A.J. Franzman
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Posts posted by A.J. Franzman
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Apologies for continuing this OT bit of conversation:
...Game engine quickly cycles through all 4 joystick ports by cycling the four key bits thriugh the cpu in output mode, then reads the joystick inputs. Four sticks to one port, up to eight sticks total. Circuit diagram needs to be made, tested on breadboard first. Then etch pcbs, create wire harness, design injection mold for plastics, easily the most expensive part. Assemble at factory.
Logistics of manufacture aside, coming up with a game that can harness the severely limited system ram, cpu cycles, and layer objects to create a functional and fun game for 8 players will be challenging....Tank 8, anyone?
Speaking of which, does anyone here even know the game? Ever played it? (MAME doesn't count!) Are any survivors or restored examples in existence and playable?
I saw it and played it in the fabulous arcade in Avalon on Santa Catalina island (California) sometime circa 1980 give or take a year or two.
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Here's what I have. It's a work-in-progress, subject to change -- most notably, the folders under "By Brand" are likely to change, as I don't intend to have a folder for any brand with less than about 10 games. My directory system uses several abbreviations mostly made of 3 capital letters. For example, "PRO" = "prototype"; "CTL" = "control(ler/s)", etc. There are many more such abbreviations not seen here, which I use in the filenames. Names in [brackets] are folders which contain one or more sub-folders. Names without brackets are folders which contain only program binaries. Folders which contain sub-folders do not also contain "loose" binaries; any given Harmony menu screen will be filled with either sub-folders or binaries, never both. The "All Games Main Version" folder (probably equivalent to your "A to Z" folder) will contain only games, and only the best available NTSC version of each. Duplicates of these exact same files will also be found in the "By Brand", "By Number of Players", "By Controller Type", "By Genre", "Homebrews" and "Playable PROs & WIPs" folders where appropriate. The "Less-Complete PROs" folder (in the "Alternates" folder) will contain earlier versions of prototypes found in the "Playable PROs & WIPs" folder. The remaining folders should be self-explanatory.
[All Games Main Version] [by Brand] 20th Century Fox Activision Apollo Atari Bit Corporation CBS Electronics CCE Coleco CommaVid Data Age Ebivision HES Home Vision Imagic Junkosoft Mattel Mystique-PlayAround Parker Brothers Quelle Sega Self-Published Spectravideo Starpath Suntek Telegames Telesys Tigervision U.S. Games Xonox Xype Zellers Zimag-Emag-Vidco [by Number of Players] 0 1 2 Only, Simultaneous 2 or more Alternating 2 or more Simultaneous 3 or more Simultaneous [by Controller Type] Joystick Paddle Driving Keyboard-VTP-Kids' Multi Litegun-Mindlink-Other [by Genre] Adult Adventure Arcade Board + Card Children's+Educational Horror Martial Arts Maze Media Tie-in Puzzle Racing-Chase-Motrsport Shoot 'Em Up Simulation Sports [Homebrews] [Playable PROs & WIPs] [Modern Hacks] [by Hacked Game] (Folder per Original Game Name) Accurized Ports PAL to NTSC Conversion CTL Type or Port Graphics + Play Play Only Graphics Only Palette Select Bankswitch Conversion (Including Supercharger) NTSC to PAL Conversion [Non-Games] [Demos, Bad PROs & WIPs] Demoscene Images Music & Audio Kernel & GFX Demos Unplayable PROs & WIPs [PAL Only] [Alternates] [Vintage Pirate Hacks] [by Hacked Game] (Folder per Original Game Name) PAL to NTSC Conversion CTL Type or Port Graphics + Play Play Only Graphics Only Logo Chnge-Remove Only NTSC to PAL Conversion Alternate ROM Versions Less-Complete PROs Multicarts PAL & SECAM Versions [Harmony Incompatible] Over 32 KB Other-
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It's fairly common for CRT TVs to have some tilt or skew to the image, though this can be largely corrected by a competent TV repairperson. It's also very common for the image to widen where it gets brighter and get narrower where it's dark on a CRT; this is why the left edge of the Enduro screen has that step where the sky meets the grass. It may be possible for something like a capacitor kit to improve this flaw, but in most CRT TVs it can never be completely eliminated.
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Re- Questions #2 and #3:
RF < Composite < S-video < Component < HDMI . . (this is a bit of an oversimplification but gives the general idea)
Please be careful with your terminology. Component video and composite video are very different things. Component video is two steps in quality above composite video. All of the mods I've ever seen on AA or elsewhere online have been composite video, or S-video (a.k.a. Y/C or Luma/Chroma). At the circuit level, the VCS produces a Luma/Chroma signal, which is the equivalent of S-video (one step above composite video). Thus, this is the highest signal quality that the machine is capable of.
That is not to say that a component video or HDMI mod for the VCS isn't possible, merely that it would not provide any picture improvement in the majority of situations.
