c6The Amiga:c7 c7An Inside Look at a Powerful Computer c2Written By Shane R. Monroe c5================================================================= Table of Contents ================================================================= I. Introduction A. In The Beginning... ................................1 B. History in the Making ..............................1 C. The Amiga in Today's Market ........................2 II. Architecture A. To Kill a Clone ....................................3 B. Parts is Parts .....................................4 C. Matters of the RAM .................................6 D. Indianapolis A500 ..................................7 III. The Operating System A. Its Never as Easy as it Looks (Or is it?) ..........7 B. A Comfortable GUI ..................................8 C. Multiple Task Master ...............................9 D. Making the Best Better with 2.1+ ...................9 IV. Graphics: Denise's Game A. The Basics plus ECS ................................10 B. "Ham"ing it Up .....................................11 C. "Blitter"ing Heights ...............................12 D. When "Copper" Isn't a Metal ........................12 E. The Wonderful Wizard of AGA ........................13 V. Sound with Paula the Orchestrator A. When Computers were New ............................13 B. Amiga Rocks! .......................................14 VI. Input/Output: Multitasking with Gary A. Mice and Such ......................................14 B. A, E, I/O, and You .................................15 C. Video Out ..........................................15 VII. Expansion: The Way of the Future A. Ah, But Can It... ..................................15 B. Is it Live or is it Amiga? .........................16 C. Sounds of Silence ..................................16 D. Video Construction Set .............................16 E. How to Burn Toast ..................................16 VIII. Defense, You May Give Your Closing Statements IX. About the Author (As if You Cared...) c6 I. Introduction A. In the Beginning... Welcome to what I hope will be the complete guide to the Commodore Amiga Personal Computer. Let me start off by saying that this is not intended for the complete computer illiterate. We will discuss basic computer principles such as RAM, ROM, disk drives, hard drives, monitors, etc. very little here. This guide was made primarily for the novice to intermediate Amiga owner and for those people who own a different system or have researched into buying a computer system. If you are an experienced Amiga user, you will find most of this text pretty boring, although the Amiga history may be something that you were unfamiliar with. It makes for interesting reading all the same. I learned quite a bit while writing this and I think that just about everyone can pickup something useful here. For those of you who are planning to purchase a computer in the future, please read this guide. It isn't very long, and it may help you get a better computer system for less. The purpose of this guide is NOT to bash other computer types; I simply want to help open new doors to those who want to walk through them. When you are finished, pass it on to a friend who may be interested. The secondary purpose of this guide is to help build Amiga awareness which helps all us Amiga users out. Have fun! B. History in the Making Back in the late 1970's, computers were very little known and used. They were the luxury of big corporations and colleges. They had gotten considerably smaller since the days when they took up a full room, but they still weren't ready to come into the home yet. By the early 1980's, computers were starting to happen. Apple created their first Apple II computer, which they cleverly gave away to schools, then raked them over the coals for hardware and software later, making them the original 'education' computer. The first IBMs started coming out with 16 color text and basic graphics. Of course, the best selling computer of all time was also released: the Commodore 64. At the time, these computers represented incredible processing power, graphics, and sound. The C64's three voices and graphics processing chip made it incredible for games and educational titles. The IBMs stayed on the businessman's desk for several years following but started to get into the personal computer market shortly there after. Not to hammer, but it seems that IBM always has to wait for someone else to come out with the cutting edge of technology before trying to match it. While this was going on, a group of individuals got together and started designing what they hoped to be the best possible computer made; the Lorraine, Amiga's first project. Among the design team was Jay Miner, a designer for Atari. He had plans for a graphics chip set that would blow any current computer out of the water. Unfortunately, he and the rest of the Amiga group had no funding to build this fantastic machine. With the beginning of the console game machine's age and the huge success of the Atari 2600 and other game machines, a group of doctors, lawyers, and other professionals decided that this was where the future money was at. Together, they wanted to invest big money into developing the ultimate game machine. Thus, the alliance between them and Amiga started; to build the