIC, which was recently
released. Jim also sought out and received quite a bit of user feedback
in the Message area BEFORE the program was released.
This is a good example of how Portfolio users can influence the
products they will ultimately use by dropping in on the Message section on
CompuServe.
A largely untapped source of programs for the Portfolio is BASIC
programs written for other computers. PBASIC is the most popular public
domain program for the Portfolio. PowerBASIC brings the power of a
compiler to the scene. Programs written in BASIC for other computers are
all over CompuServe. These programs can be ported with relatively little
effort. A good example is WCA.ZIP, uploaded by BJ Gleason. It was
originally written for the Tandy Model 100 and was found hiding in the
AVSIG Aviation Forum. It is a simple flight computer. This week BJ also
uploaded CDRIVE.ZIP, a program to detect the presence of a Flashdrive,
8088.ADR, an Address Book file that's a quick reference to 8088 assembly
language instructions, RUNPB.ZIP, a program to run PowerBASIC from within
the Portfolio's Editor to compile the program you are currently editing,
and DATEFN.BAS, date functions for PBASIC.
Also uploaded were INTL.ZIP (by me, Don Messerli), a database of
international telephone access codes for use with DBSHOW, SHO.ZIP
(uploaded by Henry Hahlbohm), shows disk space used in a bar chart format,
BANNER.ZIP (by Dave Stewart), a program to display large text banners on
the Portfolio's screen, PGCPCX.ZIP (by Don Messerli), to convert PGC
pictures to PCX files for importing into your favorite PC-based paint
program, and PARC.ARC (uploaded by Adrian Simonian) a collection of ARC
archive related programs that run on the Port.
One continuing topic of discussion has always been the use of
different modems with the Portfolio. Will it work? Will it drain my
batteries? Is it small enough? Howard Blumenthal has uploaded a file,
NEWMOD.TXT, that discusses the new Hayes Pocket Edition modem.
What do we do to top the marathon, there are already a few things
rolling around the minds of the forum's SYSOPS. A PGfliX animation
contest has been briefly discussed. Now, it looks like there will be a
24-hour online conference marathon. They are still trying to nail down a
suitable time and date, we'll keep you posted. That reminds me of a
movie. I think it was called, "they shoot SYSOPS, don't they?".
Camera! Action!
________________________________________________________
> User Group List STR InfoFile Those who strongly support....
============================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
Atari Computer User Groups Listing Updated 12/08/91
Editor: Lawrence Estep; CompuServe: 71450,1050, Delphi: LESTEP
GEnie: L.ESTEP1 Internet: 71450.1050@COMPUSERVE.COM
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
ALABAMA (Sorted by ZIP code)
Alabama ACE*
PO Box 1205
Tuscaloosa AL 35403-1205
Joe Moudry (205) 556-1781
HAUG*
3911 W Crestview
Huntsville AL 35816
Levin Soule (205) 534-1815
BBS (205) 722-0900
ARIZONA (Sorted by ZIP code)
NPAC*
PO Box 36364
Phoenix AZ 85067
Paul Parks (602) 278-2375
SVAC
PO Box 662
Chandler AZ 85224
Tim Barr (602) 821-1200
Meetings: 3rd Sat., 10 AM
3234 S. Fair Lane, Tempe AZ
AIM newsletter participant
TAC*
1426 W Kilburn Rd
Tucson AZ 85705-9232
Ray Waters (602) 887-4196
ARKANSAS
LRAA*
28 John Hanco*ck Cir
Jacksonville AR 72076
Keith Steensma (501) 985-2131
CALIFORNIA (Sorted by ZIP code)
(ZIP codes 90000-90999):
ICE
PO Box 5085
Two Harbors CA 90704
William D. Peterson (213) 510-1807
Atari ST support
Meetings: 2nd Wed., 8 PM
LBACE*
PO Box 92812
Long Beach CA 90809-2812
Lee Curtis (213) 423-2758
(ZIP codes 91000-91999):
HACKS*
249 North Brand Blvd #321
Glendale CA 91206
John King Tarpinian (818) 246-7286
SCVACE
19449 Nadal St
Canyon Country CA 91351
Mark Ostrove (805) 252-6881
8-bit meeting on 1st Thursday, 16-bit meeting on 3rd Thursday
AAUG*
PO Box 1433
Upland CA 91786-1433
Todd Bane (714) 737-4329
BBS (714) 625-4251
(ZIP codes 92000-92999):
San Diego ST Users Workshop*
902 Nolan Way
Chula Vista CA 92011
Chester Edwards (619) 224-5090
ERACE*
1906 Avineda Del Diablo
Escondido CA 92025
Gary Martin (619) 489-9872
SDACE*
PO Box 900076
San Diego CA 92120
Mike Bergman (619) 558-7866
BBS (619) 558-7866
The Desert Atarians
47-800 Madison St #53
Indio CA 92201
Lee Ellis (619) 342-1600
BBS (619) 342-1647
Pass Area ST Enthusiasts*
1145 West Westward
Banning CA 92220
Steve Miller (714) 849-7927
AUGIE*
3905 N Lugo Ave
San Bernardino CA 92404
Cajon Computer Club*
639 W 36th St
San Bernardino CA 92405
Tim Adams (714) 882-6784
ACAOC
PO Box 9419
Fountain Valley CA 92708
Larry Weinheimer (714) 969-9053
BBS (714) 778-1228
Meetings : 2nd Sunday at 1:00 P.M.
