@database "ar415.guide"
@Node MAIN "Amiga Report Online Magazine #4.15 -- December 31, 1996"
===========================================================================
  December 31, 1996           @{" Turn the Page " link MENU}             Issue No. 4.15
===========================================================================
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                 "THE Online Source for Amiga Information!"

                      Copyright 1996 FS Publications
                            All Rights Reserved
@endnode
@node MENU "Amiga Report Main Menu"
@toc MAIN

Amiga Report 4.14 is sponsored in part by:

@{" Intangible Assets Manufacturing " link AD1}.  IAM is the purveyor of a fine
line of Amiga products.  

@{" AmiTrix Development " link AD2}.  AmiTrix is the worldwide publisher of
the AWeb-II WWW browser.

===========================================================================
==                               Main Menu                               ==
===========================================================================

    @{"  Editorial and Opinion   " link OPINION}             @{"    Featured Articles    " link FEATURE}

    @{"         Reviews          " link  REVIEW}             @{"  News & Press Releases  " link NEWS}

    @{"      Aminet Charts       " link     FTP}             @{"       Reader Mail       " link MAIL}

                     ---------------------------------

    @{"    About AMIGA REPORT    " link ABOUT}             @{"    Dealer Directory     " link DEALER}
 Contact Information and Copyrights     Amiga Dealer Addresses and Numbers

    @{"     Where to Get AR      " link WHERE}             @{"     Advertisements      " link COMMERCIAL}
 Mailing List &  Distribution Sites     Online Services, Dealers, Ordering
               ______________________________________________
         //   |                                              |       //
========//====|  Amiga Report International Online Magazine  |======//=====
==   \\//     |  Issue No. 4.15           December 31, 1996  |   \\//    ==
==============|  "THE Online Source for Amiga Information!"  |=============
              |______________________________________________|
@endnode
@node JASON "Editor"
@toc STAFF

===========================================================================
                                  EDITOR
===========================================================================

                               Jason Compton
                               =============
             Internet                                  Address
             --------                                  -------
       jcompton@xnet.com                      1203 Alexander Ave
       jcompton@amigazone.com                 Streamwood, IL 60107-3003
                                              USA

               Fax                                      Phone
               ---                                      -----
           847-741-0689                             630-736-1286
@endnode
@node KATIE "Assistant Editor"
@toc STAFF

===========================================================================
==                           ASSISTANT EDITOR                            ==
===========================================================================

                             Katherine Nelson
                             ================

                                 Internet
                                 --------
                               kati@nwu.edu
                            kati@amigazone.com
@endnode
@node KEN "Games Editor"
@toc STAFF

===========================================================================
==                             GAMES EDITOR                              ==
===========================================================================

                               Ken Anderson
                               ============

               Internet                             Address
               --------                             -------
             kend@dhp.com                      44 Scotland Drive
         ka@protec.demon.co.uk                 Dunfermline
                                               Fife KY12 7TD
                                               Scotland
@endnode
@node WILLIAM "Contributing Editor"
@toc STAFF

===========================================================================
                            CONTRIBUTING EDITOR
===========================================================================

                               William Near
                               ============

                                 Internet
                                 --------
                              wnear@epix.net
@endnode
@node EDITORIAL "compt.sys.editor.desk"
@toc OPINION

===========================================================================
    compt.sys.editor.desk                          By: @{" Jason Compton " link JASON}
===========================================================================

It's the end of 1996--a year that held a great deal of promise for Amiga
users.  The Walker wasn't everyone's cup of tea, but it was a real sign
that some work was being done on the Amiga and that we would see some
improvements over time.  Amiga Technologies seemed to have its act
together, more or less, and Amigas were available worldwide.  Escom was in
financial trouble, though, and we all started getting a bit nervous.

Then I woke up one April morning and got probably the biggest shock I could
have received.  A press release from Gilles Bourdin (a rare enough
occurence in and of itself) announcing VIScorp's intention to buy Amiga
Technologies from Escom.  I had spoken with VIScorp's CEO, Bill Buck, in
the summer of '95, when it was well known that VIScorp was licensing the
Amiga technology.  Bill summed up VIScorp's set-top technology and I filed
the information away under "Not particularly interesting to me."  Why
bother with a cable box that did internet stuff when you can get much
better capabilities from a computer?

But the AT/VIScorp press release suddenly made VIScorp important to
everyone.  I contacted VIScorp and established a relationship with their
Director of Communications, met with Bill Buck, and walked away confused.
But a couple of weeks after that meeting, he offered me a job.  It was a
dream job description, and the sort of thing I'd made a few preliminary
inquiries about to AT when they first got started.  Be VIScorp's liason to
the Amiga community?  Sure, where do I sign up?  Actually, to be totally
honest, I turned down Bill's initial offer, but after thinking about it for
an hour, I decided that I'd never be able to live with myself unless I
actually gave it a shot.  So I did.

Anyway, time went by.  Most people had shifted into a VIScorp gear,
watching them for news and information.  VIScorp held a meeting in
Toulouse, which didn't go off much better than Bill's appearance at the
WOA UK.  People were getting nervous about VIScorp.

Things weren't helped when July rolled around and Escom went bankrupt.
This derailed VIScorp's "in-place" acquisition of AT's assets, and instead
made it a dreaded bankruptcy proceeding.  But VIScorp opened a dialogue
with the trustee, and life went on.

Rumors began to circulate about VIScorp, and about other companies that
might be interested in the Amiga.  But nobody was willing to step forward
and announce it outright, so VIScorp remained the most talked about name.

August, then September came and went, and by now VIScorp had not acquired
the Amiga despite giving some explicit dates.  The Amiga public grew
rancorous.  The public flaming of VIScorp by PIOS, a sort of AT successor
company founded by former AT president Stefan Domeyer didn't help matters
much, either.  My job was losing its dream status and quickly becoming a
nightmare, as I was powerless to push the deal along and not very well
equipped or supported by the company to make some serious reassurances.

Meanwhile, it seemed clear the Walker was to be scrapped.  What PowerPC
work there was for AT was being directed by PIOS.  And Phase5 was soon to
announce its own "Amiga successor" computer, with a high-spec custom chip
and PowerPC engine.

November rolls around.  Right before I leave to attend the Cologne Computer
'96, at the invitation of Schatztruhe, Carl Sassenrath, who had been
VIScorp's legitimizing name, flamed the company.  VIScorp loses its rock
star, and the public gets downright ornery.  Soon after, I submit my own
resignation, and on December 16, my 7-month stint as Communications Manager
for VIScorp comes to a close.

So, where are we now?  A second company, QuikPak, has stepped to the plate
and formally announced that it, too, is seeking to have a bid for the Amiga
technology accepted.  QuikPak has been manufacturing 4000Ts for some time
now, and has been doing work on a 4000-level portable and a "5050"
Amiga/Pentium hybrid monster.  Meanwhile, Phase5 seems to be moving ahead
with their "A/Box" computer, looking to lure Amiga users to a new,
"Amiga-like" if not explicitly Amiga-compatible platform.  PIOS seeks the
same result, but their solution is a more or less generic PowerPC box
running the BeOS as well as the offering-in-development from ProDAD known
as p-OS, which claims to offer a very Amiga-ish environment.  Rumors of
high levels of Amiga compatibility on the Phase5 and PIOS boxes abound, but
to date nobody has seen these things in the flesh.  p-OS was on display at
Cologne, but is not a finished product yet.

At the end of 1996, the Amiga is the property of Escom AG, a company in
bankruptcy.  Its trustee, Bernard Hembach, has told potential purchasers
that he will not entertain discussion unless they bring at least US$20
million to the table.  VIScorp claims that its research indicates the
assets are not worth that much, and as a result nobody will back the
purchase for such an amount.

I was fortunate enough to have a discussion recently with Dave Ziambicki,
CEO of QuikPak, about their decision to publicly enter the fray.  When I
expressed concern about their ability to raise the sort of money Hembach
was asking, he agreed that Hembach would likely need to come down in price
to make any purchase reasonable.

1997 will open with the Amiga in bankruptcy and its ownership future up in
the air, marking the 4th straight calendar year a bankruptcy has touched
the Amiga.  We all hope that the situation will be sorted out expediently,
but I've learned that it's a lot more complicated that just walking down to
a Citibank branch and telling a banker that you'd like US$20 million to buy
a computer you can make profitable.  Don't be fooled by Usenet denizens who
would have you believe otherwise.

But when the acquisition takes place, what then?  Is the future of the
Amiga in the AmigaOS and a more modern approach to the hardware, with a
RISC AmigaOS 4 supporting industry-standard hardware to achieve its goals?
Does it lie in a replacement OS as p-OS presents itself to be, which could
run on both existing machines as well as PowerPC boxes, offering AmigaOS
capabilities in a more modern structure?  Does it lie in a jump to a
platform embodying the original Amiga design spirit, as the A/Box seems to
be?  These questions are not easy to answer, and the answer will not be the
same for every Amiga user.  When the acquisition is completed, we will be
facing some very difficult choices.  The Amiga genie is out of the bottle,
and it has become clear that no single company is likely to have the power
to control the fate of the technology.  Companies have been waiting far too
long to allow that to happen.

Amiga Report will rededicate itself in 1997 to covering all of the possible
avenues for the continuation of the Amiga legacy.  I'm looking forward to
seeing where the path leads, and am excited by all of the possibilities.  
We are at the front and center of a growing movement towards the
establishment of a legitimate "alternative computing" market, unashamed to
stand outside the Wintel spotlight and strong enough to make our own
destinies without the endorsement of Bill Gates.  Good luck to us all.

-Jason
@endnode
@node COMMERCIAL "Commercial Products"
@toc MENU

===========================================================================
                            Commercial Products
===========================================================================

@{"Intangible Assets Manufacturing" link AD1}  IAM and their fine line of products

@{"       AmiTrix Development     " link AD2}  AmiTrix, publisher of A-Web II

@{"             CalWeb            " link ZONE}  The new home of the Amiga Zone

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@{"   News   " link NEWS} @{"  Opinion  " link OPINION} @{" Articles " link FEATURE} @{"  Reviews  " link REVIEW} @{"  Charts  " link FTP} @{"  Adverts  " link COMMERCIAL}
@endnode

@node AD1 "Intangible Assets Manufacturing: Amiga Sale!"
@toc COMMERCIAL

HOLIDAY SALE WITH DEEP DISCOUNTS ON GREAT AMIGA STUFF

We need your help.  Please spread the word about the quality of our
products and about these special sale prices (up to 40% off!). 

The best way to get more information about IAM is through the Web:
http://www.iam.com.  We also have an AmigaGuide format catalog of our Amiga
products which can be FTP'd from file://ftp.iam.com/biz/iam/iam.lha, and
you can get an automatic reply with current information on our products by
emailing info@iam.com. 

Low sale prices valid through 31-Dec-96: 

* A book on Amiga networking and telecommunications: "Connect Your Amiga!
  A Guide to the Internet, LANs, BBSs and Online Services" revised second
  printing (1996) US$19 + s/h, or with 8 freely redistributable disks for
  only $39 + s/h

* DiskSalv4 -- the commercial release of Dave's disk utilities US$30 +
  only $39 + s/h

* MRBackup 2.5 $45+s/h (upgrade from earlier registered versions for
  $10+s/h)
  
* SPECIAL: DiskSalv4 and MRBackup together for only $60!

* Dave Haynie's "The Deathbed Vigil..." video, NTSC or PAL US$19 + s/h
  (originally $35), or only $35 including the T-shirt below...

* The Deathbed Vigil T-Shirt, $17+s/h (size S, L, XL, XXL) includes eject
  logo on the front and signatures of most Amiga engineers on the back.
  
* The Amiga-only peer-to-peer networking software Amiga Envoy, US$45 + 
  s/h (2-user)

* MegaBall4, a tres cool video game, $30 + s/h Get a Free XL MegaBalls
  T-shirt when you order MB4 at the regular price, or get MegaBall4 for
  only $19 + s/h!
  
* DICE 3.2 C Development Environment (full price $100+s/h, students and
  competitive upgrades only $75 +s/h)  Upgrade from DICE 3.x at
  ftp://ftp.iam.com/biz/iam/dice/!

* "Torn Shapes of Desire: Internet Erotica", book, $14.95

We don't accept COD orders, but do accept checks in US dollars, as well as
Visa and MC (no Amex or Discover).  Our shipping and handling charges are
flat-rate: you can order up to one of each of our products for the same
charge.  We ship via USPS or UPS at our option.  In the US: $6 for ground,
or $9 for air.  Elsewhere: $9 for ground and $15 for air. 

Our Amiga products are available through Amiga dealers world wide.  Small
dealers in North America can order from Software Hut.  For end-users
without a local dealer, three of our larger mail-order dealers (in
alphabetical order) are: Safe Harbor (1 800 544 6599), Software Hut (1 800
932 6442), and Zipperware (206 223 1107).

Intangible Assets Manufacturing
828 Ormond Avenue
Drexel Hill, PA  19026-2604
USA

http://www.iam.com

info@iam.com    -- bot mails you current info on our products
sales@iam.com   -- to ask questions or to place an order.

voice: +1 610 853 4406  (orders only)
fax:   +1 610 853 3733

P.S. We will be at the "Gateway Computer Show -- Amiga 97" in St. Louis on
March 15 & 16, 1997. 

@endnode

@node AD2 "AmiTrix -- Worldwide Publisher of A-Web II"
@toc COMMERCIAL

===========================================================================
AmiTrix Development,  5312 - 47 Street, Beaumont, Alberta,  T4X 1H9  Canada
Phone/Fax:+1-403-929-8459   Email:sales@amitrix.com  http://www.amitrix.com
===========================================================================

                    Direct Mail Order Price List                Dec. - 1996
                    ============================
             (Prices subject to change without notice.)

Product Description                                       CAN $        US $
-------------------                                     -------     -------

AWeb-II (AWeb-II v2.1/HTML-Heaven2.0 WWW Software)      $ 60.00     $ 45.00

SCSI-TV HD controller for CDTV with 2.5" Drive Adapter  $190.00     $149.00
SCSI-TV for CDTV, with-out Adapter                      $180.00     $142.00
SCSI-TV570 HD controller for A570  with 2.5" Adapter    $200.00     $157.00
SCSI-TV570 for A570, with-out Adapter                   $190.00     $149.00

Amiga-Link/Envoy Starter Kit (2-unit),                  $270.00     $210.00
- the peer-to-peer network for external floppy port.
- (also available as expander kit with extra cable)

Amiga-Link/Envoy Expander Kit (1-unit for odd # exp.)   $175.00     $135.00

Amiga-Link Expansion Kit (1-unit for even # exp.)       $135.00     $105.00

Amiga-Link Accessories:
   2-way Floppy Port Splitter                           $ 39.00     $ 31.00
   RG58 cable - 1m(3.5ft.)                              $ 10.00     $  8.00
   RG58 cable - 5m(16.5ft.)                             $ 13.00     $ 10.50
   RG58 cable - 10m(33ft.)                              $ 17.50     $ 14.00
   - (custom lengths available on request)
   Extra BNC-T connectors                               $  4.50     $  3.50


The P-Net Box, a ParNet Adapter                         $ 15.00     $ 12.00
AM33C93A-16PC SCSI controller for 3000/2091/HC+8        $ 26.00     $ 20.00
A3000 U202/U203 chip ram control PALs - each            $ 15.00     $ 12.00
External Active SCSI Terminator - C50 male              $ 29.75     $ 23.50
Internal Active SCSI Terminator - IDC50 male            $ 19.00     $ 15.00
External Passive SCSI Terminator - C50 male/female      $ 12.25     $  9.75
DB23 solder-type connector
- male, female, or chrome hood - each                   $  1.65     $  1.25


Shipping Costs: (most large boxed items)
---------------
First Class Mail: within Canada                         $ 10.00
                   within USA                                       $ 10.00
                  International                         $ 15.00     $ 12.00
Shipping: (for small bubble-packet items)               $  5.00     $  5.00

Orders should include a Bank Draft/Money Order or Postal MO, payable to 
AmiTrix Development in CAN or US dollars.  Cash COD's inside Canada only.
Shipping costs may vary for quantity orders/alternative method of shipment.
Canadian customers add 7% GST to all orders.

===========================================================================

@endnode

@node MAIL "Reader Mail"
@toc MENU

===========================================================================
                               Reader Mail
===========================================================================

From: Jon Klooster <matix@netspace.net.au>
Subject: reader mail

To all the gurus in guruland:

I don't know if it is possible but I have a suggestion for a little utility
for anyone out there who is bored:

I think it would be extremely useful if there was a utility that could
determine what the slowest link in any systems connection to the internet.


By link I refer to:  serial.device
                     TCP stack
                     phone lines
                     modem
                     server overloaded
                     or whatever else it may take!

Something along the lines of sysinfo, etc..

Anyway, its just a suggestion, take it or leave it.

But most importantly, keep Amigaing!

Jon.

                            --- --- --- --- ---

CC: cjefts@geis.com

Jason,

My name is Charles Jefts "Gamesmeister" and I am hosting the Amiga Gaming
forum on Genie (Wednesday nights @ 9:00).  Genie continues to support the
Amiga and the member list remains "sizeable". 

If you are continuing to author the Amiga Report, please include a word
about us. 

Thanks,
Charles Jefts

                            --- --- --- --- ---

From: Trond Werner Hansen <tronhan@stud.ntnu.no>

Hi,

Read your last Amiga Report with great interest as usual, including part 2
of the dopus5.5 review.  I think it's great that there still is developed
serious programs like dopus, now when the Amiga is having a hard time, but
that doesn't mean you shouldn't try to find some weak spots in a program,
and let the reader know about them. 

Personally, I would like you to make the reviews somewhat more "testy"... 
I found the dopus5.5 reviews a bit too much pointing out all the features,
and not very much "real life" testing..

like:

-speed (it's slower than the old WB when it comes to scanning)
-inefficient window opening (notice how it opens the windows INACTIVE and
then activates them)
-Poor WBPattern performance (esp. with CGFX...poor CGFX performance in
general)
-Only nonprop fonts in listers

that's just a few of everyday problems/weaknesses that would have been
nice if you pointed out..

As you might guess, these and other reasons is why I don't use dopus, but
develop my own WorkbenchNG.

I'm not trying to cast bad light over dopus, because of my own project,
it's just that I use dopus5.5 very much for comparison, and I was a bit
surprised when the only "bad" thing mentioned was that it eats memory...

But, hey! Keep up the good work!

Greetings,

Trond Werner Hansen, student at Norwegian University of Science and Technology.
EMail: tronhan@stud.ntnu.no | WWW: www.stud.ntnu.no/~tronhan | IRC: Coyote
Developing WorkbenchNG and Playboy3.0 | Amiga - There's a lady in every story -


     It's always good to have feedback on our reviews.  Ironically, GPSoft
     was a little less than pleased about my DOpus 5.5 review, but they
     haven't yet explicitly outlined what they perceived as the problem.
     Personally, I think the CyberGFX performance of DOpus 5.5 is fine, and
     I encountered no problem with the patterns I wanted to use.  Since I'm
     running on an 040/25 (stock 3640) system, the speed was not a factor,
     but you're right--on slower machines, it would be noticable that
     windows open slower than the WB windows.  I'd have to say that was
     because the windows are in effect DOING more.   - Jason

                            --- --- --- --- ---

From: goose@post2.tele.dk (Gustav Kjeldsen)

Hi, Jason.

I just read Amiga Report, and saw Jon's letter, complainig about MUI.  
This made me reflect upon the issue, and here is my contribution...

In my opinion MUI is a VERY well developed AmigaOS add-on, and for one
thing, it provides a lot of the userfriendly functionality that the AmigaOS
lacks today.

Some systems today (one - Windows 95) provides a LOT of userfriendly
features, almost completely eliminating the need to know anything about
computers in order to use them.

Now, that obviously makes Win95 attractive to a lot more people, who are
not computerfreaks but can still be customers.  Since we all want more
Amiga users too, and userfriendlyness is certainly the way to get them. 
That is a feature of MUI.

Another force of MUI is that it is SO easy to use for the programmer.  It
takes care of AREXX, helpfiles, all programs become commodities and a lot
of the configurations are handled through a standard MUI preference
program.  Nobody could be dissatisfied with that...  Unless they WANT
something different, but then they won't follow ANY standard, and that's
not too admireable...

Finally MUI itself is a systemfriendly program.  And it is possible to
limmit and control the level of userfriendliness.  That's a feature not
even Win95 has.

Before I got my first version of MUI (this spring), I too was very annoyed
about it.  But I looked into it, because I was thinking about creating a
spreadsheet program.  Now I just registeret (online through www.sasg.com)
MUI last week, and already have my key file.

I used to think that everybody should stick with the Commodore standards,
but having to program with them myself, I found a lot of gaps in them,
especially some userfriendly things, that were NOT there.

And I realized that we all have to move on, everybody has to.  I'd be a
fool not to look for new and better opportunities, making my life easier,
making it easier to get the job done without having to become an expert in
GUI-creation and userfriendlyness, when I really intended to make a
program, that could take care of a certain task.

Today I wish all programs were MUI programs.  They may require a bit more
ressources, but nowadays that's just a necessity with all computer systems.

If we take a look at the PC development, it's obvious that the reason for
their need of power is because of the demands from the software.  Maybe
Amigans should start using software that requires more power, in order to
get more powerfull equipment and move the standards.  (then we could have
more powerconsuming games as well :-))

Of course this standpoint will start another discussion about prices of a
decent system.  All I can say is that I did it myself.  I bought some add
ons for my Amiga, and they cost the same as a complete pentium system.  
But the Pentium can't run Amiga OS.  And that is what I want.  I feel
trapped when I use Windows, because I don't get to decide the level of
userfriendlyness or abstraction.  So it's worth it for me.  I don't want
limits.  But I want the possibilities.

Gustav...

                            --- --- --- --- ---

From: argha@execpc.com (James Moe)

I would like to make some suggestions to the Amiga community at large.

I think the we as Amiga owners and users that we take it upon ourselves to
mantain the Amiga's OS and Workbench (ala MUI and NewIcons, etc..)

I think we should form a group to that will make suggestions to the company
that has the ownership of the Amiga properties.

I would like to make a suggestions myself.  I think that web access should
be a part of the OS.  make http and ftp, etc devices.  so that any program
that comes out for tha Amiga has instantaeous access to the net, and we
have a step up on the rest of the computing world.
@endnode
@node NEWS1 "AWeb-II News"
@toc NEWS

AmiTrix                      PRESS RELEASE               December 25, 1996

                     AWeb-II, v2.1 Plugin Updates!
                     -----------------------------

AmiTrix Development is pleased to announce the release of several updates
to the version 2.1 package of "AWeb" by Yvon Rozijn.  Disk packages that
ship in the new year will contain these, and the updates can be freely
obtained by existing customers from our AWeb page. 

Note:- you can now reach our web site using the new "www.amitrix.com" URL.

Finnish and German translations of the AWeb html docs; Postscript versions
of the English docs; and new Norsk, Finnish, & Icelandic Catalogues are now
available from our page.  Additional datatypes and other utilities are
being added along with other items as noted below.

A small number of packages (20) were released without the AWebFTP archive
on the second disk.  Most of these have been accounted for, but if you are
missing this file, it can also be obtained from our web page.

More plugins such as the AWeb online News Reader, and an updated version of
HTTX are being added to the package on a running basis, so check our web
pages periodically for new information.

--------
AWebNews v1.7 - An Amitrix Christmas Present!

 Season's Greeting to All !

Amitrix would like to thank all the AWeb users for their support and
encouragement in the past year.  It has helped make this our most
successful year ever!

Please accept, as a small gift, the new version of AWebNews.  It is now
available to all on the AWeb home page (http://www.amitrix.com/aweb.html).
You can go there with the AWeb-II help menu.

AWebNews 1.7 includes:

  - html docs ( thanks to Gabriele Favrin of HTTX fame )
  - progress report window
  - complex message filter
  - subject scanning
  - online context help
  - installer script
  - auto link to URL's
  - abort function
  - save file requester
  - many more improvements
  - sorry. TermiteTCP is not supported
    You must have a valid "TCP:" device.

 ENJOY !

I personally would like to thank all my beta tester's for all the work and
excellent suggestions they have provided over the last few months.

