From: gblock@csd4.csd.uwm.edu (Gregory R Block)
Subject: Re: Atari Falcon Discount Supermachine  Re: Sydnes is gone?!!
Organization: University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee
Date: Mon, 17 Aug 1992 02:54:07 GMT

gfm@hal.gnu.ai.mit.edu (George Francis McBay) writes:
: 	Sure there are better DSP chips available, but the whole point of
: the Falcon is low price, it seems obvious they'd use an entry level chip
: , then.

Yes, but the point is that it's being wasted.  For sound generation.
Do you think that's what a DSP was designed to do?  Since the system
is making use of it for audio, not many programs will be able to make
use of it without trashing the audio of the system, correct?  (if
they're even allowed to use it, it may be OS only.  Or, there may be
no arbitration or system functions to access it...  etc.)

: 	This is true, but Commodore should support more high-resolution
: graphics mode flicker-free, not everyone uses their Amiga for video.
: (And don't even mention the ECS modes)  I agree that having a non-standard
: parallel port would be kind of stupid.

I won't mention ECS, then.  I won't mention that you can program
yourself a mode you're suited for, and I won't mention that the 3000
has a built-in de-interlacer for ~15KHz modes.  Better to keep
de-interlaced video to high-end, 'cause the low-end stuff is designed
to be hooked up to a tv, right?

I don't believe "flickering" modes hurt the Amiga.  Some do.  Most
want it for professional uses.  The 3000 is considered to be the
"professional" model, so that takes care of that, doesn't it...

: 	Hack? Maybe, but that's two extra digital-only ports that the Amiga
: doesn't have.  Such things may only be useful for games, but that's one of
:the Amiga's biggest selling points. (I know about the '4 joystick adapter' but
: I've already got 3 items fighting for my parallel port, thank you)

I won't argue that two more ports is good.  I'll argue that they
should have ALSO been digital/analog, however.

And as to parallel ports...  Just go get a card.  :)  Fortunately, the
Falcon has no such worries...  with one "processor direct slot", don't
plan on using much expansion.

: 	I'm sure the Falcon will eventually support flopticals as well, 
: especially if it does have SCSI-II or at least a port that will make
: adding it easy.  Hard Drives are not a substitute for High Density Disks,
: they are vastly different beasts and I'd love to see HDD on my Amiga.
: If nothing else, they'd make it far easier to backup my HardDrive without
: needing to buy a Tape drive.

That's true.  :)

:	How can you judge without having seen the Falcon's OS? A rolodex 
:program isn't a big deal, but I don't remember getting one with AmigaDOS (Then
: again I doubt I'd get a package as powerful as ARexx with MultiTOS..)

2.04 Extras came with a few more apps than a rolodex and an address
book.  It had MicroEmacs, pic displayers, etc...

: 	Rumor has it that MultiTOS is call-compatible with some unknown
: (I've never heard it states..SYSV? BSD?) version of Unix.  This really
: wouldn't help them learn Unix, though.  If anything it would make
: a WIDE body of public domain software easily available.. Then again most
: Unix programs (Not counting programs that use X or something such as that)
: will compile with minimal modification on Amigas with a decent compiler.

SAS/C 6.0 should be interesting.  ;)

Greg

--
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(:	gblock@csd4.csd.uwm.edu			Gregory R. Block         :)
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