Another warm evening for our September meeting. This is the kind of weather you would expect in July or August. It's the kind of weather that would make it easy to have an excuse to find something better to do than go to a SPACE Meeting. Next month I would hope that we would have most members attend the meeting. The summer is officially over by then and the Elections are looming for the November Meeting. Our October Meeting is very important in that we will have nominations for the Officers of SPACE for the upcoming 1999 calendar year.
As for our treasury, at the end of September we are once again looking very strong. We had a deposit of $105.00 based on one membership renewal, eleven DOM sales and $41.00 collected from the Auction at the August meeting. We had no expenses paid out in September, so our ending balance for September 30th, 1998 now stands at $950.23.
I would like to say a few words about the BBS. The reason we did not have a BBS expense in September is that someone circumvented the system and deliberately destroyed the BBS. Lance indicated that it would take a few weeks to get everything back in order and it sounded like the BBS's harddrive may have to be re-formatted from scratch. Lance waived the BBS monthly bill to SPACE because of this problem. I can't believe there are still hackers out there who want to cause this damage to small BBS's like ours when they have the whole Internet to screw around with. It's too bad that these guys if they are so smart aren't writing some worthwhile programs for us ATARI 8-bitters instead of wasting their talent on mischievous code. Come on guys, we are lucky to still have a BBS for ATARI, don't ruin it for all of us.
Don't forget to plan ahead for the October Meeting. Elections are coming in November and we need candidates for President and Vice President and of course all other positions are open for nominations. See you all in October.
The following are postings submitted by Michael Current:
Subj: Always Check the Mirror Before You Start the Car
Date: 98-09-26 17:53:38 EDT
It was about six weeks ago or so that my family hopped a plane from the Sacramento to San Diego for a couple of days. It was a trip we had promised our son for years. -- Actually for about three years now. -- At twelve, Kyle, was very much into skateboarding and inline skating. When we finally connected cable television to the house, it seemed whenever Kyle was not outside our house devising new tricks with his skateboard, he was inside watching the pro-skaters compete in ESPN2 X-treme game competitions.
I don't know if you have watched a lot of the X-treme games like my son has, but Kyle has learned two major lessons in life by watching professional skateboard competitions. First, there are desirable careers to be had in that sport. Secondly, all the nation's skateboard pros live in San Diego, California. Hence, he has had an eager desire to visit that city. Kyle just knew that professional skaters were all over the streets in San Diego and he just had to see and mingle with them.
So now Kyle is fifteen. He is in his early years of high school and a trip to San Diego is an opportunity to tour San Diego State University, a renowned venue for a respectable college education. Of course, now, Kyle isn't into skateboarding any moreÉ it's definitely BMX trick cycling.
We hit San Diego during a very warm, but still pleasant weekend. We visited the Zoo on a Sunday and toured the SDSU campus on the Monday before flying back home. On the evening of that Sunday, we were touring the area in our rental car and comparing differences between San Diego and the San Francisco Bay Area. At some point, Kyle told Lynn and me, "One thing is for sureÉ There aren't all the professional skaters on every street corner like I thought there would be!"
How nice it was to see my son mature and get a better grasp of what the world is really like. Just as I was about to congratulate him on his astute observation, he added, "They must all be on tour."
I guess he still has a little more maturing yet.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Good morning. My name is Don Thomas. I worked at Tramiel's Atari between
November 1989 through August 1996. Many Atari users once knew me as a
spokesperson for Atari offering feedback and support on CompuServe and the
Genie online services. I have been an Atari computer user and game player
since the early eighties and founded a small software publishing company I
called Artisan Software in the late eighties. I have been profiled in
publications such as Start Magazine and have had my articles printed in many
prominent trade journals and throughout the Internet over the years. I
currently work in the video game industry and am responsible for the Web
Domain of "I.C.When.COM". "I.C. When" is a comprehensive chronological
history of video games and home computers.
In a few minutes I will offer an opportunity to answer questions you may
have about me, my experiences at Atari or in the industry. But first, I'd
like to share some thoughts I have with regard to the impact classic gaming
and computing SHOULD have on us all . . . particularly the decision makers
and the trend setters.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
SoÉ my son, Kyle, is convinced that he understands the skateboard industry.
He'll be the first to admit that he doesn't know everything, but that is not
really the point. The point is more related to the integrity of the
information he does know. For instance, he is convinced that skateboarders
and BMX riders and inline skaters can earn a respectable living by touring
the country and winning competitions. "All it takes is finding the right
sponsors," he says.
In most respects, Kyle is simply wrong and he is in for an awakening when he
learns that life is most probably going to be made up of flipping
hamburgers, going to school and landing a series of traditional jobs
throughout his career. On the other hand, Kyle may very well become the
Ralph Baer or Nolan Bushnell in some aspect of the X-Games industry. His
determination may well persevere and he could be in the right place at the
right time as the world adopts a new billion-dollar devotion to world league
network of skateboard teams and competitions. If Nolan had listened to his
critics, then he may well be an unknown engineer at Lockheed and the world
may have never known the same "Pong" that we now know.
