ST Report: 12-May-95 #1119
From: Bruce D. Nelson (aa789@cleveland.Freenet.Edu)
Date: 05/22/95-04:12:02 PM Z
From: aa789@cleveland.Freenet.Edu (Bruce D. Nelson)
Subject: ST Report: 12-May-95 #1119
Date: Mon May 22 16:12:02 1995
SILICON TIMES REPORT
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May 12, 1995 No. 1119
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> From the Editor's Desk "Saying it like it is!"
""""""""""""""""""""""
It was as inevitable as the march of time itself... The Information
Highway has proven itself to be _the_ coming thing. Of this there can be
no doubt. On the Highway, there are no real or implied impediments to the
powers of creativity other than good moral sense and taste. As such,
there are very little, if any, of the narrow minded corporate types that
infest the online services uttering; "we (meaning Mr.. high and mighty
himself) don't feel that type of product is exactly what we are looking
for. Controversy and the true stories, honest reviews and faithful
endorsements, Pictures and voice overs don't attract?? Up to date news
and inside track scoops don't attract readers, users, subscribers?? These
stagnant corporate types are the very pitfalls (cancerous growths) the
major networks are slowly dying from. Sure, they (the major networks) are
offering freebies and candy now, but as soon as the new users SEE what's
really on the Internet and the WEB especially, the major networks are in
very serious trouble. What are the majors going to offer once the new
users see they can get so much more in value by going through a server
such as InternetMCI than accessing the Internet via an expensive online
service?? These "pinstripe suits" are actually deadly liabilities to
these online services their elitist attitudes have actually allowed the
Internet and all its "warts" to literally "blow away" even the biggest of
big when it comes to online participation. This very narrow-minded
pinstripe suited group are the very ones that literally killed an online
service that we are all familiar with. The "wake-up alarms" are ringing.
I'm willing to bet they're too deaf from all the applause they've given
themselves instead of paying attention to the users.
The Internet is growing in leaps and bounds. Most all major software
publishers are making powerful provisions in their new software or updates
to allow users to enjoy the 'net to its fullest degree. The WEB.... the
name's not pretty, but it sure tells the true story. It is like a spider
web. Once you've seen it and used it there is no turning back. Its
fantastic. Of course at slow modem speeds the graphics can drag on a bit.
Sure, you'll hear the "purists" say they go in using text only mode. Hah!
They remind me of the types who say; "it was good enough for my father....
its good enough for me." Who do they think they are fooling? Its only
themselves they are fooling. Honestly, you do need a fast modem and a
good connection. You need that anyway if you are doing any type of
serious modeming. The Online Services had better wake up and "get with
it" or the 'Net is going to take it all. As it appears now, this
reporter's opinion is, ("saying it like it is"), "the Internet is well on
its way to obliterating a number of the online services in fact, in mho,
of the big five services; (CIS, AOL, Delphi, Prodigy, Genie), only one
stands any chance at all. The rest will soon be pricey and slow gateways
to the 'Net or gone.
The Telecommunications Revolution is upon the computing community.
The shame is the powerful decision makers at the Online Services appear to
have little or no clue as to what its all about. They're still busy being
smug, conservative pinstriped dregs in the face of the telecommunications
awakening. We will, over the next few years, be witness to the "big shake
out" of the online pay services. The signs are all there. Certain of
those connected with these services who are "savvy" have already made
changes and shifts to ensure a spot in the scheme of things for
themselves. Unfortunately, some still haven't a clue. Some because of
themselves and others because they are not up to another competitive
climb. The stiffly structured Online Service (again the big five) of
today, that tells you what you are going to and not going to see, do,
post, etc.. Is dead meat. The wide open, free style of the 'Net is
what's happening ..period. Sure, there are the political Exon's out there
who'll try and tell you the "Net is the Devil's Playground" these _panic
mongers_ and wacky zealots who love to complicate our lives with goofy
laws hoping to make names for themselves are not going to survive the
efficiency of the 'Net. You see, no sooner do they jump up with this
nonsense, the modern day Paul Reveres notify the entire country in a
matter of moments of the pending skullduggery. This, coupled with the
fact that the computing community is far better informed and educated than
the politicians give them credit for makes for many politicians who'll be
astonished at how "fast" the people "learned". Yes indeed you are
correct, I put the crafty politicians in the same class as the
"enlightened executives at the Online Services. They haven't a clue as to
how far ahead the 'Net and its users truly are.
Ralph...
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IBM/POWER-PC/PC SECTION (I)
===========================
Computer Products Update - CPU Report
------------------------ ----------
Weekly Happenings in the Computer World
Issue #19
Compiled by: Lloyd E. Pulley, Sr.
******* General Computer News *******
>> TI Wins $51.8M Patent Judgment <<
After an eight-day trial, a federal jury in Dallas has awarded Texas
Instruments Inc. a $51.8 million patent-infringement verdict against
California semiconductor makers Cypress Semiconductor Corp., VLSI
Technology Inc. and LSI Logic Corp.
Reports say the jury decided the three firms violated two TI patents
that covered a process to encapsulate semiconductors in plastic. (TI says
its technology reduced costs by providing a reliable packaging alternative
to ceramics.)
Commenting on the ruling, TI attorney Richard J. Agnich told McCartney,
"We continue to wage the fight for intellectual-property protection
worldwide, and it is heartening that this jury agreed with our contention.
We're very pleased with the decision. Respect for intellectual-property
rights is critical to the health of our industry."
It isn't over, though, because Cypress, LSI and VLSI say they will
appeal. Says Cypress CEO/President T.J. Rogers, "We will fight it with
every means at our disposal."
>> Gateway Offers Home Pentium PC <<
Gateway 2000 Inc. has announced the P5-100 Family PCT, the newest
member in its line of home-oriented multimedia computers.
The P5-100 Family PC, based on a 100MHz Pentium CPU, is priced at
$2,999 and joins the company's current 66MHz 486DX2 and 60MHz, 75MHz and
90MHz Pentium Family PC models.
The P5-100 Family PC comes with a 1GB hard disk and a 64-bit PCI
graphics accelerator with 2MB of DRAM. Other standard features include a
17-inch Vivitron monitor; a CompuServe starter kit; 8MB of RAM; a four
speed, three-CD-ROM changer; and a TelePath IIv 14.4 data/fax modem.
Numerous software titles are also included.
>> IBM to Preload Win95 on PCs <<
Despite its substantial investment in OS/2 Warp, IBM Corp. has
announced that its PCs will also run Windows 95 when the new Microsoft
Corp. operating system becomes available.
IBM says it is working with Microsoft to ensure system compatibility
and support of Windows 95 for its customers, including support of the Plug
and Play Specification 1.0A.
IBM also says it intends to preload Windows 95 on selected desktop and
mobile systems and will provide customer support for these preloaded
systems through IBM HelpCenters worldwide. In addition, IBM will work with
Microsoft to establish a technical support team to ensure customers that
Windows 95 is compatible with IBM hardware.
>> Microsoft Unveils Kids Mouse <<
Microsoft Corp. has announced EasyBall, a computer mouse designed for
children ages 2 to 6.
Compatible with Windows- and DOS-based PCs, EasyBall is designed to
resemble a bright yellow sun surrounded by Saturn-like rings. The device
will ship with a copy of Microsoft Explorapedia: The World of Nature, a
children's interactive encyclopedia.
Microsoft notes that EasyBall's design offers improved control for
little hands as well as flexible software that's designed to grow with the
child. In Microsoft usability testing, EasyBall was preferred by kids over
all the other mouse products tested, says Microsoft.
EasyBall is scheduled to become available in September for $54.95.
>> Toshiba Cools Oregon Rumors <<
Japanese electronics giant Toshiba Corp. says that, while it is
considering a new chip plant abroad, it is not confirming reports it will
build a $1 billion facility near Portland, Oregon.
The Electronic Engineering Times is reported as saying it has learned
the plant is coming to Oregon, possibly with some investment from IBM.
(It would be the first chip facility for Toshiba outside of Japan).
However Toshiba officials as saying no decision has been made on
location, form and size of investment, or products to be manufactured at
the prospective factory.
>> Dell Preloads Win95 Beta <<
Dell Computer Corp. says it's offering customers a limited number of
computers preloaded with an evaluation copy of Windows 95.
"The Dell evaluation platform for Microsoft Windows 95 will allow some
Dell customers the opportunity to preview Windows 95 before its official
release," says Sue King, director of software development at the Austin,
Texas-based computer maker. "This offering will allow Dell and a group of
interested customers to experience Windows 95 in a controlled, limited
environment, before the large scale launch of Windows 95, which is
expected later this year."
Upon official release from Microsoft, Windows 95 will be offered across
Dell's desktop and notebook products and will also be the default
operating system available on all of Dell's desktop and notebook lines.
Windows 95 is scheduled for an August release.
>> Nintendo Unveils Virtual Boy <<
Nintendo of America Inc. reports that Virtual Boy, its new video game
system, will be launched in the U.S. on Aug. 14.
The $179.95 unit, which Nintendo describes as a "three-dimensional,
virtual immersion, 32-bit video game system," will be backed by more than
$25 million in marketing.
Virtual Boy will be bundled with a game title and a double-grip
controller. An AC adapter will become available later this year.
Virtual Boy is a RISC-based, 32-bit system that uses two
high-resolution, mirror scanning LEDs to produce a 3-D experience. Notes
Nintendo: "Its unique design eliminates most external stimuli, totally
immersing players into their own private universe with high- resolution
red images against a deep, black background. The 3-D experience is
enhanced through stereophonic sound and a new, specially designed,
double-grip controller which accommodates multi-directional spatial
movement."
"We're bringing a totally unique, 3-D gaming experience to market at an
affordable price and in time to get a jump on the holiday shopping
season," says Peter Main, vice president of marketing for the Redmond,
Washington-based company. "We expect to sell more than 1.5 million
hardware units and 2.5 million pieces of software by the end of 1995."
>> Panasonic Cuts Notebook Prices <<
Price cuts of up to $1,100 are being made by Panasonic Personal
Computer Co. on its high-end multimedia notebook computers with integrated
CD-ROM drives.
Reports quotes officials with the Panasonic unit of Matsushita Electric
Industrial Co. Ltd., as saying prices on the V41 line now start at $3,199
and vary depending on the memory, the display monitor and hard disk
capacity, among other items. The company listed its highest V41 price as
$7,399.
The officials also said the company has cut prices on its V21 notebook
computer line, offering them for a range of $2,099 to $4,099.
>> Japanese Firm Re-Packs Floppy <<
Working with two U.S. firms the Matsushita-Kotobuki Electronics
Industries Ltd. has developed a floppy disk and compatible drive with the
largest-ever storage capacity of 120MB.
Sources say the new drive can read and write data on existing 3.5-inch
floppy disks as well.
The company says it has developed the products jointly with Compaq
Computer Corp. and 3M Data Storage Products.
The developers say the new disk's capability equals the data storage
potential of 83 3.5-inch high-density floppy disks, noting that the
previous best was a U.S.-developed floppy disk capable of storing 100
megabytes.
Look for the new disk and drive to be commercialized later this year.
>> Game Software Alliance Formed <<
Entertainment software publisher Electronic Arts says it has acquired a
minority stake in NovaLogic Inc., an interactive game maker.
Electronic Arts also reports that NovaLogic has signed a four-year
agreement under which Electronic Arts will have exclusive distribution
rights for NovaLogic's CD- and floppy- based entertainment software in
English-speaking countries.
Founded in 1985, NovaLogic's products include Comanche, Armored Fist,
WolfPack and Ultrabots. Electronic Arts says the company pioneered
real-time interactive 3-D rendering for the PC with its proprietary Voxel
Space technology.
The NovaLogic deal is the latest in a string of software publishing
investments and acquisitions made by Electronic Arts over the past several
months.
>> HP to Use AMD '486 Clones in PC <<
Advanced Micro Devices Inc. says Hewlett-Packard Co. will begin
producing PCs powered by AMD's Am486 microprocessors.
According to AMD, HP will use the CPUs in some of its desktop PC
systems. The models are scheduled to begin shipping this summer.
"Because of continued, strong demand for 486 microprocessor-based
systems, we need to take advantage of the opportunity to solidify our
microprocessor supply," says Richard C. Watts, vice president and general
manager of HP's personal information products group.
AMD is the world's second-leading supplier of Windows-compatible PC
microprocessors, following only Intel Corp. AMD has shipped more than 75
million microprocessors since 1982 and more than 30 million CPUs in the
last three years.
>> IBM Unveils New ThinkPads <<
IBM Corp. has added two new models to its ThinkPad notebook computer
line. One of the systems features a unique screen that allows the PC to
work with an overhead projector.
The ThinkPad 755CV's snap-off active-matrix screen panel gives the
system the ability to "piggyback" onto standard overhead projectors. With
the PC's rear panel removed, images on the computer's screen become a
see-through "slide show" that can be projected on a wall or screen by the
overhead projector's lamp. An infrared remote control with 22
special effects and built-in telephony features are also provided.
The ThinkPad 755CV is set to become available on May 31. Prices will
start at $6,799 for a system featuring a 100MHz 486DX4 microprocessor, a
540MB hard disk and 8MB of RAM.
IBM is also offering the ThinkPad 755CX, which includes a conventional
active-matrix color screen, built-in telphony features, a lithium ion
battery pack and a 75MHz Pentium CPU.
