tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24744456732489233792024-03-18T05:00:54.305+02:00Old MachineryComputers, videogames, gadgets, design, DIY, BASIC, Assembler, 8-bit, 16-bit...Tero Heikkinenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13784200871918377919noreply@blogger.comBlogger283125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2474445673248923379.post-18290563847269124432024-02-29T11:25:00.003+02:002024-02-29T11:25:50.403+02:00We are Rewind WE-001 tape player/recorder<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIXsLWXGO33DkxZi4pLzMw0w8solrpz96O-owv7VfaKD79mPWyC6zfdp7Iy4Kd_y-V98aCRLbpiJj2VgYAu8UE5iZVyhwFemGx3PxSJ4LDcNnfzrbH3nFTOUwZxZMh8NjgBkhIWT6mSW6dmpxrEWKPCPVm0VtRpwRNNmVFyJR_3NFbdjMpwXwkcaYjdOs/s1600/front.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1043" data-original-width="1600" height="418" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIXsLWXGO33DkxZi4pLzMw0w8solrpz96O-owv7VfaKD79mPWyC6zfdp7Iy4Kd_y-V98aCRLbpiJj2VgYAu8UE5iZVyhwFemGx3PxSJ4LDcNnfzrbH3nFTOUwZxZMh8NjgBkhIWT6mSW6dmpxrEWKPCPVm0VtRpwRNNmVFyJR_3NFbdjMpwXwkcaYjdOs/w640-h418/front.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">WE-001 portable tape player</td></tr></tbody></table><p>I did a rare thing and straight away bought a gadget advertised on Facebook: a portable cassette tape player.</p><p>I didn't want to dilute my impulse by examining too many reviews and just ordered it. Ok, I saw the Amazon reviews appeared to average to at least ok/good.</p><p>Less than week later I became an owner of a "Keith" variant of the WE-001 player. There are more nicely colored models but I stuck with the grey one.</p><p>The device is branded as "We are rewind", the design is from France, built in China.</p><p>The styling is good and the object feels heavy in a nice way.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhS5zD5BXrjBCZN5oMndzkV66Kcfo60KbJFopSCcHBeBRM31jfkJOLFgUzrjOAkZ9Xo-M6DopYdnUv01WiFfn-t0Alnx7LKrc9OFy6Q5snCIViq6OrJv5zwLRgf4vNsuRxbKT20hphu5IOqHClmGFBSCDdlolCwHh27-rbk-NfJzMvQmX3r2aa7-Be_C7I/s1600/boxitself.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="954" data-original-width="1600" height="382" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhS5zD5BXrjBCZN5oMndzkV66Kcfo60KbJFopSCcHBeBRM31jfkJOLFgUzrjOAkZ9Xo-M6DopYdnUv01WiFfn-t0Alnx7LKrc9OFy6Q5snCIViq6OrJv5zwLRgf4vNsuRxbKT20hphu5IOqHClmGFBSCDdlolCwHh27-rbk-NfJzMvQmX3r2aa7-Be_C7I/w640-h382/boxitself.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A feelgood product</td></tr></tbody></table><p>The packaging is also fun, had I seen this at a store it might have been an instant buy.</p><p>Inside the box there's a quick guide and the proper manual, and as a courtesy, a short black pencil.</p><p>Confession: I probably never used a pencil for rewinding tapes back in the day.</p><p>Another confession: I probably never owned a commercially recorded music tape during the 1980s-1990s. Computer tapes? A bunch. And a few copied music tapes, which I guess killed the industry.</p><p>The player can be recharged using a USB-C cable. There's a Bluetooth wireless playback too, but I felt a little weird about that. I mean, if I intend to play back physical media, why break the chain?</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9qK9vZu4aEvQPNXSYhyNhVyrUoy738rT-kK52qohUtnSY3RRLK2ZJqT4QnNp1ZA42HJIot0OdMgSHMa3x46mSnxzajuDy4IIUAj0Em_bswlCK5muPEeFasfaGqYrQz_tV05zw934u4ZXXeY4nSksfisL3TDxzd6rOPVdjthkZDP-0XFNZrHjHx_suOYQ/s1600/pencil.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="890" data-original-width="1600" height="356" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9qK9vZu4aEvQPNXSYhyNhVyrUoy738rT-kK52qohUtnSY3RRLK2ZJqT4QnNp1ZA42HJIot0OdMgSHMa3x46mSnxzajuDy4IIUAj0Em_bswlCK5muPEeFasfaGqYrQz_tV05zw934u4ZXXeY4nSksfisL3TDxzd6rOPVdjthkZDP-0XFNZrHjHx_suOYQ/w640-h356/pencil.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Unboxening</td></tr></tbody></table><p>From what I've read the audio quality has been the main beef for some, but for most of us mortals the playback is good enough for what it is, a fun and nostalgic player.</p><p>But I also have to say I don't have much experience with tape playback during past 30 years. With my better headphones I could find some tiny hiss I would not expect from any current digital device. Just blast away something suitably loud and it's not noticeable, or use more forgiving headphones. I tried a couple of new and old tapes, and the output was what I expected.</p><p>Recording might be another matter. The manual recommends "Type I" tapes. They do sell the player together with a tape, being the cheapskate I didn't order one. Using a recommended tape would have helped make a more definitive statement.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEip8v7yAYifj3sKS5bjOCQkVP_IlsOfLkK4t0FCjaG5gJBxNGTNyCvT11HAAIKl4Z2knaF6tDesvIWl2L9cR7hgeWHijVkkhP3Y-Xl5QeCZuaxTAvCGQYrQe59EPSrO1JKu-1mx6PH210MfUwSc6dxtZMDMt8ktBKd_D70qRcenGnJEC31XnOffii3paXA/s1920/kassut.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1081" data-original-width="1920" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEip8v7yAYifj3sKS5bjOCQkVP_IlsOfLkK4t0FCjaG5gJBxNGTNyCvT11HAAIKl4Z2knaF6tDesvIWl2L9cR7hgeWHijVkkhP3Y-Xl5QeCZuaxTAvCGQYrQe59EPSrO1JKu-1mx6PH210MfUwSc6dxtZMDMt8ktBKd_D70qRcenGnJEC31XnOffii3paXA/w640-h360/kassut.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">There are not many music tapes around.</td></tr></tbody></table><p>As it is, I did a recording from Fostex MR-8 digital recorder output to a 15 minute "computer" tape. Although at playback the speed appeared constant, there was occasional garbage here and there. These were not even at the loudest or bass heavy points.</p><p>Another try was from a Steinberg UR12 USB audio interface headphone out, recording Dave Rodgers' <i>Deja Vu</i> out of Youtube. As the results were somewhat similar, it's possible the tape is to blame, but it may also be the recording really is the weak point of the device.</p><p>So, the results are still a little random and inconclusive. My old tapes don't all have specification markings. The device has no peak light indicator but an automatic level detector, not a great starting point for recordings.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1SZGlWMi5MAgOdM_WEXWgmxyiLpS6ebrLTUQIDK-yR9qrRrM8H9gAyGFTUM7Nu-MBwqdIz9MGqmn9mgDzau_aaTABXqrILKmlOlfsI7mOp5-PXuGipWxmnpNRl9GZwm9fRzKE-ajIKPR6rEGCYdOHrETFzjcTKzjmnEuo75rsXhyphenhyphenQRp4gxywst5O6gLI/s1600/playerbuttons.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="883" data-original-width="1600" height="354" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1SZGlWMi5MAgOdM_WEXWgmxyiLpS6ebrLTUQIDK-yR9qrRrM8H9gAyGFTUM7Nu-MBwqdIz9MGqmn9mgDzau_aaTABXqrILKmlOlfsI7mOp5-PXuGipWxmnpNRl9GZwm9fRzKE-ajIKPR6rEGCYdOHrETFzjcTKzjmnEuo75rsXhyphenhyphenQRp4gxywst5O6gLI/w640-h354/playerbuttons.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Instead of red, the record button is a sprightly yellow.</td></tr></tbody></table><p>There's no eject button to open the lid, but this was probably rather common with portable players. You can simply pull the lid open.</p><p>At least by 1990s portable players became very round and with non-protruding buttons. The reason why WE-001 looks fresh is because such considerations have been ditched. I can imagine the sharp corners and buttons getting a little stuck inside pockets. But really, who would carry this player around just as casually?</p><p>Not much experience with battery life, I've had a few hour-long sessions without the LED giving any kind of signal yet. The promised battery life is 8-10 hours, a full recharge takes more than few hours.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9urJAbYQNYwMplLfftSI7cB16AuazaiKhpqnCxU5ThmSF86UgnAaD1xBwIaP90BiUi_aJv8-lydeaRt0ryVuKUeGGMRqTdagBdJanecLBd9NwJpX_ZN_0bPAlGNAXoRVaqB9d_ZzYq2jwSuqetTZa7suYWM1tGdKlWd8PsP3YbZYnDX40sClsKVc1LII/s1600/sideways.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="895" data-original-width="1600" height="358" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9urJAbYQNYwMplLfftSI7cB16AuazaiKhpqnCxU5ThmSF86UgnAaD1xBwIaP90BiUi_aJv8-lydeaRt0ryVuKUeGGMRqTdagBdJanecLBd9NwJpX_ZN_0bPAlGNAXoRVaqB9d_ZzYq2jwSuqetTZa7suYWM1tGdKlWd8PsP3YbZYnDX40sClsKVc1LII/w640-h358/sideways.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">And the connectors for power, audio in and audio out. Volume control to the right.</td></tr></tbody></table><p>One important question remains. Can I use it to load ZX Spectrum tapes?</p><p>I had no such luck with the new ZX Spectrum Next. Using a stereo cable (TRS both ends) didn't cause much more than some border flickering. Similar problems did arise with a proper Sanyo Data Recorder, so I'll have to treat the Next as a separate issue, maybe there's still something I've not yet understood about the computer configuration.</p><p>Then I moved to ZX Evolution, another modern Spectrum clone, which has been proven to load tapes before. I took <i>Horace Goes Skiing</i> and had success after a couple of attempts. I needed to use less than maximum volume here.</p><p>There's no counter though, so reloading multiload game positions or loading a specific program from a collection could be troublesome.</p><p>The full rubber-key ZX Spectrum 48K tape loading experience has to wait, the equipment is currently buried a little deeper.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKGV-f4a3rZZ0NXn_BDN1Qv-sCD0xPX_8cxhN0qI87qdoF9KDPASxZIKX_lAPfu-5NwkF5bL-R7my5ExeSR3xRkHPc6yfinQzqPx0-XDSet36DbrY70TXoh7myLxr_YxvFx4A-TsaG-8kTqqAeKs54zLlOdIrzdpEaWpIQrwArv7cCqAX5gqE-tr7Q8m4/s1422/horace65.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1049" data-original-width="1422" height="472" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKGV-f4a3rZZ0NXn_BDN1Qv-sCD0xPX_8cxhN0qI87qdoF9KDPASxZIKX_lAPfu-5NwkF5bL-R7my5ExeSR3xRkHPc6yfinQzqPx0-XDSet36DbrY70TXoh7myLxr_YxvFx4A-TsaG-8kTqqAeKs54zLlOdIrzdpEaWpIQrwArv7cCqAX5gqE-tr7Q8m4/w640-h472/horace65.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p><br /></p>Tero Heikkinenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13784200871918377919noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2474445673248923379.post-51696997625094920512024-02-14T12:40:00.003+02:002024-02-14T12:42:07.640+02:002001–3001 The Clarke Odyssey <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkTFDJOL8g4PJLUBEyL-drUE6Z7Z4J2QMmXRpix5I9YPBDKvutM4WzelN2HURT2Otnlbnv2yIl0vkX2FpPKyWma-gw4DFD8Tq3GbMTvfzDUhnHyRhQjLGMSXG9Bxq10m45VAmZTO8ZEfQiN5F6zprEf59Ui8ZBbGYfcBqSPepVamycvCiG_xx5GJ8tYCY/s1600/clarke_front.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="822" data-original-width="1600" height="328" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkTFDJOL8g4PJLUBEyL-drUE6Z7Z4J2QMmXRpix5I9YPBDKvutM4WzelN2HURT2Otnlbnv2yIl0vkX2FpPKyWma-gw4DFD8Tq3GbMTvfzDUhnHyRhQjLGMSXG9Bxq10m45VAmZTO8ZEfQiN5F6zprEf59Ui8ZBbGYfcBqSPepVamycvCiG_xx5GJ8tYCY/w640-h328/clarke_front.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p>I'll cover these in more length than usual. No doubt more literate minds have analyzed <i>2001: A Space Odyssey</i> to death, but I didn't even know "2061" existed.</p><p>In case of sequels, I'll avoid describing story-specific plot points that I consider reveals. But it's of course impossible to avoid describing the entire saga and not "spoil" it.<br /><br /></p><p><b>Arthur C. Clarke: 2001: A Space Odyssey</b></p><p>This is not an ordinary "novelization", and neither is 2001 a film of the book. The histories of the film and novel supposedly intertwine, and in any case the story is partly built on Clarke's earlier short stories. The book says it's based on the screenplay by Clarke and Kubrick.</p><p>It's not a hard call to say the film that came out of the process is more important than the novel.</p><p>The book almost inevitably feeds into the interpretation of the film. After reading the book and other sci-fi, the film events no longer seem all that incomprehensible, even if you don't accept Clarke's interpretation of what happens in the end.</p><p>Firstly, the plot loops back into itself. The space-age humans are much like the monkey-men in the beginning, fighting with each other until the other faction has the edge. The Monolith is partly about enhancing the intelligence of those who contact it, but it can also be considered as a prize, a milestone, and a monitor of the race's "worthiness".</p><p>The Russians and the Americans compete to reach the Monolith on the Moon, and much like with the monkeys, the other tribe wins and gets the option to reach another signal source at Jupiter. The parallel is clear in the film, but it is even more so in the book. The fighting doesn't end there, though.</p><p>The journey to Jupiter is something akin to the pinnacle of human race – now also including an AI – reaching to make the important contact. The analogy of a sperm cell (within the phallic ship) trying to reach the ovum (the round and motherly Jupiter) springs into mind, with the Star Gate sequence as the climax. The hardships cull out options, and in the end only Bowman remains.<br /><br />In the film, both Bowman and HAL 9000 could be considered candidates. With HAL, the human race might have created something more "worthy" than themselves. The book makes HAL seem more of a pragmatic tool that becomes confused, whereas the film is more ambiguous. What are the inner motivations and the status of HAL's "soul"? Does HAL do the things it does because of a logical contradiction in the task statement, or because it also competes for the <i>real</i> goal?</p><p>The book makes it clear how the Monolith acts as a teaching aid and intelligence booster for the ape-men. There are said to be numerous monoliths on Earth, which are also crystal-like and transparent, producing psychedelic-pedagogic light shows for the apes. I suppose this gives rise to the idea that the cinematic medium is a comparable device.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhR-SwaP9OWN9aA0frZxgevgzsYI47WxM_fST5lKoM2mMl_bM-QKKWe-XCYULF9F0KPmWUnmfdbpZWiCxvVT5_3K6r-75dBsApps2PyYddpYx4ffkmA650W6ZHB5pDllfZrLCa-hVGtTVdWsMW5mG0yVOU5SERcUIOi0tNvF_APhrg4XMDRUicQyCtDFU/s1214/cassini.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="960" data-original-width="1214" height="506" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhR-SwaP9OWN9aA0frZxgevgzsYI47WxM_fST5lKoM2mMl_bM-QKKWe-XCYULF9F0KPmWUnmfdbpZWiCxvVT5_3K6r-75dBsApps2PyYddpYx4ffkmA650W6ZHB5pDllfZrLCa-hVGtTVdWsMW5mG0yVOU5SERcUIOi0tNvF_APhrg4XMDRUicQyCtDFU/w640-h506/cassini.png" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Celestia displaying Cassini near Jupiter in 1.1.2001</td></tr></tbody></table><p>Clarke gives more narrative meat to the episode on the moon, with more focus on Dr. Heywood Floyd. The moon colony is told to be rather huge, and the expository text dwells on details such as hydroponic farms and zero-g toilets.</p><p>Oh, and the journey in the book takes to Saturn, using Jupiter as slingshot. The real-world parallel is interesting, as the <i>Cassini</i> probe from 1997 actually used roughly that window of opportunity, reaching Jupiter just in time for 2001, continuing towards Saturn.</p><p>So the year 2001 is not evoked just to give a suitably far-off sounding time, Clarke probably figured it would be a good real world moment to reach Saturn. (In notes elsewhere, he blames the repercussions of Vietnam War and Watergate for making the real 2001 less like "2001".)</p><p>Budget reasons are often cited for changing Saturn to Jupiter in the film. It could be the star gate sequence also became more abstract as a consequence. A creative decision or not, simplifying the itinerary is a blessing to the film. </p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9mK98N5b_3HYSn1boV6L8iDaDtM601BZPhkdDmaWfxIsTmspm_oCcwyp4QZ5tHo87ZKqXLu1CmISoaZgTdV72u3zZRgftouEOcppYWu9BVaOl6aLhJpYksJJpbMhyphenhyphenJdfdDYtoyaPUf1RLNDK6FhQXBSrppBrS8_2DaSKHh6RKzMxB00xe8H-3_6-YNO0/s1920/aliens.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="890" data-original-width="1920" height="296" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9mK98N5b_3HYSn1boV6L8iDaDtM601BZPhkdDmaWfxIsTmspm_oCcwyp4QZ5tHo87ZKqXLu1CmISoaZgTdV72u3zZRgftouEOcppYWu9BVaOl6aLhJpYksJJpbMhyphenhyphenJdfdDYtoyaPUf1RLNDK6FhQXBSrppBrS8_2DaSKHh6RKzMxB00xe8H-3_6-YNO0/w640-h296/aliens.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Should I imagine these are alien ships or accommodations? Or the Galactic Grand Central?</td></tr></tbody></table><p>Although the film was a huge leap for cinematic science fiction, a transcendental ending or twist in sci-fi literature was already quite cliché. The trope of immeasurably incomprehensible aliens putting humans in a "zoo" was also a sci-fi staple, witness a number of <i>Star Trek </i>episodes revolving around the theme. Kurt Vonnegut could already use the idea in <i>Slaughterhouse Five</i> (1969) for satirical effect. </p><p>Of course, clichés aren't inherently bad, you just have to use them really well. The poetry and ambiguity of Kubrick's film makes it succeed. The book's spelled out interpretation is just one of the possibilities. The ending could simply be a celebration of life being more magical than whatever gimmicks might propel us to space.</p><p><br /></p><p><b>Arthur C. Clarke: 2010 Odyssey Two (1983)</b></p><p>As we remember, <i>Discovery </i>was left on orbit around Io, the moon of Jupiter. Now we learn it is still there, but its orbit is unexpectedly decaying. Before the successor to Discovery can be launched, <i>Anton Leonov,</i> a Russian spacecraft sets out to Jupiter. Americans are generously taken aboard, mostly because only they can operate Discovery. </p><p>What else is still in Io orbit? The Monolith, that is.</p><p>Overall, the plot is one somewhat unsatisfying "let's get to Jupiter real quick, and ... uh, let's get back even quicker". The intent and nature of the alien intelligence(s) becomes clearer, gnawing away from whatever mystery was left from <i>2001</i> (the book).</p><p>The main character is Heywood Floyd, known from the moon trip in 2001. He is an aging science professional who gets the chance of a lifetime to join the crew and visit Jupiter, something he missed ten years prior.</p><p>Although Floyd's insight is important to the resolution of the journey, he and the Discovery crew are mostly observers of events rather than protagonists.</p><p>The regressed HAL is relegated to a side role, as the Indian AI expert Chandra attempts to re-ignite its intelligence. Chandra was mentioned in HAL's deteriorating monologue in 2001. </p><p>I get the feeling that after 15 years Clarke is downplaying the amount of AI development that could happen in the next 20. He's not entirely wrong. Yes, chatGPT can now carry as good or a better conversation than HAL, but not at 2010, and it doesn't really play chess and I wouldn't trust ship systems to it.</p><p>The text is replete with popular cultural references reflecting the time of the book's writing. Some of these are science fictional in nature, such as the direct <i>Star Trek</i> references. Indirect mentions go to <i>Alien</i>, <i>Close Encounters of the Third Kind</i> and <i>Star Wars</i>. It's as if Clarke wanted to remind 2001 (the film) was the augur to the blockbuster generation of science fiction.</p><p>It's credible, people are entrenched in popular culture, and to Clarke it must have been obvious people would remember these films in the 2010s. Again, he isn't wrong. But it does make a stylistic hodgepodge of what one hopes to be a somber, philosophical journey.</p><p>Importantly, not that much was known about Jupiter's moons before Voyager visited them in the 1970s. As Clarke recalls in the short intro to <i>2061</i>, the Voyager missions inspired him to write a sequel that features these satellites. Future discoveries could no longer radically contradict the findings.</p><p>The film version wisely prunes some of the book's sidetracks, such as most of Bowman's spirit-excursion to Earth memory lane and the above mentioned popular-cultural hits and misses. The Chinese craft's race to Europa is something we don't get to see either.</p><p>If I recall right, the film made the US/Russia relations more strained than in the written form. Funnily, the technology and displays onboard the Leonov have dated the film more than the comparable tech in 2001. It's a passable 1980s flick, if one is able to stop comparing it to 2001.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhITeXS7MIXjRshLStY1wvneQ_QKKYuPF6wDMvVVXehaqK2pfXWxTij1axPvx3bLKW2Yaj7QqUOosRlJNyKmoD5YL-JEEg2b0D01B4wnNBFbSsJe4Lh-iExJsJaAPCKxjVmrSgnYzD9YWI2bEHPlfAnA5QB8XPvRWvVCSC7sTOduFNWeel8k6ufYbdOYj8/s1629/coleco2010.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1194" data-original-width="1629" height="470" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhITeXS7MIXjRshLStY1wvneQ_QKKYuPF6wDMvVVXehaqK2pfXWxTij1axPvx3bLKW2Yaj7QqUOosRlJNyKmoD5YL-JEEg2b0D01B4wnNBFbSsJe4Lh-iExJsJaAPCKxjVmrSgnYzD9YWI2bEHPlfAnA5QB8XPvRWvVCSC7sTOduFNWeel8k6ufYbdOYj8/w640-h470/coleco2010.png" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Repair Discovery's subsystems in a Colecovision game. What excitement!</td></tr></tbody></table><p>There was an attempt at a game-of-a-film-of-a-book tie-in phenomenon that surrounded other sci-fi franchises and films in the 1980s. There's not only one, but two, games for the Coleco hardware. I'm unsure who is the intended audience here.</p><p>Anyway, the story is book-ended with Clarke's notes, explaining how this is a sequel to the film rather than the book (using Jupiter instead of Saturn). He reminisces over a few predictions that eerily came true, and a few life-imitates-art situations. Apparently the "Ah, Houston, we've had a problem" of Apollo 13 mission is an echo of 2001's "Sorry to interrupt the festivities, but we have a problem." They were playing Strauss in the module.</p><p>Clarke says the book was written on <a href="https://americanhistory.si.edu/collections/search/object/nmah_334645">Archives III</a> (CP/M) computer, the WordStar manuscript was sent out on a 5 inch floppy. He also mentions his trusty programmable <a href="http://www.vintagecalculators.com/html/hewlett-packard_hp_9100a.html">HP9100A</a> calculator (from 1968).<br /><br /></p><p><b>Arthur C. Clarke: 2061 Odyssey Three (1986)</b></p><p>It's 2061 and hey would you know it, Heywood is still alive! During the after-party of <i>2010, </i>which took place in 2015, Heywood fell from a balcony and had to be taken to a space station to revive. This silly plot point ultimately made him a total spacer and he can't even return to Earth.</p><p>This lifestyle, combined with the deep sleeps he enjoyed during spaceflight, kept him a well-preserved 65 rather than the 100+ he really is. Convenient.</p><p>The book was supposed to be inspired by the findings of the Galileo probe, but the <i>Challenger</i> tragedy of 1986 put the probe on hold.</p><p>The story rather takes the Halley's comet as a starting point, another timely reference. Which will again become timely as it returns in ... 2061. The comet has already started its way back in December 2023. <br /><br />I used to think comets like Halley go back to infinite depths of space, and by some virtue of masterly calculation it is possible to predict when they will return. Well, this is sort of true, but Halley's comet doesn't really go much further than the orbit of Neptune. Which of course is far enough.</p><p>But I'm digressing.</p><p>Actually, no. The major point of the book is the importance of the Halley mission. If humanity now has effective rocket ships that can travel from Earth to Jupiter in weeks, they could visit the comet pretty much whenever they want to. Ok, it might be more valuable to do so near the perihelion, but I still think the whole premise is a little flaky.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh96ZsD-4uGQQNRcnZ7qrSFASnWvYmN5NcdB1I_aM__4iOXM3DUgeMGIzLEyjRhrOaDjJLyW-JDzAHN-_MfS9R78Ip2EWSdhpB3shYK8_B24ENC3z7V4Tc-b0gcvL_8NLbYkzFWdYEbEEkgdxVGAz5NiLcn474RBewEWI1zugHmB0-s2qsnPMA4eCrtb3M/s1379/halley_2061_s.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="973" data-original-width="1379" height="452" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh96ZsD-4uGQQNRcnZ7qrSFASnWvYmN5NcdB1I_aM__4iOXM3DUgeMGIzLEyjRhrOaDjJLyW-JDzAHN-_MfS9R78Ip2EWSdhpB3shYK8_B24ENC3z7V4Tc-b0gcvL_8NLbYkzFWdYEbEEkgdxVGAz5NiLcn474RBewEWI1zugHmB0-s2qsnPMA4eCrtb3M/w640-h452/halley_2061_s.png" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Halley's Comet and the alignment of the Inner Solar System at the end of May 2061</td></tr></tbody></table><p>Just as 2010 backpedals from the ending of 2001, the outcomes from 2010 are not instantly revelatory for the human race. The species is puttering about in Ganymede and have operations around the solar system with the improved spaceships.</p><p>There's a weird discovery on Europa, related to a mountain that didn't exist before. And despite the ominous warning of not to land there, circumstances will lead people to land there anyway. Some are hungry for scientific merit, some see potential for profit. The discovery is almost immediately guessable, but Clarke keeps hanging on to it until the end.</p><p>What with the mountain and Halley's comet stealing the show, the story actually has very little to do with the 2001 saga. It could have been written in some other frame, and I suspect it partly originates from some other project.</p><p>For most of the time Clarke is being pedagogical about space, orbits, rocket flight and the solar system in general. There's a Jules Verne-esque entourage partaking with the Halley's Comet mission, as a kind of space tourism. This enables Clarke to have more characters around to have small talk, but they don't do much for the story. </p><p>The discussion can again turn to Star Wars and of all things,<i> Gone with the Wind.</i> Clarke seems to think that Beatles will be forgotten in 100 years, yet that somewhat badly aged film will be revered as a classic still in 2061. Currently it looks like the opposite might become true, but who knows.</p><p>As a detail, the story addresses the monolith's resemblance to the UN building.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-8m4xGePdnfQOAluO5DDwh2xCK9IT6H-AnfrKIbKt80BZO0oKGV2akRKdN8Mwdm-rfmVzxMdyWfJ0FQtVDSd9aF-9cB7igSyCdlnCI4I9NpKnjGETQj8oFi2tzAzcjMFxt0BfbKvpV6v2IK_nP2miqcl9BKCoS6ONTt8PJBmD0DG99GT-_aX_7Ox9re8/s323/unitednations.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="260" data-original-width="323" height="323" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-8m4xGePdnfQOAluO5DDwh2xCK9IT6H-AnfrKIbKt80BZO0oKGV2akRKdN8Mwdm-rfmVzxMdyWfJ0FQtVDSd9aF-9cB7igSyCdlnCI4I9NpKnjGETQj8oFi2tzAzcjMFxt0BfbKvpV6v2IK_nP2miqcl9BKCoS6ONTt8PJBmD0DG99GT-_aX_7Ox9re8/w400-h323/unitednations.png" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="text-align: left;">From<i> 201 min. of A Space Idiocy </i>(1969), perhaps not MAD's finest moments.</span></td></tr></tbody></table><p>Clarke progresses the story with ease, with nearly cinematic organisation of changing viewpoints and short expository chapters.</p><p>By the way, why did 2061 not receive the film treatment?</p><p>Apart from the fact the plot doesn't live up to even 2010 standards, I believe Halley's comet hype became very old very quickly, especially as the comet wasn't all that impressive. It would have been a mistake to release a film about Halley after it had passed.</p><p>There's now less talk of AI, computers and networks, and what little is there can be weird. Surprisingly, even rudimentary Google-style keyword searches take minutes or hours of expensive computer time in 2061. I recall Asimov was also somewhat prone to similar underestimations. But, just maybe, <i>maybe, </i>there's so much more information in 2061 that 20th century scientific papers and popular culture needs to be dug up from some deep strata.</p><p>In the short postscript Clarke mentions apparently having moved his writing to a more "portable" Kaypro.<br /><br /></p><p><b>Arthur C. Clarke: 3001 The Final Odyssey (1997)</b></p><p>This was already hinted at the epilogue 2061: something wonderful would happen in the year 3001. This story then mostly unpacks that epilogue.</p><p>Clarke was about 80 when this book came out. It serves as a sort of anniversary and perhaps a final hurrah for the author, who mostly wrote collaborations after this novel.</p><p>I sometimes forget that one aspect of the original was to showcase the world of 2001, its space stations, moonbases, computers, video calls and nuclear drives. 3001 does this in abundance, and for this far-away year Clarke can pull out all the stops and just describe one imaginative thing after another.</p><p>But it's also not that imaginative. What's on display is an Arthur C. Clarke greatest hits tour, with space elevators, space drives and other future innovations. Clarke gets self-referential and knowingly acknowledges the future world finally looks a little like the pulp cover art of early 20th century. Asimov and Heinlein are indirectly referred to.</p><p>Late 20th century popular culture features, too, as Clarke would now have witnessed <i>Jurassic Park</i>, CD ROMs, the fledgling cyberspace and the internet. These are retroactively inserted into the history of the first novel and Clarke knows very well the timeline doesn't make much sense.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSbIhZE1JIlf59ReSZLwi-UsE_kzIxTuu6tDQ5EDIVIyxDBW5selFUtFI-i9DSqvhRy3oxQqIoz41DdOA0d4dPjEnFIF1xfXnAogeMU1fwhnlHphbyHQx4-OfN9GZSmVwGREtp86qty3T7i39ujnM-xplWWQHL6FRJsZ01d4GKJkFwC7RFZtchMrLRHbw/s2026/3001_space_odyssey.jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="726" data-original-width="2026" height="230" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSbIhZE1JIlf59ReSZLwi-UsE_kzIxTuu6tDQ5EDIVIyxDBW5selFUtFI-i9DSqvhRy3oxQqIoz41DdOA0d4dPjEnFIF1xfXnAogeMU1fwhnlHphbyHQx4-OfN9GZSmVwGREtp86qty3T7i39ujnM-xplWWQHL6FRJsZ01d4GKJkFwC7RFZtchMrLRHbw/w640-h230/3001_space_odyssey.jpeg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">An AI collage to match the book stylistically</td></tr></tbody></table><p>Amusingly the world of 3001 can be a weirdly nostalgic extrapolation of late 1990s suppositions of how the future might turn out. Climate change, major wars, religion and killing animals for food seem to be a thing of the past. If Clarke was here to see the 2020s, he might have been less optimistic.</p><p>There's a curious sense that humanity is on its way developing the technologies that the Monolith entails... but I'm less eager to reveal plot points here, although the book is more than 25 years old by now.</p><p>Speed of light cannot be beat, and it looks like the alien entities responsible for the monoliths might have received their initial data on Earth's encounter with the Jupiter monolith and cooked up a suitable response. Based on data from the 20th century. Uh-oh. </p><p>But didn't Bowman use a Star Gate in 2001 to visit the Galactic Grand Central, defying space and time? There's a stronger sense here that perhaps Bowman did not visit another star system after all, but that everything happened within a simulation inside the monolith. Well, again, Clarke readily admits the books do not form a coherent whole.</p><p>What disappoints me is the inclusion of slightly edited repeats of long passages from 2010 and 2061. Apparently Tsien's final message was so poignant it had to be included three times in the books.</p><p>With these repetitions alongside lazy "e-mail" type chapters give artificial length to the tome. There are some interesting ideas about the role and the morality of the Monoliths and their builders, but the closure to the Space Odyssey saga isn't very satisfying.</p><p>In the extensive end notes, Clarke reveals he has progressed to an IBM laptop, again trying to discredit the idea that HAL was meant to be one letter off from IBM...</p><p><br /></p><p><b>Afterword</b></p><p>Clarke liked to use real-world predictive possibilities for laying out his plots, such as known windows of opportunity for space missions. In this series, he seems to have preferred not to write about worlds if there was no observations to base speculation on.</p><p>He was eager to see opportunity for life thriving in every crack, crevice and cloud of the solar system, despite the apparent barrenness and hostility of it all. </p><p>In parts he seems to have been vindicated, as complex organic chemistry and water crop up nearly everywhere. But actual extra-terrestrial life seems to still elude us, and the 20th century idea of living just at the cusp of this great discovery, seems to be dwindling. I felt it also reflected in the sequels of 2001, each one taking a step farther from the original's premise.</p>Tero Heikkinenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13784200871918377919noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2474445673248923379.post-45148483893973986962024-01-27T11:22:00.002+02:002024-01-27T11:26:17.042+02:002023<div>The 2023 retrospective has been delayed a little...<br /><br /></div><div><div>Listing "what I did last year" is not now very appealing, but I'll try to keep up the tradition.</div></div><div><br /></div><b>Programming, graphics</b><div><br /></div><div>The year started with the release of <i><a href="http://multipaint.kameli.net/">Multipaint 2023</a></i> with Vic-20 modes and the beginnings of a large internal overhaul. Every export and import of native formats is handled through external scripts, and I hope to extend this idea to a few other facets of the software.</div><div><br /></div><div>Still, the most ambitious programming task was the Commodore 64 game <i><a href="https://csdb.dk/release/?id=234071">Lancess Priya</a></i>, which had been brewing from since 2022 summer. The semi-vector graphics routines make it more of a technical exploration than a proper game. I found the energy to port the game to <a href="https://plus4world.powweb.com/software/Lancess_Priya">Commodore plus/4</a> too.</div><div><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0zN4GMVwmfX-02SsrK83jajrZdOZ2IkIdVu9Sddk9f4asOmDF1xf8JxQnHzqAjNYN4_ll25p7PIkxYLgElfkZA7I3k2S0KQZHLw_DkiYzjP6XylmeCJYRK_2M1mtyW0ddnNDuVcJH0womLzSeujci3YEyp4jHrs5FNdKU89o4iohiNtxS_0ItXr8A-y8/s2048/speggunnext.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1153" data-original-width="2048" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0zN4GMVwmfX-02SsrK83jajrZdOZ2IkIdVu9Sddk9f4asOmDF1xf8JxQnHzqAjNYN4_ll25p7PIkxYLgElfkZA7I3k2S0KQZHLw_DkiYzjP6XylmeCJYRK_2M1mtyW0ddnNDuVcJH0womLzSeujci3YEyp4jHrs5FNdKU89o4iohiNtxS_0ItXr8A-y8/w640-h360/speggunnext.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">ZX Spectrum Next... but what's wrong?</td></tr></tbody></table><div><br /></div><div>Of old computers, Sinclair Z88 inspired me for a while, fostering thoughts about focused, keyboard-based text-only computing, but the computer eventually became just another oddity in the pile.</div><div><br /></div><div>In December, at long last the ZX Spectrum Next arrived from the 2020 Kickstarter batch. The final moments of the year were spent tinkering with the Next and getting Multipaint to do 256-color graphics.</div><div><br /></div><div>As the "Z80N" processor has fantasy extensions, there's really no way to build a similar computer by putting together a real Z80 and an FPGA for video/sound chip. But despite some quibbles about the authenticity of this new "Spectrum" it has been enjoyable to explore.</div><div><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9fO5WOYYhqO_HRiymYgFYEdDOwyNm53Oxu3NRRiNk4-G33iB2hK02goEgz87tWlKuELBQUbrbrg8TVkDFtTVGY2DNr9HY6GeeP2iRJu9NwL-FGmUFKslCrsFgY9AUUnbONeysMt9gOtL_v960lt541YdOCFxCdW3iUNbIrz87HENmMbh1THyZaicnxrg/s960/noescape.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="792" data-original-width="960" height="528" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9fO5WOYYhqO_HRiymYgFYEdDOwyNm53Oxu3NRRiNk4-G33iB2hK02goEgz87tWlKuELBQUbrbrg8TVkDFtTVGY2DNr9HY6GeeP2iRJu9NwL-FGmUFKslCrsFgY9AUUnbONeysMt9gOtL_v960lt541YdOCFxCdW3iUNbIrz87HENmMbh1THyZaicnxrg/w640-h528/noescape.png" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">No Escape</td></tr></tbody></table><div><br /></div><div>The retro graphics output was modest this year, although notably it does feature the first official ZX Spectrum gfx compo outing, <i>No Escape, </i>a remote entry for the Edison 2023 demoparty.</div><div><br /></div><div>For me this is somewhat humorous moment, as I originally made Multipaint to create ZX Spectrum graphics, way back in 2013. Well, okay, the one-screener <i>Unhanged</i> Speccy demo already featured my gfx.</div><div><br /></div><div><i></i>This and the Vammala Party piece <i>New King</i> were mostly left-overs from earlier times.</div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGN11k_5nY56OaXsCqE6eTxZj2dtfUHdAbt4peuhDWPsKNqVIrAzt0gVHh8CG2D884KAkrt_ovRklo_i1vE_ydi_FirMqXIuD9WFbQockR7YQiOunWNiPfqcIvwid9sk3nxzMz2gSPVKSQLm98GAbZYwYtiZ5XNgvuDfviYXoDV6-uR9JCQdxLaYgNCHI/s1152/macscii.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="816" data-original-width="1152" height="454" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGN11k_5nY56OaXsCqE6eTxZj2dtfUHdAbt4peuhDWPsKNqVIrAzt0gVHh8CG2D884KAkrt_ovRklo_i1vE_ydi_FirMqXIuD9WFbQockR7YQiOunWNiPfqcIvwid9sk3nxzMz2gSPVKSQLm98GAbZYwYtiZ5XNgvuDfviYXoDV6-uR9JCQdxLaYgNCHI/w640-h454/macscii.png" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Applescii Macscii, happy 40th, Mac!<br /><br /></td></tr></tbody></table><div>Although the old computers never really left me during 1990s and early 2000s, it has now been a more dedicated ten-year journey with exploring 8/16-bit computers, PETSCII, bitmap graphics and programming.</div><div><br /></div><div>I sometimes think this "phase" is winding down rather than going to higher gear, but something new comes up all the time. The balance of the hobby may become shifted but apparently there's no real end in sight.</div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><b>Games</b></div><div><br /></div><div>No sooner than I thought the year would not have much gaming in it, I found myself playing <i>Eurotruck Simulator 2</i>, <i>Carrier Command 2</i>, <i>Mudrunner</i>, <i>Lake</i> and <i>Just Cause 3</i>, as documented in the blog.</div><div><br /></div><div>I did touch <i>Disco Elysium, </i>but despite all the accolades it didn't look like a game I would play. Too wordy and narrative-driven for me. Before 20 minutes had passed I switched it off.</div><div><br /></div><div>I also started with the 2009 <i>Bionic Commando, </i>and although it looks solid enough it will have to wait for another time.<i> </i></div><div><br /></div><div>Again, Proton/Linux with Steam largely enabled all of this. I'd perhaps nominate Carrier Command 2 as the most interesting game experience for my 2023, despite all its flaws.</div><div><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfh0Q6CgIfyBQ2H85ap3mDXLKObT8YTve0GnVFb2SroMXNirvfUZo6gLHccn14vqqP5XkaUbMSdEkSIWS017Q1z6jL-X4-Y8anxgHg9k_zssYUqay0MSRi_pZHzxv6kcf6dhprj3sdjHj4f9ILLHYlfqT4x4oo_dgpD1B23SaUk0lVSLefd1AKakmAyDY/s1920/lake2023.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1920" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfh0Q6CgIfyBQ2H85ap3mDXLKObT8YTve0GnVFb2SroMXNirvfUZo6gLHccn14vqqP5XkaUbMSdEkSIWS017Q1z6jL-X4-Y8anxgHg9k_zssYUqay0MSRi_pZHzxv6kcf6dhprj3sdjHj4f9ILLHYlfqT4x4oo_dgpD1B23SaUk0lVSLefd1AKakmAyDY/w640-h400/lake2023.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lake</td></tr></tbody></table><div><br /></div><div>In addition I would play the occasional vintage game, and a few games on the aforementioned ZX Spectrum Next platform. Perhaps the tiny tower defense variant <i>Next War </i>took most of my time.</div><div><br /></div><div>I finally became fed up with chess, at least the online variety. On self reflection, what began as a slow alternative to computer games, with focus on physical pieces, boards and paper books, ended up as an online grind with diminishing returns, sense of wasted time and increased irritation. I will return to it eventually.</div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><b>TV, Books, Films</b></div><div><br /></div><div><i>Star Wars: Ahsoka </i>was not that bad, but it's not my generation's Star Wars anymore. Perhaps it is made for those who grew up with the prequels, Expanded Universe novels and the animated <i>Clone Wars</i> and <i>Rebels</i> series. Now instead of having rare encounters with Samurai-like Jedi, we're now treated with 1-2 light saber fights every episode.</div><div><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPYHxB5O_eX04Tcnk0MFBK-hKUJbB0pE8jqdeM3ol0sORT92CvDN5jLUpxLUWT80jWVdEhm30i2hvBIstExvfPmhxDR5C2X0y00zwLVuyuSCVYOnL5HVnr7rUBNuddLAemK_AwDVRoK9QCWBP5qtzTtauuo9XRSmg-ZdXLghgZzn88DKOLBjQjiCq6rCQ/s1600/starwars.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="901" data-original-width="1600" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPYHxB5O_eX04Tcnk0MFBK-hKUJbB0pE8jqdeM3ol0sORT92CvDN5jLUpxLUWT80jWVdEhm30i2hvBIstExvfPmhxDR5C2X0y00zwLVuyuSCVYOnL5HVnr7rUBNuddLAemK_AwDVRoK9QCWBP5qtzTtauuo9XRSmg-ZdXLghgZzn88DKOLBjQjiCq6rCQ/w640-h360/starwars.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ahsoka. Not the series.</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><div>The first resurgence of what should be the post-slump <i>Doctor Who</i> has arrived, and although it looks promising, I'm wondering if the re-invention is sufficient. Soon it's 20 years since the renewal of the series, and one can say there's already nostalgia building up for those early 2000s times.</div><div><br /></div><div><i>Dark</i> was the most memorable TV series I watched this year, even if the third season went off a tangent and mostly just stalled the outcome. It started out looking like a poor man's <i>Stranger Things, </i>but had its own clear voice after all.</div><div><br /></div><div>More recently, <i>Umbrella Academy</i> has proven to be entertaining enough, following on the footsteps of <i>Watchmen</i> and the like. I don't too much care about TV or film format superhero adventures, having read the stories in comic book form long time ago. Again the third season meandered and stalled around a plot point that was already evident in previous season. Such is serial TV these days.</div><div><br /></div><div>Talking of TV, my mind is rather blank about 2023's TV. Perhaps the increasingly splintered nature of streaming TV is something that puts me off watching more. Want to rewatch <i>Twin Peaks </i>or a few episodes of <i>McGyver</i> on the spur of the moment? No, not possible.</div><div><br /></div><div>I managed to see about 70 films (not counting re-watches) in 2023, starting off with <i>Koyaanisqatsi</i> and <i>Lawrence of Arabia. </i>Koyaanisqatsi is less artsy than its makers probably intended, but at least it sports the Philip Glass soundtrack that eventually mutated into the C64 <i>Delta</i> tune in Rob Hubbard's hands. I could see Lawrence as an important and influential film, but the "grand historical epic" format dragged it down somewhat.</div><div><i><br /></i></div><div><i>Truman Show </i>could be added to the list of films I really ought to have seen before, and whatever one thinks of Jim Carrey I thought the concept was more interesting than the one in <i>Matrix.</i> Oh, and I did see the clever <i>Barbie</i>, but <i>Oppenheimer </i>is still waiting.