Z*Magazine: 13-Nov-88 #131
From: Atari SIG (xx004@cleveland.Freenet.Edu)
Date: 09/18/93-04:40:37 PM Z
From: xx004@cleveland.Freenet.Edu (Atari SIG)
Subject: Z*Magazine: 13-Nov-88 #131
Date: Sat Sep 18 16:40:37 1993
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SYNDICATE ZMAGAZINE Issue #131 November 13, 1988
*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*
Publisher/Editor: Ron Kovacs
Assistant Editor: Lisa Kovacs
Post Office Box 74
Middlesex, NJ 08846-0074
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Weekly Conveyance Via PayBax BBS (302) 731-5558; All Bauds
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+-* CONTENTS *-+
(*) Editors Desk..............Ron Kovacs
(*) ZMag Special Report....Tony Robinson
(*) ZMag Archives "1987 Comdex Report"
(*) Area Code Listing........Lisa Kovacs
(*) What is GIF?...................GEnie
(*) Announcement........................
(*) Notes on GOE..........David Sullivan
(*) ZMag Humor..........................
(*) Bit versus Baud........Peter Vaughan
(*) ZMag Circulation Counts...Ron Kovacs
_______________________________________________________________________
Editors Desk
by Ron Kovacs
COMDEX begins this week and look for updates via ST-REPORT on CompuServe
and in next weeks edition of ZMAG. Reprinted in this issue is a press
release from Atari from the 1987 Comdex. Dont confuse this with any 1988
press release (if any).
If you missed the Nov 9th conference on CompuServe last week, you can find
it in the Atari Arts NEW UPLOADS data library #1. Duw to space
limitations, we cannot reprint the entire conference here.
The ZMagazine Survey has been completed and will be uploaded to the
services after Wednesday. Please take the time to download and send it
back to us to accumulate the results. You can send the file back to us
via email or through the US mail.
_______________________________________________________________________
ZMag Special Report
"The First Canadian Atari Users Convention": In the Promised Land
By Anthony L. Robinson (CHAOS, Michigan)
It was a cool day in Toronto, but for the Atari enthusiast it was a
beautiful day. It was the "First Canadian Atari Users Convention". Over
fifty booths of nothing but Atari hardware and software of every kind.
There was even a 260 ST on display at one of the user group tables. The
convention, open from 10am-6pm, had nearly 700 show-goers in attendance
by 1:30 in the afternoon. The place was packed! A great beginning for a
great show.
Many well supplied dealers and user groups were there for the curious and
seeking, even a few programmers, but most important presence for many was
the Atari (Canada) Corporation. Business was swift and rewarding for all
in attendance. Inquiries received demonstrations, and questions were
given real answers. On the hardware end there were no such thing as
shortages or unavailability of products, practically everything that Atari
has manufactures in computers was on hand - in great quantities. Atari
support, both from the company and from the users, was clearly evident.
While at the Atari booth, it seemed like the only feelings of doubt or
overall complaint came from the U.S. attendees.
Conversations with the Atari representatives revealed several new
developments, and responses to many current speculations. Although the
representative was not free to announce all the facts (a privilege
reserved for those at Comdex), he did talk about things in general. We
can expect to see new products (ie...machines) to start coming out shortly
after the first of the year. One of the computers coming will be a 68030
chip-based ST. It will be endowed with enhanced graphic resolution, a
stereo chip, more colors, and the new TOS. It will remain completely
compatible with existing ST software via the ability to load in old TOS,
and it will support Unix in the same manner. A '30 upgrade for current
ST's is being worked on, but may prove to be unfeasible due to the amount
of reworking that seems to be necessary.
Other goodies to be released will include a portable laptop ST, a "Amiga
Beater" ST (not the 68030 one!), and later, a ST based game machine -
currently incompatible, but still under development. On a lighter note,
ST owners can also be on the lookout for a new light gun of the ST, as
well as some new games to utilize it. The gun will basically be the same
as the design currently available for the XE game system (let's hope the
aim will be better!). One of the games to use the new gun will be
"Crossbow", already available on several other computer systems.
