
                  *---== ST REPORT ONLINE MAGAZINE ==---*
                         """""""""""""""""""""""""
                                       
                                       
                     "The Original Online ST Magazine"
                      _______________________________


  August 18, 1989                                         Vol III  No.101
  =======================================================================
  
                         ST Report Online Magazine
                        __________________________
                          Post Office Box   6672
                          Jacksonville,  Florida
                               32205 ~ 6672
  
                               R.F. Mariano
                            Publisher - Editor
                 _________________________________________
                   Voice: 904-783-3319  10 AM - 4 PM EDT
                     BBS:  904-786-4176   12-24-96 HST
                    FAX: 904-783-3319 12 AM - 6 AM EDT
                 _________________________________________
  
             **  F-NET NODE 350 ** FIDOMAIL NODE 1:363/37  **
              Our support BBS carries ALL issues of STReport
                                    and
               An International list of private BBS systems
               carrying STReport for their users  enjoyment

    __________________________________________________________________ 
    
 > Issue: #101 STReport        The Online Magazine of Choice! 
   ------------------- 
     - The Editors' Podium                   - CPU REPORT
     - Again! The Revolving Door!            - MILLENIUM, Review
     - MasterCad, Review                     - NIGHTHAWKS, Review
     - FALCON - Mission Disk, Review         - TOS 1.4, Review
     - TOUCH-UP 1.53, Review                 - Limited Release for TOS?
     - TT's to be Configurable!              - THE REAL REASON-TOS DELAY!
     - NEW USERGROUP COORDINATOR!            - ST REPORT CONFIDENTIAL

            ---==== FEDERAL EXPRESS BUYS THE PORTFOLIO! ====---
       --=== *** EXCLUSIVE: THE BOSTON SIGRAPH INTERVIEWS *** ===--
              ---==== HOT! INSIDE INFORMATION ON TT ====---
    
  =======================================================================
       AVAILABLE ON:      COMP-U-SERVE  ~  DELPHI  ~  GENIE  ~  BIX
  =======================================================================
    
 > The Editor's Podium

     Under any cover story there always is the "bottom line".  In the Atari
 arena, the bottom line has been a most elusive item  indeed.   Through the
 course of  the past year, it has been almost impossible to find the bottom
 line.  Many different analysts, both  is the  press and  other areas, have
 tried with little or no success.  The big question is why no success?

     To accurately  obtain a  viable result,  there must be present certain
 'constants' with which an analyst may  work.   In the  case of  Atari, the
 factors  that  are  constants  would  yield  a  catastrophic picture.  For
 example;  a) constant  delays -  b) conflicting  release information  - c)
 obvious favoritism  shown to  the European market - d) Ongoing development
 of game machines thus, promoting the game machine image - e) continued use
 of the  Atari name  on the high end, high performance computers - f) total
 lack of cooperation with the press - g) Lack of continuity in the decision
 making process  at the  top.  The list is longer, but why show to all what
 most obviously know already.

     Atari must, in the coming weeks and months "get with  the program" and
 rediscover the basics of good business.  Any company with a good amount of
 cash reserve can put on the "dog".  There is  nothing wrong  with this, as
 long as  it doesn't  evolve into dogging the users.  The TOS 1.4 situation
 is atrocious.  The deliberate placement  of misleading  information is not
 the mark  of a  professional corporation.   It  is, however, the mark of a
 leadership group that is  strife  with  emotionally  controlled decisions.
 Atari and  it's various endeavors have a great deal going for them if only
 those in control would learn to concentrate on the timely release of these
 successful endeavors.

     In any  case, Atari is our computer and it will remain so.  Regardless
 of all the problems, we are adamant in our choice.  Atari has a  good grip
 on the  secret of  hardware success,  now for  the marketing and publicity
 angle.
                                                   Ralph.....



                             ATARI IS BACK!!!



  **********************************************************************


                    :HOW TO GET YOUR OWN GENIE ACCOUNT:
                     _________________________________

      To sign up for GEnie service: Call: (with modem) 800-638-8369.

               Upon connection type HHH (RETURN after that).
                         Wait for the U#= prompt.
                    Type XJM11877,GEnie and hit RETURN.
             The system will prompt you for your information.


                THE GENIE ATARI ST ROUNDTABLE - AN OVERVIEW
                ___________________________________________

 The Roundtable is an area of GEnie specifically  set aside  for owners and
 users of Atari ST computers, although all are welcome to participate.

 There are  three main  sections to the Roundtable: the Bulletin Board, the
 Software Library and the Real Time Conference area.

 The Bulletin Board contains messages from Roundtable members  on a variety
 of Topics,  organized under  several Categories.   These  messages are all
 Open and available for all to read (GEnie Mail should be used for private
 messages).  

 If you have a question, comment, hot rumor or an answer to someone else's
 question, the Bulletin Board is the place to share it.

 The Software Library is where we keep the Public Domain software files
 that are available to all Roundtable members.  You can 'download' any of
 these files to your own computer system by using a Terminal Program which
 uses the 'XMODEM' file-transfer method.  You can also share  your favorite
 Public Domain programs and files  with  other  Roundtable  members  by
 'uploading' them to the Software Library. Uploading on GEnie is FREE, so
 you are encouraged to participate and help your Roundtable grow.

 The Real Time Conference is an area where two or more Roundtable members
 may get together and 'talk' in  'real-time'.  You can participate in
 organized conferences with special guests, drop in on our weekly Open
 COnference, or simply join  in  on  an  impromptu  chat  session.   Unlike
 posting messages  or Mail  for other  members to  read at some later time,
 everyone in the Conference area can see what you type immediately, and can
 respond to you right away, in an 'electronic conversation'.



  **********************************************************************
 --------------------------------------------------------------------------





 > CPU REPORT
   ==========

 Micheal is on vacation, he will return shortly, we feel he deserves a well
 earned  vacation.    Micheal  has  produced  CPU  REPORT ,  a  feature  of
 STReport's  since Issue # 64 December, 1988. 



 > ATARI & THE FUTURE STR FOCUS   An interview with some of the "BIG WIGS"
   ============================



                                                  DENDO before DEPARTURE
                                                  ======================


 "Hey dude, let's party!"
 -Sean Penn, Fast Times at Ridgemont High


 by David Anderson

      Thursday.  13  July,  1989.    Westboro, Massachusetts.  The Marriott
 hotel.  It was  here that  Michael R.  Dendo, VP-Sales  for Atari Computer
 came  to  perform  the  task  he  had  been given.  His mission: meet with
 current dealers in the too-long neglected Boston/New England market. Court
 potential dealers.  Do what is necessary to strengthen Atari's presence in
 the area.

      He did not come  alone.   Stalwart at  his side  was Nathan Potechin,
 President  of  Canada's  ISD  Marketing,  Inc., a third-party supporter of
 Atari's ST  and MEGA  computer lines,  boasting powerful  packages such as
 Calamus  and  DynaCadd,  billed  as  "Professional  Solutions" for Desktop
 Publishing  and  Computer  Aided   Design/Drafting,  respectively.     The
 Boston-area  (by  a  slender  thread) whistlestop was coordinated by Betsy
 Piper, President of Tech  Plus, Inc.,  Atari's manufacturer's  rep for the
 area.

      Throughout the day, meetings had been held with current and potential
 dealers, with the intent of  rejuvenating  interest  in  Atari's products,
 expanding the  area dealerbase,  and mending fences in general.  To aid in
 these purposes, the delegation brought along a few exemplary wares.   Mike
 trotted out  Portfolio, the  vest-pocket PC with which Atari hopes to make
 its way into the business market.  "This is a great opportunity  for us to
 get into  Corporate America,"  he said.   "That's  what we're going to use
 Portfolio for.  It's  our gambit."  It was  Nathan's job  to exemplify the
 potential of the ST, especially the MEGA, as a professional business tool.
 To that end, he demonstrated the capabilities of Calamus and  DynaCadd, as
 well  as  the  forthcoming  Calamus  Outline  Art, a graphics-creation and
 editing package with features  rivaling Adobe  Illustrator, Aldus Freehand
 and LetraStudio.

      Time  had  been  scheduled  for  Dendo  to  meet with local usergroup
 representatives, to address the needs  and  concerns  of  Atari's end-user
 base. Due  to the aggressive pursuit of his first priority, the recruiting
 of new dealers  to  expand  Atari's  market  presence  in  and  around New
 England, Dendo's usergroup meeting was pushed back until shortly before he
 had to leave, when we were told we'd have a  five minute  (!) question and
 answer period  in which  to convey  our concerns,  as end users, about the
 past, present and future of Atari  Computer.   That five  minutes came out
 closer to a half hour, with Nathan good-naturedly fidgeting throughout the
 entirety of the talk, understandably concerned with missing his plane back
 to Canada -- the last one of the day.  This installment of my column deals
 with what was said in that meeting room at the  Westboro Marriott  on that
 July afternoon.