Fellowship Room of the North Orange Christian Church
16561 Lincoln Avenue (between Tustin Ave. & Orange-Olive Rd.)
CompuServe contact : Rick Meredith [76157,30]
GEnie address: TOPNOTCH
BBS (714) 778-1228
NOCCC ST-Sig*
3852 Balsa
Irvine CA 92714
Dain Leese (714) 552-5185
(ZIP codes 93000-93999):
RAM of Ventura County*
PO Box 112
Camarillo CA 93011
Tim McCoy (805) 482-4788
BBS (805) 987-6985
SBACE*
PO Box 3678
Santa Barbara CA 93130-3678
Avery Galbraith (805) 687-1075
Bakersfield ACE*
PO Box 40203
Bakersfield CA 93308
Anthony Garcia (805) 397-9566
Atari Federation*
PO Box 5367
Vanderberg AFB CA 93437
Chester Hadely (805) 733-4177
SMLACE*
PO Box 2286
Orcutt CA 93457-2286
Eric A. Daniels (805) 929-3296
AVACE*
PO Box 512
Palmdale CA 93590
(805) 945-9780
BBS (805) 723-0093
SVACE
672 E Romie Ln
Salinas CA 93901
President: Gary Klugman [70277,1000]
Meetings : 1st Tuesday of each month
Salinas Community Center, 7:30 P.M.
BitStream BBS (408) 449-2150
(ZIP codes 94000-94999):
ABACUS
PO Box 22212
San Francisco CA 94122
Roger Sinasohn (415) 337-9534
Meetings: 1st Saturday, 10 A.M. Atari 8-bit, 11 A.M.
General, Noon Atari ST
Membership: $20/yr full membership or $15/yr BBS/newsletter.
SLCC
PO Box 1506
San Leandro CA 94577-0374
President: Bob Barton
Meetings 1st Tuesday, ST SIG 2nd Monday
Newsletter : SLCC Journal (monthly)
Member Dues: $20/yr
Key System 8-bit BBS (415) 352-5528, Stu's Place ST BBS (415) 782-4023
CompuServe contact: Bob Wooley [75126,3446]
(ZIP codes 95000-95999):
Atari Users Group Of South Santa Clara County
52222 Carryback Ave
San Jose CA 95111
Ron Reade (408) 225-7162
Meetings 2nd Wed at San Jose Computer
BBS (408) 848-6032 Atari ST support
ST ACE of Sonoma County*
PO Box 4916
Santa Rosa CA 95402
Hal Anderson (707) 542-1745
ACCESS
PO Box 1354
Sacramento CA 95812-1354
President: Mark O'Connell
All Atari 8-bit user group
COLORADO (Sorted by ZIP code)
FRAUG*
3012 Rockborough Ct
Fort Collins CO 80525
Jerry Belfor (303) 223-2604
BBS (303) 223-1297
Pikes Peek and Poke ACE*
PO Box 17779
Colorado Springs CO 80935-7779
Rick Reaser
CONNECTICUT (Sorted by ZIP code)
AUGOGH
PO Box 289
Windsor Locks CT 06096-0289
William Midyette (203) 870-7034, CompuServe [76406,455],
GEnie W.A.MIDYETTE
1 Abbott Rd, #78, Ellington CT 06029-9501
BBS (203) 871-0696
STAUS*
176 Burnside
E Hartford CT 06180
Brian Rufini (203) 289-7903
FCACE*
362 Hattertown Rd
Monroe CT 06468
Paula Burton (203) 452-1716
STAR Atari ST Road Runners
263 Guinevere Ridge
Cheshire CT 06492
Lou Demetriou (203) 271 0452
BBS (203) 421-4861
DELAWARE
CDACC*
PO Box 545
Camden DE 19934
Tom Baldwin (302) 678-9411
FLORIDA (Sorted by ZIP code)
ST J.A.U.G./J.A.C.E.*
c/o R.F. Mariano
PO Box 6672
Jacksonville, FL 32205-6672
904-783-3319
The Bounty ST BBS 12-19.2 bps 904-786-4176 24hrs.
Meetings: EO Monday 7:00pm - 10:00pm
ABLE
c/o Hadley Nelson
PO Box 1172
Winter Park FL 32790
PACE
12500 Ulmerton Rd Lot 196
Largo FL 34644
President: Joan Raia
Meetings: 1st Saturday, 2 P.M., Largo Public Library, 351 E. Bay Dr.