The ThinkPad 755CX, with a 540MB hard disk and 8MB of RAM, is available
now for $6,549.
>> HP Offers New Home Printer <<
Reacting to the continued blossoming of the home PC market,
Hewlett-Packard Co. is introducing new color inkjet printers designed
specifically for households.
Reports from HP's headquarters say the new printers include:
-:- The HP DeskJet 660C printer for IBM compatibles, to replace HP's
DeskJet 560C.
-:- The DeskWriter 660C, to serve the Apple Macintosh market.
Michele Hamilton, HP deskjet product manager for the U.S. and Canada,
said the printers, both of which will sell for about $499, are intended to
offer improvements over earlier models in terms of print quality and ease
of use for no additional cost.
"We're seeing a precipitous drop in PC prices fueling rapid growth of
PCs into homes," she said, "and where PCs go, printers go."
Hamilton added the new printers will be available in volume through
retail outlets nationwide next month.
>> Intel Makes WavePhore Deal <<
In a project to develop data broadcasting technology to receive data
sent in TV signals, chipmaker Intel Corp. has formed a technology alliance
with WavePhore Inc.
Sources say Intel has agreed to pay $500,000 cash along with license
fees and royalties and may buy up to a quarter million shares of
Wavephore.
Reports say the agreement provides for WavePhore's licensing of
technologies to Intel and Intel's granting to WavePhore of rights on the
sale and distribution of products incorporating WavePhore technologies.
>> IBM OS/2 Warp Sales Soar <<
A study by Computer Intelligence InfoCorp (CII) reveals that sales of
IBM's OS/2 Warp operating system have increased more than 300% since the
product first became available late last fall.
According to CII's StoreBoard Channel Tracking service, sales of Warp
in March surpassed 46,000 copies. In November, Warp's first month on the
market, just under 11,000 copies were sold.
StoreBoard also says its most recent figures indicate that Warp edged
out Windows 3.1 in retail market share during the first three months of
1995 - 19.5% versus 17.9%. Only DOS managed a higher percentage (55.2%).
CII ascribes much of Warp's success to the large investment IBM made in
marketing, particularly in advertising targeted at the consumer market.
>> Apple Unveils TV Venture <<
Apple Computer Inc. says it will provide the interactive TV set-top
technology for a six- state trial of educational programming created by
The Lightspan Partnership Inc.
The computer maker notes that Lightspan is creating an interactive
television service that will provide schools and homes with interactive
curriculum programming for children. The will include a programming series
for teaching reading and mathematics to children ages 4 to 12 and will be
tested in ten school districts.
Additionally Apple and nCUBE Corp., a leading provider of interactive
digital media server solutions, have announced a low-cost interactive TV
development system which will allow information service providers and
content developers to create home shopping, education, video-on-demand and
other ITV applications.
The development system, dubbed nVision, will be marketed by nCUBE and
will incorporate Apple technology. nVision, which includes nCUBE's video
server, media server software and Apple's interactive TV set-top
technology, is among the first turnkey end-to-end development packages on
the market.
>> HP Unveils Printer Promotion <<
Hewlett-Packard Co. has unveiled Cash In & Trade Up, a promotion that's
designed to encourage customers to trade in their HP and non-HP laser
printers for credit toward the purchase of new HP LaserJet printers.
HP notes that by program participants can choose from new HP LaserJet
printers that include faster-page-per-minute engines, high-speed RISC
processors, JetAdmin network printing management software, 600 dpi
resolution, duplex printing options, microfine toner and Resolution
Enhancement technology (REt).
"There are millions of earlier LaserJet printer models in good working
order that are still being used by customers," says Carolyn M. Ticknor,
general manager of HP's LaserJet printer group. "HP customers have asked
for a way to upgrade to new LaserJet printers without losing the value of
their older printers."
To simplify trade-ins, HP will send packing and shipping materials and
pay for freight costs. Deinstallation assistance will be provided for
trade-ins of 25 or more printers.
All laser printers received by HP through the Cash In & Trade Up
promotion will be recycled and refurbished by HP's service organization.
The promotion begins May 1, and runs through Oct. 3. All authorized HP
dealers will honor the promotion.
______________________________________________
> PP'95 STR InfoFile
""""""""""""""""""
Micrografx Announces Preview Version
------------------------------------
PICTURE PUBLISHER FOR WINDOWS 95
================================
Fully Multi-Threaded Image Editor
to Highlight User Benefits of Windows 95
Richardson, Texas (April-May, 1995) -- Micrografx, Inc. (NASDAQ: MGXI) has
announced the availability of a preview version of Picture Publisher for
Windows 95 beta. The application, which is the most complete
multi-threaded and multi-tasking product currently available, allows
Windows 95 users to experience the true productivity and performance
enhancements provided by the operating system.
Anyone interested in Windows 95 ( including Microsoft's 400,000 Windows 95
preview users ( can receive Micrografx Picture Publisher for Windows 95
beta by calling 1-800-765-7859. The cost is free to registered users of
the Windows 3.1 version of Micrografx Picture Publisher 5.0, and $19.95 to
all other users.
"I am extremely enthusiastic about Windows 95 and the advantages it gives
to people using computer graphics," said J. Paul Grayson, founder and CEO
of Micrografx. "Micrografx is poised to meet with great success as we
execute our Windows 95 development strategy, and it's important we
continue to share our success with users."
Micrografx Picture Publisher for Windows 95 is a fully exploitive 32-bit
application. The use of multithreading is extensive throughout the
program's features, including all image enhancements and filters. Users
will experience a 50% improvement in performance when working with large
files and up to a 200% performance gains when applying filters. Other
enhancements include complete Windows 95 common dialogues and a
customizable interface.
To help users fully experience Windows 95, Micrografx is offering a CD-ROM
preview version of Micrografx Picture Publisher for Windows 95 to all
users running the Windows 95 beta software. The program is the most
comprehensive Windows 95 application available today, and employs
multithreading for all commands in the application.
"Since the beginning of the PC and GUI revolution, Microsoft has always
worked will with Micrografx and are very pleased with their application
plans for Windows 95," said Brad Silverberg, vice president of Microsoft's
Personal Systems division. "Picture Publisher for Windows 95 offers
Windows 95 users tremendous performance gains, and we expect the
application to be a leading example of true multithreading on the
desktop."
Micrografx Continues to Lead in 32-Bit Application Development
--------------------------------------------------------------
One of the first independent software publishers to deliver graphics
software for Windows 1.0 in the mid-80's, Micrografx continues to help
computer users fully exploit the power of their PC.
The company's work with Windows NT and Windows 95 began in the summer of
1993, and resulted in a "shipping beta" version of Picture Publisher 4.0
for Windows NT, which was available to registered users of Picture
Publisher. The project satisfied the needs of the most technically
demanding user of the product, and also provided valuable insight into the
process of porting and refining a true multi-threaded, multi-tasking
application. This experience has been leveraged during the Picture
Publisher for Windows 95 development, and has allowed Micrografx to enjoy
a strong lead in Windows 95 applications.
Micrografx develops and markets graphics software to meet the creative
needs of everyone who uses a personal computer. Founded in 1982,
Micrografx has become a leading software publisher by responding quickly
to customer and worldwide market needs. The company's U.S. operations are
based in Richardson, Texas, with a development office in San Francisco.
International subsidiaries comprise Canada, the United Kingdom, France,
Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Australia, and Japan.
________________________________________
> Internet Publisher STR FOCUS!
"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
NOVELL OFFERS INTERNET ACCESS
AND
PUBLISHING TO END USERS
Palm Springs, CA -- Spring 1995 -- Novell, Inc. Has announced
WordPerfect Internet Publisher for Windows, a free add-on to WordPerfect
6.1 that allows users to easily create and view documents on the
Internet--without having to learn hypertext
markup language (HTML). Novell also announced WordPerfect Internet
Publisher Pro for Windows, an open solution that provides users with
seamless connectivity to the Internet from within WordPerfect 6.1. The two
products will be available in early second quarter of 1995.
"With the simple click of a button on the WordPerfect 6.1 toolbar,
Internet users will be able to create, publish and view information
anytime, anyplace," said Mark Calkins, general manager of Novell's
Business Applications Division. "Novell continues to define its vision of
pervasive computing by providing the tools and the access for electronic
publishing in a global data network."
Using WordPerfect, the world standard in word processing, anyone will
be able to create documents for the World-Wide Web, a global document
network of servers, and communicate with millions of people. With support
for the most popular Internet protocols, WordPerfect Internet Publisher
and WordPerfect Internet Publisher Pro will give users the tools and the
access to global information through the world's most popular word
processing interface.
Easily Create and View Internet Files
-------------------------------------
The Internet Publisher gives WordPerfect 6.1 users everything they
need to create hypertext markup language (HTML) documents, the original
document format of the World-Wide Web. A template guides them through the
process of creating an HTML document, and a conversion program
automatically converts the WordPerfect document into a native HTML file.
Users can access HTML features such as hypertext links, graphics and
bullet lists through the WordPerfect toolbar. With these tools, users do
not need to learn an HTML authoring tool or have a detailed knowledge of
HTML.
In addition to the HTML template, the Internet Publisher includes
NetScape Navigator, a sophisticated browser for the World-Wide Web, with
integrated WordPerfect and Envoy viewers. The free availability of the
WordPerfect and Envoy viewers enables users to publish documents directly
on the Web in native WordPerfect or Envoy formats. No conversion to HTML
is required. WordPerfect Internet Publisher can be downloaded from the
Internet, from the World-Wide Web at http://www.novell.com/ and from
online services.
Connect to the Internet
-----------------------
For users who need to get connected to the Internet, WordPerfect
Internet Publisher Pro on CD-ROM provides all the tools in the Internet
Publisher, plus dial-up Internet access software from Novell's LAN
WorkPlace product, and a trial subscription to any of several Internet
service providers. The suggested retail price for Internet Publisher Pro,
including connecting software and service provider access, will be $49
(US).
Maintain Internet Files
-----------------------
Using the soon-to-be-released WordPerfect 6.1 SGML Edition, Internet
users can edit HTML documents in native format and re-post them to the
World-Wide Web--a capability no other word processor provides. HTML
documents can also be converted into WordPerfect documents by importing
them into SGML Edition. When the document is saved, the user can choose to
save it as a WordPerfect or an HTML document. Users do not need to have a
detailed understanding of HTML to edit ASCII text and tags manually. The
document can be pulled from the Internet, edited and re-posted without any
lengthy conversion or learning of an authoring system.
For more information about the WordPerfect Internet Publisher,
WordPerfect Internet Publisher Pro and WordPerfect 6.1 SGML Edition,
customers can call (800) 451-5151. Information is also available on
Novell's World-Wide Web home page at http://www.novell.com/.
_______________________________________________
> Novell - Word Perfect STR FOCUS! Internet Gains More Support!
""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
NOVELL
INTERNET PUBLISHING SOLUTION
WHITE PAPER
Introduction
------------
The evolution of widespread computer use in the early 1980's was hailed by
environmentalists as the end of unnecessary deforestation because
information could be shared electronically rather than on paper.
unfortunately, the exact opposite happened! Paper use increased. In spite
of this, buzz words such as 'paperless office' and 'paperless publishing'
are still being used in discussions about the future of computing. In the
past, electronic documents presented few advantages over paper. Software
was engineered for document creation, not document consumption. Documents
were not distributed electronically because paper and monitors were
different sizes, the recipient didn't have the application used to create
the document, and graphics and fonts did not properly display on different
systems. Furthermore, computers were generally standalone machines and
platform dependent, making document interchange no easier than
transferring documents on paper.
Finally, in the 1990's, the vision of publishing documents electronically
is gaining more credibility. Applications whose specific function is
distributing and consuming electronic documents are just now becoming
available. The realization of a society that consumes less paper is
coming to fruition due to better networked environments and E-mail systems
to aid in document transfer, and most important, the ability of local
networks and individuals to connect to the Internet. Because electronic
documents can be distributed both faster and cheaper, they now have a
great advantage over paper. What's more, documents can be stored and
accessed by users in disparate locations, using different systems.
The Internet was developed by the U.S. military for the purpose of
transferring information to remote locations and has been in use by the
government since the early 1970's. The Internet is a massive worldwide
network of computers. The word 'Internet' literally means 'network of
networks.' The Internet comprises thousands of smaller regional networks
scattered throughout the globe. The Internet generally refers to the
physical side of the global network, the cables and computers. It does,
however, include some software that routes information packets to the
correct address. The Internet structure has significantly contributed to
other projects that have used its infrastructure.
The World-Wide Web (WWW or Web) project, which originated at CERN in
Geneva Switzerland in 1989, made the Internet more useful by using it as a
backbone to connect over 7000 servers. The Web provides locations for
information storage and is often referred to as a body of information or
an abstract space of knowledge. The 1993 introduction of NCSA's Mosaic
viewer transformed both the Internet and the Web from systems used
primarily by education and government, into an information exchange medium
for the masses. The Internet is now becoming the standard information
storage and interchange mechanism for many organizations including large
business and government.
As a testament to its growth, on any given day in 1993 the Internet
connected roughly 15-million users in over 50 countries. In 1994, that
number grew to at least 30-million users (according to a Honolulu
Community College Study). Traffic growth, in bytes, was even more
impressive. From 1993 to 1994, traffic on the Internet doubled, and
traffic on the Web increased by over 1400% (according to gopher://nic.
merit. edu: 7043/11/nsfnet/statistics).
