************************************** * Z M A G A Z I N E * ************************************** Issue #107 May 23, 1988 Publisher/Editor: Ron Kovacs Managing Editor : Ralph Mariano APEInc PO Box 74 Middlesex, New Jersey 08846-0074 BBS: (201) 968-8148 300/1200 24hrs ______________________________________ T A B L E O F C O N T E N T S ______________________________________ |*| Publishers Desk |*| Atari News Update |*| More News |*| Atari Desktop Publishing News |*| Latest Developments and Update |*| New CompuServe Forum Software |*| Hardware Review NX1000 |*| Information Watch |*| ZMag Classified Advertising Rates |*| Modifying 850 Express |*| Avatex 1200 Modification(Re-print) ______________________________________ Publishers Desk ______________________________________ by Ron Kovacs As many may or may not know, we are currently under re-organization. The ST-Report magazine staff has been shuffled around and Ralph Mariano has taken on the task of Managing Editor. In an effort to keep the 8-bit readers up to date on Atari News and info, we will be publishing short news articles that may not be specific to 8 bitters. As with this weeks edition, ST news is rampant, but we will still cover 8 bit news first. For more ST news, reviews, and commentary, read ST-Report!! Here are a few additions to your ZMAG BBS listing. The next update will be released June 1, 1988. S105-203 ST BBS (Name??) 203-873-8518 X106-805 Home Bace BBS 805-831-7037 X107-612 Flight Line BBS 612-544-5118 Z108-502 StormBringer 502-955-6955 X132-615 STarbase BBS 615-528-7153 Z102-201 Mideval Castle 201-752-2818 X103-307 Prairie Chip 307-635-0148 Thanks for reading ZMagazine. ______________________________________ Atari News Update ______________________________________ The following text was captured from the comp.sys.atari.st section of the Rutgers FidoNet (201-932-3887) on 5/18/88. The text has been slightly edited for clarity and typos. Article Edited by Steve Godun for ZMag #36 18 May 88 14:37:33 [1] From: Usenet News To: All Subj: Shiraz Shivji Reveals Future Atari Plans From: steven@cwi.nl (Steven Pemberton) Date: 10 May 88 12:56:11 GMT Organization: CWI, Amsterdam Message-ID: <311@piring.cwi.nl> Newsgroups: comp.sys.atari.st Shiraz Shivji was interviewed at the Hannover Fair by the Dutch monthly Atari ST News, and I thought net readers might be interested by some of the things he said. What follows has been translated to Dutch by the paper, and then back into English by me, so it might not reflect *exactly* what he said. "The ST will remain the most important product for Atari. For instance, (there is a worldwide shortage of memory chips) all memory chips that we can get go first to the ST range. Only then do we use them for the PC range. We will offer a path to connect ST computers to the TT. "In contrast to the past, when Atari was known for its Vaporware, we are going to be much more careful with announcements of new products. We want to get rid of that bad image that we announce all sorts of things that are only years later available, or even are never produced." He then went on to talk about new Atari products: * The EST (Enhanced ST) will be the next item in the ST range, featuring a 68000 processor at 8MHz, but with higher resolution in both mono and color, more colors, improved VDI, and is upwardly compatible with the current ST computers, with the addition, for example, of horizontal and vertical scrolling. Expected availability: 4th Quarter, 1988 * A removable hard disk, the SR244. The disks have the size and form of a compact disk box, and will cost $120 each. Cost of the unit itself will be little above the current hard disk price, and will have a capacity of about 44-Megs per disk with an access time of 25Ms. (The SH205 has an access time of 65Ms, as a comparison). It shouldn't be long before there are 60- and 80-Meg disks with 15Ms access times. Expected availability: 3rd or 4th Quarter, 1988 * A number of new, non-exchangeable hard disks, with a much larger capacity than the SH205. Expected availability: 3rd Quarter, 1988 * The CD-ROM drive is expected to be available everywhere for around $600, including (?) interface cable and software driver. Expected availability: 3rd Quarter, 1988 * The TT computer, featuring a 68030 processor, 68882 floating-point co-processor, VME bus, Unix V system 3.1, and the possibility to connect an ST to the DMA port. The ST will then run X-windows. It may be possible that GEM will then run in one of the windows. All this for only $5000. Expected availability: 4th Quarter, 1988 * They have found a new manufacturer for the BLITTER chips and now expect to catch up on back-orders "in a few months". * Atari has just been having high- level talks with Digital Research. No further information is available about what the discussions were about. * A portable ST is being developed. No dates for availability. On this last point, in the May Personal Computer World, a British magazine, a reporter tells that Sam Tramiel assured him that the portable ST should be available by Christmas at around $1000. The machine, called the STacey, is being prototyped by Perihelion in Cambridge, England (who are also doing the Abaq, by the way). Planned features include 1-Meg RAM, 20-Meg hard disk, 3.5" floppy disk, full LCD screen, and a track ball instead of a mouse. Memory shortages may mean that the first versions will have 512K of RAM, and pricing considerations may mean that the hard disk will go. Steven Pemberton, CWI, Amsterdam; steven@cwi.nl