Info-Atari16@SCORE.STANFORD.EDU (Info-Atari16 Digest) (11/12/86)
Info-Atari16 Digest Tuesday, November 11, 1986 Volume 86 : Issue 10
This weeks Editor: Bill Westfield
Today's Topics:
Anybody seen Turbo Pascal for the Mac or the Atari ST
Praise of ATARI....I've actually got the fixed HDX!
Re: New ST models?
Re: Question about Micro-Emacs 3.7i
Re: Advertising methods
re: disk drive problems
Format+ and Disk Formatting
Duplicates
Re: Help with Desk Accessories: accessory loaders.
Re: ARC and ALITE comments - (nf)
CPM problems
Atari Stock
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Date: 6 Nov 86 07:08:02 GMT
From: rutgers!clyde!watmath!looking!brad@lll-crg.arpa (Brad Templeton)
Subject: Anybody seen Turbo Pascal for the Mac or the Atari ST
To: info-atari16@score.stanford.edu
I have heard rumours about these products but I have not actually seen
them. Has anybody? What are they like? In particular, what is their
programming interface to the graphics environment and window system like?
Is it just a bunch of calls to do the bindings, or do they support higher
level things?
Reply by mail, please.
--
Brad Templeton, Looking Glass Software Ltd. - Waterloo, Ontario 519/884-7473
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Date: Fri, 07 Nov 86 00:25:00 GMT
To: info-atari16@su-score.ARPA
From: K538915%CZHRZU1A.BITNET@WISCVM.WISC.EDU
Return-Receipt-To: K538915@CZHRZU1A.BITNET
Subject: Praise of ATARI....I've actually got the fixed HDX!
Now that was really quick...I picked up the new, fixed version of HDX
in our local shop today. Release date was the 29th of September, that
means it took less than one and a half months to get to Switzerland,
this must be a new record! Thanks ATARI!....BTW what has changed in
the new version of AHDI.PRG?
Simon
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Date: 6 Nov 86 22:16:48 GMT
From: imagen!atari!neil@ucbvax.Berkeley.EDU (Neil Harris)
Subject: Re: New ST models?
To: info-atari16@score.stanford.edu
In article <154@ndmath.UUCP>, milo@ndmath.UUCP (Greg Corson) writes:
> There was a short note in this month's BYTE magazine mentioning that Atari
> had released a 2 and 4 megabyte version of the ST in europe somewhere.
> Does anyone out there (ATARI??) have some more information on this? The
> new machine was said to have a bit-blit chip. I would be very interested
> to know if there are any new graphics modes with more colors/higher
> resolutions.
No word will be forthcoming on hardware products until they pass FCC.
The blit chip (which will be available as a ~$120 upgrade to older ST's)
will not add new resolutions -- it is not an upgrade to the video shifter,
it is a chip chich performs bit block memory transfers.
--
--->Neil @ Atari
...{hoptoad, lll-lcc, pyramid, imagen, sun}!atari!neil
BIX: neilharris CIS: 70007,1135 Delphi: NEILHARRIS
GENIE: nharris WELL: neil Atari Corp. BBS 408-745-5308
US Mail: Atari Corp.
1196 Borregas Ave.
Sunnyvale, CA 94086
"I'm a 20th century man but I don't want to die here." -- Ray Davies
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Date: 7 Nov 86 13:22:23 GMT
From: imagen!turner@ucbvax.Berkeley.EDU (D'arc Angel)
Subject: Re: Question about Micro-Emacs 3.7i
To: info-atari16@score.stanford.edu
> How does one replace a string with a null-string using
> uEmacs 3.7i?
