Great local Craigslist of someone's interested (not mine)

[Great local Craigslist of someone's interested (not mine)]

I hate when you hit the zoom on a picture and it doesn't get any bigger.

[Will the NES console play Famicom titles, same powerpad]

PowerPad and Zapper both use Player 2 D3 and D4 inputs.

 

NES Vaus uses Player 2 D3 and D4 inputs. Famicom Vaus uses Player 1 and Player 2 D1 inputs.

 

Famicom games use Player 1 and Player 2 D1 inputs as auxillary controllers as well as Player 3 and Player 4 for four player titles.

 

NES four player games multiplex Player 1 and Player 2 D0 inputs to provide data for players 3 and 4.

 

 

 

The takeaway: Zapper and Powerpad function identically on NES and Famicom. It is possible to access Player 2 controller inputs simultaneously with a Famicom revolver (Zapper) on a Famicom but I know of no game that utilizes this. Some homebrews or unlicensed NES games support dual Zappers and will not function correctly on any Famicom as Player 1 D3 and D4 inputs do not exist anywhere on the Famicom accessory port. Famicom Arkanoid I and II will not work with an NES Vaus controller. NES Arkanoid will not work with the Famicom Vaus. Some NES games and homebrews (and rarely some Famicom games), especially by western developers, may or may not support the Famicom accessory controllers. Four player Famicom games don't work with Four Score and Four Player NES games don't work with Famicom accessory controllers.

 

Famicom systems cannot access Start and Select on player 2 (except the AV Famicom). NES and AV Famicom cannot access the Famicom microphone (Player 1 D2). AV Famicom cannot use an NES Zapper or PowerPad because Player 2 D3 and D4 pins on the controller port are disconnected. The AV Famicom can however be modified to accept NES accessorie controllers in port 2 by running jumpers from the accessory port.

 

Also Family Basic, which requires the Famicom keyboard and utilizes nearly every I/O pin on the accessory port, cannot be used on an NES. Lastly I have no clue how the Power Glove or U-Force controllers operate (beyond basic controller functionality) or if they are supported on the Famicom.

There's also this controversy about plugging your Famicom with its own cord into a USA plug 100V vs 115V AC. Some people say its okay if you unplug it when your not using it. Other say, don't worry about it, its just a cheap Famicom, LOL! I think they say that less as it gets more antique.

[Will the NES console play Famicom titles, same powerpad]

PowerPad and Zapper both use Player 2 D3 and D4 inputs.

 

NES Vaus uses Player 2 D3 and D4 inputs. Famicom Vaus uses Player 1 and Player 2 D1 inputs.

 

Famicom games use Player 1 and Player 2 D1 inputs as auxillary controllers as well as Player 3 and Player 4 for four player titles.

 

NES four player games multiplex Player 1 and Player 2 D0 inputs to provide data for players 3 and 4.

 

 

 

The takeaway: Zapper and Powerpad function identically on NES and Famicom. It is possible to access Player 2 controller inputs simultaneously with a Famicom revolver (Zapper) on a Famicom but I know of no game that utilizes this. Some homebrews or unlicensed NES games support dual Zappers and will not function correctly on any Famicom as Player 1 D3 and D4 inputs do not exist anywhere on the Famicom accessory port. Famicom Arkanoid I and II will not work with an NES Vaus controller. NES Arkanoid will not work with the Famicom Vaus. Some NES games and homebrews (and rarely some Famicom games), especially by western developers, may or may not support the Famicom accessory controllers. Four player Famicom games don't work with Four Score and Four Player NES games don't work with Famicom accessory controllers.

 

Famicom systems cannot access Start and Select on player 2 (except the AV Famicom). NES and AV Famicom cannot access the Famicom microphone (Player 1 D2). AV Famicom cannot use an NES Zapper or PowerPad because Player 2 D3 and D4 pins on the controller port are disconnected. The AV Famicom can however be modified to accept NES accessorie controllers in port 2 by running jumpers from the accessory port.

 

Also Family Basic, which requires the Famicom keyboard and utilizes nearly every I/O pin on the accessory port, cannot be used on an NES. Lastly I have no clue how the Power Glove or U-Force controllers operate (beyond basic controller functionality) or if they are supported on the Famicom.

Thanks for the info. I have some question regarding confusion from my current limited understanding of NES-FC compatibility. Thanks

 

"Famicom Vaus uses Player 1 and Player 2 D1 inputs."

"Some homebrews or unlicensed NES games support dual Zappers and will not function correctly on any Famicom as Player 1 D3 and D4 inputs do not exist anywhere on the Famicom accessory port"

 

I have to admit I find this pinout for the FC aux port confusing.

https://wiki.nesdev.com/w/index.php/Famicom_expansion_port_pinout

There's one Joypad 1 pin and five joypad 2 pins, but aren't the controller ports hardwired elsewhere, are these auxillary pins also internally hardwired to have continuity with the main controller 1 & 2 port pins? I'm not sure how you would plug two zappers into a Famicom with only one port available.

