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66-474: Prior to joining Infocom, Moriarty was a Technical Editor for the Atari 8-bit computer magazine ANALOG Computing . He wrote two text adventures for ANALOG : Adventure in the 5th Dimension (1983) and Crash Dive! (1984). He also worked on Tachyon (1985), an adaptation of Atari's Quantum arcade game, which was previewed but never published. Moriarty joined Lucasfilm Games, later known as LucasArts, in 1988 at

132-477: A GEMDOS file system which became part of Atari TOS (for "The Operating System", colloquially known as the "Tramiel Operating System"). This gave the ST a fast, hierarchical file system , essential for hard drives , and provided programmers with function calls similar to MS-DOS . The Atari ST character set is based on codepage 437 . After six months of intensive effort following Tramiel's takeover, Atari announced

198-466: A 16-bit bus, which reduces performance and cost. In another cost-reduction measure, Atari shipped the Falcon in an inexpensive case much like that of the ST and ST . Aftermarket upgrade kits allow it to be put in a desktop or rack-mount case, with the keyboard separate. Released in 1992, the Falcon was discontinued by Atari the following year. In Europe, C-Lab licensed the Falcon design from Atari and released

264-404: A few months later and were included in new machines and as an upgrade for older machines. Atari originally intended to include GEM's GDOS (Graphical Device Operating System), which allows programs to send GEM VDI ( Virtual Device Interface ) commands to drivers loaded by GDOS. This allows developers to send VDI instructions to other devices simply by pointing to it. However, GDOS was not ready at

330-551: A letter by Gilman Louie , head of Spectrum HoloByte . He stated that he had been warned by competitors that releasing a game like Falcon on the ST would fail because BBSs would widely disseminate it. Within 30 days of releasing the non- copy protected ST version, the game was available on BBSs with maps and code wheels . Because the ST market was smaller than that for the IBM PC, it was more vulnerable to piracy which, Louie said, seemed to be better organized and more widely accepted for

396-716: A list price of US$ 999 (equivalent to about $ 2,800 in 2023) in the US, BYTE hailed it as the first computer to break the $ 1000 per megabyte price barrier. Compute! noted that the 1040ST is the first computer with one megabyte of RAM to sell for less than $ 2,500. A limited number of 1040STFs shipped with a single-sided floppy drive. Initial sales were strong, especially in Europe, where Atari sold 75% of its computers. West Germany became Atari's strongest market, with small business owners using them for desktop publishing and CAD. To address this growing market segment, Atari introduced

462-446: A little under one year. Atari had intended to release the 130ST with 128 KB of RAM and the 260ST with 256 KB. However, the ST initially shipped without TOS in ROM and required booting TOS from floppy, taking 206 KB RAM away from applications. The 260ST was launched in Europe on a limited basis. Early models have six ROM sockets for easy upgrades to TOS. New ROMs were released

528-465: A low-cost desktop publishing package. A custom blitter coprocessor improved some graphics performance, but was not included in all models. Developers wanting to use it had to detect its presence in their programs. Properly written applications using the GEM API automatically make use of the blitter. In late 1989, Atari Corporation released the 520ST and 1040ST (also written STE), enhanced version of

594-574: A new design with an integrated hard-drive enclosure. The final model of ST computer is the Falcon030. Like the TT, it is 68030-based, at 16 MHz, but with improved video modes and an on-board Motorola 56001 audio digital signal processor . Like the Atari STE , it supports sampling frequencies above 44.1 kHz; the sampling master clock is 98340 Hz (which can be divided by a number between 2 and 16 to get

660-426: A science fiction adventure game based on an idea from Steven Spielberg . The project had a notoriously lengthy and troubled development, with Moriarty leading the second of ultimately three incarnations the game underwent before finally shipping in 1995. When his version of the project collapsed in 1993, Moriarty departed LucasArts and joined Rocket Science Games . Moriarty said of his stint at Rocket Science Games, "It

726-709: A single double-sided one, to avoid alienating early adopters . Some software uses formats which allow the full disk to be read by double-sided drives but still lets single-sided drives access side A of the disk. Many magazine coverdisks (such as the first 30 issues of ST Format ) were designed this way, as were a few games. The music in Carrier Command and the intro sequence in Populous are not accessible to single-sided drives, for example. STs with double-sided drives can read disks formatted by MS-DOS , but IBM PC compatibles can not read Atari disks because of differences in

