SOCS18@vaxb.york.ac.UK (Vision Newspapers) (02/26/90)
This article is primarily in reply to Allan Pratt's posting questioning the reasoning behind my posting of the STE DMA sound information. Since Allan posted his complaint to the net, I'm going to post my reply similarly. Allan, I realise that you're not "The Villan Of Atari US", and I would like to give my reasons for the posting. 1) My STE documentation was obtained from Atari UK. However, I am not a developer - I just write for a computer magazine. I am also not the only UK computer journalist with a copy of the documentation. But what did Atari UK think computer journalists were going to do with the it? Lock it away in a safe? 2) The amount of mail I received requesting that I posted the info to this group clearly indicates that this information is _NOT_ of limited interest to anyone. One of the biggest problems with writing software for the ST is the lack of correct technical information available to non-developers (i.e. the guy who is fairly serious about programming his ST, and wants the facts, but who doesn't want everything else you get when you pay to be a registered developer) I would imagine that my column in ST World would not run to six pages every issue if such information was available. 3) I agree that simply keying in Atari documentation and posting it is bad (and also a breach of copyright). Although what was posted is fairly close to the original Atari text, it is not the same. The wording is mine. 4) Since the wording is mine, I will carry the can for any mistakes or omissions. As you might guess, I'm not convinced that posting programming information on the STE is wrong. I still intend to post some information on display hardware soon. Regards, Mathew Lodge *********************************************************************** * c/o Dept. Computer Science * "Baldrick, fetch me a turkey _so * * University of York * big_, you'd have thought its mother * * Heslington * had been rodgered by an Omnibus" * * York, UK * * * YO1 5DD * JANET : SOCS18@uk.ac.york.vaxa * ***********************************************************************
qralph@dna.lth.se (Ralph Haglund) (03/01/90)
Hi, Those on the net regularly might remember I posted appr. the same thing some time back, then derived from a German magazine, where all the STE registers where described. At the time I got, privately and publicly, exactly the same scolding from Atari USA. I had clearly indicated the source, I am a developer but still I haven't got this info from Atari Stockholm, and in general I have GIVEN them info, but never ever got a single sheet except those I got when I bought the development kit. I have sent mail via snail mail to Atari USA, I have sent several to all the Atari guys on the net, never ever a single reply. As a developer I sent in a few pages from the development package that I was requested, to Atari USA, to get something in return. That is soon one year ago. Not a single reply.- I am also trying to sell Ataris here in town. I try to get all kinds of argu- ments for Atari, with the result I have sold piles of Ataris but just one Amiga (put a smiley there if you feel for it). I also try to write programs for Atari. But sometimes I wonder what I am doing. Even a fanatic might start to wonder at times... I put the simple question to Atari USA: in the complaints here on the net there was mentioned, that this way people might get erroneous info. So my question is: What about books how to program the Atari? The deevelopers aren't allowed to tell how to do it, Atari themselves don't publish, except to people who pay $300. That means all legal books about programming the Atari are written by hackers who have guessed, experimented about everything, or possibly stolen from waste paper baskets at Atari USA. Is that the best way to inform the public about this machine??? I wish I saw some logic in the whole. Why doesn't Atari want to make money? |-------------------------------------------------------------| | Want to talk to me? Try: | | QRALPH@SELDC51 || QRALPH@SELDC52 || qralph@dna.lth.se | | My name? In official Sweden it is: 4.901.185.654 (secret) | | Anywhere else: Ralph Haglund | | Disclaimer: If it works, it's out of date. | |_____________________________________________________________|