Atari 800XL

Atari 800XL

Manufacturer

Atari, Inc. (until July 1984) Atari, Corp. (from July 1984)

Main developer

Mark Lutvak (lead), Joe Decuir ( ANTIC ), George McLeod ( GTIA ), Doug Neubauer ( POKEY ), Steve Mayer Research Lab (hardware, operating system), Regan Cheng (housing)

Sales start and new price

November 1983 for 299 US dollars November 1983 for £ 249 April 1984 for approx. 800 DM April 1984 for 3200 F (PAL) June 1984 for 3500 F (SECAM) June 1984 for 707,000 ₤

Cessation of production

November 1985 early 1990s

Main processor

6502 "Sally" @ 1.79 MHz (NTSC) 6502 "Sally" @ 1.77 MHz (PAL)

RAM ex works

64 KB DRAM

Graphics output

Various text and graphic modes 8 monochrome sprites ("Player" and "Missiles") Color selection from a palette of 256 colors

Sound output

4 tone generators (output via TV)

Scope of delivery (USA)

Computer, power supply unit, instructions, two styrofoam shells, packaging

The Atari 800XL is a home computer from the US manufacturer Atari, Inc. It is based on a variant of the 6502 microprocessor specially manufactured for Atari .

The computer is a further development of the Atari 1200XL released in the USA in March 1983 . The main electronic components were largely retained, only the visual appearance and technical details for expandability and simplification of production were revised. As a direct competitor to the Commodore 64 , Atari equipped the computer with 64 kilobytes (KB) of RAM . As with the Atari 600XL entry-level model with only 16 KB RAM, the Atari BASIC programming language is included in the computer and is available after switching on.

The device went on sale around the world at the end of 1983, accompanied by extensive advertising campaigns. In the Christmas business of 1983, the computer was not available in the requested quantities due to the delay in production, which meant that larger market shares were lost to the competition, especially the Commodore 64. After Atari was taken over by Jack Tramiel , prices were gradually reduced worldwide until the Christmas business in 1984. These made the Atari 800XL the cheapest computer in its performance class, but were unable to oust the Commodore 64 as the market leader.

After the successor series, the XE models , entered the market in early 1985, production of the Atari 800XL was continued until November 1985. With the gradual decline in North America and Western Europe that began in mid-1986, the computer experienced an unexpected revival in the Comecon countries, which - together with the XE series - culminated in market leadership there. The unexpectedly high demand led to a resumption of production in July 1988. At the end of 1992, Atari finally stopped supporting and thus also manufacturing its 8-bit computers.

Shortly after publication, the trade press praised the appealing exterior, the good workmanship, the built-in Atari BASIC and the large range of peripheral devices and programs.

history

• 

  Atari 400
• 

  Atari 800
• 

  Atari 1200XL
• 

  Atari 600XL

After the Atari 400 and Atari 800 home computers, which had been produced since 1979, no longer corresponded to contemporary tastes and the successor model Atari 1200XL had proven to be a flop, in 1983 contemporary and inexpensive devices were to lead Atari out of the economic crisis. In the segment of high-quality home computers in particular, it was hoped to be able to compete with Commodore International and the Commodore 64 .

development

Atari provided a computer that was compatible with its predecessor models in the design of the Atari 1200XL, but without its defects and supplemented with expansion options. In view of the market situation at the time, two different technical configurations were planned. The entry-level model with 16 KB RAM - the later Atari 600XL - was intended to compete with the Commodore VC 20 and Sinclair ZX Spectrum ; the higher-quality variant with modern 64 KB RAM aimed at market shares of the successful Commodore 64. The in-house development projects called “Surely” and “Surely Plus” were mainly based on the remaining capacities and staff of the “Liz” project, from which the Atari 1200XL had previously been had emerged.

Project "Surely Plus"

Work on the higher-quality equipment variant of the new XL computers began in March 1983. The basis was the system architecture of the predecessor models with the special components ANTIC , GTIA and POKEY as well as a special variant of the 6502 microprocessor, already known in the Atari under the name "SALLY" 1200XL was used. The technical innovations include the integration of the Atari BASIC programming language into the computer and the addition of a connection option for extensions.

Renaming to Atari 800XL, introduction, delayed start of production

• 

  Presentation at the Summer CES 1983

Atari presented the computer, henceforth Atari 800XL , together with new peripherals for the first time at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES), which took place in Chicago in early June 1983 . Atari's specially invited representatives of the largest national user groups were given the opportunity to assess the new devices when they were presented at the CES. By including future users, Atari hoped to be able to uncover any weaknesses before production began. This should avoid a failure like the previous Atari 1200XL.

A little later, the approval for electromagnetic compatibility by the US Federal Communications Commission (FCC) took place - a key requirement for the device to be sold in the USA. In the meantime, the development work to adapt the computer to the various television standards had also been completed. Corresponding PAL devices, for example, were presented at the international radio exhibition in Berlin in late summer 1983 . The transfer of the computers to production in Hong Kong took place after a change in Atari's top management with a one-month delay, as was the manufacture of the devices intended for the European market in Ireland .

marketing

• 

  Alan Alda (2008)

The manufacturer praised its Atari 800XL as a powerful and user-friendly device mainly for computer beginners ("We made them smart enough to know you're only human", "Discover what you and Atari can do") and small users, for training purposes and for playing ( "You'll do more with Atari homecomputers", "The 800XL: power enough for over 2,000 programs"). For this purpose, large-format newspaper advertisements and advertising films for television were used. The American actor Alan Alda, who was presented as the official advertising medium at the CES in June 1983, played a key role in this . Its five-year engagement, which cost around five million US dollars , was preceded by extensive market research measures on the part of Atari.

Market launch and delivery difficulties

The Atari 800XL went on sale in both North America and the UK in late November 1983. The suggested retail price in the US was $ 299 and the UK was £ 249 . Due to the initial production delays, even with the help of expensive air freight imports, only 60 percent of the pre-ordered devices could be delivered by Christmas in North America. The entire annual production of the Atari 600XL and 800XL - around 400,000 units - had sold out by the end of the year. Probably because of the general delivery bottlenecks, the Atari 800XL did not go on sale in France and West Germany until April 1984 in significant numbers; the price of this PAL version was 3200 francs or around 800 German marks (DM). A variant specially made for the French SECAM television standard was available from June for 3500 francs. In Italy , the calculator probably only went on sale at this point and then at a price of 707,000 lira .

Price increase and Olympic sponsorship

Beginning in 1984, Atari increased the wholesale prices of its new XL computers in North America by $ 40. This was done on the grounds that from now on only selling at cost-covering levels and wanting to end the ruinous price war in the home computer industry. In addition to private households, marketing efforts are now increasingly directed at educational institutions such as schools. In the summer of 1984, Atari participated as a sponsor for home computers at the Olympic Games in Los Angeles . The Atari 800XL then advanced to become the "Official Home Computer of the 1984 Olympics", which was intended to suggest a certain reputation for the devices to potential buyers. In addition, Atari concluded contracts for extensive television advertising in order to be able to reach other potential interested parties.

After Jack Tramiel's takeover of Atari and first discounts

• 

  Jack Tramiel (2007)

Shortly after Jack Tramiel's takeover of Atari by Jack Tramiel in July 1984, which was completely unexpected for the entire computer industry , there was initially uncertainty about the continuation of Atari's XL product line. Tramiel's plans for the future, published shortly thereafter, only provided for the discontinuation of the Atari 600XL, which had been considered unprofitable for a long time anyway. Acquired inventories of the Atari 800XL with a volume of around 100,000 devices and optimizations in the manufacturing process carried out from August 1984 - the monthly production output of the Atari 800XL thus reached around 150,000 devices - shortly afterwards led to the significant price discounts already expected by the specialist press.

"Power without the Price" and "Marketing for the Masses"

From November 1984, further price reductions followed in Europe under the Tramiel slogan “Power without the Price”. The pre-Christmas price slide that followed shortly afterwards to 120 US dollars or 130 British pounds, the retail price of the competing model Sinclair ZX Spectrum, initially gave rise to speculation about a sell-off in favor of new computer models. The rumors were mainly fed by hints at Atari, which became known at the end of September, about a technically and visually refreshed successor to the Atari 800XL. The company management immediately denied it and stated that the aggressive pricing policy had become possible mainly due to further optimizations in the manufacturing process that had been made in the meantime. They also expressly confirmed the continuation of production. The price war sparked by Atari - the price also fell in West Germany in December 1984 from around DM 650 to DM 500   - aimed primarily at the market shares of the direct competitor and market leader, the Commodore 64.

As part of the marketing concept, also referred to by Jack Tramiel as "Marketing for the masses", and its competitive prices, more bundled offers came into the European trade. The British department store chain Laskys, for example, offered the Starter Pak consisting of a computer, Atari 1010 data recorder, joystick, instruction material and software from December at a price of 170 British pounds. This made the Atari 800XL one of the cheapest computers in its performance class at the end of 1984; Competitive models such as the Commodore 64 and the MSX computers were significantly more expensive. In 1984 Atari managed to sell around 600,000 copies of the Atari 800XL worldwide and to rise to the ranks of the three most popular school computers in American schools. What did not succeed, however, was the displacement of the Commodore 64: around four times as many copies of the international market leader found their buyers in the same period.

Further discounts after the presentation of the XE series, bundled offers

At the beginning of 1985, Atari presented its latest generation of computers in the form of the Atari ST series at the CES in Las Vegas . In addition, Atari had also given its 8-bit home computers, as announced in September of the previous year, a makeover. The new devices had a contemporary housing and improved technology - the FREDDY memory management module , originally intended for the Atari 800XL , was now used. Initially, only the Atari 130XE, with its 128 KB RAM, was supposed to go on sale as a supplement to the Atari 800XL with only 64 KB RAM.

With the appearance of the Atari 130XE in the USA in February 1985, the price of the Atari 800XL was further reduced - the pure manufacturing costs had meanwhile been reduced to 80 US dollars - in Great Britain for example to just under 100 British pounds. Shortly thereafter, Atari stepped up its efforts to make floppy disk drives attractive to newcomers in particular through inexpensive complete offers, for example in the form of the Personal Computer Pack with computer, Atari 1050 floppy disk drive and programs for around £ 250. No such bundled offers are known for West Germany, but by mid-1985 at least 100,000 units of the two models Atari 600XL (in stock) and 800XL were sold together.

To boost sales in Great Britain, From August 1985, Atari granted educational institutions discounts of up to 25 percent on the suggested retail price. The Atari LOGO System bundled offer with the entry-level programming language Logo was specially created for schools in order to break the supremacy of Acorn's BBC Micro computer in state educational institutions. Atari achieved great success in September 1985 in the Netherlands , where the Atari 800XL was chosen as the official school computer. In addition to the purchases made by the educational institutions themselves, Atari hoped that schoolchildren and students would fall back on what was already known and trusted from school - an Atari computer - in the context of later private purchases and thus sales of around 100,000 computers would follow in the Netherlands alone .

Sale in the west

Dixons branch in Sheffield.

After Atari announced the cessation of production of the Atari 800XL in November 1985, the department store chain Dixons took over the marketing of remaining stocks in Great Britain. The bundle offers that Dixons then launched in time for the Christmas business marked further rock-bottom prices in the home computer business: An Atari 800XL was now available together with the Atari 1050 floppy disk drive, a software package and a joystick for around £ 170. By Christmas, 100,000 computers could probably be sold in Great Britain alone. In the US, the Atari 800XL was available for a similarly low price - under $ 100 - during the holiday season. In West Germany, prices between 200 and 250 DM also led to increased sales, but the market share of the Atari 800XL in 1985 did not reach more than six percent - that of the undisputed German market leader Commodore 64, on the other hand, was almost 40 percent; Also far behind were the Schneider CPC 464 with around 15 percent and the Sinclair ZX Spectrum with a little over nine percent.