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792-678: A single resolution of 640 × 400 at 71.25 Hz. The attached monitor determines available resolutions, so each application either supports both types of monitors or only one. Most ST games require colour with productivity software favouring the monochrome. The Philips CM8833-II was a popular color monitor for the Atari ST. Atari initially used single-sided 3.5 inch floppy disk drives that could store up to 360 KB. Later drives were double-sided and stored 720 KB. Some commercial software, particularly games, shipped by default on single-sided disks, even supplying two 360 KB floppies instead of

858-449: Is based on CP/M-68K, a direct port of CP/M to the 68000. By 1985, CP/M was becoming increasingly outdated; it did not support subdirectories, for example. Digital Research was also in the process of building GEMDOS, a disk operating system for GEM, and debated whether a port of it could be completed in time for product delivery in June. The decision was eventually taken to port it, resulting in

924-467: Is the first Atari with PCM audio; using a new chip, it added the ability to play back 8-bit (signed) samples at 6258 Hz, 12,517 Hz, 25,033 Hz, and even 50,066 Hz, via direct memory access (DMA). The channels are arranged as either a mono track or a track of LRLRLRLR... bytes. RAM is now much more simply upgradable via SIMMs . Two enhanced joystick ports were added (two normal joysticks can be plugged into each port with an adapter), with

990-587: The Atari ST announcement in early 1985, ANALOG expanded its scope to include the new computer line. Starting with the April 1986 issue, ST coverage was consolidated into a supplementary section titled ST-Log . With its 10th issue, in January 1987 ST-Log became a separate magazine and ANALOG returned to being fully devoted to the Atari 8-bit computers. (This paralleled STart magazine being spun off from Antic .) In

1056-550: The Atari, Inc. consumer division in 1984 to create Atari Corporation, the 520ST was designed in five months by a small team led by Shiraz Shivji . Alongside the Macintosh , Amiga , Apple IIGS and Acorn Archimedes , the ST is part of a mid-1980s generation of computers with 16- or 32-bit processors, 256  KB or more of RAM, and mouse -controlled graphical user interfaces. "ST" officially stands for "Sixteen/Thirty-two", referring to

1122-581: The Mega STE , is an STE in a grey Atari TT case that had a switchable 16 MHz, dual-bus design (16-bit external, 32-bit internal), optional Motorola 68881 FPU , built-in 1.44 MB "HD" 3 1 ⁄ 2 -inch floppy disk drive, VME expansion slot, a network port (very similar to that used by Apple's LocalTalk ) and an optional built-in 3 1 ⁄ 2 " hard drive. It also shipped with TOS 2.00 (better support for hard drives, enhanced desktop interface, memory test, 1.44 MB floppy support, bug fixes). It

1188-555: The Motorola 68000 's 16-bit external bus and 32-bit internals. The ST was sold with either Atari's color monitor or less expensive monochrome monitor . Color graphics modes are available only on the former while the highest-resolution mode requires the monochrome monitor. Some models can display the color modes on a TV. In Germany and some other markets, the ST gained a foothold for CAD and desktop publishing . With built-in MIDI ports, it

1254-516: The Motorola 68000 . The Atari ST design was completed in five months in 1984, concluding with it being shown at the January 1985 Consumer Electronics Show. A custom sound processor called AMY had been in development at Atari, Inc. and was considered for the new ST computer design. The chip needed more time to complete, so AMY was dropped in favor of a commodity Yamaha YM2149F variant of the General Instrument AY-3-8910 . Soon after

1320-471: The assembly language source code. ANALOG also sold commercial games, two books of type-in software, and access to a custom bulletin-board system . After the Atari ST was released, coverage of the new systems moved to an ST-Log section of the magazine before spinning off into a separate publication under the ST-Log name. The title began as an acronym for A tari N ewsletter A nd L ots O f G ames, which

1386-547: The 520ST at the Winter Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas in January 1985. InfoWorld assessed the prototypes shown at computer shows as follows: Pilot production models of the Atari machine are much slicker than the hand-built models shown at earlier computer fairs; it doesn't look like a typical Commodore 64-style, corner-cutting, low-cost Jack Tramiel product of the past. Atari unexpectedly displayed

