N.O.A.H. - February 1990
From: Atari SIG (xx004@cleveland.Freenet.Edu)
Date: 03/01/94-04:37:43 PM Z
From: xx004@cleveland.Freenet.Edu (Atari SIG)
Subject: N.O.A.H. - February 1990
Date: Tue Mar 1 16:37:43 1994
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N e w s n o t e s
February 1990 Issue #4
__________________________
Northern Ohio Atari Helpers
February 1990
Volume 1, Issue 4
A Special Message From Archer
I would Just like to say that I was very impressed with the
turnout of last month's meeting. If it is any indication of the
future, I can honestly say that ST support is far from dead! I
knew that there were ST users out there, and you all proved me
right!
I also would like to thank AAA Video for the support, and a
place to hold the meetings. N.O.A.H membership is growing by
leaps and bounds and is already begining to rival some of the
bigger groups supporting other computers. I hope that all ST
users will find the time to stop in and attend a meeting. We have
quite a lot planned in the coming months and you won't want to
miss a thing!
Gary "Archer" Turton
================================================================
Archer's Angles
Bloodwych
Hello again from the Silver Archer. This month we take a
dive into The Realm of Bloodwych! Some would say that it is a
take-off of Dungeon Master and maybe that's true, but I played
AND solved Dungeon Master (Long before all the tricks and tips)
and am now working on Chaos Strikes Back, and, in my opinion,
Bloodwych is Better. I am a fanatic D&D player, so I like to have
a little more control over what happens in a game, and Bloodwych
does just that!
In the game, a mystical order of mages (I thought all mages
were mystical) called the Bloodwych have chosen your body to
despose of a real menace who has taken over their Tower. You get
to choose three others to help you at this task of wandering
through the castle bloodwych in search of all these Nasties.
Sounds like Dungeon Master you say? Well, this is where the
similiarities end. You actually get to Talk, yell, scold,
dismiss, and many other options to the things you will encounter!
The graphics are all out awesome! The game is played with one or
two (thats right two!) players. You can communicate with the
other adventuring party and even kill them if you wish, although
it's better to work together.
The movement and controling of Bloodwych is almost identical to Dungeon Master and any adventure game player will catch on
quickly. Bloodwych is a great looking game and a lot fun. The
graphics are right up there with the best. I see that the next
part to Bloodwych is already out on the shelves, so there is a
lot more playing to be done.
Well, that about raps up Bloodwych. if you liked Dungeon
Master you'll love it! And speaking of Dungeon Master, I am on
the move in Chaos Strikes Back (reviewed in last month's newslet-ter by Rick Gridley). Look for hints, tricks and tips in a new
column starting next month written by Yours Truly called..."On
Target." Next month's review..North and South
Until Again, Aluve
================================================================
Spectre GCR
Finally a MacIntosh for 'the rest of us'
by Kevin Steele
I still remember the first time I learned about the Macin-tosh computer. No it wasn't during the 1984 Superbowl, when Apple
Computer aired their famous "Big Brother" commercial. It was an
ad in Time magazine proclaiming a new computer, a "computer for
the rest of us." I fell in love, a deep, eternal love that
lasted until I saw the price tag. Apple, it seems, had a strange
concept of what "the rest of us" could afford to pay for a
computer. Sadly, I shelved my dream on a recess in the back of my
mind labeled NBTE ("Nice, But Too Expensive").
Now, years later, my dream has come true. I have a Mac
sitting on my desk, a Macintosh that is compatible with the Mac
Plus, running at a speed close to that of a Mac SE, with hard
disk access speeds that are faster than a Mac II, and with a
screen that is the same size as the Mac Portable. And all of this
for a price that I could afford, thanks to Gadgets By Small and
the Spectre GCR.
The Spectre GCR has been hailed as everything from "an
interesting hack" to a "miracle." It would be highly redundant
for me to heap any more praise on this device. Simply put, it
performs exactly as advertised. This aspect alone is quite a
rarity in the computer world, and almost reason enough to support
GBS with your hard-earned dollars. To run the Spectre GCR, you do
need an Atari ST. But, you may then ask, why bother to emulate a
Macintosh when you've already got a wonderful mouse-based
computer? Well, in one word, Software.
