No Fragments Archive 12: Textmags & Docs/nf_archive_12.iso/MAGS/TEXTMAGS/ATARI16/INFO91.ZIP/INFO91/371.TXT

Text File | 1997-04-16 | 26.9 KB | 647 lines

Info-Atari16 Digest         Wed,  3 Jul 91       Volume 91 : Issue 371

Today's Topics:
             DOUBLE Version 2.01 (takes 32K less RAM !!)
                         GCC 1.39 -g Problems
                              GCR wanted
                                 HELP
                     Info-Atari16 Digest V91 #370
           lharc woes (AGAIN, was Is musedt.lzh corrupted?)
                        MINIX on an Atari TT?
                    MultiGEM, survey of responses
                                 NeXT
                     Publishing Partner (w/SG10)
                ST Software from British distributors
                          Supra HD utilities
                         This week's program
                         What's a STE anyway?
                where to look for the latest gcc libs?

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----------------------------------------------------------------------

Date: 3 Jul 91 08:19:22 GMT
From: mcsun!ukc!edcastle!hwcs![e-mail] (Neil Forsyth)
Subject: DOUBLE Version 2.01 (takes 32K less RAM !!)
To: [e-mail]

In article <[e-mail]>
[e-mail] writes:
>Double Screen-Heigh emulator for STE, MEGA STE (and TT ??)  VERSION 2
>...
>Why does this program only work om STE and not on standard ST ????
>""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
>Both the display modes uses new hardware registers on the STE to
>make the code small.

Why not do things the way BIGSCREEN does and use normal ST hardware scrolling
at a character height resolution. Then your program would benefit everyone.
OK we can lose the interlace version for old ST's.

>Lars-Erik 0sterud      E-mail:         [e-mail]  (usenet)
>Okriveien 39           Call me at:     [phone]  (voice phone)
>N-1349 Rykkinn         or ABK-BBS:     [phone]  (300-9600 bps)
>Norway

+----------------------------------------------------------------------------+
! DISCLAIMER:Unless otherwise stated, the above comments are entirely my own !
!                                                                            !
! Neil Forsyth                      JANET:  [e-mail]                 !
! Dept. of Computer Science         ARPA:   [e-mail]                 !
! Heriot-Watt University            UUCP:   ..!ukc!cs.hw.ac.uk!neil          !
! Edinburgh, Scotland, UK           "That was never 5 minutes!"              !
+----------------------------------------------------------------------------+

------------------------------

Date: 3 Jul 91 12:14:39 GMT
From: otter.hpl.hp.com!hpltoad!ghiggins![e-mail] (Graham Higgins)
Subject: GCC 1.39 -g Problems
To: [e-mail]

++   I have got "gcc139b.lzh" containing the GNU assembler for ATARI-ST
++   version 1.38 from Uni Koeln and the GNU debugger "gdb" from A.A.

I would advise against such "mix-n-match" setups. That's why I have been trying
to create a "standard" ST GNU release on A.A.

Here's an extract from A.A.'s
file ....

++ Here is a heavily hacked  gdb for atariST, based on the incredible work
++ of John Dunning of porting it to the ST.
++
++ The big difference is that this version supports dbx_format symbols and
++ stabs, not the gnu format (ie: "gcc -g" and not "gcc -gg"). gnu has
++ essentially dropped support for the -gg format. Other than that, it is
++ still undergoing development, to make it as stable, and to bring it up
++ to the changes in the latest rev of gdb from FSF. It is quite usable,
++ and a lot of you have been waiting for "something" so i am sending it
++ out for you to play with. I will provide updates (hopefully in a timely
++ fashion :-).

Claro?

Graham
======

------------------------------------------------------------------
Graham Higgins                  |  [e-mail]
Hewlett-Packard Labs            |  [e-mail]
Filton Road, Stoke Gifford      |  [e-mail]
Bristol, U.K.                   |  ...!mcvax!ukc!hplb!gjh
Tel: [phone] x24014         Fax: [phone]
------------------------------------------------------------------
Disclaimer: My opinions above are exactly that, mine and opinions.
------------------------------------------------------------------

------------------------------

Date: 3 Jul 91 14:07:04 GMT
From: noao!ncar!elroy.jpl.nasa.gov!usc!samsung!know![e-mail]
Subject: GCR wanted
To: [e-mail]

Anyone want to sell a GCR with Mac 128K ROMs? E-mail a message to
me, FAX a note [phone] or leave a message on my answering machine
[phone].

