1252 lines
38 KiB
Plaintext
1252 lines
38 KiB
Plaintext
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SYNDICATE ZMAGAZINE January 11, 1988
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Issue #88 Volume 3, Number 2
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(c)1988 Syndicate Publishing Company
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Edited by: Ron Kovacs
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Circulation Assistants: Ken Kirchner
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Susan Perry
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Syndicate Zmag BBS (2O1) 968-8148
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______________________________________
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Xx INDEX 88
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______________________________________
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[NEWS]
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Winter CES Report Part 1 Marc Wielage
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Atari News Update Mr. Goodprobe
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Atari Scuttlebits Bob Kelly
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[FEATURE ARTICLES]
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Printer Help Tom Dewar
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Basic Programming Part 2 J. Beebe
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ZMAG 1987 Reviews Index Ron Kovacs
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ZMAG 1987 Columnist Index Ron Kovacs
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PC Pursuit Update Mr. Goodprobe
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______________________________________
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Xx WINTER CONSUMER ELECTRONICS REPORT
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..Press Day - Wednesday, January 6th..
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______________________________________
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by Marc Wielage
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So far, the two biggest hooplas of the
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show are DAT--the ubiquitous Digital
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Audio Tape recorder, which is showing
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at no less than a dozen booths-- and
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Toshiba's 3-D camcorder, which some
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industry observers say is just $2850
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worth of gimmickry. No doubt, Toshiba
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will be getting a lot of publicity out
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of this gimmicky product, designed to
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appeal to the glitzy -Sharper Image-
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crowd. This -3-D Cam- is a lightweight
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(under 4 lbs.) VHS-C unit that has two
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separate 1/2- 300,000 pixel CCD
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pickups.
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This makes it two, two, two cameras in
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one! It doubles the scan rate to 60
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frames per second, which Toshiba
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claims will minimize flicker-the worst
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problem seen in past 3-D video demos.
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Special glasses synchronize with the
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on-screen image to create a depth-
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perspective effect. 3-D buffs won't be
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able to buy this camcorder until
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summer at the earliest, which is just
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as well; it appears to be of
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questionable interest for all but the
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most gimmick-crazed videophiles.
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Several manufacturers are announcing
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delivery of DAT players, including car
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DAT/tuner in-dash units. One of the
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first confirmed table models is one
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from Harman-Kardon, which will be
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available in the Spring for around
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$2200. Even the company admits that at
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that price, they'll only sell about a
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thousand of them in the U.S. Others
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predict that once DAT prices
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inevitably move downwards, they could
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prove immensely popular. Sony, who
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just completed the purchase of CBS
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Records, is rumored to be readying a
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-DAT-man- series of DAT portables,
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eventually to be priced under $500.
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The Laserdisc market is opening up in
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a big way, with new combo -multi-disc-
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players arriving from Magnavox,
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Pioneer, Sony and Yamaha. These models
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will play conventional 4-3/4- CDs, CD
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singles, CD-V discs, as well as 8- and
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12- Laserdiscs. One Sony spokesman
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told us they were reluctant to get
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into the LV market before, but now
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that they can sell the product as
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being a -universal- disc player, it
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has a built-in non-obsolecence factor
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that should quell buyers' fears.
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Pioneer's new unit will be replacing
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the short-lived CLD-1010, and will
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feature the long-awaited still-field
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circuit for deriving special effects
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from CLV videodiscs, and will sell for
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around $1200. There are also rumors
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that Panasonic and JVC may be jumping
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aboard the LV bandwagon as well, first
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in Japan, and eventually in the U.S.
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This could be the death knell for the
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VHD videodisc format, which has had
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only fair to middling sales overseas.
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Another big trend is that of combining
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TV sets and VCRs.
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But unlike the -boom box--size combos
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of the past, now we're seeing tiny LCD
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sets strapped to miniaturized VCRs and
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players.
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Sony is expected to show working
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models of previously shown mockups,
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including several super-small 8mm/LCD
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players as small as a paperback book.
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While such units won't be cheap (at
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least in the $800-1000 price range),
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they'll be just the thing for Walkman
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fans, or for people who want to watch
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yesterday's ball game while riding the
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subway.
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There are lots of developments
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happening in the area of improving TV
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quality. Now available in Japan are
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TV sets featuring IDTV (improved-
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definition TV) and EDTV (extended-
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definition TV, essentially the same
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thing), which enhance the existing
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line-standard through digital tricks
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and improved circuitry. Toshiba will
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be pushing their own double-scanning
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non-interlaced TV set, already seen at
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previous shows. Coming up later on in
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the 1990's is true HDTV (high
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definition TV), featuring a wider
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picture with over 1000 scan lines. RCA
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will be demonstrating ACTV (advanced
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compatible TV), which has 1050 lines
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and a widescreen picture, and a
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Japanese consortium is exhibiting
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their MUSE prototype system, a true
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HDTV system with 1125 lines and a
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similar widescreen aspect ratio.
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In other new product news, Panasonic
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is showing a new 45- rearscreen unit
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with S-VHS inputs, a high-end model
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made to compete with similar
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projectors from Pioneer and Sony.
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They're also introducing two new mid-
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priced VCRs, non-Hi-Fi models with an
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improved on-screen programming system.
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Sony will be having private demos of
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two new combo LV/CD players and at
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least one ED Beta VCR.
