News - Undated - III
From: Len Stys (aa399)
Date: 01/23/90-04:11:42 PM Z
From: aa399 (Len Stys)
Subject: News - Undated - III
Date: Tue Jan 23 16:11:42 1990
Undated Time Capsule
--------------------
2400 Baud logons
Atari 1988 Annual Report
XF551 - A 3.5" Disk Drive
Why an ST? because it's the best.
Accelerator
An American Computer In Europe
Atari PC4
The STacy
Tx-816 Articles
2400 Baud logons
----------------
-From:aa384:news:609193758:611785758:2400 Baud logons
HOW TO GET ONTO THE FREE-NET
AT 2400 BAUD
I have just successfully got onto
the Free-Net at 2400 baud. Here's
how:
1.) You need to create a file to
send nulls into the Free-Net.
This can be done like this:
10 OPEN #1,8,0,"D:BREAKSIG.TXT"
20 FOR I=1 TO 240:PUT #1,0:NEXT I
30 CLOSE #1
2.) If you are using DeTerm, you
should set up the file ahead of
time before you log on. Go to
SEND in the ONLINE menu and set-up
the file to send _USING_0_ as a
delay rate. If you are using
Express, you will have to do it
manually.
3.) When you log onto the Free-Net,
send the file. If you are using
DeTerm, press [START]. If you
are using Express, return to the
menu and send the file at the
fastest delay.
4.) You will probably need to repeat
the proceedure. I did it 3 times
before getting on at 2400 baud.
You should see:
Press 1 and then return ==>
or something like that. If you get the
prompt with no garbage after it, then
the proceedure has worked and you have
successfully logged on at 2400 baud.
If you have any questions or a better
method of doing this, leave mail to
aa384.
Doug Wokoun
aa384
Atari 1988 Annual Report
------------------------
-From:aa399:news:610919150:613511150:Atari 1988 Annual Report
___Information taken from: Atari 1988
Annual Report by Len Stys aa399___
_ - _ - _ - _ - _ - _ - _
1 9 8 8 Annual Report /|\ATARI
Profile
Atari Corporation is one of the
largest manufacturers of personal
computers and video game systems in
the world. Through creative
application of advanced technologies,
the Company consistently offers
customers "Power Without the Price."
The Corporation's products include
the MEGA and ST lines of advanced
personal 16/32 bit computers, a new
line of PC compatibles, the XE range
of 8 bit computers, and the complete
selection of XE, 2600 and 7800 game
systems. The Company also produces
a range of peripherals, accessories,
and an expanding library of computer
and video game software that is sold
in almost every country in the world.
Atari is a multinational company
employing nearly 1800 people
throughout the world. Corporate
headquarters, including computer and
video game product design, are
located in Sunnyvale, California.
Other Corporate R&D centers are
located in West Germany, England and
Japan. The Company operates through
wholly owned subsidiaries in
Australia, Belgium, Canada, Denmark,
France, Germany, Hong Kong, Italy,
Japan, Mexico, the Netherlands,
Norway, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland,
Taiwan, the United Kingdom and the
United States.
For Atari Corporation, 1988 was a
year that included both a sales
growth of 25 percent for the
continuing operations of computers
and video games, and the decision
to declare the Federated Group,
our retail division, a discontinued
operation.
During the year a number of steps
were taken to resolve the
difficulties associated with our
retail business. While efforts were
made to reduce losses, the turnaround
was slower than anticipated. To
insure that Federated would no longer
have a negative financial impact on
Atari, we recorded a fourt quarter
charge related to the retail divison
in excess of $100 million. From an
accounting viewpoint we regard this
division as a discontinued operation.
We are now considering several
options including sale, spinoff, or
a leverage buyout of Federated.
Sales frrom continuing operations
increased by 25% from $362.6 million
in 1987 to $452.2 million in 1988,
principally due to increased sales
of Atari ST computers and the new
range of Atari PC compatible
products. In 1988, 65% of total sales
were in Europe compared to 56% in
1987.
The loss of $84.8 million in the
year ended December 31, 1988 consists
of income from continuing operations
of $39.4 million from the computer
and video game division less
Federated related losses and charges
of $124.2 million. The Company wrote
off its investment in Federated
and provided for additional
anticipated financial obligations
arising from the disposistion of
Federated.
Computer sales were constrained by
the unexpected and protracted
shortage of D-RAM (Dynamic Random
Access Memory) components. This
shortage directly impacted our
ability to supply existing markets
and expand into new markets.
In order to maintain our stong
posistion in the European market,
we did not raise prices despite
increased component costs caused
by the shortage. This decision was
based on long term factors; in the
short term margins were reduced.
It now appears that the D-RAM
shortage is finally easing. This will
allow for expansion of existing
markets and entry into new ones.
During the second half of 1988, we
began shipping the 80286-based PC4
and 80386-based PC5 personal
computers into Europe. Atari is
commited to the PC compatible market.
In the year ahead we will introduce
new and exciting models. These
systems are being developed at our
newly established product
engineering facility in
Braunschweig, West Germany.
Sales of our Atari ST personal
computers remain strong, and the
library of software for these popular
systems continues to grow.
Thousands of programs are available
now for scientists, students,
doctors, publishers and outher ST
owners on every continent.
Last year, both the 520 ST and the
1040 ST were selected as "The Best Home Computers of the Year."
This prestigious award is made
annually by an international panel
of experts representing major
compter magazines from ten different
countries. These publications
include: Personal Computing (USA),
Practical Computing (Great Britain),
CHIP (Italy), svjet komjutera
(Yugoslavia), komputer (Poland),
Chip-micros (Spain), ASCII-Magazine
(Japan), CHIP (Germany), Impulzus
(Hungary), soft et micro (France).