The last larger quantities of the Atari 800XL had been sold in Great Britain by February 1986. In West Germany, on the other hand, stocks lasted until the second quarter of 1987, although around 92,000 computers were bought the year before. As the successor to the Atari 800XL, the Atari 65XE, which had previously been sold in Canada , hit stores in North America and Great Britain from 1986 . In Germany, the successor appeared in October in the form of the Atari 800XE, identical to the Atari 65XE, at a price of a little under 200 DM. Due to the sales, the user base for Atari's 8-bit computers in Great Britain alone had grown to around 300,000 active users by mid-1986 in North America due to Christmas sales the year before to more than one million.

Market leadership in the Eastern Bloc

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With the relaxation of the export restrictions for high-tech goods at the end of 1984, the Atari 800XL was also exported to many Eastern Bloc countries from 1985 onwards . There the computers and accessories were available from state trade organizations, but only in exchange for foreign currency . In the German Democratic Republic that was the Forum Außenhandelsgesellschaft with its Intershop retail network and the means of payment for forum checks equivalent to the Deutsche Mark . In Poland, sales took place in Pewex branches. The first two batches of 5,500 Atari 800XL and accessories ordered by Pewex in 1985 found their customers within a few days. For black market rate in the national currency zloty converted, costing an Atari 800XL with data recorder Atari 1010 first 150,000 zloty and about the annual salary of a university lecturer in Poland. After the opening of trade by the Polish government and the expansion of imports, the price fell to the equivalent of 120,000–130,000 zlotys. Because of this comparatively low price, the Atari computers soon displaced the Sinclair ZX Spectrum, which had previously often been procured through private imports, as the most widely used computer in Poland and thus rose to become the market leader. In Czechoslovakia , Tuzex stores offered Atari computers for sale, also for a corresponding substitute currency.

As a result of the rapidly growing demand, around 100,000 Atari 8-bit computers went to the Eastern Bloc in 1987 alone, 4,600 of them to the GDR - the Atari 800XL was the first officially imported western home computer there as early as 1985 - and 10,500 to the ČSSR. In these two countries, Ataris XL and XE computers also rose to become market leaders in the course of 1987. At the Leipzig spring fair in 1990, the manufacturer estimated that a total of around 100,000 Atari computers of various series had been sold in the GDR via the Forum Außenhandelsgesellschaft. There were also other devices that found their way to users through private imports or donations from well-meaning “West relatives” through Genex , a GDR gift service.

Comeback in the west

In West Germany, too, sales had risen sharply again - by July 1988, Ataris said it had sold around 500,000 devices there since its market launch. In order to satisfy the great demand, which could not be covered by Atari's XE series alone, Atari's own announcement immediately resumed production in July 1988. The newly manufactured Atari 800XL were henceforth available together with the Atari XC12 data recorder for just under 200 DM.

Modern replicas

The manageable architecture of the system and extensive documentation from the manufacturer enable the miniaturized replica of the electronics of the Atari 800XL and compatible models with today's technical means with at the same time manageable effort. Such a modern realization took place for the first time in 2014 - as with other home computer systems - as an implementation on a programmable logic circuit ( FPGA ) together with an embedding system . The replication using FPGA technology was initially only intended as a technical feasibility study, but later also demonstrated its practical benefit: Due to the miniaturization and the possibility of battery operation, it is an easily stowable, reliable and transportable alternative to the original, gentle technology.

Technical specifications

In the housing of the Atari 800XL, a single circuit board contains all electronic components, the peripheral connections and the external system bus for expansions.

Computer motherboard. Hover over the individual components with the mouse pointer to identify them and click for further information.

Main processor

The Atari 800XL is based on a variant of the 8-bit - microprocessor MOS 6502 , which was often used in contemporary computers. In contrast to the previous Atari 400 and 800 models, the Atari 800XL uses a special variant of the 6502 called Sally , which helped to significantly reduce the number of electronic components in the computer. The CPU can access an address space of 65536 bytes , which also defines the theoretically possible upper limit of the main memory of 64 kilobytes (KB). The system clock for PAL devices is 1.77  MHz , for those with NTSC output it is 1.79 MHz.

Special modules for generating graphics and sound

The three special components developed by Atari, Alphanumeric Television Interface Controller ( ANTIC ), Graphic Television Interface Adapter ( GTIA ) and Potentiometer And Keyboard Integrated Circuit ( POKEY ) are an essential part of the computer architecture . They are functionally designed in such a way that they can be used flexibly within their area of ​​responsibility and at the same time relieve the CPU.

Mixing of two different graphic modes (large and normal text) with the aid of a raster line interrupt .

The two graphic modules ANTIC and GTIA generate the image displayed on the television or monitor. For this purpose, the operating system or the user must first store the corresponding data in the main memory in the form of the "display list". The GTIA allows, among other things, the integration of a maximum of eight independent, but each monochrome graphic objects, the sprites. These objects, also called “players” and “missiles” in Atari jargon, are copied into the background image generated by the ANTIC according to user-definable overlapping rules and subjected to a collision check. It is determined whether the sprites touch each other or certain parts of the background image ("playfield"). These abilities were developed - as already indicated by the names "Playfield", "Player" and "Missiles" - for the simplified creation of games with interacting graphic objects and fast game play. The capabilities of the two special components ANTIC and GTIA combined give the display options of the Atari computers a flexibility unmatched by other home computers at the time. Further electronic components are combined in the third special module POKEY. These essentially concern the sound generation for each of the four sound channels, the keyboard query and the operation of the serial interface Serial Input Output (SIO) for the communication of the computer with the corresponding peripheral devices.

Thanks to the highly integrated design ( LSI ), the special modules combine many electronic components and thereby reduce the number of components required in the computer, which in turn results in significant cost and space savings. Not least because their construction plans were never published, they could not be copied economically with the technology at the time, which meant that the illegal replica of computers for the Atari 800XL, which was quite common in the home computer industry, could be excluded.

Overview of the graphics levels provided by the Atari 800XL operating system

Graphics level	Display type	Resolution (pixels)	Colours	Memory requirement (bytes)
0	normal text	40 × 24	2	992
1	Large text	20 × 24	5	672
2		20 × 12	5	420
3	Dot graphics	40 × 24	4th	432
4th		80 × 48	2	696
5			4th	1176
6th		160 × 96	2	2184
7th			4th	8138
8th		320 × 192	2
9	GTIA modes	80 × 192	16
10			9
11			16
12	Text (character set)	40 × 24	5	1152
13		40 × 12	5	660
14th	Dot graphics	160 × 192	2	4296
15th			4th	8138

Storage and storage allocation

The address space accessible by the CPU and ANTIC is segmented in the Atari 800XL into different sections of different sizes. For practical reasons, it is common for their addresses instead of decimal notation , the hexadecimal to use. It is usually preceded by a $ symbol to make it easier to distinguish. The addresses from 0 to 65535 in decimal notation correspond to addresses $ 0000 to $ FFFF in the hexadecimal system.

The range from $ 0000 to $ BFFF is primarily intended for memory. This cannot be fully used by the user, because the operating system provides the variables required for ongoing operation in almost the entire range from $ 0000 to $ 06FF. If the self-test is activated, the associated program routines are copied from the read-only memory into the address block from $ 5000 to $ 57FF. When the module with 8 KB read-only memory is inserted, its content is displayed in the area from $ A000 to $ BFFF instead of the BASIC otherwise located there. If the plug-in module has 16 KB of read-only memory, the content ranges from $ 8000 to $ BFFF. The operating system joins at $ C000. The addresses of the special modules ANTIC, GTIA, POKEY and other hardware components are located within a segment called input / output block ranging from $ D000 to $ D7FF . The remaining components of the operating system and the drivers of the devices connected via the parallel interface are accommodated from $ D800 to the upper memory limit $ FFFF. By switching off the operating system and BASIC, memory banks with working memory can be faded in instead, so that a maximum of 62 KB can be used.

After switching on the computer, the CPU reads the contents of the ROM blocks with the operating system, first checks the module slot and, if necessary, starts the program on it. If no module is available, the status of the function keys Option and Start is queried in the next step . The pressed Option key causes the operating system to deactivate the built-in BASIC of the computer and instead load an executable program from a connected floppy disk drive. If the start button is pressed at the same time while switching on, an executable program is loaded from the connected data recorder. If neither of the two function keys mentioned is active, the computer starts the built-in BASIC and reports with a blinking cursor that it is ready to enter commands.

Interfaces for input and output

Two controller sockets on the right side of the housing serve as connections to the outside world, a slot for the exclusive use of ROM plug-in modules on the top, a coaxial RF antenna connection for the television and a socket for the proprietary serial interface ( Serial Input Output , SIO for short ) on the back side. The latter is used to operate appropriately equipped “intelligent” peripheral devices, using a transmission protocol and connector system specially developed by Atari for this purpose . Printers, floppy drives and other devices with looped-through SIO sockets can be connected in a " chain " manner with just one type of cable . In addition, in contrast to the Atari 1200XL, the Atari 800XL has a parallel expansion interface, the connection of which is built into the rear of the housing. This system bus brought out allows, for example, the operation of an external component carrier such as the Atari 1090 expansion box , which, however, never went on sale.

To identify the individual components / connections, hover over them with the mouse pointer and click for further information if necessary.

Peripherals

The Atari 800XL basically works with all peripheral devices published by Atari for its 8-bit computers. The following section mainly deals with the commercial products available from Atari in the XL design until 1989.

Mass storage

→ Main article : Mass storage for Atari 400 and 800 , XL  and XE

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  Compact cassette
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  5¼ ″ floppy disk

In connection with mainly western home computers from the 1980s, cassette recorders and floppy disk drives were mainly used for data backup , while hard and removable disk drives were increasingly used in the professional environment for personal computers . The cheapest variant of data recording using compact cassettes generally has the disadvantage of lower data transfer rates and thus long loading times, whereas the much faster and more reliable floppy and disk drives were much more expensive to purchase. When the Atari 800XL was released, it had program recorders as well as diskette systems such as the Atari 1050 floppy and a little later also hard disk systems as mass storage devices. The hard drive systems from Corvus that are still suitable for operation with the Atari 800 cannot be used due to some of the connections that are no longer available on the 800XL.

Cassette systems

In contrast to other contemporary home computers such as the Tandy TRS-80 or the Sinclair ZX81 , the Atari 800XL cannot be operated with standard cassette recorders to store data ex works . Rather, he needs a device that is matched to his serial interface - the Atari 1010 program recorder . The average data transfer rate is 600  bit / s; 50 KB of data can be stored on a 30-minute cassette . The device has a stereo - head , which in parallel with the reading process as playing music or spoken instructions for use is possible. In order to save costs and space, no loudspeaker was built into the program recorder; the audio signals are instead output on the television using the special POKEY module.

To accelerate data transfer, Rambit was launched in Great Britain at the end of 1986, a commercial hardware solution and corresponding control software for just under 20 British pounds. After the soldering installation of a board already assembled by the manufacturer and the use of a converter program that was also supplied, the modified Atari 1010 program recorder was able to load data at rates of 3300 to 3600 bit / s.

