Arcadenut

January 22, 2002

quote:

Originally posted by Fretwobbler:

Could you add a "copywrite Year" field to compliment the "release date" field as these are not allways the same.

looks good!

Adam

Done.

January 21, 2002

Work on Cart Commander has been going better than expected! There has been significant work done on this version, so I am bumping the version number up to 2.0.0.6 instead of 1.4.0.6.

A lot of work has gone into this version. I have spent more time on 2.0 then I did on 1.0. There are a lot of cool new features that I have added and the architecture is now in place to allow me to add a lot more features quickly.

I expect to have a BETA out this week.

With this version, Cart Commander has evolved into more than just a Cartridge Cataloging utility. Right now it tracks Media (Carts, Tapes, Disks, etc...) and Hardware. It is evolving from just tracking cartridges to tracking everything a collector collects.

With that, my first question is this:

1) Should I keep the name "Cart Commander" or change it?

2) If I change it, what should it be called?

3) What other things would you like to track with it?

Some of the things I have in mind are:

Manuals

Boxes

Souvenirs

Anything else?

Starting with 2.0, there will be some features that will only be available to registered users. I have not determined what those features are yet, however, it wont be any feature that is already present in 1.3.0.5.

If you have any wishes for a feature to be added to this version before it hits BETA, please send me an email.

All comments/questions/criticisms are welcome. Post a message here and I'll respond, or if you feel more comfortable, email me.

Thanks,

January 19, 2002

quote:

Originally posted by :

It's at bootup, like bad ROMs or something. I'll do it with smilies. THe background is green.

Like that, only in black blocks.

The first thing you should try is to open it up and reseat all the socketed chips. ST's have always had problems with socketed chips coming loose.

If that doesn't work, start feeling chips to see if they are really hot to the touch. If one is too hot too touch, then its bad and needs to be replaced.

If neither of those don't work, then something more serious/difficult to diagnose is wrong and you'll need to get it serviced.

January 18, 2002

quote:

Originally posted by :

Anyone know what low-res blocks that go down after about 5 blocks on boot-up mean? I was using it earlier that day with no lines at boot-up. After about an hour, I turned it back on, I got the lines for the first time. Can I fix it, or is it a lost cause?

Can you put up a picture of what it looks like?

Does it happen always or only after its been no for a while?

January 17, 2002

quote:

Originally posted by cbrash39:

Help! Need Repair on a 1040STe in N.J. or the East Coast Tri-State Area.Allso Looking for someone with 520/1040 in N.J. for possible rental to convert Passport-Master Tracks Track into standard midi files for PC. If you know of repair shop or have aunit for rent e-mail me please Thanks

What is wrong with it?

January 17, 2002

quote:

Originally posted by Tempest:

I was just looking at my new websites test page from work and I noticed that it looked much bigger than it did on my home computer. It must be because I'm using a very high resolution at home (1024x768) and a normal resolution (800x600) at work. I don't want my webpage to look funny if viewed at the wrong resolution so I was wondering which one most of you use?

I also noticed that my main site 8-bit Rot (

http://www.msu.edu/user/reicher6/

) looks off center and has alot of word wrap at 800x600. If you want to see what it should look like (what I see) use 1024x768.

Is there a easy way to adjust the resoultion according to the viewer or do you just go with one and screw the other guy?

Tempest

I run 1280x1024. My web site is designed for 800x600. I've found that the best way to control the look of a site is to either fix the width (and possibly height) by use of Tables, or to make sure your content still looks good when Resized. After fighting the resizable problems, I stuck with a Fixed Width.

You can also combine those options so that certain things stay a fixed size, while other aspects shrink and grow as the page changes sizes.

If its a FONT size problem, then you need to stick with the basic fonts (Arial, etc..) and specify a specific Size (8pt, 10pt, etc...). If you sepcify + and - or the big and small tags, then you have less control over how it looks.

Its a major pain to get it to look perfect in every browser, so just pick one or two and go with that.

January 16, 2002

quote:

Originally posted by Albert:

Not to nitpick here (well, okay), but the PS2 does have AC-3 optical out and it does support component video.

..Al

I Sit Corrected. My appologies.

