doctorclu

remowilliams: "I used to frequent a lot of BBS's back in the day. I also ran (or co-sysoped) three separate BBS's. I even wrote the software for one." Nice! What was the platform for the BBS computer wise? I loved the games and the closer knit perspective of the boards, but time marches on and they've been left as relics from the past. <sigh> My Atari 800 from '79 is a relic. But then I'm in good company for appreciation of relics. NE146: All I ever did on BBS's is download files. Pretty much all I do on the internet today.. so I guess nothing's really changed icon_lol.gif LOL... can see that. All I did was post messages, well, some downloading back in the day, but mostly posting. And I do a lot of posting here on Atariage. Atariage is definately a BBS in it's own right. But still like the old form too. oesii: I'm guilty of not dialing into one since 1988 or so. The internet and usenet which I was on in 1991 have kept me busy since. My favorite parts of the BBS experience was the discussion messages and some of the file downloads. I got most of my piratey games trading with local friends. The internet does a great job for sure. I guess if we could make a web forem that was ATASCII friendly I would be more inclined to not hit the BBS's as often. Or run a web forem on a Atari computer. I know it can be done, but would love to see it happen to a useful level. (Can see maybe a TT030 hosting a web forem) To me it is the novelty of my Atari talking to an Atari computer, or if nothing else, my Atari doing all the talking and communicating. To travel the world telecom-wise through my Atari. A fun & unique thing to say in 2007. And I especially love being a Atari 800 on current dialup and telnet BBS's out there. JellE: I really like Dark Force BBS. (even if I don't win a prize hehe) Dark Force has a lot of Atari related things, as well as non-Atari related stuff. I really enjoy reading the posts...they are interesting, and very informative. You've been on Darkforce? Awesome, didn't know that. Did you post a message? Get on there and write sum'in! The only reason I can see for not calling into one, at least for me, is having to actually telnet into it from my PC. It doesn't always work. I personally think the BBSes are a good tool, not unlike a forum, or a chat channel. I would like to see more of them around. But of course, that is just my opinion. Gotcha. Maybe once you get a APE cable going for the Atari 800 you have you might appreciate the BBS's a bit more. Getting on the BBS's with a Mac or a PC is .. ok. I always sit there thinking "Yeh, these computers could be doing more". For the Atari computer though, it is a world that is the right speed. While my 800 *CAN* hit simple websites, (like Atariage, where I have posted a message on here with my 800), the ease of making it happen is just not there yet. As the internet grows, I doubt the 800 will ever call the internet home. But the BBS's are a lot more merciful to our Atari machines. And THIS is the reason I like the BBS's like the Family Net that I get on. I COULD use a Lynx text web browser to read the Atari Newsgroups, and my mail on Yahoo. Or, I can read it all in a simple text format on a BBS. And what is great, I can talk to any of the Dallas sysops (all four.. hehehe) and they would gladly add a feature to their BBS to accommodate my Atari's browsing. Why? Because they love BBS's and their hobby to run a BBS when I am only one of ten of their regular users. And there is another reason I like BBS's, if they are worth anything, you will get to know the sysop fairly well that is running the BBS. That is very very nice.

Been practicing my a$$ off at beating the lobster, so tonight I was able to play a game that took Bubsy through a continuous game to level 15. Managed in the end to beat Hansel, didn't quite get Gretel. Just one more goal for me and the Bubster... beating this game with one game (and maybe some honest continues that he picks up along the way) Final score : 647,834 (Note to self, grab the continues on levels 3,6, and 7. There might be more, but those are the only ones I know of. With this at least I would get another 27 lives). More on this maybe in another month, unless we have others that want to tell how things are going for their games of Bubsy.

Bubsy 647,834 (continuous play to level 15... got Hansel, didn't quite get Gretel)

Good to see you Mark!! SIO2OSX is not getting used too much only due to using a flash drive, but otherwise, glad it's there. So what are you waiting for? Take Al up on his offer!

Well, I start making Atari stuff house accescories. 810 drives are used as door stops. Works great with my beige carpet. Percom drives are stacked on top of each other to make shelves. I have one SM124 monitor on top of two Macs as part of a stand for my plate maile armour. So I just work things in.

Now you know why I am dinosaur! Someone told me I'd like sneakers. Now I can see why.