or mcvax!steven.uucp ______________________________________ More News ______________________________________ by Steve Godun Hi guys...Remember me? "Hey, he's the guy that wrote all those reviews for the Atari and Nintendo, and did all that other stuff for Zmag!" Yeah, that's me. A few of you have asked me why I don't write for Zmag any more (thank you for noticing), and the answer is that I *DO* write, but I've been pretty busy lately and haven't had the time to get some material together. Now that I've got some free time, I'M BACK!!! OK, here we go... Atari 8-bit news...Over 350,000 Apple, IBM, and Commodore owners have had a big advantage over XL/XE owners. Until now, that is. Springboard software has just released "The Newsroom," a desktop publishing program that has been a favorite among the above mentioned computers for quite some time. The Newsroom includes everything you need to create great looking newsletters in just a few minutes. Choose from over 600 pieces of clip art with the option to edit and modify those pieces for custom results, or create your own with the drawing tools. A built-in mini word processor allows you to write and print in any of five fonts with built-in "picture wrap," where the text automatically (and smoothly) wraps around your clip art. And with the addition of three Clip Art Volumes, the possibilities are endless. ***SPECIAL OFFER*** Until July 31, Springboard is offering a special discount offer for the Atari version of The Newsroom. Order now and receive up to 50% in discounts! Buy The Newsroom for $39.95 (list $49.95), NR+1 clip art volume for $49.90 (list $79.90), NR+2 clip art volumes for $59.85 (list $109.85), or the whole package -- NR+3 clip art volumes -- for $69.80 (list $139.80) -- a savings OVER 50% To order, call 800-654-6301, extension 3011 (ask for "Newsroom Atari Offer") and have your Visa or MasterCard ready. (There is a 30 day money-back guarantee.) Enjoy! Now for some ST news...The Multiline Nite Lite BBS is now available for the Atari ST! This is a TRUE multiline BBS that is already in operation in Maryland, Virginia, Illinois, and many other places around the world. Features of the Multiline Nite Lite BBS include up to 7 callers at once plus a local logon, up to 27 message bases, 87 built-in commands including an interpreter allowing you to add your own custom functions and commands, support for interactive and /or single user on-line games, an unlimited number of file transfer sections, support for baud rates up to 2400 baud in any mix on all lines, two chat "rooms" for caller conferences, total sysop control even from remote logon, built-in terminal mode for outgoing calls...Too much more to list! Multiline Nite Lite BBS operates in a standard GEM environment on all Atari ST computers. Multiline BBS also requires an SP408 ($199) for up to three lines or an SP808 ($349) for up to 7 lines. The software itself is $99 from Nite Lite Systems, or *FREE* with the purchase of the SP408 or SP808 Programmable Serial Interface. One more catch...The order has to be postmarked before July 1, 1988 from a user group registered with Atari Corp. Contact Nite Lite Systems PO Box R Billerica, MA 01821. You can also experience Nite Lite BBS at 617-663-4221 (3/1200), or 617-663-2885 (3/12/2400) 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, or by voice at 617-663-4463. General computer news...MEI/Micro Center is still offering great deals on computer disks (among other things). Now you can get 5.25" black disks for .25 each in lots of 200, or 5.25" colored disks for .39 each in lots of 10. 3.5" disks are now .89 and .99 each (SS and DS, respectively) in lots of 50, while color 3.5"-ers are $1.19 each in lots of 10. More good deals include 2500 sheets of laser cut printer paper for $15.95 (white w/tractor feed) for two or more boxes, labels at $9.95 per box ($8.95 for two or more boxes), and $4.95 per unit for 5.25" diskette cases (holds 70 disks; $3.95 per unit for two or more). Contact MEI at 1-800-634-3478 for more deals and for orders. After all, you can't have too many disks! Gee, sure sounds like I've been taking a few pesos for advertising, eh? Anyway, that about wraps it up for this article. I wish I had a little more news to spread around, but I've been kicked off a few mailing lists recently. Well, I do have a little personal news to announce. I've been made the Atari sub-sysop of The Graphics Dump BBS (201-469-0049; 3/12/2400), a BBS supported by HAL Systems, makers of ComputerEyes, etc. Anyway, maybe next time I'll have enough to make you say "Hey, this guy's good." Because after all, I am. Seeya later... ______________________________________ Atari DeskTop Publishing News ______________________________________ Compiled by Steve Godun Atari Shows Variety of Desktop Publishing Solutions at CEPS. At the Corporate Electronic Publishing Show (CEPS) in Chicago last month, Atari displayed new third-party software support for the Atari Desktop Publishing (DTP) system, based on the Atari Mega line of business computers and the Atari SML804 laser printer. Atari has issued a challenge to DTP systems with Apple of IBM hardware and software platforms, demonstrating complete systems at a lower price with superior performance in most real- world applications. Said Chuck Babbitt, president of Atari Computer, "The press really thought we had something. We were showing a $5,000 desktop publishing solution, and Apple was showing $18,000 to $20,000 systems. We are a real player in this