January 15, 2002

quote
As for buying seperate components means you get higher quality, that is just not true all the time.

I agree, however, my experience has been that combining multiple elements has led to an inferior product all around. This may not be the case with the XBox or PS2, as I don't own either. I DO own a GameCube, (plus a dozen other consoles) and it is a very high quality product. It is also stellar at playing games, which is what is was designed for.

quote
For example, my "cheap" Jaguarcd plays disk PERFECTLY that won't play on other disk players because of scratches, and the sound quality from the Jagcd is nothing less than superb. Plus, I get a cool light show on top of that, a feature that you won't find in ANY regular cd player.

Thats great if thats what you are looking for. Me, I've been down that path, and I've learned alot in the process. The BIG thing that I learned is that I get what I want and pay a fair price for it. If I can't afford it, I wait until I can.

quote
I have saved a bundle by not buying a seperate cd or DVD player and the Xbox has a much better picture than my brother's "high quality" $480 Harmon Kardon DVD-50 player!

Saving money is important to you. Its not as important to me. Quality is MUCH more important to me and therefore, I'm willing to spend the extra money. I'm not going to go out and buy Nakamichi because I think they are way over priced. They have Excellent quality, but I can get better than average quality at a fraction of the price.

quote
$30 dollars more for a remote is a h*ll of a lot better than $480! Or even $330 if you include the price of the Xbox, which also plays cd's, cdr's,GAMES, and maybe even more formats-I haven't tried them all yet.

That’s great, but I don’t need it. I already had a CD player and a DVD player long before the Xbox, PS2 or GameCube were even on the drawing board.

quote
Any way you look at it, better than paying $450 for your 6-disc cd changer,

It is for you, but I have different requirements for my entertainment needs and that money was spent in 1988, 14 years ago.

quote
PLUS your $200 dollar Lamecube AND whatever you payed for your separate DVD player...even if I add the cost of my Jaguar+cd on top of the Xbox&remote, I still come out WAY ahead, with top quality performance and extras (like the VLM).

I spent $300 on the DVD player which allows me to run Fiber to my AC-3 Decoder. This is not possible with any console. The one nice thing about the Xbox and the GameCube is that they support component video. This means I will get the most out of my HDTV with either one. The other thing to note is that since I went with the GameCube, I saved $100 over the Xbox and PS2, which allowed me to get two games for it.

My decision to buy a GameCube was based on the fact that I already had a DVD player and a CD Player, and although the Xbox has some attractive features, it is from a company that has never been in the console market.

This makes them a BIG question mark as to their long-term viability. Microsoft also has other motives for the Xbox other than just being a “Game Console”. To me, that says that they are not focused on what is important to me, and that’s playing games. What Microsoft has going for them though, is they will keep trying until they get it right. It might take them a long time, but they do eventually get it right.

I am not saying the Xbox isn’t right, but that their execution may be flawed. Only time will tell.

The PS2 was passed on because it didn’t offer much of anything more than the GameCube had (that I didn’t already have in other components) and it costs $100 more.

Nintendo has always had an eye to high quality games and high quality hardware. I’m not saying they are perfect, but they’ve been around the block a few times.

Now go play your Xbox, and I’ll go play my GameCube and we’ll both be happy :-)

January 14, 2002

quote:

Originally posted by Gunstar:

Did you actually pay attention to what I said at all? So you have a 6-cd changer to play your music, good for you. So, what did that set you back ($)? Like I said, I've never had to pay EXTRA for a cd player because my console DO play cd's. So you payed X amount of dollars for your console and THEN you payed X amount of dollars for your cd player...I payed only ONCE and got the best of both worlds! So sit on that disk and spin it! Now, with the Xbox, I got a 3 in one deal! I don't have to buy a seperate DVD player. I have a lot of extra money to buy more GAMES with than you because I didn't buy an extra player for my cd's or DVD's. Not to mention NOTHING about the Xbox is half-*ss. Microsoft did everything right and the games are Awsome in EVERY way; gfx, game play, depth, etc., etc. So go on and keeping paying extra for your extra components, like anyone really needs a cd player that stores multiple cd's...gee it's sooOOO hard to take one disk out and put in another, you can't listen to more than one at a time anyway...to me that's lame and just proves you must be a very lazy person, with a fat *SS from sitting there using your remote to change between your six discs...use your legs for a change, maybe your cholestorol levels will subside...

