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From:    [e-mail] (Frankel, W.A.M.)
Subject: Shock vs The Pulse (was re:Graphics)
Date:    Tue, 14 Jun 1994 10:05:03 GMT


First of all,Thomas Nielsen (Steve/Regina) send his answer to my last post on
the subject to me personally by accident. Still,since it all started here and
I'd
like to know how others think about the subject,I decided to post my answer to
his mail (which is included here) both to him personally and here ..

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------


Hello Thomas,glad to hear from you personally (even if you send it to
me by accident).

Let the saga continue:

>: No,I didn't say that.I KNOW that Sh0ck wasn't the first mag,but it was the
first
>: ever to use a lay-out like it did,and I am not the only person who saw how
much
>: The Pulse looks like it .. In fact,I heard of several people who were shocked

>: (pun intended) when they first saw it.The reason we did know that the code
wasn't
>: ripped was because the output was so much slower than that from Sh0ck - which
just
>: proves who can code and who can't (ie:Mirage can,you can't !!).

>Oh come on!! Now you're going to tell me that our slow text output means
>that we can't code?! Hmm..

Well,I cannot deny that you (Steve) can code,at least better as me,so I won't
attack
you for that.But look at it like this:Sh0ck was coded in 1990 and still the
output was
much faster that that from The Pulse.What I just want to say is that,if you copy
an
original idea (which Mirage had),why not try to improve it so people won't
complain
about it,instead of releasing a worse version.

Also we 'had something' against The Pulse because it was written in several mags
that
The Pulse was the new name for 'Sh0ck' but I won't blame you for that.I have
been
around for a REAL long time now and I do know that magazines tend to fuck up
news
whenever possible (hey,let's see if we can do better with Sh0ck !!).

>: To be totally honest with you (if you can handle that):I never liked the text
in the
>: original Sh0ck (too much modem based for my opinion) but that will change
when we
>: (Focus) will release the new editions of Sh0ck soon.I'm not saying that it is
going
>: to be the #1 mag (for one thing:we won't be releasing it every month,the one
fact
>: I do admire The Pulse for) but I dissaprove with you about The Pulse being
just
>: that.Mags like Reformation,and esp. the fantastic Revealed are of much higher
quality,
>: in every field !! (text,lay-out,coding).

>Well I'll be looking forward to that. I'm sure it will be nice to look
>at (I never doubted your graphicians' talents), but I doubt you can even
>get close to The Pulse text-wize.

Thanks for the compliment on the gfx (I do agree with you ofcourse) but as for
the text:let's just wait and see .. I haven't been called the best textwriter on

the c64 by many people for nothing (he bragged and boasted).

>And wether or not you like modemscene news, the modemscene is THE most active
scene
>on the C64, and it's the scene we write for and about..

That's personal also,and it's another topic we won't include. Also,we won't talk

about cracks and stuff like that because we don't have any connection with that
scene (well,I could ofcourse always ask the SCS+TRC dudes to give a helping
hand,
but we want to keep things legal).What we do know are demo's,so that's what
Sh0ck
will be about.We consider ourselves big enough experts to make up our own
charts,
although we're considering getting votes through internet (so if you are
interested,
let me know !! Because,despite our disagreements,I do consider you a true
demohead).

>Concerning Revealed.. I agree that it's a fab mag. Or atleast I would
>have thought so a year or two ago. But the C64 gamescene is, in my
>opinion, so dead, that there's absolutely no point filling a mag with
>info on how to irritate Gremlin Graphics just cause they dropped the
>C64

Agreed,still it's a great mag and great fun to read (and I'm desperately looking

forward to the new edition.Which reminds me:Kring asked me to give info about
Focus
for it,better hurry..).

>: No,I want a magazine I can read without having to consult a doctor because my
eyes
>: hurt so much afterwards.And while Hotshot wasn't that mag (I HATED the
stars),it did
>: feature some cool text which was actually enjoyable enough to read to
overcome the
>: problems with the lay-out (also they seemed to be huge Focus fans there ..
hehe).

