• Re: When Is A Game Old?

    From JAB@noway@nochance.com to comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action on Tue Apr 9 15:20:58 2024
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

    On 09/04/2024 08:23, Kyonshi wrote:
    On 4/8/2024 11:09 PM, Spalls Hurgenson wrote:
    On Mon, 8 Apr 2024 09:27:05 +0200, Kyonshi <gmkeros@gmail.com> wrote:

    On a related note: what's the oldest media (tape, floppy, cd-rom,
    cartridge) you still have for a game?

    I still have a 5.25" floppy disk for Infocom's "Hitchhiker's Guide to
    the Galaxy" for the Apple II lying around somewhere. I've no idea if
    it still works, though. According to Mobygames, that dates it to as
    far back as 1984 (although, honestly, I can't remember how 'new' the
    game was when I purchased it).

    On PC, that honor probably goes to "Ultima VI" (1990). I imaged (and
    then discarded) most of my floppy disks years ago in order to make
    space and only kept the disks for a handful of favorites. The Ultima
    games definitely fall into that last category.

    But I think the oldest video game 'media' I still have are the faded
    pages ripped from some magazine that listed the Basic code that made
    up a really primitive 'Star Trek' game. I dutifully typed it out into
    my 8-bit and was immediately disappointed by the results. The disk I
    saved the code to is long gone, but for some reason I hung onto the
    magazine pages. It's yellowed and crinkly and probably missing a page
    or three, but it's still buried in the closet somewhere...


    Similar to that I have some old programming books in storage at my
    parents' house which have listings for some games.

    The oldest other stuff would be some old Sega Master System games, the oldest most likely being California Games from 1989.

    The oldest PC game I have physical media off would be Battletech: The Crescent Hawk's Revenge from 1990. I once bought this in a grab box in
    the shop, and I think someone had already played it and returned it
    later, as it gave my computer it's first virus.


    The oldest I still have for programming is a 68000 book from 1988. I
    must have lost my Speccy 48k assembler programming book in my many moves before I did the sensible thing and bought a house.

    This site takes me back a bit though.

    https://worldofspectrum.org/archive/magazines/sinclair-programs
    --- Synchronet 3.20a-Linux NewsLink 1.114
  • From Spalls Hurgenson@spallshurgenson@gmail.com to comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action on Tue Apr 9 10:24:45 2024
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

    On Mon, 8 Apr 2024 22:30:02 -0000 (UTC), candycanearter07 <candycanearter07@candycanearter07.nomail.afraid> wrote:

    Spalls Hurgenson <spallshurgenson@gmail.com> wrote at 21:09 this Monday (GMT):



    If single-game handhelds count, I think I have some Tiger
    Electronics-esque ones somewhere. Otherwise, probably one of my NDS >cartridges..

    Ooh, I hadn't considered those.

    I'm not sure it's older than my "Hitchhiker's Guide" disk, but it's
    ofthe same era: I have an Nintendo "Game & Watch" with an LCD screen
    where Mickey Mouse tries to catch eggs (a gift from a well-meaning
    relative).

    Well, I say I still have it, but honestly, I don't know. I didn't get
    rid of it, but I've no idea where I have stashed it. I haven't seen it
    in years. It still worked last time I tried, although that probably
    speaks more of the robustness of the coin-cell batteries than the
    device. ;-)

    I had a love-hate affair with that game. It was the most tedious game
    I've ever played, but it was also the only hand-held game I owned for
    decades. So it inevitably got tossed into the bag - and played -
    whenever I knew I would otherwise be stuck somewhere doing nothing.

    Eventually I replaced the device with a Palm Pilot hand-held, which
    not only had a greater variety (and depth!) of games that could be
    loaded onto it, but apps and books that could entertain me when I
    tired of the games.

    --- Synchronet 3.20a-Linux NewsLink 1.114
  • From Justisaur@justisaur@yahoo.com to comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action on Tue Apr 9 07:25:49 2024
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

    On 4/9/2024 6:07 AM, Mike S. wrote:
    On Mon, 08 Apr 2024 17:09:57 -0400, Spalls Hurgenson <spallshurgenson@gmail.com> wrote:

    On Mon, 8 Apr 2024 09:27:05 +0200, Kyonshi <gmkeros@gmail.com> wrote:

    On a related note: what's the oldest media (tape, floppy, cd-rom,
    cartridge) you still have for a game?

    Quick glance....

    I think the oldest for me on the PC at least is tied between Wizardry
    1 and Might & Magic 1 - Copyright 1987 - 5 1/4 Floppies.

    But the oldest I can quickly tell is Questron on the C-64, 5 1/4
    Floppies, Copyright 1983

    You beat me there! Elite was copyright 1984 & 1985 by Acornsoft, though
    the box says it's made by Firebird.

    I don't have any way to use it, I haven't had a 5 1/4" drive for
    probably more than a decade.


    But I have a lot more C-64 games stored away in bins in my garage,
    including many Infocom titles. They are probably even older.

    Unfortunately my Intellivision, C-64, and Kaypro are long gone,traded
    off or sold for something else I don't remember.

    I do have a Dungeons & Dragons Computer Labyrinth Game from 1980 that
    still worked the last time I dusted it off, though I had to press rather
    hard for it to register piece moves.
    --
    -Justisaur

    ø-ø
    (\_/)\
    `-'\ `--.___,
    ¶¬'\( ,_.-'
    \\
    ^'

    --- Synchronet 3.20a-Linux NewsLink 1.114
  • From Spalls Hurgenson@spallshurgenson@gmail.com to comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action on Tue Apr 9 10:33:06 2024
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

    On Tue, 9 Apr 2024 09:23:30 +0200, Kyonshi <gmkeros@gmail.com> wrote:
    On 4/8/2024 11:09 PM, Spalls Hurgenson wrote:
    On Mon, 8 Apr 2024 09:27:05 +0200, Kyonshi <gmkeros@gmail.com> wrote:

    On a related note: what's the oldest media (tape, floppy, cd-rom,
    cartridge) you still have for a game?

    The oldest PC game I have physical media off would be Battletech: The >Crescent Hawk's Revenge from 1990. I once bought this in a grab box in
    the shop, and I think someone had already played it and returned it
    later, as it gave my computer it's first virus.

    You weren't missing anything. "Revenge" wasn't a very fun game, from
    what I recall. Its combat was slow and tedious, but also lacked the
    depth and versatility of the tabletop game. And its story wasn't very
    engaging. It was one of Westwood Games (of "Eye of the Beholder" and
    "Command & Conquer" fame) earliest titles though, and one of the last
    games to sport the Infocom branding.

    I've had similar experiences from that era of returned PC games being
    sold 'as new' (although without the 'fun' of paying for a virus ;-).
    Too many store owners were extremely confrontational when called on
    it, too.


    --- Synchronet 3.20a-Linux NewsLink 1.114
  • From candycanearter07@candycanearter07@candycanearter07.nomail.afraid to comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action on Tue Apr 9 15:20:12 2024
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

    Spalls Hurgenson <spallshurgenson@gmail.com> wrote at 14:24 this Tuesday (GMT):
    On Mon, 8 Apr 2024 22:30:02 -0000 (UTC), candycanearter07
    <candycanearter07@candycanearter07.nomail.afraid> wrote:

    Spalls Hurgenson <spallshurgenson@gmail.com> wrote at 21:09 this Monday (GMT):



    If single-game handhelds count, I think I have some Tiger
    Electronics-esque ones somewhere. Otherwise, probably one of my NDS >>cartridges..

    Ooh, I hadn't considered those.

    I'm not sure it's older than my "Hitchhiker's Guide" disk, but it's
    ofthe same era: I have an Nintendo "Game & Watch" with an LCD screen
    where Mickey Mouse tries to catch eggs (a gift from a well-meaning
    relative).

    Well, I say I still have it, but honestly, I don't know. I didn't get
    rid of it, but I've no idea where I have stashed it. I haven't seen it
    in years. It still worked last time I tried, although that probably
    speaks more of the robustness of the coin-cell batteries than the
    device. ;-)

    I had a love-hate affair with that game. It was the most tedious game
    I've ever played, but it was also the only hand-held game I owned for decades. So it inevitably got tossed into the bag - and played -
    whenever I knew I would otherwise be stuck somewhere doing nothing.

    Eventually I replaced the device with a Palm Pilot hand-held, which
    not only had a greater variety (and depth!) of games that could be
    loaded onto it, but apps and books that could entertain me when I
    tired of the games.


    Sounds cool!! I also forgot I used to have a leapfrog.
    --
    user <candycane> is generated from /dev/urandom
    --- Synchronet 3.20a-Linux NewsLink 1.114
  • From Mike S.@Mike_S@nowhere.com to comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action on Tue Apr 9 11:40:35 2024
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

    On Tue, 9 Apr 2024 07:25:49 -0700, Justisaur <justisaur@yahoo.com>
    wrote:

    Unfortunately my Intellivision, C-64, and Kaypro are long gone,traded
    off or sold for something else I don't remember.

    I owned an Intellivsion as well. But I no longer have it or any the
    cartridges for it. My oldest owned games would have been my Atari 2600 cartridges but they too are long gone.
    --- Synchronet 3.20a-Linux NewsLink 1.114
  • From Anssi Saari@anssi.saari@usenet.mail.kapsi.fi to comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action on Tue Apr 9 18:44:24 2024
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

    Spalls Hurgenson <spallshurgenson@gmail.com> writes:

    On Mon, 8 Apr 2024 09:27:05 +0200, Kyonshi <gmkeros@gmail.com> wrote:

    On a related note: what's the oldest media (tape, floppy, cd-rom,
    cartridge) you still have for a game?

    I think I have a Commodore 64 game cartridge or two in a box
    somewhere. Next oldest is probably some CD-ROM or if not, I bought the
    useless DVD for Dishonored. Or come to think of it, I should have some
    PS2 and Xbox 360 games around somewhere too so those are probably older
    than 2012's Dishonored but same media, DVD.
    --- Synchronet 3.20a-Linux NewsLink 1.114
  • From Kyonshi@gmkeros@gmail.com to comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action on Wed Apr 10 12:11:23 2024
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

    On 4/9/2024 4:33 PM, Spalls Hurgenson wrote:
    On Tue, 9 Apr 2024 09:23:30 +0200, Kyonshi <gmkeros@gmail.com> wrote:
    On 4/8/2024 11:09 PM, Spalls Hurgenson wrote:
    On Mon, 8 Apr 2024 09:27:05 +0200, Kyonshi <gmkeros@gmail.com> wrote:

    On a related note: what's the oldest media (tape, floppy, cd-rom,
    cartridge) you still have for a game?

    The oldest PC game I have physical media off would be Battletech: The
    Crescent Hawk's Revenge from 1990. I once bought this in a grab box in
    the shop, and I think someone had already played it and returned it
    later, as it gave my computer it's first virus.

    You weren't missing anything. "Revenge" wasn't a very fun game, from
    what I recall. Its combat was slow and tedious, but also lacked the
    depth and versatility of the tabletop game. And its story wasn't very engaging. It was one of Westwood Games (of "Eye of the Beholder" and
    "Command & Conquer" fame) earliest titles though, and one of the last
    games to sport the Infocom branding.

    I've had similar experiences from that era of returned PC games being
    sold 'as new' (although without the 'fun' of paying for a virus ;-).
    Too many store owners were extremely confrontational when called on
    it, too.