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1452-501: The Amiga had almost none. After Atlanta COMDEX, The New York Times reported that "more than 100 software titles will be available for the [ST], most written by small software houses that desperately need work", and contrasted the "small, little-known companies" at Las Vegas with the larger ones like Electronic Arts and Activision , which planned Amiga applications. Trip Hawkins of Electronic Arts said, "I don't think Atari understands

1518-490: The April 1988 issues of ST-Log and ANALOG Computing , Pappas announced that both magazines were under new ownership and the offices moved from Worcester, Massachusetts to North Hollywood, California. Circulation was interrupted between issues 58 and 59 (from October 1987 to March 1988). Details of the acquisition were not mentioned in the editorial, but the masthead showed the publisher as L.F.P., Inc. (for Larry Flynt Publications ). Subscribers were not told ahead of time. In

1584-531: The Atari 520ST in June 1985. In March 1987, the two companies settled the dispute out of court in a closed decision. The lead architect of the new computer project at Tramel Technology and Atari Corporation was ex-Commodore employee Shiraz Shivji , who previously worked on the Commodore 64 's development. Different CPUs were investigated, including the 32-bit National Semiconductor NS32000 , but engineers were disappointed with its performance, and they moved to

1650-403: The Atari buyout, Microsoft suggested to Tramiel that it could port Windows to the platform, but the delivery date was out by two years. Another possibility was Digital Research , which was working on a new GUI-based system then known as Crystal, soon to become GEM . Another option was to write a new operating system, but this was rejected as Atari management was unsure whether the company had

1716-564: The C-Lab Falcon Mk I, identical to Atari's Falcon except for slight modifications to the audio circuitry. The Mk II added an internal 500 MB SCSI hard disk; and the Mk X further added a desktop case. C-Lab Falcons were also imported to the US by some Atari dealers. As with the Atari 8-bit computers , software publishers attributed their reluctance to produce Atari ST products in part to—as Compute! reported in 1988—the belief in

1782-459: The Centronics printer port can be used for joystick input, and several games used available adaptors that used the printer socket, providing two additional 9-pin joystick ports. The ST supports a monochrome or colour monitor. The colour hardware supports two resolutions: 320 × 200 pixels, with 16 of 512 colours; and 640 × 200, with 4 of 512 colours. The monochrome monitor was less expensive and has

1848-583: The Interactive Media and Game Development program at Worcester Polytechnic Institute . ANALOG Computing ANALOG Computing was an American computer magazine devoted to Atari 8-bit computers . It was published from 1981 until 1989. In addition to reviews and tutorials, ANALOG printed multiple programs in each issue for users to type in . Almost every issue included a machine language video game—as opposed to Atari BASIC —which were uncommon in competing magazines. Such games were accompanied by

1914-723: The ST at Atlanta COMDEX in May. Similarities to the original Macintosh and Tramiel's role in its development resulted in it being nicknamed Jackintosh . Atari's rapid development of the ST amazed many, but others were skeptical, citing its "cheap" appearance, Atari's uncertain financial health, and poor relations between Tramiel-led Commodore and software developers. Atari ST print advertisements stated, "America, We Built It For You", and quoted Atari president Sam Tramiel: "We promised. We delivered. With pride, determination, and good old ATARI know how". But Jack Tramiel admitted that sales of its earlier 8-bit systems were "very, very slow", Atari

1980-513: The ST or Amiga, and the majority of software companies were hesitant to support another platform beyond the IBM PC , Apple, and Commodore 64 . Philippe Kahn of Borland said, "These days, if I were a consumer, I'd stick with companies [such as Apple and IBM] I know will be around ". At Las Vegas COMDEX in November 1985, the industry was surprised by more than 30 companies exhibiting ST software while

2046-473: The ST or the Amiga. John C. Dvorak wrote that the public saw both Commodore and Atari as selling "cheap disposable" game machines, in part because of their computers' sophisticated graphics. The original 520ST case design was created by Ira Velinsky, Atari's chief Industrial Designer. It is wedge-shaped, with bold angular lines and a series of grilles cut into the rear for airflow. The keyboard has soft tactile feedback and rhomboid-shaped function keys across

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2112-525: The ST with improvements to the multimedia hardware and operating system. It features an increased color palette of 4,096 colors from the ST's 512 (though the maximum displayable palette without programming tricks is still limited to 16 in the lowest 320 × 200 resolution, and even fewer in higher resolutions), genlock support, and a blitter coprocessor (stylized as "BLiTTER") which can quickly move large blocks of data (particularly, graphics data) around in RAM. The STE

