Cloanto's Amiga Forever

Presentation: Cloanto's "Amiga Forever"

Last week, Cloanto acquired from the group of owners of Amiga technology (Gateway 2000, Inc., Amiga International, Inc. and Amiga, Inc.) a license covering all Amiga operating systems from version 1.0 to version 3.0, to be published by Cloanto in a package named "Amiga Forever". (A few minor files will be missing or changed as agreed in this license, without affecting the emulation's Amiga compatibility. Certain Asian territories are excluded by the license.)

The license also covers Amiga ROMs, Amiga patents, the use of the word "Amiga" in "Amiga Forever" and "Amiga Explorer", the official "Powered by Amiga" logo, and other intellectual property and every permission required to legally publish a fully working Amiga emulator. (It must be considered that, without a proper license, emulation as well as other Amiga compatibility solutions may infringe not only on Amiga copyrights, but also on Amiga patents and trademarks.)

Amiga Forever includes "Amiga Explorer", a new Amiga-to-PC networking software developed by Cloanto. The Amiga Explorer user interface is an object-oriented extension to the Windows Desktop, where the Amiga appears as a networked computer. The Amiga and the PC can be connected via a serial (null modem) or parallel (Windows/LapLink/InterLink/Norton standard) cable. A future upgrade, expected to be available later this year (at no cost to Amiga Forever users on the Cloanto web site), will extend the networking capabilities to support TCP/IP.

Amiga Forever also includes a variety of famous old Amiga games, demos and other material of historical interest (with an exclusive, never before released, interview with the late Jay Miner, "Father of the Amiga"), plus Personal Paint and other up-to-date productivity software by Cloanto and other companies.

The Amiga operating systems, ROMs, and Amiga emulation software are preinstalled on Amiga Forever for easy use and installation. The user just needs to insert the CD-ROM in a PC, and with one mouse click a fully working Amiga will appear on the screen. The Amiga emulation software, which is based mainly on a new version of the well-known UAE software (which will continue to be freely distributable) includes for the first time drivers for Picasso 96 screen modes (up to 256 colors, as well as 16/24-bit true color modes).

The initial release of Amiga Forever is scheduled to include a CD-ROM with software for the Amiga and the other platforms, plus a floppy disk with a copy of the Amiga-side networking software (for Amiga systems with no CD-ROM drive). The exact platforms which will be supported by the emulation software, in addition to Windows NT, Windows 9x, DOS and Linux, will be defined and announced shortly. The official Amiga Forever web address http://www.cloanto.com/amiga/forever/ will allow users to obtain information and support, and to easily upgrade their software directly from the Internet.

Amiga Forever will be presented to the public on November 14, 1997, at the Computer '97 Show in Cologne.

For additional and up-to-date information, including a section on "Thoughts and Technology Behind Amiga Forever's Emulation Software", plus additional links and graphics, please visit the Amiga Forever home page at http://www.cloanto.com/amiga/forever/.

Back to News