Questions & Answers

 
User tip 
Vertical sync problems
If your SM 124 picture starts to roll and the vertical hold preset cannot steady the picture try replacing C601 (a 0.1ufd 50 VDC electrolytic capacitor) located by video lead connector.
I used a ceramic decoupling capacitor as my component stock is 10 miles away.
Bob Culverston
 
 

PC IDE for me?

#2 Kevin Cadoo
You said a 3.5" IDE wouldn't fit inside a standard Falcon casing which
came as a suprise to me because I have had a Quantum Maverick 540A 3.5"
IDE drive inside my standard Falcon case for almost two years now, powered
by the Falcon power supply.
If I remember correctly I had to cut one of the plastic mouldings for the
case screws off, modify the 2.5" drive mounting bracket, and buy a 2.5" to
3.5" cable adaptor - which included a power plug and lead. To date I have
had no problems with it and it's much quicker than the 65Mb Seagate that
came fitted in my Falcon.
Mike Wilson, via the Internet
 
 

Crash landing Falcon


I have been very happy with my Falcon but recently it has been causing me
nothing but hassle. The first program I run always crashes with two bombs
when I quit although subsequent programs run without any problems at all.
atari.st conference, CIX


Hmm, a tough one this. There is no definite answer without further
information but it could be that it only recently started due to some
clash between accessories or programs in your AUTO folder. You will need
to eliminate the culprit by booting up without any of these and testing
with different boot set-ups. If the problem still persists then you may
try deleting the NEWDESK.INF file in the boot drive and resaving the
desktop. In some circumstances it may be a hardware fault. In this case
contact The Upgrade Shop on 01625-503448
Denesh Bhabuta
 

Atari on the move


I have had to sell my trusted Atari and buy a portable PC for work
reasons. I would still like to use Atari programs. What options are open
to me?
comp.sys.atari.st conference, Internet


You have three options. One is a software version of the GEMulator
available for Windows 3.11 and above. This needs a copy of MagiC2 or
MagiC4 as the operating system. GEMulator is available from from FaST Club
on 0115-945-5250. Alternatively you may go directly for MagiCPC, the MagiC
operating system for Windows95. For more details contact System Solutions
on 0181-693-3355.  The final option is TOS2WIN for Windows 95 and Windows
NT from AIXIT in Germany. This is a software emulator and currently only
available in Germany. If you have access to the Web, point your browser to
http://www.aixit.com/
Denesh Bhabuta
 
 
User tip 
Symbolic links versus File aliases
The MagiC OS includes built-in support for symbolic links but there is general confusion about how to use them and how they differ from file aliases.
Consider a file called ABC.TXT on drive C:. If you create a 
symbolic link of that file called 123.TXT and save it elsewhere both files will appear as 'real' files on the desktop, in the file selector and everywhere else and changing one changes the other.
Creating file aliases is normally a feature of desktops (Thing, MagXDesk, Neodesk etc) where an alias of ABC.TXT can created and handled as a desktop object, dragged to other icons, windows etc. 
Aliases do not exist as real files and merely serve as pointers to the original file.
Mario Becroft, Auckland, New Zealand
 
 

Junior Faxing


I am having trouble getting Junior Office to work. When the modem kicks in
it doesn't dial except it makes a nasty bleep and times out. I have set up
all the configuration files and the Class 1 Fax MTX file. Any ideas what I
could be doing wrong? I have set up all the numbers in the address bit and
the modem code is set to ATD.
D. Diamond, Scotland


This seems to be the most reported problem with Junior Office. You need to
set the modem dial-string (in Module/Configuration/Modem)to "" (empty
string) and all should be well.
Steven Taylor, ex-Atarian, Ramsbottom
 

Junior Faxing 2


I've just got a US Robotics 33.6 voice fax modem which doesn't seem to fax
anything. My older modem faxed fine with JO! The fax light flashes but it
doesn't dial.
Bruce Oldfield via email


