conklin@eecae.UUCP (Terry Conklin) (10/02/87)
The following is a collection of hardware announcements that I have collected as a function of being the Admin for the Club Network. I always try and keep the Club's 8-bit people abreat of the latest news, so, while commercial in nature, this isn't meant as an ad proper as much as a list of new hardware and software that I have found for the 8-bit. From Terrific Corp. I have received the following information about this home control system: "The X-10 POWERMANAGER SYSTEM Now you can finally use your Atari Home Computer to conveniently create, store and recall programs that can be loaded into the X-10 PowerHouse controller to control lights, appliances and other devices hooked up to X-10 control modules throughout your home. There are two X-10 interface kits available from Terrific Corp. One kit includes an X--10 PowerHouse Computer interface, a special Atari interface adaptor and the Powermanager software. For those who already have the PowerHouse computer interface, the software and adaptor are available seperately. The Powermanager software takes full advantage of the PowerHous interface. Features include: -Up to 256 modules can be individually controlled. Modules can be grouped together to allow control of an 'infinite' number of devices. -Lights and appliances can be programmed to turn on or off at specified times through the use of a timer event schedule. In addition, lights can be programmed to dim to 16 intenstities. -Timer event schedules can hold up to 128 events, a single event can control up to 16 modules. -Timer event schedules can be created, stored and edited on disk. -Modules can be controlled instantly from the Atari. -Software allows use of joystick or keyboard -48K required, machine language, drive. Terrific Corp. 17 St Mary's Court Brooklin, MA 02146 (617) 232-2317" You all know these things. The dreaded BSR controller returns. Actually, these really ARE cool. I have a friend with equivalent software on his TRS Coco. It's all very impressive and neat. The only problem is that control modules get expensive as you wire up a whole house. He bought out an RS inventory at $3 a module or so. The only way to do it. More exciting Atari 8bit hardware came recently from the yet scarier IRATA VERLAG corp. Their offerings included: 512K card for the 800XL....$170 512K special chip for use with above card............$52 Card and Chip together.....$200 6 OS System Box : Basically the equivalent of the RAM-ROD XL. This allows you to have 6 diffeent OS chips and then to select amongst them with a switch. ...........................$50 HIGH CHIP: for people who have the Happy drive enhancement. This chip has a hidden menu. Hold don select while you press RESET and you get a menu with the options for COLD START, SECTOR COPY, or TURN HAPPY ON/OFF. "Saves times." ...........................$50 XE CHIP WITH RAMDISK.......$75 (doesn't say anything else!) OLD SYS CHIP: Replacement OS chip for XL/XE's for 400/800 compatibility ...........................$??? ------------------------------- All chips that have something to do with the Happy have a special feature. For people who know machine language, the happy can load any protected disk into the happy memory, then turn around and write the binary data back onto a normal formatted diskette. This allows you to then take a sector editor to look at the actual bit stream from the original disk to learn how it is set up. --------------------------------- Some new 8bit software: 100 New Print Shop pictures....$7 The Editor.....................$15 The Super Label II.............$15 --------------------------------- THE XL/XE SUPER TURBO INTERFACE: This is a disk interface for the Atari 8bit that allows you to do many different things. They are: -Use IBM 5.25" and ST 3.5" disk drives for fast seek and large storage capacities -Back up ANY protected 8bit software -Transfer between any of the three (Atari, IBM, 3. 5") formats. -Backs up all protected ST & IBM software too!? -Has built in 8bit pritnter interface -For people with Happy drives, the SUPER TURBO works with the Happy and kicks the baud rate to an awesome....... (drum roll) * 150,000 * baud. It loads programs in 7 seconds and does whole disk copies in 27 seconds. (THIS, I gotta see.) SUPER TURBO INTERFACE.....$250 -------------------------------------------------------------- I am NOT affiliated with these people in any way. In fact, I have absolutely no idea where they are or came from. I just get a lot of release info in the process of searching out what's new for Club Net 8bit owners and thought it might interest some of the netters. The english on the IRATA ad left something to be desired, so be sure and give these guys the third degree when you call to make sure it is ligit. Forgot to list their address/phone number. It's IRATA VERLAG 1272B POTTER DRIVE COLO SPRINGS, CO 80909 (303) 596-0135 I also talked to ICD today and they claimed that the SPARTADOS-X cart would be available for Xmas. Such is excitement. No news from the we fine brave souls in the Turbo-project. We just got the 65802. Hope! Terry Conklin ihnp4!msudoc!conklin Club Lansing (517) 372-3131 (gets all this junk first.) Club II (313) 334-8877 (next day or so) Club III (714) xxx-xxxx (at this rate, we may never know) So this is what happens when BBS's go Imperialist. It becomes some sort of public entity. Swell. Does that mean I have to housebreak it?