Dues: $10/yr per family
Hacker's Zone BBS (813) 584-2425, Tut's BBS (813) 797-8449
Newsletter: The PACESetter
4663 60th Street North
Kenneth City FL 33709
GEORGIA
MGAUG*
c/o Pete Miller
115 Feagin Mill Rd
Warner Robins GA 31088
(912) 328-8758
IDAHO (Sorted by ZIP code)
RACE
301 Birch St
Mountain Home ID 83647
Meetings: 3rd Tuesday, 7 P.M.-Pizza Express
Carson Walden (208) 587-7476
Dues: $10/yr w/1 free PD disk
Rattlesnake STation BBS (208) 587-7603
BAUG
c/o Frank Chan
3073 S Riba Ridge Way
Boise ID 83709
(208) 376-5603
BBS (208) 362-2243
ILLINOIS (Sorted by ZIP code)
SCA*
c/o Alvin Riesbeck
PO Box 7226
Roselle IL 60172
(708) 985-0693
BBS (708) 231-7227
ClAUG North
Meetings: Wright College, 3400 N Austin Ave, Chicago IL 60634
3rd Saturday, 11 A.M.
BBS: (312) 889-1340
ClAUG South
Meetings: Daley College, 5830 W 95th St, Oak Lawn IL 60645
4th Saturday, 11 A.M.
BBS: (312) 422-4476
ClAUG
PO Box 66583
AMF O'Hare IL 60666-0583
President: Gerry Fied
(See ClAUG North and ClAUG South above for more information)
LCACE
PO Box 8788
Waukegan IL 60079-8788
(312) 623-3815
Python BBS (312) 680-5105
Dues: $20/yr per family
Meetings: 2nd Saturday, 11 A.M.
Warre
n-Newport Public Library, 244 O'Plains Road, Gurnee,IL Newsletter : LCACE News Journal
GAUG*
c/o Michael Burkley
PO Box 55
Viola IL 61486
(309) 596-4152
ST Information Group*
c/o Joe Lambert
1116 Woodlawn Ct
Pekin IL 61554
CIAUG*
c/o Robert Handley
1920 E Croxton Ave
Bloomington IL 61701-5702
(309) 828-4661
EAUG*
c/o Hank Vize
2425 Crislisa Dr
Alton IL 62002
(618) 465-0342
BBS (618) 254-6077
INDIANA (Sorted by ZIP code)
ASCII
c/o Dan Ward
1752 Alimingo Dr
Indianapolis IN 46260
(317) 254-0031
ST Archive BBS (317) 353-9326
GEnie contact: D.WARD10
BlAST
c/o Bill Loring
PO Box 1111
Bloomington IN 47402
(812) 336-8103
BBS (812) 332-0573
GEnie contact: W.LORING1
CRAG*
c/o Jeff Coe
PO Box 10995
Merrillville IN 46411-0995
IOWA
Midwest Atari Group-Iowa Chapter*
c/o Gordie Meyer
PO Box 1982
Ames IA 50010
(515) 232-1252
KANSAS (Sorted by ZIP code)
FLAG*
PO Box 3233
Fort Leavenworth KS 66027
LACC*
PO Box 1415
Lawrence KS 66044
Robert Drake (913) 842-5961
Midwest ST Atari Resource*
c/o Gary Leach
7213 Mastin
Merriam KS 66203
WACE*
c/o Marilyn Merica
501 Trotter
Maize KS 67101
(316) 722-1078
KENTUCKY
AEL
PO Box 34183
Louisville KY 40232
President: William "Doug" Lampert
Atari Scene! BBS (502) 456-4292
Dues: $20/yr per family
Newsletter: $3.50/yr w/membership (mailed), $8.75/yr non member mailed
Meetings: 2nd Saturday, 11:30 A.M.
Central Jefferson County Government Center
7201 Outer Loop
DC (8-bit) Sig meetings 1st Wednesday, 7:30 P.M., Leader: Rich Link
ASTRO (ST) Sig meetings 4th Wednesday, 7:30 P.M., Leader: Jan Wilt
Location for DC & ASTRO Sigs: Bon Air Library
2816 Del Rio Place
LOUISIANIA
NOACE
c/o Dave Porter
PO Box 73236
Metairie LA 70033
(504) 887-7505
MARYLAND (Sorted by ZIP code)
MAST*
c/o Bob Johnson
1616B Forrest Avenue
Ft Meade MD 20755
AURA*
PO Box 7761
Silver Spring MD 20910
Steve Duggan (301) 890-3889
Maryland Atari Computer Club*
c/o James Hill
8591 Wheatfield Way
Ellicott City MD 21043
(301) 461-7556
Frederick Atari Computer Enthusiasts*
c/o Buddy Smallwood
923 N Market Street
Frederick MD 21701
MASSACHUSETTS (Sorted by ZIP code)
WMAUG*
c/o David Scarpa
285-A Gates Street
Palmer MA 01069-9617
BBS (413) 589-1382
NVACUS
c/o Ray Wallace
PO Box 456
Maynard MA 01754
(508) 534-0699
BACS*
1 Center Plaza
Boston MA 02108
Jerry Feldman (617) 244-3025
BBS (617) 396-4607
SSAG*
PO Box 129
Boston MA 02136
Norman Boucher (617) 361-0590
NAACC
c/o Computer Zone
28 E Washington St
N Attleboro MA 02760
Contacts: Joe Heroux/Secretary (508) 533-2619
GEnie address: JOE.HEROUX
Bob Levetin/President (508) 699-0430
Meetings last Tuesday except July and December at the Computer Zone on
Route 1 in North Attleboro.