Floppy disk systems

With the introduction of the Atari 800XL, a specially designed floppy disk drive was also available, the Atari 1050 floppy station . - with the Atari 1050 disk drive 5¼ "can diskettes are described on one side, let bringing store up to 127 KB of data. The DOS 2.0s floppy operating system originally supplied with the drive only supports single density . This means that 88 KB of data can be stored on one side of the disk, with a sector containing 128 bytes. In mid-1984 it was replaced by DOS 3.0, which supports the Atari-specific Enhanced Density operating mode . Unlike double-density (English double density ) is increased per track, leading to the not the number of bytes per sector, but the number of sectors proprietary leading storage capacity of 127 KB. Mainly the incompatibility of DOS 3.0 to its predecessor version DOS 2.0s finally led to the publication of the in many ways improved DOS 2.5 in 1985. The Atari 1050 floppy disk drive cost about $ 450 in mid-1984.

Along with the appearance of the 800XL, a large number of Atari-compatible floppy disk drives from various third-party manufacturers were available, almost all of which worked with 5¼ "floppy disks, but double density. These included Percom devices, the Rana 1000 for $ 400 and the Astra 1620 dual drive for $ 600. In the course of 1984, further high-performance floppy drives were added: the Percom AT-88 for 420 US dollars, the Trak AT-D2 for 500 US dollars, the Trak AT-D4 , which is suitable for double-sided writing from floppy disks, and the Indus GT for 500 Dollar. The Amek AMDC I for US $ 550 and the Amek AMDC II dual drive for US $ 760, both based on 3 ″ floppy disks that were rarely used at the time, were special . In addition to connection and documentation material, many of the third-party drives also contained a floppy operating system such as SmartDOS or DOS XL .

In the course of 1985 the acquisition costs for floppy drives fell, sales increased and an increasing number of extensions for the Atari 1050 drive were brought onto the market. This made it possible to shorten the access times of Ataris 1050 to the diskette data and to increase the storage capacity by doubling the write density per diskette side to 180 KB. The best known of these so-called floppy speeders include US doublers , Happy Enhancement 1050 , Super Archiver I & II with or without BitWriter and also some German products such as High Speed ​​1050 from Irata-Verlag, 1050 Turbo from Gerhard Engl and various versions of the Speedy 1050 from the Compy Shop. The scope of delivery of these modifications always included corresponding software such as SpartaDOS , WarpDOS or BiboDOS . At the beginning of the 1990s, due to a lack of Atari drives, various self-made small series were added, such as the Floppy 2000 I and II from Klaus Peters Elektronik and Polish manufacturers such as California Access CA-2001 and TOMS 720 .

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• 
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Hard drive systems

From the beginning of 1986, third-party manufacturers brought hard drive systems and the necessary software for the Atari 800XL onto the market. One of the earliest providers is the Supra Corporation with its Supra Drive . The connection is made via the parallel bus, the expansion interface of the computer. With the help of the supplied system programs such as MyDOS , the 10 MB storage space of the drive can be used in a variety of ways. The short access times compared to normal floppy drives and the high data transfer rates were reflected in a relatively high price: when it was released in early 1986, the Supra Drive was around four times as expensive as the Atari 1050 floppy drive at the beginning of 1986 The added BTL Hard Disk System also has a storage capacity of 10 MB, but the user could expand it up to 128 MB. It also came with MyDOS and cost about $ 600 when it was launched. Another device, but with a capacity of 20 MB and the SpartaDOS software to manage it, was introduced by ICD Inc. in 1987 under the name FA-ST for around 700 US dollars. In 1989, hard disk systems from Computer Software Services with capacities from 5 to 80 MB were added, all of which are based on the universal expansion The Black Box! based. Prices ranged from $ 400 (10 MB) to just under $ 900 (80 MB).

Due to problems with the transfer of copy-protected programs to the hard drives and in view of the high price, such systems were hardly used by the majority of Atari owners. They were mainly used by operators of memory-intensive mailboxes and by professional program developers.

Output devices

Imaging devices

The image output of the Atari 800XL can take place via the built-in HF modulator on a standard television set. Special monitors, on the other hand, enable better image quality. In May 1985, for example, more than 15 different monochrome monitors were available for the Atari 800XL in West Germany, each of which was priced below DM 500  . Of the more expensive color monitors, the German user could choose from eight different models with prices of less than 1500 DM at the same time. A monitor produced by Atari especially for the XL model series does not exist.

printer

→ Main article : Printers for Atari 400 and 800 , XL  and XE

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  Atari 1027
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  Atari 1020

Various printers, both from Atari and from third-party manufacturers, are used to fix text and graphics in writing. With the appearance of the Atari 800XL, Atari offered the four-color plotter Atari 1020 for 299 US dollars, the needle-based printer Atari 1025 and the ball-headed Atari 1027 pen model . If, on the other hand, the user wanted to connect one of the often more powerful printers from third-party manufacturers, this required the use of an additional device, a printer interface . Connected to Ataris SIO socket, these standard interfaces such as RS-232 or Centronics and connection sockets are available. The first devices appeared in 1984, with which type wheel printers such as the Transstar 120 , inkjet printers such as the Hewlett-Packard Thinkjet and dot matrix printers such as the Gemini 10X could be used. In addition to the monochrome printers, it was also possible to use more expensive color-capable thermal printers such as the Okimate 10 released in 1985 and the needle-based color model Seikosha GP-700A . In addition to the printer interface, the printers require special programs, the device drivers .

In September 1985, Ataris 1029 was added, a somewhat more powerful needle-based model, which now also enables graphics to be output. As early as 1986, according to a survey by the computer magazine Antic Magazine, printers from other manufacturers had largely displaced the aging models from Atari in favor of the Gemini 10X , Star SG-10 and various models from Epson . The selection of printers that can be used with the Atari 800XL also in the following years primarily depended on the availability of the appropriate interfaces and the device drivers required for operation. Compatibility with Epson printers was often a prerequisite.

Others

There are plenty of output options from third-party manufacturers, such as The Voicebox and The Voicebox II from The Alien Group, which are intended for voice output, and the Voice Master from Covox, which was added in 1986 , but also, for example, 3-D glasses that you can assemble yourself for viewing stereographic content on TV and a programmable robot gripper arm.

Input devices

→ Main article : Atari input devices

Atari 800XL with closed module slot flap. To identify the individual components, hover over them with the mouse pointer and, if necessary, click on them for further information.

Keyboard, mouse, trackball and joysticks

The typewriter keyboard of the Atari 800XL contains a total of 56 individual keys, one space and four function keys. The computer can alternatively be operated using a mouse, with programs that have been matched to this, such as desktop publishing or painting programs, being a prerequisite. Trakballs, paddle controllers and joysticks from various manufacturers are also available, with joysticks mainly used to control games.

Graphics tablets

Graphic tablets quickly established themselves for more convenient operation of painting programs in particular , which use a touch-sensitive surface to determine the position of the supplied paint pen (stylus) and to generate the desired actions on the screen using the appropriate software. In contrast to drawing programs that are based on joystick inputs, graphics tablets allow faster and thus more efficient work, especially when creating images. Among those available for the Atari XL computers in late 1984 were the Atari Touch Tablet for about $ 90, Koala Technologies' Koala Touch Tablet for about $ 125, and Chalk Board's Power Pad . The use of graphics tablets requires suitable graphics programs such as Micro Illustrator . After the sale of the Touch Tablet and Koala Touch Tablet had been discontinued, the company Suncom offered the Animation Station from 1987 onwards at a price of around 90 US dollars.

Light pens

An alternative to entering graphic data using a joystick or graphic tablet is the use of a light pen . This device can be used to draw directly on the screen or to operate a program. The functionality of the light pens is based on the determination of the position of the electron beam of an image output device and is therefore limited to devices based on cathode tubes . From autumn 1984, light pens from four different manufacturers were available: the Light Pen from Atari for just under 100 US dollars, the Edumate Light Pen from Futurehouse for around 35 US dollars, the Tech Scetch Light Pen in different versions from 40 US dollars and the Mc Pen from Madison Computer for $ 49. The scope of delivery included software in each case, whereby the Atari Graphics paint program supplied by Atari on a plug-in module was rated as the most powerful.

Remote data transmission (EDI)

In addition to exchangeable storage media such as cassettes and floppy disks, there are various other options for exchanging data between computers, including different types. A distinction is made between wired and wireless transmission of data. If a direct connection via a continuous cable (e.g. the popular SIO-2-PC solution ) is not required due to the large physical distance between the devices , the transmission can also take place via a telephone or radio network. In the 1980s, however, their technical structure was not suitable for the direct transmission of digital data; rather, these had to be recoded into transmittable analog signals beforehand and then decoded into digital data when received. These tasks of modulating and demodulating were reserved for special devices, the modems . In addition, many modems, especially those from third-party manufacturers, have an additional interface unit, often called a modem interface , for operation .

When choosing a modem, legal aspects such as approval by the German Federal Post Office played a major role, especially in West Germany. For example, the Atari 830 , Atari 835 and Atari 1030 modems, which appeared in North America, were not allowed to operate due to the lack of postal approval.

Acoustic coupler

Until the mid-1980s, acoustic couplers were among the cheapest modems that could also be operated with public telephones . However, they were slow and unreliable in data transmission, since the exclusively acoustic signal transmission via the telephone receiver could easily be disturbed by extraneous noises. For the North American users of the Atari 800XL, such a device was available with the Atari 830 modem with a transfer rate of 300 baud. In addition, a large number of third-party manufacturers offered similar devices. In West Germany, for example, the Ascom modem, which was sold and approved by post by Dynamics Marketing GmbH, was available in mid-1985 .

Direct modems

With this type of modem, the data is electrically coupled directly into the telephone line, without the error-prone detour via the telephone receiver.

The Atari 1030 modem provided by Atari for the XL series transmits data at a rate of 300 bit / s. Compared to models from third-party manufacturers, the memory requirements on the computer are low, so that it could also be used with an Atari 600XL with only 16 KB of RAM and without a floppy disk drive. With a purchase price of just under 60 US dollars, the Atari 1030 modem was one of the cheapest available for Atari computers at the end of 1985. Hayes Smartmodem , Signalman Express and Ataris SX-212 were also powerful, but also more expensive devices that allowed transfer rates of up to 2400 bit / s. In West Germany, for example, these were only usable towards the end of the 1980s, as there were hardly any mailboxes for even 1200 bit / s at the beginning of 1986 .

Radio modems

These devices, which are very popular in the amateur radio sector, do not establish a connection with a specific target point: Rather, the data is fed into a radio device and then emitted as radio waves that anyone can receive and use with the appropriate technology. They are therefore particularly suitable for the simultaneous distribution of data to many recipients. In many cases, technical measures have made it possible to considerably increase the limited range and thus install regular networks. The transmission speed was comparatively low at 300 baud , but it was often more than offset by the low operating costs. In contrast to telephone-based transmission methods, there were hardly any charges, which in the mid-1980s could be considerable , especially for long-distance calls . The commercial devices available for the Atari 800XL at the end of 1985 include modems from the US manufacturer Kantronics such as Kantronics Interface II and products from Macrotronics such as RM 1000 .

Extensions

To increase its performance, the Atari 800XL was provided with a wide range of extensions, which can essentially be divided into two groups: Installation solutions - often combined with soldering work on the circuit board - and those that can only be operated via the interface sockets provided by the computer (extension and module slot , Joystick connections, SIO). The advantage of the second group was that the computer did not have to be opened and therefore the guarantee did not expire. In the following, only commercial solutions are presented, which were also the subject of assessment by the contemporary specialist press, i. H. were also noticed by the general public.

random access memory

Some memory expansions available for the Atari 800XL require opening the computer case in order to be installed, while others are operated via the expansion interface. With the additional memory retrofitted in this way and the corresponding software, virtual floppy disk drives (RAM disks) or data buffers for printers ( printer spoolers ) were often implemented. So that the data stored in a RAM disk is not lost when the computer is switched off, some of the expansions have a battery backup or their own power supply. The Atari 1064 memory add-on to be connected to the expansion slot of the Atari 600XL cannot be used to upgrade the Atari 800XL due to its design.

