OldGuru

Search for Best Electronics in Google. They have it all. OG

I've ordered from Jemeco (www.jameco.com), Jameco #44901. It depends what type of paper you are using for your lables. If it is really thin (as mine) you'd 'see and feel' the excess glue from the label removed... However, if you use a thicker paper (similar to the original used by Atari) I don't think you need to remove it... OG.

Thought you may want to know that during the assembly of all Castle Blast cartridges I found that: - About 15% of the EPROMS were failing on the console (while programmed and verified o.k on the pocket programmer). - 3% of the PCBs had shorts and 1% had disconneted traces (all fixed manually, BTW). - 1% of the cases could not be reused as some parts got broken when the case was opened for the first time... You may want to take that into account when ordering your materials... O.G.

It plays really nice - if you move it slow (normal play)... I have not implemented "balistic" movement (which means that the faster you move the DC, the further the bat/paddle moves)... I actually use a built in BIOS function to rotate a vector list. This way I have 360 deg. (which are supported by 256 values - i.e., the resolution is 360/256 deg. per increment) and it really looks nice and the movement is smooth. You may want to download the BIN and run it on a vectrex emulator to see for yourself. In my mind, makeing the ball movement is the tougher part of all - at least on a vector based system... never thought how easy/difficult it would be to implement on raster based system. OG.

Hi Calamari, Man, you've beat me on that one... I've coded a similar game for the vectrex called "Rounders". My idea was to port it to the 2600 as well... There is no need for that now, huh? http://vgcollect.freehosting.net/myvectrex...ex.htm#Rounders is where I have some information about the vectrex title. I was using the Atari 2600 Driving controllers or the original controller for that game. I guess that now I'll have to look for something else to do on the 2600... Good luck on that one, OG.

I used to have one till it broke - back then, when it used to work, we didn't have the Y2K splash screen coded yet... I then got a 4-port console and since then never tried the code on a 2-port console... Thanks for testing that, it could have been quite a pain to ship cartridges to people and then find out about the 2-port vs. 4-port BIOS differences... OG

Interested to see the latest developments on Castle Blast? Check it out here: http://members.bellatlantic.net/vze2j83t/p...tml/MyGames.htm OG.

Can you start from 15, decrese it each time and when 0, change the LMS and reload it with 15 again?

Hi all, As a final step before going into production (where there is almost no way back), I'd like to have the game tested on various types of consoles (2-port, 4-port and 4-port modified (that has * after the serial number)). So, if you can burn an EPROM, have one (or more) of these cosole and willing to help me out, please drop me a line at [email protected] Thank you, OG.

From my experience you can't avoid that phase both on Atari 5200 and on the Vectrex. In my opinion, Atari 5200's emulators are way better than the ones available for the vectrex. In other words, you can get further in your emulator based development on the 5200's emulators than you can with the Vectrex ones... I believe that this is true for most of the emulators/consoles out there... Is that true? What about the 2600? OG

Both De-Re-Atari and Atari Archives have assembler and basic examples. Once you know a programming language, you'll have to learn how to apply it on the Atari 5200 itself... O.G.

Hi all, After a long self debate and consideration, I fianlly made up my mind and finalized my selection. I decided to choose Zanza's label design: In the selection process, I printed my favorite 5 entries and actually glued them on a real cartridge case. I then, showed them to close friends (that were not following the voting on the label's contest page) and asked for their opinion. The winning label was "leading" by a bit over its runner up. Since this was my choise in the original poll, I decided on it. Again, thank you all for taking the time and submitting your entries. I could never come close to this level of artwork myself. Also, I'd like to thank the comitted team of AtariAge for hosting this contest. Thank you all, OldGuru.

Hi all, First, I'd like to thank all those who sent their label design. You guys made a wonderfull work of art and I really have hard time to make my choice. Based on what I've seen here, and, in order to avoid any place for doubt, I'll make my selection without any poll or vote as originally planned. I'll announce the winner lable by the end of this coming Sunday here on the message board. Thank you for your cooperation and patience, Ronen. [ 04-09-2002: Message edited by: OldGuru ]

I tried to print some to see how they look on a real cartridge... the printed label came out larger than the original's size. Any idea why? Thanks, OG.

...I was 10 years old in 1979... It's not that I consider myself (or feel) old, it is just a nickname after all... How and why did you guys choose your nicknames?

quote No more levels are planned... Now starts the final stage in the development - final debugging... Some people say that the last 5% of a project consume 95% of the project's total duration ...I just hope it won't be true in this case tough... OldGuru.

quote Had the chance to update the www: Castle Blast web page OldGuru.

... Old enough to play Atari games as a kid... Old enough to read newsgroups and see that there are people who ask what is Atari... OG.

Thank you all for taking part in this contest! Just wanted to let you guys know that I've added a 6th level with vertical leaser beams coming down from the castle. A few other features were added as well. I'll try to update my web page tonight with some screenshots. Ronen.

Hi, Looks good calamari! Assuming I came up with some entries in the POKEDITOR program. Something basic that I miss: How do I convert the .POK file to include in the asm? Thank you, OG.

I use xemacs for windows. Works fine and highlights almost any language you may ever use... OG

Hi Charlie, Sorry to reply on other's thread, but anyway: quote Agreed. I'm in the process of addressing that issue. I must admit that it is quite annoying to shoot at the castle shield, hear the hit sound (and get a point) when nothing actually changes on the screen... quote Correct. The missiles are currently being earased off the screen a bit too early (before the HW actually detects the collision with the player). I'll have to fix that in the final polishing phase of the game. quote Great idea! Also quite easy to implement. Definitely a must! Will do. Thank you for taking the time to post your comments, OG.

The next step is to disassemble it. I've been using DIS6502. It took me a while to set it up but once done it run fine. When disassembled, you'll get a whole 32KB out of which only a very samll section is what you'll need. So how do you know what will you need? 1. SAPReader gives back Init address and Player address values when creating the bin file. 2. Use this addresses to search the code in the dissassembled code. 3. Now starts the tricky part: Most of the music files you'll extract have both code and data sections. You'll need to find these data sections (by reading and understanding the code) and convert them (within the disassembler) to data sections. This way your pointers will point to the correct data location. Also, you must pay attention to the address (RAM locations) that the original code used. It might overwrite some of your current variables or, be complete out of range. You'll have to modify the various labels of the disassembled code to fit your code. 4. Copy and Paste the routines and data into your code. Then, before the main loop, call the Init subroutine. In the main loop call the Player subroutine. 5. Convert the Atari400/800 addresses to the A5200 ones (Mostly AUDC/F registers). If everything works fine you'll hear the music. What I ususally do is take a simple "hello world" program, add the music to it first, debug it there and only then copy it to my main program. I think that it makes it simpler to see the whole context this way. Genrally, it never works for me on the first try. I then have to follow instruction by instruction and see what is going on. My suggestion, never give up, the outcome usually makes it worth the trouble. OG.

I'd say that I'm 75-80% done. There are some bug fixes and features that have to be addressed. I'm planning (can't commit though) to be ready with my game by CGE2K2. I'm planning on a boxed version but have to figure out all the details associated with that (mainly cost and timeframes). Also, looking for a graphical designer to assist with all art-work as I have no clue about that... OG.

Hi all, This post is along the same lines as the other programmer's query. I'd like to get an idea of the number of carts I should make. Therefore, if you plan on ordering a Castle Blast cart when it's ready, please send me an E-mail. Please include in the subject CastleBlast. The targeted price is unclear yet as I have to figure out how much will everything cost. My plan is to have it in the $30 range. My email is: [email protected] Thank you, OG