2178-544: The ST. After a meeting with Atari, one analyst said, "We've seen marketing strategies changed before our eyes". Tramiel's poor reputation influenced potential software developers. One said, "Dealing with Commodore is like dealing with Attila the Hun. I don't know if Tramiel will be following his old habits ... I don't see a lot of people rushing to get software on the machine." Large business-software companies like Lotus , Ashton-Tate , and Microsoft did not promise software for either

2244-509: The ST1 at Comdex in 1986. Renamed to Mega, it includes a high-quality detached keyboard, a stronger case to support the weight of a monitor, and an internal bus expansion connector. An optional 20 MB hard drive can be placed below or above the main case. Initially equipped with 2 or 4 MB of RAM (a 1 MB version, the Mega 1, followed), the Mega machines can be combined with Atari's laser printer for

2310-502: The September 1989 issues of both ANALOG and ST-Log , it was announced that the two magazines would be recombined into a single Atari resource under the ANALOG name, beginning with the November issue. Two issues of the combined magazine were published before L.F.P., Inc. shut it down. STart magazine reported this, incorrectly claiming that both magazines were dropped less than a month after

2376-571: The SubGenius ). The ST was less expensive than most contemporaries, including the Macintosh Plus , and is faster than many. Largely as a result of its price and performance factor, the ST became fairly popular, especially in Europe where foreign-exchange rates amplified prices. The company's English advertising slogan of the era was "Power Without the Price". An Atari ST and terminal emulation software

2442-459: The actual sampling frequencies). It can play the STE sample frequencies (up to 50066 Hz) in 8 or 16 bit, mono or stereo, all by using the same DMA interface as the STE, with a few additions. It can both play back and record samples, with 8 mono channels and 4 stereo channels, allowing musicians to use it for recording to hard drive. Although the 68030 microprocessor can use 32-bit memory, the Falcon uses

2508-706: The announcement, but correctly reporting that production staff merged into another publication owned by Pappas, Video Games & Computer Entertainment . The final issue of ANALOG Computing was December 1989, #79. There was no mention that this would be the last issue. In its early years, ANALOG Computing sold games via mail order under the name ANALOG Software. Several of these were written by magazine staff members. Some games were advertised, but never completed or published, such as Sunday Driver and Titan . Released games ANALOG published two books of program listings and tutorials. The ANALOG Compendium (1983) contains "the best Atari home computer programs from

2574-663: The chipset. Tramiel countered by suing Amiga Corp. on August 13, 1984, seeking damages and an injunction to bar Amiga (and effectively Commodore) from producing anything with its technology. The lawsuit left the Amiga team in limbo during mid-1984. Commodore eventually moved forward, with plans to improve the chipset and develop an operating system . Commodore announced the Amiga 1000 with the Lorraine chipset in July 1985, but it wasn't available in quantity until 1986. The delay gave Atari time to deliver

2640-522: The console and home computer departments, in July. As executives and engineers left Commodore to join Tramel Technology, Commodore responded by filing lawsuits against four former engineers for infringement of trade secrets . The Tramiels did not purchase the employee contracts with the assets of Atari, Inc. and re-hired approximately 100 of the 900 former employees. Tramel Technology soon changed its name to Atari Corporation . Amid rumors that Tramiel

2706-479: The entire ST computer line in 1993, shifting the company's focus to the Jaguar video game console. The Atari ST was born from the rivalry between home computer makers Atari, Inc. and Commodore International . Jay Miner , one of the designers of the custom chips in the Atari 2600 and Atari 8-bit computers , tried to convince Atari management to create a new chipset for a video game console and computer. When his idea

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2772-440: The existence of a "higher-than-normal amount of software piracy". That year, WordPerfect threatened to discontinue the Atari ST version of its word processor because the company discovered that pirate bulletin board systems (BBSs) were distributing it, causing ST-Log to warn that "we had better put a stop to piracy now ... it can have harmful effects on the longevity and health of your computer". In 1989, magazines published

2838-476: The first ten issues." An Atari 8-bit Extra from ANALOG Computing (1987) contains previously unpublished programs. The ANALOG Computing Pocket Reference Card was published in 1985 and sold for US$ 7.95. It contains a summary of Atari BASIC commands, player/missile memory layout, hardware register and operating system addresses, ATASCII characters, graphics modes, and other information. The ANALOG Computing Telecommunications System, or ANALOG Computing TCS,

