621 lines
28 KiB
Plaintext
621 lines
28 KiB
Plaintext
*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*
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Syndicate ZMagazine Issue #124 September 21, 1988
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| HOT Atari News and Reviews |
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-----------------| American Publishing Enterprises, Inc |----------------
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-----------------| Post Office Box 74 |----------------
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-----------------| Middlesex, New Jersey 08846-0074 |----------------
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PUBLISHER GENERAL MANAGER ZMag EDITOR ASSISTANT EDITOR
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Ron Kovacs R. F. Mariano John Deegan Carlos Hernandez
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=========================================================================
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Available on: * CompuServe * GEnie * Delphi * The Source * F-Net *
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=========================================================================
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Copyright (c) 1988 APEInc, SPC -- All Rights Reserved --
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ZMAG NORTH
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The Launch Pad BBS
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(201) 343-1426
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H143-201
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ZMAG MIDWEST
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Stairway To Heaven
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(216) 784-0574
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H002-216
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ZMAG SOUTH
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Bounty Atari ST BBS
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(904) 786-4176
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H014-904
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ZMAG WEST
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Shadow Haven Information Service
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(916) 962-2566
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H009-916
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*-[CONTENTS]-*
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*=* Publishers Desk by Ron Kovacs
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*=* ZMAG Weekly News Roundup
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*=* New Book on Computer Viruses
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*=* Line Noise Revisited Ctsy CIS Atari
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*=* Circuit Maker Review
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*=* SAM TRAMIEL in Conference
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*=* 8 Bit Owners Update
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=========================================================================
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PUBLISHER'S DESK
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by Ron Kovacs
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Originally planned for preview in this space was an article written by the
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Editors of Michigan Atari Magazine. I have cancelled this segment while I
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research and produce our official position on the matter. Stay tuned to
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these pages in the next few weeks for an indepth look at MAM.
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Starting October 2, 1988, ZMAGAZINE will release issues on Sunday
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evenings. We will also debut a new section devoted to User Group Updates
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and news. Stay tuned for more details on this next week.
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SCHEDULED RELEASES FOR OCTOBER
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Issue #125 October 2, 1988
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Issue #126 October 9, 1988
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Issue #127 October 16, 1988
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Issue #128 October 23, 1988
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Issue #129 October 30, 1988
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Due for release in October....Update of the official ZMAG/ST-REPORT BBS
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listing. If your BBS has not appeared, or you think you might be missing,
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Please send a post card with your BBS information and a phone number so we
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can contact you and give you your official ZMAG Registration number. The
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ZMAG 1988 Reader Survey is near completion. I need your address to send
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you the survey!! Please send that post card off today!! The survey is
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presently 8 pages long.
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Enjoy your vacation John Deegan!
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***************************************
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ZMAG NEWS ROUND-UP 9/14-9/21
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Compiled by the Staff of ZMagazine
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***************************************
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(Comments detailed in the following article are NOT those of ZMagazine or
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it's editors. Readers opposed to any comments here are welcome to submit
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a reply by 9-30-88. Any opposing commentary on this article will NOT be
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accepted for publication.)
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PRESS RELEASE 9/15/88
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In an article called Atari News and Comment in the September Michigan Atari
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Magazine (MAM), editor Bill Rayl again blasted a non-participating local
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Michigan Atari users group for policies not in tune to MAM's liking.
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MAGIC, the eastern Michigan Atari users group who has stead fastly refused
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advances to join the MAM consortium, was sharply condemned for charging
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-50 cents to $1 admission- to attend a special meeting hosting Atari execs.
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-I was strongly misquoted by Mr. Rayl,- says Sourcerer's Apprentice Editor
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Mike Lechkun. -I went out of my way to call Bill Rayl long distance to
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share and report this bit of local Atari news. I was shocked to see it
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turned into a negative slam against us (MAGIC).-
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-I told his wife (and MAM co-editor) Pattie that MAGIC was asking for a
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donation to help defray costs of starting up another Atari fest effort [as
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well as to pay for the increase in space needed for the meeting]. It
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seems to me,- commented Mike, -that MAM is allowed to rake in money for
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it's own ventures, but others trying to serve the Atari community are, in
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their words, 'tasteless'.-
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Mike concluded that he'd -be more than happy to make a donation in the
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Rayls' name if they couldn't cough up a couple of bucks!- It was MAM,
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over a year ago, who slammed then-non-participating club MACE when they
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proposed charging non-members to attend the monthly meetings. MACE was
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(and is) losing money rapidly by providing services to non-members who
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were sponging off the group. Because of the article, MACE was embarrassed
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into changing their newly adopted policy.