Another topic that came up was the company's image as a business company
or game company. One of the attending users apparently felt that Atari
was wrong to show the ST running games in its advertising. The Atari rep.
said that there was nothing wrong with it. In fact, he said that Atari
was interested in showing the business side of the Atari, but was not
trying to kill the game side at the same time. Almost half of Atari's
profit last year was from the games. When challenge with the low ratio
of games available for IBM, the representative countered with statistics
that almost 65% of the software available for the IBM was game oriented.
Obviously, Atari wants to have something to offer for everyone.
Further talk with the Atari rep. included references to Atari's efforts to
encourage third party programmers to stick with the U.S. market till they
get more ST's out in the U.S. (ST's are doing great in the UK and Europe,
approaching around 200,000 ST's in the UK alone by Christmas!).
He recited that they've already had success in this activity with
programmers such as Epyx, Electronic Arts, and several others with more to
come. He stated that all the ST will remain as upwardly compatible as
possible, to help insure a long and happy life for the computer line.
Another activity that Atari is conducting is the importation of european
software to this side of the ocean. This brings hot, new titles to the
users and helps show U.S. programmers what's being done in Europe on the
ST - yet another market waiting for more Atari titles.
Indeed, most Canadian Atari users seemed very happy with their machines
and its creator. With plenty of dealers, products, and availability
backed-up with plenty of advertising and promotions, its easy to
understand all the positive and enthusiastic feelings found at the
convention. To an American, it felt like being in the "promised land"
(imagine what being in the UK must be like! Nirvana!?). Atari (U.S.) is
promising to bring this "land" to the States. If Toronto is just a taste
of paradise, it was a taste that should become a regular meal for every
Atari user everywhere.
_______________________________________________________________________
ZMag Archives (October 1987)
PRESS RELEASE: OVERVIEW OF COMDEX 1987 ATARI BOOTH
CONNECTIVITY, SOLUTIONS, AND TECHNOLOGY: ATARI ANNOUNCES NEW PRODUCTS
(Las Vegas, NV -- Comdex Fall 87)... In a series of major product
introductions, Atari Corporation emerges as a maker of a complete line of
high-performance, low-cost solutions for the business world.
New technology is showcased by Abaq, an ultra-high-performance workstation
with blazing speed and dazzling graphics. The Abaq, based on a
sophisticated "transputer" chip, runs more than 10 times faster than a
PC/AT technology and more than 5 times faster than the 68020 with math
processor. The parallel processing capability of Abaq lets a single
system multiply its processing power by adding extra transputer chips.
Atari unveiled its new CD player capable of reading CD-ROM disks and of
playing musical CD disks. The CD-ROM is supported by a Mega and ST-
compatible DMA interface, and will retail in early 1988 for under $600.
Atari's connectivity answer is a LAN which is compatible with the NETBIOS
standard used by IBM and Novell. It communicates data at 1 megabits-per-
second to PC's and over 250K bits-per-second over Appletalk. Atari is
planning to manufacture "PromiseLAN" adapters for the Mega, ST, and PC
computer lines.
The Atari Mega computers are showcased with a variety of solid business
solutions. Desktop publishing is represented by both the Atari SLM804
Laser Printer and by G.O. Graphics, who are porting their Deskset program
(CompuGraphics compatible) which Atari will market. Word Perfect is
displaying the recently shipped Word Perfect ST and Atari is displaying
Microsoft Write. A group of vendors are appealing to VARs with vertical
packages running under the IDRIS multi-user multi-tasking operating
system. Several new high-end CAD packages are on display including
Foresight's Drafix 1.
