#Books and other sources
24 messages in this thread
Help! I am a new user of the A1200. I've always wanted to have an Amiga, and
now that I have one… well, there are some things I would like some help on,
or some book et. cet I can peruse to get up to speed. Fer 'stance:
1. What the heck are gadgets, gurus, intuitions, et. cet?
2. When I get ready to quit, I find that there are applications I need to quit,
but, how do I find the darn thing, in either the CLI or WB? The 'STATUS"
command helps, but not always.
3. How much memory, beyond the 2 meg standard, can I put on-board, or
somewhere, and how mu$h can it cost me?
4. And where in Richmond, if anywhere, can I locate users?
5. I am a little disappointed that WB/OS 3.0 did not come with the
speach/speak/talk files. Can I get them still somewhere?
6. I have a battery-backed clock. But, when I start up, the default year is
2014. How can I get this to stay current (or can I). Its a DKB 1202 (I
think).
I sure do dislike admitting ignorance, but, I want to make better use of my
machine. (and no, I don't play games – yet!) Any help / advice will be sorely
appreciated. Thanks to all
John Dyer
Richmond, VA
Ok, I think I can answer most of your questions…
—
1. What the heck are gadgets, gurus, intuitions, et. cet?
Gadgets, are those things people like to play with. On the Amiga, they
are the buttons, sliders, etc. that you use the re-size windows and scroll
text or scroll files names.
Gurus, the nick-name for "system/program crashes".
When something goes wrong, and the Amiga crashes. It doesn't just
"freeze", the Amiga will *try* to give you a message about what went
wrong. Originally, when the system crashed a black screen appeared
containing a "guru meditation error" message in red box. By decoding the
message (it is numeric) you could figure out if the CPU was fed a bad
command or data, or if a support library failed.
The nickname "guru" came from a hobby that the orginial Amiga developers
engaged in — balancing (meditateing) on a joyboard. A joyboard was a
special surfboard-joystick, used for a surfing game.
Intuition, is the REAL name of the "graphic user interface". The
Workbench (and most other programs), use the information in the
"intuition.library" (stored in KickStart ROM) to draw all the boxes,
buttons, gadgets, windows, etc.
—
2. When I get ready to quit, I find that there are applications I need to
quit […]
I'm assuming your referring to the QUIT command used to kill the Workbench
"application". While the WB with not quit when something it launched is
still running, you don't really need to kill those launched programs.
You can just turn the power off.
As long as a program isn't writing to a disk, it is safe to turn the Amiga
off at any time.
—
3. How much memory, beyond the 2 meg standard, can I put on-board, or
somewhere, and how mu$h can it cost me?
The A1200 has no sockets on its motherboard for mor memory. You can add
an expansion board through the "belly slot", that can hold another 8-megs
of memory. Adding memory through the belly slot can double the speed of
the A1200, since the A1200 will no longer need to run programs in the
first 2-megs that the graphic sub-system "shares" with the CPU.
If you add an CPU/RAM expansion board with a 68030 or 68040 CPU, you can
add upto 128-megs of memory depending on the features of that expansion.
—
5. I am a little disappointed that WB/OS 3.0 did not come with the
speach/speak/talk files. Can I get them still somewhere?
The text-to-speech software that Commodore used in the past, was leased
from a third party. Commodore decided not to renew the lease for AmigaOS
2.1 & 3.0. The speech software from AmigaDOS 2.0, still works with 2.1 &
3.0, and if you could find a frien that has the 2.0 files…
You can still play music, sound, & digitized speech files using programs
like deliTracker, Sound, SSPlayer, etc. Check the Libraries.
—
6. I have a battery-backed clock. Its a DKB 1202 (I think).
If this is the board that fits in the belly slot, you have a way to add
upto 8-megs of memory using 32-bit, 72-pin SIMMs. This board uses the
same SIMMs that the A4000 uses.
If its the small daughter board that plugged into the middle of the
A1200's motherboard, you just have the clock.
The clock should be setable using the TIME preference manager found in the
PREFS drawer. Set the correct time & date, then SAVE.
Ron.
– ap'ing with AP. (Eagles may fly, but weasels aren't sucked
into jet engines.)
Thanks for the info. It's so good to get information like this, it's like a
drink of water in the heat of summer – you WANT MORE!
Okay, the clock – I have dropped 'TIME' preference in the WBStartup drawer. I
select save. Fine, then when I boot up the next time, well, you got it. Is
this something that should I have to do only once, from the shell? Or, (bulb
goes off) – if the battery on this thing is going down, would that cause the
failure (always blame the machine first!)
I'm glad that it isn't a real serious matter to shut down if there are apps
running in the background, and they aren't writing to disk. Saves me a little
frustration for other things.
Hope to see ya again, as I (clumsily) learn my away around this new universe.
John
JKD >>Okay, the clock – I have dropped 'TIME' preference in the WBStartup
drawer. I select save. […]<<
The TIME preference doesn't need to be moved to the WBStartup drawer.
