| ROVAC ZMAGAZINE | | Issue #158 | | May 23, 1989 | |Copyright 1989, RII| Entering our 4th year of service to the Atari 8-bit Community! |This week in ZMagazine| A Few Minutes with Randy Mooney Frank Walters Terminal Emulators for the 8-bit Robert Anisko WAACE-Current Notes Contest Analog July 1989 Contents Clayton Walnum Turbo-816 Version 1.1M Orders Z*NET Newswire 8-bit Version Harold Brewer |A FEW MINUTES WITH RANDY MOONEY| |by Frank Walters| T.A.C.O. BELL BBS ...did'ja ever notice those bulletin boards that go wee-wah...wee-wah... wee-wah...when you connect? That really annoys me. I wish all modems went weeeeeh like mine. Half the time they don't even connect anyway. ...did'ja ever notice those bulletin boards that don't do anything when you connect? They make you hit RETURN a bunch of times before anything happens. That's a pain in the neck. Nobody answers a telephone that way, they always say 'Hello?' or something like that. Why don't all bulletin boards say something like 'Hello' when they connect, and not make you hit a bunch of keys before they say anything? It doesn't seem polite to me. I don't like to call them back, I'd rather call a friendlier place, one that answers the phone and says something. ...speaking of answer, did'ja ever see those bulletin boards that just send out a bunch of garbage like a foreign language and make you hit RETURN before you can understand? We're in America and I think bulletin boards should speak English and not some foreign language. I think it's just sloppy programmers who can't figure out what language the caller is going to use. The modem uses the right language, why not ask the modem instead of the caller? ...ya know what really bothers me? Did'ja ever see those messages that you try to read and at the end of the message there are about 33 carriage returns and the whole thing scrolls off the screen before you can read it? I think there ought to be some kind of law or something that everybody who writes messages would have to read their own message and if they don't understand it then they would have to delete it. ...did'ja ever see those silly twirling cursors on some bulletin boards? Did'ja ever capture for a long time and see how much extra garbage goes into the buffer just from those silly cursors? Even worse, did'ja ever try printing them? Twirling cursors really bug me. There oughta be some kind of law that only allowed twirling cursors with the expressed permission of the caller. ...did'ja ever notice those cutesy menus that give you no idea what anything is? I mean, why can't all bulletin boards use 'G' for Goodbye? I've seen Off, Quit, Land, Terminate, and even Bye. Why does every sysop complain about dropped carrier and then make it so hard to log off? There ought to be a law that certain commands are sacred and can't be touched: Download, Upload, Time, Messages and Goodbye! Even those Ataris use Yell instead of Chat. ...did'ja ever notice those people who write long messages that are continued on the next message? Did'ja ever notice after reading all those words that you have no idea what they were talking about? I never read any messages that are continued anymore. People who write those messages don't have anything important to say, they just like to see their words on the screen or maybe just like the typing practice. ...did'ja ever download a big long file from a long-distance board and the file didn't run? I like to have my friends call the long-distance board and download the long files and then give them to me only if they work. I wish I had more friends. I wish I could be allowed to erase those bad files from the sysop's disk so other people wouldn't have the same problem. ...doesn't it bother you that some bulletin boards change the filenames so you don't recognize the download list and you download all the same files as last week but with different names? Maybe the sysop does that 'cause nobody uploads and it makes everybody think he has a lot of different files. I always wondered about that. Maybe somebody uploads them that way so the sysop will think he is getting something new and lets the caller have 'blackbeard privileges' or something. ...'handles' are a pain in the neck. I never could think of a good handle and am embarrassed whenever I log-on a new bulletin board and the last question is 'What is your REAL NAME?'