ST Report: 19-June-92 #825

From: Bruce D. Nelson (aj434@cleveland.Freenet.Edu)
Date: 06/21/92-09:25:44 PM Z


From: aj434@cleveland.Freenet.Edu (Bruce D. Nelson)
Subject: ST Report: 19-June-92 #825
Date: Sun Jun 21 21:25:44 1992


           *---== ST REPORT INTERNATIONAL ONLINE MAGAZINE ==---*
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                                   from
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 June 19, 1992                                                      No.8.25
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 > 06/19/92 STR 825    "The Original * Independent * Online Magazine!"
   """"""""""""""""
     - The Editor's Desk      - CPU Report        - PORTFOLIO NEWS
     - PCs Popular?           - Perot & Gates     - BLUE RIDGE FEST
     - CFJ Rebuttal           - SHAMUS REPORTING! - COMPO NEWS
     - CT ATARI FEST          - WAACE'92          - OCR Review II

                    -* PAGESTREAM 2.2 UPGRADE SHIPS! *-
                     -* SUPER FOLIO DEMO RELEASED! *-
                       -* AUA -> CASUALTY COUNT! *-


                           THE STORM IS COMING!

 ==========================================================================
                  ST REPORT INTERNATIONAL ONLINE MAGAZINE
               The Original * Independent * Online Magazine
                          -* FEATURING WEEKLY *-
                "Accurate UP-TO-DATE News and Information"
     Current Events, Original Articles, Tips, Rumors, and Information
             Hardware - Software - Corporate - R & D - Imports
 ==========================================================================
 STReport's BBS, The Bounty, invites BBS systems, worldwide, to participate
 in the Fido/TurboNet/Atari F-Net Mail Network.  You may also  call our BBS
 direct at 904-786-4176, and enjoy the excitement of exchanging information
 relative to the Atari  and other  computers worldwide  through the  use of
 excellent International  Messaging Networks.  SysOps, worldwide, are quite
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     COMPUSERVE WILL PRESENT $15.00 WORTH OF COMPLIMENTARY ONLINE TIME

                              to the Readers of;

                  ST REPORT INTERNATIONAL ONLINE MAGAZINE
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                 WHAT'S NEW IN THE ATARI FORUMS (June 19)

 FONTGDOS AVAILABLE HERE!

 FONTGDOS is now available (courtesy Atari Corp) in LIBRARY 9  of the Atari
 Arts Forum (GO ATARIARTS) along with Bob Wilson's help file.

 Please,  be  sure  to  take  advantage  of our NEW SURVEY in the Atari Pro
 Message (GO ATARIPRO) area.  Here's your chance  to let  us know  what you
 want!

 NEW IN ATARI VENDORS FORUM (GO ATARIVEN)

 SoftLogik  Publishing  Corporation  is  pleased to announce the release of
 PageStream 2.2 for Atari  ST/STe/TT  computers!    Please  read  message #
 27184.  For users of PageStream 2.1:  Download file PATCH.LZH from LIBRARY
 11 to convert to version 2.2.
 Users of STalker version  3.01:    Be  sure  to  download  STK302.LZH from
 LIBRARY 8  for a  program that  will upgrade  a registered copy of STalker
 3.01 to version 3.02.   An  original  (unmodified)  STalker  3.01  disk is
 required for the upgrade.

 NEW FOR THE PORTFOLIO

 The ULTIMATE  PORTFOLIO DEMO  is now  available in LIBRARY 17 of the Atari
 Portfolio Forum (GO  APORTFOLIO),  courtesy  Don  Thomas  and  Atari Corp.
 (This  demo  runs  on  a  PC,  not  on  the Portfolio) Superb graphics and
 suitable for an in-store self-running demo/promotion.


                  THE ATARI PORTFOLIO FORUM ON COMPUSERVE
                          HAS BEEN DESIGNATED AN
                OFFICIAL SUPPORT SITE BY ATARI CORPORATION

            "GO APORTFOLIO TO ACCESS THE ATARI PORTFOLIO FORUM"



  """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""



 > From the Editor's Desk             "Saying it like it is!"
   """"""""""""""""""""""

     Summer Fun, the beaches, picnics, cycling and the sleepy time of the
 year for computer platforms.. or, is it?  STR's infamous Crystal Ball is
 about ready to make another appearance and according to the barometer,
 things just may get hot and humid.  Seems there was a comment or two on
 Usenet about a certain Atari mouthpiece recently bragging about being the
 "only Atari spokesperson in the english speaking world".  Talk about ego!
 I guess Sam isn't able to speak for his own company any longer!  One can
 only wonder; is the mouthpiece speaking to benefit Atari Corporation
 or....???  The last I saw and heard, most everyone at Atari and loyal
 Atarians were all disciples for Atari computers.  Fact is, we all enjoy
 using the great hardware and are not bashful when it comes to bragging
 about the hardware's benefits to most anyone.

     While a number of Atari's well respected and highly visible people,
 W. Rehbock, D. Thomas, D. McNamee, J. Townsend, J. Grunke, C. Bacani and
 J. Patton actually go way out of their way in helping users (customers),
 and creating good-will for Atari, there will always be those as in any
 large operation, who must bathe in their own imagined glory.  History has
 shown us these people are indeed "legends in their own minds".  Usually,
 these people are welcomed warmly as one type of person and sadly exit as a
 completely different and utterly disappointing person.  A classic example
 of this is Richard M. Nixon.  Is it really a situation where power or the
 perception of such was too much for the current "nixonite" to handle?
 Time will tell and thankfully, the situation is "on the clock".

     On to a more enjoyable topic, Stalker 3.02, it now "has it all" and
 the best news is it works as promised.  No hassles, headaches or RSN
 promises.  The upgrade patch is available on all the major services.  Two
 important points are it will go well over 38.4 kbaud now and it has the
 ability to use CIS' very fast Quick B+ protocol.  At 9600, it yields in
 the mid 900s most all the time.

     Soft-Logik has released their new updates for the Pagestream 2.1 DTP
 package.  The update package is available online for those who already own
 PGST2.1.

     Its Father's Day weekend, here's to all those fathers out there and to
 the mothers that made them fathers!  In other words... have a wonderful
 weekend.

             Ralph @ STReport International Online Magazine




  """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""





  STReport's Staff                      DEDICATED TO SERVING YOU!
  """"""""""""""""

                            Publisher - Editor
                            """"""""""""""""""
                             Ralph F. Mariano


          PC DIVISION         AMIGA DIVISION           MAC DIVISION
          -----------         --------------           ------------
          Roger D. Stevens    Charles Hill             R. ALBRITTON


  STReport Staff Editors:
  """""""""""""""""""""""
          Lloyd E. Pulley Sr. Dana P. Jacobson         Michael Arthur
          Lucien Oppler       Brad Martin              Judith Hamner
          John Szczepanik     Dan Stidham              Joseph Mirando
                    Steve Spivey        Doyle C. Helms

  Contributing Correspondents:
  """"""""""""""""""""""""""""
          Michael Lee         Richard Covert           John Deegan
          Brian Converse      Oliver Steinmeier        Tim Holt
          Andrew Learner      Norman Boucher           Harry Steele
          Ben Hamilton        Neil Bradley             Eric Jerue
          Ron Deal            Robert Dean              Ed Westhusing
          James Nolan         Vernon W. Smith          Bruno Puglia
                              Clemens Chin

                             IMPORTANT NOTICE
                             """"""""""""""""
      Please, submit letters to the editor, articles, reviews, etc...
                              via E-Mail to:

                 Compuserve.................... 70007,4454
                 GEnie......................... ST.REPORT
                 Delphi........................ RMARIANO
                 BIX........................... RMARIANO
                 FIDONET....................... 112/35
                 FNET.......................... NODE 350
                 NEST.......................... 90:19/350.0


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 > CPU STATUS REPORT                LATE BREAKING INDUSTRY-WIDE NEWS
   =================

    Issue #25

    Compiled by: Lloyd E. Pulley, Sr.



  -- Austin To Intro 33 MHz 486 PC For Under $1,100

 Due to new CPU technology from Cyrix, Austin Computer Systems will soon
 announce a 33mhz '486 PC for only $1,095.  Sources say the Cyrix chips
 contain all the performance of a '486 CPU in a form factor the size of
 a standard 386 SX chip. Because the chips use the less expensive '386 SX
 motherboard, the system's prices can be lower.

 Austin's recently introduced their new 25mhz system, the $995 Cyrix
 486SLC-25 computer. It comes standard with a 43MB hard drive, one MB
 RAM, one 3.5-inch floppy drive, and a 14-inch color VGA monitor. DOS and
 Windows are not included, but the system does comes preloaded with
 McAfee Associates' virus protection software, ViruScan. The purchase
 price also covers 24-hour technical support, plus a one-year parts and
 labor warrantee.  Additional ram is available at $50 per meg.



  -- Top 100 Software Companies Sales up 22% in 1991

 Despite weak economic conditions, the top 100 U.S. software companies
 reported 1991 revenues of nearly $14 billion, an impressive 22% gain
 over 1990.

 Microsoft Corp. was in the number one spot with $1.8 billion in software
 revenue. The firm posted a 58% gain over last year, thanks mainly to its
 Windows products. Computer Associates was second with $1.4 billion, with
 Lotus third with $828 million in annual software revenue.

 Software sales accounted for 16% of IBM Corp. and 20% of Digital Equip-
 ment Corp's 1991 worldwide revenues.



  -- US Electronic Products Sales Up in First Quarter

 Sales of domestically produced electronics products and services in the
 first quarter of 1992 were up 6.4% to $77.7 billion and may be a sign
 that the recession is abating in the electronics industry.



  -- National Semi Earnings at Five Year High

 National Semiconductor says it's showing the best financial gains the
 company has seen in five years. The company made the statement in its
 newly released fourth quarter 1992 report. Sales for the quarter which
 ended May 31 were $491.5 million, compared with $444.9 million a year
 ago.



  -- New Survey Says People Like PCs

 The times are a changing - while previous surveys showed more men using
 PCs than women, Logitech's newly released "PCs and People" survey says
 women now outnumber men 2-1 as PC users.  Previous market research has
 shown 84% of PC users are men.

 The survey, polling exclusively people who already use PCs, said 75% see
 PCs as work companions, 98% think of PCs as a valuable aid when it comes
 to getting work done, and 80% said PCs are fun to use.

 The survey was performed via telephone interviews with 301 computer
 users, 68% who were women. Companies were randomly selected by size
 (between 50 and 350 employees) and specific inclusion was made of branch
 offices of Fortune 1000 companies so there would be easier access to
 qualified respondents, according to ADF Research.



  -- Even Billionaires Can Make Mistakes

 According an article this week in the Seattle Times, Ross Perot once had
 a chance to buy Microsoft Corp. for just a few million dollars.  In 1979
 Perot met with Bill Gates, Chairman of Microsoft, to discuss the possi-
 bility of buying the $2 million startup software company.

 According to Perot, "He did give me an opportunity to buy a ringside
 seat," but he thought Gates's asking price was too high. Perot added
 that Gates "has never kidded me about that, but I think if the shoe were
 on the other foot, I'd probably needle him."
 Microsoft's market value this year is $21 billion. Gates, who is 36,
 owns about a third of Microsoft's stock, which means he is more than
 twice as rich as Perot.






  ***********************************************************************


                    :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. They're Here -- GEnie Hot Summer Days -- Save 30%.............*EVENTS
  2. New MIDI Windows Product Announcement......................SOFTRONICS
  3. Tuesday June 23 join our Mom's Night Out discussion...........FAMILY
  4. 54 Programs for Windows ONLY $29.95 - Save $20+ at..........SHAREWARE
  5. Emotional sign of CANCER welcomes the Sun's arrival in the....STARS
  6. NEW TITLES on Computer Books @ Discount Prices................PCBOOKS
  7. Batman's back, Catwoman's got him. BATMAN RETURNS reviewed....SHOWBIZ
  8. Meet Caryn Navy of RAISED DOT COMPUTING.......................ABLE
  9. Mortimer sez notebook prices $$$ are faaaallling down, on.....LAPTOPS
 10. WIN FREE TIME for your prize BBQ recipe in....................*FOOD
 11. From S/36 to Cray, we've got them all in....................MAINFRAME
 12. WWI Draft Records - Microfilmed and Available at FHL........GENEALOGY
 13. President Perot:  See what we think in......................ASTROLOGY
 14. Get Tips on Marketing Your Business Products & Services.......*HOSB
 15. BRIEF, in brief...............................................BORLAND

 GENIE'S "HOT SUMMER DAYS" SALE!
 """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
 From June 15 to September 7, GEnie's prime  time hourly  connect charge is
 being  reduced  from  $18.00  per  hour  to $12.50 per hour; in Canada the
 reduction is from $25.00 to $16.00 per hour.  That's savings of  over 30%!
 And it makes GEnie Services rates most competitive with CompuServe's -- 24
 hours a day.  (Note: GEnie*Basic  pricing is  NOT applicable  during prime
 time hours.   Reduced  prime time rates are in effect in the United States
 and Canada only, and apply at speeds up to 2400 bps.)