 

"Zapper and Powerpad function identically on NES and Famicom."

Not sure how this works when the power pad plugs into a 7-pin controller port on the NES but the FC 7-pins are hardwired to joypads. I don't think you can plug the NES power pad or zapper into the Famicom unless there is some kind of adapter. There are Famicom analogs of zapper and power pad that plug into the 15-pin aux port, but I have read the FC "Family TRainer Pad" is wired differently to take advantage of the extra aux port pins. Ultimately, it sounds like the NES power pad games may (possibly) work with the "Family Trainer Pad", but the FC family trainer pad games probably won't work right with the NES as they expect more pin input than you can get from a single NES 7-pin port. I saw this infor at this link:

 

https://wiki.nesdev.com/w/index.php/Power_Pad "The Famicom's version of the Power Pad looked similar, but had an entirely different protocol that took advantage of the greater number of digital outputs on the Famicom expansion port:"

 

"AV Famicom cannot use an NES Zapper or PowerPad because Player 2 D3 and D4 pins on the controller port are disconnected."

This blows, mods are expensive if you are not confident in your own soldering ability. I recently realized that although the NES had mono composite, the original Famicom only had RF. Also, the NES has cart port springs that wear out.

 

I am curious, it sounds like the AVS RetroUSB system can do everything the original NES and Famicom could do with HDMI support. I imagine you could use an HDMI to composite adapter to use the zapper on a CRT. Only complaint I have heard about this device is the cart port, as it is a pain to seat a cart and remove it, at least in the NES cart port. Worth $185? Its sounds like the next best option is to get an original Famicom and AV mod or AV Famicom and pin jumper mod. Although, the AV FC pin jumper sounds more compatible as long as the AV Famicom itself is as fully compatible with NES and FC games as the original FC.

[Will the NES console play Famicom titles, same powerpad]

I have a powerpad but no jp titles to test with. What are the 11?

Easier to just link to the info. See "Compatible Games" section.

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Power_Pad

 

You can use a cart adapter on the NES for Famicom games, you may even be able to play Famicom games on an NES using a programmable ROM megacart of some sort, but it sounds like on the Famicom the pad is different and uses an expansion port with more pins, so I don't think the Famicom ROM on the NES would understand the NES powerpad input, unless there is some kind of pad adapter. Now the Famicom has both the controller port and the expansion port, so it seems like with a cart adapter or the programmable ROM megacart, there is a possibility if you have both pad to play all 11 games on one system. However, info on this is lacking so this is all speculation. I am wanting to know if there is a way to get everything with one console and possibly one pad. BTW, I have read from several sources thatthere are no NES/FC controller adapters for emulators that work with power pads, although I have found nothing on if there is one for the FC expansion port that would work on an emulator with the game ROM, but I doubt they would make an adapter specifically for the FC expansion port.

[Frogus]

frogus07202017.a78

 

frogus07202017.bin

 

Changed the music. Added some increase in difficulty as you progress. Changed the rules a little. As before, you must collect a fly in order to enter the gate/cave. Now you may also collect additional flies before entering the gate/cave. Each bonus fly scores an additional 25 points. Collect 10 bonus flies and earn yourself an extra frog. Be careful not to run out of time though.

 

At the beginning of the game, the number 10 is displayed to the right of the rightmost cave. That number will count down as you collect bonus flies so that you know how many flies you still need in order to earn a free frog. You may only have a maximum of five frogs = one in play and four in reserve. If you collect ten bonus flies but already have the maximum frogs, you will not receive a bonus frog and the counter will reset. Manage your resources carefully.

Sorry, just realized you said the frog holes were caves. So, it look like caves in some background rather than pads on a lake. Okay, done. Really like the game.

[Frogus]

frogus07202017.a78

 

frogus07202017.bin

 

Changed the music. Added some increase in difficulty as you progress. Changed the rules a little. As before, you must collect a fly in order to enter the gate/cave. Now you may also collect additional flies before entering the gate/cave. Each bonus fly scores an additional 25 points. Collect 10 bonus flies and earn yourself an extra frog. Be careful not to run out of time though.

 

At the beginning of the game, the number 10 is displayed to the right of the rightmost cave. That number will count down as you collect bonus flies so that you know how many flies you still need in order to earn a free frog. You may only have a maximum of five frogs = one in play and four in reserve. If you collect ten bonus flies but already have the maximum frogs, you will not receive a bonus frog and the counter will reset. Manage your resources carefully.

A different idea might be different levels, like a "playground" with bikers and skateboarders or" shopping mall" with shopping carts, just as examples; Some other settings might be better. Quote marks indicate a minimalist background for practicality. Okay, I'll leave you alone for a while, LOL.

