Cupcakus

I don't think that last post was very wise :-) I think Ken has more power then to just ask you to stop... Relax and think before you post things like this or things may get infinetly worse for you... I understand you're upset... I would be too... but don't kill yourself :-) You can still do good for the community.

Yep Dragoon Orta :-) XBox is gonna dominate 2003 yeah baby! :-)

Bah! :-) What you guys suggest is less of a hack and more of a brand new game... It would be easier anyway :-) And as a brand new game... it's not a very interesting game... :-) Maybe I'll try it again when I get a chance... I did make a few of the changes mentioned... I may just upload what I did and you'll have to be satisfied with that :-)

Scott's a Nazi!!! I'll take the Off Topic forum please :-) Couldn't resist....

Thanks! I'll check them out too!

VB for windows... The problem with windows NT environments (2000/XP) is the OS does not allow access to the ports by software... So I use a cheapy VB library that runs a driver on the system so I can access the parallel port. It's frustrating to say the least... but VB allowed me to write the software in two days as opposed to other languages I'd probably still be fussing with. I will write the Linux version in GCC... as Linux has no problems with port access.

Ha!!!! Well If I didn't live in California, I might have tried them out :-) I can't order boards from overseas :-) I want to release soon :-)

That kinda depends :-) But yes... for the most part EEPROM's are very slow... EEPROM's are ment to be written to once and then used... only to be written to again for a software update... It's not intended to be used in system for memory functions... But I suppose they could be :-) Yes! But if you add the cost of a normal RAM chip, and the socket, it's cheaper and "smaller" to buy it all in one package. No! Thanks for the link! I'll get a quote from them... I've been using 4pcb.com, Joe recommended them... they have a great deal on protos 3 for $99, but it's only for rectangular boards... and we all no a cartridge board is far from rectangular :-)

Actually his exact words were "even our breathren over in Europe and other far away places like Mars Colony VI can get their hands on this ingenious device"

I despise Japanese infuenced games... I hate the FF series, and Mario Party is as close to Japanese influence as I usually go... I never even thought twice about Shenmue until I saw it played on TechTV and read it's review on IGN... then I decided I would rent it.... And as usual the dubbing is completely sub par... If I have to hear Ryo say "I Understand" one more time :-) But the story is believable and engaging... (No Princess Tempura(Simpsons attack on anime) which a lot of Japanese games delve into rediculous plots, and unbelievable characters) and it's not a FF style RPG with random fights (SO FRUSTRATING), or Diablo style button mash festival... it mixes adventure, fantastic story, and Dragons Lair style QTE system that I just love :-) Plus the huge array of mini games is phenominal... And when it finall comes down to a fight... it's just like a fighting game... no special powers, or spells... just real Kung Fu... you have to read your opponent and time counter moves, throw opponents into other enemies to slow their approach :-) Awesome! :-) (SPOILER!) Although I was preterbed at how many boards you have to walk across to get to Zhu in Kowloon... 4 would have been enough... And given the sheer number of cut scenes with no QTE's, I wish the ones that do contain a QTE would give more warning... because watching a 5 minute scene and all of a sudden the screen flashes "Down, A, Up" can get a little frustrating :-)

If this is true, it's unfortunate the issue became public first... but that doesn't matter now... he did ask you... publically... so ante up! :-) Fantastic!!!! Case closed!!! it's unfortunate you and Mark will be "enemies" from now on... but at least it's agreed you both can sell the CommaVid games and move on! Now... who wants pie!!!

Good games come in small packages :-) Qb is absolutely one of the best homebrew games made... But it loses on Sound and Graphics, which is where the bigger Thrust and Marble Craze excell... however I see all three games as fantastic... and I always find it near impossible to make a choice when the time comes... But, while there is no "official" best/worst homebrew :-) You might as well cast a vote based on size too :-)

Are you willing to ship to europe since i'm probably not going to be able to visit PhillyClassic? The 2600 In A Flash will be sold exclusively through the AtariAge store... And Al has assured me he will even ship to Mars if you want...

Thanks for the support everyone! :-) There are a couple things I forgot to write into the instructions that I will add tonight... My question is... :-) If it's so good? How come no one from XYPE has contacted me??? Now how am I going to be an elitist?