      First of all, let's get straight just who was there.  On Atari's end,
 there was Dendo, Potechin, Betsy Piper and several of her  associates.  In
 the  usergroups'  corner,  there  was  Harry  Steele  and  Jerry  Feldman,
 representing BCS/Atari.  On behalf  of  A.B.A.C.U.S.,  Dave  Burns  was in
 attendance.   Carrying the banner of the SSAG, of course, was yours truly,
 along  with  my  faithful  sidekick,  Joe  Mercurio.    Various  others in
 attendance included  Rick Flashman  of Gribnif  Software,  Paul Swanson of
 NiteLite Systems, and three young men  who run  a bookstore/computer store
 on the Holy Cross campus (I neglected to get their names).

      Dendo began  by stating  that Portfolio, as well as Stacy, the laptop
 ST, would ship in September (for all you skeptics out there, no, he didn't
 name  a  year).    He  maintained  that both the European and U.S. markets
 continue to grow.  "I know it's hard [because] we haven't done  the things
 in  the  [Boston]  marketplace  like  we've  done  in  Houston or L.A. or,
 Minneapolis or Chicago or Miami or Washington, D.C. or New  York City," he
 told the  assembled group.   "We've  just done it a city at a time." Dendo
 said he belived that was the most appropriate  approach to  the situation.
 "Now, with our new products," he continued, "like Portfolio...Stacy, we're
 going to have a 68030 machine in November that we'll  be delivering...that
 requires,  if  you  will,  another  level of dealer. And the products that
 we're coming out with,  and the  type of  consumer who  will buy  those is
 necessitating  a,  let's  put  it  this  way, at least, an addition to our
 current dealerbase."  He went on to say, "If we  don't have  the right guy
 to support  the consumer,  if we have to, we'll come and do it ourselves."
 Dendo stressed that Portfolio would come, off-the-shelf, with either three
 or  five  ready-to-go  software  applications,  but added that, they don't
 perceive  Portfolio's   biggest  marketplace   to  be   with  the  common,
 "plug-and-play" user.   He foresees that the most common aftermarket sales
 in regard to Portfolio, in the  corporate marketplace,  would be  in blank
 memory  wafers  or  cards,  citing  the  example  of a potential corporate
 customer who came to the meeting  specifically to  look at  Portfolio as a
 tool for remote data entry for his manufacturing business, who would use a
 custom application on the machine.

      True to form, Harry Steele  (let's  face  it,  our  boy  Harry  is no
 shrinking violet)  jumped in  with both  barrels.  "Three and a half years
 ago," Harry stated, "[Jack Tramiel] expressed that he wanted the  users to
 help him.   We  helped him wholeheartedly...we have bent over backwards to
 help Atari...he said 'You help  me,  I'll  help  you.'    We  have trained
 people, because you don't have training programs...we've held meetings, to
 show the product...what is Jack gonna give us...how  is he  gonna help the
 user help the new user?"   Dendo clarified that "It's not just 'he'.  This
 is a much bigger company than Jack  Tramiel.    This  is  a  seven hundred
 million  dollar  corporation  that  does  not rest on the shoulders of one
 human being.  He's Chairman of the Board,  he's sitting  in the  back now,
 and his  son, Sam is the President and CEO of the company.  But the direct
 answer to your question is, what we're doing  now is  we're out  getting a
 stronger dealerbase that we can put money behind, that will provide better
 support to the business pool, whether it's the  usergroup, whether  it's a
 new consumer,  what have  you...that's number  one.   Number two is, we're
 spending money on our  advertising, we're  going to  do a  lot of national
 trade advertising  on our  newer products, which will get better developer
 support, which will, in turn, provide you more applications for your STs."

      Jerry Feldman brought up the oft-belabored point of getting an ST (or
 two) placed in the BCS' Resource Center.  Dendo asked  him to  address the
 matter with  Betsy, whom  he called  his "eyes and ears" in this area.  If
 Jerry can convince Betsy  to  convince  Mike  that  it's  in  Atari's best
 interest to  donate a  system to  the BCS,  it will be done. Dendo assumed
 full responsibility for the matter, saying "the call isn't Jack Tramiel's,
 or Sam's,  it's my  call.   So, if  it doesn't happen, you can pick up the
 phone and call me and tell me I'm a jerk."

      When asked about how corporate sales would be  handled, Dendo replied
 that, whenever  possible, they  would be  handled through  a dealer.  "The
 only place it wouldn't make sense," he said,  "is where  we don't  feel we
 have a dealer who can represent us the way we want to be represented.  "In
 such cases, the company's  rep  groups  would  act  as  VARs  (Value Added
 Resellers).    He  cited  the  example  of an Atari dealer in Memphis, TN,
 describing him as a "nice guy" who "couldn't walk into Federal Express any
 more than I could walk into the White House tomorrow."  In this particular
 instance, it was the  Memphis-area rep  group that  landed the  account to
 sell  Portfolios  to  Federal  Express.    Dendo expressed his belief that
 "There's no reason in the world  why we  can't put  on three  or four more
 solid citizens  of the  clout of  a Bit  Bucket, or  bigger," calling them
 "almost a prototype of the type of independent we're looking to set up." 

      The  contingent  from  Holy  Cross  raised  a  queston  about Atari's
 attempts to  breach the  educational market, to which Dendo responded, "We
 handle our  educational program  fundamentally through  an educational VAR
 called CCC  out of Palo Alto, CA.  They sell about 10,000 1040s a year for
 us, and that volume seems to  grow about  15-20% a  year.   They developed
 their own  micro-host, which  has their own firmware, it's a pretty unique
 educational system.  They've  sold  it  mainly  to  the  inner-city school
 systems.   They've got  an installed  base, I  believe, of about 70-80,000
 machines in the U.S.  They've sold enough machines that  finally Atari has
 been recognized,  if you will, as having a percentage, I think it's two or
 four percent,  of the  educational market."   Dendo  went on  to say that,
 looking at  the university-level  market, Atari  has, "a  pilot program in
 place right now, where we've signed a major  southwestern university  as a
 reseller to ID cardholders, the same thing as Holy Cross would be, they're
 selling the ST, they're selling IBM,  they're  selling  Apple.    That's a
 market that  our dealers,  and we  have a  very strong  dealerbase in this
 particular city, too, we have five great dealers, and they're  not hitting
 that area.   On  top of  it, Apple has limited product configurations that
 the university  can  sell,  and  they're  competing  directly  against the
 particular university bookstore, for lack of a better definition, and they
 don't allow them to go  sell  to  the  university,  they  go  in  and sell
 direct."   He further  said he  hoped that, if the pilot program works out
 well,  it  would  be,  "something  that  we  would  probably  pursue  on a
 nationwide basis."   Stressing  that there are "some unique opportunities"
 in the Boston/New England  trade area,  given the  size of  our scholastic
 population, that would be evaluated once the "fundamentals" are taken care
 of, Dendo defined the fundamentals as,  "stabilizing the  dealerbase," and
 discussed possibilities  including the use of ISD's products, DynaCadd and
 Calamus, to make inroads with MIT and Harvard, respectively.   "For all of
 the millions  of dollars  worth of  equipment I've  given away in the MIDI
 marketplace, to music schools,  there's no  reason, when  I have,  far and
 away the  finest CADD  solution in  the world,"  he said,  in reference to
 DynaCadd, "why I shouldn't have that at MIT."

      Toward the end of the talk, Dendo complimented the usergroups for the
 job they've done in supporting the home user.  "Thank God for a lot of the
 usergroups throughout the country,"  Nathan  Potechin  added,  "there's no
 question, both  in Canada  and the  United States.   "When  Harry asked if
 perhaps there wasn't some  way Atari  could just  let the  usergroups know
 what's going  on, Mike said, "Thank you, because...I 'Gotcha' now.  'Cause
 I just did something for you.  I hired a 'legitimate' Head  of Usergroups,
 paying him  a very  fat sum  of money, and he is putting together, as part
 and parcel of our standard newsletter  that  we  send  to  our  dealers, a
 usergroup newsletter.   His  name is Chris Roberts.  I've seen him more on
 the phone in the four weeks he's been with the company than  I saw anybody
 in the  whole year  I've been  with the  company.   "As I  write this, the
 latest news out of Sunnyvale is  that  Chris  Roberts  is  no  longer with
 Atari.  Beyond that, little is known about the situation. 

 EDITOR NOTE:  As we  prepare to publish this interview, BOTH CHRIS ROBERTS
 AND MIKE DENDO ARE NO LONGER WITH ATARI .....

      "One of the problems that  everybody  has  been  having  with Atari,"
 Jerry Feldman  observed, "is  that Atari  has had  a very high turnover in
 some very visible areas."  Dendo pointed out that there have been THIRTEEN
 people in  his position before him, and that combined, they weren't around
 as long as he has been.  "I don't believe that the turn of  a person  in a
 company, or  even a  group of people, should be able to cause your network
 and your userbase to go crazy  and to  go unsupported.   I  think that the
 lack of  structure and the, if you will, lack of newness in products, lack
 of strong distribution and all these issues...if I was to  die in  a plane
 crash tonight,  it should  make no  difference to this company whatsoever.
 This company should be able to continue to move forward  in the directions
 it goes  in."   Dendo asserted  that, "the  key thing...we  can talk about
 Atari, we can talk about the new products, we can talk about Jack, and Sam
 and all this other baloney, but the key to the business and the key to the
 stability of  the business,  is the  dealers.   And that's  one thing that
 we've never  had in  this town,  is a  stable dealerbase.   We've had some
 consistent players...that's one or two, and  everything around  it is like
 constant Chinese Checkers, it's going here and there and everywhere."