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The members of MAGIC have always felt that a user group's newsletter helps
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to define and add personality and individuality to the club. The
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newsletter is the club's identity to the outside world. It is a shame
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that MAM feels that their viewpoint is the only valid one in Michigan, and
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that any other club's views are -considered extremely bad taste.-
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Quote from MAM, 9/88
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Atari News and Comment
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-In a move that can only be considered extremely bad taste, MAGIC is
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planning to charge 50 cents or $1 admission to attend this meeting [with
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Atari's execs]! The meeting takes place on their normally scheduled
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meeting night, and MAGIC's meetings are generally open to all. But, in
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this case, MAGIC proposes to charge admission from the very people they
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are going to need assistance from if another show will occur. MAGIC can't
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pull off an AtariFest on their own, but if any other clubs want to get
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involved at this first meeting, they'll have to pay to do so? Hopefully,
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MAGIC will change the tune before October...-
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ATARI KILLS DETROIT VISIT
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ATARI CORP.'s proposed visit to Detroit user group MAGIC has been
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cancelled. Sam Tramiel said that such a visit would -excite group
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members-, but with no product to deliver and because we are right before
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Comdex, there's really nothing that could be said. ATARI has promised
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full support for a Detroit AtariFest, which the MAGIC group is still
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considering. Sig Hartmann commented that the November Comdex show would
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be -an opener to a revitalized U.S. market presence-, and indicated a
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proposed resurgance after the first of the year. But as to not discourage
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those who would attend a large scale meeting from afar, Atari will not
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make a local apperance until the show.
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** NEWS BULLETIN **
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Attention all persons that have a program being called -Master Cruncher-
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or any alterations of that. It seems that a group of pirates have edited
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out the Copyright notice and have claimed the program as there own. This
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Utility is not Public Domain nor a Pirate utility, it is a Commercial
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program that was going to be sold in The Federal Republic of Germany.
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There were plans to market it in the USA, but due to the massive spreading
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of the utility, there is no hope of making any kind of profit nor will
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there be any other such utilities produced due to these problems, it is
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not cost effective to try and track down who did this terrible thing, so
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you can just thank who ever the persons involed for screwing up the future
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of such useful utilities you might have had. Please notify all sysops or
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board operators that this file should be deleted from file sections and
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not posted again.
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I was really surprised to hear that it was posted on 2 major commercial
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networks, I would have thought they would have questioned this utility
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because of no documentation or origin of source. I would have thought the
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sysops would be a little more responsible to there amiga comunity and
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check things that are questionable out first.
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A final note, the version that seems to have made it's way all over the
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United States is still a beta version and has a Serious! bug in it, I do
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not accept any responsiblity for any damage caused by the faulty program.
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-it is not my fault everyone pirated it- I strongly suggest you uncrunch
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everything crunched with it or things might begin to happen you wish
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didn't. You have been warned of the problem. Please spread this file as
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fast as my program was spread to warn people against the possible
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destruction of all there data.
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Bit Soft Programing (BSP)
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Hans Mayor
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Post Fach 1123
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8623 Staffelstein
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West Germany
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NEW BOOK ON COMPUTER VIRUSES
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Compute!'s COMPUTER VIRUSES
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Author: Ralph Roberts
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Price: $14.95
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ISBN: 0-87455-178-1
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On Sale: November, 1988
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Publisher: Compute! Books, a Capital Cities/ABC Company
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Why are the big computer companies keeping quiet about the problem of
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computer viruses?
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Over one percent, or about a quarter of a million IBM PC's and
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compatibles are already infected,'' says Larry DiMartin, president of
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Computer Integrity Corporation, the makers of the commercial viral
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protection program, Vaccinate.