While our video game business in
Europe, Australia and the Far East
continued to grow, our progress in
the United States was interrupted by
the unfair monopolistic practices
of Nintendo of Japan and Nintendo
of America. During the year, these
companies illegally prevented many
independent developers from freely
marketing their products through
unfair exclusive performance
arrangements. Atari Corporation has
recently brought suit against
Nintendo for their antitrust
practices.
Despite the illegal efforts by
Nintendo, U.S. distribution of the
Atari 2600 and 7800 system increased
last year with the addition of such
American retailers as Sears Retail,
Hypermart, a division of Walmart,
Rose's Deparment Stores, and a
growing number of smaller,
independent toy stores. Software
continues to drive this business.
Accordingly, thirty-five new game
titles were released during 1988.
Plans for the coming year include an
aggressive software acquistion and
development program aimed at
securing and creating new arcade and
original games. The most innovative
Atari video game system ever is
scheduled for release in 1990.
Keeping pace with our expansion
plans, Atari Germany and Atari France
are preparing to relocate to a larger
facilities. Our newer subsidiaries,
such as Atari Australia, have already
begun to expand the Atari brand in
their countries. The two largest
school districts on the continent,
New South Wales and Victoria, have
already standardized on the Atari
1040 ST as the computer of choice.
The video game business is
experiencing a resurgence down under,
and our 2600 has become Australia's
number one selling video game
product. Additionally, Atari is now
selling directly in New Zealand and
Scandinavia. In Spain and Mexico
we are experiencing increased
sales of both video game and computer
products. Our XE line of 8-bit
computer systems is extremely popular
throughout Eastern Europe, and most
recently, has begun to appear on
retail shelves in the Soviet Union.
The 2600 video game system is now
being offered in the People's
Republic of China.
The future of Atari is very bright,
indeed. A great many positive and
promising developments occured during
the past twelve months. Among the
products we will be bringing to
market in 1989 are:
Atari PORTFOLIO. The Atari PORTFOLIO
is a hand held personal computer that
uses a DOS 2.II compatible operating
system. Not a laptop, this true
personal computer measures just
7-inches by 4-inches and is about
I-inch thick. It has a built-in
diary, address book/telephone tone
dialer, Lotus 1-2-3 file compatible
spreadsheet, and an editing program.
The PORTFOLIO features a large,
legible "Supertwist" Liquid Crystal
Display, a familiar QWERTY keyboard
layout, and an expansion connector
for optional peripherals. This hand
held portable uses removable memory cards the size of a credit card for
storage of programs and data.
ATW The Atari Transputer Workstation
(ATW) is a powerful personal graphics
workstation with a palette of over
16 million colors. The system is
designed around the Inmos T800
microprocessor which has a sustained
performance of I.5 million floating
point operations per second (MFLOPS).
The ATW features video resolution of
up to 1280X960 pixels and has
a dedicated graphics co-processor.
By exploiting the ATW's
parallel processing architecture,
more power can be added as needed for
the job. The Helios operating system
allows distribution of tasks across
a network of ATW's. The user
interface is the industry standard
X-Windows.
Atari PC4. Our Atari PC4 is a 12MHz
Intel 80286-based PC/AT compatible
personal computer. The system
includes a high performance video
subsystem, a hgih density floppy
disk drive, a 44 megabye removable
cartridge, 2 serial ports, and a
parallel printer port. Its VGA can
accommodate a variety of analog
and digital monitors.
Atari TT. The 68030 based Atari TT
will be the newest member of our
flagship line. In addition to
running existing ST software, the
TT can also run the industry
standard Unix operating system with
the X-Windows graphical user
interface. This powerful computer
features stereo stampled sound and
six video resolutions, up to
1280x960(monochrome) and 640x480
(color), from a palette of over
256,000 colors. The TT will be able
to interface with the outside world
through industry standard SCSI,
VME, MIDI and RS232 ports. Local
Area Networking (LAN) comes standard
on the TT system and Ethernet will be
available to further enhance this
product.
Atari MEGAFILE 44. The MEGAFILE 44
brings the convenience of rugged
removable data cartridges to the
Atari ST and MEGA series. Each 44
megabyte cartridge is only half and
inch thick, allowing you to easily
transport data from one system to
another or to lock away sensitive
information.
Atari STACY. This is our ST
compatible laptop model. With 1,2 or
4 megabytes of usable RAM, the
portable STACY computer features a
640x400 Supertwist LCD, and is
fully compatible with the ST and MEGA
series of computers and peripherals.
Our products, both present and
planned for release in 1989, provided
an arsenal of computering power to
meet the broadest range of needs for
our constantly growing computer-
oriented world.
Atari has two primary objectives in
the year ahead. The first is to
complete the disposistion of the
Federated Group, which will be done
as smoothly and quickly as possible.
The second major goal is to
concentrate on our continuing
operations. We plan to introduce new,
exciting products and expand in all
markets.
With the continued dedication of our
employees and support from our
shareholders and vendors we look
forward to future profitability and
success.
Sam Tramiel, President
- _ - _ - _ - _ - _ -
Len Stys (aa399)
Atari Sig Operator for
the Cleveland Free-Net
XF551 - A 3.5" Disk Drive
-------------------------
-From:aa400:news:612518165:615110165:XF551 - A 3.5" Disk Drive
________________________________________ How to convert the XF551 drive
into a 3.5" drive.
________________________________________Adapted from article in San Leandro
Computer Club's Newsletter.
________________________________________
Note of advice: You will not be able to
successfully make these changes unless
you have reasonably decent electronic
skills, so don't gamble with your new
XF551 unless you know what you are
doing. Most User Groups have skilled
members that will be happy to guide you
if you need help.
First of all, the drive IS double
sided and can read and write in single,
enhanced or double density. The "book"
that comes with the drive is incorrect.
MyDOS, SuperDOS and SpartaDOS can all
format the drive as double sided and
double density.