By facilitating the exchange and reuse of information to connect
suppliers, customers and business partners worldwide, the Internet has the
potential to change how businesses operate. Businesses who fail to
acclimate to this change could easily find themselves, in only a few
years, hopelessly outdated. It is interesting to note that currently over
50% of white collar workers have not heard of the Internet. This figure
illustrates the growth that is still to come in this market.
Electronic Publishing Problems on the Internet
In spite of its steady growth, interacting with the Internet is not an
easy process. In fact, an average computer user would have a very hard
time even getting connected to the Internet, not to mention retrieving
information from or publishing information to the Internet. Some of the
problems include:
1. Connecting to the Internet
--------------------------
Connection requires a number of pieces, which, if the user knows
little about them, can be very confusing. Adding to the problem
is that as the Internet gains in popularity, so does information
about available options. Additional information about options
that one does not understand is only more confusing. What the
average user needs is all of the tools delivered in one package,
not multiple options for each tool. Some of the pieces needed
for Internet access are:
* Web Browser -- An HTML browser that allows users to access Web
documents. NetScape and Mosaic are the most widely known.
* TCP/IP Stack -- TCP/IP is the Internet's communication protocol.
The TCP/IP stack is the software that, when loaded on a PC,
interprets the information that is sent over the Internet.
* SLIP-PPP, and LAN Drivers -- SLIP and PPP are two protocols that
allow dial-up access to the Internet through a serial link over
normal phone lines. The LAN Driver is used to connect directly
to Ethernet.
Internet Access Providers -- The service providers have the service and
servers through which a user must call to access the Internet through
standard telephone lines or direct LAN connections. The service provider
uses the server to house and administrate the user's account on the
Internet. The number of service providers is increasing rapidly. In
additional to the traditional niche players, software, hardware and
telecommunications firms are entering the market by either setting up
their own services, or purchasing smaller providers. This consolidation
will bring even more choice to Internet and Web users.
Some Internet Access Providers also provide Web Server Service. Users can
rent server space from Web Server Service Providers to house documents
that they wish to publish to the Web. Without space on a Web server, a
user cannot publish documents to the Web.
2. Publishing Documents
--------------------
HTML is the standard document format on the Internet. While many
document formats may be on the Internet, HTML is the Web standard
and required for home pages. All Web browsers (software that
allows one to navigate the Internet or "Surf the Net'), have the
ability to view only HTML formatted documents.
HTML is subset of SGML. It is a special format of documents,
including text and graphics, that allows information to be viewed
using Web browsers. HTML strips a document of its formatting and
layout and maintains only its content, in the form of ASCII text,
and its structure, in the form of tags that encompass each
element of the document. These tags define the location of
content, style, and hypertext links. Specifically, each element
of a document is preceded by an open tag and followed by a close
tag. For example, the title of a document would be preceded by a
'begin title' tag and followed by an 'end title' tag. The title
would look like this:
<title>This is a Title</title>
For this example, the tag was rather descriptive, but HTML tags
arc very cryptic. For example, a specific level heading tag in a
Web document would look like this:
<Hl>This is a Level One Heading</HI>
Without a very good understanding of HTML and the tagging
structure, any given tag would be meaningless.
Creating HTML documents is difficult. To author HTML documents,
users are typically technical and have a high level of
understanding of Unix, SGML, and HTML, meaning that few
mainstream users author HTML documents. In fact, entire service
industries now exist around creating, tagging and validating
SGML/HTML documents because average users simply do not have the
time or expertise it takes to work in the SGML environment.
These service industries have used niche tools for authoring and
validating SGML structure, and were designed with the technical
SGML user in mind. Because authoring in HTML is difficult, the
average computer user has been locked out of Internet publishing.
Computer users generally create their documents in a proprietary
file format such as WordPerfect or MS Word. The average computer
user who wants to author and publish documents to the Web has
only a few choices. The user can:
* Author their documents directly in HTML. This method requires
the user to learn HTML and possibly a different authoring system.
* Convert their proprietary documents into HTML for Internet
publishing. Without an automated tagging software configured for
their needs, this requires manually adding tags to ASCII text.
To configure the automated tagging software to their needs the
user must either understand both HTML and the tagging software,
or employ an SGML expert requiring additional expense.
* Access proprietary file formats with viewers created specifically
for that purpose, alleviating the need to convert documents into
HTML.
The optimum solution to HTML publishing would incorporate HTML
authoring in a mainstream word processing environment. This
would require the HTML authoring to be either transparent or easy
for the user to accomplish.
Another key would be the use of a Web browser that allows not
only the ability to view HTML documents, but other standard
document formats, such as word processing and portable document
formats. Then the user or consumer of the information could get
at not only Web home pages, but other types of information as
well over the Internet.
3. Managing Documents
------------------
Once documents are posted to the Internet, they must be
maintained and revised. Because of the difficulty in working
with the HTML format, HTML documents have been viewed as static
or non-editable. Considerable effort is expended to convert
documents into HTML; to edit and revise existing documents would
require a similar effort. It is seldom the case that documents
are static. By some estimates, 85% of published information
changes at least once a month. This is hardly a new problem. In
the past, one of the larger users of the Internet has been
education, an institution that is ripe with cheap and/or free
labor. Many graduate students have been kept busy maintaining
educational servers. Unfortunately, business doesn't have access
to the same quantities of free labor. They must pay competitive
wages, so Web server maintenance becomes quite expensive.
Publishing houses experience yet another problem. A publishing
house that intends to publish up to 1900 magazine documents to
their Web server as an additional service to their subscribers
finds its efforts have been stalled because of the lack of
electronic publishing tools available to maintain and revise the
Web documents.
One of the big advantages of HTML is that information can be
stored, used and reused without the worry of disparate operating
systems, non-compatible proprietary file forinats, or the need to
continually reformat. Both of these activities require editing
existing HTML documents. The same problems with publishing HTML
documents apply to editing them. There are no mainstream editing
tools. To edit HTML documents, users must:
* Edit pure ASCII text, including the manual editing of tags and
understanding HTML structure. This requires that the user has
patience and a good knowledge of HTML.
* Convert HTML information into a proprietary forrnat for editing
and convert back to HTML for Web posting. This is a three-step
process and still requires knowledge of HTML codes for tagging,
and a validation process for correct HTML output.
* Learn a new document processing system, which requires knowledge
of HTML and leaniing an unfamiliar authoring envirorunent.
Each of these options involves time-consuming processes and aid the
perception that HTML documents are difficult to create and edit. These
methods also force document revisions to be document rewrites. As Web
documents grow in number, it will become unacceptable to rewrite each
document that only needs revision.
The Internet Publishing Solution
--------------------------------
For over a decade, WordPerfect has been the world-wide standard for word
processing. With over 17-million users, WordPerfect documents is one of
the most familiar environments in which to author documents. As
technology has changed, WordPerfect has integrated such changes to give
users the most advanced technology in document processing. The recent
release of WordPerfect 6.1 for Windows is a testament to this philosophy.
The following are excerpts from the press:
"In our view, WordPerfect 6.1 is the strongest of the three
[Windows word processors]. WordPerfect has always been laden
with features, but this latest version makes significant progress
in making these features simple to use ... Word for Windows lacks
some of the sophisticated document filing capabilities of
WordPerfect, which could make finding documents more of an ordeal
on a complex system."
Business Consumer Guide, December 1994
"WordPerfect 6.1 is a coup d'etat over Microsoft's Word and
Lotus's Ami Pro. You'll find many improvements in WordPerfect
6.1 that you didn't think were possible ... Usability is just
about as good as it gets ... An unparalleled combination of power
and ease of use."
Five-star rating in the November issue of PC/Computing
"PerfectSense is the first breakthrough in editing that I've seen
in a long time," said Jeffrey Tarter, editor of Soft*letter in
Watertown, Mass. "WordPerfect's a good two years ahead of the
competition."
Quoted in PC Week, August 15, 1994
Over three years ago, WordPerfect Corporation saw that electronic document
delivery was the wave of the future, and formed an electronic publishing
team. This team is comprised of electronic publishing tools experts who
have studied market research, reviewed customer feedback, and developed
the strategy and tools for bringing electronic publishing and document
interchange to the mainstream. The electronic publishing tool's group has
been involved in various consortiums that explore electronic document
delivery, such as SGML Open and the ODA Consortium. WordPerfect
Corporation has actively supported non-proprietary file formats (e.g.,
SGML and ODA) and has released electronic publishing tools (e.g.,
Intellitag, Envoy, ConvertPerfect/ODA) that make electronic document
delivery a reality.
Because WordPerfect Corporation has established itself as the first major
vendor to provide a complete electronic publishing solution, the merger
with Novell, Inc. only only added to the work that had been accomplished
over the past three years. The Internet is the next technological
frontier in electronic document delivery, and Novell is poised to deliver
the tools its users need for a successful Internet publishing solution.
In establishing the strategy for Internet Publishing, Novell has three
goals:
1. To enable users to use WordPerfect as their authoring system of
choice for Internet publishing and electronic document delivery.
2. To enable users to view not only HTML formatted documents, but
also native WordPerfect documents and Envoy portable documents.
3. To provide users with the first superior Web document maintenance
solution.
To achieve these goals, Novell realizes it must provide a family of
electronic publishing tools the customer can choose from to access,
author, and browse the Internet. The choice will be based on the pieces
the user currently owns and currently needs.
The products are:
Internet Publisher
WordPerfect 6.1 for Windows SGML Edition
Internet Publisher
------------------
This product is designed for the WordPerfect user who is already connected
to the Internet. As stated in the introduction, one of the problems that
Internet users have is that they must either publish HTML documents to the
Web, or they must have access to viewers for proprietary formats. The
Internet Publisher solves this problem as well as achieving the first two
goals of the Internet family of products. Specifically, the Internet
Publisher provides:
Publishing Solution
-------------------
Internet Publisher contains everything a WordPerfect 6.1 user
needs to create HTML documents. A WordPerfect 6.1 template is
provided, which guides a user through the process of creating an
HTML document. This allows the user to easily create HTML
documents from within WordPerfect. A conversion program is also
included which will automatically convert the document to native
HTML and bring up the included Web browser to view the 'final
form' of the Web document. HTML features such as hypertext links
and bullet lists are accessed through the toolbar. With this
tool, the user does not need to learn a new HTML authoring tool
or have a detailed knowledge of HTML.
With the WordPerfect viewer (explained helow), users simply need to create
and publish WordPerfect documents, bypassing HTML altogether. Users can
also publish Envoy documents and view Envoy files existing on the
Internet. The HTML browser allows users to automatically access
WordPerfect and Envoy formatted documents, along with the corresponding
viewers.
Viewing Solutions
-----------------
The Internet Publisher provides:
Netscape's Web Browser to view standard HTML docs & Home Pages
WordPerfect viewer to view native WordPerfect documents
Envoy Mini-Viewer to view Envoy (.evy) documents
WordPerfect 6.1 for Windows SGML Edition
----------------------------------------
Documents on the Internet must still be maintained, and WordPerfect 6.1
for Windows SGML Edition gives users that ability. SGML Edition allows
users to create SGML documents using WordPerfect 6.1 rather than requiring
a completely separate editing application. Users will be able to leverage
their existing knowledge of WordPerfect.
While a template-based approach to HTML document creation is useful for
small numbers of documents, it does not scale well to maintaining servers
full of documents. SGML Edition was designed for this type of task.
Moreover, as electronic publishing and digital commerce applications
demand ever more complex SGML document types, SGML Edition will provide a
viable solution.
SGML Edition allows direct editing of HTML documents that can then be
revised, re-saved and published back to the Internet. Because SGML
Edition is a complete solution, the user is not limited to the HTML
template provided with the Internet Publisher. SGML Edition gives users
the ability to create forms for Internet distribution and high-end
customized HTML documents.
As the Internet and the Web evolve, so will HTML. In time, HTML will need
to incorporate more of the robustness of full SGML, and will become closer
to SGML. For example, HTML 2.0, the current Web standard, is much closer
to full SGML than was HTML 1.O. By using WordPerfect 6.1 SGML Edition, the
publisher of Internet documents will be ready for future HTML
specifications changes. To publish with each change, all the user will
need is a new DTD for the enhanced HTML specification. Because the SGML
Edition will support any DTD, it will automatically support new HTML
specifications and will always ship with the most recent HTML DTD. New
HTML DTDs will also be available free of charge from Novell.
Other features of the SGML Edition include:
-------------------------------------------
Layout Designer
---------------
The Layout Designer allows the user to assign format to SGML or
HTML documents which contain only content and structure. The
layout designer, through the macro language of WordPerfect 6. 1,
also allows batch tagging of documents.
Document Type Definition Support
--------------------------------
SGML is defined by a Document Type Definition, or DTD. The DTD
defines how the document is structured and facilitates the
publishing of information between different applications. SGML
is extremely flexible to enable organizations to design their own
userdefined or use an industry DTD that is similar to their
organizations style. The SGML Edition of WordPerfect can use any
user defined DTD, and ships with a good number of industry
defined DTDS. HTML is basically a DTD that was defined
specifically for the Web. It will certainly change in the future
to accommodate changing nature of the Web. Because the SGML
edition supports any DTD, it %ill always be up to date with the
Internet.