Resorting to personal attacks invalidates your points. I find it amusing that you would say “…to me that's lame and just proves you must be a very lazy person, with a fat *SS from sitting there using your remote to change between your six discs...use your legs for a change, maybe your cholestorol levels will subside...”, when you are probably sitting down playing your video game. Or do you jog in place while playing? Maybe walk on a treadmill? Either way, your statement is hypocritical at best.

As for the CD player, it set me back $450 back in 1988 when I bought it. CD’s weren’t used much for video games back then. Being Lazy? Maybe, Maybe not, it is nice to be able to put 6 discs in, push random and have a good variety of music to listen to for around 120 minutes.

“Now, with the Xbox, I got a 3 in one deal! I don't have to buy a seperate DVD player.” No but you DO have to buy the $30 remote for it. That’s a great deal.

I used to buy the integrated stuff, but I found that most of it was crap. I now buy things that are separate components that do one task, and do it very well. As for the extra cost, just remember that you get what you pay for.

If you’d like to discuss this intelligently and rationally, then I’m all for it. If you want to resort to name-calling, then I’ll take a pass.

P.S. Calling you Hypocritical is not name-calling, it is a description of your character. Name calling would be like “…you must be a very lazy person, with a fat *SS…”

Oh Yeah, as for my Cholesterol, I’ll let you know. The lab results should be back by next week.

January 14, 2002

quote:

Originally posted by twit:

20 Years Later ...

...

Pitfall!

Just to let you know, under History, it should be "DeVry Institute of Technology" and not "De Vry School of Technology". Do you know which one he graduated from? I graduated from the one here in Phoenix so it would be interesting to know.

Other than that, the site looks great!

January 14, 2002

quote:

Originally posted by Eduardo:

I find the All-in-one concept more atractive (Xbox/PS2 way), not everyone would be happy to have one device for each function, ppl should encourage convergence of personal devices like PDAs, cel phones, MP3 players, gaming, web surfing, etc. Of course I can´t deny that also some ppl out there still prefer a separate device for each use, so get what if fits better for your needs. Choice is yours.

Why do one thing really well, when you can do a bunch of stuff half-assed?

January 14, 2002

quote:

Originally posted by Gunstar:

All I have to say about these format fights you guys are having is that at least every disk based console from the Segacd and/or turboduo to the latest Xbox, regardless of the format, have been able to have a regualar music cd put in it and played. Even though Nintendo has finally gotten away from carts, they go and use some rinky-dink disk format, try and stick a cd in that box!!! Of course I only use my Jagcd for music, because of the VLM light show, but at least if I wanted to throw a cd in any of my other systems (Saturn, DC, 3DO, PSX and XBOX)I could. I've never bought an actual cd player ever, because I can double my consoles as a cd player. To me that is a BIG thing. It's almost as cool as being able to double my Xbox as a DVD player, try sticking a DVD in the Ninshmendo Lamecube!!! Hehe, yeah I still hate Nintendo...sorry if that offends anyone, but at least you still hang at an Atari page even if you like the big N...I guess that makes up for your misguided loyalty to Ninshmendo...

Oh please! Its a GAME Console, not a damn CD Player! If I want to play CD's I put them in my 6-Disc Changer or my DVD Player. Same goes for the PS2 and XBOX, if I want to play DVD's I'll put them in my DVD player, not some cheesy DVD player in a console.

January 14, 2002

Heck, I grew up on video games because of my Parents. We had Pong, then the Atari 2600. There was ALWAYS a computer in the house. We had a pool table and a slot machine.

Where do you think I learned how to swear so well? From my Mom playing Kaboom! and Stampede!

I got a Dreamcast for christmas in 2000 and both my parents where playing Crazy Taxi! Not bad for a couple in their ... uhh... I wont say, but I'm 33 and the youngest of 5.

Gotta love em!

January 10, 2002

quote:

Originally posted by King_Asmo:

BTW: I still owe you some carts for that wonderful cart commander software of yours. Do you have a wantlist?