Hey is Abdul (the Sysop of The Boot Factory) doing ok? I am really concerned that we have not seen him around. I don't mind people moving on, but can someone let me know if he is alright? Thanks!

All I have to say is I love this modification and use it practically daily in my BBS'ing. Nothing like an Atari 800 running Ice-T XE (which is not normally possible) and running the MyIde Flash cart (also not usable on a stock 800). When Warerat makes the next run of the 576K XE mods, I'll probably pick one up. Either that or a 128K mod. Figure use that one and preserve the Beta version.

To keep it centralized I've started a poll on what people know about BBS's. http://www.atariage.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=99102 Come vote and give suggestions!

Ok, the computer Bulletin Board System poll, since I try to promote BBS's in the Dallas, TX area, and of those that are Atari ones online. And we need to know of other BBS's out there that provide services to your area to help other Atari users out there. This poll is to find out your thoughts on the BBS's in general, and your experience with them. If you have any suggestions of how to make them better or what keeps you from calling BBS's, just write them in the replies to this message. Doc Clu (If you are in the Dallas, Ft. Worth, Denton area check out this link for the 2007 BBS list for that area. http://jybolac.atari.org Don't forget about the Dark Forces BBS with is a Atari BBS run over the internet. That place is a good places with door prizes.)

On the flip side, unless a good Atari recycle program was made, there is no way we as a Atari community could save every Atari "released back into the wild" Just no way. Best you and I can do is do the best with the computers that come into our possesion. But I am open to ideas for mass recovery efforts.

I HATE... repeat HATE Goodwill for this. I've tried working with them, especially the one in Ft. Worth. 1999, there was a center where all the computers went. When I was in there there was just BINS and BINS of Amigas, Commodores, Apples, Atari equipment. They would sort out the Apple and PC stuff and trash the rest. They were hesitant to sort out the Apple things. They would pit those that were interested in the retro stuff against each other, and in the confusion claim the other bought it, but I know they trashed it. They have my undying hatred for that.

The following are listed here for the great resource it can be to the Atari users in the D/FW area with little more than a modem and a term program. These provide telnet out access, newsgroups (yes Atari), online games, and best of all they're free, and you can do all this on your Atari computer! PM me if you have any questions on how this works. 940 565-9165 - The Mezzanine Possibly reached by Metro line... 214 987 2135 - Ecclectic 972 496 0650 - Family Net BBS 972 276 6721 - Mars Den BBS 972 329 0781 - Prison Board BBS Please verify... 817 367-2517 - KloneZone BBS 817 428-1642 - Night Lights BBS More BBS information... http://jybolac.atari.org

The following are listed here for the great resource it can be to the Atari users in the D/FW area with little more than a modem and a term program. These provide telnet out access, newsgroups (yes Atari), online games, and best of all they're free, and you can do all this on your Atari computer! PM me if you have any questions on how this works. 940 565-9165 - The Mezzanine Possibly reached by Metro line... 214 987 2135 - Ecclectic 972 496 0650 - Family Net BBS 972 276 6721 - Mars Den BBS 972 329 0781 - Prison Board BBS Please verify... 817 367-2517 - KloneZone BBS 817 428-1642 - Night Lights BBS More BBS information... http://jybolac.atari.org

Tempest 2K for the Jaguar is pure video game crack. I played that for days straight. Friends borrowed my Jag for Tempest 2K and had to force themselves to give it back. To this day I reach for other games first just because I know I don't have the time to warp out of existance for half a week. But I will be off for the next week. Get my rotary controller handy, get some food around me, and start playing on Friday and wake back to reality sometime around Monday. Ok, it is not quite that bad, but it is just AWESOME...

Be fair, doesn't everyone make a pong or breakout game as they are getting tooled up for development? I plan to make a breakout game this year. Maybe by oh... 2009 I will make a great game.

Oh wow! Another SIO2OSX user! Nice. That makes both of us probably. I haven't used mine in a bit with the flash working, but it was fairly reliable. I believe any problems I might have had might have been timing using with using the G3 Wallstreet I was using.

So far no problem with CD-R's. I archive to that, and make another backup of really important things. 5 1/4 floppies do tend to live a while. On average, but I'm not counting on it. My least favorite media are hard drives. My favorite is flash media. But CD's to me are good for archiving.

