
*************************************
       Commodore Free Magazine
    http://www.commodorefree.com/
*************************************

       Issue 47, January 2011

      Free to download magazine
  dedicated to Commodore computers
  Available as PDF, HTML, TXT, SEQ,
      D64 disk image and now as
        ePUB and MOBI e-book

=====================================

*************************************
              CONTENTS
*************************************

* Editorial
* NEWS
  - Games That Weren't Update
  - Commodore Keytar
  - ZoomFloppy ready for pre-order
  - SCACOM Aktuell #20/21 out
  - High Voltage SID Collection 54
  - Arcade Retro Gaming
  - 2011 C64-RetroInvaders calendar
  - Amiga Forever / C64 Forever 2011
  - Plus4: Club Info 120 Released
  - Attitude Disk Magazine
  - dtv2ser 0.5 Released
  - BOH update14 Released
  - 1541 Ultimate Firmware Version 2
  - More Commodore Videos
  - YC C16/Plus4 Special Edition
  - YC C16/Plus4 Programmers Edition
  - AresOne Update
  - CBM-Command Version 2.0 Beta 1
  - Nanako In Japanese Monster Castle
  - Plus 4: 256k Memory Expansion
  - The Rear Admiral
  - Eway10: 3 New C64 Adventure Games
  - ZTerm Terminal Client For C64
  - Theater Of War WW2 (VIC20)
  - Chameleon 64
  - DiscreetFX Platform Shift
  - On the Edge: the Spectacular Rise
    and Fall of Commodore
  - uIEC Change Device Program
  - sd2iec Firmware
* Interview With Alf Yngve
* Build Your Own RGBI>S-Video Adaptor
* Commodore 16 Programming
* 1000 Kung Fu Maniacs
* Back to the Past - Issue 7

=====================================

*************************************
              EDITORIAL
*************************************

WELCOME BACK

I hope you enjoyed the Holidays of
Christmas and New Year, and I would
like to take this opportunity to
wish you all a Happy and prosperous
New Year.

Now without anymore small talk to
spoil the text I will, with your
permission give you a breakdown of
what tantalising offerings we have
for you in this edition of Commodore
Free magazine.

FROM THE REAR

It's the usual news, as this issue
tries to catch up from December;
this will be an extended feature, to
cover up for the missing December
issue.

The Rear Admiral News section is a
really good start if you are still
on the Christmas Blues bus or
suffering from SAD (Seasonal
Affective Disorder
http://www.sada.org.uk/ ). I think
we all suffer a little from this,
however I do feel sorry for the
people that this disorder is really
a problem for. Still The Rear
Admiral feature just may cure the
problems away, well ok, maybe not.

PROGRAMMING

John Fielding enters programming
overdrive as he explains out to
death the programs that were listed
in Commodore Free issue 45, and then
he gives us another application to
try out. It all feels like 1980`s
again with type in listings,

INTERVIEWS

I managed to interview SEUCK game
programmer Alf Yngve about his
latest creation 1,000 Kung-Fu
maniacs, and there is a review of
the game in this very issue.

NEW FEATURES

More new games appear in the shape
of EWAY10 RELEASES 3 NEW C64
ADVENTURE GAMES

Featured again in the news section
so I won't elaborate here anymore.

I REMEMBER IT WELL

I am also putting together an item
about the shops where I used to buy
Commodore products and have
tentatively penned this as a "what
happened to" style feature. Where
the shops where what they stocked,
and what actually happened to them
after Commodore went bust. I thought
about the feature after passing 2 of
the shops over the Christmas period
and as nostalgia welled, I
remembered buying my first external
Commodore Amiga disk drive and even
the assistant stating the obvious
after the sale like "don't turn it
on and off while connected"

AND YOU MAY HAVE NOTICED THE NEW LOGO

The old one didn't show up to well
on some monitors, especially with
the black colour scheme, I am no
artist and you may well think it
looks a little poor, but I thought
it was time for a change. You are
welcome to send in some of your own
example Commodore Free logo`s for
possible use in the magazine. I
would love a retro styled 8-bit one,
but unfortunately my efforts have
been rather poor not being in anyway
arty.

That's all from me now see you next
month

Regards
Nigel (editor Commodore Free)

=====================================

*************************************
                NEWS
*************************************

*************************************
      GAMES THAT WEREN'T UPDATE
*************************************

GTW 64 has a Xmas update with the
following games. Putty from System 3
(1991), Undead (1990), An preview of
Pulse by David Green (1990),
Scimitar from Cyberdyne Systems
(1990), More demos of Deadlock from
System 3 (1990), Music recovered of
Armalyte 2 from Thalamus (1990),
Graphics found of Half Life from
Cyberdyne Systems (1990), Music
recovered of Savage Platforms and
bits founds of Turn Change from
Commodore Scene / Mike Berry (1996).

http://www.gtw64.co.uk/

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

*************************************
          COMMODORE KEYTAR
*************************************

www.youtube.com/watch?v=1LZUH0p6cXc

A link to a YouTube video showing a
demonstration of Jordan Bartee
playing Giana Sisters. He uses a
modified Commodore C64 to play the
music and has added a second SID
(6581), keyboard and the MidiBox SID
platform to his C64

Here is the videos text

A quick demo of a keytar I built out
of a Commodore 64. It uses two SID
6581 chips and was made using the
MidiBox SID platform from
www.ucapps.de . Better video to
follow later.

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

*************************************
   ZOOMFLOPPY READY FOR PRE-ORDER
*************************************

The ZoomFloppy connects 15x1 IEC
drives (including nibbler parallel
port) to USB. This allows reading or
writing D64 or G64 images from your
PC with OpenCBM or nibtools,
including copy protections.

Jim Brain is now taking pre-orders
for $35 USD. It should be shipping
January 7.

http://www.jbrain.net/products/ZoomFl
oppy.html

PRODUCT DESCRIPTION

Archive your Commodore floppies (and
CMD HD partitions) to your
contemporary PC, without the hassles
of external parallel ports, IRQ
settings, special adapters, bulky
cables, or the alphabet soup of disk
drive cable adapters. ZoomFloppy
replaces all X*-1541 cables with a
simple USB-based hardware device
guaranteed to work with today's
machines, using today's multitasking
operating systems. Simply plug into
any free USB port, connect your CBM
drive via a serial cable, and
transfer data to or from your
software collection.

ZOOMFLOPPY FEATURES:

* Attach any CBM serial drive to
  your PC

* Works with Windows, OS X, and Linux

* Open Source solution, no vendor
  lock-in

* Active development community

* Minimal footprint, no external
  power supply needed

* Parallel access hardware support

NOTE: ZoomFloppy requires an IEC
cable (sold separately) and a USB to
mini-USB cable (available any many
computer stores).

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

*************************************
      SCACOM AKTUELL #20/21 OUT
*************************************

Issue 20/21 (October/December 2010)
of the German language magazine
SCACOM.aktuell is available.

Download it at
www.scacom-aktuell.de.vu
or read it online.

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

*************************************
HIGH VOLTAGE SID COLLECTION UPDATE 54
*************************************

Another Update to the growing
collection of Sid tunes, after this
update, the collection should
contain 39,626 SID files!

THIS UPDATE FEATURES (ALL
APPROXIMATES):

933 new SIDs

217 fixed/better rips

5 PlaySID/Sidplay1 specific SIDs
eliminated

21 repeats/bad rips eliminated

561 SID credit fixes

258 SID model/clock infos

28 tunes from /DEMOS/UNKNOWN/
identified

6 tunes from /GAMES/ identified

41 tunes moved out of /DEMOS/ to
their composers' directories

9 tunes moved out of /GAMES/ to
their composers' directories

http://www.hvsc.de

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

*************************************
         ARCADE RETRO GAMING
*************************************

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

We would like to thank all Arcade
Retro Gaming friends for supporting
us in our efforts to preserve the
classic computer and classic game
consoles for the future.

Thanks to faithful friends like
yourself, this past year has been
very successful.
We have a Christmas present for
everyone who owns already the MCC-216

The ATARI 2600 implementation is now
available online for FREE download.
As if this isn't enough another
release of the C64 is planned
between Christmas and New Year!

ZZZZZZZZ HAPPY RETRO GAMING ZZZZZZZZ

http://www.arcaderetrogaming.com/shop
/page/12?shop_param

ALL NEW MCC-216 NOW COME WITH THE
C64 AND ATARI 2600 CORE

We are pleased to announce that the
Multiple Classic Computer? comes
with the Commodore C64 and ATARI
2600 re-implementation factory
installed

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

*************************************
   2011 C64-RETROINVADERS CALENDAR
*************************************

Here we go for the New Year a
calendar for every month of the year
with recent Commodore 64 games.

Download it, print it, cross off
dates and amend it but most of all
enjoy it .

http://noname.c64.org/csdb/release/?i
d=97007&rss

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

*************************************
          AMIGA FOREVER AND
      C64 FOREVER 2011 RELEASED
*************************************

Amiga Forever
(http://www.amigaforever.com ) and
C64 Forever
(http://www.c64forever.com ) are the
easy to use emulation, preservation
and support packages published by
Cloanto, Commodore/Amiga developers
since the 1980s.

The 2011 version introduces features
like multiple snapshots (saved
states) and further improves
usability, performance and memory
consumption. As a result of various
optimizations, in some scenarios
loading times are reduced by 90% and
runtime memory usage dropped by 80%

Amiga Forever and C64 Forever work
side by side to play games directly
from a variety of emulation sites,
as well as from original media like
CD-ROMs. Content is recognized using
the built-in Retro Platform Library
database, which helps identify and
automatically start the correct
hardware configuration (Amiga, CDTV,
CD32, C64, VIC 20, different PET/CBM
models, etc.)

In addition to the hundreds of
titles which come preinstalled with
the software, tens of thousands of
games and demo scene productions
have been released by their authors
for publication on preservation
sites. Beyond one-click access to
this precious legacy of the 1980s
and 1990s, the packages aim to
introduce users to the computer demo
scene culture and to present other
items of historical interest. The
Premium Edition of Amiga Forever
contains more than five hours of
video footage on two DVDs.

Amiga Forever and C64 Forever passed
official Windows 7 logo tests on
both x86 and x64 systems. Prices
start from $14.95 for C64 Forever,
and $29.95 for Amiga Forever
(downloadable Plus Editions, with
discounts for upgrades and for
bundles of both packages). The 2011
upgrades are free for all 2010
customers.

FOR MORE INFORMATION:

Amiga Forever
http://www.amigaforever.com
http://www.facebook.com/AmigaForever

C64 Forever
http://www.c64forever.com
http://www.facebook.com/C64Forever

RetroPlatform Project
http://www.retroplatform.com

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

*************************************
    PLUS4: CLUB INFO 120 RELEASED
*************************************

The sixth and last Club Info issue
of 2010, the most popular C264
series disk-magazine, is here to
warm your cold winter feet!

Erich/Ultd packed the two disk sides
with a lot of goodies.

Enjoy.

SIDE A

Is filled with various
German-language articles. There are
tips and tricks, game descriptions,
a user's guide to 3D Construction
Kit etc.

SIDE B

Has recently released stuff as well
as some new releases: Maths Battle,
Hman +4 and Thunderbird Digi among
others.

Download it now from here.
http://plus4world.powweb.com/dl/mags/
club_info/club_info_120.zip

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

*************************************
       ATTITUDE DISK MAGAZINE
*************************************

http://www.cactus.jawnet.pl/attitude/

ATTITUDE #11 WINTER EDITION IS HERE

Europe's #1 is back again! Attitude
#11 delivered for your sole pleasure
by the joint forces of TRIAD and
Oxyron on December 12th, 2010 is now
available for download. Get it and
share your thoughts about the new
edition with us!

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

*************************************
        DTV2SER 0.5 RELEASED
*************************************

The dtv2ser device published in
previous dtv2ser releases required
the creation of a custom PCB with an
ATmega8 and FT232 chip. Therefore,
only a very limited number of users
were capable of recreating the
device.

To make the device accessible for a
wider user base I have ported the
firmware to the Arduino 2009 boards.
These boards are easily available
almost everywhere. The dtv2ser
modification only requires minimal
HW modifications and soldering
skills.

The new release 0.5 contains this
new firmware and detailed
instructions how to build your own
device. On the software side nothing
has changed - only some minor bug
fixes were applied.

The dtv2ser Arduino page:
lallafa.de/blog/dtv2ser/arduino/

The dtv2ser Homepage:
http://lallafa.de/blog/dtv2ser/

Have Fun building your own dtv2ser
device :)

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

*************************************
        BOH UPDATE14 RELEASED
*************************************

The year could not end without BOH
players getting one more nice gift:
this 14th update ups the total
number of missions to a whopping 50
(for many tens of hours of play),
brings a few enhancements and makes
life easier to who enjoys creating
his own missions!

More specifically, this update:

* reworks the advanced auto mapper
  (the realistic mode has been
  replaced with the full screen
  view, which allows to see more;
  the controls have been made more
  comfortable);

* improves the video modes
  suggestions;

* allows terminating map lines with
  CR+LF;

* improves error logging;

* improves the graphics of blocks in
  theme "C64";

* adds 5 new missions;

* retouches slightly a few missions;

* retouches slightly the Spanish
  translation;

* updates the manuals;

* applies various other changes.

The update can be downloaded for
free from the DOWNLOADS page of the
official website.
The demos have been updated to
reflect the changes.

ABOUT BOH

BOH is a unique retro-flavoured
puzzle-riddled maze game spiced up
with thrilling action.

You move in claustrophobic,
mysterious, dangerous battlefields
searching for the Evil Masters, who
throw countless enemies at you until
you discover and face them in the
final battle. Although your quests
are made slightly less hard by the
power-ups scattered all around,
carrying out the missions demands
lots of concentration and quick
reflexes.

With BOH the fun never ends: new
missions can be added anytime and
you can even create your own! And,
as if that was not enough, you can
also customize entirely its
audio-visual aspect!

BOH has been created with lots of
passion and care to offer, with its
old school style, a fascinatingly
different video gaming experience.

Website: http://www.bohthegame.com

Facebook:
http://www.facebook.com/pages/BOH/995
98418583

Twitter:
http://twitter.com/bohthegame

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

*************************************
  1541 ULTIMATE FIRMWARE VERSION 2
*************************************

http://www.1541ultimate.net/

* 83 new batch Ultimate-II's have
  been shipped.

* Firmware 2.0 FINAL is out, and
  available for download! Go to the
  download page to get it now and
  see what issues have been
  addressed. It is a major update,
  and highly recommended to install!

* All additional FPGAs were shipped
  to the assembly company. Hopefully
  they will release more completed
  boards before the end of the year.
  They said they would, but they
  couldn't tell me how many would be
  finished.

* First modified tape adapters
  shipped.

* It is now possible to order
  accessories for the 1541U-II. This
  is possible through the "Order
  Status" page. In case your unit
  has already been shipped, please
  create another order of 0 (zero)
  1541U-II units, and add the
  accessories to that order.

* Tape connector boards have been
  received. One board clicks under
  the 1541-II case; the other holds
  the 2x6 pin tape connector and
  tape feed-through. The two boards
  connect to each other using a
  standard 10-pin flat cable. The
  part that clicks under the 1541-II
  case can also be used to power the
  cartridge for stand-alone mode
  (requires future software update).

