Atari Explorer Online: 07-Mar-94 #0304 From: Bruce D. Nelson (aa789@cleveland.Freenet.Edu)

Date: 03/18/94-12:00:34 PM Z

From: aa789@cleveland.Freenet.Edu (Bruce D. Nelson) Subject: Atari Explorer Online: 07-Mar-94 #0304 Date: Fri Mar 18 12:00:34 1994 :::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: :: Volume 3 - Issue 4 ATARI EXPLORER ONLINE 7 March 1994 :: :::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: :: :: :: ATARI .............. News, reviews, & solutions ............ ATARI :: :: EXPLORER ............ for the online Atari .......... EXPLORER :: :: ONLINE ................. Community .............. ONLINE :: :: :: :: Published and Copyright (c) 1993-1994 by Subspace Publishers :: :: """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" :: :: Publisher ........................... Michael Lindsay EXPLORER :: :: Editor .................................. Travis Guy AEO.MAG :: :: Assistant Editor GEnie................ Ron Robinson EXPLORER.1 :: :: Assistant Editor CompuServe.......... Albert Dayes AEO.1 :: :: Assistant Editor Delphi......... Andreas Barbiero AEO.2 :: :: Assistant Editor Internet........ Timothy Wilson AEO.8 :: :: Atari Asylum ................... Gregg Anderson AEO.7 :: :: Unabashed Atariophile ..... Michael R. Burkley AEO.4 :: :: Atari Artist ................... Peter Donoso EXPLORER.2 :: :: :: :: :: :: Telecommunicated to you via: :: :: """""""""""""""""""""""""""" :: :: GEnie: AEO.MAG :: :: CompuServe: 70007,3615 :: :: Delphi: AEO_MAG :: :: Fnet: AEO Conference, Node 319 :: :: AtariNet: AEO Conference, Node 51:1/10 :: :: Internet: aeo.mag@genie.geis.com :: :: FTP from: rahul.net in the directory pub/wilsont/AEO :: :: :: :: Internet subscription service: stzmagazine-request@virginia.edu :: :: (Internet subscription requests ONLY!) :: :: :: :::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: Table of Contents * From the Editors ...................... Blooms abound in Atari's Garden. * Digital Briefs ........................... Computer, communication, and video game industry news. * Dateline: Atari ............ Tempest 2000 offer, new Atari personnel on GEnie and lots of questions for Bob from last Friday's GEnie RTC. * Jaguar Tackboard .................... New sign-ons breath fire into the Jaguar. Cat Box announced. Official & confirmed news. * Atari Artist ......................... Lots of Falcon hardware upgrades, as well as MIDI software, AND a look at NAMM. * Andreas' Den ................... STe sellout, PowerPC supergiants, death of the Jaguar and other fantasies! * The Unabashed Atariophile ................... PD and Shareware files for _your_ Atari computer. * GEnie News ........................... New files & happenings on Atari's Official Online Resource. * Developing News ........................... SAC Expo This Weekend Texas Atari Festival CD Audio Player Name Contest Cleveland Free-Net Additions * Shutdown ............................ Around the world and up your block. --==--==--==--==-- ||| From the Editors ....... Atari Explorer Online: The Next Generation ||| Travis Guy / | \ GEnie: AEO.MAG Delphi: AEO_MAG Internet: aeo.mag@genie.geis.com ------------------------------------------------------------------- Things are going well in the World Atari. The weather is warming up, and the first flowers are coming into season. Those who would have you think you have been led down a garden path of withered vines would do well to rub the crud from their eyes and take another look. Their long and bitter fight has blinded them to anything positive. Aye, they do live in a small world. The first third-party hardware developer annoucement for the Jaguar, released today, is inside. ICD will be marketing "Cat Box," an AV and communications expansion box that provides industry standard ports for the Jag. ICD has long held a stellar reputation for their line of hardware and software products in the Atari arena and others. It's great to see them supporting Jaguar also. Atari has just today announced a new list of Jaguar developers and licensees. Big names and bigger names are coming onboard, and as time goes by, many of their products will help to redefine the video game arena. (Have you played Atari today?) This issue welcomes back Atari Artist. Pete and Fadi have a lot of information about the Wizztronics 040 board for the Falcon and other nifty products, as well as a look at MIDI products from the NAMM show. AEO will be expanding into a few new areas in the next couple of issues. We're looking to start a column on Atari user groups, and on 8-bit Ataris. Watch for them. The robins have started their way back north. Winter is about to loosen its grip on North America. Spring Break is underway here in the Florida Panhandle. Drop by if you can! Welcome to this issue of AEO. --==--==--==--==-- ||| Digital Briefs - Industry News ||| By: Albert Dayes / | \ CIS: 70007,3615 GEnie: AEO.1 ----------------------------------------------------------------- //// Software Vendors STEP to it - STEP, the international standard ================================ for the Exchange of Product Model Data has gained ground among several US and European computer software makers. "As a neutral standard to which all software can adhere, STEP will enable users to digitally represent and exchange product information, via computer, both between corporation departments and with manufacturing partners and suppliers. The removal of barriers with STEP- based software is expected to facilitate multi-enterprise, multi-vendor, multi-supplier manufacturing efforts. The initial release of STEP, approved this year as an international standard by the International Organization for Standardization, addresses mechanical design applications." //// CompuServe in the Fast Lane - CompuServe recently announced a ================================ new promotion for its on-line service for retail stores. "Get Into the Fast Lane on the Information Superhighway" is the new slogan while also toting its new 14.4K access speed capability. Over 1,000 retail stores are expected to participate in the new campaign. //// IBM has the Best Nose - IBM's research labs recently developed a ========================== very sensitive instrument for measuring heat. The new instrument can detect changes in temperature as small as 1/100,000 of a degree. The device, called a calorimeter can be used in a wide variety of chemical detection, observation, and analysis applications. One such application is in drug design. A paper on the subject was recently published in the Journal of Physics Letter. //// Put a Cray Beside Your Desk - The new Cray EL94 can perform over ================================ 500 megaflops (millions of floating point instructions per second) which is at least double what Cray's previous deskside computer offered. Each model (2 or 4 processors) has 6,000 megabytes or 21,000 megabytes as standard disk storage. The product is binary compatible with the entire Cray supercomputing line. //// Preemptive Chip Strike? - Intel has started shipping its 90 and ============================ 100 MHz Pentium chips. In conjunction with the new chips is a new multi-million dollar marketing campaign. Many were expecting these chips in the summer of 1994, but the soon to be released PowerPC Macs (running at 80MHz) probably spurred this new announcement. //// H-P's Taligent Investment OK'ed - Hewlett-Packard's proposal to ==================================== establish an investment in Taligent Inc. was granted full regulatory approval. Under the terms of the proposal, HP will invest in 15 percent of Taligent and be granted a seat on the Taligent board of directors HP. HP and Taligent will license and use certain special technologies, each developed by the other company. =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= //// Telecommunications =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Motorola FLEXes its Muscle - Motorola's New FLEX high speed paging ========================== protocol was used in a recent beta test by Paging Network Inc. Beginning in the summer of 1993, the test was to determine how well FLEX would work to boost the capacity from 200,000 pagers per channel to over 600,000 pagers per channel. The test was very successful and the best part is only a minimum change to the infrastructure was necessary. //// Reach out to Object - Object Design's database management system, ======================== ObjectStore, is being used by many telecommunications companies worldwide. These companies include AT&T, Ameritech, MCI, Siemens Telecom Public Networks, Telecom Australia, Telefonica de Espana, as well as many of the Regional Bell Operating Companies (RBOCs) for implementing mission critical applications. One manager at a Regional Bell company stated "The previous mainframe-based billing analysis took an hour-and-a-half, while the ObjectStore-based system running on a PC took just 20 minutes." When handling over 150 million phone calls per day, some of the tasks ObjectStore handles include billing, system balancing demands and detection of technical problems. AT&T in 1993 made an equity investment in Object Design confirming its place in the industry. Neal Douglas of AT&T said this of ObjectStore, "We believe ObjectStore is rapidly becoming a de-facto industry standard in the telecommunications market, and our investment helps make it available for a wide range of AT&T applications." //// New PDAs PDQ - Apple announced their newest PDA, the Newton ================= MessagePad 100. This PDA improves on the design based on feedback from customers. More memory, longer battery life, letter-by-letter recognition, deferred handwriting recognition, easier addition of new names to personal wordlist are some of the new features. Sony announced new software titles for Motorola's Magic Cap based personal wireless communicators. One title, Official Airline Guide (OAG) FlightLine allows one to check current flight information and pricing through OAG's extensive database which is accurate up-to-the-minute. River Run software announced telecommunications applications for Motorola's ENVOY (personal wireless communicator) which allows for access to host systems like IBM 370 and SUN host systems. All standard file transfer protocols are also supported. The software can be embedded with an existing application to provide transparent connectivity. =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= //// In the Courts =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= [] A class action lawsuit brought by AST Research Inc. stockholders against the company was filed in U.S. District Court in California. A decline in AST profits appears to be the motive behind the suit. [] Stac Electronics won a 120 million dollar judgement against Microsoft Corporation. The judgement was due to claimed infringement on Stac's software patent on data compression by Microsoft. Microsoft has begun shipping MS-DOS 6.21 which does not include any of the infringing software. An appeal by Microsoft is expected. [] AT&T has filed suit against Spectra-Physics Scanning System. The suit involves a bar code scanning patent held by NCR (a unit of AT&T, which was recently renamed to AT&T Global Information Solutions). NCR currently holds the number one position in the world, in the high volume bar code scanning market. [] A new standard v.34 was recently approved by the CCITT. This will allow for modems to communicate up to 28K compared to the current 14.4K (v.32bis) standard. One possible problem is over the use of patents held by some of the developers and how much of a royalty must be paid for its use. Patent issues should be settled by that time of the final vote in the summer of 1994. =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= //// Video Game News =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= //// More Jaguars in the Wild? - It's been long established that Atari ============================== Games is looking into using Jaguars in some of their arcade machines, but rumors that another leading American arcade game maker has chosen to use Atari's Jaguar as the heart for new arcade machines have been spreading recently. Spokesmen for Atari Corp. have declined to comment on these new stories. //// 3-D Arcade Video Game? - Japanese entertainment giants Sanyo =========================== and Taito are combining forces to develop 3-D arcade video games. Sanyo will be responsible for the hardware, a 40 inch auto-stereoscopic LCD 3-D screen that is claimed to not require special glasses for 3-D viewing. Taito