The Macintosh found its niche in the computer world, and
that niche is desktop publishing and graphics. The Macintosh,
from the start, had an integrated graphics and text system,
allowing you to cut and paste between nearly any two applications\j\with ease. Need a graph from a spreadsheet to paste into your
word processing document? No problem. The Macintosh also had
support for the Postscript printer language from the beginning,
meaning that every application running on the Mac could obtain
the best output available in the industry. Due to heavy (and
mandatory) standardization, Mac applications package show a
polish and ease-of-use that is hard to equal.
Well, enough reasons for why one should emulate, how good is
this emulation? Very good, to be accurate. The Spectre GCR is a
bit large, but fits well into the cartridge slot. The cartridge
comes with the case removed, since you must first install two
Macintosh ROM chips into it first. This is to skirt some very
tricky legal issues concerning using the Mac's proprietary
operating system. Once you've bought the 128k ROM chips, however,
you can do anything you want to themyou bought them, they're
yours to play with. You'll also need the latest version of the
disk-based part of the operating system, a pair of programs
called "System" and "Finder." These are available for the cost of
a download from GEnie, for the cost of the disks at a Mac User's
Group, or for $50.00 at a Macintosh Dealer (see what I mean about
inflated Mac prices?). If you've downloaded the files, you'll
need to use a program called "Transverter" (included with the
GCR) to transfer the files to a Macintosh-formatted disk.
Formatting a Macintosh disk can be accomplished with the Spectre
software while in ST modesince you'll need a Mac disk to boot
your pseudo-mac, this is recommended.
Once you've plugged the chips in, closed the case, and
plugged the cart in, you must also plug a drive cable into the
back of the cartridge and then into the drive port on your ST.
This allows the Spectre to read and write Macintosh disks. Once
this is done, you simply turn on your ST and run the special
software driver. Your ST will make a "bong" noise like the Mac,
the screen will fade, and you will be presented with a little
graphic of a smiling Macintosh as your ST loads the system
software. I kid you not this is how the Mac tells you it is
functioning properly! After this, the words "Welcome To Mac-intosh" will appear, followed by the Mac desktop.
From here on, you're running a Macintosh, not an ST. There
are a few keys that have been "re-mapped" on the ST's keyboard to
simulate the Macintosh keyboard, such as using the Control key as
a "Command" key, and the Alternate key as a "Option" key. Once
you've familiarized yourself with the new keys, using the
keyboard is simple. Not that you'll have to use the keyboard for
much. The Macintosh is even more mouse-intensive than the STnot
every program has keyboard equivalents for the menu functions, so
it's a good thing mouse emulation is flawless with the GCR.
Think of the Mac's desktop as "NeoDesk Plus" you can pull
files and programs to the desktop, programs come "pre-installed,"
so that you can simply double-click on any file generated by a
program to load that file and the program. You can set the mouse\j\speed, background pattern, disk cache, cursor blink speed,
double-click rate, time/date, and more from the control panel,
plus load special "CDEV" programs that add new features to the
control panel. You can display files as Icons, Small Icons, or
Icons with Text. Filenames on the Macintosh aren't limited to 8
letters and an extension. Heck, forget extensionsif you want to
call a file "Teenage Mutant CDEV's From Outer Space", you can.
Well, once you've played around in Mac-Land and are ready to
get back to ST mode, how do you do it? Simplepressing Shift-Help
on the keyboard will re-boot the computer back into ST mode, and
you're "back in Kansas," so to speak. The Spectre software is
simple to use, intuitive, in operation, and very hard to crash.
What more could you want in a program?
With the possible exception of a reason to buy it, that is.
If you have no need to run Macintosh software, and the ST meets
all of your needs, then the GCR isn't for you unless you can
afford to pay $450 ($299 for the GCR plus $150 for the ROMs) for
a plaything. Still, the Spectre GCR is a wonderful device that
offers an amazing amount of "bang for your buck"where else can
you get a "computer-in-a-cart" for only $450?
