The Atari interview discussion thread

[Savetz]

Harry Guiremand, SynChron

http://ataripodcast.libsyn.com/antic-interview-180-harry-guiremand-synchron

Harry Guiremand wrote SynChron, a calendar application, which was published by Synapse Software in 1983.

This interview took place on April 15, 2016.

Thanks to Wade at the Inverse ASASCII podcast for his research and suggestions. You can hear Wade's thorough review and walkthrough of SynChron at the Inverse ATASCII podcast.

Teaser quote:

"I had a password system where if you didn't guess the password correctly, you had to wait a little bit longer each time you missed it. Somebody who was trying to break the password with brute force method would end up having to wait days and days for the next chance to make a guess."

[Savetz]

Stan Ockers, public domain game programmer

http://ataripodcast.libsyn.com/stan-ockers-public-domain-game-programmer

Stan Ockers started on the KIM-1 single board computer, where was was co-author of The First Book of KIM with Jim Butterfield. He later got an Atari 400, and became a prolific author of public domain programs which were distributed by users groups and in Antic magazine. His game credits include Chicken, Frog, and Bats, all of which were published in early issues of Antic magazines. Some of his programs were also published in Page 6 magazine.

This interview took place on March 10, 2016.

Teaser quote:

"I put in like, I figured, something like about 40 hours to write a program before I was satisfied to get rid of it. Or, got sick of it."

[Savetz]

Well,

 

how about an interview with early Basic programmers on the A8, like a) Stan Ockers or b) J.D. Casten and what they were doing later on (or what they are doing today) - assuming they are still alive ?!?

 

 

Here you go. http://ataripodcast.libsyn.com/stan-ockers-public-domain-game-programmer

 

-Kevin

[Savetz]

Dave Menconi, Atari Customer Service and User Group Support

http://ataripodcast.libsyn.com/antic-interview-182-dave-menconi-atari-customer-service-and-user-group-support

Dave Menconi started at Atari in 1982 doing customer support for the Atari computers. Later he moved to the marketing group, where he helped support the Atari users groups. Dave wrote the program "Dancin' Man" for Antic magazine, and wrote several articles for Atari Connection magazine.

In this interview, we discuss Chris Crawford, Ted Richards, and Mike Albaugh, whom I previously interviewed. This interview took place on April 19, 2016.

Teaser quotes:

"...A light bulb went on above my head. That, it's one thing to know how to program but it's a much harder thing to know what to do with the skills that you have."

"He identified what the problem was and proposed a fix, and they fixed the product. And then afterwards, I remember him saying, 'And don't ever come back.'"

[Savetz]

Lane Winner: Graph-It, XEP-80, De Re Atari

http://ataripodcast.libsyn.com/antic-interview-183-lane-winner-graph-it-xep-80-de-re-atari

Lane Winner was an Atari employee for about a decade: he worked in the software development support group, as a programmer, and as an engineer. He is the author of Atari's Graph-It, contributor to De Re Atari, and designer of the XEP-80 80-column peripheral. Lane wrote several early releases for Atari Program Exchange: BASIC Cross-Reference Utility, BASIC Renumber Utility, and Variable Changer.

This interview took place April 20, 2016.

"OK, Lane. When you get your ... head and your heart together, you can be useful, and help the company out and help other people out."

[_The Doctor__]

Would be super cool if he could shed some light and share all the xep stuff he squirreled away to help us unlock all it has to offer.... I know depending on what driver your using it can be a turtle or it can actually move at a good clip... There seems to be alot of unused power and pins in the xep that could and should have been implemented.. the major cost was in the chips that are all present and not drawing all that goodness out with a few support chips and circuits made no sense at all... at least that's been the consensus so far....

Edited June 7, 2016 by _The Doctor__

[Kyle22]

I agree.

[+MrFish]

Kevin, I don't know if you saw the comment in the thread about command processors, but it was suggested that Bryan P. Schappel (and Barry Kolbe) of Analog magazine fame would be good to get an interview with if possible.

