+x=usr(1536) Posted October 8, 2019 Share Posted October 8, 2019 23 minutes ago, Flojomojo said: The cute enclosure is the main draw anyway. They can't add enough unique value to justify developing their own OS, unless it's just a thin veneer over something that already exists. A Kodi skin would suffice. The true believers shouldn't care. If this project had ended up being a $39.99 RasPi case with accompanying licensed downloads of <insert emulation OS image here>, it likely would have been profitable by now. Hell, I might even have bought one just for the novelty value. 24 minutes ago, Andrew Davie said: Would a linux-based OS boot and power-off in 2-3 seconds? That's about the time for the on/off sequence shown. Just pondering what I'm seeing here. It is possible to have a running Linux system up in that time, but that depends on how the boot is approached (an image in NVRAM could effectively be treated as a save state), how complex the kernel is, what needs to be loaded in addition to that, storage and RAM speeds, etc. What you've seen here are smoke and mirrors. 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+x=usr(1536) Posted October 8, 2019 Share Posted October 8, 2019 Quote No original games developers have signed up to the Atari VCS, two years after launch. And they are unlikely to in future, either. Damn. And here I was, so looking forward to playing Forests of Diptheria or whatever it was on my Ataribollocks(tm). We should probably start keeping an eye on John Phelan for erratic and/or self-harming behaviour. 4 8 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MrBeefy Posted October 8, 2019 Share Posted October 8, 2019 1 minute ago, x=usr(1536) said: Damn. And here I was, so looking forward to playing Forests of Diptheria or whatever it was on my Ataribollocks(tm). We should probably start keeping an eye on John Phelan for erratic and/or self-harming behaviour. I feel bad for him and Brandon Harris. They seem like genuine enthusiast and aren't assholes like the Heir Werners. 9 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MrBeefy Posted October 8, 2019 Share Posted October 8, 2019 25 minutes ago, x=usr(1536) said: If this project had ended up being a $39.99 RasPi case with accompanying licensed downloads of <insert emulation OS image here>, it likely would have been profitable by now. Hell, I might even have bought one just for the novelty value. It is possible to have a running Linux system up in that time, but that depends on how the boot is approached (an image in NVRAM could effectively be treated as a save state), how complex the kernel is, what needs to be loaded in addition to that, storage and RAM speeds, etc. What you've seen here are smoke and mirrors. Contact Atari Dude. I'm sure he could hook you up. At least you could get a pack in game with his thing from the looks of the videos. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lingyi Posted October 8, 2019 Share Posted October 8, 2019 "You’re probably wondering what happens when you turn on one of our pre-production Atari VCS units. To be honest, while these machines boot up using our Atari BIOS, they operate more like a computer than a fully-functional game system at the moment. In other words, Atari Sandbox Mode is fully functional and the machines will play games beautifully through a standard Linux or Windows installation. The custom Atari operating system is functional, but various consumer-facing software elements like the front-end graphics interface we teased at E3, along with with our Atari VCS store framework and apps, including Antstream Arcade and other native entertainment and game applications, are still in varying stages of development and not yet ready to be shared or installed into these particular units. We have all of this working in other environments and it will be working in concert on the Atari VCS soon. We can’t wait to show it to the world because it all looks incredible. In fact, we are very much looking forward to hosting a series of hands-on preview events later in the fall for a select group of press and partners as soon as we are ready." So wait...the first units without the custom OS will "...operate more like a computer than a fully-functional game system at the moment. Ummm...what happened to the "Unconsole"? 