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Aside from new products, the entire
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electronics biz was abuzz with news of
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the near-panic earlier in the week,
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with the Japanese yen sinking to its
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lowest ebb since World War II: a mere
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121 to the dollar. This will
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inevitably result in some precedent-
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setting price hikes on all VCRs, tape
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decks, TV sets, and related gear over
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the coming year, but probably not
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quite matching the rate of inflation.
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Most manufacturers, including
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Panasonic and Toshiba, are considering
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increases of between 5% and 10%, which
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means the $500 VCR you bought last
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year might now sell for $550 or more.
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Even worse, this means the $1000 VCR
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you buy this year may lack certain
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features and the overall quality of a
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similar $1000 VCR from last year.
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Japanese manufacturers are also
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hesitating in releasing new products
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with advanced breakthroughs, simply
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because their increased price-tags
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will make them unappealling to the
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U.S. market. For example, Sharp has
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perhaps the most deluxe consumer Super
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VHS VCR on the market in Japan, with a
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jog/shuttle knob, flying erase head,
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and other exciting features, but it
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would have to sell for over $2000 if
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it were sold over here. So don't hold
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your breath at seeing this one in
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North America, folks.
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______________________________________
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Xx PRINTER HELP
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______________________________________
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by Tom Dewar
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These are the print commands for the
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C. Itoh Prowriter 8510 printer. Many
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Atari programs are set up for the
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Prowriter as well as the Epson,
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because it is a popular printer among
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Atari owners. Some programs do not
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support the Prowriter and this seems
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to mainly be because the programmer
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doesn't have access to the codes for
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it. To try and help, I have typed
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these from the Printer manual. I hope
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they help.
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[Following text in 80 column]
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GENERAL FORMAT
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COMMAND DESCRIPTION BASIC FORMAT
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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
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Carriage Return Returns carriage to CR
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left position CHR$(13)
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Line Feed Moves paper up one LF
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line CHR$(10)
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Form Feed Advances paper one FF
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(Top of Form) full page length CHR$(12)
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from present position
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Back Space Moves the print head BS
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back one space CHR$(08)
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Set Tabs Sets a tab at each ESC ( ,a,b,c.
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column designated CHR$(27);CHR$(40);
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-a,b,c.-
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Clear Tabs Clears tab at each ESC ) ,a,b,c.
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column designated CHR$(27);CHR$(41);
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-a,b,c.-
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Clear All Tabs Clears all tabs ESC 0
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CHR$(27);CHR$(48)
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Horizontal Tab Sets Carriage to HT
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next tab position CHR$(09)
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Pica Pitch Sets 10 cpi pica ESC N
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pitch (640 dpl, 80 dpi) CHR$(27);CHR$(78)
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Elite Pitch Sets 12 cpi elite ESC E
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pitch (768 dpl, 96 dpi) CHR$(27);CHR$(69)
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Compressed Pitch Sets 17 cpi (1088 dpl) ESC Q
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compressed pitch(136 dpi) CHR$(27);CHR$(81)
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Proportional Selects Proportional ESC P
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Mode (1280 dpl, 160 dpi) CHR$(27);CHR$(80)
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Elongated Sets elongated SO
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Character Select character mode CHR$(14)
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Elongated Clears elongated SI
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Character Clear character mode CHR$(15)
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Boldface Select Sets boldface ESC !
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type mode CHR$(27);CHR$(33)
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Boldface Clear Clears boldface ESC -
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type mode CHR$(27);CHR$(34)
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Underline Select Selects underlined ESC X
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text mode CHR$(27);CHR$(88)
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Underline Clear Clears underlined ESC Y
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text mode CHR$(27);CHR$(89)
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Character Repeat Causes the next ESC R, nnn
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Character to be CHR$(27);CHR$(82);
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printed nnn times -nnn-
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Line Feed 1/6 Sets 1/6 inch ESC A
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Inch spacing between CHR$(27);CHR$(65)
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lines
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Line Feed 1/8 Sets 1/8 inch ESC B
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Inch spacing between CHR$(27);CHR$(66)
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lines
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Custom Line Feed Sets nn/144 inch ESC T, nn
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spacing between CHR$(27);CHR$(84)
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lines -nn-
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Forward Line Feed Moves paper in normal ESC f
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(forward) direction CHR$(27);CHR$(102)
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Reverse Line Feed Moves paper in reverse ESC r
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(backward) direction CHR$(27);CHR$(114)
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Bidirectional Printer prints in ESC <
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Printing both horizontal CHR$(27);CHR$(60)
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directions
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Unidirectional Printer prints in ESC >
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Printing forward direction CHR$(27);CHR$(62)
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only
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Left Margin Set Sets left margin ESC 8, nnn
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to position nnn CHR$(27);CHR$(56);
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-nnn-
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Greek Characters Selects Greek ESC &
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Character Set CHR$(27);CHR$(38)
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Graphic Symbols Selects Graphic Symbol ESC #
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Character Set CHR$(27);CHR$(35)
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Alphanumeric Selects (normal) ESC $
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Characters alphanumeric character CHR$(27);CHR$(36)
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Set
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Incremental Print Selects Incremental ESC [
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Mode Print Mode CHR$(27);CHR$(91)
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Logic Seek Mode Selects (normal) ESC ]
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logic-seek mode CHR$(27);CHR$(93)
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Bit Image Graphics Dot by dot firing mode ESC S, nnnn
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(nnnn = # of dot CHR$(27);CHR$(83);
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positions ex. 200=0200) -nnnn-
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Dot Column Repeat Following 1 byte is ESC V, nnnn
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repeatedly printed in CHR$(27);CHR$(86);
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8 dots/dot column -nnnn-
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Dot Addressing The head is moved to ESC F, nnnn
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the dot position CHR$(27);CHR$(70);
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indicated by nnnn -nnnn-
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Dot by Dot spacing in proportional mode
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1 Dot Space ESC 1
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CHR$(27);CHR$(49)
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2 Dot Space ESC 2
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CHR$(27);CHR$(50)
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3 Dot Space ESC 3
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CHR$(27);CHR$(51)
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4 Dot Space ESC 4
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CHR$(27);CHR$(52)
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5 Dot Space ESC 5
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CHR$(27);CHR$(53)
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6 Dot Space ESC 6
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CHR$(27);CHR$(54)
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______________________________________
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Xx ATARI SCUTTLEBITS
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______________________________________
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by Bob Kelly
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ATARI! What next for home enthusiasts?