</div><div><br /></div><div>I saw more than the usual amount of Finnish movies in the theater, partly because of research purposes. The new <i>Hirttämättömät </i>(Unhanged) and the <i>Spede </i>biopic were not all that impressive but were mandatory viewing. In addition I saw <i>Je'vida, </i>a not too happy film about the integration of Sámi people in the 1950s.</div><div><br /></div><div>Aki Kaurismäki's<i> Dead Leaves</i> (Kuolleet Lehdet) was the same usual what Kaurismäki does, but the new actors made it feel fresher and less of a "one man's odyssey". Aki's films are often set in an ambiguous time period <span face=""LFT Etica", arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #252528; font-size: 18px;">–</span> <i>Man without Past </i>looks like it could be 1950s, but suddenly you see a computer terminal in a bank... Dead Leaves is set to a specific year with laser-precision. Also, weird to see some of my neighborhood, so recently filmed, in the film.</div><div><div><br /></div><div>This new year is unlikely to be very film-heavy.</div><div><br /></div></div><div>Nearing the end of the year I read what felt like a ginormous amount of sci-fi, but in actuality it was a generous handful of books. As a kind of literary highlight I read Thomas Pynchon's <i>Gravity's Rainbow</i>, a monumental and not entirely enjoyable task. At least afterwards I could easily read normal-sized sci-fi paperbacks in one evening or two.</div>Tero Heikkinenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13784200871918377919noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2474445673248923379.post-82001252941487058762024-01-17T10:07:00.003+02:002024-01-17T10:07:52.459+02:00Multipaint and ZX Spectrum Next<p>Some development notes about ZX Spectrum Next graphics modes in Multipaint, the multi-platform (Linux, Mac, PC) for creating 8/16 bit images.<br /></p><p>The supported screenmodes are "layer 2" graphics, 256 x 192, or 320 x 256, both with 256 colors. ZX Next has many more modes, but these look like the most prominent for graphics and games.<br /></p><p>I know it's possible to write code that displays 512 colors on-screen, but as usual, Multipaint only supports the most vanilla screenmodes.<br /><br />Paint programs for 256 color modes are common, so I tried to compensate by adding a bunch of useful load/save options, more than the usual amount.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUauwCY6Yho90JzfqasQNnX0-2KBv2-rq8Q_JC_3cWcESZ0JsTSQfqNIhc5Z5TrW3TWKpwB93nG2BdeZUqqtJfiGeekmtNBiNJaq4014v1fSRYUu2djMbDiU5xTifxpy4sQmUkbnEchyAxob4UHkTyVR-vOW8d6H_mJbQ_8nLtwzz02nD-ITmVHWDo8Ks/s1166/mp_sprites_all.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="718" data-original-width="1166" height="394" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUauwCY6Yho90JzfqasQNnX0-2KBv2-rq8Q_JC_3cWcESZ0JsTSQfqNIhc5Z5TrW3TWKpwB93nG2BdeZUqqtJfiGeekmtNBiNJaq4014v1fSRYUu2djMbDiU5xTifxpy4sQmUkbnEchyAxob4UHkTyVR-vOW8d6H_mJbQ_8nLtwzz02nD-ITmVHWDo8Ks/w640-h394/mp_sprites_all.png" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">DK sprites from the Next SD card</td></tr></tbody></table><p>Why are the formats individually listed in the menu, and not just integrated in the file selector? Well, I've found that if a feature is not very visible, people tend to think it does not exist.</p><p>Seriously though, one day I may add a better file extension recognition for the main file selector too.</p><p>Multipaint was designed for about 16 colors in mind, so the palette and color options for 256 color modes can appear a little limited.</p><p>At least the FX brush modes such as Lighten/Darken, Tint and Mix help somewhat and work better in 256 colors than in other modes. I still consider these as somewhat "beta". But you can draw a filled rectangle with the FX "Darken" on the desired area to make it more subdued, without having to pixel everything again or alter the palette.</p><p>Spectrum Next has a convention where the default palette holds a 256-color "8-bit RGB palette", 8 steps for Red, Green and 4 steps for Blue. </p><p>This is especially useful for NextBASIC, you can work ideas without having to define palettes. The 256-color set is already very comprehensive – there isn't that much more you can do with the 512 color range. (8 greyscales is something that springs into mind, though.)<br /></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxaX6TrZkt3kCZUqAgbuK_HhCaRig-BQhMckYZUS47cDbf20WGlnmKDNZNfc-TLY8R0ALuZFQ-PK5rZEST1GqU6cg-ZnyNlVSSOFxEwsROP6jp4V_w4Mf62OgiqXSW8YNmK3vPrcG7ZUvL8KLJ4xmx3kC6kUSRXq7-LbFhqLQCI7onJQZEWoxrqAr995A/s690/mp_palette.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="690" data-original-width="605" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxaX6TrZkt3kCZUqAgbuK_HhCaRig-BQhMckYZUS47cDbf20WGlnmKDNZNfc-TLY8R0ALuZFQ-PK5rZEST1GqU6cg-ZnyNlVSSOFxEwsROP6jp4V_w4Mf62OgiqXSW8YNmK3vPrcG7ZUvL8KLJ4xmx3kC6kUSRXq7-LbFhqLQCI7onJQZEWoxrqAr995A/w351-h400/mp_palette.png" width="351" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Next default "8-bit" palette</td></tr></tbody></table><p>Multipaint respects this default palette convention, so if you import a PNG image, the palette is not altered.</p><p>This behavior can be changed from <b>File->Settings</b>, by turning on the "re-palette" option for incoming files.</p><p><i>Coders: </i>Each platform specific Save menu option can be invoked from the <b>File-> Export TXT</b> item. From this dialogue you can save text/source versions of the same formats. These can then be copied to or included in an assembler source.</p><p>As of now the result is a little unresponsive, but the file ought to save even if it looks like nothing happened.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4xJPGxuGJiPBGn340p5Ndj5_OtY4zKWLC1Wv6vRBgpv-Vt2ZccydNysmrypEGgzNjmU27Dbhvga4CEbrELUYyx7uA6ZZMztbWn9XCKm6RiwtnY4aps9q7uW-yXtLj37elheANLzppQQpr2XmGE8hhhxp6wbIjE3NgCMkcEC-nwjWcrAs1YdELBFrdBzs/s497/mp_export.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="497" data-original-width="486" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4xJPGxuGJiPBGn340p5Ndj5_OtY4zKWLC1Wv6vRBgpv-Vt2ZccydNysmrypEGgzNjmU27Dbhvga4CEbrELUYyx7uA6ZZMztbWn9XCKm6RiwtnY4aps9q7uW-yXtLj37elheANLzppQQpr2XmGE8hhhxp6wbIjE3NgCMkcEC-nwjWcrAs1YdELBFrdBzs/w391-h400/mp_export.png" width="391" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Export as Text dialogue.</td></tr></tbody></table><p>I've been asked for GIF and BMP support, makes sense as they are indexed modes with no ambiguity. Again something to think about in the future.</p><p>The Multipaint BIN project format obviously preserves the palette and the color index, and sticking to the default palette can also be helpful.</p><p>The ZX Next specific formats supported:<br /><br /></p><p><b>NXI</b></p><p>NXI is raw bitmap data, without any palette information.<br /></p><p>The 256x192 and 320x256 variants can be detected from the file length.</p><p>Without palette, they are 49152 and 81920 respectively. With palette, add 512 bytes to length.<br /></p><p>Note that the display order is different for the 320x256 version, the image is stored "vertically" in memory.</p><p>Multipaint doesn't currently change the screenmode automatically for an in-coming NXI, so you have to first pick the correct mode and then load the NXI. The dialog will warn of incorrect NXI length, though. <br /></p><p>Notably, the PLOTIT-LITE paint program included in the ZX Next bundle can load and save 256x192 NXI files.</p><p> </p><p style="text-align: left;"><b>NXI with palette added</b></p><p>The same as NXI, but with 512 bytes of 9-bit palette data. Multipaint can detect which one it is from the file length.</p><p>For saving, you have to choose either NXI or "NXI wo" (without).<br /><br />This format is largely useful for storing, I don't know of any other context of use. <br /><br /></p><p><b>SL2</b></p><p>256 x 192 raw bitmap data, without palette. These files have a 128-byte <a href="https://area51.dev/sinclair/spectrum/3dos/fileheader/">PLUS3DOS header</a> to facilitate system loading, or something.</p><p>Although the header ends with a checksum, the checksum apparently only matters for the 128 first bytes, thus the value is always the same for this image format.<br /></p><p>The importance of SL2 is that the NextBASIC can easily load these files: <br /></p><p><span style="font-family: courier;">10 LAYER 2,1<br />20 LOAD "picture.sl2" LAYER<br />30 PAUSE 0</span></p><p>If the picture is in the same folder, NextBASIC should load and display the image.<br /><b><br /><br />SPR</b></p><p>SPR is 16384 bytes, raw bitmap data, containing 64 sprite definitions. The sprites are ordered as 16x16 entities, following each other.</p><p>Multipaint has no different mode for sprites, the SAVE SPR simply stores the top third of a 256x192 mode screen. This also means whatever is in the remainder, is NOT saved!</p><p>Hopefully I can come up with a clearer solution, as the bottom part works nicely as a scratchpad, and there's a chance of losing work.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2Va-xwTXqyqmThCBilEmRRcd3KxvJ73X563QBDRjduXrnOF83q9bRoy4LevUX8acwNZwIt9h1XsBX8q19fsv4Dj9J3JsMPYCdMuGSGlt6on0sJYsH4RBsAB_6Sn4xAndMe925MVrf2uwCeSkWrhPI6qjHOOR0lX3epq_B3_nesyYEdoTTKsixtmLy7Uw/s1166/mp_spritemock.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="718" data-original-width="1166" height="394" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2Va-xwTXqyqmThCBilEmRRcd3KxvJ73X563QBDRjduXrnOF83q9bRoy4LevUX8acwNZwIt9h1XsBX8q19fsv4Dj9J3JsMPYCdMuGSGlt6on0sJYsH4RBsAB_6Sn4xAndMe925MVrf2uwCeSkWrhPI6qjHOOR0lX3epq_B3_nesyYEdoTTKsixtmLy7Uw/w640-h394/mp_spritemock.png" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Some tile work</td></tr></tbody></table><p>Preferably, sprites and tiles should be saved in some other format, and only exported via SAVE SPR when needed.</p><p>The Sprite/Tile editor included with ZX Next bundle can load SPR files. *.SPR can even be launched from the Browser for inspection.</p><p>There's a couple of NextBASIC demos that show how to load and use SPR files in your own Basic programs, I won't go there now.<br /><br /></p><p><b>PAL</b></p><p>PAL is a 512 bytes file which contains the 9-bit RGB definitions for 256-color palette, from index 0 to 255. Practically every odd byte just contains the last needed bit for Blue component of each color.</p><p>This is identical to the way the palette is stored in NXI paletted format. It is also a handy order for dumping palette data via color registers in machine code.<br /></p><p>This format also facilitates the loading and saving of alternative palettes, in case you need something else than the default palette. I'd recommend sticking to the default palette as much as possible.<br /></p><p><br /><b>NEX</b><br /><br />Nex is not an image format, but a more generic means of "packaging" a code, its data and assets into a direct one-file executable, as described <a href="https://wiki.specnext.dev/NEX_file_format">here</a>.<br /><br />I used this opportunity to have a NEX-based self-viewer that can be run from the Browser.<br /></p><p>If you use the excellent <a href="https://solhsa.com/specnext.html">NextSync</a> for wireless file transfer, you could just export the NEX into your PC sync folder, sync the Next and then run the executable. Not too slow!</p><p> <br /><b>A few non-Next related notes</b></p><p>Multipaint is still being developed, and I am headed for a 2024 version, with some overhauls and a possible move to Processing 4.</p><p>Tutorial is a funny addition. It can be selected from the start menu. Hopefully, by going through the tutorial, it's more clear what kind of tools and options are available. The tutorial hasn't really been tested much, and may be adjusted in the future.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxOU_InP-MhPAzrVPWLAaWvuapS_fv1rrNLlFDpBwS0k-BxBhF4zV7uIExGfL6QjbC-BkNXjt3sOy_-DTwxhuqRNY0FSDBIvseYcw6ILR2gv1JGKYuPKvKobuyBrRqUTxwl8SIPkVutvE8ti2Mp8lvMxawifCLrCwd96m41bGsn0XGTvfFaTZknSGv4Hc/s581/mp_tutorial.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="378" data-original-width="581" height="260" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxOU_InP-MhPAzrVPWLAaWvuapS_fv1rrNLlFDpBwS0k-BxBhF4zV7uIExGfL6QjbC-BkNXjt3sOy_-DTwxhuqRNY0FSDBIvseYcw6ILR2gv1JGKYuPKvKobuyBrRqUTxwl8SIPkVutvE8ti2Mp8lvMxawifCLrCwd96m41bGsn0XGTvfFaTZknSGv4Hc/w400-h260/mp_tutorial.png" width="400" /></a></div><p>Another recent addition is a "key cheatsheet" menu item, which shows some (not all) keyboard shortcuts that might come in handy for more effective work.</p><p>Generally, Pull Down menus and the icon set and tooltips should give an idea of what is there, but there are also couple of functions that have never been really visible.</p><p>For example, scrolling of dither patterns using [ and ] keys is not widely known!</p><p><a href="http://multipaint.kameli.net/">Multipaint website and Downloads</a></p>Tero Heikkinenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13784200871918377919noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2474445673248923379.post-25149718439257162182023-12-30T18:32:00.003+02:002024-01-18T11:37:11.661+02:00ZX Spectrum Next<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_R9uK8J0XyzwYx4pPuLdJqbdQEYXMlBKVANoe5ReWQtREcFySPIWlMbIC4SoapwL50w4CIZoO2Fk0R_LPdGKINeUpXbyAhWg8hu4Xm0N4u1cphBYkb5giWNxaLZEyabwmi1_g60Q5Mln95g2pP9lldp6sM1zmrPX7OToFeHJFJHVLZtsf9ajLi2PSuCk/s1600/specnext.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="890" data-original-width="1600" height="356" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_R9uK8J0XyzwYx4pPuLdJqbdQEYXMlBKVANoe5ReWQtREcFySPIWlMbIC4SoapwL50w4CIZoO2Fk0R_LPdGKINeUpXbyAhWg8hu4Xm0N4u1cphBYkb5giWNxaLZEyabwmi1_g60Q5Mln95g2pP9lldp6sM1zmrPX7OToFeHJFJHVLZtsf9ajLi2PSuCk/w640-h356/specnext.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sinclair ZX Spectrum Next</td></tr></tbody></table><p>The first ZX Spectrum Next Kickstarter was launched in 2017. Back then I felt the <a href="https://oldmachinery.blogspot.com/2012/11/zx-evolution.html">ZX Evolution</a> was enough for me. When I learned of the second Kickstarter, promising improvements over the first one, I had to jump in.</p><p>The board is a continuation of the TBBlue, where an FPGA drives the entire thing. So it's not a software emulator but there's no factory-made bona fide Z80 chip inside. In fact they call it the Z80N because it has a few extra instructions. If the magical aura of a genuine 8-bit CPU is absolutely necessary, then steer elsewhere... </p><p>But let's not forget the original Spectrum ULA video chip was a kind of proto-FPGA chip too. It's just nowadays more realistic to have everything in the "ULA".</p><p>256 colour graphics with support for scrolling and sprites, multi-channel sound, SD card storage media, 2MB memory. For programming this means a memory paging system, because the Z80 cannot address more then 64 kilobytes of memory directly.</p><p>The computer can also work as ZX80, ZX81, 48K, 128K, through either emulating or switching the ROM and capabilities.</p><p>Instead of listing <i>everything</i> the computer does (and it does a lot) I'll just relate my initial observations and things I have found interesting after week and a half.<br /><br /></p><p><b>First Impressions<br /><br /></b>The Next comes packaged with the appropriate PSU and a printed booklet in the tradition of the original Sinclair manuals. It's crammed with information and tables. In addition there's also a quick start sheet.</p><p>The great thing here is that I don't need to buy anything extra to get it up and running. Ok, a video cable is necessary but who doesn't have a HDMI or a VGA lying around?</p><p>The case is physically very impressive, a proper industrially molded case and keyboard. In size and appearance it is quite close to the Spectrum Plus, although not nearly as tall. Rick Dickinson, the original designer of many Sinclair products, was still involved with the design before his passing.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhL2Lrl2YuSUh2ZbspMywW-348SueZA0lAxtxiai1mZx5COYhWBmG72MDFnR_mt1gqHDcJ3-szC-Bi22W7szdVltrVcao-UsYuk1GCXgsz6Goc7kvb8JWwHP2p5wRe6HO5mLMcUbIrb8EMCozWmFFzl1PISHjC30mFVrN0Sd7bD7Dpu-yKpNOVrRuczAb8/s1600/roundings.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="911" data-original-width="1600" height="364" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhL2Lrl2YuSUh2ZbspMywW-348SueZA0lAxtxiai1mZx5COYhWBmG72MDFnR_mt1gqHDcJ3-szC-Bi22W7szdVltrVcao-UsYuk1GCXgsz6Goc7kvb8JWwHP2p5wRe6HO5mLMcUbIrb8EMCozWmFFzl1PISHjC30mFVrN0Sd7bD7Dpu-yKpNOVrRuczAb8/w640-h364/roundings.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">In the correct order</td></tr></tbody></table><p>I'm not a big fan of rounded corners in tech, but I have to admit the rounding and the rainbow plastics gives the box a lot of character. It's also a tribute to the original rubber-keyed Spectrum.</p><p>The keyboard appearance and feel exceeded my expectations. It mostly follows the Spectrum Plus layout, the main difference being the cursor keys have been positioned more reasonably. </p><p>The layout difference makes it hard to compare the Next with modern keyboards. It feels right but I tend to mistype because my fingers are one key off, typing LIAR instead of LIST and so on.</p><p>Occasionally I lapse into Speccy-thinking, using shift+P to create " and even searching the cursor keys from both sides of the space bar! My brain hasn't really decided yet what to do with the keyboard.</p><p>The lack of explicit CTRL and ALT keys also affects the way software deals with keyboard shortcuts.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyO-_YbK-Og92Q_GR7ikjLyK1oOqpQkY5_FIk-5uXvlkI1oyehPfL6jhKwJk0haP5nrltbz4I38W3gmJOZxWg7jNdkignx6y46qps3p3w9AaDEP5tV7CImN3CIOS4Az6ym-708uCcKeRrkZB7YqyFmUW9DFHkj92PWJPgLhS449W3_QzstEkVBSHVMbD4/s1600/kiippari.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="901" data-original-width="1600" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyO-_YbK-Og92Q_GR7ikjLyK1oOqpQkY5_FIk-5uXvlkI1oyehPfL6jhKwJk0haP5nrltbz4I38W3gmJOZxWg7jNdkignx6y46qps3p3w9AaDEP5tV7CImN3CIOS4Az6ym-708uCcKeRrkZB7YqyFmUW9DFHkj92PWJPgLhS449W3_QzstEkVBSHVMbD4/w640-h360/kiippari.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Instead we have True Video and Inverse Video</td></tr></tbody></table><p><b>Connectors</b></p><p>There's a bunch of modern and less modern connectors at the backside. In the great Sinclair tradition, there is no power switch on the computer itself and you can just "pull the plug". </p><p>Fortunately, the package includes a separate power switch cable extension. Together with the modular adapter there's quite many parts to fiddle with, which makes me worry a little.</p><p>If you have the additional Raspberry board (I don't) the USB and digital video debug ports are available. You cannot use them as conventional USBs for keyboards and controllers.</p><p>I tried to load <i>Horace Goes Skiing </i>from tape using my Sanyo Data Recorder, but got no reaction. Possibly the cable was bad, I wasn't that motivated to find out the problem.</p><p><i>Edit: I was too lazy to check the connector, it's a split EAR/MIC, so it makes sense that a mono cable doesn't work.</i></p><p>I've yet to test the RGB connector, not sure if I should try to make the cable myself or just order one. Big <i>plus</i> for the Next people for including the RGB.</p><p>You can attach a PS/2 mouse or a keyboard to the PS/2 connector. It's worth noting any external keyboard will still follow the Spectrum layout rather than its own.</p><p>The mouse needs to be supported by the software. The Next menus, file browsers and editors do not directly make use of it.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-Y4gXihKRlOg10zY9DrXnT1pNGJ5yw26xbLIdqkqJkqTUEg15et7vIunH4V4g62q2mJbIPTI323lqzehPAcvsf6iGNvFwZcO05Z-rH5qrtWkObqbNKRWwmdmTfOMiHbXX1hBKgUkR_oH0iOaEn2Czklxk2y343Gj6lqbS9cA697Mvba6F3gxmtqQolZU/s3568/connectors.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="576" data-original-width="3568" height="104" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-Y4gXihKRlOg10zY9DrXnT1pNGJ5yw26xbLIdqkqJkqTUEg15et7vIunH4V4g62q2mJbIPTI323lqzehPAcvsf6iGNvFwZcO05Z-rH5qrtWkObqbNKRWwmdmTfOMiHbXX1hBKgUkR_oH0iOaEn2Czklxk2y343Gj6lqbS9cA697Mvba6F3gxmtqQolZU/w640-h104/connectors.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Power connector excluded</td></tr></tbody></table><p>The left side of the computer hosts the Reset, Drive and NMI buttons, with the SD card "drive".</p><p>The NMI button accesses the "freezer" menu, there I can change the CPU speed (3.5/7/14/28MHz), enter POKEs, save Spectrum snapshots and screenshots. These save features won't work as well with the Next software, if at all.</p><p>For the sake Sinclair QL nostalgia, the SD card slot really ought to be at the front, near the right side of the computer, but it's fine as it is and certainly not in the way.</p><p>Without a spring ejector, it's a little tricky to remove cards from the slot. But with some preparation and use of the wi-fi, I don't need to swap the card that much.</p><p>It's recommended to backup the card on a PC before doing anything further.</p><p>Standardizing two joystick ports is a good thing. If you intend to use the Next mostly as a game console, the front positioning might be good. Again, hot-swapping joysticks is not recommended. </p><p>For other activities the joysticks might be in the way. Although the ports are supposed to double as serial ports, I don't feel too good about connecting peripherals from the front side. </p><p>I tried a Megadrive pad and it accepts a second fire button too. Nice. Turn off any autofires or other exotic features before plugging in...</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-Uz4Mxo71k50IeNYrj_A6nA_nw1P8JPEDb9DOOKqhvUU0nm8Szb9ZilwH81cKbBcbUf4R1CmPWL213KEV8mwQPEYswXL69bEs7LNtWQi2OcJOXgnyZTwGT8Q1g2bDZo1iePYAdmTRtWA-ZPkud4WI9ZKSTyEXy3TDCyYAi4vs8E53yQuSj2BqC2QH1o8/s1600/drive.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="705" data-original-width="1600" height="282" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-Uz4Mxo71k50IeNYrj_A6nA_nw1P8JPEDb9DOOKqhvUU0nm8Szb9ZilwH81cKbBcbUf4R1CmPWL213KEV8mwQPEYswXL69bEs7LNtWQi2OcJOXgnyZTwGT8Q1g2bDZo1iePYAdmTRtWA-ZPkud4WI9ZKSTyEXy3TDCyYAi4vs8E53yQuSj2BqC2QH1o8/w640-h282/drive.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Extra buttons</td></tr></tbody></table><p>Modern video cables such as HDMI are not physically very flexible, something I noted with the similarly tiny Raspberry Pi 400. The Next at least has some size and weight to it, so it's not like a flap of plastic dangling at the end of its cables.</p><p>A cable mess was a fact of life with the integrated keyboard computers, and it can't be helped much. It is fortunate you can get away with only two cables, the PSU and display.</p><p><br /><b>Booting up</b></p><p>At first I was a smidge doubtful about the Next booting from a SD card, but it looks to be fast enough. Resetting isn't exactly as instant as it used to be in the 8-bit era, but the few seconds are not too bothersome.</p><p>But as reset is often the default "exit" from a program, these seconds can begin to matter...<br /></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrs1F7fZGC2GkesgXvV_RKVYh6Vs4jBlFxTrW40qb-giLoB9Tm_A2VQfAYntoIi-Hjv1-WhTkbEpiRv6rXax3Yw4k72QHC5a_kNTWN_z_rscO0vOqoicx0QMyX-CL0Hcnx1UnisgLoRgpR_pV0nKEevDDZ89EydFsAXl_U2yzngwcm2iwfFE0bhp7WwfM/s689/mmenu.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="519" data-original-width="689" height="482" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrs1F7fZGC2GkesgXvV_RKVYh6Vs4jBlFxTrW40qb-giLoB9Tm_A2VQfAYntoIi-Hjv1-WhTkbEpiRv6rXax3Yw4k72QHC5a_kNTWN_z_rscO0vOqoicx0QMyX-CL0Hcnx1UnisgLoRgpR_pV0nKEevDDZ89EydFsAXl_U2yzngwcm2iwfFE0bhp7WwfM/w640-h482/mmenu.png" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The main choices</td></tr></tbody></table><p>(The screenshots are from the Zesarux emulator and can look different to the software in the Kickstarter 2 Next.)</p><p>There's a wealth of options in already in this menu, and the SD card has a plethora of apps, demos and games to keep one exploring for days. </p><p>For the occasional games player, the main environment is likely to be the Browser. Here you can navigate the SD card folder structure and select any of the files there. These can be ZX Spectrum TAP tape files, or SNA/Z80 snapshot files.</p><p>Basic programs also launch happily from the browser, and autorun if they have been saved with SAVE "filename" LINE 10 or something similar.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhO-IL89DZ2LmkTkDmnjyxkEwhr1BxlrJ7_JJ7tzDRJj6vs9wSCdUg-m6bvUbTVesTQHgqp2cKbeCc1qcQqstFnZp0ZkAJSJQfXBmu7g38ZNEyV4bvO4IbEdCTWShQWMBzE9kHxZAtLW8ZQzqg2GJZRANQPNY_4P2nMm5mST5fzclTFwhQDOryn_-G-keg/s689/browser1.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="519" data-original-width="689" height="482" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhO-IL89DZ2LmkTkDmnjyxkEwhr1BxlrJ7_JJ7tzDRJj6vs9wSCdUg-m6bvUbTVesTQHgqp2cKbeCc1qcQqstFnZp0ZkAJSJQfXBmu7g38ZNEyV4bvO4IbEdCTWShQWMBzE9kHxZAtLW8ZQzqg2GJZRANQPNY_4P2nMm5mST5fzclTFwhQDOryn_-G-keg/w640-h482/browser1.png" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Browser</td></tr></tbody></table><p>Apart from the Browser there are many ways to operate and do things with the Next.</p><p>A number of Basic environments are available, 48K, 128K and Next Basic.</p><p>The Command Line supports alternate browsing through commands such as CD, LS and also the running of "dot" commands.</p><p>The Command Line also doubles as a Basic environment, and the dot commands can be used from within NextBASIC listings.</p><p>One interesting dot command is the .HTTP, which allows fetching of files over the internet. There's also a software for searching and downloading Spectrum snapshots from a database. After installing Getit and NextSync, there's little need for juggling SD cards.</p><p>I never really liked the Sinclair 128 Basic editor, it's a weird compromise between a line and full screen editor. At first the Command Line looked like a better starting point for Basic, but I grudgingly accepted the 128-style editor.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcKgkkjTDJI91IY1VYjvThYwgyyb4uzkjJ5rA58n95ovIVANNEOh482AzOV6UL0au_H-QAF89NK0kqFtt6mRNN2DCeAQmG3SR4F6zcq-SGSxBbF3ugVDv-hlEdze3oezZD13diB2wBuQTslIVp10UygFMN9TE75pJjJqFvI9djc6TPi63-h5tE4Gjgxrw/s689/cli.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="519" data-original-width="689" height="482" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcKgkkjTDJI91IY1VYjvThYwgyyb4uzkjJ5rA58n95ovIVANNEOh482AzOV6UL0au_H-QAF89NK0kqFtt6mRNN2DCeAQmG3SR4F6zcq-SGSxBbF3ugVDv-hlEdze3oezZD13diB2wBuQTslIVp10UygFMN9TE75pJjJqFvI9djc6TPi63-h5tE4Gjgxrw/w640-h482/cli.png" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Command Line</td></tr></tbody></table><p>TXT2BAS and BAS2TXT are also worth checking out, as they can translate between tokenized basic and ASCII text files.</p><p>The neat thing is that using #autoline 10 in the text file, the TXT2BAS can fill in the line numbers. The NextBASIC has REPEAT...UNTIL and procedures, so you don't need to explicitly refer to line numbers with GO TO and GO SUB.</p><p>It's possible to use a text editor on Next (or PC) to write Basic and then turn it into a runnable program using TXT2BAS.</p><p>As the computer is capable of a high resolution text display, a full screen text editor or notepad would have been nice. At least you can view text files through the browser in a higher resolution.</p><p>A command-line assembler would have been nice too, there's something called Odin in development but I'm unsure if it's exactly what I would have hoped.</p><p>(Edit: The <a href="https://www.solarisite.com/spectrumnext.html">Sol assembler</a> looks quite nice)</p><p>Of older scene demos, <i>Aeon</i> was supplied on the card and it looked fine. There are also technical demos of Next capabilities, like the Rusty Pixels' <i>Scrollnutter</i>, a throwback to the Amiga era of multiple-speed big-font scrollers. There's not that much Next activity on the demoscene, though.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQFiDyXZpOpGcuSqOzYzmEBaZFCBR7mgqlZDZjVIER_3dvPb7EVWPYLjCUcGn0DPyGJtJEEVhviDzn4CLyjRuOVlkhwC-pzB-1RFkUbBUXdteN_Mv8wVdv0NRsZa5KrZVWK8GjYK3eUHqDSvgjFm0NwSZ2S17RLH2Rk9B2gHJCatV4-jcQ9Mug7pyGKY0/s689/lom.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="519" data-original-width="689" height="482" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQFiDyXZpOpGcuSqOzYzmEBaZFCBR7mgqlZDZjVIER_3dvPb7EVWPYLjCUcGn0DPyGJtJEEVhviDzn4CLyjRuOVlkhwC-pzB-1RFkUbBUXdteN_Mv8wVdv0NRsZa5KrZVWK8GjYK3eUHqDSvgjFm0NwSZ2S17RLH2Rk9B2gHJCatV4-jcQ9Mug7pyGKY0/w640-h482/lom.png" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lords of Midnight</td></tr></tbody></table><p>There's plenty of games or at least game demos already on the card. <i>Next War</i> is a surprisingly addictive tower defense type game and <i>Night Knight</i> is a fun-looking conversion of an MSX effort. <i>Warhawk</i> is quite impressive scrolling shooter with lots and lots of sprites. There's also a 256-color version of Mike Singleton's classic <i>Lords of Midnight</i>.</p><p><br /></p><p><b>HDMI Update</b></p><p>It's worth applying the FPGA core update as soon as possible. I found some timing problems, flickering and music tempo fluctuation in a program where it wouldn't really happen on a 48/128 machine.</p><p>I guess it could also affect game experience even in cases where nothing is visibly or audibly wrong.</p><p>By now you should have your SD card contents backed up.</p><p>Make sure Next is turned off, take the SD card out of and use your PC to access it.</p><p>Download the file TBBLUE.TBU from <a href="https://gitlab.com/thesmog358/tbblue">Phoebus Dokos' Gitlab site</a>.</p><p>Direct download link:</p><p><a href="https://www.gitlab.com/thesmog358/tbblue/-/raw/master/TBBLUE.TBU">https://www.gitlab.com/thesmog358/tbblue/-/raw/master/TBBLUE.TBU</a></p><p>Copy this one over the one on the SD card root.</p><p>Insert the SDcard back into the Next, and press U <i>while</i> powering up the computer.</p><p>Go through the flashing process (it takes a while), then switch off and on again as instructed. The new version number should be indicated in the boot screen.</p><p><br /></p><p><b>50/60 display refresh rates</b></p><p>Talking of display, the 50Hz legacy of 8-bit computers can be a potential source of woes.</p><p>The ZX Spectrum was 50Hz, and so was Commodore 64 and everything else in Europe. But many computer displays today can't work with 50Hz, you'll likely have better luck with a TV than a dedicated computer display.</p><p>My HP Elite display seems to be happy with the 50/60 changes and any experiments with scrolling resulted in no glitches.</p><p>Just be aware that from an European point of view 50hz was really the more "authentic" display refresh rate, and all games and demos might not function correctly in the 60hz refresh rate.</p><p>For completeness, Next can adopt different timings and the Russian Pentagon timings are also included.</p><p>By the way, PAUSE 1 is a simple way of invoking "Wait Vertical Blank" in Sinclair Basic. I believe it just invokes the HALT Z80 command which stops the CPU until the ULA is ready to redraw a new display frame.</p><p>It works in NextBASIC too, so, adding these lines to the <i>basicTiles/smoothTileScroll.bas</i> source...</p><p><span style="font-family: courier;">5 RUN AT 3</span></p><p><span style="font-family: courier;">165 PAUSE 1</span></p><p><span style="font-family: courier;">205 PAUSE 1</span></p><p>...makes that demo genuinely smooth scrolling.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjABSs5Xy7LzkWZFeUiRbHqJmkIPmhz9NGEvvC_hfgOOLYt33r9he7dAfNYM1aNWmyICdOGFffI5LzqAJvcH3r2CkaPMjBxNO3LXcL6HWD96W72fyJn24td4VnbkZEFavkUdpiAXybMhI0udcFgY4ztLjNNlb6tNQ265R1IMx4e4A4VnnhAXzFPbS2b7sA/s689/tilescroll.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="519" data-original-width="689" height="482" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjABSs5Xy7LzkWZFeUiRbHqJmkIPmhz9NGEvvC_hfgOOLYt33r9he7dAfNYM1aNWmyICdOGFffI5LzqAJvcH3r2CkaPMjBxNO3LXcL6HWD96W72fyJn24td4VnbkZEFavkUdpiAXybMhI0udcFgY4ztLjNNlb6tNQ265R1IMx4e4A4VnnhAXzFPbS2b7sA/w640-h482/tilescroll.png" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">smoothTileScroll.bas</td></tr></tbody></table><p>The PAUSE/HALT method is not very sophisticated. The Spectrum Next has a proper line interrupt, I should check how to make better use of that, or if it can be easily used from Basic at all.<br /><br /></p><p><b>New graphics</b></p><p>Somewhat controversially, the Next heavily expands the graphics capabilities of the Spectrum. This reminds me a little of the TS-Conf setup which brought Amiga-esque capabilities to the ZX Evolution board.</p><p>The Next's additions are more closely integrated with the Spectrum-like ROM, NextBASIC and other features.</p><p>The hardware supports a 256 color mode, tile maps and a large number of sprites. There are so many modes I can't really examine all of them here. For example, there's a 128x96 16/256 color mode, Timex hires and Timex 8x1 color modes are also possible.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMiehJJe7AmIvSgItIkJP1QPmJg2_jT0OoEKRz-x4dENP49F02gNA4ScLYDJsSBuc1d3XGuF0_aLyXunsQzXe0Y4BpaocEaYYwOmoK3-CjePcwEfirWLO7sq_co_yiiCygcZLJ6Q4czuO_6YD3ghERBEKNBOq4ZMMbHH8-8ax1i0-UQAbCJpKoA1cY0VQ/s669/nutters.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="530" data-original-width="669" height="508" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMiehJJe7AmIvSgItIkJP1QPmJg2_jT0OoEKRz-x4dENP49F02gNA4ScLYDJsSBuc1d3XGuF0_aLyXunsQzXe0Y4BpaocEaYYwOmoK3-CjePcwEfirWLO7sq_co_yiiCygcZLJ6Q4czuO_6YD3ghERBEKNBOq4ZMMbHH8-8ax1i0-UQAbCJpKoA1cY0VQ/w640-h508/nutters.png" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">All in the best possible taste</td></tr></tbody></table><p>Note that 256x192 with 256 colors takes 8 times more memory than the original 1-bit 256x192 Spectrum display file (excluding the attributes), resulting in 48K image files. That 2MB doesn't sound so huge after all.</p><p>Conveniently, 28MHz is also 8 times faster than the original Spectrum processor speed, and the graphics are also banked. What I'm saying a filled vector flight simulator or a Doom-style routine is unlikely to turn out super-fast on the 256 color bitmap. Although there's a Wolfenstein raycaster demo that seems to prove me wrong. Well.</p><p>What really helps here are the scrolling tiled modes and sprites, making the hardware closer to 1990s consoles such as Super Nintendo or Sega Megadrive.</p><p>The new modes work cleverly as layers on top of (or under) the classic graphic mode. So you could in principle have 1-bit bitmap elements on the Spectrum attribute layer, and then sprites on top of that.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhU2xzg__yU60YMsR6nPELMyhmclmx3q3L1v_FsOrEDekvMie1POhkc9px2jnVEwKFXys2DTJYSeY9S6PVl7RmN3S9BrAZ7B_7hB5qPtpqe4a1nQ-NcaAP4CExK_0Ia9yFQ2osS7B8mSqVAivtMoUTPBECRwRX2K8Dsy-DX0ptugjFsenGTLQvtO0W2dLU/s679/colors256.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="539" data-original-width="679" height="508" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhU2xzg__yU60YMsR6nPELMyhmclmx3q3L1v_FsOrEDekvMie1POhkc9px2jnVEwKFXys2DTJYSeY9S6PVl7RmN3S9BrAZ7B_7hB5qPtpqe4a1nQ-NcaAP4CExK_0Ia9yFQ2osS7B8mSqVAivtMoUTPBECRwRX2K8Dsy-DX0ptugjFsenGTLQvtO0W2dLU/w640-h508/colors256.png" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">256 colors through NextBASIC. One line is transparency, letting the background through.</td></tr></tbody></table><p>Here's a little NextBASIC program to show 256 colors:</p><p><span style="font-family: courier;">10 RUN AT 3<br />20 LAYER 2,1<br />30 BORDER 0 : CLS<br />40 FOR N=0 TO 255<br />50 INK N<br />60 PLOT N,0<br />70 DRAW 0,191<br />80 NEXT N<br />90 INK 0 : PAUSE 0</span><br /><br />Line 10 activates the 28MHz processor speed.</p><p>Line 20 switches on the layer 2 (256x192 x 256 colors) and selects it.</p><p>The further INK, PLOT and DRAW commands play out on the selected layer.</p><p>Note that the LAYER 2 considers the top left corner as the 0,0 point, and the bottom right corner is 255,191. The old Spectrum graphics has bottom left corner as 0,0. This was more correct for plotting mathematics, but extremely confusing nonetheless.</p>You can have either 8-bit or a 9-bit color palette.<div><br /></div><div>The 8-bit palette has only 2 bits for Blue, but simulates the third bit by performing an OR 1 with the most significant of the two bits.</div><div><br /></div><div>So,</div><div><br /></div><div><span style="font-family: courier;">RRRGGGBB b</span></div><div><span style="font-family: courier;">00000000 0</span></div><div><span style="font-family: courier;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: courier;">BB b</span></div><div><span style="font-family: courier;">00 0 = 0</span></div><div><span style="font-family: courier;">01 0 = 73</span></div><div><span style="font-family: courier;">10 1 = 182</span></div><div><span style="font-family: courier;">11 1 = 255</span></div><div><p>The outcome values are how to represent the blue value on PC, these seem to agree with Zesarux emulator and other sources I could find. Red and Green ramps would have values 0,36,73,109,146,182,219,255.</p><p>To be honest, the 9-bit RGB seems to be used all over. 256 colors can be freely chosen from a total of 512, much like in the original Atari ST.</p><p>As 320x256 is also possible, it shouldn't be difficult to display ST images on the Next. It takes a whopping 80K of bank memory, though.</p><p>The 256 color default palette is already well thought-out, and it can be a good idea to explore its possibilities before even trying to change it.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXJUp0soEkjdMkEzq_YxwemCC-TBAMTi4q44S0iM0iknuvdHEyu4XYM7E4wxB0vaF6pxmkPa6x6FOZ2-ZsQymxpqkRak7XNhoS8a6bVFe6ZeUcqgHGPDWOr_BoGoKNsGYiKqL75UV994J6fFY4C2NMOQKwyZ22MeVd5wDQsQiQBhITmOcXja8vXFwylkA/s960/next_ninja_ai.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="792" data-original-width="960" height="528" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXJUp0soEkjdMkEzq_YxwemCC-TBAMTi4q44S0iM0iknuvdHEyu4XYM7E4wxB0vaF6pxmkPa6x6FOZ2-ZsQymxpqkRak7XNhoS8a6bVFe6ZeUcqgHGPDWOr_BoGoKNsGYiKqL75UV994J6fFY4C2NMOQKwyZ22MeVd5wDQsQiQBhITmOcXja8vXFwylkA/w640-h528/next_ninja_ai.png" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Next Ninja</i>, courtesy of Bing create, conversion and some adjustments by hand.</td></tr></tbody></table><p><b>Manual etc.</b></p><p>The book has a lot of information in it, replicating in parts the nostalgic experience of wading through the original ZX Spectrum manuals.</p><p>It is, however,<i> not </i>a book that explains in a simple way how to start using the Next features in your Basic or Assembler programs. There's no alphabetically ordered explanation of what each Basic command does. It might no make sense anyway, as some of the keywords are used in very different roles. For example, the old keyword ERASE on its own simply wipes out the current program, used to terminate an autoexec.bas.</p><p>The book is not very visual at explaining the computer capabilities, and some of the few diagrams are printed in small size. I kept scratching my head about the layer, sprite, palette and color specifications, trying to find out concise information from the internet.</p><p>Still, having the book is far, far better than no book at all, and especially at times when I can't be bothered to open a browser on another computer while working on the Next, it's a valuable reference.</p><p>It's worth looking at the Basic listings included in the SDCard, if only to see how sprites are loaded and displayed on screen, how the mouse driver is invoked etc.</p><p>Utilizing the extra power requires some study of the memory banking and examining what the various commands and registers do. Remember that even at 28MHz, the Spectrum Basic isn't really all that fast.<br /><br /></p><p><b>End notes</b></p><p>It's a ZX Spectrum to end all ZX Spectrums, all right, but how do I feel about the "extra" dimension? Perhaps the computer could be seen as a Spectrum with a somewhat more modern retro games console tacked on as a compromise?</p><p>Or perhaps not, as the new features are also part of the NextBASIC and the generally Spectrum-like environment.</p><p>Almost needless to say the Spectrum Next is far above simple products such as TheC64 maxi/mini and especially the ZX Spectrum Vega. Those mostly worked as game platforms and rather poorly as computers. The MEGA65 is probably a comparable project.</p><p>It's early days for me, so I don't have a final verdict. But I feel the Next, with all its additions, is still somehow respectful to the original ZX Spectrum experience. The extra features could make it interesting for those looking for "new" 8-bit computers.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiykpyu_sSUku_vZoVqCNz4FFEu1ZvoOWjwTxBpdkPcVt7d5i1pv-HB92aBLt0pLBmyqA7BXoUPETwDaEWdserp_QVdw0XAAiEnG-9tF7k9A019D3J4mk-AHugzQKAwGla3R6y2CYS10yKPPgVIwGguD3U2TgN5cfu0WMhdm6VZPinAijtnPjYqzC6nhIA/s635/ruselee.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="474" data-original-width="635" height="478" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiykpyu_sSUku_vZoVqCNz4FFEu1ZvoOWjwTxBpdkPcVt7d5i1pv-HB92aBLt0pLBmyqA7BXoUPETwDaEWdserp_QVdw0XAAiEnG-9tF7k9A019D3J4mk-AHugzQKAwGla3R6y2CYS10yKPPgVIwGguD3U2TgN5cfu0WMhdm6VZPinAijtnPjYqzC6nhIA/w640-h478/ruselee.png" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The primary use after all?</td></tr></tbody></table><p>What makes this kind of computer fresh and attractive is the anarchy made possible by not having to care about security, localization, multi-user log in, accessibility and whatever else is taken granted in mainstream computing. Just some core functionality and a bunch of software written in very different, individualistic ways.</p><p>It looks like the Spectrum Next has generated enthusiasm. Hopefully there will be enough momentum to keep new software appearing for years to come. The hardware and the system is of course interesting in its own right. </p><p>I left out the productivity software side. Although any serious developers are likely to use cross-development tools, there are still the obligatory character, sprite, tile and map editors, suggesting you could use Next directly for creative purposes. Maybe they are enough for small Basic programs, but better tools could inspire more software and content.</p><p>I had some minor success in compiling assembler, turning on layer 2 and displaying some extra colors. It looks like understanding the .nex package format would be very useful. I'll come back to this if I learn the ropes.</p></div>Tero Heikkinenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13784200871918377919noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2474445673248923379.post-5593293307163423872023-12-10T22:52:00.005+02:002023-12-10T22:55:18.372+02:00Proton/Linux: Just Cause 4<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhh4bSCo_D31pcjAyv3SCSqExQzcrfpn64Br7UDF3_j5NZttCPFKnYnGCqWYlhxGbsygbOEkbx_rNvTwSb_CPRbybI5uy1kpf2X5FwCrys1iJHFlMl2AwjJr1UsF4rrc4waGyMysJf00wHPD1h1DlSpy8NK50UxxAiPq4bPeebi5oNLDVzWZOyh3uaVRXQ/s1920/20231129222816_1.