* It's now possible with 2.0RC9 to
  capture tape data to a .TAP file!

* Payments have been processed until
  December 7, 2010.

* Payments for the new batch(es) are
  now accepted.

* Firmware 2.0 also runs on the
  Ultimate-I! (Of course, only the
  features that MK1-hardware
  supports will show.. no RTC, no
  USB, no C2N (tape), etc...)

Ultimate-II is open source! See the
documentation on the download page
on how to set up the build
environment. This document (which is
work in progress) also explains how
the FPGA and software is structured.

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

*************************************
        MORE COMMODORE VIDEOS
*************************************

For those who like Amiga computers
and who could not get to the Amiwest
Show 2010 on October 23-25, I've
posted my entire video series of
presentations and keynote speeches.
Here they are --

Around the Amiwest Show 2010
http://blip.tv/file/4432511

Carmona at Amiwest Show 2010
http://blip.tv/file/4428812

Krueger at Amiwest Show 2010
http://blip.tv/file/4428423

Sadlik at Amiwest Show 2010
http://blip.tv/file/4424195

Sassenrath at Amiwest Show 2010 -
part 2
http://blip.tv/file/4370435

Steve Solie at Amiwest Show 2010
http://blip.tv/file/4358295

Sassenrath at Amiwest Show 2010 -
part 1
http://blip.tv/file/4347633

Dickinson, Hermans, Luck at Amiwest
Show 2010 banquet
http://blip.tv/file/4341466

Ben Hermans and the Friedens at
Amiwest Show 2010
http://blip.tv/file/4326295

Trevor Dickinson, Ben Hermans at
Amiwest Show 2010
http://blip.tv/file/4320600

A brief description of what each
video is about is at each link.

Truly,
Robert Bernardo
Fresno Commodore User Group
http://videocam.net.au/fcug

The Other Group of Amigoids
http://www.calweb.com/~rabel1/

Southern California Commodore &
Amiga Network
http://www.sccaners.org

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

*************************************
      YOUR COMMODORE C16/PLUS4
           SPECIAL EDITION
*************************************

A free brand new C16/Plus4 special
edition of Your Commodore is now
available for download.

It includes every games review they
published for the 264 series. Every
"Our Comment" monthly feature. All
the Data Statement news, all the
type-in games and a review of both
the C16 and Plus/4 themselves.

As always, all the scans have been
straightened, reformatted and
cleaned up, no yellowing of the
pages to give a nice fresh original
magazine feel. A brand new cover
design and a new index page which I
(hastily) designed for this
retrospective look back of yet
another classic British magazine.

PDF Format (31MB)
http://www.commodore16.com/baz/magazi
nes/your_commodore-c16-plus4_retro_sp
ecial.pdf

You will need Adobe Acrobat Reader
to view this, which you can download
HERE http://www.adobe.com/downloads/

ZIP Format
http://www.commodore16.com/baz/magazi
nes/your_commodore-c16-plus4_retro_sp
ecial.zip

The magazine in numbered .jpg
images. These are high quality
scans. This comes with CDisplay
which is slightly similar to the
Adobe Acrobat viewer.

You can help the scene by purchasing
the full magazine scans on DVD of
this and many other classic computer
gaming magazines at the Zzap
Zzuperstore
www.zzap64.co.uk/zzuperstore.html

You can now download the
programmer's edition (see Commodore
Free THIS ISSUE news feature Your
Commodore - C16/Plus4 Programmers
Edition for details)

Incidentally, this took a year to
produce. The reason why it took so
long besides the magazine being
larger than usual and due to other
commitments was because I
accidentally lost an important
backup setting me back half the
work. Oops.

Meanwhile, enjoy the memories, and
please leave your comments below :)

Sixteen Plus

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

*************************************
      YOUR COMMODORE C16/PLUS4
         PROGRAMMERS EDITION
*************************************

A free brand new C16/Plus4 special
programmers edition of Your
Commodore is now available for
download. The issue includes every
programming article that was
featured in this long running
magazine.

As always, all the scans have been
straightened, reformatted and
cleaned up, no yellowing of the
pages blah blah blah of yet another
classic British magazine.

This is only available for download
in high-quality JPG images, it comes
with CDisplay which is similar to
the adobe acrobat if you wish to
view it this way. You will need to
download all 4 parts first so to
open with WinRAR to extract the
folders which is available free for
download HERE
http://www.rarlab.com/download.htm

Download:

Part 1
http://www.commodore16.com/baz/magazi
nes/your_commodore-c16-plus4_programm
ers_edition.part1.rar
Part 2
http://www.commodore16.com/baz/magazi
nes/your_commodore-c16-plus4_programm
ers_edition.part2.rar
Part 3
http://www.commodore16.com/baz/magazi
nes/your_commodore-c16-plus4_programm
ers_edition.part3.rar
Part 4
http://www.commodore16.com/baz/magazi
nes/your_commodore-c16-plus4_programm
ers_edition.part4.rar

You can help the scene by purchasing
the full magazine scans on DVD of
this and many other classic computer
gaming magazines at the Zzap
Zzuperstore

Incidentally, this took a year to
produce. The reason why it took so
long besides the magazine being
larger than usual and due to other
commitments, was because I
accidentally lost an important
backup setting me back half the
work. Oops.

Meanwhile, enjoy the articles, and
please leave your comments below :)

Sixteen Plus

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

*************************************
           ARESONE UPDATE
*************************************

FIRMWARE UPDATE FOR THE ARESONE 2010

Recently released is an AresOne 2010
Firmware-update.

Just download the ROM-file and put
it on a USB-Stick or burn it on a
CDR. Then power on your AresOne 2010
and press "DEL" as soon the AresOne
Logo appears. Navigate to EZFlash
like described in the main board
manual. During the first reboot you
will be asked if you want to setup
the Bios (F1) or JUST use default
settings F2 - PLEASE! Press F2! Ok
if you now what your are doing you
can also Press F1 : D

The new Version supports more CPU's
and fixes some bugs.

Get it here: www.aresone.de

ARESONE 2011 AVAILABLE NOW

Time goes by and we have now the
third reincarnation of the AresOne.

The AresOne 2011

Well the description on
www.vesalia.de says still 2010 but
just compare the specs and the
price. We have now 2GB DDR3 Ram. The
HD4200 is now a HD3000 but as some
may now both are interesting because
Bearsoft is working on a driver for
those... In the meantime you can get
Nouveau support by buying the
Geforce 8400. Also we are
investigating the possibility to add
a sparkle Geforce 250GT.... cross
your fingers.

The price is now below 250 euro for
the base system.

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

*************************************
   CBM-COMMAND VERSION 2.0 BETA 1
*************************************

This is the first beta release of
CBM-Command version 2.0. CBM-Command
has undergone a lot of changes since
version 1.7, most of which consist
of a thorough cleaning of the code
by Greg King and new features added
by Payton Byrd; with the space that
Greg King freed up. Being the first
public release after so many
changes, please understand there
will probably be some bugs.

New Features

* REL file copying between devices
  that support REL files.

* D71 disk image support - now you
  can create and write dual sided
  disk images with a 1571 drive

* Configurable Hot Keys - Don't like
  the default keys? You can redefine
  them yourself for version 2.0
  using the Configuration program.

Changes

* Almost all code optimized for
  space savings to allow more
  features.

* Issuing a drive command is now
  done on the main screen instead of
  in a popup box

* When renaming a file, the
  directory remembers where you were
  so you don't have to scroll to the
  newly named file any longer.

* Changed disk image writes to
  reposition the buffer pointer in
  the drive instead of rolling the
  data in CBM-Command which freed up
  a buffer and some memory in the
  main program.

* Old keyboard shortcuts that
  required using the C= key now use
  the SHIFT key instead.


Known Issues

* Documentation is way out of date.
  New documentation is being written
  but is not yet ready for this
  release.

* Some of the default keys have
  changed; If you cannot find your
  old keyboard shortcut then go into
  the Configuration program and
  redefine the function as you need.
  These changes will be documented
  in the new version of the docs.

As always, you can download the
latest version at
http://cbmcommand.codeplex.com

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

*************************************
RELEASED: NANAKO IN JAPANESE MONSTER
               CASTLE
*************************************

Wood, the Portuguese developer who
ported the Spectrum game UWOL to the
C64
http://www.mojontwins.com/juegos_mojo
nos/uwol-quest-for-money-c64/ has
released a conversion of an obscure
Nanako game called "in classic
Japanese monster castle." The game
is released under the MojonTwin
label, and a CPC and Spectrum 128+
versions are already available. ?

The game consists of 25 levels you
have to climb one level to another
level in the castle and off course,
there are some baddies. Nanako is a
very original platform game with
beautiful backdrop graphics and nice
SID tunes.

http://noname.c64.org/csdb/release/do
wnload.php?id=120707

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

*************************************
    PLUS 4: 256K MEMORY EXPANSION
*************************************

The Plus 4 hardware developer
Levente Hrsfalvi started his Plus 4
memory expansion project with the
goal to use native development tools
for his Plus 4 "activities". With
the original 256K hack documents by
Lux at hand, it became apparent that
Levente had to piggy-back chips in
the computer, which he didn't want
to do anymore. ?

After some pondering, brainstorming,
etc. this is the product Levente
came up with.

The Plus 4 memory expansion is
designed in KiCad EDA, although it's
Levente first attempt in about 15
years to etch a printed circuit
board. As such, it should be
considered a "prototype". The design
is fully compatible to the original
design of Hannes Lux & Christian
Schffner and has been tested
successfully with Dream World (by
Bionic/Synergy).
http://plus4world.powweb.com/software
/Dream_World

Benefits over the original design
are:

* no piggy-back needed (installing a
  wire lead is still necessary).

* the need for custom chips
  eliminated (6529B)

* the memory bank register has a
  proper reset

* Levente is considering taking his
  design in to production, moreover
  the design is based on classic
  fundamentals and component are
  cheap and widely available.

For more information click here.
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid
=2092497&id=1458531880&l=3d34937604

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

*************************************
          THE REAR ADMIRAL
*************************************

A few months ago I discovered that
the Rear Admiral hard drive system
was about to be released. It is now
in full distribution from the
designer and through eBay. The Rear
Admiral hard drive is a modernized,
improved incarnation of the 1980's
Lt. Kernal hard drive. Faster than a
CMD hard drive, the Rear Admiral
boasts a slew of features, plus
complete Lt. Kernal compatibility.
Not only can you buy the system, but
you can also buy the chips, DOS,
and/or other parts to improve your
Lt. Kernal hard drive and bring it
up to Rear Admiral standards.

For a more complete description of
the Rear Admiral, go to
http://retro-link.com/smf/index.php?t
opic=542.msg2172#msg2172

For a discussion of the Rear
Admiral, go to
http://www.commodore128.org/index.php
?topic=3505.0

To see the Rear Admiral on eBay,
search for Rear Admiral hard drive.

Regards

Robert Bernardo
Fresno Commodore User Group
http://videocam.net.au/fcug
The Other Group of Amigoids
http://www.calweb.com/~rabel1/
Southern California Commodore &
Amiga Network
http://www.sccaners.org

THE REAR ADMIRAL

by Jeff J., Designer/Author of the
Rear Admiral HyperDrive System
released in 2010

[The Rear Admiral] is not a
"cartridge" - It's a complete SCSI
System Host Adaptor & Hard Drive
with an incredibly powerful
operating system. It's also the only
product for 64/128 computers that
provides simultaneous multiplexing
of all data on the hard drive
between multiple computers. The DOS
provides so many features and
operates in less time that in takes
to blink your eyes. It also supports
"real" Relative (and all other)
format files and can run nearly
anything in the very same way that
any "real" CBM drive would. There is
no need for emulation or fudging of
code to make programs work.
Performance-wise, it's about 20-120
times faster than any other 64/128
products ever devised. Additionally,
with the advanced implementations of
the DOS, it actually changes the
computer into a near-Irix machine
(but still speaking in CBM language)
and without eating up resources in
the computer. With the S.M.A.R.T.
button, C64 programs can be
instantly captured to the drive and
loaded in less than 0.35 seconds, no
matter what program it is. These
captured archives are then
immediately accessible throughout
the "network" (if multiplexed) and
can also be shared with Zip images
since the system will allow Zip
drive archiving. On a 128, it
operates so quickly that there is no
need for additional hardware hanging
all over the computer.

There has truly never been anything
like this system before, with the
exception of the original LTK [Lt.
Kernal hard drive]. That system has
now been vastly improved upon and
has re-emerged as the Rear Admiral
HyperDrive.

You do not plug a Rear Admiral
"into" a Commodore, rather you plug
a Commodore "onto" a Rear Admiral,
hence the slogan: "Every Commodore
should answer to a Rear Admiral..."

The RA system began in mid 2009, as
a very secret project. The
electronics and DOS were completely
developed by the end of 2009. Then,
in early 2010, came the addition of
Zip drive solutions and the AutoMUX.
The system was completed in April,
but there were issues with the Host
Adaptor housings as to finding a
U.S. manufacturer who could meet the
specs. Once that was done and the
housings arrived (in July), the
systems could be built. The entire
project was kept in near total
secrecy until it was only days from
retail release. The RA is 100% U.S.
designed and painstakingly assembled
by hand. All soldering is also done
by hand, right here in Michigan.

The new Rear Admiral System is a
continuation of the Xetec Lt. Kernal
System. There are many long-term
owners of LTKs that still use them
on a daily basis. Those owners do
not easily part with their LTKs and
therefore availability for the units
is sparse, at best. Originally, the
creation of the Rear Admiral was
just homage. Later, it became
apparent that the original Xetec
units could be upgraded to the
advanced Rear Admiral logic by
producing "drop-in" controllers for
equivalent substitution. This allows
the older Xetec Host Adaptors to be
retained and used with RA DOS, while
still supporting all of the vintage
hardware as well, and thus led to
the creation of the new AutoMUX
Multiplexers. The entire RA System
is also 100% backwards compatible
with LK DOS, which provides archive
retrieval/migration. Since the LTKs
are still in operation, the arrival
of the RA system might be quite
timely.

Question - Your eBay post says it
works with copy protected
software... Like what? Can you take
a factory disk and copy it so it
will work? So it sounds like it is
faster that a RAMLink? That would be
great if all the above is true.

All True.

Part 1: You can insert a
copy-protected software disk, load
the program, and when the point is
reached where you are at the main
level (or menu, or start), just
press "S.M.A.R.T." and capture
everything in the computer, reducing
it to an instant load image.

[ S.M.A.R.T. = System Memory And
Register Trapping ]

This does not "duplicate" the
program to another disk; rather it
images the operating program state
to a distilled archive that will
load again to that exact state in
the blink of an eye. You may also
adjust the S.M.A.R.T. capture
features to allow precision captures
of nearly all 64 programs. My
personal archive contains more than
2000 captures and LLoyd Sponenburgh
(LTK) has now created better than
6000 programs in his S.M.A.R.T.
archives, and growing day by day.
Soon, it is desired to have an
entire C64 program biography
(evolution) reduced to the
S.M.A.R.T. instant load archiving
format, all available for RA users.