market." The newest software offering, Desktop Publisher ST from Timeworks in Deerfield, IL arrived in stores late last month. Suggested retail is $129.95. Publisher uses a true GEM- based interface and offers word processing, page layout, graphics, and typesetting, including WYSIWYG display. The program allows users to import text from Word Writer ST, 1st Word, and WordPerfect, as well as ASCII files from any other word processor. It fully supports the Atari SLM804 laser printer, taking less that one minute to produce a full page of text and graphics. A family of Accessory Packs of ready -to-use graphics especially designed for a variety of applications will be available later this summer at $39.95 retail. Timeworks offers free technical support to all registered users, a money-back guarantee, and an exclusive exchange policy. Timeworks Desktop Publisher ST runs on the Atari 520ST, 1040ST, and Mega computers. Soft-Logik Publishing Corporation of St. Louis, MO has announced Publishing Partner Professional, an advanced version of its popular Publishing Partner, to start shipping in early June. Publishing Partner Professional supports auto-text flow around graphics, auto hyphenation, auto kearning, a spelling dictionary, and grouping of multiple objects. It offers the ability to rotate, slant, or twist text and objects, and special functions for color printing. Publishing Partner Professional also allows users to import text from Word Writer ST, 1st Word, Word Perfect, and ASCII files. According to Shawn Fogle, president, Soft-Logik has dramatically improved the printing speed when used with the Atari SLM804 laser printer -- now about 55 seconds to produce a full page of text and graphics. Publishing Partner Professional includes a driver for the Atari SLM804 laser printer, and support for a number of dot matrix and laser printers, including PostScript for devices like the Linotronic phototypesetter. Publishing Partner and Publishing Partner Professional offers a unique font scaling technique to allow characters at any point size between 2 and 216, and many other features. Both programs function with Atari's 520ST, 1040ST, and Mega computers. According to one of Publish! magazine's staff, upon viewing Publishing Partner Professional at the CEPS show, "This program has features that no other desktop publishing package has, like kearning tables and color separations! I'm really impressed." Look for a full review of the Atari DTP system in upcoming issues of Publish! and Personal Publishing. Publishing Partner Professional will sell at $199.95 retail. Registered Publishing Partner owners may receive an upgrade for only $50 in a program just extended to June 1. The suggested retail price of the original Publishing Partner has been lowered from $149.95 to $89.95. Mirrorsoft's Fleet Street Publisher is a desktop publishing program out of Great Britian. Marketed here by Spectrum Holobyte of Oakland, CA, Fleet Street will fully support the Atari SLM804 laser printer with a release due soon. Additional graphics libraries also will become available. The current version works on the 520ST amd 1040ST and retails for $149.95. Fleet Street runs under GEM so it's friendly and easy to use. It includes a library of ready-to-use graphic images, a pixel editor for creating and adapting graphics, six fonts, and box and rule drawing in multiple weights and shades. International character sets are available. Another package from Europe is Calamus, being sold in the US by ISD Marketing in Canada. It is currently anticipated that Calamus will appear in stores in June. It offers many high-level features, including a full GEM interface, scalable fonts from Monotype, polygon functions, an integrated diagram graphics program with functions including vector graphics, and support for a number of printers, including the Atari SLM804. Calamus for the Mega will retail at $449.95, and a fully compatible scaled down version will be available fot the 1040ST at $199.95. At the higher end of the marketplace, Atari is producing the G.O. Graphics' Deskset, a high-quality desktop typesetting program designed for use with the Atari Mega and SLM804 laser printer. Deskset is a professional level typesetting package which uses genuine CompuGraphic scalable fonts and WYSIWYG preview. It includes automatic hyphenation and justification, character pair kerning, automatic character compensation, and multiple exception hyphenation dictionaries. Deskset uses a GEM interface and typesetting commands identical to those found in CompuGraphic typesetting systems. Deskset is soon to be released -- it's currently in beta testing -- and will retail for around $500. All of these packages allow users to import text from ASCII files from any word processor. Graphics can be picked up directly from either Degas, NeoChrome, GEM Draw, or Easy-Draw formats. Supercharged Easy-Draw from Migraph, in Federal Way, WA offers the combination of the popular graphics program with a graphics file converter. The Supercharger allows Easy-Draw to load bit images from NeoChrome or Degas, as well as scanned images of portions of any screen display. Excellent for use as a low-end desktop publisher for the production of forms and flyers, Easy-Draw 2.3 also offers use of fonts, and takes full advantage of the speed and versitility of the Atari SML804 laser printer, composing a full page of text and graphics in only 30-40 seconds. Easy-Draw without the Supercharger is often used as a drawing tool for the creation of