 If you're looking for software, GEnie has over  100,000 downloadable files
 of shareware,  freeware and  demoware covering  the spectrum from business
 utilities and productivity tools, to graphics and fonts, and education and
 games.    Software  is  available  for  virtually  all  personal computing
 platforms.  GEnie also features  online  support  from  many  hardware and
 software vendors.   GE  Mail is  also included  in the sale, with the same
 lower connect charges in effect.

 And when it comes to fun, don't forget  GEnie's industry-leading selection
 of  Multi-player  Games!    The  lower daytime rates mean more competitive
 action in  such hits  as Kesmai's  award-winning Air  Warrior, the all-new
 MultiPlayer Battletech, Dragon's Gate, Federation II and Gemstone III.

 But all  good things  come to  an end, and so will this sale.  These rates
 are in effect until  September 7,  1992.    Some  services are  subject to
 additional charges.  Check the online rate pages for additional details.

 So enjoy  a Summer  of Savings on GEnie, the home of Hot Summer Nights III
 and Hot Summer Days, too!

 Here are some questions  about Hot  Summer Days  which may  come up, along
 with the appropriate answers.

 1.  Are GEnie*Basic Services included in the Hot Summer Days Sale?

     No.  This is a sale on GEnie's prime time hourly connect rate.
     GEnie*Basic Services remain applicable only during non-prime time
     hours.

 2.  Is 9600 baud service included?

     No.  The sale is applicable on speeds up to and including 2400 baud.

 3.  Are remote access surcharges applicable?

     Yes.  The sale does not affect our cost for those lines, so the $2
     per hour charge will still apply.

 4.  Are all countries included?
     No.  This sale includes the U.S. and Canada only.

 5.  What are the rates?

     The U.S. hourly rate will be $12.50 per our instead of the normal
     $18 per hour rate.  The Canadian hourly rate will be $16.00 per hour
     instead of the normal $25.00 per hour.  These rates are in effect
     Monday through Friday from 8:00 AM to 6:00 PM local time.

 6.  Are Chat Club rates in effect?

     No.  Chat Club rates are in effect only during non-prime time hours.

 7.  Are databases and services subject to surcharges?

     Yes.  The same surcharge rate structure which applies now will apply
     during the sale.  This sale is only on GEnie's connect charge.

 8.  Can I use my Gift of Time during the sale hours?

     Of course!  Gifts of Time apply to connect rates at any time of the
     day or night.

 9.  How long will the sale last?

     Hot Summer  Days will be in effect from Monday, June 15 until Monday,
     September 7.

 10. Why is GEnie offering this promotion?

     GEnie wants to make this summer an exciting time for its customers.
     GEnie hopes to attract daytime usage currently spent on other
     services.

  FROM THE ST RT
                     New Files in Your Library

   No.  File Name    Address     Description
  ----- ------------ -----------  -------------------------------------
  24542 PRES9206.TXT S.HOFFMANN   W.A.A.C.E. AtariFest 1992 Press Rele
  24539 ICONS.LZH    ST.REPORT    *  Super Icon Collection - NEWDESK *
  24537 TLINK373.LZH M.CALDWELL6  TRIPLINK version 3.73 Complete!
  24530 MUSICAL.LZH  G.KICHOK     Musical NeoDesk 3 icons, NEW!
  24529 HELPFGDS.LZH G.KICHOK     Help file for FontGDOS installation
  24527 GRNDPRIX.ARC E.TREMBLAY2  Three Formula One car images
  24526 CSAS_FAQ.ARC S.YELVINGTO2 Usenet Atari ST FAQ (answers)
  24524 PATCOLOR.LZH SGUBER       Colored Wallpapter Patterns
  24521 AEO_9204.LZH Z-NET        Atari Explorer Online - Issue #4
  24519 STKR_302.LZH GRIBNIF      Upgrade STalker 3.01 to 3.02
  24516 LOSERS_1.LZH D.SMITH200   But they WERE fun to draw.

     Also available  in the  Atari RT Library are Sound Files (library 11),
 Graphic pictures (library 5), Atari Archives (library 13), and Sale/Wanted
 Files (library  26).  Sale/Wanted items are also available in the Bulletin
 Board Category 27.

         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

 Since Michael is going to be away for a while, Ralph decided that I sho-
 uld be on the lookout for posts that might be of general interest to our
 readers (i.e., he 'volunteered' me).  The following posts were of inter-
 est to me, I hope they are also of interest to you.

         Lloyd E. Pulley, Sr.
  Senior Staff Editor for ST Report

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

 From Delphi -

  38579 10-JUN 18:44 Sound & Graphics
        RE: Bruce Springsteen (Re: Msg 38563)
        From: THEBOSS99    To: BIBLINSKI (NR)

  My  sister Patti Scialfa is married to Bruce Springsteen.   He has  two
  sisters, Virginia and Pam.  Pam took the cover photo for Rolling Stone,
  neither has children.

  Since we are totally independent (THRILL HILL),  Bruce doesn't like  to
  be as associated w/anything but his Music. We go to such extremes as to
  cover the Brand Names of the DX-7'S on stage,  never played w/a warm up
  band, etc. So you will never see any Logos or endorsements by the Bruce
  Springsteen Band.

  However  we use Atari systems for many different  reasons,  MIDI  being
  only  one of them.   In Europe,  Atari is extremely popular and we  tour
  there extensively!

  DELPHI is not really a MIDI BBS, however there are other systems we use
  that are huge Atari MIDI systems.Thanx 4 dropping me a line!!

  Michael R. Scialfa
                             ----------------

 From CIS -

  #: 64821 S17/Community Square
      13-Jun-92  23:37:40
  Sb: #An Open Letter to ATARI
  Fm: LEXICOR Software 75300,763
  To: [F] Bill Rehbock 75300,1606

  To: Mr. Bill Rehbock and the ATARI Artist Community

  Dear Bill and A-A's

       This is an open letter

       And intended by way of suggestion to pose what I see as an  impor-
  tant  opportunity for both ATARI and the using public.  I address  this
  open  letter to Bill because he is the proper person and to  the  Atari
  users  at large because my suggestion is in a way a call for  continued
  support of the Atari computer platform.

       I respectfully offer the following idea: That Atari should open or
  create  a  new level of ATARI Developer.  This new  category  would  be
  "Developer-Artist". The developer would, with ATARI support, do what he
  does best....Create artistic computer art based material. This material
  would  be used by ATARI at their many sponsored shows and in their  ad-
  vertising.

       The  Developers should receive the latest and best hardware  ATARI
  has to offer...in this case I am suggesting the new FALCON....much men-
  tioned  in  the press of late.  This should be a  fully  loaded  puppy,
  including massive hard drives,  maxed out RAMs,  and the best  monitors
  available.

       Such hardware should be "loaned or Given" to these developers  who
  are usually and traditionally "with-out" as they say.

       In addition ATARI should provide all available software to  afford
  the  best  possible  Artistic computer environment  for  the  Developer
  Artist.

       These  Artists and their work should be displayed by Atari at  all
  major Atari events,  this should include the inclusion of the Artist as
  well as his work.

       Given  that it is a forgone conclusion,  considering  recent  news
  articles that ATARI is about to launch a new graphics platform for  the
  Atari  user,  that  without some substantial examples of  the  stunning
  color  and  resolution inherent in the rumored specs  of  these  forth-
  coming computers,  sales of such computers will be less than what might
  be expected.  All should realize that very few serious computer Artists
  consider the ATARI a serious graphics platform. We at Lexicor have been
  stumbling into this problem for quite some time.  There is no  question
  that stunning graphics,  both still and animated,  sell  computers.  In
  fact  it  was  only  after my own work was seen  by  folks  at  Silicon
  Graphics,  that  they  began  to  take both  me  and  Lexicor  Software
  applications seriously.  The fact is that what we see on the monitor is
  what sells computers to new users.  It also is what keeps  contemporary
  users buying new Ataris as well.  But then this is nothing new is it?

       I  do not mean to suggest that I or anyone at Lexicor be  included
  in this new category of developer I am suggesting.

       The plain truth is I don't have time now to do the creative work I
  would  like and suggest be done now.  I could not do justice to such  a
  commitment.  Bill,  I  do  have some nominations I would  like  to  put
  forward  for you to consider -  if you feel that my suggestion has  any
  merit at all.

       My nominations are as follows:

             1. Earl Hinson Jr of New York state
             2. Barry Summer also of New York state
             3. Joey (Realm) Sherman of KY
             4. Norman Pickthall of Canada

       I don't nominate these artists lightly. They have all sent me many
  examples of their work and have impressed me as being a few of the very
  best Computer artist I have had the pleasure receive work from.

       Bill,  I  believe  that  you  could  mount  a  very  sizeable  and
  impressive impact on today's computer graphics community if you decided
  to take my suggestion.  The cost to set up these and other artist would
  be  minimal compared to the cost of paying for the same sorts  of  work
  from even a conservative advertising company.

       Well  that's  my suggestion for what it is worth....I  might  also
  suggest that any Atari ARTIST who has their work on Video tape or prin-
  ted out might consider sending it to Bill at Atari.  It might help Bill
  in  considering  my  suggestion  if he has some  examples  of  what  is
  currently being done on the Atari.

  Best regards

  Lee Seiler

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

 From the Soft Logik Round Table on Genie -
  Soft Logik RT
  Category 1,  Topic 66
  Message 1         Fri Jun 12, 1992
  SL-TECH                      at 13:25 EDT

  Soft-Logik announces PageStream 2.2 for the Atari!

  St.  Louis,  Missouri (June 1992): Soft-Logik Publishing Corporation is
  pleased  to announce the release of PageStream 2.2 for Atari  ST/STe/TT
  computers.  PageStream  2.2 includes many improved features as well  as
  some new features.  With the release of PageStream 2.2,  Soft-Logik has
  demonstrated  its  commitment  to the Atari market  and  to  its  loyal
  customers.

  PageStream  2.2  has  enhanced import modules and  printer  drivers  to
  provide  users greater control.  Support for plotters and sign  cutters
  has been added,  allowing desktop publishing users to access even  more
  output  devices.  An improved toolbox makes PageStream's  award-winning
  interface easier to use than ever. New keyboard shortcuts help users to
  move  around documents more quickly,  and text is displayed  faster  on
  screen.

  PageStream  2.2 retails for $299.95.  Registered owners of version  2.1
  can receive version 2.2 free of charge by downloading a patch file from
  Soft-Logik's BBS, GEnie or CompuServe.  If owners do not have access to
  a modem,  they can order a version 2.2 upgrade from Soft-Logik for only
  $25. This will give users a new four disk set and a 12 page addendum to
  the  2.1 manual.  (The patch file online includes a readme file  equiv-
  alent to the addendum.)

  Registered  owners  of  versions prior to version 2.1  can  upgrade  to
  PageStream  2.2 for $75 and will receive a complete set of  disks,  two
  new manuals and a quick reference card.

  Soft-Logik Publishing Corporation

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

 From CIS concerning rewriting GEM and TOS into assembly -

  #: 65019 S8/Hot Topics
      15-Jun-92  23:11:16
  Sb: #64825-#C-vs-Assembler
  Fm: John Townsend @ Atari 70007,1135
  To: Boris Molodyi 70322,624

  You  have no idea!  Do you realize how hard is it to change things  now
  and  maintain compatibility?  It's VERY hard.  I wouldn't even want  to
  think about the problems that would be created if we switched the whole
  thing to assembler. BTW.. Just for your info:

  BIOS - the whole thing is in Assembly
  XBIOS - about 90% is in Assembly
  GEMDOS - Completely in C
  AES - about 25% Assembly
  VDI - about 80% Assembly

  As you can see, large sections of the OS are already in Assembly. There
  is a chance that we will be going to a better C compiler in the  future
  that  will  make TOS smaller and slightly faster,  but we  are  already
  doing quite a bit to make things fast.

  Please,  tho..   don't  make judgments about how "easy" it would be  to
  write TOS in Assembly Language.  It would be pretty hard to  do,  would
  take LOTS of time,  and goes against one of the principles of Operating
  Systems: Compatibility and Maintainability.

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

 From  the ST Round Table on Genie concerning Spectrum Holobyte's  games
 and future in the US ST market -

  Atari-ST RoundTable
  Category 9,  Topic 34
  Message 163       Wed Jun 17, 1992
  HOLOBYTE [No.19]             at 15:30 EDT
  We all want to do a better job in supporting all our products,  whether
  it's for the Atari ST,  IBM,  Mac or Amiga. However, we are constrained
  on  the  Atari ST and Amiga side by the fact that we did  not  directly
  develop FALCON or Flight of the Intruder for the Atari ST and Amiga. In
  the case of FALCON,  Rowan Software took the FALCON concept and some of
  the  Mac code and wrote a brand-new game from scratch for the Atari  ST
  and Amiga.  In the case of Flight of the Intruder,  Rowan Software came
  up with the concept, did the design, and did all the coding.

  That's  why it's been so difficult (essentially impossible) for  us  to
  get any updates on either product.  We don't really have direct control
  of either FALCON or FOTI for the Atari ST,  nor do we have any leverage
  on  Rowan  Software  to  work  on  updates,  which  they  believe  (and
  rightfully  so,  I agree) to be financially a  drain.  It's  especially
  tough for them after the collapse of Mirrorsoft in England.