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1920" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhh4bSCo_D31pcjAyv3SCSqExQzcrfpn64Br7UDF3_j5NZttCPFKnYnGCqWYlhxGbsygbOEkbx_rNvTwSb_CPRbybI5uy1kpf2X5FwCrys1iJHFlMl2AwjJr1UsF4rrc4waGyMysJf00wHPD1h1DlSpy8NK50UxxAiPq4bPeebi5oNLDVzWZOyh3uaVRXQ/w640-h400/20231129222816_1.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Army of Chaos, sure</td></tr></tbody></table><p>Proton did well enough and I could finish the game after about 27 hours. I did change the proton version to 7.0-6 (instead of 8.0-6 or experimental) after first experiencing more crashes than I expected.</p><p>The game would still occasionally crash (once in couple of hours) but because of the game's structure it doesn't mean that much. This is what happened with Just Cause 3 too, and a possible feature of the native version.</p><p>The graphics are overall rather fine, the world has a good amount of detail and variety of zones. Some have waterways between vertical jungles, then there's the obligatory desert and snowy mountains.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEht4SYpsT_XoPN47PvqKwYOlsCli2bA72zPQ8OZpf6fDrPrpRivUuazZsW5S_jsEno2wOQ48ZSCUEwUuGWuNYISYWys2fUo7R6QRnVlXI9hSqjTOdTzqqdS2tjkiE_gpj5DUPYEmm4YUBbfX542mXpvjw8KFE7p_m6XtvzPjOmBMgKyD3BAJ15f1tuOHYg/s1920/20231204213302_1.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1920" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEht4SYpsT_XoPN47PvqKwYOlsCli2bA72zPQ8OZpf6fDrPrpRivUuazZsW5S_jsEno2wOQ48ZSCUEwUuGWuNYISYWys2fUo7R6QRnVlXI9hSqjTOdTzqqdS2tjkiE_gpj5DUPYEmm4YUBbfX542mXpvjw8KFE7p_m6XtvzPjOmBMgKyD3BAJ15f1tuOHYg/w640-h400/20231204213302_1.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">That's a tornado near the horizon...</td></tr></tbody></table><p>The cutscenes had some problems, related to Proton or not. Things like beard stubble and eyelids or eyelid shadows where somewhat weirdly rendered, but I did not bother to find out if I could do something for these.</p><p>I've usually enjoyed the Just Cause games, offering somewhat GTA-esque thrills without the investment and without being very story-heavy. I've come accustomed to the grapple-parachute-wingsuit acrobatics well enough.</p><p>But it's not a massive improvement over Just Cause 3, if it is an improvement at all.</p><p>Perhaps I liked Just Cause 3 more, because of the simple town liberation system. This has been replaced with "chaos army" that advances from one region to another, player making the choice of directing the troops.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj77jAviT0Sv9ehDPcTUpsJokjbp5qYtjavSKcTQaR9X8pdoGA8sdeT4wfwR12ZgTdQ1UGGd4mYlMqW7GnVW07l1MNc8NL7L_VZrd5nwGM83rAP-mAylPi7TSNOssM9Lz2zf_E4DCFRrTfckNa6Jdk0ZPotsvMYkJQ_lFSu1i7bErwwbfHljdYqKtoNTpE/s1920/20231129222613_1.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1920" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj77jAviT0Sv9ehDPcTUpsJokjbp5qYtjavSKcTQaR9X8pdoGA8sdeT4wfwR12ZgTdQ1UGGd4mYlMqW7GnVW07l1MNc8NL7L_VZrd5nwGM83rAP-mAylPi7TSNOssM9Lz2zf_E4DCFRrTfckNa6Jdk0ZPotsvMYkJQ_lFSu1i7bErwwbfHljdYqKtoNTpE/w640-h400/20231129222613_1.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Checking the world map and the enemy lines</td></tr></tbody></table><p>Technically it's more of a way to structure the main story missions into a chronology, as most areas can't be captured without doing some pre-requisite tasks or conquering of other areas.</p><p>This shift in focus also means there's not that much to do in the towns and cities. Some optional tasks and fights take place there. The speed and stunt mini-missions are also often in the cities, but these I chose to avoid.</p><p>And as usual there's a lot of random encounters, side-quests, equipment, vehicles, weapons you can find, summon or steal from the environment.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8RRZF8uOe9jpgaHiZboiIb4sUxHCszeJ9kQevx87km4TdLmb8e0Yd1gX5vD_JQmB-gD13BtxSNnlp3rOh1iQ8Z28SGfhnnvNOKBrbU-otA9GO2R_dm5fTluVHO2SOOHmScAZJN_eCUqczn4o_ZGlOPAKeRrhoKKmXM103NNhcFKGa2OaqfeY8YrcSeUE/s1920/20231202124939_1.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1920" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8RRZF8uOe9jpgaHiZboiIb4sUxHCszeJ9kQevx87km4TdLmb8e0Yd1gX5vD_JQmB-gD13BtxSNnlp3rOh1iQ8Z28SGfhnnvNOKBrbU-otA9GO2R_dm5fTluVHO2SOOHmScAZJN_eCUqczn4o_ZGlOPAKeRrhoKKmXM103NNhcFKGa2OaqfeY8YrcSeUE/w640-h400/20231202124939_1.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Visiting the front lines</td></tr></tbody></table><p>At the front line between two areas, you can actually witness the lines holding and a battle going on. This looks impressive at first, but it's just a paper-thin illusion really.</p><p>Try to intervene in the frontline battles and your troops can't perform any better. More likely the enemy will just summon more jets and tanks and you'll be dead eventually. Funnily enough these new enemy units can just as well spawn from behind the friendly line...</p><p>Another novelty are the weaponized mega-weather effects, sandstorms, lightning and the iconic tornado. The tornado is a game element that can arrive and mess with your unrelated task, and at times this can be quite fun.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmnB6yNO13AkV1jFLn0QiQEIqmyAFirHps_-2ve_54qrgaus8EnsuTjRY_1v4TvflBemXLERWl7QWWsm0Fa64TRpVkGS4fTn4iVj8pLHgwhYMA9rWuckTNS5-b7qwjkWoq9rzuM0Tz39g5GyZ9q-9UfmNh46xdvM_ghUQcM87SsLrZOoI9z_0Ao-gx25M/s1920/20231202162443_1.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1920" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmnB6yNO13AkV1jFLn0QiQEIqmyAFirHps_-2ve_54qrgaus8EnsuTjRY_1v4TvflBemXLERWl7QWWsm0Fa64TRpVkGS4fTn4iVj8pLHgwhYMA9rWuckTNS5-b7qwjkWoq9rzuM0Tz39g5GyZ9q-9UfmNh46xdvM_ghUQcM87SsLrZOoI9z_0Ao-gx25M/w640-h400/20231202162443_1.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ok, you'd expect more to happen at this distance</td></tr></tbody></table><p>I would have hoped some of the randomness of the enemy attacks could have been modified a little. There's just more and more of the enemies, approaching from unlikely places. </p><p>As usual, the battles have all the subtlety of two pre-school kids bashing toys together. Mostly it is all for good fun, but it would be nice if at least the player sighting was more realistic. Now a line of sight is enough and the chaos starts ensuing. How do they know it's Rico from a distance of 200 meters?</p><p>As the fight escalates, helicopters, tanks and jets arrive at the scene from around the corner or behind the hill, with little consideration as to where they might have come from.</p><p>There's also some glitchiness and weird behavior resulting from the open world and physics engine. I thought such things could be improved by now. Helicopters and jets might spontaneously crash and the enemy units continue to have silly attack patterns, often resulting in their death.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtsVDPriWN0jbtsrrUuuASlubo90Qq8FRNN5oo2ckGeEFwZOtLZ4hZLl31H__7OrhKZEO9eI7t0DBVxRPYxjiFNHDf3YVhIXaCIbKLnhi3sJD6Fp0T2xA0IQcSnmykXaAxpy_oSgh-2vRJ6sCzfKhV4NZGI5BA1FeHlxztpvOhmKthv4S0ipNeiSs89Jk/s1920/20231209152934_1.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1920" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtsVDPriWN0jbtsrrUuuASlubo90Qq8FRNN5oo2ckGeEFwZOtLZ4hZLl31H__7OrhKZEO9eI7t0DBVxRPYxjiFNHDf3YVhIXaCIbKLnhi3sJD6Fp0T2xA0IQcSnmykXaAxpy_oSgh-2vRJ6sCzfKhV4NZGI5BA1FeHlxztpvOhmKthv4S0ipNeiSs89Jk/w640-h400/20231209152934_1.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">1998 called and wanted its textures back</td></tr></tbody></table><p>At one time, a rebel-occupied train whizzed past the enemy train, shot it with its mega-cannon, derailing both trains hilariously.</p><p>By the way, the trains and the train tracks are modeled so sparsely they'd not look out of place in Half Life 1. These are conveniently further off in the island so it's not the first thing you see.</p>Tero Heikkinenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13784200871918377919noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2474445673248923379.post-87611520179439852492023-12-01T17:41:00.000+02:002023-12-01T17:41:01.821+02:00Proton/Linux: Lake<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibF4hcgDSX1B0M_QMCF-TpqowKrrPOidEXm7DhuXXHLF5zqfaEUjcvOUZLWBwnf_eR2wAwrDZw-DkWND6_LRghreLdy1MXs5e1kRc9-M6EjrAx5kwJnB_1WwHhcPxRqnhnVjKsHUWlAiiywSl4V_iFc_bQeOxDVSAVYeB3hNWkq5G1Sp0Xr6edzHosTwM/s1920/driver.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1920" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibF4hcgDSX1B0M_QMCF-TpqowKrrPOidEXm7DhuXXHLF5zqfaEUjcvOUZLWBwnf_eR2wAwrDZw-DkWND6_LRghreLdy1MXs5e1kRc9-M6EjrAx5kwJnB_1WwHhcPxRqnhnVjKsHUWlAiiywSl4V_iFc_bQeOxDVSAVYeB3hNWkq5G1Sp0Xr6edzHosTwM/w640-h400/driver.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Providence Oaks, main street</td></tr></tbody></table><p>One more "walking simulator" type game, comparable to <i>The Long Dark</i>, <i>Firewatch</i>, <i>Virginia</i>... oops, it seems I've tried more than a few of these over the years.</p><p>Of the above, <i>Lake</i> from 2021 might be most comparable to Firewatch. There's just a story that kind of unravels through reaching different map positions, which also serve as trigger points for cut scenes and discussions. With more characters and more locations, there's slightly more to "play" and explore here. But only slightly.</p><p>The story is told from the perspective of Meredith Weiss, who after 22 years returns to her home town of Providence Oaks, to take over her dad's mail route for a couple of weeks. It's 1986.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBL68Mki71wUvWGgOfchL0r_W8iZ0Z6iDYCsUh87CHGMwgDZVclM8bE87Be92YnrhPEf2FHL8CB6Jxsy2n77phaPRvFGNCLt5TaqNEhmiq1NdVZ8ueqhFu65CROiwX4EHUJKQ6kB9VdbZ3e4P3UubYrlJu8YX-p62sNru4IswztxstRoAmK1Etbh1Bhmo/s1920/addit.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1920" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBL68Mki71wUvWGgOfchL0r_W8iZ0Z6iDYCsUh87CHGMwgDZVclM8bE87Be92YnrhPEf2FHL8CB6Jxsy2n77phaPRvFGNCLt5TaqNEhmiq1NdVZ8ueqhFu65CROiwX4EHUJKQ6kB9VdbZ3e4P3UubYrlJu8YX-p62sNru4IswztxstRoAmK1Etbh1Bhmo/w640-h400/addit.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Is Addit'87 going to be a big hit?</td></tr></tbody></table><p>A MIT graduate with career in computers, she is part of a soft-co about to launch a new DOS-based home organizer/diary software called Addit. Meredith hasn't quit this job, on occasions choices need to be made regarding Addit. These are handled via telephone calls and mail from "Steve".</p><p>Despite a potential story-telling device, the software isn't really seen often at all.</p><p>Although the laptop/luggable concept appears credible for 1986 (think IBM model 5140 or Toshiba T1100), the high-contrast color screen is far too good. A glowing orange display or a non-backlit LCD with a few greyscales would have been more likely. Artistic licence, and all.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgr-dWCLrUk-VUzC-1LIEnK2BQViIjQg7gNxTH66GwZoPjduLA4gMyfplvumlp4tWImTwVQm93kl4ZuDz8kuVHYyb4UcW-mzeCT4gDytv2BLBXqgxIdO7YLDkZFGqXVVZXZDXOBLk5ba-Dr6GOldK7Egdiu-2U7ZjLINOpS7SwdgbZsQpxvQKu-UNDNU5o/s1920/lapparia.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1920" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgr-dWCLrUk-VUzC-1LIEnK2BQViIjQg7gNxTH66GwZoPjduLA4gMyfplvumlp4tWImTwVQm93kl4ZuDz8kuVHYyb4UcW-mzeCT4gDytv2BLBXqgxIdO7YLDkZFGqXVVZXZDXOBLk5ba-Dr6GOldK7Egdiu-2U7ZjLINOpS7SwdgbZsQpxvQKu-UNDNU5o/w640-h400/lapparia.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Let's not forget the focus of the blog...</td></tr></tbody></table><p>The mail route is repeated each day. For this Meredith drives a van, but for delivering the mail to the boxes she has to leave the car. Parcels are hoisted out from the trunk and taken to the door. Pressing the doorbell may result in further interactions, but most often not.</p><p>But make no mistake, it's not Eurotruck or any kind of car simulator. The game stays firmly in the walking genre. If anything, the car just helps make the larger environment of the Lake a little more functional. Looking at it cynically, it's just there to add to the game time.</p><p>The mail delivery premise allows for Meredith to meet various people around the town and the lake surroundings, leading to discussion-tree type interactions. It's unclear from the first play how much these affect further events, but perhaps the social routes might not be radically different. </p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-qLtrSWPrwPvdujHlR_QLsJZ6-EP3DczIl10NVh78mUGuDNcg_HGMRfSnTj3pVWO4llejqLdT5Z9GHHYJDJSZqa9N1DNd3hoilMjhlPzB74FCWV7ptN0U-SsKwcuWntAZMx0kDGhof75BC2uetcpiGAFtgaKu6ah0G6a-kuVQAFmLDWb6Y4exr41vUHU/s1920/social.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1920" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-qLtrSWPrwPvdujHlR_QLsJZ6-EP3DczIl10NVh78mUGuDNcg_HGMRfSnTj3pVWO4llejqLdT5Z9GHHYJDJSZqa9N1DNd3hoilMjhlPzB74FCWV7ptN0U-SsKwcuWntAZMx0kDGhof75BC2uetcpiGAFtgaKu6ah0G6a-kuVQAFmLDWb6Y4exr41vUHU/w640-h400/social.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Am I being dragged into a romance part</td></tr></tbody></table><p>Firewatch had some ingenuity in overlapping the walking with the (radio) dialogue choices, but here the driving and the social interactions are two quite separate elements of the game. </p><p>The year 1986 is wisely approached from the perspective of different communications technologies. No internet, no mobile phones. People rely on letters and passing on information. Obviously land line telephones are much in use. In the evening, there is often a phone call or at least a phone message. Meredith has to choose whether to watch TV or read books... </p><p>The decade is fortunately not exaggerated, no synthwave with neon grid Lamborghinis here. There's an understanding that much of mid-eighties was still based on decade-old cars, surroundings and mixtures of older fashions.</p><p>The game still has a fair share of film/game/tech references, making things relatable to today's video game player. On one hand it can be interesting for younger players to see that hobbies of today were already around in the 1980s, but on the other hand less-obvious topics could have been more interesting to explore.</p><p>I'm not sure if the point of reference for 40-somethings living in the era would be "the 80s". This is addressed in few occasions, though, and you can sometimes choose to make Meredith appear either hip or ignorant of the times.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghAQ0k1chooqdE6Qi0gStZA_zAlrL2vc8xLSrXCcBtJM_4QwGlE21vc7M4Szyvy5d8qAyLXXYtDMUeFajuXyFxKyZouru_fC1eHei5U8OvB03t7s_qEqdyC2sZQBeJVu_FvtOtHxBegn4ToGIUD39hOCDNHOKrVzT2gU3i8x6h2ZFhgtXpcPltZ5rLMDs/s1920/delivering.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1920" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghAQ0k1chooqdE6Qi0gStZA_zAlrL2vc8xLSrXCcBtJM_4QwGlE21vc7M4Szyvy5d8qAyLXXYtDMUeFajuXyFxKyZouru_fC1eHei5U8OvB03t7s_qEqdyC2sZQBeJVu_FvtOtHxBegn4ToGIUD39hOCDNHOKrVzT2gU3i8x6h2ZFhgtXpcPltZ5rLMDs/w640-h400/delivering.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Delivering a package. Watch out for those birds. Just kidding.</td></tr></tbody></table><p>The radio plays pastiches of generic 1980s feelgood country-style pop, props for achieving this in such a small game, but the few songs do get a little repetitive rather soon.</p><p>Delivering the mail in itself doesn't have much variety after a few days. You'll get to see more locations, and you can get involved in more unconventional deliveries too, but these do not play differently. The evolving interactions is what keeps the player wanting to turn the pages further in the story.</p><p>I am not sure if it is a Proton problem or something with the original game, but I kept experiencing drops in audio channels. Dialogue would cease and from small fragments it was still clear the speech should be there. The tone of voice is often quite important for picking choices, so it can be a little annoying. ProtonDB only had a mention of potential audio delays, which I didn't encounter.</p><p>Aside from audio, the 3D world has some glitches too, and I doubt Proton has anything to do with this. With the focus on mail delivery, I'd have expected the letters would at least fit the mail box models!</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjun64h9Yi9WGy8AgAkVkAJnB-N9YLpPRWP72JvYtFSihduccy_DtfoJXM4kv1MwfWvE4KL1yeeD-WD5HjR6EPsNVRiNKI2N-wGmtTyndjJr8WzuF20I2ApJhSTz5XOn3FrpSEGWSJmjjF5jQ5UvfuWoJvM7dukk7EuZjucuo0JvljAT4Q_Q0G7Q3DzQYo/s1920/oregontrail.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1920" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjun64h9Yi9WGy8AgAkVkAJnB-N9YLpPRWP72JvYtFSihduccy_DtfoJXM4kv1MwfWvE4KL1yeeD-WD5HjR6EPsNVRiNKI2N-wGmtTyndjJr8WzuF20I2ApJhSTz5XOn3FrpSEGWSJmjjF5jQ5UvfuWoJvM7dukk7EuZjucuo0JvljAT4Q_Q0G7Q3DzQYo/w640-h400/oregontrail.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"Oregon Trail", heh.</td></tr></tbody></table><p>Almost anything outside the immediate roads and buildings is not modeled very richly, which is of course a pity but understandable. There's not much sense in exploring areas on foot. Sure, it's no GTA but the developers have managed to create a reasonable illusion of a small town.</p><p>I did find the cars could sometimes get stuck, even without any apparent player intervention. After one car chooses to stop, this creates a growing queue of cars which doesn't move until the traffic is reset for the next day. Usually they are able to recover and overtake cleverly enough.</p><p>Lake could be considered a feel-good game and the six hours were just about the appropriate length for the experience. As with Firewatch, I sometimes surprise myself with the meekness of my dialogue choices. It's just a game, what the hell?</p>Tero Heikkinenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13784200871918377919noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2474445673248923379.post-28070858858148258192023-11-22T22:32:00.005+02:002023-11-22T23:34:12.197+02:00Proton/Linux: Mudrunner<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGP96kF_FiZW4m5z1R1yDBma6Sf-kbAREl_fgdvsxq2v63ApbB30bn_T7VgYAPQnFEmL_LZ19HgI29emTgbtKbMJJUSl2moL_RdF8UDc8jPZpnbDZ6cn_B0nSdb_8cy5iFnUArzgHcxou9SPwDIaFGV9BDG_ZoPm48LxGYShdRkMw6BSfNconPTWgv3PQ/s1920/20231105174721_1.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1920" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGP96kF_FiZW4m5z1R1yDBma6Sf-kbAREl_fgdvsxq2v63ApbB30bn_T7VgYAPQnFEmL_LZ19HgI29emTgbtKbMJJUSl2moL_RdF8UDc8jPZpnbDZ6cn_B0nSdb_8cy5iFnUArzgHcxou9SPwDIaFGV9BDG_ZoPm48LxGYShdRkMw6BSfNconPTWgv3PQ/w640-h400/20231105174721_1.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p>I had my eye on this game around 2017, but felt it was too expensive and perhaps my computer couldn't handle it back then. Now it's an easy peasy task for the 1660TI GPU and Steam/proton.</p><p>I've never been too enthusiastic about truck or car games, but with this and <i>Eurotruck Simulator 2</i> I've played two truck-themed games in recent times. </p><p>There's something for little boys here: huge trucks and splattering mud around. Some of the scenarios in the game relate to the film <i>The Wages of Fear </i>(1953), its remake <i>Sorcerer </i>(1977) and the McGyver episode <i>Hellfire </i>(based on the 1953 film). I'm unsure if the nerve-racking nitroglycerine mission features in the game, but it's made of similar stuff.</p><p>Perhaps there's a narrow category of "car games for people who usually don't like car games", and <i>Mudrunner</i> might fit it.</p><p>I'll instantly say I enjoyed the short challenges more than the main game, there was always variety of tasks, equipment and environments and it didn't get boring.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7rnBy2qfZOsHEgPjDqenHu3Z1sJVNZ6WP24g6z82_EttqxiRKpj6Twb3KOa4u-bf34LSVq9Qcfarl_X4d0Adoukkm5UeC87OhxZ7-YQA_omEm6fYl8bw5tVDWtAJQCzjpmDe3cteaBk6ycCnG-7nhtKFc8bnKdi_-7Z3QPuLyuKqXaj_mx0fARDAm3gg/s1920/20231105211838_1.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1920" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7rnBy2qfZOsHEgPjDqenHu3Z1sJVNZ6WP24g6z82_EttqxiRKpj6Twb3KOa4u-bf34LSVq9Qcfarl_X4d0Adoukkm5UeC87OhxZ7-YQA_omEm6fYl8bw5tVDWtAJQCzjpmDe3cteaBk6ycCnG-7nhtKFc8bnKdi_-7Z3QPuLyuKqXaj_mx0fARDAm3gg/w640-h400/20231105211838_1.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p>In contrast, the main game gives you tasks that are rather meandering and even a little dull. Deliver 8 points worth of logs to the log mill(s), while avoiding running out of fuel, damaging the trucks too much or flipping over. All while the vehicles move rather slowly through the terrain and the problems remain similar.</p><p>The physics are realistic enough, but there's inevitably some uncanniness. Sometimes I feel it is obvious the truck and the load would flip over, yet they don't. Whereas when it does flip over, I sometimes ask if it would have really happened that way.</p><p>Trying to cut corners where there's uneven terrain, often has disastrous results...</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioZQZ4VM2B2d4D4QOzKbNHB3DWl9AvuVTtE9fCOUsK7sGZN_JrRM98KpLniHxkfgX1GEbFAnW5IBRQpc42keuM0q5cZOowFjc5hYIPRnMWhMc8dH8hQFkGxaa8GSvuOp61-0ZjaiOF8DC_5qoJ5VEG6j88j9UotG1iWk2FL8C1efczcNduwo4kEjoMZ6c/s1920/20231110180713_1.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1920" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioZQZ4VM2B2d4D4QOzKbNHB3DWl9AvuVTtE9fCOUsK7sGZN_JrRM98KpLniHxkfgX1GEbFAnW5IBRQpc42keuM0q5cZOowFjc5hYIPRnMWhMc8dH8hQFkGxaa8GSvuOp61-0ZjaiOF8DC_5qoJ5VEG6j88j9UotG1iWk2FL8C1efczcNduwo4kEjoMZ6c/w640-h400/20231110180713_1.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p>The sense of getting more and more stuck to a position is made very palpable. Fortunately, there's a powerful winch for getting out of these type of situations, and if that's not enough or possible another truck can give a bump. Fortunately the winch isn't super-realistic, you can instantly connect to nearby trees, no matter what the terrain is.</p><p>The missions usually feature a jeep that can be recalled instantly to the current position, which is good for scouting unexplored areas and tagging those navigation flags which uncover map elements. The jeep is rather easy to flip over or wreck to pieces. </p><p>The instant recall seems somewhat against the spirit of the game, but I guess there had to be some kind of helpful element to the game.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjq8zGHuLZT4bhIk4yNWSuxjlcBBB6mk1aPMnsUYuGtJpAWqmaS_4NL89pywXwthJ97VsMk_sTRVkOvDFaP4AwA2Hxx0DG2VLA-xfmBmfwsEwCCXzPpHZHG5NumBs1F3onq3oor2MoO3RQiIi89cA0fNH9axRbr1QWbIqe8vB0-HR4PGhxf0dGtKHiOUR4/s1920/20231113202544_1.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1920" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjq8zGHuLZT4bhIk4yNWSuxjlcBBB6mk1aPMnsUYuGtJpAWqmaS_4NL89pywXwthJ97VsMk_sTRVkOvDFaP4AwA2Hxx0DG2VLA-xfmBmfwsEwCCXzPpHZHG5NumBs1F3onq3oor2MoO3RQiIi89cA0fNH9axRbr1QWbIqe8vB0-HR4PGhxf0dGtKHiOUR4/w640-h400/20231113202544_1.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p>Ultimately the biggest draw, the mud, isn't such a big factor in many maps. You just have to persevere. The game is more about finding safe enough routes and not getting lost in the dark.</p><p>When I at first saw the visuals years back, it looked like some kind of pinnacle of ultra-realism, and yes the mud and water effects are still quite well made and the car models have detail.</p><p>Felled woods crack and twist under the wheels, and you can mow some of the smaller plantation. The mud cakes on your wheels and your truck gets wet after dipping into the water.</p><p>After seeing most of the tricks the game has to offer, I didn't feel a huge draw to complete all the maps, or perform better. But I might return to it occasionally.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikAwRC_ynsvvRVOMNfRDV-QkJE3b0kCthpzU36HF5A2iLlkledz8He4To5V4dgIF1Vu3-LVp_XrmDqdR25IbimbAPNw66zOCXu1gW4LfiamaVt7w82so7A13xTEpMX0Tdu-f7Qdhlm0SJ0NWk7RVTLvKpFa74z0-iJQy2QCc7n7N0s7YWszlrteWyLm5E/s1920/20231117221424_1.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1920" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikAwRC_ynsvvRVOMNfRDV-QkJE3b0kCthpzU36HF5A2iLlkledz8He4To5V4dgIF1Vu3-LVp_XrmDqdR25IbimbAPNw66zOCXu1gW4LfiamaVt7w82so7A13xTEpMX0Tdu-f7Qdhlm0SJ0NWk7RVTLvKpFa74z0-iJQy2QCc7n7N0s7YWszlrteWyLm5E/w640-h400/20231117221424_1.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p><br /></p>Tero Heikkinenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13784200871918377919noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2474445673248923379.post-61939531588796286292023-11-15T11:17:00.001+02:002023-11-15T11:20:05.996+02:00Ulanzi I-light wands<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVdg-SU_BheZ8L6GuSRUUrClPlfqixTzYfAG_hjLPd9eceLm_yTU_CxZMljZ-Y3PhE52V3Gk20PHU8G3kzXxnj5RebESxl0Gx0nRt3edJ8xYWumTrz1e08WKNJzOzJysGQuxc5ppHRdIwVmGx-ExmTK2yocG9cOQvooeyYv6S_EWTy0lRJA4xlst9cvYo/s1956/20231110_134032.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1170" data-original-width="1956" height="382" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVdg-SU_BheZ8L6GuSRUUrClPlfqixTzYfAG_hjLPd9eceLm_yTU_CxZMljZ-Y3PhE52V3Gk20PHU8G3kzXxnj5RebESxl0Gx0nRt3edJ8xYWumTrz1e08WKNJzOzJysGQuxc5ppHRdIwVmGx-ExmTK2yocG9cOQvooeyYv6S_EWTy0lRJA4xlst9cvYo/w640-h382/20231110_134032.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This is getting out of hand</td></tr></tbody></table><p>For 15€ a piece I chose to buy two of these 6W light wands. At first I thought I should have ordered more, but perhaps these are enough. A word of warning: I've seen these sold with a 50€ price tag.</p><p>Both ends have a magnet and the standard camera mount. The magnet is strong enough for waving a few of them around together, but a real bolt might be preferable if you intend to pretend it's a lightsaber.</p><p>The battery provides light for a few hours, depending on the brightness setting. This should be fine for any kind of minor hobbyist photoshoot. At 6W, I don't think it's a great substitute for desk lights and such. The light can be used while charging, though.</p><p>For video chat sessions, the wands can give some added lighting but again perhaps not as the only light source, unless going for some kind of dramatic effect. Setting them to low brightness can be helpful and doesn't use so much power.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzFLzNLHn73b2n8GETO37I5b8RMH1EuEODWT_Z9EyCpmq4GUrrjFavUIn3CKNuNxFhBRmP9r6IVFVRWeUVehl40TXeRio-3ZAlrfndgQK592mmwSJhxwXDL1MfXoNltU0WSWxzFkbAwK6QUUOKArdgXZ8mPZuAA_QR6P-PhDBMJXBIljQkrDoKDNjYfWQ/s1940/20231110_133812.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1302" data-original-width="1940" height="430" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzFLzNLHn73b2n8GETO37I5b8RMH1EuEODWT_Z9EyCpmq4GUrrjFavUIn3CKNuNxFhBRmP9r6IVFVRWeUVehl40TXeRio-3ZAlrfndgQK592mmwSJhxwXDL1MfXoNltU0WSWxzFkbAwK6QUUOKArdgXZ8mPZuAA_QR6P-PhDBMJXBIljQkrDoKDNjYfWQ/w640-h430/20231110_133812.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The typical unsubtle colors you'll go for the first few days</td></tr></tbody></table><p>USB-C can be used for recharging the 2000mAh battery, this can take a couple of hours.</p><p>Despite the USB connector, the lights can't be externally controlled nor are they even very hackable. As yet, I didn't find anyone providing ways to change the firmware.</p><p>There's no screws visible so I couldn't get them open either. There could be screws under the very thin rubber feet.</p><p>The interface gives some light effects "scenes", Cop Car, Ambulance, Fire Engine, Lightning, Fireworks, TV, Candle, Party, Fault Bulb, Pulsing, Strobe, RGB Strobe, Paparazzi, Emergency, H/L beam, Red Flash, Green Flash, Blue Flash, HSI Slow, HSI Fast. </p><p>These effects only have a brightness parameter (0-100) so they are sadly rather one-dimensional.</p><p>As the lights are not very powerful, I'm not sure how large areas can be covered with the scene effects. But for videos of miniature dioramas etc., these live effects could be a fun addition.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgST0hDtu0BnatItamHrYJhDO1aUm__yVIJgXc7B51B32Cw15YsrFRV83IvATnVLa2AxMyEj2Nl-S6u6gvSSr5d0JxAt7wFebYec929yCLhj33mRbCrF0nUL165pzX7rMxpxW9sUy-c2HAd-SO6OQH4UuH1XtypiYDm0soOtcVhC2zcZhkW1uAbDyDOgnc/s2312/20231110_134156.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1302" data-original-width="2312" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgST0hDtu0BnatItamHrYJhDO1aUm__yVIJgXc7B51B32Cw15YsrFRV83IvATnVLa2AxMyEj2Nl-S6u6gvSSr5d0JxAt7wFebYec929yCLhj33mRbCrF0nUL165pzX7rMxpxW9sUy-c2HAd-SO6OQH4UuH1XtypiYDm0soOtcVhC2zcZhkW1uAbDyDOgnc/w640-h360/20231110_134156.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hue reminder</td></tr></tbody></table><p>The other modes are more practical, you can have a light of specified color temperature ranging from 2500K to 9000K, with brightness 0-100.</p><p>Finally, you can adjust the color of the light using Hue (0-359), Saturation (0-100) and Brightness (0-100). The device has a helpful diagram showing each hue and its corresponding degree. </p><p>There's a tiny display on the opposite side of the lamp, easy enough to read. A combination of four keys is used to navigate the different modes, options and parameters.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTrbMTuc0jqcKozlf2e6P2bACuhTB1kOr-oJSzYuCRzEZPPFQOZoeqfdO1akfnOze2yaLTl9q-QOLmAI40Ca3hyphenhyphenm22xPZfScpaOargrZROho32tQBOTYY75NGVRL98Jajh_6oF4kTYrCBjJDnyN4h-obNQAx9_NV4wdQZMPQVwWq8kiFO24QX_w7qTZK4/s1594/manfrotto2.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1594" data-original-width="1024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTrbMTuc0jqcKozlf2e6P2bACuhTB1kOr-oJSzYuCRzEZPPFQOZoeqfdO1akfnOze2yaLTl9q-QOLmAI40Ca3hyphenhyphenm22xPZfScpaOargrZROho32tQBOTYY75NGVRL98Jajh_6oF4kTYrCBjJDnyN4h-obNQAx9_NV4wdQZMPQVwWq8kiFO24QX_w7qTZK4/w412-h640/manfrotto2.jpg" width="412" /></a></div><p><br /></p>Tero Heikkinenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13784200871918377919noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2474445673248923379.post-43035316009707967302023-11-05T10:21:00.001+02:002023-11-06T22:46:06.671+02:00Scifi roundup<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEix_g4QQKdhBLCKt0HLgjO74nC1mUDabvBj_EQIVMvObNdzeQv1Y2KV7cvBnqeorccxq3OiXbq_ePjmaB0EiSGSmoRbhhuIpsX1HBvKsVNW9UJOpnKzUGaA3IwRZl034vRoD54PmX2e0BgucUqFXKvdq0h3OFN97E3VcgAr4Y7D0DjoIjbbKoEg1tNviJ4/s1600/smally.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1004" data-original-width="1600" height="402" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEix_g4QQKdhBLCKt0HLgjO74nC1mUDabvBj_EQIVMvObNdzeQv1Y2KV7cvBnqeorccxq3OiXbq_ePjmaB0EiSGSmoRbhhuIpsX1HBvKsVNW9UJOpnKzUGaA3IwRZl034vRoD54PmX2e0BgucUqFXKvdq0h3OFN97E3VcgAr4Y7D0DjoIjbbKoEg1tNviJ4/w640-h402/smally.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p>It's been a while, some of these I wrote years ago.</p><p>The descriptions are inevitably somewhat<b> *spoilerific*</b>. But I won't mention <i>all</i> the major plot reveals and outcomes.<br /><br /></p><p><b>James P. Hogan: Code of the Lifemaker (1983) & Immortality Option (1995)</b></p><p>I bought these two randomly off a flea market.</p><p>The prologue tells how an automatic interplanetary robot explorer/factory system fails as the alien star system turns nova. After countless millennia, the crazed probe crashes on a moon of another system and the robots begin to evolve into self-conscious lifeforms. This results in a medieval robot world based on a non-carbon ecosystem, with some properties more advanced than Earth science could achieve.</p><p>On future Earth, an expedition is launched for Mars, revealed in process to be headed to Titan, but no-one gives a really good reason for the change of plans. <i>Could it be...?</i></p><p>The real main character is one Zambendorf, a very public person who made a career by claiming he has psychic powers. The arguments for and against parapsychology are rooted around the time of the novel's writing, reminding of the Uri Geller phenomenon.</p><p>The initial parts of the novel reminded me of Alfred Bester's stories, but it is soon found out to be very different. In addition there's some weird soapboxing against solar power and other "green" or "leftist" mindsets.</p><p>The idea of the self-evolving robot life was interesting, whereas comedy takes center stage as the antics of the medieval robot scientists and religious fanatics are explored.</p><p>The sequel, written a decade afterwards, acts both as a direct sequel and a kind of prequel to the first book, detailing the events leading to the robot evolution. Topically, there's less of the robotic science-religion irreverence, and more attention is paid to intelligent entities living within computer networks, in essence "fixing" the absence of software AI's from the first novel.</p><p>Neither of the novels are especially good, age hasn't graced them and the plotting is convoluted. Although Zambendorf's parapsychology is made to some good use in both of the novels, at the same time it flattens the story to an anecdote about outwitting the opponent.</p><p>Apart from all the hijinks and comedy, Hogan has managed a relatively plausible first contact scenario without resorting to faster than light travel. <br /><br /></p><p><b>Larry Niven and Jerry Pournelle: The Mote in the God's Eye (1974)</b></p><p>Niven and Pournelle co-wrote this fairly brick-sized novel about humanity's first encounter with an alien race far in the future. <br /><br />As a fun inversion, alien language isn't a problem as they learn English quickly enough. In contrast, the complexity of their language prevents it from being ever understood by humans. Come to think of it, something similar happened in Hogan's novels discussed above.</p><p>The alien race appears to have many resources and skills humans do not have. The question arises, as the puny humanity has invented faster than light jump travel long ago, why are the ostensibly more intelligent aliens stuck on their homeworld?</p><p>Apart from this central mystery, this sci-fi examines what precautions need to be taken in a first contact situation, what misunderstandings might take place and how could they be resolved.</p><p>Niven explores his style of alien races with ease, incorporating the geometric thinking that helped make <i>Ringworld</i> intriguing. For example, the logic of the hyperjump to the Mote system, and the reason why the Mote's can't do it in reverse, is satisfyingly spatial. <br /><br />I'm less sure what Pournelle's contribution to the novel is, but the more muted naval military elements of the Human Empire feels less Niven. Consulting Wikipedia, the novel indeed takes place in Pournelle's universe. There's some of Niven's usual silliness and stereotypical characters, and the novel really doesn't rise above its plot, which was enjoyable enough. <br /><br />The Mote in the God's Eye is rather modern sci-fi for something published in 1974. Perhaps because now the generic video game sci-fi universes resemble the one presented here.</p><p>Also, those parts of the <i>Halo </i>video game universe and plot, which are not taken from Niven's Ringworld, are largely derived from this book. Or Pournelle's universe, to be more precise.</p><p>Or it's just that sci-fi ideas in popular culture simply became stuck in the 1980s.<br /><br /></p><p><b>Vernor Vinge: A Fire upon the Deep (1992)</b></p><p>This has even been translated to Finnish ("Linnunradan ääret", 2001), but I've missed it entirely. </p><p>It turns out that from our local vantage point, we don't know that much about how universe works. Towards the center of the galaxy, machines work less effectively, spaceships move slower, even organic minds begin to lose their capacity. Moving outward, towards the galactic rim, faster than light travel is possible, technology works more fluidly and even minds are more capable.</p><p>A vast conglomerate of alien cultures mingle with each other there, communicating through an ultra-internet spanning the galaxy, or rather, the outer rim. </p><p>This creates a dynamic backdrop for stories that might not make much sense in our physically constrained universe. Conventional sci-fi empires in the slow zone have little expansion potential before they perish. Civilizations like the Earth's, have a hope of ascending through, but they might just as well become extinct.</p><p>Then, something wicked this way comes from the human outpost of Straumli, awakening even the interest of the Powers, entities transcended beyond the galactic rim. Shortly after the rapidly escalating catastrophe, a human refugee ship descends on a medieval world, with a pack-mind culture unaware of the rest of the galaxy.</p><p>What at first appears tiresomely post-modern and post-internet mish-mash of confusion, is eventually balanced with what is essentially a rollicking space opera, with twists and turns and reveals round every corner.</p><p>The story, problems and solutions are intertwined satisfyingly with the world concepts. The pack-mind alien race and the universe only really work in the written medium, otherwise I guess it would have been filmed already.<br /><br /></p><p><b>David Brin: The Postman (1985)</b></p><p>After a short nuclear winter, the United States is reduced to a scattered wasteland, Western-like territories with mountain men and outlaw gangs. Jeremiah Johnson is even name-dropped.</p><p>Gordon makes a living travelling about and performing little plays and leading entertainment events with singing and stories that remind people of times before the fall.</p><p>When Gordon finds a near-intact post courier's jeep, with a mail bag and a uniform, this sets wheels in motion. Due to the uniform, he gets a grand reception at a village of simpletons. Being a bit of an idealist, Gordon continues to work as a mail carrier in the name of the Restored United States. But does this play act become more real in the process? Are symbols really so strong?</p><p>The book is quite episodic, Gordon's role as a Postman leads him to various locales where people attempt to keep up civilization. Instead of staying as a picaresque, the story escalates and leads to larger themes.</p><p>The last portion of the book is like the end part of a sequel book was bolted on, with partly different characters and themes that were not developed in the beginning. Apart from this incongruity it does make fun reading.<br /><br /></p><p><b>Fred and Geoffrey Hoyle: Rockets in Ursa Major (1969)</b></p><p>Earth sent the rocket DSP-15 to "Ursa Major" thirty years ago, its crew in deep sleep. All such journeys apparently failed or fell silent, but now the DSP-15 has inexplicably returned.</p><p>This is an interesting setup, but then the action shifts too soon into high gear, forgoing the mystery. Soon all points to an alien intelligence, set to invade the Earth. No sooner a ship is sent to probe the outer reaches of the solar system, the attack is found to be already in process.</p><p>The book can be dismissed as a novelette for juvenile audiences, with the "Hullo, Dick, wait while I adjust the batteries of my chrono-temporal wrist terminal" type dialogue and heavy-handed description of gadgets in the future world, most of them having no bearing on the actual story.</p><p>However, the story has a nice example of the "dark forest" concept. There's a thriving galactic community of aliens, and a malevolent race only called the Yela, the Unseen Ones. They would destroy the Earth just because they know it exists. Pour hydrogen on the atmosphere, apply pressure, and <i>voilà</i>, life on Earth will be vaporized.</p><p>This alone is a thrilling concept, but there isn't much else going for Ursa Major. The space battles are fun, unpretentious bashing using rigged torpedoes and such. The inevitable table-turning solution is a little too bombastic and not too credible, but the story had to stop somewhere.<br /><br /></p><p><b>Arthur Clarke: Rendezvous with Rama (1973)</b></p><p>A well known and deservedly a classic, <i>Rendezvous with Rama</i> is a story of an interstellar object arriving to the solar system. When ʻOumuamua did the rounds around 2017, it spurred many comparisons with this novel.</p><p>As human race has spread out to habitate the solar system, it's not too much of a problem to divert one competent spaceship crew to the silent cylindrical mini-world dubbed as Rama. Landing on top of it, they discover a way in and thus begins the adventure for discovering the secrets of a dead, alien culture. Or is it so dead after all?</p><p>Possibly the best book on display here, I am somehow less eager to divulge its contents. Suffice to say it's a rare example of a science fiction novel where the initial mystery is not flattened through the story's conclusion. There are sequels, but they were made so much later I suspect they are not worth reading.</p><p><br /><b>Isaac Asimov: Nemesis (1989)</b></p><p>A latter day Asimov I've somehow been able to avoid.</p><p>Using a half-realized FTL drive, a group of human settlers are able to reach Nemesis, a star system only couple of light years away. As the star has escaped detection, the shrewd commander of the colony has decided to keep it secret from Earthlings and the other solar system settlements. </p><p>Meanwhile, it is revealed Nemesis might eventually hit the solar system, with grave consequences for Earth... are the Earth politicians and their soon overpopulating melting pot, that much better?</p><p>Asimov weaves together a perhaps too many threads for comfort, as the human drama, near-telepathic inference talent of one Marlene, and the mystery of the Plague on the settler world Erythro take the center stage. But "comfort food" it essentially is, mystery piling on mystery until it is all unraveled.</p><p>Asimov makes a point of saying the story is not part of the Foundation and Robots series, which is just as well as I didn't include it in my <a href="https://oldmachinery.blogspot.com/2020/09/asimov-chronological-reading-project.html">massive Asimov through-read</a>...</p><p>...however, the statement might be something of a red herring, as the story isn't that contradictory with the larger Asimov tapestry. He never said it wasn't part of the same <i>universe! </i>The very end and the epilogue makes the connection rather blatant, hinting at the Earth/Spacer split, future events and possible makeup of the early colonies. This may include, among other things, the potential origin for the trans-human Solaria and eventual mind-controlling factions in the Foundation novels.</p>Tero Heikkinenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13784200871918377919noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2474445673248923379.post-73250804040219009752023-10-29T23:18:00.008+02:002023-10-29T23:22:55.044+02:00Keep on Eurotruckin' : Finland<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSiPFY5VsYyGzF3SRZCdpRFJ4T8R2n52_gaqDCBZSnOy52hs3UIfF4R7GHX_zWMOByitVTBfLM-_4k1pI7epU4ZQ72VKmPQNap25msySGaQ-zjGhJYqImsdXFGBO2mdUUiSO-WeEzuO5N5GJ7u2fAU5phkHUuSYTYgVZkUXU-IQTX3QGQvLfsmogZQQwM/s1227/ratikka.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="760" data-original-width="1227" height="396" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSiPFY5VsYyGzF3SRZCdpRFJ4T8R2n52_gaqDCBZSnOy52hs3UIfF4R7GHX_zWMOByitVTBfLM-_4k1pI7epU4ZQ72VKmPQNap25msySGaQ-zjGhJYqImsdXFGBO2mdUUiSO-WeEzuO5N5GJ7u2fAU5phkHUuSYTYgVZkUXU-IQTX3QGQvLfsmogZQQwM/w640-h396/ratikka.