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Finally there's a book that shows why software and hardware manufacturers
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--in some cases selfishly and intentionally--have their heads in the sand.
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Finally there's a book that helps you protect your system from computer
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viruses. A book that answers the questions the industry has been ducking.
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Like a biological virus, a computer virus can replicate itself and be
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spread (through the use of Trojan horse'' programs) from system to
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system. Trade a floppy disk with a friend and you may unwittingly be
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destroying all the data in your system, whether it's a single person
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computer or a large, networked system of 20,000 terminals. It's not even
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enough to have good backup--a timed release virus can also be in the
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backup disks or tape, destroying data time after frustrating time.
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The destructive rampages of these small hidden programs from sick minds
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are not limited to high risk'' users who download indiscriminately from
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pirate'' electronic bulletin boards. AP and UPI reports in recent months
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have reported that such major institutions as NASA, Lehigh University,
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Miami (Ohio) University, ARCO Oil, Hebrew University in Israel, and others
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have had computer virus attacks.
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Whether you are a single computer owner or a manager of a large area
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network, Compute!'s COMPUTER VIRUSES offers relief from the fear and the
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very real danger of a viral infection in your system.
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Topics Covered:
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* How your system can become infected (risky practices and how to practice
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safe computing,'' and minimize exposure.
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* The history of viruses, including some infamous infections such as the
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Brain'' virus, the Sunnyvale Slug,'' the Scores,'' and the
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Macintosh Peace'' virus.
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* How viruses work and what they can do to your system.
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* The kind of programs that can hide viruses.
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* How to detect a virus or viruses in your system and erase them.
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* Protection from virus infection.
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* Reviews and tips on viral protection systems, both commercial and
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public domain.
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* Sections with specific protection information for IBM and compatibles,
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Macintosh, Apple, Amiga, Atari, and other systems.
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Contents:
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Your Computer May Be Sick!
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History and Famous Viruses
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How Viruses Work
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Practicing Safe Computing
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How The Experts Deal With Viruses
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Corporate Initiatives for Data Security
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(by Pamela Kane, President of Panda Systems)
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The Case of the Gerbil'' Virus
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(by Raymond M. Glath, President of RG Software Systems)
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IBM and Compatibles
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Macintosh
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Apple
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Amiga
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Atari
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The Only Good Virus is a Dead Virus.
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For Additional Information:
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Ralph Edwards
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P.O. Box 8549
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Asheville, NC 28814
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(704) 254-3972
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LINE NOISE REVISITED
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Ctsy CompuServe Atari SIG
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#: 47388 S2/CompuServe & BBSs 27-Dec-86 22:10:29
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Sb: #Interlink
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Fm: Jeff Rigby/Intersect Sof 74615,323
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To: Dave Groves 76703,4223
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I have never had the pleasure of taking apart a Courier 2400 but most
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modems use the same input transformer ( FCC Regulations ).
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Below is a schematic drawing of the Input transformer circuit:
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----) || (------
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Input from ( || ) output to
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phone line ) || ( modem
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----( || )-----
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||
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|| (------> 600 ohm Inpedance matching
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|| ) < resistor
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|| (------>
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Transformer
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You change the 600 ohm ( blue black brown ) resistor, to a lower value by
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tacking a resistor in parallel. Try values from 1000 ohms to 600 minimum.
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This is a quick and dirty method, it works by making the transformer less
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efficient and therby reducing the sensitivity of the circuit. The resistor
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is there to cause the input transformer to match the phone line (600 ohms)
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impedance. When you have an impedance match you have maximum transfer of
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energy. Choose the highest value resistor that gives the fewest errors.
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Jeff Rigby c/o SOTA Computers
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3949 Sawyer Rd.
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Sarasota, Fl. 33583
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813-922-6244
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****************** UPDATE *********************
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17-Sep-88 09:21:43
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Sb: #110696-2400 baud problem
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Fm: INTERSECT Software 76004,1577
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To: SYSOP*Dave Groves 76703,4223
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The resister will reduce the sensitivity of the modem to incoming noise. If
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the problem is only periodic and does not get worse after warmup then this is
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the method to use. If it does get noisy after warmup then open the modem and
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look for an 8 pin chip with X2444 on it. It's an XR chip that sometimes causes
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the line noise problem at 2400 baud.