  Atari-ST RoundTable
  Category 9,  Topic 34
  Message 164       Wed Jun 17, 1992
  HOLOBYTE [No.19]             at 15:34 EDT

  P.S.  By  the way,  we've only done 6 games for the Atari  ST:  FALCON,
  FALCON Mission Disk I,  FALCON Mission Disk II, GATO and Tetris. So I'm
  not sure which "other" Spectrum HoloByte games you own if you don't own
  either Mission Disk or FOTI.  Sphere is the corporate name of  Spectrum
  HoloByte, but they're one and the same.

  Atari-ST RoundTable
  Category 9,  Topic 34
  Message 165       Wed Jun 17, 1992
  HOLOBYTE [No.19]             at 15:39 EDT

  I  don't  know why I bother mentioning it,  but we  since  we  released
  Flight of the Intruder last year for the Atari ST, we have sold a grand
  total of 753 copies in the U.S. :-( That doesn't even cover the cost of
  testing the product for 6 months,  let along packaging it!  Even if  we
  sold 10 times more copies in the U.S.  with the European version,  that
  still isn't worth it.

  I believe that if our Atari ST products had been developed in-house, we
  would  have tried to come out with an update to be compatible with  the
  the newer TOS versions and machines.  Unfortunately,  for the Atari  ST
  market,  we  were not the developers nor is the market large enough  to
  warrant developing new products.

  No.19
                             ----------------

 From the Jerry Pournelle Round Table on Genie concerning Jerry  getting
 his TT upgraded and doing a new review on it

  Jerry Pournelle RT
  Category 4,  Topic 15
  Message 193       Mon Jun 15, 1992
  J.COLE18 [John Cole]         at 21:07 EDT

  Well said!  Your comments about Atari are right on. Atari's  philosophy
  for home-run products has precluded building a firm base of  developers
  and users large enough to reach critical mass.   Atari,  in its present
  form,  posses  no danger to anyone in the  computer   industry,  except
  those directly involved with Atari ;-)

  Even today, that home-run swing is still present. With the exception of
  Font-GDOS  (who's release appears to have come about only because of  a
  supreme  effort  from Bob Brodie,  Atari's Director  of  Communication)
  Atari has failed to produce any product promised for the ST line for  a
  year. No ST book, No FSM Gdos, No MetaDos, No Class B TT's (though they
  are claimed to exist,  none have been found at dealers).  Coupled  with
  astoundingly low production schedules for the TT (one rumor quoted  250
  a month!   WORLDWIDE!   While that is doubtful, this figure ought to be
  in  the 10's of thousands per month),  which is the only machine  Atari
  has capable of competing with PC's on a level playfield,  does not cast
  a hopeful light on Atari's marketing success.

  Looking towards Atari's future,  it seems that they are again  swinging
  for the centerfield fence ;-)

  Atari's  communication problems with developers are only surmounted  by
  their  internal communication problems.  What's worse,  I know  several
  VERY  good  people  who are doing their  best  at  fixing  things,  but
  necessary ideas don't seem to fit into the home-run way of thinking.

  If you were to buy the development documentation (available separately)
  you would be disgusted with the tools given to create programs for your
  new  computer.  The  resource  construction program  is  the  same  one
  distributed YEARS ago.  No RCS with prototyping,  no profilers,  only 2
  commercial C compilers and only one has a source level debugger at  the
  moment (to be fair to a group of people doing very good work, Hisoft is
  working on a source level debugger and should have it soon ;-)

  With  all  the  problems  at  Atari,   the  dismal  marketing,  minimal
  production,  zero  support,  there  are several  VERY  good  developers
  remaining in this market (which is probably the smallest since 1986, if
  our sales are any indication, assuming we have only a small fraction of
  a percentage,  there are less than 30,000 active ST's in America!)  Why
  do these people remain? Well they continue to make money in this market
  despite the feeble marketing and development support from Atari.  These
  developers  are very dedicated to the platform and represent  the  real
  diehards.  I consider many to be friends and I know many are struggling
  with  the decision to support other platforms with  meager  development
  resources, something Lexicor has already done with Silicon Graphics.

  On that note, I am very happy that you will be dusting off your TT soon
  (this weekend isn't it?).  With Dan's visit [Dan McNamee of Atari], you
  should get a good idea of just what is out there in this small, tightly
  knit market.   I would greatly appreciate it if you might find the time
  to see just what Lexicor has to offer on the TT platform.

  However,  we have learned several hard lessons from Atari,  and meaning
  no disrespect to Dan, who works very hard for the success of Atari, I'd
  rather not have Atari representing our software.

  So  here  is my offer :-) Lee Seiler,  the president of Lexicor  and  a
  fantastic artist,  to boot,  has offered to fly down and show Lexicor's
  animation and graphics software personally,  any time you feel up to it
  ;-) I really hope you have time to have Lee visit sometime,  because  I
  think anyone who has seen Lee's work is very impressed :-)

  Please  leave  me Email if you are interested at  all.  My  address  is
  J.Cole18 (as it said above ;-)

  John Cole, Lexicor Software Tos development division





  ***********************************************************************



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  ***********************************************************************




 > A REBUTTAL STR FOCUS!         Charles F. Johnson replies to Deegan
   """""""""""""""""""""




                         FONTGDOS - FRIEND or FOE?
                         =========================



 Mr. Deegan,

   I was mistaken about FONTGDOS's ability to change font assignments
 without rebooting.  As soon as it was pointed out to me (the next day), I
 recanted this statement with the following message:

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

   Atari-ST RoundTable on 920603 at 21:49
   Category 32, Topic 3

   John,

     You're right; I apologize for my misstatement.  FONTGDOS does let
   you change font assignments.  (As long as you agree to save your
   ASSIGN.SYS after making changes -- wiping out your old file.)
   However, G+PLUS is still superior, because it lets you _automatically_
   load the correct ASSIGN.SYS for each program -- which is important for
   many existing GDOS programs, since (unfortunately) not all programs
   are compatible with the same ASSIGN.SYS.  With FONTGDOS, changing
   between different GDOS programs (for example, Timeworks Publisher and
   Degas Elite) requires a lot of manual work on the user's part -- and
   he/she must also be pretty familiar with the mechanics of an
   ASSIGN.SYS file to do it at all.

   - Charles @ CodeHead Tech

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

     I stand by everything in this message.  Yes, FONTGDOS does let you
 change font assignments, and you can account for disparate programs like
 Degas Elite and Timeworks Publisher that won't work with the same
 ASSIGN.SYS file.  HOWEVER, it's a lot of manual work to do it.  With
 G+PLUS, the process is automatic; you set it up once and then never have
 to think about it again.  With G+PLUS, you just run your GDOS programs
 whenever you want, without worrying that they'll crash because of the
 wrong ASSIGN.SYS file.

     It's interesting that the apology for my incorrect statement didn't
 receive the same "rumor mill" coverage as the original statement.

     As for the drivers included with the FONTGDOS release -- yes, they are
 superior to the pre-existing Atari drivers, and they do work very well
 with G+PLUS too.  We're pleased that Atari released these improved
 drivers.

     As for Warp 9 -- somewhere wires got crossed.  I _never_ said there
 was an "incompatibility" between FONTGDOS and Warp 9; there isn't.
 However, because Atari changed the way GDOS interacts with certain
 structures that are pointed at by a documented Line A variable, the
 acceleration afforded by Warp 9 when FONTGDOS is installed is lessened.
 Warp 9 still speeds up the system plenty -- just not quite as much as it
 does without FONTGDOS or with G+PLUS.  See the test results below for
 proof of this.

     This information was also posted on the online services, and again,
 the clarifications didn't get reported.

     As for the "caching" feature of FONTGDOS -- I agree, that is a nice
 feature (although of minimal usefulness to existing GDOS programs), and
 again, I said so online.  Again, THAT message didn't get reported.

   Mr. Deegan says:

   ->> FONT GDOS does not slow down the system as CFJ suggests.  Again
   ->> this is an area of competition for G+Plus.  An improper setup of
   ->> FONT GDOS _may_ slow down the system a bit and the Font Cache
   ->> will load fonts as needed and this may cause what appears as a
   ->> slow down.

 Sorry -- but FONTGDOS _does_ introduce about a 10% system slowdown in GEM
 applications.

 Since people are probably getting tired of reading unsupported statements
 about whether or not FONTGDOS introduces a system slowdown, I did some
 tests, with the Quick Index benchmark program, and also with the
 ZOOMTEST.PRG we ship with G+PLUS.  The tests were conducted with a "real
 world" system; i.e., a Mega 4 with several other AUTO folder programs and
 desk accessories installed.

 For the ZOOMTEST results, timings are given in seconds; lower timings mean
 faster speeds.  For Quick Index, higher percentages mean faster speeds.

   Here are the results of the tests:

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

   G+PLUS - with Warp 9

   ZOOMTEST (50 repetitions)   -- 5.94 seconds
   Quick Index GEM Dialog Test -- 409%

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

   FONTGDOS - with Warp 9

   ZOOMTEST (50 repetitions)   -- 6.09 seconds
   Quick Index GEM Dialog Test -- 356%

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

   G+PLUS - without Warp 9

   ZOOMTEST (50 repetitions)   -- 18.43 seconds
   Quick Index GEM Dialog Test -- 144%

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

   FONTGDOS - without Warp 9

   ZOOMTEST (50 repetitions)   -- 25.73 seconds
   Quick Index GEM Dialog Test -- 119%

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

     Regardless of attempts to portray CodeHead's misgivings about FONTGDOS
 as "sour grapes" coming from a competitor, these numbers tell the true
 story.  We ask you, the public, to take a look at the numbers and judge
 for yourselves.

                          Charles @ CodeHead Tech
                      Friday, June 12, 1992  7:46 pm


     ________________________________________________________________





 > The UNTOLD Story! STR Spotlight  PITTSBURGH.... Finally, the TRUTH!
   """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""



                    THE UNTOLD STORY OF PITTSBURGH, PA
                    ==================================




 by DC Signorini
 (c) 1991, 1992, 1992


 =======
 PART V
 =======


     [This is  part 5  of a  6 part story concerning the Atari arena in the
     Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania area.  You are encouraged to read all 6 parts
     in their  entirety.   If you  missed Part  I, II,  III, or IV, you are
     encouraged to read these Parts before reading further.]


                              CASUALTY COUNT
                              --------------

     Rumor has it that both Atari Elite and PACE  are suffering  a year and
 a half  later.    PACE  is rumored to have fewer than 90 members and Atari
 Elite is dropping membership too.   PACE refuses to  talk to  Atari Elite,
 while Atari  Elite has  always had an open door policy.   This attitude is
 not doing either group or Atari computers any  good.    In  my eyes, Atari
 Elite did  nothing wrong  to get  the reputation  they currently possess.
 PACE and Atari Elite should have had a meeting 4  years ago  to settle any
 and all  disputes.    However,  the board of directors of both groups were
 too stubborn for such talks.   Neither wanted to admit wrong doing.    The
 Atari ST  users of  the Pittsburgh area have suffered because of the greed
 of a few selfish people.   The  members of  the Atari  Elite have suffered
 because certain  individuals took  it upon  themselves to  begin a "smear"
 campaign against  the group.     Those people  did nothing  wrong, and the
 Atari Elite deserves a clean slate.

     You see,  PACE wanted  the Atari  Elite to  crumble so badly that they
 were willing to do almost anything to make sure that Elite was eliminated.
  Little did they know, they were slicing their own throats in the process.
  It took them 5 years to coat the Atari Elite  with kerosene  only to find
 that when they lit the match, they too had some on them.

     The following  article is  re-printed from  the Atari Elite Electronic
     Chronicles Newsletter and was written by John Karlovich,  president of
     the Atari Elite--

                            ***** REPRINT *****

       05/29/90
       Greetings to all:

          Until this  time, THE ATARI ELITE has sat back and not said
      a word, we have listened and  read ALL  of the  posts that have
      been printed  about the Pittsburgh situation.  Bear with me for
      awhile and you will begin to see the TRUTH unfold.

          There have been some  false allegations  being spread about
      The Atari  Elite Organization  that needs clarification, let me
      introduce myself.   My name is John N.  Karlovich and  I am one
      of the founding members of THE ATARI ELITE and a past president
      of PACE (Pittsburgh Atari Computer Enthusiasts) I resigned from
      that  position  officially  in  November 1985.  Myself and five
      other 520ST users started  ** The  ATARI ELITE  **   an ST only
      organization.

          I gave  the board  of directors of PACE a 6 month notice of
      my  resignation  and  explanation   which  was  necessary...The
      secretary had  NEVER taken  the minutes  of the meetings....The
      disk librarian would NOT  report on  how many  disks were being
      bought or sold....And many many other functions that I will not
      bring up...(Leave the skeletons in the closets)

          The accusations that I  left  PACE....to  be  split  up, is
      totally ridiculous.   The TRUTH is BEFORE I left I made sure it
      was listed as a  non-profit organization....The  club had grown
      in size so much that the income we were making was quite large.
      If the IRS were  to inquire  about our  income I  am quite sure
      they  would  have  gone  to  the  president and the rest of the
      officers  with many questions.  Our records  at that  time were
      practically  non-existent.      We  managed  to reconstruct the
      previous three years  and  obtain  the  non-profit  status.   I
      instructed  the  board  members  if  these  conditions were not
      corrected in 6 months I would resign and get up in front of the
      membership  and  explain  WHY..    this I did.  (This is public
      knowledge and I only mention this as background for NEW members
      and the Atarians not in the Pittsburgh area.)

