The column - at the beginning only on a half page, later on a whole page - was continuously adjusted. In 1988, in addition to the version number, there was information about the compatibility to the three standard resolutions and the memory requirements. In 1995 the list was much more detailed, because now the list also gave information about compatibility with TT, Falcon, large screens, MultiTOS and the ST emulators Janus and MagiCMac.
The column remained even after the takeover of ST-Computer by Falke-Verlag. But by the end of the 90s the Atari world had changed: The World Wide Web opened new possibilities. As a tribute to the ST-Computer column the website AtariUpToDate was launched.
AtariUpToDate originally started as a collection of static HTML documents with the most important Atari programs and a marker if further development was stopped. But finally the focus changed: Why not collect information about all programs ever written for the 16/32-bit Ataris ?
AtariUpToDate has been available in various formats over the past twenty years, sometimes as an independent site, sometimes as part of the ST Computer website and sometimes as a content partner. The sources for the database are PD series, developer websites, books and magazines. From the initial 200 programs listed, the list grew to over 15000.
Philosophy
There are different ways to count programs. Unlike two other large databases, Atarimania and Demozoo, AtariUpToDate does not count individual versions as separate programs. The browser CAB appeared in versions 1.1, 1.5, 2.0, 2.6, 2.7 and 2.8, among others, but on this website it is only counted as one program. A rare exception is the word processor Signum!: Since Signum! two differs strongly in conception and interface from Signum! 3/4, there are two entries for the word processor.
Because AtariUpToDate was mainly oriented towards commercial releases and public domain series, demos are underrepresented in the list. To get a rough idea of how many programs were and are available for the ST, the number of programs of AtariUpToDate and Demozoo would have to be added. At least 20000-30000 programs should exist.
AtariUpToDate 4.0
Just in time for the 20th anniversary of the website, the source code was revamped and the website was revised. Version 4.0 offers the following new features:
- Public Domain: Selected public domain lists, with descriptions and screenshots from the AtariUpToDate database
- Home page: The home page is now no longer divided into categories, instead the new releases are sorted by date.
- Newly added: At the bottom of the page, on the start page and all category pages, there is a table with the most recently added programs.
- GEM games: The GEM games page moves away from the classic list: Each game is listed with screenshot, genre, description and date it was added.
- Special pages: On the special pages for programming languages (GFA-BASIC) and standards (BubbleGEM) the executing programs are listed at the top, for example the GFA-Interpreter.
- Compatibility: The system pages for STE, TT and Falcon now no longer show the programs that are compatible with these systems - that would be too many - but those that were written for these systems.
- Star pages: For programs that have been awarded a star as particularly remarkable, the corresponding page follows the layout of the GEM games.