(Disk Duplication (in most cases)
can be done with FastCopy - Disk
Duplicator Mode - F5 option from the
FastCopy main menu. FastCopy
automatically sends required 20x
code to serial drives and unloads
upon exit, returning any floppy
drive to its normal state.)

Part 2: A CMD RAMLink is neither a
DOS nor a Disk Drive; it is a RAM
expansion device, limited to the
hardware onboard. It does not
provide anything more than extended
Random Access Memory, with larger
space. Even when paired with a
parallel interface cable and a CMD
drive, the performance is only
"enhanced IEC serial" with emulation
of CBM devices. This "emulation"
falls short in many factors of true
CBM compliance and causes many
problems with programs. Other than a
directory sorted storage lair, the
CMD devices never got developed
beyond rudimentary support. As for
the Rear Admiral, all CBM support is
fully available. With the RA, all of
the work is done in the Host
Adaptor, by swapping the entire
programming and register space into
(and out of) the Host Adaptor,
before the computer knows what
happened. The RA is, in a word,
"Breathtaking" to see in action,
since it would take your breath away
upon seeing the speed it actually
delivers without "SuperCPU"
off-board assistance or other
methods whereby the actual computer
would be turned into a "dumb
terminal" device. Unless you
experience it, nothing more than a
glorious myth would describe it. The
RA DOS is the best part, exceeding
the hardware, since it provides so
many features that take the
Commodore 64/128 into the true
"programmer's realm" and beyond.

Rear Admiral performance is faster
because it does all of the
heavy-lifting for the computer
within the Host Adaptor itself,
allowing the computer to remain
unhindered by required programming
overheads placed on it when using
RAM expansion devices (in any form).
The Rear Admiral does not place any
programming into the computer, the
Host Adaptor does the work (as it
should) without the computer ever
noticing.

Evidence is in side-by-side
benchmarking of the varying
equipment. I still own several
RamLink units as well as CMD Drives.
All with parallel cable
configurations. These devices are
still appropriate for many uses and
should not be discounted.

Question - So it sounds like it just
takes a snapshot like the Super
Snapshot or Action Replay? That
would be a nice feature, but
basically doesn't have any better
compatibility than the CMD HD or
RamLink because you can't load copy
protected programs. What about those
with custom loaders? I guess those
would not work either? Either way, I
am glad to see something new being
produced in 2010. It would be nice
to see a video of it in action!

It does in deed support
copy-protected software. S.M.A.R.T.
is unlike Super Snapshot, Action
Replay, or anything else for that
matter.

Here is a more detailed (yet
condensed) overview of the
technology:

[S.M.A.R.T. = System Memory And
Register Trapping]

What does the little blue button
really do?

1) The system is prepared by
allocating a centralized capture
repository file and then placing the
necessary SMART code into the Host
Adaptor's on-board "shadow" RAM. The
computer is then rebooted to a
normal (non-RA) state. The Host
Adaptor is now aware (transparently)
and it waits for the S.M.A.R.T.
button to be pressed. Now the user
can load the target program (even
copy-protected) from the original
source (floppy) drive. At some point
(user's discretion) when the program
is loaded or running, the user
presses the S.M.A.R.T. button to
initiate the actual capture
procedure. Once the button is
pressed, the Host Adaptor "freezes"
the entire computer - CPU activity,
I/O, memory and all register states
(as well as clock data), etc. At the
same instant, all of the "frozen"
information (system-wide) is
buffered into the capture repository
- a large REL "keyed access
database" file with an indexed map
of all captured information from the
system. The system is then booted
back to normal RA operation. The
"image" file is available for
instant access (via the SMART menu)
and can be reverse applied (loaded
back) into the system in about the
same time it takes for the "ENTER"
key to come back up from being
pressed.

2) Since the system conditions
change in a unique way for each
individual program that is captured,
the single repository is not the
logical end of the capture process.
The repository file is mapped large
enough to handle the entire scope of
the 64 yet, in most cases, very
little of that entire scope is
really changed. So, the SMART menu
is the next step after capture.
Adjustment "tweaks" (i.e.; user
preferences) may be applied to the
dynamic "playback" settings for the
repository file. Once satisfied with
the settings (defaults usually do
the trick), the user may then create
a permanent "archive" of the
repository. This process will
compare the "normal boot" state of
the computer with the "target state"
after capture. From this comparison,
a vastly reduced map of the system
necessary to load the captured
program can be derived. That
information is then placed in a new
archival version of the repository
(user named) and becomes the final
capture image at a vastly reduced
file size. The central repository
file will now be used again for the
next capture, in the same way it was
previously, without needing to
re-allocate. The SMART menu will
also build autoloader front ends for
any archive file. This makes it
easier to load the archive by simply
typing the name of the archive,
instead of having to load it from
the SMART menu each time.

3) The entire capture process
requires approx. 1 second to
perform. The "reload" process
requires an approx. maximum of 350
milliseconds seconds.

A video? Not this month. Too many
units to build.

Question - Thank you for the
detailed explanation. I look forward
to seeing one in action sometime.
Maybe I'll see you at a Commodore
conference sometime?

You're welcome, and correspondingly
thanked for your questions.

Conference? That may be possible. I
am currently involved in assisting a
local (Detroit/Metro) area club
(64/128/PET) in their revitalization
efforts. They recently merged with
another club (Amiga/Atari), causing
change to their meeting place and
schedules. I've had to wait for some
of the dust to settle before jumping
in. My goal is to provide a
below-cost Rear Admiral System for
their general equipment, which
already includes some LTKs. However,
I will need to recover a portion of
my investments from the project
before I can proceed.

You may be interested to know that I
have somewhat more immediate plans
to post additional information on
the forum, and allow members to
purchase Rear Admirals directly.
This would (1) save money for member
purchases and (2) generate funds for
the forum, as I will be setting
aside $10 from each unit sold
(through a sponsored link) here for
Lemon64.com.

Question - [Is it just copying the
Lt. Kernal?]

I suppose it would be a nice job of
"copying" had it been just a clone.
However, the need for "just a clone"
was nothing, as a goal. That lesson
was learned (the hard way) many
years ago after successfully
"cloning" the CMD HD's interface
logic. Although rather simplistic in
design, it was still a laborious
task to duplicate that device - the
"cloning" of which has not been
achieved elsewhere to this day. Upon
first conception of the RA project,
it seemed as if to be looking down
the throat of a behemoth. The logic
was so complex that it was amazing
how they could fit so much into the
5C032 PLDs from that era. The
project also required unorthodox
methods (to be invented) in reverse
engineering, just to get started.
The CMD logic uses basic
combinatorial methods, whereas the
LTK uses both combinatorial and
sequential logic, spanning two PLDs,
with portions of the computer and
other Host Adaptor components in
between. After reverse engineering
was finally completed, then came the
task of improving upon the logic
with "notions" dating back to the
late 80's of my LTK experience.
Eventually, the next version of the
LTK emerged as the Rear Admiral
HyperDrive. Now the floodgates are
open for the batch of "surprises" to
be discovered in the next release of
RA DOS (7.4), that of which all
registered owners will receive free
of charge.

Complete owner's manuals are
available to all registered RA users
and accompanying documentation is
sent with the product.

High-Quality detailed photography
transmittal is currently suspended
until an online-magazine finalizes a
review of submitted information.
This material also includes
historical/retrospective data
pertaining to the original LTK, as
well as associated photography.
There are delays pending this review
due to minor language translations
for international publication

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

*************************************
        EWAY10 RELEASES 3 NEW
         C64 ADVENTURE GAMES
*************************************

The German based C64
Publisher/Developer "Eway 10
Software" released 3 new adventure
games, earlier announced in June.
This time the games are translated
into English. Nice touch, some of
the translation is done by our own
C64Scene.nl member: C64Addict (Hans).

The games are only released on tape,
the games released are:

* Dark Catacombs (Dunkle Katakomben)
  is a classical RPG

* The Cave (Die Hohle)

* Astrolab

Eway10 is committed to develop new
classical retro adventures for the
C64 and keep the genre alive.

http://www.eway10.de/

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

*************************************
    ZTERM TERMINAL CLIENT FOR C64
*************************************

Jeff Brown wrote a ZTerm C64
Terminal client as a CCGMS clone, in
essence to support the
swiftlink/turbo232/link232 high
speed cartridges. You can download
the application from here

http://www.c64scene.com/c64/wp-conten
t/downloads/zterm.d64

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

*************************************
           VIC20 NEW GAME:
      THEATER OF WAR WW2 (BETA)
*************************************

Ghislain developer of the Vic20 game
Realms of Quest has released the
first beta of a new Vic20 game
called Theatre of War WW2.

You play the role of a German
general in the Eastern front that is
outnumbered.

The computer AI great and the game
simulates the USSR armies' dearth of
quality officers because Stalin had
purged most of the competent ones
whose allegiance to pure doctrinaire
communism was considered suspect.

Each side has a certain number of
supply points that are generated per
turn (which goes into reserve). This
number goes down by 1 every time a
unit is destroyed. Each battle
begins with an empty map, and both
sides start to place units (by using
up supply/reserve points). A battle
is won when a ground unit occupies
the flag of the enemy.

The terrain also affects movement
(can stop or slow movement) and can
provide defence bonuses ? the goal
of the game is simple . "capture the
flag."

http://www.c64scene.com/c64/wp-conten
t/downloads/THEATR16.P00

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

*************************************
            CHAMELEON 64
*************************************

FLICKER FIXER, REU, TURBO BOARD AND
MORE FOR THE COMMODORE 64

Chameleon 64 is an extremely
user-friendly cartridge that can be
used without opening the computer.
It is just plugged into the
expansion port of the C64.
Everything a C64 user would expect
from a multi-function cartridge is
there; plus a lot more, as you can
see in the features overview.

The Chameleon cartridge can also be
operated as a stand-alone unit
(since it's basically an FPGA
computer like the C-One or the
Minimig in a C64 cartridge case),
replacing the computer, the floppy
drive and the heavy power supply.
When used as a stand-alone unit, a
USB power adapter (available
separately) or active USB hub can be
used as a power source. Even a
USB-enabled computer (or LCD TV, DVD
players) can be used to power this
nifty little cartridge.

TECHNICAL DATA IN SHORT:

* VGA-output with 60 Hz refresh rate
  or more

* Turbo function with full 6510
  processor compatibility (incl.
  illegal opcodes)

* Cycle-exact REU (memory expansion)
  with 16 MB RAM

* MMC/SD card slot with MMC64
  compatibility and 1541-emulation

* Connector for PS/2 mouse and PS/2
  keyboard

* Freezer (compatible with Retro
  Replay)

* Bright yellow case with blue
  buttons

* Battery-backed real time clock

* IR receiver for CDTV remote control

* Stereo audio out for stereo SID
  emulation

* USB link to a PC for debugging and
  data transfer

* Connector for RR-Net (10 Mbit
  Ethernet)

(image shows prototype version)

The Chameleon 64 cartridge is under
constant development. Since it is a
re-configurable platform, hardware
updates can be installed by updating
the flash of the cartridge. This
does not require expert knowledge,
and it doesn't even require opening
the cartridge. All you need is an
internet-enabled PC (running Linux
or Windows) with a USB port; this
lets you perform the update via a
USB connection. The special
breakout-cable required for this
connection is included with
Chameleon 64

Orders are being taken from VESALIA
online

http://www.vesalia.de/

The unit is priced without Shipping
costs at 199 euro.

Individual's website is listed here
http://www.jschoenfeld.com/

The product information is available
from here
http://www.jschoenfeld.com/products/c
hameleon_e.htm

or here in German language
http://www.jschoenfeld.com/products/c
hameleon.htm

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

*************************************
      DISCREETFX PLATFORM SHIFT
*************************************

DiscreetFX's primary focus for quite
a while has been developing visual
effects products for video editing
solutions on Windows. We would
sometimes also make these effects
available at a later date for Mac OS
X. Potential Mac customers would
call us concerned because certain
products would ship much later for
Mac OS X if ever. As 2010 winds down
and ends we have noticed a softening
in our Windows effects business. We
did some research and found that
while companies that sell integrated
hardware/software solutions on
Windows are doing fine software only
vendors have noticed a great slow
down.

Our research results have come back
and this downward spiral will only
continue and accelerate in the
future. Microsoft continues to bleed
many key executives at an alarming
pace. What do they know that we
don't? Since we wish to grow and
expand DiscreetFX we plan to avoid
this destitution and software sales
decay. For some time we have already
run the business side of DFX on Mac
OS X and this has worked out well.
Starting today we will change the
focus of our software effects
development from Windows to Mac OS
X. Now the OS X versions of our
software will come out first and
later the Windows versions will ship
if ever depending on the product.
The first product this will affect
is MusicFX.

DiscreetFX's Amiga business and
Amiga.org will remain unchanged
since this has always been the fun
side of the business. This decision
should strengthen DiscreetFX and
help it grow. We are only reporting
it here for transparency reasons and
for full disclosure to our customers
since some of them are members of
this site. Of course old products
are still fully supported.

If you have questions don't hesitate
to ask. Our first mission is to help
our great customer base. Exciting
times are ahead like the Mac App
Store. A lot of our regular
customers have changed platforms
from Windows to Mac and we will now
join them. Expect to see other
software developers follow suit. We
are usually slightly ahead of the
curb. If you remember we were one of
the first to embrace selling
software on Flash drives in 2006 and
we completely moved to selling all
our FX software on Flash drives in
2008. Apple just started selling Mac
OS X and iLife 11 on Flash drives
last week with the new MacBook Air.

Best regards
DiscreetFX Team

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

Visual FX company DiscreetFX LLC
Inc. and a group of investors have
submitted a proposal to Amiga Inc.
requesting formal validation of the
company's value. DiscreetFX hopes to
secure funding to purchase Amiga Inc
and it's Intellectual Property
within the next year.

Currently DiscreetFX is hard at work
completing their documentary titled
"Oil Change". Oil Change is a film
about the dangers of trans fatty
acids in the style of "Super-Size
Me". Plans to purchase Amiga Inc
would proceed after the completion
of the movie which is currently in
pre-production.

Ultimately this transaction would
depend on Amiga Inc's willingness to
sell and price negations. DiscreetFX
believes there is tremendous value
in the Amiga brand and the Amiga
Operating system.

DiscreetFX CEO stated. "Today we
primarily develop our visual effects
software on NewTek video editing
solutions for Windows and Final Cut
Studio for Mac OS X. But the Amiga
has always held a special place in
my heart since I developed my first
product for the Amiga Video Toaster
on it. I want to help bring the
Amiga back to it's former glory in
new IT markets."

If an agreement can be reached
between Amiga Inc and DiscreetFX,
the much speculated return of the
Amiga brand could spark a unique,
new chapter in the machine's ever
fluctuating history.

