Although Atari computers have more-or-less passed into computing history now as far as many people are concerned there are still quite a number of people using them on a daily basis. They are still popular with musicians, and it is perhaps because of this there is still a small cottage industry supplying improved mouse and keyboard interfaces, plus a few other bits of hardware and although software development is limited, there are still some things happening.
For a few years I was a joint publisher, designer and distributor of Atari Computing magazine. The publication was set up with the help and financial backing of a small group of Atari enthusiasts and we managed to get the first issue ready in time for a launch at a UK Atari show. The magazine was so successful that we had to do a reprint of that first issue after we sold out within a few days!
A year later and we were advised by our accountants that we had to turn the magazine into a limited company and Joe Connor and I took on the roles of directors and whatever. The magazine continued on for another two years or so, but in the end a dwindling Atari user base, lack of advertising revenue and a struggle to maintain good editorial standards meant we decided to call it a day. We went out with a bang, giving all readers a free Atari CD and all in all we thought we had done a good job on very limited resources.
One of the nicest things about the Atari scene was the shows and get-togethers where all Atari fans could have a natter and eye up the latest hardware and software. This little collection of photos shows some of the people involved in the Atari scene in Europe.
The photos were taken at Atari shows in Birmingham, England and Neusse, Germany.
The first photo shows Atari Computing’s German agent Thorsten Butschke and two of his friends.
The second photo shows from L to R, standing, Melanie Bhabuta, Danny Bhabuta, Bob Paton and Ken Johnston. Sitting from L to R are Mark Wherry, Si Gardner, Joe Connor and Colin Fisher McAllum. And in the background to the right we can just make out El and Karl from System Solutions
The third photo shows CAB maestro Alexander Clauss and Thing meister Thomas Binder, two German Atari programmers who between them contributed an immense amount to the Atari scene in Europe. CAB was the first web browser for the Atari range and for a few years it enabled users to access a lot of web sites. Thing was a desktop replacement program and made using an Atari a far more pleasurable experience. It allowed users to pretty up their workspace, as well as speeding up opening files with preferred programs.
Joe Connor and I made an interesting trip to the German Atari show in Neusse one year which was very frantic and very tiring, but still good fun. A meal and drinks with our German distributor and his friends was one of the highlights, as was ‘persuading’ Nick Harlow (as seen in final photo) to buy us a meal the following night!
Those glory days of Atari are probably gone for good now, but I still keep some souvenirs of the Atari scene including a huge ATARI sign, an Atari shoulder bag, various T-shirts and of course a few STs and a Falcon. They don’t get used nowadays, but I intend to keep them for a bit longer and one day they may get fired up again!
