@database "ar414.guide"
@Node MAIN "Amiga Report Online Magazine #4.14 -- November 13, 1996"
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  November 13, 1996           @{" Turn the Page " link MENU}             Issue No. 4.14
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Subject: Apollo 1240 review Hi Jason, I want to thank you for your recent two-part review of the Apollo 1240 accelerator in Amiga Report. Like many other Amiga owners, I'm in the process now of assembling a powerful-enough system to tide me over until Viscorp/Phase 5/Pios and the other players can produce the next generation of Amiga computers. I would never call myself a cutting-edge person, as I seem to acquire a technology several years after it's been on the market. For instance, I am typing this letter right now on an Amiga 1000 with hard drive, 2.1 operating system, and 4 megs of ram. It's not spectacular, but it gets me by. But with the lack of Amiga research and development over the last three years, when my new 1200 system is fully assembled, I will have a nearly state-of-the-art Amiga! I'm elated, but it's also a very weird sensation. I recently took advantage of the SAS Institute's SAS/C "giveaway" and plan to throw my weight into the freeware/shareware arena as soon as the system is assembled and I figure out how the compiler works. Every little bit helps, right? Getting back to my reason for writing, as much as I liked your review, I have still not completely decided which board to purchase. I really *want* an 040, and until recently figured Phase 5's new 1240 T/ERC would suit me. Then I realized that when they say "tower", they mean they used an existing motherboard, and the contraption is so big that it may only fit in a custom expansion adapter like the one in Micronic's (sp?) 1200 expansion tower. I was hoping Phase 5 would have put all the large compo- nents on one side of the board, so it would fit much better when I hack my 1200 motherboard into a PC desktop case. Mounting the motherboard on 1-inch standoffs isn't an option, so I've gone back to the drawing board. I'm looking for more information on Apollo products, and maybe you or your readers can help? For starters 1) Exactly who manufactures these boards? Your board was supplied by Datakompaniet in Norway, but reading their web page, they seem to be just an Amiga distributor/vendor. (My Norwegian is rusty ;-) Does the manufacturer have an email address and/or web page? 2) Can you point me to any other reviews of the 1240 and it's SCSI adapter? Some detailed information, especially on the speed and compati- bility of the SCSI unit, would be welcome. I'd be grateful if anyone could send me photocopied reviews from Amazing Computing, UK Magazines, or even smaller Amiga newsletters. 3) You mentioned in your review that the mouse pointer had a habit of locking-up intermittently. Since then, have you any idea if this fault was limited to your test system, or if it's representative of all Apollo 1240's? Have any other 1240 owners noticed compatibility problems? Speci- fically (and I get some of these questions from a nice Blizzard 1230 faq ;-), do software failures ever reset the clock? (I assume it has a clock.) Does it ever have problems accessing the hard drive (or the early startup menus) after a warm boot or cold boot? Is the processor socketed or surface-mounted? I assume the board takes advantage of all instruction and data, burst and cache modes, and fast simms (60ns or better)? 4) One major concern is the lack of a disable option, but even though this is not included, I wonder if it isn't possible in a crude way through some combination of wires attached to a few lines on the expansion connector that would simply disable autoconfig during a cold boot? This is something I would like to ask Apollo's engineering team. If you or any of your readers can help me wrestle with these questions, I would love to receive some email. And if you have an Apollo product, how about posting a review to comp.sys.amiga.reviews? ;-) Thanks, Todd Oberly taoberly@delphi.com I addressed Todd's issues in e-mail, but a few things bear mentioning. ACT, the Apollo series manufacturer, does not have any online contact points at present. As to a crude disable--I'm not qualified to judge on that, but regardless, it's not the same thing if you have to hack it up. - Jason --- --- --- --- --- From: matix@southcom.com.au (Jon Klooster) Subject: AR Reader Mail Hi- Just some food for thought: Being a recent addition to the Amiga_on_the_Net Family, I have started to discover that a rather annoyingly large proportion of new applications tend to require MUI or similar interfaces. Perhaps I am looking at things the wrong way, but surely one of the main advantages the Amiga has over other (and I never type the names on MY Amiga) types of computer is that the operating system is trim taut and functionally terrific. So why the trend to bog down the system with MUI type background apps? If thats what you people want then go out and get [insert seven letter word meaning a hole in wall to see through] and run it on one of those other doorstop things! So please all you developers/programmers out there, sure make your applications MUI/whatever compatible, but please, please don't make it a neccesity. Jon.. MUI is a big point of contention among a lot of Amiga users. The fact is that a lot of applications these days are turning to third-party interface standards or "helpers", such as MUI and ClassAct. Some regard MUI as one of the few things that keeps Amiga applications looking modern and attractive, others regard it as a scourge. Personally, I've learned to live with MUI and appreciate that it does, indeed, make a lot of applications look better than their non-MUI contemporaries. -Jason @endnode @node OPINION1 "ChequeMarcs" @toc OPINION =========================================================================== ChequeMarcs Michael A. Piva mpiva@gpu.srv.ualberta.ca =========================================================================== What in the world are ChequeMarcs? Well, simply put, it is an idea I came up with after reading Amiga Report 4.13. A while back I remember thinking to myself... "Very few people actually register shareware programs. In fact, I'm one of them. That's not very good but I just don't have the spare money, nor do I want to put up with the hassle of figuring out how many DM's are in a Canadian dollar or mailing away a cheque. The fact that's I have have bad experiences in the past does not help either. wouldn't it be nice to just TRADE programs over the internet?" To clarify this... say I develop a shareware game and decide that people can register it for $20. Later I download a game from the Aminet (written by Bob) and I love the game, however, it's only the first level and Bob wants $20 for me to register it. But, say Bob has played my game and really likes it and wants to register it as well. Wouldn't it make more sense for me to TRADE a registered version of my game for a resistered version of his? This way, no money would be involved and it all can be done over the internet. It would be EASY and SAFE. This is where ChequeMarcs come into play. Jonathan Gapen wrote an interesting article in Amiga Report talking about shareware developers using E-Cash. Well, let's forget regular money altogether and create ChequeMarcs. In the above situation, what if Bob loves my game but I don't care for his? The trading system won't work then. If Bob wants to get a registered copy of my game, he just pays me 20CM. This 20CM now does me no good in the REAL world but I could spend my 20CM on another shareware program. Or, I could save my 20CM and wait until someone else registers my game so now I have 40CM and can now afford to register Fred's great new utility (which costs 35CM). The great thing about this system is that involves no real money and still stimulates shareware development. After all, I'd be much more willing to develop shareware programs for the Amiga if I knew that it would give me credit to register some of my favorite shareware programs. The Needs: (What do we need to start using ChequeMarcs?) First, we need a group of people to organize the project (I've come up with the general concept but I am FAR from qualified to work out all the tiny details myself). This is my main focus for now. If you want to volunteer please e-mail me at mpiva@gpu.srv.ualberta.ca We need to set up some sort of online bank to handle the "money" (and, of course, people experienced with security on the Internet to protect the "money" from hackers). Then we need to advertise ChequeMarcs to the Amiga shareware developers, convincing them of the benefits of using such a system. Note to developers: I'm not asking you to ask for ChequeMarcs instead of regular money but use them as an alternative. The Problems: ChequeMarcs, like all innovative ideas, are not perfect right from the start. There are some obvious problems with my idea. Some of these problems include: if there aren't any ChequeMarcs in existence right now, where will they come from. If you earn ChequeMarcs by people registering your programs, how do you earn ChequeMarcs if you're not a developer. I am aware of such problems but I believe the idea is still a good one and these problems can be solved. I already have a few ideas to solve some of the problems but I would rather discuss such things with the Organizing Team first. Why "ChequeMarcs" There's a few answers to that question. Obviously "Cheques" and "Marcs" are forms of money. The term "Checkmark" has definite Amiga connotations. So, I put them together and got "ChequeMarcs". Also, I personally think that "ChequeMarcs" is more of a creative name than something like "AmiCash" or "AmiCredits" or something similar. @endnode @node OPINION2 "Question Of Support" @toc OPINION =========================================================================== Question of Support Robert Pigford cyrano@goodnet.com =========================================================================== Whom should I be supporting with my Amiga-stuff purchasing dollars: The local shopkeeper or the advertisers and developers in the only remaining US Amiga magazine (AC/Amiga)? Both are important, of course. Without the developers, one could argue that there would be nothing for the local shop to sell. And don't all retail sales of things flow some money back to the developers? In fact, the money's already gone to the developer at that point; I buy product from the dealer who got it from a distributor who got it from the developer/manufacturer. The developer's had his money for quite some time once I take the product home. But AC/Amiga is worth supporting, IMHO. If we want a greater-than-48-page issue again, there need to be more advertisers. Even though most readers buy the magazine for the editorial content, it's the ads that pay the bills. We, as Amiga users, need to be telling developers and manufacturers that we saw their adverts in AC/Amiga, and back that up with hard dollar purchases. I recently pulled out all my old Amiga magazines. I have Amiga World running back to December, 1991, when I bought my first Amiga, an A2000HDP. I have every AC's Tech ever published (and all the coverdisks). I even have the odd issue of .info and Amiga Video/Graphics lying about. The variety and content in those old magazines is amazing. Many of the techniques and ideas still have practical application today. I read some of the product announcements and beat my head against the wall that I didn't buy them when I had the chance (of course, I didn't have the money at the time...). How many computer magazines can you say have information that's still useful today? The PCWorlds and whatnot are merely showcases of the latest & greatest. Rarely is there something to help you really get more effective use out of your system. The Amiga magazines, however, are chock full of ideas and techniques and suggestions and methods -- all aimed at making our favorite computer more friendly and/or useful. That creativity is what makes the Amiga community so powerful. That power is why I still have an Amiga and continue to spend money to upgrade it. That's where the value in an Amiga magazine is. That's why I don't want to lose AC/Amiga. So what am I doing about it? Well, for starters, I'm stepping back through my software and making sure I'm registered on all the shareware I actually use; that will help the private developers. I'm upgrading all my programs to their latest versions (as much as possible, anyway); that will help the commercial developers. I've given myself a budget for Computer Stuff every week/month, which I spend at my local Amiga shop (Wentek Computers in Scottsdale, Arizona, (602)483-7200). The proprietor, Rob Wendling, has always been friendly and helpful to me, and he keeps stuff on the shelves to browse. That's important to me -- I like to browse and impulse buy once in a while. I'm writing letters to the developers and manufacturers of all the stuff I'm buying and using now, letting them know how I learned of their products and that I want them to support AC/Amiga with advertising dollars; AC/Amiga is my primary source of new Amiga-related information, and I turn there first when looking for information on an upcoming intended purchase. And finally, I'm trying to do something to help increase the volume of editorial content in AC/Amiga by writing for them. I've been cutting my teeth by writing for the MECCA newsletter, and have some ideas to submit to Don Hicks, managing Editor of AC/Amiga. I've requested a copy of their Writer's Guide, to prepare myself more fully. I don't know if I'll actually be published or not, but at least I'm trying. Through it all, of course, I'm actively supporting my user's group (MECCA). I participate in the regular meetings, and host a technical presentation every so often. I share my recent Amiga experiences (good and bad) with the group. I help others with their technical troubles. I participate -- that's the key. Many members are in fact active in several local clubs, and I applaud them. So I started this message with questions of 'whom do I support?'. Funny how the answer turns out to be myself. By supporting all these organizations with my dollars and my energy, I help sustain and improve the Amiga community and market. It's a logical economical cycle: When products in a given market sell well, more vendors are enticed into that market. The volume of available products goes up, which gives me more options for my purchasing dollar. It's a positive cycle, don't you think? 8^) So what are you going to do? @endnode @node NEWS1 "UltraAccounts V3.1a" @toc NEWS TITLE UltraAccounts 3.1a AUTHOR Richard Smedley PO Box 59 Sutton-In-Ashfield Nottinghamshire NG17 3HP rsmedley@cix.compulink.co.uk DESCRIPTION An intuitive & easy-to-use accounts program, specially designed to be suitable for non-computer-users as well as experts. Features include: - Multiple accounts, with optional minimum & maximum limits (for entering credit card limits, minimum bank balances, etc.) - Debit & Credit standing orders, and timed transfers. - Budgeting functions. - Tags, for grouping various types of transaction. - Transactions entered by timed events (e.g. standing orders) can be edited or deleted *without* duplicate entries being created. - Easily predefine the details of commonly-used transactions and transfers (e.g. doing the weekly shopping) - Reminders to make sure you don't miss important events, like birthdays/anniversaries, or bills that need paying. - Pie, bar and line graphs, with optional future projections. - Encrypted files, optionally password protected. - Compatible with UltraPayAdvice for entering wage details. NEW FEATURES - Tags, for grouping various types of transaction. - Budgeting facilities. - Minor bug fixes. SPECIAL REQUIREMENTS - AmigaOS 2.0 or better, at least 1 meg ram, reqtools.library - A hard drive and 2 meg ram are both recommended AVAILABILITY Available via FTP from Aminet sites. ftp://wuarchive.wustl.edu/pub/aminet/biz/misc/ultraacc.lha (134938 bytes) PRICE The unregistered version is fully functional, but will display shareware reminders from time to time. Standard registration fee is 10 Pounds Sterling (or equivalent) DISTRIBUTABILITY Shareware, unregistered copies are freely distributable. UltraAccounts is (C) Richard Smedley 1996 @endnode @node NEWS2 "Photogenics 2.0 CD-ROM" @toc NEWS Please forward to whom it concerns: Zipperware is proud to annouce, that Zipperware is selling and distributing Photogenics 2.0 CD-Rom for the United States. Photogenics is the premeire 24-bit image manipulation package. Photogenics has scored very high in all Amiga publications. Requirements are a 5 mb hard drive space, 68020, 3.0+, 4mb ram, CD-rom Recommendations are 10mb hard drive space, 68030+, 10mb ram, Graphic card Check out Almathera's web page for more info. http://www.almathera.co.uk/genix/genix.html It is available from Zipperware directly at $179.95 or from various dealers. Upgrades for $79.95 for registered users of v1.25. Fax, email or snail mail: Name, Address, Form of Payment (Credit Card, Money Order or Check) and personal registration number. Thank you, -- "Who needs windows, when you have an Amiga" Zipperware 76 South Main St. Seattle, WA 98104 206 223 1107 Phone 206 223 9395 FAX @endnode @node NEWS3 "PCom//CD Series" @toc NEWS PC Communication Inc., Hong Kong, a well recognized OEM manufacturer of peripheral devices, has unified its PCom//CD Series of CD-ROM drive kits: > PCom//CD PARALLEL 1.2MB/SEC > PCom//CD PCMCIA PC > PCom//CD PCMCIA AMIGA Some unique features and benefits for volume buyers are: - Use of low cost ATAPI CD-ROM drives with most personal computers. - Supports almost any ATAPI CD-ROM drive up to 12x speed. - Rate optimization ensures a maximum data transfer rate: Parallel 1.2 MB/sec, PCMCIA 2.0 MB/sec. - Checksum protection ensures error free reading. - Long term investment protection due to universal driver support. - Only one external power adapter for all ATAPI CD-ROM drives, and for other PCom// Series. At the same time PCom would like to announce > PCom//120FLOPPY < which is in a prototype stage and will be produced from November 1996. We would like to get inquiries from the Amiga community, whether PCom//120FLOPPY is interesting for volume buyers for use of the removable 120MB Floppy under AmigaDOS. PCom also has been developing an innovative > PCom//CD-RECORDER < offering all advantages of PCom//CD combined with 100% error free writing of Master CD-ROMs. Production is scheduled for spring 1997. For more information, please visit our newly established Internet presence at http://eExpert.com/pcom-hk/ . Inquiries from volume buyers are welcome. Please, only use the provided eMail form to submit a qualifyed inquiry. Thank you for your attention, PC Communication Ltd., Hong Kong International Sales http://eExpert.com/pcom-hk/pc_mail.htm @endnode @node NEWS4 "IAM Open Letter" @toc NEWS 06-NOV-1996 Dear Amiga Community Member: Please help us, we've been censored! We at IAM are offering new low sale prices on our Amiga products, but we are now even more dependent than ever on word-of-mouth to help us sell them. For the last six months, IAM has been running a full-page advertisement in Amazing Computing, the last general-interest Amiga print magazine left in North America. Our ad gives information on all of our products. As of the December, 1996 issue, when we were to announce a new product and major discounts on other products, Amazing Computing will no longer allow us to pay to advertise our full product line in their magazine. Details of this story are available on our Web site, but the most important issue for us is that we have to get the word out about our new low sale prices. The Amiga community is too important to be torn apart by arguments or grudges, or to be hampered by censorship. We still ask our North American customers to continue supporting Amazing Computing, just as we ask them to support all Amiga publishers. Call or write to Amazing Computing today. Please say "I support free speech," as you subscribe or renew: Amazing Computing, PIM Publications, P.O. Box 2140, Fall River, MA 02722-2140 1-508-678-4200, 1-800-345-3360, fax: 1-508-675-6002. We also ask you to support IAM. We need your help to spread the word about our products. Please tell your friends about us, try to get our products listed in your user group newsletter, put us on your BBS, link to us on your Web page, write positive reviews of our products, or whatever you can do. Our web page is at http://www.iam.com. If there is anything we can do to help you get the word out, please contact us. We are especially in need of help reaching people who can't find out about us on the Internet. Thank you in advance for whatever help you can give us. Sincerely, Dale L. Larson el Presidente Intangible Assets Manufacturing @endnode @node NEWS5 "IAM Sale" @toc NEWS *** About IAM and our Products *** The best way to get more information about IAM is through the Web: http://www.iam.com We also have an AmigaGuide format catalog of our Amiga products which can be FTP'd from file://ftp.iam.com/biz/iam/iam.lha, and you can get an automatic reply with current information on our products by emailing info@iam.com. Low sale prices valid through 31-Dec-96: * A book on Amiga networking and telecommunications: "Connect Your Amiga! A Guide to the Internet, LANs, BBSs and Online Services" revised second printing (1996) US$19 + s/h, or with 8 freely redistributable disks for only $39 + s/h * Dave Haynie's "The Deathbed Vigil..." video, NTSC or PAL US$19 + s/h (originally $35), or only $35 with the T-shirt below... * The Deathbed Vigil T-Shirt, $17+s/h (size S, L, XL, XXL) includes eject logo on the front and signatures of most Amiga engineers on the back. * DiskSalv4 -- the commercial release of Dave's disk utilities US$30 + only $39 + s/h * Dave Haynie's "The Deathbed Vigil..." video, NTSC or PAL US$19 + s/h (originally $35), or only $35 with the T-shirt below... * The Deathbed Vigil T-Shirt, $17+s/h (size S, L, XL, XXL) includes eject logo on the front and signatures of most Amiga engineers on the back. * DiskSalv4 -- the commercial release of Dave's disk utilities US$30 + s/h (upgrade from DS3 for $10 +s/h) * MRBackup 2.5 $45+s/h (upgrade from earlier registered versions for $10+s/h) * SPECIAL: DiskSalv4 and MRBackup together for only $60! * The Amiga-only peer-to-peer networking software Amiga Envoy, US$45 + s/h (2-user) * MegaBall4, a tres cool video game, $30 + s/h Get a Free XL MegaBalls T-shirt when you order MB4 at the regular price, or get MegaBall4 for only $19 + s/h! * DICE 3.2 C Development Environment (full price $100+s/h, students and competitive upgrades only $75 +s/h) Upgrade from DICE 3.x at ftp://ftp.iam.com/biz/iam/dice/! * "Torn Shapes of Desire: Internet Erotica", book, $14.95 In addition to the major new discounts, our December (and future) ads would also have indicated that we will be at the "Gateway Computer Show -- Amiga 97" in St. Louis on March 15 & 16, 1997. The organizer of that event, Bob Scharp, has already indicated that he'd be happy to have us sell our new book at that show. We don't accept COD orders, but do accept checks in US dollars, as well as Visa and MC (no Amex or Discover). Our shipping and handling charges are flat-rate: you can order up to one of each of our products for the same charge. We ship via USPS or UPS at our option. In the US: $6 for ground, or $9 for air. Elsewhere: $9 for ground and $15 for air. Our Amiga products are available through Amiga dealers world wide. Small dealers in North America can order from Software Hut. For end-users without a local dealer, three of our larger mail-order dealers (in alphabetical order) are: Safe Harbor (1 800 544 6599), Software Hut (1 800 932 6442), and Zipperware (206 223 1107). info@iam.com -- bot mails you current info on our products sales@iam.com -- to ask questions or to place an order. Intangible Assets Manufacturing 828 Ormond Avenue Drexel Hill, PA 19026-2604 USA http://www.iam.com voice: +1 610 853 4406 (orders only) fax: +1 610 853 3733 @endnode @node NEWS6 "Executive V2.0" @toc NEWS TITLE Executive VERSION 2.00 (October 28, 1996) AUTHOR Petri Nordlund (petrin@megabaud.fi) (http://www.megabaud.fi/~petrin/) DESCRIPTION Executive brings real multitasking to AmigaOS. Executive is a UNIX-like process scheduler for Amiga. It also has plenty of other features previously available only in larger operating systems. Executive improves the responsiveness of your Amiga. One CPU intensive application no longer causes the whole system to crawl. You can start many CPU intensive applications and the system still feels as if it would be totally idle. The Executive package also includes many useful client programs that let you control tasks and monitor what is going on in your system. The core of Executive is a scheduler that recalculates task priorities based on system load average and task's recent CPU usage. The scheduler will give high priority to interactive tasks and low priority to CPU intensive tasks. Lets say you are printing a document from a word processor. You can't do much else while the document is being printed. This isn't multitasking. With Executive you could also do some heavy rendering and C-compiling in the background at the same time. You could surf the web with your favorite browser without even noticing all these programs running in the background. Executive consists of a server and clients. The server is run in the background and it takes care of scheduling, CPU usage calculations and many other things. Some important features of the server: - precise (1/1000 seconds) CPU usage timing - six different scheduling algorithms - load averages - process identifiers - process group identifiers - accounting - focus - task with active window gets more CPU time - MultiUser support The client programs are: Acct Accounting daemon ALoad Display load average or CPU usage ALoad3D Display load averages in 3D Commander General task manager Ctp Extended ChangeTaskPri Dashboard The mother of all meters Kill Extended Break Lastcomm List last commands executed Meter Display system information Nice Run programs with lower scheduling priority Ps Process status displayer Pstree Display child-parent relationships Renice Renice a task Sa Display accounting statistics Stat Display some misc. information Timer Time shell and Workbench programs Top Display information about top CPU tasks Uptime Display system uptime and load averages Executive is fully compatible with all Amiga computers running AmigaOS release 2.04 or newer. Executive is the highest rated item of shareware CU Amiga magazine has ever awarded at 98%. NEW FEATURES - Schedulers have been improved and a real multi-level feedback queue scheduler, found on most UNIX systems, is now available. - New client, Dashboard, lets you open multiple windows and interactively create all kinds of meters on them and adjust their parameters. Everything is user configurable. - PatchControl and ScreenNotify support. - CPU usage can be displayed with Amiga's power LED. - The server and some clients are now commodities. Scheduling can be disabled and enabled without restarting the server. - ExecutiveAPI is a new low-level API for application programs that wish to directly control scheduling. - Tasks can now be scheduled as a group, if necessary. SPECIAL REQUIREMENTS AmigaOS 2.04 or newer is required to run Executive. AVAILABILITY Any Aminet site, for example: ftp://ftp.luth.se/pub/aminet/util/misc/Executive.lha Executive has a WWW-page which has links to several Aminet sites and also some nice screenshots. The URL of the page is: http://www.megabaud.fi/~petrin/Executive.html PRICE The freely redistributable version doesn't lack any crucial features so it can be used without registering. Registered users get process accounting, ALoad3D and Meter clients and 5 additional scheduling algorithms. Registration fee is $15 and it's also accepted in many other currencies. DISTRIBUTABILITY Copyright © 1995-96 Petri Nordlund, freely redistributable. @endnode @node NEWS7 "Syzygy Web Site" @toc NEWS Hi everyone. This message is being sent out to registered owners of "The Digital Universe", and though it is not completely "Digital Universe"-specific, we thought we would let you know of a few changes to our web site. Essentially, we've added two new features: - a WebBoard: This allows you to post public messages and carry on discussion with other users about a wide variety of topics. We encourage Digital Universe owners to use this service to talk with others who share your interest in astronomy. - a Guest Book: Please take a moment to sign our guest book and provide us with any comments you might have about our services. Both of these services are accessible from our home page at http://www.syz.com/ And if you haven't already discovered our "Astronomical Image Library", we also maintain the largest searchable index of astronomical images available on the Internet - 17,000 and growing. Join the thousands who are currently using this resource to find images of any particular astronomical object. It's accessible at http://www.syz.com/images/ We thank you for your continued support! -- Syzygy Research & Technology Ltd. |email: sales@syz.com, support@syz.com B 1204-17a St. NE | images@syz.com, townnet@syz.com Calgary, AB, T2E 4V5, CANADA |- Creators of "The Digital Universe" Phone: (403) 276-1250 |- home of "The Astronomical Image Library" WWW: http://www.syz.com/ | & "The Alberta Town & Business Network" @endnode @node NEWS8 "Personal Paint 7" @toc NEWS Personal Paint 7 and New GIF Policy: Unisys has updated its policies on the distribution of GIF software. Free distribution without a license apparently is now impossible, unless it is from a charitable institution. Shareware software must have a license from Unisys, and the software must include two limitations: 1) the GIF component must not be usable until the software is registered and 2) the software must kill itself after 30 days of unregistered use. Both 1+2 are a requirement, one is not enough. All previous statements have been removed from the Unisys web site, including the archive of press releases. The whole story is at . Our packages such as the forthcoming Personal Paint 7 have a GIF component which even suppports GIF animation, and is licensed from Unisys. @endnode @node NEWS9 "Convergence International" @toc NEWS Convergence International Press Release 11th November 1996 CIPR-001 New user group, Convergence International, is formed A new user group for users of non-Wintel computers, has been recently created. Convergence International was formed with the intention of bringing together the non-Wintel community to present a unified front to face the Wintel threat, as well as looking to the future and supporting the emerging Network Computer and Set Top Box technologies. Convergence International's main aims are to: (a) Support users of non-Wintel computers By providing extensive technical information, advice on software and hardware, and helping new users, Convergence International will offer support for new and existing users of non-Wintel computers (including Acorn, Amiga, Apple, and PowerPC, please see below for a full list). (b) Promote intercompatibility Convergence International aims to bring the minor computer companies together to fight the powerful market share of IBM compatibles, something which no small company can hope to take on alone. As part of this working together we believe these platforms need to be intercompatible, handling files from the other supported platforms, as well as recognising all major international standards. To help this cause Convergence International has a sub division, the Convergence International Development Group (CIDG), which will work on producing programmes simultaneously for supported platforms, as well as file format convertors, development tools, and other useful utilities. (c) Highlight the strengths and successes of non-Wintel technology By providing information on supported platforms, Convergence International will create a reference for people looking to purchase a computer. We intend to produce a library of system set ups, detailing required hardware, software, and add ons, to perform a wide variety of tasks. Demonstrating to purchasers that non-Wintel technology can accomplish the end results they desire, often more efficiently and easily, will encourage users to switch from Wintel. After all, the majority of people are not interested in the type of computer they use as long as it does the job they bought it for. Convergence International invites users of supported platforms, and people interested in associated technology, to join the group. Membership is totally free, people interested in joining should simply e-mail with their details, or use the form provided on our web site. Members have opportunity to participate in various projects to help Convergence International to fulfil its aims, but, of course, a member can do as little or as much as they want. Convergence International also welcomes corporate members, sponsors, or funding of any kind. Convergence International supports the following platforms: Acorn, Amiga, Apple, ARM, BeBox, NCs, PIOS, PowerPC, Psion, STBs. To find out more about Convergence International, please see our web site at http://www.parabbs.demon.co.uk/convergence/, or contact us using any of the methods listed below. Web http://www.parabbs.demon.co.uk/convergence/ E-Mail convergence@rocket.demon.co.uk Address Convergence International 49, St Gilberts Road Bourne Lincs PE10 9XD United Kingdom (Please include SASE for reply) IRC #Converge (EFnet), Sundays/Wednesdays (9pm GMT) --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Convergence International Frequently Asked Questions Version 1.10, 10/11/96 (Draft - please see web site for latest version) Below is a list of questions we are frequently asked by those who are new to Convergence International. If you have any questions that are not asked below, feel free to contact us at convergence@rocket.demon.co.uk. Contents -------- Why the name "Convergence"? Why converge, then? Why is Acorn always listed first? How much does it cost to join Convergence? What do I need to join Convergence? What about your API I've heard mentioned? Will Convergence work closely with the manufacturers of supported platforms? I'm a dealer, why is Convergence of any interest to me? I'm a manufacturer, what about me? I'm a developer, what about me? I'm a user, what about me? Why the name "Convergence"? --------------------------- Convergence symbolises the coming together of Acorn, Amiga, Apple, BeBox, and other non-Wintel users, developers, manufacturers and dealers, under a single banner. Convergence hopes, that by uniting these groups of people, and by helping each other, we will stabilise the non-Wintel market and allow it to grow. The name "Convergence" symbolises the coming together of the Acorn, Amiga, Apple and BeBox operating systems under one hardware standard, the PowerPC Platform. The PowerPC Platform is a key part of Convergence's desktop computer marketing strategy. The name "Convergence" also symbolises the converging of household appliances, namely the television, communications and cable industries under the Set-Top-Box and Network Computer technologies of the future, which will bring a new age of competition, in a brand new market. Why converge, then? ------------------- Convergence is necessary when you have a great force that is affecting many smaller enemies. In this case, the Wintel/Microsoft monopoly is having, in our opinion, a pronounced effect on the rest of the computer industry that is both damaging and unhealthy. We must unite and stand together if we hope to make the Wintel/Microsoft monopoly less pronounced, and their competitors flourish. Why is Acorn always listed first? --------------------------------- This isn't intentional! :) There was some debate in our early days what order they should be listed in. Eventually, we agreed alphabetically was the best way, as then there is no bias. Naturally, Acorn comes before Amiga comes before Apple comes before Be, so Acorn, Amiga, Apple, Be is our preferred order. How much does it cost to join Convergence? ------------------------------------------ Nothing. Convergence is a free to join user group. Membership does not commit you to anything, and how much is contributed is left up to the individual members. All we do ask (and this is by no means a requirement) is that you contribute something to the group, by either joining in on one of regular IRC conferences (channel #Converge on EFnet), participating in one of the ongoing group user projects, help with development, or translate a portion of our website into your language. If you don't have enough time to contribute, then you can help simply by displaying our banner (due soon) on your website with a link to our website, or by advertising your membership to Convergence International plus our webaddress on your E-Mail and News signatures. What do I need to join Convergence? ----------------------------------- Presently, you need an online connection via the Internet. However, support channels are being built up for BBSs (Support BBSs connected via ConvergeNet network), plus recently renamed Convergence Report will be distributed as widely as possible, and can be sent by post if you send a disk and postage to us. You can, of course, include submissions or work of your own on this disk, to contribute to the group, and this would be highly welcome. What about your API I've heard mentioned? ----------------------------------------- Presently, we are developing a multi-platform API system that will allow developers to write their software and unleash it to a wide variety of platforms simultaneously. We are presently in negotiations with another group to participate in the development of their own API, to avoid an unhealthy split of two rival APIs. The outcome of the negotiation will determine if we continue work on our own version or co-operate with their own and share rights and responsibilities equally between the two groups. We will let you know the outcome. Will Convergence work closely with the manufacturers of supported platforms? ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Oh, yes. We will monitor closely the activities of our supported platforms, and do our best to help. We hope to establish a healthy dialogue and communications between Convergence and those manufacturers, developers and dealers. I'm a dealer, why is Convergence of any interest to me? ------------------------------------------------------- Convergence understands that your profit margins for standard IBM-compatible PCs are low and shrinking, and it's a cut-throat market. We realise you'd rather sell platforms with a higher margin, but are frightened they won't sell and you shouldn't stock them. Convergence is trying it's best to attract as much interest as possible to these platforms, and to divert attention away from the more mainstream, low margin, systems. By supporting Convergence and seeing it is successful in it's aims, you are helping to increase sales of non-Wintel computers, increasing your profit margin and thus your profits. Convergence will take care of the issues of supporting the hardware and software, avoiding the users coming back to you all the time and hogging down your support department (if you have one). Please feel free to join Convergence, and display our banner on your website. Please help us help you! All dealers who join are awarded the honorary Convergence Preferred Dealer award. We're working on a better name and logo right now. We'll even provide some support for you on the WWW if you don't have your own webspace yet! Of course, it's your job to keep up the support and respect the non-Wintel platforms. If we receive bad reports, you'll lose the award fairly quickly. If you work hard and keep up the support, you'll gain respect and our support. I'm a manufacturer, what about me? ---------------------------------- If you're a manufacturer, you already know how Convergence can be of help. We are encouraging growth and competition in the industry, which will help your product sell in higher volumes, rather than more common and mainstream hardware and software. This means increased sales and profits. Again, please join and display our banner on your website. We need you to help us help you! Convergence-joined manufacturers are Convergence Preferred Manufacturers and get a free listing in our Manufacturers section (due soon). I'm a developer, what about me? ------------------------------- If you develop for one of the platforms for profit, you know your profit is much lower than the mainstream alternatives. You still do it, as you'll know you'll enjoy it, and that those platforms deserve to succeed. But your profit margins are shrinking. You are faced with a dilemma now. You must switch. Or do you? With our multi-platform API, you will be able to develop for all the non-Wintel machines simultanenously. One development group, one budget, multiple platforms. This means a tremendous boost in sales. Now you have two options: earn a decent wage and still not support the mainstream platform(s), or jump ship and help the monopoly which almost crushed you before. Help us help you, join and display our banner on your website, software manuals, etc! We'll make the rest easy. And of course, you will be mentioned in our developers list as a Convergence Preferred Developer! We'll even take care of WWW support if you don't have your own site yet. I'm a user, what about me? -------------------------- You are by far the most important of all categories! You're the people, the general public, who buy from those above. You can make a tremendous difference. Keep supporting those who are supporting the non-Wintel markets, YOUR markets. They're helping you, so help them! Unite together! Stop attacking the Acorn, Amiga, Apple, Be - they're not your enemies! They're