will handle the software side of the project, and will test the video game system in Japan as early as this April. Commercial sales are to begin in the fall. Sanyo is eager to bring such a system into the home, however, reports state that the company is still "feeling out" the home video game market. //// Rate That Game - Jack Heistand, senior vice-president of =================== Electronic Arts, is chairman of a video game industry committee to set standards for rating sexual and violent content in games. The first games to come under the committee's system are expected to debut late this fall. As plans stand, games produced prior to the adoption of the ratings standards will not be forced to carry rating labels. This committee was formed to head off proposed Congressional legislation, forcing a ratings system on all video games produced and sold in the United States. A spokesman for Sen. Joseph Lieberman, D-Conn., the leading critic of violent video games, expressed the sense that while the voluntary measures planned by the video game industry were welcome, Congress was not ready to drop its interest in the matter. Heistand has said he expect broad support in the industry for the rating system. Companies expected to submit to the ratings committee include Atari, Nintendo, Sega and 3DO. //// Sega Pres. Fears Legislative Ploy - Sega reacted strongly to a ====================================== recent Washington Post story about Nintendo's attempts to damage Sega's reputation. Tom Kalinske, president of Sega expressed surprise that Nintendo would attempt to use legislation to play on parents fears of violence in video games. "I'm really amazed that Nintendo would go to such lengths to target Sega - seeking through the legislative process that which they seem unable to earn through the marketplace process - and that they would so irresponsibly drag retailers and the entire video game and personal computer segments of the larger interactive digital media industry through the mud in their efforts to slow our momentum. "While we spent the last two years trying to implement a video game rating system, Nintendo apparently spent that time plotting a marketing ploy that would play off of parental concerns about violence. I think they should channel that creativity into productive pursuits like solving industry problems and creating great games." --==--==--==--==-- ||| Dateline: Atari! ||| With Bob Brodie / | \ File Courtesy of GEnie ------------------------------------------------------------------ ========================================================================= (C) 1994 by Atari Corporation, GEnie, and the Atari Roundtables. May be reprinted only with this notice intact. The Atari Roundtables on GEnie are *official* information services of Atari Corporation. 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 XTX99437,GENIE and press [RETURN]. The system will prompt you for your information. ========================================================================== Dateline Atari with Bob Brodie March 4, 1994 with Special Guests Tom Gillen, Hank Cappa, Joe Sousa, Faran Thomason Host - Lou Rocha <[HoST] ST.LOU> Just before we open tonight's conference, I would like to extend my condolences to the family of comedian John Candy who passed away in his sleep this morning. John Candy was a talented person renowned by many. He was also a Canadian, a Torontonian, and a classmate of mine through high school. His talents will live forever on celluloid but his magnanimity will only be known by those who lived with the man whose heart was his biggest attribute. Welcome to the March edition of Dateline Atari with Bob Brodie. With the spring season almost upon us (thank goodness!), the national rollout of the Jaguar is imminent. TT's have begun shipping again, although in unknown quantities. Bob Brodie is with us and a number of new Atari personnel have GEnie accounts and have begun to appear online. I would like to thank Bob for his monthly meeting with Atari users here on GEnie. Recent comments in the bulletin board indicate appreciation for Bob's increased participation in the Atari topics, as well. We hope that all is well with Bob and his family... both at home and at Atari! :-) Let's get on with things..... Bob, your opening comments please.... <BOB-BRODIE> Good evening everyone, and thanks for joining us once again at Dateline Atari, here on our official online service, GEnie! Tonight, I'd like to share a couple of special offers that we're making to our friends online, and also introduce to you some of the new faces that you'll be seeing online here on GEnie. In some cases, you may have already "bumped into" some of these fine folk. Joining me tonight for the conference is Tom Gillen (GEnie address TOM.GILLEN), and yet two more of the staff that we'll be adding to our GEnie support crew, Hank Cappa and Jose Sousa. Hank and Joe don't have accounts yet, but we're expecting to have them online sometime next week. After we finish up our opening remarks, we'll be happy to talk about Jaguar titles to the extent that it's possible to...the guys are working on a large number of titles, most of which we can't tell you about tonight. But some of them we can! :-) As most of you are aware, much of Atari's push right now has been with the Jaguar. We've been criticized for not having more staff available for online support here on GEnie. And rightfully so! So, we've added a number of new accounts to our online staff. With that, I'll turn in over to Tom, so he can introduce himself along with Hank and Joe. <TOM.GILLEN> Hello everyone! My name is Tom Gillen, and I am the Software Test Group leader here at Atari. I am thrilled about being on GEnie, as this enables me to communicate directly with the people that mean the most to me; the ones that support Atari! I have been with Atari since the Warner days, and have always been involved with the Software Test side of things, as well as a little bit of Hardware testing. I have tested Software on everything from the 2600 to JAGUAR, and I'm still not tired of it!! I love what I do, but there are other people that help complete the picture, and two of them are here with me tonight; Joe Sousa and Hank Cappa are two of my testers, and let me assure you that the Test Department here at Atari is quite a competent bunch! Our testing procedure consists not only of "play testing" for program bugs, but also providing the Product Managers and Developers with game ideas and enhancement suggestions, many of which have made their way into many different games. Our focus for quite a while now has been the JAGUAR, but we are still testing LYNX games as well. As far as FALCON software, the testing and development has been moved to the UK, but I still have a great personal interest in seeing the FALCON succeed. My computer setup includes a FALCON and a TT, both of which I love, and am always hungry to do new things with (anybody seen the TT VGA emulator for the TTM195? WOW!!). I will freely admit that I am no computer "know it all" that can recite all the specs at the drop of a "chat", and have acutally learned many things myself by scanning the ST message areas here on GEnie (love em!); but if and when I can help out with computer related questions, I will! I would now like to introduce Joe Sousa and Hank Cappa, both of whom will have their own GEnie accounts soon, and are eager to help out with the Atari presence in the message areas. Thank you for being there, and I look forward to participating here on GEnie! <JOE SOUSA> My name is Joe Sousa, and I am a game tester at Atari. My first real project on the JAGUAR was designing levels for CYBERMORPH, eight of which are in the game. I was also lead tester on RAIDEN, and TEMPEST 2000. I am currently working as co-lead tester/game designer for KASUMI NINJA, along with my partner, Hank Cappa. <HANK CAPPA> Hi, I'm Hank, and I've been with Atari since last November. I've tested DINO DUDES, RAIDEN, and TEMPEST 2000. I am also a co-designer and lead tester for KASUMI NINJA. I have also tested many upcoming LYNX titles. I personally enjoy fighting games (Dragonball Z 2), R.P.G's (Arena: The Elder Scrolls), Strategy Games (Super Giant Robot Adventure 3), and DOOM. <BOB-BRODIE> Also coming on-line with us tonight is Faran Thomason. His GEnie mail address is F.Thomason. Faran would also like to introduce himself to you all. <F.THOMASON> Hello My Name is Faran Thomason. I am a former tester. <BOB-BRODIE> You will also be hearing from Hans Jacobsen (H.JACOBSEN), infamous as Mr. Dino Dudes and Mr. Dinolympics at Atari, Sean Patten (SEAN.PATTEN) lead tester for Cybermorph who just had all of his hints for Cybermorph printed in Video Games Magazine, and Ted Tahquechi (TAHQUECHI), the producer for Kasumi Ninja. Ted couldn't join us tonight, as he is in the UK working in person with the developer of Kasumi Ninja. Susan McBride, Director of Art will be online at here GEnie address of S.G.MCBRIDE. As you can see, we're shoring up our online presence to ensure that GEnie is the number one source of information for Atari users everywhere! In recognition of the support from our most avid users, we're pleased to make a special offer to our online customers! To celebrate the impending release of the award winning Tempest 2000 for the Atari Jaguar, we're offering a special price to our online customers of just $40, plus $3.50 shipping and handling for a total of $43.50. The suggested retail price of Tempest 2000 is $59.99, and normal shipping cost is $4.95! You save over $21 on this terrific game!!! Here's the deal: All orders must be received in GEnie mail to my address of BOB-BRODIE by 11:59 PM Pacific Time on Sunday, March 6th. As a bonus, Atari will randomly select 10 (ten) names that will have their cartridges shipped to them early next week. The balance of the orders will be shipped when Tempest 2000 officially arrives. Orders must be accompanied by a valid Visa or Master Card number, including the expiration date of your card. Sorry, no COD's or checks. California residents, add $3.30 state tax. We can only ship to North American shipping addresses, no P.O. Boxes for addresses please. Please include a telephone number. All orders will be shipped via standard ground services. Orders from the Internet and other networks are also welcome: send your e-mail to via GEnie's Internet bridge to: BOB.BRODIE@GENIE.GEIS.COM Please feel free to tell your friends about this special offer, but remember you must respond online. If we find you like this promotion, and it helps to get everyone excited, we can do more online promotions in the future! Remember, I must have your order in my e-mail box by 11:59 PM Sunday, March 6, 1994 in order for you to get this special price! Please mark the subject of your email Tempest Offer to help me sort through the mail. We're also offering a special deal to attendees of this weekend's SCORPIONS Concert at the San Jose Arena. You can get a free Scorpions CD single when you purchase an Atari Jaguar! Concert goers will be presented with a coupon upon entering the San Jose Area to fill out and obtain their CD via mail. This special offer will expire on April 5, 1994. There are still good seats available for the Scorpions concert available thru Bass-TicketMaster. The concert begins at 8:00 P.M., seats start at $19. On the PR front, Atari's own Bill Rehbock has been invited to participate on the syndicated radio program, "On Computers" with Leo Laporte and Gina Smith which will air this coming weekend March 5th, and March 6th. Leo Laporte is a well known Bay Area radio personality, and Gina Smith is the Editor-in-Chief of Electronic Entertainment. I urge you to tune to the appropriate station in your area if you can. You may wish to call the station and let them know you like their program content at those times. You may also consider writing a letter to the station to share your views. In any case, I hope you can tune it in in your area and will share your afterthoughts online! Kudos to Dave Shorr, who previously uploaded a file to the libraries of the Atari ST RT showing the times and stations that carry this program! This listing not only give you the station call letters, but gives you the power of the station as well, just in case you haven't tuned in to the show before: "On Computers" RADIO SHOW SCHEDULE STATION MARKET ST PWR FREQ DAY TIME ----------------------------------------------- KENI-AM ANCHORAGE AK 5K 550 SAT 09P-12A WJHO-AM OPELIKA AL 5K 1400 SUN 10A-12N KWHN-AM PT. SMITH AR 5K 1110 SUN 12N-02P