The final price is yet to be determined... it balances upon how many protos I have to buy... which is based on if the initial design works or not... each revision I make is another $150 proto I have to order... I am confident I can nail it on the first try... but stupid mistakes do occur :-) Look for a final retail price from $70 to $95 US. You are correct... EEPROM's have a maximum amount of times they can be written to... usually about 100,000 times. This makes it fine for ordinary use, like writing games to the memory. But using it as RAM is another story... Some SARA games use the extra RAM as a screen buffer... if the EEPROM was written to every frame it would stop working in about 15 minutes. So I had intended to install a seperate RAM chip for RAM, however there simply isn't enough room inside of an atari cartridge for everything that needs to go in there... So I am on the next best solution, using a RAM chip for the whole thing. The RAM chip contains and internal battery circuit the removes the battery and "supposedly" recharges it when it is under external power. The datasheet does not give it a lifespan so I have an e-mail in to the manufacturer... I will settle for nothing less than 10 years of normal use... or at least an inexpensive way to replace the battery down the line.

This issue is a lot more hazy then the Hozer issue... as neither party is the original creator of the work, or even had a hand in the work at all. There is no easy way out of this... It stinks to bring in lawyers and all other sorts of crap over such a silly circumstance... How much money is really stood to be made here? $1,500 maybe at the most? That sounds like a lot, but no copyright lawyer is going to waste time with it... The lawyer would cost more than what you are fighting over. You might as well both keep doing what you're doing and hate each other, or work it out and partner up or something and benefit the community as a whole. Because these battles are getting tiresome... I know I wont be buying from either of you, until this is settled...

Sell them to AA for their cartridge shells :-) Turn your defacto carts into wonderful homebrews :-)

Welcome to the club :-) Most doubters of it's awesome power, have never used one... Live! is fantastic, albeit a bit stale right now... UC is really fun, but once I ranked #3 in the world ratings on it, I got a little tired of it :-) MechAssault is also fun, but the Live! interface is crappy, and when the game ends it boots you to the menu, instead of letting you play again with the same people. I never played Ghost Recon online... only single player... Whacked! was fun during beta :-) But no one really plays it anymore. However, right now, Splinter Cell, Panzer Dragoon, and Shenmue II are the best games I've played in years! And you can't play them on no PS2 crapiolla. --Chris

As of right now I will be ordering 200 production boards. However I will only be assembling 50 for sale initially... as those sell, I will use the funds generated from those to purchase the components for the remaining boards. So... at a minimum there will be 200 units produced... If I release close to PhillyClassic, and you can't make it to the show, you will most likely miss out on the first run... but there will be plenty more shorty after. :-) And if those 200 sell out, I will just have to order more boards..

While I probably shouldn't even get involved... here is my take given the information presented... And as a consumer... Implied copyright only applies to the author of the original work, be it an individual or a company. Copyrights can't be transfered unless you apply with the copyright office... So I don't see how they could have purchased the copyrights to commavid games... Unless they appropriated the commavid company, in which case all intellectual property of that company is now theirs. They need to present written evidence they own the copyrights, or they are just talk... Given that information, you can create your commavid repros and not be in trouble legally at all. However, if they DO own the copyrights, and prove it to you, I see no reason why they have to buy your excess stock... you will be forced to cease and desist, and eat what you didn't sell. This happened to me a few years back with a web game I made... the real copyright owner showed up out of the blue and I was forced to cease and lose some money in the process. When dealing in "hazy" copyright circumstances, this is a chance we all take.

PS2 does bite... :-) Boycott! Boycott!

EBay is the best place for older games... AtariAge is the best place to get newer games made recently by homebrew authors... They are loads of fun!

I dont think our little click is that popular just yet... Granted we are starting to get a little more noticed... (A couple TV spots, major web sites reporting on us)... but I think Nintendo has more important legal matters to deal with, they probably don't even know we exist at the moment. Also, unlike Activision, Nintendo doesn't have much of a history of re-releasing it's Atari titles... (It's NES titles is another story), So I don't think they are as concerned on that legal front of their Atari property being stolen.

NE saw this and was immedietly hooked!!!

I have uploaded the instructions for how to play my new homebrew "Kablamo!" to my web site! Check it out!! Release is soon! http://www.atariage.com/~clarkin/kablamo.html