To get any ostensibly higher-quality level output signal type such as component video or HDMI, would require an up-conversion, which is exactly what any television with the appropriate input jack will internally do with an S-video signal anyway. So, unless your TV has crappy circuitry and you use a very high-quality circuit for your up-converting component video or HDMI mod, there will be no visible improvement in quality when doing one of these mods versus an S-video mod. There will, however, be a very significant difference in price -- I estimate that a component video or HDMI mod would cost at least $50 more than an S-video mod, and possibly much more than that, depending on what is used to perform the up-conversion. There are several of us on the forums who are capable of modding a VCS for component or HDMI output but as far as I know, nobody's ever done it, because at this time it would be practically pointless, with no real benefit to justify the increased expense above an S-video mod. Perhaps sometime in the future if NTSC RF, composite video, and S-video inputs all become obsolete and no longer available on a large proportion of televisions, it might become worthwhile for those with significant disposable income to get their consoles modded for component, HDMI, or whatever the next new thing turns out to be. But that time isn't here yet.
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From the manual and elsewhere in this forum, the Harmony cartridge generally ignores filename extensions, except the following ones that force a particular bankswitching type:
.2K = Atari 2K .4K = Atari 4K (default) .F8 = Atari F8 .F8S = Atari F8 with Superchip .F6 = Atari F6 .F6S = Atari F6 with Superchip .F4 = Atari F4 .F4S = Atari F4 with Superchip .FA = CBS RAM + .FE = Activision FE .3F = Tigervision 3F .3E = 3E (3F with up to 4K RAM) .E0 = Parker Brothers E0 .E7 = M-Network E7 .CV = CommaVid .UA = UA Limited .AR = Arcadia Supercharger .DPC = DPC (Pitfall 2) .084 = 0840 Econobanking
There's also one special filename: AUTORUN
I don't know if it's case-sensitive (probably not). If a file with this name is in the root directory of the SD card, the Harmony menu will be skipped and whatever game has this name will be run. It will not be exactly the same experience as plugging in an original cartridge with that binary, though; the Harmony spinning logo will briefly appear as the game loads. To make the Harmony appear to behave EXACTLY as an original cartridge, the Harmony must be "flashed" with the game binary (replacing the multicart BIOS) using the programming software.
I just hope nobody comes along and makes a VCS game that's actually named "AUTORUN"...
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I'm glad you were able to confirm that there is a firmware bug. I just found out that the console I was using may have some issues with certain controller inputs, and I thought that that may have been the reason I was experiencing odd Harmony behavior.
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I found what I think is a bug in the NTSC BIOS 1.05 menu, but I find it difficult to believe I'm the first to encounter or report it:
When navigating the menu using the console switches (Game Select and Game Reset), pressing Select when the cursor is at the bottom of the screen changes to the next page and resets the cursor to the top of the screen -- but the cursor then instantly jumps to the second position in the list without pausing, no matter how quickly I press the switch. I cannot launch any game that appears at the very top of a page this way.
The reason I'm trying to navigate without a controller is, I'm cleaning and repairing some controllers, and using different games and programs for testing. It's a little frustrating when the controller to be tested isn't working right, and the test program I want to load happens to be at the top of a page. Then I have to unplug the bad controller, put in a good one, load the program, then swap the controllers back again.
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One thing that strikes me as odd... three non-Atari-collectors allegedly dictated and typed the list in post #81 over a telephone connection, in a span of "2 or 3 hours". Yet there are almost no spelling or punctuation errors in the list. Even "Sneak'n Peek", one of the titles least likely to be typed correctly, is perfect. This is evocative of scenes in Bartleby, the Scrivener! (How's that for an esoteric reference?)
Bartleby, the Scrivener is a novella (and has also been made into a film) by Herman Melville, best known for writing Moby Dick. Bartleby is a legal clerk, whose job is to copy documents and write from dictation, very dry legal text sometimes spoken aloud during committee-type meetings, including every space and punctuation mark, and often with words spelled out. It drives him insane.
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You thought wrongly.
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Hmm, should winner list request emails have two commas in the subject line or just one?
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Is it common for there to be this much difference in the color of E.T. end labels? Is it caused from fading or two different color inks? All my E.T.s have an orange color but one of them has a pink color like the one on the top.
Apart from fading and printing variations, another factor that changes the appearance of colors is glue bleed-through (Actiplaque), which may be why the upper E.T. end label in post #180 looks darker.Color fading happens from both excessive printing and exposure to light. I own many of these and color varies. Not really a variation.
I don't know about the ROM size -- I think both versions are the same. Anyway, the version without the copyright screen is the original. This change was once mentioned to programmer Brad Stewart, who was surprised by the question, as he had not written the copyright screen code.
That is helpful. Thanks. Is the only difference the copyright screen?
Some Asteroids carts have a copyright screen. IIRC, having the copyright screen is an indication that the ROM is 8k instead of 4k.I was sorting through either my Defender or Asteroids carts. When I tested them they said Atari in red on start up but one didn't. I'm going to go through them again and see which it was but does that sound familiar? -
Does anybody actually have a Junior that they use with any frequency, that does not have any chips, cracks, scratches, dents or dings anywhere on the casing (including broken bits on the inside, if you ever open it)? IMO, the Jr.'s casing is too thin and fragile and they just don't hold up well. I have one here that's my current "play" unit, but it's a real beater with several small edge chips missing and three major repairs to the case (a crack a couple of inches long, a screw post inside, and the support structure for the Select and Reset switches).