================================================================
"Warning: Programming May Be Hazardous To Your Health"
by Rick Ortman
I was asked by the owner of AAA Video to write an article
about programming on the ST, most likely in response to a program
I recently wrote and uploaded to a few area bulletin boards. I'm
not claiming to be an expert programmer, but I will say this GFA
Basic is about as close to simplified programming as you can get.
If you like to program but have found other languages to be too
complex, I strongly urge you to try it. I most likely would never
have attempted writing Disk-Filer had it not been for GFA. Surely
not in Atari Basic, which I found to be much slower, inadequate,
and clumsy to use. GFA is fairly easy to learn and quite power-ful! If my opinion seems biased, it is. And for good reason. I've
tried my hand at assembly language and Pascal with little success
at either. This leaves me with a limited number of choices.
I wrote Disk-Filer for one reason and one reason only. I
wanted to catalog my disks and do it my way. But what started out
as a simple project turned into a four month computing marathon.
Sleepless nights, 14 hour a day weekends and missed Browns' games
(big deal) were the norm. My wife, who already accuses me of
being dumber than a box of rocks for spending so much time on
this machine, even before I started this project, was ready to
toss me and my ST out the window. But my kids I truly feel sorry
for. They were the ones who had to witness a well-dressed and
clean-shaven man walk into a room on Friday afternoon and crawl\j\out Sunday evening resembling a zombie-like Neanderthal with eyes
like fiery hot coals and a back so stiff you could use it for a
spring board.
It's quite a unique feeling laboring over a keyboard
churning out sub-routine after sub-routine, wondering how in the
world four hours could have gone by in the last 30 minutes. Must
have something to do with Einstein's theory of time and relativ-ity. But the real dilemma I'm faced with is how do I continue
concentrating on my monitor while trying to ignore the over-flowing contents of my ashtray along with the odor it produces
and at the same time continue the athleticism developed in my
younger days by ducking another incoming frying pan?
There is one important lesson to be learned from all this
though. When your program is finished and the frustration has
subsided and your children are thoroughly versed in all the "new"
words you've been teaching them the last couple of months, you
say to yourself, "you deserve a break today!" And I don't mean
McDonald's, either. Open a bottle of wine, leave the ST alone for
awhile, and spend some quality time with my family. I could relax
on the sofa and talk to my wife, until she takes command of the
conversation by informing me of our dire need for a new dish-washer, dryer, or living-room set. Or that one of the kids needs
braces. Or, I could watch the boys tear their rooms and limbs
apart after they've spent an afternoon session watching mutant
turtles and big-time wrestling! I could install the garage door
opener I got for Christmas or start one of the countless other
chores I've been neglecting or...
You know, if I move real slow I'll bet I can make it back in
there without being noticed. Thanks, Sam Tramiel and GFA. If not
for you I, too, would be getting ready to visit my mother-in-law.
Let's see. What project can I begin now?
================================================================
N.O.A.H. Newsnotes
Our last meeting on January 30th was a great success! The
demonstration of MIDI by Cliff Scott was enlightening for all.
Many of the people in attendance were so awed by the music he
played that they requested a disk or two of his music. After the
meeting he did promise to get some samples to me for distribution
to the members. When "Blame It On The Rain" kicked in I saw many
a jaw drop to the floor.
Probably the most impressive thing though was his ability to
put together most of a complete song in around twenty minutes! I
for one have worked many hours at a keyboard with the ST co-nnected and am lucky to get the bass line down for "In a Gadda--Da-Vida" (yes I am old enough to remember that song...note for
note). I guess you could say everyone enjoyed it since the\j\meeting was supposed to end at 9 pm and the last people left,
forcibly, at around 10:30!! I hope the attendance at this meeting
is a sign of good things to come.
This month's demonstration on DTP's is being handled by
Kevin Steele. I have seen Kevin's name on local boards for a
while but it wasn't until recently that I met him in person. He,
like Cliff, uses the ST to support himself and his family. After
meeting him, talking with him and seeing a few samples of his
work, I boldly asked him to do a demonstration for the group. He
graciously agreed and I'm sure I will be writing a glowing review
on him in next month's N.O.A.H. Newsnotes.