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p>Just to be clear. I'm not a very enthusiastic Eurotruck Simulator 2 player. But I have to admit for a while it's been fun to try to handle a truck instead of all the racing cars games usually have on offer.</p><p>As a typical Finn, I was mostly curious about how Finland is represented. For this I needed the <i>Beyond the Baltic Sea</i> DLC, and even then it only has southern Finland. You can visit for example Helsinki, Tampere, Turku, Pori, Kouvola and Kotka.</p><p>Being a simulation, you have to follow various laws, such as observing the speed limit, left-side/right-side traffic and whether lights need to be on in this country or not.</p><p>More technically, cruise control, windshield wiper, high beams and signaling adds complexity to the controls, although not everything really needs to be performed. Reversing a truck and a trailer can be really counterintuitive at times, which makes for a fun challenge.</p><p>Driving a truck does seem a stressful job, even in this simplified universe where you get to bump into things without repercussions, and no-one bothers your parking.</p><p><br /></p><p><b>The Finnish experience</b></p><p>As the game mostly takes you from one industrial setup to another, you don't get to see that many sights in the cities. The portion of Helsinki on display does give a funny <i>déjà vu</i>, what with the local police cars, traffic signs and the green trams, but it's not a particularly accurate depiction.</p><p>I especially appreciate the first thing I see are areas under construction, because that's what Helsinki these days seems to be. Ha, ha. But it's really Jätkäsaari, under construction, an area that's been finished for a while.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxZIS4ZDxF0o8apHhPPgNZhzaosLN0TDxL8FaDp-rFjtmsCRGJYbLl0DAAoaZMjudwZ11mtpOeOYH0ftypYXadhGVwH84VA1Y1f9-SsA3Hs_JlQTJuVza_tTZjc7hA5qmsEXn5qdbxYQ5tNBlvd9DEcGA79djXM3Ga1yHXlovczTsB2_m2nVo2GUMc0HQ/s1920/helsinki_1st.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1920" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxZIS4ZDxF0o8apHhPPgNZhzaosLN0TDxL8FaDp-rFjtmsCRGJYbLl0DAAoaZMjudwZ11mtpOeOYH0ftypYXadhGVwH84VA1Y1f9-SsA3Hs_JlQTJuVza_tTZjc7hA5qmsEXn5qdbxYQ5tNBlvd9DEcGA79djXM3Ga1yHXlovczTsB2_m2nVo2GUMc0HQ/w640-h400/helsinki_1st.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Arriving in Helsinki West Harbor. Jätkäsaari is being built.</td></tr></tbody></table><p>My first gig is from Helsinki to Turku, and although I don't know Turku, the Helsinki exit road from west is familiar terrain. Very vaguely I get the impression of leaving Helsinki over Lauttasaari, viewing perhaps Otaniemi coasts on the right, but I also have to say the scenery is a little weird there.</p><p>Arriving to Helsinki from the west, it looks more familiar. These should be Wärtsilä, Stora Enso, maybe even Cable Factory looming at the right side of the road.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgybshux9SbggDlDJpFu4B5PPGSXJi3Uk9iQ9XkiRwJYTpGrPDSTcSgNfCQoy1CvaGglI_UKB-BI6wMpFkUkJMjS9rK9DEvkhatG-PD0M8AnK198Euwb5y6w2B0f6X2uzr-TW8fcPUA_ECplZTOoRGdlcsbK9aUUIQt9Rb8bt_3BlBZqPDty-KQbSQ5Xa8/s1920/cablefactory.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1920" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgybshux9SbggDlDJpFu4B5PPGSXJi3Uk9iQ9XkiRwJYTpGrPDSTcSgNfCQoy1CvaGglI_UKB-BI6wMpFkUkJMjS9rK9DEvkhatG-PD0M8AnK198Euwb5y6w2B0f6X2uzr-TW8fcPUA_ECplZTOoRGdlcsbK9aUUIQt9Rb8bt_3BlBZqPDty-KQbSQ5Xa8/w640-h400/cablefactory.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Nearing the terminus of road 51.</td></tr></tbody></table><p>The skyline is lacking the smokestacks. I guess most of the buildings are created from generic elements, and there's probably not that much unique geometry in the Finnish cities.</p><p>Then, at the left, it must be the Orthodox cemetery at Lapinniemi viewed from Porkkalankatu.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0YjA6pcJTs9iVDfU6VhIkzH85UODLm8x4hELmQlGLVOP06_eXNcx4iCOMKt2Tne_e2clB0a3N1wCc6mWeUWuP-8vk2h9AjlJ9WUgev8n5wRD3AfV7sfNRNUyc_zp5-AGLxw0Yq7zd2xuiPoHhwe5-rUTL9sH-qlcllbcRgWv_PUxcjJ439TVvSP6nIEk/s1920/hietaniemi.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1920" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0YjA6pcJTs9iVDfU6VhIkzH85UODLm8x4hELmQlGLVOP06_eXNcx4iCOMKt2Tne_e2clB0a3N1wCc6mWeUWuP-8vk2h9AjlJ9WUgev8n5wRD3AfV7sfNRNUyc_zp5-AGLxw0Yq7zd2xuiPoHhwe5-rUTL9sH-qlcllbcRgWv_PUxcjJ439TVvSP6nIEk/w640-h400/hietaniemi.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Porkkalankatu</td></tr></tbody></table><p>What follows must be the road that leads to the West Harbor, and it does look kind of familiar. </p><p>It's just that the Jätkäsaari area has now been built full of highrise, and the DLC doesn't quite reflect these newer developments.</p><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjC9u-I_MEY5xUY1LJJYaFMhHJIxD1BWVElcRvTppoaUkuBGNX2g_7FKmnQhfNamoooYiWrx01oIJI7vA_N043JkHIHE88tnHdsARXqx15yLJDwQ-g5TI_5_e0DLHxqtgc-RmpY1jbL5IdS5R71-7zS276A3WHLGYbrW3qr0U4_SNAIECKCG50r3mO31ec/s1920/jatkasaari.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1920" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjC9u-I_MEY5xUY1LJJYaFMhHJIxD1BWVElcRvTppoaUkuBGNX2g_7FKmnQhfNamoooYiWrx01oIJI7vA_N043JkHIHE88tnHdsARXqx15yLJDwQ-g5TI_5_e0DLHxqtgc-RmpY1jbL5IdS5R71-7zS276A3WHLGYbrW3qr0U4_SNAIECKCG50r3mO31ec/w640-h400/jatkasaari.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Tyynenmerenkatu.</td></tr></tbody></table><br />Outside Helsinki, the scenery between cities does give a nice impression of the usual Finnish motorway, the surroundings forests, fields and the occasional old shed.<p></p><p>Coming from Tampere to Helsinki did spark some recognition, Riihimäki is somewhat represented (though not named) and the Linnatuuli station complex is there by name of "Linna Tuuli" but the structure over the motorway has not been replicated.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-g7neWtdomLnmJFXuhjSe-IhXezp0N-TLtonwZ8XmfyQBG0oItIePBM0tCuTq2YLSbRbK5BhfL6IT22j83I8bykJ3hpF2uhVdVkOn3toBaQAm2Es1s_2hh9kRs1q0yOFZ0gf9d5pnBG6Xhi5dnB1kvlUnUgqmm9YbFUHrTJ3L762NKOq_ORXIidcXFrw/s1920/raining.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1920" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-g7neWtdomLnmJFXuhjSe-IhXezp0N-TLtonwZ8XmfyQBG0oItIePBM0tCuTq2YLSbRbK5BhfL6IT22j83I8bykJ3hpF2uhVdVkOn3toBaQAm2Es1s_2hh9kRs1q0yOFZ0gf9d5pnBG6Xhi5dnB1kvlUnUgqmm9YbFUHrTJ3L762NKOq_ORXIidcXFrw/w640-h400/raining.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The usual Finnish road.</td></tr></tbody></table><p>For a moment I get some Martinlaakso vibes before entering Helsinki, but I'm redirected to the Ring Road again so I don't get to see the actual beginning of Mannerheimintie.</p><p>This could be virtual counterpart of the long-standing Lahnus Shell station, facing southeast, even if the surroundings are not that similar and the road that leads to it from Helsinki turns somewhat sketchy. But the south side of the station has a (non-driveable) road leading north(east), corresponding with the topology. Change my mind.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQFwZVAK7gExlEy0quc5HG3UFYaDZZhAVlcgHwKRfQtvNCTKkJ20ewk9kgMz76iaPaYcj7oYatXcsW9v_aGb-aKsmo8Nucmv8Njvqs7xdPS84dolqvE9djAbO-LixbJ6l_M5vrbYcTI647t5mWfl6uVBwvQTpwBF9LjhQikC_OH6EvSFU3BvZWiUfw6hw/s1920/lahnus_shell.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1920" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQFwZVAK7gExlEy0quc5HG3UFYaDZZhAVlcgHwKRfQtvNCTKkJ20ewk9kgMz76iaPaYcj7oYatXcsW9v_aGb-aKsmo8Nucmv8Njvqs7xdPS84dolqvE9djAbO-LixbJ6l_M5vrbYcTI647t5mWfl6uVBwvQTpwBF9LjhQikC_OH6EvSFU3BvZWiUfw6hw/w640-h400/lahnus_shell.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lahnus Shell</td></tr></tbody></table>Tero Heikkinenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13784200871918377919noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2474445673248923379.post-40866336734012459032023-10-12T20:49:00.011+03:002023-10-20T23:34:47.945+03:00Carrier Command 2<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg589aj7guYfF1N5-jY8oBDYlAi5yeCw5Ktytug-70zEXoMXIjMlt8RKksGD1F5hb9T2PFUUy5r9PtHZ9bEPLfrRTKEWvVWeTj1dxzMo0bB3AMB-R6SQETkJKbq2V8mvxGGe_7erEYgZ72vILBe2Op11uO07Sig9UBLgyXboBPE6DbrziYtS6t0LiJWbVs/s1920/20231011204156_1.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1920" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg589aj7guYfF1N5-jY8oBDYlAi5yeCw5Ktytug-70zEXoMXIjMlt8RKksGD1F5hb9T2PFUUy5r9PtHZ9bEPLfrRTKEWvVWeTj1dxzMo0bB3AMB-R6SQETkJKbq2V8mvxGGe_7erEYgZ72vILBe2Op11uO07Sig9UBLgyXboBPE6DbrziYtS6t0LiJWbVs/w640-h400/20231011204156_1.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">The titular Carrier</div><p>The original <i>Carrier Command</i> from 1988 ran on Amiga and Atari ST. This was the pinnacle of 16-bit home computer gaming: a technical tour de force of solid 3D graphics, multi-vehicle control and a complex mouse/icon-driven interface. </p><p>It's like a demo of what would <i>not</i> be possible on the 8-bits. And then it was converted to ZX Spectrum too.</p><p>The technicality and multi-screen play covered a fairly simple strategy game focusing on the control of a handful units, made more tricky by the real-time aspect and the delightfully cluttered interface.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi39Cji_QXir-btACaEnXyTBJeT7axBJLwsGI1NQeoW05Bo9uOQ1iCwT5kuRBatpScBCHvklSzkmIEc9advbd_j8UbAhR66ayVLoTgjKxQxL1TPM8fEvbWIFtBU01QiNYMu25HpS9EHcRjsASe4VQfuCmn5bqmPL9kWBLS9iwQZS4zPqOJP5z2jDToZK84/s3600/carrieramiga.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1170" data-original-width="3600" height="208" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi39Cji_QXir-btACaEnXyTBJeT7axBJLwsGI1NQeoW05Bo9uOQ1iCwT5kuRBatpScBCHvklSzkmIEc9advbd_j8UbAhR66ayVLoTgjKxQxL1TPM8fEvbWIFtBU01QiNYMu25HpS9EHcRjsASe4VQfuCmn5bqmPL9kWBLS9iwQZS4zPqOJP5z2jDToZK84/w640-h208/carrieramiga.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Carrier Command on the Amiga</td></tr></tbody></table><p>Yet Carrier Command remains a cult game and many have probably wondered if the concept could be updated for more recent computers.</p><p>As the Microprose brand returned, I had my eyes on their future offerings for a while. Then, crucially, <i>Carrier Command 2</i> (2021) was released and I only found about it a year later, thought it was little weird as the original was published by Rainbird. Another year passed before I bought the game from Steam.</p><p>It's not the first time the theme has been resuscitated. There's also a <i>Carrier Command: Gaea Mission </i>(2012), but that Bohemia Interactive interpretation has some Halo knock-off fps elements which put me off. Perhaps some day.</p><p>This is not a Linux game originally, but as usual, Proton to the rescue. I didn't experience any in-game crashes with Proton 7.0-6.<br /><br /></p><p><b>All aboard the Carrier</b><br /><br />Carrier Command 2 is surprisingly almost the same game concept as the Amiga original, and this is what piqued my interest.</p><p>You are in control of a retro-futuristic carrier, with the goal of conquering an archipelago of small islands, or the destruction of the enemy carrier. The enemy carrier is wandering about with a similar purpose.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjT9ZUjj8PgZyMvOCw_f02GlAb-a1LtQTa06R2TgbwZS3RAHd-w1FnNHKkdT4Z_AAx1EjiOtRcWqiiiCbLGDroKH5LMI91LjrZpZTXMC3jzeZXmv3nW2BP-owhXozJOJ7hsU_NWRp5uQSkcV_Fxfh0lM0mEBPi54rjB-PH6F0lVIrd6VTS27ykkqAMbC2Y/s960/20231007181648_1.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="960" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjT9ZUjj8PgZyMvOCw_f02GlAb-a1LtQTa06R2TgbwZS3RAHd-w1FnNHKkdT4Z_AAx1EjiOtRcWqiiiCbLGDroKH5LMI91LjrZpZTXMC3jzeZXmv3nW2BP-owhXozJOJ7hsU_NWRp5uQSkcV_Fxfh0lM0mEBPi54rjB-PH6F0lVIrd6VTS27ykkqAMbC2Y/w640-h400/20231007181648_1.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Most of the screens at one glance.</td></tr></tbody></table><p>The first impressions were very good. The prologue brings the player down from the orbit on to the surface of an alien world, and on board the carrier. </p><p>There is only a minimal amount of story content and the game is not split into on-rails episodes or smaller portions.</p><p>The campaign is a complete simulation of the war on the archipelago, and one run can take tens of hours. Bad choices early on can result in a game over that only becomes apparent much later.</p><p>Indie-esque art directorial choices and budgetary constraints are evident, but the creators have focused in the essentials and still managed to make a nice looking game.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEii3PiL6oWqzy53vKv-IaruZcqK39daZFaSDV7_NNirMUIDWr_zWX4yO5x-MDOPQkEEsrfVK8OIS7Frgjf66DZCI6KeEfIPtgaZq_vTnSput2h1zQ0Lrh44GR9DIFo-mvcspnhpipxBXZtu-GIGt3uvRZcZoigVcLQ5m2fGhG9zep2lGGlMHqaQJTb_1yA/s960/20231002171709_1.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="960" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEii3PiL6oWqzy53vKv-IaruZcqK39daZFaSDV7_NNirMUIDWr_zWX4yO5x-MDOPQkEEsrfVK8OIS7Frgjf66DZCI6KeEfIPtgaZq_vTnSput2h1zQ0Lrh44GR9DIFo-mvcspnhpipxBXZtu-GIGt3uvRZcZoigVcLQ5m2fGhG9zep2lGGlMHqaQJTb_1yA/w640-h400/20231002171709_1.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The captain's holodisplay, neat but rather useless in single-player mode.</td></tr></tbody></table><p>The Carrier and the weapon systems are imaginary sci-fi equipment in an imaginary world. The alien feel is heightened as no-one else is around except you. </p><p>The simple step-by-step tutorial at the beginning shows how to switch on power, move about, how to use the Carrier main gun and how to deploy vehicles.</p><p>Rather than clicking various icons over different screens, the player has to walk about and man different stations, and use the screens from there.</p><p>Many buttons, switches and levers can be activated in the "physical" space too. Much of the added detail and complexity relates to the on/off and brightness adjustment buttons connected to every screen. It's also possible to wander off to the sparsely modeled Carrier interiors, but this serves no real purpose.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTOyUAdQOtgqDdZvHfXgsjtFnfW7pmUy4qvpI9oYzaH6Hc65qv8u2ihkcUprttczVajiCfayTZiVnsFaJWWukGU_Tc2e0bSKriWgJjmfQYtkj1Bw1dYiPe5fJahCeV4hdvPisSLgvFj0OVnPdPfy0Ac5ZD7E6kdYc6u-IpLatuPsCtdPFCg2o3aRW5a3s/s1920/20231002170542_1.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1920" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTOyUAdQOtgqDdZvHfXgsjtFnfW7pmUy4qvpI9oYzaH6Hc65qv8u2ihkcUprttczVajiCfayTZiVnsFaJWWukGU_Tc2e0bSKriWgJjmfQYtkj1Bw1dYiPe5fJahCeV4hdvPisSLgvFj0OVnPdPfy0Ac5ZD7E6kdYc6u-IpLatuPsCtdPFCg2o3aRW5a3s/w640-h400/20231002170542_1.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Weather changes and the day cycle add to the atmosphere</td></tr></tbody></table><p>The approach makes sense considering CC2 has a multiplayer mode where a complete crew can man the bridge stations and do different things in parallel, also using virtual headsets. I doubt I will ever test that.</p><p>Playing solo involves hopping between stations to do actions that in principle could have been done from a single screen. It is difficult to handle multiple vehicles and the Carrier attack/defense systems in the heat of a battle.</p><p>But the original game also showcased similar type of thinking and the game might lose its essence if there was an effective keyboard shortcut for every action.</p><p>There's no overall "God's eye" camera of the surroundings, you only see what "you" see, mediated through cameras or not.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiMm9DKkWJyVBc0Q4-nzGXXrMArr795bYcKpOS-i8SkQSOR2iExWdPP0mdfxkGSXLK3Acji841lnLBdxUDXZRlBJiSuC5LooifOW8e5NrQANJBl9psguDFFR-k_6Vpsi4wynW0SfLfp_0pCQNKJR2veI__zsxe_KmxnyZfuJa3y_e81xTmPTS6bssGxqQ/s960/20231005201731_1.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="960" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiMm9DKkWJyVBc0Q4-nzGXXrMArr795bYcKpOS-i8SkQSOR2iExWdPP0mdfxkGSXLK3Acji841lnLBdxUDXZRlBJiSuC5LooifOW8e5NrQANJBl9psguDFFR-k_6Vpsi4wynW0SfLfp_0pCQNKJR2veI__zsxe_KmxnyZfuJa3y_e81xTmPTS6bssGxqQ/w640-h400/20231005201731_1.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The tactical display, where the various assets are controlled</td></tr></tbody></table><p>Actions take time. Deploying some of the vehicles is especially slow, and firing main guns does not happen instantly. In the Amiga original, you could at least fire the deck laser gun in frustration, here you need to designate targets and wait for the gun to fire.</p><p>It does make me wonder though why I cannot delay the last "fire" order until after the gun is ready?</p><p>After deploying amphibious surface vehicles, helicopters and planes, these can be controlled using waypoints on a map.</p><p>It is also possible to enter the camera view of each and guide them directly. Taking manual control at a crucial moment can be useful, as the vehicles can sometimes be painfully passive.</p><p>Enemies can be visually eyeballed from far away, but unless they are scanned through a specific kind of camera, they won't identify permanently on the map. Further scan is required to identify the weapon systems, after which the enemy weapons reach become visible as circles.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBTYezXtQSq7AYhktAXhGEagvMiR_aItII0s33Evlwhc8N3mrHamzZ_txNbv6NBDaH9t8YHIgkBps88eEL5PiDPJKanDCqkwE-lBTQlr4NvYIEo57F4p15BDDAU4mr77mzvVBwUQQsBJRD1myta8csXOXTyfzV-hlLP9O7xYnL_C9eWW12ZcjzpBuIT28/s960/20231007202835_1.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="960" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBTYezXtQSq7AYhktAXhGEagvMiR_aItII0s33Evlwhc8N3mrHamzZ_txNbv6NBDaH9t8YHIgkBps88eEL5PiDPJKanDCqkwE-lBTQlr4NvYIEo57F4p15BDDAU4mr77mzvVBwUQQsBJRD1myta8csXOXTyfzV-hlLP9O7xYnL_C9eWW12ZcjzpBuIT28/w640-h400/20231007202835_1.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">An Albatross being deployed.</td></tr></tbody></table><p>Install this gimbal camera to an Albatross or a Petrel and you can "paint" enemy targets and activate Carrier main weapons from above via in-flight screen. Not always the easiest approach.</p><p>In any case, a tiniest mistake in the approach can lose your precious vehicle(s). There's a way to make more, though.</p><p>The scale of the game is far bigger than the tiny islets in the Amiga version, which means the islands span multiple kilometers. On one hand this makes the situations more complex and realistic, but on the other hand there's a lot more waiting and flushing out of enemy units. This choice really highlights how abstract the original was.</p><p>Conquering the islands is (as far as I see) achieved by dumping virus bots near the command center of the island. This can be tricky, if there are enemies around they will most certainly shoot the virus bots first and the attack will be repelled. This can easily happen even in the "tutorial".</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh64dC0ae_hawdZRnavSsFnADxFk0oTH-TNRNZCkBuAveNcE_eZ5YQZRqkcHdM_fpEKyIpDjTkwEXiPjwgOwNUP3zEjH4HnJKq7YWkUvFpZs-kCJKeSdcI8EdPtmR3UoDP3GSsP1NmYwxph_udA5LkXgY2CrNHc1U4IvU0U3q75lrqfyjrDkql_yF5DGoQ/s960/20231007171849_1.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="960" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh64dC0ae_hawdZRnavSsFnADxFk0oTH-TNRNZCkBuAveNcE_eZ5YQZRqkcHdM_fpEKyIpDjTkwEXiPjwgOwNUP3zEjH4HnJKq7YWkUvFpZs-kCJKeSdcI8EdPtmR3UoDP3GSsP1NmYwxph_udA5LkXgY2CrNHc1U4IvU0U3q75lrqfyjrDkql_yF5DGoQ/w640-h400/20231007171849_1.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">SEALs carrying Virus Bombs, viewed from another SEAL.</td></tr></tbody></table><p>At the beginning, nudging between waypoint and hands-on mode was essential to gain an edge over the opposition who has similar equipment and the player can't afford to lose anything.</p><p>Sometimes a huge number of enemy tracks becomes stuck at the same position, and one cruise missile or a volley from the Carrier main gun can get rid of them all. Knowing this made some of the approaches more manageable.</p><p>After the tutorial is over, the player is left alone with the manual and the humongous carrier and all its sub-systems. Frankly, the in-game manual isn't that helpful or even very readable, and it might have been helpful if there was another tutorial explaining the archipelago logistics even a little. Fortunately, there is more information online.</p><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><b>Barging in</b></div><div><br /></div><div>The important tidbit: Unless you conquer an island that can produce fuel, your Carrier will run out of it rather soon. </div><div><br /></div><div>To refuel the carrier, you need to master the rather poorly documented topic of Barge ships. Barges can replenish the lost resources of the Carrier, if the materials are available on your conquered islands.</div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8sdpwKX40XHmPqfTxVpvbGrqHgep0TEaYioGGQdXPJBl4Bdd0RhvcXys7EWQ4m0ZkuW_WcTnRC0Pp9E8rnNYG95wO0PLfUtftDhGksiRGWGZ_FIhREenUtyg-V8sVzpTXGJ4iCAAnP7Z2YSYO2xyPabelFuqbC8hM3fOwmFKyzawI6bAo11nBhvZxx9A/s960/20231007191434_1.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="960" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8sdpwKX40XHmPqfTxVpvbGrqHgep0TEaYioGGQdXPJBl4Bdd0RhvcXys7EWQ4m0ZkuW_WcTnRC0Pp9E8rnNYG95wO0PLfUtftDhGksiRGWGZ_FIhREenUtyg-V8sVzpTXGJ4iCAAnP7Z2YSYO2xyPabelFuqbC8hM3fOwmFKyzawI6bAo11nBhvZxx9A/w640-h400/20231007191434_1.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Barge is bringing me more missiles, Albatrosses and Razorbills.</td></tr></tbody></table><div><br /></div><div>To start production in an island, you go to the logistics screen and activate the island's icon from there, forming an production order queue.</div><div><br /></div><div>Only the barges can bring you materials, it doesn't help at all if your Carrier is sitting next to a fuel-producing island.</div><div><br /></div><div>You first need to place an "order" for the equipment you need, otherwise the barges don't know what to carry. After this has been done, the barge waypoints (logistic screen again) are dragged to the source of production (island icon) and then the carrier.</div><div><br /></div><div>The barge waypoints <i>cannot</i> be set from the tactical screens, where the deployed vehicle waypoints are set. Go figure.</div><div><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRWIt_kvY5FNNpGTIstDXE5s8ffP6HBFY9SNyubSm2q55FFmxVXWV7GjWzi4ET4bmpm3et6YMBKSPOzsu-AN7yZET1bLdW4jWPewCibitqrViF27HY2QI58IupqazjRParclG1qUo5_w2gwgjOK0YFYMZau2_o9Sh-JOVPzmHTZ6A-7XCjHTDUfAnwwaA/s1920/20231005213415_1.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1920" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRWIt_kvY5FNNpGTIstDXE5s8ffP6HBFY9SNyubSm2q55FFmxVXWV7GjWzi4ET4bmpm3et6YMBKSPOzsu-AN7yZET1bLdW4jWPewCibitqrViF27HY2QI58IupqazjRParclG1qUo5_w2gwgjOK0YFYMZau2_o9Sh-JOVPzmHTZ6A-7XCjHTDUfAnwwaA/w640-h400/20231005213415_1.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The second barge is unloading fuel to the Carrier.</td></tr></tbody></table><p>The Barge appears to be at least as fast as the Carrier, but it does take time waiting and it is better to try to anticipate needs and do parallel tasks rather than do things in sequence.</p><p>However, just as you get fuel logistics rolling, you'll soon find out the ammunition is running out from the main gun, you need replacement vehicles, missiles etc. and each of these categories require different factories.</p><p>You eventually need to build more barges to maintain logistics across your widening grip over the archipelago.</p><p>Taking the barges too far from the map can slow them down to a halt without warning, just so you know.</p><p>In my opinion the barges sometimes refuse to start loading the ordered materials without any kind of explanatory message, and this can be a little frustrating.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgH-ay6pT7NKjcJY1i-3x9fXa8fZFubxgpRKPrdvTfnxkuypWObcgO5e5ECfK2KdLf0ylDCJ36T0mOA4mlPnYgjhuDqZ24bNzUjMCzh0Yo0s_D0zsh4OvjmeW-ams_UBW8wGb5slVzrsX97byRlLBDdo472j_8qp7zgRL-cPrZg2oW20iHmmUUFyHcZcx4/s960/20231007182857_1.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="960" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgH-ay6pT7NKjcJY1i-3x9fXa8fZFubxgpRKPrdvTfnxkuypWObcgO5e5ECfK2KdLf0ylDCJ36T0mOA4mlPnYgjhuDqZ24bNzUjMCzh0Yo0s_D0zsh4OvjmeW-ams_UBW8wGb5slVzrsX97byRlLBDdo472j_8qp7zgRL-cPrZg2oW20iHmmUUFyHcZcx4/w640-h400/20231007182857_1.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Part of the Archipelago islands and their resources on the Logistics screen.</td></tr></tbody></table><p><b>End Note</b></p><p>Carrier Command 2 is an unashamedly long-winded simulation game. After about 24 hours of game time I can say it has been a rather interesting experience and I'm far from understanding it all.</p><p>Much like the original Amiga Carrier Command, I will remain mostly perplexed about how to go about playing it, and will probably not even try to complete it. I can see the game is able to keep up excitement, as new things become unlocked and discovered. The game has far more variety of equipment than the original had. </p><p>My first campaign proceeded slowly, trying to figure out the barge logistics and how each weapon subsystem works, nudging each island assault carefully with the scant resources. All while the enemy struck a rapid and fearsome division into the archipelago.</p><p>I tried encountering the enemy Carrier once, with glorious fireworks both over the sea and over the nearby turret-infested island. I did not prevail.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgc6-z3AO2b3yel2QSAdnHwc-VSq1-ym6RrByCdWl3UvzKkW2jzNlx0_4ayxyv9GwdCrlGI5IL0HQhcdRritLpwFvnt9VrJ1Pzdv82VQU2ktMTfoseNCzWrQ3l3iwias4M_hH82ngQUNm8zWULzE06h8XvAoKF4zNCcMh_UwAUqDW0mihFgGe4tGeGSIzQ/s1920/20231011204051_1.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1920" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgc6-z3AO2b3yel2QSAdnHwc-VSq1-ym6RrByCdWl3UvzKkW2jzNlx0_4ayxyv9GwdCrlGI5IL0HQhcdRritLpwFvnt9VrJ1Pzdv82VQU2ktMTfoseNCzWrQ3l3iwias4M_hH82ngQUNm8zWULzE06h8XvAoKF4zNCcMh_UwAUqDW0mihFgGe4tGeGSIzQ/w640-h400/20231011204051_1.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The first encounter with the enemy Carrier, with obvious results.</td></tr></tbody></table><p>I find myself reverting to saves quite often when things go wrong, which is another sign of an old style gaming. Possibly the package could have benefited from having a few more piecemeal missions and a "tiny campaign" after a tutorial, with saves only between operations.</p><p>But it is fascinating in many ways. There's a serene and watchful atmosphere. The carrier chugs along, closing in on an enemy island (there's no accelerated time). The waves on the alien world grow high, forcing the ship into impossible angles. The rain subsides, evening darkens and I spot flickering lights in the distance of an island buried in fog...</p><p>One of my biggest gripes has to do with what is really a small detail. The trees. I can bash the island with the biggest guns on the Carrier, resulting in impressive fireballs that light the sky and the surroundings. However, the trees do care not at all, not even a single pine needle or snowflake falls off from their branches.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghTeEtN9SykGtbSORQ8LIm7Ka9lWsnOtBxwxRZohHm2QujTZASN-gtO8HNztIhaqbfbJcadMrbnmSd7OTZFHdIyjxngklO3BEM99BSLYGVZqSGB4rCB_b0yJ_BTXRtKz_BakJhuG14V5tocSJBFIVy80yfADKc6RH05or6-g8yBMerfhL4dDPNj8hMMfY/s960/20231004210423_1.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="960" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghTeEtN9SykGtbSORQ8LIm7Ka9lWsnOtBxwxRZohHm2QujTZASN-gtO8HNztIhaqbfbJcadMrbnmSd7OTZFHdIyjxngklO3BEM99BSLYGVZqSGB4rCB_b0yJ_BTXRtKz_BakJhuG14V5tocSJBFIVy80yfADKc6RH05or6-g8yBMerfhL4dDPNj8hMMfY/w640-h400/20231004210423_1.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Raining destruction on the enemy tracks</td></tr></tbody></table><p>I wish the starting point for the island modeling had been the fact that it will be pounded by missiles and guns. The terrain ought to blacken, trees and small buildings blown to smithereens.</p><p>Based on this new game, I still think there's life left in the old Carrier Command concept. If only <i>Midwinter</i> (1989) was remade with similar sensibility. I'm having an eye on Microprose's <i>Tiny Combat Arena</i>, which is in early access.<br /><br /></p><p><b>Edit 20.10.2023: Completed!</b></p><p>I did complete the game after all. It took 46 hours. The cracks and flaws in the single-player campaign begun to emerge, and I felt the destruction of the enemy carrier was a result of combining some tactical insight and very nearly using "exploits".</p><p>After depleting the enemy carrier fleet and its resources, its destruction wasn't that difficult and perhaps even a little anti-climactic, considering my earlier encounters with it tended to result in sudden death.</p><p>Perhaps I will come back to this in more detail. But it does seem that if you manage to take over more than 10 islands your global energy budget is so high, the islands can be covered with defensive turrets, and the warehouse can produce almost constant feed of Needlefish ships.</p>Tero Heikkinenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13784200871918377919noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2474445673248923379.post-29826161199630988842023-09-23T23:39:00.001+03:002023-09-24T10:15:35.985+03:00Lancess Priya plus/4<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcx-1fj-xOLv2c3Co1LHa3u27EhYfbfb6KaeQnpubSMRvDmq8NdICn0fKk5-CMQQ0JxaisaZv5XCwwXKBhb4xXf0JTnU3uJXL4ku0_A6InHa12BMPa_0TLfbLRuyzfg1HSjEhVmeQj7b6xSdv1QKvtWnX4fkk5g60yBMON6rVJsoutIKG6Mswl04G7CnQ/s1152/plus4lancess.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="864" data-original-width="1152" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcx-1fj-xOLv2c3Co1LHa3u27EhYfbfb6KaeQnpubSMRvDmq8NdICn0fKk5-CMQQ0JxaisaZv5XCwwXKBhb4xXf0JTnU3uJXL4ku0_A6InHa12BMPa_0TLfbLRuyzfg1HSjEhVmeQj7b6xSdv1QKvtWnX4fkk5g60yBMON6rVJsoutIKG6Mswl04G7CnQ/w640-h480/plus4lancess.png" width="640" /></a></div><p>I found some time to convert the Lancess Priya game to Commodore plus/4, the underappreciated little brother of Commodore 64. I formally demo'd the plus/4 version at the Skrolli magazine demoparty at 23th September 2023, and the game is now available at <a href="https://plus4world.powweb.com/software/Lancess_Priya">plus4world</a>.</p><p>Lancess C64 made extensive use of sprites to generate the dashboard and fireball graphics, so all this had to be made to work in the pseudo-pixel character graphics.</p><p>But this was not a great problem, some of the font elements could even look nicer when they are more chunky. I already experimented with it on the C64 version before deciding on the sprite approach. This also simplified the interrupt a little, as there's no need to multiplex sprites.</p><p>The fireballs (enemy shots) were the toughest, as these needed to be drawn differently. I believe the added speed of the plus/4 made it possible to draw them without noticeable slowdown. The graphics also use less space than the sprites, which although not necessary, made handling memory issues easier.</p><p>The fireballs, taken together with the sights also means the gameplay area is quite monochromatic. The sights cannot be moved in every frame like in the C64 version, but I felt this wasn't a problem. I added some color to the texts, to take at least some advantage of the platform qualities.</p><p>TED sound is much simpler than SID, so it didn't take long to have some sound fx and some abysmal ditties playing here and there. I didn't set the bar very high though! I ignored the SIDCart route this time as the C64 version soundscape was quite simple to begin with.</p><p>I took the opportunity to fix a few glitches and bugs found from the C64 version, these may be eventually released as a C64 v. 1.1.</p><p>-You could ambiguously "fly over" the towers, which wasn't very apparent if you fly closer to the ground. It made it look you could just pass through everything, but this was not the intention. The towers are clamped a little awkwardly to the bottom of the screen to prevent them from disappearing.</p><p>-The "deathstar" graphic in the space battle would wrap around in a rather silly way. I just couldn't be bothered for the initial release. I now made the wrap-around at least a little less conspicuous for this non-moon.</p><p>Lancess Priya at <a href="https://plus4world.powweb.com/software/Lancess_Priya">plus4world</a></p>Tero Heikkinenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13784200871918377919noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2474445673248923379.post-78107024059692257412023-09-08T10:42:00.000+03:002023-09-08T10:42:07.594+03:00The Raspberry-based Z88-wannabe<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_dg2c8TALF2nFw0t9j5msRfvzqoXrHvT0J2oZFhAf58xpzfMaoeYbn11T-OlPtMhW_Mpz5_lSG3hab0qX9MCsbnLXq-mG13f22UcZhGsmMW6MIML80yrhcDGNImhOi02aSgKgGHDkWhFkdi-n5JHnT6UgoS2SStyplmKbVkJqCTO1I2dUv3DotTx4ETI/s1600/portrait1.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="887" data-original-width="1600" height="354" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_dg2c8TALF2nFw0t9j5msRfvzqoXrHvT0J2oZFhAf58xpzfMaoeYbn11T-OlPtMhW_Mpz5_lSG3hab0qX9MCsbnLXq-mG13f22UcZhGsmMW6MIML80yrhcDGNImhOi02aSgKgGHDkWhFkdi-n5JHnT6UgoS2SStyplmKbVkJqCTO1I2dUv3DotTx4ETI/w640-h354/portrait1.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p>After playing with the portable Cambridge Z88 computer and reading little more about devices such as Amstrad NC-100, Epson HC-20, Husky Hunter/Hawk and the Tandy TRS-80 Model 100 (Kyotronic KC-85), I began to wonder if anything exists currently in the same form factor.</p><p>There are a few keyboard-display hybrids. There's the <a href="https://www.sypnotix.com/reviews/this-keyboard-has-a-monitor-attached">Ficihp K2</a> keyboard with an integrated display. Another is a BQAA RGB keyboard, which looks larger with keypad included, and something called Kwumsy, a very similar concept.</p><p>These hybrids do not contain a computer. Expensive, and apparently geared more as an add-on for gamers and such, I passed these opportunities as something that wouldn't work for me and not easy to hack into a full portable computer.</p><p>But it became clear that mass-produced screens must exist for such devices, and I started planning my own version.</p><p><b>*** Some of the details are left vague on purpose – for inspiration only! I'm not responsible for destroyed Raspberries, lost data and house fires other than my own. ***</b><br /><br /><br /><b>Model 100 or Z88?</b></p><p>Exactly ten years after building a <a href="http://oldmachinery.blogspot.com/2013/08/boxed-raspberry-pi.html">wooden prototype to house a Raspberry Pi</a>, I felt I could hodge-podge something together without going too deep into electronics or software development.</p><p>And yes, many have hacked Tandy Model 100-inspired cases for Raspberry, or even used an original case. Model 100 was far more widespread and better known than the Z88, especially in the US.</p><p>Hobbyists and crowdfunders have built some Model-100 successors, such as the Clockwork <i>DevTerm</i>, and the <i>Ready! Model 100</i>. Just looking a these makes me feel I don't want all that clutter.</p><p>My concept:<br /><br />A no-nonsense slab computer inspired by Cambridge Z88, mostly for writing.</p><p>-Large-font terminal for focused text editing etc.<br />-No GUI/Desktop/Browser<br />-No mouse, no trackpad, no nothing<br />-No connectors<br />-Flat rubber keyboard if possible!<br />-Wifi is still needed there to install software and easy transfer of files</p><p>I would not break my Z88, and my project is not about building a computer inside that case. I probably couldn't get the parts to fit there anyway.</p><p>Well, off to hacking.</p><p><b><br />The screen</b></p><p>I started by hunting for a suitable display. The Z88 original design depended greatly on the availability of a particular LCD display, and I have a very similar design constraint here.<br /></p><p>I would have liked to use an e-Ink display just for the added weirdness, because I've seen videos of people connecting them to Rpi. But I couldn't find anything close in the aspect ratio and size range I'd need. It's either book page territory or tiny electronic price badges.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjH4P_ZyvQcHt49FhONzx524lfL4zy0KyYBFWbPD7-aQ3KeICVMcU1Xg6alZoemtXjx-MiybBfjhAtsChmCY277ByjR4rm__IuJJeddyjn4FiLACkjrvEOH2Ine0yK9TXyEaQhWW4qB6e9P4AtS8vzyO_KPdkaftEKB7xSUI6KSoBSfPCze2nmqmwQ-ljY/s1400/raspi_OS.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="536" data-original-width="1400" height="246" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjH4P_ZyvQcHt49FhONzx524lfL4zy0KyYBFWbPD7-aQ3KeICVMcU1Xg6alZoemtXjx-MiybBfjhAtsChmCY277ByjR4rm__IuJJeddyjn4FiLACkjrvEOH2Ine0yK9TXyEaQhWW4qB6e9P4AtS8vzyO_KPdkaftEKB7xSUI6KSoBSfPCze2nmqmwQ-ljY/w640-h246/raspi_OS.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Some of the first tests with the display, running Raspberry OS</td></tr></tbody></table><p>Eventually I decided on a <a href="https://www.waveshare.com/11.9inch-hdmi-lcd.htm">Waveshare 10.9 inch</a> HDMI display with 320x1480 resolution. Another option might have been an 8.8 inch screen with 480x1920 resolution, but the proportions didn't look that inviting. And yes, the 320 is the default horizontal resolution!</p><p>It's a touchscreen, but I'm not going to use that feature.</p><p>I ordered the Waveshare from berrybase on ebay and received it soon enough. The package included the screen, HDMI cable, USB power cable, and an assortment of screws, stands and USB adapters for different Raspberry models. There's also a cloth for wiping the display clean.</p><p>Just connecting the HDMI to any old output of a computer doesn't work, the computer needs to have drivers. And fortunately the Raspberry Pi OS has that, and the product is clearly intended to work together with a Pi. </p><p>It is a good idea to do the initial tests with the basic OS without jumping into the Lite OS or some other build.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiB1jLHLa8Vffgh-qBIglNSbFItG1ED22paOSb4SA4rKIuQuyb3ZuR7n_381v98caMPYDF5StPzS4qDuQDIMMpM3gr-uyY9OebMaUcwe2P_LygLNIxTWF4Ih5HTT4hRVGf7Rp1uSAEY2QowKciqGtgYH089-5GMWEqN-kLhKmU4jBLhquj2-puvui-Z3i4/s1600/waveshare_dongle.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="844" data-original-width="1600" height="338" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiB1jLHLa8Vffgh-qBIglNSbFItG1ED22paOSb4SA4rKIuQuyb3ZuR7n_381v98caMPYDF5StPzS4qDuQDIMMpM3gr-uyY9OebMaUcwe2P_LygLNIxTWF4Ih5HTT4hRVGf7Rp1uSAEY2QowKciqGtgYH089-5GMWEqN-kLhKmU4jBLhquj2-puvui-Z3i4/w640-h338/waveshare_dongle.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The configuration is clean, but a little tall for my purposes.</td></tr></tbody></table><p>A fresh desktop is a little annoying as the initial dialogues do not fit the narrow screen. Remember, the screen is horizontal in the 320-dimension. But after getting through this, it's possible to use the OS screen/display functions to rotate the screen.</p><p>A better way to do this is to adjust the config.txt and the display parameters prior to booting up.</p><p>With some more fooling about, I had a correctly rotated terminal screen using a 16x32 font (sudo dpkg-reconfigure console-setup). This gave me a chunky-looking 93x10 character display, inspired by the 8-line Cambridge Z88 display. After that I began to think of installing the OS lite version without desktop on a separate card. More about that below.</p><p>I feel the shape of the screen is quite close to what I want, and the product connects and displays the Pi screen with no big hassle. All in all this stage was a lot easier than I thought.<br /><br /></p><p><b>Battery</b></p><p>I did the initial tests with PSUs, but I was eager to start planning and building the case itself.</p><p>A thin battery would be desirable. There are really small products that cater mostly for no-display, low power operations. The JuicePi hats look a little daunting, eating all that space would be a little counterproductive.</p><p>A battery should run the Raspberry for many hours and the screen is likely to eat up power. So I tried to look for something sturdy, such as a power bank.</p><p>I bought an Insmat Exclusive PD3.0 Super Mini 10000mAh power bank, because it happened to be on the shop shelf and had promising enough parameters. It's about 18mm thick with 2 USB-A output sockets. This made it possible to power both the screen and the Raspberry instantly without any modifications.</p><p>10000mAh sounded like a minimum, a ballpark estimate says I might be able to run the Pi and the screen for a couple of hours.<br /><br />I wish there were more flexible backlight options on the Waveshare, I could live with a relatively dim screen in this context. A similar display with ISP technology seems to have more options in this regard. Here, even the lowest setting is quite bright. Only in a very bright office environment it begins to look dimmer in comparison to other displays.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRywsafn0LaxQ8l-UO09TAOz7VkoazLTfcpDsjW34V7D_WtXlrF3VniGRDY-qoMNLlU0f0atr4aY3IKRg1dJynaG0fnQg7N9Og0EVl5le9aMBTZYSrHwJuIFG7CxSfNO6PPq1MEwIZ1C6J0cKmZlcq7FLnKi7p5NMsdTdTYiNBqPuxuO2-uK2OyoJ_NSw/s1400/corner.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="695" data-original-width="1400" height="318" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRywsafn0LaxQ8l-UO09TAOz7VkoazLTfcpDsjW34V7D_WtXlrF3VniGRDY-qoMNLlU0f0atr4aY3IKRg1dJynaG0fnQg7N9Og0EVl5le9aMBTZYSrHwJuIFG7CxSfNO6PPq1MEwIZ1C6J0cKmZlcq7FLnKi7p5NMsdTdTYiNBqPuxuO2-uK2OyoJ_NSw/w640-h318/corner.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The power switch</td></tr></tbody></table><p>There are a lot of tutorials on how to build a safe power on/standby switch, but nothing very reassuring about cutting the power physically. I think it should be safe to cut the power after I've issued the shutdown command, just as I have to do anyway when I pull off the cable.<br /></p><p>I tried powering the screen from the Raspberry 5V out, using only one USB out from the power bank. This should be the same as sharing the input of the MicroUSB. But although initially promising, this seemed to cause problems and undervoltage, so I reverted back to using the both USB power outs separately, as it appeared to work better. Fortunately I have a switch that controls two separate power lines.</p><p>I'll discuss the undervoltage problems further below, it's not certain that powering the screen from Pi was to blame.<br /><br /></p><p><b>Keyboard</b></p><p>The first keyboard connected was a quality Apple Mac mini keyboard. This was all well until I noticed I had trouble getting <|> keys from where I'd expect. Changing the settings from raspi-config seemed to do nothing. Oh well.<br /><br />I'm not going to mutilate the Apple keyboard for this project anyway, so I went for my old Deltaco TB-5V. Which, incidentally, mapped correctly.<br /><br />This mediocre mini keyboard was cannibalized already before and it'll live again for this prototype. It's not quite as wide as the screen, which is fine. The keyboard model is rather good for repurposing, as the controller is still a simple separate through-hole board and the connections are easy to understand. I de-soldered the LED lights as I have no room for them.