 Merry Christmas to all!!!

 Hug a friend, and help a stranger. This is the season of Peace.

Bill (William  Parker) bill@amitrix.com
--------

MSRP for AWeb-II v2.1 is $45.00US/$60.00CAN. Add $5 S&H for direct orders.

Dealer and Customer inquiries welcomed!  For more information, ordering
AmiTrix products or dealer locations, contact us at:

AmiTrix Development,
5312 - 47 Street,
Beaumont, Alberta, T4X 1H9
Canada

Email: sales@amitrix.com (preferred if possible)

Phone or Fax: 1+ 403-929-8459

(Please leave your mailing address, phone/fax number, &/or email address 
on phone messages when requesting information.)

You may also contact us via email at the following addresses.

Email: support@amitrix.com
 or
http://www.amitrix.com/index.html
@endnode
@node NEWS2 "Convergence International"
@toc NEWS

 Convergence International News
 ------------------------------

In the few months since Convergence was formed it has grown rapidly with
users of many non-Wintel computers from all over the world joining us.  
However we are still relatively small, and would like to see even more
people sign up in 1997 (after all it is free!).

This month Convergence has taken over Xodus, a smaller group with very
similar aims to us, so that resources can be pooled.  Xodus members have
all joined the Convergence group, and projects that were being worked on by
Xodus, including the UAPI project, have been transferred to the CIDG.  To
take advantage of the awareness of the Xodus name, which Convergence has
acquired, the Convergence International Development Group (CIDG) will be
known as Xodus (it also has the advantage of being less of a mouthful to
say :-).

In 1997 we hope to expand membership, further build the Convergence web
site, and raise awareness of Convergence and the platforms it supports.  We
also hope 1997 will be a year packed with new technology and products
(there are certainly lots of exciting rumours...), as well as a very
successful year for Acorn, Amiga, Apple, ARM, Be, PIOS, Psion, and all the
other innovative computer designers.

Merry Christmas, and a Happy New year, from,

Steve Crietzman, George Hussey, and James Sears
Founding members of Convergence International

About Convergence International
-------------------------------

Convergence is a user group for users of all non-Wintel computers, which
was created earlier this year (1996) with the intention of bringing
together the non-Wintel community to present a unified front to face the
Wintel threat, as well as looking to the future and supporting the emerging
Network Computer and Set Top Box technologies.

Convergence International's main aims are to support non-Wintel computer
users, and highlight the strengths and successes of non-Wintel technology
to attract new users.  To fulfil these aims we are developing a web site to
provide extensive information, advice on software and hardware, and help
for new users.

The web site will also serve as a reference for people looking to purchase
a computer.  We intend to produce a library of system set ups, detailing
required hardware, software, and add ons, to perform a wide variety of
tasks.  Demonstrating to purchasers that non-Wintel technology can
accomplish the end results they desire, often more efficiently and easily,
encouraging users to switch from Wintel.  After all, the majority of people
are not interested in the type of computer they use as long as it does the
job they bought it for.

One of Convergence's other important aims is to promote compatibility
between the non-Wintel computers.  Convergence have set up the Convergence
International Development Group (CIDG), codenamed Xodus, to develop
software simultaneously for the supported platforms to support this aim.

Membership
----------

Convergence International invites users of supported platforms, and people
interested in associated technology, to join the group.  Membership is
totally free: people interested in joining should simply e-mail with their
details, or use the form provided on our web site.

Members have opportunity to participate in various projects to help
Convergence International to fulfil its aims, but, of course, a member can
do as little or as much as they want.  Convergence International also
welcomes corporate members, sponsors, and funding of any kind.

To find out more about Convergence International, please see our web site
at http://www.parabbs.demon.co.uk/convergence/, or contact us using any of
the methods listed below.

 Contact Details
 ---------------
 Web     http://www.parabbs.demon.co.uk/convergence/
 E-Mail  convergence@rocket.demon.co.uk
 Address Convergence International
         49, St Gilberts Road
         Bourne
         Lincs
         PE10 9XD
         United Kingdom
         (Please include SASE for reply)
 IRC     #Converge (IRCnet), Sundays/Wednesdays (9pm GMT)
@endnode
@node NEWS3 "Amiga Informer"
@toc NEWS

Amiga Informer News

Issue #5 of The Amiga Informer is now available and ready for reading!.  
What's The Informer?  The Amiga Informer (ISSN 1089-4616) is a B&W Amiga
print Zine full of information and contacts which helps readers stay
connected with new developments, products, reviews and the latest news. 
The Informer's staff are all committed and passionate Amiga us- ers, and
are proud to produce the entire newsletter using only Amiga computers.

Issue 5 has 20 pages full of useful information for the dedicated Amiga
user.  Our cover stories detail the new phase 5 A/Box and discusses the
toll of the still pending Amiga sale.  Inside we present the winner of the
prize drawing (DiskSalv 4 and "Connect Your Amiga!") along with an-
nouncing the prizes up for grabs in the next issues (MRBackup and Megaball
4). 

This issue's news stories include ZyXel's new ISDN card that works with
Amigas, Carl Sassenraths leaving VIScorp, VIScorp's capitol injection to
Amiga Technologies, PageStream 3.2 release, Phase 5's PowerUp project,
AmigaZone's special deal, Village Tronics Picasso IV GFX card, Petsoff's
Delfina sound card and more.  In our "Developments" section we profile
AmiTrix Development and welcome Digital Lightyear Tech- nologies to the
Amiga fold.  In the "Announcements" section we highlight nearly 2 pages of
fine new Amiga products and provide info on upcom- ing Amiga shows.

In the "Enhancements" section Brad Webb continues his Workbench Extras
column, detailing useful programs no Amiga should be without.  In the "Site
Seeing" section, Davis Sprague details the use of Email and some fine Amiga
programs that make using it much easier.  In the PD Pick section, Davis
summarizes 3 interesting and very useful internet assesories programs
you're sure to love. 

We present two reviews in the "Evaluations" section.  First is Brad Webb's
assessment of Megaball 4, followed by a review of IAM's book "Connect your
Amiga!" by Lance Haug.  Issue 4 finishes off with a list of excellent
Internet sites and fine Amiga dealers in the "Contacts" section and a large
selection of used Amiga products for sale from our subscrib- ers in the
"Marketplace" section.

Issue 5 is hot off the press and waiting for you to read!  To receive a
copy of issue 5, send $1 US (for USA addresses) or $2 US (for all other
countries) to cover postage costs to:

The Amiga Informer
PO Box 21
Newburgh, NY 12551-0021

[Cash preferred, but checks made payable to Eldritch Enterprises].

If you would rather examine past Informer articles (without shelling out
cash for postage), visit our Web site at:

http://www1.mhv.net/~eldritch

Or, if you want to subscribe to The Amiga Informer, you can complete the
below form and send a check or Money Order, made payable to EL- DRITCH
ENTERPRISES, to the above address.  Subscribers receive 6 bimonthly issues
mailed first class to their homes.  (See coupon below)

In addition, Subscribers gain these special benefits:
* You are automatically entered into our bimonthly prize drawings for 
cool Amiga prizes. 
* You can advertise your used Amiga products for free in the Market-
place (seen by over 5000 readers). 
*As a subscriber, you gain a special 10% discount when you purchase 
any products from Liage International.
* If you have an Email address, you will automatically be sent the latest 
news, courtesy of Amiga Update Newsletter.

For your convenience, we have included a handy Subscription form at the end
of this letter.  You can fill it out and return it to us by Snailmail or
Email.

Thanks!

Fletcher Haug
The Amiga Informer Zine
PO Box 21
Newburgh, NY 12551-0021
eldritch@mhv.net

------------------------------------------------------------------------
One years subscription (6 issues) to The Amiga Informer Newsletter is 
(US) $12 for USA, $15 Canada, and $20 all others. Make checks pay-
able to: ELDRITCH ENTERPRISES

NAME:______________________________________________________

ADDRESS:___________________________________________________

PHONE #:_________________________________
DATE:____________

EMAIL_______________________________________________________

PAYMENT METHOD (payable to Eldritch Enterprises)

Check______        Money Order______     Bill Me______ (Available to 
USA subscribers only).

START SUBSCRIPTION WITH ISSUE:

#5 (December)_____        #6 (February)_____

Do you subscribe to or read an Amiga magazine regularly?   Yes___
No___

-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Mail to: PO Box 21, Newburgh, NY 12551-0021 or Email to: 
eldritch@mhv.net
@endnode
@node NEWS4 "Announcements Wanted By Informer"
@toc NEWS

Informer Looking for Announcements

Greetings.

Just a short message to any and all Amiga developers interested in getting
their products announced and seen by thousands of Amiga users.

My name is Fletcher Haug and I'm the publisher and Editor of The Amiga
Informer Zine.  We currently print and distribute 5000 issues bimonthly. 
These issue are distributed directly to Amiga users, and you know how rabid
they (we) can be.

The Informer offers both commercial and shareware authors a way to have
their products announced in the print medium­completely without charge. 
This opens up a whole new group of people who may normally not see the Net
based postings of your product. 

If you would like your product announced in The Amiga Informer, Email the
information to: eldritch@mhv.net Keep your announcement or press release as
short as possible and include all pertinent contact info (similar to a
"readme" file).  We have limited space available in each issue but will
fill that space with as many submissions as possible.

In addition, The Amiga Informer also prints reviews of commercial and
shareware (registered version) products.  If you would like your product
reviewed and the results printed in a future issue, contact The Informer
for more details.

The Informer is dedicated to bringing the latest news, announce- ments,
reviews and information to Amigans thought the print me- dium.  Send us
your information so we may pass along the fact that the Amiga is still a
platform supported by many fine and committed programmers.

Thanks,

Fletcher Haug
The Amiga Informer Zine
PO Box 21
Newburgh, NY 12551-0021
Voice: 914-566-4665
eldritch@mhv.net
Visit The Informer Homepage at: http://www1.mhv.net/~eldritch
@endnode
@node NEWS5 "Open Letter From QuikPak"
@toc NEWS

An open letter to the Amiga Community from QuikPak

The past few years have not been kind to the Amiga Community.  Since the
demise of Commodore, the ownership and future of the Amiga has been
continually uncertain.  The only thing that has remained constant is the
loyalty of Amiga users.  It is with respect to this loyalty that we feel it
necessary to let YOU know the current state of affairs and what QuikPak is
doing to see that the Amiga has the successful future it so deserves.

Back when Amiga Technologies was owned by Escom, QuikPak was selected to
manufacture the complete A4000T and components for the A1200.  During the
collapse of Escom and the subsequent negotiations with VisCorp, QuikPak
continued manufacturing and servicing Amiga Computers.  Throughout this
time of uncertainty, QuikPak continued to support the platform, placing ads
in the North American publication Amazing Computing, forging alliances with
Amiga developers and supporters, and developing new products of our own. 
Recently, at AmigaFest in Toronto, we unveiled two new computers and we
have been shipping the 060 Accelerator for the A4000T.  We believe this
product development clearly demonstrates our commitment to the Amiga.

It now appears evident that negotiations between VisCorp and Amiga
Technologies have reached a standstill.  As a creditor of Amiga
Technologies, QuikPak has a vested interest in seeing the future of the
Amiga handled properly.  To this end, QuikPak has placed an offer in front
of the German liquidator for Amiga Technologies, and we are awaiting
further information regarding this.

What does this mean to you, the end user?  QuikPak believes that there is
more to the Amiga than a simple set top box.  We believe that the A4000 and
its successors have a place in the market.  We believe that a model along
the lines of the A1200 also can play an important role in the future of the
Amiga.  We further believe that products currently under development at
QuikPak can bring the Amiga back to the forefront in innovation.  We
believe that working closely with developers, other manufacturers,
distributors, and dealers is necessary to make the Amiga a success.  And,
perhaps most importantly of all, we believe in listening to you, the person
who has kept this platform alive.

We hope that the new year will allow us to bring you good news, that
QuikPak will be successful in our negotiations with the German liquidator.
We trust that the liquidator will move quickly, and justly, to see these
events through.  We encourage any and all input from the Amiga Community -
let us know what you want to see.  And, finally, we encourage those
responsible for handling the Amiga Technologies' assets to be as open as we
at QuikPak are striving to be.

Sincerely,
Dave Ziembicki
C.E.O.
QuikPak Corporation

Dan Robinson
Director of Business Development of Amiga Computers
QuikPak Corporation
@endnode
@node NEWS6 "UltraAccounts 3.3"
@toc NEWS

TITLE

    UltraAccounts 3.3

AUTHOR

    Richard Smedley
    PO Box 59
    Sutton-In-Ashfield
    Nottinghamshire
    NG17 3HP
    England

    rsmedley@cix.compulink.co.uk

DESCRIPTION

    An intuitive & easy-to-use accounts program, specially designed
    to be suitable for non-computer-users as well as experts.

    Features include:

    - Multiple accounts & transaction tags.

    - Compatible with UltraPayAdvice, for taking care of all your
      payslips. (Aminet: biz/misc/ultrapay.lha)

    - Debit & credit standing orders, and timed transfers. The
      transactions entered by these timed events can be edited or
      erased *without* duplicate entries being created.

    - Budgeting facilities.

    - Common transactions & transfers: These let you predefine the
      details of commonly-used transactions and transfers (eg. doing
      the weekly shopping) to save you from having to keep typing in
      exactly the same details each time you enter that transaction.

    - Reminders: Make sure that you don't miss any important events
      like birthdays/anniversaries, or bills that need paying.

    - Pie, bar and line graphs, with optional future projections.

    - Encrypted files, optionally password protected.

    - Multiple data export configurations.

NEW FEATURES

    - Account/tag details can be locked for all new transactions.

    - Transactions can now be "disabled" from the running balances.

    - Custom-defined formats for exporting data, for use in other
      programs.

    - Transactions can now be saved as an ASCII text file.

    - Much faster loading & saving of UltraPayAdvice files.

    - Now uses proper ASL file requesters.

    - Numerous enhancements & bug fixes.

SPECIAL REQUIREMENTS

    - Requires: AmigaOS 2.0, 2 meg ram, reqtools.library (supplied)

    - Recommended (but not essential): Hard drive, additional ram

AVAILABILITY

    Available via FTP from Aminet sites.
    ftp://wuarchive.wustl.edu/pub/aminet/biz/misc/ultraacc.lha
    (146768 bytes)

PRICE

    The unregistered version is fully functional, but will display
    shareware reminders from time to time.

    Standard registration fee is 10 Pounds Sterling (or equivalent)

DISTRIBUTABILITY

    Shareware, unregistered copies are freely distributable.

    UltraAccounts is (C) Richard Smedley 1996
@endnode
@node NEWS7 "Symposium '97 Demoparty Invitation"
@toc NEWS

Symposium '97 Demoparty Invitation

Symposium '97
  Mekka '97

-------------------------
 The Official Invitation
-------------------------

---> PREFACE.

Half a year is over now since the Symposium '96 and Mekka '96 parties took
place.  The Symposium, as a multi-platform party, and the Mekka for the PC
scene are both remembered as important events for the German demo scene.

After several announcements, both inofficial and official, it's now time to
give you a more precise invitation text.  Next year's event combines the
parties which stood in competition to each other last year, to provide you
with a great deal of fun.

---> GENERAL INFORMATION.

The Symposium + Mekka '97 will be a demo scene party involving all
important platforms: the Amiga, the PC, the C64 and the Atari Falcon
systems.  We also support the Acorn RISC PCs, though the scene is a bit
limited on these nice computers.  Of course you are invited to bring your
SGI workstation or BeBox as well.

Symposium '96 has been visited by 640 people, Mekka '96 had about 300
visitors - if this adds cleanly, next year's party is for sure an event not
to miss.

---> WHEN.

Join us at Easter 1997, when the doors swing open on 28th March, 1200 CET.
The party will last until 31st March, 1200 CET.

The entrance fee amounts to 40 DM.  We don't accept foreign currencies.

---> WHERE.

The location is supposed to be the same as the last one, located in the
very near south of Hamburg.  The address is:

  Veranstaltungszentrum "Burg Seevetal"
  Am Goehlenbach 11
  D-21218 Seevetal
  GERMANY

It has got enough room for about 1000 people and a quite decent video and
sound system.  The space is further extended by a 200 sqm tent outside the
Burg.  Don't worry about winter, it will be *hot*.

This is how to reach the Burg: If you're going to come by train, you first
have to arrive at Hamburg Hauptbahnhof (main station) and take the S3 or
S31 (on Gleis 4, HVV price 4DM) to "Harburg", where we will pick you up
with the Symposium shuttle service, which *will* be present this time. 
Alternatively, you can use one of the public busses to "Seevetal" coming
every hour (148).  Coming by plane, you will use the bus shuttle service to
the station "Ohlsdorf", wait for the U1, get out at Hamburg Hauptbahnhof
and, again, take the S3/S31 to reach "Harburg".

For the case that you own a car, you have two possibilities to visit us:
The A1 ("Autobahn 1") and the A7.  Coming from the north or south via
A7/B4, you have to leave at Abfahrt "Fleestedt".  Then roll down the
"Hittfelder Landstraáe" (part of the B4) southwards and follow the sign
"Veranstaltungszentrum".  Coming from east or west via A1, take the Abfahrt
"Hittfeld" and follow the signs.  We are trying hard to put up "Symposium"
street signs in a wide range.

As a last note we want to add that we are about to find a new, slighty
bigger location.  New addresses will probably be published in the Web page
and in the invitation demos.

---> FEATURES.

Everyone talks about Internet.  So do we: Lots of IRC terminals and even
the possibility to surf the Web will be provided.  A party network with IRC
access is also planned.

While a repetition of the laser show is not absolutely sure, we can
announce that Noisedrift will do a live act again, other musical
attractions will take place, too, like Ronny/Teklords and the FX Performer
who will do a live ambient turntable mix.

Now that we're organizing this party, you might think that all you can do
is visiting it.  This is wrong: We give you the one and only chance to
produce yourself.  If you want to give a lecture on something or if you
have another idea of enriching the event, you're very welcome to do so.  We
would like you to contact us as soon as possible, though.

By the way: anyone who took last year's announcement of nude girls for
serious should think about his sense of humor.  What we want to say is that
we can't announce every single feature and every surprise competition. 
However, you can be sure that the party will be really entertaining.

It will be even more entertaining if the doom-playing kiddies would
consider to stay at home with their parents, please.

Last but not least, for the most traditional feature of demo scene parties,
we have reserved an own chapter which deals with...

---> COMPETITIONS.

The Symposium + Mekka '97 will offer you these fine competitions.  A
competition will only be held if we get at least 5 entries for it, this
magic number may be decreased for the smaller scenes, e.g.  Atari and
Acorn.

The usual conditions are valid: An artist or group may only give one entry
per competition, one person must be present.  Voting is done by the
audience.  Anonymous competition means that the entry must not reveal who
the author is.  A separate version including a tag can be provided and will
be spread instead.

This is a short version of the rules:

 Graphics: (ANONYMOUS)
     Max. 640x512 24bit, IFF, GIF, PNG, JPEG. Raytracing is allowed.

 Graphics C64: (ANONYMOUS)
     All formats/modes allowed, executable file.

 ProTracker Module:
     We will show 3 minutes, max. 1MB unpacked.

 Music:
     1.4MB unpacked, playable by CubicPlayer or executable. We will
     show 3 minutes.

 Music C64:
     All formats allowed, executable file - the C64 screen will not
     be shown during the compo!

 4K Intro:
     for Amiga and PC only.

 Intro:
     Amiga 40K, PC 64K, Atari 96K.

 Demo:
     Amiga, PC, Atari, Acorn: 4MB, must not require installation
     (Assigns, Libs, Drivers...). C64: Standard 5.25 DD disk.
     We will show 15 minutes max.

 Game:
     PC only jump'n'run or shoot'em-up game. 32K maximum.
     The coder will play it on the big screen.

 Video:
     Anything on VHS or S-VHS.

 Wild:
     Use any hardware you want.


Competition configurations:

 Amiga:
     68030 @50MHz, 2+16MB, AGA. 68060 is optional.

 PC:
     Pentium 133, 16MB, Ultrasound+SoundBlaster.

 Atari:
     Standard Falcon configuration.

 C64:
     New SID, Action Replay MK6, 1541-II disk drive.

 Acorn:
     Bring your own ;-)

---> THE ORGANIZERS.

The groups involved in organizing the Symposium + Mekka '97 are Polka
Brothers, Lego, Phantasm (for Amiga), Amable (for PC), Avena (for Atari)
and Smash Designs (for C64).

But what do names mean?  It's the experience that matters.  And that's what
we can *boast* with: seven Symposiums, the Mekka '96, the 680xx Convention
1993 and an in-depth knowledge of the scene provide us with the power
necessary for organizing such an event.

---> MORE INFORMATION.

... in upcoming invitation intros around X-Mas,
    at least for Amiga, PC and C64,

... on our extensive World Wide Web page,

     http://www.szczecin.pl/~rawstyle/Sym97/
     http://134.28.37.10/~frank/Sym97/

... directly from the organizers,

   Amiga:

     Frank Schliefer - Am Musterplatz 27 - 21220 Seevetal, GERMANY
     gandalf@blackbox.dame.de (Gandalf/Phantasm)

     Michael Krause - Mannesallee 24 - 21107 Hamburg, GERMANY
     rawstyle@blackbox.dame.de, ii7349@fh-wedel.de (Raw Style/Lego)

   PC:

     Malte Kanebly - Im Dorfe 3 - 21107 Hamburg, GERMANY
     amable@aol.com (Hardball/Amable)
     pv80090@ph80090.hh.eunet.de (Starcode/Independent)

   C64:

     chaotic@blackbox.dame.de (Chaotic/Smash Designs)

   Atari:

     michael_wiegers@hh3.maus.de (Jet/Avena)

... on the Black Box BBS,

   +49 4105 84619  (v34)
   +49 4105 669011 (ISDN)

... via voice,

   +49 4168 8611 (Hardball)
@endnode
@node NEWS8 "Aurora Works Inc."
@toc NEWS

 20 Nov 1996

The following is a press release for Aurora Works Inc.

We would like to announce the launch of a new Amiga software company,
Aurora Works Inc.  AW's primary focus is to create quality games for Amiga
computers, especially the higher-end Amiga machines.  Our first commercial
release, _Zone 99_ , is scheduled for release in March, 1997 with our main
project, _Betrayed_ , to be released in time for Christmas next year.  Demo
and shareware versions of each title will be available sooner so check our
website at www.auroraworks.com for more details.  Aurora Works' purpose is
to support the future of the Amiga computer and the new technologies that
are being created to bring that bright future to light!

For more information contact us at the following mailing address or email
us at info@auroraworks.com, http://www.auroraworks.com

Aurora Works Inc.
358-114 Queen Mary Rd.
Kingston, ON K7M 7E8
Canada

Phone: +1 (613) 549-0204
@endnode
@node NEWS9 "DataKompaniet Moves Net Contact"
@toc NEWS

DataKompaniet Moves Net Contact

We know have a new WWW and e-mail address.

WWW: http://www.datakompaniet.no
E-mail: post@datakompaniet.no

THANKS!

- Best Regards,

  Tor Rune Skoglund                  DataKompaniet as
  CEO                                Trondheim Innovation Centre
  Tel: +47 7354 0375                 N-7030 Trondheim
  Fax: +47 7394 3861                 Norway
  NEW E-mail from ~20th Nov: post@datakompaniet.no  
  WWW: NEW FROM ~20th Nov: http://www.datakompaniet.no
@endnode
@node NEWS10 "Independent Amiga Rejuvenation Survey"
@toc NEWS

"The Independent Amiga Rejuvenation Survey"

IARS?

The Amiga Community is known for for its fanatic dedication to the Amiga
platform, and that has led to several quarrels with PC and Mac users over
the years.  Our dedication has maybe been strengthened by the fact that the
Amiga has never gotten any real chance to prove its advantages over the
major platforms, perhaps mostly due to mismanagement by its holders.

The last years has been an endless waiting for answers.  Who owns the
Amiga?, who will own the Amiga?, what will become of the Amiga?  etc.  This
has, to say the least, been very frustrating for those of us who strongly
believe that there still is a future and room on the market for our beloved
Amiga.  However, one side effect of the waiting is that tons of ideas have
evolved in the minds of the Amiga Community, a community which indeed is
rather superior in its technological skills compared to the PC- and
Mac-users.  The vast number of high quality shareware programs on the
Aminet proves this fact.