9 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheVgaTv Posted October 8, 2019 Share Posted October 8, 2019 2 minutes ago, lingyi said: "You’re probably wondering what happens when you turn on one of our pre-production Atari VCS units. To be honest, while these machines boot up using our Atari BIOS, they operate more like a computer than a fully-functional game system at the moment. In other words, Atari Sandbox Mode is fully functional and the machines will play games beautifully through a standard Linux or Windows installation. The custom Atari operating system is functional, but various consumer-facing software elements like the front-end graphics interface we teased at E3, along with with our Atari VCS store framework and apps, including Antstream Arcade and other native entertainment and game applications, are still in varying stages of development and not yet ready to be shared or installed into these particular units. We have all of this working in other environments and it will be working in concert on the Atari VCS soon. We can’t wait to show it to the world because it all looks incredible. In fact, we are very much looking forward to hosting a series of hands-on preview events later in the fall for a select group of press and partners as soon as we are ready." So wait...the first units without the custom OS will "...operate more like a computer than a fully-functional game system at the moment. Ummm...what happened to the "Unconsole"? I'm not a hardware guy by any stretch of the imagination, but I'm going to assume that not having your Operating System running on an actual unit two months before the scheduled release is a bad thing.... 5 5 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+x=usr(1536) Posted October 8, 2019 Share Posted October 8, 2019 (edited) 29 minutes ago, lingyi said: "You’re probably wondering what happens when you turn on one of our pre-production Atari VCS units. To be honest, while these machines boot up using our Atari BIOS, they operate more like a computer than a fully-functional game system at the moment. In other words, Atari Sandbox Mode is fully functional and the machines will play games beautifully through a standard Linux or Windows installation. Oh, that is such a relief to hear. I was running short on ways to play Xroach and Minesweeper, so knowing that Atari SA has my back on that one is just comforting. Edited October 8, 2019 by x=usr(1536) 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+x=usr(1536) Posted October 8, 2019 Share Posted October 8, 2019 (edited) 15 minutes ago, MrBeefy said: I feel bad for him and Brandon Harris. They seem like genuine enthusiast and aren't assholes like the Heir Werners. I put Harris and Phelan more in the fanboy category than enthusiasts. Sure, they have enthusiasm for Atari - but an enthusiast sees systems and software for what they are, warts and all. Fanboys are the people who can't or won't accept that their OMG BEST EVAR platform of choice may not be all turd, but does have some brown spots showing through the shiny. Not saying I want to see them get screwed out of their money any more than I do anyone else, but they did choose to pull the wool over their own eyes. That said, I will agree that they're thankfully not the Werners, whom I really want to see double down on defending Atari SA because nothing could be better from a comedy standpoint at this time. Edited October 8, 2019 by x=usr(1536) 3 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clint Thompson Posted October 8, 2019 Share Posted October 8, 2019 (edited) Honestly, I'm surprised they showed any hardware at all but if we're being honest here, why show an LED power on (or again) instead of the system booting with the so-called "Atari's BIOS", even if it's to a kernel. Yeah, everyone has been wondering for two years now but keep talking. Multiple angles of the top PCB shown but they ran out of time (all of 10 seconds) to take a picture of the bottom? Strange how the more they show, the more it seems there is to hide and with the charades played up until now, it's hard to believe really anything... honestly. Why does it always have to be just a peek, isn't it damn well time for full disclosure? I guess this is the best one can expect given all things. I don't know... honestly, it just seems like there's a lot of blurring between the lines. Could be just me. Either way, varying stages or not, none of the software can be installed on those particular units? Can't imagine why. Strange since it's not using anything proprietary and should at very least be compatible with the "other environments" it has supposedly been developed on. I'm calling bullshit. Less smoke, more mirrors but it sounds like they're at very least going to ship the hardware despite the OS interface never having been completed or possibly even started, outside of a mock-up phase for their E3 show and tell. Edited October 8, 2019 by Clint Thompson 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+x=usr(1536) Posted October 8, 2019 Share Posted October 8, 2019 (edited) 10 minutes ago, Clint Thompson said: Why does it always have to be just a peek, isn't it damn well time for full disclosure? I guess this is the best one can expect given all things. I don't know... honestly, it just seems like there's a lot of blurring between the