>
> I do the following (which works but seems very indirect):
>
> {ESC}R<string>{ESC}{CTRL-Q}{SP}{BSP}{ESC}
>
> Is there a more direct way?
the following has always worked for me,
{ESC}R<string>{ESC}{ESC}
Name: James M. Turner
Mail: Imagen Corp. 2650 San Tomas Expressway, P.O. Box 58101
Santa Clara, CA 95052-8101
AT&T: (408) 986-9400
UUCP: ...{decvax,ucbvax}!decwrl!imagen!turner
CompuServe: 76327,1575
GEnie : D-ARCANGEL
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Date: 5 Nov 86 21:41:16 GMT
From: dual!islenet!jons@ucbvax.Berkeley.EDU (Jonathan Spangler)
Subject: Re: Advertising methods
To: info-atari16@score.stanford.edu
>>>etc), a windowing system is ideal. It's nice to have the flexibility; it's
>price just to admire the artwork. The IBM version uses those silly
>IBM screen "graphics" characters, while the ST has individual mini-icons
>for the rogue, for each type of monster (they even all have shadows!), and
>for each type of item or trap, as well as good representations of passageways
>(with cobblestones) and rooms (rather than the IBM/mainframe style of dots
>and dashes). Even the Atari Explorer (BTW, nice pic, Neil...) had an IBM-style
>photo along with the ST Rogue article. Why give people a poor impression of
>a nice machine and superior version of the software?
My guess? The version of ROGUE for the ST wasn't finished by the time the
advertising deadlines were in... Did I hit the target?
Guessing is my middle name, and in Hawaii, it is a fact of life.
Aloha,
Jonathan Spangler
{ihnp4,vortex,dual}!islenet!jons
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Date: 04 November 86 15:07 EST
From: QBZJ%CORNELLA.BITNET@WISCVM.WISC.EDU
Subject: re: disk drive problems
To: INFO-ATARI16@SCORE.STANFORD.EDU
This is an update of my disk drive troubles following by 1 meg upgrade to my
520st. Following the upgrade, my computer experienced difficulty reading
the drive. The drive would clunk at me once or twice and the desk top would
appear. Attempts to access the disk would result in a message saying to
insert a disk (there was one in it I assure you). Sometimes the drive could
be accessed and sometimes not. Occasionly opening folders would result in 0
bytes in 0 items messages. I tried out the computer with my dealer's drive
and got similar problems. This suggested that the problem was with my
computer and I worried that I had damaged someting by doing the upgrade.
Not so! The solution to my problem follows: (1) I re-seated the wd1772
floppy disk controller chip. This chip is the closest mid-sized chip to the
floppy port in the 520st. I sprayed all contacts with Contact-ReNu. The
computer now worked with my dealer's drive but still not with mine. I have
heard that this is a fairly common prblem when you muck around on the pc
board. I've received several responses to my original request for
information citing similar problems with empty folders and missing disk
messages resulting from this chip. (2) I then discovered that I had a
problem with my drive. The drive had been repaired about two weeks earlier
for a problem with writing to the drive. Attempts to write or format a disk
resulted in gibberish and scrambled directories. The dealer replaced the
drive mechanism itself but left the interface board at the back of drive in
place. This is the part that distributes the power and figures out which
drive you are talking to. This is the part which had failed now. Replacing
this part restored my drive to operation. A word of warning: a screwy drive
may corrupt a write-protected disk.
The bottom line is that my 520 now works with 1 meg of memory. I would like
to thank all of those who responded to my pleas for help, in particular my
local dealer in Ithaca who helped greatly in pinning down the problem. For
all of those considering buying a computer by mail-order, consider the benefits
of local service. Apparently atari awards a 4 percent repair allowance to
dealers and expects them to pick up repair costs out of poket. So if you
are a dealer and buy 1000 dollars of stuff from atari, they give you 40 dollars
towards warranty repairs. Consequently a dealer will probably refuse to
repair what you bought somewhere else. Having to ship your computer by
UPS back to wherever you bought it might nullify whatever savings you gained.
Anyway, I am delighted to have a useable amount of memory now and have
found the upgrade perfectly doable.
thanks to all,
peter lorraine (qbzj@cornella)
PS. As a postscript I should mention a minor problem I had while building by
computer back into its case. The ic pins extend quite far below the pc card
and can actually short together if the card is pushed down to firmly. I
also placed a thin strip of teflon on top of the memory upgrade to prevent it
shorting to the rf shielding.