ultimate console games machine. Amiga was delighted to take on the job, secretly using the funding to build the Lorraine. To supplement their income, Amiga began to make input devices such as joysticks, etc. Within a couple of years of endless revisions and smoke blowing to the investors (they still wanted a console; not a computer), the Lorraine was finally done. In 1982, the Lorraine was taken to the Consumer Electronic Shows and displayed. The response was incredible. Finally, the investors caught on to Amiga's ploy. They yanked their financial support. The production and development of the Lorraine skidded to a halt. It was then that other computer manufacturers decided to try for the machine. Atari came along first. Making promises and proposing deals, Atari continued to blow smoke to the Amiga group. Commodore, makers of the PET and the C64, come along with a hard copy contract and terms ready to be signed. At first, Amiga didn't want a pact with Commodore due to conflicts with the CEO, Jack Tramiel. But, watching the market pass by, they signed up with Commodore. Atari was absolutely furious at losing the bid. It was then that Atari purchased the Atari ST computer from someone and began open competition with the newly founded Commodore Amiga. In 1984, the Amiga Lorraine, now named just 'AMIGA' 1000 computer was released to the public. In its first days, it was hailed as the best graphics and sound powerhouse money could buy. Artists, musicians, game players, and more rushed out to get into this new technology. Soon, Commodore saw the need for different and better versions of the Amiga and that started the whole Amiga revolution. While IBM, Apple, and others struggled to play catch up, the Amiga continued to flourish, reaching into new marketplaces where computers were not really an integral part such as multimedia and video processing. Each step of the way, Commodore designed the technology that others had to duplicate. C. The Amiga in Today's Market Today, the American marketplace appears to be flooded with IBM clones and Macintoshes. The Amiga stopped competing with these platforms years ago, and started to move in on the big systems like Silicon Graphics and Crays. With its incredible graphics power and video production capabilities, the Amiga continues to be the leader in video which is readily evident if you watch cable TV preview channels, go on a tour of Disney World's animation facilities, or watch incredible graphic and special effect shows like Babylon 5. The Amiga is behind all of them. In Europe, where the market is a different ball game, the Amiga is the premier computer. IBM is not the driving force behind the market there. Why? The reasoning probably comes from the fact that when you purchase an IBM (or clone) you are automatically obligated to purchase add ons for just about every function. The European economy doesn't allow for much expenditure on hardware, so the Europeans I guess figure that they should get a system that contains all the aspects from the start. They are also much more individualistic about their machines. They are a very passionate people about computers just as Americans are passionate about their cars. "Everyone else has one" doesn't cut it for them. True, it is difficult to find an Amiga dealer these days, at least, here in the States. This is obviously due to the market. But, just because the market is flooded with something certainly doesn't make it the best for all applications. After all, you don't see Ferrari dealers everywhere, but that doesn't stop an elite group from buying them. II. Architecture A. To Kill a Clone When the Amiga team designed their computer, it was made (from the bottom up) to be a graphics and sound powerhouse with the ability to do things that others were never designed to do, such as multitask (more on this later). It was designed to be the most user-friendly machine as well. After all, when it came out, the majority of people were still hesitant and even scared of computers. In order to understand what makes this Amiga so powerful, we need to look into the heart of it. To allow for fair comparison and offer a point of reference for clone owners, we will also breakdown the inside of a IBM clone as well. I think that the architecture will speak for itself. - Please proceed to the next page - B. Parts is Parts Basic Amiga Construction VIDEO PARALLEL SERIAL AUDIO JOY/MOUSE DISKS ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ | | | | | | | | DENISE | | PAULA | | GARY || | |CPU (680X0) | | | | | | | | | | | | | AGNUS | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |ROM (512k) | | FAST RAM BANK | | CHIP RAM BANK | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | Breakdown of Parts: ------------------- CPU - Performs math functions and executes programs. The processor is from the Motorola family. 