====================================================================== ________ _________ ____ _|__ __ __|_______ _________ __\ _____ \\\\ \_ _/ //___// _____//______\ _____ \\ // \\\\ /. \\\\__ \/ __// \\ \\____. /// \\\\ /. \\ \\___\¯ /___///___\ /___\ \\_________//\\___\¯ /___// ¯ \/ ¯ ¯ \/. |¯ ¯|z!o ¯ ¯ \/ ¯ A M I G A | 050430 | U P D A T E |________| "SO THE WORLD MAY KNOW" ====================================================================== AMIGA and the Amiga logo are trademarks of Amiga, Inc. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- A M I W E S T S H A R E S A D A T E . . . . . . W I T H T H E A M I G B G S H O W ! C O O L ! A M I G A A N Y W H E R E S D K V E R . 1 . 5 N E W S T E K M A G A Z I N E I S S U E # 1 I S O U T P A G E S T R E A M O S 4 . 0 W O R K R E S T A R T N E W S F R O M G O L D E D T E A M S C U M M - Y S O F T W A R E C A N B E G O O D O N Y X S O F T A N N I V E R S A R Y A C T I V I T Y April has been a relatively quiet month, Amiga-wise. However, there are items in the planning that promise interesting times ahead. Some of these are the subject of stories in this issue. Amiwest is nearly upon us. In a show of global Amiga Community solidarity, AmiGBG will be happening at the same time. There's a new magazine for users of NewTek products, just starting publication. And the team at Grasshopper has resumed work on a version of Pagestream for OS4, certainly good news for the future. We have information for you on all these items and more. We hope you enjoy reading about them in this issue. I have of other thoughts to end this introduction with this month. There has been a lot of interest and discussion among our readers about the founding of AmiWest since the lamented death of John Zackarias. You'll note the story below lists him as co-founder, and that he's being honored during this year's show. We think that's an excellent idea and wish we could attend to add our own feelings of loss to those which will be expressed there. One thing we're certain of though. John would have wanted everyone to have a great time at AmiWest, and make it an upbeat event. I think also he'd have enjoyed the coupling of the date for AmigGBG with AmiWest and the thought of a World Wide Amiga Day. Cool idea, that! Brad Webb, Editor -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= A M I W E S T S H A R E S A D A T E . . . 10 April 2005 Announcing AmiWest 2005! AmiWest 2005 is rolling! While many others have come and gone, AmiWest is still rolling and in its eighth year. The AmiWest committee is proud to announce we are again hosting this year's show in Sacramento, California, at the Clarion Hotel Cal Expo, a member of the Choice Hotel group. Amazingly, the rates are THE SAME AS LAST YEAR and the hotel management much more accomodating, according to our SACC Vice President for AmiWest 2005 operations. The dates are July 23rd and 24th, 2005. This year's theme is "AMIGA at 20: Past, Present and Future." Our venue is our original AmiWest location with the remodel now completed. AmiWest is in it's eighth year and is the only Amiga show produced on the West Coast of the United States. The show has proved very popular for Amiga enthusiasts in the Western United States as well as attracting attenders and exhibitors world-wide. We are also honoring our recently deceased past president, life member of SACC and AmiWest co-founder, John Zacharias. Photos of John will be on display along with other information and AEmail, his fine email program for the Amiga platform. Space is available for rent to companies, clubs, organizations, and individuals producing Amiga related products and services as well as exhibiting items of interest to Amigans. We want to thank Amiga Inc. for posting this notice on their website: "23-Jul-2005 - AmiWest 2005 AmiWest, now in its eighth year, is sponsored by the Sacramento Amiga Computer Club. We are celebrating 20 years of the Amiga and honoring our recently deceased past president and life member, AmiWest co-founder John Zacharias. We will be presenting Amiga past, present and future. Visit our website and get on the mailing list (plain text only) for further details and breaking news as it happens. AmiWest 2005 is rolling!" If you know of any vendors/suppliers/anything AMIGA-related that you think belongs at this show, let us know and we will contact them. Alternatively, point them to our webpage at www.sacc.org/amiwest. This weekend event will again showcase the progress that IS the Amiga Community. That Amiga community is poised for the future and still healthy. We welcome all who will attend in peace and understanding. AmiWest 2005 will be at the Clarion Hotel Cal Expo 2600 Auburn Blvd. Sacramento California 95821 Reservations Phone 1-800-424-6423 toll-free (local 1-916-487-7600) and by snail-mail at the above address. Please watch our website at www.sacc.org/amiwest for continuing news and information regarding AmiWest 2005. We are on target for another improved show! See you there! ---------------------------------------------------------------------- . . . W I T H T H E A M I G B G S H O W ! C O O L ! 