------------------------------

Date: 3 Jul 91 14:14:31 GMT
From: exurchn1.ericsson.se![e-mail] (Chinh Pham)
Subject: HELP
To: [e-mail]

Hello everyone,

   My name is Chinh.  I am new to USENET as well as to the atari
computer system.   My friend brought me an atari st four years
ago.  Since then, I used it for maximum of 50 times.  Now that I
have free time, I want to learn more about this computer that
my friend brought for me.  I have quite a few questions to ask,
but before I go crazy with them, I will ask only the essential
ones.

  1.  I live in Dallas.  Where can I get any help for my computer?
  2.  I have hard disk, color monitor, and an ST.  What can I do
      with them (besides selling them)?
  3.  I heard so much good things about it.  How can I use as it as
      a terminal to call into the IBM mainframe?  In other words,
      what emualtion package should I purchase?
  4.  I would like to do some word processing (publishing) with
      my atari.  What publishing programs are there available?
      What laser printer is best suited for the atari?
  5.  I read some of your notes about monitors.  What is a good
      one (reasonablely priced) for publishing program?
  6.  Is the ST good, or should I dumped it for something new?
  7.  My friend wants to put up a BBS board.  I don't want to buy
      PC for it, so can I use the atari instead?  And where would I
      get such information about it?  And is it hard to maintain,
      given that I am a novice at it?

  Besides those questions, I asked you persuade me that this gift
my friend gave me is worthwhile - not just gag sitting on my desk
collecting dusts.

  PLEASE HELP......  Chinh.

------------------------------

Date: Wed, 03 Jul 91 08:28:06 CDT
From: Mike Dorman <[e-mail]>
Subject: Info-Atari16 Digest V91 #370
To: Atari List <[e-mail]>

The newest version of STeno and STalker are being distributed by GRIBNIF,
the NeoDesk people.  They're due for release next month--and should have all
the cool features that people want.

The new version of Flash is supposed to be some rewrite from an Australian
developer, but it hasn't picked up a distributor, although a bunch of people
are trying to pick it up...

Mike.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
: Michael Alan Dorman   :                                                     :
: [e-mail] : Hobbies are things people do when they should be    :
: BIX: syssupport       :   sleeping.  --M.A.D.                               :
: GEnie: M.DORMAN2      :                                                     :
: PostalNet:            :                                                     :
:   Box 8068            : Stonehenge was built by two drunks with no          :
:   Tuscaloosa, AL      :   witnesses.  --P.S.McGhee                          :
:               35486   :                                                     :
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

------------------------------

Date: 1 Jul 91 19:48:52 GMT
From: cucstud!tfd!afp!gna!linn![e-mail] (Vincent Pomey)
Subject: lharc woes (AGAIN, was Is musedt.lzh corrupted?)
To: [e-mail]

>>files, worse on very small files), and has a built-in GEM interface.
>                                    ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
>why? does this mean it won't port to unix et al?

The ZIP file format is originating from PKZIP on PC (no source but a
description of file format and algorithms used). STZip is written for, guess
what, Atari ST !!
It certainly won't port to unix (Modula-2 & 68000), but a portable UNZIP in C
has been posted in comp.sources.misc a few months ago, and a portable ZIP will
be posted in a few weeks (see [e-mail] for infos,
betas, flames etc).
---
--==>> Linn <<==--  AtariST  Paris
    [e-mail]
 or tfd.com!afp!gna!linn!linn.fido!Vincent.Pomey

------------------------------

Date: 3 Jul 91 06:46:18 GMT
From: waikato.ac.nz!comp.vuw.ac.nz!actrix![e-mail] (Alex
 Valdez)
Subject: MINIX on an Atari TT?
To: [e-mail]

In article <[e-mail]> [e-mail] writes:
> Has anyone tried running ST MINIX on a TT?  Does it work?  Anyone know of
> any plans for a TT MINIX?
>
>
> mathew
> --
> << baby  mother  hospital  scissors  creature  judgement  butcher  engineer >>

Last I heard, MINIX doesn't work on 68030s, (TT or Amiga 3000).
--
================================Alex Valdez=============================
"Alas sais na naman, oras ng pagdidili-dili...
 Isaisip ang mabuti, ang masama'y iwaksi..."