lines. Could be just me. Wouldn't fit with Atari SA's corporate strategy. Spoiler Edited October 8, 2019 by x=usr(1536) 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lodmot Posted October 8, 2019 Share Posted October 8, 2019 (edited) 37 minutes ago, lingyi said: "You’re probably wondering what happens when you turn on one of our pre-production Atari VCS units. To be honest, while these machines boot up using our Atari BIOS, they operate more like a computer than a fully-functional game system at the moment. In other words, Atari Sandbox Mode is fully functional and the machines will play games beautifully through a standard Linux or Windows installation. The custom Atari operating system is functional, but various consumer-facing software elements like the front-end graphics interface we teased at E3, along with with our Atari VCS store framework and apps, including Antstream Arcade and other native entertainment and game applications, are still in varying stages of development and not yet ready to be shared or installed into these particular units. We have all of this working in other environments and it will be working in concert on the Atari VCS soon. We can’t wait to show it to the world because it all looks incredible. In fact, we are very much looking forward to hosting a series of hands-on preview events later in the fall for a select group of press and partners as soon as we are ready." So wait...the first units without the custom OS will "...operate more like a computer than a fully-functional game system at the moment. Ummm...what happened to the "Unconsole"? Is that literally what they said? Wait a fuck.... I have to see that... oh gawd-- (checks article) EDIT: Yup... the article actually says that... LOL... Alright, well, looking at everything else-- I stand by what I've been saying: The hardware is going to be a lot of fun to play with, but there's no way this will ever be a viable game console against the big 3. Die-hard Atari enthusiasts who are also well-versed in computer hardware will probably get the most enjoyment out of this machine. In other words, an extremely niche audience. Edited October 8, 2019 by Lodmot 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Inky Posted October 8, 2019 Share Posted October 8, 2019 Saw this on a political facebook post.. Right under a posting of #NotMyAtari 's recent announcement. I thought it appropriate in this case... 5 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Andrew Davie Posted October 8, 2019 Share Posted October 8, 2019 20 minutes ago, Clint Thompson said: Honestly, I'm surprised they showed any hardware at all but if we're being honest here, why show an LED power on (or again) instead of the system booting with the so-called "Atari's BIOS", even if it's to a kernel. Yeah, everyone has been wondering for two years now but keep talking. Multiple angles of the top PCB shown but they ran out of time (all of 10 seconds) to take a picture of the bottom? Strange how the more they show, the more it seems there is to hide and with the charades played up until now, it's hard to believe really anything... honestly. Well those images pretty clearly show what the bottom probably looks like. I can make out two RAM modules right there. Top right two images. Isn't this pretty much conformation that the RAM "is on the bottom" as previously surmised? Maybe this is already known... if so, sorry for stating the bleeding obvious, then. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Osgeld Posted October 8, 2019 Share Posted October 8, 2019 (edited) 2 hours ago, PlaysWithWolves said: Whats up with that rats nest of bodge and debug wires hanging out its ass Edited October 8, 2019 by Osgeld 1 6 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+TwentySixHundred Posted October 8, 2019 Share Posted October 8, 2019 They will just throw a linux kernel dressed up as their own after the comments roll in as a "demo" with Atari Vault installed. I highly doubt they have even looked into their own OS yet. Having said that, they could get a third party software company to knock up a quick linux based OS for them, if they hand over the coin. Fairly sure they will cheap out on the OS too, so they will get what they pay for, an buggy sub-par barely functional system. The puzzling part about this "update" is, how would they think throwing an heatsink with fan on the board and gluing the board to the front of the case be worthy of an update? It shows how little effort they have put in, when they're all excited and quick to announce an heatsink, and backlit Fuji logo. This shit could be done in an hour over a couple beers and a hotglue gun. Then again their fanbase isn't hard to impress... 