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 4 Nov 86 19:44 EST
From: Bill Pase <Pase@DOCKMASTER.ARPA>
Subject: Format+ and Disk Formatting
To: info-atari16@SU-SCORE.ARPA
I could use a little bit of explination about Format+ which was recently
posted as a stand alone program. I understand the fast formatting part,
but w{hat I don't get is the business for having extra sectors and/or
tracks. As far as I know the normal dis contains 80 sectors and 9
tracks. I also have a program which can put 83 sectors and 10 tracks.
My questios arrises wrt format+ as to why it doesn't allow 83 sectors
but only 82? Furthermore why does it default to only 9 tracks rather
than then maximum of 10? Can it fast format 82 and 10 or isn't there
enough space for the extra info?
The second part of the question has to due with using these non-standard
disks. I have observed that the system copy (in the roms) doesn't
properly copy the 83 sectory 10 track format. It looks like it does,
but when you look at the files, assuming you have copied a full disk,
some stuff will be missing!
Anyhow, what format sould one use to maintain compatibility to so degree
and still get the advantages of sped and/or space?
/bill
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Date: Wed, 5 Nov 86 10:59 EST
From: Bill Pase <Pase@DOCKMASTER.ARPA>
Subject: Duplicates
To: info-atari16@SU-SCORE.ARPA
I don't know about others, but I seem to be receiving a couple of copies
of each of the info-atari16 digests. Could soemone look into this
problem? /bill
[DOCKMASTER is one of the sites that Score regurally has trouble delivering
mail to. I suspect that score thinks a transmission has failed, while
DOCKMASTER thinks it has succeeded, Score tries again later, and multiple
copies result. Is anyone else having this problem? --BillW
PS: Such messages should be sent to info-atari16-request...]
------------------------------
Date: 6 Nov 86 12:19:45 GMT
From: mcvax!ukc!dcl-cs!bath63!pes@seismo.css.gov (Paul Smee)
Subject: Re: Help with Desk Accessories: accessory loaders.
To: info-atari16@score.stanford.edu
ACC_LOAD showed up here today. Looks like just another case of order
shuffling, so that US comments about it came before it did.
------------------------------
Date: 31 Oct 86 14:53:00 GMT
From: mcvax!unido!coma!axel@seismo.css.gov
Subject: Re: ARC and ALITE comments - (nf)
To: info-atari16@score.stanford.edu
>Finally, someone got it to work! The "problem" is that I sent only
>one *.sng and *.pic file with alite.prg. I had thought of distributing
>some more of the *.sng/*.pic combos, but decided not to (in light of all
>the recent grumblings about large volumes of mail). Those of you wishing
>to acquire more of the original alite music should send email to me, and
>I'll email the stuff directly to you.
>
It drives me mad to see that people don't dare to post useful (or at
least interesting) material, while literally everyday 100s of KBs of
*trash* flood the net. Post your *.sng/*.pic combos.
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 7 Nov 86 18:47:05 cst
From: moore@ncsc.ARPA (Moore)
To: info-atari16@su-score.ARPA
Subject: CPM problems
I recently downloaded and de-arc'ed (w/o any errors) the CPM Emulator from
Atari Base. The only trouble is that, when I try to run MAKE_CPM to start
the whole thing off (going by the READ.ME file), I am prompted to insert the
formatted disk in drive A:, the drive spins, and I get a 999,999 byte file on
a SS disk!!!??!! The filename is CPMZ80.APP, and it's marked read-only. Can
anyone help me out with this?
What especially is the use of having a CP/M for the ST anyway? Obviously
Z80 code won't run on a M68000, so where's the benefit in bringing another
(some would say outdated) OS into the picture? Constructive comments *only*
to my address; send all flames, especially those in the fashion "my OS is
better than yours, nyah!" to rick@ncsc, 'cause he doesn't get very much mail
and it makes him feel neglected.
Thanks for any assistance.
Jim
Moore@NCSC.arpa
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Date: 7 Nov 86 19:32:57 GMT
From: sabre!blade!jls@petrus.bellcore.com (John L. Schantz)
Subject: Atari Stock
To: info-atari16@score.stanford.edu
Well every body Atari went public this morning (11/7/86).
It opened at $11.50 and went up to $11.75 by noon with about
3M share traded so far. I hope it does well.
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End of Info-Atari16 Digest
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