S P A C E

NEWSLETTER September, 2000

Michael
President's Corner
by Michael Current
September, 2000

I think Nolan Friedland deserves mention and thanks here for taking on the volunteer club position of BBS Operator. How much of his expenses the club can and/or should cover will be an ongoing discussion, but we're very lucky he's willing to put in this considerable effort for us. I hope the new BBS is getting a healthy number of calls!

It turns out I should be able to make it to the meeting this month after all. So, before we get to the scheduled auction, I hope we can get back to discussing the proposed revamped Bylaws document. I'll include the full proposed document below, including the changes resulting from previous feedback, to facilitate discussion.

The one concern from before which wasn't resolved was in the DOM section:

ARTICLE VI
DISK OF THE MONTH

Section X. Other than the DOM Librarian or his designated proxy, club members shall not sell or give club DOMs to any other person, bulletin board, or computer club, although sharing of individual files is permitted and encouraged.

In my new proposal, I am simply dropping this section. I think it is tough for us to try to limit our members in how they can redistribute shareware/freeware/PD files to their friends. I think if we discover we are not making enough money on DOM sales to offset the cost and trouble of making them, we'll simply quit producing them. What do you think?

Thanks, keep using that Atari, and come to your next SPACE meeting, Friday September 8, 2000.

========================
Here, then, are the proposed new SPACE Bylaws in their entirety.

As proposed by Michael Current, August 27, 2000

BYLAWS FOR THE SAINT PAUL ATARI COMPUTER ENTHUSIASTS CLUB OF SAINT PAUL, MINNESOTA

ARTICLE I
NAME AND OBJECT

Section 1. The name of the Club shall be the Saint Paul Atari Computer Enthusiasts, or SPACE.

Section 2. The object of the Club shall be to bring those with a common interest in Atari computers together for the purpose of sharing hardware, software and information related to Atari.

ARTICLE II
MEMBERSHIP

Section 1. The number of members of SPACE shall not be limited.

Section 2. Any person or family interested in Atari computers shall be eligible for membership upon payment of the annual dues for the first year.

Section 3. The annual dues shall be $15.00, payable on the anniversary month of the member's joining date.

Section 4. Unused portions of dues are not refundable.

Section 5. Any member found to be in violation of the rules or spirit of the club may be expelled by a majority vote of the Executive Board.

Section 6. The Membership Chairman shall be responsible for collecting membership dues and managing the current membership list.

ARTICLE III
MEETINGS

Section 1. SPACE meetings shall be held at 7:30pm on the second Friday of each month, at the Falcon Heights Community Center, unless otherwise directed by the Executive Board. Section 2. Club business cannot be conducted without at least one Officer and one other member present.

Section 3. All club meetings shall be open meetings.

Section 4. Minutes of each club meeting shall be recorded by the Secretary and published in the club newsletter.

Section 5. The Annual Meeting shall be held each November. At the Annual Meeting, Officers shall be elected and volunteers for other ongoing club duties shall be secured.

Section 6. The President shall preside over club meetings. In the President's absence, the Vice-President shall preside. In their absence, the Secretary shall preside. If the first three are all absent, the Treasurer shall preside.

ARTICLE IV
TREASURY

Section 1. An accounting for all incomes and charges to the SPACE balance sheet shall be published in the newsletter each month.

Section 2. Prior approval by the Executive Board is required if the club is to incur any expense.

Section 3. The Treasurer shall be responsible for the duties of managing the club's monetary assets.

ARTICLE V
NEWSLETTER

Section 1. The club shall publish the SPACE Newsletter on a monthly basis.

Section 2. All currently paid club members shall receive a copy of the Newsletter by mail each month.

Section 3. Newsletters shall also be sent free of charge each month to other Atari clubs which are able to return the favor.

Section 4. The Newsletter Editor shall be responsible for the duties of collecting articles from the membership, publishing, and distributing the Newsletter.

ARTICLE VI
DISK OF THE MONTH

Section 1. A new SPACE Disk Of the Month (DOM), readable by a standard Atari 1050 disk drive, shall be produced on a monthly basis.

Section 2. DOMs shall include shareware, freeware, or public domain software or other files for the Atari. DOMs shall not include pirated commercial software.

Section 3. The price of the DOM shall be $3.00.

Section 4. DOMs shall be available for sale at each club meeting, and may be sold to members and non-members.

Section 5. Other clubs may trade DOMs with SPACE on a one-for-one basis.

Section 6. The DOM Librarian shall be responsible for the production and sales of the DOM.