But, while we popularize the stories that beat the odds, we often forget to
check the mirror in life and see all the mistakes to avoid new failures. The
gambles that lost. The bets that may have won if the gamblers looked at all
the angles and examined all the risks before starting the machine that
failed so unceremoniously.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Now, let's fast-forward away from Baer's Odyssey and Bushnell's "Pong" to a
world of PlayStation, Dreamcast, N64 and Color Game Boy. Dare I forget to
mention Project X? I think we can all agree that the video game industry has
changed in a quarter century. Companies make systems that are MIPS ahead of
a time that power was evaluated by how many sprites and colors could be on a
screen simultaneously. Technology includes terms related to texture mapping
and full motion video instead of bank switching and vertical blanks. Gaming
magazines tend to allocate more space to well endowed polygons named Lara.
Publishers select games that spatter oceans of blood-red pixels across the
screen and replay digitized screams of real-time animated monsters being
ripped apart to terrorize more than just our imaginations.
This weekend's World of Atari '98 show is indicative of an old trend that is
re-emerging. It is one that explores the value of updating and republishing
classic video games. Most recent examples include Activision's libraries of
Atari 2600 and Commodore 64 compilations for the PC, Hasbro's release of
"Frogger", Namco's series of "Namco Museum" titles for PlayStation, other
releases such as "Centipede", "Asteroids" and so many more. I think it is
exciting that companies are putting back in to my hands easy access to the
games we loved playing so fondly in years gone by.
In my opinion, this trend is not a step backward by any stretch of the
imagination and I feel it has been way too slow in coming. I believe that
the video game industry has successfully established a new market of game
players in the last decade. By doing so, they have abandoned the original
phenomenon that built the industry twenty years ago and, thus they have
abandoned those who loved it so. I guess it could be similar as if the music
industry gave up on classical, swing, blues or jazz just because most of the
world seems to appreciate some form of rock.
So what is it exactly that built the industry? What is this phenomenon that
differentiates the games of the nineties from those introduced in the
seventies and eighties?
Many of us at Atari had a name for the formula that makes classic games so
great. I don't know if anyone else ever tried to define it like I have, but
it is three simple wordsÉ "The. Fun. Factor.".
I define the fun factor as a phenomenon that includes five primary
components: I can remember them more easily because the parts spell out the
word PRESS as in "Press the Fire Button".
All games, past and present, have to have some mixture of these components
to survive very long on the marketplace. But only the original classic games
consistently maintain a balance of all of them.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Let's look at them quickly. First, I mentioned "high score Potential". (I am
cheating a little bit to steal the P from potential to make the anagram, but
it is a very serious component.)
You might remember "Pong" had scoring. It had to. It was the only measure of
how one did when playing the game. A higher score than your opponent meant
that you won the game. A higher score than the computer player meant that
you beat the game. But, by today's standard, the scores were awfully
unimpressive. A good game might conclude with a score of 11, maybe 15
depending on the version of "Pong" being played.
Then there were games like "Warlords", "Breakout" and "Missile Command".
Suddenly games allowed players to score as high into the hundreds, maybe
thousands. Then along came "Galaxian" and "Phoenix" which doused players
with scores in the tens and hundreds of thousands.
Eventually, next generation games took over and high scores have been fading
fast. Games are too complicated to score anymore. Racing games give lap
times. R.P.G.'s reward players with new levels and fulfilled objectives.
Arcades no longer publish player high scores over each machine and we never
hear about a game that revealed something unusual simply because a
determined player hit a new high score.
There is an article I found in the most recent September 1998 issue of Next
Generation magazine. The article starts on page 10 and is titled: "When was
the last time you scored?" The piece concludes and I quote, "Will score ever
come back? Probably not. As technology evolves, games will become even more
complex, and current titles that still employ a high score, such as 'N20',
'Einhander', and 'Incoming', are in an ever-smaller minority."
The article sheds some rays of hope however and I quote further, "But
classic games are making something of a comeback; titles like 'Centipede'
and 'Asteroids' are being retrofitted for the 90's, with score intact."
Sadly the author concludes, "Still, it's safe to say that score will never
play the pivotal role it once did in gaming history."
If nothing else, I am not the only one that believes that high score
potential is an elementary difference between games of today and yesterday.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Let's look at the second element of the fun factorÉ Repetition.
When I say Repetition, I am describing the ability to identify a way that a
game is played within the first few seconds of pressing the start button and
depend on that overall premise to stay the same throughout the game.
"Pitfall" is a game that includes climbing, swinging and jumping in a
horizontal scrolling format. The obstacles may change their positions, the
ladders may not always be on the left or on the right, but the game never
ends up being different than how it started. Each new wave, each new level
predictably resembles the one prior.
Someone might say, ah, but "Gorf" deviated from that formula and "Donkey
Kong" had a series of different virtual game venues that had a lot of
changes from one level to the next. Well, not really. It may have taken more
than a few seconds to learn the new looks of each level, but they eventually
recycled and the series of levels fit the definition of repetition that I am
describing here.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Okay, let's look at ease of learningÉ the E in the anagram that defines the
fun factor.