The best-known extensions include Rambo XL with 256 KB RAM from the US manufacturer ICD, Newell 256 KB , Ramcharger from Magna Systems with up to 1 MB RAM and especially in West Germany the 256 KB addition from the Compy Shop. The multifunctional expansion ICD Multi I / O Board offered by ICD from the end of 1986 could optionally be equipped with 256 KB or 1 MB RAM.

Interface units

The data exchange between the Atari 800XL and, for example, the Atari 1050 floppy disk drive takes place with the help of transfer rules that did not comply with the standards commonly used at the time, such as B. RS-232 compatible. If RS-232 or Centronics compatible devices are to be controlled, a corresponding converter must be interposed. These interface units (English Interface Boxes ) often consist of a combination of hardware and integrated software, in some cases they are equipped with additional working memory for the intermediate storage of printer data.

At the end of 1984, various converters were already available for connecting Centronics printers, including e.g. B. MPP-1150 Printer Interface from Microbits Peripheral Products and Ape-Face from Digital Devices Corporation for just under $ 100. Other much more expensive devices also had up to 512 KB of RAM in order to be able to temporarily store larger print data and thus to relieve the computer. In West Germany, a variant with two different interfaces, RS-232 and Centronics, was also available from 1985 with the 850XL Interface Box . Further devices with improved technical characteristics were added later, including ICD products such as the ICD Multi I / O Board and the P: R: Connection Box, but also The Black Box! Computer software services are to be counted.

80-character representation (hardware)

The 80-character extensions produced for the Atari 800XL serve for a clearer and less tiring display of the image content. Due to the high horizontal resolution of 560 pixels, these are not suitable for use with a television set, but require appropriate computer monitors. Well-known solutions include ACE80XL from TNT-Computing and the Multi I / O Board developed by ICD with a retrofitted 80-character card.

System modifications

Some extensions are aimed directly at interfering with the system architecture and specifically at the function of the main processor. They either manipulate it or replace it with another microprocessor. The devices of the first group include the so-called freezers . Activated by the user during operation, a freezer stops the further program sequence by stopping the main processor and the freezer takes over control of all system functions. Freezers are designed in such a way that the user can manipulate the system status after "freezing". This ranges from changing certain memory areas to saving the entire system state on diskette or loading it from diskette. These functionalities are useful, for example, for error analysis in programs, for overriding copy protection mechanisms or for saving a game status that cannot be saved in any other way. The second group of system expansions relates to the replacement of the main processor with a more powerful variant or another type of processor in order to be able to use software from third-party systems, for example.

The only freezer for the Atari 800XL realized as a hardware solution and sold commercially is the Turbo Freezer XL from Bernhard Engl. It was available from 1987 for around 150 DM exclusively in West Germany. The connection is made on the system bus, the extension socket of the computer. With the ATR-8000 interface unit from SWP Microcomputer Products, which can also be connected to the expansion port , it is possible to use the built-in microprocessors to run a variety of programs for CP / M systems and those for IBM-compatible computers with the Atari 800XL as a terminal . The Turbo-816 , which was advertised from the end of 1988, contains, in addition to suitable control electronics, the 16-bit microprocessor 65816, which is downwardly compatible with the MOS 6502, and an operating system adapted to it. In order to be able to fully exploit the advantages of the alternative processor, such as the larger, directly usable main memory, existing programs have to be modified.

EPROM programmers

If programs such as the system software are to be available immediately after switching on, they must be stored in read-only memories. In the 1980s, this comprised both unchangeable ROM modules and modifiable variants such as EPROMs . In contrast to the ROM modules inside the Atari 800XL or in plug-in modules, the contents of EPROMs can be changed again at any time. In addition to an ultraviolet lamp to erase the entire content, a so-called EPROM burner and software, a special external device, often with a zero-force socket, and electronics to write (“burn”) one or more EPROMs are required.

The ProBurner from Thompson Electronic, which can be operated via a plug-in module slot , was considered one of the best for Atari's home computers in December 1985 and allows the use of many EPROM types with storage capacities from 2 to 16 KB. The more modern BiboBurner from Compy Shop, which can write to EPROMs with storage capacities of up to 32 KB, was available especially in West Germany from 1986 . From 1990 onwards, the Super E-Burner and The Gang Super E-Burner, which appeared later, were added more powerful versions of computer software services.

Digitizer for graphics and music, midi

In order to transfer printed or video images to the computer, special converters are required, the digitizer and scanner. The Computer Eyes Digitizer from Digital Vision, available from 1985 and costing 130 US dollars, was used to read video camera images - which also includes filmed printed documents . In addition to the electronics, the scope of delivery also included corresponding software. In West Germany, Irata-Verlag offered a similar device with its digitizer . Easy Scan from Innovative Concepts was used for direct scanning of paper documents . However, the device required a printer for its operation, on whose printhead the scanning optics of the converter had to be mounted by the user beforehand.

A second group of digitizers, the so-called sound samplers and midi interfaces, are used to transfer analog sounds or speech into a computer-processable form . The Atari user was able to fall back on various devices and software, the best known come from 2-Bit-Systems, Alpha Systems, Hybrid Arts and Wizztronics. In West Germany, from 1987 onwards, Ralf David's Sound 'n' Sampler was also available as a device and software.

software

The range of programs for the Atari 800XL computer included the selection of commercial programs sold by Atari and Atari Program Exchange ( APX ) as well as software ( listings ) developed by third-party manufacturers and published in magazines and books for typing.

As with other home computers of the 1980s, commercial software was distributed on various data carriers. The inexpensive compact cassettes, particularly popular with game manufacturers, were, however, very prone to errors due to the high mechanical stress on the magnetic tape, and their use was often associated with long loading times. In addition, certain operating modes, such as relative addressing, which is advantageous for operating databases, are not possible with datasettes. In the case of the plug-in modules, which are much more expensive to manufacture, the programs contained therein were available immediately after switching on the computer, which was a great advantage in particular for system software and frequently used applications. The floppy disks achieved the best compromise between loading time, possible operating modes, reliability and storage capacity. When the Atari 800XL was released, their use was supported by floppy disk drives from Atari and those from other manufacturers. Due to the disk drives, which were still very expensive in 1983 and 1984, plug-in modules and compact cassettes were the most frequently used data carriers for Atari computers. This situation only changed when Atari began to noticeably lower prices for the 1050 floppy disk drive in 1985.

Illegal copies (“pirated copies”) always made up a large part of the software in circulation - in the countries of the Eastern Bloc, original software from the West was virtually never in circulation until the fall of the Wall - and thus often presented smaller software companies with existential economic difficulties. As a result, copy protection systems were increasingly used, especially in games, as the best-selling software.

operating system

The configuration and initialization of the computer after switching on or after a reset is the responsibility of the operating system stored in the read-only memory. The subroutines of this 16 KB operating system (OS) control various system processes that can also be initiated by the user. This includes the implementation of input and output operations such as keyboard and joystick queries, floating point calculations , the processing of system programs after interruptions ( interrupts ) and the provision of a subroutine for generating various graphic modes. Compared to the Atari 400 and 800 models, the new operating system has a diagnostic program for self-testing the computer. This can be used to test the functionality of the main memory or the sound generation, for example. Since the operating system of the Atari 800XL, which is based on the Atari 1200XL, has not been completely adapted, the keyboard diagnosis shows keys that are only available in the Atari 1200XL.

The start addresses of the individual subroutines are summarized in a central location in the form of a jump table . This is always located in the same memory area on all Atari computers, so that compatibility with earlier and later operating system revisions is to be ensured. However, some programs do not use this table either out of ignorance of their programmers or for reasons of copy protection, but instead call the relevant subroutines of the operating system directly. Since many of these subroutines in the Atari 800XL now occupy different memory areas than in the Atari 400 and 800, calling them at the old but invalid memory address inevitably leads to program crashes. For this reason, some third-party programs will not run correctly on the Atari XL models. Atari then released the Translator Disk, a program that fixes the incompatibility problems of the computer at least until the next warm start .

Alternative operating systems and additions

Shortly after the XL computer was released, alternative and extended operating systems began to establish themselves, often in the form of upgrade boards. This included, for example, the Ramrod-XL with the Omnimon XL on EPROM, optionally supplemented by the Fastchip and Omniview XL . Other alternative operating systems were later added with XOS / 80 from Computer Support, Boss II from Alien Macroware, OS Controller Board Expander , 6 System Switchbox , Diamond OS and Ultra Speed ​​Plus from Computer Software Services. In addition to the desired compatibility with the older Atari 400 and 800 computer models, these also provided the user with extended functionalities. These included, for example, optimized floating point and data transfer routines as well as powerful tools for system control and troubleshooting. From 1985 onwards, different versions of the BiboMon were also available in connection with the Turbo-Freezer XL in West Germany .

Graphical user interfaces

These additions are based on the normal operating system in conjunction with the floppy disk operating system (DOS) and facilitate interaction for the user. All actions that would otherwise have to be carried out via the command line are now menu-driven in a clear, window-based environment. The graphic elements are often operated using a freely movable and mostly arrow-shaped cursor. The commercially available user interfaces included XL-TOS , Diamond GOS and SAM ( Screen Aided Management ) published for typing in German Atari magazine .

Programming languages ​​and application programs

Was the processing of a task with z. For example, programs that can be purchased are not possible for technical or economic reasons, or if, for example, new types of entertainment software are to be produced, this had to be done independently with the help of the appropriate programming languages. According to a survey carried out by the high-circulation magazine Antic Magazine at the end of 1988 , BASIC was by far the most widely used of all programming languages ​​among Atari users.

Assembly language

In the early 1980s, the creation of fast action games with lots of moving objects on the screen required optimal use of the hardware, especially the RAM. In the home computer sector, this was only possible through the use of assembly language with appropriate translation programs, the assemblers . In many cases assemblers were delivered with an associated editor for entering the program instructions (“source code”), often also as a program package with debugger and disassembler for error analysis.

With the introduction of the Atari 800XL, mature and powerful assemblers that had previously been published for the Atari 400 and 800 were available. However, some of these assemblers, such as the Synassembler from Synapse Software , can only run with the old operating system or corresponding adaptations. Among the multitude of assemblers on offer, the MAC / 65 from Optimized System Software was by far the best and most user-friendly. Supplemented by the Ultra Disassembler from Adventure International for program analysis, the ambitious program developer had little to be desired by the end of 1984. The best known assemblers in West Germany were the 1985 published Atmas II by Peter Finzel and the Bibo-Assembler from the Compy Shop.

In many cases, programming beginners preferred the clear and easy-to-use, but less powerful high-level programming languages ​​such as BASIC.

Interpreter languages

• 

  Atari BASIC input screen

• 

  Turbo-BASIC loading screen

The BASIC published by Atari in revisions B and C (from February 1985) were supported by a few more: Microsoft BASIC, which was the quasi-standard at the time, and a product called BASIC XL from Optimized System Software that was downwardly compatible with Atari BASIC . BASIC XL in particular contains extended editing options, simplifications in the command structure and it supplements many performance features not implemented in Atari and Microsoft BASIC. This includes, for example, convenient use of the sprites ("player missiles graphics") through specially provided command words. At the end of 1985, two additional powerful programming languages ​​for the Atari 800XL appeared with Advan BASIC and Turbo-BASIC XL .