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COMDEX has come and gone. In the past,
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this time of the year was one of
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excitement for Atari HOME computer
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owners. New products were announced.
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The home user was the center of
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attention. Sales were up and the
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image of a game machine company was
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fading fast. Yet, even with the
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smiles on corporate Atari's face at
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this year's COMDEX, an air of somber
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reality pervades the user community.
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Times are a-changing.
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Despite a flood of new products, Atari
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stock is down to the neighborhood of
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$6.50 a share, reflecting a general
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feeling of uncertainty. Third quarter
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earnings have been reported and they
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are lower per share than the same
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period of 1986. While two-thirds of
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Atari's sales remain overseas, there
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is no reason to expect a dramatic
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expansion in these markets. Foreign
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sales have been impacted much in the
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same fashion as in the U.S., consumer
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expenditures are projected to decline
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since the stock market crash of
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October 20. Consensus projected GNP
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growth for the U.S. in 1988 has
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nosedived to 1.9%. Last, but
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certainly not the least, the purchase
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of the Federated group of stores by
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Atari could hamper rapid achievement
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of other short-term corporate
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objectives by straining cash reserves.
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As for Atari's strategy, it appears
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the game machine is back with a
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vengeance. Atari is now a retailer
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and manufacturer of workstations for
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the scientific, high-end educational,
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and business markets. However, the
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68030 (32 bit) machine is still not
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ready and the 8 bit user is clearly
|
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being lost in the shuffle. To the
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home user, this all translates into a
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sense that Atari Corporation has lost
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its sense of direction. (I have heard
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this phrase from users more in the
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last month than any other comment in
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my four years writing this column). In
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fact, all that happened is that the
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home computer user (520/1040 ST) has
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been relegated to a lesser status.
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Does it really make sense for the user
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community to react so negatively?
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Let's examine a few of the recent
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developments in more detail before
|
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drawing a final conclusion.
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I. COMDEX
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InfoWorld covered Atari's display at
|
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Comdex in its Nov. 9 issue stating
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that Atari took aim;
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-Directly at business and technical
|
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markets announcing a slew of new
|
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products at COMDEX, including PC
|
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clones, a CD ROM player, multiuser
|
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software for the ST and Mega lines,
|
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and a radical computing engine based
|
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on the Inmos T-800 RISC processor.-
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The new high-end workstation is called
|
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Abaq. It requires at minimum 4
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megabytes of DRAM with each
|
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workstation expandable to 64
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megabytes. The software [Helios]
|
|
supporting Abaq can read both Ms-Dos
|
|
floppies and Unix hard disks. This
|
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machine, owing to its very high
|
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resolution graphics, is reputed to be
|
|
capable of providing a picture similar
|
|
to your camera.
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The IBM PC clones introduced are
|
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replacing those announced last year,
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but NEVER introduced into the U.S.
|
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market (this established Atari as an
|
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industry leader in at least one
|
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segment of the domestic market -
|
|
vaporware). Atari's variations on the
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PC clone are:
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Table 1
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Clone Type Expandability Cost
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-------------------------------------
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PC2 XT 4 slots <$1000
|
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PC4 AT 5 - <$2000
|
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PC5 16-MHZ-80386 machine ?
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The PC2 and PC4 are Atari machines
|
|
intended to compete in what is in fact
|
|
a shrinking market. To illustrate,
|
|
according to IBM, they have shipped
|
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over 1 million of the new PS/2
|
|
machines in the last seven months. The
|
|
new operating system (OS/2) to
|
|
accompany the PS/2 machines goes on
|
|
sale this month. OS/2 supersedes the
|
|
software standard set earlier by IBM.
|
|
There is little doubt by most analysts
|
|
that OS/2 is the standard of the
|
|
future. Thus, much of the new high
|
|
powered IBM software will not work
|
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with the first generation clones such
|
|
as those being introduced by Atari.
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The CD ROM is a product Atari
|
|
indicated it would like to market more
|
|
than a year ago. It is capable of
|
|
being connected to both an Atari
|
|
computer as well as a stereo system, a
|
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pleasant surprise for the audiophile.
|
|
What software will be available for
|
|
introduction with this machine remains
|
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a mystery.
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II. Third Quarter Earnings
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|
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Atari's third quarter 1987 net income
|
|
rose by 9% to $9.9 million or 17 cents
|
|
a share versus $9.1 million or 21
|
|
cents a share in 1986. (The number of
|
|
shares outstanding rose to 58 million
|
|
from 47.5 million over the past year.)
