darwinmac

The cost is in the PDF in @tf_hh's signature. He lists all of his products there with pricing information and the way to contact him. If you read the forums from an iPhone, you'll need to rotate the phone to landscape mode in order to see the signatures. Bob C

If you get stuck on a level, how can you restart the level without restarting the Atari? Bob C

When Dungeon Hunt II was sold, it came with a manual. I have a PDF copy of it. However, I don’t know if it was intended to be released when he decided to freely give away the game. There’s no hint book that I know of so it wouldn’t help with being trapped in the room. Bob C

If you’re even considering a 400 mini, I’d first see is one of the Atari emulators will work for you. I don’t know if you run Windows, if you do, Altirra is the obvious choice. Since you only want to run a few classic games and have no other attachment to the Atari computer, that seems the best first step. I doubt the 400 mini would be any better than running Altirra. If you use a Mac or Linux, you can either run Altirra under Wine or use the Atari800 emulator. Bob C

For me, two things would be almost essential in a new machine: 1. Will the paddles work directly from the DB-9 port? On the MiST core (that you originally wrote), I have to plug in my 2600-daptor into a USB port in order to use my paddles. I think that is a limitation of the MiST hardware. I just want to make sure it would not be a limitation of the new machine. 2. Will there be the ability to disable the custom hi-res mode? I have run into a few games (the latest being Cyborg Warriors) that do not like the mode. I appreciated the new option that was added recently to the MiST core to disable the high-res mode. That appears to improve compatibility. Overall, I have been very happy with the MiST core. However, if this new version was affordable, it would be very tempting for me. I appreciate being able to switch between NTSC and PAL easily. Except for a dual pokey, I do not see the need for much built-in except for an SD slot to load XEX and CAR images. If the SIO matches the original machine, I can plug in my existing Fujinet rather than having it built into the FPGA. Bob C

What issue did you have with MiSTer and Joyride? With foft’s core on MiST, I have only had two problems: 1 - Related to paddle support, one of the games incorrectly detected that I had an SNES controller. The core maintainer added an option to disable paddle support which fixed the problem. I can reenable paddle support for the games that use it. 2. The enhanced video messes up a few homebrew games. Again, the core maintainer added an option to disable the enhanced video which eliminated the problem. Though I own an 800XL and an XEGS, the 8-bit FPGA allows me to run PAL software and, I think, use a stereo Pokey. The compatibility has been fantastic. Bob C

@Allan @djglish - I doubt the scans are perfect from my iPhone, but it did create a searchable PDF which is nice. Anyway, here are the files I promised: MAST (Milwaukee Area ST) newsletter issue #1 (June 1990) Milwaukee AtariFest 1991 program guide (little more than exhibitor map) Milwaukee AtariFest 1992 program guide (same format as 1991) WAACE 1992 Program and Guide (only WAACE show I was able to attend) A nice tidbit from the WAACE show. John Trautschold (spelling?) from Missionware Software brought me along to help him at his booth. At the time, he sold Flash 2 along with distributing software from an Australian software company (Fair Dinkum software). Since he was a private pilot (he might still be for all I know), he took me on my first airplane flight in his Piper Cherokee. I'd never even flown commercial before that flight. I didn't get paid, but I got a free flight and meals. I can't complain. I also got to sit at the Atari developers table where they were bitching about Atari. Good times. Bob C

@Beeblebrox - Simply using the desktop site doesn’t show the signatures on my iPhone. It may work on Android but, on iOS, signatures don’t show up for me in portrait mode. If another iPhone owner has a different experience, I’m happy to hear how they did it. Bob C

Also, if you’re reading AA on a smartphone (like I normally do), you’ll have to rotate your phone to landscape mode in order to see the signatures. Bob C

The first MAST issue was June 1990. I’ll try to get time to scan it. Unfortunately, I three hole punched the newsletter at some point, but it’s better than not having it at all. @djglish - Do you have the March 1995 issue? That was the issue when both clubs merged. Since you were the editor at the time, I assume you don’t need that scanned. @Allan - Previously, I scanned the 1992 WAACE AtariFest program for @rkindig, I think. I still have the scan on my Dropbox account if you need it. When I get to this, can I provide links for you to upload the files to your Internet Archive account? Sorry I haven’t done this sooner. I’ve been too tired to do much retro-computing after starting a new job. Bob C

@djglish - Do you have the first issue of the MAST newsletter? I’ll let you scan that if you have it. I also have the programs from the two Atarifests that MAST held. The “programs” are little more than a dealer map. I also have the larger program from the one Atarifest that LCACE put on that was sponsored by Atari (1991). Bob C