In addition to the BASIC programming language in its various versions, languages ​​suitable for training purposes such as Atari Logo and Atari PILOT , which were often used in educational institutions, were also available with the launch of the Atari 800XL . Supported by elements such as turtle graphics ( turtle graphics ), a child-friendly and interactive introduction to the basics of programming is possible with a logo. With QS-Forth from Quality Software, Extended fig-Forth from APX, English Software Forth , Elcomp Forth , Go-Forth from Red Rat Software and Inter-LISP / 65 from Datasoft, further interpreter languages ​​join the program range for the Atari 800XL.

Compilers and compiler languages

The fundamental limitations inherent in the nature of the interpreter, such as the low execution speed and the large amount of memory required, had a disadvantageous effect on the usability of interpreter programs. These disadvantages can be mitigated by special programs, the compilers . Executable machine programs are generated that can run without an interpreter and thus often allow faster execution. Various compilers are available for the Atari BASIC: ABC BASIC Compiler from Monarch Systems, Datasoft BASIC Compiler from Datasoft and BASM from Computer Alliance. At the end of 1984, the BASIC compiler from MMG, the most powerful at the time for the XL computers, appeared. The range of programs was supplemented by the compilers for Advan BASIC and Turbo-BASIC XL released at the end of 1985 .

Corresponding versions of the compiler languages C and Pascal , which were widespread at the time, also exist for the XL computers. These include Deep Blue C from Antic, C / 65 from Optimized Systems Software, Lightspeed C from Clearstar Softechnologies and DVC / 65 as well as Atari Pascal from APX, Draper Pascal in different versions by Norman Draper and Kyan Pascal also in different versions from Kyan Software. Action , which was only available for Atari computers, was considered the most powerful of all programming languages ! from Optimized System Software, which combines elements of C and Pascal as well as commands specially tailored to Atari's hardware. A specialty among the compiler languages ​​available for the 8-bit Atari computers is MASIC , which was published by Verlag Rätz und Eberle in early 1987 . It is only used to create independent music sub-programs for integration into games or demonstrations, for example.

Application software

Until 1985, the range of programs for the Atari 8-bit computers included programming languages ​​for creating your own applications, as well as a small selection of ready-made commercial application software compared to its contemporary competitor Apple II.

Atari Writer from Atari ( Atari Schreiber in West Germany), Bank Street Writer from Broderbund , Letter Perfect from LJK Enterprises and The Writer's Tool from Optimized System Software were among the most powerful word processing programs when the Atari 800XL entered the market . At the end of 1984, VisiCalc from Visicorp, The Home Accountant from Continental Software, Data Perfect from LJK Enterprise, Synapses programs Synfile + , Syncalc , Synstock and Syntrend as well as Complete Personal Accountant from Futurehouse were available for account assignment and other business management tasks in the domestic sector . There were also numerous joystick-based painting programs such as Paint from Atari, Graphic Master and Micropainter from Datasoft, Moviemaker from Reston Software and Fun with Art from Epyx. With the speech synthesis program SAM - Software Automated Speech from Tronix and the Advanced Musicsystem from APX, very well-rated programs for controlling the sound output were also available.

In the course of 1985, the range of programs was expanded to include Print Shop from Broderbund, Paperclip from Batteries Included, Atariwriter + from Atari, Austrotext from Austro.com, Proofreader from Atari and StarTexter from Sybex-Verlag to include additional high-performance layout and word processing applications. Databases and small applications for accounting were available with Austrobase from Austro.com, Business Inventory System from CodeWriter and Silent Butler from Atari. The selection of the painting programs was given further options with Antic's RAMbrandt and the Micro Illustrator from Koala Technologies, the music programs with MIDICom from Hybrid Arts, Music Studio from Activision and SoftSynth from the German magazine Happy Computer.

1986 brought the user interested in word processing and desktop publishing the First Xlent Word Processor from Xlent Software and AwardWare from Hi Tech Expressions. In addition, B / Graph by Ariola and Back to Basics Accounting System by Peachtree Software were published. The new releases were completed by the graphics programs Blazing Paddles from Baudville, Design Master from Peter Finzel Productions, Envision from Antic Software and Technicolor Dream from Red Rat Software. Hybrid Arts added MIDI Music System and Oasis to its midi portfolio . A music program produced in West Germany appeared with Soundmachine .

With LuxGraph XL , MiniOffice , Newsroom from Springboard Software, Print Star from AMC-Verlag, SAM - Screen Aided Management from Atari Magazine and SX Express! Atari expanded the variety of applications again in 1987 and 1988.

Tutorials

Corresponding to the orientation of the predecessor models Atari 400 and 800 also as learning computers, there is a vast number of programs that are used for the computer-aided transfer of teaching content and its subsequent interactive query. The knowledge to be conveyed is presented in a playful form with a constantly increasing level of difficulty in order to motivate the learner on a long-term basis. Great importance is attached to an age-appropriate presentation, which ranges from small children to students. For the youngest, animated stories with comic-like characters are often used as accompanying tutors, for young people the teaching content to be queried is dressed up in adventure games or action-packed space adventures, whereas in the higher-level teaching content for students and adults, lexically presented knowledge with subsequent query and success balance predominate. The learning areas covered by more than 100 titles at the end of 1984 extend to reading and writing, foreign languages, mathematics, technology, music, geography, demography, typing schools and computer science.

Well-known manufacturers include American Educational Computers, Atari, APX, Carousel Software, CBS Software, Walt Disney Productions, Dorsett Educational Systems, Edupro, Electronic Arts , The Learning Company, Maximus, Mindscape , PDI, Prentice Hall, Scholastic, Screenplay Computer Software , Sierra On-Line , Spinnaker Software, Sunburst Communications, Unicorn Software and Xerox-Weekly Reader.

Games

→ Main article : Games for Atari 8-bit computers

A large part of the games that can be used with the Atari 800XL comes from the period 1979 to 1983 from the technically largely compatible predecessor models Atari 400 and 800. This supply of high-quality programs ebbed noticeably with the takeover of Atari by Jack Tramiel in July 1984 and his initially unknown plans for the future from. Many software developers were faced with economic uncertainties and instead turned to more promising systems such as the Commodore 64. This trend continued even after Atari's most extensive economic recovery in early 1985, before some titles - mostly conversions - also appeared in the USA from mid-1985 to 1987. From the end of 1986 onwards, programs in significant numbers came onto the market only in Europe, including in particular games in the low-price segment (“low budget”), before the large-scale software supply there also collapsed at the end of 1989. From now on the purchase options were limited to magazines and smaller mail order companies. Due to the extensive computer sales in the Eastern Bloc and the resulting demand for software, a separate manufacturer landscape developed in Poland for a few years after the fall of the Wall in 1989: New establishments such as Laboratorium Komputerowe Avalon , Mirage Software and ASF produced and sold more than 140 games, Mirage Software even until 1995.

Magazines

In the 1980s, along with specialist books, computer magazines played a major role for many home computer owners. The editions, which were often published monthly, contained test reports on innovations, programming instructions and software for typing. They also served as an advertising and information platform as well as for establishing contact with like-minded people.

In the English-speaking world, the magazines Antic , Analog Computing , Atari Connection , Atari Age , Atari User , Current Notes and Page 6 dealt specifically with Atari home computers . Occasional reports and programs for the Atari computers were published by the high-circulation Byte Magazine , Compute! and creative computing . In German-speaking countries, reports appeared regularly in Current Software Market , Chip , Computer Kontakt , Happy Computer , Homecomputer and PM Computerheft ; Atari Magazin and Zong dealt exclusively with Atari topics . Users in France were provided with information and program listings from L'Atarien , Pokey and Tilt . In Poland contained Bajtek and Computers often posts on Atari.

emulation

After the end of the home computer era in the early 1990s and with the advent of powerful and affordable computing technology in the late 1990s, dedicated enthusiasts increasingly developed programs for emulating home computers and their peripheral devices. To play old classics of various home computer systems, a single modern system with data images of the corresponding home computer programs was sufficient with the help of the emulators. The emergence of the emulators continued, among other things. a. an increased transfer of otherwise possibly lost software to modern storage media, which makes an important contribution to the preservation of digital culture.

The most powerful emulators for Windows and Linux systems are Atari ++ , Atari800Win Plus , Mess32 and Altirra .

reception

Contemporary

Shortly after its appearance, the trade press unanimously certified that the Atari 800XL had good workmanship, although opinions only differed on the quality of the keyboard and the quality of the external power supply. The large selection of programs, especially the games, and the large number of peripherals were also pleasing. Some reviewers did not miss the fact that the BASIC Revision B , which should have been corrected, instead came up with new, albeit less serious, errors. The incomplete downward compatibility with the Atari 400 and 800 models was also criticized, although the solution provided by Atari a little later in the form of the Translator Disk was unanimously welcomed. On the other hand, there was a lack of connection for standard cassette recorders, which forced Atari's own devices to be bought. Above all in Great Britain voices were loud criticizing the comparatively high prices for the software. In West Germany, the lack of a German keyboard and the 'ß' not included in the international character set were also criticized. Overall, however, the performance data were convincing, although the basic system architecture was seen as getting on in years. But they are still among the best in the home computer sector:

“Let's face it, these new XL machines are nothing more than repackaged 800s. That does not change the fact that Atari home computers are still the most versatile graphics machines you can buy for less than five thousand dollars. "

“Let's be honest, the new XL computers are nothing more than the old 800s in a new look. However, that does not change the fact that Atari computers still offer the most versatile graphics options for computers under five thousand US dollars. "

Showcase of the Atari Bit Byter User Club ( ABBUC ) with various Atari home computers at the Games Convention (2008)

After Atari was taken over by Jack Tramiel and the associated sharp price reductions towards the end of 1984, the Atari 800XL again became the focus of many reviewers. The highest-circulation of all computer magazines byte, for example, essentially followed the reviews already published, but also referred to the now well-organized user base and particularly emphasized the advantageous price-performance ratio that makes the Atari 800XL a bargain. The extremely positive perception of the Atari 800XL associated with the price reductions finally culminated in the Home Microcomputer Award 1985 :

"We feel the 800XL is a good computer, with a decent amount of memory, very good graphics and a good range of software that is no longer so expensive."

"In our opinion, the 800XL is a good computer with sufficient RAM, very good graphics and a wide range of software that is no longer that expensive."

Retrospective

In retrospect, the system architecture of the Atari computers was unanimously seen as groundbreaking and as a pioneer of many later systems. According to several authors, "problems in production" and the associated pre-Christmas delivery difficulties in 1983, caused by "internal changes at Atari", permanently reduced the potential market power of the Atari 800XL. The Commodore 64, which was already establishing itself, had lost market shares, from which the Atari 800XL, which was initially relatively expensive, was never able to recover. In addition, there are technical advantages of the Commodore such as its colored sprites, which were the prerequisite for many game innovations and therefore assigned the inferior Atari 800XL from 1985 a "shadowy existence". Nevertheless, "the 8-bit series from Atari sold quite well on both sides of the Atlantic", "but not as well as it deserved."

