FATR6@usu.BITNET (03/10/87)
Date: Mon, 9 Mar 87 15:39 MST From: <FATR6@USU.BITNET> Subject: Atari Drives, copy protection, BITNET To: info-atari16@score.stanford.edu X-Original-To: info-atari16@score.stanford.edu, FATR6 Three points 1. I mentioned at the end of last week that my copy of VIP Professional was trashed. Before I sent it back to the dealer I decided to test it on another 520 so I took it (the program) down and it booted just fine (ARGH!). It seems that my drive was messed up. This is the first copyprotected software I had run on my machine although since then I ran SILENT SERVICE which worked fine. In any case I got a new drive out of the deal and VIP runs fine. By the way those of you who have used LOTUS and not VIP try it you will notice no change in the operation of the two at least I haven't. 2. All this brings me to point 2. I had a similar problem when I had an old Atari 810 drive with an SSI game. I imeadiatly called the company and they said check your drive speed. Sure enough it was off. Is there a program to check the drive speeds for the ST, and if so how do you adjust an incorrect speed? 3. Please someone tell those of us who don't know any better how to get the program listings which are published here to our STs. Some of us are new to the net and don't have a clue about all that code. Thanks for the response to my VIP problem Jon Jensen FATR6@USU USU CS DEPT
leavens@atari.UUCP (03/11/87)
>...Is there a > program to check the drive speeds for the ST, and if so how do you adjust an > incorrect speed? > There is a public domain program, although I haven't personally seen it, that does this. One thing to remember, though, is that you can't adjust the drive speed on ST drives the same way you can on 8 bit drives. (There's apparently no easily adjusted pot, the way there was on 810's). I have trouble believing that any copy protection method today relies on drive speed for it's protection to work--I think that in VIP's case they use a bad sector out on track 81 or 82, which is a definite no-no. 3.5" drives are spec'd to go to track 80, and that's it... --alex @ Atari BIX:alexl. GEnie: ALEXLEAVENS AtariCorp: 408-745-2006 "How can you be in two places at once when you're not anywhere at all."