MICHIGAN (Sorted by ZIP code)
MACE
PO Box 2785
Southfield MI 48037
President: Ed Hanson (313) 675-0044
Meetings 3rd Tuesday, 7:30 P.M. at:
Southfield Civic Center, Evergreen & 10 1/2 Mile Rd
MAGIC*
c/o Mike Lechkun
4801 Martin Rd
Warren MI 48092-3491
BBS (313) 978-7363
Great Lakes Atari ST Support*
c/o Byron Johnson
PO Box 99737
Troy MI 48099
CHAOS
PO Box 16132
Lansing MI 48901
President: Leo Sell
BBS (517) 394-6852
Meetings 3rd Saturday, 10 A.M. at Capitol Federal, 250 E. Saginaw
STING*
c/o Ron Schultheis
PO Box 321
Marne MI 49435-0321
MINNESOTA
SPACE
PO Box 120016
New Brighton MN 55112
President: Nathan Block
BBS (612) 488-5973
Meetings 2nd Friday, 7:30 P.M. at Falcon Heights Community Center, 2077
W. Larpenter.
MISSISSIPPI
CAAUG
c/o Lowen Overby
PO Box 5098
Biloxi MS 39534
(601) 388-1515
MISSOURI (Sorted by ZIP code)
ACE St. Louis*
PO Box 6783
St. Louis MO 63144
Joan Ryan (314) 645-6431
KCAC
7837B Wornall Rd
Kansas City MO 64114
(816) 363-2814
Meetings at Baptist Medical Center, 66th and Rockhill Rd. on first
Tuesday
MONTANA
Rattlesnake ACE*
c/o Tom Tucker
PO Box 9457
Missoula MT 59807
(406) 626-4410
BBS (406) 777-3992
NEBRASKA
O-ACES (Omaha - Atari Computer Enthusiasts)
PO Box 723
Papillion NE 68046
Peter Killian (402) 592-542 or (402) 294-6232 (day)
CompuServe User I.D. [72017,72], GEnie: P.KILLIAN
Meetings on second and LAST Wednesday (except Nov/Dec when only 2nd Wed.)
at La Vista Recreation Center, 8116 Parkview Blvd., La Vista, NE 68128
Dues: $18.00/yr (AIM included in dues)
NEVADA
HSAUG*
PO Box 2152
Sparks NV 89432
Michael O'Masey (702) 972-3659
NEW HAMPSHIRE
NASTUS
c/o Don Peters
51 Cheyenne Dr
Nashua NH 03063
(603) 883-0347
NEW JERSEY
JACG*
PO Box 5206
Newark NJ 07105-0206
(201) 241-4554
NEW YORK (Sorted by ZIP code)
Atari Computer User's Group Of Westchester*
4 Charlotte St
White Plains NY 10606
Roland Herman (914) 946-4134
RACUG*
c/o Richard Bloch
29 Riverglen Dr
Thiells NY 10984
(914) 429-5283
LIAUG
PO Box 92
Islip NY 11751
CDACE*
PO Box 511
Delmar NY 12054
Joe Boggard (518) 785-4071
BBS (518) 237-1232
ACE Of Syracuse*
204 E Patricia Ln
North Syracuse NY 13212-3218
Kenneth Wickert (315) 458-6077
Backstairs BBS (315) 458-0118
ACO Of Rochester*
PO Box 23676
Rochester NY 14692
Bruce Nelson (716) 334-5513
NORTH CAROLINA (Sorted by ZIP Code)
TCC*
c/o Donald Nelson
Rt 3 Box 760
Hillsborough NC 27278
(919) 942-2764
PTAUG
PO Box 1073
Greensboro NC 27402
Meetings are on the last Wednesday of each month (except July and
December) Folk Recreation Center, 3910 Clifton Road, Greensboro NC 27402
Dues: $15/yr
President: Danny Hartman (919) 722-9902
Co-sponsored by the Greensboro Parks & Recreation Department.