Atari expanded its PC-compatible offerings by adding two new models, the
PC2 (PC XT compatible) and PC4 (PC AT compatibile), both with EGA graphics
high clock speeds, and low price tags. A variation of the PC3 will
operate in VGA graphics mode as well. The PC2 and PC4 will be offered
with 3.5" or 5.25" floppy disks and with hard disks. These new models
join the PC1, which at $799 is a basic 512K PC XT compatible, suitable
for use as a LAN workstation and for standalone personal computing. The
PC2 includes XT-compatible slots, while the PC4's slots are PC AT
compatible.
"We offer complete systems for the office," said Atari president Sam
Tramiel. "I can see Atari Mega computers with laser printers as desktop
publishing stations exchanging data with a satellite group of PC1's as LAN
stations. An entire office environment can be created. The PC, the
Macintosh, and the Atari computers co-exist. Each can do the things they
do best."
(PLEASE NOTE THAT THIS PRESS RELEASE WAS REPRINTED FROM THE ZMAG ARCHIVES.
AND IS REPRINTED HERE AS A FEATURE BEFORE THE 1988 COMDEX SHOW. THIS
COULD VERY WELL BE CONFUSED FOR A 1988 PRESS RELEASE. PLEASE MAKE A NOTE
OF THIS.!!)
_______________________________________________________________________
Area Code Listing as of Nov 1, 1988
201 - NEW JERSEY 202 - WASHINGTON D.C. 203 - CONNECTICUT
205 - ALABAMA 206 - WASHINGTON 207 - MAINE
208 - IDAHO 209 - CALIFORNIA 212 - NEW YORK
213 - CALIFORNIA 214 - TEXAS 215 - PENNSYLVANIA
216 - OHIO 217 - ILLINOIS 218 - MINNESOTA
219 - INDIANA 301 - MARYLAND 302 - DELAWARE
303 - COLORADO 304 - WEST VIRGINIA 305 - FLORIDA
307 - WYOMING 308 - NEBRASKA 309 - ILLINOIS
312 - ILLINOIS 313 - MICHIGAN 314 - MISSOURI
315 - NEW YORK 316 - KANSAS 317 - INDIANA
318 - LOUISIANA 319 - IOWA 401 - RHODE ISLAND
402 - NEBRASKA 404 - GEORGIA 405 - OKLAHOMA
406 - MONTANA 408 - CALIFORNIA 409 - TEXAS
412 - PENNSYLVANIA 413 - MASSACHUSETTS 414 - WISCONSIN
415 - CALIFORNIA 417 - MISSOURI 419 - OHIO
501 - ARKANSAS 502 - KENTUCKY 503 - OREGON
504 - LOUISIANA 505 - NEW MEXICO 507 - MINNESOTA
509 - WASHINGTON 512 - TEXAS 513 - OHIO
515 - IOWA 516 - NEW YORK 517 - MICHIGAN
518 - NEW YORK 601 - MISSISSIPPI 602 - ARIZONA
603 - NEW HAMPSHIRE 605 - SOUTH DAKOTA 606 - KENTUCKY
607 - NEW YORK 608 - WISCONSIN 609 - NEW JERSEY
612 - MINNESOTA 614 - OHIO 615 - TENNESSEE
616 - MICHIGAN 617 - MASSACHUSETTS 618 - ILLINOIS
619 - CALIFORNIA 701 - NORTH DAKOTA 702 - NEVADA
703 - VIRGINIA 704 - NORTH CAROLINA 707 - CALIFORNIA
712 - IOWA 713 - TEXAS 714 - CALIFORNIA
715 - WISCONSIN 716 - NEW YORK 717 - PENNSYLVANIA
718 - NEW YORK 801 - UTAH 803 - SOUTH CAROLINA
804 - VIRGINIA 805 - CALIFORNIA 806 - TEXAS
808 - HAWAII 812 - INDIANA 813 - FLORIDA
814 - PENNSYLVANIA 815 - ILLINOIS 816 - MISSOURI
817 - TEXAS 818 - CALIFORNIA 901 - TENNESSEE
904 - FLORIDA 906 - MICHIGAN 907 - ALASKA
912 - GEORGIA 913 - KANSAS 914 - NEW YORK
915 - TEXAS 916 - CALIFORNIA 918 - OKLAHOMA
919 - NORTH CAROLINA
_______________________________________________________________________
WHAT IS GIF?