File Support
------------
Either WordPerfect, SGML or HTML documents can be retrieved
directly into SGML Edition without conversion,
Alias Support
-------------
As is often the case with HTML (recall the cryptic tag used as an
example above), a DTD may contain tags that are not identifiable
by name to the SGML author. Using an alias allows the author to
assign an alternative name to the tag. For example, using the
case above the level one heading tag <HI> could have an alias
that states the ftmction it plays in the overall HTML tag. This
feature greatly simplifies the HTML authoring and editing task.
Interactive Validation and Error Reporting
------------------------------------------
As the user tags a document for SGML output, an interactive
validation feature walks the user through the tagging process.
As determined by the DTD, HTML for this example, the validator
will indicate what tag should be applied at that point in the
document. Error reporting occurs when a tag is improperly placed
in the document.
Conclusion
----------
The recent announcement from Novell stated plans to deliver a full range
of Internet access, hosting, and application development tools for
NetWare. The Internet Publishing Solution is the first step along a path
to a complete Internet connection, access, and application family of
products from Novell.
Novell is moving forward in its promise to provide additional electronic
publishing tools to easily act upon information available on the Internet.
This is Pervasive Computing ... It's connecting people with other people
and the information they need, giving them the power to act on that
information -- anytime, anyplace.
_________________________________________________
> Frankie's Corner STR Feature
""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
The Kids' Computing Corner
--------------------------
SUPER SOLVERS SPELLBOUND!
=========================
Dual format CD-ROM for Macintosh and Windows
ages seven to twelve
suggested retail $49
by The Learning Company
6493 Kaiser Dr.
Fremont, CA 94555
510-792-2101
IBM Requirements Macintosh Requirements
---------------- ----------------------
CPU: 386/25 CPU: Mac Color Classic
RAM: 4 megs RAM: 4 megs
Video: 16-color VGA (256 SVGA rec.) Video: 256-color
Hdisk: 1 meg Hdisk: 1 meg
CD-ROM: Double-speed CD-ROM: Double-speed
OS: Windows 3.1 OS: System 7.0.1
Misc.: Sound card, mouse
by Frank Sereno
Are you ready for an exciting and difficult challenge? "Super Solvers
Spellbound!" offers several vocabulary and spelling exercises besides a
traditional spelling bee. Featuring graduating degrees of difficulty,
"Spellbound!" offers a continuing challenge to children. With the option
of adding your own word lists, this program can even be beneficial to
adults.
"Spellbound!" includes four activities. These are Word Search, Criss
Cross, Flash Card and the Spelling Bee. The player must gain enough
points in the first three activities before he can enter the Spelling Bee.
Advance through the five rounds of spelling bees and you become a national
champion.
Word Search is a game of finding words in a matrix from a list of eight.
On the lowest level, the words are hidden vertically and horizontally. As
the player moves to the harder levels, diagonals are added. On the final
level, the letters can be connected in an almost infinite array of
patterns. This makes the game challenging for players of all ages.
Criss Cross is similar to a crossword puzzle but there are no written
clues. The squares are laid out so that each word intersects with at
least one other word. To place the words correctly, one must place the
words in the proper places. Attention must be paid to the length of each
word and the letters which will be in the intersections with other words.
Criss Cross uses combinations of four to eight words.
Flash Card is a spelling game. The player may choose to see the word
flashed before him, hear the word pronounced or both. He must correctly
spell eight words to earn points. If a word is misspelled, the correctly
placed letters will be shown. After three attempts, the correct spelling
is displayed. On higher levels, the player will have to spell the eight
words, then he will have to unscramble them.
The Spelling Bee is the final activity. After the player has accumulated
enough points, he can go to the spelling bee. He will face two computer
opponents. The contestants will spell words in turn until each has made
an error. Words from the included lists will be announced aloud but
created words will be flashed on the screen.
"Spellbound!" has eye-pleasing graphics and excellent sound. The
interface is point-and-click and it includes help text files. The program
provides audible encouragement and the player is never penalized for an
incorrect answer. The game play does not include any arcade action but
children are encouraged for doing well. If your child enjoys puzzles and
challenges, then he will enjoy "Spellbound!" Educational value is
excellent. The program teaches vocabulary, spelling, word recall,
auditory recognition and problem solving. By using the word list creator,
"Spellbound!" can be used to study vocabulary, technical terms and even
other languages.
"Spellbound!" offers excellent value and it is backed by The Learning
Company's 30-Day guarantee. If you are displeased with this program, it
can be returned for an equivalent program from TLC's library or for cash.
Ratings
Graphics ........... 8.05
Sounds ............. 9.00
Interface .......... 8.05
Play Value ......... 8.00
Educational Value .. 9.00
Bang for the Buck .. 9.00
Average ............ 8.67
Activision's "Atari 2600 Action Pack"
-------------------------------------
Are you ready for some gaming nostalgia? Did you sell your old Atari
gaming system years ago at a garage sale and wish you could play some
classic games from yesteryear? If you have an IBM compatible running
Windows and a spare $25, you need look no further than the "Action Pack."
Activision has included some of its greatest hits from the early days of
video gaming. You can relive the thrilling action of fifteen classic
games all on one CD-ROM. These are the games with the same code that you
played a decade ago.
What makes this all possible is the Atari 2600 emulator. The emulator
does have some pretty heavy hardware requirements. It needs at least a
486DX-33 CPU and a 256-color display. Activision recommends that you have
the latest drivers for your video and sound cards as well. It is hard to
believe that so much horsepower is needed to emulate an 8-bit game
machine!
Here's your chance to show the younger generation what gaming was like in
the dark ages of video games, back when there was no full motion video and
three-dimensional graphics. Yes, those were the days when gamers had to
have active imaginations plus quick reflexes and sore trigger thumbs.
"Action Pack" includes Boxing, Chopper Command, Cosmic Commuter,
Crackpots, Fishing Derby, Freeway, Frostbite, Grand Prix, H.E.R.O.,
Kaboom!, Pitfall!, River Raid, Seaquest, Sky Jinks and Spider Fighter.
This is only the first volume. I'm not certain what titles will be
included in the future. It's possible that Activision may obtain the
rights to other companies' software. I'd love to play some of the old
Imagic games brought back to life.
I'd also like to see some of these titles enhanced with better graphics
and story lines. Maybe an educational game could be incorporated into
Freeway. "Retro" or nostalgia gaming may be gaining popularity but I want
more than that.
If you are looking to re-experience the dawning age of video gaming, the
"Action Pack" does an excellent job. Just do not be disappointed with how
the old games looked compared to today's best. If gameplay is your thing,
then these old classics still have it.
As always, I thank you for reading!
_______________________________________________
> NOVELL SUPPORT STR InfoFile
"""""""""""""""""""""""""""
NOVELL ENHANCES ON-LINE TECHNICAL SUPPORT OFFERINGS
===================================================
Customers Access Novell's Electronic Technical Services
More Than 3.5 Million Times Monthly
OREM, Utah -- May 8, 1995 --Novell today detailed the company's
expansion of on-line technical support services, highlighting Novell's
strategy of providing electronic support options that allow customers to
be more productive, increase self-reliance and reduce technical support
out-of-pocket expenses. Chief among the elements of the announcement was
the consolidation of electronic-based technical resources from Novell,
Inc., WordPerfect Corporation, the Quattro Pro business and SoftSolutions
Inc., providing the industry's most comprehensive set of electronic
services and tools.
Other enhancements include branding Novell NetWire as the name of the
company's technical support presence on all major on-line services;
expanding Novell's strategy to broadly place Novell NetWire on additional
on-line services; creating dynamically updated "Top 20" lists based on
customer usage; increasing the number of forums maintained on CompuServe;
and other initiatives that make the company's services easier to learn and
use.
"Novell has always had an extremely active relationship with its
customers via on-line technical support, but further advancements in
technology and management expertise have immensely increased our
customers' use of and satisfaction with these services," said John Lewis,
senior vice president of Novell Technical Services (NTS). "We expect this
rapid increase in usage to continue as we also continue to innovatively
enhance our electronic support solutions."
The increased customer usage of Novell's electronic technical
services is evidence that customers find value in the services provided by
Novell. Accesses to Novell's electronic technical support services
increased more than 500 percent between March 94 and March 95.
"In March 1994, we received around 600,000 accesses to our electronic
technical services," said Michael Bishop, director of Electronic Support
at Novell Technical Services. "This March, we topped 3.5 million accesses,
and the upward trend is accelerating monthly."
Novell recently consolidated the technical information for all major
company products and is now branding Novell NetWire as the name of the
company's technical support presence on all major on-line services. Novell
NetWire is currently on the Internet, CompuServe, and SpaceWorks. The
company's strategy includes aggressively reviewing all on-line services
for possible placement of Novell NetWire content. The current review
includes America Online, Interchange, Prodigy and expansion of the
company's presence on SpaceWorks. Novell plans on placing Novell NetWire
on AT&T NetWare Connect Services (ANCS) when the service is available.
Novell NetWire provides online access to technical, corporate and
product information from Novell through remote access 24 hours-a-day.
Novell NetWire includes message forums, easily searchable online databases
and libraries of downloadable files. Novell NetWire is best known for
providing quick, inexpensive access to technical solutions from
experienced system operators (SYSOPS) and other knowledgeable users.
Technical questions posted on Novell NetWire usually receive a response
within 24 hours. Advanced questions are routed through Novell's direct
technical resources, the same resources used to solve hotline support
problems.
Novell has also created two "Top 20" lists on Novell NetWire. These
lists provide customers with the top 20 Technical Information Documents
(TIDS) and top 20 downloadable files based on customer access to each
Novell NetWire on-line service. Automatically updated according to
customer usage, the "Top 20" lists represent the most common technical
solutions delivered on-line to customers by Novell.
Additional expansion of Novell's electronic technical support
offering includes adding 11 public forums on CompuServe, where information
on all Novell Business Applications, GroupWare and Consumer Products will
be maintained by Novell. Novell NetWire is also receiving an updated look,
as Novell switches from the current bookshelf metaphor interface to an
icon-based interface.
Novell's electronic technical support offering aligns with the
company's vision of pervasive computing by providing Novell's service
partners, large accounts, customers and technical support engineers with
access to comprehensive technical information on Novell products, anytime,
anyplace. Novell is establishing the electronic support programs and
delivery vehicles required to provide technical assistance to a billion
users worldwide by the year 2000.
______________________________________
> Integrity Master STR InfoFile
"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
INTEGRITY MASTER DATA GUARD & VIRUS HUNTER
==========================================
Integrity Master(tm) provides complete, easy to use, data integrity for
your PC plus virus protection. It can also be used to provide file change
management and security on your PC. It scans for viruses like other
anti-virus products but it also protects you against more than just
viruses.
Integrity Master provides function and performance far beyond any other
anti-viral or data integrity software, yet is easy enough for novice
users. Integrity Master is written 100% in assembly language and provides
the utmost in speed and small size. It is certified as a virus scanner by
the National Computer Security Association (NCSA). Integrity Master is
the recommended anti-virus in "The 1995 PC Magazine PC Buyer's Guide" and
recommended by John Dvorak in his "Inside Track" column in PC Magazine
(see below).
Distinguishing features:
------------------------
1) Integrity Master recognizes known viruses by name and will describe
their characteristics and then allow you to (optionally) remove them.
2) It can detect not only existing viruses, but also as yet unknown
viruses. Unlike other programs, which you must constantly update to
keep ahead of the current crop of viruses, Integrity Master continues
to protect you.
3) Unlike other programs, it detects sectors and files which were damaged
by a virus not just those that were infected.
4) Integrity Master understands which files and areas on your disk are
special and provides special specific diagnosis and recovery if these
areas have changed.
5) Integrity Master can reload system sectors on disks which are so badly
damaged that DOS can no longer recognize them.
6) Integrity Master detects any form of file or program corruption, not
just that caused by viruses. This makes Integrity Master a useful tool
to provide PC security, change management and hardware error detection.
Why spend your time merely checking for viruses when you give your PC a
complete check out with Integrity Master?
7) Integrity Master provides easy to use menus with context sensitive
help plus a complete tutorial. Integrity Master is designed so you
you can start using it immediately -- no need to open the manual!
8) Integrity Master is useful as an aid to PC security. If someone
changes, adds or deletes any of your files you will know.
9) Integrity Master is useful with disk diagnostics. You can run your
normal test programs to check if your disk drive is working OK right
now, but was it working correctly at 3 PM yesterday? Integrity Master
will detect any disk errors which caused data damage earlier.
10) You just restored your files from a backup. Are all the files really
OK? Integrity Master will tell you.
11) You just deleted *.BAT rather than *.BAK. Integrity Master will
tell you exactly which files you need to restore.
12) Your hard disk is having problems. Now DOS will not even recognize it
as a disk. IM can diagnose and then reload your partition and boot
sectors to "fix" your disk!
John Dvorak wrote in the May 17, 1994 (V13#9) PC Magazine "Inside Track"
column:
"Genuinely Interesting Software Dept.: A friend of mine called me a
month ago telling me that he had made the mistake of booting his
machine on a Sunday when that old Michaelangelo virus would
activate. It did. No backups, either. In time for the next year's
outbreak, it's not too late to get what's considered by almost all
experts to be the current state-of-the-art anti-virus package on
the market: Integrity Master from Stiller Research (2625 Ridgeway
St., Tallahassee, FL 32310, U.S.A.;phone, 800-788-0787,
314-256-3130). In a side-by-side comparison, this product beats
everything on the market. With its built-in scanner, Integrity
Master will not only find every known virus, it will also handle
polymorphic and other odd type viruses. This is the anti-virus
software I use. It's only $39.95 in the U.S. and $44.50 elsewhere.