The problem is, as always, to make the manufacturers/developers of Amiga
hardware and software listen to the opinions and ideas of the Amiga
Community, or rather benefit from them.  One major reason may be the fact
that the Amiga Community is rather disorganized, no common views have ever
been presented.  Of course one can't expect that everyone should agree upon
a certain topic, but it would indeed help our cause and put a lot more
wieght behind out arguments if we could at least be rather agree upon some
major topics.

I strongly believe that if the highly skilled and devoted Amiga-users
around the world could agree upon a common document regarding the
rejuvenation of the Amiga, we will make an impact.  The Independent Amiga
Rejuvenation Survey (IARS) is meant to serve as the basis of such a common
document.  In addition to this it will also serve as a constant receiver
and resource of ideas from the Amiga Community.

It must be emphasized that this survey is not in any way meant to be
anti-VIScorp or anti-anyoneelse for that matter, it only meant to be
pro-Amigan.  The result of the survey could in fact indeed be pro-VIScorp
in the sense that we're just trying to be a development resource.

This is how it will be done:

1.  Initially I will receive documents (maybe even images, html documents
are welcome) - by e-mail - where you express your views and ideas
concerning the future of the Amiga.  Topics could for instance be:

  The hardware specifications (CPU, what kind of bus, expandability etc.)

  The casing (pictures are welcome)
  The OS (Libs, Devs, CLI, GUI etc.)
  Internet (TCP, Software etc.)
  Software (Bundles, killer apps etc.)
  Marketing (Advertising, strategy etc.)
  Education (Selling to schools, programming courses etc.)
  Programming (Bundles, preferred languages etc.)
  etc.

I would also like to have your views upon:

What was it that initially made the Amiga successful?  Whas it that it
inspired a new generation of programmers?  Whas it the hardware?  Whas
it....?  You tell me.

What are the benefits of Windows and MacOS, apart from the obvious ones
(availability, dominance etc.), i.e what's good about them?  What should we
copy?

Is it important that this future computer everyone's raving about really is
an Amiga, i.e do we care whether it's called Amiga or not?

     ...and anything else that comes to mind.

2.  After the deadline (10 dec 1996) the documents will be compiled into
one, where no views or opinions are left out.  However, I will of course
shorten it a bit, maybe using sentences like "The motivations for using the
PowerPC were:..........,........" .  (Mails received after the deadline are
not neglected, the ideas and documents may still be included in the final
document, however that may not serve as basis for the survey questions.)

3.  The compiled document will then be mailed to every contributor, and of
course it will also be available on this web-page.  Every contributor's
document will also be available as such, if nothing else is specified by
you.

4.  Based upon the document, a form-based survey will be presented here,
were everyone who's interested in the future of the Amiga should
participate.  Every question in the survey will have reference links to
descriptive pages so that you can really make up your mind, and maybe even
learn something along the way.

5.  The results of the survey will then be compiled into the final
document, project name: "The Independent Amiga Rejuvenation White Book",
which will not only be released here on this page, but also available in
printed form.  This printed document will be sent to VIScorp, Phase5, PIOS,
Soft-Logik, Almathera etc..  You will of course have the possibility to
mail your opinions regarding the final document before its printed.

The web-version of the document will also contain full versions of the
submitted documents, be it pure text documents or html-documents.

The future

Hopefully, the page may serve as a constant collection of the ideas that
the Amiga Community come up with, i.e it will be constantly updated, even
after the first publication of the document.  In conjunction with e.g chat
possibilities this could be the ultimate Amiga Forum.

Maybe this kind of user survey could be used even after a successful Amiga
relaunch, and would then serve as the users instrument to influence the
further development of the Amiga platform.  It would not neccesarily be
administered by me, the important thing is that we keep trying to influece
the future of the Amiga.

Start mailing!  Deadline for the survey basing documents is the 10th of
December, 1996..  However, submissions after this date are just as welcome.

Here's the address:

s96gunte@student.adb.gu.se

Gunnar Liljas, 1996.
@endnode
@node NEWS11 "Digital Universe Update"
@toc NEWS

Digital Universe Update

First of all, we're using new, more efficient list software to send out
these messages, and as a result, this message is a test of sorts.  If
something doesn't look right at your end, please let us know.

Secondly, we've now implemented an online "Digital Universe" registration
service on our Web site.  If you are receiving this message directly from
us, you are most likely already a registered user.  However, we'd
appreciate it if you could visit our site to verify that the information we
have for you (postal & email addresses) are correct.  This will help to
ensure that we can contact you as new updates to the package are available.

You can access the online registration from our "Digital Universe, Amiga
version" main page, at:

http://www.syz.com/DU/amiga.html

About 3/4 of the way down the page, you'll find a box in which you can type
in your registration number to access or change the information we have on
file about you.  Please note that you will need a forms-capable Web browser
to do so.

Of course, if you happen to change addresses at some point in the future,
we'd appreciate it if you could update your information at our site so that
we remain in contact.

And finally, we've placed a UOF file with updated orbital elements for
Comet Hale-Bopp at our site.  You can place this file into your
DU:data/orbits subdirectory to use "Digital Universe" to track what may be
the comet of a lifetime.  The file is available from our DU support page at

http://www.syz.com/DU/support/

or can be downloaded directly at

ftp://ftp.syz.com/DU/support/halebopp.uof

Please keep in mind that comets are very unpredictable objects, and the
magnitudes predicted by DU should only be taken as a rough guide.  
Hopefully the show turns out as spectacular as some think it might.

As always, if you have any questions or comments, please do not hesitate to
contact us at support@syz.com.

Dan
--
Syzygy Research & Technology Ltd. |email: sales@syz.com, support@syz.com    
B 1204-17a St. NE                 |       images@syz.com, townnet@syz.com
Calgary, AB, T2E 4V5, CANADA      |- Creators of "The Digital Universe" 
Phone: (403) 276-1250             |- home of "The Astronomical Image Library"
WWW: http://www.syz.com/          |  & "The Alberta Town & Business Network"
@endnode
@node NEWS12 "VTU/Lightwave Pro Cancellation"
@toc NEWS

View of VTU/Lightwave Pro Cancelling

[Harv Laser, longtime contributor and supporter of Video Toaster User
magazine, offers his interpretation of the events leading up to the
cancellation of VTU and Lightwave Pro.  Harv's view is biased, of course,
but still valid.  Taken from comp.sys.amiga.misc.  -Jason]

: Has anyone heard any information about the demise of Video Toaster
: User magizine.  I had recently renewed but haven't gotten a single
: letter explaining their actions and how I will get a refund.  Anyone
: with info on this please post it to this news group since I check the 
: misc group out 3 or 4x a week.

: P.S. I'd like to hear from other Amiga/Toaster users about this sad situation.
: Will there be a independent publication started to fill the void created
: by the loss of VTU????

This has been detailed in comp.graphics.apps.lightwave and uh..  the
toaster newsgroup too (can't remember its correct name but if you search
your .newsrc for "toaster" you'll find it).

Here's what happened:

In late Summer '96, Miller Freeman Inc., a huge multi-national monster,
bought out AMG Media (formerly Avid Media Group), who published VTU,
LIGHTWAVEPRO, a couple other minor mags, and who put on the Video Toaster
User Expo each year.

The people at AMG's offices in Sunnyvale were either let go or were merged
into MFI's operation in San Francisco.

Three issues of VTU and LWP were released with MFI's name on the masthead.

Then, for reasons I will never undestand, MFI decided to stop all
publishing of the two magazines and instead, roll their content into two
other magazines they own, 3D Design, and DV (Digital Video) as twice-a-year
"inserts." (Their press release promises that this will somehow deliver
timely news to LW/Toaster owners.  How you get timely news but twice a year
is a paradox I will leave to the mystics to unravel).

Roughly at the same time this was going on, the Portal Online System was
being shut down by its owners.  AMG's Web site was on Portal's Web Server
and I was its Webmeister.  I first tried to get AMG to approve my moving
the site to another provider, but then AMG got sold.  Then I tried to get
Jim Plant, (do I have to explain who he is?) to get MFI to let me continue
doing the VTU/LWP web site on another service (it brought me a few hundred
bucks income each month) and he said he would try, but then came back and
said sorry but MFI has decided to take the web site in house.

So, currently, at http://www.portal.com/~amg is the last update to the AMG
web site that I did many months ago.  That site will vanish any day. 
Portal's already stopped email forwarding and the user/commercial web sites
it hosted will too soon disappear.

MFI's own site is at www.mfi.com and DV is at www.dv.com. 

The third annual Video Toaster User expo was held the first week of
November, 1996, at the old same place, the Hilton Hotel at Universal City.
I went to the show and I wrote it up for Amiga Computing and my short
article should appear in that magazine's January 1997 issue (which may
already be out in the UK, or not..  I dunno).

Now back to your subscriptions - MFI issued a press release a while back
saying that they would offer VTU and LWP subscribers either refunds for the
balance unshipped, or conversion to DV and 3DDesign mags for remaining
issues.  Subscribers were supposed to have been notified.  What can I say?
I have onthing to do with any of this..  I was just the AMG Webmeister.

Go visit www.dv.com and (as of last week anyway) there was a question and
answer link having to do with this buyout and shutdown and so on which
addressed subscribers' remaining issues. 

Meanwhile, NewTek has apparently linked up with a company called Advanstar
(I think) and a new magazine called "Newtekniques" is supposed to start
publishing early in '97, edited by Joe Tracy, who was VTU's last editor
(after Tom Patrick McCauliffe who left the magazine earlier in '96).  Joe
is a frequent poster in the LW newsgroup so sniff arond there too or use
altavista or dejanews to search usenet for postings by "joe tracy".  Also,
Manny Coates, who has a company that publishes a product called
"Lightspeed" (a magazine on tape), told me at the VTU expo last month that
he was planning a Lightwave/Toaster print magazine too, and that he would
try to send me a mockup of the first cover in the mail to get into my Amiga
Computing article, but that was over six weeks ago and I have seen nada
from him.

So that's the situation as I see it.  I think I got most if not all the
facts straight :)

To summarize:

- the AMG web site is frozen and will soon vanish and I no longer have
any control over it nor does anyone else.
- VTU and LWPro are gone as monthlies and will be rolled into 
DV and 3DDesign mags also owned by MFI.
- Advanstar with Newtek will publish Newtekniques edited by Joe
Tracy, former Ed. of VTU
- Manual Coates' company promises its own LW/Toaster magazine
- VTU Expos for the future, no idea. They didn't return my calls.
- Miller Freeman Inc. sucks. 

Harv
*Portal AmigaZone has moved to CalWeb - signup is FREE!
*Call 1-800-509-9322 (24 hrs.), say "Amiga Zone sent me." 
*Visit http://www.amigazone.com for more info.
@endnode
@node NEWS13 "C64 Music"
@toc NEWS

Upcoming C-64 music CD?

Much as there have been MOD CDs on the Amiga before, a project is underway
to make a physical CD of classic C-64 tunes.  The information sent to Amiga
Report is below.  We'll have more information when it becomes available.

Track listing (* still subject to copyright clearance)

Thing on a Spring (3:57)
Monty on the Run Title (6:19)
Delta Title (2:44/1:33)
Delta Endgame (3:12/4:28)
Sanxion Loading Tune (5:16)
Crazy Comets (4:23)
Auf Wiedersehn Monty (6:00)
Stormlord Intro (5:40)
Cybernoid 1 (7:14)
Cybernoid 2 (6:16)
Savage (6:30)
Turbo Outrun Title (3:40)
Last Ninja (4:00)*
Wizball (3:40)*
Ocean Loading Music v3 (2:30)*
Lightforce (7:00)*
Rambo (3:47)*

Reserve tunes
BMX Kidz
Warhawk

Although comments are welcome on the track listing, we are unlikely to
change it significantly now.  However, requests are welcome for volume 2
(dependent on the success of volume 1). 

Price: we do not have enough information yet.

Bear in mind that these are very different arrangements from my previous
MIDI versions, and use a lot more equipment, and some real
instrumentalists.

Also, most people have only heard them through not-too-good SB16s or
wavetable soundcards.  They sound competely awesome on CD (half of the
tracks are already finished).

The tracks are being released with the full permission of the copyright
holders, and will also be pre-approved by them for quality.

Thanks for your message of support, anyway.  Every message makes this
project more viable.  We'll try and keep you up-to-date with news.

Chris Abbott and Zak Ghouze
Commodore 64 Anthology Project
@endnode
@node NEWS14 "User Group Database"
@toc

                    ATTENTION ALL AMIGA USER GROUPS

By special request from many Amiga Dealers, Team *AMIGA* is compiling a
database of worldwide Amiga User Groups.  This database will be given to
any *AMIGA* related company wishing to reach the Amiga user base with new
product listings, specials, etc.

*Your User Group does NOT have to belong to Team *AMIGA* to be listed. 
This listing is open to everyone wishing to be included in snail mailing
and emailing from Amiga ONLY related companies so that you can pass the
info to other members of your User Group!  Each company has already agreed
that ONLY Amiga related info will be passed to you!

This is our effort to put the user base with our Dealer/Developers with
both of us getting the most bang for the buck!

Please help our loyal dealers/developers by signing up your user group
today.  It costs you nothing to be listed!

Simply fill in the below template and forward to:

Gary Caine

Inet : gcainethe.link.ca
Fido : 1:140/58.1

     or

Gary Caine
Box 464
Dalmeny, Sask. Canada
S0K 1E0

--------------------------------Cut User Group Form---------------------

Email me with the subject title "Team Amiga User Group"

Please use this form.
Enter "N/A" for info that doesn't apply.

User Group Name:

Contact Person:

Address:

Country:

Phone Number:

Inet Address:

Fido Address:

HTTP Address:

Number of Members:

------------------------------End Cut User Group form-------------------

Team Amiga reserves the right to make this entire database available to any
AMIGA related company that agrees to send *AMIGA* ONLY related mailings!

Another FREE service provided by Team *AMIGA*!
@endnode

@node NEWS15 "Dealer/Developer Database"
@toc NEWS

                       ATTENTION AMIGA DEALERS/DEVELOPERS

Because of the many requests from both Team *AMIGA* members and non-members
alike, Team *AMIGA* is organizing a database of Dealers and Developers for
the Amiga platform.  Anyone in software/hardware development, wholesale, or
retail areas are asked to join.  YOU DO NOT HAVE TO BE A TEAM AMIGA MEMBER
TO GET SIGNED UP!

This database of Dealers/Developers will be shared with anyone asking for
information on where to purchase Amiga computers, Amiga hardware, or Amiga
software.  Both Commercial and non-commercial developers are welcome. 
Wholesale and Retail Dealers will be gladly accepted as well!

If you publish software or books, develop and/or sell hardware or software
and want the Amiga users to be able to find you for purchases/information,
you need to be listed!

*There is ONLY one request!  You must agree that your predominant focus
will be on *Amiga* related advertising/info in any referrals we send to
you.We are attempting to support our loyal Amiga dealers and developers,
not push users away from the Amiga platform.

Note that PC ONLY advertising will not be allowed!

Simply fill in the following and send thru email or snail mail to:

Gary Caine

Inet : gcaine@the.link.ca
Fido : 1:140/58.1

     or

Gary Caine
Box 464
Dalmeny, Sask. Can
S0K 1E0

--------------------------------Cut Company Form-----------------------

Email me with the subject title "Amiga Companies"

Please use this form.
Enter "N/A" for info that doesn't apply.

Company Name:

Contact Person:

Address:

Country:

Phone Number for Info:

Phone Number for Orders:

FaxNumber:

Modem Number:

Inet Address:

Fido Address:

HTTP Address:

Type of Products:
(Software, hardware, both)





I agree to focus on *Amiga* related information for all referrals sent to
our company thru this listing with the understanding that we may or may not
also offer pc related items due to the current market and situation!  I
further agree that no pc ONLY advertising or info will be presented to any
referrals from this listing.

By ________________________________

------------------------------End Cut Company Form---------------------

Another FREE service sponsored by Team *AMIGA*!

(Team *AMIGA* reserves the right to make this database available to all
Amiga users and interested parties.)

Please support our Amiga dealer/developers.  Pass this form on to your
favorites today!
@endnode

@node NEWS16 "Australian News from Amiga News Australiasia"
@toc NEWS

[Amiga News Australasia is one of Australia's new Amiga publications.  Its
editor, John Pospisil, also publishes online portions of the magazine for
use in other publications such as ours.  Thanks, John! -Jason]

For a free copy of Amiga News (Australiasia), send a stamped,
self-addressed enevelope to: 

JP Media
3/7 National Ave
BULLI NSW 2516
AUSTRALIA

http://www.ozemail.com.au/~pospisil/ANA.html

AMIGA NEWS AUSTRALASIA
DECEMBER 9/12/96  
(INTERNET EDITION - SELECTED LOCAL NEWS ONLY)

Megatron sticks by Amiga
------------------------

The Amiga's Australian distributor, Megatron will not abandon the Amiga,
according to the company's General and New Business Manager, Bob Farrow.
"This is a very frustrating time, but unlike some dealers, we are not
abandoning the product and trading Amigas for PCs,"; he says.

"What we are doing is expanding our Industrial Division and strengthening
the Amiga market and the public's awareness of the Amiga's graphics
capabilities." Farrow sites as an example the work Megatron is doing with
Club Video in Queensland:

"To date Club Video has some 150 units in the field, and with our help, it
will triple that in 1997.  So who can say the Amiga is dead in Australia?"
Farrow also revealed that Megatron not only has the exclusive distributor
rights for Australia, it also has a licence to manufacture Amiga
motherboards in Australia.  "So, if the unthinkable were to happen, we
would take on the manufacturing of the Amiga for our region, and, if I'm
not mistaken, Asia as well."

If the VIScorp deal goes ahead, Farrow promises that Megatron will get
behind its dealer network, "especially those who have remained loyal to the
Amiga platform all these years." Farrow confirmed that Megatron was still
buying Amigas from Amiga Technologies. 


Aust Amiga show in 97
---------------------

Megatron is planning an Amiga show for Melbourne in the first quarter of
1997.  The show, yet to be named, will encompass both the home and
industrial market.  According to Megatron's General and New Business
Manager, Bob Farrow, the aim of the show will be to "strengthen the Amiga
platform in Australia and ultimately Asia."

Farrow says the show will go ahead regardless of the outcome of the VIScorp
deal.  Megatron wants to talk to all interested parties, and is also
looking for co-sponsors.

Further information: Megatron Electronic Industries, ph (03) 9870 4844,
e-mail rfarrow@gui.com.au.  


Mystery hard disk
-----------------

One of Australia's leading Amiga Internet sites, Livewire, was recently
donated a hard disk to help it keep its Amiga archives.  However,
Livewire's Ross Delaforce, has a written agreement not to reveal the
identity of the donor: "I believe it might have something to do with a
product launch soon," says Delaforce.  All very mysterious... 


Amiga Development fund in Australia
-----------------------------------

Australia has it own branch of the Amiga Development Fund.  As reported in
the last issue, the fund has been set up to help finance Amiga software
projects.  In Australia, the fund is represented by Warrick Burgess, who
says he will shortly commence an e-mail campaign to Australian Amiga
software authors.


Capital Punishment
------------------


Capital Punishment, the hottest Amiga game of 1996, will not be released in
Australia.  Dealers we spoke to said it was no longer viable to import
Amiga games because of a new $350 censorship assessment fee.  Amiga News
thinks this is a great shame.  We're willing to coordinate a shipment of
Capital Punishment (and take care of censorship obligations) to help keep
the Amiga alive.  Any interested dealers interested fax us on 042 674518,
indicating how many copies you're willing to take.  Interested Gamers
should let their local Amiga dealer know what we're trying to do.

@endnode

@node NEWS17 "VIScorp Awarded Preliminary Injunction against IVP"
@toc NEWS

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

DECEMBER 9, 1996

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Hugh Jencks (312) 655-0903


A federal district court in San Jose, California issued a preliminary
injunction on December 4, 1996, against the source of Dallas-based Curtis
Mathes Holding Corp.'s (Curtis Mathes) Uniview interactive television
device prohibiting further use of proprietary technology developed by
Visual Information Service Corp.  (VIScorp) of Chicago, Illinois.
Interactive Video Publishing, Inc.  (IVP), David Serlin, Steve Owens, and
Kaori Kuwata and "all those in active concert or participation with them"
were enjoined from using any of VIScorp's trade secrets or technology and
"from manufacturing, shipping, distributing, promoting, licensing or
selling any of that technology or any product incorporating that
technology."

VIScorp filed a complaint in the Northern District Court of California
against the defendants alleging that they misappropriated its trade secrets
and technology and licensed the misappropriated technology to Curtis Mathes
for its Uniview product.  The court recognized that "IVP's deal with Curtis
(Mathes) will likely be affected" by its order.  The court found that
VIScorp "will probably succeed on the merits of its claim that defendants
used improper means to acquire VIScorp software trade secrets, and,
therefore have misappropriated VIScorp trade secrets." No trial date has
been set.

@endnode

@node NEWS18 "Carl Sassenrath Departs VIScorp in Flames"
@toc NEWS

[I, too, have recently departed from the ranks of VIScorp, although on
somewhat more subdued terms.  This message was originally posted to Usenet.
Carl was VIScorp's Director of Software and was instrumental in the
original Amiga OS.  -Jason]


Dear Amigans,


Many of you have been wondering what's happening with VIScorp, the Amiga,
and why my name is no longer on the vistv web site.

I hope this is not too long-winded for you, but here is a brief summary of
my story:

I joined VIScorp about a year ago as a consultant to help them create new
system software for the Amiga.  I believed at that time that they had the
ability to take the Amiga into several new, huge markets around the world.
They made many promises to me in order to get me to join the project.

In March 1996 VIScorp informed me that they planned to buy Amiga
Technologies.  The reason was simple: for the vast quantities of Amigas
that they planned, it was cheaper to buy AT then to pay the royalty.  It
seemed to me that this could work, if they could come up with the money.

Over the months that followed, I made numerous suggestions to VIScorp
regarding what they needed to do to support and further improve the Amiga.
I even proposed a business plan centered around the Amiga, as it seemed to
me that you CAN have an ALTERNATE computer for people who don't want PCs. 
After all, what would our cars be like if only one company produced them? 
The Amiga offered us a choice.

VIScorp never responded to my suggestions.  Not once.  In fact, they kept
me totally in the dark as to what they were doing and what progress had
been made on the AT deal.  I never knew from day to day what was going to
happen next.

By August I was starting to tire of VIScorp and its unkept promises to all
of us.  They were 110 days behind in paying me, and I was very disappointed
in the whole mess that they had brought on the Amiga community, developers
and dealers, and myself.  It had become clear to me that VIScorp was not
competent.  I took a couple weeks off and went to Florida.

In September I tried to recruit RJ Mical to join the team.  I put a lot of
energy into it, as RJ was skeptical of VIScorp.  I finally succeeded!
Then, VIScorp blew him off.  RJ and I couldn't believe it.  What were they
doing?

Finally, I decided to focus 100% on what they had originally hired me for:
to create a TV set-top Amiga.  Perhaps if we could build a good demo,
VIScorp could convince one of its investors to contribute extra cash.  By
the end of September, Don, Steve, Jim, and I had finished a dazzling
prototype of such an STB.  In my opinion, it really showed off what the
Amiga could do as a STB.  The software for it was entirely written by Jim
and I, because VIScorp had not been paying any of the other contractors.

After delivering the prototype, I never heard a word back.  VIScorp was
again far behind in payments.  What were they doing?  What had gone wrong?
What was next?

Whatever it was, I didn't want to be part of it any longer.  I've never
seen such an idiotic, screwed-up, incompetent company (and I am saying it
mildly).  VIScorp was worse than Commodore, and I never thought that was
possible.  I took my name off the web site, vowing not to be a part of this
lunacy.

So what can I say?  Please don't flame me for doing this.  I refuse to be
part of such a sloppy situation, regardless of my love for the Amiga.  Over
the last 10 months I have heard from many of you, and have sent nearly 1500
personal email replies to you.  All I can say is that I am sorry that I
could not do more for you and our Amiga Computer.