      Dendo predicted  that, "I  think you'll see 'Power Without the Price'
 go away  as a  slogan, and  now you'll  start to  see that  we'll get fair
 market value  for an  exciting Desktop Publishing solution, we'll get fair
 market value for products like Portfolio and Stacy,  so that  we have more
 margin,  to  staff  better,  to  do  more advertising, it all this vicious
 cycle.  That's where  the philosophy  of 'Power  Without the  Price' falls
 apart; it's  a very,  very skinny  shop.   Many people remember there were
 sixteen buildings when [Jack Tramiel] bought  it from  Warner, and there's
 three now." He declared, "I think if you picked up an annual report, you'd
 see that the company is a highly undervalued company."   He wrapped  up by
 saying,  "We've  got  a  whole  new  line  of  products,  the products are
 well-tested, the products will be delivered  on time,  unless there's some
 quirk.  I think, before, people were talking about hope and prayers.  

     It's hard to explain to you people who are loyal followers who've been
 here all  this time,  but it's  hard to  imagine the  passion that's being
 taken, on  Portfolio, on  Stacy...at one point, Sam went back and forth to
 Japan...and all of a sudden, another opportunity came up to get more SRAM,
 and he'd  get back  on the  plane and  go out there and he'd make the deal
 right on the spot to get more  SRAM.    We  understand  the  importance of
 Stacy, we  understand the  importance of  the TT,  more from a credibility
 standpoint than anything else.  The  TT will  come out...it's  going to be
 downward-compatible to  current ST  software...we're going  to run UNIX, I
 think UNIX 5, 5.1." When asked which of the UNIX camps Atari would go with
 for the TT, Dendo firmly responded, "AT&T."

      "This is  our year,"  he concluded.   "If we get enough product, this
 could be  a billion-dollar  corporation this  year, and  we're all working
 very hard for that to happen."

      That's it for now. Until next time...live long and prosper.


                             ----------

      The  above  was  written  for  my  column,  "Behind The Mike," in the
 September 1989 issue of  SSAG News,  the newsletter  of my  usergroup, the
 South  Shore   Atari  Group.    The  South  Shore  Atari  Group's  current
 incarnation came into being  in late  1986-early 1987  (slightly before my
 time), meeting  at the  now-defunct Computer  Cache in  Quincy, MA, before
 which it  existed, to  my understanding,  more or  less as  a fairly loose
 assemblage of Atari enthusiasts meeting over a couple of Boston-area BBSs.

     After suffering some upheavals, not the least of which was the loss of
 our meeting place (not to mention one heck of an Atari dealer!), the South
 Shore Atari Group, currently 50 members strong, is  looking to  the future
 with optimism (and, if I do say so myself, a pretty darn good newsletter).

     Our goals for the  future include  getting some  sort of  AtariFest or
 World of Atari show put on in the Boston area, and, along with some of the
 other local groups (such as  A.B.A.C.U.S.  and  BCS/Atari),  continuing to
 help  local  users  make  the  most  of  what  we  like to call "The Atari
 Experience." For more information on the South Shore Atari Group, or for a
 sample issue of SSAG News, write (enclose $1.00 for the newsletter):

                          South Shore Atari Group
                               P.O. Box 129
                             Boston, MA 02136

                              David Anderson



 EDITOR NOTE:

 The above  article is,  without a  doubt, highly informative and indeed if
 one looks deeply into what is actually being said here,  one will  be very
 well informed about the future.  Many thanks to David for a fine article.




    ___________________________________________________________________




 > TOS 1.4 STReport InfoFile    An average user's first impression!
   =========================



                                                  IMPRESSIONS of TOS 1.4
                                                  ======================
 
 
 by Myles Goddard    
 
 
     I am  still shaking my head at what I saw today as I still can't bring
 my mind to believe it is here, at least at the developer's level.  I had a
 chance to  try out a TOS 1.4 ROM on a developer's Atari 1040ST tonight.  I
 am not an expert by any  means when  it comes  to the  technical aspect of
 operating systems  but I  do know  that when a product is worthy of note I
 usually will try to express my opinion  about it,  both good  and bad.   I
 have had my 1040ST for over three years now and have been using it with
 the standard  TOS 1.0.   I  did notice  that there  were some pecularities
 about it at times but for the most part I was satisfied with it.
   
     There were features I would have liked to seen on it, especially after
 seeing how unique the new Macintosh  system and finders were.  If I may, I
 would like to compare some of the new features of the new  TOS to  the old
 one I  am using  on my  ST.   Keep in  mind that  I am  no expert in these
 matters and I only spent a couple of  hours playing  around with  it and I
 realize that  there are  probably many  features I have not uncovered yet.
 Therefore, when I do find new goodies,  I'll  let  you  know  in  a future
 report. 
     
     First and foremost is the speed.  TOS 1.4 flies circles around 1.0.  I
 noticed that floppy and hard disk access is  dramatically increased.   The
 hard  disk  partitions  can  be  32  megabytes  instead  of  the normal 16
 megabytes.  There is no longer a 40 folder limit so you won't have  to run
 some hard  disk utilities  like Folderxxx.prg  and others  to access those
 larger directories and subdirectories.   Speaking  of floppies,  it allows
 you  the  option  of  "Twisting"  your  floppies  when  you  are using the
 Universal Item  Selector.   In other  words, instead  of having individual
 tracks on  the disk,  the twisted format allows the tracks to be formatted
 sequentially, more like a 45 RPM record.  That way, the drive doesn't have
 to travel all over the place to get the desired information.    
     
     Another superb  feature I found out about is the ability to move files
 by pressing  the control  key when  you pick  files to  move.   One of the
 better features  of the  Macintosh was  that you  could move files without
 having to copy them first and then  delete  them  later.  This  is  a real
 advantage when  you only  have a limited amount of disk space or one drive
 to start with.  More than once I have been frustrated by  copying files to
 a folder  on the  same disk  and get  a message  that the disk is full.  I
 really like the MOVE option. ( I would like it even better if the ST would
 tell you  before you  start copying  files that there was or wasn't enough
 room on the disk ).    

     If you have ever wanted to print a text file from the desktop  you had
 to double  click the text file then move the mouse  pointer to " SHOW " to
 see it.  TOS 1.4 defaults at show  so all  you have  to do  is tap return.
 When you want to copy a disk, for example, all you have to do is highlight
 your A: drive and drag it to B:, a window comes up and shows your options.
 It will  allow you  to format  one or  both drives  and then  it shows the
 actual progress of each drive as the files are copied from the  source and
 destination disks.  I also like the way you can scroll through the desktop
 windows just by holding the mouse button down on the arrows of the window.
 The old  version would  only allow  window scrolling after you pressed the
 mouse button each time you wanted to move the window contents.
  
     While TOS 1.4 runs beautifully on it's own,  when paired  with TURBOST
 and NEODESK,  it is  fantastic!   The windows  fly open in a flash and the
 speed with  which information  is presented  like I've  never seen before.
 Its the next best thing to having a blitter chip installed, as far as I am
 concerned.  But then, this ST amazes me all of the time.   
  
     I know that TOS 1.4 is  taking far  too much  time to  be released and
 true, we  have been  very impatient for it, but from what I have seen this
 past week, it will be well worth the wait.   My hat's  off to  Atari Corp.
 for producing this fine product.

 Editor Note;   STReport  finds the  ultra late  release of this product an
 excercise in futility, furthermore, we feel  it would  be in  Atari's best
 interest to  get this  product to  the users ASAP.  To release the utility
 package, (Rainbow TOS Utility Arc), out in the open file downloads instead
 in the  developer areas  is an outrage.  One can easily suppose that Atari
 believes the majority of the users  already  have  this  TOS.    Thus, the
 reason for  the utilities  being released  in the  public forums.  We know
 this is not the truth and implore Atari to get TOS 1.4 out to  the general
 public NOW!  Stop jerking the userbase around and get it to the dealers.
 Harsh?   You bet!  Our frustration is showing right along with that of the
 users.





   _____________________________________________________________________



 > LIMITED RELEASE STR Spotlight   But, it's "GENERALLY AVAILABLE" ..Sam
   =============================

  
 Rainbow TOS is in limited release to dealers  at this  point.   We hope to
 have it  available to  all consumers who wish to purchase it as soon as we
 possibly can. 

  -- John Townsend
     Atari Corporation


     Here we go again, Sam sez the TOS 1.4 is  "generally available"  in an
 interview  in  Start  Magazine.    Now,  another  voice says TOS 1.4 is in
 limited release.   What  ..is  limited  release?    Where  and  under what
 conditions may  a user  obtain these chips for his machine?  When will the
 chips be "generally available" if they are  not  at  this  time.    Must a
 person meet certain criteria to BUY these chips?