Previous Atari drives did not use
the INDEX hole on the diskette, which
allowed us to flip the disk over and
format the back of the media. The
XF551 uses a standard, bone stock, IBM
style drive. It uses INDEX. It will
not FORMAT the back of a diskette
unless the disk jacket has two index
foles. (As far as I know, the only
brand of disks I have been able to find
with the two index holes on the jacket
is made by BASF). It WILL read and
write to the back of any disk.
On side one, the tracks on the disk
are written from the outer edge in,
from 0 to 39. On side two, the tracks
are written from the inner edge out.
This allows us to read the first 40
tracks of a DSDD diskette on a SSDD
drive. The second side isn't backwards
nor could it be read on a SS drive even
if you changed it.
The speed of the drive is't 288 RPM,
but 300 RPM, the industry standard.
The XF551 compensates for the differ-
ence by using a clock frequency 4%
(.33mhz) higher than it should be.
This will read and write data in
exactly the same place on the diskette
as your 288 RPM drive, although
programs that measure the speed of the
drive will read 300 RPM.
Talking to the drive...The XF551, as
it comes from Atari, has the ability
to format a diskette in any of the
three configurations: single density
(SSSD-88K), 1050 density (SSED-127K)
and double-sided, double density (DSDD-
360K). The DSDD format has a standard
skew and a high speed skew option
available to the user. This extra skew
layout allows faster data transfers on
the SIO bus, much like the ICD Doubler
upgrade on the 1050. For those of you
interested in programming, the DSDD
format SIO command is $23. For a high
speed skew format in DSDD, you just
need to turn on bit 7 for a value of
$A3. To transmit data at high speed
to and from the XF551, just set bit 7
of the command to "1" again. You must
still send the command frame at a
normal SIO rate and then set $D204 to
$10 for high speed operation during the
data frame. The drive will also recog-
nize the Put (and Get) Option Table
command, which are similar to the
Percom configuration table operations.
Only bytes 4-8 are changed by the Put
command, however, and only the three
supported formats will be recognized.
Even if you sent the Option Table a 512
byte sector size, you would only get
256 byte sectors. A number of the
newest DOS versions (SuperDOS 5.0, DOS
XE, SpartaDOS X...) now have the XF551
support built in. Also a file is
available in Atari8 on Compuserve that
will modify SpartaDOS 3.2D for the
XF551 features (in DL3 - XF32D.BAS).
Using any of these methods will
transfer data almost twice as fast as
DOS 2.0.
The first thing you notice about the
ICs in the drive is the one in a nice
socket, the ROM. Makes it a lot easier
to burn an EPROM (use a 2764) to make
code change if you can just plug and
unplug your devices. I just wrote a
simple dis-assembler for the 8050 MPU
used as the brains of the drive. It
was very nice when Atari used a 6507
(which uses 6502 OPCodes) in their
drives but, no more. Everything Atari
comes out with now seems to use a dif-
ferent chip.
One upgrade that was available for
the 1050 is a ROM change that will re-
address the drive as D5: thru D8:.
This can be done on the XF551 ROM by
altering location $0095 from $31 to $35
($33 gives you a range of D3: to D6:,
etc.).
Having 360K is nice. Having 720K is
even nicer. Putting a 720K, 3.5 inch
drive in place of the stock drive is
not too hard, so let's start with the
ROM. There is a little bug in the code
that allows the drive to start writing
the track before it has reached operat-
ing speed. To remedy that, change $528
from $90 to $00, $C1D from $88 to $80
and $E25 from $88 to $80. The 720K
drive has 80 tracks per side which re-
quires you to change $680 from $28 to
$50, $80F from $30 to $60 and $811 from
$FD to $FA. A 3.5 inch drive uses 3ms
seek time - change $53D from $00 to
$03, $57B from $18 to $13, $9D1 from
$08 to $03, and $B15 from $18 to $13.
Finally, the 3.5s use a pre-compensa-
tion - change $61D from $F6 to $F4,
$621 from $F6 to $F4 and $D0D from $A2
to $A0. For a drive, I used a unit
from JDR Microdevices (MF353B Mitsubi-
shi) that plugs right into the 5.25
connectors and uses the same mountings
as the larger drive. This simplifies
the installation quite a bit. When you
go to plug the 3.5, you may notice the
34 pin cable is too short. I desold-
ered the connector and added a longer
cable, but one hacker, Joe Wyks,
managed to pry the top off of the board
connector and crimp his new cable into
place without soldering. The power
connector can be adapted with cables
made for that purpose, if necessary.
That's about all that's needed to run a
720K 3.5. Format a disk using Sparta-
DOS XINIT, option 7 (DS 80 tracks) and
start filling up! You now have 2820 DD
sectors on that disk.
Bob Woolley - San Leandro Computer Club
CIS-[75126,3446]
A kit of parts (EPROM, instructions and
cables) is available from:
Innovative Concepts
31172 Shawn Drive
Warren, MI 48093
313-293-0730
aa400/ae826
Phillip M. Chow
Atari Assistant SysOp
Free Net : Atari Sig
Free Net II : Atari Sig
Why an ST? because it's the best.
---------------------------------
-Article #110 (154 is last):
-From: aa399
-Subject: _WHY AN ST?_ because it's the -best.
-Date: Wed, 16 Aug 89 21:52:44 GMT
_____________________________________
////////// The Atari ST ///////////
_____________________________________
Atari users,
The Atari ST computer line is
the most qualified computer for
anyone's needs.
The Atari 520ST-FM is the low cost
end of the ST's. It includes 512k
of memory, 3.5" drive, parallel and
RS-232 serial ports, MIDI port, TOS,
mouse and much more. It can be
purchased for as low as $499.95.
The Atari 1040ST is another
personal computer system offered by
Atari. It includes 1MB of memory,
3.5" drive, parallel and RS-232
serial ports, MIDI port, TOS, mouse
and much more. It can be purchased
for as low as $599.95.
The Atari Mega 2 is one of Atari's
newest computer systems. It includes
2MB of RAM, 3.5" drive, detached
keyboard, parallel, serial, mouse and
MIDI ports. It can be purchased for
as low as $1049.95.