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Since 2400 baud does push the Florida phone lines to the limit, neither method
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may work for you.
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CIRCUIT MAKER by Bill Pike (PAC)
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My field of endeavour, that which I do when not using a computer, involves
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a lot of logic circuit design. Well anyhow I was going thru the local
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software store and happened to see a program on the shelf that immediately
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caught my eye. The name of the program is CircuitMaker and it was written
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by Ozzie Boeshans. The cost is $69.95, why not make it a even $70?. The
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program is published by ILLIAD Software.
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For those who havn't used this type of program in the past, this includes
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until now me, this is the cats meow. No more breadboarding of circuits.
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No more burning out chips. No more tangles of wire, piles of parts, and
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general mess laying all over the place. Also, for those who are married,
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no spouse telling you to clean up your mess.
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Version 1.2 of the program allows you to design various logic circuits on
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screen and TEST AND DEBUG THE CIRCUITS ON SCREEN. The program then will
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print the circuit on your Epson compatible printer. You can also go back
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to the last saved version of the circuit if you have made a mistake. The
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next version, 2.0, is said to allow you to specify and make a library of
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your own favorite IC's. Didn't I say that the program comes with 1 library
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of various logic gates and IC's? Well if I didn't, it does.
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Here is what is in the library: All of the various types of gates
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including, a inverter, 2-4 input AND & NAND, 2 input ORs, 2 input NORs,
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and 2 input exclusive ORs, LED's, seven segment displays including the BCD
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to 7-Segment decoder, switches, two types of quad latches, 7474, 74138,
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74151, 74168, 74169, 74109, and 74194 IC's.
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There is a snap-to-grid feature so everything looks neat. The various
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logic devices can be rotated in 90 degree increments, you can label either
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vertically or horizontally. When you are wiring the circuit the curser is
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accompanied, once you move out of the device area, by a set of full screen
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cross-hairs that show you where the wire will end up both vertically and
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horizontally if you extend it the full screen. This allows you to be much
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neater in the layout of wiring. There is also a dot placed where wires
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join so that you are sure of the connection. You can also move devices
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around or delete them if you decide that the location is bad. You are
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working in a window of the design, the window is approximately 15% of the
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working area. You can wire outside of the screen area.
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I find that you should make a printout of just the device placement so you
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are able to easily find the devices not on screen when you start to wire.
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A zoom command would have been nice.
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There are programmable pulse generators for signal inputs, each generator
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is independently programmable as to waveform and start time as well as
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well as when it starts. The speed is variable in common. There is a four
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input oscilloscope that can be used to check any four points in the
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circuit simultaneously.. You are able to either use a continous run or
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set for 5 or 10 cycles. The various wires show you the logic level on
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that wire by either being solid black (logic 1), dark dotted (logic 0),
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or light dotted (not active) as the test is running. If you are using a
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color monitor the colors of the lines change to indicate the same
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conditions. You are able to move around the screen during the run so you
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can see the functioning of the entire circuit.
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There is a tutorial on fundamental logic circuit design included in the
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small 50+ page manual. The tutorial doesn't go into much depth and those
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who are unfamiliar with logic design should pick up a book on the subject
|
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as well as a TTL Device handbook so you can figure out just what the
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various chips are and what they require to work. The program doesn't go
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into microprocessor logic and if it did it should/would probably cost about
|
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10 times as much, if not more.
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This program is designed for the average designer and builder not for
|
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someone who does this for a living, he/she would probably have the $700 to
|
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$7000 version of this type of program and a main frame to run it on. This
|
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is a MUST HAVE program for anyone who designs logic circuits including
|
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those in college level logic design courses. It is also a must have for
|
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anyone who just does logic design at home for their computer interfaces or
|
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anything else, this is most logical (sorry about that it slipped out). So
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dig into your pocket and BUY THIS ONE.
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*********** SAM TRAMIEL IN CONFERENCE ***********
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The Atari Forums on CompuServe will be sponsoring a world-wide electronic
|
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teleconference with Sam Tramiel, President and Chief Operating Officer of
|
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Atari Corporation, on Monday, September 26 at 9:00 PM EDT. Your
|
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participation in this conference is welcomed and encouraged!