          I was  to leave in October but stayed on one more month and
      we had an ATARI EXTRAVAGANZA.  Neil Harris  was coming  to town
      and I  did not  want to  air our  dirty laundry  to anyone.  We
      passed out shirts, Frisbees, duffel bags and backpacks with the
      ATARI LOGO (I went out with a bang so to speak) I am sorry that
      there  were  and  still  are  HARD   feelings  because   of  my
      resignation,   but   I   guess  there  will  exist  personality
      conflicts.  My energies were dedicated to the betterment of the
      club, and  the promotion  of Atari  in the  Pittsburgh area and
      they still are.  At that time,   not only  myself but  the VICE
      PRESIDENT and the TREASURER resigned the same time.

          The ATARI  ELITE was formed out of a void that existed.  As
      time went on more Atari People wanted to join an  ST only group
      (That is  the only machine we cater to....I am happy to say for
      the ST user the 8_bit is dead).  We also took extra  caution to
      assure  that  our  meetings  were  on  a  night  that would not
      conflict with the PACE meetings.

           In the past THE ATARI ELITE has tried  to work  with PACE,
      we have  tried to  put our  differences behind us to no avail.
      Instead of welcoming competition, they are afraid of  it.    We
      believe  that   organizations  should  work  together  for  the
      betterment of  Atari  and  not  to  another's  demise.    As an
      example, PACE  has had other Atari Products Shows.   All of the
      other user groups were  invited to  attend BUT  the ATARI ELITE
      was not  permitted to  have a space even though we have offered
      to pay vendors price for the booth.  The reasoning  given to us
      was that we were in the same county as they are and would be in
      competition for the same members.  This to  me sounds terrible.
       Apparently  PACE  felt  that  we  were (are) that much better.
      Even if they feel that way,  we  should  have  been  allowed to
      attend because the ATARI ELITE is promoting the ST.  The phrase
      was that we were "STEALING" their members.   Come  on now, when
      was  the  last  time  somebody  "STOLE"  you?  THE  ATARI ELITE
      operates under the philosophy of Lee Iacocca "if you can find a
      better deal, BUY IT." The ELITE says, "If you can find a better
      group then JOIN IT."

          Lets get  to  the  infrastructure  of  the  matter.     The
      question could be raised as to why we do not have our own show.
      The answer is that Pace has an ANNUAL SHOW and we don't want to
      repeat the  same thing.   We  felt that this was something that
      they did well.    Judging  the effects  of their  1990 show, it
      appears that  they have  lost their ability to do the one thing
      that we felt they were good at.  Now they have blown it for the
      Pittsburgh  area.    They  have  single-handedly  destroyed the
      reputation of Pittsburgh in the eyes of the Atari community and
      tried  to  place  the  blame elsewhere instead of admitting the
      REAL REASONS.  (This has been brought out in STReport).

          One vast reason the show was  a  flop  was  that  THE ATARI
      ELITE  did  NOT  participate  at  all, we were not invited as a
      group and most of our members would not  go (The  ones that did
      go spent  plenty of  bucks and  we have  a committee  set up to
      tally the amount which will be  reported at  a later  date with
      receipts to prove it).

          Another untruth  that has  THE ATARI  ELITE fired up is the
      belief that we are  a bunch  of PIRATES.   This  outrageous lie
      that was  generated by  a few  people at  PACE, has branded THE
      ATARI  ELITE  as  pirates  in  the   Atari  community.     Many
      allegations have been spread over the networks but NO PROOF has
      or will be found.   This was started I believe because  PACE is
      a  dying  club  and  they  are  trying  every thing possible to
      discredit THE ATARI ELITE in futile  hopes that  the ST members
      will leave  and join the other side.  One other fact to mention
      is, MANY  members belong  to both  clubs? This  also is untrue,
      approximately a  half a  dozen ELITE members belong to PACE and
      they have said they will NOT renew their  memberships with PACE
      because of their childlike antics.

          We believe  that, UNLIKE  PACE, we have taken an AGGRESSIVE
      stance against piracy.  We have actually bussed  our members to
      shows  where  they  have  purchased  thousands  of  dollars  of
      soft/hardware.( Video  tapes are  available to  prove this.) We
      are planning  on attending the D.C.show, this invitation is and
      has been open to  ALL the  user groups  in the  area.   We will
      provide the  transportation and  tickets for this function at a
      reasonable cost.  Another point  I  would  like  to  mention is
      most of  our members  have the  newest in software and hardware
      because of  our  aggressive  support  with  the  vendors.   One
      example  is;  our  group  purchased  at  least 18 copies of the
      Universal Item  Selector, (again  we have  the documentation to
      prove this).

          No one  has mentioned  the GOOD  things THE ATARI ELITE are
      doing such as taking 14 systems to a Real Estate  and Financial
      Investors  meeting  next  month  to show the "Power Without the
      Price", I do not want to blow our  horn but  this needed  to be
      told.

          I am disheartened that the developers and vendors have been
      fed the  WRONG impression  of the  ATARI ELITE  because of some
      misinformed  individuals.    I  challenge  ALL  the vendors and
      developers to go through your records and check to see how many
      people in  the Pittsburgh  area have  purchased your products.
      Contact the users and ASK them how they found out about it.  My
      bet  is  they  heard  and  saw  it  at  one  of THE ATARI ELITE
      meetings.

                       Time will tell the TRUTH.....

          The information  that I  have provided  you with  is to END
      this  pointless  "in-fighting."  We  are one city, and one user
      base with one computer.  This fighting serves NO ONE!   We feel
      we have  a lot  to offer the Atari community.  The only ones to
      suffer in the end  is the  users...   NO good  can come  out of
      strife..    We  at THE  ATARI ELITE  are not in competition for
      anything.  We march to the  beat of  our own  drum, we  are not
      followers but leaders.   Our purpose is to acquaint, teach, and
      inform the community of the home  and business  computer.    To
      foster a  positive attitude in the general population regarding
      computers  and  to  demonstrate  the  potential  importance  of
      computers to those seeking such information.

          Information booths  have been  set up in shopping malls and
      other locations to inform the public  of the  existence of such
      an organization where one can learn.

          Available to  the public  is a  24 hour  phone line for use
      concerning any computer related problems or questions.

          A monthly meeting is held for its members to attend to view
      and learn  about the newest products available.  Technical help
      is also provided at  these meetings  for those  having problems
      with any aspect of their computer use.

          A 24 hour Bulletin Board System, or BBS, is provided to the
      public and to the general membership.   This system is a source
      of information  and a  'meeting place'  of hundreds of computer
      users in the Pittsburgh  area, and  with the  advent of special
      processing  features,  the  BBS  is online with several hundred
      other BBS's across the country and around the  world allowing a
      member or user to contact thousands of other users.

          Included   in   membership   is   a  bi-monthly  electronic
      newsletter provided on magnetic  media  (one  of  the  first on
      disk).    This  newsletter  provides  the reader with literally
      hundreds of computer related  articles and  editorials plus new
      public domain software or shareware for the reader's use.
          The  overall  goal  of  this organization is to educate the
      novice computer user and educated user alike.

          We feel the public  is smart  enough to  join a  group that
      will benefit them the most for their membership dues.   If they
      choose, an individual can join 10  groups.    We  at  the Elite
      maintain that  the more  you know  about your computer the more
      fun you can have, and the better we ALL will become.   The user
      will go  to the group(s) that they get FED the most information
      from, that have the best speakers,  most up  to-date technology
      and the  Atari atmosphere  throughout.   This is what The ATARI
      ELITE is all about.

          If anyone has been  offended by  this message   I  am sorry
      ...this was  not the  purpose of this letter.  The image of THE
      ATARI ELITE has been badly damaged  and some  will never change
      their small  mind to  really search  out the  FACTS.    We will
      continue  to  work  very   hard  to   bring  out   ALL  of  the
      TRUTH......for you  Atarians that want to learn more about your
      machine ...we meet  the  first  Monday  of  each  month  at the
      Greentree Marriott....

                          *** THE ATARI ELITE ***
                              P.O.  BOX 18293
                           PITTSBURGH, PA 15236


      If you  need more information drop us a line.....  For all that
      like to use their modems call our BBS......

                           AUTOBOSS/ATARI ELITE
                               P.O.  BOX 281
                            BUNOLA, PA.  15020
                       (412) 384-5609 (412) 653-7540



                        ***** End of re-print *****


                   GREAT LAKES ATARI COMPUTER CONFERENCE
                   -------------------------------------

     Patty Marshall and Paul  Plants  of  the  Westmoreland  Atari Computer
 Organization (WACO)  contacted the AUA in October of 1990 with their plans
 of an Atari Show in 1991.  We first met  Paul while  we were  at the WAACE
 show in  Reston, VA, and both Tony and myself wanted to entertain the idea
 of an AUA co-sponsored event.

     So, we met with Paul and Patty, as well as Dennis McGuire  of SAGE one
 sunday morning  and discussed what would have to do to pull of a good show
 -- without suffering from the "Pittsburgh Syndrome"   After all,  our show
 would be nearly 150 miles north of Pittsburgh and would draw from Buffalo,
 Cleveland, Detroit, and Toronto  and could  provide us  with a substantial
 draw of  ST users.    What we did not know at that time was that Atari had
 completely  erased  all  of  Pennsylvania  from  the  map  and  that  many
 developers had  bad feelings  about the  area still.   Tony and I left the
 meeting pretty excited and  confident that  a show  in Erie  would do very
 well.   However, we  were having  some concerns as to what our actual role
 would be in  the  show  and  whether  we  had  the  time  and  manpower to
 co-sponsor the  extravaganza.   After talking  about it for a few days, we
 decided that it would not be  in the  best interest  of the  AUA to become
 financially involved  in the  show because we would not be able to provide
 the other show sponsors  with  equal  time  and  capital.    Therefore, we
 announced  that  we  would  fully  support  the  show and help promote it,
 however, we could not provide them with finances or manpower.

     Our decision was not received very well, but we had to do "what we had
 to do."  There was no way that we would be able to give 100 percent of our
 time while working full time and running the  AUA on  the side.   That was
 enough, and  a show event would overload us and probably cause hardship at
 home  (the  spouse/girlfriend  theory...).    Both  Paul  and  Patty  were
 disappointed  with  us,  but  we  really  felt  that our decision was well
 thought out.

     During the course of the next few months, AUA helped  the show efforts
 by mailing  flyers for  the show  with our  normal mailing efforts such as
 renewals, direct mail, and newsletter.  Paul estimated   that  between our
 efforts at  AUA and  his, nearly  8000 flyers  were sent out over a 3 or 4
 month period.  That figure is  rather substantial  and really  should have
 hit a broad population of ST users who would attend the show.

     Paul mentioned  that he  spent hundreds  of dollars contacting vendors
 and each of them had some excuse as to why they could not attend the show.
 By the  first of  June, Paul and the Great Lakes Atari Computer Conference
 had confirmed three booths:  Wiz  Works, ICD,  and Best  Electronics.  All
 of the  other vendors  gave excuses  like "To  far to travel," "Not in our
 budget," "We will get back to you."  Paul got  a run  around.   Even Atari
 fed them  a line when Bob Brodie said that Atari could not attend the show
 because their schedule was full.   We later  found out  that Bob committed
 to 2  shows, Asheville,  NC and  another midwest  show --  both 1 day mall
 shows, AFTER he told Paul he could not  attend the  GLACC show  because of
 the above state reason.

     While not  one of  the people  Paul contacted  over the 6 month period
 would actually state why  they would  "really" not  attend the  show, this
 writer knows  the real  reason and  it does not take a genius to figure it
 out.  Pennsylvania has  been a  "black hole"  in the  Atari Community ever
 since the events of April 1990.  No one wants to come here because of what
 they "heard" about the Pittsburgh.  To be  honest, if  I was  a vendor and
 heard  some  of  the  things  that  were  said,  I  would be hesitant too.
 However, I can attest that I would at least want to get the truth before I
 made a  decision to  not attend  a show  that had  the potential to draw a
 thousand or more starving ST users.  The three vendors  who did  commit to
 the GLACC  show were  also at  the PACE  show in  1990.  Of the three, Wiz
 Works is the only software vendor  while the  other two  are hardware.   I
 suppose that  the hardware  guys did not feel threatened by piracy and for
 Wiz Works, the distance to the show was convenient.
     It is a shame to see the effort that these  GLACC people  put into the
 show  washed  away  by  unsubstantiated rumors about Pennsylvania and more
 specifically Pittsburgh.  Both Paul and Patty are very discouraged at this
 point with  Atari and  I really don't blame them.  But what Atari does not
 realize is that there are thousands of "Pauls  and Patties"  in the United
 States who do not care about Atari any longer.