Many people tell me that ease of learning is not at all missing from games
today. They bring up games like "Unreal", "Gran Turismo" or "Crash
Bandicoot". Yes, those are relatively easy games to learn, but are still far
more complex than walking up to a machine, dropping a quarter and driving a
circle through a maze to eat dots and avoid ghosts. I've played "Unreal".
It's fun, but there are a lot complexities too. A lot of passages to
discover. A lot of items to recover. A very difficult game to sit down and
compete against your previous high score.
I have played "Gran Turismo". It is undeniably a phenomenal racing game. Of
course I have to be concerned with a lot more than I did when I played
"Night Driver" or even "Pole Position". There's tire tread, engine
capabilities, car handling. Not much instant plug-and-play here.
I have enjoyed many hours of "Crash Bandicoot" and "Crash Bandicoot 2". I
know I will rush out and buy "Crash Bandicoot 3". But it is more complex of
a game to learn and accomplish than "Space Invaders" or "Missile Command".
Games from yesteryear, games that were filled with the fun factor, were
never hard to learn. Often hard to master, but never hard to learn.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
All games require the gamer to learn and apply a strategy to master the
gameplay. Whether it is "Checkers" or "Othello", "Boxing" or "Street
Fighter", there are one or more strategic moves that enable competitors to
score better with experience.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Finally, the fun factor is unleashed in any specific game when there are
Secrets in or about the game to be discovered. A secret may be a hidden
level or character. Maybe it is a code to add lives or weapons. Maybe it is
a way to see the programmer's initials such in Atari's "Adventure" or "Yar's
Revenge". Or, perhaps it is a fascinating story on how the game was
developed or marketed.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
So why does an understanding of the fun factor and the appealing aspects of
video games from yesterday have significance to you and me today?
Because we are approaching a new fork in the road. An opportunity to go in
new directions. New generations of video game systems such as Dreamcast and
Project X as well as whatever competing products designed to knock the socks
off of the mass market. And before we embark on a journey to new
next-next-generation technology, let's check the rear view mirror. Let us
begin to recognize the market that wants to play classic favorites or new
games that instill the fun factor into them. Let's put high score back into
the game.
I applaud what companies such as Hasbro for what they appear to be doing.
Their focus on reintroducing some of the world's greatest software titles on
up-to-date platforms is cutting edge. Hasbro has tasted the success with
"Frogger" selling over a million copies in less than six months since its
launch last November. "Centipede" will undoubtedly do similarly as well. I
believe that they will do equally as well with each new title as long as
they look back and enhance them using the same formula that made them great
in the first place.
Thankfully, companies like Hasbro and Activision and Namco and nYko are
beginning to adjust the mirror before moving forward on new projects. They
may not always make the greatest decisions based on what they have seen
behind them, but they are pulling out into the proverbial traffic of
progress while being more informed.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I'd like to suggest to forward thinking companies in this business two
thingsÉ It's wise to check the mirror and apply the good things from the
past into the things they do in our future. And, secondly, it would be smart
to look for more ways to work togetherÉ to solidify a plan to help
legitimize the gaming industry completely. Let's find more opportunities to
recognize all the better games and to put the people who create them in the
spotlight.
### END ###
Subj: The AfterMath
(WINDOW DRESSING: Mr. Mark Santora is producing a quality video documentary
of WOA '98. For information and ordering, visit, Mark's homepage at:
http://home.earthlink.net/~santora.)
Suddenly, a Vegas weekend has passed me by and I find myself on a plane
chasing a Sunday sunset toward the western horizon. The first annual Classic
Video Game and Home Computer Show, otherwise touted as World of Atari '98,
had come to a close. The people and the memories have bid me a fond
farewell. While mere hours before I was saturated in a sea of camaraderie I
now find myself heading home in an airship of anonymity. I did not win the
"Asteroids" cocktail table raffled by Mr. Tim Arnold to benefit the Las
Vegas Salvation Army, but I did carry with me a few small boxes of
memorabilia that I consider just as priceless. And I carry a camcorder
crammed with a few hours of video. And I carry a few chocolates for my wife
and son as they stay up at home to ask me if I had a nice time.
I now feel inspired to share, with those who honored us by attending and for
those who so desperately wanted to go, a report of the show from my unique
perspective. It was an interesting change of pace for me. After so many
years of attending Comdex, CES, E3 and a number of Atari-specific shows over
the years as one of the crew, I am suddenly bestowed the title of
Distinguished Guest. This time, I am not responsible to help set up walls of
a booth, components of a kiosk or crates of literature. Instead, I am
invited to verbalize my experiences at Atari, shake friends of old and new
and sign an occasional request for an autograph.
Mr. Keita Iida and Mr. Don Rogers greeted me at McCarran International
Airport around noon on Friday, August 21, 1998. Both gentlemen were anxious
to help carry my bags. In spite of my insistence to carry them myself, Keita
managed to grab one away as I put one down to switch hands. They took me to
the Holiday Inn Boardwalk Hotel and Casino (http://www.hiboardwalk.com)
located right on the world famous Vegas strip. The hotel required me to wait
a couple hours to register so we checked my bags and a group of us drove
over to TGI Friday's (http://www.tgifridays.com) for lunch.