. I never know what to say because I already used my real name. Should I make up a real name different from the one I used at the beginning? One board I logged on asked for my real name first. I thought that would be easy so when it asked for my 'Handle' I just answered: NONE. I left 2 messages from NONE and it kept asking 'NONE, what is your command?' Then when I logged off, it said 'Thank you for calling NONE'. I felt really foolish. I don't like bulletin boards that make me feel foolish. I usually don't call back. I never could leave E-mail on those boards because I never could figure out who to send the mail to. ...did'ja ever notice the sysops who complain the most about callers disconnecting are the ones who have boards that disconnect from you for no reason? Really! Is it polite to tell me after I fill out a long questionaire that I have 9 minutes remaining and then while I am trying to find out where everything is located, I see a message that says 'Time expired, disconnecting...' and it hangs up? Then the next time I call back I have a nasty note from the sysop that says I let my time run out. That really bugs me. I didn't set the time limit, he did. I didn't disconnect, his board did. Why is he so mad at me? ...I could probably run a bulletin board better than most of these sysops and maybe I will some day. It's probably pretty easy. All I need is a BBS program and a couple of extra disk drives, make up my own rules and post messages around that I am open for business. What's so hard about that? Some of these guys think they are some kind of a god or something. That's all the time I have for now. I wish I had more time, you never seem to have enough time for all you want to... |TERMINAL EMULATORS FOR THE 8-BIT| |by Robert Anisko - MVACE| In the world of telecommunications, one of the most helpful and sought-after properties of a modem program is terminal emulation. On the standard computer bulletin board, this is not a great priority. Generally speaking, most BBSes are designed in ASCII, which every system can view. A few have special graphics types, such as ATASCII for the Atari 8-bit, or ANSI for the IBM-types. But in general most any computer can call a BBS without any problems. But you say you want to call up your school mainframe or office system which is not set up in plain ol' ASCII? When you tried calling, you were barraged by an array of meaningless screen garbage? What that garbage is, most often, are special control codes sent by the host computer (the one you hooked into) to what it believes are terminals. Terminals are not technically computers--they are an interface connected to a computer, where the video screen often can be -programmed- for certain functions, such as cursor control or inverse video, by means of control codes. Yep, those creatures that turned your screen into the city dump. Is there anything you can do? (Hmmm... I wonder what he's gonna answer). The answer of course is yes. There are programs out called Terminal Emulators which essentially will accept the control codes received, and make the appropriate action. In the land of Atari 8-bits, I have found only two major emulation types--VT52 and VT100 (I exclude ASCII and ATASCII as generally any 8-bit program can access those). I will elaborate on this soon. In searching for emulation, I have run across five modem programs that feature some sort of terminal emulation. I have found some to be adequate, and some not. The programs I have tested are: CHAMELEON, AMODEM 7.52, OMNICOM, VT10-squared, and KERMIT-65. CHAMELEON is a program that was written by John Palevich around 1984, and is sold through ANTIC publishing. This program has some nice features, such as the ability to view 40, 80, or 132 column screens. The only problem in that is that they are the -pan-and-scan- screens--that is, 40 columns are shown at any one time. To view the others, you must press START or SHIFT-START. While this allows for you to see screens that the 8-bit can't show at one time (the 132-width), it is somewhat uncomfortable, having to scroll back and forth to read things. And when your racing at 2400 baud, this is almost impossible. I would recommend this to people who perhaps have a vision difficulty, as all the screens are in large 40-column characters. CHAMELEON does feature the largest array of emulations--Glass TTY, IBM 3031, ADM-3A, and VT52 (so you stretched the truth before, huh?), but as all the screens are pan-and-scan, and since VT52 is the only major type in the list, I would skip this program. The next program featuring emulation is AMODEM 7.52 by Trent Dudley, (c)1986. This