[comp.sys.atari.st] Emulators, et al...

Z4648252@SFAUSTIN.BITNET (Z4648252) (02/02/90)

 Tom Bellucco writes:

"Let's compare apples to apples here...it makes sense to want 3 seperarte
items that perform their tasks perfectly than 1 item that performs 3 seperate
tasks half-ass."

    This is in reference to running emulators on an ST.  In my biased
opinion, it depends on the quality of the emulator.  I'm running Spectre
GCR, the Macintosh emulator on a monochrome monitor and the end result
is a faster 3.7 megged Mac Plus.  I run PageMaker, FullWrite, and am
typing this letter via my RedRyder 10.3 terminal program for the Mac.  As
far as all end results are concerned, my ST is a Mac while in GCR mode.
The only 'half-ass' job is in the fact that the emulator is lousy at
copy protected games which I could postively care less about.  I use the
ST side for games, if need be.  David Small has so extended my ST that
I have two computers on my desk.
    Extension of the computer is what emulation is all about.  We are
fortunate that Spectre GCR is so solid that the extension actually turns
the computer into another system.  Tom's statement is just not correct
as far as the GCR is concerned.
    Indeed, I have FEWER CRASHES which using the GCR than I do while in
native host ST mode.  by crashes, I mean the cute little cherry bombs and
this is with TOS 1.4, which has made my ST even more solid that it
originally was.

"Look at the list of software that wouldn't run on the Megas!"

    WHAT LIST?????  I've had a Mega2 ST since December of 1987 and I've
yet to run across any problems.  Are there problems with games, where
is the difficulty?  Someone tell me so that I can convince the software
that I use that it is not supposed to run.  Typical software that I
use daily is Flash 1.61, WordPerfect, Dungeon Master, Blood Money, Xenon II,
HotWire, Falcon, Populas, and all the popular utilities from the CodeHeads
and DoubleClick.  I've lots more but these are the ones which come to
mind.  Also note that I've been collecting ST software since summer of 1985
and haven't discarded anything yet.  I do know that Arkanoid used to not
work, or something like that.  I never had it anyway.  Oh well...
    Speaking of incompatibilities...
    Since upgrading to TOS 1.4, I have noticed that Captain Blood stopped
working on me.  Everything else seems clean to me.  Anyone know anything?
    Regarding emulation again...  it is a concept allowing extension of
the host machine.  We are fortunate in that we have such good emulators
that they seem to replace the host, the ST.

Larry Rymal:  |East Texas Atari 68NNNers| <Z4648252@SFAUSTIN.BITNET>