I am unsure what the future holds for the Amiga.  Perhaps VIScorp or some
other company will scrape together enough cash to make the AT purchase.  We
can only hope.

As for my future, I am going to return to what I do best: operating systems
and languages.  You have not heard the last from me.  I can imagine a
system much better than the Amiga....  now to create it.  Truely, only time
will tell.

Stay in touch my friends.

Sincerely yours,

Carl Sassenrath
Ex-VIScorp OS Guy
carl@sassenrath.com


Permission granted to copy and repost.

@endnode

@node FEATURE1 "Digital Media World '96"
@toc FEATURE

===========================================================================
              Digital Media World '96 - A Missed Opportunity
  Gavin Dodds                                   gavin@eagle001.demon.co.uk
===========================================================================

"Another computer show report?" you ask yourselves.  "Surely we have heard
most of this stuff before." However this report is not one of
congratulation, of showing the world that the Amiga is still viable.  This
report tells of a show where the Amiga was not present, was not
represented, and indeed was mentioned in only one company's literature, to
the best of my knowledge.  There was no amiga hardware, no Amiga software
and definitely no Amiga computers on show here.

"So why are you telling us all this?" you ask impatiently.  Because the
Amiga SHOULD have been there!

The show was Digital Media World (formerly Compute Graphics Expo) at
Wembley Conference Centre, London, U.K.  on 19th - 21st November.  I
attended on the 20th.  It was attended by the greats of the computer
graphics industry, Silicon Graphics, Alias|Wavefront, Softimage, Industrial
Light & Magic and Disney.  It was attended by some of the U.K.'s highest
profile games companies, Microprose and Codemasters to name but two.

It was also attended by three companies who's names are linked tightly to
the Amiga.  Hisoft Systems (U.K.  distributor for many Amiga products),
Scala and Newtek.  Surely these stalwarts of the Amiga scene would have
given some recognition to the computer which allowed them to actually
exist?  Well one of them did.

Surely it was Hisoft, distributor of many Amiga products?

Hisoft were, in fact, showing only one main product - Maxxon Cinema 4D.  As
I noticed the stand, I was drawn to this familiar name and logo.  I managed
to get hold of one of the many free booklets that were being handed out to
anybody who strayed within two feet of the stand (the aisle here being only
five or so feet wide) and started to read.  The cover was indeed
impressive, a subtly different version of the Real 3D watch, as shown in
Amiga Format many times, adorned the cover, with the slogan "What Are You
Waiting For?".

The booklet mentions many things, realistic lights, photorealistic picture
quality and cross platform compatibility.  Many platforms are mentioned
Windows 95, Power Macintosh, Windows NT, OS/2, X Windows, SGI Mips, DEC
Aplpha.  Leaving aside the fact that the last two "platforms" are chips and
computers based on them would be running Windows NT, we see that the Amiga
is not mentioned at all.  At lest they have the grace to mention that
Cinema 4D imports and exports IFF pictures.

The main thrust of the booklet is that Cinema 4D has features equal to the
most expensive rendering software, but at a fraction of the price.  The
price in question being UKP499 if bought at the show and UKP699 at other
times.

Call me a cynic, but wasn't Cinema 4D on the Amiga first?  Didn't it have
all these features?  Wasn't it priced at UKP200?!?!

So we quest onward to Scala's stand.  They are showing a landmark product,
a package that has won many prizes.  The product?  Scala MultiMedia MM100!
For the PC.  Also mentioned were Scala InfoChannel and Scala Studios.  How
about MM400?  The people at the Scala stand were handing out a small
pamphlet about MM100, no mention of the Amiga, but again Scala will import
IFF pictures.

Wasn't Scala doing all of these things on the Amiga many years ago?  And
without the need for Scala BackBone or Scala Multimedia Multitasking
Operating System.  No price is mentioned, but they helpfully mention the
dimensions and weight of the box the software comes in!

So it must have been Newtek who mentioned the Amiga?

Newtek's stand was a masterpiece of cyberpunk showmanship.  It was a
wonderful two story affair (the only twin level stand in the show) and had
two large "pods" that visitors could sit in and remotely watch the
demonstrations that were going on in another part of the stand.  The upper
floor also had a viewing area, but seemed to be restricted to the press,
possibly due to the fact that they had a (the?) full size Hammerstein model
from the Judge Dredd film atop the stand.  The stand was actually owned by
a company called Amgfx, who distribute Lightwave in the UK, but the only
products on offer were Lightwave and a Pentium Pro based workstation to run
it on, courtesy of Red Box (who I'd never heard of).

But what was this, Amgfx's nasty photocopied information booklet containing
information about Lightwave, mentioned a strange, little-heard-of computer.
The Amiga!  Did you know that Lightwave was available for the Amiga?  What
a shock I got!  Of course, Lightwave will import and export Iffs as well.

As a responsible member of the AMiga community, I asked an Amgfx member of
staff when the Amiga version of Lightwave 5.0 would be coming out.  He
explained that it's release had been pushed back so as not to steal the
thunder from the Power Mac version's launch!  Lightwave 5.0 Amiga will,
according to the cheerfully helpful man, be available in December.  Wether
this is a U.K.  only launch date or a world wide one, I forgot to ask.

So much for the "Amiga" companies, what about the rest of the show?

Well SGI were "officially" launching the O2, of interest to Amiga owners
due to it's similarity in specs and purpose to phase5's A\Box.  Now I had
seen a room full of these machines six or so days before SGI admitted they
existed, so I was not taken aback by the Walker-esqe design.  The number of
these little machines scattered around the hall was quite staggering for a
machine that had only "existed" for a month and a half!  Not only had the
SGI stand been liberally coated with them, but many of the other companies
round the hall had the odd one or two adorning their stands, along with
software to make use of them.  SGI were comparing the O2 to a Power Mac of
roughly the same price (the Mac was about 1000 more expensive).  Of course
the O2 came off best, winning in all the (probably carefully selected)
categories that SGI chose to compare the two computers in.  Memory speed is
2.1GB/sec for the O2, comparing well to the A\Box's advertised 1.6GB/sec. 
However the version that was compared to the Mac was costing 10,000, this
was with many extras, like more memory (64MB) and a large hard drive (2GB),
but still would cost much more than phase5's offering.

The rest of the show consisted of software (mostly for the SGI platform)
concerned with 3D graphics, image manipulation and some VR applications.
The "Wired World" exhibit was devoted to PC/Mac development software for
Internet and Web publishing.  Apple had a stand, bravely pushing the Power
Mac, but so close after the Apple Expo, they weren't getting many visitors.

And now to the whole reason for writing this report.  This show was giving
companies involved in computer graphics a chance to show off, not to the
public, but to the industry.  Effects houses, animation studios, post
production houses and multimedia developers were circulating, evaluating
products and planning their next round of spending.  Considering that the
main thrust of the show was towards 3D graphics, the Amiga should have been
present, showing what can be done with a small, low speed, low cost
machine.  There should have been demonstrations of Cinema 4D, Scala MM400,
Lightwave and more on the Amiga.  There should have been demonstrations of
Image FX, Photogenics and ImageStudio.  For God's sake, Newtek should have
been showing the Flyer and the Toaster, not just Lightwave!

If Lightwave requires a 486 w/FPU or a Pentium to run on NT or 95 (and we
all know that means a fast Pentium and stuff the 486!) and only an '030 on
the Amiga, shouldn't that be shouted about, instead of occupying a small
section of a photocopied sheet on machine specs?  If the upgrade to 5.0 for
Lightwave on the PC or NT costs 350 and it only costs $199 on the Amiga,
isn't this something people should know about?

The Amiga IS the low-end computer graphics machine (PCs are mid-range, SGIs
are top-end) there is nothing that can match the productivity to price
ratio of an A4000/060 with a decent range of add-ons (hard drive, memory,
CD-ROM, etc).  Notice I said "productivity" not "speed", I know the Amiga
isn't the world's fastest computer, but it is the most productive for the
price.

Newtek, Scala and Maxxon wouldn't have been at this show if it wasn't for
the Amiga.  There should have been more than one of them even mentioning
it.

At least this year was an improvement on last year's show.  Only Lightwave
was there then, with the same small mention of being available for the
Amiga platform.

Next year, if I can attend, I hope to see more Amiga related stands.  The
Maxxon crew had just been to Computer 96 in Germany, where phase5 were
showing the Power Up boards.  Surely phase5 could have attended Digital
Media World?  VISCorp could have attended and shown off the prototypes of
their web browsing platforms.  Almathera could have shown off Photogenics
(image processing software was thin on the ground this year).

All in all, I see Digital Media World as a missed opportunity for VISCorp,
phse5, Almathera, etc to show the computer graphics industry that there is
another choice for their hardware needs, a choice that has all the software
that they need to produce their wares for a fraction of the cost.

I'll get off my soapbox now <grin> and leave you with this last thought -
if the Amiga can't be sold to money-conscious professionals, who work in
the field it was originally designed to dominate, where can it be sold?

The organisers of Digital Media World '96 can be reached at:-

Digital Media International
10 Barley Mow Passage
Chiswick
London W4 4PH
UK

Tel: ++44 (0)181 995 3632
Fax: ++44 (0)181 995 3633

email: digmedia@atlas.co.uk
@endnode
@node FEATURE2 "Amiga Fest Show Report"
@toc FEATURE

===========================================================================
                          Amiga Fest Show Report
  Steve Collins                                          envisage@ptd.net
===========================================================================

The following is a brief description of Amiga Fest '96 which took place
Dec.  29 thru Nov 1.  The Canadian Amiga show was produced jointly by
Amazing Software and the people from Computer Fest.  This material is by no
means comprehensive and may not be 100% accurate.  With that out of the way
here is my take on Amiga Fest '96. 

Arriving at the show Friday I found the Amiga section of Computer Fest (The
main show which Amiga Fest was a part of) tucked away in the back corner of
a giant warehouse.  It seamed to have all the organization of a back yard
barbeque, but there was definitely more here then met the eye. 

Quikpak 
-------

Their slogan "Now things are happening with the Amiga" was basically true.
Quikpak introduced two new computers.  The A5050 is a tower 4000 computer
with a Pentium CPU card, Zorro, PCI, and ISA slots.  With a touch of a
button one can swap from the Amiga to the PC side.   The prototype on
display also had an LCD monitor built into the side of the tower.  When
flipped on it's side the monitor flips out making it the worlds largest
portable computer.  This was a "surprise" feature and would only be
implemented if there was enough demand.

Quikpak also introduced the A4060 L which was definitely a hit, at least
with me.  Basically a complete A4000 with an attached LCD monitor,
keyboard, and 060 processor.  The A4060 L was more compact than I imagined.
This computer brings the dream of a portable Flyer system to reality.  Now
if someone would design a portable, hot-swapable, hard drive box, I'd be
set.  NewTek and Quikpak should get together on this one.

There was also great news that Quikpak is now the front runner for the
purchase of Amiga technologies.  This would make sense because they have a
vested interest in the Amiga.  They hoped to make an announcement
"shortly".

NewTek
------

Don Ballance was demonstrating the Flyer, and even though I own one and use
one every day I was still struck by the simplicity and power of its
interface.

It was also implied by a source that NewTek had no immediate plans to
incorporate Firewire with the Flyer and that this was best left to Third
parties.

Phase 5
-------

Wolf Dietrich was showing off their Power PC/'060 board.  For demonstration
purposes Wolf played an Mpeg movie in one window while in another window he
used a fractal generating program.  As Wolf zoomed in and out of the
fractals the Power PC chip recalculated and re-drew the fractal in
real-time.  The Mpeg movie, being played by the '060 side never missed a
beat (can you say dual processing?).  Wolf went on to say that the board
would be 10 to 20 x's faster than an '060 and significantly faster than a
Mac running an equivalent chip.

On a side note, Phase 5 is talking to NewTek about possible ports to their
Power PC board.  When asked if the Power PC board would run Windows NT for
the Power PC chip, Wolf replied in a Schwarzenegger accent, "we won't be
getting into that our main concern is Power PC Amiga." He did imply that if
someone wanted to get Windows NT up and running on their board he would not
stop them.

Wolf also went over the specs for Phase 5's proposed A/Box machine.  The
A/Box will run an Amiga compatible 3.1 operating system.  It will also run
Unix and Linix, in windows directly from the Amiga compatible operating
system. 

Asimware
--------

Asimware displayed their Audio Thunder software along with their CD
recording software and a 100 disc CD-R machine.

Applied Magic
-------------

Applied Magic demonstrated their very impressive Broadcaster Elite,
non-linear editor.  The quality of their digitized video was excellent. 
This company's lack of advertising makes me wonder if they are just biding
their time until the PC port of Broadcaster Elite comes out.

Anti-Gravity
------------

Anti-Gravity products were on hand along with their President Dan Lutz. 
While I was video taping the A5050 T Dan tapped me on the shoulder and
asked me to take a look at a computer in his booth.  Low and behold it was
a 200mhz DEC Alpha machine running Photogenics in a window right out of
Windows NT.  This of course was due to the fact that the machine was
running a new version of the Siamese System by Hi-Q.  If parts of AmigaDos
were to be ported to the DEC Alpha there would be great possibilities here.
I was informed that this was exactly what was happening and that the Amiga
Math Libraries would be the first to be ported!

On a side note, Dan Lutz is a knowledgeable Amiga enthusiast.  I listened
to him turn several Amiga nay-sayers back on to the Amiga.

In conclusion I would have to say any time you get the hottest developers
together at a show it is a success.  Most developers, retailers, and many
end users know each other on a first name basis - and it showed. 
Developers, retailers, and users expressed there interests, ideas and hopes
to each other.  The Amiga community is a unique one and definitely worth
saving.  To coin a phrase, the results of the Amiga's death have been
greatly exaggerated. 
@endnode

@node FEATURE3 "Impressions on Cologne: Computer '96"
@toc FEATURE

===========================================================================
               Impressions on Cologne: The Computer '96 Show
                            By: @{" Jason Compton " link JASON}
===========================================================================

I had the unique opportunity to spend two days at the November Computer 
'96 (formerly World of Amiga) in Cologne, Germany.  I can honestly say that
few experiences in my life have been filled with quite so many conflicting
emotions.

The circumstances of my trip certainly could have been better.  At the
time, I was working for VIScorp as their Communications Manager for
Amiga-related operations.  However, since August, VIScorp had cut the
budget for Amiga shows to zero.  Much as I urged that VIScorp should and
must have a presence at Cologne, neither I nor any other VIScorp employee
would be going.  But about a week and a half before the show, I received an
irresistable offer--I could be the guest of Schatztruhe, the German CD-ROM
publisher, so long as I spent a reasonable amount of time at their area.
It was a terrific opportunity and I couldn't help but take it.

Looking back on it, it was really a milestone for me.  An event that, years
earlier, I only got to read about other people going to, I would be
attending personally.  As a welcomed guest, no less.

But I was nervous.  After all, VIScorp hadn't been making friends at a
great rate, and I knew that the German public in general would be upset.
After all, they'd just gotten comfortable being the Amiga capital of the
world, and some Americans stepped in to take it away--and I was their
representative.  

I arrived in Cologne on Friday morning, made my way to the show, and after
just a little bit of arguing with the ticketers, got my pass and I was in.

It hit me immediately.  I was in, by a factor of two or three, the biggest
Amiga show I had seen in my life.  Mind you, my basis for comparison is
skewed, since previously the biggest show I'd seen was the WOA Toronto '95.
This outshone its volume considerably.  People were EVERYWHERE--and even
though the show was multiplatform, most of them were there for the Amiga.
The PC areas were actually rather poor--the only eye-catching items were
the Electronic Arts landmass and the omnipresent Tomb Raider girls.  I
would venture that 75% of the exhibits, at least, were Amiga.

Despite my awe at its size, one of the things I heard most at the show was
how previous years' exhibitions were larger.  I kept telling them that
I didn't care--never before had I been in such a huge hall of Amiga goods,
with tens of thousands of others who were genuinely interested in the
platform.

My first goal was to get to the Schatztruhe booth--and I'd forgotten to
grab a map on my way up.  It wasn't too hard, though.  Schatztruhe was
fairly centrally located, in a square area with a private meeting room.  I
met with Stefan Ossowski, the proprietor of Schatztruhe, and we sat down
and met with a number of his colleagues, including Richard Small of GTI,
one of the world's most successful Amiga product distributors.  Early on
were interviews with a host of German Amiga magazines.

After the interviews, I FINALLY met Urban Mueller, head honcho of Aminet.
Urban was working the Schatztruhe booth, pushing Aminet CDs and the dozens
of other products published by the company.  There were literally hundreds
of boxes of CD-ROMs (which is the only format Schatztruhe publishes in,
with the exception of the Guru-ROM), and customers were usually stacked two
or three back along the entire length of the counter.

Also hosted at the Schatztruhe booth was GPSoft's Greg Perry and Jonathan
Potter of DirOpus 5 fame.  They were demonstrating DirOpus5 to the crowd,
once the machine they were provided with was up and running.

Another Schatztruhe guest was Cloanto's Michael Battilana, who was
passing out and selling copies of the new Personal Paint 7, in the
incredibly attractive mini-CD sleeve.  It wouldn't be a Cloanto product if
I wasn't able to talk about how pretty the label is.  :)

Digita had representation as well--and I'm extremely embarrased that I
didn't write down his name and am blocked on it now, despite how much time
we spent together.

Later in the day, I got to meet a group of journalistic colleagues--Ben
Vost, Assistant Editor of Amiga Format was the first.  Ben and I spoke
candidly about the VIScorp situation--I told him I didn't know much.
Later, I met Mat Bettinson, Technical Editor of CU Amiga.  I do quite a bit
of writing for CU, so I was pleased to see him and pick up a couple of
recent issues of the magazine.  Later we met up with Thomas Svenson, editor
of Sweden's AmigaInfo.  Ben and I did a short video interview, courtesy of
the impromptu camera work of Greg Perry.

With all of this running around and meeting people and handling interviews,
you might think I didn't get much of a chance to see the show--and you'd
largely be right.  Partially because of the language barrier (a great many
Germans do indeed speak English, but after a while I was getting
self-consious about my inability to speak German as well as the VIScorp
badge on my chest) and partially because there just never seemed to be
time, I didn't get to do the rounds of the entire show floor.  But I DID
see quite a bit:

Schatztruhe
-----------

Well, yes, I was here the most often.  I have NEVER seen Amiga sales at
this pace before.  It was really a sight for doubting eyes.

The irony is that despite the big sign announcing my presence at the booth
and the importance Schatztruhe placed on it, relatively few people who came
to the area actually wanted to talk to me.  True, some did, but by and
large most people just wanted to hand over their money and walk away with
their CDs.  I personally filled a half-dozen orders or so. :)

Much to my surprise, I only had one encounter I'd term "negative", when a
patron engaged me in some abusive questioning and then walked away before I
was finished answering.  But by and large, things went well.

One of the interesting products Schatztruhe had is unique to the German
market--DirOpus 5.5 on CD-ROM, with online manual only.  It's only in
German, but GPSoft is considering the product in English for other markets
based on the success of the German version.


Phase5
------

I got an audience with the suddenly VERY popular Wolf Dietrich, in what was
probably the most expensive Amiga booth in the place.  Phase5 had a large
walled-in meeting area where a number of hired well-dressed assistants
controlled entrance and looked professional.  Outside the perimeter was
Phase5's entire product line, including a few PowerUP demos--but no
CyberVision 3D, and only a logic-probe type exhibit for the A/Box.

The PowerUP demo was a mixed bag.  The two pieces of software they had to
show (a Mandelbrot generator and a partial port of the 3D software
Reflections) definitely showed the PPC to be faster than the 060, by an
awful lot.  But Reflections is hardly the most popular software package on
the Amiga--in fact, before the show, I'd never heard of it.  Phase5 needs
to show that developers are not only behind the product in spirit, but in
fact, before PowerUP can reach its real potential in the Amiga market.

Wolf and I discussed where things were going and how the A/Box was
indicative of a new growing spirit towards "alternative computing"--that
computers other than those endorsed by the WinTel standard can survive in
the present and future.


Haage and Partner
-----------------

H+P were showing off their product line.  Beginning with StormC, the
company has really made strong positive impressions on the Amiga market
with products meeting perceived needs.  ArtEffect and DrawStudio (the
latter is published by LH in Britain but distributed by H+P in Germany)
looked good, but unfortunately none of these packages has been provided for
review in Amiga Report.  H+P's area was rather large, and their staff was
cheerfully handling the flood of people around it.

Village Tronic
--------------

With a rotating Amiga and Mac cube, VT was having no trouble attracting
attention.  And they had no trouble keeping it with the Picasso IV.  A
terrific looking card, the P-IV was running MPEG CDs on the Workbench and 
putting up some great displays.  We hope to have a model for review soon.

ACT Electronic
--------------

The manufacturers of the Apollo line of accelerators were neighbors of
Schatztruhe.  The entire product line was laid out for passerby to see.  On
the whole, ACT didn't put on quite as professional a presentation as the
other companies like Phase5, but what they lacked in style they made up for
in substance--there was a LOT of product there.

Eagle and Micronik
------------------

Two separate companies, Eagle and Micronik's work was seen around the show.
Eagle makes A4000T custom configuration cases, and Micronik manufactures
A1200 cases.  Many exhibitors used their products--and they're gorgeous,
particularly compared to the extremely bland American QuikPak A4000T.

HiSoft/Maxon
------------

Maxon and HiSoft demonstrated their product lines in a rather flashy area.
All three platforms (Amiga, PC, Mac) of Cinema4D were on display, as was
IBrowse, and assorted Maxon products got airtime as well.  I met with
HiSoft's David Link and their top Cinema4D programmer later on--nice
fellows.

DCE
---

The SX32 Pro 030 was on display at the show, as Alan Redhouse of Eyetech in
the UK told me.  I missed a demo, but saw a board behind glass later at the
DCE booth.  The 030/50 is enough to make a CD32 user drool, but my question
is--what will I do about Pirates Gold, which chokes even on Fast RAM?

More Meetings
-------------

I will have to revisit this story another day quite soon, since I met so
many people for the first time I couldn't possibly list them all.

Meeting Christoph Guelicher was very high on my list.  This guy is
incredible.  He was the best thing about Amiga Technologies, in my
opinion--responsive, informative, sympathetic, and intelligent.  His
decision to leave the company this autumn is more than understandable, but
I sincerely hope he will be a professional part of the market again,
because the market could use more of him.

Getting to meet Heinz Wrobel and Angela Schmidt was exciting as well.
Heinz, best known lately for his work for AT on AmigaOS, and Angela, famous
for Meeting Pearls, were often found at the Schatztruhe area.

Mark Habinski and Trevor Kidd of Wonder Computers was there--it was funny
to travel to Europe to meet a couple of Canadian friends. :)

Dr.  Peter Kittel was on hand for PIOS, and it was great to meet him and
shake his hand for the first time.

And just seeing hundreds of people who knew my name was a thrill.

Cologne was a great experience for me.  I wish I had been able to do more
for the people there, but I'll not soon forget it.

The Fun Stuff:
-------------

Ben Vost and Mat Bettinson are actually two good looking guys, despite the
less than flattering pictures their magazines have run of them.

Urban Mueller's first words to me were "You're Jason Compton?  F*** you!"
It was ok, though, you had to be there.  Urban and I actually get along
very well. :)

Anybody who knows Angela Schmidt knows she loves to climb things.  She was
determined to climb the 10-foot wall around the Schatztruhe booth with only
thin plastic rods as supports.  Thankfully, Heinz, Stefan and I were able
to talk her out of it.

If you ever meet Greg Perry, offer him a coffee and cognac, heavy on the
cognac.

According to Urban Mueller, the Swiss have made only one contribution to
world cuisine--fondue.

Michael Battilana had a terrible sore throat, which he blamed for getting
in the way of his normally sexy Italian voice.

I know I heard a floorscrubber joke somewhere, but I forget what the
context was.

