News, Notes & Quotes

What's Happening in the Atari World

by Stephen Mortimer and the START Staff

GDOS Replacement

G+PLUS is a GDOS replacement by CodeHead Software. GDOS is an extension of the operating system that allows programs such as Microsoft Write and Easy Draw to display and output device-independent fonts and graphics at the highest resolution possible. Currently, GDOS causes speed degradation in some systems and some programs do not work properly with GDOS installed. G+PLUS takes the place of GDOS in the boot disk AUTO folder offering speed and compatibility improvements over GDOS.

According to Charles F Johnson, one of the program's authors, G+PLUS has shown no compatibility problems and will work with software previously incompatible with GDOS. Significantly, there is no speed degradation using G+PLUS. A special line drawing option allows the ST to operate 25% faster than normal on the Desktop.

A companion accessory included with G+PLUS allows different ASSIGN.SYS files to be installed without rebooting the system. The ASSIGN.SYS file tells the system what fonts are installed and where to find them. Normally, the computer must be reset for a new ASSIGN.SYS to be recognized. Under G+PLUS, the execution of a GDOS-based program will cause a specific ASSIGN.SYS file to be automatically loaded and installed. G+PLUS is available for $34.95 from CodeHead Software, P.O. Box 1250, Pacific Palisades, CA 90272.

The Moniterm Vik- ing 2400 high reso- lution monochrome monitor dwarfs the Mega 4 beside it. Including the inter- face board that plugs into the Mega bus, the Viking 2400 lists for $2595, while its smaller 19" cousin lists for $1995.

High Resolution Monitor

Moniterm, a giant in the monitor industry, has completed a high-resolution interface board for the Atari Mega and the Moniterm Viking 1 and Viking 2400 monitor. The board connects to the Mega's internal bus connector and provides a monochrome screen resolution of 1280 by 960, more than twice the size of the current ST monochrome monitor.

The board will also have a socket for the Motorola 68881 math coprocessor that may be installed at a later time. The Viking 1 19-inch monitor and board will sell for a maximum of $1,995, according to Ward Johnson, President of Moniterm. The Viking 2400 24-inch monitor will sell for $2,595. Both monitors have an option for a non-glare screen. Properly written software should work immediately with the Moniterm monitor. For more information, contact Moniterm at 5740 Green Circle Drive, Minnetonka, MN 55343. (612) 935-4151.

Precision Comes To The U.S.

Precision Incorporated, the English publishers of Superbase Personal and Professional and LOGiSTiK, has opened its doors in the U.S. Distribution and support of these products had formerly been handled by Progressive Peripherals & Software of Denver, Colorado. Precision Incorporated will now provide full support for all of its products from its offices at 8404 Sterling Street, Suite A, Irving, TX 75063. Their voice telephone number is (214) 929-4888 and their Fax number is (214) 929-1655.

Atari Hard Disk Fix

Berkeley MicroSystems, creators of the BMS-100 hard disk interface board, has designed a replacement PAL chip for the Atari SH-204 20 megabyte hard disk. As shipped by Atari, the SH-204 does not report errors to the computer in media formatting, reading or writing. With the Atari Drive Enhancement, all errors are reported, curing erratic disk operations and problems of phantom partitions that can occur when using Supra or ICD hard disk software.

The ADE chip simply plugs into a socket on the SH-204's host adaptor board. The retail price of the ADE is $20 and it's recommended as a dealer-installed option. For more information, contact Berkeley MicroSystems, 360 Oakland Avenue, Suite 5, Oakland, California 94611, (415) 465-6956.

Dot, Dot, Dot. . .

Have you been wondering what David Small is up to these days? First of all, he's finished Version 6 of the Data Pacific Magic Sac Mac emulator that offers much faster disk access speeds. More recently, since leaving Data Pacific David has been developing a 128K version of the Magic Sac. Currently the Magic Sac uses Apple 64K ROMs that are incompatible with software such as HyperCard and Adobe Illustrator. The 128K emulator, popularly dubbed the "Super Sac," will not be marketed by Data Pacific but by a company run by David Small himself. Small expects the Super Sac to retail for about $200 without the Apple ROMs. . . Early this summer at the NAMM show held in Atlanta, Atari created a MIDI developers council. The council is made up of several well-known ST MIDI companies, including Hybrid Arts, Sonus and Dr. T's, and will try to further MIDI on the Atari ST line of computers. . .

If you've got a hot tip or an interesting product for the ST, we'd like to hear from you. Let us know at News, Notes & Quotes, START, 544 Second Street, San Francisco, CA 94107.