PeBo

I have 2 carts, both labelled "Micro-Pinball" (one of which has the latter-day DBT dot matrix label on the top of the cart rather than the end). One contains Micro Pinball and the other contains Micro Pinball II. When I got them, I figured that the v2 was a burnt eprom put in a Micro Pinball labelled shell, but in opening them, I found the PCBs were both labelled « Databiotics ». I've always wondered if maybe if DBT, near the end of their life (and money) simply distributed/sold the newer version without changing the designation on the labels. I don't think V2 was ever « officially » released on a cart (I could be wrong) , so that would explain how I ended up with one (albeit mislabelled). Or I DID get ripped off for one of the carts, who knows. I would be interested to know if anyone else has a Micro-Pinball labelled shell which actually contains V2. As far as the difference between the games, the shape of the table (not the layout, just the dimensions) had been altered ever-so-slightly (enhancing the physics of the game), more bumpers have been added to the top cluster, and a new set of roll-overs have been added to the top right side. I just wish (as I always do with this generation of video games) that facilities would have been included to save high scores out to disk or tape. Especially considering how many high score slots are provided until you unplug the cart. Even a great Pinball simulation like this (I rate the physics/gameplay right up there with Dave's Midnight Magic and the Pinball Construction Kit) misses something without the ability to save your high score!

J'espère que ton gueule de bois n'est pas trop grave ce matin (héhé), et que ce « weekend » du Jour de l'An est génial ben raide! p

At first I was annoyed at having to take a break from playing Bouncy, but all I can say is And a Happy New Year to you too sir!!!! Wow! That is such a amazing little treat! I mean just having the music woulda been cool, but this!!! Thank you so much for all your gifts to the community. You truly enhance my hobby in ways that I never expected or thought possible when I returned to the TI fold. One question... What was the enhanced resolution used? Having it run in vertical full screen was very cool indeed! I love seeing features/functions of the F-18A being demonstrated.

Actually, I know that the explanation given is the common one, but the actual fact is that young TI modules have a tendency to wander off and get themselves in all kinds of trouble. As a result, parents in many cartridge families will often put a 'leash' on their young offspring to avoid losing them in crowded flea markets. The last thing a TI command module father wants, is to find his daughter has come home with a baby Atari or Commodore cartridge to support (1980's cartridges were far less understanding of mixed-manufacturer relationships than we are today). Of course, permanently disfiguring your child as a replacement for watchful parenting is not something that the cartridge community is proud of, so they've come up with this fanciful « Demo Cartridge » story to hide the truth. The fact that so many young cartridges were known to hang out in computer stores in the early to mid 1980's made the deception easy to sell.

will PM u

Looking for Sneggit and Fathom with manuals. Would also love to find an original Demonstration Cartridge, hopefully at a price where I would not need to take out a second mortgage - although I might be willing to trade my wife (warning: her weight may be excessive for shipping). Seller must be willing to ship to Canada.

1. TI Logo Cartridge (the original 99/4 version, not Logo II). The manual would be nice, but it will double or triple shipping fees, and the Cart Manuals archive has a decent scan, so unless you live near the Canadian border, I'd be happy just to get the cart. 2. Scott Foresman's Star Maze (white label) Can't afford the one on ebay - it's only $51 US (not outrageous for sealed), but at the current exchange rate that works out to $110 CAD shipped (gotta love ebay's global shipping brokerage fees - adds $15 bucks to this one, even though duty and taxes are not applicable on vintage software under NAFTA) I'd love to find this with a manual (original color illustration, not the latter-day generic White Foresman cover with label), and this time it wouldn't effect shipping at all, but again it's not a deal breaker. If some kind soul has these in their 'dispensable' collections, you'd let me put something under tree that I WANT! (To supplement the annual supply of socks, underwear and re-giftables - since no one who's list I've made it onto is going to contribute to what they call my « useless addiction »)

The speed (or lack thereof) of TI-Basic/Extended Basic

Oh gawd yes!!!...lost THREE last week... ...several feverish "1 click" quick bids right up to the last second didn't help. The pseudo-auction model for buy&sell truly sucks!