[Savetz]

I hope you can get interviews with David Bueler, Wes Newell ,Greg Christensen, and Dan Rohr. Greg will be the holy grail.

 

 

Updates:

 

Bueller: found him (!) but he's busy right now, I think it could happen in time.

Newell: scheduled!

Christensen: declined an interview (^%$#!);

Rohr: either he's ignoring me or I've got the wrong guy. Interview scheduled.

 

Kevin

Edited June 8, 2016 by Savetz

[www.atarimania.com]

Check the Bugrunner entry on our site, Daniel J. Dorey left his e-mail address:

http://www.atarimania.com/game-atari-400-800-xl-xe-bugrunner_821.html

 

Trollops Caves and The UNIT Copier are new ones to me!

 

Thanks again for what you're doing!

 

--

Atari Frog

http://www.atarimania.com

[rkindig]

Rob Zdybel, Bug Hunt, Atari 5200 OS, Missile Command, Atari 850 interface and much more

http://ataripodcast.libsyn.com/antic-interview-184-rob-zdybel-star-trek-missile-command-bug-hunt

 

Rob Zdybel was a long-time employee at Atari, having worked there from 1979 to 1996, when the Tramiels left. Rob has a long line of credits including Pigs in Space, Real Sports Football, Stellar Track and Star Trek for the Atari 400/800, SOS for the Atari 2600, Missile Command for the Atari 5200, and Bug Hunt for the Atari XE. He also designed the system BIOS for the Atari 5200.

Rob mentions the SYLVIA game system in the interview, although he couldn’t remember the name of the system at the time. It was the machine that was supposed to come between the 2600 and the 5200 and which Doug Neubauer worked on.

Niles Strohl and Doug Neubauer are both mentioned in the interview, both of which I’m working to get interviews.

Please note that this interview does have some profanity.

This interview took place on January 17, 2016.

Teaser Quotes:

• “I said Good Lord, Man, I don’t know if I can stand the idea of using computers to kill people more accurately.”
• “They were going to give us a free Atari 800 computer. That’s one of things you got for signing on with the Atari crew.”
• “I signed on to the Atari 2600 program at the time. I was not actually interested in writing 2600 programs, but where my heart was really at was the Atari 800 computer because it was so much more powerful.”
• “The lights had come on: you CAN’T win at Marketing Adventure.”
• “You’re talking to the man who’s responsible for Chris Crawford being in the game industry. It’s my fault.”

[Savetz]

Would be super cool if he could shed some light and share all the xep stuff he squirreled away to help us unlock all it has to offer.... I know depending on what driver your using it can be a turtle or it can actually move at a good clip... There seems to be alot of unused power and pins in the xep that could and should have been implemented.. the major cost was in the chips that are all present and not drawing all that goodness out with a few support chips and circuits made no sense at all... at least that's been the consensus so far....

 

 

"Hi Kevin,

Will look.

Thanks, Lane"

[Lynxpro]

 

Rob Zdybel, Bug Hunt, Atari 5200 OS, Missile Command, Atari 850 interface and much more

http://ataripodcast.libsyn.com/antic-interview-184-rob-zdybel-star-trek-missile-command-bug-hunt

 

Rob Zdybel was a long-time employee at Atari, having worked there from 1979 to 1996, when the Tramiels left. Rob has a long line of credits including Pigs in Space, Real Sports Football, Stellar Track and Star Trek for the Atari 400/800, SOS for the Atari 2600, Missile Command for the Atari 5200, and Bug Hunt for the Atari XE. He also designed the system BIOS for the Atari 5200.

Rob mentions the SYLVIA game system in the interview, although he couldn’t remember the name of the system at the time. It was the machine that was supposed to come between the 2600 and the 5200 and which Doug Neubauer worked on.

Niles Strohl and Doug Neubauer are both mentioned in the interview, both of which I’m working to get interviews.

Please note that this interview does have some profanity.

This interview took place on January 17, 2016.