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|
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Revenue rose by 34% to $80.4 million
|
|
from $59.9 million for the same period
|
|
a year earlier. Overseas demand was
|
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accountable for about two thirds of
|
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Atari's total revenue with the 1040ST
|
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being the sales leader.
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III. Analysis
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This is a lot to digest. What in the
|
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world does it all mean? First, let's
|
|
look at the cost data and expected
|
|
delivery dates for the new products
|
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introduced at COMDEX.
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|
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Table 2
|
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Projected Availability
|
|
Cost by by by
|
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Item _US$__ Atari Joe Skeptic
|
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------------------------------------------------------------------
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Abaq1/ $5,000 Apr/June '88 Late '88/'89
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PC clones * Jan/Mar '88 June/Dec '88
|
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IDRIS2/ 800 ? ?
|
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Moses LAN)3/ ? ? 1989
|
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CD ROM 599 February '88 Mid l988
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* see Table 1
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1/ 4 megabyte single processor system
|
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only
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2/ multiuser operating system
|
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3/ local Area Network (LAN) which
|
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will connect up to 17 PCs, Megas,
|
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Mac, STs
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|
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Atari expects most of the products to
|
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be on the market within six months.
|
|
Given Atari's reputation for making
|
|
scheduled dates, there is a natural
|
|
reluctance to bet when the products
|
|
will be on the dealers' shelves. An
|
|
old friend, Joe Skeptic, made his own
|
|
estimates as to when these products
|
|
might appear, shown in the 3rd column
|
|
of Table 2. Frankly, I believe even
|
|
Joe's estimates in some cases may be
|
|
optimistic. Why is timing important?
|
|
IBM plans to introduce a whole slate
|
|
of high-end Unix machines to the U.S.
|
|
market in 1988. Delays make Atari's
|
|
already uphill battle for market share
|
|
more difficult.
|
|
|
|
Another immediate issue is how Atari
|
|
plans to sell these high-end products
|
|
in the U.S? Again, they are aimed at
|
|
the business/educational/scientific
|
|
markets. They are not intended to be
|
|
sold through mail order or Mom and Pop
|
|
stores. They will require not only a
|
|
dealer network but a complete service
|
|
network both of which will take Atari
|
|
years to accomplish.
|
|
|
|
We now know why Federated was
|
|
purchased in the U.S. But, what
|
|
happens beyond the 4 to 5 states where
|
|
Federated stores are located? Atari
|
|
either needs to buy more regional
|
|
outlets or make a deal with a major
|
|
computer retailer, such as Entre
|
|
Computers. The former option appears
|
|
unlikely for the next year or so given
|
|
Atari's cash position after the
|
|
purchase of Federated and the decline
|
|
in the value of its stock. So, who in
|
|
the latter category is going to deal
|
|
with Atari in the U.S.? My bet is
|
|
that Atari will first concentrate on
|
|
marketing their new machines and
|
|
establishing a dealer network in
|
|
Europe, not the U.S. Once a
|
|
successful operation has been
|
|
demonstrated overseas, more computer
|
|
retailers should be interested
|
|
domestically.
|
|
|
|
If a growing percentage of Atari's
|
|
corporate talent focuses on the
|
|
business/scientific market, the
|
|
520/1040 ST user might well have some
|
|
justification to wonder what Atari has
|
|
in store for them. Does Atari expect
|
|
the vast majority of present or future
|
|
home users to move up to the Mega
|
|
machine given the present price
|
|
structure? Unlikely.
|
|
|
|
Like it or not, ignoring the home user
|
|
and concentrating its limited
|
|
resources upon LONG-TERM objectives
|
|
has to be a wise market strategy for
|
|
Atari at this juncture. The
|
|
fundamental concern with this strategy
|
|
is Atari may have taken on too much
|
|
too soon financially and some of the
|
|
product offerings may have a tough
|
|
time penetrating the U.S. market (PC2,
|
|
non-postscript laser printer, etc.).
|
|
Failure to deliver products this time
|
|
WILL carry serious market
|
|
consequences. There are no easy
|
|
answers as to the future despite what
|
|
others might say. Unless one is
|
|
sitting in the board room, any
|
|
evaluation is nothing more than an
|
|
guess (even here it still might be).
|
|
For the home user, sit back, buckle
|
|
up, 1988 could be one hell of a ride.
|
|
The game is definitely for high stakes
|
|
- Atari's future market power.
|
|
|
|
Atarifest-1987
|
|
|
|
o Atarifest 1987 has to be rated a
|
|
huge success. The crowd attending
|
|
easily exceeded the 4,000 projected
|
|
(probably closer to 5,000). Reported
|
|
sales by vendors were very good to
|
|
excellent and some products such as
|
|
the Magic Sac were completely sold
|
|
out.
|
|
|
|
o Atari was present showing off their
|
|
equipment. It was a good marketing
|
|
opportunity and they took advantage
|
|
of it as they should.
|
|
|
|
o Local advertising for the event was
|
|
poor. This makes the huge turn-out
|
|
all the more remarkable. What
|
|
apparently happened was while areas
|
|
along the east coast heard about the
|
|
show, those in the Metropolitan
|
|
D.C./Maryland/ Virginia area were
|
|
largely in the dark. A better job
|
|
has to be done next year.
|
|
|
|
Sorry no product endorsements ....