Well, Ω, my mother always said that « tu peux vouloir dans une main et shier dans l'autre et voir laquelle replirait en premier » (or: you can wish in one hand and sh*t in the other, and see which one fills up first!) BUT, if someone does give you a 99/8 (and yes, I think you definitely deserve such a special gift) ask them if the have an original 99/4 for me??? (with power supply and keyboard overlays of course, those buggers are hard to find!)

Gee and I could have sworn that the gizmo I had hooked up to my pre-F18A TI was a television! I mean it looked like a TV and had TV like connections. It even had rabbit ears and a dial with numbers on it just like a TV. Guess it was something else though, since the video cleraly states (at the offset no less) that you couldn't hook a TI up to a TV. (might have been a good idea to remove the RF modulator from the camera's field of vision before making such claims) The problem with youtube is that it allows any idiot to act like an expert on subjects they know nothing about!

Looking for the following manuals/instruction sheets... From TI: - Multiplication 1 - Alligator Mix - Video Games 1 From Atarisoft: - PacMan - Jungle Hunt From Parker Brothers: - Popeye From DataBioTics: - Mini Writer II From Funware (ya, I know - I have a hope in hell to find these ) : - Henhouse - Driving Demon - St Nick Thanks in advance.

Promised myself when I bought my first TI in 30 years that I would not fall into the "collector" pit, but I've never been good at keeping promises to myself. Of course at first it was easy to do...most original TI-branded hardware/software is still quite inexpensive (from a vintage system perspective). I was able to build an expanded console (PEB/32K/RS232/drives/controller), a complete TI-branded game collection and a couple modern niceties (nanoPEB, F18A, XB2.7s) for much less than I would have spent on a similar collection for another classic computer. The collector bug may not have been what I had originally planned, but it wasn't breaking the bank either, so all was good. Adding TI productivity and home finance software (which, let's face it, is for nostagia purposes far more than practical for use in 2015) is even cheaper, so was able to add a basic collection of those titles without adding much to the budget costs. Same with TI educational software which has suprisingly withstood the test of time VERY WELL, while conversely being the least expensive TI software to buy today (why is that anyway?)). For a few hundred bucks (and far less than I spent 'back-in-the-day'), I was able to build a system and library that far exceeds what I owned in 1983! Quite a feat for a vintage system hobby and a tight budget. Unfortunately, now that the addiction is fully developped, I am finding the remaining hardware and software is far less common (trying to avoid the word "Rare" which is so overused), and so each additional "fix" is falling increasingly outside of my budget (add a failing Canadian dollar, and an impending retirement, and my new purchases have been reduced to a slow crawl). When a single original cartridge without a box or manual can sell for more than $200, then this is a game I can no longer play. So maybe now it's time for make good on my original plan of getting back into amateur programming (which I enjoyed so much in my youth). One thing is certain. No matter what from this hobby takes, my love of this machine, with all it's limitations and quirks, is as strong today as it was the first time I brought one home over 30 years ago.

I am on the hunt for the following DataBioTics carts, which I believe are all that remain missing (DBT games) from my shelf: - Breakthrough - Escape - Mancala - Spy's Demise Also missing Sargon II, but am hoping to fill in the above first. Since this is an attempt to acquire a complete collection from this company, I'm only interested in the carts if they include the instruction sheets (Warranty cards are nice as well, but not a deal breaker) I've managed to find all of the rest of them this year (14/19 if I have the total titles available correct), but these few remain ellusive. finding a couple more would be très cool.

Those times where I sit in front of the 4A not certain what I "feel like" doing, it is always the first cartridge I plug in (If it wasn't already plugged in, which is far more likely) It's a cornucopia of entertainment on it's own, but combined with disk based software (be it on SD, CF, HDX or real floppies), there's little reason to ever unplug the thing (except maybe for switching languages). A shelf of favourite carts can ignite some warm nostalgia, but once you've got Xbasic 2.7 you're really cooking with gas!

A truly sad announcement. We live on as long as we are remembered... ..ans so Gazoo will live on for many many years to come in our hearts, in these forums, and in our TI hobbies - of which he has become an intrinsic part. R.I.P.