>So now the mag is cool because they were FOCUS fans?! Hmm..

No,I liked the mag because it was one of the first which featured demo reviews
written
by people who knew where they were talking about. The fact that they gave 3 of
our demo's
a rather high mark was only 'ice on the caking' ..

>: But you can't seriously say that you yourself like the way The Pulse looks
today ??
>: Take the may edition for example:VERY UGLY intro (Kring was damn right to
distance
>: himself from the graphics in it) and nothing special within.Now,if you really
would
>: be the #1 mag,that would have been different.It's not a bad mag,it's just
average.

>As I said before, I didn't code the magazine. If I did, I would have
>changed some things.. But Doctor Z did it the way HE thinks it should
>look, and that's cool with me!!! It's a matter of taste if you like it
>or not, and taste is individual!!

Agreed once more,but remember:if you really want to be the no#1 mag you must
make
the mag just the way most people like it.. After all,if I would release a
popsong
today which I loved myself but which most people would hate (no wonder,since I
have
absolutely no musical talent) it would not become a hit.

>: Just to set things straight:I did know who you are,and I'm still not
impressed ..

>Well, I can't help that.

Don't get me wrong:I do not dislike you,and I still respect your opinion over
that
from most of the dutch sceners (which seem to be at average 14 years old and
started
becoming elite 3 weeks ago when they bought a diskdrive) but as I'm used to
dealing
with REAL big names,well,Steve/Regina isn't one of them (just as you probably
don't
think TDJ/Focus is).

>: I am impressed with most of the Camelot members qualities though,I think it
is
>: a great group,and Tower Power is one of the best ever c64 demo's. You see,I
do know
>: quality when I see it - and I don't see it when looking at The Pulse.

>I'm beginning to wonder if you actually saw the Pulse since the new
>outfit?!?!

Unless you already released the june edition (which I'm desperately waiting
for,as it
is supposed to feature a review of our Not Worthy demo - although it probably
will get
very low marks now,right ??) I did just that (how else could I have stated how
ugly
the new intro graphics are ?? At least the previous intro had a cool RRR logo).

>: Tsh,such a shame .. Here I am:a guy not kissing up to The Pulse like they're
used
>: to,and all of a sudden they don't like me.Well,it was never my intention to
be liked
>: by everybody,so needless to say I won't lose any sleep over it.

>: Why don't you put all your anger & energy in producing a new outfit for The
Pulse
>: instead ?? Maybe then it would be the #1 mag ..

: (Hey,at least these flames back and forth liven up this newsgroup)

>..Atleast we agree there!! But I'm not angry (nor do I have any energy),
>but i DO love a good discussion, and I don't see anything wrong with that.

>But anyway, I'm right in anything I say, and you're not! :)

Hmm,I feel exactly the same way (I am right,you're not) but I'm afraid we're
starting
to agree on certain topics.Better stop that,or else this discussion will start
getting
really boring ..

>L8R! Steve

Time to make like a tree,and leaf ..
------------------------------------------------------------
Marco 'The Dark Judge/Focus' Frankel,aka "The Net Prophet"
[e-mail]
------------------------------------------------------------




------------------------------

From:    [e-mail] (Pontus Berg)
Subject: Re: sid chips?
Date:    Tue, 14 Jun 94 15:39:52 +0200

In a message of 07 Jun 94 Ivan wrote to All:

 I> You are going about the whole thing wrong, and infact you need something
 I> different all together.  You need another SID chip for your 128, which
 I> is  different from the SID chip in most 64's (until the V4 64c's), and it
 I> doesn't go in the empty socket, you have to either 1) build a small
 I> board  for it including chip, small amplifier circuit, etc., or 2)
 I> piggyback it  on top of your existing SID chip - you'll still need an amp
 I> circuit and a  few other parts.  Or, just pick up one of those Stereo SID
 I> cartridges -  just plug it in and go, perhaps the best idea for someone
 I> who's not used  to tinkering around inside their computer.