Shipping and handling is included in the price. Get this package
and you will be glad you did."
What's new?
-----------
Version 2.42d:
This release fixes false positive virus indications in MSAV/CPAV products
as well as DM300, Neuroquila, and ViennaF.
Version 2.42c:
This release fixes a false virus indication for: Auspara4 and Shiny.
Version 2.42b released 3/17/95:
1) Small addition to IM's scanner of a few more viruses including Diehard2
and a correction to the Ming detection algorithm.
2) Adjust alignment of text on IM's Option menu.
3) Allow IM to update integrity data in initialize mode even when
"Integrity Update" is set to Never.
4) Fix false detection of Freddy2 in Cheyanne's INNOCULAN anti-virus.
5) Corrected false positive of Auspara4 and Phalcon
Version 2.42a released 2/28/95:
1) IM supports a new option to allow rapid screening of diskettes for
boot viruses. This is available through the Check menu as well as
the "/VB" command line switch. This also allows IM to read boot
sectors on diskettes that are unreadable to DOS. Researchers can use
this option when testing IM since IM will also check the boot sector
for partition sector (MBR) viruses.
2) New "Force update" option on the "Integrity update" options submenu.
Selecting this option or using the new "/UA" command line switch will
force integrity master to update integrity data for all files.
Normally IM will not update integrity data for what appear to be
corrupted files when it is running unattended.
3) When run from a diskette, IM will now automatically offer to change to
change to another disk.
4) New easier install. SetupIM will now offer a super fast install that
usually gets IM installed in under one minute.
5) IM tolerates a wild card spec on it's /P (disk and directory change)
parameter. This allows you to use IM with some programs that insist
on including a wild card with the directory to check. For example:
IMSCAND C:\DOS\*.* will scan all files in subdirectory \DOS.
6) Changed colors on some help/tutorial screens to improve legibility.
7) SetupIM changed so it will correctly recognize drive characteristics of
disks using Symantec's Ncache.
8) IM will not pause even if severe hardware errors occur when the /ND
command line option is used.
9) IM identifies over 600 new viruses by name and characteristic
including: 7thSon2, Ambalama, Andromeda, Ansibomb, AntiCleric,
Asexual, Attitude, Aurea, BNB, BigX, Big_Bang, Bloody_Warrior,
Breaking, CarpeDiem, Centenary, Click, DA'BOYS, Dementia, Dichotomy,
Dillinger, ESP, Emma, Felize, Galicia, Geek, Gipsy, Greetings, Heja,
Hellspawn, Human Greed, Taslehoff, Icecream, Infernal, Iron, Jack,
Jimmy, Jpage, Kode4, Kode4b, Kohn6, Kommuna, Leningrad, Leuk, Loki,
Merde-3/5, NoLimitz, Ntit, Nygus.278, Offspring, Override, Ovile,
PHB, Panek, Panic, PeaceMan, Peanut, Peter2, Phantasm, Pirate,
Polifemo, Praying, Psychosis, Rambo, Raptor, Rattle, Redstar,
Rubbit2, Saigon, Sampo, Sandy, Santa, Satyricon, Semtex6, Shin,
Smallcomp, Soupy, Soupy-Death, Sov1, Sterculius, Strange, Sword,
Teraz, VLamiX, Vampiro, ViNCHuCa, ViroGen, Wet, YB2, Zombie, and Zulu
as well as the usual new but trivial ARCV, Australian Parasite,
Jerusalem, Leprosy, PS-MPC, VCL and Vienna related viruses.
Versions 2.40a, 2.41a and 2.41b are restricted beta versions please
do not use or distribute these versions.
New in Version 2.31:
1) New /ND parameter allows even faster execution of IM in unattended
mode. This works the /NE parameter but eliminates further pauses and
screen displays.
2) The primary display has been simplified and now displays license
information.
3) You may now choose report filespecs (disk, directory and filename) of
up to 30 characters using the /RF= command line option.
4) IM now supports a home directory so you can keep autonamed reports and
reload files in a single subdirectory.
5) Integrity Master now supports an option to never update integrity data
under any circumstance.
6) Registered users of IM can now download evaluation (shareware) versions
from any of thousands of BBSes world wide and convert them to the
registered version.
7) IM identifies over 300 new viruses by name and characteristic
including:
3Tunes, 4Pirates, Accept, Agena, Aija, Aragon, Bengal, Berlusconi,
BRAVO, Bruchetto, BuffEater, Chill, Chromo, Cobra, Curse, DAS_BOOT,
Double heart, Dicker, Epidemic FeelBad, Fifo, Firefly, Fission, FLAME,
Genesis, Gidra, Goga, Gusano, Hbex, HOP, Hot, JoeAnthro, Junkie, Kaos4,
Khizhnjak, MidNight, Ming, Modor, MZ, Natas, Neuroquila, Nika,
Noncemale, One_Half, P.Enemy, Paola, Phunnie, Plagiarist, Pure, Razor,
Ritzen, RMBD, Scratch, Simplex, Slash, Slub, Smoka, SofiaTerm, Stimp,
Stunning, Sunrise, Sybille, Sze, TaiPan(Whisper) Tajfun, Tamanna,
Taurus, TISO, Trumpery, Tver, Veronika, Aver_Torto, Villino, Warlock,
WXYC, W_Cards, XUXA2
8) We've eliminated several Mutation Engine (mte) false virus indications.
""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
A T T E N T I O N -- A T T E N T I O N -- A T T E N T I O N
FARGO PRIMERA PRO COLOR PRINTERS - 600DPI
For a limited time only; If you wish to have a FREE sample printout sent
to you that demonstrates FARGO Primera & Primera Pro SUPERIOR QUALITY
600dpi 24 bit Photo Realistic Color Output, please send a Self Addressed
Stamped Envelope [SASE] (business sized envelope please) to:
STReport's Fargo Printout Offer
P.O. Box 6672
Jacksonville, Florida 32205-6155
Folks, the FARGO Primera Pro has GOT to be the best yet. Its far superior
to the newest of Color Laser Printers selling for more than three times as
much. Its said that ONE Picture is worth a thousand words. Send for this
sample now. Guaranteed you will be amazed at the superb quality. (please,
allow at least a one week turn-around)
A T T E N T I O N -- A T T E N T I O N -- A T T E N T I O N
""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
___ ___ _____ _______
/___| /___| /_____| /_______/
/____|/____| /__/|__| /__/
/_____|_____|/__/_|__|/__/
/__/|____/|__|________|__/
/__/ |___/ |__|_/ |__|_/_____
/__/ |__/ |__|/ |__|______/
________________________________________
/_______________________________________/
MAC/APPLE SECTION (II)
======================
John Deegan, Editor (Temp)
> eWorld Updates STR InfoFile
"""""""""""""""""""""""""""
eWORLD BRINGS VOICES TO ON-LINE CONFERENCING
UNVEILS NEW HOME MARKET CAMPAIGN
CUPERTINO, Calif., May 9 /PRNewswire/ via NewsPage -- Today, Apple
Computer, Inc. (Nasdaq-NNM: AAPL), announced that users of its on-line
service, eWorld can now actually listen to an on-line conference instead
of watching a screen of scrolling messages. The feature, entitled "Speak"
is one of the many capabilities of the service's next operating version --
code named Golden Gate -- that is available ahead of schedule. Golden Gate
is expected to be released later this quarter and aims to enhance the
service's ease of use and communication capabilities with expanded
Internet access, intelligent electronic mail management, and other
features.
Separately, eWorld unveiled a new marketing campaign that focuses on the
home/consumer market, leveraging the company's strengths in this area.
Using Apple's Plain Talk technology, Speak allows users to actually listen
to the conversation in a conference room by assigning a different voice to
conference members. The feature creates a richer conferencing environment
by letting users participate in a conference while doing other things on
the service. Moreover, the company expects the feature to be an important
tool in creating disability solutions, especially for kids and adults with
learning disabilities and to some extent, the visually impaired. eWorld is
the first commercial online service to incorporate this technology.
"Apple has a legacy of making all our products accessible to people with
disabilities, so it's natural that the company pioneers this solution to
the information superhighway with its own on-line service," said Alan
Brightman, manager of Apple Worldwide Disability Solutions -- whose group
also publishes the "Disability Connection" in eWorld. "One of the things
eWorld Speak allows us to do is explore ways to provide on line solutions
to the learning disabled and the visually impaired," he added.
In addition to Speak, other features of Golden Gate that are now available
for users to download include:
-- Faster access to eWorld in 250 U.S. cities through support of 14.4 kpbs
high speed modems -- at no additional cost.
-- Exclusive on-line support from Apple. Users post a question and receive
an answer directly from an Apple support professional the next business
day. (Editors Note: See release 4/17/95, "Apple Offers Direct On-line
Computer Support via eWorld.")
-- An auto-open feature that opens to a specific eWorld area when logging
into the service.
-- Playful variations of the eWorld Town Square for users to download into
their art folder, including Winter, Martian, Desert, Valentine, St.
Patrick, Jurassic and Spring versions.
When released later this quarter, Golden Gate is expected to include
greater access to the Internet, more multimedia capabilities, and an
electronic mail agent that allows users to automatically filter and better
manage incoming mail. The company expects World Wide Web access -- also
ahead of original schedule -- to be available to eWorld users by mid-year.
New Home/Consumer Campaign Levers Apple's Strengths
---------------------------------------------------
In addition, eWorld has launched a new advertising and direct marketing
campaign that focuses on the home/consumer market. Executed by Wunderman
Cato Johnson, San Francisco, the campaign shows a family at home exploring
eWorld on their computer. The campaign's message is that eWorld brings
solutions to family's real-world needs.
"The home and consumer market is a key market for us because eWorld
provides an on-line environment that is appropriate for every member of
the family," said Peter Friedman, vice president and general manager of
eWorld. "Not only is the company strong in this area and eWorld offerings
on target for families at home, but our studies are showing that our most
recent subscribers are coming from the home market."
The ads hit the newsstands this month in major Macintosh and computer
industry publications. The company is also synchronizing an aggressive
direct mail campaign to complement the advertising placements.
eWorld is a powerful, yet easy-to-use, global family of on-line services
from Apple, which include eWorld for Macintosh and NewtonMail -- eWorld's
messaging service for Newton personal digital assistants. Included on most
Apple Macintosh computers, the software is also available free to all U.S.
Macintosh users by calling 800-775-4556. eWorld is available in the U.S.,
Canada, United Kingdom, Australia and New Zealand. eWorld for
Windows-based personal computers is expected to be available in 1995.
Apple Computer, Inc. an information industry innovator, creates powerful
solutions based on easy to use personal computers, servers, peripherals,
software, on-line services and personal digital assistants. Based in
Cupertino, CA., Apple develops, manufactures, licenses and markets
products, technologies and services for the business, education, consumer,
scientific, engineering and government markets in more than 140 countries.
NOTE: Apple, the Apple logo, Macintosh, and Newton are registered
trademarks and NewtonMail and eWorld are trademarks of Apple Computer,
Inc. All other trademarks are owned by their respective companies.
**********************************************************************
ATARI/JAG SECTION (III)
=======================
Dana Jacobson, Editor
> From the Atari Editor's Desk "Saying it like it is!"
""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
It's been a really slow week with regard to Atari computing news.
I often wonder how much time remains before there's nothing to report, on
a regular basis. It must be the weather that is putting me in a dreary
mood tonight. It may also be due to the fact that I spent the best part
of my day off today packing up most of my unused ST software and spare
hardware and storing it in my basement.. it was taking up way too much
space laying around spread out all over the place. My wife is still in
shock that I moved it all!
Last week I mentioned that I'd be including an article on
Europe's latest Atari-specific magazine, Atari World. Well, I finally had
a chance to put it all together and you'll find that article this week.
Unfortunately, that's about all we have for you in this issue
pertaining to the computing side (other than Joe Mirando's "People Are
Talking" column). Hey, it happens. So, let's get the show on the road!
Until next time...
_______________________________________________
Delphi's Atari Advantage!
TOP FIVE DOWNLOADS (5/10/95)
(1) SPEED OF LIGHT 3.8
(2) NISHIRAN!
(3) UNIVERSAL PRINT CONTROL ACC
(4) SILKBOOT 3
(5) LITTLENET/MIDI PORT NETWORK PRG.
* = New on list
HONORARY TOP 5
The following on-line magazines are always top downloads, frequently
out-performing every other file in the databases.
STREPORT (Current issue: STREPORT 11.18)
ATARI EXPLORER ONLINE (Current issue: AEO: VOLUME 4, ISSUE 4)
Look for the above files in the RECENT ARRIVALS database.
_________________________________________
> New HardCopy MAG STR Focus
""""""""""""""""""""""""""
Atari World Debuts!
===================
A rare occurrence in today's world of Atari computing is the advent
of a new magazine devoted to Atari products. Well, Europe is more
supportive than North America, so I guess it's not toostrange that a new
magazine would originate from there.
