Omega-TI

Nice!

Naw, if anything it might increase activity here. First I doubt the majority would be interested in this project, but those that do would be able to talk freely and discuss things at a different level. Stuff talked about would probably migrate back here.

Creepers? Naww, it would just be like one big party line with everyone on speaker phone... except you can turn off the microphone for privacy.

With all the cheap kits like Arduinos and Raspberry Pi's, I was wondering if it could be possible to make a dedicated TI-99/4A chat network. The idea would be a the hidden (so-called "dark web"), but an available 24/7 place for us all to chat when in our dens, or game rooms. 1) These devices take very little power, and could effectively be on 24/7. 2) Of course the microphone could be switched off, but whenever someone is around, a voice activated circuit could "broadcast" anything someone wanted to say. 3) If you prefer not to leave it on 24/7 a power sensing circuit could be hooked up to the TI, so whenever the TI is on, it could be on as well. Imagine if you could hands freely speak up right now and say, "Anyone playing with their TI right now", and get numerous responses back. Imagine the kinds of discussions that could arise out of the blue?

No, I'm in the process of downsizing and simply cannot justify a bunch of redundant stuff hanging around. I was originally going to keep my Tempest cart, but maybe that could be used as a sweetener?

Well, I was on the fence, but so far it's 100% the top one... which is actually good because it's about $20.00 cheaper. I'm thinking of addind an extra word at the beginning though...

Google knows! CALLER: Is this Gordon's Pizza? GOOGLE: No sir, it's Google Pizza. CALLER: I must have dialed a wrong number. Sorry. GOOGLE: No sir, Google bought Gordon’s Pizza last month. CALLER: OK. I would like to order a pizza. GOOGLE: Do you want your usual, sir? CALLER: My usual? You know me? GOOGLE: According to our caller ID data sheet, the last 12 times you called you ordered an extra-large pizza with three cheeses, sausage, pepperoni, mushrooms and meatballs on a thick crust. CALLER: OK! That’s what I want ... GOOGLE: May I suggest that this time you order a pizza with ricotta, arugula, sun-dried tomatoes and olives on a whole wheat gluten-free thin crust? CALLER: What? I detest vegetable! GOOGLE: Your cholesterol is not good, sir. CALLER: How the hell do you know! GOOGLE: Well, we cross-referenced your home phone number with your medical records. We have the result of your blood tests for the last 7 years. CALLER: Okay, but I do not want your rotten vegetable pizza! I already take medication for my cholesterol. GOOGLE: Excuse me sir, but you have not taken your medication regularly. According to our database, you purchased only a box of 30 cholesterol tablets once, at Drug RX Network, 4 months ago. CALLER: I bought more from another drugstore. GOOGLE: That doesn’t show on your credit card statement. CALLER: I paid in cash. GOOGLE: But you did not withdraw enough cash according to your bank statement. CALLER: I have other sources of cash. GOOGLE: That doesn’t show on your last tax return unless you bought them using an undeclared income source, which is against the law. CALLER: WHAT THE HELL! GOOGLE: I'm sorry, sir, we use such information only with the sole intention of helping you. CALLER: Enough already! I'm sick to death of Google, Facebook, Twitter, Whats App and all the others. I'm going to an island without internet, cable TV, where there is no cell phone service and no one to watch me or spy on me. GOOGLE: I understand sir, but you need to renew your passport first. It expired 6 weeks ago...

I'm not on FB, couldn't watch.

You want another cool one? Never mind if you cannot understand the lyrics. Trust me, play this video full screen with your screen grabber software in the ON position.

I'm wanting to get a "TI decoration" for the den, which one do you prefer? Top or bottom?

Well, that took a while, but I combined all of @blackbox's Invoice Management scans into a single PDF. Thanks again for scanning these Blackbox! Invoice Management.pdf

For some reason I thought of @jedimatt42 when I saw this...

@acadiel CONGRATULATIONS!

So, now that this game has been out for a while now, has anyone found the cheats? 😁 Never mind, I forgot those were removed when training mode was installed.

Recently the issue of timing came into play about one particular program not working well on consoles with the FinalGROM 99. In the past, the only time I've ever had trouble was when I had dirty contacts. Now the FinalGROM might require slightly higher voltages to operate properly and just a little extra stuff on the contacts *MAY* inhibit things a little. This got me thinking... Is there any way to 'sense' the GROM port lines by shoving data over them and reading what comes back? If so, a program could be written to tell you when it's time to clean your cartridge port. Just an idea... ** EDIT ** This of course could probably detect a percentage of missing or altered data (over a few minutes) and timing of said data could probably be recorded (within a variance) using the TI's internal clock as a baseline.

Potential confirmation? If so, a routine to set, or reset console memory could be inserted at the beginning of an updated .BIN... or am I off base here? ERROR CONDITION.mp4

Is it an optical or mechanical detect for the read/write notch?

I never saw such an inexpensive entry level << O-Scope >> in my life, of course it has some limitations, after all it's not a Fluke or a Tektronix it's not a But, then again you only get what you pay for, but for an entry level starter scope for simple projects... who knows?

I'm not having an issue with either the UberGROM version or the FinalGROM version. I do not remember which program it was, but a few years back one program did not run properly unless I ran a program that cleared some memory addresses first. It had something to do with the initial state of the memory on startup, but once I ran the program everything was cool. As you can see in the video below, there does not appear to be anything wrong with the .BIN image... No Issue.mp4

The FinalGROM .BIN has been available for some time on AtariAge << HERE >>. I'm unaware of the loader ever being available on disk/

Yes and no. They make them, but ArcadeShopper appears out at the moment. There is another outfit called the Brewing Academy << HERE >> that looks like they could set you up.

Yes, yes I do! I"ll attest to that fact. I might add I've shipped two packages of my own lately and I've not yet recycled 1/2 the bubble wrap yet.

How much you can use (size of emulated drives) it totally dependent on the maximum capability of your floppy controller. I can only speak about the Lotharek Model as I do not own or have any personal experience with the Gotek units. No, not exactly plug & play, you'll need adapters for your power and data cables too. Also, you'll need to create some emulated disks to put on the drive. If you've not spent the money yet to obtain one, I'd recommend putting your money into a TIPI unit as you'll get much more bang for the buck and you'll gain extra capabilities other than a simple storage device and the WiFI makes saving files MUCH less of a hassle.