No karaoke this time, I'm afraid. :)

@endnode

@node REVIEW1 "Review: Aminet 15"
@toc REVIEW

===========================================================================
                             Review: Aminet 15
                            By: @{" Jason Compton " link JASON}
===========================================================================

Aminet isn't about just one person, it's about all of the contributors to
the Amiga's library of PD/FD/Shareware and all of the people who come back
day after day to use it.  But in some ways, what Aminet has become can be
traced to one person, its chief administrator, Urban Mueller.  I had a
chance to meet Urban (finally!) at the Computer '96 in Cologne.  We spent
about 15 minutes at the same booth before finally realizing who each other
was, but after that we got along fine.  I learned a couple of things from
him, which follow:

1.  Aminet is more or less his full-time employment.  Maintaining the
archive is fairly straightforward, but assembling the CDs takes quite a bit
of time.

2.  Swiss cuisine consists entirely of fondue.  (His words, not mine.)

So, here we are at Aminet 15.  Noticable in its absense is any sort of
special commercial software--there's no explicit explanation for this, but
I imagine it has something to do with the close proximity of Aminet 15 to
the previous CD.  Of course, Aminet hasn't had coverdisk software for very
long (only since Aminet 10), so nobody should EXPECT it--but we were
starting to get used to it.

The Aminet interface is back--it's not going anywhere.  They are trying to
move people to PowerGuide, a new AmigaGuide reader.  My test drive of it is
inconclusive--I don't like text readers that don't support the space bar as
page down (one of the things I really disliked about IBrowse 1.0, and
thankfully fixed), but it does support a number of other familiar keyboard
shortcuts.

The feature item is the entire MPEG collection from Aminet, as well as a
collection of viewing tools.  Personally, I'm using Amipeg under
CyberGraphX, and having a good time doing it.

Not much has changed, although I was interested to note that for the first
time I can recall, a second North American distributor of Aminet CDs is
listed, as National Amiga joins Cronus.

It is by now a well-known conundrum in the Amiga magazine community--my
colleagues all agree.  We are all very hard-pressed to come up with clever,
innovative ways to say that Aminet CDs are basically the end-all be-all of
CDs on the Amiga, and if you buy one CD this week it should be Aminet.  It
could drive a man crazy.

Aminet 15 is published by:

Stefan Ossowski's Schatztruhe
Veronikastr. 33
D-45131 Essen
Germany
Phone:++49 201 788778
Fax: ++49 201 798447
http://www.schatztruhe.de/
@endnode
@node REVIEW2 "Review: Horror Sensation"
@toc REVIEW

===========================================================================
                         Review: Horror Sensation
  Bohus Blahut - Modern Filmmaker                          bohus@xnet.com
===========================================================================

Horror Sensation- 
  A CD rom containing horror & gore themed miscellany.

Epic Marketing
 138-139 Victoria Road
 Swindon
 Wiltshire
 SN1 3BU
 UK

 Tel  : +44 (0)1793 490988
 Fax  : +44 (0)1793 514187
 EMail: epic@epma.demon.co.uk

Steel your stomachs, dear readers, this is going to be a gut-wrenching
ride.  This CD is intended for both Amiga and PC users, with special files
dedicated to each, but the directory that this CD will be remembered for on
both platforms is the directory of horror Jpeg pictures.  When the CD
arrived at the AR offices, it's funny that it was immediately earmarked for
me.  I'm not a fan of real horror, instead relegating myself to cheap 50's
and 60's drive-in movies.  After my bleary eyed look at this disc, though,
I can see why I was chosen.  They must hate me around here. 

Many of the Jpegs are what I expected; framegrabs from horror films.  There
were directories full of Freddie, Chuckie, and nameless gored women. 
Pretty ridiculous stuff really.  There is horror themed computer art,
undoubtedly a few Dpaint and DCTV pictures in there.  Also some funny
horror clip art for desktop publishing.  So it was with a complacent
feeling that I went to open up the Real Life directory.  This is where
things get scary. 

The Real Life directory is full of greyscale and color photos of real gore.
Some are pictures of roadside accidents, others are from what looks like a
forensic text.  There are pictures of blown apart military personnel,
bizarre pictures of freaks throughout time, even the remains of people who
tried to catch the train a little too late.  Whoa.  Don't just casually
thumb through the contents of this directory before going to bed. 

On the lighter side, there are a number of textfiles that deal with horror
and fantasy films.  There's a FAQ for the Cameron film; Terminator, an
extensive list of theatres across the U.S..  showing The Rocky Horror
Picture Show, even the FAQ for my favorite film; Terry Gilliam's Brazil. 
Other textfiles include horror stories written by the denizens of the
Internet.  There's a large directory of shareware horror games on the CD. 
There's Carnage, a 2 person scrolling shooting game.  For seasonal horror,
the Santa & Rudolph game pits the popular Christmas heroes against the evil
sandman. 

Look for the horror icon collections, 124 MODs, and the collection of
DMS'ed material.  These are mostly bloody demos, but there is also the
Sickness Simulator.  The idea behind this "utility" is that you can call in
to work sick while triggering belching and coughing sound effects on your
Amiga.  There is also a directory filled with duplicate anim and flic
format animations.  These are gross clips from films of various stabbings,
bodies exploding, and the like. 

On the disc, there are also a few LightWave and Imagine 3D objects of a
spooky skull, a haunted house, and some weapons.  There are unfortunately
no thumbnails or other preview to show what these objects will look like
once rendered.  The disk does include the PD ShowObj utility that will load
up a wireframe of a 3D object onto Workbench. 

This CD is aimed at horror enthusiasts with many interests.  There is the
abject revulsion at the directory of photos, but there is also some fun to
be had in the guise of the demos and games.  If you're a horror fan, and
don't want to scour the net for your fix, pick up this disc.  The overall
quality is quite good, things seem to run off the disc well, and you can
creep out your friends with your gory Workbench backgrounds.  If you do,
please don't invite me over to see it! 
@endnode
@node REVIEW3 "Review: Sound FX Sensation"
@toc REVIEW

===========================================================================
                        Review: Sound FX Sensation
  Bohus Blahut - Modern Filmmaker                          bohus@xnet.com
===========================================================================

Sound FX Sensation- 
  A CD rom brimming with 15,500 files including sound samples, MODs, and
even a clever IFF player program.

 Epic Marketing
 138-139 Victoria Road
 Swindon
 Wiltshire
 SN1 3BU
 UK

 Tel  : +44 (0)1793 490988
 Fax  : +44 (0)1793 514187
 EMail: epic@epma.demon.co.uk

When I got my first Amiga 500 in 1989, I walked out of the store with not
only the computer, but the FutureSound 8-bit audio digitizer and Audio
Master for sample editing.  At the time, I was experimenting with music and
I knew that sampling was in the stars for me.  I have amassed floppy after
floppy of fun samples that I've captured from television, music, and even
swapped and downloaded with others through BBS access. 

Those days are long gone, but I got the same electric charge when we
received the SoundFX Sensation here at AR for review.  Hundreds upon
hundreds of samples of instruments, movie quotes, and yes the CD represents
the venerable MOD in the form of 230 of them, and a number of players. 
Epic Marketing has destined this CD for both Amiga and PC users.  Each
platform uses its own file format for sounds.  The PC commonly uses the WAV
format, while Amigas use IFF.  Included on the disc are several utilities
to convert between the two standards. 

Epic Marketing has created a sample player expressly for the Amiga called
BeatBox.  The full-screen interface allows you to pick out ten samples that
you can trigger using the keyboard's function keys.  The interface seems
aimed at AGA machines.  When I tested the program on AR's 4000T, it worked
fine.  While I could get it to work on my '040 2000, I couldn't read the
program's display.  There was no end to the fun that I had playing with
these sound FX in the office. 

In the root directory of the CD, there are lots of categories of IFF
sounds.  Categories like: aliens, alarms, bass, beats, breakbeats, breaking
(including the Dave Letterman shattering glass sound), cartoon, creature,
horror, human, sci-fi, movies, naughty, speech, and several
sub-directories.  The instruments sub-directory has lots of MOD-ready
instruments sorted alphabetically by sample name, but it makes me wish that
these samples were also sorted by instrument type.  There's also a WAV
directory with alphabetical listings of countless WAV samples.  These are
also only sorted in alphabetical order. 
 
As with any compilation of this size, some of the items are good, others
are bad.  Some of the samples must be recorded at 4k or lower because they
sound terrible.  Others seem to have been created with great care.  This
disc is great for you if you're a musician who's looking for a seemingly
endless stream of instruments for your next killer MOD.   However, if
you're a creator of multimedia, or perhaps games, you should also look into
this disc. 

The problem comes when you consider that many of these samples aren't
really in the public domain.  While it's unlikely that a big film company
is going to come after you for creating a Scala presentation for your user
group using a quote from a movie, if you're creating the next DOOM clone,
then you'd better license your effects elsewhere. 

Let's not forget the most important factor in choosing this disc.   It's
just fun to play around with samples.  While I'm tempted to blow the dust
off of AudioMaster IV, perhaps in the future I'll poke around Aminet and
find the latest and greatest in shareware sample manipulation.  I'll tell
you right now, AM4 will be hard to beat.  This collection is hard to beat
too, so pair it up with your favorite sampling software and have some fun!
@endnode
@node REVIEW4 "Review: Movie Maker - Special Effects Vol. 1"
@toc REVIEW

===========================================================================
               Review: Movie Maker - Special Effects Vol. 1
  Bohus Blahut - Modern Filmmaker                          bohus@xnet.com
===========================================================================

John Pasternak's Movie Maker Series- Special Effects Volume 1
  A multimedia CD rom that teaches special effects for filmmaking.  

 Plexus7 Media
 Ground Floor Studios
 139 Victoria Road
 Swindon
 Wiltshire
 SN1 3BU
 UK

 Tel  : +44 (0)1793 484097
 EMail: plexus@epma.demon.co.uk

As we all know, the Amiga was a multimedia innovator before the term
"multimedia" came into common parlance.  Therefore, I've always wondered
why it's taken so long for multimedia CD roms to come out for the Amiga.
The first one that I saw was Club Toaster- a CD rom magazine for Toaster
owners.  It has a very nice interface, with audio cues and music, and all
in all is a proud achievement for the Amiga.  Unfortunately, other
platforms have much more extensive use of multimedia CD roms. 

You can imagine my excitement when we received this Movie Maker CD rom for
review.  From what I could make out on the back of the disc, it was a CD
that intended to teach techniques for creating special effects for film and
video.  I popped the disc into my Amiga 2000's CD rom drive, and was ready
for the ride. 

Though the jacket of the disc says nothing about compatibility issues, the
CD seems intended for AGA machines.  Therefore, I conducted further trials
on AR's Amiga 4000T.  This wasn't effortless either.  There are several
files that need to be installed from the CD onto your native hard drive,
and there were several problems with PAL settings.  Once we conquered these
initial problems, we were able to fire up the disc. 

First, the viewer (Or participant, I guess.  This IS multimedia, right?)
listens to some music as some introductory screens pop up.  These interface
screens look quite professional.  The main menu has a TV and what looks
like a CD player control panel.  The control panel allows you to navigate
the contents of the disc.  Unfortunately, there's no instruction given on
what buttons to actually press, so we had to figure it out through trial
and error. 

The concept of the disc is novel.  The viewer first watches a video clip,
and each clip prominently features a specific special effect.   Then you
learn how to re- create that effect with props manufactured from common
household materials, a little makeup, and you'll also learn techniques for
shooting the scene effectively.  We had a few problems with the movie clips
stuttering.  Since they don't animate smoothly, this served as a
distraction from the effect that we were trying to learn about. 

Again, the lack of instruction forced us to figure out what control buttons
to press in order to access the tutorial portions of the disc.  Once there,
the techniques were quite intriguing, but again technical problems got in
the way of effective learning. 

The effects are terrific ideas.  In one sequence, a woman removes her
artificial eye made from a ping-pong ball.  In another, she lays her
damaged arm down on a table to reveal the working cybernetics within.  
They even use Deluxe Paint to rotoscope in laser bolts.  I like the
emphasis on using inexpensive materials around the home.  This
do-it-yourself approach really embraces the Amiga spirit. 

Unfortunately, this disc suffers from far too many technical problems to
make learning beneficial.  Also, I can't figure out why this material is
presented to us on a CD rom.  As far as I can tell, this disc doesn't
really take advantage of the CD rom format.  The material could easily be
presented in a linear fashion on a video, perhaps with an accompanying CD
or floppy disc with accompanying tutorial imagemaps. 

This is the approach that the In-Focus video tape series takes.   This is a
LightWave video tutorial series that includes a CD to accompany lessons
taught on the video.  The CD contains examples and finished renders to
practice new techniques on.  This, I think, is a very good approach to
learning new skills. 

For whatever reason, Plexus7 Media decided to disseminate this material on
CD rom, but unfortunately getting the material out of the disc is proving
more difficult than it has to be.  The interface looks good, the material
being taught is of high caliber, all we need is easier implementation to
make this one of the growing number of successful Amiga multimedia CD roms.
@endnode
@node REVIEW5 "Review: Blobz AGA"
@toc REVIEW

===========================================================================
                             Review: Blobz AGA
                            By: @{" Ken Anderson " link KEN}
===========================================================================

Apex Systems

I like a challenge, so I'll try to write this review without mentioning a
certain game beginning with the letter L, written by a Scottish company
beginning with D and published by a software house beginning with the
letter P.  Have you guessed yet?

Acting as some nameless force, you must ensure that a preset number of
"Blobz" (small bouncing potatoes, apparently) get from A to B without being
squashed, drowned, zapped or eaten by anything along the way.  Just to add
to the fun, a requisite number of diamonds often have to be gathered along
the way before the exit will open.

Appearing one by one, the blobz appear on the horizontally scrolling level
and bounce along in the direction they face.  Using the mouse, you can
empower certain attributes to each blob - they can turn around, jump, fire
rockets, and drill, amongst others.  Not all of these skills are available
on every level, and sometimes they have to be earned along the way by
guiding a blob to a bonus square. 

Unlike a game beginning with L, there's no restriction on the number of
blobs (sorry, blobz) that can be empowered.  Each action uses up a certain
amount of the player's "energy".  Once you're out of energy, you'll have to
wait for the meter to top itself up enough to carry on; meanwhile, the
blobz carry on bouncing on spikes and into the sea.  Therefore, thought has
to be given before carrying out a manoeuvre, as you may end up powerless
halfway through.

Of course, there's a time limit, and it's not generous.  After the first
few levels, you will only have seconds to spare on a few levels, so make
sure you have a well-oiled mouse.  To make things slightly easier, a
slow-down mode is provided.  When selected, everything runs at half speed,
making the task of getting the mouse to the blob you want easier.  The
downside is that the clock ticks as normal in this mode - what you gain in
the accuracy you loose in throughput, I suppose.

There are 60 levels in all, arranged in 6 mazes.  To complete a maze, you
choose a route through several screens to the exit.  It's a nice touch
which means if you get hopelessly stuck on one level you can try and find
another route through the maze.   Bundled with the game is a comprehensive
level editor which, unlike most game level editors, actually works well.

The background graphics are pleasant enough, with a pleasing parallax
effect as the level scrolls (with only a very slight glitch on the top
line).  The blobz bounce smoothly enough, but the foreground graphics
aren't really much to write home about - then again, how detailed can small
bouncy potatoes be?  The music is a mix of chip and sample tunes, and
aren't too annoying in the background.

I was hooked for the first couple of mazes; the compulsion to see the next
level was very strong and with every mistake made came the cry of "I know
how to do it!  I'll get it next time!".  By the third map, the time limits
were becoming so narrow that there were only a few seconds between
completing a level and a failure.  The choice of levels and the level
editor increase the lifetime of Blobz, but if you have a dodgy mouse or if
you're prone to throwing heavy objects at your monitor, perhaps Blobz isn't
for you.  On the other hand, If you're looking for a cheapish stocking
filler to keep the other half busy after the turkey and the charades on
Christmas day, or if you loved L-------, I can't see any reason not to
recommend Blobz.

Pros: Compulsive gameplay and very strong "one more go" element.  60 levels
and the editor make it good value for money. 

Cons: Most will have seen it all before.  Torturous time limits and tricky
level design increase frustration.

Blobz is available for 14.99UKP + 50p postage & packing from: 
5th Dimension Licenceware
1 Lower Mill Close
Goldthorpe
Rotherham, South Yorkshire S63 9BY
UK.

More info is on-line at http://www.ware5d.demon.co.uk.  A demo is
available on your local Aminet mirror, /game/demo/blobz#?.lha
@endnode
@node REVIEW6 "Review: Bograts"
@toc REVIEW

===========================================================================
                              Review: Bograts
                            By: @{" Ken Anderson " link KEN}
===========================================================================

Vulcan Software (A1200/4000 only)

"It isn't easy being a parent, as any Bograt will tell you", begins the
blurb for Bograts, Vulcan Software's latest MiniSeries game.  Personally, I
wouldn't have thought it would have been easy being ANYTHING when you're a
Bograt.  Just the knowledge that I was part of the species Bograt would be
enough to keep me in bed in the morning.

Anyway, easy or not, you're a Bograt, and you've been left in charge of
your two offspring (affectionately known as "Red" and "Blue") for an
evening.  Right on cue, they go off and decide it's time to go hunting for
the magical eggs at the big bad Mystical Castle of Bog.

Right, that's the plot out of the way.  Yes, it's another save'em'up - get
dumb creatures from A to B without being killed along the way; for
reference, see the Blobz review in this same issue.  Keep reading, however,
because the two games still manage to be quite different.

In the first place, rather than have a semi-omnipiant player controlling
the surroundings, Bograts puts you in the same playing area as the baby
Bogs.  As the parent, you have to roam around the level, clearing a path to
the exit for your kids to travel along.  There's the usual array of
hazards: spikes, fires, enemy somethings and so on.  Levers are invariably
dotted around the levels, opening and closing ladders and doors, and
operating elevators and conveyor belts.

The baby Bogs both have permanent special abilities: one can frighten away
nasties, the other can collect keys and open doors.  The parent can jump
with the best of them, aided with springs and the occasional High Jump
pill.  At certain locations on each level, you can enter Map Mode, which
allows you to sweep around the level and see what's what - absolutely
essential for finding out what each lever does and planning the next move.

My first instinct with this game was what I'm afraid a lot of players might
do: play the first couple of levels, get hopelessly stuck on the third and
file the game away for a boring Sunday afternoon.  It's not action-packed,
it doesn't have a particularly novel concept, and there's no immediate
hook.  But ...  and it's one of those big buts ...  Bograts rewards success
with ever more intricate level designs and fiendish puzzles, and it really
does begin to sink it's teeth into you.  You may not rattle through the 60
levels at any great pace, but you will have the desire to see the next one.
By the time you've finished that lot, the planned data disk should be here.

The first real criticism is that the graphics just aren't clear enough.
The switches, vital in most levels, easily blend into the background
graphics, making them difficult to spot unless you're really looking for
them.  The baby Bogs aren't too difficult themselves to see, and there is a
neat "split-screen" effect which means you can view the main parent
character and either one of the baby Bogs at the same time.

What really annoyed me, however, was the restart level facility - or the
lack of it.  You cannot start a level again from scratch - you either start
from the very beginning of level 1 again, or you load a saved game.  Games
can be saved at any point, providing you have enough energy points, but the
constant loading/saving just to restart a level pulls you back out of the
game world and into the real world - something a game should never do on
purpose.  I can't see any point in NOT having a level restart facility, and
it is a real minus point for floppy-only users (the game is hard drive
installable, however).

Despite the storyline, I can't help thinking this is a game more suited to
the older gamesplayer - I know of a couple of Amiga-owning dads who would
sit all night with this one.  If you know someone like this too, Bograts is
another stocking-filler that'll keep them going long after the turkey
sandwiches have disappeared.

Pros: Level designs show thought, and the puzzle fan will enjoy working
through of the 60 stages - plenty to be going on with.

Cons: Confusing graphics, and poor restart facilities.  Not for those
without a brain.

Bograts is priced at 12.99UKP (+ 2UKP for P&P outside the UK), and can be
ordered from:

Vulcan Software Limited
Vulcan House
72 Queens Road
Buckland
Portsmouth
Hants PO2 7NA
UK
@endnode
@node REVIEW7 "Review: Photogenics 2.0a"
@toc REVIEW

===========================================================================
                         Review: Photogenics 2.0a
  Guy Nathan                                               jagz@ar.com.au
===========================================================================

Finding the best application to do exactly what you want is hard to find
these days.  Today you can go out and you have an enormous variety of
applications you can choose from.  No matter what the title may be, you
have choice.  And where there's choice, there's confusion.

I have found an application which I believe ideally suits me for most
things I care to do when it comes to the area of image creation and image
manipulation: namely Photogenics 2.0a.

(Note: Photogenics 2.0a is a free patch upgrade from V2.0)

What is Photogenics:
For those who have had their head stuck in the ground like an Emu for the
last few years (to use an overused cliche), Photogenics 2.0a is an Image
Processing and Image Creation package on the Amiga, by Almathera, which has
made its way from V1.0, V1.0a, V1.1, V1.2, V1.2a, V2.0, and finally to
version 2.0a.

Comparisons:
In the beginning most people were comparing the current version of Personal
Paint at the time to Photogenics, and in general Photogenics usually came
out on top (not by much though).  So how does Photogenics 2.0a stack up
against something like Personal Paint 7?  Read on to find out.

Firstly I'd like to say that Photogenics and Personal Paint, while they
both have notable similarities in the feature department serve two
different purposes.  Personal Paint (here-in refered to as PPaint) is much
more ideal for the artist who wishes to create hand-drawn images and wishes
to be able to use Image Processing type effects to 'brush it up' (the
image).  Photogenics on the other hand is the ideal package for one who
wishes to work with alot of high resolution images and rather than creating
images from scratch in general, use existing or scanned images to create a
new image via the means of conventional paint program tools and with the
aid of a variety of powerful image processing affects.

Photogenics 2.0a and PPaint 7.0 both come with a whole set of Image
Processing effects and traditional paint tools, both come with an extensive
set of Arexx commands, both can be bought on CD-ROM with a whole variety of
fonts and images included, both support 24bit buffers (although when
working with Photogenics you can always see the 24bit buffer you're working
with), both support secondary channels, and both support a variety of other
features as well.  As you can see from this list, this may lead to some
confusion when choosing which application to go for, and why the comparison
between the two products have been made.

So what are the differences?  Well, Photogenics 2.0a has many more Image
Processing effects than PPaint 7.0 does, PPaint has better animation
support than Photogenics, PPaint has a more 'DPaint-like' environment for
those accustomed to that sort of working environment, Photogenics has a
custom GUI system of its own (called Widget) which has both benefits and
losses (losses is initially it's hard to get used to, benefits though are
much more extensive when you're used to it).  Photogenics comes with an
on-line HTML manual (decide for yourself on this one) where as PPaint, up
to version 7, came with a printed manual [V7 on mini-CD comes with an
online AmigaGuide manual.] Photogenics can handle more than 2 images
(actually it can handle hundreds, memory permitting), Photogenics is the
better application when dealing with high resolution images, PPaint
requires no high-spec Amiga to work well, and the comparisons could go on.
As you can see while there are alot of similarities, the two applications
also have alot of differences.  Which application you choose will depend on
what requirements you wish of it.

How does Photogenics 2.0a compare with V1.2a?
For a start Photogenics, up till version 1.2a used the Amiga's intuition
system completely for its GUI, V2.0 onwards uses the Widget system, which
can be chosen to look more or less like Intuition and different versions
for High Resolution and Low Resolutions screen systems exist.  This is the
most striking difference in looks from earlier versions.  While the Widget
system takes quite some time to get used to at first, after a while I found
it to be a far more beneficial system.

Other features which are new in V2.0 from V1.2a is Virtual Images (allowing
the loading of images which are bigger than your available RAM), the
Plug-in Effects system (allows for more complex image processing than
allowed through the standard image processing effects offered in the
'Modes' window, and also has the benefit of working with the Virtual Image
system), Animation loading and saving (although you can only work on one
image from an animation at a time) (it supports loading and saving of all
varieties of IFF ANIMs and CDXL Animations), Arexx support (Any function of
the program is basically programmable through this new Arexx port), On-line
HTML Help (some people may see this as a major downfall of this version in
comparison to previous versions, some may find it an advantage), the
loading and saving of Paint Layers (a 'Paintlayer' is a separate layer
'floating' above your image), changes to loaders and savers (a variety of
new file formats have been added here and greater support for older formats
has also happened), and a variety of other (un-listed) bug fixes.

