New
DevelopmentsNew
Developments-- By late Friday, August 21, 1998, many of the world's most beloved
video game creators and marketers will arrive in Las Vegas to celebrate
the opening of the first annual Classic Video Game Show and Exhibition.
The
Saturday and Sunday event, dubbed "World of Atari '98", will play host
to the world's first gathering of the "retro-gaming" elite and is open
to the public.
"We've made elaborate arrangements to turn the exhibition areas of the Holiday Inn Boardwalk Hotel and Casino into a living museum of the video game era that spawned a mammoth industry," explained Mr. Keita Iida, co-promoter of the show. "World of Atari '98 honors a corporate catalyst for so many careers and companies that built the Silicon Valley."
Show promoters confirm today that pre-show ticket sales are already in the hundreds plus dozens of confirmations have been received from noted guests. As a first year endeavor, promoters have been exceptionally pleased with the pre-show results. Among the announced attendees are persons such as Mr. Bill Kunkel, co-founder of "Electronic Games" Magazine.
"As someone who's been writing about and designing electronic games for two decades," stated Kunkel, "it always heartens me to see people who remember how this all started. Today, it's a little tough to explain what was so damned exciting about two 'paddles' and a square 'ball', but there's nothing like historical perspective to transform an amusement into a hobby.
"We'll talk, we'll remember, and we'll laugh," Kunkel added with a smile. "You can't beat that with a Whack-A-Mole mallet!"
The premiere celebration of video games from yesteryear was decidedly called "World of Atari '98" in honor of the veteran Show Producer, Mr. Rich Tsukiji. Tsukiji hosted a number of World of Atari shows at the Disneyland Hotel in Anaheim, California during the mid to late 1980's.
"Accordingly, many of the exhibits and guests this first year are ex-employees or extraordinary supporters of Atari," explained Iida. "We are doing our best to keep up with a list of all the official confirmations from attending celebrities on the official WOA'98 Web Site."
World of Atari '98 promises a number of exhibits and activities throughout the two-day event including a licensed, bonded game collectors' auction conducted by U.S.A. Auctions. Mr. Howard Scott Warshaw, mastermind behind the Atari 2600 versions of "Yar's Revenge", "E.T. The Extraterrestrial" and "Raiders of the Lost Ark" will debut the second of his continuing video series, "Once Upon Atari". Keynote speakers are expected to avail themselves to answer questions and sign autographs prior to and following their presentations or directly on the exhibit floor.
"I find it very interesting that someone cares about what I did 15 years
ago other than myself!" Mr. Steve Woita shared candidly. "Finally... a
reunion for the little games that made this business fun!" Woita, famous
for the
Atari 2600 hits "Taz", "Asterix" and "Quadrun", also created a number
of titles for the Sega Genesis and Nintendo platforms.
"Classic gaming is not just a pastime for persons who remember a different
kind of gaming experience. It is also not just a hand-me-down experience
for a younger crowd. Classic gaming has evolved into a phenomenon that
contemporary publishers and distributors too often ignore," points
out Mr. Donald A. Thomas, Jr., ex-Atari Consumer Services and Marketing
Director.
"If you want to know what core gaming elements sell best, one has to
have an appreciation for the history of the same classic games that established
the industry. To purposely ignore those factors is an insistence on allowing
such ignorance guide the industry's future." Persons interested in
attending the Classic Gaming Show in Vegas are encouraged to write woa98@jps.net
or call (916) 422-7424. Special room rates may still be available for persons
who stay at the Holiday Inn Boardwalk Hotel and Casino. Visit the official
WOA'98 Web Site at
http://www.atarihq.com/atari98
for hotel, airfare, rental car or exhibitor information.
The Atari Users of North Texas (AUNT) Computer Exposition will be coming again to Dallas this November in conjunction with the monthly DFW XChange Super Saturday activities at the beautiful Dallas Infomart. Show date is planned for Saturday the 14th. As with the last three DEUCE shows, the actual show date will be finalized 120 days prior to the exposition. The exposition, along with the Super Saturday activities, charge no admission fees and are open to the general public. The one day exposition is planned to begin at 8:30 AM and run until 4:00 PM. A Friday evening pre-show get together and a post show get together are also being planned.
November is still a great time to visit the Dallas Metroplex. The DFW Xchange Super Saturday activities are a monthly computer extravaganza where thousands of computer enthusiast get together, share their computer interests and enjoy some of the best computer and high-tech electronic buys in Texas. This November will be special for us Atarians because many of our finest developers and dealers will be participating in the activities.
The Dallas Infomart facility, a replica of the famous 1895 world fair crystal palace, is located in the heart of the Dallas commerce district at 1950 Stemmons Freeway (I-35E). The facility is leased by the DFW Xchange each month to provide a community service to all computer users in the Metroplex area. The Atari Users of North Texas is one of many participating user groups that help support this community service by sharing our Atari computer interests, general computer expertise and providing user assistance to our local Atarians and the interested general public.