GIF is a graphics format common to all machines that read GIF. What this
means to us is that we can all see the same graphic from ONE file. The
format allows for 256 level color and BW gray level. This 256 level is
refered to as "8 Bit" graphics. Your machine does not display 8 bit you
say, well the Gif format will show you the graphic as your machine can see
it.
I strongly believe in giving credit where credit is due. GIF is a format
copyrighted by Compuserve, and they have placed it in the Public Domain.
I want to thank Compuserve for the GIF format (even though Im a sysop on
GEnie) because it serves a need that we have, and it does a good job. As
to what machines do the best job, let me say this: I have seen GIF on Mac
SE & Plus, Mac II, Atari ST, MS/DOS EGA,VGA and Super VGA. I have also
seen Amiga Gif on my Mac II. There is a lesson to all of this ...Dont
judge one machine from what you see on your Screen. Obviously the systems
that can show the full 256 levels (8 bit) show up the best.
The best displays I have seen by far are the Mac II and Super VGA. Next
would come the Amiga (5 bit), then EGA. IF you are viewing on an SE or
Plus, you really should stick to the MacPaint conversions (which we will
discuss soon). On the EGA and other 16 color (4 Bit) machines, you will
see a good image but wont be able to figure out why the rest of us are
raving. To our ST friends, the ST gif I have seen was not super good, and
I assumed it was under the potential of the ST; therefore I THINK its a
software problem and thereby fixable.
The quality of a Mac II and super VGA is reasonably close to that of a
photograph. While the topic of 24 bit graphics will soon come up, GIF
does not at this time support that high of graphics. Besides, the file
transfers would be unreasonalbly long due to size of the files. A 24 bit
file of 5x7 size (75dpi) is 544 K before compression, while an 8 bit of
the same resolution is 181 K.
HOW TO GIF
How to Gif? Easy! All you need is a viewer and/or converter. A viewer is
written for your machine and will open the GIF file. Many times it will
convert that image to a graphics format common to your computer system. So
all you really need is to download a file and have your viewer open it for
viewing and possible conversion to your favorite graphics format. Where do
I get these programs? Another good question!!
We have all the files you need for most popular systems. Following is a
list of file on the Photo RT Library that you may download at your
convience.