Is it worth the upgrade?  Well, if any of the new listed features above are
things you don't need and you still have Photogenics 1.2a I see little
reason to upgrade, IF though you do believe you need these features (and I
found I have definitely used many of these new features extensively) then I
DEFINITELY recommend the upgrade.

What features does Photogenics 2.0a have:
For those of you who have never used Photogenics before here is a list of
its features: (based on the manual)

* Natural paint tools (AirBrush, Pencil, Chalk pastel,
  Watercolour, Ballpen, Neon, etc)
* Edit multiple images simultaneously (each in a resizeable
  window)
* Powerful Undo/Redo System
* Virtual Image System (Edit images much larger than you
  can fit in your computer's memory)
* Preview any paintmode effect instantly
* Support for multiple file formats (IFF-ILBM, JPEG, GIF,
  BMP, PCX, PhotoCD, PBM, QRT, Raw, Impulse, IMG, Targa,
  TIFF, CDXL, Framestore, etc)
* Paint in 24-bit with real time HAM8/24bit preview
  (Realtime 18-bit HAM8 preview really is fast and no
  24-bit graphics card required (only AGA))
* Full CyberGraphX Support (Direct support for running
  under 15/16/24-bit CyberGraphX screenmodes with HiColour
  and TrueColour previews) (CyberGraphX supports most graphics
  boards)
* Support for additional hardware (Video Toaster, CyberVision64,
  OpalVision, Picasso-II, VLab, Retina, EGS cards. ProGrab24RT,
  etc)
* Easy to use alpha-channel support
* Open Architecture (in terms of its plug-in system for
  adding and deleting loaders, savers, effects, brushes)
* Drag & Drop User Interface
* Dozens of paint modes and effects (Add Noise, Alter Hue,
  Balance, Blur, Brightness, Cloner, Contrast, Displace Map,
  Emboss, False Colour, Flip, Gradient Tint, Greyscale, HueMap,
  Limit, Line Art, Matrix, Mix, Monochrome, Motion Blur,
  Negative, Paint (standard painting), Pixelise, Posterise,
  Randomise, Rub Through, Rub Mix, Saturation, Sharpen, Shift
  Hue, Solarize, Tile, Tile Brick, Tint, and many more)

As you can see from this list, its feature list is quite extensive, and
provides a great many number of tools for the artist.

Manual:
The included manual is in HTML form (ie.  World Wide Web pages), and has an
old version of AWeb (Unregistered) included for the purposes of viewing
these documents.  You can within Photogenics though, configure it to use
any Amiga Browser you wish (as the on-line HTML Manual is called up when
you press the Amiga HELP button).  The manual covers all aspects of the
program and all the descriptions and capability lists of all the Loaders,
Savers, Modes, and Effects the program.

It also includes tutorials for beginners and/or advanced users.  The
tutorials are generally very useful, but it would be alot easier to have
printed documentation so you can look at the manual as you do it
step-by-step in the program.

The manual is fairly well indexed (they could have done better), and
usually finding help for the feature you're after is generally very easy. 
The inclusion of HTML On-line documents Vs's AmigaGuide is sensible, but as
for HTML Vs's Printed, or HTML and Printed, is quite as good.  It would
have been much better if they had included printed documents as found in
V1.2a and versions prior to that.

Ease of use:
Photogenics 2.0a has been described as complex/complicated to learn in
comparison to packages such as ArtEffects.  While this is right, once
you've got the hang of the Widget system and learn how to use the program
(which really doesn't take all that long) it's a VERY easy program to use.
Finding a feature takes next to no time, and its interface is well designed
and laid out, as are the menus.  Photogenics 2.0a I found much easier to
learn than a package like ImageFX 2.6.1 or PPaint.

System Requirements:
Normally this information would go at the front of a review, but to avoid
any bias the review may have as a result of it, I have included it near the
end of the review.  Why?  Well I believe that if you CAN afford to upgrade
your system to use this program then I believe you should do so, if your
system can't currently support it.  Upgrading your Amiga will help to make
it more powerful, allow you to do more things, allow you to run more
applications (and games), is a positive step towards supporting the Amiga.

So what does Photogenics 2.0a require to run?  You must have an Amiga (any
chipset) with 4mb of RAM, Hard Drive, and Kickstart 3.0 or higher, and to
use the CD-ROM version of this program, a CD-ROM Drive is required (a disk
version also exists).  NO 24bit Board is required to use this program, but
if you have one it can do wonders for you when using Photogenics.

Conclusion:
So is this the package for you?  Well if the above sounds like the sort of
thing you want, or has enough reasons to justify an upgrade, do so.  If you
own no package like this, then I definitely recommend picking up this
package now.  V3 of Photogenics is currently being written, and owners of
V2.0a will find upgrade paths exist.  Overall, Photogenics 2.0a is a highly
professional Image Creation and Image Processing tool for the Amiga, and a
product well worth supporting.

Photogenics 2 sells for UKP100.

Almathera
Southerton House
Boundary Business Court
92-94 Church Road
Mitcham, Surrey
CR4 3TD England
http://www.almathera.co.uk
@endnode


xxx CHARTS

@node CHARTS1 "Aminet Charts, November 24, 1996"
@toc FTP

| The most downloaded files from Aminet during the week until 24-Nov-96
| Updated weekly. Most popular file on top.
|
|File              Dir        Size Age Description
|----------------- ---        ---- --- -----------
akGIF43x.lha       util/dtype  32K   0+AkGIF-dt V43.4 (GIF, 000/030-060)
YAM13_3aUpd.lha    comm/mail  240K   1+'Yet Another Mailer' 1.3.3a Update
akJFIF433.lha      util/dtype  69K   0+AkJFIF.datatype V43.3 (JPEG for V40
qt12.lha           gfx/show   211K   0+QuickTime player for AGA/CyberGFX. 
term_47a_pch.lha   comm/term  656K   1+Updates `term' v4.7 to v4.7a
Memplus.lha        util/boot   17K   0+A memory `doubler' that WORKS
YAMscripts.lha     comm/mail   12K   0+Useful AREXX scripts for YAM (rel 2
aview.lha          util/misc   62K   0+Multiview enhancement V1.00
AESicons9.lha      pix/icon   260K   0+300 NewIcons! Imagefolders, Docks, 
WebFactory.lha     comm/www    18K   0+Easy creation of HTML headers (MUI)
pplib020.lha       util/libs    5K   1+Powerpacker.library 68020+ version
amirc110.lha       biz/patch  182K   1+Update from AmIRC 1.1 to 1.10b
ObjectView210.lha  util/misc   89K   0+A MultiView replacement, V2.10
mwm202.lha         comm/www   157K   0+Magic Web Maker v2.02.
ar414.lha          docs/mags   79K   1+Amiga Report 4.14, Nov. 13, 1996
lwalker.lha        gfx/aga    586K   1+Creates shining 3D web graphics and
mn_ansitest.lha    comm/mebbs   3K  74+ANSI Test Door for MEBBSNet
SpeedRacerFX.lha   game/misc  308K   0+(V1.01) Cool,fast 3D vector Racing 
svgdt431.lha       util/dtype  42K   0+SVG.datatype V43.1 - SVG Graphics F

| The highest rated programs during the week until 24-Nov-96
| Updated weekly. Best program on top. Please rate all the programs you
| download. To do so, send to aminet-server@wuarchive.wustl.edu :
| RATE <path> <num>
| where <path> is the file you want to judge and <num> is a mark from 0..10
| with 10 being the best. You can rate several programs in one mail, but
| don't rate your own programs. Example: RATE dev/gui/mui23usr.lha 8
|
|File              Dir        Size Age Description
|----------------- ---        ---- --- -----------
F1GP-Ed.lha        game/misc  439K   4+Formula One Grand Prix / WC Editor V
AlgoMusic1_7.lha   mus/misc   1.2M   2+Plays great algorithmic techno tunes
AWeb.lha           biz/demo   444K   2+Version 2.1DEMO of this fast WWW bro
term-030.lha       comm/term  662K   4+V4.7, MC68020/030/040/060 version
sc657pch.lha       biz/patch  595K   2+SAS/C 6.57 Patch (requires 6.56)
dCN_MT20.lha       comm/bbs   284K   5+Best and quickest 64-Bit Multitop 2.
slipstream.lha     game/demo  361K   5+Playable demo of Wipeout clone 
ManiacBall.lha     game/misc  427K   2+A multiplayer Breakout game V1.3
SoundBox.lha       mus/misc   157K   1+Soundfile converter. ENGLISH DOCS! V
XIRC.lha           text/font    6K  14+Edited XHelvetica 11 & 13 for AmIRC
SysPic400.lha      util/boot  235K   7+The ultimate bootpic utility! (v4.00
HFM2_2.lha         disk/misc   93K   7+Virtual disks on HD V2_2
TA1_22.lha         comm/bbs   872K   4+TransAmiga BBS v1.2 public release
AGPPerf.lha        game/misc   13K  59+F1GP/WC telemetry recording utility
TKGTurboPatch.lha  game/patch  47K   3+TKGPatch 34.5 - an utility to speed 
ShapeShifter36.lha misc/emu   236K   3+Macintosh II emulator, V3.6
akGIF43x.lha       util/dtype  32K   0+AkGIF-dt V43.4 (GIF, 000/030-060)
MUI-ASL.lha        util/libs   98K   1+MUIfied ASL replacement (68020+ OS3+
term-main.lha      comm/term  664K   4+V4.7, Distribution for all Amigas
TachySearch.lha    comm/www    43K   4+WEB and Aminet searching for IBrowse
GPDisplay.lha      game/misc   82K  59+F1GP/WC telemetry displaying utility
WormsShell.lha     game/patch  24K   1+Bug fixes and hacks for Worms, v0.3
BeIcons.lha        pix/icon   149K   1+BeBox style NewIcons for your WB.
ixemul-040f.lha    dev/gcc     96K   5+IXemul 45.0 - 68040+fpu library
DataTypesLst20.txt docs/lists   7K   4+OS 3.x Datatypes List V2.0
DevGuide.lha       docs/lists  41K   1+Guide of Amiga Shared Devices 

@endnode

@node CHARTS2 "Aminet Charts, December 29, 1996"
@toc FTP

| The most downloaded files from Aminet during the week until 29-Dec-96
| Updated weekly. Most popular file on top.
|
|File              Dir        Size Age Description
|----------------- ---        ---- --- -----------
MagicMenu2_15.lha  util/wb    169K   0+Improves the Intuition menus (V2.15)
N42-IBrowse.lha    comm/www   480K   0+Cool Gold navigation icons for IBrow!
MCC_MonthNavi.lha  dev/mui    183K   0+MUI custom class V16.4
YAM13_4.lha        comm/mail  512K   1+MUI Internet mailer V1.3.4
lowfrag13.lha      util/boot    6K   1+Prevent Memory Fragmentation!
DiskMonTools.lha   disk/moni  109K   0+V 3.10 of THE moni/optim/salv/cdrom 
arcanoid.lha       game/wb     89K   1+"Arkanoid" clone in window 2.4. Bug 
anetfaq.lzh        docs/help   84K   1+Amiga Networking FAQ
UnixDirs3.lha      util/boot   15K   0+AmigaDOS improver. Freeware. V1.4
MiamiOnOff.lha     util/rexx   14K   0+MIAMI Online/Offline from CLI/WB 2.0
filmdtc013.lha     util/dtype  47K   0+IFF FILM DataType V1.3
MemTest.lha        util/misc   27K   0+Memory tester
1200Tower20.lha    hard/hack   26K   1+V2.0 - How to put your 1200 in a TOW
GNUtar-1.11.8.lha  util/arc   940K   0+GNU tar 1.11.8, fully functional
QuitMiamiRT.lha    comm/tcp     1K   0+Miami exiting ARexx macro
AmigaOS4-DM.lha    pix/wb     598K   1+AmigaOS Idea, Dave Matthews, PNG Pic
HitTiles2.lha      game/think 261K   0+A very configurable Shanghai game
MakeCD.lha         disk/cdrom 284K   0+Burn CD-Rs, create ISO9660+RR, *chea
pgscalender.lha    text/dtp     9K  19+Pagestream 3.x calender maker ver 1.1
MEXCH108b.lha      util/cdity  14K   0+Exchange Replacement With TaskInfo

| The highest rated programs during the week until 29-Dec-96
| Updated weekly. Best program on top. Please rate all the programs you
| download. To do so, send to aminet-server@wuarchive.wustl.edu :
| RATE <path> <num>
| where <path> is the file you want to judge and <num> is a mark from 0..10
| with 10 being the best. You can rate several programs in one mail, but
| don't rate your own programs. Example: RATE dev/gui/mui23usr.lha 8
|
|File              Dir        Size Age Description
|----------------- ---        ---- --- -----------
ManiacBall.lha     game/misc  427K   7+A multiplayer Breakout game V1.3
HL2Voyager.lha     comm/www     2K  32+Arexx script for converting hotlist 
Play16_1.7.lha     mus/play   105K   3+Multi format sound player, supports 
akJFIF43x.lha      util/dtype 203K   1+AkJFIF-dt V43.18 (JPEG, 68000-060)
PPaint7_Demo.lha   biz/cloan  540K   1+Cloanto Personal Paint 7 Demo Softwa
EO220.lha          biz/misc   313K   3+Everyday Organiser 2.20 (MUI) 
YAM13_4.lha        comm/mail  512K   1+MUI Internet mailer V1.3.4
BlobzHD.lha        game/demo  657K   7+`Blobz` Playable demo (AGA+Hard disk
lionhd.lha         game/patch   4K   3+HD Installer for Lion King AGA
Graal2a.lha        game/role  341K  10+Graphic Adventure Authoring Language
CyberAVI17.lha     gfx/show    55K   4+AVI animation player for CyberGraphX
akGIF43x.lha       util/dtype  39K   1+AkGIF-dt V43.8 ("GIF", 68000-060)
SerialPrefs24.lha  util/sys    51K   4+V2.4 - Extended Serial Preferences f
akPNG43x.lha       util/dtype 168K   1+AkPNG-dt V43.8 (PNG, 68000-060)
ReqToolsUsr.lha    util/libs  157K   2+ReqTools 2.7 - the requester toolkit
ampu101.lha        game/2play 793K   5+VERY GOOD Worms 'clone' ,AGA,Freewar
BOR_part1.lha      game/misc  627K   1+The best BREAKOUT-game for AMIGA par
uropa2a.lha        game/misc  812K   4+Uropa2 Isometric/Vector 3D game (1/6
Angband_1.x.lha    game/role  254K  22+Angband 297v6s executable for Amiga 
AlienFF.lha        game/shoot 178K   5+Platform Shoot'Em Up with lots of bl
VWorlds21.lha      misc/sci   1.2M  32+Images of sky from any planet or com
Base64Coders.lha   comm/mail   11K   3+Fast base64 (MIME) decoder/encoder. 
mwm210.lha         comm/www   161K   1+Magic Web Maker v2.10. (3.x OS only)
ApexGolf.lha       game/demo  200K   3+Great new golfing game from Apex.
playpac.lha        game/misc  281K   7+Pacman game with random levels
raystorm_881.lha   gfx/3d     536K   3+V1.7 of RayStorm (68020+881 binaries
lupe.lha           util/wb     55K   5+V1.7, The magnifying glass program
00TomGun.lha       game/demo  210K   3+Tommy Gun 1Mb (Demo) - Mutation S/W.
PowerTetris114.lha game/misc  448K   3+Cool & Smooth Tetris Game (ECS, Shar
mFinger10.lha      comm/tcp    68K   4+Fully featured finger client (MUI)

@endnode

@node MAILLIST "Amiga Report Mailing List"
@toc WHERE

===========================================================================
                        Amiga Report Mailing List
===========================================================================

If you have an internet mailing address, you can receive Amiga Report in
@{"UUENCODED" link UUENCODE} form each week as soon as the issue is released.  To be put on
the list, send Email to majordomo@ninemoons.com

Your subject header will be ignored.  In the body of the message, enter

subscribe areport

The system will automatically pull your e-mail address from the message
header.

Your account must be able to handle mail of any size to ensure an intact
copy.  For example, many systems have a 100K limit on incoming messages.


** IMPORTANT NOTICE:  PLEASE be certain your host can accept mail over   **
** 100K!  We have had a lot of bouncebacks recently from systems with a  **
** 100K size limit for incoming mail.  If we get a bounceback with your  **
** address in it, it will be removed from the list.  Thanks!             **
@endnode
@node UUENCODE
@toc MAILLIST

===========================================================================
                          UUDecoding Amiga Report
===========================================================================

If you receive Amiga Report from the direct mailing list, it will arrive in
UUEncoded format.  This format allows programs and archive files to be sent
through mail by converting the binary into combinations of ASCII
characters.  In the message, it will basically look like a lot of trash
surrounded by begin <filename> and end, followed by the size of the file.


To UUDecode Amiga Report, you first need to get a UUDecoding program, such
as UUxT by Asher Feldman.  This program is available on Aminet in

     pub/aminet/arc/

Then you must download the message that it is contained in.  Don't worry
about message headers, the UUDecoding program will ignore them.

There is a GUI interface for UUxT, which should be explained in the docs.
However, the quickest method for UUDecoding the magazine is to type

     uuxt x ar.uu

at the command prompt.  You will then have to decompress the archive with
lha, and you will then have Amiga Report in all of its AmigaGuide glory.

If you have any questions, you can write to @{"Jason Compton" link JASON}

@endnode
@node AMINET "Aminet"
@toc WHERE

                                  Aminet
                                  ======

To get Amiga Report from Aminet, simply FTP to any Aminet site, CD to
docs/mags.  All the back issues are located there as well.

Sites: ftp.netnet.net, ftp.wustl.edu, ftp.luth.se, ftp.doc.ic.ac.uk

@endnode
@node WWW "World Wide Web"
@toc WHERE

                              World Wide Web
                              ==============

AR is also available on the WWW!  Some of the mirror sites include a mail
form, allowing you to mail to Amiga Report from the web site and some also
include a search engine allowing you to search recent issues for specific
topics and keywords (if your browser has forms capability).  Simply tell
your browser to open one of the following URLs (pick a location nearest you
for the best performance):

Australia
     http://ArtWorks.apana.org.au/AmigaReport.html
     http://www.deepwoods.saccii.net.au/ar/menu.html
     http://www.livewire.com.au/amiga/cucug/ar/ar.html (w/search and mail) 
     http://www.phys.unsw.edu.au/~pec/amiga.html

Germany
     http://www.fhi-berlin.mpg.de/amiga/ar/

Greece
     http://www.acropolis.net/clubs/amiga/amigareport/

Hungary
     http://mm.iit.uni-miskolc.hu/Data/AR

Italy
     http://www.vol.it/mirror/amiga/ar/ar.html

Poland
     http://www.pwr.wroc.pl/AMIGA/AR/

Sweden
     http://www.lysator.liu.se/amiga/ar/

United Kingdom
     http://ppewww.ph.gla.ac.uk/~gowdy/Amiga/AmigaReport/
     http://www.iprom.com/amigaweb/amiga.html/ar/ar.html (w/search and mail) 
     http://www.sussex.ac.uk/Users/kcci1

USA
     http://www.cucug.org/ar/ar.html (w/search and mail)
     http://www.omnipresence.com/Amiga/News/AR/

Additional Amiga information can also be accessed at this URL:
     http://www.cucug.org/amiga.html

Mosaic for the Amiga can be found on Aminet in directory comm/net, or
(using anonymous ftp) on max.physics.sunysb.edu
@endnode
@node COPYRIGHT "Copyright Information"
@toc ABOUT

===========================================================================
                Amiga Report International Online Magazine
                 December 31, 1996         Issue No. 4.15
                       Copyright 1996 FS Publications
                             All Rights Reserved
===========================================================================

Views, Opinions and Articles presented herein are not necessarily those of
the editors and staff of Amiga Report International Online Magazine or of
FS Publications.  Permission to reprint articles is hereby denied, unless
otherwise noted.  All reprint requests should be directed to the editor. 
Amiga Report and/or portions therein may not be edited in any way without
prior written permission.  However, translation into a language other than
English is acceptible, provided the editor is notified beforehand and the
original meaning is not altered.  Amiga Report may be distributed on
privately owned not-for-profit bulletin board systems (fees to cover cost
of operation are acceptable), and major online services such as (but not
limited to) Delphi and Amiga Zone.  Distribution on public domain disks is
acceptable provided proceeds are only to cover the cost of the disk (e.g. 
no more than $5 US).  CD-ROM compilers should contact the editor.  
Distribution on for-profit magazine cover disks requires written permission
from the editor.  Amiga Report is a not-for-profit publication.  Amiga
Report, at the time of publication, is believed reasonably accurate.  Amiga
Report, its staff and contributors are not and cannot be held responsible
for the use or misuse of information contained herein or the results
obtained there from.  Amiga Report is not affiliated with Escom AG or
VIScorp.  All items quoted in whole or in part are done so under the Fair
Use Provision of the Copyright Laws of the United States Penal Code.  Any
Electronic Mail sent to the editors may be reprinted, in whole or in part,
without any previous permission of the author, unless said electronic mail
is specifically requested not to be reprinted.

===========================================================================
@endnode
@node GUIDELINE "Amiga Report Writing Guidelines"
@toc ABOUT

===========================================================================
                      Amiga Report Writing Guidelines
===========================================================================

The three most important requirements for submissions to Amiga Report are:

     1.  Please use English.

     2.  Please use paragraphs.  It's hard on the eyes to have solid
     screens of text.  If you don't know where to make a paragraph break,
     guess.

     3.  Please put a blank line in between paragraphs.  It makes
     formatting the magazine much much easier.

     4.  Please send us your article in ASCII format.

Note:  If you want to check ahead of time to make sure we'll print your
article, please write to the @{"Editor" link JASON}.

Please stipulate as well if you wish to retain copyright or hand it over to
the editor.
@endnode
@node ZONE "CalWeb"
@toc ONLINE

===========================================================================
                    CalWeb: The Home of the Amiga Zone!
===========================================================================

AMIGA ZONE MOVES TO CALWEB!

THE AMIGA ZONE MOVES FROM PORTAL TO CALWEB INTERNET SERVICES

For over ten years the Amiga Zone has been an online resource, home,
community, oasis, for Amiga owners.

For over ten years I've made my living running the Zone and supporting Amiga
users all over the USA, Canada, and the world.

Five years ago when American People/Link pulled their own plug, we had to
find the Zone a new home and we found a good one on the Portal Online
System. 

Well, it's happened again.. Portal has informed all of its customers that
its ten year history as an online service and Internet provider is coming to
an end on Sept. 30, 1996.  This is very sad, it's short-notice, and the
decision is completely out of my control, but it's also irreversible.  

Portal is changing its entire business plan from being an ISP to selling an
accounting system to other online services.  

So be it. It's sad, but like I said, the Zone went through this before and
now we'll go through it again, and come out the other side better and wiser.

THE AMIGA ZONE IS MOVING TO CALWEB INTERNET SERVICES.

CalWeb (http://www.calweb.com) is a two year old Internet provider located
in Sacramento, CA.  It has a good sized customer base, and very
knowledgeable support staff. 

It's also run by a long time Amiga owner who has been a friend of mine for
many years.

The world of modeming has changed much in the last ten years.  In 1985 you
had very few choices and you had 1200 baud.  These days, everyone and his
dog has an ISP running and a web page

But the vast majority of those providers don't know an Amiga from a hole in
the ground, and could care less about Amiga owners.  Say "AWeb" or
"IBrowse" to them and they'll say "Omega?  Amoeba?  What?  Huh?  They still
make those things?"

CalWeb is different because it's the new home of the Amiga Zone.

In October 1996, a new custom front-end menued system will be added to
CalWeb to host the Zone.  It'll have features for Zone users that neither
Plink nor Portal ever had nor were they willing to add.

The tradition of a friendly online Amiga community, run by long time Amiga
owners, users and lovers will continue. 

Message bases, huge file libraries (we plan to move over the 20,000+ files
we have on the Zone on Portal to CalWeb, MANY of which you'll never see on
Aminet or anywhere else), live nightly chats, vendor support and our famous
prize contests will continue.