   ====================================================================
   Permission to Re-Print is granted as long as no part of this work is
     changed in any way and credit is given to the Author and the AUA.
   ====================================================================





 > SHAMUS! STR Review       ALL ABOUT THOSE NEW GAMING GOODIES!
   """"""""""""""""""


                     *--  ST REPORT CARD # 4 --*
                       \___ BY THE SHAMUS ___/

 LEANDER - Psygnosis has been producing software for the ST since
           the machine's beginnings.  Some of their early ST
           releases were hits like BARBARIAN and some were pretty
           poor like CAPTAIN FIZZ.  Graphics have always been the
           strong suit of this company.  In addition to this, all
           of the Psygnosis games are originals, not arcade or
           movie licenses.  Leander is the latest platform game
           from Psygnosis and fans of this genre will be very
           impressed.  The graphics are colourful, the sprites are
           huge and the scrolling is close to flawless!  The use of
           sprites will remind you of a console game from TURBO
           GRAPHIX or SUPER NINTENDO.  The only shortcoming of this
           game is the soundtrack.  Frankly, all you will hear is
           soundchip sound-effects but you will hardly notice this
           anyways.  Aside from the sound, this game seriously
           challenges and surpasses the best platform games on the
           ST such as GODS (The Bitmap Brothers).
                                                  GRADE: A+

 PARASOL STARS - Before I tell you about this game, I must mention
                 I am a big fan of the previous two arcade
                 conversions in this series, namely BUBBLE BOBBLE
                 and the classic RAINBOW ISLANDS.  These games are
                 for people who enjoy a good platform game with all
                 the hidden rooms and prizes and weapons and add-
                 ons and end of level guardians.  Parasol Stars,
                 like Rainbow Islands, is the type of game which is
                 more popular when it is converted than it is in
                 the arcade.  OCEAN is well known for its great
                 conversions like Hudson Hawk and Toki.  Parasol
                 Stars is not as good as RAINBOW ISLANDS, but
                 judged on its own merit, it is a fun game.  As a
                 one player game, this game is a B, but as a two
                 player game, the fun is enhanced considerably.
                 You can stun and even throw your opponent!  The
                 main problem with the conversion is the cheap way
                 the colour was converted from the 32+ colour AMIGA
                 to the 16 colour ST version.  The sprites are not
                 as colourful, detailed or well-defined as the
                 conversions for other computers.  The scrolling on
                 some of the screens is also quite choppy.  On
                 early ST games, chunky scrolling was completely
                 acceptable but in this games, the scrolling keeps
                 this game from being exceptional.  Still fun.
                                                  GRADE: A

 ASTEROIDS - This column usually reviews commercial software, but
             this new SHAREWARE title is worth checking out because
             it is the closest thing to the classic arcade
             ASTEROIDS on the ST.  The graphics are simple but well
             defined and the playability is great.  A lot of the
             in this game is due to the sheer simplicity and
             addictive nature of the game. For SHAREWARE, everyone
             should register their copy.           GRADE: B

 DIZZY ADVENTURES - Dizzy adventures is a compilation five brand
                    new DIZZY adventures including BUBBLE DIZZY,
                    PANIC DIZZY, QUICKSNAX, SPELLBOUND DIZZY and
                    THE PRINCE OF YOLKFOLK.  The strongest of the
                    games is SPELLBOUND DIZZY.  It is set up like
                    many of the other DIZZY ADVENTURES.  This is
                    the largest DIZZY game to date with over 105
                    screens of cute strategy and platform action.
                    As you may or may not know, many of these
                    adventures have been converted over for the
                    NINTENDO.  On their own, these DIZZY games are
                    average at best.  As a package, five games for
                    the price of one is a good deal.  Recommended
                    for people who like puzzles and platforms.
                                                     GRADE: B+

 TREX WARRIOR - Trex Warrior is the latest game from game writing
                greats, THALION (Wings of Death, Enchanted Lands).
                This game takes the old 8-bit game called
                ENCOUNTER (by Synapse) and adds better graphics,
                bigger explosions and some fast vector graphics.
                The game plan is quite basic but it is also quite
                fun.  This game is no ENCHANTED LANDS, but it is
                an original shoot 'em up which will make you
                remember the 8-bit days.  Worth a look.   Grade: B+

 STEEL EMPIRE - There has been an obvious lack of territorial
                conquest strategy games on the ST.  The best ones
                include RISK, COLONIAL CONQUEST and LORDS OF
                CONQUEST.  Some publishers have combined action
                and strategy with games like DEFENDER OF THE CROWN
                and NORTH AND SOUTH.  This game takes many elements
                from both and makes a very nice futuristic strategy
                game.  The program is quite hard to describe but it
                is the type of program you can not pick up and just
                figure it out without reading the documentation
                first.  For strategy fans, this game will really
                draw you in when you find out how complex it is.
                Others will want to try before they buy.  Grade: B


          _______________________________________________________



 > Blue Ridge Fest! STR SHOW NEWS         Summer Fun with Atari!
   """"""""""""""""""""""""""""""




                         BLUE RIDGE ATARIFEST '92
                         ========================




     The Blue  Ridge Atari Computer Enthusiasts (BRACE) and Computer STudio
 invite you to participate in the  third  annual  Blue  Ridge  AtariFest on
 Saturday, July  18, 1992.   The show will take place in the Courtyard Shop
 area of  Westgate Shopping  Center in  Asheville, North  Carolina (Home of
 Computer STudio).

  Exhibitor's who have already made a commitment to attend include
  (Alphabetical Listing):

  Accusoft-ST (Michael Cooper) ................ PD/Shareware Software
  Atari Computer Corporation (Mike Groh) ......
  ABC Solutions (Peter Zalesak) ............... Publisher ST2, First
                                                Word, First Graph,
                                                tbxCAD, Kuma's
                                                KSpread4/Lite
  Clear Thinking (Craig Harvey) ............... EdHak
  CodeHead Software (John Eidsvoog) ........... Midi Spy, TOS Extension
                                                Card, Megapaint II Pro,
                                                Hotwire, G+Plus,
                                                LookIt/PopIt, etc.
  Computer STudio ............................. Visit a 'real' Atari
                                                Dealership in the mall
  DSA (Robert Dytmire & David Munsie) ......... GP Graphics Engine -
                                                New product unveiling!
  Goldleaf Publishing (John Fox) .............. Wordflair II, Didot,
                                                Retouche, Sherlook,
                                                etc.
  KAUG (Knoxville Atari Users Group) .......... P/D Library Disks
  KAUG (Seminar by Erik White) ................ "Beginning MIDI"
  Lexicor Software (John Cole) ................ Desktop Video Software
  Reed Mountain Press (Don Terp) .............. Desktop Publishing
                                                Seminar
  Software Development Systems (Scott Sanders). NewDesk Icon Editor
                                                CPX, Printer
                                                Utilities Pak
  ST Report/ABCO Computer (Ralph Mariano) ..... Seminar on current
                                                events in the Atari
                                                marketplace.
  Step Ahead Software (Nevin Shalit) .......... Tracker ST (Nevin is
                                                Current IAAD Pres.)
  Twilight Zone Software (Wayne Watson) ....... Transcendence BBS
                                                software.
  Willard Productions (Clifton Willard) ....... Professional Desktop
                                                Video
  WorldComm (Ralph Roberts) ................... Author of several
                                                computer books incl.
                                                "Computer Viruses"
                                                and hint books

     Several additional Atari developers have also expressed an interest in
 the show but have not yet made their  commitment.   The list  is obviously
 still growing!

  For additional information, please contact:

      Sheldon Winick                     Cliff Allen, Show Coord.
      GEnie:  S.WINICK                   GEnie:  C.ALLEN17
      Computer STudio                    Internet:  CALLEN@UNCA.EDU
      Westgate Shopping Center           phone:  (704) 258-3758
      40 Westgate Parkway - Suite D
      Asheville, NC  28806
      (704) 251-0201



          _______________________________________________________





 > COMPO PRODUCTS STR InfoFile               CompoScript - C-Font
   """""""""""""""""""""""""""



                           COMPO PRODUCTS UPDATE
                           =====================


 CompoScript
 -----------
 CompoScript is a very powerful application that lets you work with
 PostScript files on your Atari computer.

 Why PostScript?
 ---------------
 PostScript is  a page  description language.  It lets an application, such
 as a word processor, publishing program, or graphics  program output files
 which are device independent - this means that you can output a PostScript
 file that can then be printed on any  PostScript printer,  be it  a 180dpi
 dot matrix printer or 2400 dpi imagesetter.  You'll always get the highest
 quality that the printer is capable of.  When using  applications that can
 drive a  printer directly or via PostScript, printing via PostScript often
 gives superior results.   There  is  also  Encapsulated  PostScript (EPS),
 which  is  a  resolution  independent  file  format  for  exchange of data
 between programs.

 PostScript has two typeface formats -  Type 1  and Type  3.   Type 1 fonts
 are  generally  considered  the  highest  quality  fonts available because
 they're stored as outlines that  can  be  scaled  to  any  size,  and have
 hinting.   Hinting is a method of accurately reproducing fonts at any size
 (when outline fonts are rendered at a small  size or  resolution, unhinted
 fonts can  lose important font details).  There are literally thousands of
 Type 1 fonts available, from famous  font  foundries  or  even  the public
 domain.   Type 3 fonts are similar to Type 1s, but do not have hinting and
 are generally slower and consume more memory.

 PostScript, and Encapsulated  PostScript,  have  become  the  standard for
 data exchange  on MS-DOS,  Macintosh, and  UNIX computer  platforms. It is
 becoming  very  popular  with  Atari  users  as  well,   because  of  it's
 flexibility, quality,  and transferability  for users  who work  on DOS or
 Macintosh computers or emulators  who can  now take  files back  and forth
 with their Atari.

 Why CompoScript?
 ----------------
 CompoScript gives your Atari and your printer PostScript compatibility.

 At its  most basic level of operation, it outputs PostScript files on most
 any printer.  It also  lets  you  adjust  printing  resolution,  print (or
 preview)  the  image  to  the  screen, convert PostScript and Encapsulated
 PostScript files to GEM Image and TIFF (so you can  load these  files into
 programs that don't support PostScript), adjust screen frequency and angle
 for grey scale (halftone) images, and edit font names and  aliases, giving
 you font  flexibility and  preventing the problem found all too often with
 some PostScript interpreters which default to Courier when a file requests
 a font that isn't available.

 CompoScript is  the only  PostScript interpreter  for Atari computers that
 uses Type 1 fonts.  Any Type 1 font can be used by CompoScript,  simply by
 telling CompoScript  where the font is located (a matter of a couple mouse
 clicks).  It also includes 35  Type 1  fonts, which  can be  used with any
 application that uses Type 1 fonts!

 You may  already be  using PostScript, or applications that can use it. We
 invite you  to  experience  the  power  of  PostScript  through  our handy
 upgrade program.

 CompoScript runs  on any  Atari computer  with a  megabyte of memory and a
 hard disk.

                     It has a retail price of $349.95

 SPECIAL OFFER
 -------------
 Through   August 31,  1992, users  who own  PostScript compatible software
 (such  as  UltraScript,  PageStream,  and  Avant Vector, among others) can
 purchase CompoScript for $200.00.

 Simply return your original disk with your order.

 *** Editor Note:
     ------------
     In lieu of sending an "ORIGINAL DISK", a  photocopy of  the disk, book
 cover or  receipt with  be sufficient.   if you have any further questions
 please call Compo.  The number is listed at the end of this article.


                                  C-FONT
               CONVERT CALAMUS OUTLINE FONTS TO GEM FORMAT!

 About Fonts . . .

 There are two fundamental types of fonts - bitmap fonts and outline fonts.
 Any outline  font must  be turned into a bitmap before it can be seen on a
 monitor or printed to a printer.

 A bitmap font is a collection  of dots;   as  such it  is only  a specific
 point size.   For  instance Times  Roman in  8, 10,  and 12  point needs 3
 different bitmap fonts for the  printer  and,  for  WYSIWYG  programs,   3
 different bitmap fonts for the screen.

 An  outline   font  is   completely  different.    It  is  a  mathematical
 representation of a font in terms of lines and curves.   In  its own right
 it is  useless;   before it  can be used software must interpret it into a
 bitmap for display or printing.

 On Atari computers one of the most popular  forms of  outline font  is for
 Calamus.    C-Font  will  take  a  Calamus  outline font and produce a GEM
 format bitmap font for both screen and printer.

 Who needs C-Font?

 Anyone who uses software that  supports  standard  GEM  format  fonts will
 benefit from  C-Font.   This includes  COMPO's own  word processors That's
 Write and  Write  ON,  any  program  that  uses  GDOS  or  G+Plus  such as
 Timeworks Publisher  and Easy  Draw, and other software such as the Diablo
 emulator for laser printers.
 How does C-Font work?
 C-Font will run either as a stand alone program, or  as a  desk accessory.
 All you  need to  do is load a Calamus font (normally a .CFN file) and say
 what  point  size  you  would  like  C-Font  to  produce.     C-Font  will
 automatically create the appropriate fonts for your monitor and printer.

 Technical bits . . .

 Font sizes up to 99 points

 Font resolution up to 999 dpi

 User definable inter-character spacing

 Automatic superscript and subscript fonts for That's Write and Write ON

 Default information taken from GDOS, That's Write or Write ON screen and
 printer drivers

 Full manual control of all parameters for maximum compatibility and
 flexibility

 Support for compressed fonts, as used in That's Write 2 and Fontkit Plus.

