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INFO-ATARI16 Digest         Sat, 28 Apr 90       Volume 90 : Issue  487
 
Today's Topics:
                      An Apology to Word Perfect
                          HAPPY COMPUTER BBS
                      Help, where can I get LINT
               Looking for graphics/animation software
                         Mac Emulators on ST
                      Ramdisk bootup (Code RAM)
                      STE TOS / TOS 1.4/1.6 etc.
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Date: 27 Apr 90 23:12:43 GMT
From: haven!aplcen!jhunix!jheddy@purdue.edu  (Jared Brennan)
Subject: An Apology to Word Perfect
Message-ID: <5088@jhunix.HCF.JHU.EDU>
 
In article <5873.263811fd@uwovax.uwo.ca> 35002_3025@uwovax.uwo.ca writes:
>       There should be a student price on Word Perfect at about $200...
>Kevin-john Conway
>35002_3025@uwovax.uwo.ca
 
     This has been discussed a couple of times.  The gist of what I've
read is that, for every version of WordPerfect, be it Atari, PC, Mac,
or whatever, there is a student discount price of $99.  Every dealer
who sells WordPerfect should honor this price.  They should have the
forms WordPerfect Corp. supplies for student discounts.  If they don't,
well, call up WordPerfect and complain and then go someplace else.
 
--
. . . Yet another shallow and badly thought-out opinion from:
Jared Brennan <jheddy@jhunix.hcf.jhu.edu>       BITNET: JHEDDY@JHUNIX,JHUVMS
ARPA: jheddy%jhunix@hopkins.ARPA        UUCP: allegra!hopkins!jhunix!jheddy
 
------------------------------
 
Date: Sat, 28 Apr 90 13:49:33 SST
From: "S. Sujarittanonta" <AKISUJAR%NUSVM.BITNET@CUNYVM.CUNY.EDU>
Subject: HAPPY COMPUTER BBS
 
Hello from Singapore,
 
I learn that the Happy Computer Inc, Maker of the Discovery Cartridge has put
up the latest version of their software for the user to download on the Happy
BBS. I own one of the cartridge with software version 2.7 and would like to
updated mine to the latest version.  However it is impossible for me to logon
the US BBS from Singapore. I wrote to the Happy Computer several time but never
get any reply from them.
 
I shall be most grateful if anyone will be kind enough to e-mail me the update
file and the BETA version software which can convert the Atari 8 Bit diskette
to ST format. I heard that both are in small ARC format files.
 
Thank in advance,  Suthipuntha.  School of Architecture,
                                 National University of Singapore
                                 AKISUJAR@NUSVM.BITNET
 
------------------------------
 
Date: 28 Apr 90 02:13:10 GMT
From: cs.umn.edu!thelake!steve@ub.d.umn.edu  (Steve Yelvington)
Subject: Help, where can I get LINT
Message-ID: <A2846168219@thelake.mn.org>
 
In <9004270944.AA03533@ucbvax.Berkeley.EDU>,
   S61304@PRIME-A.POLY-SOUTH-WEST.AC.UK ("Simon Chappell") writes...
 
> Does anyone know where I can get a copy of LINT that I can use with
> Sozobon 1.01 (I'd use it with 1.2 if I could get working binaries!)
 
I know of no version of lint for the ST.
 
Working 1.2 binaries were posted to comp.binaries.atari.st.
They should be available from panarthea and terminator.
 
> I need it in sort of a hurry as I keep shooting myself in the feet and it
> would be very useful to use it before starting another long error doomed
> compile!
 
Keep your modules short, or your code perfect, whichever is easier.
 
> Also, does anyone have any short comments on how to use MAKE? I have split
> my main program up so that it covers a number of smaller .c files, but at
> the moment I am doing the following:
>
> #include "filename.c"
>
> I realise that this is possibly not the best thing to do as I am constantly
> recompiling code that is tested and debugged, so I need help!
 
Eek! Simon, that's not the way to do it. No wonder your compiles are long.
 
cc.ttp has a -c switch that means "just compile the file, and don't link
it." If you do this:
 
cc -O -c file1.c
 
you'll wind up with file1.o in the directory, assuming it passed the tests.
Repeat the process with the other modules. When you're done, link them:
 
cc -o program.tos file1.o file2.o file3.o
 
et cetera. You can mix .c, .o and .s filenames on the command line,
plus libraries (.a files, or files with no extension).
 
"make" is another animal entirely. It knows how to use cc.ttp efficiently,
but it's not a very friendly program. And Sozobon's make.doc is of little
help.
 
Nevertheless, here is a sample makefile. I'm not a make wizard, but it
appears to work. Yes, I did test this one. :-)
 
# Generic makefile for constructing GEM applications
# with Sozobon C and GEMFAST.
# Change CFLAGS, OBJECTS and PROGRAM as needed
# and leave everything else alone.
 
OBJECTS=file1.o file2.o file3.o
PROGRAM=program.prg
CFLAGS=-v -O
GEMLIBS=aesfast.a vdifast.a
 
$(PROGRAM):     $(OBJECTS)
                $(CC) $(CFLAGS) -o $(PROGRAM) $(OBJECTS) $(GEMLIBS)
#               (Notice how this translates when make is run.)
# end
 
 
The format appears to be
 
target:<tab>dependencies
<tab><tab>command line
 
Make looks for "makefile" by default; you can run "make -f altfile" and it
will look for an alternate makefile "altfile" instead.
 