The Atari Mega 4 system is included
in a great and unbelievable Desktop
Publishing package. It includes
4MB RAM, built in 3.5" drive, mouse,
Atari SLM804 8 page per minute
PostScript laser printer with 50
built-in fonts, Atari 30MB hard
drive, Atari SM124 monochrome
monitor, Timeworks Desktop Publisher
ST software, detached keyboard,
parallel, serial and MIDI ports.
It can be purchased for as low as
$3795!!!
This is why the Atari ST
is certainly power without the price.
Other computer companies such as
Apple, IBM, and Amiga can not or
will not lower it's price to even
compete with the ST. Atari has
always believed since day one that
a computer system should be
affordable and affordable they have
made it. Hardware such as the
SM124/SC1224 monitors are known
for their quality and affordability.
The Atari SF314 external 3.5" 800k
floppy sells for as low as $169.95!
The price is extremely low and no
other computer company can understand
it. The Atari ST's can also emulate
computer systems such as the IBM PC,
Macintosh, and the Atari 8-bit
computers though who would need to
with the software that is available
for the ST users today.
For all you musicians, the
Atari ST was designed for MIDI.
It was also engineered to accommodate
true bit-accurate SMPTE time code
hardware. Many computers lack this
important feature, so they resort
to using MIDI time code which isn't
precise as SMPTE and takes up part of
the valuable MIDI data stream. Never
before has so much great MIDI
software been available on a single
computer so quickly. Here are just
some titles:
Steinberg Pro-24 III by Steinberg/
Jones
Sound Designer by DigiDesign
GenWare by DRUMWARE, Inc.
EZ Score Plus by Hybrid Arts, Inc.
MidiDraw by Intelligent Music
Desktop Mixing DMP-7 by Steinberg/
Jones
C-lab-Notator by DigiDesign
There are really over 40 titles
just for the Atari ST. The Atari
ST is THE computer system for
musicians.
The Atari ST is the ultimate
computer for Desktop Publishing.
Atari has created the Mega 4
system package just for Desktop
Publishers. No other computer
system can match it and the price
is incredible. It isn't just for
major companies either, it is
affordable for YOU. You can start
up your own business for under
$4,000. It has been done before
and it can be done by you if you
wish.
I also would like to compliment
on how good the ST looks. It
looks fantastic. Atari announced
that the Mega's were designed by
YOU the users. And to me, it looks
like you have done a great job.
The Macintosh is bulky looking, the
IBM looks just as big- if not bigger
and the Amiga 2000 looks like it
will hit the ceiling after you buy
everything you want for it. But
Atari took this all in consideration
and take a look for yourself, they
have done it right. It is
perfection and it looks like it was
made for your or anyone else's
desk.
I would like to stress one thing
though. If you have an Atari ST
then please do one thing. Buy the
software you want. Software
companies only manufacture software
when there is a need for it and
when people will buy it. If you copy
software from friends then please
stop and show you want even more
software for your computer. Thanks.
For those of you that are
looking for a computer system-
I THINK YOU FOUND IT. The only
trouble I think you will have is
trying to decide on what Atari
computer you want to buy. They
are all incredible machines and
have endless possibilities.
At the Atari SIG, we support
the Atari ST computer systems and
are working on new ways to help
increase support for it. If you
have a friend with an Atari
computer then tell them to come
over and visit the Atari SIG. They
can read news on what is happening
with Atari and other companies.
They can also chat with other users
in the Bulletin Board section or
ask questions about their Atari
ST or 8-bit computers in the
Help-Line.
Thank you.
Len Stys (aa399)
Atari SIG-Operator
Accelerator
-----------
-Article #111 (154 is last):
-From: aa399
-Subject: ACCELERATOR
-Date: Wed, 16 Aug 89 21:52:56 GMT
COPIED FROM ORIGINAL PRESS RELEASE - JUNE 13, 1989
-silverthorn at <-c.f.b. atari->
---------------------------------------
CMI MC68000 Processor Accelerator BOARD
---------------------------------------
for the Atari 520 and 1040 ST computers
NOW YOUR ATARI CAN RUN AT LIGHT SPEED
Up until now, all you dedicated ATARI users have had to dutifully work away
at your ATARI computers dreaming of the day when you could turbo-charge your
ATARI 520 or 1040 ST computers. You had to sit back and watch the
expandability of other systems as they added processor accelerators, memory
expansion boards, video adaptors, and musical instrument data interface (MIDI)
adaptors, while there were virtually no upgrade products being produced for
your ATARI.
Well now it's happened --- your chance is finally here! Creative Microsystems
(CMI) has developed an add-on processor accelerator board for the ATARI ST
line of computers which will give you speed and efficiency never before
available on your ATARI ST. The CMI MC68000 Processor Accelerator Board offers
you so many features that you will wonder how you ever did without it. Be the
first ATARI user on your block to get one and watch the reaction of your
fellow ATARI devotees as they gasp in amazement at the increased processing
speed as you run your ATARI through its paces.
TURBO CHARGE YOUR ATARI WITH THE CMI MC68000 BOARD
So what will adding the CMI MC68000 Processor Accelertor Board to your ATARI
actually do for you? Extensive testing has shown that it can:
* Increase system throughput 35-40% depending on the program being run
* Increase instruction speeds from 8 MHZ to 16 MHZ
* Increase ROM performance by 10-15% (Via Fast ROM)
* Provide math co-processing expansion capability
* Provide greatly improved graphic functions (Via blitter chip expansion
capability)
* Provide automatic clock update (with battery backed-up clock option)
As if increased processing speed and system efficiency is not enough, the
board also comes with a built-in Math Co-processor Socket and Blitter Chip
Socket which allow you even greater expansion avenues. You can also order the
MC68000 Processor Accelerator board to include a battery backed-up clock. With
the addition of the CMI MC68000 Processor Accelerator Board, a math
co-processor chip, a blitter chip, and the battery backed-up clock option you
can now have the many of the features available on the new ATARI Mega ST
computer --- at a mere fraction of the cost.