BRACE*
c/o Sheldon Winick
40 Westgate Parkway #F
Asheville NC 28806
(704) 251-0201
GACE*
c/o Mary Anne Terminato
19 Alpine Way
Greenville NC 29609
(803) 292-2690
OHIO (Sorted by ZIP code)
CACE*
PO Box 93034
Cleveland OH 44101-5034
John Savarda
NOAH*
c/o Doug Novak
5538 Pearl Road
Parma OH 44129
Doug Novak (216) 845-6260
BBS (216) 582-1904
CINTARI
PO Box 14959
Cincinnati OH 45214
Roger Miller (513) 367-6842
Meetings 2nd Saturday
MVACE*
PO Box 24221
Dayton OH 45424
Joe Lovett (513) 847-3970
OKLAHOMA
STIE
c/o Steve Balch
PO Box 161
Nicoma Park OK 73066
(405) 340-9233
OREGON
PAC*
PO Box 1692
Beaverton OR 97005
David Moore (503) 240-1913
PENNSYLVANIA (Sorted by ZIP code)
WAO*
230 Clairmont St
N Huntington PA 15642
Keith Krause (412) 834-5678
SAGE*
PO Box 10562
Erie PA 16514-0562
Earl Hill (814) 833-9905
BBS (814) 833-4073
SPACE
PO Box 11446
Harrisburg PA 17108-1446
Richard Basso (717) 761-3755
ABEACE*
PO Box 2830
Lehigh Valley PA 18001
(215) 868-4856
NATUG*
PO Box 18150
Philadelphia PA 19116-0150
Allan Zaluda (215) 677-6751
BBS (215) 677-1370
RHODE ISLAND
RIACE*
c/o Steve Dunphy
192 Webster Ave
Providence RI 02909
(401) 621-5359
SOUTH DAKOTA
RACE*
c/o Kenneth Kayl
902 Virginia Ln
Rapid City SD 57701
(605) 343-7289
TENNESSEE (Sorted by ZIP Code)
CAOS*
PO Box 80101
Chattanooga TN 37411
Phil Snider
KAUG*
c/o John Cole
9109 Parktop Ln Apt C
Knoxville TN 37923
(615) 691-4435
BBS (615) 691-0113
CACE*
c/o Robert Pecora
280 Capshaw Dr
Cookeville TN 38501
(615) 528-7116
TEXAS (Sorted by ZIP Code)
AUNT*
PO Box 852016
Richardson TX 75085-2016
Gary Sewell (214) 727-6567
DAL-ACE*
PO Box 851872
Richardson TX 75085-1872
Rachel Duke (214) 429-6134
AAAUA*
PO Box 79-1426
San Antonio TX 78279-1426
Al Sherrill (512) 492-6633
Atari ST Club of El Paso*
c/o Tim Holt
10953 Yogi Berra
El Paso TX 79934
(915) 821-2048
VIRGINIA (Sorted By ZIP Code)
NOVATARI*
PO Box 4076
Merrifield VA 22116
Earl Lilley (703) 281-9017
WACUG*
13408 Marumsco Dr
Woodbridge VA 22191
Ron Dunn (703) 494-4260
GRASP*
c/o Thomas Marvin
1420 Yale Ave
Richmond VA 23224
(804) 233-6155
STATUS*
c/o Buck Maddrey
5425 Shenstone Cir
Virginia Beach VA 23455
(804) 464-2100
BBS (804) 495-3905
WASHINGTON (Sorted By ZIP Code)
BRACE*
PO Box 70097
Bellevue WA 98007
Joe Mraz (206) 747-2433
STDIO*
c/o Ralph Plaggenburg
904 N 33rd Pl
Renton WA 98056
(206) 228-5303
STarBase*
c/o Steve Drake
8307 27th NW
Seattle WA 98117
(206) 782-3691
R-AUG*
PO Box 845
Oak Harbor WA 98277
Mike Barret (206) 675-7167
TRACE*
c/o Tery Schreiber
Box 2037
Point Roberts WA 98281
(604) 943-4786
KCACE*
PO Box 2333
Bremerton WA 98310
Bill Penner (206) 373-4840
SPSACE*
c/o Nick Berry
Box 110576
Tacoma WA 98411-0576
(206) 759-1473
SWAG*
PO Box 1515
Vancouver WA 98668-1515
Allan co*kes
BBS (206) 574-1146
Atari Association Of Desert Dwellers*
c/o Rick Raymond
Rt 1 PO Box 5296
Richland WA 99352
WISCONSIN (Sorted By ZIP Code)
PACUS*
c/o Peter Schefsky
2714 South 11th Pl
Sheboygan WI 53081
MAAUG*
PO Box 14038
West Allis WI 53214
Linda Heinrich (414) 421-2376
MASTUG*
PO Box 25679
Milwaukee WI 53225
Bruce Welsch (414) 463-9662
CWAUG*
c/o Thomas Ptak
217 S Schmidt Ave
Marshfield WI 54449
(715) 387-4512
To add your user group to this listing, please send the following
information to Lawrence Estep at the online service addresses listed at
the top of this file, or on the Atari Scene! BBS (502) 456-4292. Your
information will be confirmed via Electronic Mail, and will be added to
the listing when the next update is made:
Group name
Address
Name and phone number of contact person(s) Online service id(s) (if
applicable) of contact person(s)
Meeting time(s)/location(s)
Support provided for which computers (8-bit, ST, etc.)
Additional information if available
(Bulletin Board System number, newsletter information, yearly dues,
etc.).
Thanks for helping to keep this listing as accurate as possible.
-Lawrence Estep
Editor
CompuServe contacts: Lawrence Estep [71450,1050]
Bill Marcum [72750,476]
GEnie contacts: L.ESTEP1 (Lawrence Estep)
R.LINK1 (Rich Link)
____________________________________________________________
> SANTA'S HELPERS STR InfoFile Where to get those goodies!
============================
PRODUCT SOURCES FOR ATARI ENTHUSIASTS
=====================================
ATARI CORPORATION Computer Studio
1196 Borregas Avenue 40 Westgate Parkway
Sunnyvale, CA. 94086 Asheville, NC 28806
(408) 745-2000 (800) 253-0201
Mft. Hardware/Software Authorized Atari Dealer
ABCO Computer Electronics Gribnif Software
P.O. Box 6672 P.O. Box 350
Jacksonville, FL. 32221 Hadley, MA 01035
(800) 562-4037 (413) 584-7887
Full Line Dealer & Mass Storage NeoDesk-Turbo C-Stalker-Steno
Rising Star Computers Horizon Computers
P. O. Box 20038 695 S. Colorado Blvd., #10
Dayton, OH 45420-0038 Denver, CO 80222
(800) 252-2787 (303) 777-8080
Full Line Dealer Authorized Atari Dealer
A & D Software ISD Marketing Inc.