in as much trouble as your platform is. Instead, band together and help each other! Remember who and what your mutual threat is. Support each other, support the non-Wintel platforms in MCIBTYC (My Computer Is Better Than Your Computer) arguments, don't just boast your own - support them all! We must band together now and unite if we are to succeed. Together we are stronger and can do much more to avert the threat the Wintel monopoly is posing to the computer market. Analysts say it, the press say it, those sueing Microsoft say it: the market needs competition in order to survive, evolve and grow. We need your help. Please join us and help make it happen. We're not in this for money. We're in this to help the users, developers, dealers and manufacturers that depend on competition keep going. We're thinking of the workers, the employees, those whose lives may depend on the income from one of the groups that are being cut back because of a fierce monopoly. And if you are one of those we're helping. If you work for one of those developers, manufacturers (computers or peripherals), dealers or are a user or business who depends on those developers, manufacturers and dealers, them join with us and help us succeed! Convergence International FAQ, Version 1.10, 10/11/96 @endnode @node NEWS10 "AWeb-II, v2.1" @toc NEWS ========================================================================== AmiTrix PRESS RELEASE November 7, 1996 ========================================================================== AWeb-II, v2.1 update now available! ----------------------------------- AmiTrix Development is pleased to announce the release of version 2.1 of the popular WWW Browser "AWeb" by Yvon Rozijn. This update, which is free to customers that have purchased the current v2.0 AWeb-II package, is now available from our web page at www.networkx.com/amitrix. If you have not yet registered your copy, please do so as directed on the AWeb page, or if you have, simply fill in the access form and proceed to the transfer link. Postscript versions of the docs and several datatypes are also available from our page. We would also like to appologize for the slight delay in making the update available, but illness and some last minute changes made it un-avoidable. There was no intent to keep our commercial customers waiting, rather we wish to insure that the update is as reliable as possible, and we thank you for your patience. There will be v2.1 AWeb-II packages ready for shipping to new customers by November 15/96. Version 2.1 of AWeb-II will include the following additions: - HTML2.0 & 3.2 support including tables, fully configurable disk cache & browser, configuration/settings window re-designed and split into three sections for improved access, separate control of image and background display, support for client side maps and floating images, access to ClassAct prefs, text search function, graphical print function, more ARexx commands, additional mime types, replaceable button images and transfer animation, greyscale palette support, improved page loading speed and memory usage, colored fonts and style tags, background sounds, popup menu, more compatibility for non-standard HTML code, HTTP cookies, and many other improvements. - Revised and improved FTP, MailTo, and HTTX plug-ins with ARexx macros for configuration & setup. Additional internal MailTo support for AmiTCP & Miami, INet-225 SMTPPost, UUCP SendMail, and external mail using AmigaElm, ADMail, or Voodoo. FTP support for FTPMount and AmiFTP. MSRP for AWeb-II v2.1 is $45.00US / $60.00CAN. Add $5 S&H for direct orders. Dealer and Customer inquiries welcomed, for more information or ordering AmiTrix products, contact us at: AmiTrix Development, 5312 - 47 Street, Beaumont, Alberta, T4X 1H9 Canada Phone or Fax: 1+ 403-929-8459 (Please leave your mailing address, phone/fax number, &/or email address on phone messages when requesting information.) You may also contact us via email at the addresses shown below. Email: sales@amitrix.com or: support@amitrix.com http://www.networkx.com/amitrix/index.html ========================================================================== @endnode @node FEATURE1 "Midwest Amiga Expo" @toc FEATURE =========================================================================== Midwest Amiga Expo Pat Larkin 74246.1077@CompuServe.COM =========================================================================== [Thanks to the Gateway Amiga Club for sharing this article with us. The GAC FLAK newsletter often reprints Amiga Report articles, so we're just catching up. :) -Jason] This is your far-flung correspondent reporting on the Midwest Amiga Expo in metro Columbus, Ohio. Seven of us from ASK gathered in the pre-dawn gloom for the trip and finally got on the road about 8:30. We pulled into the parking lot of the Westerville South High School right at the stroke of noon, only to find we had to walk all the way around the school in the _very_ nippy wind -- we had caught up with the cold front that had passed through Louisville the night before. Once inside, I knew we were in for a treat -- a large room with a dozen or more tables lining the walls and a large central area, all covered by groups of people several layers deep. I estimate there were well over 150 there when we arrived. I had brought along my ancient Polaroid SX-70, and got some halfway decent snaps. There were a couple of guys from our sister group, Gold City of Fort Knox/Radcliff, KY; Shawn Randolph of Silent Paws Productions assembling a portable A1200 with color LCD screen; two shots of master Amiga artist and animator Eric Schwartz (one showing one of our group, but Eric blinked) sitting at his shiny new A4000 Tower and huge 20" TIMM monitor; and Joshua Dinakaran of Wonder Computers International, all the way from Canada. I left the snaps with our scanner professional -- sure hope I get the scans back in time to put some of them in ASK's November newsletter! Eric and his dad, of Weingarten Gallery in Dayton, Ohio, had lots and lots of old and not-so-old hardware and software and quite a few CDs and videos of Eric's work. The CDs and videos sold out by 3 PM. They sold quite a few T-shirts bearing Eric's work as well. The Jesrani family, of Columbus' own Compuquick Media Center had the largest (and busiest) set of tables piled high with all manner of goodies. One of our number added a 68030 accelerator/ram card for his A1200 to his load of booty from this booth. Another of our troup came away with an A2386 Bridgeboard from the Neather Realm Software table, after learning that he could upgrade it to '486 or even '586 clone performance. The man is a (computer) speed freak! There were many user groups represented. Amicon, our hosts, and groups from Michigan, Tennessee, Kentucky and of course St. Louis. The folks at the Gateway table were just getting ready to leave for a wedding by the time I got to their table, but I managed to pick up a copy of the November GAC FLAK (another _very_ nice issue!). Cool mugs, too; are they the color-changing type? A little after 1 PM, the crowd thinned CONSIDERABLY. I wondered if there were some really big game starting until it was pointed out to me that the Toaster/Flyer demo by Steve Easly started at 1. Oh. Well, at least now I could reach the tables and see what all there was to see. In what I thought was a brilliant move, one Saul Hoffman had his loaded A2000 sitting on a table next to a sign reading "Sick Amiga Workshop -- Suggestions Welcome." The poor thing wouldn't boot properly and about 80% of the software on the hard drive(s) wouldn't run. Many people stood about and made dumb suggestions until we finally hit on something. Turns out he had been running a web browser (Voyager, I think) and apparently the image cache had overflowed and corrupted his hard drive, including some system software. We got it to boot properly from a floppy, and all the software on it ran fine, while the hard drive versions still froze. By the time I wandered on, enough had been restored from the backup on the handy internal Syquest 44 that SID would run, making the rest a piece of cake. (I love happy endings!) *B^) It was great putting faces to several people I knew only as names on email or in exchanged newsletters, though the Amicon people were too busy to talk much, and everybody else was too busy scrambling to grab all the goodies they could before it all disappeared. I did manage to nosily ask about attendance. The Amicon people hadn't done an official count, but unofficial estimates placed paid attendance at "well over 250" by 5 PM, so they shouldn't end up suffering from the experience (except for fatigue). Finally, richer by several pieces of hardware, many CDs, videos and software packages and a couple of T-shirts (and poorer by several hundred dollars), our group wended its happy way home, arriving only thirteen hours after we left. We were sorry to have to miss Jason Compton of VIScorp and Don Hicks of Amazing Computing, both scheduled to be there the next day, but it was time to move along home. On the whole trip, the navigator was responsible for only about two and a half wrong turns, none disastrous. On the whole, it was a BLAST! Really makes me look forward to Gateway's Amiga '97 show next March -- that one should be even BIGGER!!! Pat Larkin Amiga Society of Kentuckiana Louisville Kentucky USA @endnode @node FEATURE2 "Games News" @toc FEATURE =========================================================================== Games News By: @{" Ken Anderson " link KEN} =========================================================================== It's happening - the long summer drought of Amiga games is finally coming to an end. Many thought that it was all over for the Amiga, and the games market had died a death. Certainly most of the big US software houses has moved onto greener PC pastures, but the gap left by them has been filled by the small, independant companies. Vulcan Software, the UK-based mainstays of the Amiga games scene, look set to dominate AR's reviews section with several titles currently under development. JetPilot, a flight simulator (bet you worked that one out yourself), will probably be the first of the titles to be released. Billed as "The Realistic Flight Simulator", the claim can be believed if the number of keypresses available count for anything. JetPilot is scheduled for release around the start of November, and we will be reviewing it as soon as we can. Tiny Troops ("Where War is Fantastic!") should be with us at the start of Decemeber. If the slogan reminds you of Cannon Fodder, the game probably will too; tiny aliens slog it out in MicroMachines-style landscapes. From the previews we have, Tiny Troops is shaping up well, combining war-game tactics with fast action. Hell Pigs looks to be the Amiga's biggest ever graphic action adventure, shipping on 22 floppies. More exciting still is the planned CD-ROM version, complete with Full Motion Video, actor-spoken speech and an 18/X certificate on the box. From the pre-release screenshots, Hell Pigs is looking pretty tasty, and hopefully the gameplay will match up when it's released in January 97. Finally, Breed 2000 - a working title which may yet change - is a redevelopment of Damian Tarnwasky's shareware hit Breed 96. When Amiga Report reviewed Breed 96 earlier this year, we rated it highly with comments such as "polished and classy", "a belter of a game" and "easy to play". We therefore wait with baited breath for the commercial version, and we think you should too. Vulcan have also announced their web site is now fully up and running, complete with playable demos of most forthcoming titles. If you can, make sure you visit Vulcan WWW at http://www.vulcan.co.uk. Aside from Vulcan, there's an exciting new release from Apex Software entitled "Blobz". Based heavily on the Psygnosis's classic Lemmings series of games, Blobz sets the player as a god over several ... er ... blobs that, for some reason, need to get from A to B without being killed. From the demo on Aminet (game/demo/blobz.lha), Blobz is an addictive, well-written game that should appeal to anyone who had even a passing fancy for Lemmings. We should be bringing you a full review in the next issue. Other interesting game demo's on Aminet include a Wipeout clone, Slipstream, which is really nothing more than a demo of a game engine, but very promising nonetheless. We also have information on Uropa˛ from Austex software; again, a review is pending. All this plus the imminent release of Chaos Engine 2 from Warner ... Our advice is - don't hang up that joystick yet. @endnode @node FEATURE3 "Amigas In Iran" @toc FEATURE =========================================================================== Amigas In Iran Paymaan Jafari rdc@dci.iran.com =========================================================================== First of all, It's better to introduce myself; I am Paymaan Jafari, Founder of PALAPAL Amiga Programmers Group(0098-21-3153445), & Forum-Op of NONIBM forum of MAVARA BBS(0098 21 8740815) Tehran, Iran. Our group and I have designed, programmed, and made control, medical, etc. systems for about 6 years just using our beloved Amiga. I remember Commodore used to have a branch on Iran, till about 4 years ago, and although it was just importing Amigas here, it was helping us to get our machines as easily as possible. And suddenly Commodore went away and its branch changed its business to other computers, mainly IBM-PC clones :(. At first we were shocked. Until that day, we were arguing to PC & MAC users about the detail and power of AmigaOS and mostly about the hardware, CPU (I believe Motorola is best in making CPU, both for users and programmers.) and finally, the architecture of the Amiga. We were already victorious in these fights. There was no technical reason they could use to show we are wrong! Just some usual things we all have heard from these types of users, like: "If the PC is bad, why are so many people using it?" or "If the Mac is bad, why does it cost so much more?" and the like. :) All weak reasons. We even tried to show our university professors what a strong OS & Hardware Amiga has, and tried to do all our hardware and software projects on Amiga. After retreat of Commodore, Amiga's prices began to get higher and higher, and more people went toward those low-cost Pentiums and DXs. Other Amigans and me tried to get information, software and magazines from around the world to supply users, to recover our Amiga Community moral and to bring users back to our beloved platform. Some came back, because DOS and Windows are really hard to use, especially for users who have worked on an Amiga, but low prices and that damn DOOM game, no useful Persian font and direction compatibility (our caligraphy is right-to-left, but numbers & math are written left-to-right), also the PC bad standard font and char table that uses Amiga control codes for normal chars, causing problems in showing them in normal Amiga Console devices, made others to stay on PCs. To solve our problems we have need of information about new libraries, new capabilities of OS and other info any programmer needs. But I have just 2.04 autodoc series and no idea where in the world I can find up-to-date information. We had no speedy connection to the internet, and the embargo was another problem. Amiga users branched to 3 types or groups: professional animators/musicians who were already the main film/TV-adverts/clips generators, these people have no problems, they easily bring required systems by themselves (it is no problem for a person who is returning to the country to buy and bring a full system), and they are always successful in making the best products in TV. Second group was programmers (us) :-). Everything was against us! No copyright laws, no support from the former Commodore, (even when it was alive), no documents, nothing, nothing, nothing...! Some of us tried to get required information by ourselves. I myself tried to buy AutoDocs and connect to programmers and Commodore itself, to catch the info. I bought the full AutoDocs from USA, but CATS never accepted my subscription and this made me supportless (others too!). Even with all of these problems, our team made some great software/hardware that were based just on the Amiga. A language laboratory controlling system, a micro resistance meter (for Sharif Industrial University, Tehran), 3 or 4 medical systems; a gamma ray photographer,... and finally 2 of us made the PolymerAnalyzer, it won the 3rd place Innovation prize in 1994/5 (1374 Solar year from Hejrat, our time base.) and all of the systems were a little hardware plus a assembly code written by my dear friend Majid Heidary, and just an A1200!!! Third group are normal users, gamers, kids,... they are main part of Amigans here, but we can't rely on them. This group can easily change their way, seeing a DOOM may cause them to sell the high-price A1200 and buy a low-cost Pentium120 to play DOOM and WarCraft!!!. Students are better than gamers, but lack of educational software is a problem. There is no low-cost analog electric software (like SPICE), Math software (like Derive) and other topics you know. Desktop publishers have all gone to the MAC or PC side, cause there is *NO Persian DTP Package* here, and no DTP packages support right-to-left (also some other minor differences) for their publishing. After 2 years without any useful relations with other Amigans around the world, we tried to support our country's Amiga users by ourselves, by exchanging information, shareware/PD programs, magazines (AReport mainly :) ) and news. To do this, two of us increased our activity on one of the best Iranian BBSs, called MAVARA, so they accepted that an AMIGA forum was a need, and created that and a file Library too. I got to be its operator, and suddenly, we gathered all Amiga users there, providing them their needed info and files. Through INTERNET connections, we found our best info and shareware resources and these were so good, cause if we want to use commercial software, there is no authorized dealer and we are forced to use pirated copies (that I extremely hate.) All we have done, was just to keep our beloved Amiga alive, and to show people how well its made, but it is not the time to delay, it is the time for competition, with all of our capabilities, to pass this critical period. Till now, the hi-tech design of Amiga has made it stay alive, but time passes, and computer technology progresses too fast, and if we don't move, it'll be to late too win the competition. We need VISCorp's support. Iran has a extremely high capacity for selling Amiga, many more than other countries, if it imported here by a company, not people. If all text based programs, like DTP, text editors and even vector and bitmap painting packages consider a right-to-left option for text (with some descriptions about control codes), then I estimate we could force almost all publishers to use Amiga as their base system. We have made some commodities, but if the software itself support this option, it'll be more functional. Also, I would like to ask programmers to contact us for persian localization of their software (also we can do arabic translations). The last need is about shareware support. We can do money transfer to programmers, but if and only if they consider a lower shareware fee for countries like us where the money rate is lower than theirs. And they also have to support those users through us, just like other users. This may sound not so good, but it helps shareware authors to be supported. For this, all Amiga users around the world will get low-cost good programs, because our costs are very lower than other countries too. I'll be at anyone's service who wants to know more about us. Here I'm going to appreciate some good friends; Mr. Compton, who has made this great magazine, Tachyon, Sibbi, TjardE (On IRC) and many others who helped me to prepare my WWW, AmiTCP, Mlink to work, and any other Amiga Lover/User/Programmer/Artist :) @endnode @node FEATURE4 "Internet Payment Systems" @toc FEATURE =========================================================================== Internet Payment Systems - An Overview Dan Litman dlitman@abcs.com =========================================================================== I started this Internet Payment System article some time ago, while volunteering my time as part of the Amiga Development Fund Team. The purpose of the ADF is to support programmers of freeware and shareware software in their enhancement of the Amiga Platform. Well we want a Internet Payment System that a Amiga User could call up and donate cash to their favorite project/programmer. Well as it turns out, I found lots of places that deal with Internet funds in some form or another. But most of them only worked on various PC or Mac type computer systems. There are a couple of banking systems out there that support Unix type systems. But NOTHING for the Amiga !! So what are Internet Payment Systems? While this idea doesn't seem complicated