|
|
wait till February for the best of
|
|
'88. Merry Christmas and a Happy New
|
|
Year.
|
|
______________________________________
|
|
Xx PC PURSUIT UPDATE and Atari Update
|
|
______________________________________
|
|
by Mr. Goodprobe
|
|
|
|
It seems that just when you figure
|
|
something out, and are starting to
|
|
feel real comfortable with it, they
|
|
change it! But in this case, the added
|
|
features are well worth the hassle of
|
|
getting used to a new system.
|
|
|
|
What I am referring to is the fact
|
|
that PC Pursuit, the marvellous $25 a
|
|
month flat rate phone service, has
|
|
changed their service. They now
|
|
support 2400 baud, and numerous area
|
|
codes were added. I first became
|
|
mildly aware that something was afoot
|
|
when I got on the system last Tuesday
|
|
evening, January 5th. I have all my
|
|
area code and password information
|
|
stored in macros, and I simply push
|
|
one key to dial and area code. I
|
|
pushed my handy-dandy macro key, and
|
|
the PC Pursuit answered back that it
|
|
didn't recognize my command, please
|
|
re-enter it. Well, that sure was a
|
|
surprise, so I thought I must have hit
|
|
something wrong, so I did it again....
|
|
same result. Ok, who's the wise guy?
|
|
Is my modem sending out bad
|
|
characters? Are my macros OK? I exit
|
|
back to the function key of my
|
|
Interlink program, and all looks like
|
|
it is in order. I dial a local
|
|
bulletin board, everything works as it
|
|
should and this serves to further
|
|
confuse me! Hmmm..I know I paid my
|
|
bill, whats up? Sooo, the next day I
|
|
called the friendly folk at PC
|
|
Pursuit, and am enlightened as to the
|
|
fact that the system changed January
|
|
5th. Ah, so thats the reason! Well,
|
|
what do I do? Klunk goes the mailbox
|
|
outside. In the bundle of the usual
|
|
mail order trauma is a letter from the
|
|
PC Pursuit people that contains
|
|
instructions on how to deal with the
|
|
revamped system. Now they tell me!
|
|
|
|
If you need further information on
|
|
this change, if you are a PC Pursuit
|
|
subscriber, you can reach the PC
|
|
Pursuit bbs by answering:
|
|
|
|
@C PURSUIT,YOURID(Return)
|
|
Password=Your Password(Return)
|
|
|
|
Instead of dialing with the old
|
|
format, the new format is in the
|
|
following format:
|
|
|
|
@C D/xxyyy/zz where xx=State,
|
|
yyy=City, and zz=speed.
|
|
|
|
Therefore, what you should type looks
|
|
like this:
|
|
|
|
@C D/NJNEW/12,YOURID(Return)
|
|
|
|
Password=PASSWORD(Return)
|
|
|
|
This will take you to the 201 area
|
|
code for instance.
|
|
|
|
Here is a list of the Access codes,
|
|
Area Codes and Cities.
|
|
|
|
Area Code Access Code City
|
|
______________________________________
|
|
201 NJNEW Newark, NJ
|
|
202/301/703 DCWAS Washington, D.C.
|
|
203 CTHAR Hartford, CT
|
|
206 WASEA Seattle, WA
|
|
212/718 NYNYO New York, NY
|
|
213 CALAN Los Angeles, CA
|
|
214/817 TXDAL Dallas, TX
|
|
215 PAPHI Philadelphia, PA
|
|
216 OHCLV Cleveland, OH
|
|
303 CODEN Denver, CO
|
|
305 FLMIA Miami, FL
|
|
312 ILCHI Chicago, IL
|
|
313 MIDET Detroit, Michigan
|
|
314/618 MOSLO St. Louis, MO
|
|
404 GAATL Atlanta, GA
|
|
408/415 CASJO San Jose, CA
|
|
414 WIMIL Milwaukee, WI
|
|
415/408 CAPAL Palo Alto, CA
|
|
415 CASFA San Francisco, CA
|
|
503 ORPOR Portland, Oregon
|
|
602 AZPHO Phoenix, AZ
|
|
612 MNMIN Minneapolis, MN
|
|
617 MABOS Boston, MA
|
|
619 CASAD San Diego, CA
|
|
713 TXHOU Houston, TX
|
|
714 CARIV Riverside, CA
|
|
714 CASAN Santa Ana, CA
|
|
801 UTSLC SaltLake City, UT
|
|
813 FLTAM Tampa, FL
|
|
816/913 MOKAN Kansas City, MO
|
|
818 CAGLE Glendale, CA
|
|
916 CASAC Sacramento, CA
|
|
919 NCRTP Research
|
|
Triangle, NC
|
|
|
|
A couple of quick 2400 baud related
|
|
notes you may find helpful. First, at
|
|
present it seems only 713 and 303 are
|
|
actually upgraded to 2400 baud, the
|
|
rest that are active are at 1200 baud.
|
|
These will be upgraded soon, you may
|
|
check the PC Pursuit bbs for the date
|
|
when the rate upgrade will take place,
|
|
or simply try it at the 2400 level
|
|
every-so-often and eventually your
|
|
attempts will be rewarded. Also, many
|
|
300 baud modems are being replaced
|
|
with 1200 baud modems, so things will
|
|
not appear to be near as busy as they
|
|
were before. And when you call at 2400
|
|
the recognized log-on by PC Pursuit is
|
|
the -@- symbol followed at least 200
|
|
milliseconds later by a carriage
|
|
return.