226 NW 'F' Street 2651 John St., Unit #3
Grants Pass, OR 97526 Markham, Ontario, CA *L3R 2W5
(503) 476-0071 (416) 479-1880
Universal Item Selector Calamus, DynaCadd etc...
Alpha Systems L & Y Computers
1012 Skyland 13644c Jefferson Davis H'wy.
Macedonia, OH 44056 Woodbridge, Va. 22191
(216) 467-5665 (703) 494-3444
16 and 8 bit Support Atari products and Software
ASDE Inc. Maxwell CPU
151 Rue Jolicoeur 2124 W. Centennial Dr.
Hull, Quebec Canada J8Z1C8 Louisville, CO 80027
(819) 770-7681 (303) 666-7754
Geography Tutor etc... Expose - Silhouette
Atari Interface Magazine Step Ahead Software Inc.
3487 Braeburn Circle 496-A Hudson Street Suite F39
Ann Arbor, MI 48108 New York City, N.Y. 10014
(313) 973-8825 (212) 627-5830
Atari Magazine and Monthly Disk Tracker ST
B&C ComputerVisions Mars Merchandising
3257 Kifer Road 1041b St. Charles Rd.
Santa Clara, CA 95051 Lombard Il.
(408) 749-1003 (817) 589-2950
Atari Products & Supplies Atari Products & Accs.
Branch Always Software Lantech
14150 N.E. 20th St. PO Box R
Bellevue, WA 98007 Billerica, MA 01821
(206) 885-5893 (508) 667-9191
Quick ST, Software 10 Megabit Local Area Network
Best Electronics Migraph Inc.
2021 The Alameda Suite 290 200 S. 333rd St.
San Jose, CA 95126 Federal Way, WA 98003
(408) 243-6950 (206) 838-4677
THE Atari parts source & Supplies Top Notch Graphical Products
Computer Garden MicroTyme
WestSide Mall 4049 Marshall Road
Edwardsville, PA 18704 Kettering, OH 45429
(800) 456-5689 (800) 255-5835
Discount Software Discount Hardware & Software
Carter Graphics & Computers Practical Solutions Inc.
914 W. Sunset Blvd. 1135 N. Jones Blvd.
St. George, UT 84770 Tucson, AZ 85716
(801) 628-6111 (602) 322-6100
Atari Products Atari support products
CodeHead Software Prospero Software
P.O. Box 74090 100 Commercial St.
Los Angeles, CA 90004 Suite 306 Portland, ME 04101
(213) 386-5735 (207) 874-0382
Software Products "Codekeys" Software Products
Comput-Ability Rio Datel Computers
P.O. Box 17882 3430 E. Tropicana Ave., #65
Milwaukee, WI 53217 Las Vegas, NE 89121
(414) 357-8181 (800) 782-9110
Atari Products & Distributor International Products
CompuServe Information Service San Jose Computers
P. O. Box 20212 640 Blossom Hill Road
Columbus, OH 43220-0212 San Jose, CA 95123
(614) 457-0802 (408) 224-8575
Online Services Atari Products
D.A. Brumleve Seagate Technology
607 West Illinois Street 920 Disc Drive
Urbana, IL 61801 Scotts Valley, CA 95066
(217) 337-0674 (800) 468-3472
High Quality Kiddie Software Hard Drive Mechanisms
Debonair Software Sideline Software
P.O. Box 521166 840 NW 57th Court
Salt Lake City, UT 84152 Fort Lauderdale, FL 33309
EL CAL The Math Machine (305) 771-9035
Atari Support Products International Software Source
Zephyr/STPlus SofTrek
P.O. Box 1197 P.O. Box 5257
Berkeley, CA. 94701 Winter Park, FL 32793
(800) 759-1110 (407) 657-4611
Atari Support Products TurboST "The Software Blitter"
Double Click Software ST Informer
P.O. Box 741206 909 NW Starlite Place
Houston, TX 77274 Grants Pass OR 97526
(712) 977-6520 (503) 476-0071
Software Developer Monthly Newspaper
Duggan DeZign Inc. Strata Software
16 Oak Ridge Dr. 94 Rowe Drive
West Warwick RI 02893 Kanata Ontario Canada K2L 3Y9
(401) 826-2961 (613) 591-1922
"Designs with Fun in Mind!" Stalker/Steno TeleCom
Fast Technology Talon Technology
P.O. Box 578 243 N. Hwy. 101, Ste 11
Amdover, MA 01810 Solana Beach, CA 92075
(508) 475-3810 (619) 792-6511
16Mhz 68000 Accelerator Supercharger IBM Emulator
Gadgets by Small Zubair Interfaces
40 W. Littleton Blvd. 5243b Paramount Blvd.
#210-211, Littleton, CO 80120 Lakewood CA. 90712
(303) 791-6098 (213) 408-6715
Spectre GCR MAC Emulator Ass't Atari upgrades
Goldleaf Publishing, Inc. Omnimon Peripherals Inc.