If anyone wishes to receive the N.O.A.H. Newsnotes by mail
for one reason or another, leave E-Mail on any of the support
boards listed in this newsletter and we will do our best to get
it to you as quickly as possible.
One last thing...anyone wishing to contribute an article,
ie. Review, Commentary, Editorial, etc., either bring it into the
store or upload it to the BBS's with a daytime phone number so we
can confirm the authenticity.
A A A Video Manager
================================================================
ST ERROR CODES
Error description GEM Error code
==============,==========================
OK (no error)............,........0
Fundamental error...,.............1
Drive not ready..,............,....2
Unknown command........,..........3
CRC error.....,...,........,........4
Bad request...,...,....,..........,..5
Seek error..,.........,..........,..6
Unknown media................,....7
Sector not found.........,........8
No paper......,...................9
Write fault...,..................10
Read fault....,..................11
General error..................,.12
Write protect.,..................13
Media change..,..................14
Unknown device...,...............15
Bad sectors on format...........16
Insert other disk...............17
Invalid function number.........32
File not found...........,.......33
Path not found..................34
No handles left.................35
Access denied.,..................36
Invalid handle.................,.37
Insufficient memory.............39
Invalid memory block address....40
Invalid drive specified.........46
No more files..................,.49
Range error...,..................64
Internal error..................65
Invalid program load format.....66
Those bombs that appear on your screen are error messages
from the 68000 micro-processor.
Description Number of bombs
==================================
Reset: Initial PC2...............1
Bus Error..........,..........,....2
Address Error......,..............3
Illegal Instruction.....,.........4
Zero Divide..,..........,..........5
CHK Instructio,n....,..............6
TRAPV Instruct,ion............,....7
Privilege Violation,..........,....8
Trace...,.....,..........,..........9
Line 1010 Emulator..............10
Line 1111 Emulator..............11
[unassig,ned, reserved]..,........12
[unassig,ned, reserved]..,........13
Format Error..,..........,.....,...14
Uninitia,lized Interrupt Vector..15
[unassig,ned, reserved].......16-23
Spurious Interrupt...........,...24
Level 1 Interrupt Autovector....25
Level 2 Interrupt Autovector....26
Level 3 Interrupt Autovector....27
Level 4 Interrupt Autovector....28
Level 5 Interrupt Autovector....29
Level 6 Interrupt Autovector....30
Level 7 Interrupt Autovector....31
Trap Instructi,on Vectors.....32-47
[unassig,ned, reserved].......,48-63
User Interrupt Vectors......64-255
================================================================
Star Command
============
Outer Space Adventure/RPG from SSI
review by
Rick Gridley
\j\ Star Command, the outer space computer role playing game
from SSI has finally made it to the ST. The game has been
available in MS-DOS format for a couple of years now. The initial
ST version shipped with a virus that did no real harm, however,
Electronic Arts, who distribute SSI games were a little "red--faced" about the incident and did a recall on the ST version.
Version 1.1, which is clean, is now out and this game fills a big
missing void for those of us yearning for a good outer space type
RPG.
The game and manual are up to SSI's fine standards. The
learning curve of the game is a little steep at first. There is a
lot to learn about arming and fitting both your crew and your
starship. After a few hours, though, you'll start getting a
richer understanding of the numerous weapons/systems and the like
for the game.
Upon booting the game for the first time you may shout
YEEEECH! The graphics and colors are horrible, in fact it looks
like a direct port from a CGA version. However, do not let that
fool you. There is a very good game underneath those poor
graphics.
In the game, you and your merry band travel the galaxy on
various missions from Star Command. All the while you are earning
more credits and getting experience to advance both the power of
your crew and the upgrading of your spaceship. Pretty much
standard fare as in most CRPG's, but this time it's set in outer
space, a very welcome change.
Credits are earned by completing missions, defeating various
alien spacecraft, defeating aliens in ground or inside ship
combat, scientific exploration, trading and espionage. There are
many different ways to earn money but the most rewarding are
combat and completing missions. The trading aspect of this game
is a very small part and no real money can be made by trading.