KOLW-AM ARYO GRD CA 1K 1300 SUN 10A-01P KNZR-AM BAKRSFLD CA 1K 1250 SUN 10A-01P KKTR-AM FRESNO CA 1K 1430 SUN 10A-01P KNCO-AM GRASS VLY CA 1K 830 SUN 10A-01P KORV-AM OROVILLE CA 1K 1340 SUN 10A-01P KFBK-AM SACRAMENTO CA 5K 1530 SUN 10A-01P KFMB-AM SAN DIEGO CA 5K 780 SUN 10P-01A KNBR-AM SAN FRAN. CA 30K 680 SUN 10A-11N KVEN-AM VENTURA CA 1K 1450 SUN 10P-01A KGTW-AM ALAMOSA CO 5K 1450 SUN 12N-02P KFKA-AM GREELEY CO 5K 1310 SUN 11A-02P KCSI-AM PUEBLO CO 10K 590 SUN 11A-02P WRC -AM WASH. DC 5K 980 SUN 01P-04P WDEL-AM WILMINGTN DE 5K 1150 SUN 01P-04P WHNZ-AM ST.PETES. FL 5K 580 SUN 01P-03P KOU -AM HONOLULU HI 10K 760 SUN 06A-09A WOC -AM DAVENPORT IA 5K 1420 SUN 12N-02P KQAM-AM WICHITA KS 5K 1410 SUN 12N-02P WLXG-AM LEXINGTON KY 5K 720 SUN 12N-02P KPEL-AM LAFAYETTE LA 5K 1420 SUN 12N-03P WHDH-AM BOSTON MA 50K 850 SUN 01P-03P WPEP-AM E.TAUNTON MA 5K 1570 SUN 01P-03P WXYT-AM DETROIT MI 5K 1270 S/S 03P-04P WPNT-AM FLINT MI 1K 1420 SUN 01P-02P KMBZ-AM KANSAS CI MO 5K 980 SUN 12N-03P KFRU-AM COLUMBIA MO 5K 1400 SUN 12N-03P WQNX-AM ABERDEEN NC 1K 1350 SUN 01P-03P WBZO-AM EDENTON NC 2.5K 1260 SUN 01P-04P WNCT-AM GREENVILLE NC 10K 1070 SUN 01P-04P KATK-AM CARLSBAD NM 1K 740 SUN 11A-12N KVSF-AM SANTA FE NM 5K 1260 SUN 11A-12N KRSN-AM LOS ALAMOS NM 5K 1490 SUN 12N-02P WIIK-AM CLEVELAND OH 5K 1420 SUN 01P-04P WKRN-AM YOUNGSTOWN OH 5K 570 SUN 01P-04P KTOK-AM OKLAHOMA C OK 5K 1000 SUN 12N-03P KXL -AM PORTLAND OR 5K 750 SUN 05P-07P KYKN-AM SALEM OR 5K 1430 SUN 10A-12N WCMB-AM HARRISBRG PA 5K 1200 SUN 08P-11P KFON-AM AUSTIN TX 5K 1490 SUN 12N-03P WTAW-AM BRYAN TX 1K 1150 SUN 12N-03P KOBS-AM DALLAS TX 5K 1190 SUN 12N-03P WOAI-AM SAN ANTON. TX 50K 1200 SUN 12N-02P KSRR-AM OREM UT 1K 1400 SAT 11A-12N KMOR-AM SALT L.C. UT 5K 1320 SUN 11A-12N WLVA-AM LYNCHBURG VA 1K 590 SUN 01P-04P WLEE-AM RICHMOND VA 5K 1320 SUN 12N-01P WFIR-AM ROANOKE VA 5K 960 SUN 01P-04P KING-AM SEATTLE WA 5K 1090 SUN 04P-06P KXLY-AM SPOKANE WA 5K 920 SUN 10A-12N WTZM-AM LA CROSSE WI 5K 1410 SUN 12N-03P WTSO-AM MADISON WI 10K 1070 SUN 12N-02P WCHS-AM CHARLESTON WV 5K 580 SUN 01P-04P On Monday morning, we will be releasing a press release annoucing a total of 86 (eighty-six) developers that have signed on to develop new titles for the Jaguar. Amount the 48 new partners that we're going to be announcing are ReadySoft Inc., publisher of Dragon's Lair, Space Ace, and Dragon's Lair II; Bullfrog Productions Ltd, developer of Populous and Powermonger; Imagineer, publisher of Wolfenstein-3D (SNES); Jaleco, a leading manufacturer of arcade games and home video games including Super Bases Loaded and Pro Sports Hockey; and Sculptured Software, developer of Mortal Kombat for Acclaim. The remainder of the developers will be presented in the press release on Monday. I will have that online as soon as possible. With that, I think we're ready to take on some questions, Lou! Let's talk Atari!!!! <[HoST] ST.LOU> Whew! Bob, did you order a party size pizza for tonight? We have 17 in queue. <BOB-BRODIE> I'm goin' without... <[HoST] ST.LOU> First, Sean Dougherty <[Sean@TWP] P-DIRECT> Now that TT030's are available, dealer restrictions have been eased, developers are selling tons of new innovative hardware and software products, and Processor Direct is on the press, what plans does Atari have to help continue the beginning of this forward moving trend in the computer realm? <BOB-BRODIE> We will continue to work proactively with our developers to continue moving forward. We are placing a new co-opt program in place to assist the dealers advertise. Congratulation on getting Processor Direct to press. I look forward to seeing my issue soon. <[Sean@TWP] P-DIRECT> Does that include TV ads? <BOB-BRODIE> We are open to TV ads via local cable with our dealers, it's certainly something that we've done before. <[HoST] ST.LOU> Thanks, Sean. B.DUNCAN had to leave. He asked me to ask for the first ten cities to get the ad campaign? <BOB-BRODIE> The first ten cities are not public information at this point, but will be announced soon. <[HoST] ST.LOU> OK, on to Brian Harvey <BRIAN.H> Hi Bob and all of the Atari personnel with new GEnie accounts! What is the status on the patch for ATARI WORKS? I know Atari is losing sales and, more important, respect, over this need for a patch to solve the BPS (Black Page Syndrome). Is there anyway in the meantime that users can get a lower version which does not have the BPS? There has been a lot of talk in the Atari WORKS topic but nothing substantial yet. I know Pradip is busy with the Jaguar but there are even some people I have talked to that won't buy a Jaguar because of the way Atari is presently handling the computer end of things. They don't want the same thing happening to them later. (No offence meant Bob.) Also, any news about Atari products for Atari computers? Not third parties? It is good news about the TT and the other recent developments. Unfortunately, there are some of us who never wants a Jaguar unless it is TOS compatible and has a keyboard. Thanks Bob and have a great RTC! <BOB-BRODIE> Hi Brian, I know that Pradip is deeply concerned about the Black Page Syndrome and is hard at work on it, but you are correct...it is not his number one priority. I am in discussions with my superiors at Atari to see if there is some way we will be able to help our users obtain a lower version of Works. ([HoST Note] After the formal part of the conference, Bob posted this message: <BOB-BRODIE> Papa, Pradip stopped by tonight while we were RTCing...said he thinks he's got a fix but hasn't checked it.) Re your friends that won't touch the Jaguar because of the way that the computer end of things...I can understand that to a degree. However, it must be clearly understood by all that the computer hardware business is very cut throat right now on all fronts. We must concentrate on the Jaguar in order to generate profits. I also understand that many of our computer users don't care about the Jaguar unless it has a keyboard and a mouse....and I believe that that time will come. However, that is a ways off. At this point, we're working with developers to ensure that they have the information that they need to do after market products for the Falcon like the 040 boards that you have been hearing about. These will be products that will have to come from the developers, and not from Atari. <[Ken (Mar-Vel] K.STEVENS1> Hi Bob, I have four quick questions, well maybe not so quick: 1. There was a rumour that IBM was having problems with one graphics chip on the Jag and this was causing a slow down in production. Any truth to this and has it been corrected? 2. Can you give us an update on the release dates for some of the upcoming games? How are third party games going? 3. Are there any third party items coming out in the near future, by this I mean controllers, cartridge cases, etc. 4. How is the production of Kasumi Ninja going? Some people believe that AvP will be the system seller. I think that Kasumi Ninja will appeal to the younger audience more and once the kiddies have seen it, they will pester, uh, I mean, ask their parents to buy the Jag for them. <BOB-BRODIE> Just four, eh Ken? :-) IBM did have a problem with some of the Jaguar sets that they built. That did cause some delays. They are still a bit behind. Re the release dates for the games, Tempest is due in, and we're working hard on Checkered Flag II, Alien vs. Predator, and Club Drive. I understand that Microprose is very close with GunShip And in general, we expect to see a number of titles in the April-June time frame from the 3rd party groups. I haven't seen any concrete info on the other accessories that you asked about, but I know that we're interested, and that there has been interest from the third party groups. RE Kasumi Ninja, Tom and his crew will answer that. :) <TOM.GILLEN> Kasumi Ninja is heavily into the development stage, with the producer currently in England working with HMS, digitizing characters for the game. Some of the characters that we are proposing are an America Indian, and a Scottsman, and a Goth (Attila the Hun type). We are intending this game to be a real gore fest, with lots of blood and gore. There are several testers that are looking very forward to testing this game! <FAIRWEATHER> My 2-year old STacy has been rendered nearly useless by the same dim screen defect that several other STacy owners have reported here on GEnie. TCN says new screens cost $600+ and are unavailable anyway. Can Atari help me or am I SOL? Also when can we expect to see a new Falcon TOS to fix the "memory leak"? <BOB-BRODIE> Hmmmm, I hadn't heard about that before David. I'll be speaking to Jim Jackson in our dealer service area to see what can be done. $600 is quite high. I'm not familiar with the "memory leak" your talking about...what's the scoop on it? <FAIRWEATHER> Every time you open a window on the Falcon it uses up quite a bit of memory that is not returned when the window closes. Eventually you will bomb. <BOB-BRODIE> I have never heard of that. Please send details (if there are more) in email, and I'll get a hold of the software guys and see what can be done. <[HoST] ST.LOU> Thanks David and Bob... on to JL Battey, deep in the heart of Texas! <J.BATTEY1> Has Silicon Graphics ever worked on a Consumer Electronics device before (to your knowledge)? Any and all please reply. [KGBS in Dallas, not KOBS, but at least the BS part was easy] ?B^) Chances for a Jag version ThrustMaster? <BOB-BRODIE> Re Silicon Graphics, not that I'm aware of. I assume your talking about Project Reality....Re ThrustMaster...personally, I think $90 is kinda pricey for a joystick but anything's possible. <[Dave] D.SHORR> Who makes the Jaguar chipset(Tom and Jerry)? Is Phillips building the Jaguar's CD-ROM peripheral(I read this off of a CD:))? GA. <BOB-BRODIE> The makers of the Jaguar chipset and the CD is not for public consumption at this time. Sorry. <[Shadow] D.VANTREASE> What games are being developed for the Jag CD and/or VR? Any Star Trek or Star Wars/X-Wing games in the works? And THANKS for the GEnie-Tempest deal !!! (Also, why the delay on the S-Video cables?!) :-) <BOB-BRODIE> Hi Shadow...I'll let Faran talk about the CD games. <F.THOMASON> We are currently developing a Cyberpunk action adventure game for the CD ROM. <BOB-BRODIE> Re the Star Trek game, Spectrum Holobyte has the rights to that title, and they are now the owners of Microprose...so they kinda are devs for the Jaguar now. I know that they are interested in doing the game for the Jaguar. The S-Video cables are now on the way to retailers, we got them in and they went back out the next day! Glad you like the Tempest thing...:) GA <[Zombie] R.ANISKO> Bob, just wondering if Atari has considered making a "Jaguar card" (and cartridge peripheral?) for PC's -this way you could sell Jags and still take advantage of the PC market as well - I'm sure some of the Jag's features would be quite palatable to computer makers and owners for video games and other STuff....and of course, a (VME?) card for us ST'ers would be nice as well :-) ga <BOB-BRODIE> Hiya Zombie...yes, we've indicated almost since day 1 that we're considering doing a Jaguar card for PCs. <[Barry] B.CANTIN> Hi, Bob - I don't have a Jag, but I DO have a LYNX. Perhaps you or Hank Cappa could fill us in on what's upcoming for the Lynx in the next couple months... Thanks! <BOB-BRODIE> As Hank quivers before the keyboard.... <[hank] TOM.GILLEN> I recently have been looking at Battlezone, Missle Command/Asteroids, Fat Bobby..... Also to come are Road Riot (2 player), Relief Pitcher, Full Court Press, and Heavyweight Contender (Boxing). <[Tony] WETMORE> Hiya Bob, Tom, Hank, Joe and Faran! (hope I got everyone) As it happens, I'll be out in California (Sunnyvale area), in a couple of weeks. [;-) Any chance I'll be able to pick up Tempest 2000 and an s-video cable while I'm out there? Also, are you guys still swapping s-video cables for the original (bad) RF cables, free? <g> <BOB-BRODIE> Tony, we'll see what we can do for you. I'm probably going to be on vacation when you come to Sunnyvale....but I'll try to have Don Thomas primed to help you out! <[Fruitty] G.GEORGE3> Hi there you lucky guys at Atari! I want to ask someone what the story is on a possible Lynx adaptor for the Jaguar? I read in the Nov. '93 GamePro that "...A late breaking peripheral announcement call for the Jaguar to be used as a main server and support network Lynx multi-player games." If it isn't in development, it sure ought to be! I gots me 10 multiplayer Lynx games and nobody to play with! Also, could