878 CSHOW5.ARC Desc: CSHOW VER 5.0 GIF VIEW FOR IBM
751 PICEM.ARC Desc: GIF Viewer for IBM Computers
750 VGAGIF34.ARC Desc: GIF viewer for IBM VGA cards
641 AT8GIF.DOC Desc: documentation for AT8GIF.OBJ
640 AT8GIF.OBJ Desc: view GIF on 8 bit Atari computers
584 SHRCONV2.1.BQY Desc: update,view GIF on Apple IIgs
570 AMISTRIP.ARC Desc: STRIPS 1ST 128 BYTES OF MAC GIF
559 GIF QUESTIONS Desc: A MUST file for GIF users.TXT
557 MACGIF STRIP 4 ST Desc: MacGIF stripper for ST!!
554 HAMGIF.ARC Desc: View 256 color GIF files on Ami!
553 AMGIF.ARC Desc: Convert Amiga pics to GIF format
377 MAC.STRIPPER.BQY Desc: Remove Mac headers, for Apple //
375 IIGIF.BQY Desc: View GIF pics on Apple //+,//e,//c
374 SHRCONVERT.BQY Desc: View GIF pictures on the Apple IIgs
369 STIPGIF IBM.ARC Desc: IBM utility to view Mac GIF!
330 GIFCONVERTERDEMO Desc: Converts GIF files for SE/Plus view
321 GIFFER10.SIT Desc: Display GIF pictures on Macintosh.
320 GIFSHOW.ARC Desc: Display GIF pics on ATARI ST only.
319 TIGIF.ARC Desc: Display GIF on TI PRO computer.
298 CNVGIF.ARC Desc: Converts DEGAS and NeoChrome to GIF
297 GIF.ARC Desc: Converts Spectrum 512 Pics to GIF
296 CSHOW.ARC Desc: Gif viewer for IBM & compatibles
295 GIF SPECS.ARC Desc: GIF specs archived
The subject of "Stripping" must also be mentioned. When a Mac is the
source of the image, that system adds some information to the top of the
GIF file. With this added information used only by the mac system, other
Gif systems will not reconigeze the file as a GIF and will not open it.
Most systems now have strippers that take off this information. Therefore
IF, you have a GIF file you can not open, try a stripper on a COPY of the
file. This is only true for source files from MAC systems! (More on this
subject in the next topic.)
EPHOTE GIF
Anyone may upload GIF files or anyother format of photos and art. GEnie
rules of ratings on the sexual nature of the files is enforced. If you
have questions as to what this policy is, please Email the questions to
EPHOTE. On the subject of "Stripping", scans from the PHOTO RT are done on
a Mac II. While the older files do need stripping, the new files do not.
Confused? Well if you see the words "pure GIF" the file will not need
stripping. As a general rule, any file uploaded after 10-1-88 by EPHOTE
will not need stripping. Thanks to Fritz Kass of INFO CENTER BBS, for
showing us how to take out that Mac header. If you are a mac user and
dont know how to strip out the header, I have placed the proceedure in the
PHOTO RT Bulletin Board Category 15, or you can Email EPHOTE for the
proceedure.
_______________________________________________________________________
Announcement
*****************************************************************
* " TELECOMMUNICATIONS FOR EDUCATION AND TRAINING " *
* *
* A Conference and Mini Fair sponsored by *
* *
* THE ISLAND/REACH COMPUTER USERS GROUP *
* in consultation with *
* The STATE of MAINE DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION *
*****************************************************************
SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 19, 1988 at DEER/ISLE STONINGTON HIGH SCHOOL
Featuring presentations, discussions, source material and hands-on
opportunities to try out NovaNet, GEnie, Compuserve, The Information
Exchange, ME-LINK and many other state and national education and training
services available via modem.
The conference and mini-fair are designed for teachers, administrators and
managers, school board members, parents, students and anyone else
interested in using or learning about these new technologies for their
education.
The conference will begin at 9:00 am and will offer the following
presentations:
- MORNING SESSION -
9:30-10:00 TELECOMMUNICATIONS OVERVIEW
10:00-11:30 NOVANET: The nationwide educational service
11:30-12:30 COMPUSERVE & other NATIONWIDE INFORMATION SERVICES
12:30-1:30 OTHER TELECOMMUNICATIONS RESOURCES
- AFTERNOON SESSION -
1:30-2:30 LUNCH BREAK
2:30-5:00 MINI-FAIR: The afternoon session will offer
attendees hands-on opportunities to try some of
the on-line education and training resources
demonstrated during the morning. There will be
several retailers representing their computers'
educational instructional capabilities.
REGISTRATIONS: $15 for the morning, $5.00 afternoon, $20.00 both
For more information you may contact either:
ISLAND/REACH COMPUTER USERS GROUP JIM CAMPBELL
PO BOX 73 or ORLAND, ME 04472
DEER ISLE, ME 04627 1-207-469-7148
1-207-348-9917
_______________________________________________________________________
The Graphics Operating Enviroment
>From Total Control Systems
Designer David R. Sullivan
If you are tired of hearing about the GEOS on the Commodore, the GEM
desktop on the ST, and the desktop on the Macintosh, then this is the
productor you! GOE, the Graphics Operating Environment from Total Control
Systems, is THE desktop operating system for the 400/800/XL/XE/GS systems.
