NEWSLETTER November, 1999

President's Corner
by Michael Current
November, 1999

Well, I can't report on any activities at the October meeting that I wasn't able to make. Tuscon was very hot and dry, just like I pictured it. I never saw a cloud the whole weekend!

At our Annual Meeting this month we will hold elections for the Club Officers: President, Vice-president, and Treasurer. I hope we have a big turnout, because every vote counts! I also encourage anyone to consider running for any of these positions, or to consider volunteering for any of the volunteer positions: Secretary, Disk Librarian, Membership Chairman, Newsletter Editor. I especially hope we don't have to ask both Greg and Glenn to fill more than one person's shoes for another year!

Another little idea I'd like to bring up at this meeting, or another meeting soon, is that of auctioning off some, or all, of the materials SPACE owns and keeps in the closet where we meet at the Falcon Heights Community Center. There's a ton of stuff there, and hardly any of it gets used by the membership. Not to be morbid about it, but there will be an end to SPACE some day, and if we still had all that stuff in the Club's posession at that time it would be a real hassle to figure out how to handle.

Guess what? If we choose to follow tradition as always, next month is our Christmas Party! Time to begin planning!

Thanks, keep using that Atari, and please come to your next SPACE meeting, Friday November 12.

Secretary's Report
by Greg Lietner
for Mike Weist
November, 1999

Because Mike Weist and MIke Current couldn't make the October meeting I had to pretty much run the show. Here is a recap of our October meeting.

There wasn't much to report in the minutes for September as only five members showed up. Mike Current mentioned the by-law changes that needed to be voted on, but it would have to wait until October.

Nominations were to be given for the November elections at the October meeting.

I gave the Treasurer report stating that our balance was $1,400.51 and it reflects a committment by the few members who showed up for the September meeting.

Glen gave us the grim news that we are down to sixteen paid up members but we hope to add one more at the November meeting.

Nominations were brought up but no one offered their names and it was suggested that the current officers and directors keep their positions for the year 2000.

The December Christmas party was brought up and a pot-luck was agreed on and a sign up sheet will be available at the November meeting.

It was mentioned that the Hamfest/Computer/Flea market was to be held on October 30, 1999 and tickets were discounted if ordered before the show.

We closed the meeting early at about 8:15 due to an emergency of one of the members but we had a great discussion on computing in general and even though short it was an interesting evening.

Treasurer's Report
by Greg Leitner
November, 1999

It was nice to see seven members present at the October SPACE meeting. We almost had enough members to actually vote on the by-law changes. I was getting worried that the Club was starting to lose it's appeal but I think now that the warm months are behind us, our meetings will improve.

Don't forget that we need to vote for Club officers next month and we also have planned another pot luck Christmas party for December. Nobody came forward to put their name in the ballot box for Club officers, so I guess it will just be a formality to re-elect the current crop of officers and other Club directors. As far as I know, all the current officers and directors will stay on for another year.

October was a break-even month for the Club. We sold five dom's and had one membership renewal. We took in $30.00 but also paid out $30.00 for three months BBS service. Our treasury still stands at $1,400.51 and the next big expense has not arrived in my mailbox yet. That would be the third quarter room rental fee of $195.00. Remember that the fee for this quarter should be reduced by $65.00 because of the change in the August meeting, so our bill should actually be only $130.00.

We have a good opportunity to add a member to our Club next month and his interest is pretty much in the ST. We have a lot to offer ST users and anyone with questions should check it out. I would be glad to offer my assistance where I can, and there are many MAST dom's to be viewed and searched by all our ST members.

There is an auction planned for the November meeting and because I don't have the source for auction items as I have had in the past, I still have a few to bring. It would be a good time for you to bring your items to be auctioned also. Remember that you can ask for your price and the Club will begin the auction at $1.00 above that price so that the Club always makes at least a dollar on every item.

Please come to the November meeting, we have lots to catch up on and more to plan. See you all in November.

Date: Mon, 11 Oct 1999 11:59:18 +0200

From: Jindrich Kubec 

Hello!

Released beta of Adir, disk image extractor.
Disk image extractor. Can extract files from such images:
Atari DOS 2.0/2.5 and compatibles
Atari DOS 3.0
MyDOS
Sparta DOS and compatibles (BeWe)
K-Boot images
HowFen DOS
JonW multiboot
boot images (extracts boot sector only)
Works directly with XFD, ATR, DCM & SCP formats (no need to convert them).