There are thousands, and I do mean thousands, of planets to
explore throughout the galaxy, which is represented in its full
pinwheel shape. You can zoom down on the galactic map right into
starsystems and onto individual planets. Planetary landings by
your crew are possible and essential in completing many missions.
There are large ground complexes for you to find and explore.
These self-map, something like the dungeons in the Phantasie
series. (In fact, Winston Douglas Wood, who designed Phantasie,
is the designer of this game).
Not all missions are given to you the first time you play
the game and some will repeat, others will not during future
games, giving Star Command a lot of replay value, something
missing from most CRPG's.
So the bottom line, if you love computer role playing games
but are getting a little tired of the slaying of evil wizards and\j\dragons, then give Star Command a try. Once you're in the flow
this game is the "universe" come to life.
HOT TITLES COMING FOR THE ST
The following titles are all highly recommended games that
should arrive soon, some in fact by the time this makes it to
print; STARFLIGHT, SIM-CITY, BATTLE of BRITAIN, POOL of RADIANCE,
F19, M1 TANK SIMULATOR and ULTIMA V.
These are all fine titles and I look forward to them all.
================================================================
The Rumor Mill
==============
Pittsburgh Atarifest
====================
The following is a press release from PACE:
Announcing the North East ATARIfest '90, being Sponsored by PACE
(the Pittsburgh Atari Computer Enthusiasts)
Where: Chartiers Valley High School, near Pittsburgh, PA. Located
just off I-79 at the Heidelburg / Kerwin Heights exit. Within 15
minutes of the Greater Pittsburgh International Airport. Easy
access from from the PA Turnpike via Exit #3.
When: April 28th & 29th
Time: Saturday the 28th from 10:00 am to 5:00 pm, and Sunday the
29th from 12:00 pm to 5:00 pm.
Users Groups: Tables are available to any Officially Atari
Recognized User's Group for only $25.00 per table.
Need more Information?: Call the PACE BBS at 412-571-0891 and
read the show's message base. Validation is immediate! Or, call
412-843-0628 voice after 5:00pm EST.
If you've ever been to a show that PACE has put on before, you'll
know that they are well attended by the best retailers & develop-ers!
(More details on this event will be forwarded when they become
available. As this is the closest Atarifest to the Cleveland area
yet, you should make your plans to attend now!)
New Syquest Drive
=================
The SQ355, from Syquest Technology, is a brand new low-profile
42-meg removable media drive. The drive, which weighs only 3.1
ounces and is barely one inch high, supports special 3.5 inch\j\cartridges, allowing nearly unlimited storage with a speedy 19ms
access time. The drive, which can be equipped with a standard
SCSI interface, is priced at $290.00 in OEM quantities. With an
ICD Host adapter, power supply, case, healthy profit margin,
etc., it might become available soon for the ST with a guess-timated price range of $600 to $800. This drive looks to be a
better bargain than the current Syquest drive available on the ST
market, which is about the same size as a half-height hard drive,
has a 25ms access time, and retails for about $900 fully ST--ready.
Outline to Support EPS
======================
ISD Recently announced a special conversion package for their new
object-based art program, Calamus Outline Art. This software,
which will be offered only to registered owners, will convert
Outline's CVG format into Encapsulated Postscript format (EPS).
This will allow art created in Outline to be used in PageStream
in conjunction with Ultrascript or a Postscript printer, and will
also allow Outline clip art to be used with Mac and IBM DTP
programs. The converter is said to be completed, and will be
ready to ship when Calamus Outline becomes available.
PC Ditto II Problems
====================
Avant Garde is having big problems with their new PC Ditto II IBM
emulator. Seems the first batch of boards went out with a better
than 90% failure rate! The situation was blamed on a manufactur-ing problem, and it is being worked on, but it also appears that
Mega ST's may not even be able to boot with the board installed,
due to a conflict with the blitter chip. This has not led to many
happy customers, all of whom have been waiting for many, many
months for this hardware device. We'll let you know about further
developments.
Stacy Testing
=============
Latest word on the Stacy laptop is not good. Stacy has "partial-ly" passed FCC certification only as a Class A Industrial Device.