27 April, 2005 Finally! We're happy to announce that AmiGBG 2005 will take place on the 23rd of July at Lindholmen Science Park in Gothenburg, Sweden. This year we've almost trippled our staff, so can count on a memorable event. Celebrating the 20th Anniversary together with AmiWest we want this day to become a World Wide Amiga Day. We'll get back to you with more details later on. See you there! We've already got a bunch of surprises lined up. The list of exhibitors is constantlly growing, and we promise you - this year will be special. Gothenburg is spectacular this time of year, if you have the opportunity we really encurage you to take a few extra days and spend them in this beautiful city. More information will be avalible on www.amigbg.com in the coming weeks. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- A M I G A A N Y W H E R E S D K V E R . 1 . 5 April 12, 2005 - San Francisco, CA ? Amiga, Inc. today announces the launch of the new AmigaAnywhere? SDK (software development kit) version 1.5, providing increased performance, time to market and revenue opportunity for Amiga's global developer community. The new SDK combines both new features requested by existing developers, customers and users, and new services and technologies designed to extract the maximum potential from the next generation of digital devices. Furthering Amiga's unique capabilities in creating a true write-once run-anywhere cross-platform solution, this SDK introduces a raft of new multimedia technologies, such as dynamic scaling services, the LinX matrix transformation service, the PRISM descriptive UI engine, a high performance Sprite/animation solution and a comprehensive bitmap font engine. Enhanced Tools Simplify Developer Efforts In addition to multimedia enhancements, new features demanded by the growing mobile market have been added, including an abstract, device independent state persistence service, content extension to support level packs and feature enhancements, and an inverted list database for more complex data requirements. Our unique solution now allows compelling content to be deployed, not only across a wide and growing set of digital devices, but also in new ways. Whether as a player, a host transparent application, a download, pre-bundle or on a variety of physical media, the product of developer hard work will be pushed into more and more markets, greatly increasing the return on development. Developers will also benefit by the bundling of Omniscience's Adept Integrated Development Environment (IDE) with the SDK, providing a rich development experience and simplifying developer efforts to create a more sophisticated caliber of applications. Further, incorporating a vastly improved help and documentation system not only documents the Amiga Anywhere solution but also provides examples, tutorials, demo and API autodocs. The system has been designed to answer questions quickly and effectively at all levels - novice, hobbyist or professional. "AmigaAnywhere? continues to connect developers, device manufacturers, carriers and end users in the development and deployment of intensively rich applications and services," said Fleecy Moss, Vice President, Technology for Amiga. "The release of our 1.5 kit illustrates our commitment to continuous technical innovation in terms of producing a more sophisticated product, while simplifying and expediting developer efforts based on important feedback we receive from our network community and market." The AmigaAnywhere? SDK version 1.5 is available now. Developers interested in developing for the platform may contact Amiga's developer support at http://www.amiga.com/developer/interested.php and complete the online application. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- N E W S T E K M A G A Z I N E I S S U E # 1 I S O U T 22 April, 2005 Do you miss Video Toaster User, Newtekniques and or NewtekPro? Now you no longer have to! NewsTek Issue # 1 is already available* 1. What is NewsTek ? Answer: NewsTek is a Digital LifeStyle Magazine/Zine that focuses on Newtek products, the digital lifestyle and just a dash of Amiga/MorphOS. 2. When can I subscribe to NewsTek? Answer: Issue #1 is already available and subscriptions start at just $12 per year. 3. When is NewsTek published? Answer: NewsTek is published 4 times per year. 4. What is NewsTek's primary focus? Answer: The primary focus of the magazine/zine is Newtek products like VT[4], TriCaster & LightWave 3D. 5. Why does NewsTek only have 10% Amiga/MorphOS coverage. Answer: One of the goals of NewsTek is to attract former Amiga owners and or curious computer users that might be slightly interested in the current Amiga/MorphOS offerings but don't have a deep enough interest to get a pure Amiga mag. If NewsTek sparks their interest and they hunger for more they can subscribe to Total Amiga. 