When reading this; replacing the SID with a small RAM one could have a small
piece of RAM at, say $D500 where one could place things like a recieve routine
for a porting program, when you needed all the memory! Is this possible?


From: Pontus Berg                          AKA:Bacchus of FairLight 64
      Sveav{gen 88,5tr
      113 59 Stockholm                     [e-mail]
      SWEDEN                               Fido: 2:201/411.71


... So there I am
    On an 8-bit miracle
    Doing what I do best
    [Newscopy/G*P]
--- Spot 1.2d #676


------------------------------

From:    [e-mail] (Diego Barros)
Subject: Software/Hardware stores for the C64?
Date:    13 Jun 1994 16:33:33 GMT

Hello,
    I was wondering whether someone could please post or e-mail to
me any details about stores or mail-order companies which still support
the Commodore 64.

I would prefer a fax number if one is available since that makes things
cheaper especially when ordering from overseas and getting info. But any
other details would be great.

Thanks in advance.
Cheers... :)

Diego Barros

--
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------.
| Diego Barros                | "It takes two to lie. One to lie.   |
| e-mail > [e-mail]    |   And one to listen." -Homer Simpson|
_____________________________________________________________________________.


------------------------------

From:    [e-mail] (george page)
Subject: Re: Super Snapshot V5?
Date:    13 Jun 1994 17:54:36 -0600

In article <2ti1ti$[e-mail]>,
Diego Barros <[e-mail]> wrote:
>Hello,
>    Is the Super Snapshot v5 (i believe is the latest version) still
>available anywhere for the C64? Any details about it's availability
>
>How does this cartridge compare to the Action Replay V6? I'm on the
>lookout for a cartridge, mainly to speed up loading, but all other
>features come in handy too! :) I see that they've just dropped the price

It's kind of a personal preference type thing on the top-end carts like
AR and SS and FC. I prefer the Action Replay, and it's the fastest on
loading, but it doesn't like anything dealing with seq files. SS handles
seq files fine, and has a better file copier in my opinion, but doesn't
seem to be quite as compatible as the AR. FC (Final Cart) is kind of a
strange one unless you like GEOS type interfaces. One the other hand,
AR's not like ing seq files has it's adavnatges. When loading a demo or
whatever disk that has a prettied up directory, the AR jumps to the first
pgm file and loads it, which SS doesn't.

--
George Page  Commodore Enthusiast ("Collectors" get hit with higher prices)
Aurora (Denver) Colorado USA. [e-mail] or [e-mail]
 or [e-mail] or George Page on FIDONet (1:104/518)


------------------------------

From:    [e-mail] (Diego Barros)
Subject: Super Snapshot V5?
Date:    13 Jun 1994 16:36:02 GMT

Hello,
    Is the Super Snapshot v5 (i believe is the latest version) still
available anywhere for the C64? Any details about it's availability
would be appreciated.

How does this cartridge compare to the Action Replay V6? I'm on the
lookout for a cartridge, mainly to speed up loading, but all other
features come in handy too! :) I see that they've just dropped the price
of the Action Replay from 34.95 to 24.99 pounds.

Cheers... :)
Diego Barros

--
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------.
| Diego Barros                | "It takes two to lie. One to lie.   |
| e-mail > [e-mail]    |   And one to listen." -Homer Simpson|
_____________________________________________________________________________.


------------------------------

From:    [e-mail] (Jason Compton)
Subject: Re: The Great Giana Sisters -- HELP
Date:    13 Jun 94 23:42:21 CST

[e-mail] (Zsolt Szabo) writes:

>
>I remember how that game was number one on the charts for many weeks,
>until they had to recall it--because Nintendo had threatened suit (it
>looked very much like Super Mario Brothers).
>
>What a bunch of pricks!
>
>
...then someone sat down and changed the graphics so that it looked for all the
world like Super Mario Brothers.  Got right to the point, didn't it?

Jason Compton                                       [e-mail]
Emulation Editor                                    Amiga Report Magazine
Chief Executive Officer                             DigiForte Designs, Ltd.
FAX: [phone]                            AR: [e-mail]
               What we want and what we need has been confused.