someone give some details about Jaguar Blue Lightning? I love that game! <F.THOMASON> Jag Blue Lightning is being devloped by the guys that did Cybermorph. It is slated to be a CDROM Game. <BOB-BRODIE> Re the Lynx/Jag connection. Our developer staff is anxiously working with ALL of the developers to encourage them to build this feature into their games. With over 86 devs now, I think that there is plenty of chances for that kind of thing to happen, Fruity. :) <[Thunderbird] D.ENGEL> Hi, Bob! Did you get a chance to peek at Jaguar "Star Raiders" since the last RTC? Any info on this eagerly anticipated title (by Rob Zydel?) would be great! If not, then tell us about the latest features in AvP (30FPS Yet?) <BOB-BRODIE> I haven't yet. My cohorts here haven't seen it either. The primary developer/coder hasn't been in the building...we're allowing him to work off site. Re AvP, we keep adding, and we also brought in some of the game mags to allow them a preview of the game, AND to give their input on the game. Now there is more interaction with the charecters of the game, and the Predator ship and the Alien ship have been added. Lots, and lots of texture mapping going on... And you can physically map the mazes, even automatically. :-) <[Sir Fransis] K.DRAKE> Hi, Bob, and my new friends!! :) First to Bob, any thoughts on a Jaguar "core" system possibility? Then a question fo for everyone, what's your favorite feature of the Jaguar? <BOB-BRODIE> Hi Kenneth...we're talking more about perhaps changing the bundled before a core system. But the core system is certainly a possiblity. <[HoST] ST.LOU> Explain please: 'bundled'? <BOB-BRODIE> My favorite feature is the INCREDIBLE sound that the Jag has, when coupled with the Bose speakers at my house. Admittedly, I am also impressed by it because I get to be at home when I play it. :) <BOB-BRODIE> Lou, presently we have Cybermorph included with every Jag that we sell. We're talking about possibly changing that down the line. Maybe we'll change when AvP comes out. <[HoST] ST.LOU> Ah... thanks. On to STEVE-J! <[DrHfuhruhurr] STEVE-J> Pardon the antagonistic tone of the following question, but... Obviously, Atari doesn't have the resources to give the Jaguar the backing it really needs. What is Atari doing to fix this shortcoming? (Besides slowing the Jaguar's roll-out down to a crawl, that is!) You don't REALLY believe this isn't a problem, do you (and if not, WHY)? <BOB-BRODIE> Steve, you antagonistic???? Who would've believe it???? In a recent interview conducted by the San Francisco Examiner, Sam Tramiel stated that we plan to go to the equity markets to raise cash. <[HoST] ST.LOU> (I hope Sandy Wolf is here) Take note, Sandy. <BOB-BRODIE> We had stated in numerous interviews with financial publications that we knew that we would have to raise cash this year, and frankly...it was a very open topic during the November launch event which was populated by Wall Street types. I think I met every broker there personally. If not, it sure felt like it! :) I take exception to your assertion that we might bring the roll out to a "crawl", we do have plans. <[Parrot Head] C.CASSADAY> Bob, when exactly is the national roll-out? And a question to one of the game testers: Since I don't buy game magazines, can you reveal the level codes to the other hidden levels in Cybermorph? <TOM.GILLEN> We do not have the level codes down here with us, but you can call our 900 line - 1-900-737-atari, and find out everything you need to know there. <BOB-BRODIE> We also have given many of the codes to AEO, and I thought that they had published a number of them already. <[HoST] ST.LOU> 1-900-CHEAT :-) <BOB-BRODIE> Re the National Roll out...we've gone National with our print ads already in the game mags, and Electronic Boutique and Babbages are now carrying the product Nationally. <[Parrot Head] C.CASSADAY> Also, is there any chance Atari can donate a Jaguar, or shirts, or hats or WHATEVER to this years Texas Atari Festival on June 4th and 5th in San Antonio, TX? <BOB-BRODIE> I'll be happy to consider this Chris. Please contact me in email. <C.KROWCHUK1> Bob, is it true that 4 meg 80 Falcons with Software bundles are not being produced anymore? If not, can you give us some idea of delivery date, time? <BOB-BRODIE> Hi Chris! At the present time, the largest demand is for Falcons without HDs. Most of our customers don't find that an 80 meg drive is sufficient for their needs. With the prices of Hard Drives dropping seemingly daily..... It just doesn't make sense for us to attempt to compete with a built in hard drive. Also, many of the Falcons are going to musicians, who want to do direct to disk recording with 1.2 Gigabyte HDs!!! And that isn't cost effective for us, either. So for the time being at least, Atari US will stick with the no HD machines. <[Sparky] K.BURKENHEIM> All the kids (and adults) that have used my Jaguar have loved it!! I am still disapointed when I go into a store (Good Guys) and find the Jag OFF or with no controller and the sales people knowing nothing about the Machine! Is anything being done about this situation?? <BOB-BRODIE> Hi Ken, we have made trips to our local retailers. There is no doubt in my mind that we need to do follow up work with our retailers to ensure that there staff is properly trained. However, we also have to recognize that most of the stores are in a similar situation on all products. They don't have extensive product knowledge, they are there just to sell. I will speak to Garry Tramiel and pass along your remarks about The Good Guys. They are an important west coast retailer, and we'd like to see them handle the product in the right way. <[Andre] A.FOSTER7> Any chance of Atari porting TOS over to the Power PC? <[HoST] ST.LOU> Love to see that! <BOB-BRODIE> Hmmmm, interesting question. After today's announcements by Intel about the Pentium, are you sure that's the way you'd want us to go? We're very interested in that chipset, and we're going to watch the computer side of the business very closely. <[HoST] ST.LOU> What announcement, Bob? <BOB-BRODIE> I don't have the article in front of me, but basically Intel announced that they were going to update the Pentium and lower the price significantly. <[!] FSU #1 [!] AEO.MAG> Thanks, Lou. You do a terrific job as host of the RTCs - as always! <[HoST] ST.LOU> Thanks, Travis <[!] FSU #1 [!] AEO.MAG> Good evening Bob, it's always nice to get together with you here on GEnie. My question for you and your guests there tonight: What is the most amazing "it knocked your socks off and left you on the floor speechless" thing you've seen or heard done so far in any of the Jaguar games? Answers from everyone, please. <BOB-BRODIE> The proposal to do a "Jaguar Babes" game, based on the roll-out event. :) <TOM.GILLEN> My current favorite is Tempest 2000. In my office, I have the Jaguar hooked up through a nice, loud, stereo, and the music combined with the VERY exciting gameplay knocked off more than just my socks!! <F.THOMASON> I think AvP and Kasumi Ninja are both looking great. <TOM.GILLEN> Joe and Hank are very into Kasumi Ninja, and that is starting to look incredible, really!! <[HoST] ST.LOU> Does Sam ever come down to your floor, Tom? <TOM.GILLEN> Actually we are on the same floor, and just today, he stopped me in the hall to ask my opinion of a new Jaguar commercial. <BOB-BRODIE> Seriously, I'm really impressed with Tempest. The gang at home loved it, too. I had a real pile up of skateboards and bikes in front of the door for quite a few nights, with the stereo pumping out the sound. Fortunately, the cops were impressed, too. Nice guys. :) <F.THOMASON> Checkered Flag is looking like a Virtua Killer and club drive is a pretty innovative driving game. <[HoST] ST.LOU> Anyone else want to comment? <BOB-BRODIE> Tom's still typin.... <TOM.GILLEN> Also, Sam, Leonard, Gary, and Jack have all been into my office to see Tempest 2000!! <BOB-BRODIE> That's it from us.. <[HoST] ST.LOU> OK... Richard Brown! <R.BROWN30> Bob, are things still on track for Alien Vs Pred in April and National advertising in early May? Does Atari send out stock reports to share holders? Any new info on the 040 board for the F030? Thanks. <BOB-BRODIE> We expect to have the game done in April, but we're really anxious to include as much as we can in the game. Also, we have to factor in manufacturing, too. We are trying very hard to get it out in April, though. Re the ads, the print ads are running nationally now.... Re stock reports, only the quarterly reports go out to the shareholders. We don't do a separte publication. I spoke with a couple of retailers that told me they are getting in different boards from Germany with both 040 boards, and faster 030s with TT compatible ram. Check with Steve's Software and other fine dealers regarding these products. <[Internet.Tim] AEO.8> I've heard about AvP for the Lynx, first does it exist? and second will it be a beat'em'up (like the other console and arcade) or first person like the rebellion version? who is doing it? <BOB-BRODIE> Tom will answer your question, Tim. <TOM.GILLEN> Yes it does exist, and is currently being developed by Images, and it should end up being a fist person perspective, and should be similar to AVP for the Jaguar. <FALCONER> Thanks, Lou!! :) Forgive me if I am redundant here, but I came in AFTER the RTC started!! Anyway..... better late than never, and last but certainly not LEAST......Items!! 1) Will there be an Atari presence at the STAR show next weekend, here in Sacramento?? 2) What have we to look forward, re SOFTWARE or HARDWARE for the ST/Mega/Falcons?? <TOM.GILLEN> I might go if I can swing it (STAR). <BOB-BRODIE> I don't believe that we have an official presence at the Star Show, like a booth. I know that a number of our employees are planning on attending the show. Re Hardware, there are a number of products that are coming out, and I happen to know that they will be on display at the STar Show by several dealers, including Steve's Software. We already discussed some of those tonight, so rather than go over them all again, please refer to the transcript later on. Thanks!! ga <[Mike] M.LIPSON> I have the same STacy screen problem that David has. If I send ATC my Stacy, will it be fixed? <BOB-BRODIE> As I mentioned to David, I will need to discuss this with Jim Jackson of our dealer support. I regret that I cannot give you a firmer answer at this point in time, Mike. <[HoST] ST.LOU> Well, Bob... The March session is now history. And a historical session it was! This is the first chance we have had to meet some of the new people at Atari and we are very happy you brought them to GEnie first! I know that Tom Gillen has been in the RTC's a lot lately and his presence has been greatly enjoyed. I hope Joe and Hank drop in from time to time and don't forget to teach everyone how to use the Bulletin Board! <TOM.GILLEN> Thanks very much for having Joe, Hank, and myself here tonight, it was a real fun experience for all! Look forward to continued correspondence on GEnie! <F.THOMASON> It was a great experince I hope to do more Conferences. Bye <BOB-BRODIE> Lou, thanks again for a stellar job of moderating the Dateline Atari. It was a real "baptism" for my colleagues here at Atari. I know that everyone on GEnie will join me in welcoming them to our online ranks, and support them as they "learn the ropes" here on GEnie. We're looking forward to getting everyone active as quickly as we can. Thanks should also go to Dan McNamee for teaching them Aladdin to help them get online quicker! Thanks to everyone else for attending tonight...Good Night! /|\ /|\ /|\ /|\ /|\ /|\ /|\ /|\ /|\ /|\ /|\ /|\ /|\ /|\ /|\ /|\ /|\ /|\ Our next session of Dateline Atari will be held on Friday, April 1st at 10:00 p.m. Eastern Time. Real Time Conferences in the Atari ST RoundTable are held every Monday (Desktop Publishing and Graphics) and Wednesday (Open House) night at 10:00 p.m. and a HelpDesk is available evry Sunday at 9:00 p.m. On the first and third Thursday there is a Programmer's RTC at 9:00 p.m. If you miss a conference, transcripts are made for all formal RTC's (where there is a special guest) and the programming RTC. You will find these transcripts in Library 13 - Atari Archives. Please send your questions, suggestions and comments to RTC$ via GEmail. Thank you. --==--==--==--==-- --------------------------------------------------------------------------- -- --==--==-- CompuServe Sign-Up Information --==--==-- -- -- -- -- To sign up for CompuServe service, call (voice call) (800) 