Path: utzoo!utgpu!water!watmath!clyde!rutgers!husc6!uwvax!umn-d-ub!umn-cs!ems!nis!stag!trb
From: trb@stag.UUCP ( Todd Burkey )
Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga
Subject: MIDI/GAMES/etc (was Re: Serial)
Keywords: Serial, null modem, rs-232
Message-ID: <318@stag.UUCP>
Date: 24 Jan 88 17:04:45 GMT
References: <2287@crash.cts.com> <945@polyslo.UUCP> <332@splut.UUCP> <1407@sugar.UUCP> <1901@cadovax.UUCP>
Reply-To: trb@stag.UUCP ( Todd Burkey )
Organization: Mindtools ST Access Group, Plymouth, MN
Lines: 31
Posted: Sun Jan 24 11:04:45 1988

In article <1901@cadovax.UUCP> keithd@cadovax.UUCP (Keith Doyle) writes:
>
>Except for the minor detail that MIDI is not bidirectional.  It's a one-way
>link.  But then you can do what the MIDI people do, and use one cable
>for send, and one for receive.  The Atari ST achieves a bidirectional
>link (when using it for networking) presumably by diverging from MIDI spec.

This is just a problem of semantics here. As in the Atari,  most midi
keyboards have both a midi in port and a midi out port. And some
even have a midi through port.  Most of the Amiga add-on MIDI ports
support this. It really depends on how you think of the wiring in
the cables...

One nice thing is that by FOLLOWING the MIDI spec, Atari owners are
able to use MIDI for networking. You just make a ring by going from
the midi out of one machine to the midi in of another all the way
around until you have completed the circle (just like musicians have
had to do for years now hooking up their midi instruments to
computers). It isn't the fastest net, but it is inexpensive and easy
to set up (an ethernet connection is about $150 for the ST...but then
you have to have something to hook up with.) It is plenty fast enough
for networking 10 or so computers in a friendly(?) game of Midi-Maze.

Speaking of Midi-Maze ( :-) )...has anyone heard if that is out yet
for the Amiga. Considering how competitive and noisy it gets in my
house when 8 of us ST owners get together for a shootout, I can
imagine what it will be like when I invite 8 of my Amiga owning
friends over...team play would be interesting.

  -Todd Burkey
   trb@stag.UUCP