6. What is Digital Lifestyle? Answer: NewsTek will always have 20%-30% digital lifestyle coverage. The reason for this is to attract new readership so they can be exposed to Newtek products and a dash of Amiga/MorphOS. Digital lifestyle can be iPod, digital photo software, Macintosh, exciting new tech breakthroughs and or anything else we feel like writing about. 7. Why does NewsTek include humor at no extra charge? Answer: Many computer mags are boring and some software can be a sleeper, but the computer industry has enough personality's and bizarre news that it can also be damn funny. 8. What is on the optional bonus DVD-ROM? Answer: Animated backgrounds, previews of upcoming DiscreetFX products, DVE (Digital Video Effects) and much much more. 9. Is it true that product reviews of software from DiscreetFX always get super high marks? Answer: But of course! 10. Will this loooong FAQ ever be over? Answer: It is, for now. __________________ Bill P Founder/CEO DiscreetFX http://www.discreetfx.com ---------------------------------------------------------------------- P A G E S T R E A M O S 4 . 0 W O R K R E S T A R T 29 April, 2005 {Taken from the Pagestream website. Brad} New in PageStream 5.0!! o Alpha Blending for Text and Objects o Picture Transparency o Text Widow and Orphan Control o Definable Printer Marks o More Shortcuts o Path Reverse, Flatten and Smooth o Hanging Bullets, DropCaps and Number o New Duplicate Objects Method o Print to Bitmap Picture o and more! New in PageStream 5.0 Pro!! o Place PDF Objects o Export Objects as Bitmap o Automatically Adjust Text Width for Justification o Gradient/Radial Blend Masks for Pictures/EPS/PDF/Drawings o Path Math: Union/Add/Unique/Subtract o and more! The Windows and Linux versions are now available! The final phase of the Amiga 68k and MorphOS beta testing will begin this week! Due to internal problems, the Mac OSX version will come shortly later but those patient customers will be receive 5.0 instead of 4.1 at no additional charge. The AmigaOS4 version has been restarted now that an AmigaOne has arrived from Hyperion!! We are continually updating our products and a number of features have already been added to PageStream 5.0 in response to feedback from our customers! Feedback from our users will continue to mold this version so don't be afraid to make suggestions! PageStream is a full-featured desktop publishing program. It is suitable for all levels of publishing, from simple newsletters to color advertisements to technical books. With PageStream you can create letters, colorful schoolwork, presentations, business cards and any other type of document. Tens of thousands of people have been using PageStream for years to realize their dreams, from rubber stamps to airline livery! Deron Kazmaier was one of the first to develop a desktop publishing program. The first version of PageStream, known at the time as Publishing Partner, was released in 1986 for Atari ST computers and has been continously updated and improved since! Personal Publishing magazine was one of the first to review it and called it a "knockout program" and we are confident you will agree PageStream is better today. As further proof that PageStream has been, and will always be, the DTP program to beat, a quick look at Quark Xpress 5.0's top 20 wish list includes 11 items already implemented in PageStream4.1, and PageStream4.1 has 8 of the top 10! Contents Includes CD with full installation and online help in HTML format. Pricing At any price PageStream is a bargain, but PageStream's new low pricing is a steal. Retail price is a fraction of the other DTP applications at only $99, and the PageStream5.0 Professional package is only $149. But don't let our low prices fool you into thinking PageStream is low-end! PageStream4.1 customers can upgrade to 5.0 for only $40, PageStream4.1 Professional customers can upgrade to 5.0 Professional for only $40, and upgrade multiple copies for even less. Customers of prior versions of PageStream (4.0, 3.x, 2.x and 1.x) can upgrade for just $75. Other discounts exist. Check out our order page for more details on pricing. Users who complete our new usage and feature survey will be directed to a limited-time discount order page after completing the survey. Even if you already own the latest version of PageStream we ask that you still fill it out. Thanks! System Requirements PageStream5.0 for Amiga68k will require at least a 68020 processor with AmigaOS 3.0 or later. It will also requires at least 30MB of hard drive space and 16mb of memory available to PageStream. We recommend a 68040 or better, 24mb of memory, and a non-interlaced display. Development is nearly complete and betas are available to all who purchase it before the final version is made available. PageStream5.0 for AmigaPPC will work on any PPC system that OS4 will run on. It also requires at least 25MB of hard drive space and 20mb of memory available to PageStream. Development is nearly complete and betas are available to all who purchase it before the final version is made available. http://www.grasshopperllc.com/ ---------------------------------------------------------------------- N