We've given away tens of thousands of dollars worth of Amiga prizes in the
last ten years.  No one else even comes close. 

I urge any and all of you who were on Plink, or who are now on Portal or
who may have left Portal..  or even if you were never on either but used or
still use another online service to join CalWeb for the Amiga Zone.  I
personally promise you the best online Amiga community we can possibly
build.  You will not be disappointed.


CalWeb has arranged a special signup offer for you!

Call:
 1-800-509-9322
  or
 1-916-641-9320
  or telnet to calweb.com, login as "guest", and follow the prompts. 

You can join CalWeb for US$19.95 flat, a month.

CalWeb takes major credit cards or you can establish a monthly invoiced
account if you don't have plastic.

The signup is FREE.

To get this deal you must say "THE AMIGA ZONE SENT ME" when you call or
signup online. 

I hope to see lots of you join CalWeb.  You can telnet into it from
anywhere for no hourly charges at all.  Your $19.95/mo fee covers
everything and also gets you ten meg of storage which includes hosting your
own personal web page.  Naturally, when the Zone opens there, you'll have
unlimited use of all of its features and areas.  Never a "money meter"
clock to worry about.

Your personal or business CalWeb Web pages are maintained by you via FTP. 
It's pretty slick.  You can make a net connection to the server with any
Amiga FTP client, put your files onto it, the permissions are automatically
set (no "chmod-ing" required!) and flip to your running browser and see the
changes instantly.

The Amiga Zone's new home is already up at:

         http://www.amigazone.com

running on CalWeb's server.  Ckeck it out!

Please feel free to write to me at harv@amigazone.com or harv@cup.portal.com
if you want more information.

Remember to say "THE AMIGA ZONE SENT ME!" when you join.

A splendid time is guaranteed for all.  

Please plan to join us in the Amiga Zone on CalWeb!

@endnode
@node BBS_ASIA "Distribution BBSes - Asia"
@toc BBS

===========================================================================
                         Distribution BBSes - Asia
===========================================================================

                                -= IRAN =-

                              * MAVARA BBS *
                              0098 21 8740815


                                 -=JAPAN=-

                           * GIGA SONIC FACTOR *
                     Email: kfr01002@niftyserve.or.jp
                            +81-(0)564-55-4864

@endnode
@node BBS_AUSTRALASIA "Distribution BBSes - Australasia"
@toc BBS

===========================================================================
                     Distribution BBSes - Australasia
===========================================================================

                              -=NEW ZEALAND=-

                             * BITSTREAM BBS *
               FidoNET 3:771/850.0   AmigaNET 41:644/850.0
                             +64-(0)3-548-5321


                               -=VICTORIA=-

                         * NORTH WEST AMIGA BBS *
          EMail: mozza@nwamiga.apana.org.au     Fido: 3:633/265.0
         BBS Phone/Fax: +61 3 9331 2831   USR Courier V.Everything
@endnode
@node BBS_EUROPE "Distribution BBSes - Europe"
@toc BBS

===========================================================================
                        Distribution BBSes - Europe
===========================================================================

                                -=FINLAND=-

                              * HANG UP BBS *
           Email: helpdesk@hangup.dystopia.fi (telnetable site)
                           +358 - 09 - 278 8054

                               * LAHO BBS *
                    +358-64-414 1516   +358-64-414 0400
                    +358-64-414 6800   +358-64-423 1300

                             * KINDERGARTEN *
                      Email: matthias.bartosik@hut.fi
                             +358-0-881 32 36


                                -=FRANCE=-

                              * DYNAMIX BBS *
                        Email: erlsoft@mcom.mcom.fr
                    +33.1.48.89.96.66 Minitel to Modem

                        * RAMSES THE AMIGA FLYING *
     Internet: user.name@ramses.fdn.org     Fidonet: 2/320/104-105-106
                      +33-1-45845623   +33-1-53791200


                                -=GERMANY=-

                           * DOOM OF DARKNESS *
                      Email: marc_doerre@doom.ping.de
                          +49 (0)4223 8355 19200
           AR-Infoservice, contact Kai Szymanski kai@doom.gun.de

                              * IMAGINE BBS *
                    Email: Sysop@imagine.commo.mcnet.de
                              +49-69-4304948
              Login: GAST (Download area:  "Amiga-Report")

                         * LEGUANS BYTE CHANNEL *
                    Usenet: andreas@lbcmbx.in-berlin.de
                       49-30-8110060   49-30-8122442
                 Login as User: "amiga", Passwd: "report"

                              * REDEYE BBS *
                        Internet: sysop@coolsurf.de
         Modem/ISDN: +49-89.54662690   Modem only:+49.89.54662680

                          * STINGRAY  DATABASE *
                 EMail: sysop@sting-db.zer.sub.org.dbp.de
                              +49 208 496807

                            * VISION THING BBS *
                             ++49(0)345 663914
                          System Password: Amiga


                                -=GREECE=-

                            * HELLAS ON LINE *
          EMail: cocos@prometheus.hol.gr    Telnet: hellas.hol.gr
                    ++301/ 620-6001, 620-6604, 620-9500

                           * LOGIC SYSTEMS BBS *
                            Email: Paddy@hol.gr

                              * ODYSSEY BBS *
             email: odyssey@acropolis.net   Amiganet: 39:250/1.0
                  ++301-4123502   23.00-09.00 Local Time
                http://www.acropolis.net/~konem/odygb.html


                                -=IRELAND=-

                               * FWIBBLE!  *
               Fidonet: 2:263/900.0   E-Mail: 9517693@ul.ie
              Phone: +353-902-36124    Midnight to 8am (GMT)
                       Freq "Readme.txt" for details


                                 -=ITALY=-

                        * AMIGA PROFESSIONAL BBS *
                 Amy Professional Club, Italian Amos Club
                              +(39)-49-604488

                               * AMIPRO BBS*
                         AR and AMINET distributor
                               +39-49604488

                              * DB-LINE SRL *
                Email: amiga@dbline.it   WWW: www.dbline.it
                              +39-332-767383

                               * FRANZ BBS *
                          EMsil: mc3510@mclink.it
                               +39/6/6627667

                                 * IDCMP *
                             Fidonet 2:322/405
                               +39-542-25983

                             * SPEED OF LIFE *
                  FidoNet 2:335/533   AmigaNet 39:102/12
                The AMIGA Alchemists' BBS   +39-931-833773


                              -=NETHERLANDS=-

                       * AMIGA ONLINE BS HEEMSTEDE *
      Fidonet: 2:280/464.0, 2:280/412.0   Email: sysop@aobh.xs4all.nl
                      +31-23-5471111   +31-23-5470739

                             * THE HELL BBS *
             FidoNet: 2:281/418.0   Email : root@hell.xs4all.nl
                             +31-(0)70-3468783

                           * MACRON BBS HEILOO *
             FidoNet: 2:280/134.0   Email: macron@cybercomm.nl
                             +31-(0)72-5340903

                          * TRACE BBS GRONINGEN *
            FidoNET 2:282/529.0   Internet Martin@trace.idn.nl
                             +31-(0)-50-410143

                              * WILD PALMS *
Net: radavi@xs4all.nl   WWW: www.xs4all.nl/~radavi/wildpalms/wildpalm.html
                             +31-(0)30-6037959

                              * X-TREME BBS *
                      Internet: u055231@vm.uci.kun.nl
                               +31-167064414


                                -=POLAND=-

                          * SILVER DREAM!'S BBS *
                            SysOp: Silver Dream
                               +48 91 540431


                               -=PORTUGAL=-

                               * CIUA BBS *
                FidoNet 2:361/9   Internet: denise.ci.ua.pt
                           +351-34-382080/382081


                                -=RUSSIA=-

                             * NEW ORDER BBS *
           E-Mail: norder@norder.spb.su   FidoNet: 2:5030/221.0
                              +7-812-2909561


                                 -=SPAIN=-

                            * GURU MEDITATION *
                              +34-1-383-1317

                            * LA MITAD OSCURA *
             E-Mail: jovergon@offcampus.es   Fido: 2:341/35.19
                               +34-1-3524613

                        * MAZAGON - BBS - SYSTEMS *
       E-mail: jgomez@maze.mazanet.es   FTP: ftp-mail@ftp.mazanet.es
                               +34 59 536267
                              Login: a-report


                                -=SWEDEN=-

                                * CICERON *
                           E-mail: a1009@itv.se
                               +46 612 22011


                                -=TURKIYE=-

                            * NEEDFUL THINGS *
                   E-Mail: Erdinc.Corbaci@beygir.bbs.tr
                              90-216-3629417


                                -=UKRAINE=-

                            * AMIGA HOME BBZ *
         E-Mail: Oleg.Khimich@bbs.te.net.ua   FidoNet: 2:467/88.0
                              +380-482-325043


                            -=UNITED KINGDOM=-

                           * AMIGA JUNCTION 9 *
        Internet: sysadmin@junct9.demon.co.uk     FidoNet: 2:440/20
                             +44 (0)372 271000

                             * CREATIONS BBS *
           E-Mail: mat@darkside.demon.co.uk   2:254/524@Fidonet
                             +44-0181-665-9887

                            * DRAUGHTFLOW BBS *
                   Email: Ian_Cooper@draught.demon.co.uk
                            +44 (01707) 328484

                              * METNET CCS *
     Email: metnet@demon.co.uk    FidoNet: 2:2502/129.0  2:2502/130.0
                     +44-1482-442251   +44-1482-444910

                           * OCTAMED USER BBS *
                    EMail: rbfsoft@cix.compulink.co.uk
                            +44 (01703) 703446

                              * SCRATCH BBS *
      EMail: kcci1@solx1.susx.ac.uk     Official Super Skidmarks site
                              +44-1273-389267
@endnode
@node BBS_NAMERICA "Distribution BBSes - North America"
@toc BBS

===========================================================================
                    Distribution BBSes - North America
===========================================================================

                                -=ARIZONA=-

                       * MESSENGER OF THE GODS BBS *
                           mercury@primenet.com
                               602-326-1095


                           -=BRITISH COLUMBIA=-

                             * COMM-LINK BBS *
       EMail: steve_hooper@comm.tfbbs.wimsey.com   Fido: 1:153/210.0
                               604-945-6192


                              -=CALIFORNIA=-

                            * TIERRA-MIGA BBS *
             FidoNet: 1:202/638.0   Internet: torment.cts.com
                               619.292.0754

                          * VIRTUAL PALACE BBS *
                   Sysop Email: tibor@ecst.csuchico.edu
                                916-343-7420

                        * AMIGA AND IBM ONLY BBS *
            EMail: vonmolk@crash.cts.com   AmigaNET: 40:406/7.0
                               (619)428-4887


                                -=FLORIDA=-

                            * LAST! AMIGA BBS *
                              (305) 456-0126


                               -=ILLINOIS=-

                            * PHANTOM'S LAIR *
  FidoNet: 1:115/469.0   Phantom Net Coordinator: 11:1115/0.0-11:1115/1.0
                         708-469-9510 708-469-9520

                           * THE SAGE'S TOWER *
                 FidoNet: 1:2250/7   EMail: johnh@ezl.com
                               618-259-1844

                            * STARSHIP CUCUG *
                       Email: khisel@prairienet.org
                               (217)356-8056

                         * THE STYGIAN ABYSS BBS *
                            FIDONet-1:115/384.0
                  312-384-0616   312-384-6250 (FREQ line)


                               -=LOUISIANA=-

                             * The Catacomb *
                        E-mail: Geoff148@delphi.com
                               504-882-6576


                                 -=MAINE=-

                     * THE KOBAYASHI ALTERNATIVE BBS *
                           FidoNet: 1:326/404.0
                      (207)/784-2130   (207)/946-5665
                     ftp.tka.com for back issues of AR


                                -=MEXICO=-

                               * AMIGA BBS *
                             FidoNet  4:975/7
                               (5) 887-3080

                           * AMIGA SERVER BBS *
                                  5158736

                          * TERCER PLANETA BBS *
                           FX Network 800:525/1
                              [525]-606-2162


                              -=MISSISSIPPI=-

                            * THE GATEWAY BBS *
        InterNet: stace@tecnet1.jcte.jcs.mil   FidoNet: 1:3604/60.0
                               601-374-2697


                               -=MICHIGAN=-

                            * DC PRODUCTIONS *
                    Email: dcpro!chetw@heifetz.msen.com
                               616-373-0287


                                -=NEVADA=-

                              * PUP-TEK BBS *
                       EMail: darkwolf@accessnv.com
                               702-553-2403

                              -=NEW JERSEY=-

                          * T.B.P.  VIDEO SLATE *
                               201-586-3623

                           * DLTACOM AMIGA BBS *
       Internet: dltacom.camphq.fidonet.org   Fidonet: 1:2606/216.0
                              (201) 398-8559


                               -=NEW YORK=-

                             * THE BELFRY(!) *
              Email: stiggy@belfry.org   WWW: www.belfry.org/
                        718.793.4796   718.793.4905


                                -=ONTARIO=-

                           * COMMAND LINE BBS *
                               416-533-8321

                              * CYBERSPACE *
                       joehick@ophielia.waterloo.net
                      (519) 579-0072   (519) 579-0173

                          * EDGE OF REALITY BBS *
            EMail: murray.smith@er.gryn.org   Fido: 1:244/320.0
                               (905)578-5048


                                -=QUEBEC=-

                         * CLUB AMIGA DE QUEBEC *
          Internet: snaclaq@megatoon.com   Voice: (418) 666-5969
                      (418) 666-4146   (418) 666-6960
               Nom d'usager: AMREPORT   Mot de passe: AMIGA

                              * GfxBase BBS*
        E-mail: ai257@freenet.hsc.colorado.edu   Fidonet: 1:167/192
                               514-769-0565


                               -=TENNESSEE=-

                            * AMIGA CENTRAL! *
                      Email: root@amicent.raider.net
                               615-383-9679

                               * NOVA BBS *
                            FidoNet 1:362/508.0
                               615-472-9748


                               -=VIRGINIA=-

                       * NETWORK XXIII DATA SYSTEM *
                       EMail: gottfrie@acca.nmsu.edu
                               804-266-1763
                      Login: anon   Password: nopass


                              -=WASHINGTON=-

                          * FREELAND MAINFRAME *
                         Internet - freemf.wa.com
                               (360)412-0228

                              * PIONEERS BBS *
                            FidoNet: 1:343/54.0
                               206-775-7983
      Login: Long Distance   Password: longdistance   Or FREQ: AR.lha
@endnode
@node BBS_SAMERICA "Distribution BBSes - South America"
@toc BBS

===========================================================================
                    Distribution BBSes - South America
===========================================================================

                                -=BRAZIL=-

                               * 68000 BBS *
          AmigaNET-BR: 120:5521/1   Email: vaclav@antares.com.br
                    +55-21-393-4390   [16-06h (-3GMT)]

                          * STUFF OVERLOAD BBS *
         AmigaNET-BR: 120:120/0   Email: dan_cab@lepus.celepar.br
                              +55-41-252-9389

@endnode
@node DEAL_ASIA "Dealers - Asia"
@toc DEALER

===========================================================================
                              Dealers - Asia
===========================================================================

                                 -=JAPAN=-

                             Grey Matter Ltd.
                           1-22-3,Minami Magome
                        HillTop House 2F suite 201
                             Ota-ku,Tokyo 143
              Tel:+81 (0)3 5709-5549   Fax:+81 (0)3 5709-1907
    BBS: +81 (0)3 5709-1907   Email: nighty@gmatter.japan-online.or.jp


                              -= MAYLAYSIA =-

                  Innovations Lights & Magic (M) Sdn Bhd,
                         A1106, University Towers,
                           46200, Petaling Jaya,
                           Selangor Darul Ehsan
                  Tel: +6 03 7544544   Fax: +6 03 7544588
                        Email: skchiew@pc.jaring.my

@endnode
@node DEAL_AUSTRALASIA "Dealers - Australasia"
@toc DEALER

===========================================================================
                           Dealers - Australasia
===========================================================================

                               -=AUSTRALIA=-

                             Amadeus Computers
                           1/534 Old Northern Rd
                          Round Corner, NSW 2158
                  Voice: 02 9651 1711    Fax: 02 9651 1710
           EMail: amadeus@ca.com/au    WWW: www.ca.com.au/amadeus

                               Amiga Genius
                              826 Hunter St.
                         Newcastle West, NSW 2302
                 Ph: +61 49 623-222   Fax: +61 49 623-583
                      E-Mail: cdgtb@hunterlink.net.au

                        Exclusive Computer Systems
               Street: 34 Weston Street Weston, N.S.W.  2326
                Postal: P.O.  Box 68, Weston, N.S.W.  2326
                  Phone: (049) 361213 Fax: (049) 36 1213
                    Email: peter.archer@fastlink.com.au

                               Image Domain
                               92 Bridge St
                   Fortitude Valley, Brisbane Queensland
                        E-mail: imagedomain@msn.com
                 Voice: 617-3216-1240   Fax: 617-3852-2720

                             Synapse Computers
                              190 Riding Road
                    Hawthorne, Brisbane Queensland 4171
                        Voice/Fax: +61 7-3899-0980
                       EMail: synapse@powerup.com.au

              Unitech Electronics Pty. Ltd. / Maverick Amiga
                              8B Tummul Place
                          St. Andrews, Sydney 2566
               Voice: +61 2 9820 3555  Fax: +61 2 9603 8685


                              -=NEW ZEALAND=-

                                CompKarori
                         LG/F Karori Shopping Mall
                            Karori, Wellington
                          Tel/Fax: +64 4 476-0212
                       Email: sales@compkarori.co.nz

@endnode
@node DEAL_EUROPE "Dealers - Europe"
@toc DEALER

===========================================================================
                             Dealers - Europe
===========================================================================


                                -=AUSTRIA=-

                   A.R.T.  Computeranimation Ges.m.b.H.
                              Feldstrasse 13
                              3300 Amstetten
                Tel: +43 7472/63566-0 Fax: +43 7472/63566-6

                        Solaris Computec Ges.m.b.H.
                              Mariahilfpark 1
                             A-6020 Innsbruck
               Tel: ++43-512/272724   Fax: ++43-512/272724-2
                       EMail: solaris@computec.co.at


                                -=BELGIUM=-

                              AVM Technology
                            Rue de Rotheux, 279
                              B-4100 Seraing
              Voice: +32 (0)41 38.16.06   Fax: +32 (0)41 38.15.69
                      Email: defraj@mail.interpac.be

                               CLICK!  N.V.
                            Boomsesteenweg 468
                        B-2610 Wilrijk - Antwerpen
           VOICE: +32 (0)3 828.18.15     FAX: +32 (0)3 828.67.36
           INTERNET: vanhoutv@nbre.nfe.be      FIDO: 2:292/603.9


                               -=BULGARIA=-

                           KlubVerband ITA Gmbh
                                1309 Sofia
                          P.F.13, KukushStr.  1-2
                  Tel: +359-2-221471   Fax: +359-2-230062
          Email: KVITA@VIRBUS.BG     Contact: Dr.  ING B.  Pavlov


                                -=DENMARK=-

                               Data Service
                           Att.  Soren Petersen
                              Kaerhaven2a 2th
                              6400 Sonderborg
          Phone/Fax: +45 74 43 17 36   EMail: sorpe-95@sdbg.ih.dk

                              Nemesis Amy BBS
               EMail: boersting@hoa.ping.dk   Fido: 2:238/43
                       USR 33k6 V.E.  +45 75-353726


                                -=FINLAND=-

                          Lincware Computers Ltd
                              Lovkullankuja 3
                               10300 KARJAA
               Voice: +358-50-5573696   Fax: +358-11-231511
                      EMail: linctech@freenet.hut.fi


                                -=FRANCE=-

                            ASCII Informatique
                             10 Rue de Lepante
                                06000 NICE
               Tel: (33) 93 13 08 66   Fax: (33) 93 13 90 95

                            Quartz Infomatique
                          2 bis, avenue de Brogny
                              F-74000 ANNECY
                  Tel./Fax (automatique): +33 50.52.83.31
                          E-Mail: tcp@imaginet.fr


                                -=GERMANY=-

                           AMItech Systems GmbH
                              Ludwigstrasse 4
                             D-95028 Hof/Saale
               VOICE: +49 9281 142812   FAX: +49 9281 142712
                       EMail: bsd@blacky.netz.sub.de

                    dcp, desing+commercial partner GmbH
                               Alfredstr.  1
                              D-22087 Hamburg
                Tel.: + 49 40 251176   Fax: +49 40 2518567
                   EMail: info@dcp.de   WWW: www.dcp.de

                          Hartmann & Riedel GdbR
                               Hertzstr.  33
                           D-76287 Rheinstetten
          EMail: rick@p22.aop.schiele-ct.de   Fido: 2:2476/12.22
              Voice: +49 (7242) 2021     Fax: +49 (7242) 2167
             Please call before visiting, or we may be closed.

