The time is finally here. You've been waiting for months -we've all been waiting- for Atari to roll out its new hardware. And this issue, were happy to present our first hands-on report on Atari's newest releases: the STACY laptop ST and the Portfolio MS-DOS hand-held computer.

Thanks to the good offices of Atari MIDI marketer Frank Foster, Vice President of Software Leonard Tramiel, Vice President of Operations Augie Liguori, new Vice President of Marketing Jim Fisher and Atari's Press Representative Andy Marken, we were able to sit down for a lengthy session with the STACY engineering prototype in early June and then spend several days with a Portfolio clutched close at the end of June. We're proud to report that START was the first ST magazine accorded that privilege.

And what do we think of Atari's newest computers for the traveling user? Turn to my evaluation, The Traveling Computers, for a complete report.

Do you have a Great American Novel fermenting in your brain? Ready to put it on paper? Let Michael Perry help you with WordPerfect macros and good advice on how to get your masterpiece together-and how to get it read.

Like most of us, you probably have more appointments and "must do's" than you know how to keep track of. James Robinson has written the definitive Schedule Maker program with the power and versatility to handle all of your scheduling needs. And it's on your START disk this month.

Do you have a hard disk or are you thinking of buying one (as nearly half of our readers have told us they're planning to do)? Be sure to read Dave Small's definitive Hard Disk Trouble-Shooting Guide.

And if you're looking for a particular piece of software, check out START's massive ST Softguide database. It's planned to be a regular quarterly feature in START.

Finally, in response to your requests, were beginning our Programming in C column this issue. It starts with a bang, too: Sam Streeper has rewritten parts of the libraries for three popular C's to make it easier for you to create programs that can run either as desk accessories or as standalone programs. And, of course, they're on your START disk this month also.

Whatever your ST interests, whatever your ST needs, we think that we have something for you this month. This issue is full of hot news, reviews of alternative Desktops, the latest DynaCADD, font editors, entry-level sequencers and more. We hope you enjoy this issue. And to Atari, we say, keep those new products coming!