</p><p>I did look into the idea of using a laptop-specific keyboards, but getting them to work on a Raspberry is not as simple as plugging in.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPNwMZsECRP5Rd03FkWLJfq4Xf6HvJrG5l29bZ6a0DvjF5Oh-XdxXFCN8hdxiVFXQfK1_aKwBpAoBLqDyI3mQ6ZJueM2d-DZ587hIQiCV45ei2WJfkOksG6fuu5IJ1zqjuhurKPbNBXjXXDptB6pWg6bqtIKw3-C1ynnRRqqpWEeyZGkxP9mdyvswunuA/s1600/first_mockup.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="977" data-original-width="1600" height="390" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPNwMZsECRP5Rd03FkWLJfq4Xf6HvJrG5l29bZ6a0DvjF5Oh-XdxXFCN8hdxiVFXQfK1_aKwBpAoBLqDyI3mQ6ZJueM2d-DZ587hIQiCV45ei2WJfkOksG6fuu5IJ1zqjuhurKPbNBXjXXDptB6pWg6bqtIKw3-C1ynnRRqqpWEeyZGkxP9mdyvswunuA/w640-h390/first_mockup.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">First attempt, will everything fit?</td></tr></tbody></table><p>For a more Z88-like experience, I wanted to use rubber keyboards.</p><p>Aliexpress does sell the aptly named <i>85Keys Foldable Soft Silicone Mute USB Wired Mini Keyboard Computer folding keyboard Accessory</i>, but this has an annoying lump at the left side so it's a no-no.</p><p>Having that lump appears to be a common feature in rubber keyboards. Wetkeys sells soft-comfort rubber keyboards without a lump, but they also have a numeric keypad which makes them far too wide.</p><p>I'll forget about this angle at least for now.<br /><br /><br /></p><p><b>Raspberry Pi : </b><b>Putting it all together</b></p><p>From my loose assortment of Raspberries, I have a choice of 1/2/3. As I'm going to run a Linux terminal there with no graphics, I could even use some of my older Pis.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtQVg1WIvZFdonVLmuOKPVEGV7RatfVpWsXDYWj0QhYEdzBqp1gBiaEmcyniEawYoG8mDdw7Pu3walhyB1Vj76WtizeUrLskqsIrUZgqnIZI56QD7U4Vs-6spvd0vR41X6rx5Wu1eDP4zQunNtXGpxjEve-EGvsG7OapP5vb7FtBGC5tKlu1n0V7Y-ZQw/s1600/mockup_exploded.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="977" data-original-width="1600" height="390" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtQVg1WIvZFdonVLmuOKPVEGV7RatfVpWsXDYWj0QhYEdzBqp1gBiaEmcyniEawYoG8mDdw7Pu3walhyB1Vj76WtizeUrLskqsIrUZgqnIZI56QD7U4Vs-6spvd0vR41X6rx5Wu1eDP4zQunNtXGpxjEve-EGvsG7OapP5vb7FtBGC5tKlu1n0V7Y-ZQw/w640-h390/mockup_exploded.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Explosion. The screen is still "upside down" compared to the final arrangement.</td></tr></tbody></table><p>I settled with 3B+ for the moment as the Waveshare promises to work with it. I need to mod the Pi so I'd prefer not to alter the earlier models which might become museum items.</p><p>Admittedly, the 3B+ uses more power than many other models, and in the future it might be wise to consider Pi Zero W model for such a modest purpose.</p><p>The logic of getting the screen to work and rotate correctly may be a little different depending on the Pi model.</p><p>The Waveshare product included the screws and stands to fit the Raspberry below the screen, and at first I did just that. The HDMI-HDMI connector dongle is a neat addition which removes the need for a bulky, inflexible cable. The power cables however stick out from an unfortunate angle, which can't be helped now.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyFDHyD697DNiaXIhMM5_cOYL9e3hfogypfQM_HIPWRl7YNQn7dqmHy-dSJ6ZQyr27bNbvWALLPNOUsIlOSXQfu3hrcSVCYLLi--u0o-TVGMbhV7Jp90n2hz7ef15utS8lz3H-j6APRl8dCDd18kBGYTYp1m_nFSIppnJCYZI3iA-3BuxS3BJrHt56Trk/s1600/problem_area.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="880" data-original-width="1600" height="352" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyFDHyD697DNiaXIhMM5_cOYL9e3hfogypfQM_HIPWRl7YNQn7dqmHy-dSJ6ZQyr27bNbvWALLPNOUsIlOSXQfu3hrcSVCYLLi--u0o-TVGMbhV7Jp90n2hz7ef15utS8lz3H-j6APRl8dCDd18kBGYTYp1m_nFSIppnJCYZI3iA-3BuxS3BJrHt56Trk/w640-h352/problem_area.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The HDMI-to-HDMI is neat, but the power cables are still in the way. Keyboard controller at right.</td></tr></tbody></table><p>The Waveshare concept pointed to overall device thickness in the 40mm territory, which was a little too tall for me. I looked into how to either reposition the Raspberry or remove the tall USB connectors and the ethernet connector, and using lower stands.</p><p>Trying out various loose configurations, I kept coming back to the way Waveshare intended: Raspberry screwed together under the display. To get at 30mm thick device, I changed the 25mm stands to 15mm and removed the bulkier elements from the Raspberry board.</p><p>It might have been better to get a Raspberry 3A+, which is thinner, but I was a little impatient and some Raspberrys can still be a little hard to find.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiEjIvavrhIMEUar6X_lw9JF74NWBDhrOz8iLhh8BMtOozRG1qFQDYav8W_0fE_yH7l5LtT8n_vpC8oVlTnVaC-dflJEF8bo_-UXbJ0jwVHTjQPzr8GV8POBydRuwiVESaRKdrj3rJ3-IrfcqsOLSBSO-6LX5bfR6YQ3QsOhabFqv6moVFN26mNjfIikY/s3232/smashed_usb.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="901" data-original-width="3232" height="178" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiEjIvavrhIMEUar6X_lw9JF74NWBDhrOz8iLhh8BMtOozRG1qFQDYav8W_0fE_yH7l5LtT8n_vpC8oVlTnVaC-dflJEF8bo_-UXbJ0jwVHTjQPzr8GV8POBydRuwiVESaRKdrj3rJ3-IrfcqsOLSBSO-6LX5bfR6YQ3QsOhabFqv6moVFN26mNjfIikY/w640-h178/smashed_usb.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Smashing away the USB connectors.</td></tr></tbody></table><p>Removing the Ethernet connector with heated pump and soldering iron was <i>almost </i>possible to do cleanly. But for the USB it was far easier to just peel it open with pliers, cut and crush the parts inside. Then cut the wires and solder wires on the remaining "pins".</p><p>Sadly this means breaking and throwing away perfectly good parts. But now at least I could fit the display on 15mm stands, bringing the overall thickness to 32mm (The MDF board is 3mm thick).</p><p>Ultimately the battery height of 18mm under the keyboard decides the height of the computer, so there's no benefit in getting the screen any lower.</p><p>So, it's rather bulky compared to the Cambridge Z88. As a minor consolation, at 292x190x32mm the depth of the computer is at least less than the Z88. The chunky chipboard appearance is rather nice.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYus0vFWIpi2uFADCnjPwf4M_42sZcJRHfpK10Z07MXuvDtZwp45305ra8hSwCtYMFQmk_G4gMGaFxtTvXRS_FuStOO87j4e8fSDNXFaG-u85tZIXZZGbPv_lPb3KJDVK1uW415YbUHHTCMXgTmIB96z7VH276-GQVm8Xa9oRb-BxqSAAjEDXraUhm1Ws/s924/librecad_elev.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="336" data-original-width="924" height="232" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYus0vFWIpi2uFADCnjPwf4M_42sZcJRHfpK10Z07MXuvDtZwp45305ra8hSwCtYMFQmk_G4gMGaFxtTvXRS_FuStOO87j4e8fSDNXFaG-u85tZIXZZGbPv_lPb3KJDVK1uW415YbUHHTCMXgTmIB96z7VH276-GQVm8Xa9oRb-BxqSAAjEDXraUhm1Ws/w640-h232/librecad_elev.png" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Figuring out dimensions in a LibreCAD section.</td></tr></tbody></table><p>As mentioned, I eventually got electrical problems, at least the Raspberry was eager to show the "undervoltage" warning occasionally.</p><p>I really started to get these only after packaging the whole thing and connecting the power switch. So, this might be due to bad cables, connectors, soldering, or whatever.</p><p>But it might also be that this particular power bank doesn't give power evenly, and the display is such a power hog the intake will easily drop below the minimum. I don't have very clear specifications about how many amperes the display would like, Waveshare site suggests 3A and that's also the power bank nominal output.</p><p>The power bank specs are unclear about whether the separate outputs supply 3A at the same time, so I assume it the value is for the total.</p><p>The 3B+ Pi model is apparently a little finicky about the power input, whereas an earlier model might complain less. However the 2B doesn't have wifi, which would be a little too limiting. And besides, it might be a good idea to actually have these warnings so I know it is an area to be improved.</p><p>After I fiddled with the connectors and the wires, and gave the power bank a good recharge, I stopped seeing the undervoltage warnings. But the wiring inside is still a problem area and I'm not going to show that mess now.</p><p>The below image sketches out the basic case shape and especially the keyboard holder, but it's not a precise indication of how it was built and what kind of parts were used. I used clamps and wood glue to pile together 3mm cardboard and MDF pieces.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxSFFJ8Ny23TpMMo-Z-LciafX4K_1cD2bhxZ2ZjHu-TghWYcmAugmDE6_hT4tGxrDWWvi1jImitgSYGI4wvf5Gqxm3w6GlmkVUgo4XsTG7dEnQY7srS-DhTwybT0Iv2nKRQljomVbO8SePyG61lIpf086t_Bv69D_BuVK7gvNy7xQRQJk41gB678vvRLw/s1272/blender9.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="833" data-original-width="1272" height="420" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxSFFJ8Ny23TpMMo-Z-LciafX4K_1cD2bhxZ2ZjHu-TghWYcmAugmDE6_hT4tGxrDWWvi1jImitgSYGI4wvf5Gqxm3w6GlmkVUgo4XsTG7dEnQY7srS-DhTwybT0Iv2nKRQljomVbO8SePyG61lIpf086t_Bv69D_BuVK7gvNy7xQRQJk41gB678vvRLw/w640-h420/blender9.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This Blender model was made after building.</td></tr></tbody></table><p><b>OS and Software</b></p><p>Although the Cambridge Z88 served as a point of departure for this computer collage, I'm not looking for actual Z88 simulation here.</p><p>But just for fun I looked at software that could create a somewhat comparable experience, using the 93x10 character terminal as a tribute to the 8-line display of the Z88.</p><p>So, goodbye mouse and x, I use terminal-based Linux to boot into the command line, and launch Nano the text editor for productivity.</p><p>I installed the Raspi OS Lite on a new card, and adjusted the config.txt to accommodate the display format before even booting it the first time.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhE9kW9_Pjgja-HmyFc6AQUCDwrQpPFNg-JWZ5WOHIPaY6ftVchJ0kGDkrLbPelCn05_k9XLEDhKsRc4xJMePWHupChRTTt0PecMbSDxv9KJ8SKsSUc3-bWYayjrP1qzyEz0MK2w552dmUNNxo7YarF3R3XttAWr6sfoef3Hi2QXmgASWpW0uB08yOmcOg/s1600/waveshare_under.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="642" data-original-width="1600" height="256" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhE9kW9_Pjgja-HmyFc6AQUCDwrQpPFNg-JWZ5WOHIPaY6ftVchJ0kGDkrLbPelCn05_k9XLEDhKsRc4xJMePWHupChRTTt0PecMbSDxv9KJ8SKsSUc3-bWYayjrP1qzyEz0MK2w552dmUNNxo7YarF3R3XttAWr6sfoef3Hi2QXmgASWpW0uB08yOmcOg/w640-h256/waveshare_under.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">sc-im on</td></tr></tbody></table><p>There's less hand-holding than with the full OS, but it's not difficult because almost everything can be handled using the raspi-config. (<i>sudo raspi-config</i>) I am glad I am somewhat more experienced with Linux and Raspberries than ten years ago.</p><p>First it's necessary to set the wifi country, the wifi SSID and passphrase itself. Again, using raspi-config. Only after that the network is accessible. Or use ethernet, unless someone has pried it off(!)</p><p>It's also useful to set the timezone.</p><p>There are some tricks to whittle away boot time, such as removing boot delay and the splash screen. Some services, such as the network, could be shut down – if the intention is to lose the internet. </p><p>Reducing processor speed could also decrease power need, but perhaps not in total as the tasks will take more time to achieve.</p><p>The font and font size are best handled through <i>sudo nano /etc/default/console-setup</i></p><p>Some initial software ideas:</p><p>Nano ought to be launched without the space-eating shortcut display. I would also show line numbers, as there's no other simple way to show where I currently am in the document.</p><p><i>nano -x --linenumbers --softwrap testnano.txt</i></p><p>-x disables the list of shortcuts at the bottom of the screen.</p><div>The --softwrap in the command line activates soft line wrapping, so the text contents of a line are always seen on screen, which depending on preference might be desirable or not.</div><div><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDMtYQTiy44g-nqTjjlaSry8MQBB5Rv9QKe8bLPCxjbWje1J7iyUmbRykieBjwpRe5MYXj_eUnXr20xc88lnIKVc-p5znRgs2yRF24wOVQ-XBRnreulKzYB3F9KAkMOLhITcNl-56gBUkGNTwKhnXK3CiHraZcl6njKgdURBJzKYsuhBykZdAh7kmBfIo/s1599/nanoterm2.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="331" data-original-width="1599" height="132" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDMtYQTiy44g-nqTjjlaSry8MQBB5Rv9QKe8bLPCxjbWje1J7iyUmbRykieBjwpRe5MYXj_eUnXr20xc88lnIKVc-p5znRgs2yRF24wOVQ-XBRnreulKzYB3F9KAkMOLhITcNl-56gBUkGNTwKhnXK3CiHraZcl6njKgdURBJzKYsuhBykZdAh7kmBfIo/w640-h132/nanoterm2.png" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Nano reconfigured. (Linux Mint screencapture)</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><div>I could try to add some of the Z88-feel by running the PipeDream hybrid spreadsheet/text editor software that was central to the Cambridge computer. After all it was available for multiple platforms, including DOS and Windows.</div><div><br /></div><div>DosBox could run Pipedream DOS version and Rakewell offers a download for free.</div><div><br /></div><div>Using emu2 I can run DOS text-based apps via terminal, which sounds interesting. After installing git, I could clone the repository and compile it.</div><div><br /></div><div>https://github.com/dmsc/emu2</div><div><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_Xm-IcImHGQfZ4Ihfo13n7jQU0Cp9Ad2ypqZ438FWyNa0Goi02sf8N34pIGd_n_1V0TrSy6sJEc3M0NlGecLioCOEeFNCg4Gfv_aEhy-_XgAhW-QWWjp70lzsDpli1FqPmL_QEONlFDMar1UuGiye0Kiwqbiox5mPsK6Zu_fhLYAcmDjjGA4IIJr14vo/s1598/colton_pipepdream.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="331" data-original-width="1598" height="132" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_Xm-IcImHGQfZ4Ihfo13n7jQU0Cp9Ad2ypqZ438FWyNa0Goi02sf8N34pIGd_n_1V0TrSy6sJEc3M0NlGecLioCOEeFNCg4Gfv_aEhy-_XgAhW-QWWjp70lzsDpli1FqPmL_QEONlFDMar1UuGiye0Kiwqbiox5mPsK6Zu_fhLYAcmDjjGA4IIJr14vo/w640-h132/colton_pipepdream.png" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">PipeDream on emu2. (Linux Mint screencapture)</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><div>PipeDream is far too troublesome to run in the limited terminal screen I prefer, as in the DOS way the screen is assumed to be of a fixed size. Troubles begin when you have to scroll the screen. From the little time I used that software on the Z88, I found it fine for that computer but have no great desire to see it running here. So I'll pass.</div><div><br /></div><div>For a terminal-friendly spreadsheet, I installed sc-im the terminal-based spreadsheet. This requires some more compiling and fiddling with git repos, but it was do-able. The software isn't very simple, though.</div><div><br /></div><div>https://github.com/andmarti1424/sc-im/wiki/Ubuntu-with-XLSX-import-&-export</div><div><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgKHk2k2rUm8juHAQ76KuDgsVKEslQIEVxZ5bAeRbI9TkAly_DHxVaImKMWXM0wfh8uSYBJ1GIUKLkgtpS3DqvIimCrFbit0Q30LhjEu0Ssaar-8Y5vipntFQQue2r8L4tyZE5aJr98QW8YL0WVNzHVix_pGYRsv1YCs1phLu6jNIHnED1c4Z1l7Wr2sY/s1600/scim_spreadsheet.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="332" data-original-width="1600" height="132" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgKHk2k2rUm8juHAQ76KuDgsVKEslQIEVxZ5bAeRbI9TkAly_DHxVaImKMWXM0wfh8uSYBJ1GIUKLkgtpS3DqvIimCrFbit0Q30LhjEu0Ssaar-8Y5vipntFQQue2r8L4tyZE5aJr98QW8YL0WVNzHVix_pGYRsv1YCs1phLu6jNIHnED1c4Z1l7Wr2sY/w640-h132/scim_spreadsheet.png" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">sc-im (Linux Mint screencapture)</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><div>From apt I could directly install calc for calculator, or just use bc. These aren't particularly visual, though.</div><div><br />Calc is not to be confused with cal, which simply shows the month calendar. Which is, logically enough, installed through <i>sudo apt install ncal</i></div><div><br /></div><div>Again, hexcurse for hex editor, or hexyl for just viewing hex.</div><div><br /></div><div>I tried Ranger for file listing. It can actually work as a kind of launcher for other apps, but I also found it to be bit slow to init on the Raspberry and maybe not that useful at this point.</div><div><br /></div><div>Tmux the terminal multiplexer can enable complex task switching, splitting of the terminal screen and generally toying around. Obviously using ALT-F1, F2 ... etc it's possible to switch between logins and it might be enough, but with tmux I could have a text editor running on the left side of the screen and a terminal prompt on the other side.</div><div><br /></div><div>The OS Lite has Python already installed for programming tasks, and the Raspberry GPIO pins can be controlled from there. Obviously the GPIO pins are not very accessible here.<br /><br />Browsing could be a possibility, by using lynx or w3m.</div><div><br /></div><div>For games, I installed Gnuchess. In my preferred 10-line terminal, the program doesn't display the game well. If it wasn't for the pesky "Thinking..." text, the board would fit. Using "show board" after each computer move works, though.</div><div><br /></div><div>With the smaller font I could play roguelikes and...</div><div><br /></div><div>But this wasn't supposed to be a web-browsing and gaming platform. I've installed so much junk already, the idea of a very focused computer is beginning to get muddled!</div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><b>Some notes</b></div><div><b><br /></b></div><div>What about emulating Z88 itself?</div><div><br /></div><div><div>I would have liked to try this, but I couldn't get ozvm to compile easily even on a full desktop Linux Mint, and I have my doubts about getting it to work on a Raspberry OS. I gave up on that angle at least for now. Using the Circle environment, it might be possible to create a comparatively "bare metal" Raspberry Pi emulation of the Z88 computer, as people have done with ZX Spectrum. Someone would need to do that hard work first.</div><div><br /></div><div>If the aim is to create something that fits inside the original Z88 case, this is not the solution as the screen itself is already too large.<br /><br />I'm already somewhat through my "Z88 phase", and having a Linux terminal is really just more powerful and flexible. In the future I could look into reducing the boot time, which is still something where the Z88 really excels at. Oh, and also the Z88 battery life is much longer, but at least I can recharge the power bank.</div><div><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOxLDZK7kA00jdMhaMDc6Ma9uFZKUdzRiv2M2NhjZAlnXuntwT1CnEwRR_2g7wounqAiXVs4pnsLY9j5Ppkbf2juMLOHgF3fDEJnHHnQ3hSIKlL0bN0fizEJKN9yCqiNyzNShaRZbbcEUyCPns6erJU9si0Fks75OFT-iHGGtf4NwRIM-I9lVjjJlDaZ0/s1400/goodbye.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="859" data-original-width="1400" height="393" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOxLDZK7kA00jdMhaMDc6Ma9uFZKUdzRiv2M2NhjZAlnXuntwT1CnEwRR_2g7wounqAiXVs4pnsLY9j5Ppkbf2juMLOHgF3fDEJnHHnQ3hSIKlL0bN0fizEJKN9yCqiNyzNShaRZbbcEUyCPns6erJU9si0Fks75OFT-iHGGtf4NwRIM-I9lVjjJlDaZ0/w640-h393/goodbye.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Boot time is more than 20 seconds</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><div>If I have ever learned something about building stuff is that a detail not taken seriously during the design process is likely to end up haunting in the build. For this box, things like how to recharge the power bank, or how to change the SD card, were not really thought about that well. Therefore they ended up relatively unresolved. To recharge, I currently remove the keyboard and pull out the bank. For the SD card, fortunately I might not even need to change it.</div><div><br /></div><div>As far as casing projects go, this was in some ways one of the simpler ones, as the display and keyboard are dropped in and there are no ports to consider. Perhaps I should have made 25mm thickness into a hard constraint in the beginning, but 32mm isn't really that bad.</div></div><div><br /></div><div>Like I mentioned, the problems are more in the electronics side of things, and I haven't yet reached a conclusion. I have already seen the power bank last for the 2 hours I hoped for, although it looks that the undervoltage issues increase in proportion as the bank depletes. I may report back once the power bank has seen a few more recharge cycles.</div>Tero Heikkinenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13784200871918377919noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2474445673248923379.post-91930506675476022232023-08-31T14:07:00.005+03:002023-08-31T14:08:41.152+03:00Z88 serial before and after OZ upgrade<p>Detailing my further adventures with the Z88, both before and after getting the Rakewell Flash Card/OZ 4.7.1 upgrade.</p><p>Just a little note first. I changed the batteries first time. To my joy, the capacitor held the charge long enough and no memory was erased.</p><p>But it did behave weirdly at first. The screen refused to light, and when I got it running the system began to complain about BAT LOW fairly soon. But this was a false alarm, the computer began behaving normally and the battery alarm was removed.<br /><br /></p><p><b>Serial port</b></p><p>As with pretty much everything about Z88, this is already rather well documented in a number of places and I'll just relate my own experience.<br /><br />Here I'm first discussing the Z88 without the OS upgrades, then with the OS upgrade that improves the serial performance and has Xmodem and Ymodem protocols.<br /><br />This is how I soldered the cables, and it seemed to work.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHTD6C4wrnp9b0zs1Fyes27zVXEsGS5kUioWMc_VCWPOJeS7PoBkWAvKLBQyJ4kDVzh7Vat5N5HCznLEdQ_57_eA2rk4wOl-PwFtQ6M1bKoS8ju3hcku-tc0SJE8B_JjqZUeHUh-o_OAH0rquCUxemTrBmEqIsmwpWWdkJ1RnKVMmeYkAqQc1GF0pVOww/s1269/comport.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="826" data-original-width="1269" height="416" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHTD6C4wrnp9b0zs1Fyes27zVXEsGS5kUioWMc_VCWPOJeS7PoBkWAvKLBQyJ4kDVzh7Vat5N5HCznLEdQ_57_eA2rk4wOl-PwFtQ6M1bKoS8ju3hcku-tc0SJE8B_JjqZUeHUh-o_OAH0rquCUxemTrBmEqIsmwpWWdkJ1RnKVMmeYkAqQc1GF0pVOww/w640-h416/comport.png" width="640" /></a></div><p>Nominally the standard Z88 can handle 9600 and faster, but for receiving data the Z88 cannot handle the speed and presumable the buffer becomes overrun very quickly. I had to add delay of at least 5 milliseconds after each character to get the transfer to work.</p><p>Furthermore, without any protocols, binary bytes have to be sent as [ESC]B [High][Low] so [ESC]B1F means sending 0x1F over. This means sending 4 times the data you mean to send! </p><p>The ultimate test was sending the binary of the Jet Set Willy conversion over, called jsw.c. This is 19388 bytes long. Using the binary method, the overall data sent is 77552 bytes! Using the reliable 5 millisecond delay gives 387.76 seconds of "loading" time, nearly 7 minutes.</p><p>The speed can be improved slightly by sending ASCII 32-127 as direct characters, and 0-31 and 128-255 in this binary mode. However you'd expect less than 50% of data in a binary file to fall within the 32-127 range. For example the jsw.c file has 12941 bytes to send in binary mode and only 6447 direct characters. So the data-to-send is reduced from 77552 to 58211 which is still quite ridiculous for a 20K file.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsj-OFXG8CXaRRA8h45_FxbPuvjtbt__ns1YywKtzBLXzOAiH0dtUTPPp-gVMZhffEUulSWVDUxdO2cUuCL1z3vQo4JoZRD2I46ieZLeYxWNvZbI-QgUxz4NsEGv-o98pd94s0kTUolsdyf-gm8zw_qluYo4Mh4OzejNiI8_W_zgmV9Q39DNZmzPtsQVc/s1600/jetsettsi.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="881" data-original-width="1600" height="352" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsj-OFXG8CXaRRA8h45_FxbPuvjtbt__ns1YywKtzBLXzOAiH0dtUTPPp-gVMZhffEUulSWVDUxdO2cUuCL1z3vQo4JoZRD2I46ieZLeYxWNvZbI-QgUxz4NsEGv-o98pd94s0kTUolsdyf-gm8zw_qluYo4Mh4OzejNiI8_W_zgmV9Q39DNZmzPtsQVc/w640-h352/jetsettsi.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">JSW has to scroll or squish on the Z88</td></tr></tbody></table><p>Later, with my upgraded Z88 I was accidentally using only 1 millisecond delay for transferring files in 9600 baud rate to the Z88, and it worked well enough.</p><p>All this became rather academic as the OZ 4.7 has built-in X/Y modem protocols, which are both faster and more reliable.</p><p>With Xmodem you have to type in the filename to be received, and the file lengths may be mis-adjusted to multiples of block length. With Ymodem both these problems go away, and also I don't have to bother about the "4 bytes to send 1 byte" dilemma as all is transferred in binary.</p><p>Receiving the 19388 bytes of jsw.c took a little under 30 seconds in 9600 baud. I got closer to 15+ seconds using 19200. I did experience some hiccups in getting the Z88 to catch the file in the first place, though.</p><p><br /></p><p><b>Getty</b></p><p>I used getty to give login access to the Linux computer through the USB-COM adapter.</p><p>Initially this looked fine as the login and password prompts appeared and I was in.<br /><br />Again, using 9600 on the basic Z88, any commands that produced more text, for example, listing the folder using ls, or using "more" to display a plain text file, would overrun the buffer.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMmwkOe66ywQ2vEH7s8BeZOojDZMY-zb4plYEtqgv3qhItUeOzyjHi0Zy6JeAXGmjz5sWqmWTxAGprR_gUS4XYkbBaUEbuS2NZ5YLAUHI5LC9VtSNfef2redz_iLpjo26finjhNW44CeOeRWO6nIqdD-r8ywbY6SfLRn4x3DPRTU_DKjkMzX0KKIVAws8/s1024/getty.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="489" data-original-width="1024" height="306" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMmwkOe66ywQ2vEH7s8BeZOojDZMY-zb4plYEtqgv3qhItUeOzyjHi0Zy6JeAXGmjz5sWqmWTxAGprR_gUS4XYkbBaUEbuS2NZ5YLAUHI5LC9VtSNfef2redz_iLpjo26finjhNW44CeOeRWO6nIqdD-r8ywbY6SfLRn4x3DPRTU_DKjkMzX0KKIVAws8/w640-h306/getty.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Upgrading a Linux remotely</td></tr></tbody></table><p>So, switching to 2400.</p><p><i>sudo /sbin/agetty 2400 ttyUSB0 vt52</i></p><p>...yielded better results. Keys like TAB don't seem to work and, what would you use for Control? Apparently nothing, although these should be alterable from the receiving end.</p><p>Trying getty with the Upgraded OZ 4.7 did not behave better, 9600 was still unusable and I had to revert to 2400. This was a little surprising, not sure why this should be.</p><p><b><br /></b></p><p><b>The upgrade itself</b></p><p>The Rakewell Flash/512K RAM card fits into the Z88 card slot. The Flash portion can be semi-permanently written and the content won't be destroyed even if the batteries run out. There's a bunch of RAM so it's unlikely I need to keep the other cards in.</p><p>Importantly, this card also holds the operating system version 4.7, without having to do any changes to the insides of the Z88.</p><p>The physical cartridge is a 3D print which is fine, although not as smooth as the original Cambridge cards. When it is mounted I'm not going to see it anyway.</p><p>There are now multiple keyboard settings, which makes sense as there's no point in compiling the ROM for different Z88 keyboard. So I can choose Finnish keyboard. The funny thing is the keyboard layout choice also affects language in date displays etc., it's a nice bonus but really ought to be separate.</p><p>New functions relate to the flash card, as it's now possible to haul files from the flash card over to the RAM, but also "burn" files to the flash, just as the EPROM cards supposedly worked. Again, deleting the files will not actually remove them but mark them away from the flash card list. So, eventually the space will run out and it may need reformatting. Luckily this can be done from the system itself, but I'll discuss it more if that day arrives.</p><p>I can also appreciate that files can be peeked with a hex/ASCII viewer.</p><p>BBC BASIC has been given that graphics patch built-in. Use MODE 1 to activate, the screen is split into text portion and a 256 x 64 "graphic window". </p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUTE8waUX0h0eGRuRjtS8eV6K2YrkRyEdR4X6mhLwCkjGJ8vMvuX84Vh8u9r3Wx2ulEfsIeX4xo1gI43pJ_uFbhiqhhLsahBJI6_hOaCC0p0_c3zCf6G2FsebbTQiREozQ9wVBhlsIZwhghCL8QNvBX6q-5fjF0tsMs1FSUYF2FoSFw7s_Uar44ISh2Uc/s1024/bbcbasic.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="518" data-original-width="1024" height="324" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUTE8waUX0h0eGRuRjtS8eV6K2YrkRyEdR4X6mhLwCkjGJ8vMvuX84Vh8u9r3Wx2ulEfsIeX4xo1gI43pJ_uFbhiqhhLsahBJI6_hOaCC0p0_c3zCf6G2FsebbTQiREozQ9wVBhlsIZwhghCL8QNvBX6q-5fjF0tsMs1FSUYF2FoSFw7s_Uar44ISh2Uc/w640-h324/bbcbasic.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">It's not very fast</td></tr></tbody></table><p>There's a bundle of applications and files already on the Flash card, including unzip/zip applications, ROM/EPROM digging and utilities for memory monitoring and disassembly. Some of the material is zipped, and it gives a kind of early 1990s feeling, delving into the text and materials an waiting for zips to unfold.</p><p>But if a plain Atari ST was slow at unzipping, then obviously a slightly compromised Z80 chip is going to be even slower! Luckily the files are not very large.<br /><br /></p><p><b>Sidenote: Chezz</b></p><p>One thing I wanted to try is the Chess program, converted from ZX Spectrum Cyrus chess. Previously there was no way to run it, because it was not possible to "install" software from RAM. </p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZtqXC_hYhOF-0nMOnqj-rPDzqZxjAZd0YxvtStj1rvchFW6vMVG91cXpV_QfRkPRV_2rfuM_DbfNmDZtrih-_IOh95yMWYwIxlwmZs4t2QlQ16LWXNXABrOfsBRtE61cI80O8ZjwbqNARXGgaOClNpqosUbgEyVdFAIrV_zBh-el-muCGUB2uHC7hWfU/s1024/chezz.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="461" data-original-width="1024" height="288" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZtqXC_hYhOF-0nMOnqj-rPDzqZxjAZd0YxvtStj1rvchFW6vMVG91cXpV_QfRkPRV_2rfuM_DbfNmDZtrih-_IOh95yMWYwIxlwmZs4t2QlQ16LWXNXABrOfsBRtE61cI80O8ZjwbqNARXGgaOClNpqosUbgEyVdFAIrV_zBh-el-muCGUB2uHC7hWfU/w640-h288/chezz.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">It's chess alright</td></tr></tbody></table><p>This was a huge process, as on the Linux side I compiled mpm-master, z88card-master, mthtoken-master, and then z88chess-master to get the chezz.app, chezz.ap0 and chezz.ap1 files. Then I transferred them via the serial to the Z88, selected the .app in Filer and used the <>INS command to install the application. After this it will be listed in the Index.</p><p>When listed alongside other applications it can be run. The screen is small and I'm forced to use the arrow keys to enter my moves. Fortunately the sound can be turned off! Playing a couple of fast games, I both won and lost to level 2.<br /><br /></p><p><b>Crashing?</b></p><p>After using the card, I experienced PipeDream crashing, even without doing much else with the computer after the hard reset. It happens rather often, and this is a little sad as I encountered nothing like that before, and I mostly used PipeDream before the upgrade.</p><p>The Z88 just becomes unresponsive, no keys work and I have to do a soft reset. The cursor keeps flashing, and if the beep is on the key presses cease to beep. The flashing cursor might not be indicative of anything really, it might be even a part of the LCD features.</p><p>I have no way to make really sure if the card is faulty or the computer has a problem which only becomes apparent with the card.</p><p>I resorted to using Diary app for random typing, which did eventually crash too, but far less often than with PD.<br /><br /></p><p><b>In Summary</b></p><p>I had good fun exploring the new capabilities of the system and the card contents. Much of it is interest only to developers and tinkerers, but the basic premise of Z88 is already greatly improved with the better comms section. I'm also hearing the OZ 5.0 might be arriving, overhauling many a thing in the process.</p>Tero Heikkinenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13784200871918377919noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2474445673248923379.post-12359110535187529632023-07-30T17:42:00.001+03:002024-01-01T17:05:01.805+02:00Lancess Priya C64<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMdq3JVasr5YcigKai1085Y8Iqva9ba9Th9oMKOS2sppHUvjE5OsVypmL3qoyFY2uAxXOB9yFHoMppRLDPn2hQnKfQ7H_xMLCAJ_fW_xxWqNH42Ox2mLadS3mykNGgoGL_7EAJulAZdFJ8ZfbO4u3d52wcyb5N3-GHo3SvnLB98hd8Pn4VGOIpKnAARzk/s1152/lancess_priya_title.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="816" data-original-width="1152" height="454" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMdq3JVasr5YcigKai1085Y8Iqva9ba9Th9oMKOS2sppHUvjE5OsVypmL3qoyFY2uAxXOB9yFHoMppRLDPn2hQnKfQ7H_xMLCAJ_fW_xxWqNH42Ox2mLadS3mykNGgoGL_7EAJulAZdFJ8ZfbO4u3d52wcyb5N3-GHo3SvnLB98hd8Pn4VGOIpKnAARzk/w640-h454/lancess_priya_title.png" width="640" /></a></div><p>I made a 3D-ish shoot'em up game for the Commodore 64. At the moment, the file can be downloaded from <a href="https://csdb.dk/release/?id=234071">CSDb</a>. Grab a joystick and play.</p><p>The following is mostly about the background inspiration for the game.</p><p><br /></p><p><b>Star Wars Arcade 1983</b></p><p>The <i>Star Wars</i> arcade game by Atari is maybe the greatest arcade <i>experience</i> I ever had.</p><p>I'd like to reminisce how I poured coins endlessly into the machine, but in truth I likely played the real coin-op only a handful of times.</p><p>And maybe for the better, as the home version on C64 and Amiga showed the game in itself doesn't have that much longevity. It's perfect for arcade, an audio-visual-physical experience leaving you hungry for more.<br /><br />I can pinpoint my likely first encounter with the game to July/August in 1984, when a cabinet was present at the Space 2000 (Avaruus 2000) exhibition in Dipoli building, Espoo, Finland.</p><p>At that time I didn't quite get the 3D perspective and probably the colorful <i>Zaxxon</i> next to it made a bigger impression on me. I'm even unsure if I personally played Star Wars at that occasion. Later I experienced it both as upright and cockpit versions in amusement parks.<br /><br /></p><p><b>Commodore 64 versions</b></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEEksluh9ANBXnQGDr1Fjvs-EVluMzMTLU6Q4zSk93TDdALVBgbarZfvJvP8V1Vm24_X_O5Up1EBsI9lAAFzpbbN7Ei9jb_RbpkIomWyUIkWytV1e4cgDdWOQVlWet0Yg1Lc2Kc_RUI35m5Qk-s_kcnMAEqDzqhFh8xq2iOk-8t879ygSYU6T-0uSU/s2304/domark1_2.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="816" data-original-width="2304" height="226" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEEksluh9ANBXnQGDr1Fjvs-EVluMzMTLU6Q4zSk93TDdALVBgbarZfvJvP8V1Vm24_X_O5Up1EBsI9lAAFzpbbN7Ei9jb_RbpkIomWyUIkWytV1e4cgDdWOQVlWet0Yg1Lc2Kc_RUI35m5Qk-s_kcnMAEqDzqhFh8xq2iOk-8t879ygSYU6T-0uSU/w640-h226/domark1_2.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Domark/Vektor Graphics: Star Wars, Space battle and navigating the surface</td></tr></tbody></table><p>There's a brave conversion made for the Commodore 64 by Vektor Graphics and published by Domark in 1988. </p><p>Although this version is nearly complete, it is also slow on the C64. Using a smoothly moving sprite for the crosshair does mitigate it somewhat. Some 8-bit computers lacked this advantage, but the BBC Micro version looks rather fast, although it has other problems.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzmMgBjo7PuDe5ax7upwu2XWzqLH_lVGrh-4nSwhPI6lgjtYyTFIR863pikZyPTZ_QIHwWKEXG4z5hPbQV5kJx21CETc7HnQCtFiZOLTpjwZ6FWyat1JgsuqvJQZocMkQYNhi3g4RTX5Rl8CD8Q8SI5kZRwiuG-RXP4mZM3xHXPN0zSgD2lYvKp-Rm/s1152/domark0.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="816" data-original-width="1152" height="454" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzmMgBjo7PuDe5ax7upwu2XWzqLH_lVGrh-4nSwhPI6lgjtYyTFIR863pikZyPTZ_QIHwWKEXG4z5hPbQV5kJx21CETc7HnQCtFiZOLTpjwZ6FWyat1JgsuqvJQZocMkQYNhi3g4RTX5Rl8CD8Q8SI5kZRwiuG-RXP4mZM3xHXPN0zSgD2lYvKp-Rm/w640-h454/domark0.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Domark/Vektor Graphics: Star Wars trench run</td></tr></tbody></table><p>The space battle is faster, but I also notice the enemy ships rarely come very close, and the action is often obfuscated by the ever-growing mass of fireballs.</p><p>The tower scene is very impressive, the ship rolls and there are many towers and bunkers approaching. There's also slowdown at times. The tunnel works very well, it has a lot going on and yet it isn't that slow.</p><p>The earlier Parker Brothers' version of the arcade game made around 1984 is also well known among Commodore 64 users.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEih4x_p1XGpgoA5ENUS8qqaooNclOs3RwYlzR7wy3IrNf9_tJvDdvOGVwWomXR6uwgK8BU_sizZItnIeK8U_kGlkvDNRVdVZcyfAKjl0mh4r8jkAfyr2zqXSh90oB9KKXmTPJrXM667ACF1orTKY-zGrZQbGY-RS-ixwPcIz0cUyB_Qj-s5EYuUK5vN/s2304/parkerbrothers.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="816" data-original-width="2304" height="226" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEih4x_p1XGpgoA5ENUS8qqaooNclOs3RwYlzR7wy3IrNf9_tJvDdvOGVwWomXR6uwgK8BU_sizZItnIeK8U_kGlkvDNRVdVZcyfAKjl0mh4r8jkAfyr2zqXSh90oB9KKXmTPJrXM667ACF1orTKY-zGrZQbGY-RS-ixwPcIz0cUyB_Qj-s5EYuUK5vN/w640-h226/parkerbrothers.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Parker Brothers' Star Wars: Tower scene and Trench Run</td></tr></tbody></table><p>The Parker game is not very impressive, but it is fast and the tunnel section is nice, it has lot of catwalks and a three dimensional projection of sorts. That portion isn't especially fast, though.</p><p>The tower scene does not have ship roll and the towers chug along in steps, not well synced to the dot effects on the ground. The on-screen player ship elements don't move at all, further adding to the stiff feel of the game.</p><p>The space battle is especially lazy, there is no attempt at all to have the TIE fighters in different depths. It is still nice to play. The Atari 2600 version is in some ways a bigger achievement, considering the limitations of that platform.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhR0Z0VzZWp-9fm-kvJHAMJchw96RuyReSq6WKMzMvjd8kHFyyhAufL1L5Z7i01qkbi_sdk0k7-5I8QhMKJ5ZJGR1HTzPQUfmoOd85zcNBLGEGAuiDqndwOsduF-zG9S48yk0lVLLj3ZLpaghFB1oeV_0yIYGaG9roGpv2D42ePsYR-nohTpAhtqd8O/s1152/parkerbrothers0.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="816" data-original-width="1152" height="454" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhR0Z0VzZWp-9fm-kvJHAMJchw96RuyReSq6WKMzMvjd8kHFyyhAufL1L5Z7i01qkbi_sdk0k7-5I8QhMKJ5ZJGR1HTzPQUfmoOd85zcNBLGEGAuiDqndwOsduF-zG9S48yk0lVLLj3ZLpaghFB1oeV_0yIYGaG9roGpv2D42ePsYR-nohTpAhtqd8O/w640-h454/parkerbrothers0.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Parker Brothers' Star Wars: Space Battle</td></tr></tbody></table><p><b><br />Lancess Priya</b></p><p>I began asking myself if there was a third path, something that was faster than proper vectors yet would not look so silly as the sprite-based enemies. <br /><br />The result, <i>Lancess Priya,</i> is more of an "inspired" mini-game and not any kind of attempt at full conversion. All my games tend to be quite short, partly because of necessity and secondly because I usually prefer short games when I go vintage (<i>Blue Max, Rambo, Saboteur, Bruce Lee...</i>)</p><p>The game lacks many elements you'd find in the Star Wars game, and adds some that weren't really there. For example, here you have a direct control the ship even in the space battle, and you can dodge the fireballs more easily as they are not "stuck" to the screen position.</p><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiARgi4e4BlpHGrMLTsw_VlapPjmtN1_IvngGKk2laFlcgaO_SJnzwz9w66B37Y1ZgCQqIKDr4TRMNx8llCUR8rF8ixl7ypaH6NbkvDm5Iszm3eab-TfsnXAW0WA9MVrZBnLhSFh8Sefn_DdH0TALRnm7_YTEyRDf5PWvgQ2-Yo0YlYqZ7mla81Fiu5/s2304/lancess0_2.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="816" data-original-width="2304" height="226" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiARgi4e4BlpHGrMLTsw_VlapPjmtN1_IvngGKk2laFlcgaO_SJnzwz9w66B37Y1ZgCQqIKDr4TRMNx8llCUR8rF8ixl7ypaH6NbkvDm5Iszm3eab-TfsnXAW0WA9MVrZBnLhSFh8Sefn_DdH0TALRnm7_YTEyRDf5PWvgQ2-Yo0YlYqZ7mla81Fiu5/w640-h226/lancess0_2.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lancess Priya: Space battle and the Trench Scene</td></tr></tbody></table><br />I could say I'm using the the Parker Brothers' version as a springboard, building up from the compromises present in that game. Here the lasers aren't full beams, but small bolts, and pre-calculated character graphics instead of full vectors are used to draw the enemy fighters.<p></p><p>The number of objects and lines has been reduced to the minimum where I could still get it work at 1/2 frame rate, also using the full frame rate reticle trick from the Domark game.<br /></p><p>It's tricky to get a screenshot that would make the game look very interesting, but it does look a little better in motion, I think!</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQNRUKPLYk_MjxZwRSz_JJLeM0tFPsLF4Zs1LZlG9-mH5RC0yrfRQXpRwcjiCPsVnkcmRCdzCxvmRcL5KJMgmr2VP-ea0g8m-qxtjHL3y3ICBWM54U8c9baQnPmnsnqHa4EqJIEBKP96LATP53KJc0MF24xKI5-AwaookdG13ZP07dC_0CbjH62_ag/s1152/lancess0.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="816" data-original-width="1152" height="454" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQNRUKPLYk_MjxZwRSz_JJLeM0tFPsLF4Zs1LZlG9-mH5RC0yrfRQXpRwcjiCPsVnkcmRCdzCxvmRcL5KJMgmr2VP-ea0g8m-qxtjHL3y3ICBWM54U8c9baQnPmnsnqHa4EqJIEBKP96LATP53KJc0MF24xKI5-AwaookdG13ZP07dC_0CbjH62_ag/w640-h454/lancess0.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lancess Priya: The tower scene</td></tr></tbody></table><p><br /></p><p><b>Some technical notes</b><br /><br />One day I might make a more thorough technical breakdown of the development process, here I only give a brief explanation to why the game looks like it does.</p><p>I toyed with the idea of making a PETSCII character-based game, but after a couple of doodles of TIE fighter frames I felt it would not be the route. The idea of using pre-stored animation frames did stay, though.</p><p>The PETSCII experiments gravitated towards using the 2x2 blocks for more motion accuracy, which made me ask whether it would make more sense to use self-defined characters.<br /><br />So, this new game would use a pseudo-bitmap display built from characters, but not the ones included in the PETSCII set. Splitting one character into 8 cells gives me an 80x100 resolution.</p><p>This is quarter the amount of pixels compared to 160x200 resolution, and the benefit with a character mode is that it uses less memory and can be faster. Animation frames can use less memory than sprites for a comparable screen area. Line graphics aren't enormously faster than I guess bitmap drawing would be, probably because I can't write fast routines.</p><p>One byte defines a physical screen area that would need 8 bytes in a bitmap mode, this also means I can use 1000 bytes to define the full screen instead of 8000 bytes of bitmap. Or 2K versus 16K in double-buffering.