Putting the TIME program in the WBStartup drawer will FORCE WB to run the
TIME preference "editor" everytime you boot or reset.
Leave the TIME pref, in the PREFS drawer. The TIME preference manager is
used only for editing the time/date setting. The IPREFS command, (already
in the Startup-sequence) will find & load the time/date from the clock.
Iprefs, also loads all the other "preferences", that you set will the
programs in prefs.
You should only have to set the time/date once from the Prefs.
Ron.
– ap'ing with AP. (Eagles may fly, but weasels aren't sucked
into jet engines.)
Ron,
just a caution, so long as there are no disk writes pending, you can
turn off the machine. I always make sure that I wait ten seconds, while
looking my disk activity light, before I turn off the machine. The
machine may not be writing, but still have a write pending, when you turn
it off. Rare, but it does happen, as I can have repeatedly verified!
"You do trust me, don't you? Of course you do."
— "To Play the King" (BBC)
Hi John! Did you get the Commodore manuals with the 1200? If not,
that's a good place to start. There is a Workbench manual, an
AmigaDOS manual, and an AREXX manual. The only beginner's book that
is still current is Denny Atkin's Best Amiga Tips and Secrets, which
has many neat ideas but is not really a tutorial. The Workbench
manual is fair on that.
2> For applications that open a screen, just click on the the upper right
corner of the screen, (a "depth gadget") and you should be able to cycle
through the running programs. You can also use Left Amiga M to do the
same. Or, you can use one of several utilities to do the same, such as
Switcher. That program, which I use, gives you a pop-up menu of all
running screens and allows you to go to any of them just my clicking on
its name.
3> You can add quite a bit of memory. I'm not sure what the limits of
the available add on boards are right now, but I'm sure you can add at
least 8 Megs of fast 32 bit memory, and probably more. The price right
now is kind of up in the air, probably 4-500.
4> Dunno, maybe someone from there will speak up?
5> Have you tried setting the date from preferences?
Good Luck, don't hesitate to ask if anything isn't clear.
-Karl Speaking from the Rubble.
Whoops, I just looked at my bookshelf, and noticed Bob Ryan's Amiga World
Official AmigaDOS 2 Companion. It is slightly out of date, (it doesn't
cover the 1200 or AmigaDOS 3.0) but has a very good explaination of what's
going on in the Amiga System.
-Karl Speaking from the Rubble.
Hi Karl! Yeah, I got the little thin manuals, multi-language Users Guide.
That's all. The dealer I got this from (in San Diego) didn't have them, and
apparently weren't part of the deal. So, do you know how I might try to get
these little jewels – perhaps from CBM?
I will look for Denny's book, or order it if need be. I did run across another
title that I snatched up this afternoon, called AmigaDos Reference Guide, 4th
ed, by Leemon.
Like I replied to Ron, I dropped the Time preference in my startup – shopuld it
go back after using it once? I shall try this, and if it doesn't work, then it
must be the battery (blame the machine first!).
Thanks again to you for your reply – and hope to see ya around.
John
Oh, yeah, that's right. The 1200s don't come with the other two manual
stock, although CBM will sell you them separately. The Leemon book will
pretty much replace the CBM AmigaDOS book, though. If you want an AREXX
manual, you can get the CBM version or get the one by Bill Hawes, the
AREXX author. He's on CIS, BTW, so you could Email him and probably get
it direct. William S. Hawes, 72230,267.
As for the time preferences- what are you doing? You don't have to move
anything, and certainly not to the WBStartup drawer. Just open the Prefs
drawer, open the time preferences program, and set the time and date.
Click on "save" at the bottom. Or do you mean that this doesn't work?
-Karl Speaking from the Rubble.
Karl –
Thanks for the info.
As for what I'm doing, … uh, well – oh geez, sometimes I just don't know. I
KNOW I have tried to do that, and it didn't seem to set it. But, I tried it
again, and it seemed to take. I changed the date to 2/15, the time was set back
12 hours. I tried then a three-fingered salute, and complete shutdown – and it
was set. I just don't understand what happened. Gremlins perhaps? Anyways,
thanks again.
John
JKD >>Yeah, I got the little thin manuals, multi-language Users Guide.
That's all.<<
The A1200 ships with only an "AGA Supplement", and the " Workbench 3.0"
(User's Guide).
There is also the "Hard Drive Upgrade Kit", containing the cable & screws
for mounting the 2.5" harddrive. It also has Commodore's HardDrive
software, and the "Amiga Hard Drive" manual describing how to use
Commodore's harddrive software. Third party HD kits, sometimes have
there own software & manuals, instead of Commodore's.
The "AS217 Documentation Pack", contains two manuals. The "AmigaDOS User's
Guide" describing the Shell/CLI commands. The second manual is
Commodore's "ARexx User's Guide". Both of these manuals cover AmigaDOS
2.1, and 3.0, allowing the kit to be used with either system.