2904-547: The football for Charlie Brown , you can believe Jack Tramiel"; another said that because of its experience with Tramiel, "our interest in Atari is zero, zilch". Neither Atari nor Commodore could persuade large chains like ComputerLand or BusinessLand to sell its products. Observers criticized Atari's erratic discussion of its stated plans for the new computer, as it shifted between using mass merchandisers , specialty computer stores, and both. When asked at COMDEX, Atari executives could not name any computer stores that would carry

2970-479: The head of game design for the online gaming service Mpath . On occasion, Moriarty delivers public lectures. One of these, his 2002 Game Developers Conference presentation "The Secret of Psalm 46," has been adapted into a dramatic production and a graphic novel, and was included in its entirety as a video Easter egg in Jonathan Blow's puzzle game The Witness (2016). Moriarty is a Professor of Practice in

3036-416: The invitation of Noah Falstein . There he designed his first graphic adventure game, Loom , published in 1990. Though the game was a commercial success and Moriarty had an idea for sequels which were briefly entertained, he opted to move on to other projects. After working on an unreleased game based on The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles for the studio's educational division, he took over The Dig ,

3102-435: The keyboard. An "FM" variant includes an RF modulator allowing a television to be used instead of a monitor. The trailing "F" and "FM" were often dropped in common usage. In BYTE magazine's March 1986 cover photo of the system, the name plate reads 1040ST but in the headline and article it's simply "1040ST". The 1040ST is one of the earliest personal computers shipped with a base RAM configuration of 1 MB. With

3168-405: The layout of data on track 0. Atari upgraded the basic design in 1986 with the 1040STF, stylized as 1040ST : essentially a 520ST with twice the RAM and with the power supply and a double-sided floppy drive built-in instead of external. This adds to the size of the machine, but reduces cable clutter. The joystick and mouse ports, formerly on the right side of the machine, are in a recess underneath

3234-479: The new connectors placed in more easily accessed locations on the side of the case. The enhanced joystick ports were re-used in the Atari Jaguar console and are compatible. The STE models initially had software and hardware conflicts resulting in some applications and video games written for the ST line being unstable or even completely unusable, primarily caused by programming direct hardware calls which bypassed

3300-480: The operating system. Furthermore, even having a joystick plugged in would sometimes cause strange behavior with a few applications (such as the WYSIWYG word-processor application 1st Word Plus ). Sleepwalker was the only STE-only game from a major publisher, but there were STe enhancements in games such as Another World , Zool and The Chaos Engine , as well as exclusives from smaller companies. The last STE machine,

3366-520: The required expertise. Digital Research was fully committed to the Intel platform, so a team from Atari was sent to the Digital Research headquarters to work with the "Monterey Team", which comprised a mixture of Atari and Digital Research engineers. Atari's Leonard Tramiel oversaw "Project Jason" (also known as The Operating System) for the ST series, named for designer and developer Jason Loveman. GEM

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3432-506: The right to add a keyboard and market the complete computer, designated the 1850XLD. After leaving Commodore International in January 1984, Jack Tramiel formed Tramel (without an "i") Technology, Ltd. with his sons and other ex-Commodore employees and, in April, began planning a new computer. Interested in Atari's overseas manufacturing and worldwide distribution network, Tramiel negotiated with Warner in May and June 1984. He secured funding and bought Atari's consumer division, which included

3498-421: The right to type them into their computer for personal use, so long as they were not sold or copied. ANALOG was co-launched by Lee H. Pappas and Michael DesChesnes who met at a Star Trek convention in 1978. The first issue of the magazine was January / February 1981. It was published bi-monthly through the November / December 1983 issue and then monthly beginning with the January 1984 issue. Following

3564-623: The software business. I'm still skeptical about its resources and its credibility." Although Michael Berlyn of Infocom promised that his company would quickly publish all of its games for the new computer, he doubted many others would soon do so. Spinnaker and Lifetree were more positive, both promising to release ST software. Spinnaker said that "Atari has a vastly improved attitude toward software developers. They are eager to give us technical support and machines". Lifetree said, "We are giving Atari high priority". Some, such as Software Publishing Corporation , were unsure of whether to develop for