THE ENGINE DRIVING THE MC68000 PROCESSOR ACCELERATOR BOARD
In response to the drastic need for add-on products for ATARIs, Creative
Micro Systems (CMI) has developed the MC68000 Processor Accelertor
specifically for the 520 or 1040 ST computers. The product is one of a kind
--- there currently is not other product which offers similar features.
Creative Microsystems is not new at offering PC expansion products. We have a
wide range of successful, competitively-priced PC expanasion products for the
Commodore AMIGA computers. We have used our expertise to develop the CMI
Motorala MC68000 ATARI Processor Accelerator Board.
The CMI MC68000 Processor Accelerator board contains the following hardware:
* 16 MHZ SGS-Thompson 68000 chip
* Built-in math co-processor socket
* Built-in blitter socket
* Built-in fast ROM chip
* Optinal battery backed-up clock
The CMI Processor Accelerator board attaches to the MC68000 socket of your
ATARI mother board. If you are a user who has some technical experience and
likes to tinker with your ATARI, you can install the MC68000 board yourself.
Otherwise, your ATARI dealer can easily install it for you.
THE ADVANTAGE OF INCREASED INSTRUCTION SPEEDS
The MC68000 Processor Accelerator board incorporates the new 16 MHZ
SGS-Thompson 68000 chip. As a result, ATARI ST instruction speeds are
increased from 8 MHZ to 16 MHZ --- this means that instructions are executed
twice as fast. For example, with the original 68000 chip installed on the
mother-board of the ATARI, 32-bit long division math instructions requires 70
clock cycles to execute. With a CMI MC68000 processor accelerator board
installed in an ATARI, the same 32-bit math instruction is completed in 35
clock cycles.
TAKE ADVANTAGE OF FAST ROM
The CMI MC68000 Processor Accelerator board also incorporates a ROM chip on
the circuit board. The addition of the on-board ROM chip with the ROM chip
already existing in the ATARI will give the system "Fast ROM" access. ROM
instructions will run at zero(0) wait-states, thus giving access to the ROM at
a much higher rate of speed. Testing has shown ROM performance increased by
10-14% with the installation of the CMI MC68000 board. Fast ROM, when coupled
with the 16 MHZ SGS-Thompson 68000 chip, can increase overall system
throughput by as much as 35-40% depending on the program being run.
TAKE ADVANTAGE OF MATH CO-PROCESSING EXPANSION CAPABILITIES
The CMI MC68000 Processor Accelerator board incorporates a built-in Math Co-
Processor Socket which is specially designed in accordance with ATARI's math
chip specification requirements. All you have to do to have math co-processing
capabilities is to install a math co-processor chip in the Math Co-processor
socket. This will allow you to achieve even faster production speeds in
applications where math functions are used.
TAKE ADVANTAGE OF BLITTER CHIP EXPANSION CAPABILITIES
The CMI MC68000 Processor Accelerator board incorporates a built-in Blitter
Chip Socket. A Blitter Chip is hardware which enhances graphic routines for
moving graphics on a computer screen. By inserting a blitter chip in the
MC68000 Blitter Socket, you can take advantage of greatly increased graphics
capabilities of your software.
TAKE ADVANTAGE OF AUTOMATIC CLOCK UPDATING
You can also order the CMI MC68000 Processor Accelerator board to include a
battery backed-up clock. This feature will automatically set the internal clock
so that you do no have to manually reset the clock/time every time you reboot.
Imagine the convenience of not having to reset the clock --- who could do
without this feature?
CALL CMI AND LET THEM TURBO CHARGE YOUR ATARI TODAY
The development of a Processor Accelerator board for the ATARI ST computers
is long overdue. CMI has responded to the need for such a product and has
included a number of other features which will allow you to expand your ATARI
even further.
--------------------------------
| Creative Microsystems Inc |
| 19552 SW 90th Court |
| Tualatin, Oregon 97062 |
| |
| (503) 691-2552 |
| |
--------------------------------
Len Stys (aa399)
Atari SIG SysOp
An American Computer In Europe
------------------------------
-Article #41 (197 is last):
-Newsgroups: -freenet.sci.comp.atari.news
-From: aa384
-Subject: An American Computer in Europe
-Date: Tue, 15 Aug 89 12:47:54 GMT
AN AMERICAN IN EUROPE
OR
WHAT I DID DURING MY LAST TRIP TO EUROPE
By Joseph Adato
Chapter One of a Continuing Series
Since the time I purchased my first Atari Computer, back in 1984, I've
been continously hearing about how popular the Atari brand of computers
are in Europe. Statements such as, "The reason Atari computers are in
such short supply in the U.S. is because 90% of productions goes to the
European market due to its great demand there. With limited production
capabilites and financial resources, Atari has concentrated his supply of
Atari Computers where he can get the most return for his investment.
When I found out that I would be touring Europe as a member of the
Cleveland Orchestra I decided to find out for myself if the Atari brand
of computers were as popular in Europe as I had always heard about.
Before I continue, let me clear up one statement which may not be
clear to some of you reading this article. I am, and have been for the
past 27 years, a member of the Cleveland Orchestra's Percussion Section.
The Cleveland Orchestra goes on an international tour on the average of
once every two years. I have been to Europe approximately seven times
and therefore know my way around fairly well. The countries that I would
be visiting on the trip were Belgium, Holland, West Germany, Switzerland,
France, England, Austria and Czechoslovakia. These eight European
countries, I felt, would give me a good indication of Atari's popularity
throughout Europe.
My first stop was Brussels Belgium. A lovely city filled with cobble
stone streets, Gothic cathedrals (as are most European cities), Belgium
waffles (goodby waist line!!!) and beautiful women in short skirts (no
comment I'm a married man). I wasn't exactly sure how I was going to go
about accomplishing the assignment that I had established for myself.