I’m sure JJ probably has the LCACE newsletters for probably most of its history since he was the long time newsletter editor along with club founder. He might still have the PageStream files 🙂 The problem will be getting him to scan them. It’d be a huge job and I’m sure he has other interests that take up his time. That’s the impression I got when I last got an email from him on LinkedIn. Bob C

Looks like a nice option. I’ve used the 2600-Daptor when using an emulator. This might be a more cost-effective option. Bob C

@djglish is a much better source than I am for MilAtari information and newsletters. I’m sorry to hear about Dennis. I remember him well. Sadly, we’re all getting older. At almost 59, I’m probably one of the younger ex-MilAtari members. Bob C

@Allan - Yes, I have an iPhone 14 Pro Max. I’ve used it to scan other documents. I just assumed you wanted a better scan from a flatbed scanner. I’ll see when I can get time to do it. Just remind me if I forget. How can I get the file to you? Bob C

That was the year before I joined. I’m surprised at the turnover. I only recognize 2-3 names in that newsletter. It’s obvious they were still using the 8-bit for their newsletter. There’s nothing wrong with that. The ST was only about a year old and the members who owned one may not have wanted to be the newsletter editor. I only have the September 1989 issue of the MilAtari newsletter because I wrote a long article chastising Atari US for not promoting the ST. I cringe at how 20 something Bob wrote, but I was passionate about the ST at the time. I did find out that Atari actually read at least some of the articles since I received a call from Bob Brodie (Atari user group ambassador at the time) about the article. Sadly, I don’t have any scanners anymore. Bob C

As an ABBUC member, I purchased mine from their online store. However, tf_hh's support was top notch when I had some questions. The Syscheck II has good build quality. I bought the version without the battery backup since I didn't need that feature. It cost a bit more because it had to be shipped from Germany to the US. However, I highly recommend this product. If you run into a game that isn't compatible with the upgrade (Tapper, Midi-Maze), it's a simple matter to unplug it from the PBI port and you have a stock 800XL again. Bob C

Yes, Altirra works well under Wine. I run it on my M1 MacBook Air. A native port would have a more native feel. However, Avery uses Windows-specific technologies (e.g. DirectX) extensively. He makes the source code available for anyone who would want to port the code to another OS but, with how often he updates Altirra, it’s not really feasible for someone to take on a port. Since he gives away Altirra for free and he has said on many occasions that he has no interest in posting Altirra to another OS, I would not bother him about it IMHO. Bob C

Thanks for reporting on this. Your articles also give me a chance to see how much of my college Spanish I still remember. Unlike German, Polish, or Czech (which I do not know at all), I can normally understand most of your articles without relying on the Safari built-in translation feature. The game definitely reminds me of Xybex, but I am looking forward to it anyway. Bob C

It’s been a long time since I had to connect my Fujinet to my mesh network. It’s possible I used the capability in my Eero mesh network to temporarily pause the 5Ghz band, let the Fujinet connect, and allow the 5Ghz band to start up again. On the Eero, you can pause the 5Ghz band for 5-10 minutes (don’t remember the exact time right now). Once the Fujinet was connected, I know you can use the dial bands without a problem. Bob C

@Raisin54 - I assume you have PP’s latest hard disk driver. It assumes you have a machine with the ICD extensions as I recall. I had the same slowdown problem with creating folders, doing show information to see the space remaining, and just the initial boot. After some back and forth, he gave me an older version that’s limited to a 1GB drive, but doesn’t assume you’re using an ICD host adapter. That version works very quickly on my MiST system with a 250MB disk image. Bob C

I think it is more the case design rather than the PCB. My Mac is not always awake so I can’t use the TNFS server. Normally, I use the micro SD card. I use a low tech solution to access the card: tweezers. It would be nice if the case had a cutout to more easily access the micro SD card. Bob C

@djglish - Your best bet is probably to buy the Fujinet Pro from Lotharek in Poland. There are enough changes between hardware version 1.3 (in stock at The Brewing Academy - TBA) and 1.7 that I can’t recommend version 1.3. That’s especially true because you mentioned that you have other working Atari drives that you might want to use with your Fujinet. I’ve bought both an SIO2SD and MiST from Lotharek in the past and I’ve been impressed with his build quality. @ACML - Unfortunately, at this point, it’s very difficult to find either 1.6 or 1.7 hardware versions in the US. While Thom says to contact vendors to let them know to make Fujinets, there are limited vendor options in the US. From what I can tell, TBA probably has a stock of hardware version 1.3 devices to sell. I’m assuming no 1.6 or 1.7 devices will be built until that happens. The other vendors with sold out Fujinets in the US also appear to be on hardware version 1.3. Bob C

@rkindig was the man in proofreading articles this time. Way to go, Randy! Bob C

@TGB1718 - Thanks for making the fix. This allows Vexed to load from my Ultimate Cart. Bob C