    This one I found way later. I remember I was choosing between Daggerfall
    and this one, and chose the Battletech game because they wanted full
    price for Daggerfall years after it came out.
    But well, I think they just found some stuff when cleaning their storage
    and decided to put it all out.
    It wasn't like this was even a proper computer store, this was a
    department store with a small computer section. Which, come to think of
    it, didn't actually survive until today.
    --- Synchronet 3.20a-Linux NewsLink 1.114
  • From Kyonshi@gmkeros@gmail.com to comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action on Wed Apr 10 12:12:51 2024
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

    On 4/9/2024 3:07 PM, Mike S. wrote:
    On Mon, 08 Apr 2024 17:09:57 -0400, Spalls Hurgenson <spallshurgenson@gmail.com> wrote:

    On Mon, 8 Apr 2024 09:27:05 +0200, Kyonshi <gmkeros@gmail.com> wrote:

    On a related note: what's the oldest media (tape, floppy, cd-rom,
    cartridge) you still have for a game?

    Quick glance....

    I think the oldest for me on the PC at least is tied between Wizardry
    1 and Might & Magic 1 - Copyright 1987 - 5 1/4 Floppies.

    But the oldest I can quickly tell is Questron on the C-64, 5 1/4
    Floppies, Copyright 1983

    But I have a lot more C-64 games stored away in bins in my garage,
    including many Infocom titles. They are probably even older.

    I have to admit I never properly used 5 1/4 floppies. I was a child of
    the 3.5 era. We had one or two 5 1/4 floppies floating around the house,
    we just never had a drive to even use them.
    --- Synchronet 3.20a-Linux NewsLink 1.114
  • From Mike S.@Mike_S@nowhere.com to comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action on Wed Apr 10 08:50:21 2024
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

    On Wed, 10 Apr 2024 12:12:51 +0200, Kyonshi <gmkeros@gmail.com> wrote:

    I have to admit I never properly used 5 1/4 floppies. I was a child of
    the 3.5 era. We had one or two 5 1/4 floppies floating around the house,
    we just never had a drive to even use them.

    I am old enough that I started with a tape drive.
    --- Synchronet 3.20a-Linux NewsLink 1.114
  • From candycanearter07@candycanearter07@candycanearter07.nomail.afraid to comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action on Wed Apr 10 14:30:10 2024
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

    Mike S <Mike_S@nowhere.com> wrote at 12:50 this Wednesday (GMT):
    On Wed, 10 Apr 2024 12:12:51 +0200, Kyonshi <gmkeros@gmail.com> wrote:

    I have to admit I never properly used 5 1/4 floppies. I was a child of
    the 3.5 era. We had one or two 5 1/4 floppies floating around the house, >>we just never had a drive to even use them.

    I am old enough that I started with a tape drive.


    Wow, that is old.
    --
    user <candycane> is generated from /dev/urandom
    --- Synchronet 3.20a-Linux NewsLink 1.114
  • From Dimensional Traveler@dtravel@sonic.net to comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action on Wed Apr 10 07:44:02 2024
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

    On 4/10/2024 7:30 AM, candycanearter07 wrote:
    Mike S <Mike_S@nowhere.com> wrote at 12:50 this Wednesday (GMT):
    On Wed, 10 Apr 2024 12:12:51 +0200, Kyonshi <gmkeros@gmail.com> wrote:

    I have to admit I never properly used 5 1/4 floppies. I was a child of
    the 3.5 era. We had one or two 5 1/4 floppies floating around the house, >>> we just never had a drive to even use them.

    I am old enough that I started with a tape drive.


    Wow, that is old.

    I went from the final year the college did punch cards to 8" floppy.
    --
    I've done good in this world. Now I'm tired and just want to be a cranky
    dirty old man.

    --- Synchronet 3.20a-Linux NewsLink 1.114
  • From Spalls Hurgenson@spallshurgenson@gmail.com to comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action on Wed Apr 10 10:54:59 2024
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

    On Tue, 9 Apr 2024 15:20:12 -0000 (UTC), candycanearter07 <candycanearter07@candycanearter07.nomail.afraid> wrote:
    Spalls Hurgenson <spallshurgenson@gmail.com> wrote at 14:24 this Tuesday (GMT):
    On Mon, 8 Apr 2024 22:30:02 -0000 (UTC), candycanearter07 >><candycanearter07@candycanearter07.nomail.afraid> wrote:


    If single-game handhelds count, I think I have some Tiger >>>Electronics-esque ones somewhere. Otherwise, probably one of my NDS >>>cartridges..

    Ooh, I hadn't considered those.

    I'm not sure it's older than my "Hitchhiker's Guide" disk, but it's
    ofthe same era: I have an Nintendo "Game & Watch" with an LCD screen
    where Mickey Mouse tries to catch eggs (a gift from a well-meaning
    relative).



    Sounds cool!! I also forgot I used to have a leapfrog.

    It absolutely wasn't. It was a game-of-last-resort, only played
    because I didn't have any other portable electronic game. It wasn't
    just that the gameplay was tedious - you had to move your character
    into one of four positions, mapped to one of the four keys - it was
    repetitive as well, with recognizable patterns. Its only challenge was
    that it kept going faster and faster.

    But it was pocket-sized, quick to start, and had amazing battery life.
    Also it was the only portable I had. So it got played. Just never
    really enjoyed.


    --- Synchronet 3.20a-Linux NewsLink 1.114
  • From Spalls Hurgenson@spallshurgenson@gmail.com to comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action on Wed Apr 10 10:59:45 2024
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

    On Wed, 10 Apr 2024 12:11:23 +0200, Kyonshi <gmkeros@gmail.com> wrote:



    This one I found way later. I remember I was choosing between Daggerfall
    and this one, and chose the Battletech game because they wanted full
    price for Daggerfall years after it came out.
    But well, I think they just found some stuff when cleaning their storage
    and decided to put it all out.
    It wasn't like this was even a proper computer store, this was a
    department store with a small computer section. Which, come to think of
    it, didn't actually survive until today.

    Ah, the joys of raiding a clearance sale to pick up all the old games
    you missed out the first time.

    (And the inevitable befuddlement when you see - as with your
    "Daggerfall" example - that they're weirdly still charging full price
    for a few of those ancient titles)

    Honestly, given the choice of "Crescent Hawk's Revenge" and
    "Daggerfall" - and despite everything I said about "Revenge" earlier -
    you made the better choice. "Revenge" wasn't a fun game, but the
    developers had a vision of what they wanted the game to be, and I
    think they achieved it. "Daggerfall" was just a mess of unrealized
    potential and bad design, held together with buggy code.


    --- Synchronet 3.20a-Linux NewsLink 1.114
  • From candycanearter07@candycanearter07@candycanearter07.nomail.afraid to comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action on Wed Apr 10 15:40:10 2024
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

    Spalls Hurgenson <spallshurgenson@gmail.com> wrote at 14:54 this Wednesday (GMT):
    On Tue, 9 Apr 2024 15:20:12 -0000 (UTC), candycanearter07
    <candycanearter07@candycanearter07.nomail.afraid> wrote:
    Spalls Hurgenson <spallshurgenson@gmail.com> wrote at 14:24 this Tuesday (GMT):
    On Mon, 8 Apr 2024 22:30:02 -0000 (UTC), candycanearter07 >>><candycanearter07@candycanearter07.nomail.afraid> wrote:


    If single-game handhelds count, I think I have some Tiger >>>>Electronics-esque ones somewhere. Otherwise, probably one of my NDS >>>>cartridges..

    Ooh, I hadn't considered those.

    I'm not sure it's older than my "Hitchhiker's Guide" disk, but it's
    ofthe same era: I have an Nintendo "Game & Watch" with an LCD screen
    where Mickey Mouse tries to catch eggs (a gift from a well-meaning
    relative).



    Sounds cool!! I also forgot I used to have a leapfrog.

    It absolutely wasn't. It was a game-of-last-resort, only played
    because I didn't have any other portable electronic game. It wasn't
    just that the gameplay was tedious - you had to move your character
    into one of four positions, mapped to one of the four keys - it was repetitive as well, with recognizable patterns. Its only challenge was
    that it kept going faster and faster.

    But it was pocket-sized, quick to start, and had amazing battery life.
    Also it was the only portable I had. So it got played. Just never
    really enjoyed.



    Fair. I didn't know what a good game was for a few years, so I had a
    ton of shovelware DS games.
    --
    user <candycane> is generated from /dev/urandom
    --- Synchronet 3.20a-Linux NewsLink 1.114
  • From rridge@rridge@csclub.uwaterloo.ca (Ross Ridge) to comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action on Wed Apr 10 16:03:37 2024
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

    Spalls Hurgenson <spallshurgenson@gmail.com> wrote:
    So where do we draw the line between "oh man, that game is old!",
    meaning it is visually or mechanically distinct from 'modern' games? >Obviously this is a very subjective and there will always be
    exceptions to the rule, but how far back before you consider a game
    'old' and notably different from a modern title?

    I'm not sure I draw that line anymore. To me any game that is more
    than a year old isn't new, but that doesn't make it old in my mind.
    There's maybe a boundary of roughly 15 to 20 years ago where I'd have
    trouble recommending a game to most people because the 3D graphics look particularily bad by modern standards. Even with 2D games, many people
    will have a problem with them because they usually only support a 4:3
    aspect ratio and a limitted set of resolutions.
    --
    l/ // Ross Ridge -- The Great HTMU
    [oo][oo] rridge@csclub.uwaterloo.ca
    -()-/()/ http://www.csclub.uwaterloo.ca:11068/
    db //
    --- Synchronet 3.20a-Linux NewsLink 1.114
  • From Zaghadka@zaghadka@hotmail.com to comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action on Wed Apr 10 16:00:14 2024
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

    On Sun, 07 Apr 2024 12:40:06 -0400, in comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action,
    Spalls Hurgenson wrote:

    Where would you put this division between 'new' and old? Do you find >PS3/XBox360/2010 PC games still eminently playable? Do you draw the
    line at anything older than 10th generation? Do you turn your nose up
    at anything not released this year? Where does 'old' begin for you?

    TBS, anything before SM 3.0, DX 9.0c. That is OLD.

    I'd have to think about anything beyond that. Maybe the cutoff is
    pre-DX10 or 11? It's definitely about the underlying tech for me.

    Also anything that plays in 800x600 or 1024x768 (and does anyone remember 1280x1024?) as a base res, or starts you up in 640x480 and gives you the
    option to increase to the 4:3 res of your choice.

    If the game is actually even aware of 1280x1024, 5:4, it is OLD.
    --
    Zag

    No one ever said on their deathbed, 'Gee, I wish I had
    spent more time alone with my computer.' ~Dan(i) Bunten
    --- Synchronet 3.20a-Linux NewsLink 1.114
  • From Zaghadka@zaghadka@hotmail.com to comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action on Wed Apr 10 16:04:25 2024
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

    On Mon, 08 Apr 2024 17:09:57 -0400, in comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action,
    Spalls Hurgenson wrote:

    On Mon, 8 Apr 2024 09:27:05 +0200, Kyonshi <gmkeros@gmail.com> wrote:

    On a related note: what's the oldest media (tape, floppy, cd-rom,
    cartridge) you still have for a game?

    Sega Genesis cartridges. They're in the basement with a v1.0 Sega
    Genesis. c 1991.

    I have IMGs of some of my old 3.5" PC floppies, but they're all post
    1991.