Obviously I had to have some type of plan or I would just be walking
around the city aimlessly. When I arrived at my hotel I saw my first
lead, THE BELL HOP!! "Oh yes" he said, "there is a shopping mall not far
from the hotel. I know that they sell Atari because I saw the word ATARI
when I went to buy my Commodore."
-----NOT A GOOD START!!-----
When I entered my hotel room I saw my second lead, THE YELLOW PAGES OF
THE PHONE BOOK!!! (might as well let my fingers do the walking). This
lead turned out to be much more promising. So much so that I found no
less than twelve authorized Atari dealers listed. I was so impressed
with this list that I copied down many of the names and addresses. If
your ever happen to be in Brussels here's a list of some Atari dealers
you might want to check out. Oh yes, most everyone speaks English.
ACACIA 94r de l' Ensignmement 1000-BR 217 34 33
FNAC 16 r des Cenores 1000-BR 217 47 20
STUDIA FRANCINE bid du jardin Botanique-passage 44 1000-BR 218 20 20
SYNERGY 47 r Getry 1000-BR 217 79 35
ATOLL 390 bte 6 av Louise 1050-BR 640 97 31
DIGIT COMPUTERS 68 ch d'lxelles 1050-BR 511 54 45
and the list can go on.
I don't mean to imply that Atari is the only computer here. IBM is
still king and there are lots of IBM clone computers that we have never
heard about (well I haven't). Have you ever heard of a Bull computer, or
how about Olivetti, Abler, Schneider, Elite, and Ericsson. These are but
a few of the names I saw. Apple/Mac is also very well represented with
about as many dealers as there are Atari dealers (what do you think about
that). There's even some Commodore dealers.
I visited four different establishments during my stay and found out
that Atari is indeed a computer which is very much in demand. In fact it
is considered to be a business machine. That's right 'A Business
Machine'!. It seems that Commodore has the game reputation here.
Atari's special uses here are as you might expect, MIDI, DTP, Word
Processor and a host of other business applications. The people of
Belgium can not only buy a 1040ST but a 1 Mega machine. That's right, we
have only heard or read about the 1 Mega machine (in case you don't know
a 1 mega is just a 1040ST that looks like the 2 or 4 Mega machine. I
also saw the Atari PC clone computer, another computer that we've only
heard about. In Europe these computers are readily available.
The machines that I saw had TOS written in French. It was very
amusing for me to boot an Atari 1040ST, open one of the drop down menus
and see all of the commands written in French. My only regret was that I
didn't have a copy of snapshot so that I could show you the GEM desktop
with its drop down menus written in French.
My stay in Brussels, pleasant to begin with, was made all the more
enjoyable with being able to walk down the street, look into the display
window of a computer shop and be able to see, among all the IBM and clone
computers, and Atari ST/Mega computer.
Next month I'll take you to Austria, Holland and Germany and tell you
of Atari's popularity and my experiences in finding out about the state
of Atari in Germany.
Atari PC4
---------
-Article #42 (197 is last):
-Newsgroups: freenet.sci.comp.atari.news
-From: aa400
-Subject: Atari PC4
-Date: Tue, 15 Aug 89 12:48:03 GMT
PC4 -- Putting the AT in Atari!
+-----------------------------+
| Used here with permission |
| Atari Explorer 7-8/89 |
+-----------------------------+
In a surprise move calculated to
strike at the heart of the
PC-compatible market, Atari has
announced the PC4, an IBM AT-compatible
desktop system. Based on the Intel
80286 chip running at 12 Mhz and
sporting a full megabyte of RAM, the
Atari PC4 is capable of running all
MS-DOS applications. It is also
optimally configured for running OS/2 -
IBM's new multitasking environment,
which features a GEM-like graphics
interface called Presentation Manager.
All PC4 models feature a single 1.2Mb
5.25" floppy drive capable of reading
from and writing to disks in IBM
standard (360K) and "quad-density"
formats. The lower-priced of the two
PC4 models also features a 60Mb
internal hard disk.
For true power users, an alternative
configuration features Atari's new 44Mb
removable-media drive. The new drive,
which employs technology licensed from
Syquest, stores data on self-sealed
magnetic disk cartridges approximately
the size of a compact audio disk. The
cartridges, which retail for about $150
each, are said to be so durable that
they can stand up to mailing.
Additional features include a
standard PC bus, RS-232 serial and
parallel printer ports, and
EGA-compatible graphics. The PC4 was
slated for shipment in May. With 60Mb
internal fixed disk, the computer lists
for $2295; with 44Mb removable-media
drive, for $2495.
Phillip M. Chow ^ aa400
The STacy
---------
-Article #43 (197 is last):
-Newsgroups: freenet.sci.comp.atari.news
-From: aa400
-Subject: The STacy
-Date: Tue, 15 Aug 89 12:48:11 GMT
Stacy -- Finally a Portable ST!
+-----------------------------+
| Used here with permission |
| Atari Explorer 7-8/89 |
+-----------------------------+
Atari Corp. introduced the long-
promised laptop ST at the Spring Comdex
show. The Stacy, weighing in at just
15 pounds, the new machine offers all
the power of an Atari 1040ST in a
portable package.
Stacy is based on the Motorola 68000
microprocessor, running at 8 Mhz. The
new computer runs TOS version 1.4 - the
newest version - and, like other
machines in the Atari ST line, supports
the GEM operating system and graphic
environment. A full megabyte of RAM
gives the Stacy the power to run
sophisticated applications on the road.
For good visibility, the laptop
features a backlit "supertwist" LCD
screen with resolution identical to
that of the ST monochrome monitor. To
permit the use of graphic and window-
based applications even when there is
insufficient desk or lap space to
operate the mouse, the sleek Stacy
keyboard sports a two-button
track-ball.
Like a 1040ST, the standard Stacy
comes equipped with one double-sided
3.5" disk drive. An alternative
configuration adds a 20Mb internal hard
disk for power computing on the road.