ARTICLE VII
BULLETIN BOARD SYSTEM

Section 1. A Bulletin Board System (BBS) supporting Atari computers shall be made available by the club. The BBS provides an online forum for Atari discussions, and an optional communications medium for club matters.

Section 2. The BBS System Operator shall be responsible for maintaining a friendly and welcoming environment on the BBS. Illegal software or offensive language shall not be tolerated.

ARTICLE VIII
WEB SITE

Section 1. The club shall maintain a home page on the World Wide Web. The site shall be primarily designed to attract new club members, and provide online access to club information.

Section 2. The Webmaster shall be responsible for maintaining the web site, and keeping the information presented there current.

ARTICLE IX
OFFICERS AND EXECUTIVE BOARD

Section 1. The Officers of the club shall be President, Vice-President, Secretary, and Treasurer, and shall be referred to collectively as the Executive Board.

Section 2. The Executive Board shall collectively supervise the affairs of the club, shall be responsible for proper and orderly club operations, shall be responsible for upholding the rules of the bylaws, and shall at all times make decisions with the best interests of the membership in mind.

Section 3. The officers shall be elected by a majority vote, or by acclamation if only one person is running. The term shall be for one year, or until a successor is elected. The term of office shall begin at the close of the annual meeting at which the officer is elected.

Section 4. The Executive Board shall actively seek volunteers to fill the following positions: Membership Chairman, Newsletter Editor, DOM Librarian, BBS Operator, and Webmaster. These volunteers shall be subject to the approval of the club membership.

Section 5. The Executive Board shall also seek volunteers for other ongoing administrative duties, such as meeting location arrangements and post office box maintenance.

Section 6. Officers shall be subject to a Recall Vote if a majority of the membership so decries. The Recall Vote shall not take place until it has been announced in the newsletter.

Section 7. The rules contained in the current edition of "Robert's Rules of Order" shall govern the club unless they are in conflict with the bylaws, in which case the bylaws shall take precedence.

ARTICLE X
AMENDMENT OF BYLAWS

Section 1. The Bylaws can be amended at any meeting by a majority vote of the current membership, provided the amendment proposal has been printed in at least one issue of the newsletter.

Section 2. Voting shall be by consenting AYE or NAY if a majority can be confirmed, or a show of hands for a precise tally.

Section 3. Proxy votes are authorized and are the responsibility of the club Secretary to cast for absent members.

ARTICLE XI
CLUB DISSOLUTION

Section 1. The club may elect to disband itself by a majority vote of the current membership, provided the proposal has been printed in at least one issue of the newsletter.

Section 2. In such an event, the Executive Board members shall be responsible for the proper and orderly closing of accounts, arrangements, and all normally ongoing club activities.

Section 3. Any remaining material assets of the club shall be distributed evenly among the membership, as best as this is possible. Historical club materials shall be preserved if possible.

Section 4. When all outstanding charges are paid, the Treasurer shall distribute any remaining club funds evenly among the final group of club members.


Greg
Treasurer's Report
by Greg Leitner
For August, 2000

Summer is almost over, Red is heading back to Arizona, still the SPACE groupies meet the second Friday of each month no matter what. It was great to see most of the members show for the August meeting and we look forward to the months ahead as we try to finalize our by-laws and bring our SPACE belongings down to a more manageable level.

We will really miss Red at our meetings. He has the ability to take what could be a 20 minute discussion and turn it into a 20 second decision. His insight and input will be surely missed until next summer. Good luck Red.

With another auction behind us and (2) membership renewals for August, here is how the SPACE treasury stands for the month ended August 31, 2000:

Beginning balance for August 1, 2000       1,009.69
Memberships                                   30.00
Dom's                                         12.00
Auction                                       44.00

Less: BBS Phone                               21.95

Ending balance for August 31, 2000         1,073.74

We had a net gain for the month of $64.05, but don't forget we still owe $195.00 for the room rental of June, July & August ($65.00 per month).

We are planning another auction for the September meeting, so I will see you all then.


Mike
Secretary's Report
by Mike Weist
For August, 2000

Space meeting opened at 7:40 PM. Michael Current, Space club president, welcomed members to the August meeting.

Michael Current asked for a secretary report. Greg Leitner gave a report. Mike Weist was not able to make the July meeting. Greg recapped his minutes printed in August newsletter.

Michael Current then asked for a treasurer report. Greg Leitner, club treasurer, gave a report. He said the club treasury took a major hit. Five months of room rent was paid. A total of $325. Treasury stands at $1000. Greg said the club auctions help the treasury.