68000 is the most common. ROM - Stores permanent system operation information. Denise - Handles all graphics functions. Paula - Handles all sound/music functions. Gary - Handles all input/output functions. Agnus - Acts as memory manager for Chip RAM. Fast RAM - RAM only used by CPU for program and data storage. Chip RAM - RAM needed to store graphics and sound data for use with the custom chips. May be used by CPU if no other Fast RAM is available. NOTE: As you can see, the load on the CPU is very minimal. Almost every function of the Amiga is handled by one of the custom chips (also known as 'The Custom Chip Set') which is owned exclusively by Commodore which is why there is no such thing as an 'Amiga Compatible' computer. This makes it possible for a slow CPU based Amiga to run incredibly fast, often outrunning a 25-33mhz clone. This also permits 'true multitasking'. Basic Clone Construction VIDEO PARALLEL SERIAL JOY/MOUSE DISKS ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ | | VIDEO CARD | | | | | | |CPU (80x86) | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |ROM (512k) | | CONVENTIONAL ||| EXTENDED RAM | | | | | ||| | 640k ||| | | | | ||| EXPANDED RAM | | | | |MEMORY MANAGER | Breakdown of Parts: ------------------- CPU - As with the Amiga, it executes programs and stores data, but unlike the Amiga, it controls all the computer's functions including i/o, sound, control devices, etc. This is why the CPU must run at speeds of 25+ Mhz to be truly productive. Video Card - This is what determines colors, resolution, etc. of the clone's video. It ranges from basic VGA to Super VGA and coming up XGA. Conventional RAM - The 640K usable by MS-DOS to store programs and graphics/sound data. It should be noted that this barrier is mandated by MS-DOS and is not applicable to certain systems such as Windows in Unprotected Mode and OS2, both of which are in- compatible with MS-DOS applications, the majority of software out there. Memory Manager - A program in Conventional Memory that allows for swapping out of RAM between Extended/Expanded Memory in 64K chunks. When the system needs more RAM, it changes out a chunk of Conventional with a chunk of the extra RAM so it has room. Extended/Expanded Memory - Simply extra RAM usable by other Windows or other operating systems, and DOS with the Memory Manager (above). NOTE: As you can see, the architecture is not very open ended; this basic schematic has stayed the same since the beginning of the IBM's PC line. Through the addition of many cards or boards (for better graphics, the addition of real sound, and input devices), the clone has come a long way in the race. But, it hasn't caught up yet, and with the new Amiga 4000 out, it again has a long way to go to catch up to Amiga technology. C. Matters of the RAM From the above diagram, you can see the liability that the architecture has placed on the clone's RAM usage. Again, it should be noted that the 640K barrier is not inherent to the machine structure, but to the operating system, MS-DOS. Although this problem is being worked on, to maintain compatibility with all the existing programs, it still exists. This is a real problem for them. But, the Amiga is not perfect in matters of RAM. There are two types of RAM in the Amiga, Fast and Chip. Although you are pretty much unlimited on the expansion of Fast RAM, Chip RAM is the Amiga's RAM liability. Fast RAM is standard RAM. It can be expanded easily, cost effectively, and all of it is autoconfiguring (i.e. when you add it to the system, you have access to it; a memory manager is not required). The more of this you have, the more you can use to load larger programs in memory causing (usually) less disk access and load times. It is usable by the CPU only, not the chip set. Chip RAM is another story. Since it is usable by both the CPU and custom chips, it tends to get short at times, especially with Amigas that have ONLY Chip RAM (A600, A2000). Early Amigas came with only 256K Chip RAM! When you think about the fact that all graphics and sound data must be stored here, you realize its significance. Middle aged Amigas had 512K (early A500s), later models 1024K (late A500s, A2000s), and now the AGA machines (A1200, A4000) have a full two megs (2024K). It is worth noting that the A3000 also has two megs of Chip RAM. There are other factors concerning Chip RAM but they are beyond the discussion of this text. So which is machine is better on RAM? Personally, if you have at least a meg of Fast and a meg of Chip on an Amiga, you will very rarely have troubles with RAM. From what I have been told and through my own experiences, RAM management on a clone is often troubled. D. Indianapolis A500 Let's talk about speed. This seems to be the second thing people classify their computers by after the processor type. In the clone world, speed is everything since it is all they have to base the system on. As mentioned before, speeds of 25+ mhz is usually the minimum to achieve desired program speeds. With the Amiga, the story is slightly different. As we said before, the clone's structure is designed so that the CPU does all the work. The Amiga's custom chip set and invention of Chip RAM made it possible for multiple tasks to happen simultaneously. For example, it is not uncommon for an Amiga user with just a meg of RAM to optimize his hard drive, copy diskettes, download a program from a BBS via a modem, re-index a database file, and work on a letter all at the same time with negligible speed loss. All this can happen under the original Amiga's 7.14 Mhz clock speed. The reason is clear by looking at the architecture. CPU speed has little to do with it; the custom chip set makes it possible. So, we have a "slow" Amiga outrunning many times faster clones. Imagine if you increased your Amiga