Out of the "ashes" of "ST Review" comes Atari World. Many of the
same names that you remember from Review are with Atari World. It's hard
to break up a good team, apparently. Vic Lennard, former editor of ST
Review, maintains his editor role with Atari World. Along with Lennard
comes Ofir Gal, Andrew Wright, and Nial Grimes. There are also other
contributors whose names are readily recognized from their activity on the
UseNet. These people havesome good experience; the magazine proves it.
Atari World, as briefly mentioned last week, is actually a
publication made up of three individual magazines: Atari World, Atari Pro,
and ST Source - each with a specific purpose and slant.
The main focus of the magazine is Atari World. There are 84
colored-glossy pages jam-packed with information and ads. Atari World
covers just about all aspects of Atari computing and gaming news. There
is a news section covering show reports, product announcements, Internet
news, etc. There is news about public domain software, programming news,
feedback (letters), telecommunications, user groups, and more. There are
feature articles as well as a number of reviews.
Atari Pro is a 16-page magazine devoted to the Falcon (this month's
issue). This issue deals with DTP info, MIDI, graphics, and a
question/answer section. I found the articles to be quite informative;
and I don't even own a Falcon!
ST Source is also a 16-page magazine, but it deals with the
"practical" side of the ST. The articles are those which help you learn
about the machine - primarily for the beginner/intermediate user. Source
has articles such as making a boot disk, formatting disks, desk
accessories, AUTO folders and programs, and more.
ST Source is a magazine that I wish that I had access to when I first
started with my ST; it would have save me a lot of the frustration that I
went through. At that time, I needed to make calls to various people to
understand these things. The info in ST Source would have made all of the
difference!
Atari World and its accompanying magazines were special for me as I
was enticed to read everything. I've read a number of Atari magazines
over the years, but I usually only read a select few articles and skipped
over the rest. There are (or were) only a few magazines that made me want
to read them from cover to cover. Atari World is one such magazine. I
must say that this is unique because this is the first European magazine
that has warranted it. Now if I can find a local source to buy it!
If you haven't seen these magazines yet, I suggest that you make an
attempt to find them. I have heard that some dealers in the U.S. carry
it; I doubt that bookstores will stock them.
Subscription info:
Atari World Subscriptions
Unit 3 Green Farm
Abbots Ripton
Huntington
Cambs PE17 2PF
____________________________________________
JAGUAR SECTION
==============
E3 Debuts!
Hover Strike Codes!
CatNips!
The "Other" Guys!
Ultra64 Delayed!
And more....
> From the Editor's Controller - Playin' it like it is!
""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
The E3 show has begun and it's likely to dominate the gaming
industry's news for the next few days. If you recall, this show is a
departure from the traditional SCES. From all preliminary reports, this
show will be dominated by the Sony PlayStation and the Sega Saturn
machines. Nintendo's Ultra64 has been delayed, but may make an
appearance at E3. Early reports tell us that Atari's presence at E3 is
smaller than its competitors. However, with the focus likely to be on the
newer machines, Atari really needs to make a better-than-usual showing to
take away some of the attention. As the show progresses, we hope to have
some details of Atari's "performance" at the show.
Until next time...
_______________________________________
> Jaguar Catalog STR InfoFile - What's currently available, what's
""""""""""""""""""""""""""" coming out.
Current Available Titles ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
CAT # TITLE MSRP DEVELOPER/PUBLISHER
J9000 Cybermorph $59.99 Atari Corp.
J9006 Evolution:Dino Dudes $49.99 Atari Corp.
J9005 Raiden $49.99 FABTEK, Inc/Atari Corp.
J9001 Trevor McFur/
Crescent Galaxy $49.99 Atari Corp.
J9010 Tempest 2000 $59.95 Llamasoft/Atari Corp.
J9028 Wolfenstein 3D $69.95 id/Atari Corp.
JA100 Brutal Sports FtBall $69.95 Telegames
J9008 Alien vs. Predator $69.99 Rebellion/Atari Corp.
J9029 Doom $69.99 id/Atari Corp.
J9036 Dragon: Bruce Lee $59.99 Atari Corp.
J9003 Club Drive $59.99 Atari Corp.
J9007 Checkered Flag $69.99 Atari Corp.
J9012 Kasumi Ninja $69.99 Atari Corp.
J9042 Zool 2 $59.99 Atari Corp
J9020 Bubsy $49.99 Atari Corp
J9026 Iron Soldier $59.99 Atari Corp
J9060 Val D'Isere Skiing $59.99 Atari Corp.
Cannon Fodder $69.99 Virgin
Syndicate $69.99 Ocean
Troy Aikman Ftball $69.99 Williams
Theme Park $69.99 Ocean
Sensible Soccer Telegames
Double Dragon V $59.99 Williams
Hover Strike $59.99 Atari Corp.
Available Soon ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
CAT # TITLE MSRP DEVELOPER/PUBLISHER
Pinball Fantasies $ 59.95 Computer West
Jaguar CD-ROM $149.99 Atari
Hardware and Peripherals ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
CAT # TITLE MSRP MANUFACTURER
J8001 Jaguar (complete) $189.99 Atari Corp.
J8001 Jaguar (no cart) $159.99 Atari Corp.
J8904 Composite Cable $19.95
J8901 Controller/Joypad $24.95 Atari Corp.
J8905 S-Video Cable $19.95
CatBox $69.95 ICD
____________________________________________________
> Industry News STR Game Console NewsFile - The Latest Gaming News!
"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
-/- Nintendo Delays Ultra 64 -/-
Video game maker Nintendo says its much-anticipated 3-D Nintendo
Ultra 64 home game system is being delayed until after Christmas, a
development seen as giving a huge jump to rivals Sega, Sony and 3DO Co.
Reporting from Nintendo of America's Redmond, Washington,
headquarters, United Press International quotes company officials as
saying the Ultra 64 video player, designed with Silicon Graphics Inc.,
will be launched next April at a retail price under $250.
The company officially will unveil the unit at its annual video
game exhibition Nov. 24-26 in Makuhari, Japan, and at the Consumer
Electronics Show on Jan. 5 in Las Vegas, Nevada.
UPI says U.S. Nintendo Chairman Howard Lincoln sought to downplay
the moving by saying, "We have made a conscious decision not to rush
Nintendo Ultra 64 to market. We've decided to give our software developers
additional time to maximize the power of this system in their game
creation."
However, the wire service notes Sega has said it will have its
new 3-D models in stores in September. Sony also plans to enter the fray
before Christmas. "And interactive game producer 3DO Co. of Redwood City,
California, said this week it will launch an upgraded 64-bit machine later
this year that it claims will re-shape home entertainment," UPI says.
-/- Nintendo Unveils Virtual Boy -/-
Nintendo of America Inc. reports that Virtual Boy, its new video
game system, will be launched in the U.S. on Aug. 14.
The $179.95 unit, which Nintendo describes as a "three-
dimensional, virtual immersion, 32-bit video game system," will be backed
by more than $25 million in marketing.
Virtual Boy will be bundled with a game title and a double-grip
controller. An AC adapter will become available later this year.
Virtual Boy is a RISC-based, 32-bit system that uses two
high-resolution, mirror-scanning LEDs to produce a 3-D experience. Notes
Nintendo: "Its unique design eliminates most external stimuli, totally
immersing players into their own private universe with high-resolution
red images against a deep, black background. The 3-D experience is
enhanced through stereophonic sound and a new, specially designed,
double-grip controller which accommodates multi-directional spatial
movement."
"We're bringing a totally unique, 3-D gaming experience to market
at an affordable price and in time to get a jump on the holiday shopping
season," says Peter Main, vice president of marketing for the Redmond,
Washington-based company. "We expect to sell more than 1.5 million
hardware units and 2.5 million pieces of software by the end of 1995."
-/- Virtual Reality Headgear Ships -/-
Forte Technologies Inc. says it has started shipping its VFX1
Headgear Virtual Reality System. The company, based in Rochester, New
York, notes that the unit is the first truly integrated headset designed
for PCs. The $995 product includes high-contrast 789- by 230-dot LCDs, a
three-axis head tracker, high-fidelity stereo headphones, a microphone and
custom lenses. Also provided is a CD-ROM with virtual reality versions of
several popular PC games.
"The VFX1 Headgear system is the only complete virtual reality
headset system available today," says Paul Travers, president of Forte
Technologies. "Unlike other head-mounted display systems that are bulky,
uncomfortable and allow outside environments in, the VFX1 Headgear is
ergonomically designed and truly immersive to enhance the computer
gaming experience."
On CompuServe, virtual reality is discussed in the Cyber Forum
(GO CYBERFORUM).
-/- Game Software Alliance Formed -/-
Entertainment software publisher Electronic Arts says it has
acquired a minority stake in NovaLogic Inc., an interactive game maker
located in Calabasas, California.
Electronic Arts, based in San Mateo, California, also reports
that NovaLogic has signed a four-year agreement under which Electronic
Arts will have exclusive distribution rights for NovaLogic's CD- and
floppy-based entertainment software in English-speaking countries.
Financial terms of the agreements weren't disclosed.
Founded in 1985, NovaLogic's products include Comanche, Armored
Fist, WolfPack and Ultrabots. Electronic Arts says the company pioneered
real-time interactive 3-D rendering for the PC with its proprietary Voxel
Space technology.
"NovaLogic has some of the best creative talent in the
interactive entertainment software industry," says Larry Probst, chairman
and CEO of Electronic Arts. "This is an investment in a successful,
growing publisher with great products, a proven track record, and
leading-edge technology."
The NovaLogic deal is the latest in a string of software
publishing investments and acquisitions made by Electronic Arts over the
past several months.
___________________________________
> Jaguar Easter Eggs/Cheats/Hints STR InfoFile - Solving Those Riddles!
"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
> Hover Strike "Secret Missions" Codes!
"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
From CompuServe's Atari Gaming Forums:
-------------------------------------
Just got some codes off the net c/o Jeremy Haines. After completing
Hoverstrike you are given codes for the game. The codes allow you to
access a secret mission on each level which is filled with powerups.
If you enter the codes correctly you will receive a tone. I have not
tried them yet but here they are.
Level 1: 2+3+6+up
Level 2: 2+6+7+8+down
Level 3: 3+5+6+right
Level 4: 2+5+8+up
Level 5: 2+4+5+6+right
[Editor's note: These codes are not confirmed]
_____________________________________
> Jaguar Online STR InfoFile Online Users Growl & Purr!
""""""""""""""""""""""""""
CATnips... Jaguar tidbits from Don Thomas
"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
E3 is NOW!
The first wave of Atari people have invaded the Los Angeles area with
several more waves to follow. Along with them are boxes sealed with
pilfer-proof tape and scores of developer carts. While the U64 has been
delayed and 3DO makes promises of a machine that has yet been shown to
exist, the 64-bit Jaguar has passed its most difficult hurdles. Atari
has proven 64-bit technology does exist. Atari has proven they are here
for the long haul and Atari has some really cool things to show the
industry at E3. You will undoubtedly hear reports early on. In fact, the
pros at Atari Explorer Online will be filming two separate and intensive
videos at E3. Make sure you pick up their issue to be released this week
for ordering info.
As E3 progresses through the weekend, two teams of us will be sneaking
away from the convention center with E-Proms to show at selected Jaguar
retailers in the LA area. There will be hundreds of T-shirts given away
and we will share the latest E3 news.
On Thursday night (May 11) from 6pm to 9pm, John Skruch will be leading
the "TRF" (Thea Relm Fighters) team to the Virgin Megastore located at
8000 Sunset Boulevard in Hollywood. John has produced countless game
titles back to the 8-bit days and remains faithful to the fun-factor
philosophy at Atari.
Also from 6pm to 9pm Thursday night, Don Thomas and Tal Funke-Bilu make
an encore appearance at the Wherehouse located at 3115 Foothill
Boulevard in La Cresenta. Don and Tal travelled last weekend. They met
with Albert Dayes of Atari Explorer Online and Juan Gonzalez who is
active on the Internet. They even met Ed of Industrial Light and Magic
and we saw a prototype of Darth Vader's stunt double's helmet for the
upcoming film. Ed got two T-shirts! <g>
On Friday from 6pm to 9pm, see John and the TRF renegade at Electronics
Boutique located at 108 Lakewood Center in Lakewood. OR see Tal and Don
at The Good Guys at 1401 Hawthorne Boulevard in Redondo Beach.
I apologize to all CATscan members for not getting the latest issues
of online mags up sooner. It is now up to date and I will refresh it
again as soon as I return on Monday. CATscan BBS may be accessed by
dialing 209/239-1552.
****
Sb: Jaguar CD - Release Date
Fm: Laury Scott [ATARI] 75300,2631
To: All
We will be announcing at E3 an August release date for the CD. It will
be $149 and will include 3 CD's - Vid Grid (music videos in a puzzle
game), the Tempest 2000 audio CD and one other CD game.
The software development has taken longer than expected and is the main
reason for the delay.
We expect to have 6-8 game titles available at the time of shipment.
The following titles will be coming out with or shortly after the CD
player:
Demolition Man
Baldies
Creature Shock
Highlander I
Myst
Blue Lightning
Battlemorph
Dragon's Lair
Note: As many of you have speculated the Hardware has been done for some
time and we have just been waiting on the software. The software is
coming along fine (as anyone attending E3 will be able to see) and we
are now able to commit.