700 Larkspur Landing Circle, One Tech Dr. Bldg. 1E, #301
Suite 199 Larkspur, CA 94939 Irvine, CA 92718
(415) 461-5703 (714) 753-9253
WordFlair Document Processor WuzTek Atari support products
Dr. Bobware Wiz Works!
180 N. Hazeltine Avenue P.O. Box 45
Campbell, OH. 44405-1024 Girard, OH. 44420
(216) 743-4712 (216) 539-5623
MVG & Modules Graphics Image Cat - MugShot!
GEnie Information Services Taylor Ridge Books
401 N. Washington Street P.O. Box 48
Rockville, MD 20850-1785 Manchester, Ct. 06040
(800) 638-9636 (203) 643-9673
Online Services Cmanship 'C' programming
Hayes Microcomputer Inc. US ROBOTICS INC.
705 Westech Drive 8100 No. McCormick Blvd.
Norcross, GA 30092 Skokie, IL 60076
(404) 662-7100 (800) 982-5151
Modems - TeleCom Modems-BBS Sysop Program
ICD Inc. Soft Logik
1220 Rock St. 11131F S. Towne Sq.
Rockford, Il. 61101-1437 St Louis, MO 63123
(815) 968-2228 (314) 894-8608
Hardware Peripherals PageStream 2.1 DTP Software
Innovative Concepts (I.C.) Hybrid Arts Inc.
31172 Shawn Drive 8522 National Blvd.
Warren, MI 48093 Los Angeles, CA 90232
(313) 293-0730 (213) 841-0340
Full Service Dealer Software for the Musician
Mirrorsoft Ltd Supra Corp.
118 Southwark St. 1133 Commercial Way
London, UK SEI OSW Albany, OR 97321
011-43-928-1454 (503) 967-9075
UK Software Dev. Modems - Hard Drives
GT Software Word Perfect Corp.
12114 Kirton Avenue 1555 Technology Way
Cleveland OH 44135 Orem, UT 84057
(216) 252-8255 (801) 222-5800
Sofware Dev. Word Perfect wp
Spectrum HoloByte STR International.
2061 Challenger Dr. PO Box 6672
Alamedo, CA 94501 Jacksonville, FL 32205
(415) 522-3584 (800) 562-4037
Falcon F16 Software STReport Online Magazine
______________________________
> STReport's Editorial Page "Saying it like it is."
From the Editor's Desk
----------------------
"Tis the season to be jolly...." well Christmas is almost upon us.
Are you ready? I know I am not. It appears that most of the country is
in a deep recession. But. Its just not happening in Florida. I don't
know what's happened, but I'll tell you this much... I cannot keep enough
product in stock. Atari computers, they're amazing! I can sell all I can
get. I hear from dealers all over the country and the majority are
running under very tight conditions. One said that no matter what, after
this holiday season, he was going mail order only. He said he was tired
of the massive overhead and cut throat lowballers that are seemingly
"allowed" to clobber the real value in the entire Atari line. I
sympathize with the man but I am overjoyed that he has seen the light.
Mail order is the way to go if the value is to be enjoyed by both the
dealer and the consumer.
Its true there are still a few low ball artists left in the Atari
arena. They too, will fall. Everyone thought Griffin's deals were too
good to be true, they were! They cut the margins so tight they choked.
Why am I writing about this? Its easy, in the Atari world, there are some
very good dealers, including mail order, who are fine, upstanding business
people in the Atari community. These dealers are continually faced with
the prospect of investing in inventory, in hopes of serving the Atarian,
only to have its value trashed by some "wiseguy" looking to turn a quick
buck. You know the kind, they'll undersell anyone and seem to take a
sinister joy in doing so. According to our information, Atari knows about
the few left in this arena who are very busy viciously lowballing. Of
course, the other dealers are getting the impression that Atari is
helpless in this matter. The real reason could possibly come under
"restraint of trade" or so some would like us to think. Here is a
positive tidbit, there are a number of dealers who have recently formed an
alliance in hopes of crushing the lowballers by "beating them at their own
game". It should get very interesting. At least the users will enjoy the
'learn a lesson sessions'.
In this issue we have the FANTASTIC ANNOUNCEMENTS BY CODEHEAD
detailing more of the superb support the y afford the userbase. TOS 2.06
for everyone! And the continued support for Quick ST. CODEHEAD IS SURE
TO BE THE FOLKS FOR YOU IN '92!
Happy Holidays!
Ralph......
""""""""""""""""""""""""""
> STR Mail Call "...a place for folks to be heard"
=============
STReport's MailBag
==================
Conf : STReport Online
Msg# : 17272/17274 Lines: Extended Read: 1
Sent : Dec 12, 1991 at 9:01 AM
To : Rob Danskin at Fnet Node 1046
From : Ralph Mariano
Subj : Re: <17251> Software Standards
In message 350/3/17251, Rob Danskin writes:
Has anyone noticed lately, that software, in particular games
software, seems to be falling in it's general quality on the ST? At the
recent Computer Shopper show in London, I bought Deuteros, as I was a big
fan of Millenium 2.2 - Yesterday I started playing the game in earnest,
and about 3 hours into it, I was treated to a complete computer crash,
where it looked like the game dropped into 'debug' mode...