|
|
|
|
Speaking of upgrades, another quickie
|
|
subject that might interest you came
|
|
to light Friday evening as I chatted
|
|
with Dave Flory on a fine multi-user
|
|
bulletin board out west called
|
|
Ironworks. It seems that Atari
|
|
hardware had become awfully hard to
|
|
come by even for dealers such as
|
|
ourselves, and the price had gone to
|
|
apparent all-time highs. According to
|
|
Dave, the extremely long back-order
|
|
situation at 3 of our distributors was
|
|
due to the fact that Europe, the self-
|
|
same place that Atari is the most
|
|
popular PC in, is gobbling a much
|
|
higher percentage of the Taiwan plant
|
|
production than ever. This means we
|
|
are recieving an equal percentage
|
|
fewer Atari computer products, and
|
|
when they are trying to service a
|
|
higher-then-ever demand, it just isnt
|
|
working. Atari will be building a
|
|
plant in Utah or Nevada, due to
|
|
favorable tax laws in both states, and
|
|
the US will recieve its Atari stock
|
|
from there. At first a plant was
|
|
planned for the Silicon Valley, but
|
|
land and tax costs were forbidding,
|
|
and this idea was scrapped. From what
|
|
I was told, sometime in the first half
|
|
of 88 this plant will open, and then,
|
|
when sufficient product is on hand,
|
|
you will see those long-promised ST TV
|
|
ads appearing. This crunch on the
|
|
supply is in humorous contrast to an
|
|
article I just read in an until-now
|
|
reliable Commodore publication. Info-
|
|
World reported this last issue that
|
|
according to all computer experts
|
|
-Atari is fast fading from the home
|
|
computer market!-. Maybe the advisers
|
|
with those gems of information would
|
|
be well-suited to aid our presidential
|
|
advisors...just as reliable!
|
|
|
|
Keep those Atari's hummin'
|
|
Mr. Goodprobe
|
|
(on lend from) Midtown TV
|
|
Atari 8/16 Repair/Sales
|
|
(216)633-0997
|
|
______________________________________
|
|
Xx LEARNING TO PROGRAM IN ATARI BASIC
|
|
...Part 2 of a continuing series...
|
|
______________________________________
|
|
Getting Started in Atari BASIC
|
|
(C) Copyright 1986 by Jackson Beebe
|
|
|
|
This lesson is placed in the Public
|
|
Domain. Individuals, user groups and
|
|
BBS's may reprint, copy or distribute
|
|
it, as long as this notice remains
|
|
intact with the lesson.
|
|
|
|
1. LINE NUMBERS:
|
|
|
|
BASIC programs use line numbers before
|
|
each line of BASIC code. Normal
|
|
program execution begins at the lowest
|
|
number (may be any number) and
|
|
executes each line in numerical
|
|
sequence. Programs are rarely written
|
|
from start to finish in one sitting,
|
|
and sometimes are written from end to
|
|
beginning, or from the middle toward
|
|
the beginning and end. This means you
|
|
will usually be adding extra lines
|
|
between existing lines as you develop
|
|
or modify a program. To allow room
|
|
for these extra lines, it is
|
|
recommended that you initially number
|
|
your lines by 10's, allowing room for
|
|
later insertions. Renumbering programs
|
|
are available either type-in or by D/L
|
|
from bulletin board systems (BBS) to
|
|
renumber existing BASIC programs. Most
|
|
programs seem to begin with the number
|
|
10. Line numbers may range from 0 to
|
|
32767 in Atari BASIC. BASIC source
|
|
code lines may have a maximum length
|
|
of three screen lines, including the
|
|
line numbers, etc.
|
|
|
|
2. REM STATEMENTS:
|
|
|
|
Any statement beginning with the
|
|
letters REM, is not executed, but is a
|
|
REMARK statement, used to label your
|
|
program. As in all BASIC commands, it
|
|
is always in upper case REM. REM
|
|
statements still need line numbers.
|
|
The example below is typical of lines
|
|
found at the beginning of BASIC
|
|
programs. As your programs grow in
|
|
size and complexity, you can insert
|
|
REM to label parts. Anything after the
|
|
REM is just a remark or explanation.
|
|
|
|
EXAMPLE:
|
|
|
|
10 REM *** PAYROLL PROGRAM ***
|
|
20 REM by Jackson Beebe 10/86
|
|
30 REM Version 1.01
|
|
40 etc, rest of program
|
|
|
|
or for parts of programs:
|
|
|
|
265 REM << COMPUTE OVERTIME >>
|
|
|
|
A few REMS can help a lot next year,
|
|
when you try and figure out how last
|
|
year's program works, to modify it.
|
|
|
|
3. PRINT STATEMENT:
|
|
|
|
This statement allows you to print ON
|
|
THE SCREEN of your monitor or TV. For
|
|
example:
|
|
|
|
10 PRINT -HELLO-
|
|
|
|
will print HELLO on your screen. You
|
|
can skip lines with blank print
|
|
statements as:
|
|
|
|
10 PRINT -HELLO-
|
|
20 PRINT
|
|
30 PRINT
|
|
40 PRINT -THERE-
|
|
|
|
This prints HELLO, skips two lines and
|
|
prints THERE. Note that anything in
|
|
quotes in a PRINT statement, is
|
|
printed EXACTLY on the screen, blanks
|
|
included. You can print literals in
|
|
quotes, or print the values of
|
|
variables (next lesson.)