    I may have some C=64 5.25" around here somewhere, but I doubt it's still readable. If I could find that, that would be the oldest.
    --
    Zag

    No one ever said on their deathbed, 'Gee, I wish I had
    spent more time alone with my computer.' ~Dan(i) Bunten
    --- Synchronet 3.20a-Linux NewsLink 1.114
  • From Zaghadka@zaghadka@hotmail.com to comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action on Wed Apr 10 16:07:39 2024
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

    On Wed, 10 Apr 2024 16:04:25 -0500, in comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action,
    Zaghadka wrote:

    On Mon, 08 Apr 2024 17:09:57 -0400, in comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action,
    Spalls Hurgenson wrote:

    On Mon, 8 Apr 2024 09:27:05 +0200, Kyonshi <gmkeros@gmail.com> wrote:

    On a related note: what's the oldest media (tape, floppy, cd-rom, >>cartridge) you still have for a game?

    Sega Genesis cartridges. They're in the basement with a v1.0 Sega
    Genesis. c 1991.

    I have IMGs of some of my old 3.5" PC floppies, but they're all post
    1991.

    I may have some C=64 5.25" around here somewhere, but I doubt it's still >readable. If I could find that, that would be the oldest.

    Eureka! I just went into my *old* closet and found a "good" condition
    printing of Seven Cities of Gold for the C=64, complete with floppy. I
    have no way to test if it's readable.

    I'm pretty sure it's the only game I have left from that era.
    --
    Zag

    No one ever said on their deathbed, 'Gee, I wish I had
    spent more time alone with my computer.' ~Dan(i) Bunten
    --- Synchronet 3.20a-Linux NewsLink 1.114
  • From Mark P. Nelson@markpnelson@sbcglobal.net to comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action on Thu Apr 11 02:20:00 2024
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

    Spalls Hurgenson <spallshurgenson@gmail.com> wrote in news:6eh51jt0qrsfaprgpk8cgfibicimgcvge8@4ax.com:

    Where does 'old' begin for you?

    I've never owned a console, but I've been playing games on machines since the days of
    Space Invaders in the 70s and computers since Kong on a Kaypro running CP/M in the 80s.

    While I'd surely say that gameplay is *the* thing as far as the fun is concerned, there are a
    few clear cut-off points, as others have mentioned, supported resolution being the most
    obvious.

    For me today, I'd particularly cite Mass Effect, recently reissued in the Legendary Edition to
    milk the old cow again. I'd class Mass Effect 1 as an *old game*, even in its legendary
    incarnation, whereas I think 2 and 3 still seem decent enough not to be classed as *old*.

    Tamam shud!
    --- Synchronet 3.20a-Linux NewsLink 1.114
  • From Spalls Hurgenson@spallshurgenson@gmail.com to comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action on Thu Apr 11 11:43:21 2024
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

    On Wed, 10 Apr 2024 15:40:10 -0000 (UTC), candycanearter07 <candycanearter07@candycanearter07.nomail.afraid> wrote:
    Spalls Hurgenson <spallshurgenson@gmail.com> wrote at 14:54 this Wednesday (GMT):

    But it was pocket-sized, quick to start, and had amazing battery life.
    Also it was the only portable I had. So it got played. Just never
    really enjoyed.

    Fair. I didn't know what a good game was for a few years, so I had a
    ton of shovelware DS games.

    It's true!

    Even I, back when I was a younger person and only had as many games as
    could be counted on a single hand, any game would get played and
    replayed because a) I didn't know what made a good game from a bad
    one, and b) I only had a limited selection anyway. I'm sorry, younger
    me, but "Sierra's 3D Helicopter Simulator" was /not/ a good game, and
    all that time you spent with it was better spent elsewhere.

    But on the flip side, having a library of [number redacted] - and
    having played a significant percentage of those games - isn't without
    penalty either. I can too easily see the similarity in mechanics and
    tropes, this lack of novelty makes it harder to enjoy new games which
    simply ape older games just because those games were popular. There's
    a reason I bitch about the lack of novelty in games so often! I don't
    really wish to return to my days of callow youth when I didn't know
    any better - I rather enjoy my grumpy cynicism - but it would make me
    be able to look less critically at the crap Ubisoft regularly shits
    out ;-)


    --- Synchronet 3.20a-Linux NewsLink 1.114
  • From Spalls Hurgenson@spallshurgenson@gmail.com to comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action on Thu Apr 11 11:48:16 2024
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

    On Wed, 10 Apr 2024 16:00:14 -0500, Zaghadka <zaghadka@hotmail.com>
    wrote:


    Also anything that plays in 800x600 or 1024x768 (and does anyone remember >1280x1024?) as a base res, or starts you up in 640x480 and gives you the >option to increase to the 4:3 res of your choice.

    Yeah, that's another good delineation: if a game can't do widescreen,
    it automatically feels old to me. It's really hard for me to play
    fencepost'd games on a modern monitor; I have to REALLY enjoy the game
    to keep playing at that point. I'd almost certainly be looking for a wide-screen hack (or, at the very least, an option to play the game in
    a window, which I oddly find less offensive than 4:3 fullscreen)
    before continuing.





    --- Synchronet 3.20a-Linux NewsLink 1.114
  • From candycanearter07@candycanearter07@candycanearter07.nomail.afraid to comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action on Thu Apr 11 16:00:08 2024
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

    Spalls Hurgenson <spallshurgenson@gmail.com> wrote at 15:43 this Thursday (GMT):
    On Wed, 10 Apr 2024 15:40:10 -0000 (UTC), candycanearter07
    <candycanearter07@candycanearter07.nomail.afraid> wrote:
    Spalls Hurgenson <spallshurgenson@gmail.com> wrote at 14:54 this Wednesday (GMT):

    But it was pocket-sized, quick to start, and had amazing battery life.
    Also it was the only portable I had. So it got played. Just never
    really enjoyed.

    Fair. I didn't know what a good game was for a few years, so I had a
    ton of shovelware DS games.

    It's true!

    Even I, back when I was a younger person and only had as many games as
    could be counted on a single hand, any game would get played and
    replayed because a) I didn't know what made a good game from a bad
    one, and b) I only had a limited selection anyway. I'm sorry, younger
    me, but "Sierra's 3D Helicopter Simulator" was /not/ a good game, and
    all that time you spent with it was better spent elsewhere.

    But on the flip side, having a library of [number redacted] - and
    having played a significant percentage of those games - isn't without
    penalty either. I can too easily see the similarity in mechanics and
    tropes, this lack of novelty makes it harder to enjoy new games which
    simply ape older games just because those games were popular. There's
    a reason I bitch about the lack of novelty in games so often! I don't
    really wish to return to my days of callow youth when I didn't know
    any better - I rather enjoy my grumpy cynicism - but it would make me
    be able to look less critically at the crap Ubisoft regularly shits
    out ;-)



    Unfortunately, I sold most of them to GameStop for an actually good game
    (M&L BiS). I do remember having 3 Phineas and Ferb games, a Scooby Doo
    one and a penguins of madagascar game.
    --
    user <candycane> is generated from /dev/urandom
    --- Synchronet 3.20a-Linux NewsLink 1.114
  • From candycanearter07@candycanearter07@candycanearter07.nomail.afraid to comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action on Thu Apr 11 16:00:09 2024
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

    Spalls Hurgenson <spallshurgenson@gmail.com> wrote at 15:48 this Thursday (GMT):
    On Wed, 10 Apr 2024 16:00:14 -0500, Zaghadka <zaghadka@hotmail.com>
    wrote:


    Also anything that plays in 800x600 or 1024x768 (and does anyone remember >>1280x1024?) as a base res, or starts you up in 640x480 and gives you the >>option to increase to the 4:3 res of your choice.

    Yeah, that's another good delineation: if a game can't do widescreen,
    it automatically feels old to me. It's really hard for me to play
    fencepost'd games on a modern monitor; I have to REALLY enjoy the game
    to keep playing at that point. I'd almost certainly be looking for a wide-screen hack (or, at the very least, an option to play the game in
    a window, which I oddly find less offensive than 4:3 fullscreen)
    before continuing.






    I grew up playing emulators, so I don't really care that much.
    Thenagain, I was scared of fullscreen games :)
    --
    user <candycane> is generated from /dev/urandom
    --- Synchronet 3.20a-Linux NewsLink 1.114
  • From Spalls Hurgenson@spallshurgenson@gmail.com to comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action on Fri Apr 12 21:14:17 2024
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

    On Thu, 11 Apr 2024 16:00:09 -0000 (UTC), candycanearter07 <candycanearter07@candycanearter07.nomail.afraid> wrote:



    I grew up playing emulators, so I don't really care that much.
    Thenagain, I was scared of fullscreen games :)


    I still have that fear when it comes to full-screen games from the
    Win9x/early XP era. They were so... FRAGILE when it came to running in full-screen (or, more importantly, when you tried to alt-tab out of
    them). Back in the '95 days, switching away from a full-screen game
    could lock up your computer (these days, the older game might lock up,
    but you're PC will keep running fine otherwise. That's progress, I
    suppose).


    --- Synchronet 3.20a-Linux NewsLink 1.114
  • From Justisaur@justisaur@yahoo.com to comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action on Sat Apr 13 08:44:01 2024
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

    On 4/12/2024 6:14 PM, Spalls Hurgenson wrote:
    On Thu, 11 Apr 2024 16:00:09 -0000 (UTC), candycanearter07 <candycanearter07@candycanearter07.nomail.afraid> wrote:



    I grew up playing emulators, so I don't really care that much.
    Thenagain, I was scared of fullscreen games :)


    I still have that fear when it comes to full-screen games from the Win9x/early XP era. They were so... FRAGILE when it came to running in full-screen (or, more importantly, when you tried to alt-tab out of
    them). Back in the '95 days, switching away from a full-screen game
    could lock up your computer (these days, the older game might lock up,
    but you're PC will keep running fine otherwise. That's progress, I
    suppose).


    I've had the same problem with at least 2 of the recent games I played, Deathloop and Dragon's Dogma. Both would hard freeze the game if you
    left it paused in fullscreen. Even not alt-tabbing, a few minutes and
    it would freeze. I had to run both in windowed for them not to freeze.
    --
    -Justisaur

    ø-ø
    (\_/)\
    `-'\ `--.___,
    ¶¬'\( ,_.-'
    \\
    ^'

    --- Synchronet 3.20a-Linux NewsLink 1.114
  • From Spalls Hurgenson@spallshurgenson@gmail.com to comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action on Sat Apr 13 13:25:47 2024
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

    On Sat, 13 Apr 2024 08:44:01 -0700, Justisaur <justisaur@yahoo.com>
    wrote:
    On 4/12/2024 6:14 PM, Spalls Hurgenson wrote:
    On Thu, 11 Apr 2024 16:00:09 -0000 (UTC), candycanearter07
    <candycanearter07@candycanearter07.nomail.afraid> wrote:


    I grew up playing emulators, so I don't really care that much.
    Thenagain, I was scared of fullscreen games :)

    I still have that fear when it comes to full-screen games from the
    Win9x/early XP era. They were so... FRAGILE when it came to running in
    full-screen (or, more importantly, when you tried to alt-tab out of
    them). Back in the '95 days, switching away from a full-screen game
    could lock up your computer (these days, the older game might lock up,
    but you're PC will keep running fine otherwise. That's progress, I
    suppose).

    I've had the same problem with at least 2 of the recent games I played, >Deathloop and Dragon's Dogma. Both would hard freeze the game if you
    left it paused in fullscreen. Even not alt-tabbing, a few minutes and
    it would freeze. I had to run both in windowed for them not to freeze.

    Those are rarer for me. Although I do worry about leaving the game
    paused long enough for the screensaver to kick-in, since some games
    don't play well when another application grabs hold of the 3D
    renderer. So I almost always make sure to save/quit-to-desktop if I
    know I'm going to be away from the computer for a while.