Best regards,
DiscreetFX Partners

ABOUT DISCREETFX

DiscreetFX has been creating
software products for the Amiga,
video editing, computer generated
graphics (CGI) industry since 1995.
The Amiga computer defined and
created the affordable video
editing, computer graphics market
with its birth in 1985. DiscreetFX
creates Real-time transitions and
effects seen on over 100 television
programs including Blind Date, 5th
Wheel, Shipmates and more! You can
also see DiscreetFX software used on
the following networks HBO,
Showtime, Discovery Channel, PBS,
Fox and more! Video Toaster, VT[5],
VT[4]/[3]/[2], SpeedEDIT are
registered trademarks of NewTek.
Final Cut Studio and Mac OS X are
registered trademarks of Apple
Computer. Amiga is a registered
trademark of Amiga Incorporated

http://www.discreetfx.com/News.html
http://www.discreetfx.com/

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

*************************************
  ON THE EDGE: THE SPECTACULAR RISE
        AND FALL OF COMMODORE
*************************************

To: Commodore Free
Subject: Commodore: A Company on the
Edge - near release

It's been a long time in coming, but
Brian Bagnall, author of the book,
"On the Edge: the Spectacular Rise
and Fall of Commodore", has
confirmed that his new book,
"Commodore: A Company on the Edge",
is at the printer right now and will
be shipped soon. In fact, at
Amazon.com there is page that says
that Variant Press will release the
book on December 15. Just in time
for Christmas!

To see the initial announcement, go
to

http://www.amazon.com/Commodore-Compa
ny-Edge-Brian-Bagnall/dp/0973864966/r
ef=sr_ob_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1289706472&sr=
8-1

Think of the new book as a second
edition of On the Edge. Here is what
Brian had to say, "It was a long
road and a lot of work to get the
second edition into shape. There was
so much new information from the 15
additional interviews and tons of
pictures that I had to split the
book into two parts. A Company on
the Edge deals with the period up
until Tramiel leaves and the second
part (slated for 2012) will tell the
post-Tramiel years with the Amiga.
Each book deals with about a 10 year
period, and a lot of players change
in 1984 so it worked out to be a
pretty good split."

Truly,
Robert Bernardo
Fresno Commodore User Group
http://videocam.net.au/fcug

-----Original message----------------
From: Brian Bagnall
Date: 29-Nov-2010

Hi everyone.

I'm happy to report that my new
book, Commodore: a Company on the
Edge, is now available from
www.VariantPress.com. This is a
heavily reworked edition with about
40% new material. Before starting
this project I made a list of
everything that I would have liked
to include in the first edition. The
main areas I wanted to work on were:
more interviews to fill in gaps in
the story, reorder the material
chronologically, and add more period
photographs. It was very important
to me to put all this material in
the right order so readers could
read a coherent, chronological
retelling of Commodore history. This
time you can relive the Commodore
experience in real-time.

Originally, the goal was to keep the
same page count as the first
edition. That turned out to be
overly optimistic. After 15 new
interviews and a lot of new stories,
plus numerous pictures, there was no
way to make it all fit. As a result,
the story has been split in two. The
first book ends in 1984 when Jack
Tramiel is forced out of the company
and the next book will focus on the
Amiga years and Commodore's eventual
demise.

There are many new firsthand
interviews:

Brian Dougherty  GEOS developer
John Feagans  PET developer
Andy Finkel  Commodore game developer
Bill Gardei  C65 systems engineer
Neil Harris  Commodore game
developer and marketing
Manfred Kapp  Commodore cofounder
Dale Luck  Amiga developer
Bill Mensch  6502 and 65816 designer
Dick Sanford  Chief Financial
Officer of Commodore
Bill Seiler  PET, VIC-20 systems
engineer/surfer
Kit Spencer  Commodore's marketing
guru
Yash Terakura  Commodore Japan
engineer
Michael Tomczyk  VIC product manager
and marketing

Plus additional fact-checking
interviews with Chuck Peddle, Bil
Herd and Bob Yannes. I did get a
chance to talk with Jack Tramiel
briefly but didn't get any new
material from him unfortunately.

I don't want to ruin too many
surprises, but I will mention a few
things. First, thanks to John
Feagans, an avid photographer, the
book is populated with outstanding
period photographs. One of the
biggest surprises for me was finding
out that current Nintendo CEO Satoru
Iwata started his career programming
VIC-20 games for Commodore Japan.
The book digs deeper into actor
William Shatner's association with
Commodore and reveals some
interesting titbits. There is also a
firsthand account of the horrifying
PET Jet disaster. Lots of new
changes like that.

The book will be available in stores
in about a month. If you need it for
Christmas you can get it immediately
from my publisher, Variant Press,
which distributes signed copies from
its website.

http://www.variantpress.com

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

*************************************
     UIEC CHANGE DEVICE PROGRAM
*************************************

To: Commodore Groups
From: JIM PETERS
Subject: uIEC device Number change

Old Jim here:

I added a couple of input lines, to
the program someone posted some time
back. I think it makes changing
device number on the uIEC a little
bit easier. The keys listed inside :
{ } are to be used with the SHIFT
key and [ ] are to be used with the
CONTRL key.

10 REM - INPUT DEVICE NUMBERS -
100 PRINT "{CLR/HOME}"
110 INPUT "OLD DEVICE NUMBER";OD
120 INPUT "NEW DEVICE NUMBER";ND
200 REM - CHANGE DEVICE NUMBER -
210 OPEN 15,OD,15
220 PRINT# 15,"U0>"+CHR$(ND)
230 CLOSE 15
300 REM - LOCK NEW NUMBER INTO EPROM
    OR NOT ? -
310 INPUT "LOCK NEW NUMBER INTO
    EPROM [REV] Y/N [OFF]";A$
320 IF A$ = "NO" THEN END
400 REM - LOCK NEW uIEC DEVICE
    NUMBER INTO EPROM -
410 OPEN 15,ND,15
420 PRINT# 15,"XW"
430 CLOSE 15

Hope this makes changing your device
number easier.

Jim Peters

----

Very nice. One fix I saw in there:

320 IF A$ = "N" THEN END

if Y/N was the input the program
would never see NO... Also I would
suggest:

320 IF A$ <> "Y" THEN END

that way if they miss-type N it does
not change the eprom

Larry

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

*************************************
           SD2IEC FIRMWARE
*************************************

GEOS BOUNTY COMPLETED!

Commodore Bounty is proud to
announce that the very first bounty
has been completed!

The sd2iec-Geos support Bounty is
complete and bounty contributions
have been released. sd2iec-0.10.0 is
confirmed to support all
(non-cracked versions) Geos 2.0 64
and 128 D64, D81 and DNP images.
Additionally (non-cracked versions)
Wheels 64 and 128 v4.1-4.4 is
confirmed working with D64, D81 and
DNP images. These have been tested
without SuperCPU and With SuperCPU
turbo enabled.

sd2iec-0.10.0 is available to
download as always from HERE.
http://www.sd2iec.de/

Commodore Bounty would like to thank
Ingo Korb for such a fantastic job
done. The results are everything
envisioned and more!

http://commodorebounty.com/index.php?
option=com_kunena&Itemid=54&func=view
&catid=8&id=143#145

A quick and dirty video
demonstrating Wheels 128 v4.4 (aka
Geos 4) running directly from a
uIEC/CF (compact flash reader), on
my Commodore 128 Tower with SuperCPU
128. In the future I will do other
videos focusing more on specific
uses and specific software. This
video is simply proof of Wheels
running from he uIEC. Geos and
Wheels support to the sd2iec
firmware is thanks to a completed
bounty of Commodore Bounty and the
efforts of programmer Ingo Korb.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=mPdOKuZcrNc

=====================================

*************************************
      INTERVIEW WITH ALF YNGVE
*************************************

www.youtube.com/user/SEUCKgames

HISTORY OF SEUCK

Some people hate games based nothing
more on the fact that it was written
with SEUCK (the shoot em up
construction kit) the program is a
games creation package notably and
fairly obviously from the title you
will have guessed, it was designed
to create shoot-em up style games.
The package was created by Sensible
software who wrote such notable
titles as "parallax" and "Wizball"
when the system first appeared it
was said that Sensible had "given
away there trade secrets" to create
a games This was a system that
required no programming knowledge to
use, but still unfortunately needed
an initial idea and some basic
artistic talents. Some still doubt
that it can produce anything at all
never mind a decent game, Given the
right idea and the skill and
patience to sit down with a good
design the package is more than a
capable system, true it has
limitations like it would only
scroll vertically, although recent
updates have seen a horizontal
version being released, if you want
to find out more and download some
games created in the package you
could do no worse than to point your
web browser here
http://www.seuck.retrogaming64.com/in
dex.html a very active site
dedicated to all things SEUCK Not
all SEUCK games are actually space
games as you will find out.

Q. Please introduce yourself to our
readers

Hi Commodore Free Readers!

I'm a Swedish game designer; I think
I am mostly known for making SEUCK
games, and I have done this since
the 1990s.

Q, What profession do you currently
work in

Well sadly I'm no longer in the
games industry.

Q. How did you first come across the
Commodore brand of machines

I Bought a used CBM64 from a friend.

Q. You have written a number of
games using the SEUCK system can you
explain the system to our readers

The Shoot'em-up Construction Kit is
a very simple-to-use, fairly basic
utility/interface for making games
without programming skills.
Everything is self contained so you
have a sprite editor music and sound
creator and of course a logic glue
to put the all together. You can at
a very basic level design characters
and place them graphically on screen
then set routes for them to follow
and how to fire and when the screen
moves etc. the original version only
moved the screen upwards The best
way to learn the utility is by
trying it out.

Q. Why use SEUCK

Basically to save time, because you
don't need to know how to program
and also because you get fast
results you can see any changes
immediately on screen. If this sound
like your way of working then SEUCK
is the thing.

Q. Recently SEUCK has received a
number of updates can you explain
what the original system and its
limitations and how the updates have
been implemented

Now there are THREE versions of
SEUCK available:

1. The classic version from Sensible
Software, for making only
vertically-scrolling games

2. Jon Wells' new version with
horizontal scrolling instead of
vertical

3. Gernot Frisch's SEUCK freeware
program for making PC games with
16-bit graphics.

Q. Are there still limitations in
the system you find frustrating

1. No power-ups.

2. Memory limits (but you can work
around them if you're able to code a
"multiload" system in addition to
the original software.)

3. No music editor/option.

Q. Your recent game 1,000 KUNG-FU
MANIACS! Has been enhanced though
can you explain the enhanced process

You'd have to ask Richard Bayliss,
the coder; I have no programming
skills.

Q. I know Richard Bayliss is a big
SEUCK fan, did he provide any
pointers to creating a great game

Yes! He figured out what was
possible with the system and what
was not, and we collaborated closely
on testing the power-up design.

Q 1,000 KUNG-FU MANIACS! is to be
released commercially can you tell
our reader where he would buy this
product

Of course you can buy the finished
version from
http://www.psytronik.net/

Q. Will the final version be a boxed
version, and will there be other
formats available for example on
tape disk and as a digital download

From the website you can obtain the
following versions

A Boxed version,
A tape version ,
A disk

and there is even a digital download
in the form of a D64 file.

Q. So what is the process in
designing a SUECK game, you start
with an idea then what...

Well I Always start with an idea,

Then I work on a theme,

Of course you could do a puzzle or a
simple story.

Q. When did you start using SEUCK

Back in 1987 or 1988. Only after a
few years did I start to send them
to magazines. One editor at Zzap!64
(later renamed COMMODORE FORCE)
encouraged me to seek a job in the
games industry which I did! And I
worked in game design and QA (games
testing) for many years.

Q. Did you receive any feedback
about the games

Actually, no not that much to be
honest.

Q. Do you have any favorite SEUCK
games

I'm very pleased with how my game
NUKENIN & THE RONIN turned out of
course I am biased towards them.

Q. Is there a magic formula for
creating a perfect SEUCK game

Sadly there are no perfect SEUCK
games and no magic formula. But you
have to test, improve and polish the
game until it gets good. Attention
to detail is crucial: one badly
implemented feature can spoil the
entire impression.

Q. Do you have any other plans for
SEUCK games

More plans than I have time
(unfortunately).

At some point in the future I will
have to shift from C64 SEUCK to PC
SEUCK development.

Q. Do you have a final comment for
our readers

SEUCK is the computer game
equivalent of Punk Rock: Do it
yourself, it doesn't matter if you
can only play three chords, and
don't be afraid to express yourself.

=====================================

*************************************
        HOW TO BUILD YOUR OWN
        RGBI>S-VIDEO ADAPTOR
          By Allan Bairstow
*************************************

www.commodorescene.org.uk

FOREWORD:

Many of you will be aware of my task
to find a decent adaptor to convert
the C128 80 full colour signal into
one that will display on a modern
SVGA LCD monitor, this has not
happened yet but I think I am
getting close. However, earlier this
year, I finally managed to get part
way there, with this S-Video adaptor
which will allow you to use a modern
LCD panel providing it has an
S-Video input. The quality is very
good, although not 100% correct, but
to the untrained eye it looks
perfectly fine.

I have now built many of these units
for people and the feedback has been
mixed with gratitude and a sense of
relief that they no longer need
their bulky, old and failing
monitors. There are a couple of
downsides to building these adaptors

(1) they are very fiddly to make,

(2) some of the parts have to be
bought in bulk as the suppliers
usually have a 'minimum order'
policy,

(3) they are very time consuming to
make.

Even if I built it correctly the
first time it still takes me nearly
four hours to build and test each
one. Generally speaking, that is one
a day.

So here we have a building guide for
you to follow if you wish to attempt
it yourself. I must warn you that
you will need good soldering skill,
a steady hand, good eyesight and
plenty of patience.

All prices quoted are approximated
from bulk buying and all the details
were correct at time of writing.

PARTS LIST : (FIG 1)

* 1x Case - Ice Blue 1591BT (Maplins
  N06GC) 4

* 1x A22 Board (eBay shop Y-PLUS
  usually have them) 30

* 1x Half a 9 pin serial cable
  (Maplins L66BT) 2

* 4x rubber feet (Maplins FW38) 1

* 4x circuit board stand offs
  (Maplins A01BJ) 32p

* 1x Grommet (Maplins) 10p

* 1x Breadboard section (Maplins) 50p

* 1x Small cable tie (not shown) 10p

* 6x Diodes 1N914 (eBay) 30p

* 3x Resistors 1k Ohm (eBay) 75p

* 1x Resistor 1.2K Ohm (eBay) 25p

* 1x 6pin connector housing
  (Farnells 151-6269 pack of 5)*

* 6x pins for connector housing
  (Farnells 151-6301 pack of 10)*

*I cant remember what these cost but
there was a minimum order of 5

As you can see, before we even begin
building the cost of parts alone is
nearly 45 !

ESSENTIAL TOOLS:

* Small vice (I used a 'quick grip')

* Modeling drill with a cutting disc

* Circuit tester / Multi Meter

* Soldering Iron

* De-solder device

* High grade solder

* Stepped core drill bit
  4/6/8/10/12mm (see Fig 18)

* Selection of small screwdrivers
  and craft knives

STAGE 1  MODIFYING THE A22 BOARD

The A22 board has a 'composite out'
connector (Fig 3) that we don't need
as it gets in the way when we try to
house the board in its casing so it
has to be removed. De-solder the two
pins holding the composite socket to
the board while carefully prizing
the socket away from the board.