------------------------------

Date: 3 Jul 91 17:58:39 GMT
From:
 noao!ncar!elroy.jpl.nasa.gov!usc!snorkelwacker.mit.edu!thunder.mcrcim.mcgill.ed
 u!bonnie.concordia.ca!daily-planet.concordia.ca!alcor.Concordia.CA!seldin@arizo
 na.edu ( JONATHAN SELDIN )
Subject: MultiGEM, survey of responses
To: [e-mail]

I have to apologize to everybody for taking so long to send this
summary of the replies I received about MultiGEM.  All the
replies arrived during a two-day period.  At first, I was waiting
for more replies.  Then, I was caught in a rush to meet a
deadline.  This is the cause of the delay.

Here are the replies:

[e-mail] wrote:

I use MultiGEM since April and it seems to be pretty good. Unfortunately
the ST-version (TT-version will be available soon) does not support the
new desktop, i.e. you can't start programs by the function keys.

>1.  How good is it?  Will it run, for example, dvist and unix
>windows?  Will it permit a background kermit transfer via unix
>windows or uniterm?

I have never tried but I don't think MultiGEM supports a background data
transfer. You can run up to 6 applications (including accessories!) at the
same time but this is no real multitasking. The programs in the background
only get cpu time when the main application calls GEM using an evnt-call. So
if this application is no GEM application or rarely makes AES calls the
background programs won't get cpu time.

>3.  Does it run on a TT?  If not, is there a version for the TT?

MultiGEM runs on a TT, but as mentioned above at the moment it doesn't
support the TT or MegaSTE desktop. The author recommends to run MultiGEM
only in ST ram but that's not necessary.
In my opinion there is no reason to sell two versions, one for the ST and
one for the TT. Nevertheless there are plans to sell a special TT version for
a higher price. If the problems with the new desktop are fixed (they have to
be because these bugs are the same for TT and MegaSTE) MultiGEM should run
on all machines.

Hope you got some new information from this. Bye

********************************************************
*              Uwe Seimet                              *
*              [e-mail]               *
*------------------------------------------------------*
* I hate this machine, I wish that they would sell it. *
* It doesn't what I want but only what I tell it.      *
* (Programmer's lament)                                *
********************************************************

-------------------------------

[e-mail] wrote:

  As far as I know (haven't seen it, but someone I know has) MultiGEM is just
like GEM, but the AES shel_ primitives now support not only parallelism between
one application and multiple accessories, but also to more than one allpication,
where each application has a window of itself, containing the menu bar and
 sub-windows.
(this is exactly the ways MSWindows works.) The GEM primitived are written in
 such a
way that it does NOT matter whether the system allows multitasking. That is, an
 application
that is written on a single tasker doesn't notice any difference, provided it's
 resolution
dependent, etc.


--
________________________________________________________
    Annius Groenink|undergraduate student
Laan van Borgele 24|maths/computer science at the
   7415 DJ Deventer|University of Utrecht, Holland.
    The Netherlands|[from Sep91 I'll be in Leeds, UK.
 [e-mail]|You can use the same EMAIL address.]

----------------------------------------------

[e-mail] wrote:

  Ok, here's what I know about Multi-GEM, in talking to the company releasing
it in the U.S:

  It comes from Germany (American company is translating it), is supposed to
be able to multitalk GEM programs, not just TOS/TTP (every program multitasked
works inside a GEM window).  It uses the ST's ACC ports - so at least 6
programs can be running (dunno if DC Stuffer or similar programs can
do more).  Since it uses the ACC ports, it's supposed to allow you to
run ACC's just like a PRG - just double click on it.  It splits memory up
such that the main program you have up gets priority, and others next
priority.