Lucky for me I had recently saved my position, but it looks like a bug
that only occurs when you try to land colonists onto the Moon.
I've noticed other games recently that have lower standards than usual,
take Railroad Tycoon, I spent 35 pounds on that, ( about $65 ) - then I
find that it won't work correctly on any ST over 1mb in size... at least
Microprose have produced a fix program that stops the game from producin
two bombs when the mouse pointer hits the bottom of the screen display!
But I am beginning to wonder whats happening on the ST scene... standards
seem to be dropping, I'm of the pinion that some companies don't even t
their software through before releasing it anymore..
Has anyone else experienced problems like this with ST software ?
Reply;
Rob....
Please be advised, the symptoms you are observing are indeed the the
actions of companies who have lost a great deal of regard for a 'given
platform'. This type of behavior on the part of many third party
suppliers and developers has been symptomatically evident throughout the
electronics industry, especially with calculators & computers. This only
seems to occur when a given marketplace is in the process of "imploding".
In most recent observations of other "brand name" computer collapses,
this is a most familiar "early warning" sign. The next 6-8 months will
carry the inevitable "tale of the tape". Atari must make some very
serious and widespread changes in the manner in which it does business in
the computer world. Else, the "handwritin is on the wall". It sad.. but
oh... so true.
The three Tramiel kids have made a blistering shambles of the company
through the years. Hopefully their "learning curve" is behind them. I
think not. It is still quite evident that the politics and vengefull
retaliation perpetrated by them upon _any_ entity or person critical of
them is still the "order of the day". Unfortunately, as long as their
energies and efforts are misguided in these "dead end" directions they are
doomed to utter failure. Will they ever wake up? Hard to say. Even the
plummeting of the value of Atari stock to 1.58 per share has done nothing
to give rise to visible improvement.
Ralph @ STReport
Thursday, December 12, 1991 - 8:59:26 am
13-DEC-1991 00:35:33.24
From: a Delphi User
To: RMARIANO
CC:
Subj: bug in TOS
I got wind of a possible bug in TOS (no versions given, though I
assume 1.0 - at least 1.62) that gives STalker and other term programs
fits. I would appreciate it if you could include this in an upcoming STR
to prod Atari into doing something about it. They barely will acknowledge
it's existance, though it was pointed out to them in 1987 or 88 by the
author of some programs for the ST, who even wrote a short program that
reproduced the problem with 100% accuracy.
The problem, in STalker 3.0 anyways, is a flashing menu bar. It's
caused if the STalker user has the sounds set to off, because STalker
wanted to sound the bell but isn't allowed to. The bell is to tell you
that STalker isn't ignoring you, it's just busy at this time. (this
happens if you are typing or doing other things while STalker is
uploading). It sometimes happens if you're just moving the mouse or even
doing nothing! The reason for the 'phantom typist' is the TOS bug - a
conflict between some of the interrupt handlers; particularly RS232 output
and possibly vertical blank (VBL). Atari has yet to even try to address
it and will barely acknowledge that it even exists, yet many users have
continuously had this problem at one time or another.
STalker is particularly susceptible to this because it it GEM-based
and leaves the mouse on. Other programs like Flash and XYZ could have the
problem if you could get the mouse pointer to stay on.
I ask that you print this in hopes of getting readers to email Atari
and urge them to do something about it. I also ask that I be referred to
as "a Delphi user" or something like that. Thanks.
Reply;
Mr. User,
It appears that the new 2.06/3.06 should have these aggravations
corrected in them. The upgrades are available now to everyone, even
owners of older ST comouters. Elsewhere in this issue the details of the
upgrade are explained fully. Hopefully, your problem will be addressed
and corrected. If not, please let us know.
STReport's Staff The regulars and this week's contributors!
----------------
Publisher - Editor
------------------
Ralph F. Mariano
PC DIVISION AMIGA DIVISION MAC DIVISION
----------- -------------- ------------
Robert Retelle Charles Hill R. ALBRITTON
STReport Staff Editors:
-----------------------
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----------------------------
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Brian Converse Oliver Steinmeier Tim Holt
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Neil Bradley Eric Jerue Ron Deal
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Vernon W. Smith
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> STReport CONFIDENTIAL "Reporting ABOUT Atari...not FOR Atari!"
=====================
* "Rumors - Tidbits - Predictions - Observations - Hot Tips" *
========================================================
This week our "super snoop" sent in that the revolving door is busy,
once again, at Atari. Seems David Harris has left. As has Simon
Westbrook who recently came here from the UK with his wife and four
children. Seems the words "family operation has a special meaning at
Atari as there is an ever increasing number of husband and wife teams
working together at Atari. The Millers and the Boconnis. Also, it seems
the ever elusive 520 STe units are now in the warehouse. At the same time
we are told the new bundles that are shipping are, to some dealers, a
letdown. They are complaining the software is all version 1 or original
carrying copyright dates of 1985. ... more next week
____________________________________________________
> A "Quotable Quote"
==================
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...THE VERY HIGHEST FORMS OF FLATTERY!"
....Ziggy Zagnut
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Jacksonville, Florida, 32205-6672
904-783-3319
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