Teaser Quotes:

• “I said Good Lord, Man, I don’t know if I can stand the idea of using computers to kill people more accurately.”
• “They were going to give us a free Atari 800 computer. That’s one of things you got for signing on with the Atari crew.”
• “I signed on to the Atari 2600 program at the time. I was not actually interested in writing 2600 programs, but where my heart was really at was the Atari 800 computer because it was so much more powerful.”
• “The lights had come on: you CAN’T win at Marketing Adventure.”
• “You’re talking to the man who’s responsible for Chris Crawford being in the game industry. It’s my fault.”

 

 

That was awesome! There were a few times the sound was muffled on Rob's end but frak, that was a lot of good info! And for the record, as one of the people who played 3-Base Missile Command last year at the Davis Atari Party, it's the sh*t! War Birds on the Lynx is one of my most favorite games on the Lynx. I don't know how I missed his name all the times I played it. Definitely one of the best ComLynx'ed games…we used to play it a lot at the user's group meetings.

 

I was also surprised at the praise he gave the Tramiels, especially vs. Warner; cool stuff. I think his comment that he could talk about all things Atari all-night is not only true, but probably an understatement. Great interview but now I want to hear even more! So he coded for the 2600, the cancelled Sylvia, the Atari 8-bits/5200, the ST, the Lynx, and the Jag. I have a feeling he must've done stuff for the 7800, probably the cancelled "ST Game System", the Panther, and who knows what else? Maybe the beta version of the Genesis back when Atari almost had the rights to it. He probably tinkered with the Famicom - like Ed Logg - when Nintendo was negotiating with Atari Inc for it. Who knows? And I really want to know if he did any OS work on the ST; looks like he did the ST's versions of Missile Command and Star Raiders.

[rkindig]

 

That was awesome! There were a few times the sound was muffled on Rob's end but frak, that was a lot of good info! And for the record, as one of the people who played 3-Base Missile Command last year at the Davis Atari Party, it's the sh*t! War Birds on the Lynx is one of my most favorite games on the Lynx. I don't know how I missed his name all the times I played it. Definitely one of the best ComLynx'ed games…we used to play it a lot at the user's group meetings.

 

I was also surprised at the praise he gave the Tramiels, especially vs. Warner; cool stuff. I think his comment that he could talk about all things Atari all-night is not only true, but probably an understatement. Great interview but now I want to hear even more! So he coded for the 2600, the cancelled Sylvia, the Atari 8-bits/5200, the ST, the Lynx, and the Jag. I have a feeling he must've done stuff for the 7800, probably the cancelled "ST Game System", the Panther, and who knows what else? Maybe the beta version of the Genesis back when Atari almost had the rights to it. He probably tinkered with the Famicom - like Ed Logg - when Nintendo was negotiating with Atari Inc for it. Who knows? And I really want to know if he did any OS work on the ST; looks like he did the ST's versions of Missile Command and Star Raiders.

Lynxpro, you're right! Rob said so much yet there was so much left unsaid. He was there a LONG time and did an awful lot. I don't think I'd have any problem getting another hour-long interview with him. I wanted to talk ST a little with him last time but we didn't get that explored.

 

I"ll see what I can do.

 

thanks

[Lynxpro]

Lynxpro, you're right! Rob said so much yet there was so much left unsaid. He was there a LONG time and did an awful lot. I don't think I'd have any problem getting another hour-long interview with him. I wanted to talk ST a little with him last time but we didn't get that explored.

 

I"ll see what I can do.

 

thanks

 

There was a lot of other interesting tidbits through the interview too.

 

His timeline concerning Nintendo was off. Either that or he totally trivializes how much competition Mattel and Coleco put up against Atari prior to the industry crash and feels Nintendo should've been eliminated when the opportunity was there to do so before they hit it big.