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clint Thompson Posted October 8, 2019 Share Posted October 8, 2019 (edited) 6 minutes ago, Osgeld said: Whats up with that rats nest of bodge and debug wires hanging out its ass Come on... you have to power that Fuji-logo somehow! Edited October 8, 2019 by Clint Thompson 1 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lodmot Posted October 8, 2019 Share Posted October 8, 2019 (edited) It's admittedly pretty neat looking at the pictures of the molding process of how it's made. Anybody know which Linux distribution that is in the picture where they're running GParted? Also, you know what will be freakin great? Visiting this topic on the VCS itself. xD Edited October 8, 2019 by Lodmot 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+TwentySixHundred Posted October 8, 2019 Share Posted October 8, 2019 (edited) Closer inspection the Fugi logo looks to have hotspots, meaning they have literately stuck an LED behind it. They haven't even used diffusion material lol Edited October 8, 2019 by TwentySixHundred 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shaggy the Atarian Posted October 8, 2019 Share Posted October 8, 2019 (edited) Nice little distraction from the bombshell news that once again, Atari doesn't pay up and has to scramble to save face (I'm friends with someone who was working for Human Head Studios a few years back (he's no longer there) and said that they went through the same thing on the game Minimum. Atari didn't live up to their obligations and left the company with worthless French penny stocks). One would think that Atari being the "deadbeat dad" of video games should tank their remaining value and shake even the most faithful of cultists, but I'm guessing that the Werner Bros. are fapping over a cordless board making an LED turn on and will completely ignore just how bad it is to lose your principal architect just a couple of months before backers are supposed to be receiving production units. There are many hurdles that Atari still has to go through to get a market-ready device tested, and that's not going to happen quickly. I hope that one guy who said his wife would leave him over the VCS not shipping by March is getting himself a good divorce lawyer, as he's screwed. Edited October 8, 2019 by Shaggy the Atarian clarified info 10 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+x=usr(1536) Posted October 8, 2019 Share Posted October 8, 2019 (edited) 6 minutes ago, Lodmot said: Also, anybody know which Linux distribution that is in the picture where they're running GParted? No, but it doesn't really matter - it's Linux on AMD. Any distro will effectively be the same as any other, but with the amount of slimming-down needed to run that thing efficiently it's really a moot point as most of what installs to a system from a current distro would be totally redundant to have in this application. Using (some) boot and filesystem tools from an existing distro would probably be about as far as you'd want to go with it before rolling your own ultralight kernel, bare minimum system utilities, etc. That said, taking a wild stab at it, probably something Debian- / Ubuntu-based. Edited October 8, 2019 by x=usr(1536) 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Inky Posted October 8, 2019 Share Posted October 8, 2019 3 minutes ago, Shaggy the Atarian said: I hope that one guy who said his wife would leave him over the VCS not shipping by March is getting himself a good divorce lawyer, as he's screwed. Actually, I'd argue he ISN'T getting screwed... 9 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clint Thompson Posted October 8, 2019 Share Posted October 8, 2019 6 minutes ago, Lodmot said: Anybody know which Linux distribution that is in the picture where they're running GParted? Looks like Ubuntu. Still have to wonder why their "dev OS or apps" are not working on these "particular units" 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+x=usr(1536) Posted October 8, 2019 Share Posted October 8, 2019 2 minutes ago, Inky said: Actually, I'd argue he ISN'T getting screwed... He is, it's just that it's Atari SA doing the screwing. 2 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Andrew Davie Posted October 8, 2019 Share Posted October 8, 2019 If I were delivering a prototype board to a company I was designing it for, then it would have something on it saying exactly what it was, perhaps when it was manufactured/designed, maybe even a copyright/ownership notice. I wonder what exactly is on the back of that board that makes it un-showable. Perhaps some text...? 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shaggy the Atarian Posted October 8, 2019 Share Posted October 8, 2019 3 minutes ago, Inky said: Actually, I'd argue he ISN'T getting screwed... 1 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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