Books like "The Arexx CookBook", and "Using ARexx on the Amiga", can be
substituted for the Commodore manual.
Ron.
– ap'ing with AP. (Eagles may fly, but weasels aren't sucked
into jet engines.)
Ronnie
Thanks for the info – and thanks to all who have been overwhelmingly helpful.
No, don't buy it!!!!
Go for the "Guru Book" from Ralph Babel. The book's first edition has
been available in German for a long time and I'm sure every serious
programmer had a copy over here in Germany. The book has now been
translated, reedited and updated. The book has ~800 pages full of
serious informatuib and costs DM79 (that's $45). It covers lot's of
things in detail you won't find in any other book.
Beside the RKM's and AutoDocs this is the book to have for
programmers!
I don't know how that book is distributed by Ralph in the US. It's
not available through normal book channels and doesn't has an ISBN.
But you surely can order from the Europran CATS distributor
"Hirsch and Wolf" (we developers can only tell good things about them)
MittelStr. 33
56564 Neuwied
Germany
Tel: ++49-2631-8399-0
Fax: ++49-2631-839931
PS: I'm in no way connected to Ralph except I know him as excellent Amiga
programmer for some years and thus can't praise is book enough…
— Wolf Faust, Am Dorfgarten 10, 60435 Frankfurt, Germany —
Sheesh, Wolf, here I've recommend your Studio Printer Drivers to about 100
people over the past year or so — not to mention writing a glowing review
of it in Amiga Resource — and you respond to a recommendation of my book
with "No, don't buy it!!!" ?? Gee….
:sniff:
Seriously, my book the Guru Book are aimed at different audiences. My book
is on using the Amiga, rather than programming it. It's something a
beginning user can find lots of info in, but also has some tidbits for the
veteran as well.
The Guru Book is great for programmers. Another _indispensible_
programming book is Mapping the Amiga, 2nd Edition, by Rhett Anderson and
Randy Thompson. (I have no connection there, other than being a friend of
Rhett's :). It's an incredibly useful reference, with looks at just about
every routine in the operating system. If you haven't seen it, it's worth
checking out.
Yep, blame it on me…
The "No, don't buy it!!!" was targeted at the general 1.3-2.04 programing
book I thought someone was talking about. Blame it on me… of course
there are totaly other subjects… so guys, buy Denny's book 😉
Regarding the ARexx books mentioned here, there are two german ARexx books
not listed in that post. Well, maybe not important to english CIS readers,
but at least for those who can speak german there are two good ARexx books
available. I personaly only know the book distributed by CompuStore
available by many mail orders. The price and the ARexx software included
is surely worth the money and even though the title is "introduction to
arexx", the book is even of interest to experienced users because of the
software included.
— Wolf Faust, Am Dorfgarten 10, 60435 Frankfurt, Germany —
As you can see from my messages, it may be a while before I'm ready to tackle
programming beyond the simplest. But, I am keeping your msg on-file for
reference. Thanks for the advice
John
As an owner of an A1200 from the recently back-ordered lot, I can
safely say that I did NOT get an ARexx book, nor did I get anything
that told me diddly about AmigaDOS (Command line). (Luckily it
hasn't changed much, so I had no problems with it.)
Yes, CBM felt that 1200 owners didn't need the other manuals. Probably
just screw things up. . .<G>
-Karl Speaking from the Rubble.
Has anyone looked through the Abacus book on ARexx? I'm seriously
considering getting it (It's the only one avalable locally), but if
it's junk… I'll get something else….
I haven't seen it. I have the CBM book, the Hawes version (I bought
AREXX before it was standard) and Merrill Callaway's The ARexx
Cookbook. The CBM and Hawes books are language definitions and are
basically interchangeable, the Cookbook is more of a tutorial on
using the language. You probably need one of each. The Cookbook is
published by Whitestone, 511-A Girard Blvd. SE, Albuquerque, NM
87106. (505) 268-0678. Both the Hawes book and the Cookbook are
nicely spiral bound, BTW, and lie flat when you're trying to use
them. <G>
Thanks, I'll look in to it. Just browsing through some scripts I've
come across, it looks really easy to use. (I've already written a
couple of goof-off scripts for Final Copy). There are, however, a
host of things that I know ARexx can do, and browsing through scripts
just won't touch the learning curve on that!
If you are referring to "Using ARexx on the Amiga" by Nick Sullivan
and Chris Zamara, published by Abacus, it is excellent. Probably the
only book from Abacus I'd buy (well, on second look, it IS the only
book from Abacus that I've purchased).
Thanks for the input… I guess I don't have to stick Waldenbooks with it when
it gets here! <g>
The Sullivan/Zamara book is pretty good. The section dealing with
application packages that are AREXX compatible is a bit dated.
Plenty of examples, hardly any errors, good indexing and
cross-referencing .. who could ask for more? –Jim