scalable images, which are then imported into the DTP packages mentioned earlier. Supercharged Easy-Draw retails for $149.95. Easy-Draw end-users can upgrade by purchasing the Supercharger directly from Migraph. In another corner of the desktop publishing marketplace is a sophisticated word processor, Microsoft Write ($129.95). Write offers a number of different fonts and simple page layout commands to produce professional-looking reports and documentation quickly. Another key component of the Atari Desktop Publishing system is the ST Scan package from Navarone Industries in Campbell, CA. Consisting of a high- speed interface and a Canon Image Scanner, the package allows you to digitize photographs, line art, or other types of images, for use with your Atari computer. The single-sheet scanner retails for $1239. The flat- bed scanner, which can accept any type of bound material to a maximum of 8.5"x12", retails for $1779. The ST Scan package supports Degas, .IMG, and PostScript image formats, in resolutions of 75 to 300 dots per inch. (Whew! Well, that's it for desktop publishing. I hope ya got some info out of this that you didn't know before because I'd hate to think that almost a 1/2 hour of solid typing went to waste!) ************************************** * Read ST-Report Magazine for the * * latest news and reviews from Atari * * and the ST community. * ************************************** ______________________________________ Latest Developments and Update ______________________________________ by Ron Kovacs ZMagazine and ST-Report Magazine have exclusive areas on all the services. To assist you with locating our areas, here is an Online Map. CompuServe -------------------------------------- Magazine|Command |Description --------|----------|------------------ ZMag |Go Atari8 |Library 11 ST-Rpt |Go Atari16|Library 14 -------------------------------------- Address: 71777,2140 GEnie Services -------------------------------------- ZMag | Atari8 |Library 14 ST-Rpt | M 475;1 |Cat #22 -------------------------------------- Address: ST-REPORT R.KOVACS REX.READE Delphi -------------------------------------- ZMag |Atari |Database ST-Rpt |ST |ST-Report -------------------------------------- Address: RONKOVACS REXREADE Update: ------- Mr. Goodprobe is no longer affiliated with the magazines. However, we will still be covering technical and modification topics in the future. These tasks have been reassigned. Steve Godun has been named assistant editor for ZMagazine. Welcome aboard Steve. ______________________________________ New CompuServe Forum Software ______________________________________ Compiled by Ron Kovacs During the next few weeks, ZMagazine and later ST-Report, will be updating you on the new Forum software that CompuServe put into system full access May 17th. This week an overview on the changes. ====================================== SIG Software Version 4D(7) ====================================== The result of the Forum Product redesign is improved menus and navigational commands, yet the overall functionality of the forums remains the same. The new Forum Product will highlight the message board, conferencing and libraries. Ambiguous commands have been eliminated and global commands with consistent meanings have been implemented. User attention is now focused on the information content and less on the software product. Terminology Changes =================== * Leaving a message has been changed to COMPOSING a message. * Storing a message has been changed to POSTING a message. * Message Subtopics have been changed to Message Sections. * Data Library has been changed to Library. * Bulletin has been changed to Announcement * The Short Bulletin has been renamed to the News Flash Announcement. * The Regular Bulletin as been renamed to the General Announcement. * Read Marked has been changed to Read Waiting. The number of waiting messages will be displayed in paranthesis next to the menu option. Function Menu Changes ===================== * This menu has been reorganized. Now, Instructions is the first item on the menu. When instructions is selected, you can now get a summary of the various options in a Forum by selecting the item from the Instructions Menu. Help and Instruction Changes ============================ * A member can also obtain the complete HELP facility, a Forum Reference Card and the Forum Users Guide from the Instructions Menu. Message Changes =============== * Leaving and Reading Messages has been combined into one option, MESSAGES, off the Functions Menu. * The CHANGE age selection menu has been added to the MESSAGES menu. This allows a member to change the way they read messages. * A member now has the ability to read messages starting from a particular date, which they specify. * A member can now read messages by SELECTing a message section and then by selecting the subjects which they want to read in that particular message section. The number of subjects and messages available in each section are displayed next to each section name. Library Changes =============== * DEScription has been removed from the Library menu, but is still available. Conferencing Changes ==================== * The number of forum members participating in a Conference is now displayed next to the menu option. Options Changes =============== * The OPTIONS menu has been divided into 2 different sections, the Forum Options and the Messages Options. * Under the OPTIONS menu, a choice of INITIAL menu/prompt has been added. This option