speed to 25, 33, 40, or 50 mhz! Imagine the speeds you would see! The race is on... III. The Operating System A. Its Never as Easy as it Looks (Or is it?) Okay, so now we have looked at the hardware, but what about the system software? What good is all this high tech hardware if you have a crappy interface to use it? Let's see what the Amiga and the clones have to offer. Most machines run what we Amiga users call a Command Line Interface (CLI) or often called a DOS prompt. This is simply a prompt that you type your commands in at, such as the filename to run, DELETE, COPY, etc. This involved learning a new 'language' before being able to use your new computer. This is the way that most clone and older computer systems operate (i.e. MS-DOS 6.0, DR- DOS, Apple, C64, etc). Then came the Graphic User Interface (GUI) which would change the way people used computers forever. Macintosh had it first (followed shortly by the Amiga); this GUI. When it first came out, it was hailed as a huge step in helping people afraid of computers adjust since it was so easy to use and very difficult to mess up on. The GUI has little pictures called ICONS that represent programs. To run them, you just move the little pointer with your mouse, click the icon twice, and BAM; the program ran. When the program was done, BAM; the GUI came back and waited for your next command. Copying files was as easy as holding down the mouse button over the icon and dragging it to a new disk-icon. To delete it, you dragged it into the trash-icon. It was then easy to do almost any function without ever typing a key. It was HOT! Again, I hate to bring it up, but it wasn't until long after the Mac and Amiga entered the market that clones decided to cash in on the GUI. Their answer was Windows, a very bad tempered program requiring several megs of RAM and a very fast machine to run it. Even then, the system was slow and pretty unfriendly. Over the last couple years, Windows has started to come around, but it is still quite far from being a friendly GUI. The other alternative is OS/2 which currently seems to be in the minority to Windows. Unfortunately, the clone was never constructed to function in a multitasking GUI environment, so they have had to really work hard to get what they have. Now, since Windows is so grudgingly slow, there are numerous accelerators made to increase performance, all at a cost to the user, of course. The Amiga, on the other hand, was designed from the bottom up to multitask in a GUI environment. The system is fluid, the restriction few, and the requirements small. Every Amiga can run the GUI (known to Amigians as WORKBENCH) from the smallest A600 to the speedy A4000, equally. The more RAM you have, the more applications you can run. B. A Comfortable GUI I have used many popular GUI's for most popular platforms; from Mac to Windows. I will profess to being pretty clueless on OS/2 however. For my experiences, the WorkBench is by far the simplest most versatile GUI around. Most GUI's have the basics; moving, executing, renaming, copying, etc. The Amiga is no different. But even the early AmigaDOS V1.2 had more. From scrolling windows to advanced functions like formatting disks and running scripts (known to clones as batch files) right from the WorkBench. The operating system even came with a built-in speech synthesizer which was unheard of at that time and still is to this date. With little programs called 'hacks' you could make even more things possible like button launched programs (similar to docks on Unix systems), bigger-than-screen WorkBenches, little rockets that chase your pointer around the screen until you stop moving it and it is destroyed, and tons more. Icon editors made possible to completely customize your environment with two step animated icons. The list goes on and on. Many of these things are still not possible in any other GUI environment. The ease was a breakthrough in personal computing. C. Multiple Task Master Discussed previously, the Amiga is the only true multitasking personal computer available today. Its power comes from the four custom chips that drive the OS. This would be a good time to discuss the differences between multitasking and TASKSWITCHING. Multitasking is the ability to do multiple tasks SIMULTANEOUSLY. An example would be to optimize a hard drive partition while reading a program off another, or dialing your modem while printing a letter. These tasks require multiple i/o routines to happen. Without the Gary, these things cannot happen together, but they are then considered taskswitching. Taskswitching is where multiple programs reside in RAM and SEQUENTIALLY they are given access to the CPU. This may produce a similar effect, but those of you who have actually worked in a real multitasking environment know the difference. You don't have to wait for programs to catch up, printing isn't halted because some other program wants to use a disk drive, the screen doesn't refresh until another program gives up the graphics card, etc. The difference is night and day, when you get to see it for yourself. Though many systems SAY they multitask, you now understand that they don't. By definition, multitasking means using multiple processors which only the Amiga has. Even the new Intel PENTAD CPU will not truly multitask but RUNS LIKE it has two 486 chips. 