Flash@UMass.BITNET (Rick Flashman) (02/05/88)
After having a long series of programs bomb out on our MEGA ST2 here at
the store, we decided to do a little testing. We copied the ROMS in the
Mega (to make sure we have the SAME version) and placed them inside a 2.5
meg 520. We then proceeded try out some software that crashed on the MEGA.
MEGA ST2 520 (with 2.5 MEGS and SAME new roms)
-------- ---------
Gaunlet CRASH! Ran great!
Eagle's Nest CRASH! Ran great!
A-Calc Prime Some Prob. Same.
And the list goes on...
Ending result? It seems that 40% of all the programs that have problems
with a MEGA work fine on the 520 system.
What does this mean?
That something fishy is going on with Atari. They claim that only the ROMS
changed and that the hardware is the same (appart from an invisible blitter).
Well, obviously it is not. NEW roms are not was is making things non-compatible
instead something else is, something having to do with the MEGA design.
Our Atari Representative was simply as baffled as we were...how comforting.
On a related issue, our store has been experiencing a 50% failture rate with
the new mega's. Just thought that was most interesting.
BTW, we got in the TECH SPECIALTIES 2/4 MEG upgrade board for 1040s. DO NOT
BUY THIS UPGRADE. It does *NOT* fit in a 1040, and the instructions are
WRONG. If you cut the trace that they as you to, you DESTROY your MMU when
you power up, as a poor customer of us discovered. (all taken care of now)
If you want to go to 2 or 4 megs and you have a 1040, wait for the AERCO
board, which should be shipping as I write this..(hopefully)...they have
worked on it for a long time..are aware of all motherboard revisions, and
basically have their act together.
GUNSHIP is supposed to ship in the next couple of weeks, and those who have
seen it say it is hot, watch for that one.
Anyone know when LASER C is shipping?
Anyone know what is the deal with Data Pacific. They are starting to
remind me of many mail order places I love to hate. This is what is
happening.
I called 3 months ago and ordered some MAGIC SAC PROFESSIONALS. I asked
the lady on the phone "Are they in STOCK and shipping?!?!?" She said
"Yes, should go out tommorow."
To make matters short, 3 months later, we have seen nothing, and we call
them EVERY week...and EVERY WEEK...they tell us..."Just shipped." Gets
kind of fishy after the 6th time.
Talked to David Small on GENIE who promised to look into it, since he is
also claiming that they are shipping. Never got a reply.
Annoying part is, that this stuff was/is for a goverment BID. You know how
those are picky on product delivery. Well, we are still waiting...nd in
Rick Flashman
1040 N. Pleasant Street, #381, Amherst, MA 01002. (413) 549-0173
Flash@UMASS.BITNET -or- Flash%UMASS.BITNET@CUNYVM.CUNY.EDU
R-FLASHMAN on GEnielharris@gpu.utcs.toronto.edu (Leonard Harris) (02/06/88)
The Datafree 2.5/4 meg memory board is also excellent ! It works on ALL revisions of 520, 520stfm and 1040's - fits well and the documentation is clear and straightforward. The design of the board and method for installing is also rock-solid. /Leonard
martin@lakesys.UUCP (Martin Wiedmeyer) (02/08/88)
Does the datafree 2.5/4 meg RAM upgrade board require any solder connections? I'm looking for a plug in RAM upgrade. Thamks, Marty -- | Marty Wiedmeyer | | Lake Systems, Milwaukee, WI | | UUCP: {ihnp4,uwvax}!uwmcsd1!lakesys!martin | | Disclaimer: I take the heat for my own (mis)statements..... |
martin@lakesys.UUCP (Martin Wiedmeyer) (02/08/88)
What prices have you seen for the Datafree 2.5/4 meg RAM upgrade? Curious, Marty -- | Marty Wiedmeyer | | Lake Systems, Milwaukee, WI | | UUCP: {ihnp4,uwvax}!uwmcsd1!lakesys!martin | | Disclaimer: I take the heat for my own (mis)statements..... |
lharris@gpu.utcs.toronto.edu (Leonard Harris) (02/08/88)
In article <438@lakesys.UUCP> martin@lakesys.UUCP (Martin Wiedmeyer) writes: >Does the datafree 2.5/4 meg RAM upgrade board require any solder connections? >I'm looking for a plug in RAM upgrade. > > Thamks, > > Marty >-- >| Marty Wiedmeyer | >| Lake Systems, Milwaukee, WI | >| UUCP: {ihnp4,uwvax}!uwmcsd1!lakesys!martin | >| Disclaimer: I take the heat for my own (mis)statements..... | The board from Datafree ha to be soldered in (only 17 points on a template). This was done on purpose - If you spend $$$ on 4 megs of memory you don't want to have to reseat a loose plug-in connector every 6 months - believe me it happens. The first version of Datafree's board was a solderless plug-in board and no matter how a connector was designed, it would eventually come loose - maybe thats why no major manufacturer of sockets even makes a header for quad-pack sockets. /Leonard
achowe@trillium.waterloo.edu (CrackerJack) (02/08/88)
I also own a MEGA ST2 but found GAULET to work just fine on my machine. Does this mean there are different board revisions already? I have also been compiling a list of software which worked on my 1040 but not on the MEGA ST2. Any additions would be great. ROGUE ARKANOID STAR TREK (ouch!!) INTERNATIONAL KARATE OGRE SUPER CYCLE VIP MEAN 18 CHAMPOINSHIP BASEBALL SWORDS OF KADESH ST POOL KARATE KID II ---------------------------------------------------------- - Anthony Howe The definition of flying is throwing yourself at the ground and missing. -Douglas Adams' Life, the Universe and Everything
dclemans@mntgfx.mentor.com (Dave Clemans) (02/10/88)
The other hardware difference between the Mega and ST series relates to the clock. On the ST there is a clock in the keyboard cpu; on the Mega it's on the motherboard and removed from the keyboard. If a program is looking for a response from the keyboard clock I imagine it could potentially have problems. dgc
Thomas_E_Zerucha@cup.portal.com (02/11/88)
Arkanoid uses a series of locations where GEM stores the current mouse X,Y, and button state, somewhere in 0x00002000 - 0x00002fff range, and you can find the locations easily and patch them. I have the new ROMs and a copy of ARKANOIDS that runs on them. When will programmers use the documented methods of doing these things <groan>?