In the earliest hours of my arrival I met all the core promoters. Mr. Rich
Tsukiji has one of those last names that I can spell, but just cannot learn
to pronounce. I feel redeemed, however, since I later learned he once
misspelled my last name in the official program. Payback maybe?
Mr. John Hardie was rubbing his tired eyes but still found plenty of energy
to smile and welcome the guests as they arrived. John and Keita co-produce
the Atari Headquarters web domain (http://www.atarihq.com). The two
gentlemen actually coordinated most of the events at the show, helped
solicit sponsors and arrange keynotes. By this time on Friday they have
already spent a great deal of time keeping promises and schedules on track.
Before it would be over, they would see it get much worse before it would
get better.
Mr. Brad Kota, was an inspiration for this year's show. As a long time
friend and colleague of Mr. Tsukiji, Brad helped to persuade him that there
would be interest in a classic video game show. Brad's Best Electronics has
always been a formidable icon in the industry with the world's most unique
selection of hard-to-find components and parts for Atari video games and
computers.
I soon caught up with Mr. Randy Stoller, a memorable young man who has a
rare collection of classic game and computer products. Mr. Jerry Jessop
worked at Atari in the late seventies and early eighties. Jerry did a
variety of engineering projects at Atari. Mr. Dan Kramer is renowned for his
work on the track ball at Atari in the early years. Mr. Leonard Herman,
author of "Pheonix: The Fall and Rise of Videogames" and the "ABC to the
VCS" (Rolenta Press, http://www.atarihq.com/features/phoenix.html), was
setting up to offer autographed copies of his books. Mr. Sean Kelly, of
Digital Press, set up next to Leonard to offer his Classic Videogame
Commercial Archive on VHS tapes (http://www.xnet.com/~skelly/video.htm).
Amidst all the hustle and bustle, mammoth crates were moved carefully into
the vender area. Each one was marked "Atari Historical Society"
(http://www.atari.nu) and followed closely by a Mr. Curt Vendel.
By 3 p.m. on Friday, the show appeared to be coming together quite well. (I
was happy. I finally received my key to room number 463.) Anyone in the
know, however, knew things were not going as well as hoped. There were
problems. Throughout the afternoon, Rich Tsukiji had to run around Las Vegas
city offices to accommodate a variety of exhibition permits that had
previously not been required. WOA '98 was becoming a much bigger show than
some people had anticipated and an entirely new plateau of permits and
licenses were suddenly required. With a lot of hot Vegas sweat and a heavy
dose of Tsukiji finesse, Rich pulled everything together just as the city
was locking the business office doors closed for the weekend.
Meanwhile, back at the not-so-okay coral, Keita sat next to a pair of gold
plated pay phones in the foyer of the convention floor. He had long run out
of quarters to feed the phones and was now typing out the same numbers into
his cellular phone that Don Rogers pointed out in a thick edition of the Las
Vegas yellow pages. The mission: get between six to eight 19-inch color
televisions to the show at a reasonable price before the rental stores
closed and WOA '98 commenced. The long awaited "Battlesphere" tournaments
must go on, but no televisions had shown up as originally planned.
Ultimately, Keita and Rich resolved their emergencies to everyone's
satisfaction, but the energy was building and the pressure was mounting. Mr.
Bruce Carso and his wife and family arrived with their 15-foot box truck
direct from B&C ComputerVisions (http://www.myatari.com). Mr. Tim Arnold had
his classic coin-ops to unload. Mr. Jerry Jessop and Mr. Dan Kramer had a
large rental van full of artifacts for the Classic Game Museum. Artifacts
that included the very first "Computer Space" ever manufactured and an
original coin-op "Pong". Mr. Steve Kipker and his crew from Steve's Software
(http://www.atarionline.com) set up countless boxes of computer and gaming
software featuring notable mentions such as "Air Cars" ($75) for the Atari
Jaguar and "Visicalc" ($1) for Atari computers. All new in originally
shrink-wrapped packaging of course.
Keita and John would not get much sleep again this long and anxious day.
Even at late night hours, they had yet to set up their own contributions to
the museum that required a painstaking system to catalog and arrange all of
the displays and exhibits. Much of this time I didn't feel right just
standing around. Everyone was working so hard. I did my best to document the
course of events with my camcorder, but I did set it aside for a while to
help Bruce and Cathy unload their truck.
At 6:30 p.m., the doors opened across the hall of the main convention hall
to the formal reception area. Persons connected directly to the production
of the show took a well-deserved break and pre-ticketed attendees were all
invited. There were two cash bars, a great sound system playing the
soundtrack from "Tempest 2000" and wall-to-wall people. Rich asked me to
make a few opening remarks. People who know me do not think I am much
capable of making just a few remarks, but I managed to prove them wrong this
time around. I thanked Rich, Brad, John and Keita. I urged others to find
them and thank them all as well. Rich asked me to tell them how to get their
programs for the show and I closed with a formal welcome to each and
everyone in attendance.