'Runs like' and 'runs' are two different things. D. Making the Best Better with 2.1+ Everything can be improved, and the Workbench V1.3 had lots of room in it, even with all its power. It looked cheesy, users demanded more powerful commands, etc. The system lasted almost 5 years without an update. Finally, Commodore released the 2.0 system ROMS. A replacement chip for the ROM inside Amigas. A new breakthrough came with it. Before I get into the improvements of this system, let me take a moment to share a little story with you about the development on 2.0. When Commodore announced the 2.0 system, the Amiga community went nuts; it had been a long time. Commodore continued to post release dates then continued to fail to meet them. Dealers and users alike became very terse over the situation. When dealers started to pull their orders, Commodore made an official announcement that the reason for the extra delays was a problem at the factory. Apparently, they hired the same company that Intel used to burn duplicates of their 80x86 chips. The Intel chips and Commodore's ROMs wrote their data in opposite directions, see. Well, for whatever reason, the company burned all the Commodore ROMs backwards! The entire order had to be sent back and done again. Pretty amusing. A delay that wasn't Commodore's fault... Anyway, to make a long story short, 2.1 (and above; they are up to 4.0 now) offered lots of new changes. The look became a very sleek 3-D interface, the ability to read and write MS-DOS and Macintosh disks were built into the system, hacks became neat obedient programs called Commodities, a user tool menu was added so that you could add you own applications to the pull down menus, and far too much more to write about. There were some very exciting additions to the system. The unfortunate truth, though, is that with the release of 2.1+, the speech synthesis was removed from the system. Although Commodore would not comment directly, the accepted belief is that the company that produced the synthesizer wanted too much money or terminated their contract for some reason, forcing Commodore to pull the program. However, the program was software based; not hardware based. Copying a few programs from your 1.3 disk will re-enable speech on the new system. Yet another interesting landmark in Amiga history. IV. Graphics: Denise's Game A. The Basics plus ECS Everyone wants to know about graphics these days. Reasonable, considering the multiple uses of the computer. As before, the Amiga was designed as a graphics and sound powerhouse, so let's see how it stands up. The Amigas graphics haven't changed too much until just recently. Until now it wasn't necessary; everyone was still playing the catch-up game (and they still are in many areas). Until the creation of AGA (advanced graphics architecture), all Amigas were created equal. Were it still the early 1980's, I couldn't just throw a list of specs at you and expect you to understand. Now, there is a much greater awareness and understanding of computers. The basic Amiga system is capable of a maximum resolution of 746 x 438 pixels with up to 4096 colors displayed simultaneously. Pretty impressive specs. The resolution is not as high as the newer Super VGA cards for clones, but you aren't going to get 4096 colors on a standard Super VGA card either. Most common for clone is 256 colors. Believe me, more colors are better than more resolution in most applications. Although most Amiga games and color-intensive productivity use 32 or 64 colors, most of the 256 color games look no different than their 64 color counterparts. If there is a difference, it is very little. The difference between a 256 color digitized image and a 4096 color image is incredible; so much so that I can't explain it to you without you seeing for yourself. Speed of graphics is also inherently faster on Amiga, again, courtesy of the custom chip set. This is why you can take a copy of Wrath of the Demon and run it on a 32 color Amiga at 7.14 Mhz and it looks better and smoother than the same game on a 256 color 25 Mhz clone. There are factors involved other than speed that make the Amiga a superior graphics machine which we will look at shortly. The ECS (enhanced chip set) as designed by Commodore basically to placate Amiga users who were demanding better graphics; to hold them over until AGA. The enhancement wasn't huge; but it was called for. The major addition was a new graphics mode called Super Productivity which knocked you down to 4 colors but allowed 1280x400 resolution. It was designed to meet the needs of expanding business and productivity software development. It consisted of replacing the Denise with the new Super Denise and the Agnus with the Fatter (or sometimes known as Super) Agnus. Together, they permitted the new modes. The cost of this upgrade currently is under $100, and it does give the older machines access to one meg of Chip RAM. The A600, A3000, and some A2000s have this ECS installed already. The A1200 and A4000, of course, have AGA. B. "Ham"ing it Up Most Amiga users know they have a graphics mode called HAM (Hold and Modify) which is what gives them to power to display that 4096 color palette. How or why it works is often a mystery, certainly to a consumer who is new to Amiga, and to many Amiga users to this date. We