Your new modem may support a different fax class than your old one. If it
supports both Class 1 and 2 you should use Class 1 by preference. To test
this, type AT+FCLASS? in a terminal wondow or alternatively get SYSINFO
(programmed by TOAD) from a PD library.
Steven Taylor
 

Hardware Syncfix


I installed Syncfix on my falcon and was intially impressed - no more
flickering on screen while viewing JPEGs! Unfortunately it didn't work
with a FLI/FLC/FLH player or a DSP replay program from BiTMaSTER so I had
to switch it off. Maybe it is a problem with the vertical refresh or the
software is out of date?
Karel Rous


The VGA sync bug is an annoying problem where the Falcon produces two or
more vertical refresh interrupts on every monitor refresh - instead of
just one. It doesn't affect all Falcon/VGA combinations but seems to
affect many cheaper 14" VGA systems.
If you can see tiny 'flecks' near the top of the display your monitor is
affected. More seriously, this problem interferes with the timing of
graphical applications such as movie players, games and any program where
the vertical refresh is an important factor. For example, if a game
depends on 50-70Hz refresh and it thinks it's getting 100-140Hz instead,
the game runs at twice the expected frame rate - which isn't ideal!
It also interferes with image viewers (including mine), and isn't easy to
programming around in software BUT there is permenant hardware alternative
to using Syncfix
(*** Ed: Atari Computing does not accept liability for
any damage that may arise if you decide to perform this modification ***):

Hey presto, no VGA sync problems ever again! Oh, keep the inductors, they
can be useful for other mods.
Doug Little BSS
 


I've just accidently deleted 4500 files from my EZ135 drive using Kobold!
I wish I'd read that dialog more carefully! Has anyone had any experience
of batch undelete programs?
Mal Riley, CIX atari conference


I've done the very same thing with Kobold! The problem with most batch
undelete utilities is they don't make intelligent decisions.
If you defragmented your files recently your chances of a complete salvage
are improved. Typically undelete utilities assume all files are
contiguous. Bearing this in mind the following step-by-step procedure is
worth following:
 

Joing fragmented files back together takes practice. I use the KnifeST
disk editor and after looking at enough files you'll learn to recognise
file end clusters, which in some cases may still have include the disk
format pattern and the last byte may well be a null byte - both good
indications you've got the right pieces. Backup data files are a real pain
because they make it more difficult to join up the right clusters for the
current file and they're redundant anyway!
Obviously if you have taken precautions you'll stand a much better chance
of recovering all your data when the worst happens:
 

Olly Skelton
 


I've installed ST-Guide from AC#1 as an accessory on my hard drive
partition C: After selecting ST-Guide from the Desk menu the ST-GUide
intro page is displayed but as soon as I use the mouse to scroll or select
links my machine immediately locks up and I have to reboot. Am I missing
something obvious?
Peter Buchan


There are several possible reasons for this behaviour. To figure out the
precise reason on your system proceed as follows:
 
 

Joe Connor
 
 

Bad Printing


I have a STe which when connected to a HP DeskJet 500 printer prints
perfectly but when I connect a Panasonic KXP1081 9 pin dot matrix it won't
work giving the same symptoms as when the Yamaha chip is damaged, (i.e.
plugging in the printer whilst the system is switched on).
The printer is not at fault because it works perfectly when connected to a
different STe. The weird STe is using TOS 1.62 and the other has the
2.06/1.62 STe switcher fitted. The Panasonic printer works fine with 2
other STFMs (TOS 1.04). I get problems when printing pure ASCII so I know
it isn't a driver problem either.
The Yamaha chip was mounted on a 40 pin chip holder suggesting that the
chip had previously been replaced. I thought maybe the holder was causing
the problem (chip is normally surface mounted) so I removed it and surface
mounted the chip, but alas the problem still exists.