848-8199. -- -- Ask for operator #198. You will be sent a $15.00 value CIS membership -- -- kit for free. -- -- -- -- --==--==-- CompuServe Sign-Up Information --==--==-- -- --------------------------------------------------------------------------- --==--==--==--==-- ||| Jaguar Tackboard ||| Confirmed information about Atari's Jaguar / | \ Compiled from online and official sources ----------------------------------------------------------------- =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= //// Independent Association of Jaguar Developers =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= The IAJD (Independent Association of Jaguar Developers) has started accepting members on GEnie. The IAJD is a private group where confidential discussions can be freely held. (Category 64 of the ST RoundTable is the IAJD meeting place.) Consequently, membership in the IAJD is limited to Jaguar developers who are registered with Atari Corp. To apply for membership, send EMail to ENTRY$ on GEnie (or <entry$@genie.geis.com> if you're not on GEnie). Regular EMail correspondence with the IAJD should be sent to IAJD$ (again, or <iajd$@genie.geis.com> if you're not on GEnie). =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= //// Developer / Game List 1.5 =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= //// Editor: The following developers, licensee and game titles have been confirmed to the best of AEO's ability as of March 6, 1994. Entries in the "S"tatus column reflects any "e"rrors, "u"pdates, "n"ew titles, or new "d"evelopers since the last AEO list. The "?" entry represents developers or titles that once were confirmed, but are now in questionable status. Titles in brackets (e.g., [Cybermorph]) have been completed and are available in the US. S Developer/Licensee Titles under development " """""""""""""""""" """""""""""""""""""""""" 21st Century Software - Pinball Fantasies 3D Games d Accent Media Productions Accolade - Al Michaels Announces Hardball - Brett Hull Hockey - Busby in Clawed Encounters of the Furried Kind - Charles Barkley Basketball - Jack Nicholas Golf Activision - Return to Zork CD-ROM All Systems Go - Hosenose and Booger - Jukebox Anco Software Ltd. - Kick Off - World Cup d Anthill Industries Argonaut Software - Creature Shock CD-ROM (For Virgin) Atari Corp. - Battlezone 2000 - [Crescent Galaxy] - Club Drive - MPEG 1 and 2 carts - Star Raiders 2000 - Tiny Toons Adventures - VR Helmet Atari Games Corp. Attention to Detail - Battlemorph: Cybermorph 2 - Blue Lightning - [Cybermorph] (For Atari) d Audio-Visual Magic d Bethesda Softworks Beyond Games Inc. - Battlewheels - Ultra Vortex d Black Scorpion Software d Bjorn Joos/Kris Van Lier Borta & Associates Brainstorm - [x86 Jaguar Development System] d Bullfrog Productions Ltd d Clearwater Software d Computer Music Consulting d Cybervision d CyberWare d Delta Music Systems Inc Dimension Technologies d Domark Group Ltd. DTMC d Duncan Brown d Elite d E-On Eurosoft d EZ Score Software Inc. d GameTec Inc. d Genus Microcomputing Inc. Gremlin Graphics Ltd. - Zool 2 - UNKNOWN TITLE (racing) - MORE? d H2O Design Corp. Hand Made Software - Kasumi Ninja (For Atari) High Voltage Software d Hisoft d ICD - Cat Box (video & comm expansion box) id Software - Doom: Evil Unleashed d Imagineer Company Ltd. - Wolfenstein 3D Imagitec Design Inc. - [Evolution Dino-Dudes] - [Raiden] Interplay - BattleChess CD-ROM - MORE? d Jaleco Krisalis Software Ltd. - Soccer Kid d Limelight Media Inc. LlamaSoft - Tempest 2000 (For Atari) Loricel S.A. d Manley & Associates Inc. Maxis Software Microids - Evidence - Commando Microprose - 3D Gunship 2000 - MORE SIMULATIONS Midnite Software Inc. - Car Wars - Dungeon Depths Millenium Interactive Ltd. d NMS Software Ltd. Ocean Software Ltd. ? Park Place Productions - UNKNOWN TITLE (American Football) d PEXIS INTERACIVE Phalanx - Phong 2000 d Photosurrealism d ReadySoft Incorporated - Dragon's Lair CD-ROM Dragon's Lair II CD-ROM Space Ace CD-ROM Rebellion Software Ltd. - Alien vs. Predator - Checkered Flag II - Legions of the Undead (For Atari) d Rest Energy d Sculptured Software Inc. Silmarils - Robinson's Requiem d Software Creations d Team Infinity d Team 17 Software Ltd. d Technation Digital World d Techtonics Telegames - Brutal Sports Football - Casino Royale - European Soccer Challenge - Ultimate Brain Games - MORE? d Teque London Ltd. d Thrustmaster Tiertex Ltd. Titus Tradewest - Double Dragon 4 - MORE Trimark Interactive U.S. Gold Ltd. - Flashback UBI Soft International - Jimmy Connors Pro Tennis - MORE e V-Reel Productions - Arena Football - Horrorscope Virgin Interactive Entertainment Ltd. - UNKNOWN ("Movie title") e Virtual Xperience - Indiana Jags - Zozziorx - MORE? d Virtual Xperience d Visual Concepts d Williams Brothers d WMS Industries =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= //// Atari Announces New Signees - PR =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Atari Announces Total of 86 Developers, Publishers and Licensees for Jaguar 48 New Partners Include Creators and Publishers of Dragon's Lair, Mortal Kombat, Populous, Pro-Sports Hockey and Wolfenstein 3D SUNNYVALE, Calif. -- March 7, 1994 -- Atari Corporation (ASE: ATC) announced today that its award-winning Jaguar 64-bit game system has attracted 86 top developers, publishers and licensees since its introduction in November 1993. Among the 48 new partners announced today are ReadySoft Incorporated, publisher of Dragon's Lair, Dragon's Lair II and Space Ace; Bullfrog Productions Limited, developer of Populous and Powermonger; Imagineer, publisher of Wolfenstein 3D (SNES); Jaleco, a leading manufacturer of arcade games and home video games including Super Bases Loaded and Pro-Sport Hockey; and Sculptured Software, developer of Mortal Kombat for Acclaim. "The innovative technology unleashed by Jaguar challenges us to change our approach to developing software," said Glen Williams, technical director, Williams Brothers Development, one of the newly signed software developers. "With Jaguar, game developing is no longer a matter of working within the machine's capabilities, but of living up to them." Since January 1, 1994, Atari has signed 48 new partners. These are: Accent Media Productions HiSoft Anthill Industries ICD (ASG) All Systems Go Imagineer Company Ltd. Argonaut Software Ltd. Jaleco Audio-Visual Magic Limelight Media Inc. Bethesda Softworks Manley & Associates Inc. Bjorn Joos/Kris Van Lier NMS Software Ltd. Black Scorpion Software Photosurrealism Borta & Associates PEXIS INTERACTIVE Bullfrog Productions Ltd. ReadySoft Incorporated Clearwater Software Rest Energy Computer Music Consulting Sculptured Software Inc. Cybervision Software Creations CyberWare Team Infinity Delta Music Systems Inc. Team 17 Software Ltd. Domark Group Ltd. Technation Digital World DTMC Techtonics Duncan Brown Teque London Ltd. Elite Thrustmaster E-On V-Reel EZ Score Software Inc. Virtual Xperience GameTec Inc. Visual Concepts Genus Microcomputing Inc. Williams Brothers H2O Design Corp. WMS Industries "We are pleased the industry's most innovative, successful software companies continue to join the Jaguar team," said Sam Tramiel, president of Atari. "Jaguar is the world's most powerful multimedia video game system. Consequently, this platform offers leading developers and publishers unprecedented creative and commercial opportunities." "Atari has used cutting-edge technology to push Jaguar's system architecture beyond the industry's next natural stage and leaped ahead of its competitors in the process," said Lou Viveros, president of V-Reel and Viveros and Associates, a leading video game consulting firm. "Our games will require creativity and flexibility in the development process and outstanding system performance during game play. Consequently, the decision to develop for Jaguar was an easy one." V-Reel will develop and market Arena Football exclusively for Jaguar. This represents the first license of the Arena Football League for home video game systems. V-Reel also plans to develop Horrorscope, a Jaguar fighting game based on the 12 characters of the Zodiac. Atari Jaguar is the world's first 64-bit interactive multimedia home entertainment system and is the only video game system manufactured in the United States. Jaguar was recently named the industry's "Best New Game System" (VideoGames Magazine), "Best New Hardware System" (Game Informer), and "1993 Technical Achievement of the Year" (Die Hard Game Fan). Atari expects to deliver its Jaguar CD-peripheral mid-year at a suggested retail price of $200. Atari Corporation, based in Sunnyvale, Calif., manufactures and markets 64-bit interactive multimedia entertainment systems, video games and personal computers for the home, office and educational marketplaces. =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= //// ICD Announces First Jaguar Hardware Add-On - PR =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Rockford, Illinois, March 7, 1994 -- Black Cat Design, a designer of computer peripherals and accessories, and ICD, today announced Cat Box, the complete interface adapter for the Atari Jaguar 64-bit game system. Cat Box plugs directly into the AV/DSP ports on the back of the Jaguar. Its custom case measures just 6 x 1.5 x 1 inches and perfectly accents the sleek Jaguar design. Cat Box provides all of the standard connections that Jaguar customers desire. Standard ports include: S-Video, Composite Video, Left & Right Audio Out, Dual Stereo Headphones, Analog RGB Video, RS-232, ComLynx, and DSP. All connectors are "industry standard". Standards are a big part of Cat Box and connectivity is the key. The RS-232 port will connect to standard modems. The ComLynx port will join other Jaguar and Lynx game systems for multi-player games and other networking ideas. Black Cat Design is actively working with game developers to ensure support for these ports. An imaginative, well thought out design includes flexibility for the future. Internal expansion connectors for future add-in cards ensure that Cat Box will be as useful then as it is now. Future products under consideration include a MIDI interface and an internal modem. ICD has licensed Cat Box from Black Cat Design for exclusive world-wide distribution. Thomas Harker, president of ICD, explained, "This product is an unbelievable value. I wouldn't be surprised if all Jaguar owners buy a Cat Box. My family is really thankful for the headphone jacks when our twin boys are playing Raiden. Finally, peace and quiet again in the game room. The boys can't wait for the next generation of multi-player games to arrive. Imagine, dual Jaguars head to head. Cat Box will help make this possible. It makes so much sense, I don't know why it wasn't done before." The Cat Box will begin shipping early next quarter at an MSRP of $49.95. ICD is taking orders now with shipments expected in May. For further information, contact ICD Public Relations in the United States by phone (815) 968-2228 extension 222 or fax (815) 968-6888. Cat Box is a trademark of Black Cat Design. Other trademarks are those of their respective holders. =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= //// Jaguar NewsPhrases =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= ( Byte: 8 bits Word: 16 bits Longword: 32 bits Phrase: 64 bits ) KASUMI NINJA is receiving special attention inside Atari. The nine fighters in KN still haven't been finalized, but at press time, the line-up reads like this: Ninja Warrior, Yeti, Amazon Queen, African- American streetfighter, Goth, British pugilist, Scottish Highlander, and American Indian. (Yes, that's only eight.) - The fighters in KN are digitized from live actors, and with the design work taking place at Hand Made Software in Manchester, UK, there's not a lot of American Indian actors in the local talent pool to choose from. Atari Corp. was concerned about the ethics of casting a non-American Indian in the role, and decided upon flying Lawton, OK native Gene Sovo (Lonesome Dove) to the UK, where he will be digitized into the game. TEMPEST 2000 was the focus for a special online promotion from Atari the weekend of March 4-6. T2K, normally priced at $59.99, was available for direct EMail/fax order for $40. (A reduced shipping & handling charge brought the total savings to over $20.) Response was far heavier than anticipated - "We're overwhelmed," said Bob Brodie Monday afternoon. =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= //// Jaguar Quotes =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= First