INFO-ATARI16 Digest         Fri, 17 Nov 89       Volume 89 : Issue 669
 
Today's Topics:
                           GEM help needed
                             Languages!!!
                            SH 204 Upgrade
                            Vapourware!!!
                      What does the TT Buy me??
----------------------------------------------------------------------
 
Date: 17 Nov 89 00:17:28 GMT
From: nis!pwcs!stag!daemon@umn-cs.cs.umn.edu  (John Stanley)
Subject: GEM help needed
 
  I normaly wouldn't respond to this since Keith posted that he had the
answer to his problem.  Unfortunately his message indicates that he may
not have the whole answer (and since the problem is partialy of his own
doing) I felt obligated to try to set things straight...  I appologise
in advance if Keith does understand this and I'm "explaining" without
being asked... (even if I am anyway... :~)
 
[hedger@inmet.inmet.com writes...]
>
> Got it!  I am posting this in case anyone else out there gets bitten.
> First of all, the main problem was in fact user error. None of the
> docs that I had mentioned that when you are in medium resolution you
> can only use 4 colors (I knew that), but they also failed to mention
> that you can also use only the FIRST four colors.
 
  Serious question.. Which four colors would you expect?
 
> These are supposed to be 0=black,1=white,2=red, and 3=green.
 
  They normaly are...
 
> Not so, in fact 0=black,1=white,2=green and 3=blue. Anything else
> returns white. It never occurred to me to just try each color in
> order, big mistake it turns out.
> Anyway, that's the answer to this problem and I am going to call
> Mark Williams and let them know they have what appears to be a
> documentation error.
 
  The color numbers used by the vsf_color function only refer to the
individual pallet numbers from the current color pallet, not to some
absolute color code.  MW should have made this clear in their manual.
 
  The "0=black,1=white,2=red, and 3=green" -are- the default colors.
MW also should have made it clear in their manual that these are the
"normal" colors you get from those pallet values, not absolute colors.
(I'm rather suprised and disapointed in the MW phoneline support if
this answer wasn't obvious to them...)  If you've gone and changed the
default colors (using a control panel or similar utility), then you're
not going to get the colors MW listed for a normal setup...
 
  Medium rez allows 4 colors on-screen at a time.  Unless you're good
with interrupts and assembly language, that's the limit, period...
Unless your program alters the color pallet instead of just selecting
colors from the current pallet, the colors your program will show on
the screen are going to be whatever default screen colors you've chosen
to use for your machine...
 
  PS:  If you do choose to alter the color pallet, then please take the
time to read the default pallet on entry to your program and restore
all of the default pallet entries on exit.  (There aren't many programs
that become very popular that alter the users chosen screen colors
without putting them back before exiting...)
 
---
John Stanley <dynasoft!john@stag.UUCP>
Software Consultant / Dynasoft Systems
 
------------------------------
 
Date: 17 Nov 89 18:52:40 GMT
From:
 cs.utexas.edu!swrinde!gem.mps.ohio-state.edu!uwm.edu!dogie.macc.wisc.edu!vms.ma
 cc.wisc.edu@tut.cis.ohio-state.edu  (Neil Gilmore)
Subject: Languages!!!
 
In article <3289@jhunix.HCF.JHU.EDU>, esp_05@jhunix.HCF.JHU.EDU (Stdnt 05)
 writes...
 
>Strikes me that older versions of GFA Basic are in the public domain.
>Although I don't know a whole lot about it because I don't use it, it
>strikes me that it has full GEM support, and that it's really easy to
>use. The one time I looked at it, I was also impressed by its editor.
>If I used BASIC I would probably be happy with it.  (I must say, way
>back when I got my 520ST in what, '86 I guess, ST BASIC was a real
>disappointment.)
 
Well, GFA is currently one of my 2 regularly used languages (assembly w/
Assempro the other). The editor is, quit simply, the best I have ever
used on any system, for any language. I have used a lot of editors in my
time (vi, EDT, EMACS variants, .......), but I now find the
autoindenting, syntax-checking, atuo-capitalization indispensible. The
language is pretty good, too. Buying the current revision is a good
idea, as it has a CASE, and supports more variable types (byte, short
int, etc. ) The ability to import ASCII is nice too (I have a few tools
which output ASCII for importation). It's rather fast as well, and there
is a compiler which is fairly good.
 
I wouldn't reccommend it for professional projects, but it works well as
a prototyper, or for those throwaway programs which are needed quickly.
 