 

He said he basically helped sabotage the plans to have the 5200 backwards-compatible with the 2600. I've always heard that it was Atari's own stubborn Warner-appointed management that nixed that over the protests over most of Atari's own engineers. Jerry Jessop has said that the engineers wanted 2600-backwards compatibility but that "French manager" - the one that inspired him and others to inflate that blow-up frog at a trade show in protest - refused to allow it. Joe Decuir has lamented on Facebook about how they could've added 2600 compatibility to the 8-bit computer line from the start for a few extra pennies per unit. So it appears there wasn't a united front one way or another on the subject [granted, Mr. Decuir had departed long before the 5200 was released]. If Atari's management - and Warner - wanted the 5200 to be backwards-compatible with the 2600 from the start and Atari's engineers sabotaged it like this claim, then that would actually make Warner look more credible when it came time to replace the 5200 and that they trusted GCC more than Atari's own engineers.

 

Maybe some clarification when he states the "5200 controllers" sucked, he just meant the standard joysticks and not the accessories like the Holy CX53. Again, Jerry Jessop had made analog self-centering joysticks for the 5200 using RC parts but that wasn't the design that management agreed to. And according to Curt, Atari did ultimately design self-centering 5200 joysticks that didn't have bad carbon dots either but the production run of them is still missing.

 

More on Rob's work on the ST but also any other Atari hardware. Sounds like he might have some Federated stories too. Maybe something about the oddest customized title screens he did for 3-Base Missile Command. According to Dan Kramer, Rob customized each 5 1/4" disk of the game with the person's name. Dan's own customized 3 fire button Trak-Ball can be seen on the Davis Atari Party website but pics of the other custom-built Trak-Balls haven't appeared online to my knowledge. The "Left" and "Right" fire buttons are wired to the Paddle Lines while the "Center" is the usual single Atari fire button. Thought I'd pass that along if someone is interested in building custom Trak-Balls or wanted to mod their CX22s or CX80s.

 

Since he's still a Lynx enthusiast, it might be interesting to find out if he's heard of the McWill screen upgrade or SainT's SD Card adapter for it. Perhaps he has some RJ Mical stories. Or even Amiga stories back when Atari Inc thought it would be acquiring the Lorraine chipset. Maybe he did some work with the Advanced Research folks and got to mess around with the Gaza and Sierra computers or the AMY sound chip.

[Savetz]

Amazing story of how and why Atari gave $1.25M in computers etc. to schools, nonprofits and individuals.

 

Ted Kahn, Atari Institute for Educational Action Research

http://ataripodcast.libsyn.com/antic-interview-185-ted-kahn-atari-institute-for-educational-action-research

Ted Kahn was creator of the Atari Institute for Educational Action Research, which awarded major grants of Atari home computer products, and consulting services to individuals, schools, and non-profit organizations. The group granted more than $1.25 million in products and services to about 100 innovative people and projects around the US and overseas.

He also co-wrote the books Atari Games and Recreations, and Atari PILOT Activities and Games. This interview took place on October 9, 2015. In it, we discuss Ted's bother, Bob Kahn; and Tandy Trower, both of whom I have previously interviewed.

Teaser quotes:

"Its purpose is not just to give stuff away, but it's purpose is to really make sure that if it's given away, it's going to be given to people and organizations who can make some impact with it."

"A thing, behind closed doors, in Washington, in which we had an entire group of Senators and Congressmen, for a period of about a day, to learn about all this stuff..."

[Savetz]

Joel Gluck: Babel, Attank!, Pushover, Fun-FORTH

http://ataripodcast.libsyn.com/antic-interview-186-joel-gluck-babel-attank-pushover-fun-forth

Joel Gluck published four programs through Atari Program Exchange: Babel, Attank!, Pushover, and Fun-FORTH. The first, Babel, was published when he was just 16 years old. He later worked at Atari's corporate research under Alan Kay. He also wrote a few articles for A.N.A.L.O.G. Computing magazine.

Babel was available in the first APX catalog, fall 1981, where it won second prize in the Entertainment category. Pushover first appeared in the summer 1982 catalog. Attank! first appeared in the winter 1982-1983 catalog. fun-FORTH was first available in fall 1982, which won third prize in the System Software category.

This interview took place on November 20, 2015. In it, we discuss Jack Palevich, whose interview is already published.