     Normally,  this  situation  would  go  un-noticed  but in light of the
 repetitious delays and snafus concerning TOS 1.4, we are forced  to wonder
 just who  is calling  the shots?   Sam says one thing, yet we hear another
 from the online reps.  So....  here  sits the  userbase reading  one thing
 said by Sam, they go to their dealer and find no chips.  What is a user to
 believe?

     Now we have everyone talking about the Rainbow Tos Utilities, what are
 they?  Where do we use them and what good are they without TOS 1.4?  These
 are the questions being seen and heard all over the  country.   Of course,
 certain of the utilities may be used with the current TOS versions in use,
 but the questions are valid.   Perhaps, the  answer will  come forth "REAL
 SOON NOW"    <<Grin>>

 FYI:

 Sam Tramiel  President of Atari Corp. will be the guest of honor on August
 30, 1989 10 pm EST on GEnie for  a conference,  hopefully to  solidify the
 resurgence of Atari...  Sam...  you're a couragous guy.





     ________________________________________________________________



 > FALCON MISSION DISK STR Review   A close look at the new Missions!
   ==============================




                                                  Falcon--The Mission Disk
                                                  ========================



 From Mirrorsoft & Spectrum Holobyte


 By William Y. Baugh


     From the  much maligned and on-line abused company, Spectrum Holobyte,
 comes a terrific add-on to the  best jet  flight simulator  available, The
 Mission Disk.   At  first glance,  you might think "So what, it's has some
 new scenarios for the same world I've been flying for the past two years."
 I though  much the  same thing; some "upgrades" we have seen haven't lived
 up to expectations.  The great news is, this isn't  true with  the Mission
 Disk.   You have before you a totally new and different world, with 12 new
 missions to conquer.

     Along with the  new  scenery,  there  are  some  other  changes.   For
 starters, it  seems that  Mirrorsoft and  SH have been listening to the ST
 consumer, because the simulation loads MUCH faster and  you don't  have to
 use the  code wheel  anymore!   Other changes include easier approaches to
 your airfield because of the addition of air defense sites  located around
 the perimeter  of the  airfield.  This means that you no longer have MiG's
 following you in, getting on your six and  generally being  a pain  in the
 butt.   Also, landings are easier on a whole;  they have made the "landing
 envelope slightly kinder."   More  improvements  include;  your  F-16 will
 automatically level  itself if only a small bank is performed (this may be
 toggled on and off), the Mavericks give an accurate zoom image on the head
 down display  for long  range viewing  and targeting  and finally, MiG-29A
 "Fulcrum's" have been included in the new world.

     Once the simulation is loaded, you'll not notice any changes until you
 are in the air and viewing the map.  As I stated before, this is a totally
 NEW world.  Your airfield is located in  the lower  left-hand part  of the
 map, with three tanks northwest of you, a fairly good size lake with three
 landing craft, a road that runs north of the lake  that intersects  with a
 'T' at the extreme north edge of the map.  Plying the road are four trucks
 that are  brings supplies  to your  enemies.   At the  intersection of the
 roads is  the enemies  arsenal consisting of four buildings.  Turning east
 you will find a  power  station,  enemy  airfield  and  oil  refinery, all
 waiting to  be hit.   Traveling  south and  then west towards the lake are
 train tracks with a fairly strong train traveling them (the cannon doesn't
 faze it).   At  the southeast edge of the map is the tank factory which is
 building tanks faster than you  can  take  them  out  each  mission.   And
 finally, there  are two  bridges, one on the truck route, the other on the
 train tracks and a large smattering on SAM sites all over the map, just to
 keep things interesting.

     Now,  probably  the  best  feature  of  the simulation is that all the
 missions are connected; that is your inevitable goal is to  destroy all of
 the enemies  "ground and industrial assets."  But, there is no way you can
 do this all in one mission (maybe on the 1st  Lt. level).   Not  to worry,
 here  is  where  the  being  connected  comes  in.   There are 12 specific
 missions, but you need not follow these to the letter.   Say  you leave on
 your first  mission, knock out two tanks, sink one landing craft, take out
 a truck and for the heck of it, knock out his arsenal  (since you  were up
 that  way  anyhow).    On  your  next  mission the tanks will be back, the
 landing craft will be also, but the truck you blew up and the factory will
 not be functional.  As you destroy enemy objects during the missions, they
 stay knocked  out for  differing time  periods depending  upon the object.
 For example,  bridges and  factories will  remain out  for 5 missions, SAM
 sites and trains 3, runways and trucks for two and landing craft and tanks
 for one.   Also,  destroying the industrial sites affects the resupplying,
 thus the availability of tanks and such during each mission.   Getting rid
 of the tanks is probably the most pressing problem, because first, it gets
 old having to destroy  them every  mission and  second, if  you don't take
 them out,  they'll capture  your airfield and then your history.  The very
 nice part to all of this is that  SH has  allowed you  to have  not only a
 "fly  around  and  blow  things  up"  simulation, but a very good strategy
 simulation to go along with it. 

     Even though there are quite a few changes  from the  old Falcon, there
 is one  thing that  hasn't changed;  the graphics.  The graphics are still
 spectacular!  The solid 3-D objects are great, it's too bad with this type
 of  simulation  that  you  can't  go  slower  and get a better look at the
 objects.  I find myself flying low and running into  things for  wanting a
 better look  at them.   The  world has been changed (another change!); you
 are no longer flying in a desert  world,  but  on  a  kind  of swamp-grass
 world.   When you  destroy an  object, it leaves a small crater-lake where
 the object was.  Oh yeah, another change is that an object  blows up "real
 good" now,  with pieces flying in the air and such.  One complaint is that
 they don't burn or smoke because when your  flying at  a high  altitude or
 very fast,  it's hard  to tell whether the object is destroyed or not.  So
 I've been looking for the small lake (usually in front  of the  object) to
 tell if  its been  knocked out.   My  other complaint  is that, still, the
 Mavericks don't lock on extremely well.    You'll  have  your  target dead
 center and the lock-on box appears to the left.  Still need to try and get
 that right SH!

     My recommendation is if you own Falcon and  you like  Falcon, but your
 tired of the old Falcon, get this disk!  If you haven't bought Falcon (and
 you like flight simulators) get Falcon and this disk.  You'll love it!  It
 adds  so  much  to  original  version  that  its  hard  to compare the two
 together.
  
     So, in closing I feel that SH and  especially Mirrorsoft  deserve high
 praise for  this upgrade.   From  all of the bad blood between American ST
 users and SH, it's great to see such a fine upgrade come  along.  Granted,
 my copy  is from  Europe and  Mirrorsoft (SH's parent company), who by the
 way is extremely high on  the  ST,  released  this  upgrade,  I  feel that
 American support should improve over the next year.





      _______________________________________________________________



 > Millenium STR Review    Looking over the GOOD ones.....
   ====================


                                                            MILLENIUM 2.2
                                                            =============


 by Tim Holt 
 ST Club of El Paso

      In the mid-seventies, there was a TV series called Space: 1999, where
 the commander of a base on  the moon  watched helplessly  as the  moon was
 blown out  of the Earth's orbit, and the residents of the moon base had to
 fend for themselves.   Pretty bad  acting if  I recall,  but the  IDEA was
 neat.   Now, there  is a game that has come out from Europe with a similar
 theme: Millenium 2.2.

 You are the commander  of  a  lunar  base  that  is  the  last  bastion of
 humanity.   Seems as if the old Earth was wasted by a stray asteroid.  Now
 it is up to you to repopulate the solar system.  It won't be  easy.  There
 are only  100 folks  on the  moon, and  the renegade human outpost on Mars
 decides that you are going to make good target practice.  So,  how are you
 going to do it?  That is what Millenium 2.2 is all about!

 The moon base has six different areas that are under your command: 
     research                           energy production 
     industrial production              living quarters
     the launch pad                     defense. 

 By clicking the mouse on any one of these areas, you find out exactly what
 is going on at that moment.  When the game starts, energy and research are
 the most  important areas,  as the game progresses, production and defense
 gain in importance.  All  of  the  areas  are  important  at  one  time or
 another, as  you must  constantly produce  items such as energy cells, and
 must constantly research places where you can make colonies. 

 It is hard to tell about  the  game  without  giving  away  the  secret to
 success.   The ultimate  object is  to repopulate the Earth by producing a
 terraformer that can change the toxic atmosphere back into oxygen.   To do
 this,  you  must  find  certain  substances  such as silver, which are not
 available on the moon.  These  substances are  available somewhere  in the
 solar system,  but you gotta find them.  You find them by building probes,
 and sending them out to look for it.
   
 Once you find the stuff, you have to  construct colonies  there, so mining
 can take place. To get the items back to the moon, you have to build ships
 that can ferry the stuff from  point A  to point  B.   How you  build your
 ship, and  what you  consider important  is the  key to  the game.  If you
 chose one thing as being more  important, and  it isn't,  then doom awaits
 you. 

 All the  while, Mars  is attacking  you, and your colonies, so you have to
 build defenses as well as regular ships. 