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsroS6sG5jMH2Bf6ZsFcs4KN5TFmw1YxYffwKQxxHd3VD067_iRHH3dDfVdLTkHx6gLrySz70SxY0SkGTTRZZfCmWRJ8hDdul6IjAn9zbGkJTX30-iBHOkT9c13AXK3UDHU1QgCcF0TETBKgBZ4CWvt4EnIy9Rc39c5ZcXqDiGjQa2HSO4FTJPY72X/s1242/chars.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="411" data-original-width="1242" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsroS6sG5jMH2Bf6ZsFcs4KN5TFmw1YxYffwKQxxHd3VD067_iRHH3dDfVdLTkHx6gLrySz70SxY0SkGTTRZZfCmWRJ8hDdul6IjAn9zbGkJTX30-iBHOkT9c13AXK3UDHU1QgCcF0TETBKgBZ4CWvt4EnIy9Rc39c5ZcXqDiGjQa2HSO4FTJPY72X/w640-h212/chars.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p>There are 256 characters ranging from empty to full, based on the above bit pattern.</p><p>More technically, there are some occasions where left/right can be adjusted by ROL/ROR instructions, and vertical shifting isn't that expensive either.</p><p>I decided the routine should work on 25fps if possible, or it would not be worth it. I worked with 1/3 framerate in <i>Digiloi</i> (2018) , but that was full color 2D character graphics.<br /><br />So, the end result works on a double buffered character display with 80x100 effective resolution.</p>Tero Heikkinenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13784200871918377919noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2474445673248923379.post-83207630636669319832023-07-20T13:44:00.002+03:002023-07-21T13:07:12.770+03:00Cambridge Computer Z88<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4NhAtI-30cgYSF1sZY5whwVEH_DsstLEwiSrqPF-EDVaSpp6CMJE44dplr7zVinbWIYgFCnu7AP1Q0-7Bjbi7EkSzfqwLoyuQPbCe0yZTzyjJp6sUnC4GDs4IU9eU3oE9t5zLdF8qzu9WIthxFe0Zan0ZKKFW1gh2HE8nDlYKbxu_4s8zUItwwqdN4pc/s1552/z88_front.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="901" data-original-width="1552" height="372" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4NhAtI-30cgYSF1sZY5whwVEH_DsstLEwiSrqPF-EDVaSpp6CMJE44dplr7zVinbWIYgFCnu7AP1Q0-7Bjbi7EkSzfqwLoyuQPbCe0yZTzyjJp6sUnC4GDs4IU9eU3oE9t5zLdF8qzu9WIthxFe0Zan0ZKKFW1gh2HE8nDlYKbxu_4s8zUItwwqdN4pc/w640-h372/z88_front.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Cambridge Z88</td></tr></tbody></table><p>The mid-1980s: After the QL computer and the C5 electric vehicle debacle, the world waited with bated breath. What would Sir Clive Sinclair do next? Would a portable Super-Spectrum emerge? As it turned out, Sinclair and the brand was sold to Amstrad and any interesting developments got the axe. Or did they...</p><p>Cambridge Z88 from 1987 was Sir Clive's last hurrah in the computer markets. Well, obviously Clive had little to do with the functionalities of the computer, here credited to Protechnic Ltd., Colton Software Ltd., and Operating Systems Ltd. BBC Basic is courtesy of R.T. Russell (Originally by Sophie Wilson). </p><p>Still, the computer continues Clive's focus towards smaller and portable computers and is supposed to have its roots in the Sinclair Pandora laptop concept.</p><p>For a short while, Z88 might have been a success in its own niche, but far from the kind of hit Clive would have needed at that point. What might have been game changing in 1984, was less so in 1988. At least Amstrad came up with their Z80-based NC100 as late as 1992!</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIoMBFWmZ2Q8qd4UGtD1k5i9_c7COgp7anYdTCTGkAENB01AM_soSA8F35Wja4kBYKbABgzCVCeHm8Ar7T3QgRFTcardPpsm_2mDN4NK_K7nvMp3E78r84A6REPA9NRAImACpJ8FJmKhYgvBZHJKg5HvcquHBhHaH5_xPyXsMp9q42JjISjcu32jmY3_M/s633/z88ad.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="284" data-original-width="633" height="288" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIoMBFWmZ2Q8qd4UGtD1k5i9_c7COgp7anYdTCTGkAENB01AM_soSA8F35Wja4kBYKbABgzCVCeHm8Ar7T3QgRFTcardPpsm_2mDN4NK_K7nvMp3E78r84A6REPA9NRAImACpJ8FJmKhYgvBZHJKg5HvcquHBhHaH5_xPyXsMp9q42JjISjcu32jmY3_M/w640-h288/z88ad.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Perhaps not the strongest slogan...</td></tr></tbody></table><p>I saw pictures of the Z88 in the computer magazines around 1987–1988 and would have been excited to have a go at it.</p><p>Cambridge Computer's friendly approach to the Speccy press invited a curious kind of brand loyalty. This might have backfired a little, as the magazines were showing healthy scepticism towards the usual Sinclair hype and promises. Still, the most loyal Z88 fans were likely to be Spectrum aficionados.</p><p>By the way, magazines had apparently received a note from Amstrad dictating that this new machine from Clive should not be referred as a "Sinclair", a matter cheekily addressed in Sinclair User #61.</p><p>The Finnish press was positive. At least MikroBITTI 11/1988 described it as a "dream micro" and felt a Z80 chip was sufficient for typing on the go. It's interesting that the importer was PCI-Data (Commodore), not Hedengren (Sinclair).</p><p>Now, the definitely Sinclair-style appearance and the self-contained nature of Z88 makes it attractive to me. BASIC, spreadsheets and word processing, what else do you need in 2023?</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg10h9_tiIW3xfTT3yeBVQWBU-7bNdfMZF1b4JL9FXS5VlGLZEzMjHtAp2p5aOYFgUQ_gfHmOWbnjdlrACBWe8HLinvyJ0j9GK07n3u83BSpdqsw47boaRc43oQo40z8BQhnkLXSAra1IJHym-yYPXIrvJN2eu3NtcOsXkWpfM7RSGPidJgYBHJnemFNQI/s1360/scandic.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="759" data-original-width="1360" height="358" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg10h9_tiIW3xfTT3yeBVQWBU-7bNdfMZF1b4JL9FXS5VlGLZEzMjHtAp2p5aOYFgUQ_gfHmOWbnjdlrACBWe8HLinvyJ0j9GK07n3u83BSpdqsw47boaRc43oQo40z8BQhnkLXSAra1IJHym-yYPXIrvJN2eu3NtcOsXkWpfM7RSGPidJgYBHJnemFNQI/w640-h358/scandic.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Swedish version.</td></tr></tbody></table><p><b>First impressions</b></p><p>Physically the computer fits into an A4 footprint. It is reminiscent of some of the sketches from Alan Kay's Dynabook concept, except the screen is not nearly as tall. I know a plastic protective cover exists, it would have been nice to have.</p><p>Overall, there's a little nod to the QL styling, it's a Rick Dickinson design again and as a physical object it is very attractive. All the flaps, buttons and openings are precise, meticulously placed. Because of the lightness it does give a somewhat flimsy impression, I wouldn't bend the plastic case too much.</p><p>The transparent, numbered door over the card slots is an especially juicy little design detail, hidden at a corner where it's barely visible.</p><p>The keyboard was at first a cause for alarm, as it harks back to Sinclair's rubbery explorations. Worry not, typing is much better than on the Spectrum, perhaps even better than the QL. The keys are extremely silent and responsive enough, a tad too sensitive though.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtJofHIU0Y8SLdPcBm5usutaNgvRFr7-i3fp61-Zd-gIN6eSg4HQlayGl33NqfeZqoLy40QrlBSkt9BKGO9WJXglqo8IVlgPDN1qeMjftEN_RZzxsDxJbhhA6ZDV2KH7voOD_zuQaXe-0XNVc5OMuBpxPsrQLDtIvrxVKrfojsAYFnpxlYzsRd7ks14V8/s1600/rightside.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="764" data-original-width="1600" height="306" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtJofHIU0Y8SLdPcBm5usutaNgvRFr7-i3fp61-Zd-gIN6eSg4HQlayGl33NqfeZqoLy40QrlBSkt9BKGO9WJXglqo8IVlgPDN1qeMjftEN_RZzxsDxJbhhA6ZDV2KH7voOD_zuQaXe-0XNVc5OMuBpxPsrQLDtIvrxVKrfojsAYFnpxlYzsRd7ks14V8/w640-h306/rightside.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The RS-232 port, fortunately not telephone-style</td></tr></tbody></table><p>The space key feels a little weird, as it does not depress entirely but just squishes down at the spot you touch. Instead of Control and Alt keys, there are the original Diamond and Square keys.</p><p>The power is turned on and off by pressing both the SHIFT keys. And it's not a hard power on/off, the computer goes into standby and you can continue working from the same spot after turning it on.</p><p>A few times I was able to accidentally press both SHIFTs when trying to get my fingers around typing those silly :RAM.1/ device identifiers. Remember to set the default device from Control Panel.</p><p>The four AA batteries supposedly give 20 hours active use, or about a year in standby. This was one of the most doubted specs in the contemporary press, and <a href="http://www.rakewell.com/z88help/section3.shtml#power_consumption_table">Rakewell's site</a> lists more accurate numbers. The real standby battery life is more like few months, depending on the battery type and RAM configuration. </p><p>It's sensible to use the PSU and when the batteries need changing it better be connected. There's a small window of time in which the batteries can be changed without a PSU, but who knows the state of the capacitor after 35 years.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVkRk7akoHbeQlQOW3kssfkpDRVTohF9T9FDMBIiGNuhXtcEprMuhwwhN1bt_uo3AM_YzmevrRQO7Qlft_eZWcMgM_fI_z_bkf9pLEY3HWupI2m0gPLiZfoV6mXiYvMnuajMLMtvdl68dq9OsDxkTrKZM80j3ojSeMkumKZsvjBSM4I0o0yXRLi7oEwHk/s1600/leftside.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="780" data-original-width="1600" height="312" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVkRk7akoHbeQlQOW3kssfkpDRVTohF9T9FDMBIiGNuhXtcEprMuhwwhN1bt_uo3AM_YzmevrRQO7Qlft_eZWcMgM_fI_z_bkf9pLEY3HWupI2m0gPLiZfoV6mXiYvMnuajMLMtvdl68dq9OsDxkTrKZM80j3ojSeMkumKZsvjBSM4I0o0yXRLi7oEwHk/w640-h312/leftside.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">PSU connector, tiny reset switch and the contrast adjuster</td></tr></tbody></table><p>The display is a surprisingly okay LCD-type screen, but without a backlight it's rather sensitive to lighting conditions. The resolution is 640*64, which is good enough for editing 8 lines of text.</p><p>But thinking about it, the display has less pixels than a ZX Spectrum! (256*192=49152 versus 640*64=40960) The pixels come in three intensities, though.</p><p>The CPU is a low-power Z80 variant, which at 3.2768 MHz should be a tiny bit slower than the Speccy.</p><p>There are three slots for RAM/ROM/EPROM cards. My Z88 fortunately came with three 128K RAM expansions. This gives a decent 384K extra memory on top of the measly 32K built-in, although one extra 128K might have been enough for me. Apparently the computer is really crippled if there's no extra memory present.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaXskgoCR10uYcO-go1FcsyZ61uczJdKQuOImw_z-N_wZcFsYTOXnf38x_qq-Ajhl0jmI0L_pQpTymy-4gh7p-h7F5FgHQ3TzG3-uCw2fuZSXER0SK6ks59VQb_Dw8rgWvgv_nHVd8iRG7JHp0iQvA8TyFbIqxvMIbPglNBmnTTdt3eNwhoWZ5KHk2ygs/s1600/ramports.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="577" data-original-width="1600" height="230" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaXskgoCR10uYcO-go1FcsyZ61uczJdKQuOImw_z-N_wZcFsYTOXnf38x_qq-Ajhl0jmI0L_pQpTymy-4gh7p-h7F5FgHQ3TzG3-uCw2fuZSXER0SK6ks59VQb_Dw8rgWvgv_nHVd8iRG7JHp0iQvA8TyFbIqxvMIbPglNBmnTTdt3eNwhoWZ5KHk2ygs/w640-h230/ramports.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Two ROM/RAM slots and the EPROM/ROM/RAM slot, behind a transparent door.</td></tr></tbody></table><p>Obviously the Z80 chip can't handle more than 64K directly, so there's a memory manager that seamlessly banks in memory.</p><p>The RAM has to be powered, which is a potential problem. If you remove one of the cards, the Z88 will become unresponsive and needs to be soft reset. Doing this will obviously empty the current memory and any suspended applications.</p><p>However, when removing card 3 the files "saved" in card 1 were still preserved. Using the reset key with the card door open will hard reset the computer and all the RAM card contents.</p><p>One of the ports takes in an EPROM cartridge, which can be used for storing data more permanently. Technically, only ROM cards can be used to add new applications, but later developments have made it possible to run apps from RAM. From around 2000–2010 there have been Flash memory cartridges for permanent storage instead of the EPROM solution.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmKCaj0E-pf2VQZWzqFzX-X8ODuaK7wwmukTcNlSFIe_Pqo6guvkRQGxSSgzDKz31mLByfE-beWJUUkIRcbxEYnQG2qzLuLTQLIuWsdK1rR65nsDhBewlVeRwDz4VzgnnaKin-cZFIm70YebKGJdBNWSaSquaunsX95m0joBk0AOVitWuW1foHtTmPlHk/s1600/rambo.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="943" data-original-width="1600" height="378" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmKCaj0E-pf2VQZWzqFzX-X8ODuaK7wwmukTcNlSFIe_Pqo6guvkRQGxSSgzDKz31mLByfE-beWJUUkIRcbxEYnQG2qzLuLTQLIuWsdK1rR65nsDhBewlVeRwDz4VzgnnaKin-cZFIm70YebKGJdBNWSaSquaunsX95m0joBk0AOVitWuW1foHtTmPlHk/w640-h378/rambo.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A 128K RAM Cartridge</td></tr></tbody></table><p>The cards are cute and remind me of Microdrive cassettes, although bigger and with no tape at sight. From the other end you can see an edge connector.<br /></p><p>There's a fold-out stand in the bottom of the Z88, something I didn't discover until few hours of use.<br /><br /></p><p><b>OZ, PipeDream, BBC </b><b>BASIC, </b><b>apps</b></p><p>There's a plethora of tiny functions and apps built inside the 128K ROM. The computer has BASIC and PipeDream, a hybrid word processing/spreadsheet/database package. There's a calculator, diary, VT-52 terminal and a serial importer/exporter app. The Filer can be used for managing stored files and provides an interesting way of executing text files as key-command scripts.</p><p>Using INDEX key you can enter the app menu at any time and choose an app. If there are already instances of apps launched, they will be listed at the right side of the menu as "suspended activities". So I can continue a BASIC project or text editing exactly from where I left it the last time.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjg3yhaH3lpJ0Zm3y4S6_zPkDuwcTm1ONn8JTdVhSxm5j0Z9NqfyMJa4d3r8WrKkBzJnbhtxzZb6194GYwWeexTSaUXJgR0ANYjio24Qyu4sejZeseDeWR0Nkfd_gB08oJXFPK1rnylIghx_UMM1QsB9KCMCdsfWjjmvDOYPBEb6Kr-wOBtDZrfSGBsszY/s1600/menus.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="815" data-original-width="1600" height="326" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjg3yhaH3lpJ0Zm3y4S6_zPkDuwcTm1ONn8JTdVhSxm5j0Z9NqfyMJa4d3r8WrKkBzJnbhtxzZb6194GYwWeexTSaUXJgR0ANYjio24Qyu4sejZeseDeWR0Nkfd_gB08oJXFPK1rnylIghx_UMM1QsB9KCMCdsfWjjmvDOYPBEb6Kr-wOBtDZrfSGBsszY/w640-h326/menus.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Some of the built-in apps</td></tr></tbody></table><p>The system is not as graphical as the menus would make it appear at first. Some of the option and control panel screens are messy, but fortunately don't have many items in them anyway. When selecting files within apps, you may be prompted to type in the filename, with no assists provided. </p><p>There's a HELP key, but apart from PipeDream it doesn't provide much information. Removing programs from the suspended activities list is fun: You have to type KILL after pressing the diamond key.</p><p>The Z80 chip chugs along slowly, so the menus aren't especially fast and neither is PipeDream the main software package. In QL style, the font is 6x8 rather than 8x8 to make more text fit.<br /><br />I was tempted to write this blog post using PipeDream, but after sketching some paragraphs I gave up. I found I could type in fast enough, but making any changes to the existing text is a little too cumbersome. Maybe another time.</p><p>The peculiarities and compromises of the editor often arise from the needs of the integrated spreadsheet functionality, line splitting and moving between lines doesn't work exactly like in a modern text editor. Still, for a 1987 tiny portable computer it is quite an impressive package.</p><p>The software suite and the OS become better the more keyboard shortcuts you learn. Just as I've saved a text file, I can jump over to the RS-232, transmit it, and then press ESC to get back. Most of the important shortcuts for text editing are listed below the screen and this really is helpful. </p><p>The lack of rows on screen is slightly alleviated by the overview map at the right side of the screen with one character represented by one pixel. This is the earliest editor where I've seen this, it's quite common in modern code editors like Sublime Text.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiv7g0bT6mwh9sONYdjDqL32yCYtjLKCcVuQZJritt29schZIgt1SfhTab8aLwWLRIaMq2K0nb2t2fZwq6nOARt3x8wAH20Jiz9he44X-501s7HOJ3AqBA5gn5mTOvu4jXPyPYetkfJUfIfn4hJRAhdglLGgTTqJTJt6VTVyVk2KXeWP4hHnSAamHPnOb0/s1600/navigator.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="901" data-original-width="1600" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiv7g0bT6mwh9sONYdjDqL32yCYtjLKCcVuQZJritt29schZIgt1SfhTab8aLwWLRIaMq2K0nb2t2fZwq6nOARt3x8wAH20Jiz9he44X-501s7HOJ3AqBA5gn5mTOvu4jXPyPYetkfJUfIfn4hJRAhdglLGgTTqJTJt6VTVyVk2KXeWP4hHnSAamHPnOb0/w640-h360/navigator.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">PipeDream's handy map</td></tr></tbody></table><p>Moving around using TAB and shift-TAB, you can insert "expressions" into the positions and have the software calculate sums etc. Elsewhere you can just continue typing text without being limited to the cells.</p><p>The calculator is the most visual function in the device. It's clumsy and simple, but does have the virtue of being available even if you are in another program, by using [SQUARE]R. The clock and calendar can be invoked in a similar manner. Together with the suspended task switching, it gives a tiny sliver of sophistication without multi-tasking.</p><p>Instead of Sinclair BASIC, there's the BBC Basic, which seems a little funny considering how Sinclair and Acorn used to be in competition. The BBC dialect is pretty famous for its structuring and it even has an inline assembler. </p><p>The manual also provides an interesting hack to use the Filer "CLI execute" function to tokenize ASCII files by first opening the BASIC and then virtually typing rest of the plain text file contents in as keypresses. Put AUTO as part of the macro and it doesn't even need line numbers. Ingenious or kludgy? At least this means PipeDream can be used for writing program listings, as BBC Basic can use named procedures.</p><p>The "CLI execute" can also be invoked through Basic, so a command can launch another app and type in commands there. The freedom given to the user is really mind-boggling, and even if you don't want BASIC or assembler, PipeDream is quite versatile in itself.</p><p>A BOOT.CLI can be used but on the non-upgraded Z88, this sadly only works from an EPROM. This could, for example, make the computer boot into BASIC after reset. However, seeing as the computer is either on or in standby, the most sensible use for the boot file is to manage preferences after reset.</p><p>I experienced a considerable slowdown at one time, especially after playing with these CLI execute functions. Typing with PipeDream was no longer comfortable, even if I had cleared all internal RAM of files and KILLed all unnecessary apps. I reset the computer and all was fine again. Perhaps there was some garbage management problem.<br /><br />The BASIC has no graphics commands, I guess because it would be wasteful to hold a pixel buffer. I see the author of BBC Basic has created a <a href="http://www.bbcbasic.co.uk/bbcbasic/z88patch.html">patch</a> that adds the graphics commands, though.</p><p>There are more recent versions of the operating system, done by enthusiasts after Cambridge Computer shut down. Some of the tiny problems I encountered might be fixed by upgrading the Z88.</p><p>Colton Software still makes <a href="https://croftnuisk.co.uk/coltsoft/pipedream/downloads/">PipeDream</a>, not for the Z88 mind you!</p><p><br /></p><p><b>A few thoughts at this point</b><br /><br />Much like with the Sinclair QL, the Z88 felt a little iffy at first but I became more and more intrigued with the platform. The computer invites learning to use it better, finding shortcuts and tricks as you go along.</p><p>The Sinclair QL already provided a word processing and spreadsheet suite, but the execution was marred by hardware decisions. In a way Z88 continues this fixation but doesn't have similar problems.</p><p>This focus on business productivity means that many cool things are left out, such as graphics or sound. There's no mouse, but a computer like this does not really need one.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5t7z-J9oGJpimbQBccPIvQnKqbhW9gYtYTfnWAO_vJm1s8X81i-kGPEK-oHWOrwxDQu9lXOl-LgS4qXBl_DcvFjBMITqM-ByDtrjkq7NR9PPrIqv29ApkiuHf9C0mC2GWR8jIu8t0lT09XbTzqtr6efYZJWRHDIw2FDNBwEO9pR14K7NkMJ2KUwku93g/s1600/scotland.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="829" data-original-width="1600" height="332" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5t7z-J9oGJpimbQBccPIvQnKqbhW9gYtYTfnWAO_vJm1s8X81i-kGPEK-oHWOrwxDQu9lXOl-LgS4qXBl_DcvFjBMITqM-ByDtrjkq7NR9PPrIqv29ApkiuHf9C0mC2GWR8jIu8t0lT09XbTzqtr6efYZJWRHDIw2FDNBwEO9pR14K7NkMJ2KUwku93g/w640-h332/scotland.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">There's an estimate of some 60000+ units made.</td></tr></tbody></table><p>One can't really blame Cambridge Computer for not succeeding, as far as I know no-one really scored it big with these small form factor computers in the 1980s. Typing on the go was a niche thing and buyers more likely put their money into more powerful computers, rather than tinier computers. Although 6 million TRS-80 Model 100 units sold, if true, is impressive. </p><p>I could compare my tiny 8-bit computers Canon X-07, Atari Portfolio and the Z88. It's possible that because of the huge keyboard and the comprehensive feature list, the Z88 beats the others in terms of usefulness and features for the 2020s. Obviously Atari is the smallest of the trio, but without any programming language built-in, the fun factor is lower. I guess without extra memory Z88 would be limping too, so the comparison is not so straightforward.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYlWUnBi9AWUyaO6u35njhoxDYyToCUR8HgTgUpQBtlGpZ4ujxkq4F-EKMEm272esHTNE53EItkrEiOQGC2xUWX7WKyADQgOr4zn1Oy03QGdvacKH2gqN2eyzoXaLb-3lzhQX5O22lYD2ylhsGKLXD_oFUE4ks0VyFc4MMOTy33sD7KW6uPworKm-omF8/s1600/training.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="901" data-original-width="1600" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYlWUnBi9AWUyaO6u35njhoxDYyToCUR8HgTgUpQBtlGpZ4ujxkq4F-EKMEm272esHTNE53EItkrEiOQGC2xUWX7WKyADQgOr4zn1Oy03QGdvacKH2gqN2eyzoXaLb-3lzhQX5O22lYD2ylhsGKLXD_oFUE4ks0VyFc4MMOTy33sD7KW6uPworKm-omF8/w640-h360/training.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Traveling silently</td></tr></tbody></table><p>I might eventually look inside, if only to peep at the capacitors and any signs of dust or grime. I postponed this as it looks like a couple of screws are under the rubber feet and one is under the serial number label. The LCD and its ribbon are also notoriously fickle.</p><p><br /></p><p><b>Serial transfer</b></p><p>I quickly built an RS-232 adapter cable for my USB-COM device, and it worked well enough. One brainfart had to happen though, using the wrong gender at the Z88 end of the cable. Well, gender-changer to the rescue. </p><p>I can already say that sending data from Z88 at 9600 rate is ok, but it is hopeless at receiving at this speed.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitumroYcUZigOirwKhM11nAZV_VENUr_3hp-tbCB_v9cpet8i6kde131CFqWS58Fp1ve2ZSoXoF1mae-GvwmWu62RFkI07Qa_87wXb5XEKb1LLibmZkbhCvac5CnvyerDWHqJlk0mj6ANkGgdMUW9-JUVktdzI1W39tK8YCnsT3LPRKNxFU6gG23z9EDU/s1600/serial_transfer.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="901" data-original-width="1600" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitumroYcUZigOirwKhM11nAZV_VENUr_3hp-tbCB_v9cpet8i6kde131CFqWS58Fp1ve2ZSoXoF1mae-GvwmWu62RFkI07Qa_87wXb5XEKb1LLibmZkbhCvac5CnvyerDWHqJlk0mj6ANkGgdMUW9-JUVktdzI1W39tK8YCnsT3LPRKNxFU6gG23z9EDU/w640-h360/serial_transfer.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Beam me up</td></tr></tbody></table><p>Minicom was sufficient to test the connection.</p><p>If the device is called ttyUSB0 on Linux, then:</p><p><span style="font-family: courier;">minicom -D /dev/ttyUSB0</span><br /><br />I then set minicom to 9600, 8N1 (Parity none).</p><p>At the Z88 end, I launch the Control Panel (Square+S), set Parity None and Xon/Xoff to No.<br /><br />Then I can use the VT-52 terminal in Z88 to send and receive characters and the Import/Export app to transmit and receive files.</p><div>With some more work I was able to store some of my first PipeDream jottings for historical purposes. I already feel more safe about resetting the Z88.</div><div><p><br /></p><p><b>Some links:</b></p><p>Crash! magazine and Simon Goodwin on Z88: <a href="https://www.crashonline.org.uk/39/z88.htm">https://www.crashonline.org.uk/39/z88.htm</a></p><p>Rakewell has kept the name alive over the years: <a href="http://www.rakewell.com/z88/z88.shtml">http://www.rakewell.com/z88/z88.shtml</a></p><p>More resources: <a href="https://cambridgez88.jira.com/wiki/spaces/welcome/overview?mode=global">https://cambridgez88.jira.com/wiki/spaces/welcome/overview?mode=global</a></p><p>Pictures of the insides at Old Crap: <a href="https://oldcrap.org/2019/10/28/cambridge-z88/">https://oldcrap.org/2019/10/28/cambridge-z88/</a></p></div>Tero Heikkinenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13784200871918377919noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2474445673248923379.post-87051707380865170142023-07-15T21:43:00.005+03:002023-07-17T13:12:35.789+03:00Shortening the kickbike<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhV9LzjzLUwR6--s8Xz1sV9WRvEstWTc3UPAZgRCsf1euEuG65OnHoTFWnXCXsK2-AJMqXiYwcEuhePRFU6KoN129Yxm4g7qsCxCwaudczW-QbWD3ZnTt4kM_1tZS5XUGzFi0Z9FTyeTBIxIWBwDF4trQ9tTuyGkMpwsDJRjZS3YVdWdpjGghZlY4JHW88/s1641/up_front.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1641" data-original-width="1600" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhV9LzjzLUwR6--s8Xz1sV9WRvEstWTc3UPAZgRCsf1euEuG65OnHoTFWnXCXsK2-AJMqXiYwcEuhePRFU6KoN129Yxm4g7qsCxCwaudczW-QbWD3ZnTt4kM_1tZS5XUGzFi0Z9FTyeTBIxIWBwDF4trQ9tTuyGkMpwsDJRjZS3YVdWdpjGghZlY4JHW88/w624-h640/up_front.jpg" width="624" /></a></div><p>One of the reasons for buying this particular model was it looked like it could be modified easily.<br /><br />Previously, I have already <a href="http://oldmachinery.blogspot.com/2022/03/zeeclo-will-tear-us-apart.html">removed the wooden deck addition</a> and <a href="http://oldmachinery.blogspot.com/2022/07/handlebar-mod.html">shortened the handlebars</a>. Now I had something bolder in mind.</p><p>I have been thinking of two ideas. One was to remove the "wings" at the side of the deck, possibly reducing some weight.</p><p>The other idea was to make the deck shorter, both to reduce a little weight and improve the maneuverability (hopefully). This seemed more interesting, and I was a little worried removing the wings might compromise the strength of the box and make it a little too narrow.</p><p>I had suspected the outer case could hold inside a relatively large "inner case", but it turned out the part that goes in is much smaller than I thought.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmHDk1R9DYMShmm2CAkKZJe0LuIWMQFbk_xSgm9CFAQ-qYinFd_yyycesSX2ZqwUC9tGfHfl8kpOWlyBf0KMyNI4UisgTmfDwzG9X2ImMKlAXEVTyrJo-oq7LpeuZ0P05M7HL6Fo2Eq3z74VTL4FIjVdhE_aEgp2M8UrdHRJzJY6kCpvFWAh3iPxgGmoI/s1122/diagram_better.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="691" data-original-width="1122" height="394" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmHDk1R9DYMShmm2CAkKZJe0LuIWMQFbk_xSgm9CFAQ-qYinFd_yyycesSX2ZqwUC9tGfHfl8kpOWlyBf0KMyNI4UisgTmfDwzG9X2ImMKlAXEVTyrJo-oq7LpeuZ0P05M7HL6Fo2Eq3z74VTL4FIjVdhE_aEgp2M8UrdHRJzJY6kCpvFWAh3iPxgGmoI/w640-h394/diagram_better.png" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sketch, not to scale</td></tr></tbody></table><p>There are 4 bolts on top, 4 at the bottom, and then 2 at the sides.</p><p>Obviously one of the side bolts had to be gloriously stuck, so I had to waste time in removing it. After ruining the hex, I realized I could file the bolt into a more rectangular shape and use a spanner to turn it.<br /><br />After some nudging, the block connecting the stem to the chassis falls out. The portion that goes inside is only 27 millimeters deep, and the shape is irregular. It is quite hefty.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMt1-ndm3G7j5rTFBXr1f1OIZq2tPV3OGOaiVxOVKGyos3AC35K8sqnZ0iy5fgQ_pPIOTnfy_aQFJOrBckJ5oEan9WqLujHS53BjYpu_EjGGDv7CvMR92A2-egehwVb-9JTRmHRtxMPEJ8ElsxJ4hIRwS1X0csjhra0Iv3-Zt6J2kmpV8yMD6HIEqGDRM/s1600/theblock.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1050" data-original-width="1600" height="420" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMt1-ndm3G7j5rTFBXr1f1OIZq2tPV3OGOaiVxOVKGyos3AC35K8sqnZ0iy5fgQ_pPIOTnfy_aQFJOrBckJ5oEan9WqLujHS53BjYpu_EjGGDv7CvMR92A2-egehwVb-9JTRmHRtxMPEJ8ElsxJ4hIRwS1X0csjhra0Iv3-Zt6J2kmpV8yMD6HIEqGDRM/w640-h420/theblock.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The connecting part</td></tr></tbody></table><div><br /></div>I could have taken better photographs, but maybe the opportunity will yet arise.<br /><p>Then began the process of measuring and deciding how much to cut away. Peeking inside, I could see there's virtually nothing at the front 14cm part of the compartment.</p><p>I eventually chose 6cm as a suitable amount. There is a hatch at the bottom of the chassis, and if I cut for example 10cm, the hatch edge would be rather close to the front. The other thing to worry is the 28mm radius cable hole in the side.</p><p>The 6cm should be significant, but this also leaves some empty space inside the box.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVSZoC5RZjXycym3mU35p_hHeRY53qDsdqA-y1ot9FxXqR0XwEUGy19iFWF5-ZraVyT0PDNLKZtzvFKo8udCSTS-z9p6Y6rzMWt29qcn7YFg03DrpGL6CArEURTlTBxRcFH-xCD125peqyfQjh5w5OF7J8P5ZWS_TWm2ERwFnLX2CO_icHyEl0Qa0utBs/s1600/peeking_inside.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="908" data-original-width="1600" height="364" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVSZoC5RZjXycym3mU35p_hHeRY53qDsdqA-y1ot9FxXqR0XwEUGy19iFWF5-ZraVyT0PDNLKZtzvFKo8udCSTS-z9p6Y6rzMWt29qcn7YFg03DrpGL6CArEURTlTBxRcFH-xCD125peqyfQjh5w5OF7J8P5ZWS_TWm2ERwFnLX2CO_icHyEl0Qa0utBs/w640-h364/peeking_inside.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Not all the space is used up.</td></tr></tbody></table><p>I was a little lazy and traced the lines around the box using a vernier caliper adjusted to 6cm.<br /><br />After that, I started sawing with the hacksaw. This is a boring job and I split it into two sessions for two different days. Together it took more than an hour with some pauses.<br /><br />I'm not very skilled with the hacksaw, but I managed to do it accurate enough. Patience is key, otherwise it's easy to start doing things too hastily, resulting in a mess.<br /></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrSEP-LfJhA8GjVVl6xkB6XCn8_HJ2J0Elf-0nyNKm7gsTx7fIFdBPaOi4Zdw0BQWYEG-llPsSTUD1jJ2gEyDR-M6VxoqyZYYhYVEbFsGldhFoGeJaSfopyp7x-vR_NGXD3ne-Nk2mW7X3qCASELU6QTX-lScOLEWYfRaRXGmm4CgZkTte1NwKdgQ-RD0/s1400/hacksawing.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="923" data-original-width="1400" height="422" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrSEP-LfJhA8GjVVl6xkB6XCn8_HJ2J0Elf-0nyNKm7gsTx7fIFdBPaOi4Zdw0BQWYEG-llPsSTUD1jJ2gEyDR-M6VxoqyZYYhYVEbFsGldhFoGeJaSfopyp7x-vR_NGXD3ne-Nk2mW7X3qCASELU6QTX-lScOLEWYfRaRXGmm4CgZkTte1NwKdgQ-RD0/w640-h422/hacksawing.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Removing 6cm from the front...</td></tr></tbody></table><p>The case is some sort of aluminum alloy, which is quite soft to cut and drill. </p><p>Only afterwards it occurred to me the process could be generating some fine grain aluminum dust, apart from the stuff I could obviously see.</p><p>One thing to look when cutting a profile like this is to have an eye at where the other part of the saw is moving. While focusing on the actual cut, the saw might be stealthily ruining another part of the cut.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHhs3R064CCIgBT8s5QzzoQD4ss5Z-YELBg6ChmxIMKSVB5T9cmthiVrxr25D4YUyO9BAZeaS4bqSGmrYsk8F70ojMbRyFz-HYZjM9lH2YGbjfWB4H5E8T8EZ5SPMwxOxDd4D-boieMaDkQIYdkBGWCwfoEOtWqScWzCp60xJx-wGoWc1pCc2O6IoJ8_M/s1400/cut_piece.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="809" data-original-width="1400" height="370" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHhs3R064CCIgBT8s5QzzoQD4ss5Z-YELBg6ChmxIMKSVB5T9cmthiVrxr25D4YUyO9BAZeaS4bqSGmrYsk8F70ojMbRyFz-HYZjM9lH2YGbjfWB4H5E8T8EZ5SPMwxOxDd4D-boieMaDkQIYdkBGWCwfoEOtWqScWzCp60xJx-wGoWc1pCc2O6IoJ8_M/w640-h370/cut_piece.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The part, cut loose</td></tr></tbody></table><p>Compared to sawing, the drilling was quite easy and fast. I took the measures from the original piece, and just transferred these over to the desired positions. </p><p>I used 2mm drill for making pilot holes, then an 8mm for the actual sizes. I used ridiculously low speeds here, probably only a few revolutions per second.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAZggA6IWY6uGZuQ0SyQdfmPVe1fAsQtZRsAfLb81CMG7o4sRwSgpJ0R8KhmCsO2oEY1OdW684MJtkewtqUtOc6duzh7gqUtbccceu1iV1rgr-0QyvVUzzaZAQon_aMIyggadLEHsvprtiIIEQ_TqGuf7e6mAwcoAgRgO-hcN8Ct32pEGJaF0LmCCHmw0/s1600/drilling.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1114" data-original-width="1600" height="446" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAZggA6IWY6uGZuQ0SyQdfmPVe1fAsQtZRsAfLb81CMG7o4sRwSgpJ0R8KhmCsO2oEY1OdW684MJtkewtqUtOc6duzh7gqUtbccceu1iV1rgr-0QyvVUzzaZAQon_aMIyggadLEHsvprtiIIEQ_TqGuf7e6mAwcoAgRgO-hcN8Ct32pEGJaF0LmCCHmw0/w640-h446/drilling.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Drilling new holes</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><p>The original holes were not perfectly round, especially the side holes are more like very short routing lines. I just hope there isn't a really precise logic behind that, possibly just a result of using an automatic router.</p><p><br /></p><p><b>The results</b><br /><br />I believe shortening the deck improved the drive-ability of the kickbike. It shouldn't be a huge difference, but I think turning tighter corners is a little less precarious.</p><p>The distance between the wheels is now shorter than the Voi, which is something of an accident as I had previously measured the distances incorrectly. It might have been nice if the wheels have the same distance. Well, the subjective experience should be more important than the measures.</p><p>But did I get rid of any weight?</p><p>Carrying the bulk might be slightly handier because of the smaller dimensions, but it's such a small difference it cannot be really felt as weight difference.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiP1LGWblTNt8c2KV6pUsmZuR3_MqyewGGp9PNoGjxp1mH4tt74JD7sYnYS4p2RHC0XAJN4Yu4MP3qQVRNKcQ1XF32Osy-jAo6IeobWYNVbWSmIh_iSmUeqGwTDFKLg6nw3caUqW-6q3yE0nahafnre9ccDQ0RcUJ0xJm6U3QgytqtblH77MuApXS_3Lok/s1216/vaaka6.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="932" data-original-width="1216" height="490" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiP1LGWblTNt8c2KV6pUsmZuR3_MqyewGGp9PNoGjxp1mH4tt74JD7sYnYS4p2RHC0XAJN4Yu4MP3qQVRNKcQ1XF32Osy-jAo6IeobWYNVbWSmIh_iSmUeqGwTDFKLg6nw3caUqW-6q3yE0nahafnre9ccDQ0RcUJ0xJm6U3QgytqtblH77MuApXS_3Lok/w640-h490/vaaka6.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I'm going quantitative</td></tr></tbody></table><p>The cut part really was one of the lightest things I could remove, so the effect on that front wasn't that great. The cut aluminum part weighed only ~245 grams. Taken together with the plastics it's a little closer to 370 grams.</p><p><br />To put things into perspective, what things weigh:</p><p>The 6cm aluminum alloy part: 244g<br />The 6cm aluminum alloy part and the plastic parts together: 372g<br />The plastic parts: 134g<br />Wallet: 160g<br />Smartphone: 300g (!)<br />All the keys in my pockets: 145g<br />Bike helmet: 323g</p><p>The kitchen scale measures fluctuate a few grams so the values are not very accurate.</p><p>At least the removed material compensates for wearing the helmet!<br /><br />It's obvious I could lose more by leaving my phone, wallet and keys home.<br /><br />Measuring the cut out block against the 244g weight pointed to a material density of 2500kg/m3.<br /><br />Apparently aluminum alloy density isn't likely to be lower than 2660kg/m3, I might be persuaded to believe my measurements are off. The piece has holes, the scale isn't accurate, and so on.<br /><br />As a ballpark estimate, the central chassis metal part does not weigh more than 3kg. (The battery and other stuff inside are probably heavier.)</p><p>I've yet to measure the weight of the entire kickbike (Probably around 28kg originally) so I'm not sure what kind of percentages the removals represent. Also, taken together with the driver's body weight it means very little in the entire system. </p><p>The next step is to cover the openings. I could even cut some more material and try to fit the indicator lights back the way they were.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDIAunedw9raKiALgLLnehgfebArpKimFKt6h2Lj5hWXOqCGIle5zlB4y60X26jnEtMEkZZ3BJKLRkU_xqV2EuUkPLjXeV-7Kd9JZKHAa_whJMdpZJG32HiFSaN5jFtqv6YdiRcn6BnoqerVjkcpq3b7W8Nru_PIXRY4Xr1w6T1K0lXyQ3cWGb0lCHUTQ/s1400/experimental.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="762" data-original-width="1400" height="348" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDIAunedw9raKiALgLLnehgfebArpKimFKt6h2Lj5hWXOqCGIle5zlB4y60X26jnEtMEkZZ3BJKLRkU_xqV2EuUkPLjXeV-7Kd9JZKHAa_whJMdpZJG32HiFSaN5jFtqv6YdiRcn6BnoqerVjkcpq3b7W8Nru_PIXRY4Xr1w6T1K0lXyQ3cWGb0lCHUTQ/w640-h348/experimental.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><p style="text-align: left;"><br /></p></td></tr></tbody></table>Tero Heikkinenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13784200871918377919noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2474445673248923379.post-42802627501479816102023-06-21T14:32:00.002+03:002023-06-21T14:32:27.030+03:00Sony WH-1000XM5<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZgRmA9J8u_1VCQlYelw_gSrX6_XP_-bmbCeGgOqidyT_aSs3AThldpQ6PJ0JfHx_G_Dp5aQpPyZsfKSUEv-dcOqUuGuMpTYCNb74vHXdsQgTpUQeSutzRRUERJKzLKMQNBmsUeZk4yjyMtxIJVCKQikVbQG-Uh1CuJocvzMEnYT3AMorUjzdiFXu_dSQ/s1600/20230613_082212.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="901" data-original-width="1600" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZgRmA9J8u_1VCQlYelw_gSrX6_XP_-bmbCeGgOqidyT_aSs3AThldpQ6PJ0JfHx_G_Dp5aQpPyZsfKSUEv-dcOqUuGuMpTYCNb74vHXdsQgTpUQeSutzRRUERJKzLKMQNBmsUeZk4yjyMtxIJVCKQikVbQG-Uh1CuJocvzMEnYT3AMorUjzdiFXu_dSQ/w640-h360/20230613_082212.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">From outside</td></tr></tbody></table><p>Took the plunge and bought noise-canceling (NC) headphones. I've had them for a while now so thought about commenting on the experience.</p><p>One of the city sub-artery roads is just outside the window from where I sit, and it can get a little wearisome at times. With these headphones on, this traffic noise is cancelled almost entirely. </p><p>I could even sit with the headphones on without any music and not hear much of the outside world. But it's obviously better when using at least some music or sounds, as otherwise I start to pay attention to even tiniest hissing or the occasional minor pop/click coming from the headphones itself.</p><p>Yes, if you are entirely allergic to the idea the headphones might produce some additional sound, and find yourself actively looking for such sounds, then it might be a deal-breaker. But I've never really noticed it when playing music or watching movies.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXCj3To-MFlG9CbvYvER3Y35qMeQ2p5AcAlwRCShtwXBhVD7oo57Pl1ivQITl2z2qvIkmkRIOV9ZLKYeBLYo5buKTcUCUKXSv365Rqhpjp5CNWOoO1lkU1oLEg-V5yxjKLGotL55ason5BqHSmvawp64wcygyRJ4ZVvJ7U57vQ_CVNQ1puhxjvLKgWNaE/s1600/20230613_082240.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="901" data-original-width="1600" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXCj3To-MFlG9CbvYvER3Y35qMeQ2p5AcAlwRCShtwXBhVD7oo57Pl1ivQITl2z2qvIkmkRIOV9ZLKYeBLYo5buKTcUCUKXSv365Rqhpjp5CNWOoO1lkU1oLEg-V5yxjKLGotL55ason5BqHSmvawp64wcygyRJ4ZVvJ7U57vQ_CVNQ1puhxjvLKgWNaE/w640-h360/20230613_082240.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">From inside</td></tr></tbody></table><p>Almost needless to say, with the NC I can't hear minor things like computer fan noise, air conditioning or the washing machine from few rooms apart. Singing practice in the apartment is not cancelled though, but it becomes subdued and louder music from the headphones will cover it.</p><p>If the headphones are in a passive (non-powered) mode, there's audio but it's not very good to be honest. The active mode will deplete the battery but I've found the need to recharge about once a week even with daily use. The charging is quite fast.</p><p>The ambient mode allows outside noises through, but I haven't tested it much. Likewise, testing the invisible microphone hasn't been a high priority as I am more comfortable with the headset style in video conferences, a real mic gives me more confidence. </p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgx9o6HtyVHbJHJQhowKhmTZCrjoiHnWSXex-T4LGYRXEPx4HLTykJBNvLGOyVlw0JYNBHlnikD8Y6vF8AGqZ2OrenedlP-ujIM4kdIq4UdcDHsO29eTz17QbaYiosQ-xl5TNFCfoE_Y0juBIAuZObgMCjjw_ZTBVFGLxIp2QA2d7G1TXJFrL8ScM-1QE0/s975/closer.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="975" height="394" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgx9o6HtyVHbJHJQhowKhmTZCrjoiHnWSXex-T4LGYRXEPx4HLTykJBNvLGOyVlw0JYNBHlnikD8Y6vF8AGqZ2OrenedlP-ujIM4kdIq4UdcDHsO29eTz17QbaYiosQ-xl5TNFCfoE_Y0juBIAuZObgMCjjw_ZTBVFGLxIp2QA2d7G1TXJFrL8ScM-1QE0/w640-h394/closer.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The power and ambience buttons.</td></tr></tbody></table><p>I press a tiny button for a while to activate the headphones and the noise canceling feature, it does become second nature eventually.</p><p>There's a "touch/gestural" interface which could accidentally activate Bluetooth-only features, however I don't use the BT. By cupping the headphone I can also let sound come through temporarily, which I also had to learn not to do by accident.</p><p>As the headphones try to be context sensitive, the ambient mode may turn on automatically, such as when I sneeze loudly (or swear aloud). I guess the app would allow me to turn this automation entirely.</p><p>Yes, some of the features of can only be changed through an Android/Iphone app, which was initially annoying but it doesn't really need to be touched afterwards. There's an equalizer I've not really touched.</p><p>I made the Bluetooth pairing through the app initially, which was a mistake and I had to reset the headphones as this connection no longer worked. Then I made the BT pair properly through the phone settings, and only afterwards went to the app. After this there have been no problems connecting the phone to the app.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZXCjV46agdMBtf7RWd4AuQLFnXXjtYy2-deXXIjEt8nmwoKbc_BKl8trgss4zIs_rR9j0Zk7syNcVhI4VN7XDb_EtQjfQAZgMvxc1Yj50RLcfkNG57dZwvxp3ae9Qxy-ZRa-Q3DiO9hOKjuPfvp8SScgM8yvojZFrhLwtdqwzwPVrnPm-311i7tbmd7I/s1463/20230613_082555.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="871" data-original-width="1463" height="382" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZXCjV46agdMBtf7RWd4AuQLFnXXjtYy2-deXXIjEt8nmwoKbc_BKl8trgss4zIs_rR9j0Zk7syNcVhI4VN7XDb_EtQjfQAZgMvxc1Yj50RLcfkNG57dZwvxp3ae9Qxy-ZRa-Q3DiO9hOKjuPfvp8SScgM8yvojZFrhLwtdqwzwPVrnPm-311i7tbmd7I/w640-h382/20230613_082555.