Vendors are being lined up. Systems for Tomorrow, chroMagic, Crawly Crypt Corporation, and Emmulators have already expressed their interest in participating in the show. Vendors interested in participating can contact David Acklam at (972) 242-9655 or on-line at d.acklam@genie.com. You can also visit the AUNT home page at http//www.startext.net/homes/aunt.
This is a pre-call to all Atarians everywhere of every platform (game machines and home computers). We of the Atari Computer Enthusiasts of Columbus [a.k.a. ACEC] WILL be hosting a SWAP MEET/SHOW/SALE on Saturday, September 26, 1998 in Columbus, Ohio, USA. We've placed a security deposit and have marked off the calendar!
At this time, we are posting to provide early alert and gain a preliminary response from the Atari community. We wish to hear from all, but WE WOULD PARTICULARLY LIKE TO HEAR FROM (any remaining) ATARI VENDORS who may wish to attend so that we may include notice of their intention in later posts/publicity. We wish to hear from all so that we may better plan this activity and make certain that everyone interested receives a map to the location (in the north central portion of Columbus, just off of Interstate 71). We will shortly be able to e-mail that map in .BMP or other format.
We are not planning on making any money from this: Tables will be available to Vendors and flea marketeers for $5 per table pre-registration. This price INCLUDES door admission for one person. Obviously, we will not be planning a much greater admission price for people just wishing to walk in, look around, talk, and buy! ACEC merely wishes to continue to promote the Atari community as it has since the '70's.
The precise time and other details for the meet are yet to be set; Atari community response will be a prime factor in determining how long the doors will be open and what other shapes the meet takes.
PLEASE FORWARD this note to anyone you know -- any vendor, any collector, anyone cleaning out their closet -- who might be interested in things Atari.
PLEASE RESPOND to:
primary contact: rwarenz@infinet.com
Wayne's World BBS (614) 761-1891
secondary contact: chwbrown@ee.net
(Charles Brown)
SEE ALSO:
(item 7.) ACEC, special interest group (item 13.),
on the gopher server freenet.columbus.oh.us or www.freenet.columbus.oh.us
http://www2.bitstream.net/~marksim/atarimac/fonts.html
It is actually three fonts:
Atari Classic Chunky
A pixel-for-pixel interpretation
(think "stairsteps")
Atari Classic Smooth
A version with the jaggies flattened
out (think "ramps")
Atari Classic Extrasmooth
Similar to Smooth but with curves
(think "slides")
This is freeware and is available in both Mac and PC (Windows) formats.
(Note: some characters will not be accessible, depending on your OS, since some of the A8 characters occupy special low-ASCII locations which have special meanings to Macs and PCs.)
Mark
Organization: Vintage Computer Festival http://www.siconic.com/vcf
___________________________________________________________________________
| |
| .================================================================. |
| // ______ o_ ___________ \\ |
| // / \ \ o o o o o o | ____ \ \\ |
| H / | | | | | | | | | | \ \ \\ |
| H / ____|____|____|____|____|____|____|____|____|____|___ \ \ `=o |
| H | | | \ \ |
| H | | The Premier Event for Computer Enthusiasts is Back! | \ \__ |
| H | | | \ | |
| H o | V I N T A G E C O M P U T E R F E S T I V A L |__ \ o |
| H | | \ \ |
| H \ - VCF2 - | \ `-o |
| H | |\ `----o |
| H | September 26-27, Santa Clara Convention Center | `-------o |
| H / Santa Clara, California | |
| H | | |
| H | Speakers, Exhibit and Flea Market | |
| H | | |
| H | O http://www.siconic.com/vcf | |
| H |_____________________________________________________| ____o |
| H | | | | | | | | | | / |
| H | | | | | | | | | |______/ |
| H============' | | | | | | | |_________________ |
| H / | | \ \ \ |_____________________ | |
| H / / | `-o \ \ || |
| H o___________/ / \______ \ \ || |
| H o \_____|____|___________________ || |
| H ____________________________ | | || |
| H | | | The S P E A K E R S | || |
| `=| Why would YOU come to the | __| |___|| |
| _| Vintage Computer Festival? | | | | |
| | |____________________________| |-David Rutland | | |
| |__________________________________| | | |
| ________________________ ___| On the National Bureau of |__ | |
| | || || || | / | Standards Western Automatic | | |
| .-| To Learn the History |--' | Computer (SWAC). Mr. Rutland | | |
| | |__||_||_||______________| | worked under Harry D. Huskey | | |
| o ________________________ ___| to create the control unit |____| |
| | || || || | / | for this little known but | |
| o-| For the Nostalgia |--' | historically significant | |
| |__||_||_||______________| | computer. | |
| o ________________________ \______| |___o |
| | | || || || | | | |
| `-| To Hear the Speakers |-._____| FEATURED SPEAKER | o |
| |__||_||_||______________| | | / |
| ________________________ ____|-Ray Holt |___/ |
| | || || || |__/ | | |