 It sounds complicated, and Millenium 2.2  is at  first.   The instructions
 are very  skimpy, but  I found that this ADDED to the tension of the game.
 I didn't know what was  around  the  corner,  and  since  the instructions
 didn't help,  I had  to use my head.  ( I am not used to this..)  The game
 switches  from  graphic  adventure  to  arcade  action  whenever  you  art
 attacked, and that was a nice touch.  The graphics are EXCELLENT.  I won't
 spoil them for you.  Go buy it and see for yourself. 

 I did have a few gripes about Millenium 2.2.   Once you  have finished the
 game, it  is the  same every time you play.  It then becomes a race to see
 if you can beat your old time to repopulate the Earth.   (My best  time is
 18 years.)   Every  time you are attacked, the damage is done to the exact
 same type of equipment.  I thought that was a bit unrealistic.  The damage
 would be different each time in a real war. However....

 If you judge a game by the amount of time you spend stuck in front of your
 Atari trying to get it  done,  then  Millenium  2.2  has  to  be  the most
 successful game  I have  ever played.   I  bought the  game at 4:00 in the
 afternoon, and was stuck  in front  of my  computer until  2:00am. My wife
 threatened  divorce  during  that  eight  hours,  I think, I wasn't paying
 attention...

 Great graphics, a nifty plot, and only minor complaints.  Buy it, play it,
 become addicted,  and when  you are done, give it to your kids.  Tell your
 wife it was an educational game (It really does have  accurate information
 on the solar system throughout the game.)...she might fall for it...    

                                             Millenium 2.2
 by Electronic Arts (Europe)
                                             $39.95 retail




      _______________________________________________________________



 > MASTER CAD STR Review   Second, in our series of CAD Overviews
   =====================



                                                            Master Cad
                                                            ==========


 by Myles Goddard


     I am  always looking for a bargain so needless to say when I do find a
 good one I get carried away.   In  college  I  am  studying  different CAD
 systems and my major complaint is that most of the higher end CAD programs
 are made for the IBM and  Mac II.   The  ST is  starting to  catch up with
 major  advances  such  as  DYNACADD,  but  for me and my wallet, I find it
 difficult to fork over $  3000.00  for  AutoCad  or  even  $  695.00   for
 Dynacadd.  Well that left me in what you would call in a dilemma and I let
 it go at that.

     After I got back from my vacation in Australia on July 15th,  I  found
 a  letter  waiting  for  me  from  Michtron.   I opened it and saw that it
 contained some new products  as well  as some  older ones  that were being
 discontinued.   Much to  my surprise I saw a CAD program called MasterCad.
 I saw the price and immediately called Michtron to see  what the  deal was
 on it.  It seems that MasterCad was one of those specialized programs that
 doesn't have  a huge  following and  therefore was  being sold  at $ 49.95
 instead of it's original price of $ 199.95.  The man on the phone was very
 helpful and I immediately ordered MasterCad.  A few days  later I recieved
 it and I went to work on it and here is what I found out about MasterCad.


     Mastercad comes  with a  276 page  spiral bound  book that  is easy to
 follow.  The hardware requirements is any ST with one meg of ram and color
 or monochrome  monitor.   A second drive is recommended. ( I run Mastercad
 from my Hard drive ).   Any FX80  Epson compatible  printer will  do fine.
 GDOS is included for the output although I recommend using  G+ Plus as the
 GDOS replacement.

     MasterCad is completely mouse driven although  you will  need to input
 some  text  and  dimensions  by  keyboard.    It  is  helpful to have some
 knowledge of drafting terminology but  the  booklet  explains  things very
 well.   The tutorial  is extensive and spans over 130 pages.  It will show
 you how to make very impressive 2D and  3D objects  and the  printouts are
 spectacular, even  on my Citizen MSP15.  I can imagine what they look like
 on a 24 pin or even a laser printer.
                          
     Instead of an in depth look at the contents of the book, I'll just hit
 on the major procedures that are covered by it.
 ------------------------------------------------------------------------

                       CHAPTER ONE: GETTING STARTED

         This explains how to set up Mastercad and to configure your 
         system.

                           CHAPTER TWO: TUTORIAL

         Opening Menus
         Cube
         General View
         Cylinder
         Polyline
         Hexagonal Prism
         Spin
         Ring
         Partial Spin
         Move objects
         Flip elements
         Copy
         Rotate objects
         Proportion
         Copy n objects
         Copy Rotate n objects
         Mode

         That  just  covers  the  Tutorial  and  each  type of procedure is
 explained in a straight forward way.  Even I can understand it!

                           CHAPTER THREE: THEORY
  
        The  THEORY  Chapter  contains   the  concepts   behind  MasterCad,
 including   Projection,   Parallel   projection,  Oblique  projection  and
 Perspective projection.  

         FEATURES include-

         Coordinate System
         Viewpoint
         View Angles
         Picture Angles
         Picture Plane
         Horizon Plane
         Ground Plane
         Vanishing Plane
         Ground Line
         Horizon Line
         Central Fugue Point
         Distance Points
         Limit Planes
         Objects
         Elements
         Points


                          CHAPTER FOUR: COMMANDS

         The DESIGN SECTION

     This chapter  is divided  into your  2D Main  Menu and  3D Main menus.
 With these  you can  create a  2 dimensional drawing and then view it from
 another view point, the Z angle.

     The FILE menu allows you to open, append, import, save  or save screen
 to disk  or printer.   The  CONTROL menu gives you the chance to ZOOM, set
 GRID, turn on SNAP, set up UNITS, set  ORIGIN, REVERSE  SCREEN, set SCREEN
 CENTER, RULERS on or off, set SPIN and change COLORS (in Medium Rez).

     The VIEW  menu allows  you to  adjust your  PLANES from  a plan, front
 back, left or right view.

     The TOOLS  menu  lets  you  set  your  drawing  tools  such  as LINES,
 RECTANGLE,   REGULAR   POLYGON   (CIRCLE),  POLYLINES,  CLOCKWISE  ARC  or
 COUNTERCLOCK WISE ARC, as well as add TEXT or DIMENSIONS.

     The MODE menu allows you to set your planes as CUT PLANES, LOW CONTAIN
 or HIGH CONTAIN or a combination of all three.

     The SPIN  menu allows  a 360  degree spin or partial spin and lets you
 determine the direction of spin.

     The SELECT menu allows you to select the POINTS, ELEMENTS,  or OBJECTS
 you want to change or delete.

     The PROCESS  menu allows  lets you  select your group of objects, lets
 you move  them, flip  them, copy,  copy and  rotate them,  export them and
 change your fill textures.


                             The 3D Main Menu

     While  in  3D  mode  you  can  change  your viewpoint from horizontal,
 vertical, combined, or use autoview.   It also  allows you  to change your
 view from a telephoto, normal or wide angle view.  Of course your VIEWMODE
 gives you the option  of  filling  in  your  objects  to  give  it  a more
 realistic look.   The  PROJECTION option  lets you  set up your 3D view as
 either parallel or in perspective.  The OUTPUT section allows you to print
 out your drawings to your printer or plotter.


                            Getting Started....

     The first  thing to  do in  the tutorial is set up your viewing plane.
 Just move your pointer to PLANES  and  select  NORMAL.    The  screen will
 change and  you will  see SET  CUT PLANES  at the top of the screen.   All
 this means is that you will set up  the thickness  of your  object.  After
 doing  that  you  can  select  either CUT mode, HI-CONTAIN, or LOW CONTAIN
 views.  If you select CUT planes your object will be 3D when you switch to
 3D views, otherwise your object will be flat like a sheet of paper.

     You have  the option  of setting  your viewing  angles by changing the
 Horizontal and Vertical viewing positions.  As a matter of  fact, there is
 no limit  to your  viewing angles, you can even view from INSIDE an object
 looking out!  After you have made your object and are in 3D, you  can fill
 the object  so it  looks solid.   The  3D effect is impressive, especially
 when viewed with a black screen (inverse).

     My favorite way to draw a 3D object is to go to SPIN mode.   This will
 setup a  vertical line  to be  your center axis.  Pick any one of the many
 tools, such as lines, polylines,  circles,  etc  and  start  drawing.   By
 drawing a  profile on  the side of your center line and clicking the right
 mouse button, MasterCad will  start making  a 360  degree object  from the
 lines you  drew.   The final drawing looks like a wireframe model.  Hit 3D
 and FILL and your object takes on  a  realistic  shape.    I  have created
 numerous spaceships  and other bizarre objects with Mastercad and to me it
 is just about the easiest way to do it and have tons of fun too.

     By the way, you  can save  your drawing  as either  MasterCad files or
 DEGAS  picture  files.    That  way,  you  can  show off your artistic and
 darfting capabilities to  your  family  and  friends  with  having  to run
 MasterCad.

     In my  humble opinion,  Mastercad is  a real bargain for the beginning
 CAD user and possibly for a more experienced users too.   Sure,  there are
 no fancy colors and flash but as a good 2D & 3D CAD package with plenty of
 capabilities, it's hard to beat, especially  since Michtron  is selling it
 for only $ 49.95 and for a limited time only.