Not too long after the reception, activities began to settle down to a
realistic pace. Most of the venders had found time to sigh and only John and
Keita were still in a mode that some say resembles panic. In spite of it
all, Rich, John, Keita and a few others including myself broke away to get
some dinner at Applebee's Neighborhood Grille and Bar
(http://www.applebees.com). I am familiar with the Applebee's chain, but I
have no idea where Keita took us that night to get there. The trip allowed
me to renew a friendship with Rich and we filled in a lot of blanks for a
number of old Atari anecdotes from days gone by.
Immediately after dinner, we returned to the Boardwalk and Rich, Keita and
John returned to work as if they had never yet started. The appeal of the
slot machines overcame me and I began to throw money away into as many of
them as I could. Ouch. By around 2:30 a.m. I returned to room 463 and reread
my keynote speech one more time. Well, two more times. Hmmm, a few typos.
Maybe it turned out being several times before I actually turned out the
lights around 4 a.m.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Lynn, my wife, refused to bear the Las Vegas heat with me. She knew I would
be pre-occupied and decided playing mom was a most important role at home.
As always, she turned out being the wise woman I know and adore. Saturday
was hot long before anyone had a chance to complain about it. Staying at the
same hotel as the show was wonderful and the uncomfortable heat was felt
only near the windows. I arose at 8:40 a.m. By 10 o'clock I walked past a
long, long line of attendees who clearly wanted the doors to open sooner
rather than later. At approximately, 10:07 a.m. the doors pushed back the
crowd as they opened and the crowd calmly funneled themselves into the
exhibition floor.
I took a lot of videotape and will need to dedicate a day to review it all.
But from recollection, there were items for sale and items for display.
There were displays for display and displays for sale. There were mint
condition Ms. Pac-Man dolls offered by Jack Berg Sales Company, a firm based
in El Paso, Texas. There were hard-to-find coin-op art panels available from
the Atari Historical Society. There were mint copies of "Metorite" ($75) for
the Atari 5200 game system offered by Atari Headquarters. Mr. David Naghi
and Mr. Robert Rienick introduce nYko Technologies' (http://www.nyko.com)
new Classic Track Ball for the PlayStation (http://www.playstation.com) game
console.
In a center aisle, Tim Arnold kept track of the raffle total with a
makeshift tally redesigned from an old pinball game. Each of his targeted
$1,500 rung out with a loud bell and Tim would make hourly announcements of
small prize winners using a handheld megaphone.
At 10:30 a.m., I entered the keynote hall (a.k.a. the reception area from
the night before). There was a small number of people there awaiting my
arrival for my keynote. "Phew", I thought to myself as I knew speaking to
just a few people would be a stress-less task. At that moment, Keita Iida
saw I was ready and ran across the hall to announce my speech. In an
instant, the crowd from the venders area swarmed to the keynote area and
left only the rearmost group of chairs unclaimed.
I enjoy speaking. I have performed in some amateur theater in my younger
days and I know no shame to admit that I enjoy a little notoriety from time
to time. This was different. People were seated before me truly interested
in what I was about to say.
(http://www.icwhen.com/articles/keynote_82298.html) Was my talk too short?
Would it be too long? Would it be meaningful or sound like rambling? I
decided the best thing to do was do it. I had 19 (very small) pages of
script and I tried hard to refer to it as little as possible while looking
at my audience as much as possible. It must have not been too bad. People
asked a number of great questions after the talk and followed me into the
corridor to ask more. One very attractive young lady wanted to know if I was
the founder of Atari. I said "no".
Now that my keynote was over, the pressure of the weekend had been lifted
>from my shoulders and I was free to do nothing more except enjoy the show.
And I did. Big time. I met with Mr. Rob Fulop, designer of "Demon Attack"
for the Atari 2600. I saw the rare Cosmos, the holographic game system,
designed by Atari before Mr. Jack Tramiel sold holograph technology to
American Banknote (http://www.abnh.com). I saw rare prototypes such as
"Dukes of Hazard" for the Atari 2600. I saw an early mold of the Atari
Portfolio computer. I saw mint condition still-packaged Colecovision carts.
There were photocopies of rare internal Atari documents. One collector
showed me an entire box of badges for Atari employees from many, many years
ago. At 5 p.m., the exhibit hall for the first day came to a close, but a
swap meet commenced in the keynote area that lasted a couple hours.
That evening, I met David Naghi and Robert Rienick in the hotel lobby at 7
p.m. Robert's wife, Betty, also caught up with us and the trio escorted me
to Gordon Biersch (http://www.gordonbiersch.com) for dinner. David and
Robert shared a number of great things they have planned for their product
lines. Meanwhile I enjoyed a tremendous garlic-rubbed hanger steak and an
unusually decadent slice of cheesecake.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
There was no rush for me to get up terribly early on Sunday. I wanted to be
there when the doors opened at 10 a.m. and I was. My new camcorder also
takes digital stills and I exploited some of the pre-show inactivity to take
pictures of the coin-ops scattered throughout the hall. When the doors
opened, a steady stream of aficionados came and left throughout the day.