                           C-Font costs $29.95
                  available directly from COMPO Software
                         or your favorite dealer.


                           COMPO Software Corp.
                       104 Esplanade Avenue Ste. 121
                         Pacifica California 94044
                    Tel 415-355-0862   Fax 415-355-0869


    ___________________________________________________________________




 > Remember When? STR FOCUS!               Memories....
   """""""""""""""""""""""""





                REPRINT FROM STREPORT # 4.06  FEB. 09, 1990
                ===========================================




    CPU NEWSWIRE CONFIDENTIAL
    =========================



  - Sunnyvale, CA.                      ****  ATARI MAY HIRE NAGY!  ****
    --------------


     Coming from two ultra confidential and usually very reliable sources,
 it is reported that A. Salerno's division is contemplating bringing John
 Nagy onboard.  Nagy, a central figure in many controversial developments
 in the Atari arena and formally of Computer Shopper and znet recently
 moved to California from Michigan.





         ________________________________________________________






 > CT-AtariFest STR SHOW NEWS               Hartford Atari Show
   """"""""""""""""""""""""""




            DISCOUNT OFFER ON ADMISSION TO HARTFORD ATARI SHOW
            ==================================================




 HARTFORD, Conn. (June 18, 1992)

 Budget-conscious Atari  users can  take advantage  of a registration offer
 that will save them money during  their visit  to Connecticut AtariFest'92
 (CAF '92)  here on  August 15 and 16. Show organizers have invited on-line
 and bulletin board users  to pre-register  for the  Northeast's only Atari
 show this summer and save up to $2 off the price of admission.

 For  a  limited  time,  would-be  show attendees can download an Earlybird
 Registration Form, fill in the necessary data and  get $1.50  discount off
 the  price  of  a  one-day  ticket,  $2  off  the price of a two-day pass.
 Attendees registering at the show will pay $5 and $8 for one-  and two-day
 passes, respectively.
 Registrants must  return the  form with a check or money order by midnight
 July 9, 1992 to qualify for discounts.

 Organizers said the EarlyBird discounts will give showgoers  a little more
 buying power with which to fill shopping bags with goodies at the show. By
 pre-registering, attendees can breeze through  the  check-in  desk  on the
 days of  the show  and won't  be left waiting in line while other visitors
 grab the best bargains. CAF  '92  Chairman  Brian  Gockley  said EarlyBird
 registrants  will  also  receive  a  pre-show mailer containing news about
 specials that off-the- street visitors won't  learn about  until the doors
 of CAF '92 open.

 An attached questionnaire asks registrants about their interests and which
 exhibitors and products they'd like to see at the show.  The optional form
 is not needed to pre-register.

 Connecticut AtariFest '92 is rapidly shaping up as the must-go Atari event
 of this summer. More than two dozen leading  developers and  Atari dealers
 plan to  attend. More  than one  dozen Atari  user groups  from around the
 Northeast will also participate. The show runs from 10 a.m.  to 5  p.m. on
 Saturday August  15 and  Sunday August 16 at the Sheraton Hotel at Bradley
 International  Airport  in  Windsor  Locks,  12  miles  north  of downtown
 Hartford.

 Show activities will include presentation of the latest Atari products and
 services, seminars on desktop publishing and video production, instruction
 from developers,  a hands-on  Atari 'Petting Zoo' spotlighting unique user
 creations, MIDI demonstrations, Lynx (game system) competitions, Portfolio
 (palmtop) applications, 8-bit support and more.

 Look  for  the  EarlyBird  registration form in files named 'CAFREG80.TXT'
 (80- column) and  'CAFREG40.TXT'  (40-column)  elsewhere  on  this on-line
 service or bulletin board. Prospective showgoers who do not subscribe to a
 major on- line service or contact  Atari  bulletin  board  systems  in the
 Northeast  can  still  get  a  pre-show  discount.  They  should address a
 self-addressed, stamped envelope to:

                         Connecticut AtariFest '92
                             18 Elmwood Avenue
                           Bridgeport, CT 06605

 For more information about the show, contact:

                               Brian Gockley
                             18 Elmwood Avenue
                           Bridgeport, CT 06605
                           [Phone (203) 332-1721
                         E-Mail GEnie = B.GOCKLEY]

                                Doug Finch
                              46 Park Avenue
                          Old Greenwich CT 06870
                           [Phone (203) 637-1034
                          EMail CIS = 76337,1067
                             GEnie = D.FINCH7.



 +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
 ++             S E E   Y O U   A T   T H E   S H O W ! ! !             ++
 ++                        /-----------\/------------/                  ++
 ++                       /          )I(            /                   ++
 ++                      /          / I \          /                    ++
 ++                    ,/     CT ATARIFEST '92   /                      ++
 ++                  ,/  _______________________/                       ++
 ++                 /__,/                                               ++
 ++                                                                     ++
 ++     CONNECTICUT ATARIFEST '92   Sponsored by F.A.C.E., S.T.A.R.R.,  ++
 ++     August 15-16, 1992          D-BUG, A.U.G.O.G.H., A.M.A.U.G.,    ++
 ++     Sheraton Hotel at Brad-     C.C.C.C., the A.C.T. Group and      ++
 ++     ley Int'l Airpt, Hart-      other Atari user groups in asso-    ++
 ++     ford (Windsor Locks, CT)    ciation with Atari Corporation.     ++
 ++                                                                     ++
 +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

               E A R L Y B I R D   D I S C O U N T   F O R M
 +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

   Take advantage of a $1.50 discount on the cost of a one-day  admission
   ticket and  Save $2 off the cost of a two-day pass. make sure you're
   alerted to special deals and exhibitor discounts offered  at CONNECTICUT
   ATARIFEST '92.  Register now for the BIGGEST summertime show Atari will
   attend in the Northeast this year. ACT NOW!! This offer is in effect
   until July 9, 1992 only.

    ------------- Type or print the following information --------------
    Name _______________________________________________________________
    Company (if applicable) ____________________________________________
    Street/PO Box ______________________________________________________
    City __________________________________ State ____ ZIP _____________
    Phone ________________________ Fax/Modem (specify) _________________
    E-Mail addresses (specify service) _________________________________

       1-day ticket = $ 3.50 (good either day)   2-day ticket = $6.00
       No. of tickets requested    1-day ____________ 2-day ____________

   Return with a S.A.S.E. and check or money order payable to:
                               PG Associates
                              18 Elmwood Ave.
                           Bridgeport, CT 06605.
                  Connecticut residents add 6% sales tax.
   Checks must be received no later than midnight July 9, 1992. (STR825)

   ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
                         Q U E S T I O N N A I R E
   ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
   The following  questions are optional and not required for registration.
   Your answers will be helpful, however, in determining  which exhibitors
   you would  like to see, which seminars should be scheduled and which
   products and services you would like  see at  CONNECTICUT ATARIFEST '92.

   Please indicate  whether you are interested in receiving pre-show
   information from exhibitors about special offers and discounts, or would
   like us to withhold your replies. Thanks for taking the time and trouble
   to advise us. The Organizers.

   Atari model/system now in use ______________________________________
   What applications interest you the most? ___________________________
   ____________________________________________________________________
   What companies/products would you like to see at the show? _________
   ____________________________________________________________________
   ____________________________________________________________________
   ____________________________________________________________________
   How, if at all, might you consider upgrading your system,software or
   services used? _____________________________________________________
   Do you belong to a user group in your area? If so, which? __________
   _____________________________ Use a local BBS? _____________________
   Subscribe to Atari-specific publications? __________________________
   ____________________________________________________________________
   To an on-line service? _____________________________________________
   Best tip to Atari, its developers and support organizations? _______
   ____________________________________________________________________

   ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
                S E E   Y O U   A T   T H E   S H O W ! ! !
   ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++




 > STR Portfolio News & Information              Keeping up to date...
   """"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""



                         THE ATARI PORTFOLIO FORUM
                         """""""""""""""""""""""""


 On CompuServe!


 by STR's Roving Reporter


                    PORTFOLIO GOES TO THE MOVIES AGAIN!
                    ===================================

     The movie Star is at it again.  The world famous Atari Portfolio is
 well represented on the set of "Made In America" starring Whoopi Goldberg
 and Ted Danson.  While the particulars of the movie are being kept under
 wraps, we can tell you this.. the Portfolio is there, on the set, in
 force.  So, Atari Portfolio Fans...  look forward to seeing your favorite
 Palmtop in the "lights again.  So far, there three or four on the set and
 more to come.


        ___________________________________________________________




 > CSB /FTL STR Review            CHAOS STRIKES BACK! - Revisited
   """""""""""""""""""




               DUNGEON MASTER, REVISITED.....AGAIN (AGAIN!)
                           CHAOS STRIKES BACK!!



 by Dana P. Jacobson


     A few weeks ago, I managed to pick up Dungeon Master again and I
 completed it (finally), and gave a description of that trip down memory
 lane.  As I mentioned in that article, there's a lot of discussion on
 local bulletin boards and online services about Dungeon Master-like games,
 such as Knightmare, Shadowlands, Captive, and others.  These discussions
 brought back some great memories that I had when _trying_ to play/complete
 Dungeon Master.  Soon enough, I had the "bug" again!!

     With a lot of time spent, patience, and a number of helpful hints from
 other DM players and the DM hintbook/maps, I managed to finish the game.
 It was as much fun and frustrating as I remembered a few years ago!  Since
 I also had Chaos Strikes Back (the sequel to Dungeon Master), I was
 determined to play and finish it as well.

     The first thing that I did before starting out with CSB was to search
 some stacks of dusty floppies and see if I still had a few disks with CSB
 maps and hints.  I found them, chipped the dust off, and checked them
 out.  Okay, they looked fine, so I printed them out to have them handy (I
 get lost in these dungeon games _very_ easily!).  I then converted my
 champions from DM so they could be used in Chaos.  I was attached to
 these four champions, so I figured they were appropriate for the new
 challenge!

     When starting out in CSB, your champions retain their skills, but
 everything else they had when you completed DM is gone.  They even start
 out "naked".  First thing that I did was to ready them with fireballs
 because I remembered people saying that no sooner than you begin the game,
 you're greeted with those favorite monsters from DM, the Worms!  They were
 right!  And, they kept regenerating every time you passed by a certain
 spot in the dungeon.  Well, that was alright, as I managed to stockpile
 plenty of food from this unlimited source.
     Anyway, checking out the maps, I found that they weren't as good as
 the ones I was used to seeing while playing DM.  They just weren't as
 clearly marked.  I checked around our local dealers to see if they had
 the CSB hintbook, knowing that the maps _had_ to be better!  Naturally, no
 one had it in stock....sigh.  Well, knowing that one of the authors is
 Bob Retelle, a SysOp on Compuserve, I asked him if he knew where I might
 be able to find the book.  He told me that I could probably get one from
 FTL (the company that did both games); and that he would check to see if
 he had any laying around somewhere (he must have a shelf of old stuff
 collecting dust too!).  A day or so later, Bob found a hidden cache of
 books, and offered to send me one.  Who could refuse such an offer?  I
 got it a few days later (I wouldn't let my wife leave the house until
 after the UPS truck stopped in front of the house!).

     Back into the dungeon I go!!  The CSB game is similar to DM with
 relation to gameplay, spells used, and graphics.  What was different is
 the way in which the dungeon was laid out.  In DM, when you started a
 particular level, you made your way through it and then continued to the
 next (or returned to the one before it).  In Chaos, the dungeon levels
 weren't set up in the same manner.

     It's difficult to explain, but it appears that there are sub- levels
 in various places.  There are also a _lot_ more pits to fall into, hidden
 and open.  Hidden walls are plentiful as well.  There are also
 transporters that can send you somewhere within the current level, or
 another level altogether!

     The object of Chaos Strikes Back is to locate four pieces of Corbum
 that Lord Chaos has hidden in the dungeon, and destroy them all by
 throwing them into the FULYA Pit.  The game is split into four "Ways".
 Each of the Ways corresponds to one of the skills of your champions: DAIN,
 the Wizard; NETA, the Priest; KU, the Fighter; and ROS, the Ninja.
 Obviously, it's not that simple to just find these four pieces of Corbum
 and ultimately destroy them.  The "Junction of the Ways" is where you
 start the game, and choose the path in which you wish to travel.  Each
 way takes you to different parts of the dungeon, but will meet at three
 spots.  The first "junction" is the initial starting point.  Each of the
 ways from this point will take you to a second "stage", meeting at the
 Diabolical Demon Director area (the name _is_ appropriate!).  From the
 DDD, you continue on the second half of your quest to complete your
 selected way.  You then meet at each way's final stage of the game, at
 the Maze, which will lead you to the FULYA Pit where you can destroy the
 corbum.  There are pits and transporters which will take you directly to
 the Junction of the Ways, if you need to quickly restart your travels,
 and, if you've prepared, some stored supplies.