      _______________________________________________________________



 > NIGHT HUNTER STR Review   LOOKIN' 'EM OVER.....
   =======================


                                                            Night Hunter
                                                            ============


 by Perry Bailey (PAC)


     You awaken, suddenly, your eyes fly open and you see nothing, you feel
 trapped, smothered, a surge of panic runs through you.   Jerkily your arms
 fly forward  snapping an  obstruction out of your way and suddenly you can
 see.  Bathed in the soft silver light  of the  moon you  inhale deeply the
 fragrance of  the night.   Then  it hits, the hunger boiling inside of you
 like fire coursing through your veins, suddenly you all your senses become
 so acute  that you  can hear  the rats  running through the walls, you can
 smell the blood coursing through their bodies, you  feel powerful, strong,
 unconquerable. Then  you hear the sound of footsteps and the hunger flares
 to a bright glow.  " Humans,  this night,  I, Count  Vladmir Dracula shall
 feed well!

     While  the  game  Night  Hunter  doesn't  quite  start out this way it
 probably should.  This is a vampire game with a twist, instead  of hunting
 down or  running from the vampires, you are the vampire, the Night Hunter.
 This is  one of  the very  few games  in quite  some time  that has really
 gotten my interest.  I think I have played Night Hunter recently more than
 any other game. Let me describe it to you.

     The opening screen shows you the vampire standing beside a  coffin, in
 the room  with you,  you will  probably see  rats running along the floor.
 ignore them they are  harmless, but  should a  witch fly  by, duck  as she
 could zap  you and drain your powers. At the bottom of the screen you will
 note there are two power indicators.  The first one  is appropriately red,
 this one  is you  power indicator and is replenished from the the blood of
 your victims.  By the way, one thing I would  like to  mention is  that in
 this game  there is  no such  thing as  an innocent victim either you kill
 them, or they will kill you!  The second gauge  is blue  and indicates you
 powers of  transformation.   After all what kind of a vampire would you be
 if you  couldn't even  turn into  a bat!   So  Night Hunter  gives you the
 option of turning into a bat (a highly necessary function) or turning into
 a were wolf type creature.  Both of these options are highly  useful since
 vampires can't swim or walk on water and there are several bodies of water
 in the game.  The main advantage of the were wolf mode seems to be that he
 isn't always  killed by the first arrow or stake that comes flying through
 your heart.  Though after he is hit  the vampire  reverts to  his original
 form.

     According to  the documentation  (which is the weakest feature of this
 game)there are 30 levels to play and a total of 20 screens  per level, and
 if you  don't think  that is enough then you haven't played this game I am
 still trying to get past level 4 (if it weren't for them durn vultures I'd
 have made  it last time!)this is one tough game.  There are a large number
 of foes to fight from bow  men to  priests to  mad scientist  types in the
 higher levels  though the only foe you really ever have to run from is Van
 Helsing, this sucker just has to  throw a  wooden stake  in your direction
 and it is curtains, nothing left of you but a little pile of ashes.

     One  of  the  best  features  of  this game is the clever use of sound
 effects from the twang of an archers bow to the  sucking noises  that your
 vampire makes  as he  drain the  life blood  from his victims.  Leaving no
 more left of them than bones that crumble and tinkle musically together as
 they fall  to the  ground.   There are also all the sounds of the night as
 well as the sounds and songs of the birds in  the morning  that herald the
 coming of day and the death of any vampire not hidden away in his crypt.

     I  am  also  very  impressed  with  the  graphics of this game so much
 attention to detail is involved here as to be pretty darn impressive.  For
 example as time passes during the night you can keep track by watching the
 moon as it sails through  the  night  sky,  or  the  fine  details  of the
 characters on  screen like  the vampires red eyes or fact that the bow men
 actually draw there bows before firing.  A great deal of detail  went into
 this games design both from game play which is excellent, the joy stick is
 quite responsive, to the great sound  effects or  graphics.   I would rate
 this game  very highly,  I would  say at least a 9.  I would go higher but
 there are a few gripes that I have with it, aka, the following 

     1. there is no save game feature documented

     2. When booting it asks you for a code though the documentation       
        mentions nothing  about it.  Frustrating for all I know the proper 
        code letters could get me to some of those levels I only dream     
        about seeing.

     3. once  again, the documentation, two pages just doesn't seem to tell
        enough to do anyone any good.

     As for my final conclusions, I think this game, while very off beat is
 a winner  and a  good addition  to any  library.  Unfortunately, as of the
 last check I made it isn't available in  any of  the local  stores and can
 only be  obtained by  mail order.  But don't let that stop you it is worth
 the trouble!!!  The only thing I need now is a trainer version of the game
 so I'll live long enough to see all 30 levels!!!! TTFN
                                                           Perry Bailey





    __________________________________________________________________



 > TOUCH-UP 153 STR Review     "The finest Image Editor for the ST!"
   =======================



                                                  TOUCH-UP VERSION 1.53
                                                  =====================


 by William C. Roscoe

     The  latest  version  of  Touch-Up  from  Migraph appears to be a real
 winner.  Unlike  the  earlier  version  which  tended  to  bomb  or freeze
 relatively frequently  this latest  version (1.53)  seems to have most all
 the bugs worked out.  Another  plus is  the fact  that the  good people at
 Migraph have gotten rid of the bothersome dongle (PSK) that in the earlier
 version of Touch-Up attached to the parallel printer  port to  act as copy
 protection.

     For those  of you  out there  that are  unfamiliar with  the merits of
 Touch-up it is an editing and  creation program  for bit-mapped monochrome
 images.  It is possible to import color images with Touch-Up but they will
 be converted to monochrome before you can work with them.   Touch-Up works
 in either  low, medium  or high  resolution but  you must  have at least 1
 megabyte of system memory.
      
     Touch-Up can best be  described  as  a  Degas  for  image  files.   In
 addition  to  .IMG  files  Touch-Up  can  also  import  Degas, DegasElite,
 MacPaint, Neochrome, .PCX, .TIF, and .TNY  files.  It  can  save  files in
 .IMG,  .GIF,  .PCX,  .TIF,  IFF-ILBB,  Degas  and  MacPaint formats.  This
 versatility makes Touch-Up a real powerhouse when it comes to  editing and
 creating artwork for desktop publishing.

     Touch-Up has  several different  modes of  operations which can be    
 accessed by either  pull-down  menus,  keyboard  commands  or  an  easy to
 understand icon menu. The primary operation modes are:

      1) Drawing               2) Clip                 3) Text 
      4) "Lightning"           5) File                 6) Scan
                                                                          
     The Drawing  and Lightning  modes combine  a variety  of art tools and
 special effects. 
  
               In the Drawing mode you can choose:

 1) color of pen and fill pattern, either black, white or opposite
            
 2) writing mode, in which you have the option to cover up  the object with
 a new  object, have  the new  object become transparent where it is white,
 reverse the colors of the new object or have the colors of  the new object
 reverse only where they cross the image underneath.

 3)  tool  box,  where  you  can  clear  the page,color invert the page, or
 manipulate the clip and page areas which will allow you  to edit  an image
 that is larger than the size of your screen.

 4) line styles
        
 5) shadow styles
     
 6) 36 different fill patterns in either 75,150 or 300 dpi
         
 7) pen point size

 8) shape  creation in  the form  of ellipses, rectangles, polylines, arcs,
 and wedges.

 9) fill option for both patterns and solid colors

 10) freehand sketching , and adjustable B-spline and Bezier curves

     The Lightning mode includes an airbrush, pixel magnifier, eraser and a
 "lasso" function  which permits you to select a part of your image and use
 it to create a paintbrush.

     In the Clip mode you can choose a clip of any portion of upto and     
 including the  full screen  to modify using a variety of tools and special
 effects including flipping the image, mirroring,  rotating, horizontal and
 vertical skewing,  masking and outlining. Also in Clip mode there is a IMG
 file viewer to preview your IMG  files before  you import  them into Touch
 Up.

     The Text  mode allows you to create text labels of up to 35 letters or
 spaces using ten different fonts with  a  variety  of  typestyles  such as
 bold, light,  italics, outline  and many  others. You can vary the size of
 the text from 1 to 999 dots and if the characters are large enough you can
 even fill  them in from any of the 36 available fill patterns. The quality
 of the fonts are quite good but the method of  setting the  attributes and
 completely  typing  out  your  labels  before  pasting them takes a bit of
 getting used to because once the text is inserted it can't be changed.
  
     The File mode allows you to load and save images  to disk  and also to
 call up  a separate program called Outprint which enables you to send your
 image files to the printer.

     In conclusion, if you use image files in your desktop  publishing then
 you  need  Touch-Up.  As  far  as editing and creating your own monochrome
 graphics if Touch-Up can't do it then it doesn't need to be done.





      _______________________________________________________________



 > STReport OnLine  Atari, winning friends and influencing people...
   ===============

 ctsy GEnie RT

 Category 18,  Topic 9
 Message 196       Wed Aug 16, 1989
 R.HOLCOMB                    at 01:32 EDT
  
 Oh the joys of owning an "Atrashi" (ducking)........