or unique it has created some security issues for the customer involved. Companies such as Digicash and CyberCash have jumped on this issue by creating Internet Payment Systems, or more generally, Electronic Payment Systems (EPS). The systems that are being developed incorporate the conventional forms of monetary transactions: Cash, Check, and Credit Card. ----------------------------------------------------------- What different markets exist today for internet payments? Private purchases : These may include everything purchased for some people who are very concerned about Big Brother, or special gift items that a customer doesn't want his/her spouse to see. There are a variety of reasons and times that people may want to keep their purchases private. Under these cases an electronic form of cash provides the required anonymity. Most of the proprietary systems out there right now are privacy oriented. Small purchases: These include pay per view articles and information, one-time access to a commercial websites, or a download fee for a piece of software. These charges may be on the magnitude of a dollar or less. These purchases are too small to warrant the costs of a credit card transaction. First Virtual is the real leader in micropayments. Recent developments in this area include the release of the Micro Payment Transfer Protocol (MPTP) standard from the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) on November 22 1995. Medium and large purchases: These include items that customers normally purchase with credit cards at stores. They can range from under $10 up to thousands of dollars. This market will most likely be dominated by credit cards. The purchases are large enough to warrant the relatively high cost per transaction of a credit card. Security concerns are being actively addressed by both Master Card and Visa. In autumn of 1995 Visa and Microsoft teamed up and released the Secure Transactions Technology (STT) encryption standard. At the same time Master Card, Netscape, CyberCash, GTE, and IBM introduced Secure Electronic Payment Protocol (SEPP). In February of 1996 they teamed up and released a joint draft standard Secure Electronic Transaction (SET) was projected to be completed by this summer. ---------------------------------------------------------- What's on the Web today ? The 2 most common payment methods on the internet today are: Phone in orders : Many companies are only using the Web as a billboard for the company and its products. If a person wants to order an item they are given a 1-800 number to call. An operator processes the order just as if the customer saw an advertisement on TV or in a magazine. Credit card orders : Customer use a web based CGI form to fill out their order information and provide their credit card number. Netscape 2.0 introduced Secure Sockets Layer (SLL) technology to protect the card numbers. Users are often advised if they are using an older browser that does not have SLL built in, to phone in their order. Still, many people are very concerned about internet security and are reluctant to send their gold card numbers with their $5000 credit limit into cyberspace. Major Internet based payment systems in use today are: First Virtual confirms every purchase with an e-mail to the customer to verify the validity of the transaction. The only number sent over the net is the customers First Virtual ID code. They have the largest number of merchants and information vendors by far. CyberCash has you download a CyberCash wallet which is similar to the money handling software from the other firms. They are supported by multiple banks and merchants. Digicash which is handled by Mark Twain Bank and used by a variety of merchants on the WWW. It is based on creating a cash & quote which consists of 64 bit numbers that are passed from the customer to the vendor, and back to the bank for verification. The NetBank, Home of NetCash transfers funds through a series of non-encoded numbers that are e-mailed to vendors. Strings of numbers are assigned certain values when they are issued. ----------------------------------------------------------- Internet Payment Systems Challenges The biggest challenge for Internet Payment Systems is finding customers and vendors who are willing to risk investing in a product that is currently in its introduction stage. What this has created is a chicken and egg effect. Banks and software companies can't get customers without vendors, and they can't get vendors without customers. Security factors are perhaps the biggest deterrent for individuals interested in making on-line purchases. Most people fear giving their credit card numbers, phone numbers or addresses not knowing who will be able to retrieve that information without their consent. It is interesting to note that most people don't even give it a second thought when purchasing items with a credit card over the phone, but to ask them to do it from their PC makes them very uncomfortable. New developments in credit card security Secure Electronic Transaction (SET) are taking this fear away by adding encryption to scramble the card number so only the vendor and customer can read it. Privacy is a significant factor in some of the payment schemes. Cyberpunks feel that privacy is paramount. However, the public has become comfortable with credit cards and debit cards. Private cash has a potential market, but it may not be as large as people today are thinking. ----------------------------------------------------- Electronic Cash and the Web Systems such as Digicash and NetCash allow the customer to deposit cash into a bank account then use that cash to purchase items off the internet. Digicash customers receive an encoded 64 bit number for each nickel they convert to e-cash, which is then transferred to the users hard drive. The customer can then transfer the cash to vendors on the internet (as long as the vendor accepts this form of payment). The vendor then returns the e-cash to the bank in exchange for real money. Disadvantage of the Web and Electronic Cash ; Digital dollars are uninsured : For example, if you hard drive were to crash, your e-bank goes under, or hackers were to decode your numbers, there would be no way retrieve your lost cash (just as if you dropped a $20 bill on the street and lost it). Since the bank does not link the money to your name they would have no way to reimburse you. However, Digicash's e-cash is recoverable if your hard disk crashes. In that case the customer would have to give up his/her anonymity to get the e-cash replaced by the bank. Advantages of the Web and Electronic Cash ; Privacy : Electronic cash is untraceable. The bank does not link the numbers to a particular person, therefore it is impossible to link payment to payer. The customer does not have to worry about being added to dozens of mailing lists. Unless of course, the customer has ordered actual merchandise that needs to be sent to their home, instead of information that can be sent over the internet. Limited liability : A customer can only loose as much money as they are carrying. People may be more willing to deal with electronic cash and only risk the $20 in their electronic wallet than to send their $5,000 goldcard number across the net. -------------------------------------------------- Credit Cards and the Web Credit card systems will operate much in the same way as they currently do. The customer will be able to use their current credit card, if desired, to purchase items directly from the vendor. The main difference is that the major credit card companies have developed an encryption standard called Secure Electronic Transaction (SET). With SET the merchant does not receive your credit card number. Rather, they receive a token, which is passed on to the bank who then uses the token to get the actual number, authorizes or declines the transaction, then sends the merchant an authorization number. The merchant is assured that the card is good, and completes the transactions. All of this is done with public-key encryption to assure authenticity of the parties. Also, with SET the consumer receives a certified digital receipt for the transaction. In essence, SET transactions will not just be AS secure as traditional transaction, they will actually be more SECURE. Disadvantages of Credit Cards and the Web ; Lack of privacy : Unlike cash transactions that are anonymous, credit card transactions link your name to the account. Therefore, the customer will not be able to maintain the anonymity of a cash transaction. They also run the risk of having their name added to a bunch of mailing lists. Advantages of Credit Cards and the Web ; Your money is securely in the bank : If you would happen to loose the card, the account is still linked to your name. Therefore, unlike cash systems there is a way the bank can verify your account balance and the money itself is not lost. There is no need to open a new account : Unlike cash systems which require the user to open a new account with a bank that is currently set up to handle this type of transaction, with the credit card system the customer would be able to keep the bank account and credit card they currently have. This is a very important factor in the early stages of web commerce. ----------------------------------------------- Checks and the Web Schemes to transfer electronic checks across the web are not as well developed as the other forms of fund transfers. Checks could be something as simple as e-mailing a message to a merchant authorizing them to draw funds from your account, with digital signatures and certificates attached. In many ways a check system is a compromise between a credit card system and a cash system. CheckFree, NetCheque, and NetChex are the major players in the check market. Disadvantages of Checks and the Web ; Privacy : Although not near as bad as credit cards, checks would still reveal data about the customer. Advantages of Checks and the Web ; Processing: Electronic checks can be processed the same as current checks are processed, through the Automated Clearing House. They would look different, but they are still just checks. Making Change : Electronic cash can not be written for just any amount. If you get a $25 number string from NetCash and want to buy something for $5 you have to send your number string back to NetBank and ask for change. They then send you a $5 string and a $20 string. A check system would allow the user to specify the exact amount of the transaction. Your money is securely in the bank : Customers don't need to worry about losing anything as they would in a cash system. ------------------------------------------------- Visions of the future The Internet payment market belongs to the companies that can get a convenient and secure method to everyones computer the fastest. Once an initial lead is clearly demonstrated, the standard will attract more vendors which will attract more customers, which will attract more vendors, and so on. The Secure Electronic Transaction (SET) standard from Mastercard and Visa appears to have the lead. Although it is extremely new, it has the backing of Microsoft, Netscape, CyberCash, GTE, and IBM. The public already possesses and understands credit cards. It's not a new account, or a new bank to deal with. It's just a new way of sending the card number. Once the public believes the encryption is safe or receives a guarantee that they will not be held responsible for fraudulent hacker purchases, then there will be no stopping the standard. The initial lead will cause vendors to scramble to get on board and will create a more competitive market for customers. An encrypted credit card system is great for medium and large purchases, but will not satisfy the needs for small and private purchases. This leaves a niche market open for one of the proprietary software companies who are now fighting for a lead. Who will that company be is impossible to say. But it is a reasonable guess that it will be one of the firms listed above. ------------------------------------------------------ Advice for you while on the Internet Allow payments thorough as many channels as possible. They can not afford to turn away any customer who does not have the specific type of electronic cash system software platform. The more systems they hear of the more systems that will be supported. Open a merchant account with each of the leading payment system companies, most offer good deals to attract new business. Keep a close eye on the market and watch them scramble against their competitors. ---------------------------------------------------------- What I would like to see Happen ; I would like to see Amiga system users join the Amiga Development Fund team. There they could donate time an funds supporting programmers that could port PC/Mac software to the Amiga. Check out the ADF web page at http://afrodite.hibu.no:8001/paulken4/adf/index.html Also the Free Software Union has a mailing list where they just began an Amiga porting issue area. This is new so they need programmers and users with ideas. To subscribe, your e-mail should goto majordomo@fsu.clsp.jhu.edu and have a blank subject line and a body containing only subscribe fsu-amiga. You can check out the FSU via the web at http://www.jagunet.com/~braddock/fslu/org all at once. @endnode @node REVIEW1 "Review: Diavolo 3.4 PRO" @toc REVIEW =========================================================================== Review: Diavolo 3.4 PRO Ivo Kroone ivo@pimpernel.nl =========================================================================== Naming a backup program "Diavolo" (Devil) is probably the worst name anyone can think of for a backup program. Who in their right mind would trust his/her priceless data to the Devil? After using the program for 2 weeks I for one would. Hardware used for testing: Amiga 3000T/040 (2MB chip, 8 MB fast) Amiga 500 plus (1MB chip, 2MB fast) KickStart 3.1 KickStart 2.04 1.4 G harddisk space 520 MB harddisk space Toshiba 4.5 speed CD-ROM A570 single speed CD-ROM built in SCSI controller Supra XP ByteSync SCSI controller both with a Wang DDS/DAT-streamer model 3100 0.02 SCSI UNPACKING AND INSTALLING Making a living out of the Amiga means data needs to be backed up very safely. I opted for a Wang 3100 DAT streamer (officially "DSS DAT drive"), capable of storing 2 G on one tape at a speed of 20 MB per minute. Buying a tape streamer also meant choosing software. The choice was between AmiBack, Quarterback, BackMan and Diavolo. Development for both AmiBack and Quarterback seems to have ceased anyway so they were not a real option. Tape streamer support in BackMan (shareware!) is very limited compared to Diavolo. Clearly Diavolo is developed by a real Amiga freak. The program uses the standard Commodore installer utility, Magic Workbench (but does not depend on it), a font sensitive GUI, drag and drop file selection, XPK compression libraries and internal multi tasking. The user interface is ace! While installing the program will suggest to make an emergency boot disk. If the entire harddisk crashes, this disk can be used to boot from, run Diavolo and restore the data. The installer script includes a plug for Magic Workbench, asking to install a demo version. The script will ask the user to install/replace some libraries. Wether the user has a VLab motion board or not, the VLab motion support library will be installed. Perhaps the program can check for that board first and only install the library if needed? Installation does not include personalization. The unique serial number is already "burned" into the program on the original disk. USING DIAVOLO Backups can be made to disk (both HD and DD), removable media (such as ZIP or EZdrive), an AmigaDOS file or tape steamer. Backups can be compressed using any XPK compression library. The default settings have suggested compressors for each CPU. A password and/or encryption can also be applied. When using a device that already compresses the data itself, one should not have Diavolo compress the data as well. Sources can be AmigaDOS volumes, AFS volumes and even custom file systems like Macintosh or NetBSD partitions. Using the MAC handler is it is even possible to backup a Shapeshifter disk file wise. Partitions have to be mounted for Diavolo to see them. To avoid useless icons on my Workbench I have both my Shapeshifter and NetBSD partitions not auto mounted, therefore Diavolo cannot see them. The program did, however, see the shared NetBSD/VMM virtual memory partition (which is also not auto mounted). The author suggests using a utility like SCSImounter to fix this problem. Selecting files to be backed up (from any AmigaDOS compatible medium) is very simple but can be made very complex on demand. A directory tree with MagicWB style 8 colour icons for volumes, drawers and assigns can be used to visually select files. Files can be selected individually, per directory or per volume. Using the advanced selection options one can make filters to include or exclude files by date, archive bit, filename or pattern. These filters can be saved to disk or be edited using a text editor for later use. The manual provides examples on how to create such files from scratch by hand. A none AmigaDOS partition can only be backed up and restored as a whole. After backup archive bits can be set automatically. After storing a CD-ROM on tape it took some effort to convince Diavolo to stop displaying a "disk is write protected" request for every file. Hard- and soft linked files and/or directories can be backed up as such on demand. BACKUP TO DISK When backing up to disk Diavolo will calculate the number of disks needed for that backup. When using compression this estimate will be the maximum number of disks. Of course all drives connected to the system can be used, including high density drives. While backing up bad sectors on a destination disk can optionally be skipped so the disk can still be used. As Diavolo is a multi tasking program, the user can alter the backup configuration while making a backup. BACKUP TO FILE A backup to an AmigaDOS file can be useful to compact a lot of small unused files into one big file. Also a none AmigaDOS partition can temporarily be stored as an AmigaDOS file. The standard options like compression and encryption can still be used. If a volume is full while writing a file Diavolo will allow the user to continue that file on a different volume! BACKUP TO REMOVABLE Lacking a removable drive I was not able to try this option. According to the author of Diavolo is big advantage of directly writing to a removable instead of writing a file to a removable is speed. If a backup doesn't not fit on one removable disk multiple disks can be used. BACKUP TO TAPE Diavolo is without a doubt the best backup program when it comes to configuring for tape steamers. Every tape streamer related parameter is configurable making sure the program makes the most out of the hardware. Diavolo can "interrogate" a tape streamer and thereby configure all parameters automatically. The well written English manual explains every single parameter but clearly states that auto config will always be better. Diavolo's strongest point is tape streamer support. Because of the linear nature of a tape, the contents of a backup are written to harddisk for easy access. Every backup should be given a name for future reference. Before writing any data to the tape a window pops up showing the contents of that tape showing the backup name, date and size. The user can either append a backup or overwrite the last backup(s) on the tape. When backing up to tape the system gains speed while working. After setting the best buffers and task priorities for my hardware according to the manual, the average speed when storing the Fujitsu harddisk in my A3000 to tape is 12 MB per minute. Using the Amiga 500 with Quantum harddisk this speed was reduced to 5 MB per minute. I also backed up an Amiga 1200 harddisk via the AmigaTalk network, resulting in a speed of 1 MB per minute. As this is a floppy port based network this low speed can be blamed entirely on the network hardware. Backup from CD-ROM (one can fit 3 filled to capacity CD-ROMs on a single DDS tape!) also works without any problems. I tried this both using the Toshiba 4.5 speed CD-ROM in the A3000 and the A570 in the A500. Using both data (3M 90 minutes and Sony 90 minutes) and audio (3M 120 minutes) DAT tapes the result remains the same. The audio tapes did not show any more errors while comparing but I've been told that most DAT streamers simply don't recognize audio tapes as valid tapes. RESTORING DATA Every backup can be compared to the original afterwards. If using verify when backing up to disks this is not very useful. A tape however can only be verified after writing all data. While comparing a report is produced showing which files differ from the tape according to file content, header or date. Regrettably this process always crashes half way on my Amiga 3000 (always a different GURU number). As it works flawlessly on my