The Atari 800XL is a permanent exhibit in the Computer Museum in Oldenburg.

literature

• Jeffrey Stanton, Robert P. Wells, Sandra Rochowansky, Michael Mellin: Atari Software 1984. The Book Company, 1984, ISBN 0-201-16454-X
• Julian Reschke, Andreas Wiethoff: The Atari professional book. Sybex-Verlag, Düsseldorf 1986, ISBN 3-88745-605-X
• Eichler, Grohmann: Atari 600XL / 800XL Intern. Data Becker, 1984, ISBN 3-89011-053-3
• Marty Goldberg, Curt Vendel: Atari Inc. - Business is Fun. Syzygy Company Press, 2012, ISBN 978-0-9855974-0-5

Web links

Commons : Atari 8-bit computers  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

• Atari ++ emulator for UNIX / Linux systems (English)
• Altirra Emulator for Windows Systems
• Xformer 10 Emulator for Windows 10 (English)
• AtariAge International Forum for Atari 8-Bit Friends (English)
• Michael Currents website with many resources, including a. the frequently asked questions about Atari (FAQ, English)

Notes and individual references

Remarks

1. ↑ In the US the price fell to about US $ 180 (see Diane Curtis: Editorial. The Associated Press, November 13, 1984), in the UK to £ 200 (see Atari 800XL Price Slashed. Popular Computing Weekly, 6.– December 12, 1984, p. 1 f.) And in West Germany to 650 DM (see Reinhard Weber: A critical look at the challenger. In: PM Computerheft , edition 12/84, p. 106).
2. ↑ In Great Britain the computer then cost around £ 170 (see Atari plans up-market 800XL micro. In: Popular Computing Weekly , November 8-14, 1984, p. 1 and Atari Price Cut in the US. In: Popular Computing Weekly , November 22-28, 1984, p. 5.), in France the SECAM version was available for 2500 francs (see Atari en kit. In: Micro 7 , edition 21, November 1984, p. 30 f.).
3. ↑ The statement refers to the Sinclair ZX Spectrum with 48 KB RAM.
4. ↑ The C64 cost around £ 200 in Great Britain. In West Germany its price was 600  DM ( business is war . In: Der Spiegel . No. 50 , 1984 ( online ). ). MSX computers cost at least £ 275 at the same time.
5. ↑ ATR-8000 was delivered with a Z80 microprocessor, an Intel 8088 could be retrofitted in the form of a separately available plug-in card.