--
   Steve Yelvington at the lake in Minnesota
   steve@thelake.mn.org
 
------------------------------
 
Date: 28 Apr 90 04:46:18 GMT
From: usc!chaph.usc.edu!nunki.usc.edu!rjung@ucsd.edu  (Robert allen Jung)
Subject: Looking for graphics/animation software
Message-ID: <9465@chaph.usc.edu>
 
In article <9004270406.AA24279@fsucs.cs.fsu.edu> boyd@nu.cs.fsu.edu (Mickey
 Boyd) writes:
>In article <11682@portia.Stanford.EDU>, macross@portia.Stanford.EDU (Chris
 Adamson) writes:
>>      Has anyone out there seen any software product that could be used
>>in producing animation on the ST (with somewhat more flexibility than, say,
>>"Degas Elite" with the minimal color-switching stuff)?  I'm looking for
>>something along the lines of "Aegis Animator" (which I saw for lesser 68000
>>machines).
>
>I have seen something called Art and Film Director that is pretty neat
 
The two primary (as far as I know) animation programs are CYBERPAINT by Antic
software and ART & FILM DIRECTOR (it's a boxed set) by Epyx.
 
CYBERPAINT strong points: It animates by "delta animation". The computer
animates by storing the changes between each frame. This is nice because small
animation changes take up less RAM, meaning you can get more frames of
animating in. It's also easy to use -- you draw each frame and the computer
does all the processing. CYBERPAINT also has lots of built-in special effects
that you can do in a sequence of frames (rotate a graphics block n degrees
in 10 frames, etc.)
 
CYBERPAINT weak points: With delta animation, large changes (scene 1 to scene
2) take up LOTS of memory. Generally, quality Cyber animations take from
2 to 4 megabytes. CYBERPAINT does not support sound, and drawing each
individual frame can be tedious.
 
 
ART & FILM DIRECTOR strong points: It animates by a computer equivalent of
cel animation (Disney et al). Art is drawn on one of 16 screens. Rectangular
blocks of the screens is then "clipped" for cels, which can be arranged in
groups for easier manipulation. Less memory is used by A&F, and prepackaged
sounds/musics can be used (30 sounds are provided, and you can select up to
10 for your animation. There is/was also an expansion disk with sample frames
and sounds). Generally, you would use ART DIRECTOR to draw the screens, then
FILM DIRECTOR to create your animation. Full scene changes do not take any
extra memory, aside from that used to store the image itself.
 
ART & FILM DIRECTOR weak points: Animation can become repetitive easily,
since your animation is limited to how many cels you create. Customized
sounds and music is nonexistent. The animation process is more confusing than
CYBERPAINT, though the manual has a quality tutorial to guide you through
the tools. Epyx has gotten out of the computer software business, so this
program is harder to find (The Atari ST magazines have mail-order ads, they
can probably get you the A&F package for $20 [originally priced at $70, it's
a steal!])
 
 
  I would suggest you look at what you're trying to do, then pick the tool
appropriate for the task. Personally, I find ART & FILM DIRECTOR to be more
flexible to use than CYBERPAINT, but I like to generate animation similar to
"traditional" animation.
 
                                                --R.J.
                                                B-)
 
""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
Opinions expressed here are mine and mine alone. If you want them, go for it!
 
                                        Send replies to rjung@nunki.usc.edu
""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""
 
------------------------------
 
Date: 28 Apr 90 04:50:53 GMT
From: fernwood!portal!cup.portal.com!Dave_Ninjajr_Flory@apple.com
Subject: Mac Emulators on ST
Message-ID: <29384@cup.portal.com>
 
Yes, the ST does have non-interlace hi-res. The Spectre GCR reads and runs
every Mac program I have tried directly from a Mac disk. There are some
mostly copy protected ones that won't run, but all the big productivity
stuff works just fine. The screen is about 15-20% bigger and it runs a little
faster than a Mac Plus. A very viable alternative to the Mac.
 
------------------------------
 
Date: 28 Apr 90 04:50:53 GMT
From: fernwood!portal!cup.portal.com!Dave_Ninjajr_Flory@apple.com
Subject: Ramdisk bootup (Code RAM)
Message-ID: <29383@cup.portal.com>
 
>>There was a PD program called TPORT that loads a ramdisk at bootup.
>>I use it in conjunction with CODERAM (from Codehead Utilities)
>>or Pagestream. I have all the fonts autoload into a ramdisk, then
>>switch disks and run
 
If you have CodeRam then why are you using the other program. If you
have the documentation you should have gotten when you bought
Codehead Utilities you would know that with CodeCopy you can make a
.CCP file which is an image of the stuff in the CodeRam disk. The ram
disk can be configured to automatically load this file and run it on
boot up. On a warm reset the computer boots from the Ramdisk, VERY
fast.
 
 
------------------------------
 
Date: 28 Apr 90 03:55:50 GMT
From: pwp@iuvax.cs.indiana.edu  (Paul Purdom)
Subject: STE TOS / TOS 1.4/1.6 etc.
Message-ID: <43420@iuvax.cs.indiana.edu>
 
I believe that one can learn a lot by disassembling ROM code. I remember
learning a lot form reading the TRS80 code. Of course, it does take a long
time, and if you just want to write programs that work well then take Allan's
advise. This is particularly important if you are going to write a program
that is going to become popular. Sometimes I think Allan is a little
overly concerned about the kinds of trouble we can get into by our selves,
but then he often has to spend much more time dealing with some of these
mistakes than we do. Cheap acturate information would be a great help.
 
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End of INFO-ATARI16 Digest V90 Issue #487
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