will give a member the ability to choose which area of the Forum they would like to access when they first enter the Forum. You have the option of choosing Functions, Messages, Libraries, or Conferencing. Announcement Changes ==================== * The Messages Announcement has been added to the Announcements Menu. The Announcement should contain Hot Topics being discussed on the Message Board. Description Changes =================== * A descriptions menu will now be available form the Functions, Messages, Conferencing, and Libraries Menu. This will give a member the ability to obtain a description of each of the available sections of messages, libraries, and conference rooms. Miscellaneous Changes ===================== * All capitalized menu options can be abbreviated to the first 3 letters. * The miscellaneous commands of WHO, UST, and SEND can be entered at any menu prompt in the forum. CBX Version 4D(40) ================== * A member is now required to enter the Conference room number they wish to enter to conference. Public and special access to the Conference rooms will be determined by the Sysop. ====================================== FORUM PRODUCT REDESIGN INTRODUCTION ====================================== The forum product has been one of the most successful products we have, yet it receives a lot of criticism. It has been considered hard to learn, filled with confusing commands, and overall one of the most intimidating products available for subscribers. The forum software product contains a great deal of power and functionality, attainable by cryptic and less than intuitive commands. The success of forums is largely attributed to the information content. Subscribers and Sysops are responsible for adding valuable content. Thus it is our intent to highlight the content of the forums and push the software and its interface into the background. This will require change and change is never easy. We have not, nor will we, take a cavalier attitude toward the experienced user. However we must also consider the next generation of users and cannot risk the growth and future of the Service on an intimidating, puzzling, and hard-to-learn product. We cannot hold on to the current interface just for some who have fought and struggled to gain expertise while we turn away large numbers of subscribers due to confusion and intimidation. It neither benefits us nor you. With these thoughts in mind, we established the goals. CIS Goals ========= 1. To reduce ambiguity and confusing command syntax. 2. To reduce repetitious menus and focus on content, not commands. 3. To reduce the number of characters transmitted. 4. To become more consistent with other CIS product command structures. BASIS FOR CHANGE ================ We base our changes on a year of research. This research is ongoing and will continue to shape the Forum product in years to come. The research includes feedback from subscriber and non-subscriber focus groups, subscriber comments to customer service, comments from forum sysops and others. THE IMPROVED PRODUCT ==================== The new Forum Product will highlight the message board, conferencing and data libraries. Ambiguous commands will be eliminated and global commands with consistant meanings will be implemented. User attention will focus on the information content and less on the software product. ONGOING SUPPORT =============== The new Forum product will be available automatically, but the old Forum product can be called up by appending an account id of "OLDF" when logging in, (ie., Userid: 70006,256;OLDF), or by issuing the command "OF" from within the forum. The old forum product will be available for approximately one year to aid experienced subscribers in learning new commands. ====================================== Command Conversion Table Updated: 04/07/88 ====================================== by Mike Schoenbach [76703,4363] Following text in 80 Column ====================================== Old Forum New Forum Commands Commands Full Command Command Explanation ========================================================================== RF REA FOR READ FORWARD Read msgs in forward numerical order RR REA REV READ REVERSE Read messages in reverse order RI REA NUM READ NUMBER Read individual message number only RTN REA NEW READ NEW Read new msgs in thread order RN REA FOR NEW Read new msgs in forward numerical order RS;F REA FRO: READ FROM: Read msgs from name/User ID RS;T REA TO: READ TO: Read msgs to name/User ID RS;S REA SUB: READ SUBJECT: Read msgs with specified subj RM REA WAI READ WAITING Read "waiting" messages RE;### REP ### REPLY ### Reply to message ####. L COM COMPOSE Compose new message B ANN ANNOUNCEMENT Announcement Files CO CON CONFERENCE Enter Conference area DL LIB LIBRARY Enter Library area R MES MESSAGE Enter Message area MD or V MEM MEMBER Enter Member Directory area IN INS INSTRUCTION Enter Instructions area OP OPT OPTION Enter Options area SB NAM NAME View message section names LN NAM NAME View library section names ============================ At "Messages !" prompt/menu: ============================ SF SCA FOR SCAN FORWARD Scan msgs in numerical order SR SCA REV SCAN REVERSE Scan msgs in reverse order ST DIS SCA THR PRO SCAN THREAD PROMPT Scan msgs and prompt for disposition QS SCA QUI SCAN QUICK Scan message subjects only QSN SCA QUI NEW SCAN QUICK NEW Scan new msg subjects only ============================== At "User Options" prompt/menu: ============================== UM MOD MODE Forum mode (command, menu) SM PAU PAUSE Pause after reading msgs (always, never, to you) CN NAM NAME Change name in Forum PC CHA CHARACTER Specify prompt character ED EDI EDITOR Default message editor (EDIT, LINEDIT) SU SEC SECTION Default message sections to read RE REP REPLIES Reply info (list, count, none) =============================== After reading a message: =============================== UA COM COMPOSE Compose new message to current msg author RA RER REREAD Re-read current message RE REP REPLY Reply to current message MA MAR MARK Mark current msg for later retrieval RP PAR PARENT Read "Parent" (previous) message RR REA REP READ REPLY Read replies to current msg SK NEX NEXT Read next branch of thread SKALL NEX SUB NEXT SUBJECT Read next thread (skip current) NS SCR SCROLL Do not prompt for read action ========================== After composing a message: ========================== S POS POST Post message on message board S# POS SEC:# POST SECTION: Post message in specified section SU POS UNF POST UNFORMATTED Post msg the way it currently appears -- do not reformat SU# POS UNF SEC:# Post unformatted in specified section SP POS PRI POST PRIVATE Post message privately C EDI EDIT Edit message MA MAI MAIL Mail message via EasyPlex MU MAI UNF MAIL UNFORMATTED Mail msg via EasyPlex unformatted P PRE PREVIEW Preview current message. P# PRE WID:# PREVIEW WIDTH:# Preview message with specified line width. A CAN CANCEL Cancel current message RA RER REREAD Reread message you are replying to =============================== (*) Posts reply as part of same thread. Note: CompuServe will continue to support many of the commands that appear in the left column. Following is a list of the old commands not supported (Grandfathered) in the new menus version: A. Functions Menu B, R, S, STONLY, STDISONL, STONLDIS, QSALL, QSONLY Note: RM = READ WAITING L = COMPOSE B. Read Actions Prompt UA, SM, C Note: N = NEXT reply C. Post Menu C, P, L, R, I, D, RA ______________________________________ Hardware Review ______________________________________ BY BRETT TALBOT 1988 REPRINTED WITH PERMISSION STAR NX-1000 COLOR PRINTER EVALUATION FEATURES: --------- SPEED: 144cps draft/33cps NLQ. COMPATIBILITY: EPSON LX-800/FX/MX or IBM Proprinter II. FONTS: 8 NLQ - Courier, Sanserif, Orator(2) + italic fonts. 5cpi to 20cpi in NLQ. Double and Quad width & height. COLOR: 7 in text/ over 400 in graphics dump. PAPER FEED: Rear push tractor with paper park for semiautomatic single sheet loading. CONTROLS: Full controls on front for 16 functions. PRICE: $319. list/$230 to $280 discount. MANUFACTURER: Star Micronics America The NX-1000 is the next step in the ongoing evolution of the Star printers. Like its Gemini/SG-10 cousins the NX-1000 retains full Epson compatibility with innumerable features and an attractive price. The NX interfaces with the ST without necessity to reset any DIP switches. Most Epson, Star, or Gemini print drivers already function with the NX. The front LED lit controls for font pitch and typestyles are indeed welcome. The four buttons have 14 other functions when two or three buttons are pressed at once. This is my third Star printer, and seems even studier that my other reliable Star printers. The push type tractor feed is very welcome now that I don't have to waste a sheet of paper everytime I print! Single sheet paper can be inserted into the printer with the tractor paper still in the machine with the paper park function. Line spacing is very accurate; There are no gaps between lines when printing graphics. The NLQ typestyles are terrific. My old Star SG-10 had one NLQ font, and the only special effect available was underlining. Any text feature that can be implemented in any one of the four NLQ fonts. Courier is the fanciest font, and is similar to a nice typewriter. The Sanserif font looks very similar to the font used on draft text. Orator is larger than the others, and has two styles: In the first, lower case letters are shown as small upper case. This is very readable, as is the Orator with true lower case. Orator with true lower case looks funny because it does not have true descenders. There are seven colors that may be used in text mode at any time. If your word processor does not support some or all of your printer's codes, some are available using a text command imbedded in double parenthesis; this is a good way to activate color in a word processor such as STWriter or Word Writer ST. In graphics, over 400 colors may be printed using an Epson JX-80c printer driver. Colors come out clean and sharp, except that users must avoid making dark color printouts. This will wear out the ribbon and the colors come out uneven. I find myself modifying pictures in DEGAS before printing. I lighten the colors and change black backgrounds to white. Graphics print quickly in Black, and speed seems reasonable in Color. Color mode requires that the printhead changes color three times, and passes over the picture three times as well. The NX-1000 now has logic seeking graphic printing, where the printhead passes only over parts of the picture to be printed. The 8k RAM buffer holds two to four pages of text, and is great if using a modem. The buffer may be turned off and transformed into a storage space for downloadable draft and NLQ characters. Aethsetically the NX-1000's streamlined appearance is much different from the older models, being a brownish grey instead of that white, the smaller size is perfect for a tight space situation such as a dorm. The printer weights