Teaser quotes:

"I wasn't so aware of the royalty checks because, I think, my mom was intercepting them. She told me later that I earned enough from APX royalties to put me through a year at M.I.T."

"I came out wearing a white robe and wearing a very tall plastic garbage bag on my head ... But the kids loved it!"

[Savetz]

Jay Jaeger, APX Space War

http://ataripodcast.libsyn.com/antic-interview-187-jay-jaeger-apx-space-war

Jay Jaeger released one program for the Atari computers: Space War, which was published by Atari Program Exchange. It appeared in the fall 1983 APX catalog.

This interview took place on March 16, 2016.

Teaser quote:

"It took a couple revisions back and forth. The program was fine; getting the documentation right, and yet have them be happy with it, was a little frustrating. But managed to get it done."

[Savetz]

Neil Harris: Commodore, Atari, GEnie

http://ataripodcast.libsyn.com/antic-interview-188-neil-harris-commodore-atari-genie

Neil Harris started at Commodore as a member of the VIC-20 launch team, then continued to be a writer, programmer, and product manager there. He moved to Atari, where he was from 1984 to 1988. There he was hardware products manager, director of communications, and director of publications. He worked on Atari Explorer magazine, and wrote a bit for other publications including Compute!'s First Book of Atari and STart magazine. He later moved on to the GEnie online service.

This interview took place on March 31, 2016. In it, we discuss Bill Louden, whom I previously interviewed.

Teaser quotes:

"The Ataris were really good computers. ... The view inside of Commodore was that the Ataris, especially the 800, was over-engineered."

"Every person in Silicon Valley either had a close family member or a close friend who had been laid off by Jack [Tramiel]. ... You know, we were not the golden children. We were not Apple."

[Savetz]

Steve Cavin: Minotaur, Juggles' House, Juggles' Rainbow

http://ataripodcast.libsyn.com/antic-interview-189-steve-cavin-minotaur-juggles-house-juggles-rainbow

Steve Cavin started at Cromenco where he built computer kits and tested hardware. Later he wrote several programs for the Atari 8-bit computers: Minotaur, which was published by Atari Program Exchange — it first appeared in the fall 1981 APX catalog; and the Atari versions of Juggles' House and Juggles' Rainbow, educational games published by The Learning Company. He also wrote “The Five Letters", a hangman-style game that - so far - I haven't been able to find online.

This interview took place April 22, 2016.

"He looked at the screens and said, "Those don't look like the test programs that we normally use," and I said 'Well, they're not. I wrote my own. ... They're better than the other ones.'"

[bani]

 

Rob Zdybel, Bug Hunt, Atari 5200 OS, Missile Command, Atari 850 interface and much more

http://ataripodcast.libsyn.com/antic-interview-184-rob-zdybel-star-trek-missile-command-bug-hunt

 

really great job done by the interviewer. good research made for good questions. maybe it was mostly rob but the interview felt very natural.

 

one nitpick - this has very bad audio quality. clipping, way too much bass, and bad room echo. have we considered sending proper mics to the interviewees ahead of time?

[Savetz]

 

one nitpick - this has very bad audio quality. clipping, way too much bass, and bad room echo. have we considered sending proper mics to the interviewees ahead of time?

 

 

That's ridiculous.

 

Kevin

[rkindig]

Besides, it had nothing to do with the mic. Rob told me at the beginning of the interview that he had poor Internet connectivity and that Skype would likely not do well.

 

Thank you for the interview comments. Rob made an easy and great interview

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[bani]

Besides, it had nothing to do with the mic. Rob told me at the beginning of the interview that he had poor Internet connectivity and that Skype would likely not do well.

 

Thank you for the interview comments. Rob made an easy and great interview

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

it definitely has too much bass. rob is a lot more intelligible with some eq.

[Savetz]

I hope you can get interviews with David Bueler, Wes Newell ,Greg Christensen, and Dan Rohr. Greg will be the holy grail.

 

Allan

 

 

Allan:

 

There is a direct line between your message and this pile of documentation and source code that landed in my mailbox today.

 

Kevin