------------------------------

From:    [e-mail] (Bret Hoeffler)
Subject: The Great Giana Sisters -- HELP
Date:    Mon, 13 Jun 1994 19:34:56 GMT

Summertime brings free-time, and I've dug out a few old games to while away
the hours.  I've been playing THE GREAT GIANA SISTERS on both my C64
and my Amiga, and I'd like to hear from anybody else out there who knows
any of the secret tricks or hidden things.  I'm finding a lot of the
bricks that yield multiple bonus crystals, but I've only found one Warp
(the one on Level 6 that takes you to Level 9).

Can anybody tell me more, or point me to a faq somewhere?


--

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
[e-mail]                                      Bret Hoeffler
(This msg is shareware.  If you like it, and read it often, please send $15...)


------------------------------

From:    [e-mail] (Martin Rebas)
Subject: Re: The Great Giana Sisters -- HELP
Date:    14 Jun 94 15:02:42 GMT

[e-mail] (Bret Hoeffler) writes:

>Summertime brings free-time, and I've dug out a few old games to while away
>the hours.  I've been playing THE GREAT GIANA SISTERS on both my C64
>and my Amiga, and I'd like to hear from anybody else out there who knows
>any of the secret tricks or hidden things.  I'm finding a lot of the
>bricks that yield multiple bonus crystals, but I've only found one Warp
>(the one on Level 6 that takes you to Level 9).

>Can anybody tell me more, or point me to a faq somewhere?

There is a warp on level 3, just at the beginning.
Here's a map, (not very accurate, just from my memory):

XX
XX
XX          BBBBXXXX
XD        XX       w
XXX  XX        e
X         XXXXXXXXXXX


XX is a "brick"-block
BB is a bonus block
D is the door, where you appear
e is an "owl-head" type enemy
w is a warp to level 6

This works on the Amiga version, at least.

I have completed the game (32 levels) and I know that there are a lot of more
warps out there. Unfortunately, I don't remember on which levels they were
(I'll remember where they are if I play the game, though). I _think_ there was
one on level 17. But usually, when I played, I used to skip the first 2 warps
(levels 3 and 6); the levels were quite simple anyway, and you got much more
score if you played them (otherwise it's impossible to get >40000 points).



--
--- Martin Rebas, MartinSoft (c)  *** [e-mail] ***
"Look out for MartinSoft games - or you won't have time to avoid them"
DISCLAIMER: The opinions expressed above do not belong to me. Someone else
must've written them. I haven't even seen them before! Now get lost!


------------------------------

From:    [e-mail] (Zsolt Szabo)
Subject: Re: The Great Giana Sisters -- HELP
Date:    13 Jun 1994 23:47:33 -0400


I remember how that game was number one on the charts for many weeks,
until they had to recall it--because Nintendo had threatened suit (it
looked very much like Super Mario Brothers).

What a bunch of pricks!



------------------------------

From:    [e-mail] (John C. Alexander)
Subject: Re: The Great Giana Sisters -- HELP
Date:    Tue, 14 Jun 1994 03:53:49 GMT

[e-mail] (Bret Hoeffler) writes:

>Summertime brings free-time, and I've dug out a few old games to while away
>the hours.  I've been playing THE GREAT GIANA SISTERS on both my C64
>and my Amiga, and I'd like to hear from anybody else out there who knows
>any of the secret tricks or hidden things.  I'm finding a lot of the
>bricks that yield multiple bonus crystals, but I've only found one Warp
>(the one on Level 6 that takes you to Level 9).

>Can anybody tell me more, or point me to a faq somewhere?

I cannot really help here, sorry. But alas, what a great game. I
haven't played Giana Sisters in a long while. I have a SNES & an
Amiga. The SNES is to play games they way they should be played. :-)
I must admit Mortal Kombat and NBA Jam are very nice on the SNES.
Although The Settlers rules as the best game ever.