Amiga 500 as well as on a friend's Amiga 4000/040 I blame my A3000, not Diavolo. While restoring an existing file, this file can either be overwritten or renamed. Diavolo having internal multi tasking also allows the user to configure restore settings while already restoring! Reliability when restoring from disk is excellent. Diavolo needs tracks 0 and 79 for vital information about the disk. Every other track may be invalid and Diavolo can still continue to restore the readable tracks. While restoring bad files, sectors or disks can be skipped. Diavolo will always try to restore every last possible bit of data. Even when the index is missing and only one single disk of a backup set remains, the data from that single disk can be restored (providing at least tracks 0 and 79 are readable). Just like reliability from disk, tapes are surely not forgotten either. If the index on harddisk gets lost, it can be rebuilt from tape. Of course if both tape and disk are partly unreadable that part of the index cannot be rescued. If a tape itself is unreadable it is upto the streamer to decide what options remain. Diavolo has little control over the process inside the hardware so this is very much up to the user's particular hardware. MISCELLANEOUS Diavolo PRO comes with a scheduler and daemon to auto backup data. My computer is not online 24 hours a day and personally I prefer to backup the harddisks whenever I feel like it. Regarding in superb quality of the backup program itself I have no reason to believe that the quality of the scheduler and daemon is any less. Some German programs (i.e. MultiFax, Retina software) have poor or half translations. Except for the German text on the box, this English version of Diavolo has not a trace of any German text string in it. The English manual is very well written; it is clear, contains useful examples with pictures and a handy "question and answer" appendix. Updates and patches can only be obtained via Computer Conrner because of the serial number in the software. Despite of what the manual says the NATHAN mailbox cannot longer be reached. Further more the address of the author has changed to: korndoerfer@t-online.de Diavolo is notorious in the illegal software circuit. Versions with nasty viruses have been around as well a versions that will backup but never restore data. The author of Diavolo did everything possible to create the absolute best backup software for the Amiga todate. Diavolo comes in a standard and pro version, both at very reasonable prices. Destroying the fragile Amiga market by spreading failing copies of a program is not Elite, it is the worst kind of user a platform can have. CONCLUSION A couple of years ago Quarterback and AmiBack were good packages but Diavolo clearly passed them by a long shot. The shareware program BackMan is a jewel in its own right but cannot compare to Diavolo when it comes to reliability and support for devices like removables and tape streamers. Diavolo is without a doubt the best backup program for the Amiga. The user interface has the looks and feel one expects from a 1996 Amiga program. The program can backup everything and will store it on every medium supported by the Amiga hardware. Even if the backup medium itself fails, Diavolo will do everything it can to restore whatever data is left. Diavolo is the kind of program trust my precious data to, regardless of the name! Likes: - reliability - excellent SCSI tape streamer support - user interface - ability to backup non AmigaDOS partitions - author's devotion to Amiga Dislikes: - name - program size (with over 500k it will hardly load AND store tape contents in memory of my Amiga 500) Price: DM 139 for Diavolo PRO DM 89 for Diavolo standard Computer Corner Diavolo Backup Support Albert- RoFhaupter-Str. 108 81369 Munchen Germany tel.: +49 89 714 10 34, fax.: +49 89 714 43 95 @endnode @node REVIEW2 "Review: AppleCD 600e" @toc REVIEW =========================================================================== Review: AppleCD 600e Peter Eriksson ptr@solace.mh.se =========================================================================== PRODUCT NAME AppleCD 600e BRIEF DESCRIPTION The AppleCD 600e is an quad speed external SCSI-2 CD-ROM unit. AUTHOR/COMPANY INFORMATION Name: Apple Computer AB Address: P.O. Box 31 S-164 93 Kista-Stockholm SWEDEN [Please note that Apple has subsidiaries and distributors in other countries as well.] Telephone: +46 (0) 8-703 30 00 FAX: Unknown E-mail: Unknown World Wide Web: http://www.apple.se (Swedish site) http://www.apple.com (International site) COMPONENTS SUPPLIED IN PACKAGE AppleCD 600e CD-ROM unit Power cord SCSI terminator SCSI "System" cable (25 pins to 50 pins style) Warrenty statement Macintosh software license agreement Registration sheet + envelope for the sheet Apple Assistance information pamphlet List of world wide Apple subsidiaries and distributors User manual Macintosh CD-ROM Installation software on CD MacWorld commercial pamphlet LIST PRICE Unfortunatly I don't know what list price Swedish Apple has set. I purchased my CD-ROM unit on a sale for 1499 SEK (about $225 (US), DM 340,-). DEMO VERSION None. SPECIAL HARDWARE AND SOFTWARE REQUIREMENTS HARDWARE SCSI controller required. SOFTWARE A CD-ROM filesystem, such as "CDFileSystem" as found on the 3.1 Workbench disks. COPY PROTECTION None. MACHINE USED FOR TESTING Amiga 3000/25, 4 MB Fast RAM, 2 MB Chip RAM. Maxtor 120MB 7210SR internal hard disk. NEC Multisync-II multisync monitor. AmigaOS 3.1. CDFileSystem filesystem version 40.9 (used at first...) AmiCDROM filesystem version 1.15 (... and then replaced by AmiCDROM) INSTALLATION Because the unit itself is external, you will have to connect it to your SCSI controller somehow. On my Amiga 3000, this is easily done using the 'system' cable that comes with the CD-ROM unit. If the unit is to be connected to another device on a daisy-chain, a SCSI 'peripheral' cable is required. Such a cable is not included with the AppleCD 600e package. If the CD-ROM is the last device on the external chain of SCSI units, it has to be equipped with a 'terminator'. The terminator is a resistor that tells the SCSI controller that this is the last device on a given chain of devices. A terminator that plugs right into one of the AppleCD's two SCSI busses is supplied with the package. In order for the Amiga to communicate with the unit, a software filesystem has to be mounted. Users of Workbench 3.0 and above already have one in the L: directory. This filesystem is henceforth referred to as 'CDFilesystem'. Although this filesystem is capable of dealing with CDs made for the Amiga, it lacks certain features third party filesystems display. Users who wants unlock their CD-ROM unit's full potential should look for a filesystem replacement. (Note: The user manual mentions Audio CD, CD-ROM, CD-ROM XA, CD+I, Photo CD, Video CD, CD+MIDI and CD+G as compatible Apple 600e CD-ROM formats.) In theory, the installation process should be a breeze. Just plug an appropriate SCSI cable into the last device on the (external) daisy-chain and attach a terminator if the CD-ROM is the last piece of equipment on the chain. But then, this is in theory. This process showed to be more troublesome than first expected. More on this later. REVIEW 'This should be pretty much painless', I thought while connecting the SCSI cable to my Amiga 3000, 'Just plug in the CD-ROM, power up the computer and mount CD0:.'. Yes, it _should_ be pretty much painless, but then there is Murphy's Law. I followed the instructions step by step as prompted by the manual, turned on the AppleCD 600e and then the computer itself. Nothing. Then nothing. Then the "Insert Workbench floppy" animation. 'Great. The hard disk won't boot.'. I powered down everything and double checked the terminator and the SCSI cable. Everything did seem to be in order, so I decided to power up the computer again with the CD-ROM turned off, just to check whether or not my Amiga would boot from the hard disk like it had during the last three years. No problem, everything worked like a charm, just like it always had. 'Oh well', I said, 'I'll figure out why the computer won't boot with the CD-ROM turned on at first later.'. Anxiously, I wanted to mount the CD filesystem. I turned on the CD-ROM unit again, this time during the boot. As soon as the Amiga had finished the boot sequence, I put a CD in the slot and mounted CD0:. Again, nothing. No icons showing up on the Workbench desktop, no device entry for CD0: reported by "C:Info". It appeared like my CD-ROM was configured as SCSI ID 3 by default. CDFileSystem on the other hand expects the CD-ROM to use ID 2. I changed the unit's ID to 2 as described by the manual. This is done by pushing the tip of a pen into a small hole on the back of the unit, just like you set the time on most digital wrist clocks. I powered up the CD-ROM again, mounted CD0: again and... it worked! I took a brief look at my Amiga's hard disk LED. 'Now what' I cried out, getting tired of all these new problems piling up like unpaid bills on the kitchen table. The LED. It was flashing. Every three seconds, that damn thing flashed! No hard disk activity and still, it flashed! I later learned that this is normal behavior of CDFileSystem. The filesystem is polling the CD-ROM unit to check for new CDs being removed and inserted, pretty much like the Amiga checks for floppies (thus the clicking sound). Everytime a poll is made, the hard disk LED flashes. This may sound odd, and it is if you like me don't know about the A3000's hard disk LED actually being a "SCSI" LED. The LED displays the SCSI controller's activity meaning every action undertaken by any SCSI unit, may it be internal or external, will be reflected by the "hard disk" LED. (This "problem" was solved by a lot of helpful people responding to an article I submitted to two USENET Amiga newsgroups.) Still, one problem remained. When I for some reason had to reboot the computer without a CD in the AppleCD 600e unit, nothing happend. Annoying yes, but I soon found out that the computer would boot from the hard disk as soon as I put a data CD into the unit or after waiting perhaps half a minute. I wasn't content with this solution, however. This shouldn't simply be. Some intense e-mail correspondence with Claus Pedersen, Denmark sorted things out. To quote Clauss: "Having a normal ISO CD placed in the drive, usually shortens the wait period". So what is the cause of the period of waiting then? Well, it has to do with the CD-ROM unit looking for a boot strap. If no CD is placed in the unit, it'll continue to search until it timed out by the SCSI controlled. However, if a CD is inserted during this process or before it even started the CD-ROM will stop looking for boot straps unless, of course, there is one in which case it will boot from the CD instead from the hard disk. As I don't have access to any bootable CDs right now, I havn't had a chance to test booting off CDs. (There are other means of getting around this problem. Since this is a review I won't go into any details here and now. Please get in touch with me if you have any questions regarding this matter.) I thought I'd wrap up the review with some benchmarks I made. I ran this script using CDFileSystem version 40.9, then AmiCDROM version 1.15 and finally AmiCDFS version 2.37 (unregistrated). Date Copy sprintsos1:games/entertn1/depth.zip RAM: QUIET Date The CD used for the benchmarks is 'Super OZ Shareware Volume 1'. Sorry to say, I had no Amiga CD available with files larger than one megabyte so I had to use a friend's CD instead. The file "depth.zip" is 1452051 bytes large. CDFileSystem version 40.9 takes 21 seconds to complete this operation, which translates to approximatly 67 KB/second (1452051 / 21 / 1024). AmiCDROM version 1.15 takes 4 seconds to complete this operation, which translates to approximatly 354 KB/second (1452051 / 4 / 1024). AmiCDFS version 2.37 takes 21 seconds to complete this operation, which translates to approximatly 67 KB/second (1452051 / 21 / 1024). A quad speed CD-ROM _should_ be able to read 600 KB/second (4 * 150). Obviously, this isn't the case with any of the filesystems I've tested. The performance may however boost with different CD0: mountlist parameters. This hasn't been tested because no filesystem's documenation mentions AppleCD 600e preferable settings. DOCUMENTATION 71 pages of printed assistance is what Apple has put into the package, besides all commercial pamphlets, warrenty cards et cetra. The documentation probably covers everything the average Macintosh users needs to know, from installing the hardware itself to installing the supplied Macintosh software. Being an Amiga user, it is hard to rate the documentation. On one hand, I could say that the manual is real lousy not mentioning any of the problems I experienced, on the other hand I could say this product is intended for users of Apple computers. In short terms - an Amiga user may need additional sources of related documentation to get everything up and running. Something like this review. :) LIKES Once you get to know it, the Apple 600e CD-ROM unit does what it is supposed to do with no quirks. 'No less, no more' as some would put it. A more interesting discussion would be the interface between the CD-ROM and the Amiga, i.e. the filesystem. Whatever the CD-ROM is up to must be matched by the filesystem. Now if the filesystem can't keep up with the CD-ROM in some aspect, we do have a bottle-neck. 'A chain isn't stronger than its weakest link' as the Swedish saying goes. This is also the case with the filesystem you intend to use for the CD-ROM unit. DISLIKES AND SUGGESTIONS Just as I can't find much about the unit itself to like, I don't find much to dislike neither. I repeat myself - the unit does what it is supposed to do with no quirks. One thing I think should be improved however, is the location of the headphone jack. The outlet is placed just underneath the CD slot which makes it hard to access when the slot is in its 'outward' position. The unit has its power transformer built-in. In case you own the original Commodore 1541 5.25" floppy drive, you know what I'm getting at. Since the transformer is internal, the unit tends to be quite warm after some time of usage. In the case of the C1541, this caused problems when certain circuits in the drive expanded and shorted out when in contact with other components. I don't think this is the case with technology of the mid 90's, but then again, nothing is wrong with precaution. Not to mention the unit gets really dull with a built-in transformer. (Note: the C1541's sucessor, the C1541-II has an external transformer.) COMPARISON TO OTHER SIMILAR PRODUCTS Since I never had the chance to play with CD-ROM equipped Amigas before besides the CDTV and its cousin the CD32, there isn't much to say here. BUGS At the time of writing no bugs have been found. VENDOR SUPPORT Apple has something they calle 'Apple Assistance'. You register by sending your Apple subsidiary or distributor a provided registration sheet. As soon as Apple validates your registration you get 90 days of free support per phone, plus either three free issues of Swedish magazine 'Svenska MacWorld' (Swedish MacWorld) or a 45% discount on a full year subscription of the very same magazine. Offers similar to this may vary from country to country. WARRANTY The chain of stores I bought my Apple 600e CD-ROM unit from gives one year of product warrenty. Apart from this warrenty, Apple has a world wide warrenty, also limited to one year. Apple's warrenty applies to every country on the face of the Earth, provided you have a proof of purchase from an authorized Apple dealer. CONCLUSIONS I'm pleased with my purchase. I've wanted a CD-ROM for my Amiga 3000 for years, but external SCSI CD-ROM units have always been rather expensive compared to e.g. internal IDE CD-ROM units. This all changed on that magic sale. :) The AppleCD 600e works just the way you expect it to work once you know what normal Amiga 3000 SCSI behavior means. No quirks, no fuzz. COPYRIGHT NOTICE Copyright 1996 Peter Eriksson (ptr@solace.mh.se) Permission hereby given to Amiga Report magazine for publication. @endnode @node REVIEW3 "Review: Imagine PD 3D" @toc REVIEW =========================================================================== Review: Imagine PD 3D Bohus Blahut- Modern Filmmaker bohus@xnet.com =========================================================================== Imagine PD 3D- A CD rom of public domain objects for the Amiga and PC modeler/renderer Imagine 3D published by Impulse. Graphic Detail 4556 South 3rd Street Louisville, KY 40214 vox/fax: 502.363.2986 net: michael@iglou.com Graphic Detail has been producing CD roms for the 3D and graphic artist for some time now. Amiga Report has reviewed Light Rom volume 3, a similar volume to Imagine PD 3D, a multiplatform collection of PD objects and textures for NewTek's LightWave 3D. This disc contains many of the same objects converted for use in Imagine. The objects are mostly available on the Internet, but the disc brings them all together for your convenience and ease of use. Also, since the CD is multiplatform capable, users of both Amiga Imagine, and PC Imagine can make use of the disc. The objects are divided into categories i.e. Anatomy, Animals, Aviation, Botany, Buildings, Computers, Fonts, Furniture, Household, Kitchen, Land, Logos, Music, Phones, Robots, Ships, Space, Sports, Video, Vehicles, Weaponry and more. The objects range in quality from amateur-ish to excellent quality scale models, all in Imagine format. Where necessary, the models include IFFs of textures. Some of the best models are in the "space" directory, populated mostly by requisite numbers of craft from Star Trek, Star Wars, etc. A few more excellent space models are tucked in the "showcase" directory. The showcase features models by the same artist. Some of the most outstanding is by Carmen Rizzolo, who has created several outstanding Star Trek models. I've seen many of Mr. Rizzolo's animations on the Internet, and recall his outstanding Arexx contributions to Centaur Development's OpalVision. If you use an OpalVision, your Arexx directory is empty without Rizzolo's handiwork. While many of these objects are fun to manipulate and animate, remember that many of the model designs are subject to the original creator's copyright. Most objects include text files detailing how to contact the modeler. Also, since most of the objects in the "space" directory are modeled from existing designs of movie space ships, this precludes you from using them in any commercial applications, or even your demo reel. This shouldn't prevent you from using these models as a starting point for your own work. If you're an aspiring modeler, the best way to start out is by emulating the work of others to define your own style. Also included on the CD is a library of 950 textures in Jpeg Format originally found on Graphic Detail's 2CD Texture Gallery collection. There is an "indexes" directory containing 16 color hi res IFF (and 24bit Targa) previews of all of the textures by category. Again, the textures range in quality, but the ones that are good are quite good. I'd recommend working many of these textures over in a paint/image processing program like ImageFX before applying these graphics to your model work. Many of these graphics are quite small, some are from video framegrabs, and all are Jpegged (which affects overall image quality), but if you apply these onto a moving model, then these textures will work out fine. Of interest in the "textures" directory is a series of bumpmaps created by R. McVey (creator of the New Icons WB replacement set, also reviewed in AR), and features a particularly weird readme file. 3D programs capable of bumpmapping use greyscale images to "fake" raised and shadowed areas on objects without actually changing their geometry. Bumpmapping implies detail without actual modeling. Again, it's a good technique to use if the viewer will not be dwelling on a particular model. If the model is on the move, and you apply motion blur, this will hide many sins. These bumpmaps tile seamlessly. Remember, though, that if you tile a pattern too much, the human eye will pick up on the repeating grid of patterns. McVey wisely created the bumpmaps in 4 bits, since often times 8bit details isn't particularly necessary. Note, however, that many of these objects require the textures from the original distribution of Imagine. This means that those of you who are using versions of Imagine that were bundled coverdisks will need to buy the full version of Imagine. Some objects will also require the Essence series of textures. Included are the Essence attribute files for objects that need them. While the disc is well organized, I wish that Graphic Detail had carried their LIghtROM model further into the production of this CD. The LightROM discs have 24bit and 16 color preview thumbnails of all of its objects. Without the convenience of these thumbnails, you will need to load