  It looks promising - they didn't say about what it can't do however
so that'll take trial and error.  The company mentioned $99 price,
though I've heard some places saying about $69 or so.

  Anyways, could you send me the address/phone number of the place
you saw it advertised?  Thanks...

                                        Robert Anisko
                                        [e-mail]

---------------------------------------------

Is anybody surprised that I waited awhile to see if I would get
more replies?

Jonathan P. Seldin
Department of Mathematics                 [e-mail]
Concordia University, Montreal             [e-mail]





--
Jonathan P. Seldin
Department of Mathematics                 [e-mail]
Concordia University, Montreal             [e-mail]

------------------------------

Date: 3 Jul 91 08:05:31 GMT
From:
 noao!asuvax!ncar!elroy.jpl.nasa.gov!sdd.hp.com!spool.mu.edu!munnari.oz.au!uhccu
 x!uhunix1.uhcc.Hawaii.Edu![e-mail] (Jack W. Wine)
Subject: NeXT
To: [e-mail]

In article <[e-mail]> [e-mail]
 (Gregory Carter) writes:
>...
>Looks Like NeXT has got the phrase "Power without the price." Down to a
>surface mount science.
>

It seems like systems will eventually be built from one chip; maybe one day,
debating about which one is superior will be as commonplace as arguments over
the better phone or refrigerator.  Apple's redirection toward OS production
seems to indicate that growth and profits are found in the software domain,
but I'm not sure which companies will be dominant in the software/hardware
arena.

>...
>Even if you where to argue that the current architecture targets a
>specific HOME market, it STILL costs too much!
>

Since CD-I systems will probably become a popular fixture in home, school
and business, it would be nice if Atari could become a development platform
for them.  As a peripheral, CD-I seems to cover both the audio/video niche
markets.  For audio, AM-quality sound or voice-quality play up to 18 hours.
Impressive video capabilites that include Photo CD display (16 million
colors), dynamic picture effects like dissolves, wipes, etc., full-screen
full motion video with a MPEG card.  In one system version, expansion
ports will allow Ethernet, SCSI, memory boards, parallel port, multiple
serial ports, etc.  [This info is from a brochure and I'll post complete
specs if there is interest].

>Atari missed the boat, they should have made an entirely NEW modular
>machine.  Soon as I get the money, my MEGA STE is going to sit and
>either run MAC software or my BBS software.
>

Jim Miller, V.P. of R&D, said that a new series with expansion slots
was under development, so they'll have the product, but will they have
the price?

Jack

------------------------------

Date: 2 Jul 91 00:20:42 GMT
From: noao!asuvax!ncar!elroy.jpl.nasa.gov!wciu!abode![e-mail] (Luis
 Outumuro)
Subject: Publishing Partner (w/SG10)
To: [e-mail]

In article <[e-mail]> [e-mail] (Christopher
 Russell) writes:
>I have Publishing Partner (a vintage copy -- did they ever make an
>upgrade?).  Anyways, I wanna use it with my SG10.  The readme files
>says to set the printer to IBM mode and use the MX80 driver.  I tried
>this.  I tried the FX80 driver.  I tried the Gemini driver with the
>SG10 in Star mode.  It prints "something" out in any of these modes.
>Unfortunately only the largest of letters seem to print out correctly.
>
>For example: on the example (tutorial) document the title "Publishing
>Partner" prints out ok in all of the above meantioned modes.  I think
>the point size is about
>all prints out very fragmented.
>
>It is an old version of the program that was sold to me with my ST.  I
>had kinda always told myself I would try it out "real soon now".  It
>looks to be a pretty good rudimentary page layout program.  Is it
>still used much?  SoftLogik Corp. still around?
>
>--
>Christopher L. Russell (yonderboy)  Phone: [phone] Campbell,CA
>[e-mail] or [e-mail] or [e-mail]

        Hi Christopher,
                If I remember correctly (boy, what a disclaimer!), the SG10
has both an IBM mode and an Epson mode; for you to use either the MX80 or the
FX80 printer drivers, the SG10 will need to be in the Epson mode.  Using the
IBM mode on the SG10, you should use the IBM Proprinter driver (if there is
one).
        Yes, Publishing Partner has been upgraded to PageStream (of which, the
latest version (2.1) is about to be released any day now).  Yes, Soft-Logik
is still around (and doing well!); you can reach them at the following address
to ask about upgrading:

(Ooops! I cannot find the address, but here is the toll-free phone number)

        Soft-Logik Publishing Corporation
        800/829-8608

        Good luck Chris, bye....................

