R38@PSUVM.BITNET (aka Marc Rifkin) (02/23/88)
Ok, I have heard rumors (Any pre-release info from CA comes as rumors...) about the upcoming V1.3 Operation System. But which ones are true? Such as: -Workbench get kicked out -Shell-like user interface -Better drivers -Printers -Preferences control of -Better graphics -More support for: -Overscan -HAM -1/2 brite -Less GURUS? (PLEASE!) -Disk access -Floppy? Any better on reading filenames? -Fast Format - for HD's only? And one thing I have to suggest: -A *MUCH* better picture of the hand holding a disk that should not say WORKBENCH (it should be a generic looking boot disk) Now all of those things are nice, but what I would very much like to know is 1) When will it be released? 2) Will new Amigas (500,2000) come with V1.3 once it is out? Thanks for clearing the mist... ------- ________ |-R38@PSUVM.PSU-------------------| / / ____ \ | Marc Rifkin | / / /_/_/ / | 132 Beaver Hall University Park | / / ____ / | 16802 (814)862-6892 | / / / \ \ \ A E G I S OF Vertex +=================================+ / /__/ / /__/ ---===--- INC. "No matter where you go, There you are." -BB & MM
ali@polya.STANFORD.EDU (Ali Ozer) (02/23/88)
In article <34268R38@PSUVM> R38@PSUVM.BITNET (aka Marc Rifkin) writes: >Ok, I have heard rumors (Any pre-release info from CA comes as rumors...) >about the upcoming V1.3 Operation System. ... one thing I have to suggest: > -A *MUCH* better picture of the hand holding a disk > that should not say WORKBENCH (it should be a generic > looking boot disk) Just for the record, at the Feb BADGE meeting Bryce Nesbitt showed a KickStart disk which (among many other custom things) put up a huge checkmark instead of the hand/disk picture when prompting for the WB disk. The background was black (instead of white), and (with copper hacking, I assume) he had the checkmark colored with a whole range of colors, not just only the 4 that you get in the hand/disk screen... Ali Ozer, ali@polya.stanford.edu
cmcmanis%pepper@Sun.COM (Chuck McManis) (02/24/88)
I can tell, 1.3 is going to be worse than 1.2 in this regard (rumors) the following stuff is mostly extracted from what the C/A folks say on BIX. Note that they are suprisingly candid in their own conference (amiga.dev) and if your a true rumor monger you won't mind paying for your information ... :-) In article <34268R38@PSUVM> R38@PSUVM.BITNET (aka Marc Rifkin) writes: >Ok, I have heard rumors (Any pre-release info from CA comes as rumors...) >about the upcoming V1.3 Operation System. But which ones are true? >Such as: > -Workbench get kicked out One of the things mentioned were *NO* ROM changes. That makes kicking workbench out a little tough, it does not preclude having a workbench.library on the disk but I think it is not to likely. > -Shell-like user interface Don't know, but does it matter? I mean with ConMan, Metacomco Shell, Shell 2.07, and derivatives will a different CLI make you change? > -Better drivers > -Printers This has been confirmed a couple of places, basically a new printer.device and some new drivers that support better/faster graphics. > -Preferences control of > -Better graphics I assume you have to select them some how :-) > -More support for: > -Overscan Were you at the AmiExpo get together that Jimm hosted? He had some ideas and got some feedback but the timeframe looked to me to be a lot later than 1.3. > -HAM What is more support for HAM? Calls in AmigaBASIC? It's there, it works I don't understand the intimation. > -1/2 brite Same goes here. > -Less GURUS? (PLEASE!) Argh. My machine running 1.2 *never* GURUs unless I make it GURU. If all I do is run commercial software I have no problems here. Maybe you have some flakey hardware? What does your machine run that crashes alot? > -Disk access > -Floppy? Any better on reading filenames? Reading filenames? You mean like enumerating directorys? No, I don't think there will be any improvement until you can use the Fast File system on floppies. > -Fast Format - for HD's only? Fast File system is in, I can only guess that a fast format routine would be useful too. I hear that the FFS breaks the 52Meg barrier (makes it a 2G barrier) and I sure as heck don't want to sit around for a day while that thing formats :-) > And one thing I have to suggest: > -A *MUCH* better picture of the hand holding a disk > that should not say WORKBENCH (it should be a generic > looking boot disk) I think it is kind of tough to be really creative with just line draws and such. Now if they really put the image in ROM that would be one thing but since they don't ... >Now all of those things are nice, but what I would very much like to know >is 1) When will it be released? 2) Will new Amigas (500,2000) come with >V1.3 once it is out? >Thanks for clearing the mist... Like I said, Commodore has emphatically denied that there would be any ROM changes in 1.3 so I suspect that the 500s/2000s of the world will still come with 1.2 ROMS. Maybe they just want 500/2000 owners to experience the joy of buying an 'Enhancer Pack'. In either event I don't think it will be free. --Chuck McManis uucp: {anywhere}!sun!cmcmanis BIX: cmcmanis ARPAnet: cmcmanis@sun.com These opinions are my own and no one elses, but you knew that didn't you.