    But at least it isn't BSODing and taking down the whole PC like would
    happen in the Win9x days.
    --- Synchronet 3.20a-Linux NewsLink 1.114
  • From candycanearter07@candycanearter07@candycanearter07.nomail.afraid to comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action on Sat Apr 13 18:10:02 2024
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

    Spalls Hurgenson <spallshurgenson@gmail.com> wrote at 01:14 this Saturday (GMT):
    On Thu, 11 Apr 2024 16:00:09 -0000 (UTC), candycanearter07
    <candycanearter07@candycanearter07.nomail.afraid> wrote:



    I grew up playing emulators, so I don't really care that much.
    Thenagain, I was scared of fullscreen games :)


    I still have that fear when it comes to full-screen games from the Win9x/early XP era. They were so... FRAGILE when it came to running in full-screen (or, more importantly, when you tried to alt-tab out of
    them). Back in the '95 days, switching away from a full-screen game
    could lock up your computer (these days, the older game might lock up,
    but you're PC will keep running fine otherwise. That's progress, I
    suppose).



    Nah, I was way more irrational. Was outright scared bc I couldn't close
    it as easily. Then again, I mostly play games in windowed mode nowadays
    bc it's easier to have other windows open in the bg.
    --
    user <candycane> is generated from /dev/urandom
    --- Synchronet 3.20a-Linux NewsLink 1.114
  • From Spalls Hurgenson@spallshurgenson@gmail.com to comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action on Sat Apr 13 15:11:34 2024
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

    On Sat, 13 Apr 2024 18:10:02 -0000 (UTC), candycanearter07 <candycanearter07@candycanearter07.nomail.afraid> wrote:
    Spalls Hurgenson <spallshurgenson@gmail.com> wrote at 01:14 this Saturday (GMT):
    On Thu, 11 Apr 2024 16:00:09 -0000 (UTC), candycanearter07 >><candycanearter07@candycanearter07.nomail.afraid> wrote:


    I grew up playing emulators, so I don't really care that much.
    Thenagain, I was scared of fullscreen games :)

    I still have that fear when it comes to full-screen games from the
    Win9x/early XP era. They were so... FRAGILE when it came to running in
    full-screen (or, more importantly, when you tried to alt-tab out of
    them). Back in the '95 days, switching away from a full-screen game
    could lock up your computer (these days, the older game might lock up,
    but you're PC will keep running fine otherwise. That's progress, I
    suppose).

    Nah, I was way more irrational. Was outright scared bc I couldn't close
    it as easily. Then again, I mostly play games in windowed mode nowadays
    bc it's easier to have other windows open in the bg.

    That's a sensible method.

    I, on the other hand, just plug in more and more monitors and make
    everything full-screen. ;-)


    --- Synchronet 3.20a-Linux NewsLink 1.114
  • From Xocyll@Xocyll@gmx.com to comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action on Sun Apr 14 08:28:37 2024
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

    Spalls Hurgenson <spallshurgenson@gmail.com> looked up from reading the entrails of the porn spammer to utter "The Augury is good, the signs
    say:

    On Sat, 13 Apr 2024 18:10:02 -0000 (UTC), candycanearter07 ><candycanearter07@candycanearter07.nomail.afraid> wrote:
    Spalls Hurgenson <spallshurgenson@gmail.com> wrote at 01:14 this Saturday (GMT):
    On Thu, 11 Apr 2024 16:00:09 -0000 (UTC), candycanearter07 >>><candycanearter07@candycanearter07.nomail.afraid> wrote:


    I grew up playing emulators, so I don't really care that much. >>>>Thenagain, I was scared of fullscreen games :)

    I still have that fear when it comes to full-screen games from the
    Win9x/early XP era. They were so... FRAGILE when it came to running in
    full-screen (or, more importantly, when you tried to alt-tab out of
    them). Back in the '95 days, switching away from a full-screen game
    could lock up your computer (these days, the older game might lock up,
    but you're PC will keep running fine otherwise. That's progress, I
    suppose).

    Nah, I was way more irrational. Was outright scared bc I couldn't close
    it as easily. Then again, I mostly play games in windowed mode nowadays
    bc it's easier to have other windows open in the bg.

    That's a sensible method.

    I, on the other hand, just plug in more and more monitors and make
    everything full-screen. ;-)

    Been running everything that will in windowed mode since launch day of
    City of Heroes. For some reason it would disconnect after exactly 5
    minutes, and the "fix" was to play windowed. Been doing it ever since.

    It's a rare game that crashes when paused or when I inevitably tab out.

    Xocyll
    --- Synchronet 3.20a-Linux NewsLink 1.114
  • From Justisaur@justisaur@yahoo.com to comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action on Mon Apr 15 07:59:22 2024
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

    On 4/13/2024 10:25 AM, Spalls Hurgenson wrote:
    On Sat, 13 Apr 2024 08:44:01 -0700, Justisaur <justisaur@yahoo.com>
    wrote:
    On 4/12/2024 6:14 PM, Spalls Hurgenson wrote:
    On Thu, 11 Apr 2024 16:00:09 -0000 (UTC), candycanearter07
    <candycanearter07@candycanearter07.nomail.afraid> wrote:


    I grew up playing emulators, so I don't really care that much.
    Thenagain, I was scared of fullscreen games :)

    I still have that fear when it comes to full-screen games from the
    Win9x/early XP era. They were so... FRAGILE when it came to running in
    full-screen (or, more importantly, when you tried to alt-tab out of
    them). Back in the '95 days, switching away from a full-screen game
    could lock up your computer (these days, the older game might lock up,
    but you're PC will keep running fine otherwise. That's progress, I
    suppose).

    I've had the same problem with at least 2 of the recent games I played,
    Deathloop and Dragon's Dogma. Both would hard freeze the game if you
    left it paused in fullscreen. Even not alt-tabbing, a few minutes and
    it would freeze. I had to run both in windowed for them not to freeze.

    Those are rarer for me. Although I do worry about leaving the game
    paused long enough for the screensaver to kick-in, since some games
    don't play well when another application grabs hold of the 3D
    renderer. So I almost always make sure to save/quit-to-desktop if I
    know I'm going to be away from the computer for a while.

    I haven't used a screen saver in so long I don't remember when the last
    time was. I do have the power settings to turn off the screen after 15 minutes, but it was happening in less than 5 minutes.

    But at least it isn't BSODing and taking down the whole PC like would
    happen in the Win9x days.

    True.
    --
    -Justisaur

    ø-ø
    (\_/)\
    `-'\ `--.___,
    ¶¬'\( ,_.-'
    \\
    ^'

    --- Synchronet 3.20a-Linux NewsLink 1.114
  • From Spalls Hurgenson@spallshurgenson@gmail.com to comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action on Mon Apr 15 13:48:07 2024
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

    On Mon, 15 Apr 2024 07:59:22 -0700, Justisaur <justisaur@yahoo.com>
    wrote:

    I haven't used a screen saver in so long I don't remember when the last
    time was. I do have the power settings to turn off the screen after 15 >minutes, but it was happening in less than 5 minutes.

    Yeah, screensavers are quite pointless, especially since computers
    come out of suspend so quickly. There's no necessity to them anymore,
    so it's no surprise that most people don't use them. In fact,
    Microsoft has made it pretty hard even to get to screensaver settings
    in Windows 11. Arguably, they're even counter productive, since they
    waste electricity. But they're pretty. ;-)










    --- Synchronet 3.20a-Linux NewsLink 1.114
  • From ant@ant@zimage.comANT (Ant) to comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action on Mon Apr 15 18:43:14 2024
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

    Spalls Hurgenson <spallshurgenson@gmail.com> wrote:
    On Mon, 15 Apr 2024 07:59:22 -0700, Justisaur <justisaur@yahoo.com>
    wrote:

    I haven't used a screen saver in so long I don't remember when the last >time was. I do have the power settings to turn off the screen after 15 >minutes, but it was happening in less than 5 minutes.

    Yeah, screensavers are quite pointless, especially since computers
    come out of suspend so quickly. There's no necessity to them anymore,
    so it's no surprise that most people don't use them. In fact,
    Microsoft has made it pretty hard even to get to screensaver settings
    in Windows 11. Arguably, they're even counter productive, since they
    waste electricity. But they're pretty. ;-)

    I use it to lock my session. Heck, using a boring blank black screen
    saver would do before monitor sleeps. :P
    --
    "Be diligent in these matters; give yourself wholly to them, so that everyone may see your progress. Watch your life and doctrine closely. Persevere in them, because if you do, you will save both yourself and your hearers." --1 Timothy 4:15-16. IRS day! Is "winter" over yet?
    Note: A fixed width font (Courier, Monospace, etc.) is required to see this signature correctly.
    /\___/\ Ant(Dude) @ http://aqfl.net & http://antfarm.home.dhs.org.
    / /\ /\ \ Please nuke ANT if replying by e-mail.
    | |o o| |
    \ _ /
    ( )
    --- Synchronet 3.20a-Linux NewsLink 1.114
  • From candycanearter07@candycanearter07@candycanearter07.nomail.afraid to comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action on Mon Apr 15 18:53:43 2024
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

    Spalls Hurgenson <spallshurgenson@gmail.com> wrote at 17:48 this Monday (GMT):
    On Mon, 15 Apr 2024 07:59:22 -0700, Justisaur <justisaur@yahoo.com>
    wrote:

    I haven't used a screen saver in so long I don't remember when the last >>time was. I do have the power settings to turn off the screen after 15 >>minutes, but it was happening in less than 5 minutes.

    Yeah, screensavers are quite pointless, especially since computers
    come out of suspend so quickly. There's no necessity to them anymore,
    so it's no surprise that most people don't use them. In fact,
    Microsoft has made it pretty hard even to get to screensaver settings
    in Windows 11. Arguably, they're even counter productive, since they
    waste electricity. But they're pretty. ;-)











    I use xscreensaver bc I like how they look :)
    --
    user <candycane> is generated from /dev/urandom
    --- Synchronet 3.20a-Linux NewsLink 1.114
  • From Zaghadka@zaghadka@hotmail.com to comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action on Mon Apr 15 14:00:08 2024
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

    On Mon, 15 Apr 2024 13:48:07 -0400, in comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action,
    Spalls Hurgenson wrote:

    On Mon, 15 Apr 2024 07:59:22 -0700, Justisaur <justisaur@yahoo.com>
    wrote:

    I haven't used a screen saver in so long I don't remember when the last >>time was. I do have the power settings to turn off the screen after 15 >>minutes, but it was happening in less than 5 minutes.

    Yeah, screensavers are quite pointless, especially since computers
    come out of suspend so quickly. There's no necessity to them anymore,
    so it's no surprise that most people don't use them. In fact,
    Microsoft has made it pretty hard even to get to screensaver settings
    in Windows 11. Arguably, they're even counter productive, since they
    waste electricity. But they're pretty. ;-)

    I have an entire folder of old screen savers. Some of them are no longer compatible with Windows.

    It is amazing how fast "3DPipes" (from NT4) chugs along in this day and
    age.

    Unfortunately, while when you preview "3D Bubbles," it leaves the screen
    up, when it actually runs, it still blacks the whole screen out. Hasn't
    worked right since at least Windows 8. It's my favorite.