The removed socket (Fig 4) can be
discarded as it is no longer needed.
History fact : early designs
incorporated the Composite output
but the quality of the signal was
horrendous to say the least. Take it
from me, you don't need it ! It also
makes inserting/removing the A22
board a lot easier when you are
building your device.

STAGE 2  MODIFYING THE CASE

Inside the casing are four raised
nodules (see Fig 5) which will need
to be removed as they will foul the
board if left in place. Using the
modeling drill with a cutting disc,
cut away the four nodules and trim
any plastic away to leave the base
nice and smooth (Fig 6).

Place the A22 board centrally inside
the case with the socket side flush
up against the case wall (Fig 7) and
mark the four board holes with a
marker pen (Figs 8, 9 & 10).

Drill out the four marked holes with
a small drill bit that is 'just'
smaller than the threads on the
board stand offs (Fig 11).

Now screw in all four stand offs
(Fig 12) and leave the protruding
threads on the underside of the case
(Fig 13) do not cut them off.

Refit the A22 board and push it home
onto all four stand offs (Fig 14).

We now need to mark three holes to
cut, the main two at the front for
the s-video socket and power socket
(Fig 16) and one to the left hand
side of the case for the RGBI cable
to go through (Fig 17).

VERY CAREFULLY  remove the A22 board.

Using the stepped core drill bit,
drill the holes as follows: 12mm for
the s-video, 10mm for the power
socket (Fig 18) and 8mm for the RGBI
cable.

Now cut out a 'V' section above the
8mm RGBI cable hole (Fig 19) so that
the grommet will slide into place
(Fig 20).

Replace the A22 board and check the
hole alignments (Fig 21) and alter
as required. Turn the case over and
place the four rubber feet in
position (Fig 22).

STAGE 3  MAKING THE DAUGHTERBOARD

The daughterboard converts the RGBI
signal into a standard RGB signal so
we now need to turn this collection
of parts (Fig 23) into a
daughterboard. This part is very
important and is the second hardest
part to achieve! I won't bore you
with how to solder (you shouldn't be
doing this if you can't solder),
simply follow the wiring diagram
(Circuit 1).

The finished board should look
something like this (Fig 24).

Technical note:
Resistors can be fitted either way
around but Diodes can't  make sure
they are the correct way round
before soldering them into place.

STAGE 4  ADAPTING THE SERIAL CABLE

Firstly, remove the grommet from the
case and slide it down the cable and
leave it there (Fig 29).

Next you will need to remove the
outer sheathing from the wires, make
sure you expose about 6" (Fig 30).

Using a multi meter check which
colour wire is attached to each pin
(Fig 31).

If you look very closely at the pins
inside the plug, you will see that
they are numbered from 1 to 9. Make
sure you write down the results as
this is where most of my mistakes
happened. You will notice that we
don't need all ten wires, see below
for details.

Serial Pin 1  Ground
Serial Pin 2  Ground
Serial Pin 3  RED
Serial Pin 4  GREEN
Serial Pin 5  BLUE
Serial Pin 6  Intensity
Serial Pin 7  NOT NEEDED so remove it
Serial Pin 8  Horizontal Sync
Serial Pin 9  Vertical Sync

Serial Spare wire from shield casing
NOT NEEDED so remove it

We now need to crimp on the tiny
connectors for the 6 pin block
connector for the A22 board. I
consider this bit to be the most
difficult part as it is a very
fiddly and delicate task to perform.
Take your time and be careful when
making these connections. Refer to
the diagram (Circuit 2) for the pin
connections on the A22 board.

1  Vertical Sync
2  Horizontal Sync
3  Ground
4  Blue
5  Green
6  Red

Wires 1&2 need to be twisted
together and crimped into the same
connector (Fig 32) and slotted into
the connector in the '3 - GND'
position. When you have crimped all
the wires and inserted them in the
connector you should have three
wires left over (Fig 33), one is the
Serial Pin 6 Intensity wire but the
other two are not needed so they can
be cut off and discarded.

DO NOT attach the connector to the
board yet !

STAGE 5  ATTACHING THE DAUGHTERBOARD

Using the cable you have now
completed, we need to cut the
RED/GREEN/BLUE signal wires in half
and also cut the INTENSITY wire to
the same length (Fig 34).

These wires now need to be soldered
onto the daughterboard (Fig 35).

Again, follow the circuit diagram to
make sure you have the wires in the
correct place.

STAGE 6  FINAL ASSEMBLY

Your completed cable/daughterboard
assembly can now be fitted into the
casing (Fig 36).

Make sure the connector fits firmly
and that all the pins are in place
as sometimes they pop out of the
connector when being connected. Put
the grommet & cable in its location
hole and fit a cable tie to the
cable 'inside' the case so it
doesn't accidently get pulled out.
Place the daughterboard to the rear
of the case and feed the wires
around to make them tidy. The
daughterboard does not need securing
in place as the wires hold it well
enough.

Important: there are three gain
screws on the A22 board (for RGB
adjustment), these need to be set in
the following manner  fully
anti-clockwise and then clockwise
about 1mm. The PAL/NTSC switch
should be set to PAL.

When you have tested it and are
satisfied that all is well, put on
the cover and screw it down (fig 37)

Job done.

POWERING THE RGBI>S-VIDEO

The A22 board can tolerate anything
from 8v to 15v DC so anywhere
between the two should be fine. I
have been powering the units with a
spare 9v 4amp DC from my CS-SuperPSU
and it runs just fine.

TROUBLESHOOTING:

Building something like this for the
first time is going to give you
problems and I certainly was not
immune to them in the early days. I
found that the most common reasons
why the device wasn't functioning
were because the soldering on the
daughterboard was 'touching' its
neighbors, check that and rectify
it. Another fault which took me ages
to locate was that one of the tiny
strands of wire had shorted out
across its neighbor, again, check
this and rectify it. Another problem
could be the actual monitor itself.
I have only been able to test it on
two different monitors and both
function okay. All the units that I
have built for people work okay and
no one has yet to report a problem
with any monitors, however, that
does not mean that this problem
won't crop up in the future.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS & REFERENCE:

This project has taken me all year
to perfect and it could not have
been done without the help of the
following people:

Nigel Parker (commodore free), Shaun
Bebbington, Chris Syntichakis,
Zetro, Robert Willie, Ray Carlsen,
Bill Herd & Kevin Krausnick.

It has to be said that the final
push came from Robert Willie and he
details his project in full at
http://sites.google.com/site/h2obsess
ion/CBM/C128/rgbi-s-video . I
strongly recommend you go there to
see earlier variants of this circuit
design.

Details of the A22 board can be
found at
arcademvs.com/ARCADE_ACESSERIOR.htm

I thank everyone for their words of
encouragement and help throughout
this entire process.

PRICING:

Now that you know the cost of parts
and how difficult it is to build I
hope you understand the pricing
structure I have put in place.
However, if I build one for you, it
will be tested, 100% functioning and
will come with a test program on
5.25" or 3.5" disk. Each unit is
personalized to you with a unique
label and serial number.

The prices include

* the Mk2 RGBI>S-Video Adaptor (v4a),

* a test disk (State 5.25" or 3.5"),

* information sheet with proof of
  functioning.

CCCUK members 70 (some of proceeds
going to club funds)

Non members ? - eBay auctions only

Postage & packaging - UK 7.50
(insured)
Postage & packaging - World 25
(insured)

ORDERING:

Do not send any money 'up front'.
Because, at best, I can only make
possibly 2 or 3 of these a week so I
won't take any money up front as I
don't want people saying to me "I've
paid you so where is it ?" every
five minutes. The best way would be
for you to send me an email
(allan.bairstow@btinernet.com) and I
will put you on the list for
January/February 2011. First come
first served basis will apply. When
units are ready I will contact you
to confirm you still require it and
arrange payment.

FUTURE DEVELOPMENTS:

The Mk3 will have a 'swappable'
daughterboard to easily allow
different daughterboard
configurations to be used.

I am currently testing different
daughter boards on the Arcade RGBS
CGA/EGA/YUV to 2 VGA converter which
will 'hopefully' allow a solution to
holy grail of a C128 80 Column
Colour to SVGA/VGA problem.

COPYRIGHT:

All information in this article is
given freely to the Commodore
community and is not copyrighted in
any way. November 2010.

=====================================

*************************************
      COMMODORE 16 PROGRAMMING
     The Write Ups For Issue 45
*************************************

How very cruel would I be, if I
didn't come back to write up the
explanations for the printed
programs?

...Well, goodbye then...

OK, OK! Don't all cheer at once!

I do hope however, that by now some
of my explanations won't be needed.
Not by every-one anyway -just those
with loads of money to spare who
would gladly part with a small
fortune for more tips on controlling
...err, interacting with their
computer. So without much more
waffle...

I start with GShape, & GShape1,
pretty similar programs that attempt
to show some of the c16/+4's drawing
capability. Focusing on not just
drawing the shape in the first
place. Part of the shape is saved to
memory, RAM in this case. Only for
part of it to be redrawn on the
screen elsewhere.

I can only guess that when commodore
removed sprites from its capability,
it was intended that this sort of
routine would be used. The POKE
command though is still very much in
preference from the material I've
read, as it seems to allow better
scope for motion and quicker
responsiveness.

Page 90, of The "Programmers
reference guide for the commodore
plus/4, Merten &Meyer" is referenced
as being the place where these
initial programs were obtained for
our learning.
I made a reference also to page 45
of the same book, as a possibly good
avenue as a way in to someday obtain
a better understanding of the area
being saved "Sshape", as well as to
the rules of how much of the saved
shape could be Got "GSHAPE" all at
once. As illness takes its toll,
this remains a mystery.

Lines 7 & 8; make altering the
program easier. These being added by
yours truly, again in the hopes of
working out how to save different
parts of the picture and put it
elsewhere. Evidence of my starting
this experiment already can be seen
if you compare the program with the
listing in the original manual.

Lines up to 40 draw the initial
shape on screen.

45 to 55 Save an area of the picture
(Actually, this takes one line.) The
other two here yak on about it to
-err- save me typing a lot here!!

60 Wait for any key to be pressed
(This has nothing in the program to
suggest it is what is required so,
either assumes the user has read and
understands the program, or relies
on that time in games that I am sure
you all remember, where a game
crashes and you frantically press
each key in the hopes that one of
them will free it up. Cunning, very
cunning!)

70 user has pressed a key, so draw
the saved shape.

80 as 60 -"yawn!"

90 return to normal screen

200 A note for those who may wish to
study and expand the program. The
manual is available online.

FLAGS1

If you're thinking where's the Union
flag, The St. George, St. David, St.
Andrew, St. Patrick etc. You may
note due to the mostly emptiness of
the screen that this program is
unfinished. There is a good reason
for this. As I was working through
the book, something made me
sidetrack to The flag of Japan, I
think it was a film, but a I
actually wrote this a while ago
(necessary in case proof of
copyright were ever needed, albeit
in this case for the sake of good
practice). For some reason what
should have been nice and easy,
perhaps the simplest to do became
the hardest. And I cannot figure for
the life in me why this should be. I
left it down to manufacturing error
in the absence of any professional
guidance. -I will keep looking, and
if any-one knows please let us know.

10 tell us what it is.

20 set background; main colours,
though this takes a whole new
meaning in the GRAPHICs screen. Will
come to later.

30 An absolutely pointless command
that survived all debugging. In
truth is evidence that when I came
to the stumbling block -that is to
say the problems that as yet remain
unknown regarding drawing of the
flag of Japan. Is therefore evidence
of varying experiments to try to
rectify the problems that occurred.

40 set the required screen

45 This is supposed to say "goto
310", which was put in place so that
when I was trying to troubleshoot
the Japanese patriot emblem, I
didn't have to wait for all the
other flags to render. How the
typo's got in, I do not know!

50 set the drawing color; first flag
in The "An Introduction to BASIC
part 1" book, and so I wonder if
Prof. Andrew Colin had links? And
again, if any-one knows where part 2
for the c16/+4 can be obtained
Please, Please let me know!

60 draw a box with the relevant
first colour.

70 change colour for second box and

80 draw it.

90 & 100 same again for last box.
You will notice that I had to draw
extra, that the following box partly
writes over. I found it necessary to
do this, and you will see why if you
experiment with the box numbers.
Quite why this happens is anybody's
guess.

Lines follow the same type of
pattern throughout the program. The
size of box being relevant to the
required shape, and drawn in the
appropriate colour of that nation.
With as near a match as I could get
to the respective nation. This being
the third number in the COLOR
command.

Having studied the rest of the
lines, one will come to 310 in due
course.

If you've run the program already
you will note the bottom corners are
wrong.

Try reinstating line 45 as mentioned.

change line 320, either put REM in
front of it or delete it completely
as it seems to be utterly pointless,
though it is supposed to place the
pc. "pointer cursor" which only the
plus 4 reference seems to have the
correct use for. See page61. For
those who fume at books that leave
it at that... the DRAW command can
either be used with "from"
co-ordinates, as well as the "TO"
co-ordinates. With Locate on one
line, the DRAW TO ... command is
used.

<<<BREAK-THROUGH!!!>>>

It shows: If in doubt. With a long
program, try a shorter program to
fix the fault! I therefore include
"Japanese3" because this is exactly
what I did. And have learned that my
error was in the GRAPHIC command.
Numbers 1 & 2 do not allow for the
multicolor function. (i.e. COLOR2,X
OR COLOR3,Y). Strangely, everything
is drawn much bigger. I had the size
I wanted with "GRAPHIC1" but
actually I can live with this.
Change line40 to "GRAPHIC3,1" -where
the x,1 clears any previous screen.

"Ah-ha!", it was in the manual all
along, but being uneducated I didn't
properly take in the cold hard
terms. So for others who require
good examples and sometimes quite
lengthy explanations I have shared
my humiliation/s here.

If you are using an emulator such as
Yape. You may, if you wish, delete
the lines 310 to 410 in Flags1. Then
save it. Open Japanease3. Renumber
lines as "RENUMBER310,10" Clear the
screen completely (scnclr). then
type list. edit out the "ready."
prompt. Right click on the mouse,
select copy. Now you're ready to go
back to Flags1 and paste the program
to append it. Once you've done this,
check it works. And save it as
"Flags2".

Hurray! This has saved me a lot of
painstaking explanations, looking
for ways to explain why certain
lines had to be added, and trying to
come up with reasons for "why this
happened when..." etc. It proves:
The solution is better than many
answers!

There's still errors in the program!
Can you work out why the middle
looks too big in France & Italy's
flag, and the cross is now off
centre in this rendition of Swiss
flag. These co-ordinates shall have
to be altered in due course. First I
will run through the lines that we
have appended to the main
program.(as renumbered)

310 You may wish to change this to
simply say Japan, to be more in line
with the other titles. I now
recommend putting other commands
separate though, in this case COLOR
gets her own line.

320 If you have corrected line40, in
Flags... then you don't need this
repeated. Either delete it to save
memory, or place a REM before it to
serve as a reminder of the exercise
in trial and error.

330 "For those of you watching in
black and white" this gives a dark
purple drawing surface
("foreground"), and a black
background.