each object that you might want to work with into Imagine, and render out your own previews. Also, I find it a little odd that the scene featured on the cover of the disc isn't actually on the CDrom. It's a frame from a LightWave scene called "Boomer" and blows up Lightwave's over-used SpaceFighter object. It's a good explosion scene, and it's a shame not to see it here. It looks like these objects will load quite nicely into older versions of Imagine, but it would be nice to see objects included that address some of Imagine's newer abilities i.e. Blobby modeling. It's nice to see Imagine owners getting some attention. With so much attention focused on Lightwave (even though NewTek's attention isn't especially focused on the Amiga these days), it's unfortunate to have programs like Aladdin 4D, Cinema 4D, and Imagine. These programs make good use of the Amiga's abilities and still make us all capable of doing respectable work. If you are a new or a seasoned Imagine user, this CD will come in handy. While there is a range of quality in the overall contents of the CD, the average Imagine user will undoubtedly get some use out of it. @endnode @node REVIEW4 "Review: Light ROM Gold" @toc REVIEW =========================================================================== Review: Light ROM Gold Bohus Blahut- Modern Filmmaker bohus@xnet.com =========================================================================== Light ROM Gold A CD ROM collection of Objects, Textures, and utilities for NewTek's Modeler/Animator LightWave. Graphic Detail 4556 South 3rd Street Louisville, KY 40214 vox/fax: 502.363.2986 net: michael@iglou.com The Amiga has a rich history of an exceptionally active shareware/public domain community. After NewTek's release of the revolutionary Video Toaster, and the subsequent success of LIghtWave 3D, the Amiga community responded with megabytes upon megabytes of re-distributable objects. Instead of you shaking down the Internet trying to find these objects, Graphic Detail's Light ROM series has become a vital resource in hunting these objects down. There have been three volumes in the LightROM series totalling over 6,000 objects. Volumes came out every six months or so, and were cummulative; volume three contained all of the objects from volume one. This means that volumes one and two on my shelf aren't really useful any more. Graphic Detail must have agreed with me because Light ROM 4 will contain all new material. Hence Light ROM Gold. This "Gold" disc has the best of the previous three collections in anticipation of this all new volume 4. Material on this CD is culled from the Public Domain, though several items are exclusive to the CD. The contents of the CD are laid out twice: once for LightWave 3.5 users, and again for LW 4.0 and up users. LW 4.0 and later has a little-used facility: the Content Directory. This works much like setting up an "assign" in your Amiga's startup sequence. Simply input CD0: as your content directory, and you can wave bye-bye to that pesky "object not found" window. LW 3.5 users can simply load up their scenes off of the CD by going to the disc's LW3_5 directory. This is a multiplatform CD, and with LightWave's migration to PC, SGI, and now Mac and Sun, an investment in this CD can really pay off no matter where you work. The objects are categorized into Anatomy, Animals, Aviation, Botany, Buildings, Furniture, Holidays, Groceries, Logos, Music, Robots, Ships, Sports, Space, Toys, Vehicles, Video, and more. Upon entering these categorical directories, you simply choose a scene file, and all of the objects and textures will load into LightWave. There's also an "objects" directory that has objects with no associated scene files. To aid you in object selection, there's a directory full of rendered mini- thumbnails. These are usually a 3/4 view of the object in living color. Also indexed in "thumbnails" is another directory of interest: the "Showcase" directory. This directory features the work of various LightWave artists. These include work by Dean Scott who has created replicas of the Babylon 5 station and associated ships. Also you can peruse the work of Erik Flom who's demo reel is so excellent, that I use it as an example of superior work in my video class. Also on the CD is a tutorial directory with a massive textfile of tutorials, and some tutorial objects teaching metaform concepts. Also, peer into the LightWave Plug-ins directory. This is one of the new features of LW 4.0 and up. Plug-ins are sub-programs that work from within LW. They do everything from sophisticated texture mapping, to adding complex collision detection to LightWave. There's an Arexx directory with some of the best Arexx work ever written for the Amiga. These Arexx scripts automate the creation of objects, move entire scenes and change all associated paths, even automatically explode objects and create the animated scene path! Wow! What's not to like? Not much. The CD is well organized, and the majority of objects are of outstanding quality. Even the objects that are a little simplified serve as excellent starting points for your own work. Many is the time that I've had a deadline breathing down my neck, and I've been able to reach over and grab a LightROM, and use an object there as a template for my own work. Get this disc and, like me, you can eagerly anticipate LightROM 4. @endnode @node REVIEW5 "Review: Multimedia Backdrops" @toc REVIEW =========================================================================== Review: Multimedia Backdrops Bohus Blahut- Modern Filmmaker bohus@xnet.com =========================================================================== Multimedia Backdrops- A CD rom with 100 backdrops intended for multimedia and video in 24bit IFF, Targa, and Tiff formats in both NTSC (752 x 480 [Toaster FrameStore size]) and PAL (768 x 576) sizes. Graphic Detail 4556 South 3rd Street Louisville, KY 40214 vox/fax: 502.363.2986 net: michael@iglou.com This multiplatform CD contains duplicate directories of 100 multimedia backgrounds in three popular formats, cutting down your need for conversion software. These backgrounds are usually composed to allow for text in the foreground, and are there to add some visual interest to the overall composition. These backgrounds are usually fairly abstract and drawn in muted colors so as not to call much attention to themselves. It used to be that if you wanted to spice up your presentation with special backgrounds, you'd have to budget in time to create something on your own. Then, CD roms like this one came along with the promise of lightening the load, but does it? All 100 backgrounds are indexed in an "indexes" directory, each with a color thumbnail representation. Once you've chosen the image that you require, you load it from the IFF, Targa, or Tiff directory. The backdrops are stored in both NTSC and PAL sizes, with the images in the NTSC directory measuring in at 752 x 480, which is the same size as a Video Toaster FrameStore. This makes these backgrounds perfect for use in ToasterCG, Montage 24, AlphaPaint, ImageFX, Monument Designer, etc.. Aside from video titling, multimedia softwares like Scala and AmigaVision could make good use of this disc. A good number of these backdrops look like they started life as 6-bit HAM images. For use in Amiga specific applications, one could reduce some of these "24bit" pictures back down to HAM or perhaps even 256 colors, but for use in video you'll probably need to work some of these backdrops over. I performed a color count in ImageFX on some of the grainier textures in the collection. On the average I got around 100,000 colors; half of the color resolution of 8-bit HAM. Since these pictures aren't depicting anything with wide ranges of color, 100,000 distinct colors would normally be enough. However, these pictures have quite a lot of posterizing in them, so despite the color count, there aren't any fine gradation of color in the images. To get these textures to where I wanted them, I performed an IFX Gaussian Blur or two. You may just want to use these textures as a basis for something that you'll create. Some of the backdrops look like they'll tile fairly well for applications like Web design, animated backdrops, and use in 3D modeling and animation. There's a good assortment of marble backdrops with vertical marble bars for text, nature themed backgrounds, abstract shapes, and shots of the earth. While the thumbnails go a long way to help the user choose an appropriate background for the project, it would be beneficial if the files had individual names, and perhaps were in categorized directories. As it stands now, the files just have numeric monikers. I'm more likely to remember that my favorite background is METAL.IFF than 056. All in all there seems to be an even split between the good files and the grainy ones. Yeah, there's a bunch of good images, but if you've got your heart set on a particular file that isn't one of the 24bit chosen few, you may have some work ahead of you. @endnode @node REVIEW6 "Review: DirOpus 5.5 Part 2" @toc REVIEW =========================================================================== DirOpus 5.5 Review: Part 2 By: @{" Jason Compton " link JASON} =========================================================================== Last issue, we examined the basics of DirOpus 5.5, the extremely extensive file management package. This time around, I'd like to look at some of the specifics of the configuration to give you a feel as to how it can work for you. There are a number of configuration windows in DirOpus, owing to just how much you have at your disposal to work with. (I cringe to think what planning out the software must have been like.) In a way, DirOpus 5.5 can be looked upon as partially a clearinghouse for an assortment of functions that previously only came from a combination of commodities. "Docks" or "button bars" can be created at will, in whatever quantities you like. And unlike some docks, they can be iconified, edited, or closed from their own toolbar. DOpus 5.5 comes with a sampling of these constructs, and the built-in editor is extremely straightforward to use. Your "Environment" editor allows you to change some basics of the interface's operation--how big default windows should be, what the screenmode should be, what the pattern on the screen should be, etc. Setting screen and WBPattern options can be confusing at first since you will need to make use of the original Workbench tools in some cases, but it becomes straightforward after one or two tries. Under "Environment" are a set of configuration options to set up built-in filetype recognition and action, the configuration for the User Menu (a pulldown menu in the title bar), and a set of event scripts (so you can do useful or funny things when certain things occur, like the insertion of a disk or the opening of a window). The real power in all of this configuration is the ease with which you can get DirOpus to do your bidding, thanks to a set of built-in commands. Instead of having to call AmigaDOS or external programs, DirOpus will run an internal routine in response to a button press or a menu call. Some of these are certainly not indispensible, being superceded by superior and just as easy-to-use programs already out there. Still, having them readily available in the option scroller, and easy to integrate thanks to the configure tools, is quite a benefit. Then there are those quite a bit more reasonable to use (does anybody really understand why the AmigaDOS format command is so awkward?) Overall, the great thing about using DirOpus5 is the sense of limitlessness. Your actions on the Workbench are no longer limited by the need to finish certain tasks before being able to work in other windows, thanks to the multithreading. The amount of pull-down menus you can create is basically without bound, as are the options you can put in there. Open as many button bars or drive listers as you like. It's this sort of thing that makes Amiga users enjoy their computers--the feeling that nobody is telling them that they're trying to do something that they shouldn't want to. But DirOpus 5.5 is more than just a statement, it's a really unique combination of file and directory management tool, Workbench enhancer, and commodity replacement, all in one. Worth mentioning at this point is the exceptionally well done manual. For starters, it's huge, over 250 pages with a decent index. But the explanations and descriptions within are very straightforward and easy to comprehend. And it makes nailing out the nuances of configuration a lot easier. Is it for you? Like I said in my first review, DOpus 5 takes some getting used to. Particularly if you have a well decked out system already, you may be reluctant to retool your configuration to use DOpus 5's built-in enhancements. Yes, it uses a good chunk of memory. Memory is also pretty cheap these days, and I'd say that the performance benefits are worth the cost. DirOpus 5.5 is a unique piece of Amiga software, and you'd be doing yourself a favor to give it some serious thought. Published by: GPSoftware PO Box 570 Ashgrove, QLD Australia 4060 +61 7 33661402 voice/fax zzgperry@mailbox.uq.oz.au e-mail http://agnus.livewire.com.au/gpsoft/ @endnode @node CHARTS1 "Aminet Charts: 27-Oct-96" @toc FTP | The most downloaded files from Aminet during the week until 27-Oct-96 | Updated weekly. Most popular file on top. | |File Dir Size Age Description |----------------- --- ---- --- ----------- term-030.lha comm/term 662K 0+V4.7, MC68020/030/040/060 version ar413.lha docs/mags 85K 1+Amiga Report 4.13, Oct. 18, 1996 Mpegvideodtc.lha util/dtype 29K 0+MPEG video datatype V1.1 term-libs.lha comm/term 127K 0+V4.7, XPR and XEM libs term-doc.lha comm/term 236K 0+V4.7, AmigaGuide format and library term-extras.lha comm/term 241K 0+V4.7, HydraCom, ARexx scripts, sound akJFIF435.lha util/dtype 71K 0+AkJFIF.datatype V43.5 (JPEG for V40 IconDT402.lha util/dtype 26K 0+Icon.datatype V40.2 akJFIF436.lha util/dtype 56K 0+AkJFIF.datatype V43.6 (JPEG for V40 Dirdatatype016.lha util/dtype 43K 1+Directory datatype V1.6 CyberAVI16.lha gfx/show 50K 0+AVI animation player for CyberGraphX DTypeGuide.lha util/dtype 7K 0+Guide of datatypes RealIcons.lha util/wb 6K 0+(V0.14) A system patch for better ic Paranimdtcpatc.lha util/dtype 12K 1+Animation.datatype patch for paralle Waveblaster.lha hard/hack 10K 0+How to connect PC souncards to your term-main.lha comm/term 664K 0+V4.7, Distribution for all Amigas Markabletextdt.lha util/dtype 16K 1+Text.datatype mark patch. V1.2 SerialPrefs21.lha util/sys 49K 1+V2.1 - Extended Serial Preferences f Tallahassee.lha comm/tcp 49K 0+Tallahassee, Internet Utilities GUI DataTypesLst20.txt docs/lists 7K 0+OS 3.x Datatypes List V2.0 | The highest rated programs during the week until 27-Oct-96 | Updated weekly. Best program on top. Please rate all the programs you | download. To do so, send to aminet-server@wuarchive.wustl.edu : | RATE | where is the file you want to judge and is a mark from 0..10 | with 10 being the best. You can rate several programs in one mail, but | don't rate your own programs. Example: RATE dev/gui/mui23usr.lha 8 | |File Dir Size Age Description |----------------- --- ---- --- ----------- AlgoMusic1_6.lha mus/misc 654K 17+Plays great algorithmic techno tunes sb2hd.lha game/patch 40K 3+HD Installer for SpeedBall 2 & fix V zoolhd.lha game/patch 17K 3+HD Installer for Zool ECS V1.2 deathdis.lha mods/rock 43K 2+Metal Song by Corrosion / DeGeNeRaTi SPlayer_v1.3.lha mus/play 161K 0+The GUI For Play16 - Simply The Best! SerialPrefs21.lha util/sys 49K 1+V2.1 - Extended Serial Preferences f Copper-Demon.lha util/wb 16K 1+Copper-rainbows on ALL pubscreens. V LTAssign.lha util/wb 13K 3+An appicon assign manager by Life Te TachySearch.lha comm/www 43K 0+WEB and Aminet searching for IBrowse WormsShell.lha game/patch 19K 1+Bug fixes and other hacks for Worms RenameMOD11.lha mus/misc 6K 3+Renames modules to their original na Knack111a.lha util/arc 120K 1+MUI-GUI for Cruncher and PGP LHArchie.lha util/arc 70K 3+LhA GUI with special features; V2.88 term-030.lha comm/term 662K 0+V4.7, MC68020/030/040/060 version ixemul-040f.lha dev/gcc 96K 1+IXemul 45.0 - 68040+fpu library HFM2_2.lha disk/misc 93K 3+Virtual disks on HD V2_2 Track2File.lha disk/misc 119K 0+File Ripper from NDOS disks (v1.19) DataTypesLst20.txt docs/lists 7K 0+OS 3.x Datatypes List V2.0 DevGuide.lha docs/lists 5K 0+Guide of Devices civedit.lha game/patch 34K 3+Save file editor for "Civilization" Blitz_3.06.lha game/shoot 182K 0+Fly over scyscrapers and bomb them PatchLibV4FIX.lha util/libs 7K 3+Fixes for patch.library (V4.133) NewPubScreen.lha util/misc 5K 1+V1.4 Open your own public screens ToolTypeEditor.lha util/sys 83K 1+Interface to edit icon tooltypes. V Tallahassee.lha comm/tcp 49K 0+Tallahassee, Internet Utilities GUI @endnode @node CHARTS2 "Aminet Charts: 10-Nov-96" @toc FTP | The most downloaded files from Aminet during the week until 10-Nov-96 | Updated weekly. Most popular file on top. | |File Dir Size Age Description |----------------- --- ---- --- ----------- akJFIF43x.lha util/dtype 57K 0+AkJFIF.datatype V43.10 (JPEG) akPNG43x.lha util/dtype 47K 0+AkPNG.datatype V43.1 (PNG) AWeb.lha biz/demo 444K 0+Version 2.1DEMO of this fast WWW bro Mpegvideodtc.lha util/dtype 35K 1+MPEG video datatype V1.2 mn_ansitest.lha comm/mebbs 3K 72+ANSI Test Door for MEBBSNet pplib020.lha util/libs 5K 0+Powerpacker.library 68020+ version control1.lha util/cdity 107K 0+Controls SCSI hardware (CD-ROM,ZIP.. SMF.lha util/dir 20K 0+SmartFile v1.0a - The New King of fi MUI-ASL.lha util/libs 88K 0+MUIfied ASL replacement (68020+ OS3+ SVG43.lha util/dtype 42K 0+SVG.datatype V43.2 - SVG Graphics Fi binhex373.lha util/arc 15K 0+BinHex 4.0 (HQX7) encoder/decoder WhirlGIF201.lha gfx/conv 30K 1+Generates GIF animations (update) Monitorkiller.lha util/wb 41K 0+Version 1.4 of monspec utility now Be_DataType.lha util/dtype 92K 1+BeBox screen dump picture datatype V sc657pch.lha biz/patch 595K 0+SAS/C 6.57 Patch (requires 6.56) ShapeShifter36.lha misc/emu 236K 1+Macintosh II emulator, V3.6 netbar_51.lha comm/tcp 39K 1+Internet Application launcher ShutAll_1.01.lha util/cdity 117K 1+Beautiful Safe reboot/switch off Com samwb4.lha pix/mwb 940K 1+New MagicWB2.0 Icons/ImageDrawers/.. a1200INFO2.lha hard/misc 6K 0+A1200 HARDWARE info, vol.2 (11/96)- | The highest rated programs during the week until 10-Nov-96 | Updated weekly. Best program on top. Please rate all the programs you | download. To do so, send to aminet-server@wuarchive.wustl.edu : | RATE | where is the file you want to judge and is a mark from 0..10 | with 10 being the best. You can rate several programs in one mail, but | don't rate your own programs. Example: RATE dev/gui/mui23usr.lha 8 | |File Dir Size Age Description |----------------- --- ---- --- ----------- F1GP-Ed.lha game/misc 439K 2+Formula One Grand Prix / WC Editor V AlgoMusic1_7.lha mus/misc 1.2M 0+Plays great algorithmic techno tunes dCN_MT20.lha comm/bbs 284K 3+Best and quickest 64-Bit Multitop 2. slipstream.lha game/demo 361K 3+Playable demo of Wipeout clone deathdis.lha mods/rock 43K 4+Metal Song by Corrosion / DeGeNeRaTi XIRC.lha text/font 6K 12+Edited XHelvetica 11 & 13 for AmIRC SysPic400.lha util/boot 235K 5+The ultimate bootpic utility! (v4.00 SerialPrefs21.lha util/sys 49K 3+V2.1 - Extended Serial Preferences f Copper-Demon.lha util/wb 20K 0+Copper-rainbows on ALL pubscreens. V term-030.lha comm/term 662K 2+V4.7, MC68020/030/040/060 version HFM2_2.lha disk/misc 93K 5+Virtual disks on HD V2_2 AGPPerf.lha game/misc 13K 57+F1GP/WC telemetry recording utility TKGTurboPatch.lha game/patch 47K 1+TKGPatch 34.5 - an utility to speed MUI-ASL.lha util/libs 88K 0+MUIfied ASL replacement (68020+ OS3+ TachySearch.lha comm/www 43K 2+WEB and Aminet searching for IBrowse GPDisplay.lha game/misc 82K 57+F1GP/WC telemetry displaying utility WormsShell.lha game/patch 23K 0+Bug fixes and hacks for Worms, v0.2 ixemul-040f.lha dev/gcc 96K 3+IXemul 45.0 - 68040+fpu library Track2File.lha disk/misc 119K 2+File Ripper from NDOS disks (v1.19) DataTypesLst20.txt docs/lists 7K 2+OS 3.x Datatypes List V2.0 DevGuide.lha docs/lists 5K 2+Guide of Devices Blitz_3.06.lha game/shoot 182K 2+Fly over scyscrapers and bomb them NewPubScreen.lha util/misc 5K 3+V1.4 Open your own public screens Tallahassee.lha comm/tcp 49K 2+Tallahassee, Internet Utilities GUI term-main.lha comm/term 664K 2+V4.7, Distribution for all Amigas experime.lha mods/rock 77K 4+Metal Song by Corrosion / DeGeNeRaTi @endnode @node MAILLIST "Amiga Report Mailing List" @toc WHERE =========================================================================== Amiga Report Mailing List =========================================================================== If you have an internet mailing address, you can receive Amiga Report in @{"UUENCODED" link UUENCODE} form each week as soon as the issue is released. To be put on the list, send Email to majordomo@ninemoons.com Your subject header will be ignored. In the body of the message, enter