[Frogus]

frogus07202017.a78

 

frogus07202017.bin

 

Changed the music. Added some increase in difficulty as you progress. Changed the rules a little. As before, you must collect a fly in order to enter the gate/cave. Now you may also collect additional flies before entering the gate/cave. Each bonus fly scores an additional 25 points. Collect 10 bonus flies and earn yourself an extra frog. Be careful not to run out of time though.

 

At the beginning of the game, the number 10 is displayed to the right of the rightmost cave. That number will count down as you collect bonus flies so that you know how many flies you still need in order to earn a free frog. You may only have a maximum of five frogs = one in play and four in reserve. If you collect ten bonus flies but already have the maximum frogs, you will not receive a bonus frog and the counter will reset. Manage your resources carefully.

I like the smoothness now and the "ring-up" sound effects when you tally your extra flies. Getting pretty enjoyable. Just for fun, you could add some stuff like a motorcycle or sportcar with loud engine noise or a VW beetle that honks or police car/ambulance with siren. Maybe make the green frog hole surrounding into a blue pond with lily pads instead of holes or something to spruce it up. This is all just aesthetics. Whatever appeals to you, don't want to suck up too much gameplay memory.

[Will the NES console play Famicom titles, same powerpad]

1. Will the NES play Famicom power pad titles with cart adapter?

2. If you buy one power pad activity mat can you use it on the NES to play both NES and Famicom power pad games? i.e., there are 11 power pad titles combined, can you play all of them on the NES with the same power pad?

3. If no to #2, if you buy the Famicom and both US and Japanese power pad, can you play all 11 games?

4. If this is all nonsense, is there a simpler way than buying both consoles, both pads and all 11 carts ...or two different sd multicarts?

 

Thanks

[T.r.a.s.h. WIP]

This game is really cool. I like the garbage commando and all the different monsters. I did notice a cheat that if you rapid fire while leaving a screen, there will be no monster on the next screen, only trash. It wouldn't make sense to do it all the time, since you don't get any monster points, but it makes it easy to refuel. I don't think it was intended, as it defeats the purpose of the fuel meter.

[An Idea for Crowd Funding: Making 2600 Reproductions]

Some homebrews use advanced bankswitch schemes or an ARM coprocessor. Most of these run on Melody hardware. Simple schemes that rely on single or multiple 4kb banks, with or without extra RAM (SaraSara) that do not utilize ARM code, can sometimes be made to run on recycled Atari PCBs or new cost reduced circuit boards with simple logic schemes. All AA homebrew use new PCBs but many of Hozer repros or bootlegged games are recycled PCBs when convenient to do so.

Okay, this is a name brand:

https://www.atariage.com/store/index.php?l=page_view&p=atariage_melody

 

Thanks

[An Idea for Crowd Funding: Making 2600 Reproductions]

Taking bets. Who thinks the tenacious free market individualist capitalists are going to convince the well-meaning Marxist communist idealist to join them?

[An Idea for Crowd Funding: Making 2600 Reproductions]

 

 

Just in case anyone thinks this reflects badly on vidak somehow, this is the reality at most colleges/universities. In many, most of the actual teaching is done by adjuncts and grad students who -- if they divide their salary (typically $2-4K per course, sometimes less) by the hours they put in -- are usually making well under minimum wage, with no health insurance or other benefits. And grad students are paying to be there, of course.

 

There's a reason the Simpsons did this joke:

 

simpsons grad student.jpg

 

I got paid $18,000 a year with tuition waived, by the university (not student aide) to go to grad school. Not easy street, but not living the slum life either.

 

^

|

 

This is true, I was an Adjunct Professor for a while, and made a paltry sum. Did I starve? Not entirely, but I later returned to working in the private sector, so I could actually make a better wage. Layoffs keep mucking that up though every 1-2 years.

 

 

I'm all for free market competition, but I don't think cheap carts are the best viable market, there's some cheap non-Melody homebrew boards out there and Albert's services.

 

Though from the one discussion in the Homebrew forum we are having, a good option for well made custom boxes is something a few of us are looking for.

What is "non-Melody homebrew"?

[My 8-bit Computer & 5200 Hacks]

Sooooooooo Cool!

[Open source 3d printed shell for Ultimate Cart]

Not to derail, but while you are here...Up in the 7800 zone, I think some owners might like the option for a cart for the Concerto proto's that line the cart teeth up well with the port geometery, has openings for the micro-usb port and sd cart and on the front for the pokey chip. I like having the one that came with the Ultimate SD Cart.

[It's all coming together now]

Playing ColecoVision Cosmic Avenger on MAME with XBox 360 dance mat. No high scores, can't get through stage three yet, but getting good exercise. What's next? Maybe 7800 Jr Pac Man Plus? I think the standard would be to hard to start, so get the PM moving fast.