340 again a debuggers checklist

350 The color is set as black to
draw the box with. To look more
professional, I changed 1 to 2 (from
black to white) to correspond with
the backdrop of the flag. If you are
still unsure as to what is
happening, you may experiment with
this number. (but don't upset the
patriots of the respective country!).

Note:
I have used flags as something easy
to draw, to help the beginner to
move off the beginning blocks and
gain as much understanding as
possible to how the c16/+4
graphics/drawing by co-ordinates
etc. work.

360 special color2,x only available
with "GRAPHIC3" or "GRAPHIC4".
Needed here to fill box in white to
go behind the following red circle.

370 draw box that is the outline of
flag.

380 paint the area in the set colour.

390 set drawing colour to red. Note
"color3,x,y" has not been used, we
know this because there is no
following paint command that refers
to it.

400 draw the red circle/oval.

410 Paint in color1. i.e.
"Paint1,x...". (To experiment change
to paint3,x,... ...And why this
happens is a complete mystery to me!
- I got the screen rendered in a
pink-ish color.)

lines420-450 You may wish to delete
for the main program as this is
covered later in lines9300+

9300+ Put here so you can have as
many flags as you wish before ending
the program. You don't have to wait
for me to finish the program as
tinkering with it yourself, such as
the change in some of the
co-ordinates that is now required.
Looking for yourself now it is
clearer what is going on may be the
best way to learn!

9390 waits for key. Changes colors
back to something writable.

9400 Gives main screen back.

RESTORE

As stated before these prgs were
merely to test something. The actual
proper use of the restore command is
to reset the DATA Counter. So that
when it gets to the end of the list;
you can start again at the
beginning. And with dummy-READ
statement loops, that is the data is
read as a variable, but nothing is
done with it. You can actually move
through the list to where you want
to be. This is demonstrated by the
changes between "restore" and
"restore4". IF U=Still <> sure? THEN
READ The following: ELSE Learning=0

If you began with this tutorial to
learn Basic3.5, this may be a bit
more complicated debugging than you
may be used to here, especially if
it is your first computer language.

10 starts with the beginning of The
FOR..Next loop. The pass is set to
20.

20 This statement is READ which
means that DATA is to be -err- Read!
(The clue above is that the maximum
allowed is set to a count of 20.)

30 As line20 states that the data
statement is to be read, and set to
the variable called A$, and as now
the computer is told to PRINTA$,
thus it shall Print the current data
statement in that memory location
that we have told Basic to call A$.
Simple!-Yes?

40 Once this is done go to the next
data statement. Only until the count
of 20 is reached.

50 Once at the end of the count, Ask
the Question,

55 Wait for answer via a key press.
Check the result. If continue=No
Then end there and then in an abrupt
manner that will produce the line
list -in case more debugging is
required.
If the answer to "continue?" is Yes,
or anything other than No, then get
the next count in the FOR..Next loop.

If you've RUN the program already,
you will know that after the second
'Y' press/ Yes request. The program
spits out an "?Out of data error in
20" statement. Now, we see 20 is the
READ statement. And as we know that
as this line has worked for us in
the past that surely it can't be
wrong all of a sudden! ......And it
isn't! The problem is the computer
attempts to continue reading from
the DATA list of statements, but
these run out.

Before reading on, come up with and
try your own answers for sorting
this out. Note that simply adding
more DATA will still eventually
bring up the same error message.

I gave a big clue earlier. We see
that there is a "Restore" statement
already in the program. And you will
know by now, that this sets the Data
Counter back to the beginning of the
list.

?Closer analysis of the program
reveals that line 60 is never read
by BASIC!

To make the program work. The
easiest thing to do is to alter line
55. Take out everything after the
":", and after "RESTORE" on line 60
add ":GOTO10"

Finally change line10 to count to
39, if you want the whole list to be
read and printed when running.

You may of course make your own
lists, if you wish to use symbols or
colours obtained via the keyboard
etc. You will need to use "inverted
commas".

RESTORE4

What is going on here? You might
well ask.

If you RUN the program, You will
find the first continue prompt will
continue to read the full list of
data statements. With the questions
as REMarks at and after line1000,
you may have worked out the answers
for yourself. "Bravo!", if You did!
you, no doubt, will also notice
other things about this program that
are different from the last. Numbers
are placed after the words, and less
importantly -here-, if the word is
long, the number jumps out of
alignment.

I'm not going to go through the full
program again, as most of it is
already covered. The main
differences are as follows.

line 20 adds a colon ":", and a
mathematical count setting the
variable X to add 1 at each
pass-through of this line.

30 as well as printing A$ to screen,
we are now to have the count of 'X'
printed using a comma ',' which has
a specified number of spaces to
place the next word after the last
one. An alternative is the CHAR
command. See prior issues of this
excellent magazine.

We see that line 55 has already been
changed as required, but line60 is
not as listed in the Restore program
above. Let's look at the new line.
60 IF X > (is greater than) 21 THEN
perform the RESTORE command. (i.e.
Reset the Data count)

65 continues the program, if yes was
answered.

Now, the more astute among you will
see that line 60 poses problems. If
you want the computer to read out
the full message every time, that
is. So, how do we go about doing
this? Again. Try to work this out
for yourselves before continuing
here.

OK. Line20, you may realise just
keeps going up, there is nothing to
say that when we get to 21 X should
represent 0 again. And perhaps we
don't want it to? We might wish to
keep an ongoing score, or count. Yet
we clearly need the full message.
because X is always greater than 21
after it has gone past the number,
it will therefore always reset the
DC on encountering that line! So,
what do we do? There are a number of
options, the best is: 1. link the
restore to the variable J in The
For..Next loop! but make sure the
count is again for the correct
number of DATA statements. If you
want to wrestle with the program try
2. Add another variable 'Y', and
when that reaches our number, reset
both the number and restore the DC.
(Data Counter). With the later you
must be very careful. Again try your
own.

25 Y=Y+1
60 IF Y>21 then Restore: Y=0

NB: This still misses words from the
list, so try putting dummy words to
the list, and alter the counts Y and
J accordingly. This would be
considered something of a 'spaghetti
method' but that's not to say it
won't ever be needed. - Still, we
live in hope!

CODE CONVERTER

While I dedicated my last article to
be named "Things I don't
understand", with the work done
purely in this write up; I name this
effort as "Coming to an
understanding". I would not have
figured out Flags, had I not done
the write up. This alone shows how
important it is/can be to write the
code out in plain speak. (I would
have said 'plain English' but this
may not be your mother-tongue) as
well as in the computer language you
use. I realised this then I
thought... that is its own 'code
converter'!

...Yes, John!

OK. My first effort, and real look
at ML, with any real thought that it
might, just might be possible for
little me to have a go -one day. How
nice that would be to develop some
understanding of assembler, as it
was always a mystery and wonderment
in my early days with the sixteen.

Unfortunately, the one printed in
the issue45 is incorrect. And I only
realised this late in the day,
clearly after the deadline for the
magazine had passed. My sincerest
apologies for any inconvenience
caused. The corrected program has
been submitted, and to the best of
my knowledge is now making correct
mathematical calculations. I only
hope my error didn't put any-ones
program out. I am, however sure,
positive that any-one who is clever
enough to understand and program in
Assembler Language must surely have
their own methods of checking the
validity before using anything new.

The features of the program include:

Press : Function

0-1 : Will draw up a list of all the
multiplications in decimal that
total the numbers you require. You
can choose to list everything from 0
to 65535, or be more selective.
Pressing the RUN/STOP key at any
time will return to the main menu.
This function goes through all
combinations, thus takes the same
amount of time whatever number/s are
requested.

2 : Type in 00FF, this equals 255 in
Decimal, and a row of 8 1s in Binary.

3 : This time type in 255 to get
00FF etc. Note: These are just
examples.

4 : Binary. Type in a row of 1s. To
get Hex=00FF, and DEC=255.

The computer will allow for a base2
high byte to be typed in. And then
it will convert the sum of both
numbers in the above formats.

5 : As RUN/STOP Key has other uses.
It makes sense at least in the
writing and testing stage to have an
alternative way out to get into the
program. With a couple of tweaks
this could be '0', which is at the
other side of the keyboard, so as to
minimise a mispressed key.

THE WRITE UP OF THE CORRECTED
VERSION.

If this program is RENUMBERED by 10,
it comes to 1530. A hundred and
fifty three lines is less over
facing to type than what it looked
like before! I will Endeavour to
make the listing in the original
text listing given though I consider
the program now as complete as I can
make it. Often big jumps in numbers
represent a new sub-menu, and can be
very interesting to read.

*Also, as there were rumors that the
"editor" reads this in the bath!
EDITOR COMMENTS "yep True" I don't
want to get on the wrong side of him
by making him have to get out,
renumber the program before he can
read it. -the thought itself is
scary enough!

10 An unusual start. Assume the
usual "copyright by John Fielden
2010", unless there is something
already available that does the same
thing. I am allowing public use of
the program, usual public domain
licence for all work published here,
by all means those who have nice
things to send, do. If you look
through the magazine issues long
enough, you will find my details.

20 as it says, home twice. Followed
by shift home which equals clr/home
key. This is to get rid of any
sub-screens that may be in use,
though you may prefer this as a
separate variable, the program title
is included. Also to prevent
repetition, commonly needed page
editing is given over to variables.
A trick I learned while studying the
Star Trader game. Available from
www.commodore16.com or it was last
time I looked.

25 -80 sets up main menu. Sometimes
in programs I have done/seen this
later or even last. It is best to
leave space for it until you know
how many options you are going to
need.
30-35 important prog. variables.

100-130 part of menu, a space in
program numbering is a hint that the
absent minded programmer didn't know
if he was going to need to dish out
any more options.

135 The TRAP command, in this case
says, in case of error Goto line
5010. Numbers ending in 5 tend more
often than not to be an
afterthought. Other numbers that end
in anything other than 0 most likely
are. We see in this case line5010
RESUME 30 sends the program back to
the main menu. It may be worth
noting that because the Trap command
is put after the menu, run/stop can
still stop the program while the
menu is being printed, but only
directly after typing RUN{return}.
You may wish to put this higher up
your programs in their final draft.
But make sure you get the
alternative way out sorted first!

140 wait for a key press.

150 set the variable X to equal the
number of the key pressed.

155 specifies a meaning if 0 is
pressed, and includes a special
function. NOTE: It is always good
programming practice to let the user
know of such things -shows how
"good" I am - dunnit!

160 The 'onxgoto' statement. This
corresponds to the menu, and
highlights where all the main
sub-menus are. As pressing 0 or 1,
sends prog. to 8000, let's see what
is going on with the variable
introduced at line155 "s1%". ...

A look indicates that some kind of
on/off switch is being used, and may
have something to do with the pause
feature. Though as it has been
awhile, I will have to test the
prog. to find out what the
difference is by having the switch
on and off. ...

I still can't see any difference. It
may be something I later decided
against, or something I had in mind
at the time that I didn't quite
remember to put in when I came to
it. It shows to do a synopsis,
brainstorm etc. At least at the same
time as writing the program. I must
confess at this point that I've
always seemed to have had to dive
straight into the program. In
childhood I had no thoughts for
anything else, but developed bad
habits -like this!- that way.

My third trick these days is to
print the listing out on to paper.
And study it in my own time lying
down with it over my head. -I hear
Buddhists do something like this
when studying... Why not I? An
option I didn't have in youth that
has since been known to help
-sometimes. Also leaving it for a
while, then coming back to it when
all the frustrations are gone out of
my system.

170 if it isn't a listed number
don't do anything, just go back and
wait until a key is pressed that
represents a relevant function.

180 key 2 menu.

190 - 200 Get number, give it a
variable H$

210 An easy conversion and saved in
memory reference to the
corresponding Decimal.

220 make legality checks

230 print first conversion, if
within range.

235 proceed to binary but remember
this point.

MULTI-MENU

240 on return from binary, see if
user needs another hex conversion.

250 wait for key

260 this shows itself to be a
general purpose sub-menu. So,
whatever X code is registered, that
is where the program will go if Yes
is answered.

280 or main menu if Y is not pressed.

300 Key 3 menu.

310-320 set up Dec variable.

330 get rid of unnecessary points,
nb: the % symbol cannot be used with
higher range numbers.

340 ensure choice is in range.

350 direct reverse of 210. This time
the Hex equivalent is being shown of
Dec, instead of vice-versa in210.

352 & 355 together determine the
choice of the user and react
accordingly. We see the 5500 is for
binary. The choice determines
whether the user chose to get one
answer or find a number of them.

360 job done! Goto the communal
sub-menu: "Multi-menu".

400 Key 4 menu: Binary input
required!

402 Is there a hint of DATA & READ
statements about!

405 set cursor' (Yes CHAR might work
-but it has its limitations too!)

410 Do what you are told!

415 here's a suggestion "Use Poke
command to print "X"'s prior to
number." That is to go under the
number rather than above/below it.
-Well, what d'you think? I left it
so far.

416 & 417 show the other idea.

420 start the required count using
'P' as variable name.

430 wait for a key.

440 ignore if out of range.

450 If in range set required
variables to memory.

I consider programming would be
easier if the computer had a shorter
term memory that could be cleared
separate to the long term memory!

...What did you say?

460 screen plotting.

470 start required count using 'K'.

475 This is one way to remove
unwanted errors. For example, can be
caused by a return key press that
would mean the value already in
memory being added. This would cause
problems in cases of an accidental
press. The extra loop may be avoided
if you can find a way to make sure
that the number selected is going
into the right BIN-Array slot.

480 The number has to be put in
memory and go to the right place on
the screen. 'K' holds the number in
sequence.

490 & 500 Printing does not happen
without this sequence. (470-500)

510 start 'T' loop. This will be the
mathematics so we can convert the
BINs!

520 Read Data. See 570.

530 see notes. crucial sum for
converting BIN to DEC.

540 Add current sum so far in
line530 to variable C.

550 continue the sum.

560 restore: It would have been
better, perhaps to put this at about
line30ish. Because the closer to the
communal start point a command that
uses the same code is, then the less
it needs to be repeated; thus
avoiding spaghetti code and saving
memory into the bargain! The
reference at 402 uses other menus
for its comparison. But the effect
here is that the reset comes last
which does not take account for
some-one using the CONT command to
restart the program. This could
cause problems. Such errors as this
which was spotted late in the day,
and as I found this project already
somewhat adventurous; I was quite
jaded by the time I thought it was
completed -so it got left, forgotten
and printed -(there goes that
analyst job!)

402 seems to be the surplus extra
command.

570 On completing the above loop.
The computer has reset already, and
as it now has no order to READ these
DATA statements so it doesn't! And
we are still ok for the next time
when we need the computer to re-read
them.

580 confirm final Conversion to
base10.

590 confirm base16 conversion.

595 This is a menu selection control
switch, stating that if 4 was not
pressed then we don't want the high
byte formula. The line could've read
if X<(is lower than) 4 then660. But
if we are going to study Assembler
someday, then we must learn
something about conditions and
switches. (I think)

600 Our switch being off the program
asked the user whether they need to
calculate the high byte. -Are you
asking "What on earth is that?", as
yet so am I!
610 wait for response.