is a public-domain program in that it can be shared, but not altered without permission. It supports a limited set of VT52 functions, but is constant at 40-columns. This may not be bad for BBSes, but when using a mainframe it can really create -interesting- things on your screen. As a BBS program, I think it is excellent, but in the world of emulation, is isn't quite up to par. The third program I tested was VT10-squared v0.7 by Dave Bailey and Alex Stevens. This is a VT100 emulator with a limited series of functions. It is one of the earlier emulators out, and does do an adequate job. The screen is true 80-columns (3-pixel wide characters), and supports cursor controlling (which is vital for programs like the VI editor on UNIX systems). The only drawbacks are that you are limited in the menu to 300 or 1200 baud, and can't change that without reloading (at least that's what I've found). But it has two built-in keyboard configurations--DEC and PROFS, and thus is easy to control. The DEC setting is perfect for VI, so if anyone uses a UNIX system, I would look into this program. The next step up is OMNICOM by David Young (CDY Consulting), which was released in 1987. It, like that last program, has a true 80-column screen. It supports both VT100 and ATASCII, making this a good choice for BBSes as well as mainframes. And since it also supports Xmodem and Kermit protocols, it seems designed for those who call both BBSes and mainframes a lot (college students like me?). OMNICOM does more emulation than VT10-squared, including inverse-video and many graphics characters. Thus I can use programs that implement these features and see what is actually supposed to happen. There are certain graphics types it cannot emulate, namely double-sized characters, but I have yet to see any other that does (short of an actual VT100 terminal). I would highly recommend this program, in addition to the next program tested. KERMIT-65 v3.3 is the newest terminal emulator for the 8-bit. Written by John Dunning, it features VT52 and VT100 emulation, in both 40 and 80-column screens (with two flavors of 80-column: pan-and-scan or -true-). Thus the user has a choice in what he wants to see. The 80-column pan-and-scan, though, is automatic, and can drive you crazy as the screen is thrown back and forth like a tennis ball. If you need 80-columns, but with large letters, go with CHAMELEON. But if you want -true- emulation, this is the program for you. It supports as much emulation as OMNICOM, but has a better set of emulated characters, and is more flexible in the emulation world. As Kermit is the only file transfer protocol supported, you may wish to use another program for BBSes, but for mainframes and places where good emulation is a must, KERMIT-65 can't be beat. Any guess how this review was written? Right, I'm using KERMIT-65 with my school's VAX editor to write the review, and VT10-squared to edit it (since I am most used to the keyboard configuration of VT10-squared). Various notes... When using programs with the -true- 80-columns, a large black and white TV or monitor is recommended. You can use a color TV, but you'll be squinting. I am unsure how these programs are affected by the XEP80, since I don't have one. The versions reviewed were: CHAMELEON, AMODEM 7.52, OMNICOM (dated 8/15/87), VT10-squared 0.7, and KERMIT-65 v3.3. The equipment used in testing was: 800XL, SpartaDOS 3.2, Sparta-X, DOS 2.5, Supra 2400 modem (Hayes-compatible), SX212 modem (SIO port), and the XM301. The files were tested on various BBSes, a VAX computer, and a UNIX system. All files, with the exception of VT10-squared, can be easily configured from 300-9600 baud. All worked with the Hayes-compatible and the SX212, as well as all the DOSes. I had varying results with the XM301. CHAMELEON worked, as well as AMODEM. OMNICOM has a special version for the XM301. VT10-squared worked when appended with the THANDLER from AMODEM. I was unable to get KERMIT-65 running under the XM301. These results were done, as mentioned, on a 800XL. Thus the XL/XE series should have no difficulties. The files should also run under Atari 800s properly. Final remarks... If I have left any programs out that should be noted, or if you wish to leave any comments about this review, leave E-mail on either the ACE Info. BBS (FoRem-net Node 410), or Blackbird BBS (FoRem Node 281). |WAACE-CURRENT NOTES CONTEST| Reprinted from ST-ZMagazine #21 |The Best of Atari Desktop Publishing| | WAACE - Current Notes