page@swan.ulowell.edu (Bob Page) (02/24/88)
cmcmanis@sun.UUCP (Chuck McManis) wrote: >One of the things mentioned were *NO* ROM changes. I thought the point of 1.3 was to add autoboot support? If I remember right, I read on BIX that 1.3 was going to be 1.2 with NO bug fixes, just autoboot support. Doesn't that mean new ROMs? >I can only guess that a fast format routine would be useful too. There's a PD program to do this. ..Bob -- Bob Page, U of Lowell CS Dept. page@swan.ulowell.edu ulowell!page "I don't know such stuff. I just do eyes." -- from 'Blade Runner'
kim@amdahl.uts.amdahl.com (Kim DeVaughn) (02/25/88)
In article <5070@swan.ulowell.edu>, page@swan.ulowell.edu (Bob Page) writes: > cmcmanis@sun.UUCP (Chuck McManis) wrote: > >One of the things mentioned were *NO* ROM changes. > > I thought the point of 1.3 was to add autoboot support? If I remember > right, I read on BIX that 1.3 was going to be 1.2 with NO bug fixes, > just autoboot support. Doesn't that mean new ROMs? I'm not sure about the "new ROM's/KS" issue, but there does seem to be some confusion over version numbers. As I understand it: What used to be called v1.21 is now called v1.3, and ONLY adds hard-disk autoboot support, as Bob noted (though I've also heard that the '881 floating-point libs might sneek into this release). This release is supposed to show up (dare I say it) ... RSN. What used to be called v1.3 is now called v1.4, and will include the enhancements (like the FFS, etc.), and bug-fixes that we all keep wishing and hoping for. Availability ... 3Q88 (maybe) or 4Q88 (more likely). So ... unless my understanding is the result of smoking some bad weed, we can reduce some of the confusion by refering only to the new scheme of revision numbers. I'm sure someone will "inform me in the appropriate manner" [heavy flames] if I'm wrong about this ... /kim -- UUCP: kim@amdahl.amdahl.com or: {sun,decwrl,hplabs,pyramid,ihnp4,uunet,oliveb,cbosgd,ames}!amdahl!kim DDD: 408-746-8462 USPS: Amdahl Corp. M/S 249, 1250 E. Arques Av, Sunnyvale, CA 94086 CIS: 76535,25
andy@cbmvax.UUCP (Andy Finkel) (02/27/88)
In article <23057@amdahl.uts.amdahl.com> kim@amdahl.uts.amdahl.com (Kim DeVaughn) writes: >In article <5070@swan.ulowell.edu>, page@swan.ulowell.edu (Bob Page) writes: >> cmcmanis@sun.UUCP (Chuck McManis) wrote: >> >One of the things mentioned were *NO* ROM changes. >> >> I thought the point of 1.3 was to add autoboot support? If I remember >> right, I read on BIX that 1.3 was going to be 1.2 with NO bug fixes, >> just autoboot support. Doesn't that mean new ROMs? > >I'm not sure about the "new ROM's/KS" issue, but there does seem to be some >confusion over version numbers. As I understand it: > Let's end the confusion... There's Kickstart and there's Workbench. What used to be called V1.2.1 Kickstart is now called V1.3 Kickstart. The only change from V1.2 of this Kickstart is the addition of boot from devices other than DF0:, if they are properly equipped. What used to be called V1.3 Workbench is still called V1.3 Workbench. V1.3 Workbench does not require V1.3 Kickstart to work. V1.3 Kickstart does not require V1.3 Workbench to work. This above release is the one that's about ready. V1.4 will be the release after this one. That one is where the ROMs are open for changes once again. And, of course, Workbench disk changes will be possible. Everyone got it ? :-) andy -- andy finkel {ihnp4|seismo|allegra}!cbmvax!andy Commodore-Amiga, Inc. "Never test for an error condition you don't know how to handle." Any expressed opinions are mine; but feel free to share. I disclaim all responsibilities, all shapes, all sizes, all colors.