Sad this one hasn't been mentioned yet... « Mad Marvin's Great Escape » ...it's not original era, but it is an oustanding Lunar Lander clone with excellent sound and graphics. It also offers a fresh twist on the genre. Since purchasing the full version, it has gained a permanent spot in my Top Ten Ti games. If we're keeping with the 80's though, I never get sick of showing off « Super Demon Attack » (while agreeing with it's shorcomings mentioned by am933) to folks who only remember it from other consoles/computers. It remains one of the most graphically impressive ported games (not to mention the kick-a$$ "personality" sound themes associated with each Demon). Parsec rocks, but Super Demon Attack still warrants a "Wow!" for animation and sound.

Wouldn't it be more practical (albeit more work) to ditch the console and simply use a vintage laptop casing... the motherboard would probably fit comfortably in an old 4x3 display laptop (like a 90's era Tecra). Add a replacement power supply (if case size requires it), keyboard interface, an F18A, and jury-rigging a nanoPEB/CF7 for printing and storage. I have an old T1910, and I would think the thickness of the case would allow more than enough room for components (width might be lacking though), plus there is enough case real estate between the screen and keyboard to allow for the cutting of a GROM port. (the mouse is an optional snap-on for this model, so nothing would interfere with a cut-away for the expansion port on the right.). These old clunkers weighed a ton though, so calling them "portable" is a stretch

and if making requests is not overly bold or rude... Rasmus (if you are reading this thread), although I'm sure anything you might be kind eneough to offer us will be outstanding, there are two Atari 8 bit exclusive titles (at least I don't think they were ever released on another system) that I would LOVE to see (read: happilly pay for) ported the 4A... They are: Captain Beeble, and Caverns of Mars. Anyway just throwing it out there.

I voted for Titanium, but only because it's my favorite of the 4 options provided. Most notably missing from the list for me are Jet Set Willy. Although I never played the original, I found it to be quite fun (then again I have a long held preference for platformers over other genres), and as other's have mentioned, Sabre Wulf is quite brilliant (even though it is another where I have never seen the original game)

I picked up Popeye boxed for $10, but when it arrived it was missing the manual (anyone got a GOOD pdf *? Those that I've found are sub-standard quality), Frogger for $29 complete (box/manual), and Q*Bert complete (box/manual) for $49 (because I REALLY wanted to complete the set, otherwise I would have waited for a cheaper one). All those prices are Canadian Dollars, so reduce by about 20% for US $'s Parker Brothers is a great "first collection", since the boxes are always in good shape, the collection is so small that it is fairly quick to get them all, and although these are some of the best ports available on the 4A, they are ususally fairly reasonably priced. The shape of the cartridges mean that a bit of Letraset tape is unusally req'd to re-stick the labels, but otherwise these "Sets" are usually in much better condition than others (aside from the recent finds of Ti and Atarisoft full case lots). Just wish they would have released Tutankhamun...love that game and in keeping with Parker Bros' fine quality ports, it probably would have been a great version.

I have to agree with those saying that access to greater CPU RAM size (256 bytes is just this side of ludicrous) with an internal upgrade option, and an alternative to GPL based Basic so that code could be interpreted once before execution! I don't think anything hobbles the machine more for the average user than those two items.

Well, it was the last PEB you needed!

"You know sweetie, I think we can afford both the HxC, AND the black peau-se-soie Stuart Weitzman slingbacks you saw at Holt Renfrew last week" (Holt Renfrew being kinda like a Canadian Sak's 5th Avenue, and shoes being the opiate of nearly all women). I've got the getting upgrades past the wife down pat....what I want to know is how can one actually upgrade the wife? I always cry with jealousy when I watch the original Stepford Wives! Think about it....a wife that not only does not complain when you but replacement computer parts, but a wife that actually requires replacement computer parts! Damn....there I go with the sniffles again

While I'm sure that is the case, in my case is was something far more common in my home (stupid user error) Like not removing the XB autoLOAD from DSK1, so that everytime I tried to drop to XB2.7 from BOOT, it simply re-autoloaded BOOT, giving the impression that XB2.7 would not load, when it was indeed loading exactly as it should, by autoLOADing from DSK1. The epiphany came last night when a rather heavy manual was sitting on the space bar as I selected XB2.7 from « C » (bypassing the LOAD file) A little embarrassing to say the least, but just in case there are other stupid people out there (OK, maybe not AS stupid) thought I'd share.