JayoK "Can't believe the Zip stick isn't there. Need to get the digitial camera out for that one. Has a switch on the side for autofire and used high-quality microswitches. Best one of them all - including Atari's" Please do! I want to see more pictures on here! Get to know what controllers to look out for. carmel_andrews' "you can't beat a cx40 (shame they didn't devise one with 2 fire buttons and a built in autofire option)" I thought they made one for the 7800. You know I'm getting an idea... a evil evil idea. Take a sega controller (those have the cords with all 9 pins populated right?) and take two CX-40's, a junker and a good one. Then change out the cord with the Sega one, and wire the line for the 7800 2nd fire button in (which pin is that? Can anyone tell me?) Drill a hole in the upper casing for the second button, install a second button switch. Add a switch and other minor guts for the rapid fire option. (anyone know what parts are needed to make a autofire possible? I have some examples I can open up, but be nice to hear what is dinfately needed) and drill the hole for that switch, maybe put underneath or on the side. And there you go, the dream joystick... a two button CX-40 with autofire. The new Atari controller for the next 20 years. One reason I would want a two button CX-40 is mainly for the Atari Jaguar. There is a hack to use 7800 joysticks on the Jag, but wanted a real CX-40. Actually the more I think about it, the more I realize I just need to hack a three button CX-40 for the Jaguar. Oh, speaking of the CX-40... anyone remember the radio controlled version?

Hehehe... so how did the date go? Man it is fun to hear about this time. I actually have a picture of myself around that time that I included. What happened was there was this local newspaper that had a contest. Sell 17 subscriptions, you get a 2600. Sell 21 subscriptions and you get a 2600 AND Pac-Mac, which JUST came out. I didn't care much for Pac-Man. Never have, never will I suspect. I was more of a Asteriods/Space Invaders kind of guy. So I hit the streets, and sold 17 subscriptions. Then my sister (who was to me like Dee Dee is Dexter on "Dexter's Lab") jumped up and said she would like the Pac-Man cart. So we hit the streets together and with her cute factor raised 21 subscriptions. It was a lot of fun and hard work. And so I got a 2600 of my own (we had a family one, but I wanted one for myself .. why? I can't remember... maybe so I could play it in my room deep into the night on my wonderful black and white TV.. hehehe...), and my sister had a Pac-Man cart. You know, there are two version of Pac-Man I actually like. No, three. 1) Jagmania on the Atari Jaguar (Wow you can JUMP over ghosts? How cool!) 2) Pac-Man the handheld game from the early 80's (you can have TWO PLAYER PAC-MAN at the same time.) 3) 2600 Pac-Man. Like I said, never cared much for real Pac-Man. I got a REAL good version of it on my Atari 400 (which I got when I sold the 2600 from the contest), but it was so much like Real Pac-Man I only played it a few times. 2600 Pac-Man is fun. To this day I'll enjoy a good game of 2600 Pac-Man long before other versions. Let's face it, it's just a different game, and if they gave it another name other than Pac-Man, it would probably be known as "that (fun) maze game" and not hated nearly as much. It's the comparison between real Pac-Man or even 2600 Ms. Pac-Man and the 2600 Pac-Man that kills this game.

An interesting read. Thanks Curt! Merry Christmas to you!

Here are some more things that use the joystick port on the Atari computer. (Helping my wife with her camera and used this project as a excuse to take some pictures for here before doing more on the "honey-do" list)

Hm, I can't tell from the glare in the picture, does that have the 4/8 way adjustable gate? I just recently got a joystick that looks just like that, with 4/8 way gate, in a giant box of TI-994A stuff someone gave me. Should dig it out and try it with Pac-Man. Hey good question. I do have a TI-99 joystick that had just that, a 4/8 way gate. Interesting. This joystick has a very tight response, and I like the two button (wonder if it could be modified for a 7800) but is not working completely so far. Haven't opened it up to see why one of the directions is not working. In short, somewhere along the way someone did what I'm about to do, box up some excess stuff and sell it to me for a bulk amount. Lots of great stuff in there (Like three Atari jackets for one thing) and other things that are just interesting. This and the Epyx controllers were two things in that batch.

Anyone have a 1 or 2 meg alpine they want to sell? I never thought about them before, always thought about the 4 meg alpine to run game images, but I got to thinking that to start off on coding a 1 or 2 meg would be a good start. Interested in coding... if you have a alpine PM me. Work on a buy or trade. Thanks!

And yet I have three flakey ones over here. What is the best way to clean these or repair?