     I must say that in reading this quagmire of a  topic I  can see (well,
 we probably have all seen) that there are no easy solutions, and that our
 emotions have tended to dominate what would have been a logical course of
 action.

     I remember  way back when talking to a then-Atari employee and after a
 chit-chat it came down  to an  analysis that  "Atari doesn't  know what it
 (the company)  wants to  be: do they want to make a powerful home computer
 system, a  game  computer  company,  a  PC  clone  company,  a workstation
 company, whatever!?!".   All  of the trial balloons seem to bear this out:
 the STs, Mega's, PCs, ATW,  the  game  machines,  etc.    It  appears this
 perceived lack of focus shows in the way the company executes its plans. 
     C'mon now:  how many times have them blasted PCs been shown only to be
 jerked off whatever schedules set up?  And while the delays in TOS 1.4 can
 be partially  excused, having  someone saying  that they are available and
 being countermanded by another doesn't bode well in the public  eye.  What
 is even  more galling  is that the patches for TOS 1.4 are posted when the
 rest of the world  can't even  get TOS!   (BTW,  Atari isn't  the only one
 guilty of  this; Burroughs  (Unisys) was  famous for  this, but it was not
 well taken and tolerated.)  

     After hearing all of the glowing reports about how strong  Atari is it
 really makes  me wonder how Atari Europe can be such a success while Atari
 USA fails so miserably.  Are we that  more picky  than the  Europeans are?
 (what a  can of worms *that* would open, eh?)  I have some other thoughts,
 but it's late and I'm staring at a long  weekend installing (raping) my QA
 system at  work.   (Odd things  happen when your hobby becomes a business,
 doesn't it? (grin))

     There is  one thing  that Atari  can do  which would  probably cause a
 dramatic (if  not positive)  fundamental change:  Get the Tramiel's out of
 the running of the  company.   Their style  may have  worked several years
 ago: it won't cut it today.


 ----CTSY CIS-----

 13588 S10/New Products
 04-Aug-89  17:30:50
 Sb: The ATW at SIGGRAPH!
 Fm: Thomas D'Alimonte 73637,3300
 To: ALL

 I tawt a taw an ATW!  I did! I DID!

     I was just at SIGGRAPH, Boston (THE computer graphics conference), and
 a last second booth entry was ATARI!  Upon seeing this, I went straight to
 the booth  as soon as I got there, expecting to see the Stacy or Portfolio
 or maybe even the TT (68030 ST).  I didn't dream I'd see the ATW!

     It was a tiny booth  with  only  two  machines  showing  some European
 simulation  s/w,  but  it  was  great  anyway.    The ATW running a flight
 simulator had 13(!) transputers in it and the other ran color demos with 1
 transputer.

     For those  not in  the know,  the ATW uses a Mega ST as a front end to
 boards that contain tranputers, parallel processing chips.  So if you need
 more power,  you just add another board.  Each T800 board rated at 10 MIPS
 each!  The ATW comes with 4 meg of RAM and 1 10 MIPS each!   The ATW comes
 with 4  meg of  RAM and  1 meg of video RAM, to support up to 1280x960 res
 with 16 colors to 512x480 with TRUE (32 bit) color.

     The ATW runs the HELIOS operating system which  is a  UNIX-type system
 optimized for parallel processing (not just multiprocessing like MACH, the
 NEXT computer's OS).  The theory  behind showing  the ATW  at SIGGRAPH and
 not Stacy  or the  TT, is  that SIGGRAPH  is the  showcase for workstation
 vendors like Sun, DEC, HP-Apollo and Silicon Graphics.   I  still think it
 would  have  been  nice  to  see  a  little  more  variety,  a little more
 preparation and a bigger booth, but I'll take what I can get!  Commodore's
 booth was  big but  NO new h/w, even though the rumor was that their 68030
 machine would debut.

     The flight simulator was  fantastic!    The  smoothest  shaded polygon
 rendered  landscape  and  plane  I've  seen  in  real-time.  This includes
 Silicon Graphics and Evans & Sutherland  machines!   And of  course by far
 the cheapest.  Nothing short of ILM (Industrial Light and Magic (Star Wars
 people)) would be better.  Boy, give me one of these systems and I'll have
 an entry  in SIGGRAPH's  animation festival  by next  year! (that's a hint
 Atari :-)

                                        What a nice surprise...
                                             Thomas D'Alimonte
                                   Missing Pieces, s/w & consulting





    __________________________________________________________________



 > Atari Stock ~ STReport    Watchin' da schekles grow....
   ======================


                                                   THE TICKERTAPE
                                                   ==============


 by Glenn Gorman



    Atari Stock  rose 3/8  of a  point on Monday, up 3/8 on Tuesday, jumped
 5/8 on Wednesday and 1/8 on Thursday. On Friday it dropped 1/8 of a point.
 Finishing up the week at 9 5/8 points. Up 1 3/8 points from last Friday.


                                                            Glenn Gorman

                          +---------------------+
                          |  ATARI STOCK WATCH  |
                          | Week 08-07 to 08-11 |
 +=======+==========+===========+=============+============+=============+
 |       |  Monday  |  Tuesday  |  Wednesday  |  Thursday  |  Friday     |
 +-------+----------+-----------+-------------+------------+-------------+
 | Sales |     948  |     2585  |       5049  |      4563  |    2196     |
 +-------+----------+-----------+-------------+------------+-------------+
 | Last  |   8 5/8  |    9 ---  |      9 5/8  |     9 3/4  |   9 5/8     |
 +-------+----------+-----------+-------------+------------+-------------+
 | Chg.  |    +3/8  |     +3/8  |       +5/8  |      +1/8  |    -1/8     |
 +=======+==========+===========+=============+============+=============+
 | From > THE CAVE ST BBS <> 609-882-9195 <> 300/14400 HST <> F-NET #351 |
 +=======================================================================+




      _______________________________________________________________





 > ST REPORT CONFIDENTIAL        Sayin' it like it is...
   ======================




 - Sunnyvale, CA.     *** THE REAL CAUSE FOR THE TOS 1.4 RELEASE DELAYS ***
   --------------


     We received a tip; not  an  anonymous  tip  ..a  very  credible person
 called us  and said:  "Ralph, the  real reason  TOS 1.4 is delayed is very
 simple, the guy in charge of operations is  suffering from  a case  of the
 "CHEAPS"!!   He is  scared to  death to make a sizable order for fear they
 may get  stuck with  a bunch  of unsold  chips!!!!"   To that,  we say the
 operations guy ought to wake up and try minmum orders from each dealer or,
 send out a master set and an eprom burner to each dealer and let them burn
 the chips  for their  customers!!  There simply is no excuse for cold feet
 and indecision!  Let's all show Sam we want TOS 1.4, if each of us sent in
 a letter or postcard asking that they either do it or get off the pot, Sam
 might tell the meek operations guy to get busy.




 - Sunnyvale, CA.    ****** TT OFFERS THE 68030 AND RAM CHOICES!!! *****
   --------------

     As of August 14th,... Atari is getting IT  ALL together.....  "For the
 really budget-minded,"  "Atari will introduce selectable 68030 machines on
 August 25.  They have  2  and  6  megs  of  RAM,  respectively  both offer
 1,280-by-960  monochrome  and  640-by-480  color, have real VME slots, and
 come with AT&T Unix System V for an extra $299 on top of their  $3,000 and
 $5,000  prices  -  hard  disks  included."    In addition, a stripped down
 version ( 2mb )sans monitor and Hard Disk, will go for around  1500.00 and
 it, as  well as, the 6 mb version will operate fine on the SC1224/SM124 as
 well.  The TT will be  downwardly compatible,  ie; your  present hard disk
 will be fine etc...  This machine is expected to set the standards for the
 next five years.  Look for the NEW line to appear on  the covers  of STart
 over the next few months.



 - Sunnyvale, CA.        *****  THE REVOLVING DOOR SWINGS ONCE AGAIN! *****
   --------------

     Mike Dendo,  Vice President in charge of sales and dealer development,
 has left Atari amid a flurry of stories as to  why.   We will  continue to
 cover this story and other developments at Atari as they occur.



 - Sunnyvale, CA.      ***** ATARI NOT TO ATTEND MORE ST WORLD SHOWS? *****
   --------------

     ST WORLD  MAGAZINE, sponsor  of the WOA World of Atari Shows, seems to
 be the target of an especially vicious hate campaign.  As the  story goes,
 it seems  somebody, allegedly  at Atari,  has released  the statement, "As
 long as the present promoters of  WOA  are  in  place  we  will  no longer
 participate", it  is a  well known  fact that the sales dept officials and
 WOA officials have been at odds since Anaheim, but this sort of garbage is
 terrible.   To punish  the users  far and  wide by refusing to exhibit new
 product at the WOA shows is simply very sad.   First; it  sets a dangerous
 precedent,  (refusing  to  appear,  thus  punishing  the masses for a few)
 Second; Allowing corporate politics and in-fighting to rear it's ugly head
 in the  public eye  thus casting a negative aura on the company image.  We
 can't help but wonder if the Dendo departure has something to do with this
 and his lack of cooperation with the show's promoters.  And now that he is
 no longer "calling the shots" Atari will, as always, be in full attendance
 and giving all the support needed.