KA

I've been working on version 1.4.0.6 since December and should have it out in about a month or two. I am making HUGE changes to the architecture so that I can add a lot more features quickly. Pain up front make it easier later.

Until that time, I wont have the opportunity to update my wish list. However, you can take a look at what I currently have (on my site on the CC page) and compare it against your dupes.

I'll be sending an ALPHA version out to registered users this weekend.

If anyone has any requests for features, please speak up now.

Hardware Tracking WILL be in this version. I have also added several new fields for the media (Carts) tracking including:

Media Type (Cartridge, CD, Tape, Disk, etc..)

Media Status (Dead, Alive, Unknown, etc...)

Year Released

Acquired From

Video Format (NTSC, PAL, etc...)

Serial Number

Plus a few others that I can't remember. I will also be including the ability to have custom views for each list type (Hardware vs. Media) and each platform under that. This will allow people to view only fields that are relevant to that platform.

I also have several other cool things planned, but those you’ll have to wait to find out about when its released (Unless you’re registered, then you’ll find out sooner).

January 10, 2002

quote:

Originally posted by King_Asmo:

Check out this auction.. I had a ton of spare 2600's and games lying around, plus I just bought out a flea market guy.

http://cgi.ebay.com/aw-cgi/eBayISAPI.dll?V...item=1320641088

[Check out the quantity on the auction]

How many do you think I can sell?

KA

A 2600, Controlers and 10 games for $50?

No thanks. I'll pass.

January 7, 2002

quote:

Originally posted by Junie:

My cabinets will house any TV, that will save on shipping the cabinet, and make for easy repair (Replace with a new TV).

I think you'll have a hard time housing my TV in your cabinet :-)

http://www.hometheatermag.com/showarchives.cgi?48

January 7, 2002

quote:

Originally posted by King Atari:

Well, now when I hook up my VIC-20, it comes in really fuzzy (worse than my JR.), you can barely make out words. However, after I play it for awhile, it clears up. I haven't played more than about 3 min. the few times I have hooked my JR. up, so is it possible that if I played it for a little while longer, it would clear up?

Did you try the TV on both channel 3 and 4?

January 5, 2002

quote:

Originally posted by Atari Master:

Anyone get one yet?I got it two hours after release.I have SSBM and Luigi's Mansion.

I've been playing SSBM for hours now and managed to get two secrate characters.I got Dr.Mario and Jigglypuff.I pplayed Luigi's mansion too.It beat tree of the boss ghosts including the babby.

Anyone else love there cube?

I bought one yesterday and love it. I don't like the price of the games, but its in line with the other two (PS2 and xBOx).

I have Super Monkey Ball and will problably pick up Star Wars and Luigi's Mansion, and another controler, and a memory card, and...! ACk!

Ok, I'm not addicted! I can stop any time I want!

December 15, 2001

quote:

Originally posted by berzerk:

Normally, that would make sense, but if you read his post carefully, you would see that the items were up on ebay and I doubt he wanted to wait for them to go off or for anyone to bid on them. So he started talking to the owner immediately.

Thats not at issue here. I have no problem with that, other than its against eBay rules.

quote:

I agree, it seems like it could of been better handled, but if you think someone at some company just has access to products to give to people at will, you are sadly mistaken.

If he didn't have access to them, they he had NO RIGHT to even enter into the deal. Period.

quote:

He most likely had to do some paperwork and other stuff to get the items in trade ready to go to the individual.

Then he should have done that up front before Sway3 sent the carts.

December 14, 2001

quote:

Originally posted by berzerk:

man, if that's the guy that posts here, he has always been very informative, helpful and friendly. It really hadn't been that long of time. I think you could of been a bit more impatient before you threw up the "I got scammed" thread. U owe this guy and company an apology. I've had ebay auctions that have taken longer than that to go through and he has to go through company BS to get those games for you, not like they are just sitting on his desk.

berz

I say thats bullshit. Doesn't anyone take responsiblity for their actions anymore?

If MrX @ thirdparty.com said "Yeah, lets do it". He should have had those games boxed and waiting to go. When he received the games, that box should have gone out.

December 7, 2001

Ok,

I am planing on adding support for PAL to Cart Commander, however, I want to know if there are any other formats other than:

NTSC

PAL

are there SECAM versions or are those esentially the same as the PAL?