only about 10 pounds, compared to the traditional 25, and ahs the Centronics port on the side! (Yea!) Current printer owners will concede that a rear port can cause many paper jams. Comparing the NX-1000 to an older model is like comparing a Ford Taurus to a Chrysler K-car! The sticker on the front of the color NX-1000 has red, blue and yellow stripes that I think look junky. I understand that they needed to make it look different from the non-color NX-1000, but they chose the worst colors. One reason why I started buying Star printers in the first place was because they took underwood style ribbons. They cost about two dollars and you can flip them to use the second side. Star has switched to cartridges that cost about $7 for black and $11 for color. Another change is the manual, it is much clearer and comes with several color reference cards and command summaries. The manual no longer suffers from translated-from-Japanese-idis either!!! When compared to other models, such as Panasonic, Okidata, Epson, and others, I found the NX-1000 to stack up well with the competition. It has the most NLQ fonts (that are REALLY different), the most overall features, and is less expensive. The monochrome NX-1000 can be had for about 70 or 80 dollars less, but I find color more attractive for the small difference in price. Some printers like the Panasonic 1092i-II are about 50cps faster, but the NX-1000 is fast enough for me and does everything I want without hassle. I can whole heartedly recommend the NX-1000 over other printer in the $300 and under price range. ______________________________________ Information Watch ______________________________________ Captured from Atari8 on CompuServe #: 209430 S7/HOT News/Rumors 20-May-88 01:06:53 Sb: #209417-WHAT NEXT? Fm: SYSOP*Don LeBow 76704,41 To: GIL KELEMEN 73217,2335 Gil... Atari Corp. is up against the numbers game ... if there isn't what THEY PERCIEVE as a market sufficient to pay back their R&D and marketing costs, they aren't gonna take the plunge. Note I said it's on their perception of what the market is. That may be a bit different than yours and mine! Nevertheless, I like the way you think! I've heard of Atari's used in the ways you mentioned .. you have this little 'box', available for low price, that can function as a 'dumb terminal', (or a smart terminal!) and the possibilities would seem to be endless, given the software. But like a good deal of the software being written for the 8-bits these days, it's probably gonna have to be user written. Or from small dedicated companies. Wonder if anybody has any Verified Sightings of 'Ataris at Work?' out there? >>don #: 209456 S5/Application pgms 20-May-88 10:57:51 Sb: NEWSROOM Fm: RICHARD POPCHOCK 72247,2127 To: ALL If you are considering buying Newsroom from Springboard Publishing - "BE CAREFUL" If you have a 850 interface it will not work. After much aggravation, I called Springboard for assistance. They confirmed that their software is not compatible with the atari 850. They have a 850 on order but do not know when they will receive it or when (if) the problem will be solved. The only option they had to offer me was to return the program which I am doing today. So, after writing letters to Springboard, waiting several months, I still have nothing. Thanks Springboard. It is surprising that you would ignore the standard Atari interface when developing your Software! #: 209459 S7/HOT News/Rumors 20-May-88 17:22:01 Sb: Atari Advertising Fm: Chris Sorensen 73310,761 To: All All: The overwhelming wish of respondants the first Question of the Week was for Atari Corp. to advertise national, especially in non-Atari magazines. You will find that your wish has been answered in the June 1988 issue of Keyboard magazine, a national music monthly. Atari Corp. has placed a two page ad in this issue explaining the advantages of the ST and Mega computers in the field of music, as well as other features that these systems offer. This issue of Keyboard should be available in music stores and at book sellers within a week. Anyone interested in learning more about the Atari advantage in music should write to: Atari Corp. Attn: Music 1196 Borregas Ave Sunnyvale, CA 94086 ______________________________________ ZMAG Classified Ads ______________________________________ Classified advertising will be accepted starting June 1988. The following is the rate table for ZMag issues only. All advertising rates are subject to change are in effect until Sept 1988. All ads will be charged on a per-line basis. Min ad is 3 lines. All ads run for 4 weeks. Advertising set-up examples shown below. [Ex.1] Line Length [.....................................][.....................................][.....................................] [Ex.2] Flagged Ads ************************************** * Info contained within box * * Any information you prefer * * Only standard ascii * * text permitted * * and a max of 10 ten lines * * *<--included in ad * ************************************** Cost: ===== 3 line ads not flagged run for 4 weeks and cost $5.00 per issue x 4= $20.00 Flagged advertising: -------------------- 3 lines min, 10 lines max. $5.00 per line. 2 week min. Two week cost for a five line flagged ad: 5 x $5.00 = $25.00 x 2 = $50.00 All ads must be pre-paid and received atleast one week before publication. For more information on Classified advertising call via modem: (201) 968- 8148 300/1200 baud, 24 hours. Special non-classified advertising rates vary, call today for more