| .-|To Buy Vintage Computers|-------| Who really invented the |-----o |
| | |__||_||_||______________| | first microprocessor? Guess | |
| o ________________________ ______| again. The answer will stun |_____ |
| | || || || |/ | you. This designer of the | | |
| o-|For the Games & Contests|--. | JOLT and developer of the | | |
| |__||_||_||______________| \___| classic Synertek SYM-1 sin- | | |
| ________________________ __| gle-board computer will re- |_____| |
| | || || || | | veal why computer history | | |
| o-|To Meet Other Collectors|-o | may need to be re-written. | | |
| |__||_||_||______________|___ | | | |
| ________________________ \___| |__o | |
| | || || || | | * speaker list as of 6/1/98 | | |
| o-| To Meet the Pioneers |---. | ____ O | | |
| |__||_||_||______________| \ |____________/ \____________| | |
| ________________________ \ | |
| | || || || | \ | |
| .-| For the Prizes! |----. \________________________________o | |
| | |__||_||_||______________| \ | |
| | \__________________________________ | |
| o o________ \ | |
| ,=============o \ ______________________________ | | |
| // | o__ \ | | | | |
| H ___________|________ \ \___| The W O R K S H O P S |___| | |
| H | | \ | | | |
| H \ Philosophy of the / \ | | | |
| H | Vintage Computer |___ \___|-Tom Geller |_____| |
| H | Festival... | \ | | |
| H / \ \ | Whether you're into game | |
| H | The main mission | \_____| consoles, handheld devices, |____o |
| H | of the Vintage | | arcade machines or personal | |
| H | Computer Festival | | computers, there's a Mac- | |
| H | is to promote the |__________| based emulator for you. |____o |
| H | preservation of | | | |
| H | "obsolete" compu- | | | |
| H | ters by offering- | ___| * workshop list as of 6/1/98 |_____ |
| H | attendees a chance | / | ____ O | H |
| H | to experience the | / |____________/ \____________| H |
| H | technologies, peo- | / H |
| H | ple and stories | | H |
| H | that embody the- | | H |
| H | remarkable tale of | | __ ___ __________________ H |
| H | the computer revo- | | | |__| | | H |
| H | lution. | | | |Someone lucky will|==-----H |
| H |____________________| | | | go home with an | H |
| H | / | _ | | H |
| H o o_/ | (_) | IMSAI 8080 |==--o H |
| H _________________________ | | | H |
| H o__| VCF2 S P O N S O R S | | | See the VCF web | H |
| H | www.haggle.com | | __ | page for details |==--o H |
| H____| Dr. Dobb's Journal | |__| |___|__________________| H |
| H |_________________________| H |
| \\ // |
| `=====================================================================' |
| |
| V2.0 rev 1 http://www.siconic.com/vcf (C) SICONIC 1998 |
|___________________________________________________________________________|"
I am currently putting the final touches to a
paper based special edition of
the Atari Times (UK).
I'm posting this to see how much interest there
would be in such a
publication.
It currently runs to 44 A5 pages and this edition
is focused on tutorials.
However, I hope to release further (more generic)
special editions if this
one is successful.
I'm hoping that it will cost no more than £2
(UKP) inc.postage. I will be
making no profit from this venture, I just hope
to cover my costs!
If you would be interested in purchasing the Atari
Times special edtion,
please send me an e-mail and let me know.
Also, if you are able to assist in the distuibution
of the Atari Times
Special Edition in your country then please let
me know.
Cheers,
* Colin Polonowski, polonowski@zetnet.co.uk
* Experienced in Java, HTML, BASIC and Modula-2.
* User of Windows 95, DOS, TOS/GEM, MagiC, UNIX.
* The Zone - http://www.users.zetnet.co.uk/polonowski/
It has been said that, if you put your mind to it, you can do anything,
and 4Play has finally done what many have believed to be the impossible,
by putting their minds to it for the last 1745 days. They have
completed the most important step towards finishing BattleSphere:
coding it. All that remains is the encryption, cart production,
and
distribution.The most anticipated Jaguar game of all time will be ours
soon.
http://www.best.com/~sebab/dvidgames/dsphere/sphere.shtml
LYNX TO TV ADAPTER DETAILS
Details have been released about the Wizztronics Lynx to TV adapter.
The
adapter will cost $99, which is a good price, considering the prototype
cost $17,000! The board is 2x2 in. and must be installed.
If you have a
Lynx 2, it should be fairly easy to install, however, a Lynx 1 is much
harder. The Lynxes widescreen aspect ratio is also maintained.
Unfortunately, there is no graphical improvement, but the resolution
won't
be that much of a problem. And just for reference, the prototype
was
12x15 in. with 165 components, and the final release has only 8 parts.
http://www.wizztronics.com/lynx.htm
NEW LYNX MULTI-CART ANNOUNCED
A new cartridge will soon be released for the Atari Lynx. The
title of
the cart is S.I.M.I.S. which is an acronym for the contained games.
Find
out more information about this exciting new release and other upcoming
Lynx games at:
http://www.millcomm.com/~forhan/lynx.html