DTP Contest | All Atari computer users are hereby invited to submit entries to a Desktop Publishing contest sponsored by Washington Area Atari Computer Enthusiasts and Current Notes Magazine. Entries must be submitted before the 8th of September 1989. Judging and awarding of prizes will take place at the WAACE AtariFest on 7-8 October. The contest is intended to showcase the kinds of business and personal communications that are possible with 8 and 16 bit Atari computers. Personal and Commercial categories in both 8 and 16 bit divisions give everyone a chance to win. The prizes will consist of valuable gift certificates for software and hardware as donated by AtariFest supporters. Copies of the contest rules are available from Current Notes Magazine at: 122 N. Johnson Rd, Sterling, VA, 22170, from your local Current Notes retail sales agent, or by downloading file DTPCONTS.ARC from the ST Roundtable on GENie. CONTEST RULES The contest rules listed below provide the restrictions and other guidelines governing the WAACE - Current Notes DTP contest: 1 Eligibility - developers of DTP products or their employees are not eligible. 2 Categories - Submitted works will be judged in one of the following four categories: 1) 8-bit Personal, 2) 8-bit Commercial, 3) 16-bit Personal, and 4) 16-bit Commercial. Entries in the personal category will have been prepared for the use of the submitter and his/her family. Works will be deemed commercial if they are intended for wider audiences including, but not limited to, educational and social organizations, business clients, or the general public. The judges may elect not to award prizes in categories for which there are fewer than 4 entries. 3 Originality - All work must be the original work of the submitter. Submitter must certify that none of the subject matter or graphic images are substantially derived from copyrighted works. 4 Ownership - All submitted material becomes the property of WAACE and Current Notes, Inc. to use as they see fit. Material rejected as being unsuitable will be returned only if the submitter provides return envelopes and postage. 5 Limitation as to number - No more than two entries will be accepted from any one household in any one division. 6 Use of Atari Hardware and Software - All work must use Atari computers. Hardware from other manufacturers may be used as peripherals. Hardware or software that has not been available at retail to the public prior to 1 July 1989 may not be used. 7 Submissions - All entries must be submitted as hardcopy accompanied by a floppy disk containing all components needed to produce the document. Floppy disks must be readable by standard Atari disk drives. Each submission is limited to 1 disk. Hardcopy output may not amount to more than the equivalent of 5 8 1/2 by 11 pages. The submission disk must also contain a text file providing complete instructions for generating the final output. Products (hardware and software) used to create all graphics and text components of the work must be specified. Submissions must be accomanied by a letter giving the submitter's name, address, home telephone number and the title of the submission. Submission of an entry constitutes affirmation that the submitter has read and agrees to comply with the contest rules. The organizers are not obliged to provide opportunity for submitters to remedy defects in their submissions. All submissions are at the submitter's own risk. The organizers will not assume any responsibility for wear and tear that submitted material is subjected to. Submissions shall be sent to: Current Notes Magazine Attn: DTP Contest 122 N. Johnson Rd Sterling, VA 22170. 8 Deadline - all entries must be in the hands of the organizers by September 8, 1989. 9 Taste - The judges reserve the right to reject work that is offensive or otherwise unsuitable for public display at a family event. 