up, here are some additional quotes from the post-Dateline: Atari free-for-all on GEnie last Friday night. About Club Drive: <F.THOMASON> Club Drive should be ready by Mid Spring About Checkered Flag II: <F.THOMASON> There is much more depth in Checkered Flag than Virtua Racing. The player has control over many elements in the game. The player can choose weather conditions, tracks and [to] upgrade your car <TOM.GILLEN> Dont know the exact quanity of tracks, should be about 10 or more. <F.THOMASON> There are still graphic enhancemenst and code optimization still being made to Checkered Flag so the exact fps rates are not final. <F.THOMASON> ....you will be able to turn around and drive off the track About Alien vs. Predator: <BOB-BRODIE> ... It's gonna have about 150+ megs compressed. <F.THOMASON> There are facehuggers roaming about - they actually jump on your face! //// Don Thomas <75300.1267@compuserve.com> has announced that the first shipment of S-Video cables has come and gone: [] Everyone might like to know that the first shipment of S-Video cables has left our warehouse this afternoon. I understand we are backordered for all shipments through April 1, so I will not be able to accept direct orders until closer to that date. If you were looking for an S-Video cable, visit your retailer within the next 7 to 10 days as they begin to infiltrate the retail distribution channels. As for the long anticipated national advertising: [] Please be aware that the current New York cable TV schedule will be expanded to network stuff there and in San Francisco in about 2 weeks. Los Angeles will begin about the same time too. A nation-wide cable buy is set to start around March 21st. Stay "Tuned"! [] Advertising in New York for the Jaguar has been turned back on. San Francisco will soon follow. Within 30 to 45 days, ads (TV) will begin appearing in LA, Chicago, Boston, Washington, Dallas, Detroit and Atlanta. The "barf" commercial will be used. I was not permitted to argue with statistics that showed clearly that that commercial worked! Then again, I don't personally approve of blodd and guts games EXCEPT that seems to be what sells and I am MORE FOR providing the consumers what they want. This information and list is subject to change pending final media buys, scheduling, market changes, etc. BTW, there are MANY reasons for the selection of markets. For instance Radio Shack (Incredible Universe) is located in Dallas/Ft. Worth. It only makes sense to offer them a local feeling of the impact. Marketing is a strategy that involves numerous levels... we don't only sell to end users, but to the distribution and retail channels too. And how can people go about buying Jaguars direct from Atari again? [] I've posted it many times, but I'm always eager to post it again. If you cannot get Jaguar or Lynx related items fast enough from your local dealer, call 1-800-GO-ATARI during normal business hours M-F; Pacific time. You may also place orders with me in E-Mail OR fax your MasterCard/Visa info to 408/745-2088 24 hours a day. I am backordered on Jaguars about 3 to 6 weeks, but they are shipping daily. Priority IS to the dealers at present, but some people like knowing one is reserved ASAP for them. BTW, I can ship to any North American property only. //// Scott Legrand <legrand@tesla.mbi.ucla.edu> had this to say about the exciting world of Jaguar development: [] We've been developing for the jaguar for just over 3 months now... You have to be persistent in contacting Bill Rehbock, but he can be reached. He's a very very very busy man. Companies like Capcom and Acclaim are understandably going to get more attention because they can potentially bring in the big bucks just by signing on without even releasing a title. it took us a couple of months to get the ball rolling, but once it did, things went very smoothly. It may have helped that all of us were ST people from way back and our names were all at least somehwat familiar. We're developing on Falcons, STs, and clones (oh my)... We didn't even bother with a TT as a) we sort of wanted to have a falcon to screw with, and b) it works with the development system and has the cool sound chips built right in. We have some majorly cool sound FX already that only took us a night to make on the Falcon. As another posted stated, it's dang cheap to get into Jaguar development as opposed to other systems and you have a wide choice of development platforms. In fact, I'd hazard to say it's the most flexible system of all. --==--==--==--==-- ||| Atari Artist ||| By: Peter Donoso & Fadi Hayek / | \ GEnie: EXPLORER.2 ----------------------------------------------------------------- ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ]=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-[ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- [ ATARI ARTIST ] -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ]=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-[ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ After a far longer than originally estimated - and, I might add, very reluctant - absence, I'd like to start off by saying that it's great to be back here at AEO! I spent all of January packing (it still amazes me just how MUCH stuff can be accumulated after being in one place for 20 years) and then UNPACKING! Hey, wait a minute... I think I just caught a glimmer of light comin' through the cracks between them thar cartons! As those of you out there who have taken that perilous leap towards moving in with your "significant other" may have already discovered, trying to restore their space to some semblance of order as soon as possible is an absolute imperative! At least, that is, if you want to successfully restrain those spiraling feelings of regret taking the deadly step from a mere mental groan into the potentially disastrous verbal ozone! Numerous attempts may also have to be made in trying to explain that "moving" is a two-way word; the other person has to also be open to re-organizing, consolidating and otherwise disposing of their own stuff. These often may result in unannounced time-outs which can sometimes lead to a half-serious rumble over who gets to keep their old, on-the-way-out toaster (she does) and who decides what art work gets hung on the walls (she does). Who says women don't get to have it all? Of a more personal nature, among my more triumphant moments recently was discovering where I had buried my modem. I could have sworn I put it with the rest of my computer-related hardware, and I wasn't quite sure just how I would be uploading this column without it - not to mention catching up on my E-mail and all the latest on-line news! In this issue we'll be: [] Giving you a brief run-down of the recent NAMM (National Association of Music Merchants) winter show at Anaheim, CA. [] Updating you on the latest developments on Wizztronics' new products for both the Atari Falcon 030, as well as the rest of the Atari line of computers. [] Discussing the latest news on a number of music programs, including Cubase Audio, Notator Logic, Musicom II and Digitape & Digitape Lite . Having made our return entrance, we do fully expect to be back up to regular speed by our next installment, which, as you may have previously noticed, normally appears on the average of once a month, or every alternate issue of AEO. -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- = = - - -=-=-=- [ SHOW NEWS ] -=-=-=- - - = = -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= //// Atari Struts Their Bird! =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= The winter NAMM '94 show had a strong turn-out despite the earlier earthquake in Northridge, which was no more than 90 miles northwest of downtown Anaheim. Although attendance was somewhat lower than had been predicted, the weekend turned out a large, enthusiastic crowd. Atari was originally scheduled to exhibit at the Motorola booth, along with Wizztronics, Steinberg and a number of other Atari developers, but unfortunately Motorola cancelled at the last minute, and Atari held court at their suite located in the Anaheim Hilton, directly across the way from the convention center. Garry Tramiel and James Grunke were on hand to showcase Atari's Falcon 030 and the hot new Jaguar. Wizztronics' Steve Cohen riveted the attention of suite visitors as he pointed out the features of his Falcon rack case and then wowed them with a visual prototype of his 040 accelerator board. Although finished boards were not available for installation and demoing at that point, the first actual debut of a fully-working model is due to be unveiled at an upcoming Club Cubase meeting on March 9th in NYC. More on this later on. =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= /// Controllers Reign! =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= The show itself seemed to debut few surprises, with most manufacturers showcasing improved models of their respective existing technologies. Alternate MIDI controllers seemed to have captured the most interest. The most novel one was the WALKABOUT, a wireless MIDI percussion system suspended by a somewhat cumbersome-looking strap-on harness that allows a drummer the freedom to move or dance around with a complete trap set - including cymbals - suspended in front and around them. The basic unit includes a 12 pad MIDI trigger pad, remote 16 input MIDI interface, MIDI wireless system, and 2 rechargeable 12-volt batteries. Options include: an add-on, back-mounted extension bracket which extends out over your head to a comfortable distance in front of you at chest level where you can mount two MIDI cymbals; special "trigger shoes" - available in your particular shoe size - which allow for creating bass pedal and high hat (or even double bass!) effects. If you think this description sound bizarre, you're right! I musty admit that the demo I caught was pretty impressive - now if they could just add a MIDI washboard and MIDI Edsle horn it would be a real killer! Another very interesting controller was a striking, futuristic- looking strap-on keyboard controller, called the Riday T-91. Its keyboard was also a radical design, offering a clever alternative to the old, familiar linear white-and-black tiered arrangement of keys. Instead it offers 7 rows of 13 single-tiered keys, colored white, black and gray. These 7 rows are in an offset related position to each other; starting with the second row, each successive row begins 5 keys from the previous one. The closest visual image I can think of is the way the right aisle seating in an auditorium looks as you walk down - angled as the hall moves towards the stage. Although it seems daunting at first to learn a whole new technique for playing, I found I could do five octave runs amazingly fast after only five minutes of playing it! The concept of note arrangement is somewhat like a guitar neck - the same note in the same octave appears in a number of places on the fretboard (row of keys). The white keys correspond to those on a piano. What are normally the black keys are color-coded so that the first two black keys which traditionally appear immediately after C are also black, while the remaining group of three black keys which follow F are colored grey. When you do a run on a regular keyboard, you need to cross your thumb under your right hand usually after the third finger (on your left hand it's usually after your fourth). This particular method necessary for playing a traditional piano keyboard, combined with having to adjust your finger height in order to hit the black keys, can take years of practice to be able to fluidly move your hands across the instrument. The RIDAY T-91's alternate arrangement allows you to play five keys in a row and then transfer to the next row to continue your one-handed run. A small foam-covered brace attachment positioned between the back of the unit and your hip or waist allows the unit to sit at an angle comfortable for two-handed playing, and a versatile shoulder strap arrangement makes the unit adjustable to fit your frame and playing style. When you start to think about it, the possibility for otherwise impossible fingered chords and new playing techniques are quite amazing! =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= //// The Digital Audio Scene =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Despite having had their offices trashed by the earthquake, Steinberg- Jones still managed to make it to the show with working models of their products on all three computer