I/O Board
SX212 SOFTWARE
I recently purchased the new Atari SX212 modem and I haven't been able to get any of my telecommunications software to work with it. The modem comes with both a standard RS-232 port and an Atari serial I/O port, so I thought I would be able to run the modem directly through the serial port, with no need for an interface such as the Atari 850. No handler software came with the modem as I had read was originally planned.
Is there any handler software available so that I can run terminal software that normally runs through the 850 interface for 1200 baud, such as the Chameleon VT-52 or ADM-3A emulators? Until now, I've used an Atari 1030 modem, but I bought the SX212 specifically for the faster 1200 baud and I don't want to buy an interface if I don't need to.
Judy Shadduck
Lock Haven, PA
No, you won't need an 850-type interface to use the SX212. As for SX212 software. the author of the popular Express! public domain modem software series, Keith Ledbetter, was assigned to write SX Express! It should be available as an inexpensive add-on package by the time you read this. Meanwhile. a public domain handler that reportedly works with 850 Express! and AMODEM is being widely circulated by users groups and online (the Atari forums on Compuserve and GEnie. etc.).
Atari didn't want to hold the long-awaited SX212 off the market while
this situation was being resolved. And in fact the entire first shipment
of these $99.95 modems quickly sold out. Longtime Antic author Matthew
Ratcliff will be reviewing the SX212 in a forthcoming issue-ANTIC ED
MISSING INFO
My article on News Station Companion (Antic, December 1987) left out some pertinent information on conversion of text files created with AtariWriter and PaperClip.
With AtariWriter files, first use global formatting to set margins, changing the number of lines to 160. Set the left margin at 1 and the right at 80, or for double-column printing use 1 and 41 for the left margins and 39 and 79 for the right.
Do not use the ASCII save routine. Use the print command, entering N to the printer prompt, and then select the Atari 1027 printer driver. Save the file to disk with a .TXT extender.
Always convert to one column, letting AtariWriter or PaperClip format the double-column printing. The program routine just leaves gaps in the copy and should be used only for special purposes.
PaperClip also can be used in a similar manner if you use the print routine and save the file to disk without control codes. Type [CONTROL] [SHIFT] [O] (not zero) and then type a filename at the Print Device? prompt.
Steve Fishbein
Newport News, VA
MORE NEWS STATION
News Station and News Station Companion continue to amaze me with their versatility In addition to being able to publish great newsletters, I also use them to make personal and business cards. This is done on one plate, then repeated on the other seven plates.
The Companion's plate manipulator feature lets me make passable posters with several Print Shop icons. This is done by laying out one plate as the top half of the poster, manipulating it and saving the four manipulated plates that result. These are automatically saved as plates 1 through 4. Then I lay out another plate as the lower half of the poster, manipulate it and save the resulting manipulated plates on another disk. Finally, I add these plates to the first disk, renaming them as plates 5 through 8. Presto: a Print Shop-sized poster.
When your review called News Station and Ncws Station Companion "two products that combine into a mighty rival for Newsroom," you were right on the mark.
Frank Carey
Troy, MI
BOUNCE BACK
In my program Bounce (Rassilon's Triple-Header, Antic, January 1988) there is a logic error in the short routine that allows faster movement of the "paddle" when the fire button is pressed. Line 110 should be renumbered as line 125 (make sure that line 110 is deleted afterward). This will allow double movement of the "paddle" for left direction as well as right direction.
Robert "Rassilon"
Patton
CompuServe ID
70057,674
TIME CHANGE
I typed in Weather Calculator (Antic, September 1986) and it ran the first time. In the sunrise/sunset option, however, it gave me sunrise and sunset times for the Northern Hemisphere, so I have included the changes for Southern Hemisphere users:
6031 M=M-16:IF M<0
THEN M=M+12
6515 M=M+16:IF M>12
THEN M=M-12
David Zanetti
Wellington, New Zealand
MINDSCAPE PRAISE
I discovered a bug in the gameplay of Defender of the Crown, and I called Mindscape's toll-free number and spoke to a gentleman who said he'd look into the problem.
Two days later he called me back, saying that the programmers were working on the problem and it would be about a month before the new version was ready. He also said he'd let me know when to send in my disks for repair.
Recently he called me again, saying that if I gave them another week and then sent the disks, Mindscape would replace them.
I'm very impressed with Mindscape's customer service and the number of new titles they're bringing out for the Atari 8-bit computer. Mindscape should be commended-it's nice to know there is still a company that stands behind Atari owners.
Matt Stone
Framingham, MA
Antic welcomes your feedback, but we regret that the large volume of mail makes it impossible for the Editors to reply to everyone. Although we do respond to as much reader correspondence as time permits, our highest priority must be to publish I/O answers to questions that are meaningful to a substantial number of readers.
Send letters to: Antic I/O Board, 544 Second Street, San Francisco, CA 94107.