|
|
|
|
If you put a comma between items in a
|
|
PRINT statement, it will skip to the
|
|
next print zone. There are 10 spaces
|
|
in an Atari print zone.
|
|
|
|
Example:
|
|
|
|
10 PRINT -HI-,-THERE-
|
|
|
|
This will print HI, space over 8
|
|
spaces and print THERE. The spaces per
|
|
-print zone- are controllable by
|
|
POKEing 201 with 3 to 255 (more on
|
|
that later). Watch this:
|
|
|
|
10 PRINT ,,-HI-
|
|
|
|
This skips over to 20, then prints HI.
|
|
Commas will come in handy for putting
|
|
things in columns for printout, and
|
|
printing tables.
|
|
|
|
If you put a semicolon between items
|
|
in a PRINT statement (normal), it
|
|
doesn't skip any spaces.
|
|
|
|
10 PRINT -HI-;-THERE-
|
|
|
|
This prints HITHERE. A key feature is
|
|
a trailing semicolon (left at the end
|
|
of a line). This suppresses a carriage
|
|
return. Don't panic. This just means
|
|
the printer -sits there- waiting at
|
|
the end of a line like this:
|
|
|
|
10 PRINT -HI-;
|
|
20 PRINT -THERE-
|
|
|
|
This prints HITHERE.
|
|
|
|
See, the printer -waited- at the end
|
|
of HI. USUALLY items in a PRINT
|
|
statement are separated by semicolons,
|
|
like:
|
|
|
|
10 PRINT -HI -;-THERE -;-JOE-
|
|
|
|
This prints HI THERE JOE. Note I left
|
|
trailing spaces after the I and E,
|
|
inside the parenthesis. You can use
|
|
leading spaces when you wish to begin
|
|
printing less than 10 spaces in.
|
|
|
|
10 PRINT - This is indented-
|
|
|
|
Without a trailing semicolon, every
|
|
time a program sees PRINT, it skips to
|
|
a new line.
|
|
|
|
You can print on a printer, following
|
|
these same rules, but using the LPRINT
|
|
statement (for line printer.)
|
|
|
|
10 LPRINT -Hello There-
|
|
|
|
This will print on the printer, but
|
|
not on the screen.
|
|
|
|
4. MULTIPLE STATEMENTS ON A LINE:
|
|
|
|
More than one BASIC instruction may be
|
|
placed on one line, and always is in
|
|
fact, in advanced programs. To do
|
|
this, you separate statements with a
|
|
colon.
|
|
|
|
10 PRINT -HI-:PRINT:PRINT -JOE-
|
|
|
|
This prints HI, skips a line and
|
|
prints JOE.
|
|
|
|
One exception! NOTHING may follow a
|
|
REM. Here's an okay example:
|
|
|
|
10 X = X + 1:REM increments X
|
|
|
|
Here's a NOT OKAY example:
|
|
|
|
10 REM increment X:X = X + 1
|
|
|
|
This won't work, as NOTHING past a REM
|
|
statement gets executed.
|
|
|
|
5. NEW:
|
|
|
|
The command NEW, clears out the Random
|
|
Access Memory. When you're ready to
|
|
write a program, you type NEW and hit
|
|
the RETURN key. That wipes all your
|
|
RAM memory clean. It erases any old
|
|
programs and variables, you were
|
|
using. It will not affect programs
|
|
stored on disk or tape. When you LOAD
|
|
in a program from disk (see 12.
|
|
LOADING A PROGRAM:), it automatically
|
|
clears RAM first, just as if it had a
|
|
NEW command built-in.
|
|
|
|
6. WRITING A PROGRAM:
|
|
|
|
Now we are ready to write a program.
|
|
For now, you may type in LAB 1,
|
|
EXACTLY as it appears at the end of
|
|
this lesson. After each line, hit
|
|
RETURN. BASIC will let you know
|
|
immediately if you have any errors. If
|
|
so, simply retype the line. Each new
|
|
line will REPLACE any old line, having
|
|
the same line number. Instant
|
|
correction.
|
|
|
|
7. LISTING
|
|
|
|
You can LIST your code on the screen
|
|
at any time, by typing LIST and RETURN
|
|
or L. and RETURN. Individual lines may
|
|
be listed as:
|
|
|
|
L.40
|
|
|
|
to list line 40. Ranges of lines may
|
|
be listed by:
|
|
|
|
L.10,120
|
|
|
|
to list lines 10 through 120 in a
|
|
block. You may stop and start the
|
|
lines scrolling up off your screen
|
|
during listing, by alternate presses
|
|
of CONTROL+1. This means hold down the
|
|
CONTROL key while pressing the 1 key.
|
|
Lines may be entered into programs out
|
|
of sequence. Listing will always list
|
|
then in sequence.
|
|
|
|
You can Clear your screen with
|
|
CONTROL+CLEAR. Clearing and relisting
|
|
is done every few minutes when writing
|
|
in BASIC, so you can see the lines in
|
|
sequence, and watch the program flow.
|
|
|
|
You can copy lines easily, by listing
|
|
a line, then using cursor control
|
|
arrows, placing your cursor on top of
|
|
the existing line number, changing it
|
|
and hitting RETURN. The original line,
|
|
AND the identical line with the new
|
|
number will both be present. This also
|
|
allows manual renumbering of lines in
|
|
a program.