I just wish the SNES wouldn't tame games down for USA release. I've
beater every Mario game I've played. But The Great Giana Sisters
(Mario Clone Maxed) I remember being much more difficult and more
enjoyable than the Mario All Stars. I must admit that Super Mario
World is nice, but only lasted a week after I bought the SNES.

Sorry to go off of the amiga topic there. Just my .02$.
--
[e-mail]          //|    Amiga 2000/030-25
                //_||    80 Meg HD
      -Topher-        \\//   ||    4 Meg RAM

"If all the ignorance in the world passed a second ago
 What would you say? Who would you obey
 I am here to say that Peace is now"        - E.Kowalczyk


------------------------------

From:    [e-mail]@CYBERNETIC_EXPRESSIONS.NIHON (The Prophet)
Subject: Re: The Great Giana Sisters -- HELP
Date:    14 Jun 1994 19:45:36 GMT


In article <[e-mail]> [e-mail] (Martin
Rebas) writes:
> [e-mail] (Bret Hoeffler) writes:
>
> >Summertime brings free-time, and I've dug out a few old games to while away
> >the hours.  I've been playing THE GREAT GIANA SISTERS on both my C64
> >and my Amiga, and I'd like to hear from anybody else out there who knows
> >any of the secret tricks or hidden things.  I'm finding a lot of the
> >bricks that yield multiple bonus crystals, but I've only found one Warp
> >(the one on Level 6 that takes you to Level 9).
>
> >Can anybody tell me more, or point me to a faq somewhere?
>
> There is a warp on level 3, just at the beginning.
> Here's a map, (not very accurate, just from my memory):
>
> XX
> XX
> XX          BBBBXXXX
> XD        XX       w
> XXX  XX        e
> X         XXXXXXXXXXX
>
>
> XX is a "brick"-block
> BB is a bonus block
> D is the door, where you appear
> e is an "owl-head" type enemy
> w is a warp to level 6
>
> This works on the Amiga version, at least.
>
> I have completed the game (32 levels) and I know that there are a lot of more
> warps out there. Unfortunately, I don't remember on which levels they were
> (I'll remember where they are if I play the game, though). I _think_ there was

> one on level 17. But usually, when I played, I used to skip the first 2 warps
> (levels 3 and 6); the levels were quite simple anyway, and you got much more
> score if you played them (otherwise it's impossible to get >40000 points).
>
>
>
> --
> --- Martin Rebas, MartinSoft (c)  *** [e-mail] ***
> "Look out for MartinSoft games - or you won't have time to avoid them"
> DISCLAIMER: The opinions expressed above do not belong to me. Someone else
> must've written them. I haven't even seen them before! Now get lost!

There is an Amiga version of The Great Gianna Sisters?  I didn't know
about that.  Where can I find it?

Jason K.

--
.signature under construction


------------------------------

From:    [e-mail] ([e-mail])
Subject: The Scene..
Date:    14 Jun 1994 19:52:25 -0000

 Well.. This is Deathlok of PSI, PCP, and Padua typin' at ya.. I just wanted
to check the world to see who out there is in the scene, and what your scene
alias is.. So, if yer in the SCENE, reply with your alias.. Laytah!!

Deathlok/PSI+PCP+PDA


------------------------------

From:    [e-mail] ([e-mail])
Subject: Turbo Masters Wanteed...
Date:    14 Jun 1994 04:17:40 -0000

I'm looking for a Turbo Masters carg. if anyone
has one for sale would you please E-mail or smething me..
thanks..  Eliminator/DOD


------------------------------

From:    [e-mail] (kenny kant)
Subject: VDC help!!!
Date:    15 Jun 1994 04:38:26 GMT

I have used a program which tells you if you have 16k video ram or 64k
video ram.. I have tge regular style c128 I bought used about a year
ago..so I assumed it had ony 16k..

BUT when I ran this program it said I had 64k Video Ram (VDC) ..
I am still curious about this ...