10 Award Criteria - The awards will be made on the basis of the effectiveness of submissions in conveying information. Visual impact and related factors such as style, arrangement, typography, and text content will be considered. The judges may elect not to award prizes if none of the entries in a category is deemed to be prize-worthy. ENTRY BLANK 1989 WAACE - Current Notes DTP Contest Complete a separate blank for each submission Submitter's Name_______________________ (please print) Address: Apt _______________ Street:________________________________ City __________________________________ State ____ ZIP ________ Home Phone Number: ___ - ___ - ____ Title of Submission: _______________________________________ _______________________________________ [ ] 8 Bit [ ] 16 bit [ ] Personal [ ] Commercial I hereby certify that I have read the contest rules and that my entry complies with them in all respects. I certify that this submission is my own original work and that none of the material is substantially derived from any copyrighted work. _________________________ Date _______ Signed Send this form together with your disks and hardcopy output to: Current Notes 122 N. Johnson Rd Sterling, VA 22170 before 8 September 1989. |ANALOG JULY 1989 TABLE OF CONTENTS| |by Clayton Walnum| Features -------- Disk Master ...........Barry Kolbe & Bryan Schappel For those of you who want the power to directly access and manipulate your disk's data, we present this commercial-quality disk editor. Character Set Display Utility .........................Dave Arlington This unique program will let you view up to six different font files all at the same time. A great way to find out just what all those fonts you've accumulated really are. AUTORUN.SYS Secrets in BASIC ...........................David Schoch A few months ago we published an assembly language AUTORUN.SYS maker. Now here's a version for all you BASIC programmers. Chaos ......................Alfredo L. Acosta They say that the universe tends toward chaos. But does it really? Could there, perhaps, be some order in all that disorder? DEGAS View ..................Matthew J.W. Ratcliff ST pictures on your 8-bit computer? You bet! Mazerunner .............................Matt Fruin An interesting twist to the arcade maze game genre. 100% machine language. Reviews ------- Crystal Castles (Atari Corp.) ..................Matthew J.W. Ratcliff Into the Eagle's Nest ..................Matthew J.W. Ratcliff Columns ------- Boot Camp .............................Tom Hudson ST Notes ............................Frank Cohen The End User .....................Arthur Leyenberger Departments ----------- Editorial .............................Lee Pappas Reader Comment 8-bit News M/L Editor .........................Clayton Walnum BASIC Editor II .........................Clayton Walnum Disk Contents |TURBO-816 VERSION 1.1M ORDER FORM| There are a limited number of Version 1.1 Turbo-816 Systems Available for the reduced price of $110+$4 (S&H) within the US and Canada. COD fees are additional. 1200XL Version available (2-28pin PROMS) for $5.00 additional, all prices are in US dollars. The only difference between the Version 1.1 boards and the Version 1.2 boards is the size of the latter is about 10-15% smaller. They are functionally the same. Both include Version 1.00M of the Turbo-OS. The Version 1.2 Boards will be available in late-June, early July, at the full $120 plus P&H. Included in the kit is: Turbo-816 Adapter Board 6- Ribbon CPU Cable Installation/User Guide Turbo-OS Prom 1.00M The initial units will be best used by people with experience programming in assembly language. While there are various degrees of speed improvements with the Turbo-816 installed, the main application for the unit is the increased power that the 16-bit processor affords. So if you primarily play games on your computer, the upgrade is not for you at this time... ////////////////////////////////////// Order Form for Version 1.1 and 1.2 Turbo-816 Kits: Your Name _____________________________ Address _______________________________ City ________________ State/Prov ______ Zip ___________ Country ____ Target Computer (XL/XE) _______________ Amount of RAM _____________ Soldering Experience ( ) None ( ) Some ( ) Much ( ) Pro Programming Languages: ( ) None ( ) BASIC ( ) MAC/65 ( ) C ( ) Action Programming Proficiency: ( ) None ( ) Learning ( ) Good ( ) Expert Installing it yourself (Y/N) ______ Closest Atari Vendor ____________ Disk Drives Used: _____________________ _____________________ Other Equipment: ______________________ ______________________ If Version 1.1 Sold Out, place backorder for Version 1.2 (Y/N) _______ Backorders will be cancelled after 60 days, and checks returned, if for any reason merchandise cannot be shipped in that time (if B/O ok) Payment Method: ( ) COD ( ) Personal Check ( ) MO / Cashiers Check * Personal Checks Require time to clear before merchandise is shipped Please indicate where you have seen info on the Turbo-816 Adapter _______________________________________ _______________________________________ ////////////////////////////////////// Send this form with payment (if required) to: DataQue Software Post Office Box 134 Ontario, OH 44862 ////////////////////////////////////// |Z*NET NEWSWIRE 8-BIT EDITION| |by Harold Brewer| In order to reprint the following two message from the GEnie Atari 8-bit Bulletin Board I must include this statement: Copyright 1989 Atari Corporation, GEnie, and the Atari Roundtables. See signup information in this magazine. May be reprinted only with this notice and signup information included. To sign up for GEnie service, call (with modem) 800-638-8369. Upon connection type HHH (RETURN after that). Wait for the U#= prompt. Type XJM11877,GEnie and hit RETURN. The system will prompt you for your information. ==> From Alan Reeve at Reeve Software comes this message dated 19 May, 1989: -Attention All: -Reeve Software has finally completed, and is about to commence shipment of Diamond Write, as well as our first newsletter! Diamond Write is our full-featured word processor that adds capabilities such as an 80-column display and the ability to use different fonts and mix and match different styles of text in your document. We hope to begin shipping our end user orders at the beginning of next week, and to start shipping out dealer orders at the end of the week. -With Diamond Write, I believe we have finally completed the package that 8-bit owners have been longing for for the past year...a top quality Graphical OS, a Paint Program, and a Word Processor. We now will be working on an improved set of Programming Instructions, adding the Diamond environment to News Station, and Diamond Publish. Those of you who have returned your warranty cards will be receiving our first newsletter shortly. -Thanks for your support, A. Reeve- ==> Dated 17 May, 1989, comes this response to a ZMagazine query from a P. Sungenis (PAB): -In your last ZMAG (5/9, #156 I believe), you asked people for some response to Atari developers about the 8-bit world, be it dead or alive. Here's my two cents, and you can quote me verbatim. -The 8-bit market has a huge user base, and a lot of dedicated users. We had a lot of defections at first to the 16-bit models, but now the 8-bit market is smaller and much more dedicated. They want new things and new software for their machines--the machines they are DEDICATED to! -If the developers cut off their support, the 8-bit crowd will continue on their own and will keep developing. People like Bob Puff and the other -share-ware- authors out there will continue and the machines will thrive. Back-yard hardware projects will spring up. The machine won't die. Look at the TI99. There are STILL dedicated users and new software/hardware from those users even though support ended in 1983! -If you cut off the 8-bit development, we won't all go over to the STs. We'll stay where we are and be no worse for the wear. All you'll lose is money we WOULD HAVE spent! -Thank you, time to get off my soapbox.- From the National ZMagazine Headquarters BBS (Centurion) comes this news: Base nameGeneral Message #193 Sent toANTIC READERS 05/20/89 Posted byBILL H. SubjectNew Antic _______________________________________ Well I see the saga of -what-the-heck- are-these-magazines-gonna-do-next- continued when I got to my mailbox. Antic is gonna start being a with-disk version only and they are -generously- gonna let us subscribers in on the deal right away with the next issue, unless we take the time to send a card back in time. *PLOP!* into the mailbox for me. Anybody else have a negative vote for this stuff? I cannot say there has been a heck of a lot useful lately (especially in this issue) and would feel really bad to see my subscription cut in half just to get some great disk of stuff to use the Egyptian calendar or something. Oh yeah--if subscribers wanna get the disk version, their time left on their subscription is cut in half. I think that not forgetting to send in the enclosed card is important as a vote if subscribers out there don't like the format change rammed down their throat. If I wanted to get the disk version, I would have ordered it. | Rovac Industries, Incorporated | | P.O. Box 74, Middlesex, NJ 08846 | | (201) 968-8148 | |Copyright 1989 All Rights Reserved| CompuServe: 71777,2140 GEnie: ZMAGAZINE Source: BDG793 ZMagazine Headquarters BBSes: Centurion BBS--(314)621-5046 (618)451-0165 Chaos BBS--(517)371-1106 Shadow Haven--(916)962-2566 Stairway to Heaven--(216)784-0574 The Pub--(716)826-5733