|
|
|
|
Source code may be listed to your
|
|
printer in two ways. You may use:
|
|
|
|
LIST -P:- or LIST -P:-,10,120
|
|
|
|
Another option is to COPY the program
|
|
from disk to the printer, by going to
|
|
DOS and selecting COPY. When asked,
|
|
copy from D1:FILENAME to P: for the
|
|
printer, or S: for the screen or E:
|
|
for the screen also.
|
|
|
|
Printouts are very handy, as you can
|
|
quit for the night, but study the
|
|
listed printout for bugs, and areas to
|
|
improve.
|
|
|
|
8. LINE EDITING:
|
|
|
|
If you discover a boo-boo in a line,
|
|
you can edit it. Type L. followed by
|
|
the line #, or LIST followed by the
|
|
line # as:
|
|
|
|
L. 35
|
|
|
|
This will list that line 35 on your
|
|
screen. Using your control and arrow
|
|
keys, put your cursor on the line, and
|
|
retype, delete, insert (using CONTROL+
|
|
DELETE or INSERT) etc, to correct the
|
|
line. Monkey around and try it. When
|
|
you change a line, the rule is that
|
|
you must hit RETURN with the cursor IN
|
|
that line, to save your changes.
|
|
Experiment with it. It's great. SHIFT+
|
|
INSERT and SHIFT+DELETE work on entire
|
|
lines. Try them.
|
|
|
|
To get rid of a line you don't want,
|
|
simply type the number of the line
|
|
followed by RETURN. It wipes it out.
|
|
Try it. That's deleting lines.
|
|
|
|
The Atari has a screen editor, that
|
|
will let you edit any lines on the
|
|
screen. For the novice, this can get
|
|
you in trouble so fast, that you screw
|
|
up a whole screen full of lines at
|
|
once. SAVE often when editing, and
|
|
only edit one line at a time to begin.
|
|
For screen editing, you must hit
|
|
return with your cursor still in a
|
|
line to save changes.
|
|
|
|
Next week Part 3
|
|
______________________________________
|
|
Xx ZMAG 1987 REVIEWS
|
|
______________________________________
|
|
by Ron Kovacs
|
|
|
|
The following text is taken from the
|
|
Special Issue of the 1987 Zmag Index.
|
|
The Issue will be released shortly. It
|
|
was compiled by The Enchanter of the
|
|
Bunker BBS (212) 617-0153
|
|
|
|
This week, A listing of the reviews
|
|
covered last year. Title and the issue
|
|
where you can find the article is
|
|
listed.
|
|
|
|
REVIEWS
|
|
Title Issue
|
|
-------------------------------------
|
|
221B Baker Street 54
|
|
XEP80 53,79
|
|
Alternate Reality 60
|
|
Avatex Modem 36
|
|
Battle of Antietam 58
|
|
Bismark 33
|
|
Black Cauldron 56
|
|
Black Magic 33
|
|
Bop'n Wrestle 59
|
|
Borrowed Time (ST article) 58
|
|
Carina II BBS 68,70
|
|
Computing Across America 73
|
|
Dark Lord 60
|
|
Datatrieve 48
|
|
Force 7 60
|
|
Function Aid 46
|
|
GBA Basketball 53
|
|
Gemstone Healer 33
|
|
Hacker 56
|
|
Jingledisk 81
|
|
Koronis Rift 51
|
|
Magic Sac 41
|
|
Mind Tuner 33
|
|
Express 66
|
|
Oasis BBS 54
|
|
PC Clone 50
|
|
PC Pursuit 33
|
|
Print Shop Campanion 64
|
|
Qubie Modem 60
|
|
Roadwar 2000 33
|
|
Saracen 33
|
|
SpartaDos Toolkit 79
|
|
SpellBreaker 56
|
|
Spider 68
|
|
ST WordPerfect 49
|
|
Star Fleet I 33
|
|
Star Printer 36
|
|
Super Boulder Dash 58
|
|
Super Mario Brothers 43
|
|
Super Rat 33
|
|
Supra 2400 Modem 80
|
|
Sword Orcery 33
|
|
SX212 Modem 75
|
|
Tobruck 33,60
|
|
Tomahawk 60
|
|
Video Title Shop 33,60
|
|
Wargame Construction Set 33
|
|
Warship 33
|
|
______________________________________
|
|
Xx ZMAG 1987 Columnists
|
|
______________________________________
|
|
Here is where you can find articles
|
|
written by the Staff of ZMagazine. The
|
|
following index is from the issues of
|
|
1987 and where to find them.
|
|
|
|
Title Issue
|
|
--------------------------------------
|
|
ADVERTISERS
|
|
===========
|
|
Midtown TV 74-81
|
|
OASIS Software 60
|
|
Commnet Systems 81
|
|
Hard Disk Users Group 41
|
|
|
|
Authors Index
|
|
=============
|
|
Ron Kovacs
|
|
41,53,57,58,60,63,66,67,70,75
|
|
Eric Plent 47,48,51
|
|
Calamity Jane 67,70,79,82
|
|
Mike Brown 67,71,73,79,80
|
|
Bruce Kennedy 72,80
|
|
Mr. Goodprobe 67,70,72,73,74,75,77
|
|
Leo Newman 57,63,64,65,66
|
|
______________________________________
|
|
ZMAGAZINE 88 Volume 3 Number 2
|
|
(c)1988 Syndicate Publishing Company
|
|
______________________________________
|