First jus the facts, then I will give you my personal opinion.
GOE is a desktop user interface similar to the desktop on the ST and many
other machines. GOE will be released on a 64k "super cartridge" about the
first week of November, 1988. It uses icons to represent the disk drives,
a trash can for deleting files, and different icons to represent the
different types of files on a disk. GOE operates on all Atari computers,
including the older models as well as the new XE Game System.
GOE supports windows that are resizable, slidable and movable. You can
have up to 16 windows open at one time! There are drop down and pop up
menus. The drop down menus at the top of the screen are definable by the
user. This means that if you prefer to have the windows drop down when
you point at the top of the screen with the mouse icon, it can be set up
that way. However, if you prefer to have them only drop down when and if
you "click" on the title of the menu, you can set up it that way. On the
ST, the drop down menu stays on the screen, once opened, until you either
click on an option, or drag the mouse icon to a blank section of the
screen and click it to close the window.
With GOE you can decide whether you want to "click" to close the drop down
menu or have it close automatically upon your exit from the menu. In the
desk accessories section, you have a control panel built into the
cartridge, that allows you to set the screen width to 40 or 64 columns and
define in which joystick port you want to use one of the following:
joystick, mouse, koala pad, or touch tablet. You can also use the
keyboard instead of any of the above.
The CX85 numberic key pad can also be used with GOE, instead of the number
row on the keyboard or the mouse pointer to choose numbers. You are not
limited to the arrow keys for directional control of the pointer with GOE,
as you can define which keys you want to uses the controlling keys. Also
you can set the color of the background and the color of the drop down
menus.
There is a calculator included that allows you to do multiplicaton,
addition, subtraction, division, square root, and percentage calculations.
Of course there is also a notepad built into the cartridge that allows you
to leave notes to yourself at almost any time.
When copying files with the ST you are allowed to "lasso" a group of files
and then copy them all to a new disk. This is also allowed with GOE. The
function keys are also used with GOE. The HELP key is used for online
help comment boxes. The START key takes you to DOS. The SELECT key brings
up the control panel and the OPTION key allows you to change controllers.
GOE works with the MIO, the ATR8000, the 850 and the P:R connection. GOE
also works with any DOS, including SpartaDos X, MyDos, Atari ADos, Atari
Dos 2.0, and more. Subdirectories, known as folders, are also supported.
GOE comes with over 45cons to choose from, built into the cartridge, with
an editor on a seperate disk. Disk naming and comment storage for files
is provided for use even with MyDos. Time/Date stamping is supported for
SpartaDos users. Directories cane sorted, on the screen, either by name
or file extender. GOE only uses 8k of memory for a 64k program.
If all this isn't enough, if your user group orders before October 28,
1988 you can get 10% off of an order of 5 or more GOE cartridges, 20% off
of an order of 15 or more. Discounts must accompany user group presidents
signature and information about the group's member's: size, types of
computers owned, etc. Suggested retail price is $79.95 but for a limited
time, you can take the above discounts, with the restrictions mentioned
above, off of the special price of only $50.00 which includes a coupon
for goWrite and goPaint at a special low price. These two products should
be out soon.
Now for my personal opinion of GOE versus the competition. There is no
comparison! GOE is the best desktop operating system for the 8bit Atari
available. ST jr. or Diamond, whatever the name, cannot compare to GOE.
The GOE demo does more than the released version of Diamond! GOE takes up
only 8k compared to a disk based program that uses up the limited amount
of RAM in the Atari 8bit computers. GOE works with all DOS's compared to
Diamond only working with Atari DOS 2.0.
GOE is a very powerful easy to use interface for the novice or experienced
user. It brings the ATARI 8bit into the 20th century. I have used it
extensively, the demo version that is, and found it to be very easy to use
and very powerful. I have loaded several terminal programs with no
problem.
