The Atari market, finally, is beginning to delve into the world of CD ROM. It is as simple as plugging a SCSI CD ROM unit into an existing chain and copying the driver into your MULTITOS folder. So if it's so simple, then why aren't more Atarians using CD ROMs? The answer, as per usual in the Atari market, is lack of support. There is only one Atari CD on the market now, with another being released by It's All Relative very soon. Hardly what anyone would call a "wealth of data", and not even enough to warrant the purchase of the drive itself. However, what many users aren't aware of, is the fact that almost any CD ROM disc being sold can be read by an Atari. Sure, the executable programs aren't worth much to an Atari-only person, but all the data files are very usable. This includes graphics (like GIF, TIF, TGA and FLI), sound (MOD, MID, VOC, and WAV), source code, database files, etc. If you can make use of the particular file format, you can make use of that CD. I have come across several disks (3 actually) borrowed from an IBMer that I couldn't read. Don't know why though - 2 of them were from the MEGA series. My reasons for purchasing a CD ROM unit were basically to have access to large amounts of clip art without tying up large amounts of hard drive space - and I do. But I also obtained a few disks of general stuff that might be of interest to Atarians. Reviewed here for your CD ROMming pleasure: CONTINUED-----> _____________________________________________________________________________ <-----CONTINUED * Shareware Breakthrough for Windows: Desktop Publishing Collection - I picked this up from MEI MicroCenter for $9.99. It contains 150 fonts (in TrueType format), 1000 EPS files, 200 BMP files, and 200 GIFs. In all, the disk is less than half filled, but for $10 it's a great bargain. The clip art ranges in quality from lame to good, but the fonts are useless for everybody except Windows users. * ClipArt Heaven - This contains "thousands" of images at 300 dpi or better in PCX, TIF, CDR, and BMP format. The art is broken down into many categories so it's easier to find what you need. Also included are several megs of IBM programs and utilities. In general, the quality of the art is nothing spectacular, but for $15 it's a good value for DTPers. * Scenic Stills (Jasmine Multimedia Series) - A stunning collection of true color pictures. This covers a wide range of subjects from textures to places to objects. The pictures are in uncompressed TIF format; 24 bit color at a resolution of 640X480. The quality is outstanding - and probably overkill for STers without graphics cards. At $39, I would consider this one a keeper for Falcon users. * VGA Spectrum II - Whereas volume I contained mostly GIF pictures, this disk is a collection of various subjects. For IBMers, there is a large selection of games and utilities. But for general consumption, there is: over 800 MODs (holy shit - I've died and gone to MOD Hell!), 1000+ sound files in VOC format, and a ton of high quality animations in FLI format. For only $20, this is one amazing value that's bound to keep you busy for a while. :\SCRAP.TXT * InPrint Art Library Vol.2 - I just picked this package up yesterday and I am most happy with it. This is a 2 CD set containing true color TIFFs. Each disk has 101 royalty free photos in 24 bit color, each with it's grey scale equivilent. The first disk, Graphic Photos, is great for DTPers. The pictures are objects of various subjects. What makes these so usable is the fact that the pics have no backgrounds: just the object on a white background - perfect for instant use without editing (clip art without clipping) or photo compilations. This disk isn't meant to be a screen show; it's meant for work. The second disk in the package is Scenic Photos. Again, this contains 101 true color pictures and their grey scale equivelants. These are full screen pics: ie. with backgrounds and "suitable for framing". Subject matter varies widely but the quality of all is superb. Opening the folder of LANDSCAPES made me forget every bit of Falcon trouble I've ever had. I forgot to check, but judging by the file sizes (between 1.5-2 megs), I believe the photos are in a resolution of 800X600. I must remember to look for more volumes in this series - highly recommended. * Corel Photo CD: Patterns - This is 100 true color pictures in Photo CD format. The subjects included don't vary much from Scenic Stills (see above), but the pictures are unique and the quality is superb. This disk should come in handy for DTPers and animators, as well as graphics artists in need of high quality, royalty free photos. It's a great way to explore Photo CD for non-photographers (that's me). There are also many utilities for DOS/Windows/Mac users. CONTINUED-----> _____________________________________________________________________________ [?]/Cmd: Sectio:\SCRAP.TXT Atarians will need some software capable of viewing Photo CD and/or converting it to something else. For creating slideshows, I recommend PhotoShow by It's All Relative. It comes with a SCSI CD ROM driver (Falcon/TT only), as well as utilities to convert from PCD format to TIF, EPS, or RAW. Studio Photo, which also comes with a CD ROM driver, serves well for loading/editing PCD in a variety of sizes and saving them out as many other 8/24 bit formats. GEM View 3 is a shareware viewer capable of loading PCD format and saving out as almost anything else. However, it doesn't include a CD ROM driver. If you require just the driver, there is one included in ICD's Pro package (and maybe their standard ADSCSI package?). Porn porn porn. You want porn? Just go to any PC show and browse the tables: it's amazing. Everything you could want including GIFs, true color TIFs, animations, Photo CD, and "interactive entertainment" (for clone users). I've seen some pics that would make your hair stand on end (at least), but most of the collections seem to forsake the hard stuff for nudes. For the sake of clip art (yeah, right), I added Busty Babes Vol.2 to my CD collection. This disk holds 1000 SVGA pics: all in resolutions of 800X600 or 1024X768. The pics are all originals with no BBS logos: high quality R-rated photos (nudes, with several soft X pics - no hardcore stuff). There's also several megs of adult text files, as well as another 200megs of shareware and misc. data. This includes DOS/Windows programs, sound files, clip art, and animations. CONTINUED-----> _____________________________________________________________________________ [?]/Cmd: Section Atari ST/STE/TT/Falcon Messa That's just a sampling of what's out there, and I plan to add many more titles to my CD collection. With my sister due to have a baby soon, I also plan on developing lots of film onto PhotoCD. So as you can see, the Atari market isn't exactly starving for data to feed their CD ROM players. Look for the Walnut Creek Atari CD soon to be released by It's All Relative Software. It should be full of Atari ST/TT/Falcon shareware as well as misc. data. It will also be bundled w/ a Falcon/MTOS CD ROM driver and PhotoCD viewer. Fully tested drives include most of the newer NEC units. Be careful buying cheap drives as they may not work. I am using a NEC CDR-38 portable unit, comlete with multispin 2X speed, SCSI 2, and XA support (needed for PhotoCD). I picked it up at CompUSA for a really low $319. So go do it: drown yourself in data :-) ----STEVE----