    It's also a toss-up how they will deal with multiple screens.
    --
    Zag

    No one ever said on their deathbed, 'Gee, I wish I had
    spent more time alone with my computer.' ~Dan(i) Bunten
    --- Synchronet 3.20a-Linux NewsLink 1.114
  • From Dimensional Traveler@dtravel@sonic.net to comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action on Mon Apr 15 18:11:01 2024
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

    On 4/15/2024 10:48 AM, Spalls Hurgenson wrote:
    On Mon, 15 Apr 2024 07:59:22 -0700, Justisaur <justisaur@yahoo.com>
    wrote:

    I haven't used a screen saver in so long I don't remember when the last
    time was. I do have the power settings to turn off the screen after 15
    minutes, but it was happening in less than 5 minutes.

    Yeah, screensavers are quite pointless, especially since computers
    come out of suspend so quickly. There's no necessity to them anymore,
    so it's no surprise that most people don't use them. In fact,
    Microsoft has made it pretty hard even to get to screensaver settings
    in Windows 11. Arguably, they're even counter productive, since they
    waste electricity. But they're pretty. ;-)

    If I'm not actively using my PC I turn the monitors off.
    --
    I've done good in this world. Now I'm tired and just want to be a cranky
    dirty old man.

    --- Synchronet 3.20a-Linux NewsLink 1.114
  • From Kyonshi@gmkeros@gmail.com to comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action on Tue Apr 16 09:31:03 2024
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

    On 4/10/2024 4:59 PM, Spalls Hurgenson wrote:
    On Wed, 10 Apr 2024 12:11:23 +0200, Kyonshi <gmkeros@gmail.com> wrote:



    This one I found way later. I remember I was choosing between Daggerfall
    and this one, and chose the Battletech game because they wanted full
    price for Daggerfall years after it came out.
    But well, I think they just found some stuff when cleaning their storage
    and decided to put it all out.
    It wasn't like this was even a proper computer store, this was a
    department store with a small computer section. Which, come to think of
    it, didn't actually survive until today.

    Ah, the joys of raiding a clearance sale to pick up all the old games
    you missed out the first time.

    (And the inevitable befuddlement when you see - as with your
    "Daggerfall" example - that they're weirdly still charging full price
    for a few of those ancient titles)

    Honestly, given the choice of "Crescent Hawk's Revenge" and
    "Daggerfall" - and despite everything I said about "Revenge" earlier -
    you made the better choice. "Revenge" wasn't a fun game, but the
    developers had a vision of what they wanted the game to be, and I
    think they achieved it. "Daggerfall" was just a mess of unrealized
    potential and bad design, held together with buggy code.



    well, as I mentioned, the disk gave me a virus, and altogether I put
    more time into Daggerfall than Revenge becaus it kind of soured me on
    the game.
    --- Synchronet 3.20a-Linux NewsLink 1.114
  • From Kyonshi@gmkeros@gmail.com to comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action on Tue Apr 16 09:29:20 2024
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

    On 4/9/2024 12:30 AM, candycanearter07 wrote:


    If single-game handhelds count, I think I have some Tiger
    Electronics-esque ones somewhere. Otherwise, probably one of my NDS cartridges..

    Huh, I just remembered that one Tetris game we had as kids. My parents
    did not want to buy us a game boy, so we got an oddly shaped single-game
    thing with an LCD screen.
    From what I know this still is around at my parents' house, my dad has
    it in his bathroom as a time waster.

    It was this one btw (not my picture, just something I found on reddit): https://www.reddit.com/media?url=https%3A%2F%2Fi.redd.it%2F7hf51y7dwib91.jpg
    I mean, it was Tetris, what more can you want?
    --- Synchronet 3.20a-Linux NewsLink 1.114
  • From Kyonshi@gmkeros@gmail.com to comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action on Tue Apr 16 09:52:11 2024
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

    On 4/8/2024 11:09 PM, Spalls Hurgenson wrote:
    On Mon, 8 Apr 2024 09:27:05 +0200, Kyonshi <gmkeros@gmail.com> wrote:

    On a related note: what's the oldest media (tape, floppy, cd-rom,
    cartridge) you still have for a game?

    I still have a 5.25" floppy disk for Infocom's "Hitchhiker's Guide to
    the Galaxy" for the Apple II lying around somewhere. I've no idea if
    it still works, though. According to Mobygames, that dates it to as
    far back as 1984 (although, honestly, I can't remember how 'new' the
    game was when I purchased it).

    On PC, that honor probably goes to "Ultima VI" (1990). I imaged (and
    then discarded) most of my floppy disks years ago in order to make
    space and only kept the disks for a handful of favorites. The Ultima
    games definitely fall into that last category.

    But I think the oldest video game 'media' I still have are the faded
    pages ripped from some magazine that listed the Basic code that made
    up a really primitive 'Star Trek' game. I dutifully typed it out into
    my 8-bit and was immediately disappointed by the results. The disk I
    saved the code to is long gone, but for some reason I hung onto the
    magazine pages. It's yellowed and crinkly and probably missing a page
    or three, but it's still buried in the closet somewhere...








    oh, wait wait, I just remembered something I have.
    My mum at one point brought this computer home which her boss had
    mustered out: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/51/Kosmos_cp1.jpg
    It barely would count as a game though, it's a programmable learning
    computer and a few of the listings in the manual are for games (dice
    games, roulette, etc.).
    Of course the main problem was that it was really complicated and really basic. The machine only had RAM, no inbuilt physical drives, and only
    had a 6 digit display.

    Technically you could get expansion boards to connect it with tape
    recorders to make a makeshift tape drive, to connect it with breadboards
    from the same manufacturer (they mostly were doing experimental kits for kids), and I think there was also one to expand the RAM to twice the
    size. But I got this 12 years after it came out, and of course none of
    that was easily in the mid-90s.
    The memory by the way was able to hold the whole of 128 commands of it's
    own dialect of machine code. Which you could use to program your own
    programs, as long as you were content with having whatever you wanted to program display in the rather limited display.

    It was a fascinating experience, but the limitations of the system made
    it difficult to really get hyped about it. The previous owner seems to
    have had similar thoughts, as it was noticeable that only the first two listings had any signs of use.
    --- Synchronet 3.20a-Linux NewsLink 1.114
  • From Kyonshi@gmkeros@gmail.com to comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action on Tue Apr 16 09:56:13 2024
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

    On 4/15/2024 8:53 PM, candycanearter07 wrote:
    Spalls Hurgenson <spallshurgenson@gmail.com> wrote at 17:48 this Monday (GMT):

    I use xscreensaver bc I like how they look :)

    there's some nice ones in there, but I think nothing new has been added
    the last decade or so?

    It kind of went away. People don't set them anymore.
    --- Synchronet 3.20a-Linux NewsLink 1.114
  • From candycanearter07@candycanearter07@candycanearter07.nomail.afraid to comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action on Tue Apr 16 15:10:09 2024
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

    Kyonshi <gmkeros@gmail.com> wrote at 07:56 this Tuesday (GMT):
    On 4/15/2024 8:53 PM, candycanearter07 wrote:
    Spalls Hurgenson <spallshurgenson@gmail.com> wrote at 17:48 this Monday (GMT):

    I use xscreensaver bc I like how they look :)

    there's some nice ones in there, but I think nothing new has been added
    the last decade or so?

    https://www.jwz.org/xscreensaver/changelog.html
    Newest one was August 2023. Pretty recent..

    It kind of went away. People don't set them anymore.


    I guess. I like em tho.
    --
    user <candycane> is generated from /dev/urandom
    --- Synchronet 3.20a-Linux NewsLink 1.114
  • From Xocyll@Xocyll@gmx.com to comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action on Tue Apr 16 12:18:26 2024
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

    Kyonshi <gmkeros@gmail.com> looked up from reading the entrails of the
    porn spammer to utter "The Augury is good, the signs say:

    On 4/15/2024 8:53 PM, candycanearter07 wrote:
    Spalls Hurgenson <spallshurgenson@gmail.com> wrote at 17:48 this Monday (GMT):

    I use xscreensaver bc I like how they look :)

    there's some nice ones in there, but I think nothing new has been added
    the last decade or so?

    It kind of went away. People don't set them anymore.

    It's no wonder with us all using flat screens of some kind.

    CRTs were _very_ prone to burn in, LCDs and such far less so.

    I don't even turn em off anymore, much less use a blank screen
    screensaver, and the one LCD is at least 10 years old, not even a trace
    of burn in.

    A CRT of that age, on all the time, with the same images, icons etc,
    would be showing burn in.

    Screen savers died as a thing cause we just don't need them anymore.
    They're the modern day buggy whip, once everyone had em and used em, now
    it's just the Amish types. I dare say there are still folks out there
    with CRT monitors.

    You know it just occurred to me that even saying CRT might get confusing
    these days, since there's another meaning to those letters now (Critical
    Race Theory vs Cathode Ray Tube.)

    Xocyll
    --- Synchronet 3.20a-Linux NewsLink 1.114
  • From candycanearter07@candycanearter07@candycanearter07.nomail.afraid to comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action on Tue Apr 16 16:30:06 2024
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

    Xocyll <Xocyll@gmx.com> wrote at 16:18 this Tuesday (GMT):
    Kyonshi <gmkeros@gmail.com> looked up from reading the entrails of the
    porn spammer to utter "The Augury is good, the signs say:

    On 4/15/2024 8:53 PM, candycanearter07 wrote:
    Spalls Hurgenson <spallshurgenson@gmail.com> wrote at 17:48 this Monday (GMT):

    I use xscreensaver bc I like how they look :)

    there's some nice ones in there, but I think nothing new has been added >>the last decade or so?

    It kind of went away. People don't set them anymore.

    It's no wonder with us all using flat screens of some kind.

    CRTs were _very_ prone to burn in, LCDs and such far less so.

    I don't even turn em off anymore, much less use a blank screen
    screensaver, and the one LCD is at least 10 years old, not even a trace
    of burn in.

    A CRT of that age, on all the time, with the same images, icons etc,
    would be showing burn in.

    Screen savers died as a thing cause we just don't need them anymore.
    They're the modern day buggy whip, once everyone had em and used em, now
    it's just the Amish types. I dare say there are still folks out there
    with CRT monitors.

    You know it just occurred to me that even saying CRT might get confusing these days, since there's another meaning to those letters now (Critical
    Race Theory vs Cathode Ray Tube.)

    Xocyll


    I'm sure CRT's will continue to be well known..
    --
    user <candycane> is generated from /dev/urandom
    --- Synchronet 3.20a-Linux NewsLink 1.114
  • From Spalls Hurgenson@spallshurgenson@gmail.com to comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action on Tue Apr 16 12:50:43 2024
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

    On Tue, 16 Apr 2024 09:52:11 +0200, Kyonshi <gmkeros@gmail.com> wrote:



    oh, wait wait, I just remembered something I have.
    My mum at one point brought this computer home which her boss had
    mustered out: >https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/51/Kosmos_cp1.jpg
    It barely would count as a game though, it's a programmable learning >computer and a few of the listings in the manual are for games (dice
    games, roulette, etc.).
    Of course the main problem was that it was really complicated and really >basic. The machine only had RAM, no inbuilt physical drives, and only
    had a 6 digit display.

    Just the base machine looks oddly fascinating. It's the sort of thing
    I wish I might have had access to in the early days of computing. It
    probably would have given me a leg-up on programming. Who knows, I
    might have become the next John Carmack! ;-)



    --- Synchronet 3.20a-Linux NewsLink 1.114
  • From Spalls Hurgenson@spallshurgenson@gmail.com to comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action on Tue Apr 16 12:56:27 2024
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

    On Mon, 15 Apr 2024 14:00:08 -0500, Zaghadka <zaghadka@hotmail.com>
    wrote:

    On Mon, 15 Apr 2024 13:48:07 -0400, in comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action,
    Spalls Hurgenson wrote:

    On Mon, 15 Apr 2024 07:59:22 -0700, Justisaur <justisaur@yahoo.com>
    wrote:

    I haven't used a screen saver in so long I don't remember when the last >>>time was. I do have the power settings to turn off the screen after 15 >>>minutes, but it was happening in less than 5 minutes.