On this day, I had a greater opportunity to sit in on some of the other
keynotes. First, was a presentation from Dan Kramer and Jerry Jessop. They
told a number of stories from their days at Atari as renegade engineers. If
the audience was not spellbound, they were laughing at an intentional quip
or waving their hands to ask a new question. Also this day, I sat in on a
talk by Mr. Bill Kunkel, co-founder of Electronic Games Magazine. Bill spoke
of the early trade shows and the horrific videogame industry crash that tore
many of the companies apart. Dave Staugas was WOA '98's surprise speaker
during mid-afternoon. Dave spoke how he survived the Tramiel takeover and
created a number of games and applications for Atari over the years. The
keynotes, as well as the other events at World of Atari '98 are being
documented by Mr. Mark Santora's video. For information on ordering this
video visit http://home.earthlink.net/~santora.
In late afternoon, I introduced myself to Mr. Derek Mihocka of Gemulators
Inc. (http://www.emulators.com) who was demonstrating Gemulator '98. This
incredible device allows Atari ST, STe and TT software or Apple Macintosh,
Mac SE or Mac II software to run at lightning speeds in a Windows
environment for prices way under $200.
Also intriguing at the show was the new Lynx TV converter by Wizztronics
(http://www.wizztronics.com) shown by founder, Mr. Steve Cohen. The device
enables users to play Atari handheld Lynx games directly on a standard
televisionÉ even a big screen! The resolution looked fantastic and the
picture was incredibly stable. For under $150 users can finally see and play
Lynx games on a full size screen.
Nearing the end of the day, the Auction was held and nearly one hundred
items were put up for bid. Mr. Alan Miller, certified, licensed and bonded
auctioneer, U.S.A. Auctions, conducted the auction. A number of
one-of-a-kind and unusual artifacts and products were shown and blocked.
Rich Tsukiji whispered to me that this was undoubtedly the world's first
professional auction of Atari products.
Around 4 p.m., Tim Arnold picked the last few winners of the raffle. (Darn,
I did not win the "Asteroids" game.) Activities in the main hall had died
down and venders had already begun to pack things up. In the far corner,
Jerry Jessop and friends were doing their best to sell off items still on
the table. I wanted to spend some time filming the "Battlesphere"
tournament, but it was always so crowded in that corner of the hall. Mr.
Scott Le Grand and Ms. Stephanie Wukovitz of 4Play
(http://www.best.com/~sebab/dvidgames/dsphere/sphere.shtml) had the crowd
captive, but by the time I got back over to there following the auction, the
winner was declared and gone.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
There is no way to explain the pleasures that come to us at events such as
these. Those of us in the industry love it. We remember unpacking trainloads
of boxes and crates for the Winter or Summer Consumer Electronics Shows or a
Comdex. We remember working late at night wondering all the while if the
booth would be completed by the time the show started. We remember gathering
late at night to fulfill traditions at a local pub or restaurant. We
remember new product launches and all those times that something was
supposed to work and didn't. World of Atari '98 serves as a forum for us to
recall those memories and to relive them through the stories we tell.
For those who love the industry, but are not employed as a part of it, I
know it is equally fun to be a part of WOA '98. I know because I am uniquely
a part of that crowd too. I got into the business as a happenstance and as
an outsider who swore to myself that I would never forget how it felt to
press my nose against the glass looking in. I don't believe I have ever
failed that personal promise. Some said at WOA '98 that I started a trend to
get the programs autographed. I managed to get almost everyone although I
missed a few. There was Rob Fulop who I did miss in spite of intentions
otherwise, but I did get Mr. Michael Mika of Next Generation Magazine
(http://www.next-generation.com). I missed Marshall Rosenthal of the LA
Times (http://www.latimes.com), but I did get Ms. Van Burnham of Wired
Magazine (http://www.wired.com). I got most all of the venders that I have
known over the years to sign my programs and of course the likes of Sean
Kelly, Leonard Herman, Jerry Jessop, Arnie Katz, David Staugas and the rest
of the World of Atari '98.
I am not certain why I did not see representation from Hasbro InterActive
(http://www.hasbro-interactive.com) A lot of people would like to know what
their plans are with their new acquisition. A lot of people want to know why
ATARI.COM seems to have been abandoned since JTS (http://www.jtscorp.com)
shut it down (especially me since I produced the original site for Atari).
People like Mr. Nolan Bushnell would have been nice to see one day. Other
names that would have fit in well with the atmosphere would have been
Activision and Williams.
Just the same, I had one heck of a great time.
Do I have any regrets at all? Yup. I regret losing as much as I did in the
slots.
### END ###
Subj: Pooldisk TOO double cdrom
Hi Atarian,
we're about to release the "out of this world" experience of the year.
It's our upcoming POOLDISK TOO cdrom with mostly Atari 8bit stuff on it.