Individual evidence

1. ^ Marty Goldberg, Curt Vendel: Atari Inc. Business is Fun. Syzygy Company Press, 2012, p. 454.
2. ^ Marty Goldberg, Curt Vendel: Atari Inc. Business is Fun. Syzygy Company Press, 2012, p. 695.
3. ↑ Jack Schofield: Atari 800XL.  - Internet Archive In: Your Computer Magazine , January 1984, p. 72.
4. ↑ Michael Vogt: Atari XL series. Retrieved February 3, 2017.
5. ^ Marty Goldberg, Curt Vendel: Atari Inc. Business is Fun. Syzygy Company Press, 2012, p. 699.
6. ^ Brian Moriarty, Robin E. Novell, Austin Franklin: Inside the Atari 600XL  - Internet Archive In: Analog Computing Magazine , January 1984, p. 37.
7. ↑ Tim Hartnell: Tim Hartnell reports from the CES Consumer Electronics Show  - Internet Archive In: Popular Computing Weekly , 16. – 22. June 1983, p. 4.
8. ↑ Tom R. Halfhill: The Fall Computer Collection at the Summer Electronics Consumer Show  - Internet Archive In: Compute! , August 1983, p. 28.
9. ^ Marty Goldberg, Curt Vendel: Atari Inc. Business is Fun. Syzygy Company Press, 2012, p. 700.
10. ^ Jon A. Bell: Atari 1985  - Internet Archive In: Analog Computing Magazine , January 1985, p. 13.
11. ↑ Jim Bartimo: Radio Shack plans house calls. InfoWorld, July 9, 1984, p. 11.
12. ↑ Kathy Chin: Computer companies hitch stars to high-tech wagon. InfoWorld, July 4, 1983, p. 14.
13. ↑ Tom Shea: Madison Avenue turns to high-tech. InfoWorld, March 5, 1984, p. 69.
14. ^ Scott Mace: Atari, Coleco announce computer price hikes. InfoWorld, November 23, 1983, p. 25.
15. ↑ ^{a b} Price was cools down  - Internet Archive In: Popular Computing Weekly , 17. – 23. November 1983, p. 5.
16. ↑ 600XL goes on sale this week  - Internet Archive In: Popular Computing Weekly , 3. – 9. November 1983, p. 7.
17. ^ ^{A b} Scott Mace: Atari, Coleco announce price hikes. InfoWorld, November 28, 1983, p. 25.
18. ^ Tom Shea: Companies Register big sales during Christmas season. InfoWorld, February 6, 1984, p. 16.
19. ^ Scott Mace: Warner's earnings up.InfoWorld, March 12, 1984, p. 19.
20. ↑ Club Magazine News - Any questions? In: Atari Club Magazin , Issue 2, 1984, p. 5.
21. ^ Nicole Masson: Atari Change de Look. In: Micro 7 , April 1984, p. 43.
22. ↑ 25 Home and personal computers in comparison. In: PM Computerheft , issue 1/1984, p. 44 f. Rainer Gebauer: Further up. Chip, December 1983, p. 55; Thomas Tausend: Hello Atari freaks. In: Computer Kontakt , February 1985, p. 74.
23. ^ Voici les Atari. L'Ordinateur Individuel, April 1984, p. 81.
24. ↑ Atari 800 XL  - Internet Archive In: Videogiochi , July / August 1984, p. 31.
25. ^ Robert DeWitt: Atari International  - Internet Archive In: Antic Magazine , March 1984, p. 14.
26. ↑ David F. Barry: It's official: Atari joins the US Olympic Team.  - Internet Archive In: Antic Magazine , February 1984, p. 13.
27. ↑ David Barry: Women's Olympic Volleyball Team: Atari sponsors a gold medal effort.  - Internet Archive In: Antic Magazine , August 1984, p. 10 f.
28. ↑ Scott Mace: Jack Tramiel buys Atari. InfoWorld, July 30, 1984, p. 11.
29. ^ Atari delays plans  - Internet Archive In: Popular Computing Weekly , 6. – 12. September 1984, p. 1.
30. ↑ Bob Kelly: Atari Scuttlebits. Current Notes, September 1984, p. 10.
31. ↑ David Needle: A new Atari Corp. InfoWorld, August 13, 1984, p. 9.
32. ↑ James Capparell, Mike Ciraolo, Nat Friedland, Gary Yost: Tramiel declares War!  - Internet Archive In: Antic Magazine , February 1985, p. 73
33. ↑ Richard Hawes: Micro Empire that was born in the Arcades - The New Atari  - Internet Archive In: Atari User Magazine , May 1988, p. 23.
34. ↑ ^{a b c} Atari 800XL Price Slashed. In: Popular Computing Weekly , 6. – 12. December 1984, p. 1 f.
35. ↑ Kathy Chin: Big Price Drop for Atari 800XL InfoWorld, December 3, 1984, p. 19.
36. ↑ Christine McGeever: Rock Bottom Prices at Atari. InfoWorld, September 24, 1984, p. 14.
37. ↑ Kathy Chin: Bold Plans For New Atari. InfoWorld, December 10, 1984, p. 15 f.
38. ↑ Michael Lang: Tramiel counts on "love affair" with Atari.  - Internet Archive In: Happy Computer , 2/85, p. 11.
39. ↑ Kathy Chin: Atari Awash in Product Rumors. InfoWorld, 7-14 May January 1985, p. 20.
40. ↑ Scott Mace: Computer Test Hits Snags. InfoWorld, November 5, 1984, p. 33.
41. ↑ Scott Mace: Will Home Computing Survive? InfoWorld, December 17, 1984, pp. 32-34.
42. ↑ Kathy Chin: Atari Announces Six New Computers. InfoWorld, January 28, 1985, p. 15 f.
43. ↑ Peter Petre, Kate Ballen: Jack Tramiel is back on the warpath. Fortune Magazine, March 4, 1985
44. ↑ Tramile stares into Infinity as X13 and 5T Rangers see the Light  - Internet Archive In: Your Computer , February 1984, p. 24.
45. ^ Traveling Tramiel. Popular Computing Weekly, February 28 - March 6, 1985, p. 5.
46. ↑ Chip, July 1985, p. 150.
47. ↑ Atari Bids to Topple BBC  - Internet Archive In: Atari User , August 1985, p. 7.
48. ^ Dutch Pick the 800XL  - Internet Archive In: Atari User , September 1985, p. 7.
49. ^ New 800XL deal  - Internet Archive In: Personal Computer Weekly , 7–13. November 1985, p. 4.
50. ↑ This will be the Year of Atari  - Internet Archive In: Atari User , February 1986, p. 9.
51. ↑ Atari 800XL  - Internet Archive In: Antic Magazine , December 1985, p. 30.
52. ↑ Andreas Hagedorn: Home computer from second hand  - Internet Archive In: Happy Computer , November 1985, p. 142; Manfred Kotting: Atari: Situation strengthened  - Internet Archive In: Happy Computer , November 1985, p. 14.
53. ^ Richard Kerler: That was the best seller of the year 1986. Chip, June 1986, p. 200; Note: The market shares mentioned correspond to those of 1985.
54. ↑ 800XL Support is Guaranteed  - Internet Archive In: Atari User , February 1986, p. 7.
55. ↑ Atari brand new!  - Internet Archive In: Computer Kontakt , June / July 1987, p. 114.
56. ↑ Henrik Fisch: No. 800 XL is alive. Happy Computer, July 1987, p. 154.
57. ↑ Henrik Fisch: XL's Successor  - Internet Archive In: Happy Computer , October 1987, p. 11.
58. ^ Atari 8 bit market is booming  - Internet Archive In: Atari User , August 1986, p. 9.
59. ↑ James Capparell: Editorial  - Internet Archive In: Antic Magazin , January 1986, p. 8.
60. ↑ 8-bit computers should fall from the CoCom grid In: Computerwoche , October 26, 1984.
61. ↑ P. Konrad Budziszewski: Poland . In: Mark JP Wolf (Ed.): Video Games Around The World . MIT Press, 2015, ISBN 978-0-262-52716-3 . P. 401.
62. ↑ : Tadeusz Menert How Atari breached Poland's Electronic Curtain  - Internet Archive : In Atari User f, July 1986, p. 20
63. ↑ Patryk Wasiak: Dropping out of Socialism with the Commodore 64: Polish Youth, Home Computers, and Social Identity . In: Juliane Fürst, Josie McLellan (Eds.): Dropping out of Socialism . Lexington Books, 2016, ISBN 978-1-4985-2514-5 . P. 167.
64. ^ Patrik Wacek: Czech Republic . In: Mark JP Wolf (Ed.): Video Games Around The World . MIT Press, 2015, ISBN 978-0-262-52716-3 . P. 147.
65. ^ Andreas Lange, Michael Liebe: Czech Republic . In: Mark JP Wolf (Ed.): Video Games Around The World . MIT Press, 2015, ISBN 978-0-262-52716-3 . P. 200.
66. ^ Raymond Bentley: Research and Technology in the Former German Democratic Republic. Westview Press, 1992, ISBN 0-8133-8400-1 , p. 52.
67. ^ Late-Breaking Atari News  - Internet Archive In: Antic Magazine , June 1988, p. 5.
68. ↑ Thomas Tausend: Atari at SYSTEMS'87. Atari Magazine, January / February 1988, p. 18.
69. ↑ Let's Go East - Atari Club in the GDR. ST Computer Magazine, July / August 1990.
70. ↑ ^{a b} Tobias Geuther: The scene in the east before the unification. Atari magazine, November / December 1991, p. 10 f.
71. ↑ Atari: Atari 800XL is on the rise again. Atari Aktuell, Issue 7, 1988, p. 10.
72. ↑ FPGA Atari 800XL. (No longer available online.) Archived from the original on December 24, 2014 ; accessed on February 5, 2020 (English). 
73. ↑ Julian Reschke, Andreas Wiethoff: The Atari professional book. 2nd Edition. Sybex Verlag, 1986, pp. 201-214.
74. ↑ Eichler, Grohmann: Atari Intern. 1st edition. Data Becker, 1984, p. 74.
75. ↑ Eichler, Grohmann: Atari Intern. 1st edition. Data Becker, 1984, p. 41.
76. ↑ David Small, Sandy Small, George Bank (Eds.): The Creative Atari. Creative Computing Press, 1983, ISBN 0-916688-34-8 , p. 10.
77. ↑ Julian Reschke, Andreas Wiethoff: The Atari professional book. Sybex Verlag, 2nd edition 1986, p. 130.
78. ↑ Eichler, Grohmann: Atari 600XL / 800XL Intern. Data Becker GmbH, 1984, p. 63.
79. ↑ Julian Reschke and Andreas Wiethoff: The Atari professional book. Sybex Verlag, 2nd edition 1986, pp. 138-142.
80. ↑ Thomas Kaltenbach: Curiosities from Atari's hardware kitchen  - Internet Archive In: Happy Computer , June 1988, p. 134.
81. ↑ Dietmar Eirich: Computer Periphery. Heyne, Munich 1985, ISBN 3-453-47058-3 , pp. 51-53.
82. ↑ User's Handbook to the Atari Computer , p. 14.
83. ^ Carl M. Evans: Tale of Two Circuits. In: Antic , December 1982 / January 1983, p. 63.
84. ↑ Derryck Croker: Rambit - High Speed ​​Cassette Loader.  - Internet Archive In: Page 6 , Issue 24, November 1986, p. 30
85. ^ Matthew Ratcliff: Exploring the XL  - Internet Archive In: Antic Magazine , June 1984, p. 40.
86. ↑ DOS 2.5 upgrade and it's free!  - Internet Archive In: Atai User , August 1985, p. 9.
87. ↑ Lawrence Dziegielewski: Disk drive survey - Atari 1050  - Internet Archive In: Antic Magazine , August 1984, p. 81.
88. ↑ Winston Lawrence: Hardware Review: Percom Double Density Disk Drive  - Internet Archive In: Analog Magazine , No. 7, p. 57.
89. ^ Rana Systems: Introducing the RANA 1000 disk drive  - Internet Archive In: Byte Magazine , March 1983, p. 48.
90. ↑ Astra Systems: Look what we have for your Atari Computer  - Internet Archive In: Antic , July 1983, p. 39.
91. ^ Carol Ranalli: New products. InfoWorld, September 3, 1984, p. 48.
92. ↑ Lawrence Dziegielewski: Disk drive survey - Trak AT-D2  - Internet Archive In: Antic Magazine , August 1984, p. 38 f.
93. ↑ Lawrence Dziegielewski: Disk drive survey - Indus GT  - Internet Archive In: Antic Magazine , August 1984, pp. 80 f.
94. ↑ Lawrence Dziegielewski: Escape from fragile Floppies  - Internet Archive In: Antic Magazine , August 1984, pp. 83 f.
95. ↑ Julian Reschke: DOS-XL im Test  - Internet Archive In: Happy Computer , October 1984, p. 136 f.
96. ↑ RA Matulko: US Doubler  - Internet Archive in: Page 6 , Issue 27, May 1985, p. 28
97. ↑ ^{a b} Henrik Fisch: Race on the diskette  - Internet Archive In: Happy Computer , April 1989, p. 34 f.
98. ↑ Computer Software Services: Best sellers  - Internet Archive In: Antic Magazine , June / July 1990, p. 4.
99. ↑ Wolfgang Czerny, Werner Breuer: Rasende Daten. Happy Computer, special issue 2/86, p. 7.
100. ↑ Julian Reschke: 1050 Turbo, the multi-talent  - Internet Archive In: Happy Computer , August 1986, p. 142 f.
101. ↑ Hans Dieter Jankowski, Henrik Fisch: Speedy 1050: all data under control  - Internet Archive In: Happy Computer , April 1987, p. 26 f.
102. ↑ Floppy 2000 - II. Atari Magazine, November / December 1991, p. 33; Marek Tomczyk: Correspondents Corner: The Halle Expedition  - Internet Archive In: Atari Classics Magazine , October 1993, p. 5.
103. ↑ search for receipt
104. ↑ Janusz Wisniewski example: TOMS 720. Tajemnice Atari February 1,992th
105. ↑ Disc Drives  - Internet Archive In: Antic Magazine , December 1985, p. 30.
106. ^ Supra Corporation: Atari Power  - Internet Archive In: Antic Magazine , May 1986, p. 29; Charles Jackson: Supra Drive for 8-Bit Ataris  - Internet Archive In: Antic Magazine , October 1986, p. 26 f.
107. ^ Bill Marquardt, Gregg Pearlman: BTL Hard Disk System  - Internet Archive In: Antic Magazine , April 1987, p. 30 f.
108. ↑ David Plotkin: FA-ST Hard Disk  - Internet Archive In: Antic Magazine , October 1988, p. 33 f.
109. ↑ Computer Software Services: Brand new items  - Internet Archive In: Antic Magazine , June / July 1990, p. 4.
110. ↑ Charles Jackson: Supra Drive for 8-Bit Ataris  - Internet Archive In: Antic Magazine , October 1986, p. 26 f.
111. ↑ Petra Wängler: Market Survey Monitors  - Internet Archive In: Happy Computer , May 1985, pp. 136-139.
112. ↑ Atari 1020 Color Printer.  - Internet Archive In: Antic Magazine , September 1984, p. 47.
113. ↑ Linda Tapscott: Printers  - Internet Archive In: Antic Magazine , December 1984, pp. 32 and 35.
114. ↑ Charles Jackson: New color printers  - Internet Archive In: Antic Magazine , March 1985, pp. 30 f.
115. ↑ Michael King: Screen Dumps with the Atari 1029  - Internet Archive In: Atari User , September 1985, p. 48 f.
116. ↑ James Capparell: Top Ten Printers for Atari  - Internet Archive In: Antic Magazine , February 1986, p. 10 f.
117. ^ The Printer Jungle  - Internet Archive In: Page 6 , Issue 33, May 1988, pp. 18-25.
118. ^ Brian Moriarty: Hardware Review: The Voicebox  - Internet Archive In: Analog Computing , Issue 8, 1982, p. 34.
119. ^ Annie Cates: Products Reviews - The Voicebox II  - Internet Archive In: Antic Magazine , November 1984, p. 108.