    Yeah, screensavers are quite pointless, especially since computers
    come out of suspend so quickly. There's no necessity to them anymore,
    so it's no surprise that most people don't use them. In fact,
    Microsoft has made it pretty hard even to get to screensaver settings
    in Windows 11. Arguably, they're even counter productive, since they
    waste electricity. But they're pretty. ;-)

    I have an entire folder of old screen savers. Some of them are no longer >compatible with Windows.

    It is amazing how fast "3DPipes" (from NT4) chugs along in this day and
    age.

    Unfortunately, while when you preview "3D Bubbles," it leaves the screen
    up, when it actually runs, it still blacks the whole screen out. Hasn't >worked right since at least Windows 8. It's my favorite.

    It's also a toss-up how they will deal with multiple screens.

    I've a collection of screensavers I've collected over the years. Some
    of which aren't compatible with modern versions of Windows, but you'd
    be surprised by how many still are. I purchased a whole range of '3D screensavers' ten+ years ago too. All of which get tossed into the
    rotation, although mostly I only fire them up for special occassions.
    My usual is the "Ribbons" screensaver, which looks beautiful spanning
    all four monitors (I'm a sucker for glowing neon ;-).

    LCDs can suffer from burn-in, but tend to be a lot more resistant to
    it. Letting the monitor tick over into sleep mode after ten minutes of inactivity is the best way of avoiding the problem. I just prefer to
    use something more... colorful.


    --- Synchronet 3.20a-Linux NewsLink 1.114
  • From rridge@rridge@csclub.uwaterloo.ca (Ross Ridge) to comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action on Tue Apr 16 18:22:10 2024
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

    Spalls Hurgenson <spallshurgenson@gmail.com> wrote:
    On a related note: what's the oldest media (tape, floppy, cd-rom,
    cartridge) you still have for a game?

    I still have a box full my old Commodore 64 games in their original
    packaging. The oldest game in that collection would be the Commodore
    version of the Infocom game Suspended. The oldest media I have though
    would be a floppy for the C64 version Lode Runner, but I don't think I
    have the box for that.

    I'm not sure what the oldest PC game media I have is. I have 5.25"
    floppies for Command HQ, Dragon Wars, MegaTraveller 1, and SSG's Panzer Battles. I believe Panzer Battles is the oldest of these games in terms
    of release date, but I would purcased them all a few years after they
    were released.

    I still have a 5.25" floppy disk for Infocom's "Hitchhiker's Guide to
    the Galaxy" for the Apple II lying around somewhere. I've no idea if
    it still works, though. According to Mobygames, that dates it to as
    far back as 1984 (although, honestly, I can't remember how 'new' the
    game was when I purchased it).

    On PC, that honor probably goes to "Ultima VI" (1990). I imaged (and
    then discarded) most of my floppy disks years ago in order to make
    space and only kept the disks for a handful of favorites. The Ultima
    games definitely fall into that last category.

    I have the Commodore 64 versions of both of these games, in their
    original boxes, but the Hitchhicker's Guide to the Galaxy is missing
    some of feelies.

    But I think the oldest video game 'media' I still have are the faded
    pages ripped from some magazine that listed the Basic code that made
    up a really primitive 'Star Trek' game. I dutifully typed it out into
    my 8-bit and was immediately disappointed by the results. The disk I
    saved the code to is long gone, but for some reason I hung onto the
    magazine pages. It's yellowed and crinkly and probably missing a page
    or three, but it's still buried in the closet somewhere...

    I'm not sure why I kept them but I have a copy of the November and
    December 1983 issues of Compute!. It was robably because they were
    unusally thick issues for the magazine at the time. I don't think any
    of the type-in programs included were particularly interesting.
    --
    l/ // Ross Ridge -- The Great HTMU
    [oo][oo] rridge@csclub.uwaterloo.ca
    -()-/()/ http://www.csclub.uwaterloo.ca:11068/
    db //
    --- Synchronet 3.20a-Linux NewsLink 1.114
  • From Kyonshi@gmkeros@gmail.com to comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action on Wed Apr 17 13:07:37 2024
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

    On 4/16/2024 6:50 PM, Spalls Hurgenson wrote:
    On Tue, 16 Apr 2024 09:52:11 +0200, Kyonshi <gmkeros@gmail.com> wrote:



    oh, wait wait, I just remembered something I have.
    My mum at one point brought this computer home which her boss had
    mustered out:
    https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/51/Kosmos_cp1.jpg
    It barely would count as a game though, it's a programmable learning
    computer and a few of the listings in the manual are for games (dice
    games, roulette, etc.).
    Of course the main problem was that it was really complicated and really
    basic. The machine only had RAM, no inbuilt physical drives, and only
    had a 6 digit display.

    Just the base machine looks oddly fascinating. It's the sort of thing
    I wish I might have had access to in the early days of computing. It
    probably would have given me a leg-up on programming. Who knows, I
    might have become the next John Carmack! ;-)




    Well, I only got my hands on it when I already had some BASIC classes
    under my belt. Not that they helped any. Neither did having the CP1.

    Although, to get it back to gaming, it might have helped me beating
    Human Resource Machine. But that hardly was that difficult.
    --- Synchronet 3.20a-Linux NewsLink 1.114
  • From Kyonshi@gmkeros@gmail.com to comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action on Wed Apr 17 13:08:52 2024
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

    On 4/16/2024 6:30 PM, candycanearter07 wrote:



    I'm sure CRT's will continue to be well known..

    Not sure, when was the last time you actually saw one?
    I mean, my kids know they existed, but mostly from movies and stuff.
    --- Synchronet 3.20a-Linux NewsLink 1.114
  • From Mike S.@Mike_S@nowhere.com to comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action on Wed Apr 17 09:17:06 2024
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

    On Tue, 16 Apr 2024 18:22:10 -0000 (UTC), rridge@csclub.uwaterloo.ca
    (Ross Ridge) wrote:

    I still have a box full my old Commodore 64 games in their original >packaging. The oldest game in that collection would be the Commodore
    version of the Infocom game Suspended. The oldest media I have though
    would be a floppy for the C64 version Lode Runner, but I don't think I
    have the box for that.

    My Infocom C-64 games are probably my oldest games but they are stored
    away in my garage and I am too lazy to check the actual copyright
    dates.

    I'm not sure what the oldest PC game media I have is. I have 5.25"
    floppies for Command HQ, Dragon Wars, MegaTraveller 1, and SSG's Panzer >Battles. I believe Panzer Battles is the oldest of these games in terms
    of release date, but I would purcased them all a few years after they
    were released.

    My oldest PC game by release year is Wizardry 1: Proving Grounds of
    the Mad Overlord but it is obviously a re-release because it is
    actually Copyright 1987.

    I don't have Dragon Wars but I do have the Bard's Tale. It too is
    Copyright 1987.

    I have the Commodore 64 versions of both of these games, in their
    original boxes, but the Hitchhicker's Guide to the Galaxy is missing
    some of feelies.

    The only feelie I ever managed not to lose was the glowing purple rock
    from Wishbringer.

    I'm not sure why I kept them but I have a copy of the November and
    December 1983 issues of Compute!. It was robably because they were
    unusally thick issues for the magazine at the time. I don't think any
    of the type-in programs included were particularly interesting.

    I kept all of my magazines from the PC era. Oldest issue I have is
    QuestBusters dated June 89.

    I used to read a sister magazine to Compute called Compute's Gazette
    which was specifically for Commodore computers. I never kept those
    magazines though. They are long gone. They would have been my oldest
    if I still had them.
    --- Synchronet 3.20a-Linux NewsLink 1.114
  • From Justisaur@justisaur@yahoo.com to comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action on Wed Apr 17 07:03:53 2024
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

    On 4/16/2024 11:22 AM, Ross Ridge wrote:
    Spalls Hurgenson <spallshurgenson@gmail.com> wrote:
    On a related note: what's the oldest media (tape, floppy, cd-rom,
    cartridge) you still have for a game?

    I still have a box full my old Commodore 64 games in their original packaging. The oldest game in that collection would be the Commodore
    version of the Infocom game Suspended. The oldest media I have though
    would be a floppy for the C64 version Lode Runner, but I don't think I
    have the box for that.

    I'm not sure what the oldest PC game media I have is. I have 5.25"
    floppies for Command HQ, Dragon Wars, MegaTraveller 1, and SSG's Panzer Battles. I believe Panzer Battles is the oldest of these games in terms
    of release date, but I would purcased them all a few years after they
    were released.

    Megatraveler, there's a game I liked I haven't thought about in a long
    time. Are you sure at least MegaTraveller wasn't 3.5" it was released
    in 1990 as far as I can tell, and that seems a bit late for 5.25"? But
    I could be wrong, that's 34 years ago.

    -Justisaur

    ø-ø
    (\_/)\
    `-'\ `--.___,
    ¶¬'\( ,_.-'
    \\
    ^'

    --- Synchronet 3.20a-Linux NewsLink 1.114
  • From rridge@rridge@csclub.uwaterloo.ca (Ross Ridge) to comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action on Wed Apr 17 17:56:12 2024
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

    Kyonshi <gmkeros@gmail.com> wrote:
    Not sure, when was the last time you actually saw one?

    I'm looking at one right now. It's not the monitor I'm using now,
    but there's a CRT TV just to the left of it in the background.
    --
    l/ // Ross Ridge -- The Great HTMU
    [oo][oo] rridge@csclub.uwaterloo.ca
    -()-/()/ http://www.csclub.uwaterloo.ca:11068/
    db //
    --- Synchronet 3.20a-Linux NewsLink 1.114
  • From Kyonshi@gmkeros@gmail.com to comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action on Wed Apr 17 20:36:49 2024
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

    On 4/17/2024 4:03 PM, Justisaur wrote:


    Megatraveler, there's a game I liked I haven't thought about in a long time.  Are you sure at least MegaTraveller wasn't 3.5" it was released
    in 1990 as far as I can tell, and that seems a bit late for 5.25"?  But
    I could be wrong, that's 34 years ago.

    Nah, 1990 still was in the 5.25" time. They only faded from view a few
    years later. I remember when we bought our first 486 in... 1993? we had
    the choice between one with a 3.5" and one with both 3.5" and 5.25", and
    my dad took the one without the 5.25" drive. To my consternation,
    because I thought those disks looked kinda cool, and my uncle had a huge collection of games on them already.

    (and for what it's worth, here is an ebay offer for a sealed 5.25" copy
    of the game: https://www.ebay.com/itm/235038004341)
    --- Synchronet 3.20a-Linux NewsLink 1.114
  • From rridge@rridge@csclub.uwaterloo.ca (Ross Ridge) to comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action on Thu Apr 18 02:57:17 2024
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

    Justisaur <justisaur@yahoo.com> wrote:
    Megatraveler, there's a game I liked I haven't thought about in a long
    time. Are you sure at least MegaTraveller wasn't 3.5" it was released
    in 1990 as far as I can tell, and that seems a bit late for 5.25"? But
    I could be wrong, that's 34 years ago.

    Yah, my copy of MegaTraveller 1 came on 5.25" disks. I have them in
    of those disk cases you can flip through sitting on a shelf, so I had
    them in my hands before writing that. (Otherwise I probably would have forgotten I had them.) They have 3.0 version numbers hand written on
    the labels with a black marker, so I'm guessing they probably were made sometime after 1990.