subscribe areport The system will automatically pull your e-mail address from the message header. Your account must be able to handle mail of any size to ensure an intact copy. For example, many systems have a 100K limit on incoming messages. ** IMPORTANT NOTICE: PLEASE be certain your host can accept mail over ** ** 100K! We have had a lot of bouncebacks recently from systems with a ** ** 100K size limit for incoming mail. If we get a bounceback with your ** ** address in it, it will be removed from the list. Thanks! ** @endnode @node UUENCODE @toc MAILLIST =========================================================================== UUDecoding Amiga Report =========================================================================== If you receive Amiga Report from the direct mailing list, it will arrive in UUEncoded format. This format allows programs and archive files to be sent through mail by converting the binary into combinations of ASCII characters. In the message, it will basically look like a lot of trash surrounded by begin and end, followed by the size of the file. To UUDecode Amiga Report, you first need to get a UUDecoding program, such as UUxT by Asher Feldman. This program is available on Aminet in pub/aminet/arc/ Then you must download the message that it is contained in. Don't worry about message headers, the UUDecoding program will ignore them. There is a GUI interface for UUxT, which should be explained in the docs. However, the quickest method for UUDecoding the magazine is to type uuxt x ar.uu at the command prompt. You will then have to decompress the archive with lha, and you will then have Amiga Report in all of its AmigaGuide glory. If you have any questions, you can write to @{"Jason Compton" link JASON} @endnode @node AMINET "Aminet" @toc WHERE Aminet ====== To get Amiga Report from Aminet, simply FTP to any Aminet site, CD to docs/mags. All the back issues are located there as well. Sites: ftp.netnet.net, ftp.wustl.edu, ftp.luth.se, ftp.doc.ic.ac.uk @endnode @node WWW "World Wide Web" @toc WHERE World Wide Web ============== AR is also available on the WWW! Some of the mirror sites include a mail form, allowing you to mail to Amiga Report from the web site and some also include a search engine allowing you to search recent issues for specific topics and keywords (if your browser has forms capability). Simply tell your browser to open one of the following URLs (pick a location nearest you for the best performance): Australia http://ArtWorks.apana.org.au/AmigaReport.html http://www.deepwoods.saccii.net.au/ar/menu.html http://www.livewire.com.au/amiga/cucug/ar/ar.html (w/search and mail) http://www.phys.unsw.edu.au/~pec/amiga.html Germany http://www.fhi-berlin.mpg.de/amiga/ar/ Greece http://www.acropolis.net/clubs/amiga/amigareport/ Hungary http://mm.iit.uni-miskolc.hu/Data/AR Italy http://www.vol.it/mirror/amiga/ar/ar.html Poland http://www.pwr.wroc.pl/AMIGA/AR/ Sweden http://www.lysator.liu.se/amiga/ar/ United Kingdom http://ppewww.ph.gla.ac.uk/~gowdy/Amiga/AmigaReport/ http://www.iprom.com/amigaweb/amiga.html/ar/ar.html (w/search and mail) http://www.sussex.ac.uk/Users/kcci1 USA http://www.cucug.org/ar/ar.html (w/search and mail) http://www.omnipresence.com/Amiga/News/AR/ Additional Amiga information can also be accessed at this URL: http://www.cucug.org/amiga.html Mosaic for the Amiga can be found on Aminet in directory comm/net, or (using anonymous ftp) on max.physics.sunysb.edu @endnode @node COPYRIGHT "Copyright Information" @toc ABOUT =========================================================================== Amiga Report International Online Magazine November 13, 1996 Issue No. 4.14 Copyright 1996 FS Publications All Rights Reserved =========================================================================== Views, Opinions and Articles presented herein are not necessarily those of the editors and staff of Amiga Report International Online Magazine or of FS Publications. Permission to reprint articles is hereby denied, unless otherwise noted. All reprint requests should be directed to the editor. Amiga Report and/or portions therein may not be edited in any way without prior written permission. However, translation into a language other than English is acceptible, provided the editor is notified beforehand and the original meaning is not altered. Amiga Report may be distributed on privately owned not-for-profit bulletin board systems (fees to cover cost of operation are acceptable), and major online services such as (but not limited to) Delphi and Amiga Zone. Distribution on public domain disks is acceptable provided proceeds are only to cover the cost of the disk (e.g. no more than $5 US). CD-ROM compilers should contact the editor. Distribution on for-profit magazine cover disks requires written permission from the editor. Amiga Report is a not-for-profit publication. Amiga Report, at the time of publication, is believed reasonably accurate. Amiga Report, its staff and contributors are not and cannot be held responsible for the use or misuse of information contained herein or the results obtained there from. Amiga Report is not affiliated with Escom AG or VIScorp. All items quoted in whole or in part are done so under the Fair Use Provision of the Copyright Laws of the United States Penal Code. Any Electronic Mail sent to the editors may be reprinted, in whole or in part, without any previous permission of the author, unless said electronic mail is specifically requested not to be reprinted. =========================================================================== @endnode @node GUIDELINE "Amiga Report Writing Guidelines" @toc ABOUT =========================================================================== Amiga Report Writing Guidelines =========================================================================== The three most important requirements for submissions to Amiga Report are: 1. Please use English. 2. Please use paragraphs. It's hard on the eyes to have solid screens of text. If you don't know where to make a paragraph break, guess. 3. Please put a blank line in between paragraphs. It makes formatting the magazine much much easier. 4. Please send us your article in ASCII format. Note: If you want to check ahead of time to make sure we'll print your article, please write to the @{"Editor" link JASON}. Please stipulate as well if you wish to retain copyright or hand it over to the editor. @endnode @node ZONE "CalWeb" @toc ONLINE =========================================================================== CalWeb: The Home of the Amiga Zone! =========================================================================== AMIGA ZONE MOVES TO CALWEB! THE AMIGA ZONE MOVES FROM PORTAL TO CALWEB INTERNET SERVICES For over ten years the Amiga Zone has been an online resource, home, community, oasis, for Amiga owners. For over ten years I've made my living running the Zone and supporting Amiga users all over the USA, Canada, and the world. Five years ago when American People/Link pulled their own plug, we had to find the Zone a new home and we found a good one on the Portal Online System. Well, it's happened again.. Portal has informed all of its customers that its ten year history as an online service and Internet provider is coming to an end on Sept. 30, 1996. This is very sad, it's short-notice, and the decision is completely out of my control, but it's also irreversible. Portal is changing its entire business plan from being an ISP to selling an accounting system to other online services. So be it. It's sad, but like I said, the Zone went through this before and now we'll go through it again, and come out the other side better and wiser. THE AMIGA ZONE IS MOVING TO CALWEB INTERNET SERVICES. CalWeb (http://www.calweb.com) is a two year old Internet provider located in Sacramento, CA. It has a good sized customer base, and very knowledgeable support staff. It's also run by a long time Amiga owner who has been a friend of mine for many years. The world of modeming has changed much in the last ten years. In 1985 you had very few choices and you had 1200 baud. These days, everyone and his dog has an ISP running and a web page But the vast majority of those providers don't know an Amiga from a hole in the ground, and could care less about Amiga owners. Say "AWeb" or "IBrowse" to them and they'll say "Omega? Amoeba? What? Huh? They still make those things?" CalWeb is different because it's the new home of the Amiga Zone. In October 1996, a new custom front-end menued system will be added to CalWeb to host the Zone. It'll have features for Zone users that neither Plink nor Portal ever had nor were they willing to add. The tradition of a friendly online Amiga community, run by long time Amiga owners, users and lovers will continue. Message bases, huge file libraries (we plan to move over the 20,000+ files we have on the Zone on Portal to CalWeb, MANY of which you'll never see on Aminet or anywhere else), live nightly chats, vendor support and our famous prize contests will continue. We've given away tens of thousands of dollars worth of Amiga prizes in the last ten years. No one else even comes close. I urge any and all of you who were on Plink, or who are now on Portal or who may have left Portal.. or even if you were never on either but used or still use another online service to join CalWeb for the Amiga Zone. I personally promise you the best online Amiga community we can possibly build. You will not be disappointed. CalWeb has arranged a special signup offer for you! Call: 1-800-509-9322 or 1-916-641-9320 or telnet to calweb.com, login as "guest", and follow the prompts. You can join CalWeb for US$19.95 flat, a month. CalWeb takes major credit cards or you can establish a monthly invoiced account if you don't have plastic. The signup is FREE. To get this deal you must say "THE AMIGA ZONE SENT ME" when you call or signup online. I hope to see lots of you join CalWeb. You can telnet into it from anywhere for no hourly charges at all. Your $19.95/mo fee covers everything and also gets you ten meg of storage which includes hosting your own personal web page. Naturally, when the Zone opens there, you'll have unlimited use of all of its features and areas. Never a "money meter" clock to worry about. Your personal or business CalWeb Web pages are maintained by you via FTP. It's pretty slick. You can make a net connection to the server with any Amiga FTP client, put your files onto it, the permissions are automatically set (no "chmod-ing" required!) and flip to your running browser and see the changes instantly. The Amiga Zone's new home is already up at: http://www.amigazone.com running on CalWeb's server. Ckeck it out! Please feel free to write to me at harv@amigazone.com or harv@cup.portal.com if you want more information. Remember to say "THE AMIGA ZONE SENT ME!" when you join. A splendid time is guaranteed for all. Please plan to join us in the Amiga Zone on CalWeb! @endnode @node BBS_ASIA "Distribution BBSes - Asia" @toc BBS =========================================================================== Distribution BBSes - Asia =========================================================================== -= IRAN =- * MAVARA BBS * 0098 21 8740815 -=JAPAN=- * GIGA SONIC FACTOR * Email: kfr01002@niftyserve.or.jp +81-(0)564-55-4864 @endnode @node BBS_AUSTRALASIA "Distribution BBSes - Australasia" @toc BBS =========================================================================== Distribution BBSes - Australasia =========================================================================== -=NEW ZEALAND=- * BITSTREAM BBS * FidoNET 3:771/850.0 AmigaNET 41:644/850.0 +64-(0)3-548-5321 -=VICTORIA=- * NORTH WEST AMIGA BBS * EMail: mozza@nwamiga.apana.org.au Fido: 3:633/265.0 BBS Phone/Fax: +61 3 9331 2831 USR Courier V.Everything @endnode @node BBS_EUROPE "Distribution BBSes - Europe" @toc BBS =========================================================================== Distribution BBSes - Europe =========================================================================== -=FINLAND=- * HANG UP BBS * Email: helpdesk@hangup.dystopia.fi (telnetable site) +358 - 09 - 278 8054 * LAHO BBS * +358-64-414 1516 +358-64-414 0400 +358-64-414 6800 +358-64-423 1300 * KINDERGARTEN * Email: matthias.bartosik@hut.fi +358-0-881 32 36 -=FRANCE=- * DYNAMIX BBS * Email: erlsoft@mcom.mcom.fr +33.1.48.89.96.66 Minitel to Modem * RAMSES THE AMIGA FLYING * Internet: user.name@ramses.fdn.org Fidonet: 2/320/104-105-106 +33-1-45845623 +33-1-53791200 -=GERMANY=- * DOOM OF DARKNESS * Email: marc_doerre@doom.ping.de +49 (0)4223 8355 19200 AR-Infoservice, contact Kai Szymanski kai@doom.gun.de * IMAGINE BBS * Email: Sysop@imagine.commo.mcnet.de +49-69-4304948 Login: GAST (Download area: "Amiga-Report") * LEGUANS BYTE CHANNEL * Usenet: andreas@lbcmbx.in-berlin.de 49-30-8110060 49-30-8122442 Login as User: "amiga", Passwd: "report" * REDEYE BBS * Internet: sysop@coolsurf.de Modem/ISDN: +49-89.54662690 Modem only:+49.89.54662680 * STINGRAY DATABASE * EMail: sysop@sting-db.zer.sub.org.dbp.de +49 208 496807 * VISION THING BBS * ++49(0)345 663914 System Password: Amiga -=GREECE=- * HELLAS ON LINE * EMail: cocos@prometheus.hol.gr Telnet: hellas.hol.gr ++301/ 620-6001, 620-6604, 620-9500 * ODYSSEY BBS * email: odyssey@acropolis.net Amiganet: 39:250/1.0 ++301-4123502 23.00-09.00 Local Time http://www.acropolis.net/~konem/odygb.html -=IRELAND=- * FWIBBLE! * Fidonet: 2:263/900.0 E-Mail: 9517693@ul.ie Phone: +353-902-36124 Midnight to 8am (GMT) Freq "Readme.txt" for details -=ITALY=- * AMIGA PROFESSIONAL BBS * Amy Professional Club, Italian Amos Club +(39)-49-604488 * AMIPRO BBS* AR and AMINET distributor +39-49604488 * DB-LINE SRL * Email: amiga@dbline.it WWW: www.dbline.it +39-332-767383 * FRANZ BBS * EMsil: mc3510@mclink.it +39/6/6627667 * IDCMP * Fidonet 2:322/405 +39-542-25983 * SPEED OF LIFE * FidoNet 2:335/533 AmigaNet 39:102/12 The AMIGA Alchemists' BBS +39-931-833773 -=NETHERLANDS=- * AMIGA ONLINE BS HEEMSTEDE * Fidonet: 2:280/464.0, 2:280/412.0 Email: sysop@aobh.xs4all.nl +31-23-5471111 +31-23-5470739 * THE HELL BBS * FidoNet: 2:281/418.0 Email : root@hell.xs4all.nl +31-(0)70-3468783 * MACRON BBS HEILOO * FidoNet: 2:280/134.0 Email: macron@cybercomm.nl +31-(0)72-5340903 * TRACE BBS GRONINGEN * FidoNET 2:282/529.0 Internet Martin@trace.idn.nl +31-(0)-50-410143 * WILD PALMS * Net: radavi@xs4all.nl WWW: www.xs4all.nl/~radavi/wildpalms/wildpalm.html +31-(0)30-6037959 * X-TREME BBS * Internet: u055231@vm.uci.kun.nl +31-167064414 -=POLAND=- * SILVER DREAM!'S BBS * SysOp: Silver Dream +48 91 540431 -=PORTUGAL=- * CIUA BBS * FidoNet 2:361/9 Internet: denise.ci.ua.pt +351-34-382080/382081 -=RUSSIA=- * NEW ORDER BBS * E-Mail: norder@norder.spb.su FidoNet: 2:5030/221.0 +7-812-2909561 -=SPAIN=- * GURU MEDITATION * +34-1-383-1317 * LA MITAD OSCURA * E-Mail: jovergon@offcampus.es Fido: 2:341/35.19 +34-1-3524613 * MAZAGON - BBS - SYSTEMS * E-mail: jgomez@maze.mazanet.es FTP: ftp-mail@ftp.mazanet.es +34 59 536267 Login: a-report -=SWEDEN=- * CICERON * E-mail: a1009@itv.se +46 612 22011 -=TURKIYE=- * NEEDFUL THINGS * E-Mail: Erdinc.Corbaci@beygir.bbs.tr 90-216-3629417 -=UKRAINE=- * AMIGA HOME BBZ * E-Mail: Oleg.Khimich@bbs.te.net.ua FidoNet: 2:467/88.0 +380-482-325043 -=UNITED KINGDOM=- * AMIGA JUNCTION 9 * Internet: sysadmin@junct9.demon.co.uk FidoNet: 2:440/20 +44 (0)372 271000 * CREATIONS BBS * E-Mail: mat@darkside.demon.co.uk 2:254/524@Fidonet +44-0181-665-9887 * DRAUGHTFLOW BBS * Email: Ian_Cooper@draught.demon.co.uk +44 (01707) 328484 * METNET CCS * Email: metnet@demon.co.uk FidoNet: 2:2502/129.0 2:2502/130.0 +44-1482-442251 +44-1482-444910 * OCTAMED USER BBS * EMail: rbfsoft@cix.compulink.co.uk +44 (01703) 703446 * SCRATCH BBS * EMail: kcci1@solx1.susx.ac.uk Official Super Skidmarks site +44-1273-389267 @endnode @node BBS_NAMERICA "Distribution BBSes - North America" @toc BBS =========================================================================== Distribution BBSes - North America =========================================================================== -=ARIZONA=- * MESSENGER OF THE GODS BBS * mercury@primenet.com 602-326-1095 -=BRITISH COLUMBIA=- * COMM-LINK BBS * EMail: steve_hooper@comm.tfbbs.wimsey.com Fido: 1:153/210.0 604-945-6192 -=CALIFORNIA=- * TIERRA-MIGA BBS * FidoNet: 1:202/638.0 Internet: torment.cts.com 619.292.0754 * VIRTUAL PALACE BBS * Sysop Email: tibor@ecst.csuchico.edu 916-343-7420 * AMIGA AND IBM ONLY BBS * EMail: vonmolk@crash.cts.com AmigaNET: 40:406/7.0 (619)428-4887 -=FLORIDA=- * LAST! AMIGA BBS * (305) 456-0126 -=ILLINOIS=- * PHANTOM'S LAIR * FidoNet: 1:115/469.0 Phantom Net Coordinator: 11:1115/0.0-11:1115/1.0 708-469-9510 708-469-9520 * THE SAGE'S TOWER * FidoNet: 1:2250/7 EMail: johnh@ezl.com 618-259-1844 * STARSHIP CUCUG * Email: khisel@prairienet.org (217)356-8056 * THE STYGIAN ABYSS BBS * FIDONet-1:115/384.0 312-384-0616 312-384-6250 (FREQ line) -=LOUISIANA=- * The Catacomb * E-mail: Geoff148@delphi.com 504-882-6576 -=MAINE=- * THE KOBAYASHI ALTERNATIVE BBS * FidoNet: 1:326/404.0 (207)/784-2130 (207)/946-5665 ftp.tka.com for back issues of AR -=MEXICO=- * AMIGA BBS * FidoNet 4:975/7 (5) 887-3080 * AMIGA SERVER BBS * 5158736 * TERCER PLANETA BBS * FX Network 800:525/1 [525]-606-2162 -=MISSISSIPPI=- * THE GATEWAY BBS * InterNet: stace@tecnet1.jcte.jcs.mil FidoNet: 1:3604/60.0 601-374-2697 -=MICHIGAN=- * DC PRODUCTIONS * Email: dcpro!chetw@heifetz.msen.com 616-373-0287 -=NEVADA=- * PUP-TEK BBS * EMail: darkwolf@accessnv.com 702-553-2403 -=NEW JERSEY=- * T.B.P. VIDEO SLATE * 201-586-3623 * DLTACOM AMIGA BBS * Internet: dltacom.camphq.fidonet.org Fidonet: 1:2606/216.0 (201) 398-8559 -=NEW YORK=- * THE BELFRY(!) * Email: stiggy@belfry.org WWW: www.belfry.org/ 718.793.4796 718.793.4905 -=ONTARIO=- * COMMAND LINE BBS * 416-533-8321 * CYBERSPACE * joehick@ophielia.waterloo.net (519) 579-0072 (519) 579-0173 * EDGE OF REALITY BBS * EMail: murray.smith@er.gryn.org Fido: 1:244/320.0 (905)578-5048 -=QUEBEC=- * CLUB AMIGA DE QUEBEC * Internet: snaclaq@megatoon.com Voice: (418) 666-5969 (418) 666-4146 (418) 666-6960 Nom d'usager: AMREPORT Mot de passe: AMIGA * GfxBase BBS* E-mail: ai257@freenet.hsc.colorado.edu Fidonet: 1:167/192 514-769-0565 -=TENNESSEE=- * AMIGA CENTRAL! * Email: root@amicent.raider.net 615-383-9679 * NOVA BBS * FidoNet 1:362/508.0 615-472-9748 -=VIRGINIA=- * NETWORK XXIII DATA SYSTEM * EMail: gottfrie@acca.nmsu.edu 804-266-1763 Login: anon Password: nopass -=WASHINGTON=- * FREELAND MAINFRAME * Internet - freemf.wa.com (360)412-0228 * PIONEERS BBS * FidoNet: 1:343/54.0 206-775-7983 Login: Long Distance Password: longdistance Or FREQ: AR.lha @endnode @node BBS_SAMERICA "Distribution BBSes - South America" @toc BBS =========================================================================== Distribution BBSes - South America =========================================================================== -=BRAZIL=- * 68000 BBS * AmigaNET-BR: 120:5521/1 Email: vaclav@antares.com.br +55-21-393-4390 [16-06h (-3GMT)] * STUFF OVERLOAD BBS * AmigaNET-BR: 120:120/0 Email: dan_cab@lepus.celepar.br +55-41-252-9389 @endnode @node DEAL_ASIA "Dealers - Asia" @toc DEALER =========================================================================== Dealers - Asia =========================================================================== -=JAPAN=- Grey Matter Ltd. 1-22-3,Minami Magome HillTop House 2F suite 201 Ota-ku,Tokyo 143 Tel:+81 (0)3 5709-5549 Fax:+81 (0)3 5709-1907 BBS: +81 (0)3 5709-1907 Email: nighty@gmatter.japan-online.or.jp -= MAYLAYSIA =- Innovations Lights & Magic (M) Sdn Bhd, A1106, University Towers, 46200, Petaling Jaya, Selangor Darul Ehsan Tel: +6 03 7544544 Fax: +6 03 7544588 Email: skchiew@pc.jaring.my @endnode @node DEAL_AUSTRALASIA "Dealers - Australasia" @toc DEALER =========================================================================== Dealers - Australasia =========================================================================== -=AUSTRALIA=- Amadeus Computers 1/534 Old Northern Rd Round Corner, NSW 2158 Voice: 02 9651 1711 Fax: 02 9651 1710 EMail: amadeus@ca.com/au WWW: www.ca.com.au/amadeus Amiga Genius 826 Hunter St. Newcastle West, NSW 2302 Ph: +61 49 623-222 Fax: +61 49 623-583 E-Mail: cdgtb@hunterlink.net.au Image Domain 92 Bridge St Fortitude Valley, Brisbane Queensland E-mail: imagedomain@msn.com Voice: 617-3216-1240 Fax: 617-3852-2720 Synapse Computers 190 Riding Road Hawthorne, Brisbane Queensland 4171 Voice/Fax: +61 7-3899-0980 EMail: synapse@powerup.com.au Unitech Electronics Pty. Ltd. / Maverick Amiga 8B Tummul Place St. Andrews, Sydney 2566 Voice: +61 2 9820 3555 Fax: +61 2 9603 8685 -=NEW ZEALAND=- CompKarori LG/F Karori Shopping Mall Karori, Wellington Tel/Fax: +64 4 476-0212 Email: sales@compkarori.co.nz @endnode @node DEAL_EUROPE "Dealers - Europe" @toc DEALER =========================================================================== Dealers - Europe =========================================================================== -=AUSTRIA=- A.R.T. Computeranimation Ges.m.b.H. Feldstrasse 13 3300 Amstetten Tel: +43 7472/63566-0 Fax: +43 7472/63566-6 Solaris Computec Ges.m.b.H. Mariahilfpark 1 A-6020 Innsbruck Tel: ++43-512/272724 Fax: ++43-512/272724-2 EMail: solaris@computec.co.at -=BELGIUM=- AVM Technology Rue de Rotheux, 279 B-4100 Seraing Voice: +32 (0)41 38.16.06 Fax: +32 (0)41 38.15.69 Email: defraj@mail.interpac.be CLICK! N.V. Boomsesteenweg 468 B-2610 Wilrijk - Antwerpen VOICE: +32 (0)3 828.18.15 FAX: +32 (0)3 828.67.36 INTERNET: vanhoutv@nbre.nfe.be FIDO: 2:292/603.9 -=BULGARIA=- KlubVerband ITA Gmbh 1309 Sofia P.F.13, KukushStr. 