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="text-align: left;">The convenient carry case has separate compartments for the headphones and cables.</span></td></tr></tbody></table><p>I also had an opportunity to try this on an airplane while watching a film. Can't pretend I'm not hearing the airplane noise, but it's still quite effective.</p><p>I thought about comparing it to being in a car, but this would be misleading. The headphones not only cancels some of the noise but somehow "flattens" it. The difference is quite strong when I remove the headphones in a noisy environment such as the airplane. It's like returning to a three-dimensional world of sound.</p><p>The sound is good enough for my music tastes (electronic and some rock/pop). I'm not sure if Sony's reputation for headphones is the best ever. It could still be one of the better or even the best headphone I've had for general purpose listening, working just about as well with music, movies and games.</p>Tero Heikkinenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13784200871918377919noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2474445673248923379.post-72589113289496925622023-05-25T15:43:00.010+03:002023-05-25T18:52:24.609+03:00Hirttämättömät/Unhanged (2023)<p><i>It's nearly futile to write this in English, but in the tradition of this blog, here goes anyway.</i></p><p><i>*</i></p><p>After putting so much effort in watching, reading and even writing about Western films, and more recently, about Finnish western films, I could not avoid watching the first new theatrical Finnish western film since 50+ years: <i>Hirttämättömät </i>(The Unhanged)</p><p>Given that it's not strictly a film set in the West, one could argue <i>The Last Border</i> from 1993 was a western too. But unlike with the Last Border, here we see all the Western paraphernalia, such as wide-rimmed hats, revolvers, western outfits, horses etc. Together with the western-style music I'm going to say this is the more fully-formed Western of the two.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiw8gILG-a0BTK9AnFE2ExKZ37EYVSGFzqeUXt6wItRDPFiYc7IWWzpGKxI6m8a0U9Un4tCdifcd_rKX4EU_u_Dh264bwVfpnlK3mzXuptLa4pGUH3SYf1F9L8gn0YljiMxT31Cg8qFwNZnUjVWYTu-7gAgqYAXDRgoEeh4UlxMSTNSvKL8DuW-mgzF/s1440/hirttomatto1.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="810" data-original-width="1440" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiw8gILG-a0BTK9AnFE2ExKZ37EYVSGFzqeUXt6wItRDPFiYc7IWWzpGKxI6m8a0U9Un4tCdifcd_rKX4EU_u_Dh264bwVfpnlK3mzXuptLa4pGUH3SYf1F9L8gn0YljiMxT31Cg8qFwNZnUjVWYTu-7gAgqYAXDRgoEeh4UlxMSTNSvKL8DuW-mgzF/w640-h360/hirttomatto1.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The new cast</td></tr></tbody></table><p>The film in question is a remake of the 1971 "cult classic" Hirttämättömät ("Unhanged"). This was a sequel to the earlier fennowestern <i>Speedy Gonzales - noin 7 veljeksen poika.</i> (Speedy Gonzales: Son of About Seven Brothers). As most western clichés had been explored in the first film, the creators concentrated on a more narrow topic: three guys crossing a desert.</p><p>I actually have something of a soft spot for this small film, so perhaps count me in as one of the cult members. Speedy Gonzales fools Lonely Rider and Tonto to imprison him and to take him over to Threepencestad, "alive", so as not to have to take the trip himself. </p><p>They circle around what is obviously a sand pit, and suitably for a pitifully small road movie, small episodes also take place. Mostly about who gets to drink water and who has to pull the cart. And who wins the heart of the women they inexplicably meet during their journey. It is funnier at the start, whereas it gets repetitive and boring at the end.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2X0zmGEr4mVIUl6dvZLSYAG8DBEr7muhsrl847sOnkPClDgB45MmGkSYfdiB04NyA3n30DqW3JBrEBzrusR-deedaPzaIiVedGPop7tPgT8NuWC40EVzB7eoy2mn5cWFVqdPjOCYQE5og2f6EaJxxnQDqKi2b6Y-MghK2vKjfm2hY_jPQvBs-Kf60/s1002/original.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="768" data-original-width="1002" height="490" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2X0zmGEr4mVIUl6dvZLSYAG8DBEr7muhsrl847sOnkPClDgB45MmGkSYfdiB04NyA3n30DqW3JBrEBzrusR-deedaPzaIiVedGPop7tPgT8NuWC40EVzB7eoy2mn5cWFVqdPjOCYQE5og2f6EaJxxnQDqKi2b6Y-MghK2vKjfm2hY_jPQvBs-Kf60/w640-h490/original.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The 1971 original, with Vesku, Spede and Simo.</td></tr></tbody></table><p>The original film was nearly entirely carried by the antics of Pertti "Spede" Pasanen, Vesa-Matti "Vesku" Loiri and Simo "Simo" Salminen. Mostly by Vesku, who had the broadest acting range of the three and the capability to fully embody the farcical character. Spede is his usual taciturn "Spede" character, derived from a more typical Eastwood-like western hero. Simo supplies much of the physical gags, who, as a non-native American, still plays one. (Gasp!)</p><p>For the Finnish kids who watched <i>Spede-Show</i> on TV in the 1980s, these three figures have became cemented as an epoch-defining comedic "trio", both by being genuinely amusing (in kid-metrics), but by also featuring in a spate of so-bad-they-are-good "Spede films" adults still enjoy for their campiness. Reviled by critics, loved by the masses, in this film we already see the trio dynamics in action: there are really very few additional characters.</p><p>This new version follows the structure of the original with some additions. Aku Hirviniemi tries very hard to out-bullshit Vesa-Matti Loiri's 1971 character but overstays what little welcome he had in the first place. Despite having a few amusing gags he ends up just demonstrating some kind of split personality and his needy and whiny mental collapses cease to be funny after the first time round.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCB07O5vvooyxkUC8bUXDXaFnbd_UKf9cyvkoLDvA6pRiJOk8SAcsuRuGvIs391Xwocy5kz2pXOYYEwveDTY4iwB7a9oVszy2SIrPPrj4VdxdGgwbFaVy7siTC_UEhpjrJvTfIbh8pDlqVwwgXkhqFkLFw4eyKqdSjB0kwUhcVy_VEOpRwxGrxAmf0/s1440/hirttomatto2.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="810" data-original-width="1440" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCB07O5vvooyxkUC8bUXDXaFnbd_UKf9cyvkoLDvA6pRiJOk8SAcsuRuGvIs391Xwocy5kz2pXOYYEwveDTY4iwB7a9oVszy2SIrPPrj4VdxdGgwbFaVy7siTC_UEhpjrJvTfIbh8pDlqVwwgXkhqFkLFw4eyKqdSjB0kwUhcVy_VEOpRwxGrxAmf0/w640-h360/hirttomatto2.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The famous cart</td></tr></tbody></table><p>The "Speedy" in this film is a young woman (Ona Huczkowski), who the other protagonists think is a boy. Ha ha. Spede Pasanen had such a screen presence many felt his face was amusing in itself, there's no such advantage to be had for this relatively unknown actor.</p><p>Andrei Alén, who also directs the film, plays the "Tonto" character. He might be relatively interesting as the non-Indian "Indian", but as Hirviniemi overflows every scene with his babbling, he and Speedy have very little room to operate.</p><p>Some new jokes are pursued from gender relations and environmentalist themes of our times, but perhaps fortunately the gender angle is not explored too far. No Indians are in sight in this film either.</p><p>I think the pacing of the film is at least okay, I felt some genuine curiosity about where this all might be headed towards. Not too much time is wasted on a single theme (a problem with the original) but unfortunately the comedy is just not that funny.</p><p>As for the additional inventions on display, at places it was hard to understand if a thing shown on screen was supposed to be a plot point in development, or just a (failed) joke in itself. I mean, some of the ideas are never developed further.</p><p>The black and white nature of the 1971 version helped it make look like a more authentic western. The new film has colors which brings some challenges for simulating a wild west appearance. All in all the film looks nice in a small way and for example the costumes are rather well made. </p><p>Some digital background additions help the setting look more western-like, but at times they were jarring and I felt the point of the gravel pit aesthetics of the original has become lost.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsrUtGQ98MaeWJ4gzPUVvY9BA7wFek-OFAPM_4xc_YsxtEptCYQePPZ9TwAQPf-MCvLGkFxQdAm2mAwnUYYrsGAaIuCocV5488VsOiO6bJxQu0dNXvVyElilHrfq7D94Eof3E7_p-rGG1tvpHb-l7_IY5lTCeBCvKMB9sOdjB641fSqUR2J35NF9f_/s1440/hirttomatto3.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="810" data-original-width="1440" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsrUtGQ98MaeWJ4gzPUVvY9BA7wFek-OFAPM_4xc_YsxtEptCYQePPZ9TwAQPf-MCvLGkFxQdAm2mAwnUYYrsGAaIuCocV5488VsOiO6bJxQu0dNXvVyElilHrfq7D94Eof3E7_p-rGG1tvpHb-l7_IY5lTCeBCvKMB9sOdjB641fSqUR2J35NF9f_/w640-h360/hirttomatto3.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">What we see most of the time</td></tr></tbody></table><p>The film has more nods to the Spede-films and Spede's type of humor than any real understanding of the history of Western films, which I would feel is a pre-requisite for a good Western comedy/parody.</p><p>The usual suspects are again referred to, Sergio Leone and Clint Eastwood films, with some Morricone nods in the music. From more recent films, we perhaps have some Tarantinoesque elements in how the film is occasionally framed as a nostalgic TV show with VHS quality ads.</p><p>Now that the native American aspect has been removed, there are very few "western jokes" left, and most of the comedy operates outside the western premise altogether.</p><p>Part of the comedy involves literal imitations of the 1971 trio—imitating Spede is practically a national pastime. Together with the cameo of Hannele Lauri (the "fourth" member of the trio), the film is in danger of becoming a meta-film about the emotional hole the trio left in the TV and film landscape for a generation of Finns. Some might say good riddance, but the existence of this film seems to indicate at least some people need to process that loss still yet.</p>Tero Heikkinenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13784200871918377919noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2474445673248923379.post-89021411284595270102023-05-18T22:02:00.008+03:002023-05-18T22:10:30.943+03:00Planet of the Apes<p>It's roughly 25 years since I've seen the earlier <i>Planet of the Apes </i>film series in full. It was handily available at Disney+ so I took the plunge again.</p><p>The creators could pull off five films in as many years, and despite piling on new science fiction ideas for each film, it's a surprisingly coherent trek.<br /><br />The series famously relies on reveals, no further spoiler alert.<br /><br /></p><p><b>Planet of the Apes, 1968</b></p><p>A spaceship travels in the void, with four deep-sleep passengers. Already prior to the titles, Taylor (Charlton Heston) makes a huge point about how they might end up in the far future.</p><p>The ship lands on water, the clock says it's about year 4000, the passengers wake up and evacuate the craft before it sinks. Before this they confirm one of the astronauts is dead, a pretty blonde has turned into a hideous mummified corpse. My new pet theory is the woman died because Taylor smoked in the control room.</p><p>After landing, the film does some obfuscation so it wouldn't be blatantly obvious we are on Earth. Weird lightning strikes during daytime, ground is poisonous, there's very little or no vegetation, and they can't find a moon.<br /><br />This sequence took more time than I remembered, and having the astronauts prancing around in the bleak landscape is visually interesting. Taylor speaks his mind a lot, and his attitude seems the worst of the trio. I wonder who was the psychiatrist who qualified him for the mission.</p><p>The astronauts find more livable areas with some primitive and mute humans, but alas, they are all hunted down by armed, clothed, horseback apes. Dodge dies, Taylor loses Landon and Taylor himself catches a throat-wound that renders him unable to speak.<br /><br />Then it's off to Zira and Cornelius, the benevolent apes and Doctor Zaius of the science council. All speak... English. Taylor eventually reveals he is able to talk, at the most dramatic moment possible, but this doesn't much improve his position. Landon is found lobotomized, whereas Dodge's stuffed body is exhibited at the museum. </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGHk0xOg5fevxqCIRPZSLwZtw_kWlrGfKE9cnopdJ-M8vR_3cS0F0RYHsglMqz77dT8noA-ZMRWzsQxGf22loiFo-8OkcWH2bSA2uXpe3TfoViQqLzD6QlR9Yn6t-yr_FX-RCGTrAzSF4AGUK4MpEhxYaSUKQHC6sQZWQ3neaZrLwTzMgUtnl39FRF/s1400/planetof.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="585" data-original-width="1400" height="268" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGHk0xOg5fevxqCIRPZSLwZtw_kWlrGfKE9cnopdJ-M8vR_3cS0F0RYHsglMqz77dT8noA-ZMRWzsQxGf22loiFo-8OkcWH2bSA2uXpe3TfoViQqLzD6QlR9Yn6t-yr_FX-RCGTrAzSF4AGUK4MpEhxYaSUKQHC6sQZWQ3neaZrLwTzMgUtnl39FRF/w640-h268/planetof.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p>This is both an inversion of human-animal relations in real world, but also a way to discuss civil rights and racial issues. All culminates in the farce of an ape tribunal. Taylor and Nova are exiled, they reach an expedition site together with Cornelius and Zira, with rumored artifacts about the planet's past. </p><p>The film ends famously at the Statue of Liberty scene. But the cave already contains some clues the race preceding apes was human. A human doll says "ma-ma".</p><p>What apparently holds the ape society together is the firm belief in the superiority of the apes, something that could be undermined if the human past was revealed. And yes, in real world the discovery of evolution was (still is) a shock for many people.<br /><br />The science-religious apes have a role in controlling what technologies are available. Zaius is well aware that flying machines would be possible, but presumably such devices would grant too much awareness. Apes have to be kept away from the Forbidden Zone, where the secrets lie.</p><p>The apes have fairly modern rifles and photography. ("Smile" is the first word heard from the apes) Otherwise the technology is not that advanced. Considering the pre-requisites for these two items alone, it makes me wonder why they have little else. </p><p><br /></p><p><b>Beneath the Planet of the Apes, 1970</b></p><p>I used to like all 1960s weirdness and camp a lot, so this was my favorite. Together with the nihilist plot, it felt hilarious all around. Now I see it's hardly comparable with the first film.<br /><br />Another set of astronauts has landed in the future, the ship is wrecked and only one of them properly survives the crash. I'm thinking there's a permanent time-door in space that connects the two times together, rather than relativity and time dilation as such.</p><p>It seems the plot was written for Heston's character Taylor, but he was not available so we see only a few moments of him. Conveniently, Brent meets Nova from the first film and via visiting the ape colony and Cornelius and Zira <i>and </i>Doctor Zaius, <i>and </i>a needless escape detour, we go underground. </p><p>Funnily, Zira thinks Brent is Taylor for a moment, because "humans look all the same". This is kind of revealing. After a visit to a New York subway station reveals to Brent it was Earth all along, damn you all to hell they finally did it, and for plot purposes he is now as good as Taylor and the story can continue.</p><p>The military-minded apes, led by Ursus the Gorilla, are intent on an expedition of conquest to the Forbidden Zone. For Zaius, this does not bode well but he accompanies the trek.</p><p>A small colony of mutated humans lives underground. They are able to discuss and instill pain through telepathy, and cast powerful illusions from afar. They pray for their god, a doomsday-tier atomic bomb from earlier days.<br /><br />The campy elements are like some of the worse Star Trek episodes. The humans are costumed in a silly way. The sermon for the bomb takes too long. I admit the removal of the masks was and still is a little chilling.</p><p>The apes violently attack the human colony, and their mind power is no match for the "primitives". Taylor (Heston) is found from the prison and he gets some screen time. Nova dies, Brent dies, Taylor dies, Ursus dies, Zaius dies, everyone dies. The film ends up with a nuclear explosion that destroys the entire Earth, Taylor pushing the final trigger. Not sure why, he seemed rather anti-nuke in the first film.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUBhIQi-mlq_xFLYPyOhIZH0wIoFtwppLHsMIbIYhwofM9fqa22L1jm1bw2nb84A164hb2siwEhQdYf_RY-ABXimrplo2wJxoaI-MEx5O4gutUYito_8tnkMDBRxN3Jwj4FdwMOS3cvYAtkjB-XE0jj9ye5f-nX5odTih8IHlqu9oNeZz8Eiwq1eJf/s1400/beneath.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="597" data-original-width="1400" height="272" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUBhIQi-mlq_xFLYPyOhIZH0wIoFtwppLHsMIbIYhwofM9fqa22L1jm1bw2nb84A164hb2siwEhQdYf_RY-ABXimrplo2wJxoaI-MEx5O4gutUYito_8tnkMDBRxN3Jwj4FdwMOS3cvYAtkjB-XE0jj9ye5f-nX5odTih8IHlqu9oNeZz8Eiwq1eJf/w640-h272/beneath.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p>This ending, trying to rival the first film, might look it could put a stopper to a potential sequels. But it didn't prevent three more films from appearing.</p><p><i>Beneath the Planet of the Apes</i> was directed by Ted Post, whose better work includes <i>Hang 'em High. </i>It made me appreciate how these films might be a result of having an already existing infrastructure and know-how to make westerns: horse riding action scenes, guns, stunts, fist-fights, established film locations for arid desert scenes. The next film isn't a pseudo-western, though.</p><p><b><br />Escape from the Planet of the Apes, 1971</b></p><p>Some accounts have placed this film as the best of the series. Best of the sequels, might be more agreeable. It is still a film that only has existence under the armpit of the original.<br /><br />Zira and Cornelius arrive to 1970s, together with Milo, a previously unseen genius ape, in a spaceship similar to what we've seen in the first two films. The whole scene with the expressions of the military personnel as the apes are revealed, is funny. It's not that incredible<span face="source-serif-pro, serif" style="font-size: 17.816px;">—</span>the implication is they might be test pilots.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbkaTX-Lv3m8CwppQAcBxiPDUtetZyft_Yqa9N6fBP6h7zkGBQrNM-JKZG03vKlUyXDJBnpj6_bwzyxLQ78OPLK7n7Z0c_apjWNOLNpehz2Rx_FVt0k7g2-2GROz2bmAuXRA2CyMtxbouctnntBBzG7ET3EDgWnZxjnAOZOLE09y1gfm7e_WIVuoAq/s1400/escapefrom.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="591" data-original-width="1400" height="270" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbkaTX-Lv3m8CwppQAcBxiPDUtetZyft_Yqa9N6fBP6h7zkGBQrNM-JKZG03vKlUyXDJBnpj6_bwzyxLQ78OPLK7n7Z0c_apjWNOLNpehz2Rx_FVt0k7g2-2GROz2bmAuXRA2CyMtxbouctnntBBzG7ET3EDgWnZxjnAOZOLE09y1gfm7e_WIVuoAq/w640-h270/escapefrom.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p>Milo dies in captivity, Zira spills the beans to the zoo vets: they are talking apes from the future.</p><p>It's not super-credible the three apes managed to get Taylor's timeship working. They also pretty much had to launch it just about Earth was about to go Boom, and "somehow" they arrived at the point of origin. </p><p>Traveling forward in time in the first film was actually rather well within science. Going backwards is a bit suspect. With the magic time-door theory it could be conceivable.</p><p>The timing of the arrival is curious. Although the first film had some elements that suggested the astronauts did not originate that far from contemporary times (of 1968) it is still little weird the US had these super-ships in early 1970s.<br /><br />Using contemporary times frees the film to explore comedy and human acting. Cornelius and Zira become public superstars, what ensues is a critique of celebrity-obsessed culture and some amusing scenes. </p><p>Zira inadvertently reveals the Earth's inevitable destruction and that humans will be experimented on by apes. Acting the Herod, the politicians choose that whereas the pair could live sterilized, the offspring must die.<br /><br />A switcheroo in a circus guarantees that the child-chimp Caesar lives, whereas Cornelius and Zira die in 1970s USA.</p><p>It might look like a clever idea: Apes didn't so much evolve during 2000 years, but the evolved apes came from the future and helped alter the genetic stock. In a way this makes things worse: Why would chimp DNA affect gorillas and orangutans? As the later films will show, the time travel did not create any new breed of apes.<br /><br />Now it is explicitly discussed how the apes of the future came to learn English, an item that was usefully ignored in the first film.<br /><br /><br /><b>Conquest of the Planet of the Apes, 1972</b></p><p>We begin with Armando (Ricardo Montalban) from the end of the last film, who has kept Caesar the talking ape hidden in his circus for 20 years. </p><p>Yes, it is 1991, and as prophesied, all pets have died and humans took chimps as pets. It just that now they have been turned into slaves. Apes are imported from various countries and trained to work as servants, doing such important duties as cleaning windows, waiting tables, sweeping streets and shining shoes. </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiB0Vd5go7zT2wAthxIGCyWbysScf4rBdmDctleBbDPOejeKlp3-GPrvD3TuatM0yaS70KkcdHkPW4nbWg2AEmYocdJyHXVEh8fzWxMk1w72uQuo4j9V7ue6UPQH6hskpLtic3PU2HphfiH7YG3hCpATQYhxwnuHNeQLtkxitR2KmQVsuKlHXyqiC0A/s1400/conquestof.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="599" data-original-width="1400" height="274" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiB0Vd5go7zT2wAthxIGCyWbysScf4rBdmDctleBbDPOejeKlp3-GPrvD3TuatM0yaS70KkcdHkPW4nbWg2AEmYocdJyHXVEh8fzWxMk1w72uQuo4j9V7ue6UPQH6hskpLtic3PU2HphfiH7YG3hCpATQYhxwnuHNeQLtkxitR2KmQVsuKlHXyqiC0A/w640-h274/conquestof.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p>I really enjoy the police state vibes in this small film, showing how the US political system has degraded. The society is apparently become dependent on the apes, yet as they have started to misbehave there is a bunch of black-clad cops and guards controlling them. Loudspeakers continuously announce ape incidents. It might be a little annoying trying enjoy your morning coffee at the streets.</p><p>The case of the talking apes must be very well remembered. Touring the city with Armando, Caesar manages to blurt out some words and the cops are fully committed to outing him. (Instead of disregarding it as an impossibility.) I'm wondering why the human society doesn't otherwise see they are fully headed for the Planet of the Apes scenario, which might be preventable by harsh actions.</p><p>Caesar has to flee, and in a roundabout way, he mixes with a bunch of newly imported apes and being so damn clever he ends up being the Governor's servant<span face="source-serif-pro, serif" style="font-size: 17.816px;">—</span>the one looking for him!</p><p>Soon he forms a resistance, where activities and resources are redirected for the benefit of an ape revolution. As Armando is killed in a mind-probe related incident, Caesar becomes genuinely vengeful.</p><p>The film neatly interpolates the human world and what eventually becomes the Planet of the Apes. There are also little visual clues and technologies that suggest a path towards the mind control society in <i>Beneath the Planet of the Apes. </i>I'd even go so far as to say I like this better than the last installment, but maybe I am a sucker for theatrics and bleak architecture. It does go slightly downhill, though.</p><p>Apart from the friendly MacDonald, the government appears to be fascist: "Torture? But we don't do that to humans?" Having basically "good guys" do these kind of decisions made Escape more nuanced. As Caesar grows more capable, he becomes more ruthless. It looks in the end there are very few heroes to root for.</p><p>The fighting in the end takes too long. Yes, it shows the first "netting" of humans by the apes. We get the point already. </p><p>Much as with the previous film, part of me is concerned with the timeline. The Planet of the Apes was 2000 years in the future. It now looks like key events leading to it actually happen in the few decades after Taylor's ship left. In fact, if Taylor had missed his ride he might have seen the rise of the apes first hand, no need to visit the year 4000.<br /><br />This does make the events more relatable, though. The mistake in <i>Beneath...</i> was to show a human society too far removed from what we know.<br /><br />We're now shown that apes were made clever through breeding and training, <i>without</i> the Cornelius+Zira genetic contribution. Importantly, we're shown Caesar's example<i> inspires</i> one of the most clever apes to say a single word.</p><p><br /></p><p><b>Battle for the Planet of the Apes, 1973</b></p><p>The film begins around about 2600, with a wise old ape recollecting things from the ancient past. Then it's off to early 2000s.</p><p>Again, some decades have passed, it's unclear how many. Caesar and his wife are around, and so is Aldo the gorilla. The brother of MacDonald from the last film is around (In absence of MacDonald's actor I suppose) and the events of <i>Conquest of the Planet of the Apes</i> are still in living memory.</p><p>But, a lot has happened. The nuclear holocaust, for instance. Much of Earth is now a radioactive wasteland, and although the remaining apes and humans have found a livable oasis, many humans also live under the nuke-melted city of New York.</p><p>Strikingly, the society is already quite close to what we saw in the first film, apes have their caste system and although humans still speak it looks they are second-class citizens here. Aldo the gorilla is the most militant of the lot, jealous of the more clever apes and the most clever leader Caesar.</p><p>Caesar becomes intrigued by the prospect of finding tapes of his parents in that city and answers to questions. So he, McDonald's-brother, and the wise orangutan Virgil do an excursion. They find the tapes and the fact Earth is destined to be destroyed in around 4000. Virgil muses that the future might not be fixed and that they could choose one "highway" from another. </p><p>The mutant city is a dangerous place, as the society there is developing towards the bomb worshiping mind-controllers of year 4000. Unable to catch the intruders, the mutants nevertheless learn of the existence of an ape colony, and in a weird act of retribution their leader wants to destroy the apetown. </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh847hK5bo7X8p5msBXmWKPkpLVydHqd2J84wdq-tyz_084r2Fdhzz_yXaHZ7V6DeQrxFsnS7G1CSwFvtmEpakUvf7TgayCtvndI00pxLy16zIlFT1G4Wqvo7GdJomLNsCl0m1OOE-680duV8Tje0f79Zel0d8NtyHJFRo0BSvsZ80K9S5OhSyfzdys/s1024/battlefor.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="429" data-original-width="1024" height="268" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh847hK5bo7X8p5msBXmWKPkpLVydHqd2J84wdq-tyz_084r2Fdhzz_yXaHZ7V6DeQrxFsnS7G1CSwFvtmEpakUvf7TgayCtvndI00pxLy16zIlFT1G4Wqvo7GdJomLNsCl0m1OOE-680duV8Tje0f79Zel0d8NtyHJFRo0BSvsZ80K9S5OhSyfzdys/w640-h268/battlefor.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p>The most interesting part of this 1973 film is how it precedes the <i>Mad Max</i> series, or perhaps its lesser imitators in the 1980s. The humans wear silly grey-black uniforms, drive crusty motorcycles, cars, jeeps and a school bus through the desert. The drab society in the dark underground city reminds me of the later <i>Escape from New York.</i> These are minor themes here, though.</p><p>The gorillas see their moment, Aldo takes control of the colony, breaks into the weapons storage, corrals all the friendly humans and sets out to destroy the opposing force.</p><p>The battle is not that impressive. Caesar plots to win the fight as non-violently as possible, but the gorilla force kills the fleeing mutants. The gorilla plot and culpability of Aldo in ape-murder ("Ape shall not kill ape") is revealed, Aldo dies and the humans are set free. But how free, ask the humans. Does the spiral of violence never end?</p><p>The bookend closes and the wise ape from 2600s is shown to be teaching a class of both human and ape children. I guess it might indicate the future took another route, and they all learned to live together. But as it's still far from year 4000 and so much could happen in a few decades, it's ambiguous.</p><p>As a film, this last installment is quite weak. As an addition to the <i>Planet of the Apes</i> lore, the story is reasonable and fills in an interesting period in the human-ape relations. The time scale becomes even more silly, as the future ape society is now nearly fully formed after 40-50 years from since Taylor left. His ship is probably about 2.5% of completing the distance to the Planet of the Apes. Bon Voyage, Taylor.</p>Tero Heikkinenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13784200871918377919noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2474445673248923379.post-90733313666818291062023-04-29T10:17:00.003+03:002023-04-29T10:17:35.118+03:00Voxicon keyboard<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSBB3yxPWlpWpgOdJ29Mzarmttm_DgkGIqwT483FKVZOntGMfPUT8K4YdDwJ-xQ6FIzbHfGMldEKLxco3QGDDNrCo17PXO_zYoRdyzFxnPy2xYvU_1V8G0sFkWSu0E3-MVnCPjSRs_fC2suXoUKXhrakgxp9FNV6d_g0SfL9ADJ-miwlflM_eRt5Yv/s1600/open.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1074" data-original-width="1600" height="430" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSBB3yxPWlpWpgOdJ29Mzarmttm_DgkGIqwT483FKVZOntGMfPUT8K4YdDwJ-xQ6FIzbHfGMldEKLxco3QGDDNrCo17PXO_zYoRdyzFxnPy2xYvU_1V8G0sFkWSu0E3-MVnCPjSRs_fC2suXoUKXhrakgxp9FNV6d_g0SfL9ADJ-miwlflM_eRt5Yv/w640-h430/open.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p>Apparently I just can't resist buying a new keyboard once in a while.</p><p>At least this one fills a different niche than usually. The Voxicon DK-199B-G is a tiny foldable Bluetooth keyboard.</p><p>Previously, my on-the-go keyboard has been a battery powered Apple Mini keyboard. Although it feels fine, I was looking for something even more portable. Also, as a battery hog it was necessary to remove the batteries when not in use.</p><p>Well, less about the Mini and more about the Voxicon. Three Bluetooth channels, dozens of hours of battery life promised. The charging is done with the included Micro-USB cable, which is getting a little old-fashioned.</p><p>Folded, the dimensions are 202mm x 47mm x 16mm. A magnet keeps it together. It's almost conceivable the keyboard could be carried in an inside breast pocket.</p><p>Opened, the keyboard is 202mm x 90mm x 15mm, depending on whether the screen stand is folded out. The separate parts of the keyboard are connected with a ribbon cable, I can only hope it is sturdy enough.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbyie_tetKTA-yErtZ70nfdzcS-NI0xSwSzeKujZLTJxIEXoRvc9XHHDUxGd_umERCY1nhlmmv6rBKyiOPLLY3P0C7o06ZDsMpisSpwfZyKgQ1KcwAZjpNLyx2Mp-vbBtTULdylCjHQr3dvZ3bMcPkrgp7wVlCk1dOEETgsOoMBdWLfRWJKP9a4R8d/s1600/cover.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="901" data-original-width="1600" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbyie_tetKTA-yErtZ70nfdzcS-NI0xSwSzeKujZLTJxIEXoRvc9XHHDUxGd_umERCY1nhlmmv6rBKyiOPLLY3P0C7o06ZDsMpisSpwfZyKgQ1KcwAZjpNLyx2Mp-vbBtTULdylCjHQr3dvZ3bMcPkrgp7wVlCk1dOEETgsOoMBdWLfRWJKP9a4R8d/w640-h360/cover.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p>I first tried typing with Google Docs and a version of Sublime Text on Android. The experience on overall was passable.</p><p>The keys itself have a quite good, crisp, tactile feel to them, not the usual cheap BT/IR keyboard mushiness.</p><p>The smooth bottom means a cloth or rubbery surface could be desirable.</p><p>There's a little bit of rise to the keys, too, something often forgotten from even larger mini keyboards.</p><p>I have to admit my hands are somewhat too large for this, but the final verdict will have to wait as I haven't written that much with it yet.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhA52zGLdw2juLjPP-GtHnZK48VDLkzHILUyyVw1Y4PUOwTxhfadRYVerU6Nbwt2pwEEv_PTwqb4Z4WZWSGqtQK2EZRMN1I4d68XsAUOYoWRkGcsj-jWmHP1ZoOwv58bJ-Akj1WZZtMGnOM2qTTROhPjAFNh3YCAGfBajWYoJzb4UeAyxWVhwB5DIjg/s1600/standi.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1153" data-original-width="1600" height="462" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhA52zGLdw2juLjPP-GtHnZK48VDLkzHILUyyVw1Y4PUOwTxhfadRYVerU6Nbwt2pwEEv_PTwqb4Z4WZWSGqtQK2EZRMN1I4d68XsAUOYoWRkGcsj-jWmHP1ZoOwv58bJ-Akj1WZZtMGnOM2qTTROhPjAFNh3YCAGfBajWYoJzb4UeAyxWVhwB5DIjg/w640-h462/standi.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p>There are the usual woes of a compromised keyboard, many common symbols are in different places. Although backspace is technically in the correct place, it's at a cramped corner and not above the Enter key, because of the Enter shape. </p><p>The design is such that the stand "flaps" should be opened to give more room for fingers at the top row. The flaps are removable, though, with what looks like three very tiny Torx screws. But I'm not going to mutilate this keyboard yet.<br /><br />Some common symbols might need more key presses than usual. Home/End/Page Up and Page Down are reasonably accessible from fn+cursor keys, and Scandinavian keys are at least direct keys even if a little weirdly placed.</p><p>As mentioned, the keyboard includes a stand for phone/tablet, and it is simple to use. For added coolness factor I prefer to have a separate stand for the phone. The separate stand is more pleasant to use with a tiny screen as it can be positioned better.</p><p>The built-in stand might make more sense with a tablet, to give that pseudo-laptop feel and your gaze can be a little higher.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTesgrahU-o_wiWb6iZjS6DMSCv0sU99BmZHIp5JB1sMXgewtkdygln_kiyfs-Vq2pO3mi_epWzjjcQE-76TCdAatGTkiK5sy6uAD1KwctNghp5I6FVBcnqDazs9Qa6xH1WksAMRcmt_gjX5iJuVXnBYJDo5BTntB5kn9GwiJKfafPzOOq7pMHNrbA/s1600/cyberpunk.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1035" data-original-width="1600" height="414" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTesgrahU-o_wiWb6iZjS6DMSCv0sU99BmZHIp5JB1sMXgewtkdygln_kiyfs-Vq2pO3mi_epWzjjcQE-76TCdAatGTkiK5sy6uAD1KwctNghp5I6FVBcnqDazs9Qa6xH1WksAMRcmt_gjX5iJuVXnBYJDo5BTntB5kn9GwiJKfafPzOOq7pMHNrbA/w640-h414/cyberpunk.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p>For the occasional urge to make notes or an e-mail on a phone, I can justify this better than the Apple Mini keyboard. Certainly the Mini is better for typing, but this micro-keyboard has some advantages and I'll try carrying this around instead. It's light years better than the <a href="https://oldmachinery.blogspot.com/2014/04/you-get-what-you-pay-for.html">atrocity</a> I once covered in my blog.</p>Tero Heikkinenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13784200871918377919noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2474445673248923379.post-87634106043006266662023-04-05T12:48:00.004+03:002023-04-09T12:00:11.418+03:00Chess cheatsheet?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-CqvLT66ztQI/YC4_sQ7IxsI/AAAAAAAAEik/MaBJ8IY3MLIPiX4vQCsfZXS2NNApNI5AgCLcBGAsYHQ/s1910/blogpost.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="918" data-original-width="1910" height="308" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-CqvLT66ztQI/YC4_sQ7IxsI/AAAAAAAAEik/MaBJ8IY3MLIPiX4vQCsfZXS2NNApNI5AgCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h308/blogpost.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div>I have been playing online chess on and off for a few years now, with the occasional over-the-board game thrown in.</div><div><br /></div>At the beginning, I tried to collect material for a potential "chess cheatsheet" or memory aid. The resulting text has many layers from different times. Some of this seems silly now but I'll make it online anyway. <br />
<br />
I've not kept a good track of where I have picked up a particular advice. I have read books from Gideon Ståhlberg, Fred Reinfeld's <i>The Complete Chess Player</i>, and a few glances at Max Euwe and Keres & Kotov and other books. Plus whatever I found on the internet at that time.<br /><br />
More recent theory I found from Ristoja & Ristoja's chess books from the 1980s and I've had a brief look at 2000s theory from Mika Karttunen. Turns out many things that were still considered iron rules in 1960s books are already in the 1980s considered far less imperative: a chess position is now considered as a dynamic situation.<br />
<br /><div><div>Apart from what I may have read as a kid, my recent starting point for chess theory was not from a chess book. Instead it came from Dreyfus and Dreyfus' book <i>Mind over machine: The power of human intuition and expertise in the era of the computer </i>from 1986, a critique of artificial intelligence which uses chess as one of the examples. </div><div><br /></div><div>The skill model is somewhat suspect but it is great food for thought. Briefly put, the authors identified skill "levels". Whereas beginners cling to formal rules, masters of a skill are often unable to explain their skill and their moves. A chess master accesses the repertoire of knowledge almost as people would recognize faces.</div><div><br /></div><div>I initially made the wrong conclusion from this skill model: that to become good you just "wing it" and play "intuitively".</div><div><br /></div><div>On the contrary, the takeaway should have been that I'm a beginner and there's nothing wrong about looking for rules and principles first, and then eventually integrating this to a more daring, intuitive play. Eat the humble pie.</div><div><br />Still, I've liked the idea that theory can be the end result rather than a starting point. This is another simplification, but often what you find in books is a summation gained from a long career, an insight that resulted from a huge amount of playing and perhaps teaching chess. The <i>road</i> to this expertise is often forgotten, and hence we still have books that first show how the horsie moves and then goes straight into the subtleties of a variation of a Sicilian opening.</div><div><br /></div><div>
Put differently: it's often that a theory is helpful only after you have some grasp of the problem area for yourself. For example, instead of trying to memorize an opening, let the openings "come to you" through playing huge amounts of games and then take a look at how a common opening might be played.<br /><br />After the initial rush to books, playing a lot of puzzles and gaining playing hours were the most important thing for improving. Chess skill advances as any skill does, a combination of playing a lot, doing exercises and acquiring some "theory" and perhaps some goal-setting suitable for one's skill level.<br /><br />"Exercises" might mean playing huge amounts of puzzles or concentrating on some particular opening or game style, or attempt at an analysis. Also, fast games <i>might </i>be exercises for slower games, and vice versa.<div><br /></div><div>Simplest theory are absolute things like possible endgame checkmates. Despite being "simple" there's a lot of this and it can be hard to remember on the spot or under time pressure.<div><br /></div><div>Openings are also quite well understood and measured, but again this doesn't mean that knowing a bunch of opening moves will help a new player much. More about this later.<br /><br />The middlegame is the ground for the most vaguest theory. There are just too many potential situations and patterns to be identified and addressed to make into iron rules.</div></div><div><br /></div>
Well, anyway, here's the stuff:<br />
<br />
<br />
<b>Piece movement (very early notes)</b><br />
<b><br /></b>
Pieces can be visualized as both the piece and the area it threatens. Rooks and Bishops form perpendicular and diagonal crosses. A Queen forms both.<br />
<br />
In addition to the 8 directions, it may help to see the Queen as carrying a star-shaped zone. This is useful when forming certain types of checkmates.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-dm22i3PtKv0/XFvv2SLHMxI/AAAAAAAADOk/Af9dGRTIWs0CieoqlUEuPvlNeR962XnjwCLcBGAs/s1600/kungutar_bishop.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="482" data-original-width="483" height="398" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-dm22i3PtKv0/XFvv2SLHMxI/AAAAAAAADOk/Af9dGRTIWs0CieoqlUEuPvlNeR962XnjwCLcBGAs/s400/kungutar_bishop.png" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
Furthermore, the pieces can be thought to "paint" the threat areas they can reach through one move, creating a sort of secondary zone of motion/threat.<br />
<br />This way it would be already possible to see moves ahead without having to logically examine the repercussions of every possible move as in a decision tree.</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-n5gL9IW1yLU/YDNvcgehwYI/AAAAAAAAEj0/iA-Z4oFMvg4eoYXPmx09vAFlbwnsWdcAQCLcBGAsYHQ/s733/bishoppaint_lite.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="733" data-original-width="723" height="400" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-n5gL9IW1yLU/YDNvcgehwYI/AAAAAAAAEj0/iA-Z4oFMvg4eoYXPmx09vAFlbwnsWdcAQCLcBGAsYHQ/w395-h400/bishoppaint_lite.png" width="395" /></a></div><br /><div>This is more like an at-a-glance assessment of the zones threatened or defended by your or your opponent's pieces.</div><div><br /></div><div>The knight is not really a special case, but it certainly feels like it is. This may be because it requires a little more complex visualization than above.</div><div><br /></div><div>For example, finding safe space around the knight:</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-6SVZ2znJaos/YDNwr7F8MhI/AAAAAAAAEj8/i5Xtr62nv1g-Q_HV4hbUHkmkWqTidQXXQCLcBGAsYHQ/s582/knight_threats.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="578" data-original-width="582" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-6SVZ2znJaos/YDNwr7F8MhI/AAAAAAAAEj8/i5Xtr62nv1g-Q_HV4hbUHkmkWqTidQXXQCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/knight_threats.png" width="320" /></a></div><div>
<br /><br />The above shows the squares the knight could threaten after 1 move (circled squares). I felt like highlighting the "more safe" squares: these are squares the knight can't threaten even in 2 moves. (There's one more, in the corner where the black king is)</div><div><br /></div><div>
It's easy remember that putting pieces next to the knight makes them safe from it, this alone can be helpful in a fast endgame where forks need to be avoided.<br /><br />
Instead of the one-step, two-step motion, or "L shape", the knight may be better visualized as series of 2,1 or 1,2 "vectors".<br />
<br />
Other pieces may be visualized with the knight zone around them, to help assess how to reach that piece (often avoiding a fork). "Safe" locations are at (2,2), (3,2) and (3,0) relative to the knight, and these are also quite easy to visualize as a box.<br />
<br />Just as an example, analyzing some of the "Knight laws". A lot of this is re-stating the same thing in different ways.<br />
<ul>
<li>The knight always threatens squares of other colors than the square it is in.</li>