    Games on 3.5" disks didn't really become the norm until 1992 or so
    when the PC game market really got going. Before than though some
    games shipped in both 5.25" and 3.5" versions, like the first two Wing Commander games. My copy of Dragon Wars actually came with both 3.5"
    and 5.25" disks.

    One complicating factor was that 5.25" disks came in 360K or 1.2M versions while 3.5" disks had 720K and 1.44M versions. I'm guessing all my 5.25"
    PC games are on 360K disks as that was the lowest common denomitor,
    and they weren't particularily big games.
    --
    l/ // Ross Ridge -- The Great HTMU
    [oo][oo] rridge@csclub.uwaterloo.ca
    -()-/()/ http://www.csclub.uwaterloo.ca:11068/
    db //
    --- Synchronet 3.20a-Linux NewsLink 1.114
  • From Mike S.@Mike_S@nowhere.com to comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action on Thu Apr 18 08:54:05 2024
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

    On Wed, 17 Apr 2024 20:36:49 +0200, Kyonshi <gmkeros@gmail.com> wrote:

    Nah, 1990 still was in the 5.25" time. They only faded from view a few
    years later. I remember when we bought our first 486 in... 1993? we had
    the choice between one with a 3.5" and one with both 3.5" and 5.25", and
    my dad took the one without the 5.25" drive. To my consternation,
    because I thought those disks looked kinda cool, and my uncle had a huge >collection of games on them already.

    (and for what it's worth, here is an ebay offer for a sealed 5.25" copy
    of the game: https://www.ebay.com/itm/235038004341)

    Yeah, my copy of Might and Magic 3 has a Copyright date of 1991 and it
    came on 5.25 floppies.
    --- Synchronet 3.20a-Linux NewsLink 1.114
  • From candycanearter07@candycanearter07@candycanearter07.nomail.afraid to comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action on Thu Apr 18 14:30:09 2024
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

    Kyonshi <gmkeros@gmail.com> wrote at 11:08 this Wednesday (GMT):
    On 4/16/2024 6:30 PM, candycanearter07 wrote:



    I'm sure CRT's will continue to be well known..

    Not sure, when was the last time you actually saw one?
    I mean, my kids know they existed, but mostly from movies and stuff.


    Today.
    --
    user <candycane> is generated from /dev/urandom
    --- Synchronet 3.20a-Linux NewsLink 1.114
  • From ant@ant@zimage.comANT (Ant) to comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action on Thu Apr 18 20:01:33 2024
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

    candycanearter07 <candycanearter07@candycanearter07.nomail.afraid> wrote:
    Kyonshi <gmkeros@gmail.com> wrote at 11:08 this Wednesday (GMT):
    On 4/16/2024 6:30 PM, candycanearter07 wrote:



    I'm sure CRT's will continue to be well known..

    Not sure, when was the last time you actually saw one?
    I mean, my kids know they existed, but mostly from movies and stuff.

    Today.

    Same. Still have them, but not in used.
    --
    "Anyone, then, who knows the good he ought to do and doesn't do it, sins." --James 4:17. I need to more goods and less sins.
    Note: A fixed width font (Courier, Monospace, etc.) is required to see this signature correctly.
    /\___/\ Ant(Dude) @ http://aqfl.net & http://antfarm.home.dhs.org.
    / /\ /\ \ Please nuke ANT if replying by e-mail.
    | |o o| |
    \ _ /
    ( )
    --- Synchronet 3.20a-Linux NewsLink 1.114
  • From Anssi Saari@anssi.saari@usenet.mail.kapsi.fi to comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action on Fri Apr 19 13:52:57 2024
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

    Spalls Hurgenson <spallshurgenson@gmail.com> writes:

    Yeah, that's another good delineation: if a game can't do widescreen,
    it automatically feels old to me. It's really hard for me to play
    fencepost'd games on a modern monitor; I have to REALLY enjoy the game
    to keep playing at that point. I'd almost certainly be looking for a wide-screen hack (or, at the very least, an option to play the game in
    a window, which I oddly find less offensive than 4:3 fullscreen)
    before continuing.

    So do you play your old games in a window them? Or on a CRT?

    Thinking back, I've played Crudader: No Remorse somewhat recently, as a
    DOS game it probably ran at 640x480 so I'm pretty sure I ran it scaled
    to full screen with fence posts. The posts just faded away as I played.

    I thought System Shock 2 was the same but looks like it has been modded
    to run at 1440p.
    --- Synchronet 3.20a-Linux NewsLink 1.114
  • From Justisaur@justisaur@yahoo.com to comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action on Fri Apr 19 07:14:23 2024
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

    On 4/18/2024 1:01 PM, Ant wrote:
    candycanearter07 <candycanearter07@candycanearter07.nomail.afraid> wrote:
    Kyonshi <gmkeros@gmail.com> wrote at 11:08 this Wednesday (GMT):
    On 4/16/2024 6:30 PM, candycanearter07 wrote:



    I'm sure CRT's will continue to be well known..

    Not sure, when was the last time you actually saw one?
    I mean, my kids know they existed, but mostly from movies and stuff.

    Today.

    Same. Still have them, but not in used.

    I somewhat regret getting rid of my Sony Trinitron monitor, older games
    and consoles looked far better on it than modern LCDs. Unfortunately
    space, and the weight of the thing with all the moves was a problem and
    it's long gone.
    --
    -Justisaur

    ø-ø
    (\_/)\
    `-'\ `--.___,
    ¶¬'\( ,_.-'
    \\
    ^'

    --- Synchronet 3.20a-Linux NewsLink 1.114
  • From Kyonshi@gmkeros@gmail.com to comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action on Fri Apr 19 17:13:25 2024
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

    On 4/19/2024 4:14 PM, Justisaur wrote:
    On 4/18/2024 1:01 PM, Ant wrote:
    candycanearter07 <candycanearter07@candycanearter07.nomail.afraid> wrote: >>> Kyonshi <gmkeros@gmail.com> wrote at 11:08 this Wednesday (GMT):
    On 4/16/2024 6:30 PM, candycanearter07 wrote:



    I'm sure CRT's will continue to be well known..

    Not sure, when was the last time you actually saw one?
    I mean, my kids know they existed, but mostly from movies and stuff.

    Today.

    Same. Still have them, but not in used.

    I somewhat regret getting rid of my Sony Trinitron monitor, older games
    and consoles looked far better on it than modern LCDs.  Unfortunately space, and the weight of the thing with all the moves was a problem and
    it's long gone.


    I used to have one 20 years ago, but it got kind of lost in the moves afterwards. I have the suspicion it might be still around my parents'
    place somewhere.
    --- Synchronet 3.20a-Linux NewsLink 1.114
  • From Kyonshi@gmkeros@gmail.com to comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action on Fri Apr 19 17:12:25 2024
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

    On 4/18/2024 2:54 PM, Mike S. wrote:
    On Wed, 17 Apr 2024 20:36:49 +0200, Kyonshi <gmkeros@gmail.com> wrote:

    Nah, 1990 still was in the 5.25" time. They only faded from view a few
    years later. I remember when we bought our first 486 in... 1993? we had
    the choice between one with a 3.5" and one with both 3.5" and 5.25", and
    my dad took the one without the 5.25" drive. To my consternation,
    because I thought those disks looked kinda cool, and my uncle had a huge
    collection of games on them already.

    (and for what it's worth, here is an ebay offer for a sealed 5.25" copy
    of the game: https://www.ebay.com/itm/235038004341)

    Yeah, my copy of Might and Magic 3 has a Copyright date of 1991 and it
    came on 5.25 floppies.

    Now that was a great game.

    I only got it on CD-Rom though.

    --- Synchronet 3.20a-Linux NewsLink 1.114
  • From Spalls Hurgenson@spallshurgenson@gmail.com to comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action on Fri Apr 19 11:31:41 2024
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

    On Fri, 19 Apr 2024 13:52:57 +0300, Anssi Saari <anssi.saari@usenet.mail.kapsi.fi> wrote:

    Spalls Hurgenson <spallshurgenson@gmail.com> writes:

    Yeah, that's another good delineation: if a game can't do widescreen,
    it automatically feels old to me. It's really hard for me to play
    fencepost'd games on a modern monitor; I have to REALLY enjoy the game
    to keep playing at that point. I'd almost certainly be looking for a
    wide-screen hack (or, at the very least, an option to play the game in
    a window, which I oddly find less offensive than 4:3 fullscreen)
    before continuing.

    So do you play your old games in a window them? Or on a CRT?

    Thinking back, I've played Crudader: No Remorse somewhat recently, as a
    DOS game it probably ran at 640x480 so I'm pretty sure I ran it scaled
    to full screen with fence posts. The posts just faded away as I played.


    Generally, I run older games in a window. DOS games usually get scaled
    up a bit, just because a 320x240 window is a bit small... but a window nonetheless. I'm not really a 'purist' when it comes to the visuals;
    I've even been known to use filters (gasp! shock! horror!) to smooth
    or otherwise improve the quality.

    Well, that's with DOS games, anyway. Older Windows games I'll run
    full-screen (if only because a lot of older windows games don't
    support anything but full-screen anyway).

    Despite my collection of older hardware, I don't have any CRTs. I
    never found the difference in visual quality between LCDs and CRT to
    be so great as to counterbalance the power-usage or size of the older
    screens. Yes, some older games shine on CRTs, but not so much that I
    want to dedicate an entire desk to a single monitor. ;-)

    Or risk throwing out my back just to move a 21" monstrosity.

    --- Synchronet 3.20a-Linux NewsLink 1.114
  • From JAB@noway@nochance.com to comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action on Sat Apr 20 10:38:41 2024
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

    On 19/04/2024 15:14, Justisaur wrote:
    On 4/18/2024 1:01 PM, Ant wrote:
    candycanearter07 <candycanearter07@candycanearter07.nomail.afraid> wrote: >>> Kyonshi <gmkeros@gmail.com> wrote at 11:08 this Wednesday (GMT):
    On 4/16/2024 6:30 PM, candycanearter07 wrote:



    I'm sure CRT's will continue to be well known..

    Not sure, when was the last time you actually saw one?
    I mean, my kids know they existed, but mostly from movies and stuff.

    Today.

    Same. Still have them, but not in used.

    I somewhat regret getting rid of my Sony Trinitron monitor, older games
    and consoles looked far better on it than modern LCDs.  Unfortunately space, and the weight of the thing with all the moves was a problem and
    it's long gone.


    I had one for quite a few years but ended up ditching it for the same
    reasons. I had a copy of War and Peace under the monitor stand so it
    didn't break it.
    --- Synchronet 3.20a-Linux NewsLink 1.114
  • From Spalls Hurgenson@spallshurgenson@gmail.com to comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action on Sat Apr 20 10:21:39 2024
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

    On Fri, 19 Apr 2024 17:12:25 +0200, Kyonshi <gmkeros@gmail.com> wrote:

    On 4/18/2024 2:54 PM, Mike S. wrote:
    On Wed, 17 Apr 2024 20:36:49 +0200, Kyonshi <gmkeros@gmail.com> wrote:

    Nah, 1990 still was in the 5.25" time. They only faded from view a few
    years later. I remember when we bought our first 486 in... 1993? we had
    the choice between one with a 3.5" and one with both 3.5" and 5.25", and >>> my dad took the one without the 5.25" drive. To my consternation,
    because I thought those disks looked kinda cool, and my uncle had a huge >>> collection of games on them already.