     Chaos contains a lot of the monsters that we were accustomed to seeing
 in Dungeon Master.  It also contains a _lot_ of new monsters; and they're
 tougher to battle in most cases.  There are also a lot more dragons, but
 fortunately, these provide an almost endless supply of food, which is hard
 to come by in the game.  Water is also not available conveniently as was
 found in DM.  Remembering my experience in DM, "stamina" potions come in
 _very_ handy to survive those times when water and/or food is depleted.
 When either is available, stock up as much as is possible!

     My opinions of the CSB hintbook vary.  Sometimes I hated the way in
 which it was done; and at other times I found it to be invaluable.  I
 also need to explain these differences in opinion! First of all, this
 hintbook is designed differently than the one for the initial game.
 However, it was necessary due to the difference in which the game is laid
 out.  In DM's hintbook, you were given maps of each level, quick tips for
 different areas on each level, and another section which contained
 specific tips for gameplay.

     The CSB book was more comprehensive.  After the initial "history" of
 the game's plot, you're given a brief (but interesting) concept of what is
 expected of your champions in this new battle against Lord Chaos.  Next
 you see a chart of the available spells that you can use, both wizard and
 priest.  In Dungeon Master, you learned about the various available
 spells by finding scrolls laying around the dungeon.  You then were
 greeted with a chart of the various monsters, and what levels they
 appeared.  What was disappointing about this part of the book is that I
 wish that the authors had described the various monsters listed here.
 Some are quite obvious (dragons, mummies, skeletons, etc.), but what the
 heck are "gigglers", "rives", and "couatls"? Usually, if you can manage to
 pause the game and refer back to this chart, you can discover which
 monster you've just been faced with defeating.  And, if you want to be
 surprised, I guess knowing  in advance might not be such a great idea.
 Me, I'd like to know ahead of time what these things are!

     You're then shown a map of the Prison, similar to the area in Dungeon
 Master where you can choose your champions.  If you start the game using
 the CSB champions instead of those you've "saved" from DM, there's an
 added feature where you can "edit" your champions' appearance, and rename
 them.  CSB includes a utility disk in which you can do this.  It also
 contains a "hint oracle", in which you can learn a hint or two about
 whatever current location that you're in during the game.  For those who
 don't have the hintbook, this option can be very useful.  The only
 problem is that you have to save your current location, exit the game, and
 then reboot with the utility disk.  Then, reboot again and return to the
 game.  I don't know if the hint oracle could have been incorporated
 directly into the game or not, but it would have made things easier.
 Perhaps the programmers figured people would be less tempted to use this
 option if it was tedious to use all of the time!  If so, they were
 correct.

     The hintbook then goes on to describe each of the Ways leading from
 the initial junction of all four.  Each of these sections contains
 miniature maps of various sections of each way.  You're also given
 descriptions and hints pertaining to that specific area.  "Exits" from
 that area are labeled with letters and numbers which refer you to hints
 with corresponding letters and numbers.  What bothered me about this was
 that if you wanted to see the entire level at one time, you had to refer
 to the section of the book which contained those maps.  Unfortunately,
 it's not always obvious how to find the corresponding level/map from the
 smaller ones.  As I mentioned earlier, each level is broken up into
 sub-levels; which means that parts of the same level aren't accessible
 from within that same level.  Part of this is due to the fact that each
 particular "Way" will travel to part of the level, while another "Way"
 will take you to another part of the level - neither meeting with each
 other until you reach one of the junctions.  Still, it can be very
 confusing at times until you find someplace in the level which looks
 obvious and corresponds to the maps.  If you fall through a pit, it'll
 take you a long time to discover where you are using the maps!!  But, as
 in the DM book, there are sections in which you'll find general tips, and
 another where those tips will be more broadly explained.
     I found the maps to be done very well.  I know that I couldn't find
 my way around in either of these games without them.  The hints, when
 needed, provided just enough information to get you past a particular
 problem.  There were times, however, that no matter how many hints the
 book provided, I couldn't resolve the predicament I found myself in.
 Fortunately, there are plenty of people online who can provide just enough
 of a hint to help you when you most need it!

     The one thing that I learned playing Dungeon Master is to save your
 game a _lot_!  You never know what kind of a situation you're go to be
 faced with at the next turn, or at the start of a new level.  At the
 moment, I'm still playing CSB (almost done!) and I have a stack of about
 20 disks containing saved games from various points throughout.  I've
 become experienced enough at the moment where I know that I can use some
 of the earlier disks over again as I'll never have the need to go that far
 back.  Also, saving your game often allows you to have a spot to return
 to when you turn a corner and are faced with a monster that completely
 surprises you and your champions are defeated quickly.  You have a chance
 to "practice" your skills and know what to expect and how to get past that
 particular danger.  Once you do that, save the game again!!

     I'd like to give a special thanks to Bob Retelle for providing me with
 the means to be able to play Chaos Strikes Back.  Overall, the hintbook
 provides you with information to help you play this game.  The book
 doesn't always provide you the specific help that you need, but doing so
 would certainly take a lot of the enjoyment out of the game.  I did find
 that I had troubles between the two sections of maps, but after completing
 two of the Ways, I learned how to deal with those.  Currently, I'm about
 to toss the third piece of corbum that I've obtained into the FULYA Pit.
 Then, it's back to the Junction of the Ways and the final piece!
 Thankfully, I've just started one of my summer vacations, so I'm going to
 have plenty of free time to play!

     I know of a number of people who own CSB, but have never completed it
 because they became frustrated with the game because of its differences
 (and more difficulties) from DM.  To those people, and even those of you
 who are better at these games, I highly recommend that you get hold of
 the CSB hintbook.  I also recommend the first one.  If you've played
 Dungeon Master, but never went on to Chaos Strikes Back, do it - it's a
 great game! If you haven't played either one yet (there may be one or two
 people on the face of the earth who haven't), give them a try.

     Well, now that I've finished this 'return to yesteryear', it's time to
 return to Lord Chaos and the final stages of his demise!!  Then, who
 knows?!  Maybe a return to Dungeon Master, or a new adventure with
 Knightmare or one of the other currently addictive dungeon-type games.
 Bob, any future hintbooks on the horizon?  See you all in the dungeons...



     _________________________________________________________________





 > WAACE'92 STR SHOW NEWS          "THE PREMIER EAST COAST SHOW!"
   """"""""""""""""""""""



                         W.A.A.C.E. AtariFest 1992
                         =========================



     The Washington Area Atari Computer Enthusiasts will sponsor W.A.A.C.E.
 AtariFest 1992  on October 10 and 11. The show will again be staged at the
 Sheraton Reston Hotel in Reston, VA. Show hours will be from 10 am to 6 pm
 on both  days. In  addition to  the shopping  bargains available from over
 thirty vendors there will  be a  full round  of demonstrations, tutorials,
 and seminars. A banquet on Saturday evening will feature a special speaker
 on Atari matters and Current Notes Magazine's "Author of the  Year" award.
 Special mixers  will cap  off the evening's festivities. The 1990 and 1991
 editions of the show attracted approximately 2000 visitors.

     The Sheraton Reston Hotel is a  spacious, attractive  facility located
 in  a  park-like  setting  near  Washington,  DC.  The hotel is offering a
 special room rate of $59 per  night  plus  tax  to  'Fest  attendees. Call
 1-800-392-ROOM  or  703-620-9000  for  reservations.  Be  sure  to mention
 W.A.A.C.E. AtariFest '92. The  number of  rooms available  at this special
 rate is limited, so make your reservations early.

     The price  that W.A.A.C.E.  will have  to pay for the exhibit space is
 directly tied to the number of  hotel rooms  that are  rented out.  If you
 have any  expectation at  all of  attending the event we would like you to
 reserve a room for Friday and Saturday nights.

     Immediately following the 1991 show  Charles  F.  Johnson  of Codehead
 Technologies announced  that W.A.A.C.E. '91 was the most profitable outing
 that they had ever had, anywhere. For eight years W.A.A.C.E.  has provided
 a complete Atari experience. 1992 promises to be in that same tradition.

 For additional information please contact:
                             Charles Hoffmann
                            5908 Bayshire Road
                        Springfield, VA 22152-1146
                              (703) 569-6734

                            GEnie : S. Hoffmann
                          CompuServe : 73740,1507
                           Delphi : CHUCKHOFFMAN


     ________________________________________________________________





 > MIGRAPH'S OCR STR Review      OCR (Optical Character Recognition)
   """"""""""""""""""""""""




                    OCR (OPTICAL CHARACTER RECOGNITION)
                    ===================================




 MiGraph Inc.
 review Version 1.09b

 Part II

 by Doyle Helms
 Software Editor @ ST Report



        "TO SAVE SUCCEEDiNG GENERATiONS FROM THE SCOURGE OF
        iNTRA-GAlACTiC WAR WHiCH HAS BROUGHT UNTOlD HORROR AND
        SUFFERiNG TO OUR PlANETARY SOciAl SYSTEMS, AND TO
        REAFFiRM FAiTH IN THE FUNDA%NTAl INTElliGENT lIFE-FORM
        RiGHTS, iN THE DiGNiTY AND WORTH OF THE INTEllIGENT
        1iFE-FORM PERSON , TO THE EQUAl RIGHTS OF MAlE AND
        FEMAlE AND OF PlANETARY SO=iAl SYSTEMS lARGE AND SMAll
        , AND TO ESTABliSH CONDiTIONS UNDER WhiCH JUSTiCE AND
        MUTUAl RESPECT FOR T  OBlIGATiONS ARISING FROM
        TREATIES AND OTHER SOURCES OF iNTi@lANETARY lAW CAN BE
        MAINTAINED, AND TO PROMOTE SOCIAl PR%RESS AND BETTER
        STANDARDS OF lIFE iN lARGER  FREEDOM "

     The above text is the direct unedited import of a file from MI-GRAPH
 OCR.  The original text is ALL CAPITALS and monospaced.  The original text
 was scanned at 300 dpi by a MI-GRAPH hand scanner.  The results of the
 scan, as shown above, was processed with a NEW dictionary and NO
 INTERACTIVE LEARNING on my part.  The point I'm trying to make here is
 that OCR read and processed the original text with no help from me and no
 dictionary from which to draw information on the text to be processed.  I
 find the above example to be outstanding by virtue of the circumstances.
 The most noticeable "problems" (if you could call them that) is the
 failure of the OCR program to recognize the lowercase letters from the
 uppercase letters.  The program "guessed" right, just the wrong case.  The
 other "characters" in the processed text are OCR's way  of telling you
 that "Hey, I don't know what the heck that character is supposed to be".
 Still, only VERY FEW of those are shown to crept into the translation.
 Keep in mind that this text was processed with NO dictionary of learned
 type styles and NO help from me in showing it what was what!

     After saving the file in its un-edited form, I reprocessed the file
 with INTERACTIVE LEARNING turned ON.  The result of this action on my part
 was a few "verifications" of certain characters and a few "learn" entries
 to show OCR the questionable characters.  Keep in mind the QUALITY of the
 original and the quality of the scanning plays a MAJOR role in the
 efficiency of the processing.  The sharpest learning curve in using OCR is
 learning about the contrast setting of your scanner.  One setting does NOT
 fit all situations!  The type of paper and the coloration of the paper
 play a large part in the contrast settings of the scanner.  Please note
 that I have found that very minute adjustments in contrast settings is the
 rule of thumb.  I have yet been required to change  the contrast setting
 more than a "notch" either way with my MI- GRAPH scanner.  I have learned
 approximate settings just looking at the paper before the scan.  OCR
 efficiency increases each time I use it and requires less and less
 interaction by me each time.

  CONCLUSION--

     I can give OCR from MI-GRAPH a **** (4) STaR out of 5 for overall
 performance.  The only improvement I can suggest at this time is for
 someone else to do the scanning and "teaching" for me...<grin>

     OCR (1.09b)from MI-GRAPH is solid, dependable, professional and I
 predict a long and productive future for OCR on the Atari platform.

 (The spelling portion of this product is based on Proximity Linguistic
 Technology.)

                               MI-GRAPH Inc.
                       32799 Pacific Highway S. (12)
                          Federal Way, WA  98003
                            Tel: (206) 838-4677
                            FAX: (206) 838-4702


       _____________________________________________________________





 > STR Mail Call             "...a place for the readers to be heard"
   """""""""""""


                            STReport's MailBag
                            """"""""""""""""""


 From Delphi

 FORUM>Reply, Add, Read, "?" or Exit>
 38672 13-JUN 10:38 General Information
      RE: Questions (Re: Msg 38657)
      From: WAYNEDUNHAM  To: MADMODIFIER

 Lloyd,
     I call an FNET board every day, but never see anything.  Maybe because
 I've got all but the local and Programming FNET bases locked out. :-) What
 is the official Atari FNET base anyways?  Maybe I'll start reading it for
 free on the Fnet instead of spending big bucks over on "G" looking for
 'tidbits'.
         Wayne

 Enter FOLLOW for related Message(s).


 From the FNET

 Conf : Atari Technical
 Msg# : 10462/10467  Lines: Extended  Read: 1
 Sent : Jun 17, 1992  at 10:20 AM
 To   : Steve Johnson
 From : Bob Brodie at Fnet Node 319, Atari Base USA
 Subj : Re: <10433> Upgrade techs


 In reply to:

  - I'd like to find the people who will/can do an upgrade to a Stacy 1/20
  - to include a) 4meg RAM
  -            b) TOS 2.06 and possibly
  -            c) bigger int. HD and
  -            d) acceleration.
  - the famous Jim Allen FASTECH and Dave Small (Gadgets by...) have not
  - replied to my inquiries.
  -
 Try ICD. I have an AdSpeed in my Stacy-4 and I'm very happy with it.