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The Sam Tramiel Conference is going to be held in CompuServe's Electronic
|
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Convention Center(tm). The Electronic Convention Center(tm) was designed
|
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specifically for special conferences of this nature and can have as many
|
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as 300 people participating simultaniously without causing the slightest
|
|
speed decrease. In addition, the Electronic Convention Center(tm) offers
|
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the capability of holding a more structured conference, making it possible
|
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for you to ask your questions and be answered by Mr. Tramiel without any
|
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interruptions. Top performance is absolutely guaranteed! Lastly, the
|
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Electronic Convention Center(tm) offers additional conveniences (discussed
|
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later in this text) that will make your participation in this conference
|
|
amazingly easy. If you've participated in other national conferences of
|
|
this type before and have been underwhelmed at the way it was conducted
|
|
and the performance of the service during 'heavy' usage, this conference
|
|
is your opportunity to experience the communication power of a professional
|
|
-quality global information network.
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ACCESSING THE CONVENTION CENTER
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As mentioned above, the Sam Tramiel conference will be held in CompuServe's
|
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Electronic Convention Center(tm) -- NOT the conference area of the Atari
|
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16-Bit Forum. To access the Convention Center, type GO CONVENTION at any
|
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CompuServe command prompt.
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When you type GO CONVENTION, CompuServe will display the following menu:
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Electronic Convention Center(tm)
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INFORMATION/RESERVATIONS
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1 Instructions
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2 List Conferences/Make Reservations
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3 Review/Cancel Reservations
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4 Conference Etiquette
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Enter choice !
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Choice 1 allows you to view the complete instruction guide for using the
|
|
Convention Center. Choice 2 and Choice 3 allow you to list upcoming
|
|
special conferences and any advance -reservations- (NOT NECESSARY FOR THIS
|
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CONFERENCE!) you might have made. Lastly, choice 4 provides some
|
|
information on the etiquette followed by participants in an electronic
|
|
conference.
|
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|
|
On Monday, September 26, at 8:30 PM EDT (a half hour before the Sam Tramiel
|
|
conference is scheduled to begin), the Convention Center menu will appear
|
|
as shown above with the addition of menu choice 5 which will allow you to
|
|
enter the Sam Tramiel conference. An example of how the Convention Center
|
|
menu will appear from 8:30 through the end of the conference on September
|
|
26 appears below:
|
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|
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Electronic Convention Center(tm)
|
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|
|
INFORMATION/RESERVATIONS
|
|
1 Instructions
|
|
2 List Conferences/Make Reservations
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3 Review/Cancel Reservations
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4 Conference Etiquette
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JOIN CONFERENCE IN PROGRESS
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5 Atari Sam Tramiel Conference
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Enter choice !
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All you will need to do is select choice 5 in order to join the conference.
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Once you select choice 5, CompuServe will prompt you to enter your name:
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What is your name? John Doe
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Enter your name and press a <CR> as shown in the above example.
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If you enter the conference area before 9:00 PM EDT, you can chat briefly
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with other early arrivers until the moderated conference begins.
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ASKING A QUESTION
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Once the moderated conference begins, only the moderator and guest speaker
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will be allowed to openly communicate at all times. Other participants
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must signal that they would like to ask a question or make a comment by
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using the /QUESTION (or /QUE) command. Once you issue the /QUE command,
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CompuServe will add your name (in order) to the queue. When it is your
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turn to speak, CompuServe will beep your terminal and display a message
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explaining that it is your turn and you may now ask your question. If you
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attempt to openly communicate before it is your turn to speak, the
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Convention Center will send you a reminder that in order to ask a question
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or make a comment, you must enter the /QUE command and wait for your turn.
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If you issue the /QUE command and change your mind about asking a
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question, you can enter the /UNQUE command to remove your place from the
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queue.
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USING THE BUFFER
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The Electronic Conference Center(tm) makes it possible for you to compose
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or upload your question or statement into a buffer area, followed by giving
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you the option of editing the text using standard CompuServe EDIT commands
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(explained in detail in EDIT.TXT, available in LIBRARY 1 of the Atari 16-
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Bit Forum). Then, you can send your pre-composed buffer when it is your
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turn to speak in the conference. Here are the commands you will need to
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know in order to use the buffer feature of the Convention Center:
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/BUFFER EDIT - Brings you into -edit- mode where you can
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compose, ASCII-upload, or edit your text.