This means it cannot be sold as a home unit in its current state,
although musicians may be able to get their hands on it through
certain outlets. Home electronics usually require a Class C
rating, which is actually means that a Class C device emits less
electromagnetic emission than a Class A device! Go figure.
Anyway, the line of professional musicians interested in the
portable is said to include such notable names as Donnie Osmond
and Michael Jackson. Think Michael will plug the ST for free?
Nah, I didn't think so, either...
WordPerfect News
================
WordPerfect is currently working on a new release of WordPerfect
ST. The new version is supposed to allow WordPerfect to work
properly with the Moniterm monitor, as well as with ICD's new\j\hard disk driver software. New features are being added as well,
and no decision has been made as to whether this new version will
be considered a "maintenance" upgrade, or a whole new version. If
the decision is made to make it a new version, it will be
"similar or better" to the IBM 4.2 version, according to Word
Perfect Corp. No word on whether a 5.0/5.1 version of WordPerfect
for the ST will ever be considered, however.
Easy Draw "Touched-Up"
======================
Migraph is currently re-working one of their most popular
programs, Easy Draw. The new version will have all the function-ality of the current version, 3.0, but will feature a new user
interface, one similar to the interface used in Touch-Up, another
popular Migraph program. This new version of Easy Draw will go
under a different name, and should be available sometime later
this year. No decision yet has been made as to whether this new
version will incorporate the features of the Easy Tools accessory
for Easy Draw into the main program or not.
Spectre GCR Update
==================
The Spectre GCR Macintosh emulator got off to a very good start,
with the final product performing exactly as advertised. That is,
with the noted exception of Mega owners, who were faced with a
double-whammy of problems"weak" 74LS373 driver chips in some Mega
2's caused crashes with the cartridge plugged in, and a poorly--shielded internal drive caused read/write errors in Mac mode.
The chips can be easily upgraded, and the drive is easily fixed
with some foil or other metal shielding, so all in all, even the
"big" problems weren't so bad. The current version of the Spectre
software is 2.3, with 2.5 "almost ready." Version 2.5 will be a
free upgrade to registered owners, and will include better
Multifinder support, compatibility with MS Word 3.02, and true
numeric keypad emulation.
STE Available in Canada
=======================
The 1040STE, Atari's new "base" ST, is now available in Canada
and Europe. The STE sports a 4096 color palette, 2 new additional
analog joystick ports, SIMM memory module slots allowing easy
upgrade to 4 megs, and a new DMA stereo sound system, allowing
digitized sound to be produced independently of the main CPU for
faster, near-CD quality sound. It is not a revolutionary upgrade,
but a nice one considering the fact it should retail for approx-imately the same price as the current 1040ST. The STE is current-ly undergoing FCC testing, which means a projected availability
date in the U.S. would be nearly impossible to estimate.
Epyx Folding?
=============
Epyx, the designers of the Lynx game machine for Atari, has laid
off most of its work force. Rumors point to the fact that Epyx
was late in releasing the Lynx, and Atari had a rather large\j\"penalty clause" in their contract with Epyx. It is rumored that
Epyx may be closing altogether. Epyx holds the only develop,ment
license for the units.
CMI Goes Under
==============
CMI, the maker of a nice accelerator board for the ST, has
dropped away from sight and disconnected their phone. A message
posted on GEnie by an ex-employee of CMI stated that the company
had badly misjudged the demand for their board, and that the
sudden appearance of other accelerator boards diluted their
market share to the point where they could no longer stay in
business.
Morand Leaves Atari
===================
The new president of Atari, Mike Morand, has left. He came to
Atari leaving his job at AST Research. He was president of Atari
for barely six weeks before he quit or was fired. Sadly, the
revolving door strikes again.
================================================================
Publishing Pointers
Desktop Publishing:
What's Right for You?
=====================
1990, by Kevin Steele.
All Rights Reserved.
Getting Started
===============
So you've been thinking about trying your hand at Desktop
Publishing, have you? A lot of people, it seems, have been.