My question is if I opend up my c128 and looked at the mother board
could I tell if I have 64k or 16k? What would I look for? also where on the
motherboard.. Thanx for our help in advance ..
*-((Kenny))-*
[e-mail]


------------------------------

From:    Randy Mcwilson <[e-mail]>
Subject: wanted: mapping 128 by compute
Date:    Tue, 14 Jun 94 23:28:49 -0500

I will pay anyone a handsome price for a copy of mapping the 128 by compute boo
s...


------------------------------

From:    [e-mail] (Nhat-Viet Phi)
Subject: Re: Wanted: Transformer for a Commodore 64 and keyboard chip
Date:    Tue, 14 Jun 1994 06:44:22 GMT

John W. Dodson ([e-mail]) wrote:

: My questions:
: a/ Is it possible to repair a transformer or do you just buy a new one?
: b/ If it is necessary to buy a new or used one, where could I get one (here,
: or somewhere else????)
: c/ Is the hypothesis that the chip in the keyboard is also gone a logical one?

: d/ If so, is it possible to replace the chip?
: e/ If I can replace the chip where can I buy it?
: f/ If I have to replace the entire keyboard where can I buy one and what is a
: reasonable price?

A/B) The power supplies on the vast majority of C=64's were packed
purposely in epoxy - possibly a cost-cutting decision of some sort, but
one that has infuriated many C=64 owners. The end effect of all this is
that you cannot repair a "brick" (as the stock PS's are called) that has
cooked itself. You CAN, however, get heavy-duty, fused, repairable ones.

Some of these are simply C=128 power supplies modified with C=64
connectors. But they work great, and 128 owners swear by them. Software
Support International at [phone] offers C=64 and C=128 PS's for
29.95 (cat. # CO 15833 and CO 15834, respectively). Call soon before
their limited stock runs out... OR, you could call Creative Micro Designs
at [phone] and order some purpose-built power supplies at a higher
cost - however, these guys have a VERY solid reputation among die-hard
Commies like me. Item #: POWER64 $39.00; POWER128 $45.00.

C) Yes. The power surge caused by a dying power supply is widely known to
kill one or more C=64 chips.

D/E) I believe it IS possible to replace the majority of chips on a C=64
motherboard, but some are socketed and others are soldered. You COULD
find a stack of dead 64's and attempt to swap chips in and out in an
effort to find a good one... Other people may want to step in and suggest
more specific methods.

F) The classifieds?? No more than $30 U.S. would be my estimate...

Best of luck. You may want to consider getting a C=128 while you're at
it! <grin>

Nhat-Viet Phi
Calgary, Alberta
InterNet mail: [e-mail]


------------------------------

From:    [e-mail] (RayBX)
Subject: Wanted: Vic, RAM & Datasette
Date:    13 Jun 1994 20:40:01 -0400

I guess that the title says it all.

I'd like a working VIC-20, a spare Datasette and a RAM expander for
the VIC. (I think that I used to have an 8K one? Or was it 3,
bringing the system up to 8?)

Anyway, if you have any or all of these items and are willing to part
with them at a reasonable price, please let me know what that $ may
be (via email)
Thanks
---Raymond Blum     [e-mail]


------------------------------

From:    [e-mail] (Joe)
Subject: Re: Who Knows What Evil Lurks in the Heart of Commodo
Date:    14 Jun 1994 19:29:32 GMT

Tpug Sysop ([e-mail]) wrote:
: -> (And if you want to see a really cruddy piece of MS code, check out
: -> AmigaBasic sometime!)

:     The structure and form of Basic is M-soft's. The code specific to the
: various computers is Commodore's ..mind you some of the original 6502 code
came
: with it to the PETs and a smidgen got passed on to even the c128. The stuff in

: the Amiga is all original though.

   Actually, AmigaBASIC *was* written by M$, and poorly written at that.
It is actually a port of the M$ MacintoshBASIC.  It has almost all the
same commands and several of the same bugs....  And if you look through
the code you can find some Mac-specific junk still in there.  (While
you're poking around, also look inside Doom and find some of the
NeXT-specific artifacts! :)  Just trivia....


------------------------------

End of CBM Digest Volume 02 #059
***
¢