Released ChkRom, rom images decompiler.
Quick & dirty single pass disassembler for 8K/16K rom images.

Released AExt, file extracting program.
Simple utility for extracting binary blocks, outputs also Atari binary blocks.

--
Jindroush 
See http://www.asw.cz/~kubecj for Atari 8bit utils!

Hamfest and Space Christmas party

This year's Hamfest was held at River Centre in downtown, St. Paul. Although there were plenty of people at the show . I saw only one Atarian, Rachel Thompson. I was looking for our club newsletter editor, Mike Schmidt, but our paths didn't cross. I searched the whole show for Atari software or hardware, but there was none to found. Maybe at the Midwinter Madness show in the winter, I will find some Atari stuff. I had the chance to sit in on a seminar at the show, which was very interesting. It was about how to build your own amateur radio. This seminar lasted about a hour. Hey can you believe it! At a bar I saw a Atari commercial on their TV. I thought Atari was dead!

Well fellow Atarians, it is that time of the year. December is the clubs' annual Christmas party. Next meeting we will have to discuss party plans. Everybody please show up so we can plan a exciting Christmas party. Can you believe it the clubs' 17th Christmas party. Let's hope the party doesn't get canceled due to a big snow storm. A potluck list will be brought to the November meeting for people to sign-up to bring a food item. That is if we decide to have a potluck Christmas party. Just think about it turkey, salad, Greg's ice cold pop, and the Fitzpatricks delicious cake! See you all at the November Space meeting.

Mike Weist

O C T O B E R 1 9 9 9

ATARI'S PONG BRINGS THE FUN HOME AGAIN PONG, Q*BERT AND MISSILE COMMAND ARE BACK IN A BIG, NEW 3D WAY!

BEVERLY, Mass. (October 28, 1999) - The 1974 holiday season was a high-scoring time in history as Atari's arcade hit Pong came home and ignited the home interactive entertainment industry. Just in time for the 1999 holiday season, Atari's doing it again with a new 3D Pong for the PC and Sony PlayStation(r).

In new Pong, players go head-to-head, table-tennis-style, lobbing the ball back and forth in pursuit of high score. Sharp reflexes are key, because this time Pong packs the playing field with mischievous penguins, jagged terrain and many more challenges over 20 new levels. Pong is available in stores now at a suggested retail price of $19.95 (PC) and $29.95 (PSX).

Hasbro Interactive's first game for the Atari line, Frogger(r), hopped straight to the top of the charts selling more than 2.5 million copies on PC and Sony Playstation since its debut. This summer, Centipede slithered onto the scene wowing action- and arcade-lovers alike with classic gameplay and added '90s features. In response to the success of these front-running titles, Hasbro Interactive will release a sequel to Frogger in 2000.

Other blasts from the past dressed up for the future include cool new versions of classics Missile Command and Q*bert for the PC and Sony PlayStation. In Q*bert, the premise of this puzzle game may be familiar but the playing fields are a whole new frontier. Players navigate cube mazes, turning all squares the same color before Q*bert's zany enemies - Ugg, Wrong-Way and Coily the Snake - foil the plans. Only this time, Q*bert's truly a hip hopper on a mission to blast through fantastic space worlds to save his home! %*&^%!! Q*bert will bounce onto retail store shelves in November at suggested retail price of $29.95 (PC and PSX).

1980s "must-have" Missile Command has come full-circle, literally, as players must protect six cities from incoming missile attacks - blasting them from every angle! This ultimate twist on the classic Atari space-war game is sure to delight a new generation of players. The new Missile Command will fly onto retail store shelves in November at a suggested retail price of $29.95 (PC) and $39.95 (PSX).

Also joining the Atari lineup this fall will be the first Atari title for the Sega Dreamcast(r), Centipede. Exploiting the power of this new gaming console to the fullest, Centipede for the Sega Dreamcast will feature superior graphics and special effects as well as Incorporating new adventure elements.

Hasbro Interactive is also introducing new game oncepts that capture the essence of Atari's fast action-play. There's the character-driven puzzle game Glover for Sony PlayStation and futuristic sports action game Nerf ArenaBlast PC.

For more information on Hasbro Interactive's Atari games, visit www.atari.com

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.