Stacy offers all the standard ports
found on the full-size ST (RS-232
serial, parallel, external DMA,
external floppy, monitor, mouse,
joystick, and MIDI In/Out), so it can
be used with a standard mouse, external
RGB color or monochrome monitor, and
other non-portable peripherals as the
centerpiece of a powerful office or
home computing system.
The Stacy is the first popular-priced
portable computer to come on its own,
native window-based operating system.
Because GEM is so easy to learn and
use, the portable ST will doubtless
appeal strongly to traveling executives
and salespeople who have been
frightened off portable computing by
the more primitive MS-DOS machines that
dominate this quarter.
The Stacy is also expected to become
standard equipment in several vertical
markets where portability and full ST
compatibility are required -
particularly the music market, where
touring professionals have long awaited
a road-ready equivalent of studio
systems based around desktop ST and
Mega machines.
Stacy will begin shipping in August
to select Atari dealers worldwide. In
its one-floppy version, the machine is
expected to list for a surprisingly
affordable $1495; $1995 with 20Mb fixed
hard disk.
Phillip M. Chow ^ aa400
Tx-816 Articles
---------------
-Article #112 (154 is last):
-From: aa384
-Subject: Tx-816 Articles
-Date: Wed, 16 Aug 89 21:53:11 GMT
These are two articles from Zmagazine about the Turbo 816.
##############################
<*> DATAQUE UPDATE
##############################
by Chuck Stienman
(Editor Note: This text has been edited for room)
DataQue Software
Dept. T816-C
Post Office Box 134
Ontario, OH 44862
On February 15, 1989, Compuserve will sponsor an online conference
featuring Chuck Steinman from DataQue Software to present information and
answer questions concerning the Turbo-816x project.
Feel free to distribute the information in this document to your local
user group newsletter editor. The information contained herein is subject
to change without notice, and is provided as a public service to CIS
users, and the Atari community at large.
Anyone wishing to be on the DataQue Software mailing list should send a
Self-Addressed, Stamped #10 size Envelope to the above address. Please
state in your letter where you heard about the Turbo-816. I am receiving
dozens of letters daily, so please do not get discouraged if the questions
you ask are not specifically answered. If time permits I try to answer
them all, but things are kind of hectic at times.
For those not familiar with the Turbo-816, it is an adapter board for the
Atari XL/XE computers which will replace the current 6502c 8-bit
processor, with a new 16-bit central processor system. The Turbo-816 is
compatible with most of the existing hardware, and software for the Atari
8-bit computers. With the "Dual-Prom" option so far only a handfull of
existing programs have been incompatible. Programs which have been
incompatible with the Turbo-OS alone have been those which have used
illegal entry points into the Atari OS.
The Turbo-816x will come as a kit with everything you should need to get
started, some additional items will be needed under certain installations,
and these are listed in the Turbo-Install Guide. These items are things
like IC sockets, a toggle switch, wire, and solder. Tools needed to
install a Turbo-816x include a phillips screwdriver, soldering iron,
desoldering tool/solder wick, possibly a pair of plyers, and a flat
bladed screwdriver.
The Turbo-816x kit includes:
Turbo-816x ..................... Central Processor Board
Turbo-OS ....................... Operating System ROM
Turbo-816x Connecting Cable .... 12" interconnect cable
Turbo-Install Guide ............ Step by Step Install Instructions
Turbo-816 User Guide ........... Some General Turbo-816 Tips
"Dual Prom" Option Guide ....... Suggested Installation Option
This kit will have a suggested price of $159.95, which will be sold
factory direct initially for $119.95, plus $4.05 shipping/handling. COD,
Foreign, and special handling would be additional. When orders are
accepted, we will initially accept checks, or money orders. If requests
for Visa/MC/Discover cards are high enough, we will later accept credit
card orders. Due to the additional PROM on the 1200xl the Turbo-816x/12
is currently $10 additional.
There are several hardware devices planned for the Turbo-816 line. Some
of the devices being developed or investigated include:
Turbo-816a ..................... Version for the 400/800 computers
Turbo-SRAM ..................... Static Memory Board (32k-256k)
Turbo-ROM ...................... Program ROM board (32k-256k)
Turbo-DRAM ..................... Dynamic Memory board (256k-4meg)
Turbo-VID ...................... 80 column Video Adapter Card
Turbo-CAGE ..................... Advanced External Card Cage
Turbo-DISK ..................... Parallel Floppy Disk Interface
There are several software/firmware items planned for the Turbo-816 line.
Some software items being developed or investigated include:
Turbo-PRG ...................... Programmers Information Kit
Turbo-DEV ...................... Developers Information Kit
Turbo-SRC ...................... Turbo-OS Source Code Info Kit
Turbo-BAS ...................... New 16-bit BASIC Language
Turbo-CEE ...................... New 16-bit C Language
Turbo-ASM ...................... New 16-bit Assembler
Turbo-EDT ...................... New 16-bit Screen Editor
Turbo-BUG ...................... New 16-bit Assembly Code Debugger
Prices for these items and other new items will be released as the items
become available. Many items will be developed according to demand, and
the price and availability will be adjusted to reflect that demand.
The Turbo-816x is a small 2.5" by 5" (approx) board which is mounted
inside an Atari XL/XE computer system. It is connected via a 40 position
ribbon cable to the existing CPU socket. The old Atari 8-bit processor is
removed, and if needed a 40 pin socket installed to allow the Turbo-816x
DIP plug to be inserted.
The Turbo-OS is a 28 pin PROM, which is installed either as a replacement
for the Atari OS PROM, or in addition to the Atari OS. This is determined
by the installation performed. On the 1200xl there are two 24 or 28 pin
proms, and in some cases the "Dual-Prom" option is not available due to
those production runs having 24 pin PROMs.
