Path: utzoo!utgpu!water!watmath!clyde!cbosgd!mandrill!neoucom!wtm
From: wtm@neoucom.UUCP (Bill Mayhew)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga
Subject: Re: MIDIMAZE/other uses..was RE: Amiga and MIDI
Summary: Why MIDI for the MIDIMAZE on the Atari? (speculations)
Keywords: MIDI Amiga Atari ST
Message-ID: <844@neoucom.UUCP>
Date: 13 Dec 87 16:39:25 GMT
References: <447@nuchat.UUCP> <32160@auc.UUCP> <528@otto.COM> <4694@well.UUCP>
Organization: Northeastern Ohio Universities College of Medicine
Lines: 24


I'm not cross-posting this to the Atari Group since they seem to
have an unprecedented ability to send my mailbox into a core
meltdown.

1.  Can the ST's serail port hack high baud rates?  Since the MIDI
specification is 32.5K buad, that makes it attractive if the RS232
serial port is limited to 9600.  The Amiga serial port can operate
atastronomical baud rates to something over 200K baud.  Never mind
that there ain't no way software is going to keep up with that and
that you'd have to keep cabling pretty short.

2.  Midi cables [if you look around] are cheaper than RS232 cables.

3.  Midi cables are Unisex, thus making them less error prone to
attach.  Good to keep things simple for the game-oriented crowd.
[applies equally to Amiga and ST] :-)

4.  Marketing appeal.  Using the Midi port differentiates the
product from the rest of the crowd, even if use of the Midi opposed
to something else isn't significant.  This dsicussion is eveidence
of that.

--Bill