615, 620 If No; reset everything
that may be needed next time and see
if another is needed.

625 If user is drunk, talking
jibberish then go back and wait for
a more coherent response!

630 if here, Yes was chosen to
question@600. Show user choice: (Not
essential) BY% Is switched to show
second run through. And the sum
converted now to decimal is held in
C!. C is cleared so that the
computer doesn't come up with an out
of range number. Byte is placed on
screen as low byte. (hence being
moved down screen, it just seemed
apt.)

640 Print the low byte in binary.

650 second lot required! Must get
more 0s and 1s for high byte.

660 This is the sum of low & high
byte when added together in decimal.
with 665 the book that I found my
correction from Iss45 in is also
referred to.

670, 671, 675 print totals in DEC
and HEX using the totaled variable
holder C2.

680 reset the sum variables.

690, 700 wait for user to read
data/take notice of the result/s.

710 Another surplus command because
this is done in the next line. In
case of debugging, because this line
is repeated on the very next line.
It would still not be apt. yet to
just delete it. Running through the
code we see 750 is referenced. Even
if 710 had been referenced the
following bug fix (in programming
the term "solution" has come to mean
something else). Change 710 REM.

750 Again make sure all variables to
be discarded are reset. (the
repetition in 680 may not be needed)

760 go to the menu that checks if
another sum of the same type needs
to be found.

1000 If you haven't yet seen a
reference for this in another line,
or you wish to practice your
debugging skills. For now place
STOP: REM ...(then let the line
exist as is, until checking). -It is
actually referred to at line260. And
goes to Bin to hex & dec after
clearing screen. I could not do this
at 400, because of the hi+lo byte
feature. -or, I could've used a
switch, I suppose.

5000 Number 5 was pressed. It might
be an idea to add a check to see if
this button was meant to be pressed.
-if so

5010 would be changed to 5400, and
the line/s that refers to it would
have to be changed accordingly. -In
this case there's only line160. This
error trap has already been covered.

5500 This Sub-menu is used in both
main menu choices 2, and 3 for the
conversion TO Base2 numbers. While
on the subject, BASIC3.5 is ideal
for this type of program because of
the built in Functions, something
that the makers seemed less keen to
keep in later versions. (though I
don't have the reference guides for
BASIC7 etc. to hand, I find no
evidence of it in AmigaBASIC for
WB1.3. Though there is a hint of it
in GFA. nb: Not a thorough search)
-The point is I do not see how such
things that make life easier can be
dropped in a later version and yet
still call that later version 'an
improvement', which surely is the
ideal ...or would be if profit
didn't enter into the equation!

This sub-menu is the reverse of the
sub-menu previously covered from
400. The program has to break down
the singular DECimal figure. If the
program reaches here from 'The Hex
department' it will have already
been converted to DECimal.

5510 A message for the user is
always a good idea before
calculations have to be done,
especially if these are complicated,
lengthy etc.

5512-5590 Break the sum down to its
BINary components.

5600 I don't know an instance of why
there would be, and in checking the
program thus far there hasn't been
an error. But a good rule of thumb
is 'You never know!'. So for
thoroughness a check in case
anything goes wrong.

5605 & 5606 If this looks familiar,
see 416 & 417. Should I have used a
switch? ...for two print statements?
err, NO! And you will see These
numbers represent the amount of each
base2 number in the array.

5610-5630 Print to screen the
recorded results. i.e. The 0's & 1's.

5640 clear a line. (necessary?)

5650-5670 clear the used variables
so that a future reference doesn't
add up what is already there as this
would result in a ridiculous
outcome. (I would be sacked from
even this voluntary venture, and
forget any possibility of even a
future analysts job!)

6000 go back to the menu it was sent
here from.

8000 The special feature.

Because it was found that numbers
higher than 255 would need the hi+lo
byte system. And would probably have
a varying amount of different
combinations. It may be unnecessary
to list them for Binary as well. So
once the decimal is found. The user
may then use this sub-menu to see
all the possibilities that may be
presented for that particular
number. It takes a while though, and
if you have an emu. it may well be
worthwhile speeding it up for this
process. -see notes.

8010, 8020 often it is easier to ask
the question in a PRINT statement
prior to the INPUT command, even
though the latter has its own
Question mark.

8030 more range controls.

8040 get the upper range within the
max. allowed.

8050 this time the range check has
to be more in-depth because not only
do we have the maximum, we also have
the new temporary minimum to
consider because this number cannot
be below the first one or the
program won't work. Once correct we
can continue.

9000 The Pause menu, in case the
screen is running out of space, as
the user may wish to make their own
notes. The emu. may need to be
slowed down for the key press to be
realised.

9010 Uses variable set for
cancelling any sub screens that also
prints the program title name.

9020 remind user the range, as well
as their currently chosen range.

9030,9040, 9050 denotes whether
switch is on or off.

9060 Using a sub-screen here will
allow the listed numbers to scroll,
whilst keeping the main
information such as title. Hence a
more professional look and feel.

9070 start search for codes that add
up to the decimal numbers selected
within the ranges.

9080 be open to a user key press.

9090 if 'P' is pressed send program
to Pause menu.

9100 if 'Q' then exit here and
return to main menu. As no maths are
used with the ranges m1 and m2 do
not have to be cleared.

<DEBUGGING TIP>
You may notice any key press sends
the program to the pause menu. My
first suspicion was that the problem
was here it isn't. So I wrote an
unnecessary bug fix. Can you see why
it is unnecessary?
To correct this add 9085 ifa$<>"Q"
ora$<>"P"then9110 do net send the
program back to 9080 because this
would cause it to freeze.

9110 use an alternative variable for
decimal. This is done to avoid
confusions etc. that would otherwise
occur at some point in a program.

9120 Use part of the program already
built to get relevant information
for this process. (I saw Quantum
Leap, film the other day: And
looking at this reminded me of it).
I will leave the reader to study the
code as it provides the best
explanation of -by now you should
understand- what is going on.

9130 as I've taken this out, I'm not
now sure what it does. Suffice to
say I haven't missed it.

9190 Some say this line is
unnecessary due to the following
print command.

9200 tells user what is happening.

9210, 9220 A main loop with another
loop inside it.

9226 see "9085"; the actual 'fault
is here'. Why does this need to be
here, what fault did I notice? As I
can't remember I will have to look
at it again. line10... (only
kidding). If I wanted any key to
call for a pause I would've said
that in the first place!

Q. Is lines 9080-9100 being actioned
at all? -And if so, where?

A. REM the relevant lines and RUN
the program to find out. Lines 9210
& 9220 show that we are in another
loop separate from the last, but -

Q. Could these be more adjoined to
save on typing repetitively, and to
keep consistency.

A. is Yes. ...

Q. How? ...While getting the key is
needed in each sub-program. The
question of what key is pressed can
be written into the actual pause
menu. So 9090 & 9100 would go into
the pause menu, while the line9226
here can then be copied to 9090 with
the other line9100 not needed there.

9230 start to test the result of
each combination to find numbers
that add to those within the chosen
range.

9240 remember CF is not the same as
CF(x). The former replaced D.
earlier. While the latter is a
switch.

9250,9260 continue search by adding
one to count. When inner count gets
to end the outer count will add 1.
And restart the inner count to its
beginning.

9270 At first glane, I take this to
mean that the first thing to do when
the outer loop finishes is to see if
there is another of the same type to
find. Only if the switch is on and
the main menu choice was 1.

9900 next number in the chosen range.

9910 when all loops are completed.
Reset variable.

IMPORTANT NOTE: The % in 'cf%' may
be a typo. As I don't seem to
remember seeing it anywhere else.
(oops!

...Dear Microsoft, I am looking for
a job...-sweeping floors!)

9920 All done! Back to main menu.

12000 The Pause menu.

12005 Let user know that nothing is
going on at the moment.

12010 Wait for key press to decide
what to do next when user is ready.

12020 if Q or E is pressed: Goto
main menu.

12030 Delete the line that says
"paused". And RETURN to whichever
Sub-menu directed the program here.

12040 If keys don't match any of the
choices listed, go back and wait
until a key press does.

NOTES:

VARIABLES USED

20   XY$      screen plotting.
25   M1 & M2  Set range of
              allowed limits to
              convert.
     XL$      more screen plotting.
30   CF (-1)  see also 352 = control
              variable user choice
              dependent. For use in
              the menu@8000.
35   BY%      see595
150  X        remember user con-
              version choice.
155  s1%      Switch -of some kind.
200  H$       Hex.
210  D        Dec.
450  B%(P)    used to add up the
              binary to DECimal.
              In this case sort out
              where the 0s and 1s go
              in the array.
520  B        allows multiplication
              of user' selected 0s
              and 1s.
530  B%(T)    as B in line 520. Part
              of the calculation.
540  C        current BINary
              number chosen.
595  BY%      The default set in
630           35 is 0. Menu selection
              control.
660  C2       high + low Byte sum
              total.

(FUNCTIONS)

lines 210 & 350 refer to command
types that are called "Functions".
In User Manual (c16) pg.144 for
DEC(variable$) which is classed as a
"Numeric Function". And
Hex$(Variable) on pg. 150 (referred
to as "in the manual") is classed a
"String Function". ...More to come
on Functions. However these are
limited, especially with screen
editing. See line405. And "Lost
Plot" coming soon.

(Emulator/s)

With most emulators, the speed may
be increased. In Yape, there are two
ways to get a faster program. And
You can use them both at the same
time.

Try 1. Increase memory setting. left
click machine; in file list at top
of Yape window. Then select
"configuration", Select arrow in
"RAM configuration:" And change to
256 KB...

 2. 'full throttle', "Alt+w" or left
click; machine speed, No Limit or
machine, "full throttle". This makes
the emulator as fast as it can go.

There are other ways to increase
speed. Such as to "Low
compatibility" in configuration,
compatibility menu. ...But I haven't
tried these and so "enter at your
own risk!", and save back-ups
regularly.

Happy Prog'ing!
John Fielden

LISTING OF: CODECONVERTER.PRG

By John Fielden

10 REM *HEX TO DEC TO BIN AND BACK*
20 CC$="{home}{home}{clr} CODE
   CONVERTER":XY$="{home}{16*down}"
25 XL$="{home}{10*down}":M1=0:
   M2=65535
30 SCNCLR:PRINTCC$;"{down}":CF=-1
35 D=0:C2=0:C1=0:C=0:FORT=0TO8:
   B%(T)=0:BY%=0:NEXTT
40 PRINT" 1 - ALL CODES FROM 0 TO
   65535"
45 PRINT" (0 - TO SWITCH BETWEEN
   CONTINUOUS LIST)":PRINT
50 PRINT" 2 - HEX TO DEC & BIN."
60 PRINT" 3 - DEC TO HEX & BIN."
70 PRINT" 4 - BIN TO HEX & DEC."
80 PRINT" 5 - TO EXIT"
100 PRINT"{down} HEX=HEXADECIMAL,
    BASE 16"
110 PRINT" DEC=DECIMAL, BASE 10"
120 PRINT" BIN=BINARY, BASE 2"
130 PRINT
135 TRAP5010
140 GETKEY A$
150 X=VAL(A$)
155 IFA$="0"THENX=1:S1%=S1%+1:
    IFS1%>1THENS1%=0
160 ONXGOTO8000,180,300,400,5000
170 GOTO140
180 REM *HEXADECIMAL TO DECIMAL*
190 PRINT" TYPE HEX TO CONVERT:"
200 INPUTH$
210 D=DEC(H$)
220 IFDEC(H$)<0 OR DEC(H$)>65535
    THEN200
230 PRINT"DEC: ";DEC(H$)
235 GOSUB5500
240 PRINT"{lgreen}ANOTHER Y/N?
    {black}"
250 GETKEYA$
260 IFA$="Y"THENONXGOTO9900,200,
    320,1000
280 GOTO30
300 REM *DECIMAL TO HEXADECIMAL*
310 PRINT" TYPE DEC TO CONVERT:"
320 INPUTD
330 D=INT(D)
340 IFD<0 OR D >65535
    THENPRINT"RANGE: 0 - 65535 ON THE
    C=16/+4":GOTO320
350 PRINT"HEX: ";HEX$(D)
352 IFCF>-1THENGOTO5500
355 GOSUB5500
360 GOTO240
400 REM *BINARY TO HEX & DEC.*
402 RESTORE
405 PRINTXL$;"{down}"
410 PRINT" TYPE 8 DIGIT BASE 2"
415 REM *USE POKE TO ?X'S PRIOR TO
    NO.*
416 PRINT"{lred} 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0 "
417 PRINT"{orange}128 64 32 16 8 4 2
    1{black}"
420 FORP=0TO7
430 GETKEYA$
440 IFA$<"0" ORA$>"1"THEN430
450 IFA$="0" ORA$="1"THEN B%(P)=
    VAL(A$)
460 PRINTXY$
470 FORK=0TO7
475 IFP< KTHEN490
480 PRINTB%(K);
490 NEXTK
500 NEXT P
510 FORT=0TO7
520 READB
530 B%(T)=B%(T)*B
540 C=C+B%(T)
550 NEXTT
560 RESTORE
570 DATA128,64,32,16,8,4,2,1
580 PRINT: PRINT" TO DEC = ";C,
590 PRINT":TO HEX = ";HEX$(C)
595 IFBY%=1THEN660
600 PRINT"{down} *TIMES* BY HIGH
    BYTE? -Y/N?"
610 GETKEYA$
615 IFA$="N"THEN750
620 IFA$="Y"THEN630
625 GOTO610
630 PRINTA$:BY%=1:PRINT"{13*down}":
    PRINT"LOW BYTE ":C1=C:C=0
640 FORJ=0TO7:PRINTB%(J);:NEXTJ:
    PRINT"{up}"
650 GOTO400
660 BY%=0:C2=C1+256*C :REM *BUG
    FIX.'EASY PROG'ING: COMMODORE16,
    STUART, I' ET-AL*
665 REM *PAGE 51*
670 PRINT"TOTAL: ";
671 PRINT"DEC ";C2;
675 PRINT" :HEX ";HEX$(C2)
680 C=0:C1=0:C2=0
690 PRINT"{grey3} PRESS KEY{black}"
700 GETKEYB$
710 D=0:C2=0:C1=0:C=0:FORT=0TO8:
    B%(T)=0:BY%=0:NEXTT
750 D=0:C2=0:C1=0:C=0:FORT=0TO8:
    B%(T)=0:BY%=0:NEXTT
760 GOTO240
1000 SCNCLR:GOTO400
5000 END
5010 RESUME30
5500 REM *FROM DEC TO BIN*
5510 PRINT" TO BINARY"
5512 IFD>255ANDCF>-1THEN CF%=1:
     GOTO5650
5515 IFD>255ANDX>1THENPRINT"MANY
     VARIATIONS{down}":GOTO5650
5520 IFD=>128THENBT%(7)=1:D=D-128
5530 IFD=>64THENBT%(6)=1:D=D-64
5540 IFD=>32THENBT%(5)=1:D=D-32
5550 IFD=>16THENBT%(4)=1:D=D-16
5560 IFD=> 8THENBT%(3)=1:D=D-8
5570 IFD=> 4THENBT%(2)=1:D=D-4
5580 IFD=> 2THENBT%(1)=1:D=D-2
5590 IFD= 1THENBT%(0)=1:D=D-1
5600 IFD<>0THEN PRINTD;" THERE HAS
BEEN AN ERROR!"
5605 PRINT"{lred} 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0 "
5606 PRINT"{orange}128 64 32 16 8 4
     2 1{black}"
5610 FORK=7TO0STEP-1
5620 PRINTBT%(K);
5630 NEXT K
5640 PRINT
5650 FORKB=0TO7
5660 BT%(KB)=0
5670 NEXTKB
6000 RETURN
8000 REM *LIST LENGTH*
8010 PRINT" LIST FROM:"
8020 INPUT"START";M1
8030 IFM1<1 ANDM1>65535THEN8020
8040 INPUT"FINISH";M2
8050 IFM2<M1 OR M2>65535THEN8040
9000 REM *LIST 0 TO 65535 ..."PFFF!"*
9010 SCNCLR:PRINTCC$;"{down}"
9020 PRINT"MAX. LIST: 0 - 65535";"
     (";M1;"TO";M2;")"
9030 PRINTSPC(20);" (SWITCH = ";
9040 IFS1%=0THENPRINT"OFF";
9050 IFS1%=1THENPRINT"ON";
9060 PRINT")":PRINT:PRINTCHR$(27)+
     CHR$(84)
9070 FORCF=M1TOM2
9080 GETA$
9090 IFA$="P"THENGOSUB12000
9100 IFA$="Q"THEN30
9110 D=CF:PRINT"DEC=";CF;" ";
9120 GOSUB330
9130 REM IFCF%=0THEN9900
9190 REM *POSS. VARIATIONS IN
     DECIMAL*
9200 PRINT" *POSS. VARIATIONS IN
     DECIMAL*"
9210 FORL=0TO255
9220 FORL1=0TO255
9225 GETA$
9226 IF A$<>""THENGOSUB12000
9230 C0=L*L1
9240 IFC0=CFTHENPRINTL;"*";L1;"=";
     C0,CF
9250 NEXTL1
9260 NEXTL
9270 IFX=1ANDS1%=1THEN240
9900 NEXT CF
9910 CF%=0:GOSUB12000
9920 GOTO30
12000 REM *PAUSE ON*
12005 PRINT"PAUSED";L;L1;
12010 GETKEYA$
12020 IFA$="Q"ORA$="E"THEN30
12030 IFA$="P"ORA$=""THEN
      PRINTCHR$(27)+CHR$(68);:RETURN
12040 GOTO12010