ataricomputing conference, CIX


The ST printer port is driven by the Yamaha sound chip which in some cases
is apparently unable to provide enough current to drive some printers. The
solution is to buffer the Strobe output, by fitting a small-signal PNP
follower transistor in the printer lead. (ST Strobe output to base,
collector to earth, emitter to printer Strobe input.)
If you're getting garbled characters or no printout at all it sounds like
you may need a full printer port buffer. Paul Rossiter sells a 'printer
booster'. Call him on 0115-968-1870.
Someone within A|C|G
 
 

Web Graphics


I am heavily in to designing Web documents using my Atari and like to
include various personally designed graphics on them. My problem is that I
have so far been unable to create Interlaced GIF files. Is there any way
to do this on the Atari?
ataricomputing conference, CIX


Yes. You have two options. First one is a small program which is included
with later versions of CAB. Just drag the GIF file on to the program icon
and hey presto! The other option is to go for Imagecopy v4 which lets you
do this and a lot more to graphics files of various formats. Available
from the FaST Club on 0115-945-5250.
Denesh Bhabuta
 
 

Mini Atari Computing


I have just purchased cheaply an Atari Portfolio. Is there any program
available which will let my ST communicate with the Portfolio?
Derek Jones via email


Yes there are, although I do not know of any off-hand. Paul Finch runs a
Portfolio Club and he will be able to help you. Contact him at Portfolio
Club (UK), 16 Cedars Road, Morden, Surrey SM4 5AB or email him at
finch@parliament.uk
Denesh Bhabuta

Outside with Papyrus

#1 T Yusuf
#2 Martyn Tidd
I use Outside on my 4Mb Falcon with Papyrus and lots of other programs.
The Auto folder running order seems to be the most important factor (see
below).
Also make sure the 'Allocate TT RAM' and 'Load into TT RAM' flags of every
program you use are set to ON otherwise the program will crash under
Outside with an 'Out of Memory' error.
Now after loading all your Auto programs, including Outside, check to see
how much ST RAM you have free then set Outside to use ALL of this apart
from 25Kb - this should result in optimum performance.

Auto folder running order:

AHDI     - Hard disk driver
STOOP    - Boot manager
FPATCH2  - TOS patch program
NVDI
OUTSIDE
JPEGD    - JPEG DSP decoder
STIKTSR  - STiK
DRIVIN   - HSMODEM
SCC      - HSMODEM

Roy Goring, Wessex Atari Group
 
 

Switch is Best


I vaguely remember reading somwhere that I should turn off my Monitor on
first and off last to save damage to it. Is this correct???
A R HULL, Surrey


There are two reasons for this line of thinking:
First, on start-up the ST polls all its ports to discover what's connected
and all peripherals need to be switched on for this to be effective. The
most common evidence for this was with the original Deskjet printers which
would not be found by the ST if they were switched on second.
Second, there is a risk of a power-surge from any one of the peripherals
when they are switched on that may blow the port on the ST that it's
connected to. Turning on the peripherals first ensures that the ST is
safe. However most Atari users I know switch everything on and off at the
same time at the wall socket.
Harry Sideras, CIX
 

Atari PC Disks


I am wondering if anybody you can help me. I have a PC owning friend with
access to the Internet. I have an Atari 520 ST with 1meg of RAM and would
like my friend to download some games from the Atari indexes online. He
mentioned that the Atari disk format is different to the PC one and that
he would use RAWRITE (this program should write to the disks sector by
sector, ignoring format) which is distributed with many Linux
installations. This is getting a bit too technical for me. Will using
RAWRITE work or are there any alternatives?
T. Roy, Lancashire


No need to go to all that hassle. Simply use standard 3.5" Double density
floppy disks formatted to 720K on a PC. The ST is capable of reading these
9 sector/80 track discs, so you can just copy the files straight onto the
floppies like normal files.
Denesh Bhabuta
 
 