The release date is October 24th on the ABBUC's Jahres Haupt Versammlung (JHV)
in Herten in Germany.
So, you still have 1 month to contribute to this project if you want to.
Did you write a nifty Atari 8 bit program and want to put it in the
Public Domain, or is it shareware, send it to us, and we'll put it on the CD.
Besides helping the Atari 8bit community,
you get a nice backup of your software as well ;)
We're also interested in pd from Page 6. We miss a lot of disks there,
so if you've got a Page 6 pd disk, it would be nice if you could email
us a disk image of it.
The closing date of sending software to us will be October 21st, because
we will be burning disks on October 22nd and 23rd all day...
Besides software you can email nice pictures of Atari artifacts as well,
as long as it has to do with our beloved 8bit computer it's ok.
On the new Pooldisk, we've also included some internet homepages.
If you've got a nice homepage, send us the URL and we'll include it on our CD.
You probably guessed it, if you've got something interesting concerning
the Atari 8bit, and want to share it with the rest of the Atari community,
send it to us, and we'll put it on the CD.
The new POOLDISK cdrom will consist of 2 CD's.
It seems like one cdrom will only contain .ATR disk images (650 MB or so).
We removed the .XFD disk images because of the limit in disk space The other cdrom will contain movies, internet homepages,
Atari 8bit pc programs, Mapping the Atari in electronic format,
pictures of covers, hardware and other Atari related stuff.
The double disk cdrom can be ordered through the ABBUC.
Prices and such will be announced on the Internet after the ABBUC's JHV
on October the 25th (all dates are in GMT).
Sincerely,
Subj: Atari800Win 2.4
I have updated Atari800win at the usual home page,
http://www.cris.com/~Twist/atari800win
Atari800Win is an Atari 8-bit emulator for the Win9X/NT environment.
It emulates the Atari800, 800XL, XE series, and 5200 systems.
Here is what is new in version 2.4:
The Following are a couple of E-Mail's I've received.
Subj: Atari System For Sale
Hello,
I have an Atari 1040 ST with monitor and a Syquest 2 Cartridge Hard Drive (40 mbs. each) with the Link for sale. I also have a Mega file 30 computer/hard drive with an SLM 804 Atari Laser Printer. Recently, due to graphics limitations (I do much layout work), I switched platforms. The Atari systems have been wonderful to me; I''ve used them in my music business for several years.
If you know of any one who might be interested in purchasing some Atari hard ware please refer them to me. I have know idea what the current value is but will consider all resonable offers. Calumus Desk Top Publishing is loaded on the Mega file system along with the musical sequencer-Cubase (Steinburg Jones) which is quite sophisticated.
Thanks for your consideration.
Mike W.
I've recently been experimenting with Linux on a PC and a friend told me there is a version for the ST. I have had an ST since they first came out. The idea of having my 520 ST on a network with my PCs is prompting me to ask for some advice. I need info on installing a hard drive in my ST, and obtaining Linux for the 520 (I've seen it only for the Falcon) or perhaps you could even suggest alternatives. I've run the emulators, and my PC does ST very well, but it's just not the same. Please help me make my Atari live again.
Subj: Atari
Hi, I need to know the answers of some Atari questions for a competition, can you help? the questions are;
Subj: atari equipment
I have some Atari computer equipment that is just gathering dust and I was hoping you could help me find a home for them. I have 2 800XLs, 2 disk drives, 1 data recorder, 1 printer interface, many game cartridges and disks, some programs, and some dust covers. If you know anybody interested please contact me via my e-mail address. Thanks in advance for your help.
Bob.
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.
Date: 98-09-26 18:08:32 EDT
From: mcurrent@carleton.edu (Michael Current)
To: xx004@cleveland.freenet.edu, kirscheg@juno.com, mschm65612@aol.com, stirrell@portland.com, john_davison@compuserve.com, mcurrent@carleton.edu
by Donald A. Thomas, Jr.
©1997-1998 - Donald A. Thomas, Jr.
all rights reserved - http://www.icwhen.com
May be reprinted in entirety with byline.
(Revised 08/26/98)
Date: 98-09-26 16:56:10 EDT
From: mcurrent@carleton.edu (Michael Current)
Bo and Ernest Schreurs
Email your disks, software, scans to: ernest@wxs.nl
Date: 98-09-18 16:14:55 EDT
From: mcurrent@carleton.edu (Michael Current)
Date: Wed, 9 Sep 1998 06:59:33 CST
09-08-98 Ver 2.4 - large update, some beta features
* A request: I am looking for an image of the 8-bit Epyx game
"Hellfire Warrior". I'm not sure if it was available for the
Atari, but it was for the Apple][. I own this game, but only have
the TRS-80 disk image.If you can help, please e-mail
rich@cstone.net
* Big feature: support for save states (also known as "snapshots").
You must have ZLIB working (the DLL supplied with Atari800Win must
be in the path) to use this. Saved states saves _everything_ about
your Atari itself, the entire contents of memory, where you are in
a program, etc. A save state does NOT save your display, input, or
sound settings. When you load a state save, the Atari will be
paused on a black screen. Hit F9 to start the saved state. Saved
state file sizes will vary based on the machine type and what it
was doing / had loaded.