                                        Luis

------------------------------

Date: 28 Jun 91 23:58:02 GMT
From: cucstud!tfd!afp!gna!linn![e-mail] (Jan Willekens)
Subject: ST Software from British distributors
To: [e-mail]

In a message of <24 Jun 91  04:20:23>, [e-mail] (2:320/100.1)
writes:

 d> over here. Also:  Would there be any type of compatibility problems?
 d> I have heard that the programs over there will not run on our US
 d> machines.

That depends. Lots of games use the VBL interrupt for their routines. The VBL
interrupt is generated 50 (vertical blank rate of 50 Hz) or 60 (vertical blank
rate of 60 Hz) times a second in color mode. (72 Hz in monochrome) And here is
where the problem lies. The non-US machines use the NTSC standard of 60Hz,
where the machines in Europe use the PAL standard of 50Hz. On a machine with a
VBL rate of 50Hz, one can 'use' more CPU clock cycles per VBL than on 60Hz,
because one VBL takes longer. Now if the routines executed in one VBL take up
say 99% of all available CPU time, these routines cannot run in 60Hz, because
there will not be enough CPU time. When this is the case, the game will crash.
But if the routines take less time, so that there is enough CPU time in 60Hz,
the game will run. The only effect will be that everything goes more quickly
than in 50Hz.

Greetings...                                                - Jan -

---
STabloid's Chief Editor... Prerelease out soon!
    [e-mail]
 or tfd.com!afp!gna!linn!p12.f202.n281.z2.fido!Jan.Willekens

------------------------------

Date: 3 Jul 91 07:40:00 GMT
From: CCIT.ARIZONA.EDU![e-mail]
Subject: Supra HD utilities
To: [e-mail]

Does anybody know what the latest version of the Supra HD utilities is?
If so, what are the differences from version 2.62 and how can I get the
latest version (yes, I do own a Supra drive)?  Any info would be appreciated.

        Thanks,
        Doug Tarico
        [e-mail]

------------------------------

Date: 3 Jul 91 03:37:40 GMT
From:
 noao!ncar!elroy.jpl.nasa.gov!swrinde!cs.utexas.edu!sun-barr!lll-winken!iggy.GW.
 Vitalink.COM!widener!dsinc!unix.cis.pitt.edu!gvlf3.gvl.unisys.com!tredysvr!cell
 ar![e-mail] (Darling)
Subject: This week's program
To: [e-mail]

[e-mail] (ATARI Computer Enthusiasts) writes:

> Just thought I'd let everyone know that I will be on vacation for the rest of
> the week, so I've posted this week's program to atari.archive.umich.edu.
>
> DC Homey will home the mouse cursor to the center of the screen.  Just press
> <ALTERNATE>+<CONTROL>+<LEFT SHIFT>+<H> at any time.
>
> - mike vederman / Double Click Software
>
> --
> -----------------------------------------------------------------------------
> Double Click Me | Double Click Software | P.O. Box 741206 | Houston, Tx, 7727
> -----------------------------------------------------------------------------
> Voice: [phone] | DC DESKTOP | DC FORMATTER | DC UTILITIES | and others

I'm a big fan of Double-Click Software.  Every time I go to GEnie's Atari ST
File Exchange section, I always look for Double-Click contributions right
away; works from DC Desktop all the way down to F-Light are permanent
installations on my system.  But it appears that these programs are getting
increasingly useless as time goes on.  I mean, you've got to be kidding me;
you're going to replace a slight wrist motion with a four-key combination?
Why???