Michael asked for a DOM report. Glen Kirschenmann, DOM chair, reported the disk of the month has German programs on both sides. Glen said one of the programs is a word find program.

Michael asked for a membership report. Glen Kirschenmann, Membership chair, reported the club membership stands at 14 paid up members.

BBS report was given by Lance Ringquist. May, June, and July were bad months for the BBS. The BBS was down because several things that happened. Lance Ringquist said the duties of the BBS have been turned over to Nolan Friedlund. Nolan explained what it will cost him to run the BBS. The Space club voted to pay for the BBS for a few months to see if it is feasible to keep.

OLD BUSINESS

Greg Leitner talked about the club post office box, which cost the club $57 for 6 months. He asked the club if it was still worth having a post office box. This will be discussed at the next meeting.

Michael Current tabled bylaws discussion till September meeting.

NEW BUSINESS

Brian Little gave a report on the 3rd World of Atari Expos. He told the club he read a article on the Internet about it.

Mike Weist reported on the St. Cloud Hamfest being held on Saturday August 12, 2000 at high school in St. Cloud, MN.

Meeting adjourned at 8:20 PM. Auction followed meeting.


Now For Some Email Forwarded to Me by the Club President:

From: friednw@tcfreenet.org
Date: Tue, 25 Jul 2000 05:03:09 GMT

                      Nolan's Nest & SPACE BBS Update
                       (763) 691-0626     300-19.2 Kbps
                                     Open 24 Hours

File uploading and downloading is now fixed.  Online games and movies
for Atari callers now available!  I have temporarily taken the BBS off
the phone line and now beta testing it on the Internet!  The telnet
address is 209.105.35.109.  Any changes to the address this
evening/early morning will be made here.  Telnet will be available until
about 7am at which time the BBS will be connected back to the phone
line.  I've tested it through Telnet and it works fine.  The only thing
to keep in mind when connecting is that you'll have to hit return
several times to get the BBS to answer. Keep trying....It should work. 
If it doesn't work, someone is probably on.  You may email me as well if
there are any problems.  Any and all feedback, comments, and suggestions
are Welcome!

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



From: dnoguero@iname.com
Subject: ANN: New Atari 8-bit telnet BBS
Date: Mon, 24 Jul 2000 19:21:18 GMT

Hi everyone!

I've been putting off announcing the BBS since I wanted to do some more
work on it. But, I figure seeing some actual users will motivate me to
develop it more :)

So, the "Atari Annex" BBS is now on-line and ready for users!

Just telnet to: atari.thebbs.org

Feel free to leave feedback -- I'm definitely looking for suggestions on improvement.

Dan Noguerol
aka. "Farb"
Sysop - Atari Annex BBS

Sent via Deja.com http://www.deja.com/
Before you buy.

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

Subj:	 XL/XE ROM source code (rev. 2) available
Date:	00-08-16 15:27:48 EDT
From:	mcurrent@carleton.edu (Michael Current)
To:	kirschg@netzero.net, mschm65612@aol.com, stirrell@portland.com,
john_davison@compuserve.com, page6@cankita.clara.co.uk,
mcurrent@carleton.edu

Date: Sun, 23 Jul 2000 20:13:59 -0700
From: Sidney Cadot  

Hi everybody,

I am happy to announce the availability of the Atari XL/XE ROM
reverse-engineered source code, rev. 2. This latest version uses the
CC65 compiler suite, which includes a blindingly fast macro-assembler
and linker. The packages comprises 7 source files (13887 lines of
assembly) that can be assembled and linked in 0.3 seconds (!) to yield
ATARIXL.ROM and ATARIBAS.ROM, as used in several emulators that are
available.

You may find the package on my Atari web-page at:

  http://ch.twi.tudelft.nl/~sidney/atari

I'd appreciate any comments you may have, and I would also like to
mention that I would welcome outside involvement for improving the
quality of the source-level comments in the code.

Best regards,

  Sidney Cadot
  sidney@ch.twi.tudelft.nl

DISCLAIMER

Published by the Saint Paul Atari Computer Enthusiasts (SPACE), an independent organization with no business affiliation with ATARI Corporation. Permission is granted to any similar organization with which SPACE exchanges newsletters to reprint material from this newsletter. We do however ask that credit be given to the authors and to SPACE. Opinions expressed are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of SPACE, the club officers, club members or ATARI Corporation.


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Last updated: Saturday, September 30, 2000
URL:http://www.library.carleton.edu/space/news0009.html