Use the File menu to access the Load/Save state features. There
are two types of save: normal and verbose. Verbose is ONLY
necessary if you have patched ROMS that somebody else wouldn't
have. Verbose saves are larger.
Save states should be considered a somewhat beta feature. Changes
might affect the format as other Atari800 ports adopt it, making
the current format obselete. Keep in mind that even if you
snapshot a program it may still want to access the disk later; and
save states do NOT save disks. If you know a program accesses the
disk, you will have to keep the disk handy with your save state to
resume later. Save state are machine independent; they will be
useable on other ports of Atari800.
* Machine language routines here and there; small speed difference.
I spent considerable time rewriting some large sections in
assembly, and found there was little speed increase in them even
when heavily optimized.I'll continue investigating asm for things
like Antic though.
* Atari crashes are much less dramatic now, as you don't have to
exit Atari800Win. The screen will simply go black, you then have
the opportunity to change settings, and there is a new
Atari/Restart menu option to fire the machine up again (Ctrl-F5
will also work).
* Added 512x384 mode. Should help those on slow machines without 320
modes. Shows full overscan and on most cards has that "scanline"
feel.
* Completely rewrote the keyboard handler, many changes include:
- A few layout changes; see README.TXT
- Insert/Delete work correctly (char normally, line when shifted)
- Clear character now on the Windows Home key
- Option/Select/Start can be held down in combinations,fixes some
demos
- When holding a regular key, pressing then releasing a second key
will have no effect (the first key will stay held).
- Hold down a regular key, hold down a second. Release the first
key.The Atari will register the second key as being held down
after exactly 1 frame of no keys.
- F1-F4 exist only for XL, returns no keyboard code for other
machines.
- Help returns no code for non XL/XE machine
- With CTRL + SHIFT held, the following keys do NOT work on
purpose:
J K L ; + * Z X C V B F1 F2 F3 F4 and HELP
In many cases the new behavior my seem more limiting than before;
but it is now highly accurate compared to the real hardware. Many
hours in testing with a real XE back this up. Since there is
considerable new code there may be an errant key here or there;
please e-mail me if you find keyboard oddities (or if you find
things fixed!)
* Keyboard templates option added (Options/Keyboard.. menu). This is
a complicated feature for expert users, consult the README for
details.Do not mess with it if you don't understand the purpose.
Briefly, It allows you to remap almost the entire keyboard to
anything you wish to define. Helpful for games that use whacked
out directional keys like the Ultima series or if you want to
exactly duplicate the Atari layout.
* Keyboard joystick reworked. Now handles combination keys (numpad4
+ numpad8 = diagonal up/right). Ignores your Windows key delay /
repeat settings and works right off the keystroke (instant
feedback).
* Checkbox for "use AGP memory", which controls whether a surface is
allocated as "local video memory" in Ddraw terms. This is
basically for DDraw windowed modes, and could be faster, musch
slower, or no change on any particular card - you'll just have to
try it and compare.
* Fixed a problem with small graphics selector dialog used in 320
modes.
* All full screen modes clear their backgrounds.
* Bolder, more ambitious icons, less filling but taste great. Any
icon artists out there?
* Machine type and speed shown in window title (status bar in full
screen)
* Finally remembered to add keyboard click. You will notice a slight
delay between the keystroke and sound, can't be helped at present.
* Fixed a display bug that had crept in when in windowed mode with
the display partially off the desktop
* If you exit while running full speed, the next time you launch
sound
will be (correctly) disabled until you switch back to normal speed
* Pause shows paused text on Atari screen (for full screen modes)
* Fixed crash bug that sometimes occurred changing artifacting
modes.
(EDITOR)
Date: 98-09-09 16:52:59 EDT
From: MWillia142
To: MSchm65612
My web site: http://members.aol.com/MWillia142/index.html
Subj: Atari and Linux
Date: 98-09-06 19:57:24 EDT
From: floyd@novia.net (Matt Mullin)
To: MSchm65612@aol.com
Date: 98-09-26 09:25:02 EDT
From: the-womble@geocities.com (Pete Williams)
To: kirscheg@juno.com, MSchm65612@aol.com, pac@pacifier.com, acaoc@imagiware.com
1) what does the Atari symbol represent
2) Who Owns Atari
3) What does Atari mean in Japanese
Thanks
--
From Pete Williams
(The Womble)
Surrey, England
the-womble@geocities.com
Motor Madness: http://surf.to/cars
The MotorSport Webring: http://surf.to/MotorSports
1001 Resources for Webmasters http://come.to/resources
Date: 98-09-24 15:23:22 EDT
From: rjanzal@up.net (Robert Anzalone)
To: MSchm65612@aol.com
(906)466-2628
DISCLAIMER
Return to the SPACE
Home Page
Last updated: Monday, July 19, 1999
URL:http://www.library.carleton.edu/space/news9810.html