Usually, as soon as a person decides they would like to enter the
world of desktop publishing, an army of threatening questions
appears on the horizon. Which DTP program should you buy? Are you
going to need a new printer? How about a scanner? Is a hard disk
really necessary? How about extra memory? Where should you start?
The advice I mentioned last month about how to buy a
computer applies to this situation as well: find out what it is
you are going to want to do with desktop publishing, and then
find the software that matches your needs. Simple enough, but how
do you find out what your needs are? You may have a general idea,
but narrowing it down to specifics can be tough.
Who, What, and Why
==================
Not many people really use desktop publishing software for\j\newsletters. Let's face it, how many newsletter editors are
really out there? Not many. So then, what other practical uses
are there for desktop publishing software? How you use the
software depends a lot on who you are. If you are planning on
using DTP software at your place of business, a lot of possible
uses crop up. Everything from advertising flyers to invoices can
be created with desktop publishing software. If you're a home
computing enthusiast, DTP software can spice up everything from
Christmas letters to videotape labels. If you belong to a club or
organization, DTP software can be used for promotional flyers,
and yes, even newsletters.
Which brings us to that very fateful decisionwhich software
package is right for you? If you're planning on just producing a
few simple documents, and don't have plans on "making it big" in
the desktop publishing business, then I'd recommend Timeworks
Desktop Publisher. It is relatively cheap, easy to use, and
produces nice output on dot-matrix printers. If your plans are
more serious than just "letters and labels," you have two main
choices: Calamus or PageStream.
This choice between these two is a bit less clear, and will
depend heavily on personal preference. I'll admit a strong bias
in this casemy choice goes to PageStream, hands down. If you ever
want to take a file to have it professionally typeset, PageStream
is really your only choice. PageStream's support of the Post-script page definition language is unrivaled by any other Atari
DTP program, and Postscript is what most large typesetting
machines require. PageStream allows you to print a Postscript
file to disk, creating an ASCII file you can send over a modem to
almost any computer at a typesetting bureau. The file can then be
printed at laser-standard 300 dpi (dots per inch), 1270 dpi, 2540
dpi, or even higher resolutions! And the nice thing about
Postscript is, your file will keep its exact original layout no
matter what resolution it's printed at.
If you happen to own the Atari SLM804 Laser Printer, Calamus
starts to look better. It has an amazingly fast print time to the
Atari Laser, and Calamus' on-screen representation of what your
page will look like is the best in the industry. Unfortunately,
Calamus' user interface is a nightmare of nested, cryptic icons.
You'll find yourself "moused to death" in no time at all.
PageStream has a wonderfully easy-to-use interface, but the
on-screen representation of your document leaves something to be
desired. Ah, life is just full of compromises.
Hardware Requirements
=====================
With any of the above programs (Timeworks DTP included), one meg
of memory and a hard disk are almost a necessity. With all of the
fonts, clip art, and text files necessary to create a document,
you'll soon find yourself facing a situation where even two
floppy drives can't hold everything you need to even load your
DTP program, let alone save a completed document. A hard drive\j\soon pays for itself in saved time. If you're going to try to
accomplish anything more than just fiddling around with a DTP
program, I strongly urge you to start pinching pennies for a hard
drive.
With the exception of Calamus, a monochrome monitor is not
always necessary to run a DTP program, but it can be quite
helpful. On-screen representation suffers greatly with a lower--resolution color monitor. A monochrome monitor is one of your
cheaper hardware investments, and quite worth it if you plan on
doing any amount of desktop publishing or word processing. The
monochrome screen is clear, sharp, and very detailed. Of course,
the cost of both a hard drive and monochrome monitor may be too
much for your budget at first. I'd recommend getting the hard
drive first.
A scanner? My personal opinion is, don't bother. You may
need some scanned material now and then, but most of the time you
can get away with simple clip art. There is an enormous amount of
public domain clip art out there, and it's quite easy to find
something appropriate. If there is something you absolutely must
get a scanned image of, there are several places that will scan
your picture for a fee, and send you back your picture and a disk
containing your scanned version. It's not always dirt cheap, but
it fits the bill nicely when ordinary clip art won't.