120. ↑ Betsy Staples: Good Show!  - Internet Archive In: Atari Explorer , September / October 1986, p. 27.
121. ^ Brian Moriarty: Stereo Graphics Tutorial  - Internet Archive In: Analog Computing , Issue 7, p. 70.
122. ^ Myotis Systems: The Apprentice  - Internet Archive In: Antic , February / March 1983, p. 38.
123. ↑ Andreas Binner, Harald Schönfeld: Animal society for the little Ataris. Atari Magazin, August 1988, p. 54 f .; Peter Eilert: The Qtec mouse. Atari Magazine, November / December 1991, p. 31.
124. ^ Gregg Pearlman: Animation Station  - Internet Archive In: Antic Magazine , November 1987, p. 13 f.
125. ^ David Duberman: Graphic Tablets  - Internet Archive In: Antic Magazine , September 1984, pp. 38-40.
126. ↑ New products - SIO-2-PC  - Internet Archive In: Antic Magazine , February / March 1990, p. 11.
127. ↑ Michael Ciraolo: Communicating Computers  - Internet Archive In: Antic Magazine , August 1985, p. 12 ff.
128. ↑ Thomas Tausend: Atari and the big wide world  - Internet Archive In: Computer Kontakt , March 1985, p. 67.
129. ↑ The Atari 400/800 XL and DFÜ  - Internet Archive In: Computer Kontakt , edition 9/85, p. 14
130. ^ Andreas Hagedorn: Terminal software for your computer  - Internet Archive In: Happy Computer , February 1986, p. 151.
131. ↑ Gigi Bisson: Radio Atari Callinge  - Internet Archive In: Antic Magazine , November 1985, p. 36 f.
132. ^ Bill Marquardt: Radio Modems and Software  - Internet Archive In: Antic Magazine , November 1985, p. 38 f.
133. ↑ S. Meyfeldt: Tips and information for Atari XL owners and those who want to become one  - Internet Archive In: Happy Computer , April 1984, p. 35.
134. ↑ Dietmar Eirich: Computer Periphery. Heyne, Munich 1985, ISBN 3-453-47058-3 , pp. 27, 28, 39.
135. ↑ Matthew Rattcliff: Product Reviews - Rambo XL  - Internet Archive In: Antic Magazine , July 1986 p. 44
136. ↑ Lee Brillant: XL Upgrades  - Internet Archive In: Antic Magazine , November 1988, p. 23.
137. ↑ Ramcharger  - Internet Archive In: Antic Magazine , December 1986, p. 15.
138. ↑ A whopping 320 KB for the Atari 800 XL  - Internet Archive In: Computer Kontakt , October / November 86, p. 64.
139. ^ ICD Multi I / O Board  - Internet Archive In: Antic Magazine , December 1986, p. 13.
140. ↑ Interface for the Atari computer  - Internet Archive In: Computer Kontakt , November 1985, p. 58; Dietmar Eirich: Computer peripherals. Heyne, Munich 1985, ISBN 3-453-47058-3 , pp. 31-38.
141. ^ Charles Bachand: Two Printer Interfaces for the Atari  - Internet Archive In: Analog Computing Magazine , September 1984, p. 31.
142. ↑ Linda Tapscott: Interfaces  - Internet Archive In: Antic Magazine , December 1984, pp. 35 f.
143. ↑ Interface for the Atari computer  - Internet Archive In: Computer Kontakt , November 1985, p. 58.
144. ↑ Enhancements - ICD Multi I / O Board  - Internet Archive In: Antic Magazine , December 1986, p. 13 ff.
145. ↑ Computer Software Services: Brand new items - The Black Box!  - Internet Archive In: Antic Magazine , June / July 1990, p. 4.
146. ↑ David E. Mentley: Bit 3 Board - Full View 80  - Internet Archive In: ABCs of Atari Computers , Datamost, ISBN 0-88190-367-1 , p. 38.
147. ↑ ACE80  - Internet Archive In: Antic Magazine , July 1986 S. 46th
148. ^ Enhancements - ICD Multi I / O Board  - Internet Archive In: Antic Magazine , December 1986, p. 13.
149. ^ Daniel Botz: Art, Code and Machine. Transcript-Verlag Bielefeld, 2011, ISBN 978-3-8376-1749-8 , p. 75; Martin Goldmann: Freezing at the push of a button. Atari Magazin, issue 5/87, p. 28 f.
150. ↑ Dietmar Eirich: Computer Periphery. Heyne, Munich 1985, ISBN 3-453-47058-3 , p. 30.
151. ↑ Martin Goldmann: Freezing at the push of a button. Atari Magazin, issue 5/87, p. 28 f.
152. ↑ David Small, Sandy Small: InfoWorlds Essential Guide to Atari  - Internet Archive In: Harper & Row , ISBN 0-06-669006-4 , 1984, pp. 229-236.
153. ^ New Products - Turbo-816  - Internet Archive In: Antic Magazine , March 1989, p. 39.
154. ↑ Michael-A. Beisecker: The lexicon of PC terms 2005/2006. Fachverlag für Computerwissen, 2005, ISBN 3-8125-0592-4 , p. 143.
155. ↑ Ian Chadwick Proburner  - Internet Archive : In Antic Magazine f, Dec. 1985, p 76th
156. ↑ Jörg Link: Selbstgebrannt  - Internet Archive In: Computer Kontakt , December / January 1987/1988, p. 52 f.
157. ↑ Computer Software Services: Super E-Burner  - Internet Archive In: Atari Classics , March / April 1995, p. 13.
158. ^ Charles Jackson: Video Star Atari  - Internet Archive In: Antic Magazine , December 1985, p. 14 f.
159. ^ Rolf Knorre: Video images digital. Atari magazine, issue 2/87, p. 78.
160. ^ Charles Cherry: Easy-Scan  - Internet Archive In: Antic Magazine , October 1988, pp. 43-45.
161. ^ Ian Waugh: Sound Sampling and Playing Midi Music  - Internet Archive In: Atari User , June 1987, p. 46 f .; Alan Goldsbro: Making Noises…  - Internet Archive In: Page 6 , September / October 1986, p. 45.
162. ↑ Operating instructions. (PDF) Retrieved March 1, 2017.
163. ↑ Hybrid Arts MIDI interface. Atari Magazine June 1988, p. 95.
164. ↑ Jeffery Summers: Midimax  - Internet Archive In: Antic Magazine , May 1989, p. 32.
165. ↑ Operating instructions. (PDF) Retrieved March 1, 2017.
166. ↑ Dietmar Eirich: Computer Periphery. Wilhelm Hyne Verlag, Munich, 1st edition, 1985, ISBN 3-453-47058-3 , pp. 53, 55, 56, 62, 63, 75, 76, 83, 84.
167. ^ Scott Mace: The last half decade. InfoWorld, February 18, 1985, p. 32.
168. ↑ Dietmar Eirich: Computer for reference. Compact Verlag, 1989, ISBN 3-8174-3564-9 , p. 212.
169. ↑ Julian Reschke, Andreas Wiethoff: The Atari professional book. Sybex Verlag, 2nd edition 1986, p. 125 f.
170. ↑ Barry A. Fleig, Robert F. Cutler, Tom. C. Chekel: Introduction to the first edition  - Internet Archive In: The Blue Book for Atari Computers , 1st edition, WIDL Video Publications, p. 5.
171. ↑ Attention Atari 1200 XL Owners  - Internet Archive In: Antic Magazine , January 1984, p. 118.
172. ↑ CDY Consulting: New RAMROD XL  - Internet Archive In: Analog Computing Magazine , November 1984, p. 62
173. ↑ XOS / 80 Column Pack  - Internet Archive In: Page 6 , November / December 1985, p. 6.
174. ↑ Alien Macroware: XL / XE BOSS II  - Internet Archive In: Antic Magazine , August 1986, p. 42.
175. ↑ Neil Fawcett: Plug in your desktop kit  - Internet Archive In: Atari User , November 1987, p. 42 f.
176. ↑ Empowering the 8-Bit - Expander  - Internet Archive In: Antic Magazine , March 1988, p. 11.
177. ↑ 6 System Box  - Internet Archive In: Antic Magazine , August 1988, p. 41.
178. ^ Matthew Ratcliff: Diamond Operating System  - Internet Archive In: Antic Magazine , June 1989, pp. 19-22.
179. ^ Charles Cherry: Ultra Speed ​​Plus  - Internet Archive In: Antic Magazine , April 1989, p. 12 f.
180. ↑ CDY Consulting: The latest innovations from CDY  - Internet Archive In: Analog Computing Magazine , May 1985, p. 22.
181. ^ Matthew JW Ratcliff: The XL Boss  - Internet Archive In: Analog Computing Magazine , December 1984, p. 21.
182. ↑ Peter Finzel: Oldrunner card with monitor  - Internet Archive In: Computer Kontakt , July 1985, p. 69.
183. ↑ Top program of the month. Atari Magazine, January / February 1987, pp. 41-50.
184. ^ John S. Davison: A little Gem  - Internet Archive In: Page 6 , June 1990, p. 14 f.
185. ^ Andreas Binner, Harald Schönfeld: Screen Aided Management. Atari Magazin, May 1988, p. 42 f.
186. ↑ Survey '88 Results  - Internet Archive In: Antic Magazine , November 1988, p. 6.
187. ↑ ^{a b c d} Linda Tapscott: Software  - Internet Archive In: Antic Magazine , December 1984, pp. 38-41.
188. ^ Atari Makroassembler  - Internet Archive In: Computer Kontakt , July 1985, p. 61.
189. ^ Matthias Bolz: BIBO assembler. Atari Magazine, March 1988, p. 44 f.
190. ↑ News  - Internet Archive In: Page 6 , March 1985, p. 5.
191. ↑ Jerry White: Product Reviews: BASIC XL  - Internet Archive In: Antic Magazine , March 1984, p. 96.
192. ↑ Advan Compiler BASIC  - Internet Archive In: Antic Magazine , April 1986, p. 28 f.
193. ↑ Eckhard Schulz: Listing of the month: Turbo-BASIC  - Internet Archive In: Happy Computer , December 1985, p. 28.
194. ↑ Jeffrey Stanton, Robert P. Wells, Sandra Rochowansky, Michael Mellin: Atari Software 1984. The Book Company, 1st edition 1984, pp. 360-363.
195. ↑ Steven Burke: ES FORTH  - Internet Archive In: Page 6 , March 1985, p. 34 f.
196. ↑ Peter Finzel: Elcomp-Forth  - Internet Archive In: Computer Kontakt , June / July 1986, p. 80 f.
197. ↑ Red Rat to the Rescue  - Internet Archive In: Page 6 , May / June 1987, p. 8.
198. ↑ James Dearner: Product Reviews: Inter-LISP / 65  - Internet Archive In: Antic Magazine , July 1984, pp. 89 f.
199. ↑ Jeffrey Stanton, Robert P. Wells, Sandra Rochowansky, Michael Mellin: Atari Software 1984. The Book Company, 1st edition 1984, pp. 350-352.
200. ↑ Harald E Striepe: Deep Blue C & Deep Blue Secrets  - Internet Archive In: Antic Magazine , January 84, p. 109.
201. ^ Thomas McNamee: C / 65 by OSS. Antic Magazine, July 1984, p. 15.
202. ^ Matthew Ratcliff: Lightspeed C  - Internet Archive In: Antic Magazine , Nov. 1988, pp. 44-46.
203. ↑ Steven Taylor: A Step up?  - Internet Archive In: Page 6 , March 1987, p. 50 f.
204. ^ Draper Software: Draper Pascal  - Internet Archive In: Analog Computing Magazine , February 1984, p. 46; Brian Moriarty: Draper Pascal 1.5  - Internet Archive In: Anaog Computing Magazine , March 1984, pp. 16-20 .; Draper Pascal 2.1  - Internet Archive In: Antic Magazine , February / March 1989, p. 10
205. ^ Other News  - Internet Archive In: Analog Computing Magazine , July 1985, p. 9; Kyan-Pascal 2.0  - Internet Archive In: Computer Kontakt , June / July 1987, p. 54.
206. ↑ Music Compiler for XL  - Internet Archive In: Happy Computer , September 1987, p. 18.
207. ^ ^{A b} Jeffrey Stanton, Robert P. Wells, Sandra Rochowansky, Michael Mellin: Atari Software 1984. The Book Company, 1st edition 1984, pp. 210-241.
208. ^ Atari Software 1984, pp. 200, 201.
209. ↑ Fourth Annual Antic Shopper's Guide  - Internet Archive In: Antic Magazine , December 1985, pp. 41, 44 .; Petra Wängler: So much software  - Internet Archive In: Happy Computer , December 1985, p. 150.
210. ↑ still missing, Atarimania
211. ^ Fourth Annual Antic Shopper's Guide  - Internet Archive In: Antic Magazine , December 1985, p. 36.
212. ^ Fifth Annual Antic Shopper's Guide  - Internet Archive In: Antic Magazine , December 1986, p. 30.
213. ^ Julian Reschke, Andreas Wiethoff: Musikprofi Atari  - Internet Archive In: Happy Computer , December 1986, p. 156.
214. ↑ Allan J. Palmer: Mini Office II  - Internet Archive In: Page 6 , July 1987, p. 25.
215. ^ Anita Malnig: Educational Software  - Internet Archive In: Antic Magazine , October 1984, p. 29.
216. ↑ Jeffrey Stanton, Robert P. Wells, Sandra Rochowansky, Michael Mellin: Atari Software 1984. The Book Company, 1st edition 1984, pp. 263-303.
217. ↑ Anita Malnig: Educational Software  - Internet Archive In: Antic Magazine , October 1984, pp. 29-34.
218. ↑ P. Konrad Budziszewski: Poland . In: Mark JP Wolf (Ed.): Video Games Around The World . MIT Press, 2015, ISBN 978-0-262-52716-3 . P. 406.
219. ↑ Andreas Lange: What archives, museums and libraries can learn from gamers - and vice versa. Retrieved February 23, 2014.
220. ↑ Chris Kohler: Retro Gaming Hacks. O'Reilly, 2005, Hack # 59.
221. ↑ Gunnar Kanold: Basic Tenliners 2014. 2014, Preface.
222. ↑ Jack Schofield: Atari 800XL.  - Internet Archive In: Your Computer , January 1984, pp. 72 f. Matthew Ratcliff: Exploring the XL  - Internet Archive In: Antic Magazine , June 1984, pp. 38 f. Scott Mace: New Thrills Needed. InfoWorld, July 23, 1984, p. 39.
223. ↑ D. Meyfeldt: Tips and information for Atari XL owners and those who want to become one  - Internet Archive In: Happy Computer , April 1984, p. 34 f. Reinhard Weber: A critical look at the challenger. In: PM Computerheft , edition 12/84, p. 106.
224. ^ Brian Moriarty, Robin E. Novell, Austin Franklin: Inside the Atari 600XL  - Internet Archive In: Analog Computing Magazine , January 1984, p. 37.
225. ^ Jon Edwards: System Reviews - Atari 800XL  - Internet Archive In: Byte Magazine , March 1985, p. 267.
226. ↑ 800XL Wins Title  - Internet Archive In: Atari User , August 1985, p. 7.
227. ^ Roberto Dillon: The Golden Age of Video Games. 10th edition. CRC-Press, 2011, ISBN 978-1-4398-7323-6 , p. 81.
228. ↑ Curt Vendel: Atari 800XLCR. Retrieved March 1, 2017. Bill Loguidice, Matt Barton: Vintage Game Consoles. Focal Press, 2014, ISBN 978-0-415-85600-3 , p. 61.
229. ^ Heinrich Lenhardt: Atari 800 XL Commodore Killer. In: Thorsten Franke-Haverkamp (ed.): Cult computer of the 80s . Chip special issue, 2013, p. 58 f.
230. ↑ Atari 8-bit. In: Retro Gamer , special issue 2/2016, 2016, pp. 38–40, EAN 4018837009710.
231. ^ Oldenburg Computer Museum. In: Load magazine 2/2013, ed. Association for the preservation of classic computers. V., ISSN  2194-3575 , 2013, p. 22.

This article was added to the list of excellent articles in this version on February 19, 2019 .