Tin_Lunchbox

could possibly 5) burn the disk-based binary to a flash cart? Call it Demon XL...

That is cruel. Funny but cruel. The authors can't be responsible for someone who wastes "hours" though.

There's a program called Virtuoso that is "animation software," assuming that you broadly conceive that phrase (I would describe its approach as avante-garde or experimental). Jim Huether at Atari wrote Micro Movie and Micro Flick, which were never released, and he was recently trying to recover them. BBK Artist is a solid 4-color painter (the author includes it on his current website somewhere). There are various other painters that can get you to modes with more colors, but they may not have BBK Artist's upsides of good tools and compatibility and user-friendliness. It seem to me that "PIC" format could be loaded in BASIC but I do not really recall.

I think it's a little high, but not unfair at all. $70 would be unfair. I bought a really nice 600XL recently for much less than $50, but I did have to pay shipping. Sounds like yours is local. The 600XL is perfect for the new Czech memory expansion 320XL which would possibly solve any problems with disk software etc. but I don't know availability of 320XL and there is some concern about Ataris with "Mexican CPUs" not working.

My awesome, like-new condition, Hong Kong-made Atari 600XL arrived yesterday and works great. So I want to get a 320XL full version to put on it. Excuse me if this is posted somewhere, I did briefly check, but what is the availability and pricing and payment methods, and is there a website?

Thanks Fres. I looked at those files and didn't notice mine among them. However I would need to download and unarc them to be sure. There are quite a few files there, comparatively minor stuff that you don't find at places like atarimania.com. But I would think that Compuserve had many, many more uploads than that, and that that is probably just a partial assortment of those uploads. It's a good start though.

I am also interested in the full version of one of these. I am okay but not good at building stuff and it is worth a little more to me to get a device that comes complete, looks nice, and is ready to go. Seeing that this upgrade is especially-tailored to the 600XL, I ordered one from eBay and it has been shipped now. What do I need to look at to determine compatibility? The label on the bottom, or do I need open it up? I always viewed the 600XL as the lowliest of the 8bit computers for its meager 16k memory mainly, but I even thought the 400 was better because of its nice construction and four joystick ports, even though it had less memory and membrane keyboard. Also, I am interested in running a particular demo: The Shrine. The Shrine review. If I upgrade my 600XL with the 320XL, do you suppose I will be able to run The Shrine? I do not know if it is PAL-only... My 600XL is no doubt an NTSC one.

I recall that the pre-Internet computer network consumer service Compuserve had SIGs (Special Interest Groups) for the various computer platforms of its day, including Atari 8bit. As well, GEnie had "Round Tables." In those sections, users could and did upload various files. There were some BASIC programs I wrote, and some pictures I painted in BBK Artist that I uploaded, for example. There were many such files as well as Pokey Player music files, text documents, and more. Does anyone know if the contents of those file libraries survive? With so much else available on the Internet, it would be nice to be able to have access to those too. I have lost some of those files and pictures. I am sure there is plenty of content there that was unique and is lost forever if those libraries were not saved in some form.

Dungeon Master for Atari 8bit will be a big challenge. I played that on Amiga and it is a great game. It was a convincing and atmospheric 3D environment. The sounds helped a lot too. You could hear chains rattling in the distance for example. I'm pretty sure stereo was used. Without stereo, an Atari 8bit could simulate distance but not direction. The graphics posted here are wonderful. If that sample play picture is any indication, the graphics can be done. As much as I love Dungeon Master, I think that a Dungeon Master-inspired Atari 8bit game would be better than a port. The coders could be creative in ways suited to the 8bit hardware and not be constrained by attempting to mimic a game programmed on 16bit hardware with superior graphics, speed, memory, and sound.