1-2 Tel: +359-2-221471 Fax: +359-2-230062 Email: KVITA@VIRBUS.BG Contact: Dr. ING B. Pavlov -=DENMARK=- Data Service Att. Soren Petersen Kaerhaven2a 2th 6400 Sonderborg Phone/Fax: +45 74 43 17 36 EMail: sorpe-95@sdbg.ih.dk Nemesis Amy BBS EMail: boersting@hoa.ping.dk Fido: 2:238/43 USR 33k6 V.E. +45 75-353726 -=FINLAND=- Lincware Computers Ltd Lovkullankuja 3 10300 KARJAA Voice: +358-50-5573696 Fax: +358-11-231511 EMail: linctech@freenet.hut.fi -=FRANCE=- ASCII Informatique 10 Rue de Lepante 06000 NICE Tel: (33) 93 13 08 66 Fax: (33) 93 13 90 95 Quartz Infomatique 2 bis, avenue de Brogny F-74000 ANNECY Tel./Fax (automatique): +33 50.52.83.31 E-Mail: tcp@imaginet.fr -=GERMANY=- AMItech Systems GmbH Ludwigstrasse 4 D-95028 Hof/Saale VOICE: +49 9281 142812 FAX: +49 9281 142712 EMail: bsd@blacky.netz.sub.de dcp, desing+commercial partner GmbH Alfredstr. 1 D-22087 Hamburg Tel.: + 49 40 251176 Fax: +49 40 2518567 EMail: info@dcp.de WWW: www.dcp.de Hartmann & Riedel GdbR Hertzstr. 33 D-76287 Rheinstetten EMail: rick@p22.aop.schiele-ct.de Fido: 2:2476/12.22 Voice: +49 (7242) 2021 Fax: +49 (7242) 2167 Please call before visiting, or we may be closed. Hirsch & Wolf OHG Mittelstra_e 33 D-56564 Neuwied Voice: +49 (2631) 8399-0 Fax: +49 (2631) 8399-31 Pro Video Elektronik Roßmarkt 38 D-63739 Aschaffenburg Tel: (49) 6021 15713 Fax: (49) 6021 15713 -=ITALY=- C.A.T.M.U. snc Casella Postale 63 10023 Chieri (TO) Tel/Fax: +39 11 9415237 EMail: fer@inrete.it (Ferruccio Zamuner) Fido: 2:334/21.19 Cloanto Italia srl Via G. B. Bison 24 33100 Udine Tel: +39 432 545902 Fax: +39 432 609051 E-Mail: info@cloanto.com WWW: www.cloanto.com -=NETHERLANDS=- Chaos Systems Watermolen 18 NL-1622 LG Hoorn (NH) Voice: +31-(0)229-233922 Fax/Data: +31-(0)229-TBA E-mail: marioh@fwi.uva.nl WWW: gene.fwi.uva.nl/~marioh/ -=NORWAY=- Applause Data AS Storgaten 31 Postboks 143 2830 Raufoss Voice: +47 61 19 03 80 Fax: +47 61 19 05 80 EMail: post@applause.no WWW: www.applause.no -=SPAIN=- Amiga Center Argullós, 127 08016 Barcelona Tel: (93) 276 38 06 Fax: (93) 276 30 80 Amiga Center Alicante Segura, 27 03004 Alicante Tel: (96) 514 37 34 Audio Vision San Jose, 53 Gijon (Asturias) Tel. (98) 535 24 79 Centro Informático Boadilla Convento, 6 28660 Boadilla del Monte (Madrid) Tel: (91) 632 27 65 Fax: (91) 632 10 99 Centro Mail Tel: (91) 380 28 92 C.R.E. San Francisco, 85 48003 Bilbao (Vizcaya) Tel: (94) 444 98 84 Fax: (94) 444 98 84 Donosti Frame Avda. de Madrid, 15 20011 San Sebastián (Guipuzcoa) Tel: (943) 42 07 45 Fax: (943) 42 45 88 Eurobit Informatica C/. Gral. Garcia de la Herran, 4 11100 - San Fernando Cadiz Tel/Fax: (956) 896375 GaliFrame Galerías Príncipe, 22 Vigo (Pontevedra) Tel: (986) 22 89 94 Fax: (986) 22 89 94 Invision San Isidro, 12-18 28850 Torrejón de Ardoz (Madrid) Tel: (91) 676 20 56/59 Fax: (91) 656 10 04 Invision Salamanca, 53 46005 Valencia Tel: (96) 395 02 43/44 Fax: (96) 395 02 44 Norsoft Bedoya, 4-6 32003 Orense Tel: (988) 24 90 46 Fax: (988) 23 42 07 PiXeLSOFT Felipe II, 3bis 34004 Palencia Tel: (979) 71 27 00 Fax: (979) 71 28 28 Tu Amiga Ordinadors C/ Progreso, 6 08120 La LLagosta (Barcelona) Tel: +34-3-5603604 Fax: +34-3-5603607 vb soft Provenza, 436 08025 Barcelona Tel: (93) 456 15 45 Fax: (93) 456 15 45 -=NORWAY=- DataKompaniet ANS Trondheim Innovation Centre Prof. Brochs gt. 6 N-7030 Trondheim Tel: +47 7354 0375 Fax: +47 7394 3861 EMail:datakompaniet@interlink.no WWW: www.interlink.no/datakompaniet Sezam Software Ulsmĺgveien 11a N-5o5o Nesttun Tel/Fax: +47 55100070 (9-20) ABBS: +47 55101730 (24t) Email: oleksy@telepost.no -=SWEDEN=- DataVision Box 1305 753 11 Uppsala Street Address: Sysslomansgatan 9 Orders: +46 (0)18-123400 Shop: +46 (0)18-124009 Fax: +46 (0)18-100650 -=UNITED KINGDOM=- Almathera Systems Ltd Southerton House / Boundary Business Court 92-94 Church Road Mitcham, Surrey / CR4 3TD VOICE: (UK) 081 687 0040 FAX: (UK) 081 687 0490 Sales: almathera@cix.compulink.co.uk Tech: jralph@cix.compulink.co.uk Brian Fowler Computers Ltd 90 South Street / Exeter Devon / EX1 1EN Voice: (01392) 499 755 Fax: (01392) 493 393 Internet: brian_fowler@cix.compulink.co.uk Computer Magic Unit 8 / Freemans Yard Doncaster Road / Barnsley / S71 1QH Tel: 01226 218255 / 0378 425281 Visage Computers 27 Watnall Road Hucknall / Nottingham Tel: +44 (0)115 9642828 Tel/Fax: +44 (0)115 9642898 EMail: visage@innotts.co.uk @endnode @node DEAL_NAMERICA "Dealers - North America" @toc DEALER =========================================================================== Dealers - North America =========================================================================== -=CANADA=- Animax Multimedia, Inc. Willow Tree Tower 6009 Quinpool Road, Suite 802 Halifax, Nova Scotia B3K 5J7 Ph: (902) 429-1921 Fax: (902) 429-1923 EMail: info@animax.com WWW: www.animax.com/ APC Computer Services 402-5 Tangreen Crt Willowdale, Ont. M2M 3Z1 Voice/Fax: (416) 733-1434 EMail: shadow@interlog.com WWW: www.interlog.com/~shadow/apccomp.html Atlantis Kobetek Inc. 1496 Lower Water St. Halifax, NS / B3J 1R9 Phone: (902)-422-6556 Fax: (902)-423-9339 E-mail: atkobetek@ra.isisnet.com Atlas Computers & Consulting - Derek Davlut 400 Telstar Avenue Suite 701 Sudbury, ON / P3E 5V7 Phone: (705) 522-1923 Fax: (705) 522-1923 EMail: s2200147@nickel.laurentian.ca CineReal Pro-Video 272 Avondale Avenue Ottawa, Ontario K1Z 7G8 Phone/Fax: (613) 798-8150 (Call first to fax) EMail: cinereal@proton.com Computer Shop of Calgary, Ltd. 3515 - 18th Street S.W. Calgary, Alberta T2T 4T9 Ph. 1-403-243-4358 Fx: 1-403-243-2684 Email: austin@canuck.com WWW: www.canuck.com/cshop Computerology Direct Powell River, BC V8A-4Z3 Call 24 hrs. orders/inquiries: 604/483-3679 Amiga users ask for HEAD SALES REP for quicker response! Comspec Communications Inc 74 Wingold Ave Toronto, Ontario M6B 1P5 Computer Centre: (416) 785-8348 Sales: (416) 785-3553 Fax: 416-785-3668 Internet: bryanf@comcorp.comspec.com, bryanf@accesspt.north.net ElectroMike Inc. 1375 Boul. Charest Ouest Quebec, Quebec G1N2E7 Tel: (418) 681-4138, (800) 463-1501 Fax: (418) 681-5880 Forest Diskasaurus 35 Albert St., P.O.Box 84 Forest, Ontario N0N 1J0 Tel/Fax: 519-786-2454 EMail: saurus@xcelco.on.ca GfxBase Electronique, Inc 1727 Shevchenko Montreal, Quebec Voice: 514-367-2575 Fax: 514-367-5265 BBS: 514-769-0565 Le Groupe PowerLand 630 Champagne Rosemere, Quebec J7A 4K9 Voice: 514-893-6296 Fax/BBS: 514-965-7295 Email: mchabot@nationalnet.com National Amiga Oakville, Ontario Fax: 905-845-3295 EMail: gscott@interlog.com WWW: www.interlog.com/~gscott/NationalAmiga.html Oby's Amigo Computing Shop 765 Barrydowne Rd Sudbury, Ontario P3A 3T6 Voice/Fax: (705)524-5826 Email: obys@vianet.on.ca WWW: icewall.vianet.on.ca/pages/obys Randomize Computers R.R. #2 Tottenham, Ont. L0G 1W0 vox: 905-939-8371 fax: 905-939-8745 Email: randomize@interlog.com WWW: www.interlog.com/~randomize/ Software Supermart 11010 - 101 Street Edmonton, Alberta T5H-2T1 Voice: (403) 425-0691 Fax: (403) 426-1701 EMail: ssmart@planet.eon.net SpectrumTech Electronics 412-1205 Fennell Avenue East Hamilton, ON L8T 1T1 Voice: (905) 388-9575 BBS: (905) 388-2542 E-Mail: ste@spectrum.gryn.org Contact: Derek Clarke Wonder Computers Ottawa Retail Store 1315 Richmond Road Ottawa, Ontario K2B 8J7 Voice: (613) 721-1800 Fax: 613-721-6992 WWW: www.wonder.ca Wonder Computers Vancouver Sales Office 2229 Edinburgh St. New Westminster, BC W3M 2Y2 (604) 524-2151 voice young monkey studios 797 Mitchell Street Fredericton, NB E3B 3S8 Phone: (506) 459-7088 Fax: (506) 459-7099 EMail: sales@youngmonkey.ca -=UNITED STATES=- A&D Computer 211 South St. Milford, NH 03055-3743 Voice/Fax: 603-672-4700 BBS: 603-673-2788 Internet: amiga@mv.mv.com Alex Electronics 597 Circlewood Dr. Paradise, CA 95969 Voice: 916-872-0896 BBS: 915-872-3711 EMail: alex@ecst.csuchico.edu WWW: www.km-cd.com/~alex/ Amigability Computers P.O. Box 572 Plantsville, CT 06479 VOICE: 203-276-8175 Internet: caldi@pcnet.com Amiga-Crossing PO Box 12A Cumberland Center, ME 04021 VOICE: (800) 498-3959 (Maine only) VOICE: (207) 829-3959 FAX: (207) 829-3522 Internet: amiga-x@tka.com Amiga Library Services 610 Alma School Rd, #18 Chandler, Az 85224-3687 Voice: (800) 804-0833 Fax: (602) 491-0048 E-Mail: orders@ninemoons.com Amiga Video Solutions 1568 Randolph Avenue St. Paul, MN 55105 Voice: 612-698-1175 Fax: 612-224-3823 BBS: 612-698-1918 Net: wohno001@maroon.tc.umn.edu Applied Multimedia Inc. 89 Northill St. Stamford, CT 06907 VOICE: (203) 348-0108 Apogee Technologies 1851 University Parkway Sarasota, FL 34243 VOICE: 813-355-6121 Portal: Apogee Internet: Apogee@cup.portal.com Armadillo Brothers 753 East 3300 South Salt Lake City, Utah VOICE: 801-484-2791 Internet: B.GRAY@genie.geis.com Computer Advantage 7370 Hickman Road Des Moines, IA 50322 Voice/Fax: 515-252-6167 Internet: Number1@netins.net Computer Concepts 18001 Bothell-Everett Hwy, Suite "0" Bothell, WA 98012 VOICE: (206) 481-3666 Computer Link 6573 middlebelt Garden City MI 48135 Voice: 313-522-6005 Fax: 313-522-3119 clink@m-net.arbornet.org The Computer Source 515 Kings Highway East Fairfield, CT 06432 Voice: (203) 336-3100 Fax: (203) 335-3259 Computers International, Inc. 5415 Hixson Pike Chattanooga, TN 37343 VOICE: 615-843-0630 Computerwise Computers 3006 North Main Logan, UT 84322 Concord Computer Solutions 2745 Concord Blvd. Suite 5 Concord, CA 94519 Orders: 1-888-80-AMIGA Info/Tech: 510-680-0143 BBS/Fax: 510-680-4987 Email: moxley@value.net WWW: www.ccompsol.com/ CPU Inc. 5168 East 65th St. Indianapolis, IN 46220 Voice: 317-577-3677 Fax: 317-577-1500 Email: cpuken@indy.net CyberTech Labs PO Box 56941 North Pole, Alaska 99705 Vox: (907) 451-3285 BBS1 : (907) 488-2547 BBS2 & Fax: (907) 488-2647 EMail: 71516.600@CompuServe.com Fido: 1:355/17.0 DC Productions 218 Stockbridge Avenue Kalamazoo, MI 49001 (616)373-1985 (800)9DC-PROD Email: dcpro!chetw@heifetz.msen.com Digital Arts 1321 North Walnut P.O. Box 5206 Bloomington, IN 47807-5206 VOICE: (812)330-0124 FAX: (812)330-0126 BIX: msears Digital Castle 4046 Hubbell Ave. Suite 155 Des Moines, IA 50317-4434 Voice: (515) 266-5098 EMail: Sheep@netins.net Digital F/X, Inc. 1930 Maple, Suite 7 North Bend, OR 97459 Voice: (800) 202-3285 / (541) 756-6693 Email: DFX@Mail.coos.or.us WWW: www.digital-fx.com Discount Computer Sales 1100 Sunset Strip #5 Sunrise, FL 33313 Voice: 954-797-9402 Fax: 954-797-2999 EMail: DCS@aii.net, DCS@interpoint.net Electronic Connection 635 Penn Ave West Reading, PA 19611 Phone: 610-372-1010 Fax: 610-378-0996 Hawkeye Communication 1324 Fifth Street Coralville, Iowa 52241 Voice: 319-354-3354 EMail: Hawkcom@inav.net HHH Enterprises PO Box 10 Hartwood, VA 22471 Contact: Tom Harmon Voice: (540) 752-2100 Email: ko4ox@erols.com HT Electronics E-Mail: HT Electronics@cup.portal.com BIX: msears 422 S. Hillview Dr. 211 Lathrop Way, Ste. A. Milipitas, CA 95035 Sacramento, CA 95815 V: (408) 934-7700 V: (916) 925-0900 F: (408) 934-7717 F: (916) 925-2829 Industrial Video, Inc. 1601 North Ridge Rd. Lorain, OH 44055 VOICE: 800-362-6150, 216-233-4000 Contact: John Gray Internet: af741@cleveland.freenet.edu Kipp Visual Systems 360-C Christopher Ave. Gaithersburg Md, 20878 301-670-7906 kipp@rasputin.umd.edu Krulewich Enterprises 554 Vega Dr Corpus Christi, TX 78418 Voice: (512) 937-4624 Email: 1040.3444@compuserve.com The Lively Computer - Tom Lively 8314 Parkway Dr. La Mesa, CA 91942 Voice: 619-589-9455 Fax: 619-589-5230 Net: tlively@connectnet.com Magic Page 3043 Luther Street Winston-Salem, NC 27127 Voice/Fax: 910-785-3695 E-mail: Spiff@ix.netcom.com Contact: Patrick Smith MicroSearch 9000 US 59 South, Suite 330 Houston, Texas VOICE: 713-988-2818 FAX: 713-995-4994 MicroTech Solutions, Inc. 17W745 Butterfield Road, Suite F Oakbrook Terrace, IL 60181 Phone: 630-495-4069 Fax: 630-495-4245 Email: info@mt-inc.com WWW: www.mt-inc.com Mr. Hardware Computers P.O. Box 148 / 59 Storey Ave. Central Islip, NY 11722 VOICE: 516-234-8110 FAX: 516-234-8110 A.M.U.G. BBS: 516-234-6046 Paxtron Corporation 28 Grove Street Spring Valley, NY 10977 Voice: 914-576-6522 Orders: 800-815-3241 Fax: 914-624-3239 PSI Animations 17924 SW Pilkington Road Lake Oswego, OR 97035 VOICE: 503-624-8185 Internet: PSIANIM@agora.rain.com Raymond Commodore Amiga 795 Raymond Avenue St. Paul, MN 55114-1521 VOICE: 612.642.9890 FAX: 612.642.9891 Safe Harbor Computers W226 N900 Eastmound Dr Waukesha, WI 53186 Orders: 800-544-6599 Fax: 414-548-8130 WWW: www.sharbor.com Slipped Disk 170 E 12 Mile Rd Madison Heights, Michigan 48071 Voice: (810) 546-DISK BBS: (810) 399-1292 Fido: 1:120/321.0 Software Plus Chicago 2945 W Peterson Suite 209 Chicago, Illinois VOICE: 312-878-7800 System Eyes Computer Store 730M Milford Rd Ste 345 Merrimack, NH 03054-4642 Voice: (603) 4244-1188 Fax: (603) 424-3939 EMail: j_sauter@systemeye.ultranet.com TJ's Unlimited P.O. Box #354 North Greece, NY 14515-0354 VOICE: 716-225-5810 BBS: 716-225-8631 FIDO: 1:2613/323 INTERNET: neil@rochgte.fidonet.org WenteK - Amiga Computers 10317 N. Scottsdale Rd. Scottsdale, Ax. 85253 Voice: 602-483-7200 Fax: 602-483-6826 EMail: robert2@doitnow.com Zipperware 76 South Main St. Seattle, WA 98104 VOICE: 206-223-1107 FAX: 206-223-9395 E-Mail: zipware@nwlink.com WWW: www.speakeasy.org/zipperware @endnode @node OPINION "Editorial and Opinion" @toc MENU =========================================================================== Editorial and Opinion =========================================================================== @{" compt.sys.editor.desk " link EDITORIAL} Off to Cologne... @{" ChequeMarcs " link OPINION1} A look at net-payment @{" Question Of Support " link OPINION2} Mail order or storefront? --------------------------------------------------------------------------- @{" News " link NEWS} @{" Opinion " link OPINION} @{" Articles " link FEATURE} @{" Reviews " link REVIEW} @{" Charts " link FTP} @{" Adverts " link COMMERCIAL} @endnode @node NEWS "News & Press Releases" @toc MENU =========================================================================== News & Press Releases =========================================================================== @{" Aweb-II, v2.1 " link NEWS10} Includes HTML 2.0 & 3.2 support @{" IAM Open Letter " link NEWS4} IAM's recent trials... @{" IAM Sale " link NEWS5} ...and their new low prices. @{" Personal Paint 7 " link NEWS8} News on Cloanto's latest @{" UltraAccounts V3.1a " link NEWS1} Personal finance management @{" Photogenics 2.0 CD " link NEWS2} Its North American distributor @{" PCom//CD Series " link NEWS3} Interesting new series of CD-ROM drives @{" Executive V2.0 " link NEWS6} The AmigaOS task scheduler @{" Syzygy Web Site " link NEWS7} An update to the Digital Universe site @{" Convergence International " link NEWS9} New user group formed --------------------------------------------------------------------------- @{" News " link NEWS} @{" Opinion " link OPINION} @{" Articles " link FEATURE} @{" Reviews " link REVIEW} @{" Charts " link FTP} @{" Adverts " link COMMERCIAL} @endnode @node FEATURE "Featured Articles" @toc MENU =========================================================================== Featured Articles =========================================================================== @{" Midwest Amiga Expo " link FEATURE1} A report from the Ohio show @{" Games News " link FEATURE2} Ken Anderson reports @{" Amigas In Iran " link FEATURE3} Insight in the Mideast @{" Internet Payment Systems " link FEATURE4} Pros and cons of each type --------------------------------------------------------------------------- @{" News " link NEWS} @{" Opinion " link OPINION} @{" Articles " link FEATURE} @{" Reviews " link REVIEW} @{" Charts " link FTP} @{" Adverts " link COMMERCIAL} @endnode @node REVIEW "Reviews" @toc MENU =========================================================================== Reviews =========================================================================== @{" Imagine PD 3D " link REVIEW3} Tons of Imagine objects @{" Light ROM Gold " link REVIEW4} The latest Light-ROM issue @{" Multimedia Backdrops " link REVIEW5} A host of backgrounds for images @{" Diavolo 3.4 PRO " link REVIEW1} The Devil's own backup... @{" DirOpus 5.5 " link REVIEW6} This time, configurability. @{" AppleCD 600e " link REVIEW2} A solid drive... --------------------------------------------------------------------------- @{" News " link NEWS} @{" Opinion " link OPINION} @{" Articles " link FEATURE} @{" Reviews " link REVIEW} @{" Charts " link FTP} @{" Adverts " link COMMERCIAL} @endnode @node FTP "Aminet Charts" @toc MENU =========================================================================== Aminet Charts =========================================================================== @{" 27-Oct-96 " link CHARTS1} @{" 10-Nov-96 " link CHARTS2} --------------------------------------------------------------------------- @{" News " link NEWS} @{" Opinion " link OPINION} @{" Articles " link FEATURE} @{" Reviews " link REVIEW} @{" Charts " link FTP} @{" Adverts " link COMMERCIAL} @endnode @node ABOUT "About AMIGA REPORT" @toc MENU =========================================================================== About AMIGA REPORT =========================================================================== @{" AR Staff " link STAFF} The Editors and writers @{" Writing Guidelines " link GUIDELINE} What you need to do to write for us @{" Copyright Information " link COPYRIGHT} The legal stuff --------------------------------------------------------------------------- @{" News " link NEWS} @{" Opinion " link OPINION} @{" Articles " link FEATURE} @{" Reviews " link REVIEW} @{" Charts " link FTP} @{" Adverts " link COMMERCIAL} @endnode @node STAFF "The Staff" @toc ABOUT =========================================================================== The Staff =========================================================================== Editor: @{" Jason Compton " link JASON} Assistant Editor: @{" Katherine Nelson " link KATIE} Games Editor: @{" Ken Anderson " link KEN} Contributing Editor: @{" William Near " link WILLIAM} --------------------------------------------------------------------------- @{" News " link NEWS} @{" Opinion " link OPINION} @{" Articles " link FEATURE} @{" Reviews " link REVIEW} @{" Charts " link FTP} @{" Adverts " link COMMERCIAL} @endnode @node WHERE "Where to Get AR" @toc MENU =========================================================================== Where to Get AR =========================================================================== @{" The AR Mailing List " link MAILLIST} @{" Aminet " link AMINET} @{" World Wide Web " link WWW} @{" Distribution Sites " link BBS} @{" Commercial Services " link ZONE} --------------------------------------------------------------------------- @{" News " link NEWS} @{" Opinion " link OPINION} @{" Articles " link FEATURE} @{" Reviews " link REVIEW} @{" Charts " link FTP} @{" Adverts " link COMMERCIAL} @endnode @node BBS "Distribution Sites" @toc WHERE =========================================================================== Distribution BBSes =========================================================================== Arranged by Continent: @{" Asia " link BBS_ASIA} @{" Australasia " link BBS_AUSTRALASIA} @{" Europe " link BBS_EUROPE} @{" North America " link BBS_NAMERICA} @{" South America " link BBS_SAMERICA} Sysops: To have your name added, please send @{"Email", link JASON} with the BBS name, its location (Country, province/state) your name, any internet/fidonet addresses, and the phone number of your BBS --------------------------------------------------------------------------- @{" News " link NEWS} @{" Opinion " link OPINION} @{" Articles " link FEATURE} @{" Reviews " link REVIEW} @{" Charts " link FTP} @{" Adv @{" Adverts " link COMMERCIAL} @endnode @node DEALER "Dealer Directory" @toc MENU =========================================================================== Dealer Directory =========================================================================== Arranged by Continent: @{" Asia " link DEAL_ASIA} @{" Australasia " link DEAL_AUSTRALASIA} @{" Europe " link DEAL_EUROPE} @{" North America " link DEAL_NAMERICA} Dealers: To have your name added, please send @{"Email", link JASON} with the BBS name, its location (Country, province/state) your name, any internet/fidonet addresses, and the phone number of your dealership --------------------------------------------------------------------------- @{" News " link NEWS} @{" Opinion " link OPINION} @{" Articles " link FEATURE} @{" Reviews " link REVIEW} @{" Charts " link FTP} @{" Adverts " link COMMERCIAL} @endnode

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