Atari 8-bit Software Preservation Initiative

[Farb]

If I get some stuff scanned, what's the best way to get them included in the torrent?

 

My account on archive.org is the source for the manual torrent:

 

https://archive.org/details/@farb

 

Dragon375 has been generously updating the torrent as I add new manuals there.

 

Feel free to send the scans to me and I'll add them to archive.org which in turn will get them into the torrent.

 

Oh, and I should add that if anyone is interested in helping to convert raw scans to PDF, please let me know. There's a ton more to do and I've only got so much free time for this stuff :-)

Edited January 13, 2016 by Farb

[Dragon375]

I would be willing to help with converting the raw scans as well. Keeping the manuals torrent updated hasnt been that difficult and once I get setup to do the conversions it shouldnt be that taxing either. Let me know where I can access the scans and I'll go from there. Happy to help out.

[Farb]

Thanks, Dragon375. PM sent!

[+MacRorie]

 

 

 

Oh, and I should add that if anyone is interested in helping to convert raw scans to PDF, please let me know. There's a ton more to do and I've only got so much free time for this stuff :-)

 

 

If it something I can sit in front of the computer and do, I am all in. I just sit here cruising AtariAge and other sites as I care for the twins and, if I could be a wee bit more productive, that would be awesome. There are many projects I could be soldering/hacking on, but they usually require me to be in the workshop cave for an extended period and 4 month old twins tend to make that a rare occurrence!

 

tl;dr - I would love to help!

[Farb]

Thanks, MacRorie. PM sent!

[Mclaneinc]

Any torrents due Sir Farb?

[Farb]

Not until I can iron out the bugs in the new Python script I've written to generate the torrent from the new preservation database I've created.

 

I have another equally worthwhile Atari-related project (that I can't yet talk about) keeping me from working on it :-P

[Dragon375]

Another update for the Game Manuals torrent. We're up to 25 now!

 

Atari 8-Bit Game Manuals 01-27-16.rar

[Farb]

Attached is a new torrent file. Please note that this is the first torrent that has been produced using the new database and generation scripts so let me know if you see anything that is amiss.

 

This includes the remaining titles that Clay Cowgill contributed (minus the Antic magazine disks of which I also have a pile I still need to go through):

 

Atari Mini-Film Festival (Antic)

Disk Cracker!, The (CSS)

File Protector!, The (CSS)

Guardian!, The (CSS)

Impossible!, The (CSS)

Powerstar Demo Disk

Tail of Beta Lyrae, The (Datamost)

Utilities #1 (Computer Palace)

Utilities II (Computer Palace)

 

as well as a recent contribution from advfan:

 

Gulf Strike (Avalon Hill)

Atari 8bit Preserved Software 2016-02-07.torrent.zip

[Triads]

What do we need to do to start higher then 0%.

Post a Dat along with your torrent file.

Use TorrentZip.

[Farb]

Unfortunately, you have to re-download the whole thing. It's only 454Mb so it's not that big.

 

Besides, a lot of images in the ZIP files change from release to release so you're better off deleting the previous one and grabbing the new so you have the latest and greatest.

 

I forgot to mention that this release sees all raw cassette dumps in OGG format rather than WAV which SIGNIFICANTLY reduces the size of the torrent.

Edited February 7, 2016 by Farb

[luckybuck]

Thanks again Farb!

 

Your help is very much appreciated.

[Triads]

Thanks for the info Farb.

[Kyle22]

Thanks Farb!

[Dragon375]

An updated torrent for the game manuals.. up to 54 now!

 

Atari 8-Bit Game Manuals 2-26-16.rar

 

 

[Foster]

Nice update!! It's great to have these manuals. Thanks for the effort.

[+DjayBee]

Thanks for your great work. It is highly appreciated.

In my opinion these three dumps are bad. Maybe someone can verify this.

 

Mercenary - The Second City (1985)(Datasoft)(US)

It reads "Escape from Targ" during boot and then crashes if run in 64k mode. A comparison to the dump of Escape from Targ shows no difference in any non-bad sector.

 

FileManager 800 (1981)(Synapse Software)(US)

Keeps crashing for me with different settings of Altirra.

 

Zaxxon (1983)(Datasoft)(US)

Keeps crashing for me with different settings of Altirra. The October-torent contained a second dump which works. But this dump is gone in the February-torrent.

[phaeron]

FileManager 800 requires a dongle.

 

Zaxxon (1983) (Datasoft) requires OS A. It computes a checksum of the OS ROM.

[k1w1]

I am using Altirra 2.80 -19.

 

Zaxxon (1983)(Datasoft)(US) seems to run fine with me but only in OSb.

 

Mercenary - The Second City (1985)(Datasoft)(US) and FileManager 800 (1981)(Synapse Software)(US) wont run but are labeled as a bad dumps. There are a number of titles in this set that are labeled as bad dumps. I am wondering why you would put a bad dump in this collection of preserved software? If they don't run, are they indeed true copies of the original?

 

I have come across a number of titles in this set that only seem to run in OSb but are not labeled that way and some that won't run at all no matter what settings i use in Altirra. Some will only run with the SIO patch disengaged. These are not labeled either. Unfortunately i have not kept a track of the problem software but will in future and post here.