 - Sunnyvale, CA.     ****** PROCRASTINATION & DELAY TAKE THEIR TOLL! *****
   --------------
   
     Atari Corp  said the  drop in its second quarter revenues and earnings
 resulted from exchange rate  seesawing and  foundered video  game sales in
 the U.S.  It said it's video game sales remained dismal due to the alleged
 unfair monopolistic practices of "an international  competitor," which are
 now the  subject of  litigation.   Nintendo has come to dominate the video
 game market in the U.S.  Earlier, Atari  reported second  quarter net from
 it's continuing  operations of  $327,000, down from $7,866,000 a year ago,
 on sales  of $82.7  Million, down  from $102.5  Million in  sales for last
 year. 



 - Chandler, AZ.  ***** SHAREDATA NAMES RICHARD FRICK VICE PRESIDENT! *****
 ---------------

     ShareData Inc.  announced the  appointment of Richard C. Frick as vice
 president, product development for its consumer products division. In this
 position,  Frick  will  be  primarily  responsible for the acquisition and
 development of new titles for the division's recreational  software line. 

     Not  long  ago,  Frick  worked  with  Atari in a variety of capacities
 including video  games,  business  productivity  software  development and
 third-party relationships.   Frick  has a  bachelor's degree in electrical
 engineering and has spent more than 20 years in the computer fields.



 - Boulder, CO.              *******  ANOTHER CHAPTER 11 CANDIDATE  *******
 --------------

     Now another company, Computer Repeats, of Boulder, Co.,  has gone into
 bankruptcy.  Its assets have been purchased by N.E.T., a computer store in
 that city.   Computer Repeats will  operate  as  before,  but  out  of the
 N.E.T. store now, and ..no more mail order.



 - Boston, MA.       *****  SIGRAPH & ATARI ; FRANK FOSTER'S SUCCESS! *****
   -----------

     Frank Foster was leadman and laison, at the Silicon Graphics Show, for
 Atari US and UK, although the majority of the people  on the  Atari "team"
 were from  Atari U.K. and Perihelion (Gary Lawman, Phil Atkin, Jack Lang).
 Several members of The South Shore Atari Group were asked  to lend  a hand
 (and some  equipment...they weren't sure they had shipped enough over from
 England).  According to Frank Foster, the decision to attend  the show was
 pretty much  last-minute, but it was decided, and apparently Sam T. was in
 on this decision, that SIGGRAPH would  be  a  good  place  to "officially"
 introduce the  ATW into  the U.S.   Gary  Lawman commented that traffic at
 Atari's booth was "Very busy...overwhelming."   One of  the other purposes
 in attending  the show  was to  approach some of the "well-known names" in
 the Computer Graphics  industry  and  attempt  to  open  discussions about
 supporting  the  ATW.    Frank  reported  that  they had some "successful"
 discussions with several companies.



 - Memphis, TN.        ******  PORTFOLIO: "The Mouse that Roared!"  ******
   ------------

     The Memphis-area rep group for Atari Corp. has landed a nice fat juicy
 account; to  sell Portfolios  to Federal Express Corp.  The exact quantity
 is an unknown, at this time, but it  is rumored  (via FEDEX)  that most of
 the key execs will be issued a Portfolio.



 - Sunnyvale, CA.        ***** NEW USERGROUP CO-ORDINATOR APPOINTED *****
   --------------

     Bob Brodie  has been appointed the new Usergroup Co-ordinator.  Brodie
 a familiar figure in usergroup  circles  throughout  California,  brings a
 great deal  of experience  with him.   STReport wishes him all the success
 possible.



 - Dayton, OH.    *** ATARI HIT WITH BAD BATCH OF VIDEO SHIFTER CHIPS! ***
   -----------

     In June,  a  user  bought  a  new  computer  via  mail  order  from an
 authorized Atari  dealer.  It arrived and about a week later he discovered
 that whenever the computer used the register that (by default)  holds red,
 on the  medium resolution desktop, it became distorted when a fill pattern
 of that color was displayed.  ie; The red fill pattern in the Interlink ST
 screen (background  for all  rsc boxes:  set color, phone dialer, etc.) is
 distorted, but only that one color register, no matter what color it held.
 With Interlink  this is register number 2 on the Set Colors screen.  After
 many attempts to obtain local help, they called  Atari customer relations.
 Atari asked  that they  send the computer to Atari, and they would replace
 it.  About 3 1/2 weeks later the new computer  arrived.   It did  the same
 exact thing.   Now,  it becomes known, many new STs have the same problem.
 The user, whose plight  is  described  herein,  is  now  contemplating the
 purchase of  an I.B.M.  system.  They have the better part of three months
 trying to get a working ST  and it  simply is  not happening.   The dealer
 keeps sending his shipments of new STs back because of the defective video
 shifters.  - Mike Ellis 





   _____________________________________________________________________



 > STReport InfoFile    High Quality, Custom constructed hard drives....
   =================


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                               P.O. Box 6672
                     Jacksonville, Florida 32236-6672
                                Est.  1985
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                     BBS: 904-786-4176   12-24-96 HST
                    FAX: 904-783-3319  12 PM - 6 AM EDT
                 _________________________________________
                                        
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                   _____________________________________
                                        
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                 are clock/calendar and cooling blower(s).
                                        
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                 (you are NOT limited to two drives ONLY!)
                   (all cables and connectors installed)
                                        
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                  * ADAPTEK 4000/4070/5500 CONTROLLERS *

                      * OMTI HIGH SPEED CONTROLLERS *
                                        
  42mb #SG44710   569.00 - (1) mech    65mb #SG60101   729.00 - (1) mech
  85mb #SG840110  949.00 - (2) mech   132mb #SG3A1210 1149.00 - (2) mech

               ***  264mb #SGT41776 1889.00 - (4) mech  ***

        The above are just a few of the types of systems available.
    (over sixty configurations are available, flexibility is unlimited)
                                        
           * Embedded controller & ("N" type) drives available *


            *** ALL Units: Average Access Time: 26ms - 30ms ***

    ALL UNITS COMPATIBLE WITH --> MAGIC SAC - PC-DITTO/II - SPECTRE/GCR
                                        
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                 ***  Available for ST - Amiga - IBM   ***
                                        
                 LOWBOY - STANDARD - DUAL BLOWER CABINETS
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    ___________________________________________________________________



 > WOA DALLAS STR FOCUS
   ====================


                                 WORLD OF ATARI SHOW -> DALLAS TEXAS
                                 ===================================


                              World of Atari 
                               Dallas Texas

                           August 19, & 20 1989

     WORLD OF ATARI will be held at the Holiday Inn  Holidome, Irving Texas
 on  Aug.  19  and  20th.    The  hours  of  the show are 10 am till 6pm on
 Saturday, the 19th and on Sunday; 10am till  5pm.   Admission is  5.00 per
 day  or  7.00  for  both  days.    Advance  discount tickets are available
 directly from ST World for User  Groups.   Usergroup member  ticket prices
 are 3.50 for a single day and 5.25 for both days of the show.  The tickets
 must be ordered no later than August 10, 1989. Admission at the  door will
 be at regular price with no discount.

     Atari Corporation  will feature  their full line of products, from the
 2600 game machine to  the  Mega  Computer  systems.    In  addition,the pc
 Portfolio, the Lynx (New Handheld Game system), and the Stacy laptop.

     Of  course  many  of  the  companies  we are all familiar with will be
 displaying their latest products and  some  will  be  offering appreciable
 discounts as  introductory offers to the users.  Prospero Software will be
 offering a 25% discount as an introductory offer on their products.

     Also scheduled are instruction seminars designed to appeal to the new,
 as well as, the experienced user.

     Companies we  are all  familiar with  who will be there to answer your
 questions and provide help.

               Abacus Software               Alpha Systems
               Best Electronics              Codehead Software
               Double Click Software         FAST TECHNOLOGY
               ICD Inc. 8 & 16 bit           Intersect Software
               Imagen Corporation            Megabyte Computers
               Megamax Inc.                  MichTron
               Migraph Inc.                  Precision Software
               Prospero Software             Reeve Software
               Seymor/Radix                  Softrek Marketing

 plus many more...





    ___________________________________________________________________



 > A "Quotable Quote"
   =================



                     "A CLOSED MOUTH GATHERS NO FEET!"

                                            ...Horace Entz




                             "ATARI IS BACK!"

 --------------------------------------------------------------------------
 ST-REPORT Issue #101   "Your Independent News Source"     August 18, 1989
                    ALL RIGHTS RESERVED  copyright 1989
 --------------------------------------------------------------------------
 Views, Opinions and Articles Presented herein are not necessarily those of
 the  editors,  staff,  ST  Report  or CPU Report.  Reprint permission is
 hereby granted, unless otherwise noted.    All  reprints  must  include ST
 Report or  CPU Report  and the  author's name.   All information presented
 herein is believed correct, STReport or CPU Report, it's editors and staff
 are not responsible for any use or misuse of information contained herein.
 --------------------------------------------------------------------------