will explore what it is, how it works, and what you can and cannot do with it. But first, another interesting little tidbit about HAM. HAM is a hack; no doubt about it. The Amiga was never designed to use this mode nor display 4096 colors. It was the designer of the chipset, Jay Miner, who came up with the idea and decided at the last second to implement it. In truth, he didn't expect anyone to use it. Hold and Modify is very complicated, and is even shadowed in Amiga books about graphics. We will try to be simple. Each pixel contains a color register which tells it what color to be. Normally, this could be 32 different colors but the Denise had a neat little mode called 'Extra Half Bright' which would generate another 32 colors by dimming the existing 32 colors to half as bright, thus 64 colors. Pixels are drawn from left to right. By using a neat little hardware hack, Jay managed to make each pixel's color dependant on the pixels to the left of it. Without getting too deep, this allowed for an incredible amount of colors to be displayed; 4096. So why can't we all get more excited about this mode? First off, this mode became widely accepted and is usable in just about every application that Amiga has to offer, from paint programs to video character generators to video digitizers. One group, New Tek, hacked the mode further and allowed 4096 different colors PER LINE of resolution!! Since this 'Dynamic-Hires' required two megs of RAM and disabled the entire Amiga to display it, the limitations outweighed the advantages. Unfortunately, HAM requires that the left-most pixels on the screen stay constant (read this as 'no full screen animation') and great care must be taken when trying to animate anywhere else on the screen. Translation? HAM is awesome for stills, but that is about it. A powerful plus for the Amiga as stills are widely used in multimedia and presentations. C. "Blitter"ing Heights Blitter is a word synonymous with Amiga alone. The word itself refers to a function of the Denise chip. Simply put, the blitter allows objects of ANY size (up to the current screen resolution) to be moved INDEPENDENTLY of the screen! Imagine, being able to have a BOB (blitter object block) half the size of the screen scrolling around the screen at high speeds while being animated! This may not sound amazing to you but when you consider that in order for a clone to do the same thing, the object must actually be drawn on the screen. When the object is moved, the next location's pixels must be stored in a buffer so that it can be replaced when the object moves again. This cut-and-paste method requires tons of speed and more RAM that a BOB. More so, it never really looks smooth like a BOB does. Sprites are just like BOBs except faster and hardware independent of the screen completely. They are more limited in size and colors, but are unbelievably smooth. The mouse pointer is a good example of a sprite. Look at the mouse pointer of other GUIs such as Windows and note how choppy they are next to the Workbench pointer. The blitter opens incredible doors, mostly to entertainment and educational fields. This amazing function, again, increases the overall speed of graphics and the Amiga in general. D. When "Copper" Isn't a Metal Copper is what a penny is made out of, right? True, but it is also yet another fantastic function of the Denise chip inside the Amiga. And you thought the blitter was neat.... The copper allows independent control of each line of pixels on the screen. In this fashion, incredible graphic effects are possible. Imagine rainbow colored bars that move smoothly up and down the screen, shifting through colors as it moves. These are known to Amiga users as Copper Bars. You can alter text on the screen to be multiple colors, create scrolling text that bends and warps as it travels across the screen. The power of the copper and blitter combined can produce some visual effects that can literally take your breath away. Those of you who have seen demos that use plasma effects and rainbow colored 3d boxes spinning through a star field know what I mean. For those of you who haven't, find an Amiga owner to show you some demos. I think that you will be incredibly impressed. These special graphic modes; blitter, copper, etc. do not exist on any other machine than the Amiga. To coin a phrase, 'Only Amiga Makes It Possible'. If you don't take a look at the graphic capabilities of the Amiga before you buy your next computer, you are cheating yourself out of some true computing magic. E. The Wonderful Wizard of AGA Advanced Graphic Architecture. Amazing thing. Two new custom chips added to the board of an Amiga, the Lisa and Alice, creates a whole new standard of graphics power. Once again, it is time for the IBM to clone some more technology... With the A1200 or A4000, you now have an incredible arsenal at your disposal. 1280x1148 resolution. 