The demo goPaint and goWrite are exciting in what they promise to do. In
all, I heartily endorse Total Control System's Graphic Operating
nvironment by David R. Sullivan and urge you to send in your orders soon
as possible! I did!
Total Control Systems
156 Tolowa Street
San Diego, CA. 92117619
(Ed. Note: This product has been rescheduled for a mid-late November
release. This known from the recent conference on GEnie.)
_______________________________________________________________________
ZMag Humor
(ED. You might have seen this file displayed at your place of employment,
I thought everyone who enjoy reading it here.)
CHAIRMAN OF THE BOARD
Leaps tall buildings in a single bound.
Is more powerful than a locomotive.
Is faster than a speeding bullet.
Walks on water.
Gives policy to God.
PRESIDENT
Leaps short buildings in a single bound.
Is more powerful than a switch engine.
Is just as fast as a speeding bullet.
Walks on water if the sea is calm.
Talks with God.
EXECUTIVE VICE PRESIDENT
Leaps short buildings with a running start and favorable winds.
Is almost as powerful as a switch engine.
Is faster than a speeding BB.
Walks on water in an indoor swimming pool.
Talks with God if a special request is approved.
VICE PRESIDENT
Barely clears a Quonset hut.
Loses tug-of-war with a locomotive.
Can fire a speeding bullet.
Swims well.
Is occasionally addressed by God.
GENERAL MANAGER
Makes high marks on the wall when trying to leap buildings.
Is run over by locomotive.
Can sometimes handle a gun without inflicting self-injury.
Dog paddles.
Talks to animals.
MANAGER
Runs into buildings.
Recognizes locomotive two out of three times.
Is not issued ammunition.
Can't stay afloat with a life preserver.
Talks to walls.
TRAINEE
Falls over doorsteps when trying to enter buildings.
Says "Look at the choo-choo".
Wets himself with a water pistol.
Plays in mud puddles.
Mumbles to himself.
SECRETARY
Lifts buildings and walks under them.
Kicks locomotives off the tracks.
Catches speeding bullets in her teeth and eats them.
Freezes water with a single glance.
She IS God...
_______________________________________________________________________
Bit versus Baud
by Peter Vaughan
I'm a telephone engineer. I get involved in the "bit rate" of modems, as
opposed to the "Baud rate". I was talking to someone recently about my
SupraModem 2400 "Bits per Second" (2400 BPS) modem. He came back talking
about 2400 "Baud". You all probably know that our "2400" modems operate
at 600, not 2400 Baud. But, just in case anyone doesn't and is
interested:
1) The Atari XM301 and 1030 modems operate at a 300 per second "bit rate".
The Baud rate is also 300, because the modulation method is simple
frequency shift keying. One bit of digital information from the
computer results in one tone frequency being transmitted on the
telephone line. The rate at which information enters the telephone
line is called the "Baud rate". So the bit rate equals the Baud rate,
and both are 300.
2) At a 1200 "bit rate", (for example the SmarTeam 1200, or the Supramodem
1200) the Baud rate is not 1200, but 600. In this mode of operation,
TWO consecutive bits of digital data from the computer are examined
together. Depending on what these two bits are, they are then
converted into a SINGLE phase shift of the previous tone, and then
transmitted. Again, the rate at which information actually enters the
telephone line is the "Baud rate". So, it's two for one again, and the
Baud rate is 600, being one half of the 1200 bit rate. This modulation
method is called Differential Phase Shift Keying, or DPSK. At the
receive end, the modem compares the PHASE of the signal with the
previous phase. Depending on what that phase shift is, it demodulates
into TWO unique bits of data. Hence the "two for one".
3) At the 2400 "bit rate", the Baud rate is still 600. The modem uses a
modulation system called Quadrature Amplitude Modulation (QAM), which
is based on the Bell V.22bis protocol. This QAM takes FOUR sequential
bits at a time, and combines them into a SINGLE signal, which is a
combination of phase and amplitude. At the receive end, this single
piece of information is demodulated back into the original FOUR bits.