cthulhu@athena.mit.edu (Jim Reich) (03/01/88)
In article <34268R38@PSUVM> R38@PSUVM.BITNET (aka Marc Rifkin) writes: >Ok, I have heard rumors (Any pre-release info from CA comes as rumors...) >about the upcoming V1.3 Operating System > -Workbench get kicked out Oh come on. There is no way at all that this could be true. The workbench has been an integral part of the Amigas image, if not its use, from day one. It will be back, and probably better than ever... > -Shell-like user interface Do you mean the CLI? With the utilities currently out there in the Public domain there ain't so much of a difference anyway > -Better drivers > -Printers Yes, this is confirmed. They will be much faster and will support things such as the 24/18 pin modes, better color, reasonable pauses between lines, etc. From what I've heard, however, they don't have the white-lines-on-black problem fixed yet... > -Better graphics > -More support for: > -1/2 brite It's really kind of tricky to support half-brite, since many Amigas don't have it (I don't think the 2000 or the 500 do -- verification, folks?) > -Disk access Yes, the Fast File System, which should pick things up massively, particularly on Hard drives. > And one thing I have to suggest: > -A *MUCH* better picture of the hand holding a disk > that should not say WORKBENCH (it should be a generic > looking boot disk) You can make one yourself. The image is stored on the Kickstart disk, and explanations of how to replace it are on one of the recent fish disks, along with other Kickstart patches (like getting rid of that infernal clicking from empty disk drives!) -- Jim
glee@cognos.uucp (Godfrey Lee) (03/07/88)
In article <3377@cbmvax.UUCP> andy@cbmvax.UUCP (Andy Finkel) writes: >Let's end the confusion... >There's Kickstart and there's Workbench. okay. >What used to be called V1.2.1 Kickstart is now called V1.3 Kickstart. > The only change... >What used to be called V1.3 Workbench is still called V1.3 Workbench. > V1.3 Workbench does not require V1.3 Kickstart to work. > V1.3 Kickstart does not require V1.3 Workbench to work. >This above release is the one that's about ready. >V1.4 will be the release after this one. ... >Everyone got it ? :-) clear as mud. > andy If C-A is ready to release the information, I for one would appreciate a detail description of the upcoming O/S releases. It would give myself and others something to look forward to, and would reduce the traffic on the net speculating about what are in these releases. How about it, Andy? -- Godfrey Lee P.O. Box 9707 Cognos Incorporated 3755 Riverside Dr. VOICE: (613) 738-1440 FAX: (613) 738-0002 Ottawa, Ontario UUCP: decvax!utzoo!dciem!nrcaer!cognos!glee CANADA K1G 3Z4
prplworm@cup.portal.com (03/11/88)
>It's really kind of tricky to support half-brite, since many Amigas don't have >it (I don't think the 2000 or the 500 do -- verification, folks?) Yes, the A500 and A2000 have the half-bright chips. I have an A500, and half- bright works fine. In fact, I think some of the later A1000s have it (I know you can upgrade the A1000 for half-bright for about $60).
davidg@killer.UUCP (David Guntner) (03/14/88)
in article <2385@cognos.UUCP>, glee@cognos.uucp (Godfrey Lee) says: > If C-A is ready to release the information, I for one would appreciate a detail > description of the upcoming O/S releases. It would give myself and others > something to look forward to, and would reduce the traffic on the net > speculating about what are in these releases. How about it, Andy? I second this motion. I'd love to see an official release as to what is going to be what with OS 1.3 & 1.4 from the people who truely know (I've seen so many different stories now, that I've lost count...). --Dave -- David Guntner UUCP: {ihnp4, codas}!killer!davidg INET: davidg@killer.UUCP "...Different ship, but she's got a good name. Treat --Admiral L. McCoy her like a lady, and she'll always bring you home." "Encounter at Farpoint"
richard@gryphon.CTS.COM (Richard Sexton) (03/15/88)
In article <3835@cup.portal.com> prplworm@cup.portal.com writes: >>It's really kind of tricky to support half-brite, since many Amigas don't have >>it (I don't think the 2000 or the 500 do -- verification, folks?) > >Yes, the A500 and A2000 have the half-bright chips. I have an A500, and half- >bright works fine. In fact, I think some of the later A1000s have it (I know >you can upgrade the A1000 for half-bright for about $60). (Email bounced) Thanks so mych for straightening out this wretched mess. Two and a half years I've been wondering about this. I knew some techno-wizard from portal would clear this up. Praise allah for portal. -- "...(alright Nils, alright)..." richard@gryphon.CTS.COM {ihnp4!scgvaxd!cadovax, rutgers!marque, codas!ddsw1} gryphon!richard
R38@PSUVM.BITNET (aka Marc Rifkin) (03/26/88)
Even *official* SPECULATION is better than unofficial RUMORS. ------- ____ _ __ __ __ \Marc Rifkin \ / / /| /_ / / \ of \ / \R38@PSUVM.EDU \ /--- /-| /__ /_/ / _\ \\ // \132 Beaver Hall\ / \ \\// E R T E C H , Inc.\Univ. Park, Pa.\ "No Matter Where You go, \/ --=======-- \16802 \ There You Are." -BB & MM \814-862-6892 \