3630-503: The time the ST started shipping and was included in software packages and with later ST machines. Later versions of GDOS support vector fonts . A limited set of GEM fonts were included in the ROMs, including the ST's standard 8x8 pixel graphical character set. It contains four characters which can be placed together in a square, forming the face of J. R. "Bob" Dobbs (the figurehead of the Church of

3696-435: The top. It is an all-in-one unit, similar to earlier home computers like the Commodore 64 , but with a larger keyboard with cursor keys and a numeric keypad. The original has an external floppy drive (SF354) and AC adapter . Starting with the 1040ST, the floppy drive and power supply are integrated into the base unit. The ports on the 520ST remained largely unchanged over its history. Because of its bi-directional design,

3762-526: Was a custom bulletin board system accessible only through paid subscription. After the TCS launched in May 1985, an 8-page ANALOG Computing TCS Guide was bound into an issue of the magazine. Atari ST Atari ST is a line of personal computers from Atari Corporation and the successor to the company's 8-bit home computers . The initial model, the Atari 520ST , had limited release in April–June 1985, and

3828-488: Was a silly time. The Rocket Science executives were out to be Hollywood moguls, and, to their credit, they got hold of some serious money, and to start off with, it looked as if it was going to be a really fun gig. And they got most of it right. ... But the Wired cover should have warned us. I mean, Wired is the kiss of death. If they're on top of you, then you should know that you're already out of date." In 1995 Moriarty became

3894-455: Was marketed as more affordable than a TT but more powerful than an ordinary ST. In 1990, Atari released the high-end workstation-oriented Atari TT030, based on a 32 MHz Motorola 68030 processor. The "TT" name ("Thirty-two/Thirty-two") continued the nomenclature because the 68030 chip has 32-bit buses both internally and externally. Originally planned with a 68020 CPU, the TT has improved graphics and more powerful support chips. The case has

3960-413: Was much cheaper than a Digital VT220 terminal, commonly needed by offices with central computers. By late 1985, the 520ST added an RF modulator for TV display. Computer Gaming World stated that Tramiel's poor pre-Atari reputation would likely make computer stores reluctant to deal with the company, hurting its distribution of the ST. One retailer said, "If you can believe Lucy when she holds

4026-401: Was negotiating to buy Atari, Amiga Corp. entered discussions with Commodore. This led to Commodore wanting to purchase Amiga Corporation outright, which Commodore believed would cancel any outstanding contracts, including Atari's. Instead of Amiga Corp. delivering Lorraine to Atari, Commodore delivered a check of $ 500,000 on Amiga's behalf, in effect returning the funds Atari invested in Amiga for

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4092-422: Was only spelled out in the first two issues. Originally the title as printed on the cover was A.N.A.L.O.G. 400/800 Magazine , but starting with the sixth issue it was shortened to A.N.A.L.O.G. Computing . Though the dots remained in the logo, over time it became ANALOG or ANALOG Computing inside the magazine. The program listings were covered under the magazine's copyright protections, and users were granted

4158-401: Was out of cash, and employees feared that he would shut the company down. In early 1985, the 520ST shipped to the press, developers, and user groups , and in early July 1985 for general retail sales. It saved the company. By November, Atari stated that more than 50,000 520STs had been sold, "with U.S. sales alone well into five figures". The machine had gone from concept to store shelves in

4224-491: Was popular for music sequencing and as a controller of musical instruments among amateur and professional musicians. The Atari ST's primary competitor was the Amiga from Commodore . The 520ST and 1040ST were followed by the Mega series, the STE, and the portable STacy . In the early 1990s, Atari released three final evolutions of the ST with significant technical differences from the original models: TT030 (1990), Mega STE (1991), and Falcon (1992). Atari discontinued

4290-431: Was rejected, he left Atari to form a small think tank called Hi-Toro in 1982 and began designing the new "Lorraine" chipset. Hi-Toro, by then renamed Amiga, ran out of capital to complete Lorraine's development, and Atari, now owned by Warner Communications , paid Amiga to continue its work. In return, Atari received exclusive use of the Lorraine design for one year as a video game console. After that time, Atari had

4356-405: Was widely available in July. It was the first personal computer with a bitmapped color graphical user interface , using a version of Digital Research 's GEM interface / operating system from February 1985. The Atari 1040ST , released in 1986 with 1 MB of memory, was the first home computer with a cost per kilobyte of RAM under US$ 1/KB. After Jack Tramiel purchased the assets of

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