 

This collection is a fantastic idea but would be hard for FARB to manage without proper feedback from it's users and supporters with regard problem copies.

Edited March 21, 2016 by k1w1

[phaeron]

Sorry, you're correct, that version of Zaxxon will also run with OS-B. What it won't run with is the patched OS-B that everyone has as ATARIOSB.ROM.

 

Running the original images in emulation can be tricky because they have copy protection intact, which means that some acceleration settings won't work. There are very few images that absolutely require actual hardware, but there are some that require disabling acceleration settings and a few that have required emulation fixes (Warhawk comes to mind). Unfortunately, actually trying these images on a real computer typically means having a KryoFlux or SuperCard Pro. Both image-first and verification are important; as long as the original imaging was done as a flux stream, we can get the streams reconverted if it turns out there's something missing in the ATX/ATR.

 

IMO, there's too much info to tag in the filename what emulation settings are required, since this can vary by both emulator and emulator version. It can also become outdated in the future as emulators improve. However, it wouldn't be a bad idea to start a manifest with verification information.

[Farb]

There are a number of titles in this set that are labeled as bad dumps. I am wondering why you would put a bad dump in this collection of preserved software? If they don't run, are they indeed true copies of the original?

 

The flag that I add to the filenames actually means a "suspected bad dump". There are two reasons thus far that I've labeled a dump as such:

 

1. I suspect the dump might have problems (e.g. a bunch of weak sectors I don't think should be there or a8rawconv warns about read problems) but it otherwise seems to boot and work fine. Adventure in Time is a good example of this -- a super rare title that had a couple of peculiar read errors but seems to work. It seemed unfortunate not to include it but I also wanted to tag it so we know it needs to be verified when/if we get access to another copy.

 

2. Disks that don't report any peculiar read problems but that I can't get to work in an Altirra. FileManager 800 is a perfect example of this - I had no idea it needed a dongle but wasn't sure why it wouldn't boot.

 

IMO, there's too much info to tag in the filename what emulation settings are required, since this can vary by both emulator and emulator version. It can also become outdated in the future as emulators improve. However, it wouldn't be a bad idea to start a manifest with verification information.

 

 

You hit the nail on the head -- emulator settings were something that was discussed and we decided it was best to omit from filenames for the very reasons you mention.

 

Also keep in mind that the torrent files (and file naming) is driven from a database that I've been maintaining for many more than a decade and that I'm hoping will be made available to everyone in the coming months. The intent is that will very easily be able to do searches like "all software that requires OS-A" or "all software that needs more than 48K of memory", etc.

 

This collection is a fantastic idea but would be hard for FARB to manage without proper feedback from it's users and supporters with regard problem copies.

 

I definitely encourage people to report issues or inaccuracies whenever they find them. I'm not an Atari software expert and have been learning a lot through this process. And even as careful as I try to be, with a database of several thousand titles, missing or bad information is going to creep in here and there :-P

[k1w1]

Thanks for the clarification on your use of software titles Farb. It makes sense that you keep titles that are clearly not corrupted but won't run for unknown reasons.

 

I am not as convinced as you an Phaeron on not labeling usage parameters on the file title. Maintaining a separate list just adds another complication or step when most people just want to drag and drop. Clearly marking the file [req OSb], [no SIO patch], [64k], [bASIC] or even [req Dongle] allows the user to setup the emulator easily without having to check against a list.

 

But then again, I'm just happy that people like Phaeron and Farb put the time and effort to make our hobby so enjoyable.

[Farb]

I am not as convinced as you an Phaeron on not labeling usage parameters on the file title. Maintaining a separate list just adds another complication or step when most people just want to drag and drop. Clearly marking the file [req OSb], [no SIO patch], [64k], [bASIC] or even [req Dongle] allows the user to setup the emulator easily without having to check against a list.

 

My previous comment may have been unclear. I really like and will continue to use flags such as [req OSb], [64k], [bASIC], etc. ([req Dongle] is a good suggestion). I feel these are valuable and appropriate because they apply to real hardware and emulators alike and will always be valid.

 

[no SIO patch] and other emulator-specific flags (there's no "patch" to turn off on real hardware) are less desirable because they may or may not be valid in the future and could potentially apply to one emulator but not another.

[k1w1]

In case you have missed it.

 

phaeron has updated Altirra to emulate a simple dongle device. We will now be able to run the preserved copies of Leader Board and File Manager 800.

 

File Manager 800 = set the dongle port for 1 and use 0FFFFFF70FFFFFF7 as the bit pattern.

Leader Board = set the dongle port to 2 and use CCCCCCCCCCCCCCCC as the bit pattern.

 

The Paperclip dongle is a bit more complex as it has a built in chip that simulates variable joystick movement and cannot be emulated.

 

Well done phaeron.

[k1w1]

Farb,

 

As promised i will report errors as i come across them.

 

I'm having trouble with "Lunar Lander (1981)(Adventure International)(US)[bASIC]". Both the ATR & ATX versions just cycle through the first 3 sectors producing Boot Errors.

 

Disk explorer reads the disk ok so i'm guessing both have corrupt boot sectors.