<li>Pieces on different colored squares cannot be directly forked by the knight.</li>
<li>If the knight moves, it will never threaten any of the same squares as previously.</li>
<li>If the knight moves, it will threaten the square it was in.</li>
<li>The knight takes 2 moves to threaten a directly adjacent square (not diagonally adjacent)</li>
<li>After moving the knight, a square it might threaten, can often (but not always) be threatened from an alternative square .</li>
<li>The knight threatens less squares from edge/corner, and is more susceptible to imprisonment there. Still, good ideas based on a knight at the edge ought not be dismissed.</li>
</ul>
<div>
Conversely:</div>
<div>
<ul>
<li>To avoid being threatened by a knight, a piece can be positioned next to it.</li>
<li>Other easy to visualize safe spots are ±2,2 ±3,2 and ±3,0 locations relative to the knight.</li>
<li>Be mindful of positioning pieces in ±0,2 ±2,0 ±0,4 ±4,0 relation to the knight.</li>
<li>To avoid getting forked, pieces may be put to different-colored squares.</li>
<li>A bishop can quite effectively limit knight motion from the ±3,0 and ±0,3</li>
</ul>
</div>
<div>Would it be nice if all these thoughts could be integrated in visualizing a knight, obviously the checklist is too long to to go through consciously every time you look at a piece.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
And it can still get tough to avoid those damn knight forks.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Another idea I've toyed with is that pieces like the Bishops and Knights exist in another "space" within the board.<br />
<br />
Looking the chessboard naively, it is a horizontal-vertical "rook-space", but for the Knight it opens up differently:</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-HijiPDqEQ48/XFvw7kGEr2I/AAAAAAAADO0/qoRM5csS5J8grioKpYD1hgzvMJfBiNCgQCLcBGAs/s1600/dimension2.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="786" data-original-width="796" height="315" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-HijiPDqEQ48/XFvw7kGEr2I/AAAAAAAADO0/qoRM5csS5J8grioKpYD1hgzvMJfBiNCgQCLcBGAs/s320/dimension2.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A slice of knight's "space" within the board.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div>
<br /></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-AZPaw7AU6k0/XFvwGqmrGcI/AAAAAAAADOs/XGosofqynh0Sv4M_JpgNeJHTU86CIBvNQCLcBGAs/s1600/dimension1.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="786" data-original-width="796" height="315" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-AZPaw7AU6k0/XFvwGqmrGcI/AAAAAAAADOs/XGosofqynh0Sv4M_JpgNeJHTU86CIBvNQCLcBGAs/s320/dimension1.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Another slice of Knight's "space" within the board.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br /><br />Later note: There's not much support for this kind of visualization in any of the books I've read, and I'm unsure about it myself. I felt it was interesting at the start, but truth be told much of this thinking isn't active during the games. It more likely develops through playing a huge amount of games and puzzles.</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEh808X_bmcmPlo-vVMWw8niHh5kes2csvk3SekaFpuaA_xkDFTbFNaisemFkNT_zoawSQU7A8vZf7EEuJ1ouv8owSAcMKxE91hRSY-iJGQC1likSxykBpd6_RDtkwrA1jdfXpRCFhQOfnZcTFB5qoKZ-S6rGhaBBrXIwo3uR87IubQVXlldS6T0CMXo=s656" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="656" data-original-width="656" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEh808X_bmcmPlo-vVMWw8niHh5kes2csvk3SekaFpuaA_xkDFTbFNaisemFkNT_zoawSQU7A8vZf7EEuJ1ouv8owSAcMKxE91hRSY-iJGQC1likSxykBpd6_RDtkwrA1jdfXpRCFhQOfnZcTFB5qoKZ-S6rGhaBBrXIwo3uR87IubQVXlldS6T0CMXo=s320" width="320" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div>
<br />
<br />
<b>Openings:</b><br />
<br />
There was a phase when I tried to learn some interesting-sounding openings by heart, but it turned out to be not too helpful. Again, I now think it is better to remember openings through playing a lot of games while sticking to as few openings as possible.<br /><br /></div><div>But, even if I always wanted to play e4 with the intent of playing Spanish/Ruy Lopez, there are various reasons why I am not allowed do that. Obviously I might be playing black and the opponent begins with d4.</div><div><br /></div><div>But even when playing white, I could come against a number of openings, such as Sicilian, French, etc. This means that learning at least something about bunch of openings is needed. An alternative might be to stick to a less volatile opening such as the London system, but even then you can't choose to play it as black.<br />
<br /><i>2023 note: I stick to e4 with white, and study the more likely openings that result from this choice. Black responses to different white openings need to be studied also.</i></div><div><i><br /></i>
At <i>Lichess</i> low level online blitz games, I soon started to recognize Italian Game and the Parham Attack and the blatant traps inherent in them. After this it becomes a good idea to find out the good moves for responding to these routine threats and building up a better defense.<br />
<br />
I've come across an idea that beginners do not benefit from knowing named openings all that much. Any advantage gained from a correctly memorized but poorly understood opening may melt easily after a few moves anyway. Knowing that Sicilian is the best black response at master level, might lead to a poor play for the beginner player.</div><div><br /></div><div>Perhaps knowing the openings is initially more about understanding what the opponent is trying to do, and what traps might be around the corner.<br /></div><div><br /></div><div><i>Development</i>, simplified, is to move the pieces out of the king's row. (Pieces=not pawns) Development can be considered complete when bishops and knights are out and castling has been performed.</div><div><i><br /></i>Instead of learning openings by rote, rules of thumb may be useful for improving the opening:<br />
<br />
From Reinfeld:<br />
<br />
Primary idea:<br />
<ul>
<li>Create viable attack positions through acquiring <i>control over center</i></li>
<li>Ensure defense and protection of all forward-moving pieces</li>
</ul>
Alternatively,<br />
<ul>
<li>Refrain from defining the pawn lines too early</li>
<li>Refrain from castling too early</li>
</ul>This is an approach that enables you to change your plan later as a reaction to the opponent's moves. I've felt these are rather abstract ideas for the beginner, though.<br />
<br />
Pitfalls:<br />
<ul>
<li>Immediate holes in defense</li>
<li>Inconsistent approach (?)</li>
<li>Too much time spent in achieving a specific tactical idea (=lost tempo)</li>
</ul>
Notes from Nimzowitsch's ideas about opening for beginners (which is not the same as his <i>system</i>):<br />
<ul style="text-align: left;">
<li>Develop "All", ideally by moving pieces (non-pawns) only once.</li>
<li>Pawn moves are not development, ideally only 1-2 pawn moves in an opening.</li><ul><li>Pawnless advance does not work either</li></ul><li>Formula: Developed Pieces = Tempo.</li>
<li>Compound moves. Moves that both develop and force opponents to waste moves. ("Don't just develop, develop and threat!")</li>
<li>In a closed game (d-game) the development may be slower and with more pawn movements.</li>
<li>Flank pawns are a waste of time <i>in an open game</i> (e-game) </li>
<li>Never play to win pawns when development is unfinished (exceptions...)</li>
<li>Center pawn should always be taken if not too dangerous.</li>
<li>Exchanges and gain of tempo, these are related.</li>
<ul>
<li>It is a mistake to move a piece several times to exchange it for a non-moved piece.</li>
</ul>
<li>Liquidation = "radical" exchanges that relieve tension in the center (if necessary).</li>
</ul>
Again, I can hardly say I've internalized much of this.<br />
<br />
Some other ideas to observe during the opening:<br />
<ul style="text-align: left;">
<li>Don't move the queen early on unless it's really called for (traps, regaining a pawn)</li>
<li>Be wary of moving the f-pawn at the very beginning (not often compatible with kingside castling, may also block the knight)</li>
<li>Knights before bishops, but also be wary of blocking your bishops.</li>
<li>Observe the potential threat from bishop to h2 (h7) pawn and devise the castling accordingly.</li>
<li>Likewise, see if the Greek Gift can be realized against the enemy King-side fort.</li>
<li>Possibilities for variations of the Fried Liver attack or other types of knight/bishop double attacks, but it's almost never worth it to lose both just to gain a rook and a pawn.</li><ul><li><i>2023: I almost never look into "Fried Liver"</i></li></ul>
<li>Possibility of removing opponent castling through queen exchange</li><ul><li>However, without queens the castling is not that meaningful</li></ul>
<li>Preventing or postponing the opponent from castling</li>
</ul>
Some of these are flexible depending on the situation. Otherwise the opening would become too predictable. Reinfeld says that some quirkiness can be helpful. Possibly, two players playing an opening "correctly" are really doing a disservice to each other.<br /><br />
Especially older books sometimes suggest playing a lot of e4-games before moving to d4 games. Not sure why, but to me it's seemed that a Ruy Lopez, although very deep, results in a more "normal" chess than other openings.<br />
<br />
The "control of the center" seems like an obvious idea but at least to me it is a difficult concept to grasp. It's easy enough to observe the opening pawn exchanges and the building tension around them, and it is clearly a bid to control the center. But what is to control the center? Having a bunch of your own pieces cluttering the center and blocking the diagonals is often not that helpful.<br /><br />But I've seen that if the opponent has a well protected pawn or two at the center, and you don't, this often spells disaster. Similarly, if the center is empty, a vicious bishop-pair can decide the game. </div><div><br /></div><div>
<br />
<b>Middlegame:</b><br />
<br />
I have little to say about middlegame. Tactics still seem to dominate this area, together with spotting opportunities, either plain unprotected material, weakly positioned pieces or overburdened defense. These are what Reinfeld calls "landmarks", a motive for planning forward. </div><div><br /></div><div>Steinitz said: The player with the advantage, MUST attack when the opportunity comes, it is an imperative. Attack towards the weakest side, the weakest position.<br />
<br />
Current theory sees that these kind of "iron rules" are never too absolute. They might be considered as material for learning and reflection. (The advantage may be other than simply material.)<br />
<br class="Apple-interchange-newline" />
Keres & Kotov felt games can be characterized by castling-sides but also the openness or closedness of the center. This would give, roughly, a matrix of 12 "game variants" if non-castling is considered. Other literature has simply suggested a division between open and closed games.</div><div><br /></div><div>True or not, there are definite ideas related opposite side castling. A pawn advance can be attempted on the opponent's kingside, as Keres & Kotov suggest. "Who has the initiative, wins!" Pieces in the way of advance can be threatened. A fianchetto/g pawn can become a weakness in the kingside. The defender should beware of moving pawns at the side under attack.</div><div><div><br />
Later note: The pawn advance isn't an end in itself, the point is to open a line on the opponent's castled side.</div><div><br /></div><div>Bishop/knight exchanges should not be done without reason. Is the board more advantageous for bishop or knight play? (Your's or opponent's) What happens to the opponent pawn structure as a result of the exchange? Seemingly innocent exchange might result in an open line for a rook.</div><div><br class="Apple-interchange-newline" />At one point, playing an enormous amount of puzzles improved my middlegame tactics quite a lot. Recently, playing "puzzle storm" at Lichess was also helpful at activating the eyes and the brain to recognize opportunities and what to do with them.<br />
<br /><i>2023: Puzzles helped greatly in recognizing tactical opportunities, but they don't help much in creating the opportunities in the first place.</i></div><div><i><br /></i>"Planning" largely comes into play here, but this is still a grey area to me.</div><div><br />
<br />
<b>Tactics</b><br />
<br />
<div>
Tactical moves: Euwe says tactics is the point where you really need to plan moves "ahead" and consider alternatives. In this light Chess is <i>not</i> constantly about envisioning very long decision trees, but only when needed. Perhaps one reason for opening theory is not to burden the brain too much at that point of game.<br />
<br /></div>
<div>
Positional play: "when there are no tactics to play"</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
Put more pressure on already threatened squares. Are there subtle ways to improve rank and position? Defend undefended pieces or increase the defense of weakly defended squares.</div><div><br /></div><div>
Prepare for lines to open. Rooks are placed to an open line, or to defend a<b> </b>passed pawn. Look for possibilities to place rooks on the "7th row absolute". (No moves should not be made in isolation of what the opponent is doing.)<br />
<div>
<br class="Apple-interchange-newline" />
Pawn structure becomes especially important in the endgame. Envision the endgame pawn situation already in the middlegame.<br />
<br /></div>
<div>
Euwe suggests (and I'm expanding what is really a side note in the text) that Chess is about translating advantages to others. No one player can have all advantages at the same time, but only some for some of the time. These may need translating into what the situation requires.<br />
<br />
Some examples of advantages Euwe mentions: Material, Rank, Mobility, Spatial advantage, Sustained pawn formation, Safe position for the king, Tempo, Initiative of attack, Knight on a strong square, Bishop pair...<br />
<br />Exaggerating Euwe's ideas, the situation in a Chess game might be seen like this:<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-6Ey93UApYAM/Wyju4np1UDI/AAAAAAAAC4o/jOs8BnhVae8sTWyNv3qiQ3UrDpaSFsNqACLcBGAs/s1600/Euwe.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="348" data-original-width="503" height="276" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-6Ey93UApYAM/Wyju4np1UDI/AAAAAAAAC4o/jOs8BnhVae8sTWyNv3qiQ3UrDpaSFsNqACLcBGAs/s400/Euwe.png" width="400" /></a></div>
These are just examples of opportunities of exchanging one thing for another. Sometimes, in beginner games a really fast attack might bring rewards, but when it fails, it often marks a turning point and the attacker loses. Almost everything else was exchanged in order to make that one attack possible. </div><div><br /></div><div>Leaving out defense and castling may help create an impressive-looking attack, but unless it is motivated by a provable future advantage or victory, it shouldn't be done.</div><div><br /></div><div>Others that come to mind are Rook controlling the "7th row absolute", disadvantages might be "bad bishop" or overall "bad squares". Loose pieces, loose pawns, overburdened defense etc. should be interpreted more as Fred Reinfeld's "landmarks" or as disadvantages.<br />
<br class="Apple-interchange-newline" />
Controlled center and a bishop pair is apparently a good combination. A bishop pair without the center may not be such a superior strategic advantage. Be mindful of especially queen/bishops positioning directing towards/through center.<br />
<br />
Of course, overall material value of pieces is still a good indicator of your standing, but an immobile piece is a non-piece <i>at that point of time.</i> Other issues can subtly undermine your pieces' apparent material value. </div><div><br /></div><div>
The most concrete idea that results from this reading is the function of sacrificing a piece. Although the best goal is a certain checkmate, a sacrifice could have the following immediate (multiple) effects:<br />
<ul>
<li>Forcing desirable opponent moves</li>
<li>Breaking the opponent's pawn line (and/or creating double pawns)</li>
<li>Opening a beneficial line, rank or diagonal for yourself</li>
<li>Creating disadvantageous squares (color, or otherwise)</li>
<li>Removing a blockade whereas creating one for the opponent</li>
<li>Removing opponent's bishop pair</li>
<li>Preventing opponent from castling</li>
<li>Breaking the castling</li>
</ul>
Euwe also makes the important point that the advantage is often temporary, and can become lost very quickly. Consider again a sacrifice that leads to a position that looks like it <i>could</i> lead to a checkmate, but does not. The sacrifice was for nothing. Of course, a 100% certain path towards a checkmate obviously justifies any kind of sacrifice or loss of other advantages.<br />
<br />
To summarize, a sacrifice is not only made just to be able to win a more valuable enemy piece a few moves ahead, but different advantages can be "bought" or "borrowed" with it.<br />
<br />
Vice versa, be very doubtful of something that looks like an offered piece.<br />
<div><br /></div><div>For the beginner the problem is to recognize these advantages in the first place. So, for a long time I suppose the material advantage remains the most identifiable.</div><div><br class="Apple-interchange-newline" />Later reflection: This Euwe idea made originally a big impression on me, as if some revelation about Chess had been opened up. I now have to accept it hasn't made a huge impact on how I play. Perhaps the biggest takeaway is that although good advice and rules exist for strategically and tactically sound game, at a given moment "you can't do everything". You often have to disregard some aspect in order to gain initiative or tempo, and pay the price later. If you don't, your opponent might.</div><div><br /></div><div>2023:<i> Recognizing other advantages than material, is more important at first. The "insight" that these can be exchanged or sacrificed to gain others, isn't that useful without this cognition. And it would be nice to find moves that "do everything" or at least many things at once.</i></div><div>
<b><br /></b>
<b><br class="Apple-interchange-newline" />Thoughts on "strategy"</b><br />
<br />
Most initial learning seems to concern tactics. I can't say I understand strategy much as yet.</div><div><br /></div><div>I come again back to <i>Mind over Machine.</i></div><div><div><blockquote>"While [computers] are perfect tacticians [...] computers lack any sense of chess strategy. Fairly good players who understand that fact can direct the game into long-range strategic channels [...]" (Dreyfus and Dreyfus, 1986, 113.)</blockquote></div></div><div>
This, at a time when computers were not especially good at chess. E.g. if a computer has a horizon of 4 moves ahead, it might miss a simple idea about promoting a pawn that even a beginner could see. The point is that strategy obviously is something that goes beyond the scope of the next few moves.</div><div><br />The chess literature isn't always that clear what kind of thinking belongs to strategy. To some, topics such as weak/strong squares and pawn structure is already a strategy topic rather than tactics. "Improving position in piecemeal fashion" would then be strategy.<br /><br /></div><div>Discussions on pawn structure are difficult to follow, and admittedly boring compared to tactics. As a basic rule, consistent chains are better than pawn lines with holes. In the past, doubled pawns were considered undesirable, but chess theory nowadays sees them as potentially weak or strong depending on the situation.</div><div><br class="Apple-interchange-newline" />As a beginner, I easily disregarded pawns. Promotion was something of a happy accident rather than a design. This also meant if my opening resulted in a loss of few pawns, I was okay with it. Now I am paying more attention to pawns and I also see a lot of the openings build-up around pawns and threatening and defending them. Later in the game, planning might be based on simply eroding the opponent's pawns before endgame.</div><div><br /></div><div>This just to show that the player learns to see more than what is immediately apparent on the board, so eventually the player perhaps begins to recognize strategic patterns rather than just positions with opportunities. Literature might discuss "latent energy" or "tension", where I can see nothing but the board and the pieces.</div><div><br /></div><div>"Strategic choice should be ideally non-obvious to the other player."<br /><div><br />
More recent theory does not recommend having one major plan, but shift it according to how the game develops, dynamically. To me this makes the notion of a "plan" strange, but clearly it's not a healthy sign if you find yourself moving pieces aimlessly.<br /></div><div><br /></div>
<div>
"I could checkmate only if<i> this</i> and <i>that</i> piece was <i>here </i>and if this and that opponent piece was removed" seems to me like an indicator of a premature checkmate plan. Instead, improve position and look for the opportunity to improve the checkmate idea or develop another one.</div>
<div><br /></div><div>
2023: <i>Seeing a germ of a plan in this way, is actually a positive thing. Just try to find out what needs to be done.</i></div><div><br />
Again I'm reminded of Fred Reinfeld's "landmarks", which experienced chess players learn to see at a glance:<br />
<ul>
<li>Loose pieces suggest forks.</li>
<li>Loose pawns are a weak spot.</li>
<li>Overburdened defense is a weakness.</li>
</ul>
</div>
If the opponent's castle is very strong it may not make sense to have a direct checkmate plan at all. Instead erode the enemy pieces and ensure there are pawns for promotion in the endgame or a clear superiority of material. <i>Pawns at the non-castling side are an advantage. "</i>This is a war of attrition."<br />
<br />Ståhlberg: In master-level play, the one who loses a pawn with no gained advantage, will lose the game.<br /><br />
Ristoja: (paraphrasing only slightly): <i>Only the beginner aims to checkmate.</i> The mature chess player plays the opening to have a good middlegame, then plays the middlegame to have a good endgame. The threat of a mate is often a more important tool than a premature attempt to win.<br />
<br />
Reinfeld also says: the player who is ahead materially, seeks to exchange Queens, to simplify the game. The one who is behind, relies on creating confusion, traps and complications.<br />
<br />Karttunen: (again, paraphrasing) After exchanging queens, the castles are not quite as meaningful. The kings might even be better at the center after the exchange has happened. The player whose castle is broken or about to be broken, might want to seek to exchange queens, despite everything else.<br />
<br /></div>
(Exchange of queens may be more desirable for the one who has the king in the center, as removing the queen reduces the checkmate options for the centered king.)<br />
<br />
<br />
<b>Endgame:</b><br />
<br />
The endgame with very few pieces becomes again a terrain for more discrete knowledge, such as whether and how to checkmates with certain combinations of pieces. <br />
<br />I will not list checkmate patterns and piece combinations for the endgame, however they simply need to be known as the more sophisticated games are usually decided here. When the clock is running out, it would be better to have a good grasp of how to checkmate quickly with a queen or a rook without stalemating.</div><div><br /></div><div>The term <i>opposition</i> should become familiar when dissecting pawn endings.</div><div><br />This advice is more about the point of transition from mid-game to endgame:<br />
<ul>
<li>Pawns, preferably on non-castled side are useful (already the threat of promotion is a powerful tool)</li>
<li>Two bishops are often more valuable than two knights or knight+bishop</li>
<li>Two rooks can be more valuable than a queen</li>
<li>Queen endgame: one pawn advantage is not enough. A strong, free pawn is needed.</li><li>Visualize the <i>pawn square rule</i> for promotion</li></ul>
<br />
<br />
<b>Random notes</b><br />
<br />
"When threatened, find the best way to do nothing"<br />
<br />
If the castle seems to hold, why alter it? Use the tempo to develop an attack instead.<br />
<br />
The most important rule is... "YOU BELONG HERE!"<br />
<br /></div>
</div></div></div>Tero Heikkinenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13784200871918377919noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2474445673248923379.post-8160362171722960592023-03-20T10:24:00.006+02:002023-03-20T10:25:47.004+02:00George Dyson: Turing's Cathedral<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTpaFry1EQhO8I5xGLqlRjss36bVRAjDeD9mkdtYq5aGFmv1k_SjLT9zd06EvClRPfrf4j6vkIVoASevIIiiKgJUcPPQm3_QyJjjK10ZDwF1NQk1MndUyvWhr2e3tlNCjq_Pt9d9wgIamF0axCk4et0IcYl3QeRCf9wJ832g-qQ9Q37fubDgBk5kaY/s1024/turings.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="602" data-original-width="1024" height="376" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTpaFry1EQhO8I5xGLqlRjss36bVRAjDeD9mkdtYq5aGFmv1k_SjLT9zd06EvClRPfrf4j6vkIVoASevIIiiKgJUcPPQm3_QyJjjK10ZDwF1NQk1MndUyvWhr2e3tlNCjq_Pt9d9wgIamF0axCk4et0IcYl3QeRCf9wJ832g-qQ9Q37fubDgBk5kaY/w640-h376/turings.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p><i>Turing's Cathedral: The Origins of the Digital Universe</i> from 2012 begins at an unlikely point in history, of William Penn and the US revolutionary war. The narrative choice leads eventually to the Olden Farm, Princeton, where the Institute of Advanced Study (IAS) would be established.</p><p>This historical prelude also leads the author to compare the explosion of the computing capacity to that of a nuclear reaction—both significant "revolutions" for the 20th century, their histories intertwined.</p><p>The book from George (Son-of-Freeman) Dyson is already much heavier than some of those "airport books" I've recently read, but it's still not exceedingly academic.</p><p>The IAS era becomes repeatedly sectioned from the angles of different personalities and computational topics, and the invention of ENIAC and EDVAC. The scale of the narrative at times focuses on details of a chosen vacuum tube solution, at other times expanding to the connections and conflicts between personalities and faculties.</p><p>Some of the heavy-hitters here are John Von Neumann, Alan Turing, Stanislaw Ulam, Nils Barricelli, Norbert Wiener, Julian Bigelow... Women feature less, but at least Klára Von Neumann gets credit for being one of the "first coders", and not uninformed of the code's substance either.</p><p>An image emerges of a nascent digital world. A time when people with experience of using actual digital electronic computers could still be counted in dozens. A bunch of intellectuals gravitated to the topic, their thoughts projecting far ahead of what the computers could actually do.<br /><br /></p><p><b>Computers at War</b></p><p>It is not new to say that war was related to computation in many ways. But it is interesting to read in more detail about the people involved and how the first computers connected to these tasks.</p><p>Automated computational approaches were needed for many brute force-calculations, such as firing tables, the nuclear fusion and its optimization, and the development of thermonuclear bombs. Cybernetics arose from the problem of how to predict the airplane motions from the perspective of air defense.</p><p>To some extent the topic of weather prediction also connects to war and the choice of the moment of attack. The initial successes led to optimism about predicting weather for longer timescales and to use the knowledge for large-scale weather control. Other themes followed the same pattern: thinking machines, machine life, self-replicating machines, all seemed to portend even more radical changes to human life, all just around the corner.</p><p>Clashes emerged from the pure mathematicians' and logicians' attitudes towards engineering sciences and practical problems, which the real tubes-and-steel computers concretely represented. Despite, or because of, these difficulties, a sort of "golden age" of computers took place at the IAS during the war.</p><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><p style="text-align: left;">“The war had scrambled the origins of new inventions as completely as a message passing through an Enigma machine. Radar, cryptanalysis, antiaircraft fire control, computers, and nuclear weapons were all secret wartime projects that, behind the security barriers, enjoyed the benefit of free exchange of ideas, without concern for individual authorship or peer review.” (258-259)</p></blockquote><div><div>War also muddled of the issue of who did what in relation to the first practical computers, as they were also war secrets. In case of Turing and the Brits, this took decades. Von Neumann's "First draft of a report on the EDVAC" turned out to be an influential paper, and IAS became a kind of distribution point for others to build their own "clones" in the ENIAC/EDVAC mould.</div><div><br /></div><div>The invention of computer is a matter that can be sliced in different ways. Forgetting Leibniz and Babbage, here we follow the thread of one of the Hilbert's mathematical challenges, the <i>Entscheidungsproblem</i>. An extension to, or an alternative interpretation of Kurt Gödel's refutation, resulted in the Turing/Church hypothesis.</div><div><br /></div><div>Turing's paper provided the proof of an universal (logic) machine, which through Von Neumann gained an architecture for actually building something like it in reality. It's hinted that the way Von Neumann's brain worked, with perfect recall of texts read years before, also influenced the idea of this superior digital brain.</div><div><br /></div><div>Eckert and Mauchly were significant in getting ENIAC actually functioning, and nowadays more fully credited with the achievement. While the Von Neumanns of this world were lauded, much of Eckert-Mauchly work remained obscured behind war secrecy and its supposed practicality. (I recall Joel Shurkin's "Engines of the Mind" is a book that explored this point specifically).<br /></div><div><br /></div><div>The British developments included the Manchester Baby and Mark I, involving Max Newman and Turing from the cast of characters here, although they didn't design the computers. People in the US could only suspect why and how the Brits had such a good head start on the topic.</div><div><br /></div><div>The work led to the later commercialized Ferranti Mark I. To bring this all down to the measly level of my personal experience and the themes of my blog, I can only remind that Ferranti is a familiar name from the ULA chip that drives the visuals of ZX Spectrum and various other 8-bit computers.</div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><b>The digital explosion</b></div><div><br /></div><div>Turing's Cathedral gives an intriguing view into history, showing that the germ of many currently hot topics in computers were already at least in the thoughts of the great minds of the 1940s and 1950s. For example, the insight that infallible machines might not be intelligent, and that machines should instead make mistakes and learn, is not a new one. Later it turned out to be a crucial insight when using neural nets to have computers "self-learn".</div><div><br /></div><div>Given the book was out in 2012, this is actually quite insightful, but some things have advanced quite fast since then, so the author's extrapolations look like dismissing decades of "lesser" research in the areas of machine intelligence and autonomous agents.</div><div><br /></div><div>Interestingly, Dyson says that Turing’s O-machine does not get much attention, even if it is closer to what we now understand with machine “intelligence”. The O-machine is in fact somewhat tricky to understand, but I supposed it could be considered a Turing-machine with a non-Turing component, the "Oracle". The author again extrapolates, that in Internet we sort of have a giant machine, linking answers to questions. The human clicks represent the Oracle, and in time the "machine" grows up, a massive analog computer, existing in its own right. </div><div><br /></div><div>Whether this now works in an internet now further divided into platforms, distorted by commercial interests and app ecosystems, I'm not so sure.</div><div><br /></div><div>Machine life is explored from various angles. Nils Barricelli was concerned with life-games inside the computer and modelling evolution. DNA had been only just discovered, and it was perhaps attractive to see thought parallels between atoms of life and bits in the digital world. In the limited space of the early computer memory, his critters largely "died". </div><div><br /></div><div>Barricelli's research in hindsight pointed towards ideas about future AI and possibly at the significance of horizontal gene transfer. For Dyson, this provides another vision about how series of numbers necessarily live and die inside computer systems and on the internet, in symbiosis with humans. Whether inside a program that's perceived as useful or within a pornographic image, survive they must. (I'm paraphrasing a lot here.)</div><div><br /></div></div><div>It all does have its dark side, which is also explored in the book. The calculations needed for the nuclear bombs were machine-led, and the insights were made by people orbiting around the first digital computers. Von Neumann contributed to understanding of shock waves, the implosion method of detonating nuclear weapons, and optimizing the altitude of airburst nuclear explosions.</div><p>When it comes to describing the lifestyle and practices at the IAU, the book appears to send a clear message: The brightest mathematical and logical minds of their generation needed their own space, free from direct obligations such as administration and teaching undergraduate studies.</p><p>Not insignificantly, through his person and in his position, Von Neumann was a kind of major node between many other intellectuals, directing people to examine the work and findings of others. Von Neumann's political opinions arose from having a first-row seat to the nuclear developments, and these views could be rather brash. The nukes had to be built, as "they" would certainly build them.</p><p><br /></p><p><b>Sweet beginnings and bitter endings</b></p><p>Von Neumann's death seems like a passing of a small universe, leaving the mystery whether the singular thinker had something still in his sleeve or if the ideas had been exhausted. Turing's contributions for the war and other hidden developments were recognized much later.</p><p>With Von Neumann gone, the high energy collaboration and the mixing of fields in the IAS also diminished rapidly. Many saw their personal interest projects dwindling into obscurity, to be re-invented by others after more practical developments caught up and made possible the reassessment of their original thought. </p><p>The widespread computer architecture remained as a child of Turing and Von Neumann. The author is asking why wasn't this more strongly questioned afterwards? It could be considered a massive "legacy" choice that impinges itself on every new platform.</p><p>The concepts of <i>writing</i> and<i> reading </i>were influential towards inventing the universal computer. Also, the idea of an "un-erring scribe" was already a component of philosophical debate in mathematics and logic. Practically, data was usually tabulated and inspected piecemeal by human "computers". The <i>digitalization</i> of this task resulted in the electronic computer. </p><p>As the author notes, memory cells are largely passive, whereas a super-fast read/write head parses the memory contents one by one. Such computers would already be at some disadvantage when examining photographs. Perhaps multi-threading and recent GPUs have begun to erode the outlines of this architecture, with graphics memory being able to perform operations on itself.</p><p>The question is then what definition of "universal" is required—one based on late 19th century understanding of mathematical logic? Or are the other understandings of universality? What is life, what is complexity, and how does it travel across the universe? Are they little green men? Or code, a cypher to be unraveled, so to speak? Where do aliens hide in anyway?</p><p>The early days of computing was followed by the task of taming computers into banal office assistants. The book gives some feel about the motivations and lives of these people who worked on and with computers when it was still a highly academic topic and suggestive of a parallel, unlimited alien intelligence.</p>Tero Heikkinenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13784200871918377919noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2474445673248923379.post-28621334868636817392023-03-04T16:13:00.002+02:002023-03-04T16:14:40.885+02:00Cheating in Wordle<p>A few years back, I used Processing to examine palindromes in 5-letter English words, in order to explore the <a href="http://oldmachinery.blogspot.com/2020/09/some-words.html">Sator Square</a>.</p><p>Weird that even random things like that might have re-uses.</p><p>Evil uses, that is! Muahahaha!</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizEtvvZX8cS1fS4VkjS4lqYmQnMA5CWJnEqn5Th08nHH5LGOeNteA8ZA80EwRUR3SkekQnBUrAG8ButIezMK8_ae3UcmJR_fRQIt2VMDhvt9bPoYnTLaB8R7Z555zVu60NY14mBp9vHXPCkaD3mmTO6ufdJIuoeBA2TGFBuFD6CFPkmdpZt1IuMPch/s425/sator_square.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="425" data-original-width="413" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizEtvvZX8cS1fS4VkjS4lqYmQnMA5CWJnEqn5Th08nHH5LGOeNteA8ZA80EwRUR3SkekQnBUrAG8ButIezMK8_ae3UcmJR_fRQIt2VMDhvt9bPoYnTLaB8R7Z555zVu60NY14mBp9vHXPCkaD3mmTO6ufdJIuoeBA2TGFBuFD6CFPkmdpZt1IuMPch/w622-h640/sator_square.png" width="622" /></a></div><br /><p>The popular daily word guessing game Wordle uses 5-letter words, and I already had a ~10000 word dictionary for generating those squares.</p><p>You know that annoying moment when there's a couple of letters in place, but alternate words don't come into mind. (Wordle doesn't allow words outside its dictionary.)</p><p>Sometimes I cop out and suggest words that already have letters known not to belong to the solution.</p><p>But occasionally I can't even come up with a valid English word to fit! All this variety in such a small game is what makes it exciting, I guess.<br /><br /></p><p><b>The "Cheat"</b></p><p>I have no motive to extensively cheat in Wordle, but found it interesting enough to try. I bet there are already similar articles and blog posts elsewhere.</p><p>In Wordle, you have to guess the word of the day in five guesses. After typing a suggestion, the app will tell you if correct letters were in correct position (green), or a correct letter was in a wrong position (yellow), and any incorrect letters (grey).<br /><br />The keyboard view is also updated to reflect the situation, so you'll always see which letters have been used.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzCVwgcAJXigAUGWfViWy2EJW7AuwwTHiqzCTl15kSlKwzZj8O2E2cwZehGYeJvV-L9fHC7yXmaNvC_S1I14v6th_Yx0PlHODFRKO8vTo-vMJVKFUDBCGARHmPMi6RNzaTBOYRZ62M6Nc-oJowXeiE5dJkuCX_--dJslsgpJISDJ_wePrdkmi_NgtS/s942/wordle.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="750" data-original-width="942" height="510" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzCVwgcAJXigAUGWfViWy2EJW7AuwwTHiqzCTl15kSlKwzZj8O2E2cwZehGYeJvV-L9fHC7yXmaNvC_S1I14v6th_Yx0PlHODFRKO8vTo-vMJVKFUDBCGARHmPMi6RNzaTBOYRZ62M6Nc-oJowXeiE5dJkuCX_--dJslsgpJISDJ_wePrdkmi_NgtS/w640-h510/wordle.png" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Here I have guessed LOWER; then CLIMB, which is stupid as L was already known. Also, at 4th step I forgot that A should feature.</td></tr></tbody></table><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><p>First I make a genuine guess or two, to get an idea what letters there are, what positions they are in, and importantly, which letters are unused. </p><p>There's some common sense about which words are more likely, but as the words are chosen by humans they can also go other ways. It's still usually worth to pick a starting word with no repeating letters. Exhausting the common vowels in two first words might also help.</p><p>If the second guess has a correct letter, this together with the bunch of not-present letters, can narrow the possible words in my dictionary to about 10.</p><p>If the second guess only reveals a letter, but no location, the list can be still quite long.</p><p>I solved the word KIOSK on 19.2.2023, SWEAT on 20.2.2023, RIPER on 22.2.2023 and VAGUE on 23.2.203, improving the program a little each time. SYRUP, WORSE, MOOSE, ABOVE and TREND followed.<br /><br /></p><p><b>Example: Solving VAGUE</b></p><p>On 23rd of February, 2023, I started my guess with TUNES.<br /><br />I learned that U and E are present but at incorrect positions.<br />My next guess was IMBUE, showing U and E are at the end.</p><p>This was already good enough to run the first routines with.</p><p>I set the used letters string as "tnsimb" and word filter at "***ue"</p><p>The dictionary is run through so that the word has to match the filter, but not contain any of the used letters. Used letter list doesn't include discovered letters, because the word may have more of these.</p><p>This gave me:</p><p>value<br />argue<br />vague<br />queue<br />vogue<br />rogue<br />fugue<br />revue<br />deque<br />roque</p><p><i>Deque</i> and <i>roque</i> I suspect would not be plausible Wordle solutions, despite being perfectly cromulent words.</p><p>I went with ROGUE as I like Rogue-likes. <br /><br />This wasn't correct, but gave me G at correct position, so I revised the used letter string to "tnsimbro" and word filter to "**gue".</p><p>My dictionary only had these two to offer:</p><p>vague<br />fugue</p><p>...from which I picked VAGUE which was correct at step 4. Even if had been incorrect, I would have been right at step 5.<br /><br /></p><p><b>Improvements</b></p><p>I thought at first the filter could be improved by checking how a consonant or vowel can't exist at a particular location. But this probably wouldn't achieve anything, as the dictionary only contains valid words anyway.<br /><br />A simpler and better addition was to exclude words with letters at positions where they are known <i>not to be</i>, and a requirement for the dictionary words to have these known letters.</p><p>Even then the puzzle doesn't become a total pushover, because the first two guesses might not yield anything conclusive and the suggestion list is quite long with dozens of words. Often the way forward is to prefer probable Wordle-style candidates and ignore really obscure words (like the above <i>degue</i>).<br /><br />Generally the solution is found in the 4th or 5th guess.</p><p>After about 10 solved puzzles I was satisfied and stopped doing this.</p>Tero Heikkinenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13784200871918377919noreply@blogger.com0