=====================================

*************************************
        1000 KUNG FU MANIACS
*************************************

1000_KUNGFUMANIACS_PSYTRONIK.D64

This is a review of the Download
disk image so I can't comment on the
packaging and production.

Upon Starting the disk we have 5
options to select from the main menu

* 1000 kung-Fu maniacs  the game

* 1000 kung-Fu maniacs  the ending

* Stone age fighter

* Ninja Blueberries  part 1

* Ninja Blueberries  part 2

The music is very suitable for the
main title screen very Oriental with
gongs and oriental chimes. The in
game music is written by Jon Wells.

SELECTING OPTION 1 THEN

We are loaded to the next menu
screen again with suitable oriental
style warbling music and lots of
white noise (how can I describe a
piece of oriental style music) well
its oriental themed

You have 3 options

F1 Setup the music or SFX
F3 The story and instructions
F5 Lets fight

THE STORY GOES LIKE THIS

Our here the master of awesome saw a
child crying it seems that the
Childs toy was stolen by the
Blapsville boys, the child asks our
hero to get the toy back

We then see our hero walking and
skateboarding over various road
layouts till he eventually comes to
a grassed area with manic golfers
firing golf balls at our hero.

It's quite a plain landscape, but
this is more to do with the
limitations of SEUCK rather than
anything else. Our Hero is well
animated although when I see a
banana on the floor with the words
TAKE PEEL, I do seem to earn points
and loose energy and can't seem to
bypass the banana without taking it.
I am then given a skateboard to
fight off Skater style Ninja
enemies, not sure why Ninjas are on
skateboards but hey it's a faster
travel mode than walking. We pass
various places along the way like
Blapsville country club and every
time you are hit, suitably fall on
the floor; At the start of the game
you have 6 Dan style shields for
energy when these are depleted our
hero's life ends. I am afraid I
don't seem to be very good at this
game and die rather quickly.

It may look basic; as most SEUCK
games do, although some of the in
game humour will keep you going back
for more. Surprisingly it is very
playable and does have the "one more
time factor", if you are a SEUCK
games style fan this will definitely
be one for your collection. If you
have SEUCK then I am afraid the game
will not convert you.

Who could load up a game with an
option on a menu to see the ending
without selecting this option? Ah
well for this you need a 4 digit
code and rather sadly I don't have
to see the ending.

STONEAGE FIGHTER

Another game on the disk

This game you have to push boulders
onto your enemies to kill them,
again this is another SEUCK
constructed game and is split into 2
parts, I presume the real skill in
playing the game here is the learn
all the movement patterns of the
enemy, I suppose this is true of all
SEUCK games. Sadly I am rubbish at
this sort of thing and hence my
efforts in the game were left rather
lacking again. Not a bad game really
it again has the "one more go
feeling" and is a very well executed
SEUCK game. Again the author is
working within the limitations of
SEUCK so you have to take this into
consideration. Part 2 states you
have to fight your way to the
monster cave where a woman is held.
Unfortunately I never made it to the
cave. Quite a lot going on in the
first part graphically and the sound
effects are functional enough; you
can only throw stone up the screen,
which is driving me mad! All ads to
the one more go though.

The title screen music is good
however I am not sure how the tune
fits in with the Caveman theme of
the game.

NINJA BLUEBERRIES PART 1

Nice intro music fairly Ninja like
in sound, well it sounds oriental at
least
Very well executed game, This could
have been sold on its own

The in game sounds are just that
again no music or extra enhancements
and the usual 5 shields and you're
dead. This looks more like a
"traditional" SEUCK game you're
moving up a scrolling screen
shooting and or avoiding being shot,
as with all these games it's very
addictive; learning the pre-set
moves will help enormously in this
game. Very nicely animated sprites
and explosions. The games
copyrighted 1992 and was released as
Public Domain, personally it's the
first time I have seen the game,
again I don't seem to be that good,
but that seems to be a theme with me
and SEUCK games.

NINJA BLUEBERRIES PART 2

How can we have part one without a
part 2

Here the sequel to the Ninja game
again copyrighted 1992, nice Title
music although it seems to have lost
the oriental twist a little. This
games is set in a more perspective
environment, although again is a
traditional SEUK scrolling game

Very well executed SEUCK game with
lots happening on screen, here we
see some of the familiar SEUCK
glitches, although this is the
software package rather than a fault
in the game, I suppose less action
would have helped, but the game is
superb. I am actually better at this
game but still can make it past
stage 1 again the game was listed as
PD

THERE YOU HAVE IT THEN

You seem to get quite a lot for your
money, especially if you download
the Free D64 image; if you're a
SEUCK fan I suppose you will already
have the PD versions but to have
them as a packaged item.

The game is freely downloadable now
from Psytronik website

http://www.psytronik.net/main/index.p
hp?option=com_content&view=article&id
=88:kungfu&catid=34:commodore-64&Item
id=57

Here is the text information from
Psytronik website

http://www.psytronik.net/main/index.p
hp?option=com_content&view=article&id
=88:kungfu&catid=34:commodore-64&Item
id=57

Brand new release from the mind of
game design master Alf Yngve is now
available for the Commodore 64.
1,000 Kung-Fu Maniacs is a sideways
scrolling action game featuring
multiple levels of kick-ass Ninja
ACTION! Take control of the Master
of Awesome on his quest to find a
stolen toy robot in the Ninja
riddled city of Blapsville. Fight
your way through various locations
including the Blapsville Ninja
Country Club, Lawyer Street in
downtown Blapsville, Clown Street -
where you will find the dreaded Mime
University ('sworn to evil'),
McTerror Restaurant (do you want
fries with that?), Miller Street
(watch out for Ninjas hiding in the
shadows) and TV Street (where Pox
Studios is located) - and prepare
yourself for an epic Boss showdown
at the end of the game!

** GAME STORY **

You've heard of Karate, Kickboxing,
Judo, Ultimate Fighting, Soccer Fan.
But few have heard of the ART OF
AWESOME ... Or its supreme champion,
the MASTER OF AWESOME. We could go
into the details of awesome, and how
the master gained his rank by
defeating the LORD OF THE BLAND in
an epic showdown ... But frankly
there is not enough time for all
that. So let's get on with the plot.
Ahem!

One sunny day, the Master of Awesome
was on a walkabout, in his quest for
the world's most dangerous banana
peel, when he came upon a crying
child ... "Waaah!! The mean boys
from Blapsville stole my toy robot!!
Can you please, pleease help me get
it back mister!" And the Master of
Awesome, being devoted to helping
the weak and downtrodden, said to
the kid: "Don't be sad, kid, I'll
bring back your toy, even if I have
to search
the entire city to find it. What's
your name by the way?" "I'm Melvin.
Melvin Podznofsky." And so, the
Master of Awesome walks into the
city of Blapsville to find Melvin's
toy robot.

BLAPSVILLE, POP. 10,001, home of the
World's highest per-capita
concentration of Ninjas and evil
martial art schools, about 94%.
Undeterred by the "VAGRANTS ARE SHOT
ON SIGHT" signpost, the Master of
Awesome crossed the city limits and
entered Blapsville county. He had
barely finished asking a group of
Ninjas: "Excuse me, have you by any
chance seen a toy ro ..." Then he
got attacked. Thus began a day of
violence, pain, misery, suffering
and of course, destruction which
makes a smashing computer game ...
Or does it?

** GAME CREDITS **

Game design, GFX + SFX by Alf
'Master of Awesome' Yngve.

Music by Jon 'Master of Audio' Wells.

Enhancements by Richard 'Master of
Magic' Bayliss.

Packaging by Jason 'Master of the
Universe' Mackenzie.

** GAME FEATURES **

* Awesome weapon power-ups!

* Multiple levels to battle through!

* Fantastic soundtracks by Jon Wells!

* Detailed background graphics!

* Wacky Ninja battle action FUN!

* Mega-Boss Battle!

** NOW AVAILABLE AS A FREE DOWNLOAD
THE COMMODORE 64! **

(Psytronik tape and disk versions
available SOON!)

CONTROLS

Use Joystick in PORT 2 only.

Controlling the Master of Awesome as
he fights his way through the city
of Blapsville, you have the
following attacks and moves:

Default left-facing punch: Just hit
FIRE.

Right-facing punch: Press FIRE while
moving right. Good timing is
required or just hammer the fire
button.

Jump or skip: Move UP.

Dropkick: Move UP and LEFT or RIGHT
and press FIRE.

Crouch Kick: Move DOWN.

Downward left kick: Move DOWN and
LEFT and press FIRE.

Downward right kick: Move DOWN and
RIGHT and press FIRE.

Upward punch: Move UP and press FIRE.

BONUS ITEMS

For every 10,000 points scored, you
earn an extra life. You also gain
one of the following bonus items
until a life has been lost:

1. AWESOME SHURIKEN - Can be thrown
in any direction.

2. FEEBLE SHURIKEN - Can be thrown
left or right.

3. PRICELESS MING VASE - You skim
huge vases to knock your enemy over.

4. TAI-CHI HEARTBURN - A giant
fireball will give the enemies a
good toasting.

5. THE WORLD'S MOST DANGEROUS BANANA
PEEL: The thrown peel slides very
slowly but trips all enemies in its
path.

CREDITS

Game design, gfx + sfx by ALF
'Master of Awesome' YNGVE.

Music by Jon 'Master of Audio' Wells.

Enhancements by Richard 'Master of
Magic' Bayliss.

Packaging by Jason 'Master of the
Universe' Mackenzie.

=====================================

*************************************
          BACK TO THE PAST
         Issue 7, April 2007
            By Neil Reive
*************************************

As we continue our 'Back to the
Past' feature, we go back to June
2007 and look at issue seven of
Commodore Free? Featured on the
cover was Back In Time Live, the SID
music event. (What a great title,
Back in Time.) In the editorial, the
editor pays homage to Total Amiga, a
fine e-zine that had published its
last issue. Following issue 26 the
Amiga e-zine would merge with German
based Amiga Future with the
intention of producing a German and
English issue every two months.

More programming lessons in 'The
Basic Bible' by David Moorman, who
produced an alphabetical list of
BASIC 2.0 commands and functions for
the reader to try out. 'The Hex
Files' part 3 continued Jason Kelk's
tutorial on coding and Dave Moorman,
again, took us through programming
in 'Mr. Loadstar's Introduction to
Programming the Commodore 64 Part
II'.

The first interview this issue was
with Jeff Ledger who runs
www.petscii.com , a website
containing several C= projects.
Johan (aka Shocktrooper), admin of
The Sixty Four Originals DataBase
(www.sfodb.com ), is next up for the
CF interview treatment. SFODB is a
collector's resource for C64 that
includes scans of game cassettes,
inlays and instructions. This was
followed by an interview with
Cadaver (Lasse rni), programmer,
graphics artist and musician at
Covert Bitops
(http://covertbitops.c64.org/ ).
Covert Bitops developed homebrew C64
titles such as the Metal Warrior
series, as well as some entries into
the Crap Game Compos with Advanced
Action Movie Simulator and Escape
From New York.

Veteran publishing outfit, known
best for their stellar C64 back
catalogue, celebrated their 25th
anniversary and looked to update
some of their classics for the
modern gaming consoles. Boris
Kretzinger looked back at their 25
year gaming history, including such
titles as International Karate, IK+,
The Last Ninja, The Last Ninja 2 and
Myth.

Luke Lynde had a double dose of
articles featured in issue 8. In
'Bits and Pieces II: Return of the
Byte', he reminisced about the
Australian C64 scene, his Amiga 500
memories and his return to the C64
scene. In 'Activision on the C64',
he looked at Activision's finest C64
games including River Raid,
H.E.R.O., Beam Rider and Pitfall.

The Commodore 64 Book  new website
online (http://c64goldenyears.com/ )
is basically a feature on the book,
via the website's diary section. The
Commodore 64 book is an excellently
produced archive of some of the
finest games to grace the 8-bit
computer. The book can  as in 2010
be purchased for a small fee by
going to the website.

In 'Commodore 64 Mark 2?', the
editor dreamed of bringing back the
C64, redesigned for the masses in
2007. With the suits giving him the
money to hire the design team,
produce the computer and market it
to the masses, would it be a success?

Richard Bayliss introduced the
readers to the TND User Tool Disk, a
utility program with individual
public domain tools, including Turbo
Assembler V7.0+, Code Suck Monitor,
DMC V4.0, All Round Re-locator, Font
Editor V1.3, Sprite Editor V1.2,
Amica Paint V1.5, Picture Splitter
V2, Visiomizer V6.3, Sledgehammer
II, Super Zipper V8, The Cruncher AB
V3.0, and Dir Master V8.4.

=====================================