information. ______________________________________ Modifying 850 BBS EXPRESS! ______________________________________ Written By Hackers SYSOP The Ol' Hackers BBS (516)-884-4140 1Meg MIO and 10Megs HD Online 24hrs a day 7 days a week. The Ol' Hackers ATARI Users Group INC. If you have an AVATEX 1200 or the AVATEX 1200hc this modification may help your log-ons. I made these mods because I didn't like the fact that the users had to hit Control-M or S to log-on the 850 version of BBS EXPRESS, so I modified a few bytes to allow the users to log-on by just hitting the Return. The mods are split-up into to Two Parts, Part(A) is for the non-hc version of the AVATEX, and Part(B) is the mod changes for the AVATEX 1200hc. The two area's which you are going to change effect the baud step rates and the defaults of the the EXPRESS BBS program for your modem to pick the phone by starting the baud rate at 300 baud. When BBS EXPRESS 850 hangs up the modem, it initializes the modem to default configurations, and set the port and modem back to 300 baud. We are going to modify part of the code in EXPRESS BBS. So don't use your original disk, and get your favorite disk sector scanner. I suggest that you use DISKWIZ II, if you have it. First format a disk in ATARI DOS 2.0 S/D and don't write any Dos files to the disk. Now copy BBS.COM to your formatted disk. PART "A" AVATEX 1200 Non hc --------------------------- Starting at sector 68; with byte $38 $00 $0A $0C change this to $0A $00 $0A. $00=300 Baud 0A=1200 Baud 0C=2400 Baud Since you only have the AVATEX 1200 byte # $32 should be change to $0A for 1200, now write sector 68 back to the disk. Starting at sector 271 With byte $39 Your changing the text, which tells the printer log and the user at what Baud rate he or she logged on with. $33 $30 $30 $04 $31 $32 $30 $30 $04 $32 $34 $30 $30 $33 $30 $30=text 300 $31 $32 $30 $30=text 1200 $32 $34 $30 $30=text 2400 I made the following changes; $33 $30 $30 to $48 $2F $53=H/S for 1200 Baud. $31 $32 $30 $30 to $53 $6C $6F $77= Slow for 300 users. (hint to get them to change over to 1200. $32 $34 $30 $30 to $20 $48 $2F $53= Blank Space then H/S, 1200 again. Now write that sector back to your disk. Thats it for the non-hc AVATEX 1200. PART "B" AVATEX 1200 hc Mods Use the changes above with the following additional change. Starting at sector # 274 At byte $58 $A0 $00 $8C $7B $30 Change the $00 at byte $59 to $01 $00=300 Baud $01=1200 Baud $02=2400 Baud Now write this sector back to your disk and BOOT up. Things that will change with your log-ons. 1) Non hc AVATEX, after the first line of garbage the 1200 user only hits the Return key once and bang the HIT RETURN prompt. No more hitting the Control-M or S keys or having the user log-on first in ASCII then changing over to ATASCII. 2) The AVATEX hc, will at the connect automatically prompt the 1200 users to HIT RETURN without any key strikes at all. Note: I'm sure that the "hc" changes will work with and modem that is a Hayes compat or the the real Hayes 1200. Also PARTS "A and B" will work with both versions of the AVATEX, however the non hc version will show the user the ATA command them prompt them to HIT RETURN. Special thanks to Keith Ledbetter for writing the NEVER crashing BBS EXPRESS and to Chris King for the Hard Drive back-up program (HARDBACK). Both authors are ORION Micro Systems. Get your copies today. ORION Micro Systems 2211 Planters Row Drive Midlothian, Virginia 23113 ______________________________________ AVATEX 1200 MODIFICATION ______________________________________ #1: PURPOSE: Add Hi-speed carrier detect to become 100% Hayes compatible. NOTICE: *********DISCLAIMER********** COLOR-NET TAKE NO-RESPONSIBILITY FOR ANY DAMAGE CAUSED BY THIS MODIFICATION! IF DONE CORRECTLY THIS MOD WILL WORK! ****************************** PARTS NEEDED: ------------- 1- MC1488 chip Radio Shack #276-2520 (rs-232 driver) 2 feet of 20 gauge hook-up wire GETTING STARTED: ---------------- After opening up the modem...locate ic# u30 (located by the rs-232 connector). Take the new IC and fold up all pins EXCEPT--#1,7, and 14!!! Now piggy-back the new ic on to ic #u30. Using a light wattage soldering gun, solder pins...#1, 7 and 14 of the new IC to pins...#1, 7 and 14 of IC #u30. Now take a light wattage soldering gun, solder pins...#1, 7 and 14 of the new IC to pins...#1, 7 and 14 of IC #u30. Now take a wire from pin#2 of the new ic to pin#12 of IC #u23 (located just behind led's). Now take a wire from pin#3 of the new IC to pin#12 of the rs-232 connector. Now take your wire to pins# 4,5,9,10, and 12 and solder all these pins together. (we're making a heat-sink to keep the new chip from over heating). After you have soldered all these pins together, solder a wire from board ground (of the modem) to these pins! Thats it!! To test what you have just completed.. take a piece of wire and ground the cathode end (banded side) of the HS led,if all was done corectly..the HS led should light, and with a VOM connected to pin #12 on the rs-232 connector, you should read about +8 volts or so. If you're not sure how to do this... you can mail me your modem along with a money-order for $25.00 to: SYSOP (COLOR-NET) P.O. BOX 2192 PETERSBURG, VA 23804 Be sure to send it by US-MAIL!!! UPS will NOT deliver to a PO BOX!!! We will make the mods, test it and send it back. ______________________________________ ZMagazine Issue #107 May 23, 1988 Copyright (c) 1988 APEInc. American Publishing Enterprises, Inc. ______________________________________