-Laury
Sb: New Hardware Info
Fm: Laury Scott [ATARI] 75300,2631
To: all
I will take this opportunity to give you all a preview of the new hardware
that will be shown at E3 -
Jag Link Interface - The Jag Link will be in stores next month at about
$30. This product will allow you to connect 2 Jaguars to play such games
as Doom, Battlesphere, etc.
C2 (I don't know what name Marketing has settled on) - The new 6 button
controller will be released during the summer and should sell for around
$25.
Team Tap - The 4 player adapter will also be available during the summer
and should sell for around $25. It will be available by the time we ship
White Men Can't Jump which will be the first title to support it. Arena
Football will also support it and I am hearing rumors about it being able
to support 8 players.
Jaguar VR - We will be announcing the Jaguar Virtual Reality System at E3.
I will provide some more information about it later this week.
-Laury
*****
PRE-E3 SHOW NEWS
================
by Andy Eddy, Delphi's Video Gaming Forum manager
Okay, here's some news from the Electronic Entertainment Expo. Excuse my
generality, because all the news hasn't been fleshed out.
* As you probably know by now, Nintendo has delayed the Ultra 64 to April
1996. A presentation downplayed the delay, and emphasized the system it
will be bringing out in August, Virtual Boy. The show hasn't started yet,
so we can't say how good the games will look, but Nintendo claims close to
100 VB licensees.
* Software for Nintendo includes Killer Instinct for SNES and Game
Boy(?!), Donkey Kong Country 2 (which focuses on Diddy's adventure and a
new female sidekick who can propeller her ponytail), Donkey Kong Land for
Game Boy and Earthbound for SNES.
* Sony is gearing up for the PlayStation's release. I didn't get a firm
price and date, but I heard about $350 and September. Again, as the show
goes on, I'll have more info. Many of the people I talk to (including
journalists and developers) seem to think that Sony will have the upper
hand in sales vs. Sega and even (later) Nintendo. Games in the Sony booth
will be reported on later.
* Sega reportedly thought that Sony was going to have a *giant* booth at
E3. So they went wild spending money, only to find that Sony had a pretty
*normal* booth. (g) Sega also has been buzzing the various pre-show
parties with a slew of Sega Saturn vans with Cherry Coke logos on them
too. However, the big news is Sega's release of the Saturn to three chains
of stores (so far a rumor and with the three store chains unknown by me at
this point) TOMORROW (May 11)! Price isn't determined, but pack-ins are
reported to be Virtua Fighter *and* Panzer Dragoon.
* 3DO again demo'ed the M2 upgrade, which was *very* impressive. However,
very few people (because the demo was on video) believed that this truly
existed. Even so, there's no announcement of price, availability or who
the hardware manufacturer(s) will be. Trip Hawkins told me that they are
looking to the current hardware manufacturers for its construction and
release. A reporter from Time asked how 3DO would compete against "a
company with deep pockets, Sony," and Trip answered that they are in good
shape and that his personal commitment was far beyond any other company
head in the industry.
* Not much to report on Atari, because they didn't have a pre-show event,
but I did talk to Garry Tramiel, who gave a very confident dissertation on
how they are in a great position with a $159 price against Sony, Sega and
3DO, with a CD unit just around the corner.
I'll definitely have more to report on as the show progresses. Heck, it
hasn't even started yet as I write this!
A E
_____________________________________
> ONLINE WEEKLY STReport OnLine The wires are a hummin'!
"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
PEOPLE... ARE TALKING
=====================
On CompuServe
-------------
compiled by
Joe Mirando
73637,2262
Hidi ho friends and neighbors. I just got back from Washington DC for a
friends wedding. I took a couple of extra days so that I could see the
sights.
I made my usual pilgrimage to the Air and Space Museum in the Smithsonian
where I got the chance to see a "show" at the Einstein Planetarium. If
you ever find yourself in DC with a couple of hours to kill, go directly
to the Air & Space Museum! Next we (my wife and I) walked to the
Washington Monument and along the reflecting pool to the Lincoln Memorial.
Even though the Parks Service is now working to determine the best way to
restore the memorial (there are scaffolds everywhere), this was still my
favorite place in all of Washington. I've never thought of myself as an
especially patriotic person but I've found that when I'm standing inside
the Lincoln Memorial, reading Honest Abe's words, peering into that huge,
weary, ever-so-slightly down-turned face, and even looking at the profile
of Mary Todd Lincoln in the curls of Abe's hair, I feel oddly at peace.
Even with the ever-present noise within and without the monument, it's
like I'm all alone with the giant Lincoln, waiting for a bit of wisdom or
a sample of his famous humor from across more than a century. Yes, there
is much that we can learn from Lincon... much that we should have learned
already perhaps, but perhaps there is still time.
Well I guess that's enough of my babbling. Let's get on with the real
reason for this column... all the great news, hints, and tips available
every week right here on CompuServe.
From the Atari Computing Forums
===============================
On the subject of accessing the Internet with an ST, Chris Roth tells us:
"I had my first PPP connect to CompuServe today! And I even managed to
try a ftp session. Unfortunately it was slow again, but I don't know
how far that depends on the business hours in the States, where the
Internet, meanwhile, seems to be helplessly overloaded.
However, I am kind of happy..
I'll post instructions and the setting files in the next messages."
Michel Vanhamme tells us:
"I've been trying to contact Behne & Behne (makers of NVDI) for upgrade
information by mail and e-mail for quite some ime now, and have had no
reply yet. I'm wondering if, just maybe, the addresses I have are
correct, so I'd be glad if someone could correct/confirm this
Behne & Behne Systemsoftware GbR Lindenkamp 2 31515 Wunstorf Germany
e-mail: Wilfried_Behne@H.maus.de
BTW I had the same problems with OverScan (makers of Screenblaster) so
I'm still trying to find their address too!"
Simon Churchill asks Michel:
"Are you in Europe or the U.K.?
If so then you can get details about NVDI from System solutions and
details about Screenblaster from COMPO, they are both well established
companies and give all the help they can."
Michel tells Simon:
"I'm in Europe (Belgium).
Re: Screenblaster, the dealer I bought it from told me I had to contact
OverScan in Germany directly. But your reply gave me an idea: I might
try Compo in the Netherlands one of these days (no Compo in Belgium,
alas).
Also, I'll annoy the dealers here one more time..."
Back to accessing the 'net with an ST. Chris Roth tells us:
"Since I managed to get a PPP connect with the NOS package (available
here in the Libs) I want to share my 'knowledge':
I have put NOS in the directory c:\nos and start it with the parameters
"-dc:\nos", so that I don't have to keep startup.nos nd dialer.pp0 on
the root directory. I noticed that on my Falcon NOS bombs on exiting
when run in 16-color mode. As it doesn't do so in mono mode, I didn't
try to locate the failure.
Here is my startup.nos file:
------------------------------------------------------------
# startup file for KA9Q-NOS ST (DIS Version)
log c:\nos\nos.log
# Attach the SLIP driver to the serial port
# if port 0 slip dev buff mss baud
# --- ---- - ---- --- ---- --- ----
attach asy AUX: 0 ppp pp0 4640 1500 19200
#dialer pp0 dialer.pp0
#
ppp pp0 lcp local accm 0
#ppp pp0 lcp local compress address on
#ppp pp0 lcp local compress protocol on
ppp pp0 lcp local magic on
ppp pp0 lcp open active
#
ppp pp0 ipcp local compress tcp 16 1
ppp pp0 ipcp open active
#
route add default pp0
domain addserver [149.174.64.41]
# how many hops before a packet is discarded (Time To Live)
ip ttl 64
# tcp parameters can be tuned.
tcp mss 960
tcp window 5000
echo refuse
# Start the servers
start smtp
start ftp
start echo
start discard
start finger
start telnet
-----------------------------------------------------------------
I used pricipally the startup.nos found in the archive here in the
Libs. I have commented out two of the "ppp pp0 local compress ..."
commands because the resulted in error outputs at startup. Also,
there's a commented dialer command in the file that can be removed for
automatic connect.
The login script (dialer.pp0):
-------------------------------------------------------------------
#
# Sample login script for CIS
# replace tel number, User ID ad password!
#
configure:
init "ATZ\"
dial_cmd "ATD"
ld_code ""
number "12345678\r"
retries 1
#
execute:
init
cwait 10000 "OK"
dial
cwait 45000 "CONNECT" "BUSY" "NO CARRIER"
wait 2000
send "\r"
cwait 50000 "ame:"
wait 1000
send "CIS\r"
cwait 50000 "ID:"
wait 1000
send "User,ID/GO:PPPCONNECT\r"
cwait 50000 "ord:"
wait 1000
send "YourPassword\r"
-------------------------------------------------------------------
With the command "dialer pp0 dialer.pp0" the login script starts and
connects your modem to CompuServe, establishing PPP protocol. You can
issue "ppp" after a few secs to see your current ip address. I suggest
one also could configure a name for the own host in startup.nos with
the "hostname" command. I tried "100321.1763@compuserve.com" but don't
know which effect it produces.
It was interesting to learn that you can open more than one session
and switch between them. F.i. I did a hopcheck to various Austrian
sites (which took quite a time ;-) and then opened a ftp session. F10
always takes you back to the commando cental. There you can view your
current sessions or switch to a specific one with the "session"
command.
Note also the file domain.txt that grows in your nos directory - hehe.
I hope that's help for some of you and I didn't forget something
essential."
Michel tells Chris:
"I'm glad you're getting somewhere!
Hum, I'm afraid you're way ahead of me for the moment. So, what you'll
get for now is just a bunch of questions <g>.
Anyway, I _think_ I got logged on... but I couldn't do anything
afterwards.
I'll start with 3 questions:
1) > You can issue "ppp" after a few secs to see your current ip
address. "ppp" alone just got me a "usage: ppp <iface>". So I
tried "ppp pp0", and NOS issued a bunch of cryptic messages. Among
them, though, were 2 IP addresses. I assumed that meat that my
connection was OK. On the same note, I tried the command "ip
address", which also gave me an address. Am I right so far?
2) Then I tried anftp session. I typed "ftp site.name" (site.name
being sites that I know for sure to exist), with different sites.
Every time NOS issued a message "Resolving site name" or something
similar, ad after a while, "host unknown", or something similar. So,
either I did something wrong at this stage, or I had been wrong
before (wrong connection from the start)... :-(
3) How do you get the thing to hang up? I thought that when typing
"exit", the program wouls also hang up, but no..."
Chris tells Michel:
"...you were connected to the internet!"
There is lots more folks, but let's move on to something else. Milton
Horst tells us:
"I'm getting tired of finding CIM-only applications on CompuServe that
I can't access with my ST. The new United Airlines is CIM-only, and
Worldspan Travelshopper plans to discontinue their ASCII support.
We need a CIM for Atari. I have a couple of C compilers and would be
willing to try writing one if I could get the interface specs."
Ethan Mings tells Milton:
"I agree. It is frustrating to find a "CIM alike" for the atari
computer. What I don't know is, how many people still have ataris and
how many are willing to stick with the plateform for a least the next
five years. I know I have a mix of atari and DOS based machines at
home. Even DOS based applications are not being upgraded. Instead
programmers are spending their resources on windows based applications.
Maybe, before you committee the time, you should post a quick
questionnaire in the fourm to find out how many people would be willing
to commit and what type of hardware they currently are using.
I'll start. Mega st4, 250 hard drive, TOS 2.06. Yes I purchase the
software for a maximum of $50.00. I'd want upgrades through the fourm.
Hope this helps.
PS I am computer user not a programmer. So my comments are from a
user standpoint."
Alberto Sanchez adds:
"I absolutely agree. I have Falcon 030 and (for BBS -NeST system- and
communications) a MegaSTe 4Mb I also agree paying for that AtariCIM
round $50. I feel it just for programmer and cheap enough to be
successfull. Please, do it!!!!!! Saludos."
Sysop Jim Ness bursts our bubble:
"CompuServe protects the HMI protocol (used within CIM) by providing
compiled object code to developers, and giving devs the spec for
accessing the module.
They only distribute the module compiled for DOS, Windows, OS/2, Mac
and certain palmtop portables. There is no ST version, therefore there
is no way to use HMI on the ST."
Chief Sysop Ron Luks adds:
"While I appreciate the offer to write a CIM for the Atari, you can't
write a CIM without a CIS-provided CIM toolkit which they are not
porting to the Atari OS.
There will be more and more CIM-only areas on CompuSErve and someday
(regretably) this may turn into a CIM-only service. Thats definitely
the way its headed.
You wont see a CIM for CP/M or the Coleco Adam or the Atari ST. Just
like you can't go to the local movie store and rent beta-format movies
for most releases, the Atari ST like Beta, CP/M, and other discontinued
formats is simply being left behind."
Chris Roth summarizes:
"That's simply bad news.
So the only hope to stay tuned with the Ataris is that there will be a
WWW Browser and you'll find an Internet provider."
Michel Vanhamme tells Chris:
"I think there will be a WWW browser. The problem is when... ;-)
A little namedropping to lift our hopes, maybe? There's a WWW browser
called Lynx currently under development. It seems you can even download
a beta version. Here's an address : ftp.twi.tudelft.nl, directory:
pub/atari/lynx/. Of course, you must be able to do FTP, which brings
us back to square one. <G> Oh, and it can be tried out by telnet to
www.twi.tudelft.nl, login as 'lynx'. Better than nothing...