So four bits of digital information from the computer result in one
transmitted symbol, and the Baud rate is 2400 divided by 4, or 600.
The reasons for reducing the Baud rate are twofold:
A) Stay as near as possible to the middle of the passband of the telephone
line. Stay away from the high frequency roll-off. The lower you make
the highest frequency of a signal on the line, the easier it is to send
it hundreds, or even thousands of miles without excessive roll-off of
the highest frequency components. (For example, my brother lives in
England, and uses our Compuserve network. The one-way path is about
45,000 miles! The path includes his analog tones on a lot of copper
wire, some pulse code modulated transmission on more copper wire, an
up-down satellite path of about 45,000 miles, followed by the same
landline travel at this end, to a computer in Ohio.)
B) With a low signaling information rate (that is, a low Baud rate), the
duration of each piece of information sent is relatively long. So any
momentary glitch on the telephone line is more likely to be too short
to cancel the information, or change it in any significant way. The
signal goes through, and the receiver demodulates it correctly.
_______________________________________________________________________
ZMag Download Count Update
by Ron Kovacs
In the recent conference on CompuServe, a question came up about the
circulation/download counts of ZMagazine. The following is a survey taken
during the period of Nov 10-12. These counts were added together to
arrive at the amounts indicated. The sources for these numbers were
various BBS systems which carry ZMag for download and the online pay
services. The BBS systems that were surveyed gave the information via the
system sysop. There is NO validation procedure for this listing, other
then the numbers on the online services. BBS Systems count = 15, online
services count = 3. The current average per system ranges between 20-25
downloads per week of each issue. Either ARC or TEXT. Current listing of
BBS systems lists 303 systems.
Most operators stated that the issues are downloaded on Thursdays - Sunday
evenings. Of the systems surveyed, 10 stated they only include ZMAG in
the download section. Meaning NO other online magazines are offered. Of
the 5 that offered ST-Report or other online publication, Zmag was NOT
downloaded as much. Usual download count on these systems ranged between
5 - 10 downloads.
ZMAG130.ARC 97 ZMAG130.TXT 88 = 185
ZMAG129.ARC 293 ZMAG129.TXT 133 = 426
ZMAG128.ARC 266 ZMAG128.TXT 94 = 360
ZMAG127.ARC 347 ZMAG127.TXT 142 = 489
ZMAG126.ARC 353 ZMAG126.TXT 174 = 527
ZMAG125.ARC 324 ZMAG125.TXT 159 = 483
ZMAG124.ARC 348 ZMAG124.TXT 168 = 516
ZMAG123.ARC 321 ZMAG123.TXT 112 = 433
ZMAG122.ARC 412 ZMAG122.TXT 190 = 602
ZMAG121.ARC 385 ZMAG121.TXT 107 = 492
ZMAG120.ARC 356 ZMAG120.TXT 84 = 440
ZMAG119.ARC 351 ZMAG119.TXT 135 = 486
ZMAG118.ARC 403 ZMAG118.TXT 167 = 570
ZMAG117.ARC 402 ZMAG117.TXT 130 = 532
ZMAG116.ARC 386 ZMAG116.TXT 204 = 590
ZMAG115.ARC 438 ZMAG115.TXT 239 = 677
ZMAG114.ARC 391 ZMAG114.TXT 165 = 556
ZMAG113.ARC 451 ZMAG113.TXT 257 = 708
ZMAG112.ARC 645 ZMAG112.TXT 462 = 1107
If your BBS system carries ZMagazine issues, Please let us know what the
access counts are so that we can get a feel of what is actually being
downloaded each week. Any assistance is greatly appreciated.
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Syndicate ZMagazine Issue #131 Copyright (C) APEinc, Ron Kovacs, SPC
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PayBax BBS, Wilmington, De. 302-731-5558 All BAuds
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