Printer upgrade


I have a colleague who uses an ST for printing word processed documents.
He wishes to upgrade from an dot matrix printer to an inkjet printer.
Where can he obtain printer drivers for inkjet printers for his ST. He is
particularly interested in Canon inkjet printers. Are you aware of any
suppliers who may be able to help him?
Gordon McIntosh via AOL


I am unable to give an accurate answer without any more information as to
which word processor(s) he is using. However you should be able to set the
Canon Inkjet printers to Epson emulation mode and print from just about
any ST word processor.
Denesh Bhabuta
 
 

Sick rodent


My mouse is not working properly. I tried connecting a PC one but it needs
drivers and takes up my modem port. What can I do?
Ezequiel, via email


You can buy a replacement mouse with a much better feel than the original
clunky one that came bundled with your ST. They cost around œ10 and can be
bought from either the Upgrade Shop on 01625-503448, or System Solutions
who have thier own brand, on 01753-832212.
Denesh Bhabuta
 
 

Internet-ional compatability


I am trying to create an Atari friendly Web site. Is there anything
special which needs to be done?
Robert Nisbet via email


Nope! CAB supports most modern HTML code, and any which isn't currently
supported will surely be added by the author in future versions. CAB does
not however support any Java code and any programs written in this
language will not be displayed. The best advice I can give you at the
moment is to test your HTML code using the latest release versions of CAB
and leave out any features which are not supported for the time being.
Denesh Bhabuta
 
 

UDO Doesn't!


I've tried the UDO to HTML conversion and frankly I am disappointed. The
number of HTM files created must be a joke! Every node, subnode etc.
creates a separate HTM file!
Tim Marsh, London


Since UDO v5 new commands !html_merge_nodes, !html_merge_subnodes and
!html_merge_subsubnodes have been addred to improve this situation.
Furthermore you can tell UDO via !htmlname how to name a file containing a
chapter. UDO is also available for DOS/Windows on the PC and Linux.
Versions will soon be available on for the Mac and Amiga platforms.
Denesh Bhabuta

 

Window enhancements


Before using MagiC I considered WinX a must-have utility which added
extras to GEM windows and TOS. I'm missing some of the WinX features, is
there anything similar for MagiC users?
Simon Evans, Reading


WinCom (Window Commander) is what you need. It offers extra window
functions via the mouse and hot-keys along with the real time functions
available in WinX. WinCom offers many other useful features and runs under
all MagiC versions since MagiC 2 including MagiC Mac/PC. WinCom is
shareware. Registration costs œ10 in the UK via Andrew Lee
(ajl@cix.co.uk).
Denesh Bhabuta

 

Other Ataris!


I've recently downloaded a large file that is supposed to contain Atari
stuff. Having uudecoded it and unzipped the resulting file, I find I've
got something with the .ATR extension. It's certainly not executable, I
tried this changing it to " .TOS ", and looks like some kind of archive.
Can you make some suggestions?
Roy Ardent via CIX


Files with this extension can only be used with the 8-bit Atari machines
or one of the 8-bit Atari emulators running on an ST or PC. You will not
be able to decode and use these files on your ST. The emulators are widely
availabe from PD/Shareware libraries and on-line services.
Denesh Bhabuta
 
 

Weird Files


I've just started using the internet and have been trawling the many
software archives available. I understand that software on-line is
compressed and and we need to use the appropriate de-archiver once the
file is downloaded. However I have been totally stumped by the .MSA
extension that some files have. What is this and how do I view these
files?
John Stevens, via email


MSA stands for Magic Shadow Archive which is a way of compressing whole
floppy disks (including their boot sectors) into one file. Magic Shadow
Archiver is now at version 2.3 and lets you uncompress these files,
usually creating bootable floppy disks in addition to creating new MSA
files. Make sure you have a blank floppy disk per MSA file to hand when
you come to extracting them.
Denesh Bhabuta
 
 
 
 

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