platforms. They had crowds of people oohing and aahing at a Falcon running Cubase Audio Falcon at their booth. Both Fadi and I were impressed with their responses and, needless to say, we both can't wait to get our Falcons going with this monster music program! The rest of the computer world does seem to trying to catch up. Windows-based digital audio systems are still card dependent, and that added cost puts their overall system price above a Falcon. The release of Macintosh's new multimedia Quadras, with built-in DSP and 040 processor have made it possible for products like OSC's DECK II to offer up to 8 tracks of digital audio on the 660AV and 840AV models WITHOUT an additional sound card (sound familiar?) PLUS sync capability with a DECK II environment-provided Quicktime video editing window for creating AV post production sound tracks. There are, however, some definite hurdles to still overcome: prices start at around $3000 for a 660AV system; limited backward compatibility with most existing programs and a number of operating system bugs make purchasing OSC's METRO sequencing software practically a necessity...and METRO ain't no Cubase! All in all the Falcon with Cubase Audio and an 040 accelerator board still ends up being the best buy AND with the imminent release of Wizztronic's 040-compatible VES video system later on this year (see VIDEO NEWS), the Mac system looks like it will remain outclassed and outpriced. -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- = = - - -=-=-=- [ HARDWARE NEWS ] -=-=-=- - - = = -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= //// Barracuda 040 Accelerator Board & RAM Expansion Board =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Wizztronics' Barracuda 040 accelerator board is set to start shipping by March 31st. The standard configuration is driven by a 68EC040 microprocessor running at 16MHz with an 8k internal cache. Options are available for purchasing either a EC33MHz or 33MHz version. The letters EC signify no FPU (floating processor point) co-processor is present. 16 MHz owners will be able to upgrade to the 33 MHz version at a later date. The 33 MHz version will offer software that will enable on-the-fly speed switching between 16 and 33 MHz without having to reboot. The optional 32 bit Memory Expansion Card, which plugs directly onto the Barracuda 040 Accelerator card, will be able to handle from 1 to 128 additional megs of TT compatible Fast RAM operating at zero wait states. All memory is burstable for faster CPU operation. The Barracuda plugs into the Falcon's expansion buss and while assuming control of all the Falcon's 030 main processor functions while working seemlessly in conjunction with all of the Falcon's other processors - and it's fully backwards compatible. The timing problem inherent in earlier releases of the Falcon (Atari is shipping current Falcon 030 models with the fix installed) is already built in to the Barracuda, with a spot allocated for installing the 74F08 chip fix. Installation of the accelerator and bug fix is available through Wizztronics. Due to the amount of available space and power afforded by the Falcon's case, the Barracuda will NOT be able to be directly installed within a standard Falcon. Wizztronics is offering an alternative 3-space rack mountable case (see below). Prices are as follows: Barracuda 040 16MHz accelerator board with 68EC040 - $650 Upgrade to 68EC040 33MHz - add $150 Upgrade to 68040 33MHz - add $300 RAM Expansion Card w/memory management controller $300 Switch Kit - add $ 5 =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= //// Falcon Rack =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= The Wizztonics' Falcon Rack is now ready to ship. In addition to the floppy disk drive cut-out and power switch, the front plate now also features a cartridge port cut-out, mouse and joystick ports, keyboard connector for a standard Atari Mega ST/STe/TT keyboard (with optional PC keyboard interface port) and 1/4" stereo headphone jack. The rear panel looks similar to the back of the Falcon case with the addition of MIDI in/outs, cartridge port cut-out (for optional rear mounting) extended db15 connectors, 1/4" stereo input and output jacks (rear output jack is automatically disconnected when front-panel 1/4" stereo headphone jack is used) and optional 50pin centronics SCSI connector(s) (2 needed for internal SCSI hard drive installation). Rack dimensions are 19" wide by 15" deep by 5 1/4" high. These dimensions support accommodation for additional upgrades and future expansion, including a 3 1/2" SCSI hard drive, 200 watt UL power supply, Barracuda 040 accelerator board, RAM Expansion board, Video Funnel and VES Video Editing System. Prices are as follows: Level 1 - #WT-ARK941 bare case $250 Level 2 - #WT-ARK942 includes keyboard interface $335 Level 3 - #WT-ARK943 includes internal power supply $320 Level 4 - #WT-ARK944 includes internal power supply & keyboard interface $395 Additional Options: 200 watt UL power supply (recommended for Barracuda 33 MHz accelerator board and RAM Expansion board) $ 70 Internal hard drive mounting kit $ 20 SCSI cable kit with IDC 50 and dual centronics connectors $ 35 PC keyboard interface for use with XT or AT keyboards $125 Input/Output patch cable kit for use from original Falcon housing to Falcon Case $ 20 Near-Future* Options: 1040/Mega ST rear plate $ 55 Mounting adaptor plate for Mega ST $ 20 * 3rd quarter '94 =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= //// PC Emulation Board =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Wizztronics has decided to definitely proceed with development of their 486sx PC emulation board. A 486 board running at 33 MHz will be able to plug directly into the Falcon expansion bus of the Falcon's factory case. Compatibility will be also be assured with a spot provided for plugging Wizztronics' 040 Barracuda board into the 486 board, but alternate housing will then be required with the addition of the Barracuda 040 board. Expected release for PC emulation board is late fourth quarter of '94. -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- = = - - -=-=-=- [ VIDEO NEWS ] -=-=-=- - - = = -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= //// Video Funnel =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Release date for Wizztronic's Video Funnel is set for April 30th. The Video Funnel will enable single frame video frame grabbing, with 12 megs of on-board RAM a 128K cache. The Video Funnel will provide an ample buffer to allow full screen resolution redraw at true 30 frames per second with no compression required. Accompanying software will allow the additional option of being able to scan and display up to four video image clips simultaneously on screen and save them as a group at 640 x 480 true color resolution. The Video Funnel also has a 50-pin interface expansion bus for built-in expandability for integrating fully with Wizztronics' forthcoming VES Video Editing System. Orders are being accepted for the Video Funnel and will be shipped on a first-come, first serve basis when accompanied by a check or money order for the amount of $600, which represents full payment. Those who purchase a Video Funnel system now will receive a substantial savings on Wizztronics' VES system, which is on schedule for a 4th quarter '94 release. Software development is nearing completion on Genlocking and Titling aspects of the system. Negotiations are presently underway for integrating VES with a 3rd party rendering package. -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- = = - - -=-=-=- [ MUSIC NEWS ] -=-=-=- - - = = -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= //// Steinberg's CubaseScore =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Steinberg's CubaseScore 2.0 is scheduled for a May release. This version features a host of impressive additional scoring features and capabilities while managing to make the potentially complicated process of computer music scoring amazingly simple. First off, CubaseScore has been impressively been streamlined - all of its windows refresh and update with simultaneous, blinding speed. Up to 32 staves per page (8 voices per polyphonic per part) are possible. One of the most impressive features is its optional ability to move any score elements, including rests, without affecting the MIDI sequence. Additional capabilities: cross-staff beaming, nested time signatures (i.e., 3+3+2/4), grace notes, sizable small and big staves, automatic layout with page numbering, floating or one syllable- per-note text insertion, definable MIDI symbols and advanced drum notation. Users will also be able to import, export and save a variety of scoring templates. Templates will be able to range from and affect anything from individual elements to an entire piece - very cool! In addition, a number of new sequence-related modules will also be included. The Arpeggiator module offers a host of directional- configurable runs, as well as such effects as guitar-emulated strums and picking patterns for some pretty realistic effects. An expanded Sysex Editor module and General MIDI module will also make working with your MIDI data and patches easier to manage. All told, CubaseScore 2.0 is a truly awesome sequencing/scoring package running within one unified, totally integrated environment. =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= //// New Cubase Modules =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Steinberg has already released a number of other Cubase modules, all of which are accessible under its M-ROS multi-tasking environment. The Studio Module universal editor/librarian ($199 list) allows control of all your modules' load/send/save features, with total recall of your setup for any song and macro editing capabilities for individual as well as groups of both synths and FX modules. As if this weren't enough, Steinberg has bundled this with CueTrax, which can be used for seamless matching of audio to visual cues on film and video, syncing Cubase to live music or tape, restoring lost sync tracks and mixing music along with any tempo-based events! The StyleTrax module ($149.95 list) offers full-featured accompaniment capability with conversion of any arrangement consisting of up to 8 tracks into a variety of Styles in real time. Up to 15 styles with 64 different variations can be switched by velocity, randomly or directly from your keyboard controller. StyleTrax's real-time features offer killer live- performance possibilities as well, including the ability to create harmony tracks and then slave the selected Style to them. =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= //// Steinberg's New Cubase Hardware =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= For those of you out there who have been frustrated by the inability to use their MIDEX+ - Steinberg's SMPTE time code synchronizer, MIDI expander and copy protection key expander - good news! The new SMP II ($1299 list) is a single rack space computer-controlled MIDI interface module containing 2 MIDI ins, 4 MIDI outs and both reads & generates all common SMPTE formats. It also features a large, 8 digit SMPTE LED display window for keeping track of your exact location instantly. "That's great, but that still doesn't solve how I'm gonna be able to run Avalon alongside Cubase, or switch to my Spectre GCR Mac emulator without having to always be pulling one cartridge out in order to put in another?" No problem - you can use Wizztronics' Cartmaster multi-cartridge port extender - and they offer a cartridge ribbon extender so you can place their Cartmaster in a remote location! There's even a side-positioned port for large cartridges, like scanner and video interfaces... or a Spectre GCR! Software is included for activating one of the four ports. Rebooting is not required, and you can even set up your computer to auto-boot with a selected active port. Selling your old MIDEX+ should bring in some extra dough, and for a limited time Steinberg is bundling Cubase Audio Falcon and the SMP II for $1800 MSLP - or around $1100 street price. Steinberg also has released their Falcon Digital Interface ($599 list) which features SPDIF in/outs as well as optical in/outs for connecting with AD/DAs on your DAT machine. Included software lets you back up any number of folders containing digital audio files, sequences - even your entire hard drive! Storage capacity is 1.2 gigs with a 120 minute tape, and you can use the marker feature on your DAT to restore specific