I don't mean this as an insult, but I get the impression that the committment
to one new program per week is resulting in rushed jobs and a low tank of
ideas.  Guys, you're the greatest, and we won't be insulted if you want to
cut back to one program per 2 or 3 weeks, so as to spend more time on each.


~
[e-mail] \\\ Thomas Darling * record production * dance re-mixing
uunet!cellar!darling \\\ Fact HQ Studio * The Cellar BBS:215/336-9503 * FACT
v

------------------------------

Date: 1 Jul 91 14:25:30 GMT
From: cucstud!tfd!afp!gna!linn![e-mail] (Jan Willekens)
Subject: What's a STE anyway?
To: [e-mail]

In a message of <24 Jun 91  19:46:49>, [e-mail] (2:320/100.1)
writes:

 f> What is the difference between the MEGA ST and the STE?

There are two STE's, the 1040 STE and the Mega STE. The 1040STE looks like an
ordinary 1040ST except for the two addidtional
joystick/paddle/lightgun/lightpen ports at the left side and the two
connectors for connecting the STE to you HIFI. Here follow some specs.:

- TOS 1.06 or the newer 1.62. (which should be 1.062, actually)
- OS contained in 256Kb ROMs.
- Contains Blitter chip.
- Color palette of 4096 colors.
- Hardware support for horizontal and vertical scrolling.
- Prepared for an external Genlock-interphase.
- 8-bit stereo PCM-sound. Programmable sound generator.
- 1 Mb RAM, expandable to 4Mb using SIMMs.

The Mega STE looks like a TT, only it is grey and not white.

- The Mega STE has all the facilities the 1040STE has, except for
  the extra joystick/etc. ports! (please explain, Atari...)
- 16Mhz MC68000 CPU with 16 Kb cache. 8 Mhz/16 Mhz without cache/16 Mhz   with
cache can be set by the control panel.
- Socket for the MC68881/82-16 Floating Point coprocessor.
- 2Mb or 4Mb RAM (SIMMs) There are rumors about a 1Mb version, but they
  have not yet been comfirmed. Memory can be expanded by placing SIMMs on
  the motherboard or by using a VME adapter.
- Hard Disk 3.5'' 48Mb 28ms. This is a SCSI hard disk, so the Mega STE   has a
host adapter. It has no external SCSI ports, only one ACSI port.
- Real time clock like in the Mega ST.
- 2 RS232 ports
- 1 LAN 1Mbit/s port
- Internal connector for VME-bus Rev. C. 1
- Internal Fan (2) for hard disk and motherboard
- 'TT' desktop
- A far better keyboard than the Mega ST's


 f> Can a MEGA ST be upgraded to the STE? What does Atari have
 f> to say on this subject?

No way. The soundhardware is too different and the STE's have hardware
scrolling capabilities which cannot be implemented onto a Mega ST. The Mega
ST's ROMs aren't 1Mbit chips, the STE's are. The differences are just too
large.

 f> I have tryed to sell the system, but I have had no real offers. I
 f> had buyers for the monitors, and one piece of software. I guess no one
 f> likes the old MEGAs.

Yes, you are out of luck. Lots of people are selling whole systems including
Mega ST's, hard disks, printers. etc. because they want to buy a Mega STE or
TT. There are just too few people who want to buy 'older' systems.

Greetings...                                                - Jan -

---
STabloid's Chief Editor... Prerelease out soon!
    [e-mail]
 or tfd.com!afp!gna!linn!p12.f202.n281.z2.fido!Jan.Willekens

------------------------------

Date: Wed, 03 Jul 91 16:15
From: "Thomas Koenig"
 <[e-mail]>
Subject: where to look for the latest gcc libs?
To: Info-Atari16 Discussion       <[e-mail]>

Where is the place to look for the latest gcc libs?  I tried ftp at
dsrgsun.ces.cwru.edu, 129.22.16.2, but I only empty directories all
the way.

Thomas Koenig
EARN/BITNET :      [e-mail]
INTERNET    :      [e-mail]
X.400       :      S=UI0T;OU=IBM3090;OU=RZ;P=UNI-KARLSRUHE;A=DBP;C=DE

------------------------------

End of Info-Atari16 Digest
******************************