December 6, 2001

quote:

Originally posted by atari70s:

yo you serious i set up sega genisis to do and went to check master list i didnt see it

It's not going to add a Master List. It will allow you to chose "Sega Genesis" as a valid platform now. Someone has to actually create the master list first.

[ 12-06-2001: Message edited by: Arcadenut ]

December 6, 2001

quote:

Originally posted by Ze_ro:

Excellent I look forward to future versions of this (Although having to go back and enter more info for stuff I've already entered will take a while... it'll be worth it in the long run).

I tried to make sure all my suggestions were in line... I mean, you don't need to be re-writing Excel or anything

Oh, and I didn't think that C/R/ER thing through very well I guess... I suppose trying to make graphs out of mixed information wouldn't work very well. Perhaps there would be a way to choose wether a certain list used C/R/ER or numbering for rarity? Either way, it's not like would keep me from using the program

--Zero

Ideally, the C/R/ER will be converted to a numerical value.

December 6, 2001

quote:

Originally posted by ARCZero:

I've been thinking of writing a hobbyists inventory program. Amongst other things it could include a pre-set master inventory item list for a particular hobby. So, if your hobby was home video game consoles, it would come loaded with every home video game listed in it.

Sounds like Cart Commander.

quote:

Along with the games pictures and history may be included. All that you would have to do is mark that you have an item (instead of entering it from scratch) and write various personal notes on it, such as condition.

Sounds like Cart Commander too. Click Add Cart, select a master list then Check the ones you have. After they are added, then you can go back in and change anything you want. You can also do mass updates of certain properties such as rarity, qty, condition, etc...

quote:

The master inventory list would hopefully be produced by a respected name in the field (say Digital Press) and would include a price guide.

Sounds like Cart Commander. The information in the master lists have been compiled by my friend Ron Corcoran and a couple other people (sorry I forgot their names, but they have been given credit in the Revisions.txt and the master lists) from various sources such as the internet, the DP Guide and Here.

quote:

The program would let you see the value of your collection,

Thats comming in the next release.

quote:

find out what items you are missing,

You can do a List comparision against the master list to see what you don't have. You can then print that list out.

quote:

and print reports for insurance purposes amongst other things.

Does that, although it doesn't give a grand total. However the files are CSV files so you could easily import this into Excel, and do a quick total and report that way.

quote:

The master list would be updated periodically - perhaps 4 times a year.

Cart Commander master lists are updated each release. If someone wants to send me master lists, I will be more than happy to include them in the next release and make them available on my site so people don't have to wait for the next release.

quote:

The program would also link up with the net, allowing you to post trade lists, transact trades on-line, and perhaps submit auctions to eBay. It would hopefully integrate with sites such as this one. One thought is to work with eBay to mark auctioned items with a tag so that a particular type of item can be tracked for value over time. If this was possible, collectors could look at items as if they were stocks traded on the stock market.

Cart Commander is integrated with AtariAge with respect to additional information about the cartridge. Pressing CTRL-I (or choosing the More Info... option from the menu) will bring up AtariAge in your browser with the specific game.

quote:

It would take time and money to produce such a system. Is there an interest in it? If the program was free or included in a book, what would you pay for master inventory lists with price updates? $10-$20 a year? What types of features would you like to see in it?

If you'd like to contact me, my e-mail is [email protected]

December 6, 2001

quote:

Originally posted by atari70s:

copyright varartions is a addition i would LOVE to see

also something for those tiawain carts and ITT games. a Simple Other at the end of the list would be great.

there should be aditionfor adding systems

for SEGA there isnt any master list for that or SNES master list. other than those things its better than my Excel list. i hope there is a patch that can add these things in the future

I love cart commander its the best thing for my collection even with these thigns that can be done. thank you for making this to make our lives easier

You can add any master list you want. There is a directory called Masters in the Cart Commander directory. If you copy a cartridge file in there then its considered a Master list that you can pick from.

If you want to add a system that is not listed, go into Options, chose the Platform Tab, type the name of the system in, then click the Add button. You now have a new system to choose from.

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Posts posted by Arcadenut