                             Hirsch & Wolf OHG
                              Mittelstra_e 33
                              D-56564 Neuwied
            Voice: +49 (2631) 8399-0   Fax: +49 (2631) 8399-31

                           Pro Video Elektronik
                                Roßmarkt 38
                           D-63739 Aschaffenburg
                 Tel: (49) 6021 15713 Fax: (49) 6021 15713


                                 -=ITALY=-

                              C.A.T.M.U.  snc
                            Casella Postale 63
                             10023 Chieri (TO)
                          Tel/Fax: +39 11 9415237
       EMail: fer@inrete.it (Ferruccio Zamuner)   Fido: 2:334/21.19

                            Cloanto Italia srl
                           Via G.  B.  Bison 24
                                33100 Udine
                 Tel: +39 432 545902   Fax: +39 432 609051
              E-Mail: info@cloanto.com   WWW: www.cloanto.com


                              -=NETHERLANDS=-

                               Chaos Systems
                               Watermolen 18
                           NL-1622 LG Hoorn (NH)
            Voice: +31-(0)229-233922   Fax/Data: +31-(0)229-TBA
         E-mail: marioh@fwi.uva.nl   WWW: gene.fwi.uva.nl/~marioh/


                                -=NORWAY=-

                             Applause Data AS
                               Storgaten 31
                               Postboks 143
                               2830 Raufoss
               Voice: +47 61 19 03 80   Fax: +47 61 19 05 80
              EMail: post@applause.no   WWW: www.applause.no


                                 -=SPAIN=-

                               Amiga Center
                               Argullós, 127
                              08016 Barcelona
                Tel: (93) 276 38 06     Fax: (93) 276 30 80

                           Amiga Center Alicante
                                Segura, 27
                              03004 Alicante
                            Tel: (96) 514 37 34

                               Audio Vision
                               San Jose, 53
                             Gijon (Asturias)
                           Tel.  (98) 535 24 79

                        Centro Informático Boadilla
                                Convento, 6
                     28660 Boadilla del Monte (Madrid)
                Tel: (91) 632 27 65     Fax: (91) 632 10 99

                                Centro Mail
                            Tel: (91) 380 28 92

                                  C.R.E.
                             San Francisco, 85
                          48003 Bilbao (Vizcaya)
                Tel: (94) 444 98 84     Fax: (94) 444 98 84

                               Donosti Frame
                           Avda.  de Madrid, 15
                      20011 San Sebastián (Guipuzcoa)
                Tel: (943) 42 07 45     Fax: (943) 42 45 88

                            Eurobit Informatica
                    C/.  Gral.  Garcia de la Herran, 4
                           11100 - San Fernando
                                   Cadiz
                           Tel/Fax: (956) 896375

                                 GaliFrame
                           Galerías Príncipe, 22
                             Vigo (Pontevedra)
                Tel: (986) 22 89 94     Fax: (986) 22 89 94

                                 Invision
                             San Isidro, 12-18
                     28850 Torrejón de Ardoz (Madrid)
              Tel: (91) 676 20 56/59     Fax: (91) 656 10 04

                                 Invision
                               Salamanca, 53
                              46005 Valencia
              Tel: (96) 395 02 43/44     Fax: (96) 395 02 44

                                  Norsoft
                                Bedoya, 4-6
                               32003 Orense
                Tel: (988) 24 90 46     Fax: (988) 23 42 07

                                 PiXeLSOFT
                              Felipe II, 3bis
                              34004 Palencia
                Tel: (979) 71 27 00     Fax: (979) 71 28 28

                            Tu Amiga Ordinadors
                              C/ Progreso, 6
                       08120 La LLagosta (Barcelona)
                  Tel: +34-3-5603604   Fax: +34-3-5603607

                                  vb soft
                               Provenza, 436
                              08025 Barcelona
                Tel: (93) 456 15 45     Fax: (93) 456 15 45


                                -=NORWAY=-

                             DataKompaniet ANS
                        Trondheim Innovation Centre
                           Prof.  Brochs gt.  6
                             N-7030 Trondheim
                  Tel: +47 7354 0375   Fax: +47 7394 3861
         EMail: post@datakompaniet.no   WWW: www.datakompaniet.no

                              Sezam Software
                              Ulsmågveien 11a
                              N-5o5o Nesttun
                       Tel/Fax: +47 55100070 (9-20)
           ABBS: +47 55101730 (24t)   Email: oleksy@telepost.no


                                -=SWEDEN=-

                                DataVision
                                 Box 1305
                              753 11 Uppsala
                     Street Address: Sysslomansgatan 9
 Orders: +46 (0)18-123400   Shop: +46 (0)18-124009   Fax: +46 (0)18-100650


                            -=UNITED KINGDOM=-

                           Almathera Systems Ltd
                Southerton House / Boundary Business Court
                             92-94 Church Road
                         Mitcham, Surrey / CR4 3TD
            VOICE: (UK) 081 687 0040     FAX: (UK) 081 687 0490
 Sales: almathera@cix.compulink.co.uk     Tech: jralph@cix.compulink.co.uk

                        Brian Fowler Computers Ltd
                           90 South Street / Exeter
                              Devon / EX1 1EN
               Voice: (01392) 499 755   Fax: (01392) 493 393
                Internet: brian_fowler@cix.compulink.co.uk

                              Computer Magic
                          Unit 8 / Freemans Yard
                    Doncaster Road / Barnsley / S71 1QH
                      Tel: 01226 218255 / 0378 425281

                             Visage Computers
                              27 Watnall Road
                           Hucknall / Nottingham
           Tel: +44 (0)115 9642828   Tel/Fax: +44 (0)115 9642898
                        EMail: visage@innotts.co.uk

@endnode
@node DEAL_NAMERICA "Dealers - North America"
@toc DEALER

===========================================================================
                          Dealers - North America
===========================================================================

                                -=CANADA=-

                          Animax Multimedia, Inc.
                             Willow Tree Tower
                       6009 Quinpool Road, Suite 802
                       Halifax, Nova Scotia B3K 5J7
                 Ph: (902) 429-1921   Fax: (902) 429-1923
               EMail: info@animax.com   WWW: www.animax.com/

                           APC Computer Services
                            402-5 Tangreen Crt
                         Willowdale, Ont.  M2M 3Z1
                         Voice/Fax: (416) 733-1434
  EMail: shadow@interlog.com   WWW: www.interlog.com/~shadow/apccomp.html

                           Atlantis Kobetek Inc.
                           1496 Lower Water St.
                           Halifax, NS / B3J 1R9
               Phone: (902)-422-6556     Fax: (902)-423-9339
                     E-mail: atkobetek@ra.isisnet.com

                Atlas Computers & Consulting - Derek Davlut
                       400 Telstar Avenue Suite 701
                           Sudbury, ON / P3E 5V7
                Phone: (705) 522-1923   Fax: (705) 522-1923
                   EMail: s2200147@nickel.laurentian.ca

                            CineReal Pro-Video
                            272 Avondale Avenue
                          Ottawa, Ontario K1Z 7G8
               Phone/Fax: (613) 798-8150 (Call first to fax)
                        EMail: cinereal@proton.com

                      Computer Shop of Calgary, Ltd.
                          3515 - 18th Street S.W.
                         Calgary, Alberta T2T 4T9
                 Ph.  1-403-243-4358   Fx: 1-403-243-2684
           Email: austin@canuck.com   WWW: www.canuck.com/cshop

                           Computerology Direct
                             Powell River, BC
                                  V8A-4Z3
               Call 24 hrs.  orders/inquiries: 604/483-3679
          Amiga users ask for HEAD SALES REP for quicker response!

                        Comspec Communications Inc
                              74 Wingold Ave
                         Toronto, Ontario M6B 1P5
 Computer Centre: (416) 785-8348  Sales: (416) 785-3553  Fax: 416-785-3668
      Internet: bryanf@comcorp.comspec.com, bryanf@accesspt.north.net

                             ElectroMike Inc.
                         1375 Boul.  Charest Ouest
                           Quebec, Quebec G1N2E7
         Tel: (418) 681-4138, (800) 463-1501   Fax: (418) 681-5880

                            Forest Diskasaurus
                         35 Albert St., P.O.Box 84
                          Forest, Ontario N0N 1J0
                           Tel/Fax: 519-786-2454
                        EMail: saurus@xcelco.on.ca

                         GfxBase Electronique, Inc
                              1727 Shevchenko
                             Montreal, Quebec
                  Voice: 514-367-2575   Fax: 514-367-5265
                             BBS: 514-769-0565

                         Le Groupe PowerLand
                            630 Champagne
                       Rosemere, Quebec J7A 4K9
             Voice: 514-893-6296   Fax/BBS: 514-965-7295
                    Email: mchabot@nationalnet.com

                              National Amiga
                             Oakville, Ontario
              Fax: 905-845-3295   EMail: gscott@interlog.com
             WWW: www.interlog.com/~gscott/NationalAmiga.html

                        Oby's Amigo Computing Shop
                             765 Barrydowne Rd
                         Sudbury, Ontario P3A 3T6
            Voice/Fax: (705)524-5826   Email: obys@vianet.on.ca
                   WWW: icewall.vianet.on.ca/pages/obys

                            Randomize Computers
                                 R.R.  #2
                         Tottenham, Ont.  L0G 1W0
                   vox: 905-939-8371   fax: 905-939-8745
     Email: randomize@interlog.com   WWW: www.interlog.com/~randomize/

                            Software Supermart
                            11010 - 101 Street
                         Edmonton, Alberta T5H-2T1
                Voice: (403) 425-0691   Fax: (403) 426-1701
                       EMail: ssmart@planet.eon.net

                         SpectrumTech Electronics
                       412-1205 Fennell Avenue East
                           Hamilton, ON L8T 1T1
                Voice: (905) 388-9575   BBS: (905) 388-2542
           E-Mail: ste@spectrum.gryn.org   Contact: Derek Clarke

                                Valley Soft
                               P.O.  Box 864
                         Pembroke, Ontario K8A 7M5
                Phone: (613) 732-7700   Fax: (613) 732-8477
                      WWW: www.renc.igs.net/~valsoft

                   Wonder Computers Ottawa Retail Store
                            1315 Richmond Road
                          Ottawa, Ontario K2B 8J7
                 Voice: (613) 721-1800   Fax: 613-721-6992
                            WWW: www.wonder.ca

                  Wonder Computers Vancouver Sales Office
                            2229 Edinburgh St.
                        New Westminster, BC W3M 2Y2
                           (604) 524-2151 voice

                           young monkey studios
                            797 Mitchell Street
                         Fredericton, NB   E3B 3S8
                Phone: (506) 459-7088   Fax: (506) 459-7099
                        EMail: sales@youngmonkey.ca


                             -=UNITED STATES=-

                               A&D Computer
                               211 South St.
                          Milford, NH 03055-3743
                Voice/Fax: 603-672-4700   BBS: 603-673-2788
                         Internet: amiga@mv.mv.com

                             Alex Electronics
                            597 Circlewood Dr.
                            Paradise, CA 95969
                  Voice: 916-872-0896  BBS: 915-872-3711
         EMail: alex@ecst.csuchico.edu   WWW: www.km-cd.com/~alex/

                           Amigability Computers
                               P.O.  Box 572
                           Plantsville, CT 06479
                            VOICE: 203-276-8175
                         Internet: caldi@pcnet.com

                              Amiga-Crossing
                                PO Box 12A
                        Cumberland Center, ME 04021
        VOICE: (800) 498-3959 (Maine only)   VOICE: (207) 829-3959
              FAX: (207) 829-3522   Internet: amiga-x@tka.com

                          Amiga Library Services
                          610 Alma School Rd, #18
                          Chandler, Az 85224-3687
                Voice: (800) 804-0833   Fax: (602) 491-0048
                        E-Mail: orders@ninemoons.com

                           Amiga Video Solutions
                           1568 Randolph Avenue
                            St.  Paul, MN 55105
                 Voice: 612-698-1175     Fax: 612-224-3823
           BBS: 612-698-1918     Net: wohno001@maroon.tc.umn.edu

                          Applied Multimedia Inc.
                              89 Northill St.
                            Stamford, CT 06907
                           VOICE: (203) 348-0108

                            Apogee Technologies
                          1851 University Parkway
                            Sarasota, FL 34243
                            VOICE: 813-355-6121
            Portal: Apogee     Internet: Apogee@cup.portal.com

                            Armadillo Brothers
                            753 East 3300 South
                           Salt Lake City, Utah
          VOICE: 801-484-2791     Internet: B.GRAY@genie.geis.com

                            Computer Advantage
                             7370 Hickman Road
                           Des Moines, IA 50322
                          Voice/Fax: 515-252-6167
                       Internet: Number1@netins.net

                             Computer Concepts
                   18001 Bothell-Everett Hwy, Suite "0"
                             Bothell, WA 98012
                           VOICE: (206) 481-3666

                               Computer Link
                              6573 middlebelt
                           Garden City MI 48135
                 Voice: 313-522-6005     Fax: 313-522-3119
                         clink@m-net.arbornet.org

                            The Computer Source
                          515 Kings Highway East
                            Fairfield, CT 06432
                Voice: (203) 336-3100   Fax: (203) 335-3259

                       Computers International, Inc.
                             5415 Hixson Pike
                           Chattanooga, TN 37343
                            VOICE: 615-843-0630

                          Computerwise Computers
                              3006 North Main
                              Logan, UT 84322

                        Concord Computer Solutions
                        2745 Concord Blvd.  Suite 5
                             Concord, CA 94519
 Orders: 1-888-80-AMIGA   Info/Tech: 510-680-0143   BBS/Fax: 510-680-4987
             Email: moxley@value.net   WWW: www.ccompsol.com/

                                 CPU Inc.
                            5168 East 65th St.
                          Indianapolis, IN 46220
                  Voice: 317-577-3677   Fax: 317-577-1500
                          Email: cpuken@indy.net

                              CyberTech Labs
                               PO Box 56941
                         North Pole, Alaska  99705
 Vox: (907) 451-3285   BBS1 : (907) 488-2547   BBS2 & Fax: (907) 488-2647
            EMail: 71516.600@CompuServe.com   Fido: 1:355/17.0

                              DC Productions
                          218 Stockbridge Avenue
                            Kalamazoo, MI 49001
                       (616)373-1985   (800)9DC-PROD
                    Email: dcpro!chetw@heifetz.msen.com

                               Digital Arts
                             1321 North Walnut
                              P.O.  Box 5206
                        Bloomington, IN 47807-5206
          VOICE: (812)330-0124   FAX: (812)330-0126   BIX: msears

                              Digital Castle
                       4046 Hubbell Ave.  Suite 155
                         Des Moines, IA 50317-4434
                           Voice: (515) 266-5098
                          EMail: Sheep@netins.net

                             Digital F/X, Inc.
                            1930 Maple, Suite 7
                           North Bend, OR 97459
                  Voice: (800) 202-3285 / (541) 756-6693
           Email: DFX@Mail.coos.or.us   WWW: www.digital-fx.com

                          Discount Computer Sales
                           1100 Sunset Strip #5
                             Sunrise, FL 33313
                  Voice: 954-797-9402   Fax: 954-797-2999
                  EMail: DCS@aii.net, DCS@interpoint.net

                           Electronic Connection
                               635 Penn Ave
                          West Reading, PA 19611
                  Phone: 610-372-1010   Fax: 610-378-0996

                           Hawkeye Communication
                             1324 Fifth Street
                          Coralville, Iowa 52241
               Voice: 319-354-3354   EMail: Hawkcom@inav.net

                              HHH Enterprises
                                 PO Box 10
                            Hartwood, VA 22471
                            Contact: Tom Harmon
              Voice: (540) 752-2100   Email: ko4ox@erols.com


                              HT Electronics
           E-Mail: HT Electronics@cup.portal.com     BIX: msears

           422 S. Hillview Dr.          211 Lathrop Way, Ste. A.
           Milipitas, CA 95035          Sacramento, CA 95815
           V: (408) 934-7700            V: (916) 925-0900
           F: (408) 934-7717            F: (916) 925-2829


                           Industrial Video, Inc.
                           1601 North Ridge Rd.
                             Lorain, OH  44055
         VOICE: 800-362-6150, 216-233-4000     Contact: John Gray
                  Internet:  af741@cleveland.freenet.edu

                            Kipp Visual Systems
                          360-C Christopher Ave.
                          Gaithersburg Md, 20878
                               301-670-7906
                           kipp@rasputin.umd.edu

                           Krulewich Enterprises
                                554 Vega Dr
                         Corpus Christi, TX 78418
                           Voice: (512) 937-4624
                      Email: 1040.3444@compuserve.com

                     The Lively Computer - Tom Lively
                             8314 Parkway Dr.
                             La Mesa, CA 91942
                   Voice: 619-589-9455 Fax: 619-589-5230
                        Net: tlively@connectnet.com

                                Magic Page
                            3043 Luther Street
                          Winston-Salem, NC 27127
           Voice/Fax: 910-785-3695   E-mail: Spiff@ix.netcom.com
                          Contact: Patrick Smith

                                MicroSearch
                        9000 US 59 South, Suite 330
                              Houston, Texas
                 VOICE: 713-988-2818     FAX: 713-995-4994

                         MicroTech Solutions, Inc.
                     17W745 Butterfield Road, Suite F
                        Oakbrook Terrace, IL 60181
                   Phone: 630-495-4069 Fax: 630-495-4245
               Email: info@mt-inc.com   WWW: www.mt-inc.com

                          Mr. Hardware Computers
                      P.O.  Box 148 / 59 Storey Ave.
                          Central Islip, NY 11722
                 VOICE: 516-234-8110     FAX: 516-234-8110
                         A.M.U.G. BBS:  516-234-6046

                            Paxtron Corporation
                              28 Grove Street
                          Spring Valley, NY 10977
     Voice: 914-576-6522    Orders: 800-815-3241    Fax: 914-624-3239

                              PSI Animations
                         17924 SW Pilkington Road
                          Lake Oswego, OR  97035
                           VOICE:  503-624-8185
                     Internet:  PSIANIM@agora.rain.com

                          Raymond Commodore Amiga
                            795 Raymond Avenue
                         St.  Paul, MN 55114-1521
        VOICE: 612-642-9890   FAX: 612-642-9891   BBS: 612-874-8342
           WWW: www.visi.com/~raycomp   Email: raycomp@visi.com

                           Safe Harbor Computers
                          W226 N900 Eastmound Dr
                            Waukesha, WI 53186
                 Orders: 800-544-6599   Fax: 414-548-8130
                           WWW: www.sharbor.com

                             Slipped Disk
                           170 E 12 Mile Rd
                   Madison Heights, Michigan 48071
                        Voice: (810) 546-DISK
                  BBS: (810) 399-1292   Fido: 1:120/321.0

                           Software Plus Chicago
                         2945 W Peterson Suite 209
                             Chicago, Illinois
                           VOICE:  312-878-7800

                        System Eyes Computer Store
                          730M Milford Rd Ste 345
                         Merrimack, NH 03054-4642
               Voice: (603) 4244-1188   Fax: (603) 424-3939
                  EMail: j_sauter@systemeye.ultranet.com

                              TJ's Unlimited
                              P.O.  Box #354
                        North Greece, NY 14515-0354
                  VOICE: 716-225-5810   BBS: 716-225-8631
           FIDO: 1:2613/323   INTERNET: neil@rochgte.fidonet.org

                         WenteK - Amiga Computers
                         10317 N.  Scottsdale Rd.
                          Scottsdale, Ax.  85253
                  Voice: 602-483-7200  Fax: 602-483-6826
                        EMail: robert2@doitnow.com

                                Zipperware
                             76 South Main St.
                           Seattle, WA  98104
                 VOICE: 206-223-1107     FAX: 206-223-9395
      E-Mail: zipware@nwlink.com   WWW: www.speakeasy.org/zipperware

@endnode
@node OPINION "Editorial and Opinion"
@toc MENU

===========================================================================
                           Editorial and Opinion
===========================================================================

@{"   compt.sys.editor.desk   " link EDITORIAL}  1996 comes to a close.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@{"   News   " link NEWS} @{"  Opinion  " link OPINION} @{" Articles " link FEATURE} @{"  Reviews  " link REVIEW} @{"  Charts  " link FTP} @{"  Adverts  " link COMMERCIAL}
@endnode
@node NEWS "News & Press Releases"
@toc MENU

===========================================================================
                           News & Press Releases
===========================================================================

@{" Open Letter From QuikPak  " link NEWS5}  QuikPak tosses its hat in the ring

@{"      Australian News      " link NEWS16}  Courtesy of our friends at Amiga News Australiasia

@{"       AWeb-II News        " link NEWS1}  2.1 Plugins out!

@{"   Carl Sassenrath Quits   " link NEWS18}  The most influential VIScorp flame to date

@{"    VIScorp Injunction     " link NEWS17}  VIScorp wins an injunction against IVP

@{" Convergence International " link NEWS2}  Expanding alternative computing

@{"      Amiga Informer       " link NEWS3}  The new US print mag

@{"   Announcements Wanted    " link NEWS4}  ...by Amiga Informer

@{"     UltraAccounts 3.3     " link NEWS6}  Financial management software

@{"  Symposium '97 Demoparty  " link NEWS7}  A German Easter demo party

@{"     Aurora Works Inc.     " link NEWS8}  A new Amiga game company

@{"    DataKompaniet Info     " link NEWS9}  Net contact info changed

@{"           IARS            " link NEWS10}  A new Amiga survey

@{"  Digital Universe Update  " link NEWS11}  News from Syzygy

@{"     VTU/Lightwave Pro     " link NEWS12}  Harv Laser's take on the cancellation

@{"         C64 Music         " link NEWS13}  An upcoming audio CD

@{"    User Group Database    " link NEWS14}  Team Amiga is building references

@{" Dealer/Developer Database " link NEWS15}  ...here, too.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@{"   News   " link NEWS} @{"  Opinion  " link OPINION} @{" Articles " link FEATURE} @{"  Reviews  " link REVIEW} @{"  Charts  " link FTP} @{"  Adverts  " link COMMERCIAL}
@endnode
@node FEATURE "Featured Articles"
@toc MENU

===========================================================================
                             Featured Articles
===========================================================================

@{"  Digital Media World '96  " link FEATURE1}  A Missed Opportunity

@{"  Amiga Fest Show Report   " link FEATURE2}  A look from Toronto

@{"  Impressions on Cologne   " link FEATURE3}  2 hectic days at Computer '96

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@{"   News   " link NEWS} @{"  Opinion  " link OPINION} @{" Articles " link FEATURE} @{"  Reviews  " link REVIEW} @{"  Charts  " link FTP} @{"  Adverts  " link COMMERCIAL}
@endnode
@node REVIEW "Reviews"
@toc MENU

===========================================================================
                                  Reviews
===========================================================================

@{"     Photogenics 2.0a     " link REVIEW7}  A look at Almathera's latest

@{"        Aminet 15         " link REVIEW1}  A user's dream, a reviewer's nightmare

@{"        Blobz AGA         " link REVIEW5}  Ken Anderson takes a look

@{"         Bograts          " link REVIEW6}  Vulcan's new save 'em up

@{"    Horror Sensation CD   " link REVIEW2}  Gore.  Lots of it.

@{"   Sound FX Sensation CD  " link REVIEW3}  Sound.  Lots of it.

@{"  Special Effects Vol. 1  " link REVIEW4}  An attempt at a multimedia tutorial

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@{"   News   " link NEWS} @{"  Opinion  " link OPINION} @{" Articles " link FEATURE} @{"  Reviews  " link REVIEW} @{"  Charts  " link FTP} @{"  Adverts  " link COMMERCIAL}
@endnode
@node FTP "Aminet Charts"
@toc MENU

===========================================================================
                               Aminet Charts
===========================================================================

                            @{"    24-Nov-96    " link CHARTS1}

                            @{"    24-Nov-96    " link CHARTS2}

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@{"   News   " link NEWS} @{"  Opinion  " link OPINION} @{" Articles " link FEATURE} @{"  Reviews  " link REVIEW} @{"  Charts  " link FTP} @{"  Adverts  " link COMMERCIAL}
@endnode
@node ABOUT "About AMIGA REPORT"
@toc MENU

===========================================================================
                            About AMIGA REPORT
===========================================================================

@{"        AR Staff         " link STAFF} The Editors and writers

@{"   Writing Guidelines    " link GUIDELINE} What you need to do to write for us

@{"  Copyright Information  " link COPYRIGHT} The legal stuff

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@{"   News   " link NEWS} @{"  Opinion  " link OPINION} @{" Articles " link FEATURE} @{"  Reviews  " link REVIEW} @{"  Charts  " link FTP} @{"  Adverts  " link COMMERCIAL}
@endnode
@node STAFF "The Staff"
@toc ABOUT

===========================================================================
                                 The Staff
===========================================================================

               Editor:               @{" Jason Compton    " link JASON}

               Assistant Editor:     @{" Katherine Nelson " link KATIE}

               Games Editor:         @{" Ken Anderson     " link KEN}

               Contributing Editor:  @{" William Near     " link WILLIAM}

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@{"   News   " link NEWS} @{"  Opinion  " link OPINION} @{" Articles " link FEATURE} @{"  Reviews  " link REVIEW} @{"  Charts  " link FTP} @{"  Adverts  " link COMMERCIAL}
@endnode
@node WHERE "Where to Get AR"
@toc MENU

===========================================================================
                              Where to Get AR
===========================================================================

                         @{"   The AR Mailing List   " link MAILLIST}

                         @{"         Aminet          " link AMINET}

                         @{"     World Wide Web      " link WWW}

                         @{"   Distribution Sites    " link BBS}

                         @{"   Commercial Services   " link ZONE}

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@{"   News   " link NEWS} @{"  Opinion  " link OPINION} @{" Articles " link FEATURE} @{"  Reviews  " link REVIEW} @{"  Charts  " link FTP} @{"  Adverts  " link COMMERCIAL}
@endnode
@node BBS "Distribution Sites"
@toc WHERE

===========================================================================
                            Distribution BBSes
===========================================================================

                          Arranged by Continent:

                          @{"      Asia       " link BBS_ASIA}

                          @{"   Australasia   " link BBS_AUSTRALASIA}

                          @{"     Europe      " link BBS_EUROPE}

                          @{"  North America  " link BBS_NAMERICA}

                          @{"  South America  " link BBS_SAMERICA}

Sysops: To have your name added, please send @{"Email", link JASON} with the BBS name,
its location (Country, province/state) your name, any internet/fidonet
addresses, and the phone number of your BBS

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@{"   News   " link NEWS} @{"  Opinion  " link OPINION} @{" Articles " link FEATURE} @{"  Reviews  " link REVIEW} @{"  Charts  " link FTP} @{"  Adv @{"  Adverts  " link COMMERCIAL}
@endnode
@node DEALER "Dealer Directory"
@toc MENU

===========================================================================
                             Dealer Directory
===========================================================================

                          Arranged by Continent:

                          @{"      Asia       " link DEAL_ASIA}

                          @{"   Australasia   " link DEAL_AUSTRALASIA}

                          @{"     Europe      " link DEAL_EUROPE}

                          @{"  North America  " link DEAL_NAMERICA}

Dealers: To have your name added, please send @{"Email", link JASON} with the BBS name,
its location (Country, province/state) your name, any internet/fidonet
addresses, and the phone number of your dealership

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@{"   News   " link NEWS} @{"  Opinion  " link OPINION} @{" Articles " link FEATURE} @{"  Reviews  " link REVIEW} @{"  Charts  " link FTP} @{"  Adverts  " link COMMERCIAL}
@endnode
