Superjenn

- caffeinated chai - lots of yoga - obnoxiously loud music - my support group (i have some really special people) - cigarettes ("quitting") and coffee - dulcimer breaks liquid_sky, by the way, is so right. i've left texas to attend school in illinois, and the mexican food is mad ill. nothing comes close to a good, local, tex-mex taqueria.

Conversely, which games, would you say, are most popular with the men in your hometown?

I've read that interview with Roberta Williams. To an extent I think she's on the money, but then again, I also like to shoot missiles at things and blow them up. In answer to Jeffy's questions: a. At least 2 (me, and my best friend of 10 years, Cassie). b. At least 1 -- I took a C++ class, and am pretty efficient with html, and am familiar with javascript and splicing it together. I don't exactly make computer games in my basement. c. I've started collecting with playing in mind, if that makes sense. I lived with my parents until I was about four, and my whole life I've had the background music to Sneak 'n Peek and Mountain King in the back of my head as a result. When I stumbled upon these games, I was rattled. I've made it my mission to collect those games I remember my parents playing. So it's not real collecting, I guess, but there's a mission at least. On the flipside, my best friend Cassie is a fledgling hardcore collector. d. I've only got the one, the 2600, thank you -- I am relatively disinterested in other Atari platforms. And for the 2600, I am absolutely addicted to Enduro, Phoenix, and Breakout. I do understand the affection women might have for Ms. Pac Man, but I also understand that men liked it too? e. My top picks for other systems include Metroid (for NES), Metroid II: Return of Samus (for Gameboy), most Squaresoft games, and -- I confess -- I did enjoy adventure games by Sierra, back in the day, particularly Gabriel Knight I and II. I also am a fan of multiplayer Half-life at my dorm at school (that's *my* copy you'll find on all the boys' computers). I also liked Betrayal at Krondor and a few other turn-based strategy games. I have on my person an article which appears in the Summer 1997 issue of ***** Magazine titled "You Don't Know Jane" (if you can find this article at the site, I recommend giving it a looksee). In the wake of girl-oriented computer software, ***** looked at several "pink-software" games being applauded in Newsweek and Wired. Unsurprisingly, the best game was the one that was the least gender-specific ("Chop Suey"). I think Nostalgic may have struck upon the real issue ["Among my friends who are very close to my age (27), there aren't female gamers. Those who are a number of years younger (19-21) seem to enjoy them more"]. Indeed, my best friend and I are both 19, and are regular staples in the mall arcade. However, we may or may not continue to be regulars in the arcade as 27-year olds; heaven knows we'll probably be married and off in another sphere entirely, so as to have babies, thus giving our lives newfound meaning, all in the name of not feeling like crazy old spinsters. And that's too bad, that we'll feel socially obligated to reorient our interests. Especially since boys don't have to; it's perfectly acceptable that they go right on playing sports and collecting miniature war figurines and watching football and playing videogames. Women are expected to leave their youthful hobbies behind. Maybe that explains the discrepency in age, and the way women suddenly drop off from the gaming scene.

I've been doing quite a bit of plodding around on eBay, and I frequently see AtariAge's rarity guide being regarded as an authority, too.

Hee! In the same vein, my desire to "represent" is understandable, I hope. As for girls generally not enjoying classic videogames, I dunno -- my best friend Cassie has an *amazing* 2600 cartridge collection. Perhaps we girls just don't know where to congregate.

quote: ahem. somebody , and i'm not naming names, said: O.K. guys and gals. (Are there any gals that frequent this site?) And the answer, of course, is yes. Hrmph.

totally a deal. i don't know how to solder, so the finicky 2600 is no use to me, and i'd rather it end up with someone who can use it. so i'll send it off to you (i'm emailing you now).

IN NEED OF: just a 2600. no controllers, no games, no spare parts. i realize just shipping it would cost more than it's worth, but i'm desperate. AVAILABLE: one nice, albeit finicky, 2600 with a pinout problem that inhibits gameplay. i don't know who on god's green earth would want it, but if you're a soldering fiend who thinks it's not quite dead yet, gosh, just send me enough for shipping and it's yours, yours, yours. this thing will be the death of me. please email.

Yipes! Son-of-a-gun. Ah well, thanks so much for helping me out.

Oh, I just realized Chazbeenhead or whoever is having the same kind of pinout problem. Well, I looked at the pins, and none of them seem to be bent or broken. Can I safely swab them with alcohol? Should I do a voodoo chant over them?

Hi, guys. I thought there was a problem with my joystick controllers, because I couldn't move UP in any games (which is okay if you're playing Enduro or Phoenix, but...). However, I just checked out the FAQ and half-educated myself about the pinout thing. And the problem isn't the joystick; the problem is the little plug on the console where you plug in a joystick. Whatzit. About fixing it: is this a deeper, scarier problem and I should just get a new Atari? Or, is there some way to, I don't know, blow dust out and improve my connection between the console and the joystick? What do I do? What do I do?

quote: dunno why it didn't work !?!? here is the link again. jahfish: Oh, my lord. I just looked at the picture you posted of the...multicart? (Someone please correct my lingo if I'm totally off.) That's incredible!

quote: WTF? a tv is a tv they work the same no matter where you are. Er, no, that's not wholly true. Like, if you buy a television set in England, it has to have a diffent kind of VCR, and then you have to purchase your videotape in PAL format. But if you buy a set here in America (or in Canada), you'd better have an American VCR and a videotape in NTSC. Different regions of the world actually use different kinds of signals with their television sets, that's all. So the game console + games must have a compatible signal with whatever country it's in. I think the whole thing stems from the fact that the United States had the first TV sets, but shortly afterwards some crazy European improved upon it, and the Americans were too stubborn to switch over to the other type of television. It's created problems ever since.

Well, as of yesterday, I not only got my first Atari 2600 of my own (for my birthday, no less), but also several gajillion games, including Sneak 'n Peek. The reason this was so revelatory is, when I was five and younger I lived with my parents, who had an Atari. And I've always -- no joke -- had a fear of the song "Camptown Races" because of how frightening Sneak 'n Peek was. And I'd tell people that I could distinctly remember we'd had this Hide and Seek Atari game that scared the junk out of me when I was much younger, and that the game played "Camptown Races" in the background. So, up till yesterday, I didn't know what that game was called. So now I know (and I can face my childhood trauma head-on). But that's really why the game is so special to me.