256,000 colors from 16.8 million color palette. Blitter and copper. Full access to all colors in all resolutions. Any questions? Sure, why not own one? There isn't a real reason not to jump on the AGA bandwagon. In all honesty, though, AGA isn't really big as of this writing. There are but a handful (but growing steadily) of programs which make use of this technology. Backward compatibility is not as good as it could be: 80% or so of older program work fine under AGA, but what are the chances of it being the program you want to use that won't work? The worst problem for Amiga owners; there is no way to update a non-AGA machine to AGA. This may change in time, but currently, upgrading means 'purchasing new' and basically throwing away all the enhancements in your current Amiga. This is not a great prospect for all of us. We are reaping the wealth, though. Since AGA's introduction, prices on old Amigas and their respective hardware has dropped. It has never been easier to upgrade than now. In a way, I guess, AGA has help the entire Amiga and potential Amiga community. All I can say is 'it is about time Amiga crawled back on top of technology'. V. Sound with Paula the Orchestrator A. When Computers were New In the late 1970's, sound from computers was pretty much limited to beeps. Sure, you could make them different frequencies, but that didn't add much to the game. Rudimentary sound began to pop up on the Apple and the Atari computers, then, in the early 1980's, the Commodore 64 was released. With its three separate voices with nine octave range, it became the most powerful computer around for sound. Then, came the Amiga. Naturally, as the Amiga's four voice, two channel, hi-fi, stereo sound started making headlines, the IBM world tried to come up with a sound card to stay on the bandwagon. Its early attempts, Ad-Lib and Sound Blaster and a multitude of other no-name brands, failed miserably. The only machine of the day to top the Amiga's sound capability was the Apple IIgs, Apple Computer's entry into this new class of computer dominated by Amiga and the Atari ST. With its tons of voices and quality sound output, it was a great rival. Fortunately for Amiga, the Apple IIgs was quietly discontinued in the middle to late '80s and never heard from since. Failure was mostly due to the strive to maintain total compatibility with the older Apple II line, causing the rest of the system to suffer. The machine had potential but not the passion the Amiga public had. In the mean time, the Atari ST made its name amongst musicians who used it heavily for sequencing and MIDI work. It, too, went to computer heaven, although it should be noted that the Atari ST is still a contender in Europe where it holds just behind the Amiga. B. Amiga Rocks! Many Amiga users will tell you that the sound of the Amiga is aging and in dire need of upgrade. Although the clone world has the Sound Blaster Pro to compete sound-wise, the output is far from high quality. That fact alone has continued to keep the Amiga on top for music and sound, but it won't last much longer. There are lots of new developments in the works, though, that will again hurl Amiga ahead of the game. Still, potential buyers need to hear both the Amiga and clone play the same music and decide for themselves which truly sounds better. Don't worry; you won't have to pay too close attention. Sound is carried through standard RCA jacks, ready to plug in to your current stereo or dedicated amp. VI. Input/Output: Multitasking with Gary A. Mice and Such First off, what good is a GUI without a mouse? Exactly. That is why every Amiga comes with a mouse. You can't have a good entertainment system without a joystick, and although one is not provided, a joystick port is. Thankfully, Amiga uses standard digital 9-pin joysticks (same as the old Atari 2600 and C64 use) so they are easy and cheap to find. Chances are, you already have one in your closet somewhere. You may use two joysticks by unplugging the mouse and plugging in one there. With a special adapter, you can use four joysticks for the ultimate family gaming session. Of course, switchboxes are available to shift from mouse to joystick. As you may have guessed, these necessities are not always provided to clone buyers. If you are in the market for an entertainment system, keep this fact in mind. The Amiga world has a cruel mnemonic for IBM...It means I.mpiles B.uying M.ore. B. A, E, I/O, and You The Amiga is not proprietary in its input/output devices. This means that printers, modems, MIDI, etc. are compatible with most on the market. You may use existing clone printers, modems, SCSI/IDE compatible disk drives and removable media, etc. on your Amiga without a hitch. The basic difference in input/output on an Amiga is that it is handled independently of the processor, thus, has the ability to multitask. You may not use analog joysticks (an adaptor is available, though), mice, or other type devices made specifically for a clone. Most of these things you would not use anyway. C. Video Out Standard video output on the Amiga is RGB, which is why we cannot use a VGA monitor without an adaptor. However, low priced RGB monitors are available and the output is quite nice. For certain video modes on the newer machines, you will need a multisync monitor which bottom end will cost you about $500. Should you not have the cash to ship out for a monitor, a TV set will work decently. Granted, it will not be as crisp, but it will suffice, especially if you want to play games. For A500, A2000, and A3000s, you will need to buy an adapter to send the video to the TV. For about $20 you can't go wrong. There is a standard composite output (monochrome for the above machines) on Amigas which uses a standard Video