folders! =-=-=-=-=-=-=-= //// Other News =-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Yamaha's CBX-D5 has finally made it to the marketplace. Although Yamaha initially launched the unit with extensive advanced advertising, they now seem to be laying back with their ads - a rather strange approach now that the unit has finally landed at the stores. Although sales have reported to be off to a sluggish start, Steinberg's Cubase CBX-D5 for Atari has also been released to coincide with the unit's availability. =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= //// Rumored For Future Release =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= There's more excitement rumored to be ready for late '94 release. Avalon, Steinberg's unparalleled sample editing environment will supposedly be updated to integrate alongside Cubase Audio Falcon. Hard disk-based digital audio processing, such as time stretching and pitch shifting will now be possible in addition to all of Avalon's many incredible sample editing features. Rumor also has it that automatic 3-part harmonies as well as chromatic or diatonic key shifts/micro adjustments will also be possible without any change or loss in quality of the digital audio recording. Although Steinberg's recently released Time Bandit for the Mac performs a number of these functions, Avalon will take these capabilities a step further and offer the added advantage of full-blown sample editing. [] Although fully documented, most people may not know that Motorola's 56001 DSP chip - the very same one that is in every Atari Falcon 030 - has the theoretical capability of doing 8 STEREO, or 16 mono, channels of digital audio - the only requirement to break the 8 channel barrier is being able to use lots of RAM! Wizztronic's soon-to-be-released 128 meg RAM expansion board for their Falcon Studio rack module may soon test the very limits of this chip! [] Version 2.0 of Cubase Audio Falcon is also under development. Rumor has it that the next update will incorporate a number of features similar to Digidesign's SoundTools/ProTools, as well as improved and expanded digital DSP effects handling. Stay tuned right here for more on this new update. =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= //// E-Magic's Logic Audio Falcon to be Released =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= E-Magic plans to release the Atari version of Logic Audio at the upcoming Music Messe held in Frankfurt, Germany at the end of March. The first release of Logic Audio for the Mac has met with some rave reviews. Digidesign's Audio Media II, SoundTools or ProTools are required however. No word yet on how Logic Audio will take advantage of the new Mac AVs, but it will be interesting to see how much of Atari's Falcon 030 capabilities E-Magic will be able to take full advantage of. Will they include an integrated sample editor, as in the Mac version? The Falcon has the ability to compete with Digidesign's DSP card. We'll let you know. As an interesting aside, after marveling at the striking similarity in interface between Cubase and Logic, what is even more amazing is that the overall functionality of a program would not be subject to the laws of copyrighting - it isn't! It is equally interesting to note that the complete overhaul and subsequent metamorphosis of the original Notator program (which so many devoted Atarians had come to know and love) should emerge onto multiple platforms in its transformed state as Logic, affording E-Magic a whole new additional following of users. Although there are some differences between the two programs (unlimited tracks, grouping sections into "folders", Environment graphic objects processor display) the arrange, hyper, matrix, event and score windows are remarkably similar. New and improved - or merely a carbon copy? We'll be delving in for a closer look in a future column - look for it soon! =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= //// Compo's Musicom 2 Soon To Be Released =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= The original release of Musicom served to showcase some impressive DSP-related features of the Falcon 030, but its functions were somewhat of a departure from the usual GEM interface - features were accessible through a number of separate radio-button dialog-boxed screens, and parameters were somewhat limited. The anticipated release of Musicom 2 will offer even more features, with a whole new facelift to boot. There is now a full range of drop-down menus and an on-screen set of toolbox icons that trigger the main functions. A full range of sampling frequencies are available using either the Falcon's internal hardware as a clock source. Alternately you also have the option of inputting external CD or DAT clocks through the DSP port. Each clock source offers a different range of sampling frequencies, from the Falcon's own 49.2kHz to a DAT's 48 kHz and a CD's 44.1kHz. An improved hard drive management tool has been also added to allow for smoother execution of digital audio. Additional capabilities include full sample editing, on-screen signal levels, spectrum analyzer and a Playlist feature for seeming various sound bites together. Also include is a powerful Pattern Editor, which allows for total control over sequencing of samples in any order. Price has not been set, but is estimated to be around $150. If you purchased the original Musicom, you'll be able to upgrade to Musicom 2 for somewhere around $65. Look for it soon. =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= //// Digitape Released =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= CGS ComputerBild's Digitape ($699) and Digitape Lite ($229) have been released in Europe for the Falcon. Digitape offers up to 32 virtual tracks of digital audio, although only 8 tracks can be played back simultaneously. The program features the familiar tape transport window, but uses the rather interesting approach of offering 9 module "slots" for loading a variety of functions. Along with the expected Record and Playback modules are a number of DSP effects modules, including a 10-band graphic EQ, 12 types of reverb, vibrato, flanger, distortion and a noise gate, as well as a number of Playback modules, including a Karaoeke module. Once you have recorded on a track, you convert the record module to a playback module for checking on the results. This may seem a bit cumbersome at first, but it reportedly takes no less time than hit a "play" button, and once you're satisfied with the results, you can replace them with permanent playback module. Since effects can only be applied during playback getting eight tracks of digital audio plus processing more than one track with DSP is not directly possible without employing a somewhat clumsy method for getting around this limitation by calling up additional modules. You have to "hide" existing modules and insert other modules on top of them (huh?) - not too practical a way to work. The Edit system includes a sample editor, although the lack of the usual "cue sheet" playlist capability is glaringly absent. Other features include an Effects On-Line Rack, which processes incoming signals in real time, a Tape Label window for labeling track names and entering notes, and a Frequency Analyzer which can also double as... a guitar tuner?! Digitape Lite has fewer tracks, less features and no edit capabilities. Word has it that Codehead Software has been in negotiation for the rights to distribute Digitape here in the US, but it looks like the price will either have to come down or the features will have to be much improved - in addition to fixing some of the more clumsy functions, how about adding: time stretching, cross fades, automated mixdown and a playlist! Although this program has great potential, for now the price does not seem worth the level of features. =-=-=-=-=-= //// Coda =-=-=-=-=-= Well, that's it for this edition. Next time around we'll take a look at some of the exciting new graphics,animation and graphic rendering programs for the Atari Falcon, along with all the latest music and video related news in the world of Atari. Until next time, this is Pete Donoso & Fadi Hayek reminding you that... -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- = = - - [ "Today is the Tomorrow you dreamed about Yesterday." ] - - = = -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- --==--==--==--==-- --------------------------------------------------------------------------- -- --==--==-- GEnie Sign-Up Information --==--==-- -- -- -- -- 1. Set your communications software for half duplex (local echo) -- -- at 300, 1200, or 2400 baud. -- -- -- -- 2. Dial toll free: 1-800-638-8369 (or in Canada, 1-800-387-8330). -- -- Upon connection, enter HHH. -- -- -- -- 3. At the U# prompt, enter XTX99436,GENIE then press <Return>. -- -- -- -- 4. Have a major credit card ready. In the U.S., you may also use -- -- your checking account number. -- -- -- -- For more information in the United States or Canada, call 1-800- -- -- 638-9636 or write: GEnie, c/o GE Information Services, P.O. Box -- -- 6403, Rockville, MD 20850-1785. -- -- -- -- --==--==-- Atari's Official Online Resource! --==--==-- -- --------------------------------------------------------------------------- --==--==--==--==-- ||| Andreas' Den ||| By: Andreas Barbiero / | \ Delphi: ABARBIERO GEnie: AEO.2 --------------------------------------------------------------- The STe computer has really been a sellout over the last quarter of 1993! No fantasy here, but in Atari-land UK, the sales of the STe have not been at their height, but then again ~10,000 units sold is not ignorable. Software sales have not been bad, either. There are a lot of budget re-releases out there, and let's face it, most of those game titles are not worth more than the budget prices that they are going for. Several compilations are also bigger sellers, usually packing two or three great games in with several mediocre ones. To put it in perspective, in past years Atari has sold close to 300,000 computers a year in the UK, which is about 1/10th of the numbers of STfms sold in the late 80's. In 1993, the sales figures of a computer based on an 8MHz 68000 breaking 50,000 a year is astounding. On the modern side, the Falcon seems to be selling less slowly as specialized Falcon030 applications come along to drive sales up. Cubase Audio has caused sales of the Falcon up about five time over the old rate according to some music stores, and does an admirable job standing up to $3500 setups based on Macs. Now all we need in an I/O multiplexer for those 8 DMA channels! //// Power to the PC? I have seen dozens of statements on the message boards claiming that once the PowerPC arrives, there is nothing Atari or anyone else can do but to give up. The PowerPC is a powerful chip, and should cause the computer industry to move from the monolithic Intel/Microsoft duality into a same computer/multiple OS market. Bill Gates has repeatedly stated that he is working to do the opposite, a multiple computers/one OS world is what he sees. This sounds just as good, but it isn't. Having Microsoft decide the way my operating system will work, and hence dictating the way my applications will work, is not what I want to see. Being able to own a PC, Mac, Atari, or a computer that can run a combination of applications won't make Mr. Gates much more money, but will serve the computer user. //// Mac the Giant killer. Just because Apple decides to produce PowerPC (PPC) based computers does not mean that magically you have a box that will be able to run all Mac, PC, and Windows applications with ultimate speed. The Mac OS is not known for its streamlined coding, and the problems that occur with trying to run PC programs on the Atari will still show up on the PPC Mac. IBM compatible versions of popular games and some applications will not run directly, as they are looking for PC cards and may not take kindly to a software implementation of Intel code. These limitations may not hold for long, but the road to establishing a MAC based multi-computer, even with a PPC chip, is going to be a long one. The ideal thing is for software developers to develop programs that will run on the PPC natively. WordPerfect has opened the way to recompiled applications by announcing the shipment of a version which will run on the PPC Mac without any software interpretation. How successful this will be is all up to how many people get their independent pieces together. If you can run Windows in a window, System 7, and DOS simultaneo