On the subject of this HMI protocol that's only distributed in
compiled form: maybe we should do a fundraiser and buy the CIS guys a
compiler for our machines..."
Shelly "G" asks:
"What's new with Compo's latest Falcon Speed emulator. Does anyone
know?"
Albert Dayes of Atari Explorer Online Magazine tells Shelly:
"Currently still the 286 version. Nothing much has been said about the
486 version."
Michael Gaitor asks:
"Does anyone know of a disk editing utility for the 1040 ST that is
comparable in ability to the PC's NU or DiskEdit (Norton Utilities) or
DE (Central Point PC Tools, which is sadly disappearing after being
bought by its main competitor, Symantec/Norton, apparently to crush
competition)? I really screwed up an ST floppy disk by trying to
unerase a file from it on my PC using NU. Now the disk is all but
totally useless on my ST and I lost valuable data. (No HD on my ST, so
no backup, either.) I did nothing else to the disk so I'm hoping
there's _some_ way to salvage the data, though I've been totally
unsuccessful so far."
Albert Dayes of Atari Explorer Online Magazine tells Michael:
"There is Disk Mech which should be in the library which is a good
sector editor for floppy disks. The newest version of ORA's Diamond
Edge has a sector editor (I don't know the quality of it). Then there
is Knife ST by HiSoft/ORA.
You can find ORA and HiSoft/ORA products at an Atari Dealer like (Toad
Computers).
Can you read the floppy disk on the PC? If so it might be useful to
copy all of your files to another disk or hard drive on the PC. Then
copy them back to newly formatted PC disk (720K) and see if that
works."
Michael tells Albert:
"Thanks for the info. Unfortunately, I _did_ try copying the files to
the PC, copying to another diskette and then moving back to the ST, but
apparently the directory structure is corrupted ('think there are also
two physically bad sectors) and neither NU or DE will read the
directory and FAT correctly. The files, when moved back to the ST, are
just garbage. I think the FAT may be incorrect or offset by some
factor and everything else is being thrown off."
Sysop Bob Retelle tells Michael:
"We should have a program in our library here called RECOVR (I
believe that's the name), which lets you read the sectors from a disk
one by one and selectively save them into a disk file sequentially.
It's not much good for binary files, but for readable text it can help
you recover lost files. Naturally, it works best if the file is
completely contiguous on the disk, but you can also save out sections
and rearrange them in a word processor if necessary.
I've only had to use it once or twice myself, but when I did need it,
it worked pretty well."
Michel Vanhamme asks about a particular file extension:
"I downloaded a file with the .tgz extension from a BBS. I assume tgz
stands for a compression protocol, but I have no utility that
decompresses such files. I browsed the libraries with the keyword TGZ
but nothing came up. Can anyone help?"
Albert Dayes tells Michael:
"It sounds like the file has tar and gnu zip used to create it."
Carl Barron adds:
"In Unix the command is gzip -dc filename | tar xf -
In pre mint atariland this done as
gzip -dc filename >tempfile.tar
tar xf tempfile.tar
delete tempfile.tar.
Some pre mint cli's will accept the unix syntax but do it as I showed
above. A mint aware shell can do it the same way unix does and avoid
the HUGE tempfile.tar
Also beware unix filenames are not restricted to 8.3 and this can cause
some conflicts in names chosen by tar during extraction. There are
ways to get all the files out of the tar file even if they all would
reduce the the same 8.3 name."
Eric Minoli asks for help:
"I have a PC computer. I would like to copy my ASCII files from my
atari Mega ST to my PC. I used STTOPC.COM but it didn't work (error
message is : Unable to read boot sector - status byte is hex 10). I
try to use FDREAD.EXE and other program but without good results.
May be someone can help me to copy my atari files to my PC."
Albert Dayes tells Eric too...
"Format a 720K floppy on the PC and then use on your Atari to transfer
files in both directions."
Sysop Bob Retelle asks Eric:
"Do you still have your MegaST computer..?
If so, then Albert's suggestion to format a floppy on the IBM computer
and use it to transfer the files should work well...
If you don't have an Atari computer any more, it's more complicated.
I do know that we've had members here report that they've used the
STTOPC program successfully, so maybe they can give you some help in
that area..."
My old pal Doug Finch asks for help:
"Atarians past, present and [:)] future: I realize that I'm about five
years late (or more), but I recently picked up somebody's unused Zubair
Z-RAM 3-D/4MEG upgrade kit for my old Atari 520STFm. Came with 2MB f
RAM seated on the board, would like to add 2MB more to get full use of
its capacity. Have some questions for anyone who has done the upgrade
and knows what they're doing (or did):
1) Board was populated with Samsung(?) RAM chips (KM41C1000P-10). In
obtaining extra RAM, do I need to get EXACTLY the same type of
chips to fill the restof the board, or are others OK as long as I
match the speed of the existing ones? Do I need to know anything
about the limitations of the ST with regard to faster RAM chips? Can
anyone direct me to distributors that carry these chips for a decent
price?
2) My unit has the original TOS 1.0. When I get around to upgrading
this, are any more recent versions of TOS incompatibl with the Z-RAM
upgrade?
3) MMU is older CO25912-38, so I apparently do NOT have to replace it
to accomodate all 4MB, right?
4) Would appreciate additional tips anyone might have to make the
upgrade a successful one."
Andreas Rosenberg tells Doug:
"Re: 1) Any one mega bit chip that's organized 1M*1 (NO 256K*4) that is
faster than 150ns should work.
Re: 2) TOS versions below 1.04 are a little bit slow in dealing with 4
megs. You should upgrade to 1.04 (or even 2.06) because you will get
more speed, more comfort and less bugs. You could make the TOS
switchable if you have older programs, that won't run on a newer TOS.
Re: 3) No idea. I've running a 4MB upgrade in a 260ST for several years
and it works perfectly."
Sysop Bob tells Doug:
"Do you have the installation instructions for the Z-RAM board..?
The ST can only address 2 banks of memory, no matter how large each
bank may be.. the motherboard RAM is one bank and the 2 Megs currently
on the Z-RAM board is the other. If you go to 4 Megs, both baks will
be on the Z-RAM board, and the original RAM will have to be disabled.
The Z-RAM documentation should detail how to do that.
As Andreas mentioned, any 256K x 1 RAM chips should work. There
shouldn't be any speed related problems at all, as long as you keep the
same speed within the individual banks of memory."
George Kopeczky asks for opinions...
"I'd like to hook up my Atari ST 1040 with a host adapter to my Mac's
SCSI chain. (consisting of a CD-Rom, HD, Syquest, Bernoulli, 600 Meg
optical, & scanner) to access these goodies.
The scanner might be impossible to use without additional software, the
Mac-formatted HD won't work, but the remaining remvables should work (
I guess ).
Any suggestions from someone who already managed to carry out a such
feat?"
Kevin at PG Music tells George:
"I too would like to connect my Falcon030 and Quadra 660av together via
SCSI.... mainly so I could share the CD-ROM and SyQuest drives.
Let me know what you find out. I haven't tried it yet. :)
It is one of those things I just haven't gotten around to tinkering
with."
Chris Roth tells Kevin:
"I did and still do sometimes connect my Kurzweil K2000 Sampler/Synth
via SCSI with the Falcon. They share a Syquest reovable. It works, you
just have to pay attention that they NEVER try to access the same
device at the same time.
I once destroyed a whole partition byaccessing the Syquest with the
Kurzweil and meanwhile started SCSI-Tools on the Falcon...
Anyhow, if you're using advanced hd drivers, you can write protect
partitions."
George Kopeczky asks:
"I wonder, what does an ICD Host adapter (with a box) for the ST 1040
cost. (Are there several versions or only one, BTW?)"
Albert Dayes tells George:
"The most current ICD host adapter is the AdSCSI+. There are also
external ones like the LINK and LINK 2. Both the AdSCSI+ and the LINK 2
support parity.
You can have dealers build boxes for you. Atari dealers like Toad
Computers is just one of many."
George asks Albert:
"So, all in all, there are three kinds of host adapters. OK. Which is
the best if I want to hook up the cheapest 'big' Mac-compaible SCSI
drive I can find?
(Something like the second hand optical removable 600Meg for $800 I
run into from time to time on AOL Classifieds?)
I can understand the difference between an internal and external host
adapter, but the meaning (and role) of parity isn't quite clear to me."
Albert explains:
"I don't think ICD makes host adapters anymore that do not support
parity. It is good to have the parity option (so you can use it if you
need it). Anyway Link2 and AdSCSI+ are the adapters too look for.
I think of AdSCSI+ as an internal board which must be placed into a box
or cabinet. The LINK 2 is about the size of a seral (25 pin) gender
changer. It plugs into your DMA port and then you plug the SCSI cable
into the LINK 2. The SCSI cable would be coming from your device which
could be anything like CD-ROM, Hard Drive, MO drive, etc...
Parity is basically a simple error checking scheme. You basically add
up all the bits and set the parity bit based on the result. There are
different types of parity (odd, even and none). If the result of
adding all of the bits is odd then the odd parity would be set (if
using odd parity). If the result of adding all of the bits together was
even then the parity bit would be set to zero."
From the Portfolio Section of the Palmtop Forum
===============================================
Jeremy Setter posts:
"I have noticed several messages mentioning DIP in the UK who can
supply replacement Portfolios and accessories. I have used them
frequently for memory cards and for Portfolio programmes.They can be
reached at:
DIP Systems Limited:
Tel: +44 1483 301555
Fax: +44 1483 578072
Mob: +44 831 513938
32 Frederick Sanger Road
Surrey Research Park
Guildford GU2 5XN, UK"
Alan Ogden tells Jeremy:
"I beleve that DIP developed the Portfolio and Atari just badged and
sold it. One may still get Ports from DIP and there is at least one
deler who advertises them in U.K. computer mags at about 100 pounds.
DIP will do repairs too but they are not cheap. The main problem
seems to be the cable to the screen which wears with the constant
opening and closing of the case."
Well, that's about it for this week. Join me again next week, same time,
same channel, and be ready to listen to what they are saying when...
PEOPLE ARE TALKING
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STReport's "EDITORIAL CARTOON"
""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
> A "Quotable Quote" A true "Sign of the Times"
"""""""""""""""""
How to Change a Lightbulb
Q: How many WordPerfect support technicians does it take to change a
light bulb?
A: We have an exact copy of the light bulb here, and it seems to be
working fine. Can you tell me what kind of system you have? OK. Now
exactly how dark is it? Ok, there could be four or five things
wrong....Have you tried the light switch?
Q: How many managers does it take to change a light bulb?
A: We've formed a task force to study the problem of why light bulbs
burn out, and to figure out what, exactly, we as supervisors can do
to make the bulbs works smarter, not harder.
Q: How many testers does it take to change a light bulb?
A: We just noticed the room was dark; we don't actually fix the
problem.
Q: How many Microsoft technicians does it take to change a light bulb?
A: Three. Two holding the ladder, and one to screw the light bulb into
the faucet.
Q: How many MIS guys does it take to change a light bulb?
A: MIS has recieved your request concerning your hardware problem and
hads assigned your request service number 39,712. Please use this
number for any future references to this light bulb issue.
Q: How many C++ programmers does it take to change a light bulb?
A: You're still thinking prodeduraly. A properly designed light-bulb
object would inherit a change method from a generic light-bulb
class, so all you'd have to do is send a light-bulb-change message.
Q; How many developers does it take to change a light bulb?
A:The light bulb works fine on the system in my office...
Q: How many shipping department's pesonnel does it take to change a
light bulb?
A: We can change the light bulb in seven to ten working days, but if
you call before 2 p.m., and pay an extra $15, we can get you the
bulb changed over night.
Q: How many Microsoft engineers does it take to change a light bulb?
A: None. Bill gates will just redefine Darkness [tm] as the new
industry standard.
Q: How long does it take a DEC repairman to change a light bulb.
A: It depends on how many burnt out light bulbs he brought with him.
Q: How many Microsoft vice presidents does it take to change a light
bulb?
A: Eight. One to work the light bulb, and seven to make sure Microsoft
gets $2 for every light bulb ever changed around the world.
Q: How many Atari execs does it take to change a light bulb?
A: We no longer support that product, however the new Jaguar CD does
include a virtual light bulb that never needs changing!
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STReport International OnLine Magazine
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STR OnLine! "YOUR INDEPENDENT NEWS SOURCE" May 12, 1995
Since 1987 copyright 1995 All Rights Reserved No. 1119
""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
All Items quoted, in whole or in part, are done so under the provisions of
The Fair Use Law of The Copyright Laws of the U.S.A. Views, Opinions and
Editorial Articles presented herein are not necessarily those of the
editors/staff of STReport International OnLine Magazine. Permission to
reprint articles is hereby granted, unless otherwise noted. Reprints
must, without exception, include the name of the publication, date, issue
number and the author's name. STR, CPU, STReport and/or portions therein
may not be edited, used, duplicated or transmitted in any way without
prior written permission. STR, CPU, STReport, at the time of publication,
is believed reasonably accurate. STR, CPU, STReport, are trademarks of
STReport and STR Publishing Inc. STR, CPU, STReport, its staff and
contributors are not and cannot be held responsible in any way for the use
or misuse of information contained herein or the results obtained
therefrom.
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