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/BUFFER SEND - Send buffer to all participants.
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OTHER COMMANDS YOU SHOULD KNOW ABOUT
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The following list of commands are available to you in the Convention
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Center:
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/BUFFER EDIT Edit text buffer
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/BUFFER SEND Send text buffer
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/BULLETIN Display short bulletin
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/COMMANDS Show list of commands
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/DAY Show date and time
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/DISPLAY Change message display
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/ECHO Show input as it is typed
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/EXIT Exit the conference
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/NOECHO Do not show input
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/HELP Command help text
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/NAME Change your name
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/NOSEND Refuse private -send- messages
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/OFF Log-off
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/SEND Send a private message
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/STATUS User/guest count
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/WHO Show last speaker
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/USERS List users
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/LOOK Question status (how many people are in the queue)
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/QUESTION Question request
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/UNQUEUE Cancel a question
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If you have any questions, please feel free to post a message to the
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Sysops of the Atari Forums. Otherwise, hope you found this introduction
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file useful and we're looking forward to seeing you at the big conference!
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8 BIT OWNERS UPDATE
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There have been many mentions in the almost decade since the original
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Atari 400/800 Personal Computers hit the dealers shelves about there
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being a future upgrade to meet the user's needs, and new and more
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challenging applications. Finally that upgrade is available....... The
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Turbo-816 by DataQue, for the Atari 400/800/XL/XE.
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DataQue Software is pleased to announce a powerful new upgrade which was
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co-designed by Ron Shue, and Chuck Steinman. This upgrade will be
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available in two forms. There will be a replacement CPU board for the
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original 400/800 Computer system, and a plug in module for the XL/XE
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series. In either case, there usually is no need for any modifications
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to the existing hardware. The only exception to this is with XL/XE systems
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which have their CPU soldered in place, which will require the removal of
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the existing CPU, and the addition of a standard 40 pin I.C. socket is
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suggested. Also included is the Turbo-OS, by DataQue for use with the
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Turbo-816 CPU boards.
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The Turbo-816 will not only increase the potential speed of the computer,
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but also break the 64k memory barrier of the existing systems. Not with
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the awkward paged memory, but with a fully linear decoded address space of
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up to 16 megabytes. Benchmarks have put the Turbo-816 into a performance
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range ABOVE many of the 'other- PCs/!! Special memory boards will be
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available to take advantage of the new extended addressing range. These
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will be mounted internal to the computer cabinet, and in most cases
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require no hardware modifications.
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And here is the amazing feature..... While adding all this power and all
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this expanded addressing, the Turbo-816 for the Atari 8-bit computer
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systems will maintain compatibility with most currently available
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commercial and user written software. Using the Turbo-816 even those
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older programs will enjoy a speed increase!
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The Turbo-OS is a replacement operating system for use with the Turbo-816
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which will release the 16-bit processor to its full power. Increased
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speed will be the most obvious change, but hidden in its code, will be an
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advanced new floating point library that will speed even the original Atari
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BASIC to new levels of performance. Again, on most systems it will be
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just a matter of replacing the existing ROM(s) with the Turbo-OS.
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The future holds many more products for the Turbo-816 systems including:
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1) a real-time multi-tasking operating system kernal
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2) a new assembler-editor-debugger package which supports the new assembly
|
|
level instructions and addressing modes
|
|
3) a new BASIC which will speed past the fastest of the current BASICs for
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|
the 8-bit machines
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4) a new K&R compatible C development package
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5) a new Turbo-GOS operating system (graphical based)
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6) a developers development kit for new applications
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The NEW Atari Turbo-816 should be available by November of 1988 For more
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information contact your local Atari Dealer or, write:
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DataQue Software
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Dept. T-816
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P.O. Box 134
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Ontario, OH 44862
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*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*
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ZMagazine Issue #124 September 21, 1988 (c)1988 APEInc, SPC, Kovacs
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