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False advertising! Class-action lawsuit!
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I've had systems with what looked like a horrible amount of rust and water damage inside that either worked just fine or needed minimal repairs. Don't write that one off yet until someone knowledgeable has a whack at fixing it.
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Singapore banned video game TV ads and video game contests, but not the games themselves? Why not? They banned chewing gum, and cane people for graffiti... I'm sure glad I don't live there.
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Where would I post "Help! My 2600 isn't working and I tried everything!"? Just curious, I don't wanna be off-topicI am experiencing many issues, just curious where to put a post like that.
Hardware forum.
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In case Ze_ro is still around, or anyone else has noticed the problem he described, the Commodore paddle controllers use a different value of potentiometer than the Atari ones, so symptoms such as that are normal.I've been using a pair of Commodore paddles (White ones intended for the Vic-20) for my 4-player games, and they work fine on my light 6-switch (haven't tried the heavy-sixer), but if I use them on my 2600 Jr I cannot get all the way to the bottom of the screen in Video Olympics! Of course, my Atari paddles work fine on both consoles...
Why did you punch the label? From your post count I would have though you've been around long enough to know the hair dryer trick for peeling labels without damaging them.Went to play River Raid II on my Heavy Sixer the other day and discovered it did not work. Works fine on my 7800 however. I pulled a bonehead move (I admit it) and opened the cart up before testing on another system - DOH! Thought it just needed a REAL good cleaning, being an Activision cart and all. Oh well, guess I'll just find a couple of round black stickers to put over the screw holes. -
That's not true. Other than a smashed case, wire break near the console plug or totally ruined cable, most DC adapter failures can be fixed. For a heavy sixer adapter, if necessary you could even replace the entire cable with one from a "standard" 2600 adapter, though it wouldn't look the same. I have repaired internal cable breaks near the wall block many times; and even replaced capacitors, diodes and a transformer or two inside the cubes.
The gray power adapter sounds like it has bit the dust. I had one like that and there is not much you can do.The power adapter worked for a second and then the console lost power.
I've never looked it up but I've laways pronounced it to rhyme with "airtight".How is "ferrite" pronounced?-
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There is a minor exception, which only a few people will encounter. The Sears Video Arcade II and Atari 2800 (different badgings of the same console) take a different plug, and I have read that their wallcubes actually output AC instead of DC.
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VCS also had the jogging mat and a keyboard [...] And what about those two MB controllers?The Exus Foot Craz and the two Milton Bradley game pack-ins are all just different styles of joysticks. I think the keyboard (Compumate) is legit though.
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I've never seen a Keypad nor the Video Touch Pad, but I'll have to get one of those for my Synthcart in the nearby future. I know they both work the same, but do they feel the same to use? Does the buttons have an audible click to them? Do the weight the same? If someone out there has used them with Synthcart, what would you recommend - keypad or video touch pad?Any feedback on this would be great, thanks!
The Video Touch Pad has rubber buttons like 99% of modern remote controls, but they don't stick out beyond the plastic of the case; they're recessed. Because of its angle and the stiffness of the overlay, I found it difficult to use in my usual coffee-tabletop playing position back in the day -- I had to press so hard to make the buttons respond, that the controller would start to slide away. So I hacked out the centers of the buttons on the overlay!
I believe the Keyboard Controllers and Kid's Controllers use click domes similar to those inside the joysticks. This plus their being flat instead of angled, should make them generally easier to use. The Kid's Controllers are relatively huge, so if you want small and lightweight, go with the Keyboard Controllers.
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If you can't open the bottom flaps without peeling them apart, they're glued. Some boxes have tuck flaps at both ends that can simply be pulled apart without damage. Then, aside from those glued at the bottom and tucked at the top, there are others that were glued at both ends originally; if you have any of those that are not still sealed, looking at them will give you an idea of the kind of damage to expect from opening glued bottom flaps to flatten a box for storage.
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Maybe this would be easier to list companies to avoid.
On a hits-to-misses ratio then the following would be on that list for me.
Apollo
DataAge
Zimag
Mythicon
Froggo
Panda
Mystique/PlayAround
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Arkyology - New prototype discovered - Finished Game!
in Atari 2600
Posted · Edited by A.J. Franzman
Pedantic: Alligators are only found in the Americas. Everywhere else in the world where one finds creatures of approximately similar size, shape and habitat, they are crocodiles. Alligators (real ones) are easy to distinguish by their broad jaws with nearly parallel sides, said to be "U"-shaped, in contrast with crocodiles' narrower, "V"-shaped jaws. Hmm, this description sounds a bit like something else we see a lot around here...
Regardless of whether they're alligators or crocodiles: since they are aquatic, why do they even need to be on the Ark?
One of the animal types that Noah feeds looks like a duck or goose -- a waterfowl. Same question!