In any case, if the installation is performed as instructed in the Turbo-
Install Guide, the original Atari OS, and CPU can be re-installed if the
Turbo-816 should ever need to be serviced. There would not need to be any
de-soldering to remove the Turbo-816x if those directions are followed
correctly.
If your Atari computer has its CPU, and PROM in sockets, then the actual
installation time, should be well under an hour. If you must de-solder
the original OS, and CPU, then the time would be longer.
There is currently only one wire that has to be added the Atari XL/XE
motherboard to make the Turbo-816x work. This wire is connected to an
unused pin on the Atari 6502c CPU IC socket, so if the Turbo-816x should
have to be removed, it would not effect operation with the Atari CPU at
all.
Currently there are 24 beta test sites which are testing their hardware
and software under several configurations of the Turbo-816x. They are by
now, in the second stage of their testing, and the results of the first
stage should be available by the conference.
Results so far have been very good, and a few programming bugs have been
located and corrected. While most people may not understand how difficult
it is to write an operating system of this type from scratch (including
Atari) and still maintain the compatibility with the original OS. Most
people would have just hacked the old OS, and put in the needed code to
support the 16-bit processor. We have completely re-coded the Atari OS
from scratch using completely new routines. Where optimizations could be
made, they were. This causes some software not to work, due to using
illegal calls, but that is a problem we can fix from our end. Companies
which use illegal entries/vectors do so at their customer's expense.
Again, with the "Dual-Prom" option installed, this is not a problem.
It is important for people to also understand that DataQue Software does
not dedicate 100% of its efforts to developing Atari products. We make
single, and multi-processor computer systems for industrial and commercial
installations worldwide. If it were not for these other projects, the
Turbo-816 would not be economically possible.
If you have written any assembly language applications (language,
database, spreadsheet, or others) we will work with you to make the
conversion to 16-bit as easy as possible. When available the programmer,
and developer kits are strongly recommended. We are also looking for
authors which would release their programs to us for conversion to 16-bit.
Again at this time we are looking mainly at application programs, not
games.
I hope you all can make it to the conference, and will have your questions
ready. While I will not be able to comment on compatibility with many
specific hardware/software products, since many are still being tested
currently, I will try to answer where possible.
Other issues will be open for discussion, so feel free to make your
thoughts known, as we will listen to you as you are the market, and we
want to provide what you want.
=================
|TURBO 8-16 NEWS|
=================
Courtesy of GEnie's 8-bit RT
Bulletin Board
For those interested...
I am currently working a deal with a
vendor which already produces a major C
implementation for the ST, PC, Amiga,
and Mac, to supply their run-time
library for use with the Turbo-816
(Turbo-C16). The already have the
run-time for the 6502 and will licence
it to me for a *VERY* reasonable price.
It is very very good (and fast as it
was designed for embedded control
applications) and compact. Everyone
cross your fingers, as this would be a
real breakthrough...
I may also release a Turbo-C08 runtime
library at the same time, for people
who are not using the Turbo-816. So
everyone might gain from it, not just
T816 users...although I am banking on
the C16 version to be the main one
as the C types will appreciate the
extra speed, program size, and RAM
availability that the T816 provides.
To update everyone in a nutshell....
The 8-bit emulation section of the
Turbo OS is concidered done...!!!
The 16-bit section only lacks the
insertion and testing of the
allocate & execute application
routines.
Some new features already inserted:
$E49F DOBANK xe banked memory
control
$E4A2 CALUSR BASIC interface to CIO
calls
$E4A5 CALCOS calculate checksum of
memory block
$E4A8 CLRSCR clear the screen buffer
$E4AB SIONOR direct call to SIO,
bypassing PBI routines
$E4AE CPYBUF copy up to 64k from-to
anywhere in 16Mb range
$E4B1 FILPAT fill up to 64k block
with specified pattern
(16mb rng)
$E4B4 NATVEC call CIO function from
outside base 64k
addresses
$E4B7 ALLSAV save all registers
(16-bit) and return in
EMU mode
$E4BA ALLRES restore all registers
and return in NAT mode
$E4BD TBANKT check and test 'XE'
banked memory (up to
256k)
$E4C0 TBUSST check Explicit RAM or
ROM availablility
$E4C3 TETRAM check Expanded RAM
availability (up to
8Mb)
$E4C6 TALLOC allocate any of the 4
types of memory to an
application
$E4C9 TDEALO de-allocate memory from
an application
(TALLOCated)
$E4CC TINSTA install an application
$E4CF TREMOV remove an application
which was TINSTAlled
$E4D2 TEXECU execute an installed
application
$E4D5 TTERMI terminate an
TINSTAlled/TEXECUted
application
Also, a menu program is resident
which can select:
Coldstart
Resident Byte/Atascii memory dumper
(16Mb range 128 bytes at a time)
Memory clear routines for all 4 types
of memory
RAM/ROM search and logging utility
Keyboard F/X control
cursor to any corner of the screen
keyboard click toggle
screen dma control
SIO noise toggle
keyboard repeate rate
keyboard delay rate
Execute up to 8 resident
turbo-applications
Install/Remove up to 8 turbo devices
On the hardware side...
The Turbo-816 Version-2 board design
is finalized and the CAD people
have it in their hands for plotting
and auto-routing. The same applies
to the ROM/SRAM boards
The backplane has been finalized
The dynamic ram board (256k/1m/4m/8m)
is currently being finalized.
Hopefully this will be done by may
and boards available in June.
We are still not satisfied with any
video systems which have been
evaluated...either the quality or
the price is not where I want it.
I would appreciate any comments!
|Doug Wokoun|aa384|Atari SigOp|
____-______-______-______-______-______
This Time Capsule file was produced by
Len Stys. It may only be reposted with
the following information included:
REPOSTED FROM: The Cleveland Free-Net
Atari-SIG
(216)/368-3888
type 'Go Atari' at
any menu
(C.A.I.N.)
____-______-______-______-______-______
--
-----------------------------------------
Return to message index