>Eric Ruck
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Kitakaze Tatsu Raito  Neil Gilmore     internet:gilmore@macc.wisc.edu |
| Jararvellir,          MACC, UW-Madison bitnet: gilmore@wiscmac3       |
| Middle Kingdom        Madison, Wi                                     |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------+
 
------------------------------
 
Date: 17 Nov 89 18:05:16 GMT
From: mcsun!sunic!nuug!ifi!m2cs.uu.no!tomas@uunet.uu.net  (Tomas Felner)
Subject: SH 204 Upgrade
 
jheddy@jhunix.HCF.JHU.EDU (Jared Brennan) writes:
>    The SH204 case will hold a 5.25" half-height hard drive, a type which
>is readily available from any manufacturer that makes hard drives.  The
>drive must support MFM encoding and the ST512 interface.  You can use
>a 3.5" hard drive in the SH204, but you must use brackets to expand the
>form-factor to that of a 5.25" drive; my SH204 had a Tandon TM263 3.5"
>drive mechanism, which was in a framework that fitted the drive into
>the 5.25" slot provided.  Also, check the power supply in your SH204;
>I found a 40W supply in mine, which seems to be sufficient to power a
>Seagate ST251-1, the Adaptec 4000A SCSI controller, and ASCI-SCSI adapter.
>Anything below that wattage is not guaranteed to do the same . . .
 
I upgraded my SH204 to 100MB more than a year ago. I replaced the
Adaptec 4000A controller by a 4070 RLL controller, removed the Tandon
TM262 20MB MFM disk (and sold it), and put in two Seagate ST157R 50MB
RLL disks. This all fits just about into the SH204 case. And I didn't
encounter any problems with this setup or the power supply so far. The
only problem I had were quite some bad blocks on one of the disks, but
that's a whole different story ...
 
Tomas
--
                          Tomas Felner
     Modula-2 CASE Systems AS  |  Internet: tomas@m2cs.uu.no
            Maridalsveien 139  |  Phone: +47 2 379784
        N-0461 Oslo 4, Norway  |  FAX: +47 2 356448
 
------------------------------
 
Date: 17 Nov 89 15:29:31 GMT
From: zodiac!jtn@ames.arc.nasa.gov  (John Nelson)
Subject: Vapourware!!!
 
In article <34785@grapevine.uucp> koreth@panarthea.ebay.sun.com (Steven Grimm)
 writes:
>Shall we shoot him now, or torture him before we put him out of our
>misery?
 
Now now now, let's be patient.  This is what I read in a UK mag.  I
know the STE is out already in Europe and not available here.  The
announcement will be made in Feburary.  If you have better information
then share it with us.
 
Considering that Atari Corporation refuses to tell me ANYTHING about
these boxes, it shouldn't be surprising that a lot of vapour is
floating around.  Quite rude too.
 
Since I posted the article on the STE I've discovered that it is
really much more scaled down than the TT.  Apparently it will have a
mere 1 meg internal RAM with a better colour pallete and an 8-bit PCM
sound chip AND SIMM slots... APPARENTLY.  Who knows what Atari will
announce.
 
 
 
John T. Nelson                  UUCP: sun!sundc!potomac!jtn
Advanced Decision Systems       Internet:  jtn@potomac.ads.com
1500 Wilson Blvd #512; Arlington, VA 22209-2401         (703) 243-1611
 
------------------------------
 
Date: 17 Nov 89 17:37:55 GMT
From: matthews@umd5.umd.edu  (Mike Matthews)
Subject: What does the TT Buy me??
 
In article <24002@cup.portal.com> Bob_BobR_Retelle@cup.portal.com writes:
[stuff deleted]
>Atari Corp is making a lot of noise about IBM compatible "pocketable"
>computers, and "handheld" video games. They are *NOT* doing anything
>useful for their base of computer owners.  Of course they can make money
>anywhere they want to.. that's their right under our free enterprise system..
>but.. do we as owners of their outdated technology have to kiss up to them??
>
As if you're doing anything useful for the computing industry!  The only thing
messages like that do is waste net bandwidth.  And make readers fed up with all
of this whining.  If you don't like it, don't take it and LEAVE.  I'm a little
fed up with what Atari has been doing too.  I was hoping for a TT, but now I
doubt I'll buy one.  I WILL NOT, HOWEVER, BASH THE COMPUTER JUST BECAUSE IT
ISN'T UP TO MY SPECIFICATIONS.
>
>BobR
 
Mike Matthews
 
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End of INFO-ATARI16 Digest V89 Issue #669
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