 If you want to have true one stop shopping, I recommend The Computer
 Network very highly. They do all the service on my Stacy (on the rare
 occasions that it needed any).

 The Computer Network  818-500-3900
 1605 West Glenoaks Blvd.
 Glendale, CA
 Tony is the service guy. HIGHLY recommended.


 Editor Note;  One can't help but wonder how all the other dealers who
               still support Atari feel about posts like this.  While a
               reccomendation is nice, it becomes lethal when it hurts
               others who do support Atari too!



 From the FNET

 Conf : STReport Online
 Msg# : 20598/20645  Lines: 13  Read: 18
 Sent : Jun 14, 1992  at 12:38 PM
 To   : Jon Applegate
 From : Chris B. Herting at Fnet Node 556, Thieves Guild-#556-Suitland-MD
 Subj : Re: <20560> ATARI EXPLORER - THE HARD

 I really do not mind about getting a few flames from Brodie and Company.
 I have discussed things related the ST with him and Kovacs over Z*Net
 before.  I really hope they do see that message.  They will only be upset,
 if they can not handle the truth.  If I were to make that message two
 lines, it could be summed up by saying...  It is time to grow up, act our
 ages, and quit fighting like little siblings.  It is time to work
 together.  As long as we keep arguing amongst ourselves, we will never
 succeed.  The Atari User base is already in a deep hole looking up to IBM
 and the Mac.  We have a LONG climb ahead of us.  It requires everyone to
 make it to the top of this hole.  Unfortunately, Brodie, Kovacs, and
 ST-Report need to argue.  Brodie has to take his frustrations on the WAACE
 User's group because they will not keep Mariano from going.  It is
 ridiculous.


 From the FNET

 Conf : STReport Online
 Msg# : 20599/20645  Lines: 9  Read: 18
 Sent : Jun 14, 1992  at 12:41 PM
 To   : Duke Kish
 From : Chris B. Herting at Fnet Node 556, Thieves Guild-#556-Suitland-MD
 Subj : Re: <20552> The Ultimate Footshot!

 Well, I was not trying to be negative.  I was just trying to throw the
 truth in their faces.  You can keep ducking it, and nothing will EVER be
 accomplished.  I have sat back, for the last two months since I have been
 home from college, and watched all kinds of arguing..  It just needs to
 stop, plain and simple.  All this frustration, has to be made into a
 positive.  Instead of working against each other, and bringing the Atari
 User Base down to new levels, we should work together and try to inform
 non-Atari users of the platform.  Teamwork.. It's what we need.  And I
 would not be doing my duty as an Atari user not to point it out.

 From the FNET

 Conf : STReport Online
 Msg# : 20600/20645  Lines: 12  Read: 18
 Sent : Jun 14, 1992  at 1:04 PM
 To   : Brian-roland Miller
 From : Chris B. Herting at Fnet Node 556, Thieves Guild-#556-Suitland-MD
 Subj : Re: <20567> Atari BAshing, Philly Style

 Well, I do not think so.  It think you have just come across an
 ignorant bunch of IBM users.  Sure they think they IBM is a good
 machine.  It is the #1 supported computer in the world.  So they have the
 right to run their mouths off.  The Atari Userbase is very small.  But we
 love our ST's and we will continue to use them.  We have an ST and an IBM
 in the house, and we use the ST a lot more.  It is not because one or the
 other is better.  We just prefer the ST over the IBM.  They are both
 capable machines, it is a matter of what meets your needs.  I would just
 turn the other cheek and ignore their ignorance.  And not even get
 involved in one of those my computer is better than yours.  Show them,
 Atari Users have class, we do not even need to pay attention to their
 childish remarks.


 From the FNET

 Conf : STReport Online
 Msg# : 20601/20645  Lines: 8  Read: 18
 Sent : Jun 14, 1992  at 1:09 PM
 To   : Mark K.
 From : Chris B. Herting at Fnet Node 556, Thieves Guild-#556-Suitland-MD
 Subj : Re: <20558> ATARI EXPLORER - THE HARD

 Exactly.  Atari Corp has been portraying this image for some time.  But
 Bob Brodie never had.  I listen to him speak.  He seemed to be the breath
 of fresh air Atari needed.  He was the common users representative.  He
 was one of us.  What he is now.. I am unsure, and unqualified to make a
 complete judgement.  I do know, I do not like the way he is handling
 situations.  I do not like what he is doing to WAACE.  It is downright
 wrong.  He is working against us (Atari-Userbase) instead of with us.  It
 makes my stomach cringe.


 From GEnie's ST RT

 Category 14,  Topic 7
 Message 213       Tue Jun 16, 1992
 R.WATSON15 [Wayne Watson]    at 06:45 EDT

 There seems to be several problems.

 1) Atari is a small company, especially compared to Apple and
    IBM/Clones. They cannot handle the output like those companies
    can.

 2) If they were to Advertise and start getting tons of orders, I
    don't think they would be able to keep up with the demand. They
    cannot keep up with it that good now.

 3) Where would all those people go to get this great machine everyone
    is talking about? I have 2 dealers I can go to. The problem is,
    they are about 100+ miles away. So, people would then turn around
    and say, "Well, the machine may be great but, I am not going to
    drive a hundred or more miles to get this thing or get support".
    Then they would be back to square one.

 4) Atari does not have the financial resources that Apple has and yet
    they have come out with a lot of new stuff within the last couple
    of years. I love the Mega STE. They did a great job I think. Yes,
    they had some problems with it and the TT (1.44 meg support for
    one) and they dropped the ball on communication to the customer
    but, things are looking up.

 5) Atari has some real big problems with PR and communications but,
    hopefully they will work on this area. They also need to get their
    house in order (Atari Corp.). Public Relations is one of their big
    time short comings.

 I think that there may be problems with pushing the ST Book out the door
 but, no one is talking. All we see is that it is not going out the door
 and do not see what may be happening behind the scenes. I am not by all
 means trying to defend Atari but, they are just not in the same league as
 Apple and IBM/Clones. The machines in my opinion are however. The only
 area they need work in is the graphics area and if ANY of the rumors are
 true about the 'Falcon', then this will change.

 All in all, I think Atari has done a good job at getting new products out
 the door. They are still alive even with shares at $1.5 to $2.5 per share
 (a failure in most eyes). I don't know about others but, I love the
 machine. It is easier to use than a MAC although it does not have some of
 the nice software. They blow IBM/Clones out of the water as far as
 interface and speed. I have seen a 386 40 mhz machine running Windows,
 YUCK! My 8 mhz machine did better and I didn't have to use half my Hard
 Drive just to get that interface.

 So, all I can say is, go ahead and switch over. I will be thinking about
 ya when I am here working on this fantastic little machine that will run
 circles around an IBM/Clone running windows. Can you say 486 50 mhz
 running Windows and a lot of cards that will beat this poor little ol' 16
 mhz STE with printer port, Hard Drive port, 1.44 meg floppy, Stereo sound,
 2 modem ports, a serial port, GEM built into hardware and can run MAC and
 IBM software to boot.

 I know Jeff W., I will shut up now and get back on topic. I'll probably be
 getting email saying it was moved. I had to say it though. I love the
 machine but, not the company.
 The road to recovery is a long hard road. I know, I am with a company that
 is going through recovery but, we have managed to come from 5 million in
 the hole to 50 million in the black. It was a long hard struggle but, with
 a change of attitude and everyone working together, we managed to do it
 and still have a long way to go. Atari has a long way to go but, I can see
 they are trying.

  ------------
 From GEnie's ST RT

 Category 14,  Topic 7
 Message 215       Tue Jun 16, 1992
 B.KING8 [Brien King]         at 20:39 EDT

  Wayne & Jonesy -

 You know, I was singing the same song you two were a long time ago and
 kept saying "Oh! But Atari is improving".  Well, they have improved a
 _little_, but not enough to warrant me sticking around.

 Every one keeps saying "Look! Atari has come out with all this neat new
 stuff in the past _COUPLE_ of years!  What more do you want?" Other
 companies come out with the same amount of stuff in MONTHS not years.  Oh
 yeah.  Atari is a small company and can't afford to do that, I must have
 forgotten.  I guess they should have tried to advertise in the past 6
 years
 and push the ST so they would have some money.

 As for who's still around?  Well IBM is still here, Apple is still here,
 Commodore is still here, Atari is still here.  Tell me, who is
 disappearing
 the fastest?  I'll give you a hint, it starts with an A and ends with an
 I.

 If and _WHEN_ the falcon comes out, how many will be available? Where can
 you get them?  Who will fix them?  Where do you buy software that takes
 advantage of it?  Will it be a Class B machine or stuck at Class A for two
 years?

 If the BOOK makes it out this year they might set a new record!  More then
 one machine out within a year of announcement.  Remember the good ol days
 when Atari put the ST out in ONLY 6 months?

 Like I said, I'm giving them until October, after that, I'll be looking
 else where for my computer needs and wants.

                                                        Brien King

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


 Category 14,  Topic 7
 Message 218       Wed Jun 17, 1992
 B.KING8 [Brien King]         at 04:52 EDT

   The STE reminds me a lot of the C-128 from  Commodore.  A  souped  up
   revision  of its predecessor.   The  STE  should have  been out YEARS
   before then, and the MEGA STE should have come  out when the STE did.
   They were a day late and a dollar short.  Don't get me wrong, the STE
   is a great machine, but the Amiga  had  the  same  capabilities (i.e.
   Stereo Sound, 4096 Colors)  in 85-86 when the ST came out.  Then they
   came  out  with the TT,  but  with  still  only  4096  colors.  Major
   improvement there (yeah, I know, you don't  have to list all the TT's
   _NEW_ features because I _OWN_ one and  can  list them in my sleep!).
   The new monitors must have taken a  lot of  development time!  Pick a
   color scheme and slap a label on a GoldStar. The new SLM was probably
   the nicest enhancement to the Atari line.

   If you really want to know how well Atari is doing, then call a
   dealer, or developer and ask them how they are doing.  Some are
   doing _OK_ because they are working their  (you know what) off,
   others are struggling just  to  survive or going multi-platform
   just to pay the bills.  You can blame it on what ever you want,
   but how many users are really  left?  Probably  not  enough  to
   justify any major development of large projects.  The  majority
   of  software  today  is  imported  and distributed by  American
   companies because they can not afford the  time  and  effort to
   develop their own programs and still expect to survive.

 Steve -

   >>...but I think a lot of people are discouraged that Atari doesn't
   >>seem to be doing anything to improve the situation...

   Thats an Understatement.


                                                        Brien King
  ------------


 From CIS Atari Fora
 Date:  17-Jun-92 18:48 EDT
 From:  Gordon Meyer [72307,1502]
 Subj:  Last issue

 To: STReport - Ralph 70007,4454

 Ralph -

     Greetings!   Thought I'd drop you a quick note and let you know that
 including the screen shots from STraight FAX was a great idea.  I
 purchased the program (with Supra modem) at the MAST Show and it's been
 just great.  I saw the review you printed after my purchase, but I still
 enjoyed the article.

     I got version 1.03 and haven't had a lick of trouble with it.   No
 hesitation in suggesting it to anyone who has the memory/hard drive
 available.
                                             Best Regards,

                                         Gordon R. Meyer
                              9:11:34 pm CT  Tuesday, June 16, 1992


 #: 65292 S1/Forum Business
     19-Jun-92  13:24:16
 Sb: Online support survey
 Fm: SYSOP*Ron Luks 76703,254
 To: All

     In the latest Atari Explorer Online, publisher and Director of
 Communications for Atari Corporation, Bob Brodie, remarked that "his
 online time is limited" and he asked the Atari community where they would
 like to see him spend his online time.  He then went on to predict that
 everyone would respond positively to GEnie and the F-Net, but that he
 would leave the choice up to the public.

     I would like to respond by posting a survey of our world-wide
 membership, giving you the chance to cast your vote with your preference
 for online support.

     Please vote for one of the following as a reply to this message or via
 EMAIL to my user ID:

     As it pertains to Atari Corporations online support do you vote for:

     A) -  We need BOB BRODIE online on CompuServe.

     B) -  We need BOB BRODIE and others from Atari Corporation online.

     C) -  We need representation from Atari Corporation (i.e., Bill
           Rehbock, J. Patton, Dan McNamee or John Townsend or others)
           online to keep us posted as to Atari Corp.s activities and
           plans, but not necessarily Bob Brodie.

     D) -  Online Support from Atari Corporation is not necessary.

     Results of this survey will be compiled and posted online and
 forwarded to Atari Corp. and Bob Brodie by Sysop * Ron Luks.

     Please vote as your answers may very well determine the amount and
 type of official online support that is available in the months and years
 ahead.

    Ron Luks
    Manager
    Atari Forums on CompuServe



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                      STReport's "EDITORIAL CARTOON"
                      """"""""""""""""""""""""""""""



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 STR Online!           "YOUR INDEPENDENT NEWS SOURCE"         June 19, 1992
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