[Possible to convert a PAL 7800 to NTSC?]

I've never quite got the s-video/RGB thing vs composite. It is sometimes sharper than composite, but it always looks like you've gone from 256 colors to 24. I have heard the same thing from photographers about analog/digital (standard vs HD film, film vs CCD cameras)

[Controller pin diagram]

Does anyone have a pin diagram for standard CV controllers? I have given up trying to find a Champ keypad for sale, so I want to try to make one with a stock controller and a d-sub connector.

 

I just remembered these threads. The first explains how someone used diodes to make both buttons work at the same time on a champ adapter. May somehow work with the splitter as well.

http://atariage.com/forums/topic/214256-colecovision-champ-adaptor-2-button-modification/

 

Otherwise, in this thread there is a guy that has three Champ adapters he may be willing to sell:

 

http://atariage.com/forums/topic/266820-champ-keypad-controller-adapter/

[Frogus]

Thought I would mention, maybe you could get 25 or 50 points for each fly. It would increase the tension...should you wait for another fly, go for that 2nd or 3rd fly, or just head to the pad? Kind of like the tension of "should you wait and go out of your way to get the female frog or wait for a pad with a fly in it" in another game. If each level gets harder it might behoove someone to try to get more points in the lower levels at the risk of running out of time or getting ran over.

[Carrot Kingdom™ - Work in Progress 32K! - New Demo 10-16-2017]

Hehe glad you're enjoying the eye candy. ^_~ More to come.

 

P.S., I think the pin-up pack-in is a superb idea. I'd say make a calendar, but then it would only last one year

[Carrot Kingdom™ - Work in Progress 32K! - New Demo 10-16-2017]

Hehe glad you're enjoying the eye candy. ^_~ More to come.

 

 

Good to hear! The artwork inside and outside the game is lovely. The "lives" shot of Jinny is very nicely done. I get what your going for with the jumps. It reminds me of pitfall, which is, of course, iconic. (and, I doubt anyone would say "boo" if you snuck in an extra 8-16K for more fun, and it might save you a few gray hairs )

[Carrot Kingdom™ - Work in Progress 32K! - New Demo 10-16-2017]

Yay! :3

 

I think this next boss will be fun, because it's different than the Breadcat (not that the Breadcat fight isn't fun) it'll mix things up.

 

There's a few incidental changes I'd like to make too to flesh the existing stuff out a bit more. Add a few more sounds like flapping for the Fruit Bats and things.

Why is it that sometimes when I shoot the carrot I see a heart and sometimes there is no heart? Thanks.

[Carrot Kingdom™ - Work in Progress 32K! - New Demo 10-16-2017]

It's pretty easy, button to jump, down to fire.

 

That's about it! Glad you're liking it.

All these sexualized woodland creatures are making me confused 😜

[Carrot Kingdom™ - Work in Progress 32K! - New Demo 10-16-2017]

Hehe, that's all very peculiar. ^^ With a name like RamrodHare I'd reckon you might prefer Chocolat. ^^ I bet the Meowing would get everyone at the club fired up too! :3 I know I would!

 

Chocolat hes quite a place in the world of Carrot Kingdom and I'm coding her part in now! :3 Her role makes quite a bit more sense, as Jinny's kind of the stranger in a strange land type. ^^ At least in my crazy mind.

 

Jinny has a wacky story of how she got to the Carrot Kingdom, which I'll elaborate on in some way.

Do you have a rough manual/instructions of fundamentals for this, or is it pretty straight-forward? Subtleties that can be missed? Thanks, looks to be something great in the works!

[Controller pin diagram]

Does anyone have a pin diagram for standard CV controllers? I have given up trying to find a Champ keypad for sale, so I want to try to make one with a stock controller and a d-sub connector.

By the way, if you are looking to just use a 2600 controller (one fire button) and want the CV controller key pad, the y-splitter setup above will work without a hitch. Also, you do need the Atari/CV extension cord with molded ends because the PC DB9 male end is too wide to fit in the consoles controller port because of the male end's bolt supports, but the splitter's male end will fit into the extension cord, which then goes into the console. There are like literally a handful of molded spiltter cables around, but they run $50-100, if you can find one.

[New Homebrews Arrive!]

Scramble, Bentley Bear and T:me Salvo. I can play the 7800 and arcade version of Scramble by 7800 or emu, but I played the demo of the 2600 version and had to get it. Scramble/Cosmic Avenger/Defender games are some of my favorites. Bentley bear is a little outside my normal retro gaming, but the enemies and raves pushed me over the edge. T:me Salvo, well, robotron, pacman, double joystick, a lot of creativity, what else to say. Ended up buying Jeepers Creepers for my CV while I was at it ... guilty artwork indulgence, though also a fun game that I've had on emu for some time.