Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!wuarchive!uunet!mcsun!unido!fauern!faui43.informatik.uni-erlangen.de!csbrod
From: csbrod@immd4.informatik.uni-erlangen.de (Claus Brod )
Newsgroups: comp.sys.atari.st
Subject: Re: MegaSTe info
Message-ID: <1991Feb5.123429.1716@informatik.uni-erlangen.de>
Date: 5 Feb 91 12:34:29 GMT
References: <1991Feb03.062924.15318@ecst.csuchico.edu> <1991Feb3.121355.5874@marlin.jcu.edu.au> <1991Feb4.100645.23401@qut.edu.au> <1991Feb4.014940.14419@marlin.jcu.edu.au>
Organization: CSD., University of Erlangen, Germany
Lines: 55

glmwc@marlin.jcu.edu.au (Matt Crowd) writes:

>>> What's the story with 640x400x2 ? An amiga can do 640x400x16 AND even
>>> 640x400x4096, without any additional hardware.
>>
>>640*400 only in flicker mode (Interlaced)

>Anyone who uses an Amiga in 640x400 or greater has a de-interlcing card
>or runs in productivity mode, 640x400x4.

Productivity mode only comes with the A3000 which means a rather hefty
price tag for a standard 640x400 resolution.

>Try doing 1280x512x2 on an ST with NO extra hardware, it's not possible,
>it is on an amiga.

Again, this is only possible on an A3000. You're comparing apples and
oranges, i.e. Commo's top line product against Atari's new base level
product. This is not fair. (And again, 1280x512 is interlaced, isn't
it?)

>The Amiga's graphics are far superior to the ST for speed and it's a well
>known fact.

I talked to a Amiga games programmer about the Amiga blitter and he told
me a different story. You're right when it comes to raster tricks:
Doing this via the Copper chip is much faster than anything comparable
on an ST. Comparing the basic resolutions, however, especially the
ones that you need for every-day work (like 640x400) it shows that
the ST's video design eats up less processor cycles than the A2000's
video chips in comparable resolutions.

>One look at Gem on an IBM turned me off the ST for life.

You don't give up, eh? You're still comparing apples and oranges.
GEM on an ST is much faster than on any PC I've seen it running yet,
and the GEM desktop is much more functional. (And it really shines
if compared to the Workbench.)

>ps. How about multi-tasking on an ST ?? Impossible.

Nonsense. We've had cooperative multitasking since the ST saw the light
of day. I'm sure ATARI will give us something like a MultiFinder soon;
I bet we will see such a beastie this year.

To summarize: We don't question the Amiga's superiority in its field
(Desktop Video, games, animations and the like). When comparing the
Amiga and the ST series, please be fair: The MegaSTE is not the
A3000's counterpart!

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Claus Brod, Am Felsenkeller 2,			Things. Take. Time.
D-8772 Marktheidenfeld, West Germany		(Piet Hein)
csbrod@medusa.informatik.uni-erlangen.de
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