Out RCA jack. This plugs in easily to most newer televisions, and all VCRs. This way, you can even tape your graphics! A monitor is certainly better if you can get one. A monitor also enables the viewing of the PAL television standard used in Europe. If you plan on running anything PAL (you will, trust me) a TV set will not function properly. Any Amiga with at least a meg of Chip RAM can go into PAL mode. Fortunately, all Amigas have this with the exception of a few old A500s. VII. Expansion: The Way of the Future A. Ah, But Can It... Chances are...YES! The Amiga has access to just tons of neat innovative goodies. If you can find the hardware for the clone, there is a good chance that Amiga can use it or has a comparative product; scanners, digitizers, framegrabbers, floptical drives, CD-ROM, graphic tablets, light pens, video boards, the list goes on and on. You can count on Amiga being able to use the latest hardware. You may be interested to know that the newest sensation, Virtual Reality, is being pioneered on the Amiga. Every major platform of VR contains at least one Amiga; Virtuality, Dactal Nightmare, Battletech, and more. When VR becomes affordable at home, you can be sure that Amiga will be the one in the lead (with clones trying to duplicate it). B. Is it Live or is it Amiga? With multimedia being the current computer sensation, Amiga has the power to beef up your presentations. Using a DIGITIZER, you can grab actual video or sound/music and record it to your Amiga. Sure, you can do this with clones, too, but remember the HAM graphic mode and the hi-fi output of Amiga sound and you will see why the Amiga is better equipped to handle this job. If you plan to get extensive into this digital medium, plan on a system with a large hard drive and lots of RAM. If you plan on getting a clone, you will even need more. C. Sounds of Silence If you plan on composing music, look to the Amiga to help. Not only is the output and construction better (see above), but the software has been refined to a science. With a MIDI instrument and the powerful program OctaMed Professional you can even hack your Amiga into playing eight voices! Combine digitized instruments with synthesized sounds and create music like you would never believe. It even prints sheet music for you! With the support of dozens of music composition programs, players, sequencers, and MIDI you can create just about anything your ears desire. If you aren't a musician, relax. Just call your local Amiga BBS and download hundreds of public domain music files (we call 'em MODs) just to sit back and enjoy. There is something for everyone; rave, classical, techno, hard rock, rap, and lots more. D. Video Construction Set Some of the video specs of the Amiga got you worried? No problem. There are dozens of 24 bit graphic video boards to help you achieve your goal. Some are cheap, some aren't, but all will help you improve your video out. There are powerful all-in-one boxes like the Impact Vision 24 with built-in framegrabber, paint program, PIP display capabilities and lots more. Just want some broadcast quality images? Pick the DCTV with built-in digitizer and NTSC quality paint program. Ever want your own video production studio? NewTek's Video Toaster is for you (see below). The world of Amiga video is entirely open ended with lots more on the way. Whatever your needs are in video, the Amiga will assist you in achieving it. E. How to Burn Toast A video production studio. Normally an expensive acquisition ranging up to $75K for good equipment can be yours for $2000. How? With NewTek's Video Toaster. Even if you are a clone owner, you have probably heard about this little box. This card has the entire power of a $50K studio; character generator, 24-bit paint box, digital effects generator, genlock, framegrabber, luminance keyer, ChromaFx generator, three dimensional graphics render/animator, and more. This box will leave you breathless. In fact, NewTek (these boys drive Lotus' to work so they are doing something right) will send you a Toaster Demo Tape FREE if you give'em a call. They even pick up postage. NewTek went on record as to saying that the Amiga was the only computer capable of running a Toaster. Hey, they said it, not me... VIII. Defense, You May Give Your Closing Statements Just to close things up here... If this sounds like a blatant ad for the Commodore Amiga by a truly Amiga-radical author, you are correct. I have spent the last several years of my life promoting, using, and supporting the Amiga. Having worked with almost all the popular platforms in the computing world, I decided long ago that the Amiga was the best computer for almost every application, as well as the cheapest; not only to buy but to expand. If what you want is a clone, then chances are you will get a clone; my labors over this text will make no difference. If you are serious about getting a computer to fit your needs and want to get the most for your money, I hope that this document has given you some valid points to think about. IX. About the Author (As if You Cared...) I live in Summerville, SC with my wife and daughter. I have been using many computer types for the past 12 years. When not working, I write programs for my Shareware company, Dark Unicorn Productions. I am also considering expanding into a video