Art Programs
============
Another option for DTP art is to create it yourself with an ST
graphics program. Two programs that I highly recommend for
desktop publishing are Easy Draw 3.0 and Touch Up, both by
Migraph. Easy Draw allows you to create object-oriented art that
won't become "grainy" when enlarged, or "muddy" when reduced.
Touch Up allows you to edit or create large high-resolution
bit-mapped images, such as scanned pictures. Together, these two
programs should cover your art-related needs, provided you have a
modicum of talent in this area. If you couldn't draw a stick
figure to save your life, I'd recommend that you just stick to
clip art.
Things to Come
==============
Well, this has been a very broad coverage of the world of Atari
desktop publishing. I'd recommend that you take the time to
figure out exactly what it is you wish to accomplish with desktop
publishing before you spend any money. Then take the time to
research carefully just what advantages each program on the
market has to offer. If you take your time and do your homework,
your chances of getting the "right" program are far greater. And
with the costs of software today, getting it right ony!
If you have any questions about desktop publishing, please
don't hesitate to ask. Next month, I'll cover some of the more\j\important publishing terms you'll need to know.
================================================================
The Editor's Corner
===================
In case you hadn't noticed, there have been quite a number
of changes in this issue. First off, let me intor for the
N.O.A.H. Newsnotes. I'll be contributing my time, when possible,
to the writing and layout duties of this newsletter.
This particular issue was an experiment of sorts. It was
completely typeset using PageStream 1.8, and printed on a
Postscript laserprinter. I took over complete layout duties for
this issue to try and prove whether the current version of
PageStream was truly "up to Stream's embarassing bug-,filled
adolescence, I had my doubts, as did the Editor. I am pleased to
report that PageStream passed this little test, as I'm sure you
will notice when you examine this issue. After three weeks of
plugging and pounding away on the program, I did manage to crash
the program a few times, and once had a title vanish inexplic-ably. Despite these few problems, however, the po, I hope, will the
newsletter. This newsletter is the result of the efforts of a
number of talented ST owners, including Rick Gridley, Rick
Ortman, Dale Kelsey, and Doug Novak. However, there is always
room for more people to contribute. If there is a game you want
to warn the world about, a hardware bargain that has changed the
way you use your computer, or just a thought you'd like to share
wi
your message.
Well, I've said enough. I hope that you can add your skills
to N.O.A.H's pool of talent, and I hope that this user group
matures into a valuable resource for Atari owners. With Atari's
current attitude towards support, user groups are becoming more
and more a vital part of making your computer a valuable tool, as
opposed to a expensive toy. Until next month, take care and don't
=====================================================
======
NOTICE
======
Opinions expressed in this newsletter are those of the
individual author and do not necessarily reflect those of
N.O.A.H. The name Atari and the associated products and logo are
the registered trademarks of Atari Corporation.
Those wishing to submit articles should do so both on disk\j\and in print. Any word processing format is acceptable, along
with ASCII. Articles printed in this newsletter may be reprinted,
provided that the author and this newsletter are given full
credit.
All efforts have been made to present totally accurate
information in this newsletter. We assume no responsibility for
the actions resulting from someone acting upon any suggestion
presented herein.
SUPPORT
BOARDS
ST Nerd
(216) 582-1904
The Keep
(216) 282-7136
================================================================
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================================================================
$ 5.00 Off
Any software title in stock (with this ad)
* Not valid with any other sale, mark down, or special.
Good from 02/22/90 to 03/08/90
Accessories
Sony Bulk 3.5" Disks
$ .99
Mouse Mats $ 7.99
Joysticks
from... $ 6.99
Joystick Ext. Cables
$ 6.99
Asst. I/O Plugs and Jacks
Asst. Dust Covers
Printer Cables $ 9.95
Replacement muse:
Cords $ 8.99
Buttons $ 2.49
Optics $ 2.49
\j\MIDI Plugs $ 2.95
Asst. Hard Drive Cables
Atari 3' HD Cable
$17.95
Hardware
Supra 2400 Modem
$ 144.95
Best Mouse
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NEW Indus 3.5" Drive
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ST
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ST Format w/Disk $ 9.95
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================
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-----------------------------------------
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