E W S F R O M G O L D E D T E A M 25 April, 2005 GoldED's C/C++ components have been updated for the OS4 SDK, giving AmigaOS4 developers a comfortable, integrated development environment. Features include syntax highlighting for the OS4 API, compiler integration with gcc and vbcc, a dialog to set compiler options with mouse clicks, makefile generation, context-sensitive help for the OS4 API, clickable compiler errors, quick access to the SDK's autodoc documentation and more. The OS4 SDK is included, courtesy of Hyperion Entertainment VOF http://www.hyperion-entertainment.biz/, giving all developers the opportunity to cross-compile their software for OS4 with vbcc. Screenshot: os4sdk.png http://projects.dietmar-eilert.net/images/os4sdk.jpg (courtesy of Matthew Kille; this is a customized configuration) Download: The complete C/C++ package and the required servicepack SP26 for the editor (also released today) can be downloaded here: Files page http://projects.dietmar-eilert.net/golded/files.htm 23 April, 2005 Webworld The Webworld package has been updated. Webworld is the HTML editing package for GoldED. Use it to create and check HTML documents. It provides HTML syntax highlighting, tag wizards, character set conversion, bookmarks etc. For this release, the old (Gadtools-based) user interface has been retired. Screenshot http://projects.dietmar-eilert.net/images/screenshot5.png GoldED Servicepack SP25 This is an important maintenance update for OS4 users (users of other platforms do not need to apply this service pack unless they want to upgrade Webworld, too). Download (log-in required) http://projects.dietmar-eilert.net/golded/login.htm Quick links: GoldED Forum http://projects.dietmar-eilert.net/forum/index.php Buy GoldED http://projects.dietmar-eilert.net/shop/onlineshop.htm Frequently asked questions http://projects.dietmar-eilert.net/forum/viewtopic.php?t=20 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- S C U M M - Y S O F T W A R E C A N B E G O O D 3 April, 2005 ScummVM for AmigaOS 4 was recently updated to version 0.7.1. Download link http://www.os4depot.net/?function=showfile&file=game/adventure/ scummvmos4.lha "What is ScummVM? ScummVM is a 'virtual machine' for several classic graphical point-and-click adventure games. It is designed to run: Adventure Soft's Simon the Sorcerer 1 and 2; Revolution's Beneath A Steel Sky, Broken Sword 1 and Broken Sword 2; Flight of the Amazon Queen; and games based on LucasArts' SCUMM (Script Creation Utility for Maniac Mansion) system. SCUMM is used for many games, including Monkey Island, Day of the Tentacle, Sam and Max and more. Compatibility with supported games is continually improving, so check back often." See ScummVM http://www.scummvm.org/ for more information. Have fun! ---------------------------------------------------------------------- O N Y X S O F T A N N I V E R S A R Y A C T I V I T Y 4 April, 2005 OnyxSoft http://www.onyxsoft.se/ celebrates its 10 year anniversary in Amiga software development and releases two new programs and six updates! New programs Annotate v2.1 - (OS4) The old trustworthy text editor from 1993 by Doug Bakewell has been taken over by OnyxSoft. It has been ported to OS4 and has been given a bunch of new features and a couple of bugs fixed, but this is only the beginning. UTF-8 v1.0 - (68k) This program makes it possible to type and write UTF-8 anywhere. Updated programs MPlayer-GUI v1.31 ­ (OS4) A GUI for the OS4-version of MPlayer. Added a nice image and icon by Toaks. Fixed the memory leak, added some -vo/ao modes and made a list. MultiRen v1.62 - (68k) Powerful file renamer and file comment editor and more. Minor update. Fixed a crash on exit on Classic. AllKeys v1.1 - (OS4,MOS) Hotkey tool able to handle unnamend keys such as multimedia-keys. Added a few options and a MorphOS version. DECH v1.46 - (68k) Deniil's E-Compiler Handler has got some minor enhancements to make it easier to switch between different compiler definitions/commandlines. DRemind v1.68 - (68k) The reminder program DRemind has got a small update and a crash fixed when run under OS4. TheMPegEncGUI v2.5 - (68k) Completely reworked the way the default parameters are handled! Added a bunch of settings for Lame and fixed a couple of bugs. This version was released as a beta a few month ago but I got no bug reports so I guess it's stable. Enjoy! =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- Amiga Update on the net: All back issues available at: http://www.globaldialog.com/~bandr/AU/index.html Stop by and check out our archive! Now in our 11th publication year. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Copyright 2005 by Brad Webb. Freely distributable, if not modified. ====================================================================== _ __ _ <>_ __ _ A M I G A /\\ |\ /|| || / ` /\\ A M I G A U P D A T E /__\\ | \ / || || || ___ /__\\ U P D A T E / \\_ | \/ ||_ _||_ \__// / \\_ amigaupdate@globaldialog.com ======================================================================