    (and for what it's worth, here is an ebay offer for a sealed 5.25" copy
    of the game: https://www.ebay.com/itm/235038004341)

    Yeah, my copy of Might and Magic 3 has a Copyright date of 1991 and it
    came on 5.25 floppies.

    Now that was a great game.

    I only got it on CD-Rom though.

    I was always a "Might & Magic 2" fan myself. Played it to death on an
    8-bit computer. It was an absolutely ridiculous game, with ridiculous encounters (in particular, I remember fighting off hundreds of
    'Cuisinart'* monsters, each of which did hundreds if not thousands of
    points of damage per attack. Finally having a party able to not only
    withstand those attacks but nuke them en masse with magic spells was
    /such/ a satisfying experience). The visuals were a noticable step-up
    from the first game (which was surprisingly text-heavy). The new skill
    system made the game feel more like a tabletop RPG, the automap was a
    very welcome QOL improvement, and the huge open-world was the Skyrim
    of its era; so much to explore, so many hidden things to discover, so
    many quests to do!

    But by the time "Might & Magic 3" rolled around (1991), I was pretty
    much done with the franchise. It's combat-heavy game-play and
    tile-based presentation felt very old school when compared to
    contemporary CRPGs like "Ultima 6" or even (the then venerable) "Pool
    of Radiance"). "Underworld: The Stygian Abyss", which would release
    less than a year after "Might & Magic 3", was the final straw,
    cementing the fact that the franchise was officially behind-the-times
    (at least in my eyes). And if I really wanted to play a tile-based dungeon-crawler, the "Eye of the Beholder" games had a freshness to
    them that the Might & Magic games lacked.

    But I'll never forget the joy of smashing cuisinarts. ;-)



    As for disks... the early 90s were the definite transition period
    between 3.5" and 5.25" disks. I just have to look into my collection
    of games; "Underworld" came on 5.25" 1.2MB floppies, but my copy of
    "Wing Commander II" was on 3.5" 1.44MB disks. Not only did many games
    release in different SKUs, each individually marked with what sort of
    disk could be found inside the box, but pretty much every game also
    included a 'disk exchange card', with instructions on how you could
    swap your 3.5" disks for 5.25" floppies (or vice versa) for a minimal
    charge.

    Floppy disks were a surprisingly costly part of game development in
    the 90s, and ate up a significant chunk of the profits for publishers.
    Disks were expensive and - even purchased in bulk - could cost
    anywhere from 50 cents to 2 dollars US! So with a game that shipped on
    8 floppy disks, that might mean $10 of that might be spent on media
    alone! The weight of all those disks also made it more expensive to
    ship the games too. It's one of the bigger reasons why publishers were
    so quick to switch over to CD-ROM, even when the game didn't really
    need all that much storage space; it was a huge cost-saving for them.










    * named after a specific chopper/blender kitchen-device that was
    popular at the time
    --- Synchronet 3.20a-Linux NewsLink 1.114
  • From Kyonshi@gmkeros@gmail.com to comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action on Sun Apr 21 12:07:30 2024
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

    On 4/20/2024 4:21 PM, Spalls Hurgenson wrote:

    I was always a "Might & Magic 2" fan myself. Played it to death on an
    8-bit computer. It was an absolutely ridiculous game, with ridiculous encounters (in particular, I remember fighting off hundreds of
    'Cuisinart'* monsters, each of which did hundreds if not thousands of
    points of damage per attack. Finally having a party able to not only withstand those attacks but nuke them en masse with magic spells was
    /such/ a satisfying experience). The visuals were a noticable step-up
    from the first game (which was surprisingly text-heavy). The new skill
    system made the game feel more like a tabletop RPG, the automap was a
    very welcome QOL improvement, and the huge open-world was the Skyrim
    of its era; so much to explore, so many hidden things to discover, so
    many quests to do!

    But by the time "Might & Magic 3" rolled around (1991), I was pretty
    much done with the franchise. It's combat-heavy game-play and
    tile-based presentation felt very old school when compared to
    contemporary CRPGs like "Ultima 6" or even (the then venerable) "Pool
    of Radiance"). "Underworld: The Stygian Abyss", which would release
    less than a year after "Might & Magic 3", was the final straw,
    cementing the fact that the franchise was officially behind-the-times
    (at least in my eyes). And if I really wanted to play a tile-based dungeon-crawler, the "Eye of the Beholder" games had a freshness to
    them that the Might & Magic games lacked.

    But I'll never forget the joy of smashing cuisinarts. ;-)

    I only started with 4, then got 5 (and enjoyed the experience of putting
    both of them together to make the combined world; that was one expansion
    which totally held the promises it made), then moved to 3. I all got
    them as cover discs on some magazine that only existed for selling old
    games to people (Bestseller Games). I spent a lot of time in games from
    that magazine, and I didn't mind they were older because at least they
    were running fine even on my antiquated computer at the time.
    >

    As for disks... the early 90s were the definite transition period
    between 3.5" and 5.25" disks. I just have to look into my collection
    of games; "Underworld" came on 5.25" 1.2MB floppies, but my copy of
    "Wing Commander II" was on 3.5" 1.44MB disks. Not only did many games
    release in different SKUs, each individually marked with what sort of
    disk could be found inside the box, but pretty much every game also
    included a 'disk exchange card', with instructions on how you could
    swap your 3.5" disks for 5.25" floppies (or vice versa) for a minimal
    charge.

    Floppy disks were a surprisingly costly part of game development in
    the 90s, and ate up a significant chunk of the profits for publishers.
    Disks were expensive and - even purchased in bulk - could cost
    anywhere from 50 cents to 2 dollars US! So with a game that shipped on
    8 floppy disks, that might mean $10 of that might be spent on media
    alone! The weight of all those disks also made it more expensive to
    ship the games too. It's one of the bigger reasons why publishers were
    so quick to switch over to CD-ROM, even when the game didn't really
    need all that much storage space; it was a huge cost-saving for them.



    I never thought about that, but that actually is totally true. I thought
    it was mostly the convenience, but yes, just shipping one disc instead
    of 8 was certainly cheaper, even with the higher prices for CDs back then.
    I still remember that some publishers went overboard and started to ship
    some games on multiple CDs (FMV games mostly, which everybody forgets
    for good reason)
    --
    email: gmkeros@gmail.com
    microblog: https://dice.camp/@kyonshi
    macroblog: https://gmkeros.wordpress.com
    pictures: https://portfolio.pixelfed.de/kyonshi
    --- Synchronet 3.20a-Linux NewsLink 1.114
  • From Spalls Hurgenson@spallshurgenson@gmail.com to comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action on Sun Apr 21 10:21:22 2024
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

    On Sun, 21 Apr 2024 12:07:30 +0200, Kyonshi <gmkeros@gmail.com> wrote:
    On 4/20/2024 4:21 PM, Spalls Hurgenson wrote:

    I was always a "Might & Magic 2" fan myself.


    I only started with 4, then got 5 (and enjoyed the experience of putting >both of them together to make the combined world; that was one expansion >which totally held the promises it made), then moved to 3.

    MM4 (Clouds) and MM5(Darkside) were probably the best of the series
    (despite my enjoying the 2nd game more). The entire 'merge the two
    games into one, or enjoy each separately' thing was a gimmick, but a
    neat one. Overall, it had a mix of good graphics and gameplay.
    Nonetheless, the entire tile-step mechanic just felt so old-school
    (this before old-school was seen as cool) that I had a hard time
    enjoying them. Why play such clunky games, my train of thought was,
    when there was so many other games exploring newer and more exciting
    ways of playing?

    (You can argue that I was shortchanging the games with that line of
    thinking, and I probably wouldn't disagree with you, but that's how I
    viewed it back then ;-)

    I all got
    them as cover discs on some magazine that only existed for selling old
    games to people (Bestseller Games). I spent a lot of time in games from
    that magazine, and I didn't mind they were older because at least they
    were running fine even on my antiquated computer at the time.

    Ah, cover disks. The magazines that came with floppies were a useful
    source of spare disks (after you tried the demos, of course!), and the
    ones that came with CD-ROMs were a bonanza of goodies that never
    seemed to end. Especially in the early/mid-90s, when they squeezed
    literally HUNDREDS of games onto each disk.

    Having access to the Internet even back then, I was less dependent on
    CD-ROMs to get access to demos, but they were a useful 'archival
    medium' for demos that I knew I might want to look at later. Even for
    those of us with online access, downloading a 5 or 10MB demo was a time-consuming chore. Unless you absolutely needed the
    latest-n-greatest demos, it was better just to slip in a handy
    cover-disk and install it from there.

    And those rare cover disks that offered COMPLETE games (sometimes unintentionally ;-)? Those you hung onto like they were the rarest of
    4-leaf clovers.

    I still have a few cover disks lingering about just for that reason.


    Floppy disks were a surprisingly costly part of game development in
    the 90s, and ate up a significant chunk of the profits for publishers.
    Disks were expensive and - even purchased in bulk - could cost
    anywhere from 50 cents to 2 dollars US! So with a game that shipped on
    8 floppy disks, that might mean $10 of that might be spent on media
    alone! The weight of all those disks also made it more expensive to
    ship the games too. It's one of the bigger reasons why publishers were
    so quick to switch over to CD-ROM, even when the game didn't really
    need all that much storage space; it was a huge cost-saving for them.

    I never thought about that, but that actually is totally true. I thought
    it was mostly the convenience, but yes, just shipping one disc instead
    of 8 was certainly cheaper, even with the higher prices for CDs back then.
    I still remember that some publishers went overboard and started to ship >some games on multiple CDs (FMV games mostly, which everybody forgets
    for good reason)

    It wasn't just the price of the medium itself, but getting the data
    onto the CD-ROMs was both cheaper and faster. CD-ROMs were also less
    likely to go bad, which meant fewer returns/exchanges too.

    Multiple CD-ROM games (not just FMV games) were the bane of my
    existance for years. Sure, at the start it was exciting (a game that
    spanned multiple-CDROMs? Some games used up to 8 CDs; that's 5.5GB!!!
    How in the world could any game need that much data? It was
    mind-blowing ;-) but the appeal really started to fade as /every/ game
    did it. Not only did it extend installation time, but you'd have to
    constantly juggle disks just to play the game. It took me back to the
    8-bit days when PC games constantly asked you to swap floppy disks!

    But what really annoyed me was storage. Because I hadn't the room to
    keep all the boxes for my games, I stored my CDs in those large CD
    binder books (some of which held up to 200 disks). And because games
    kept coming on ever larger number of CD-ROMs, I kept having to buy
    more (and larger) binders to store them. What was worse, the continued
    this long after DVDs became a viable medium.

    (Unlike the floppy-to-CD transition, there was much less financial
    advantage to moving to DVDs. While publishers might have saved some
    money by pressing fewer disks, creating a DVD was still more expensive
    per disk than making a CD-ROM. It also required investment in DVD
    pressing hardware, and risked losing a not-insignificant number of
    customers who didn't have DVD drives yet. So PC publishers were slow
    to jump onto the DVD bandwagon).

    And by the time DVDs were starting to become common, the transition to
    digital downloads had started in earnest (not to mention games were
    becoming so bloated that even DVDs were barely able to contain them).


    --- Synchronet 3.20a-Linux NewsLink 1.114
  • From rridge@rridge@csclub.uwaterloo.ca (Ross Ridge) to comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action on Sun Apr 21 15:20:04 2024
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

    Kyonshi <gmkeros@gmail.com> wrote:
    I never thought about that, but that actually is totally true. I thought
    it was mostly the convenience, but yes, just shipping one disc instead
    of 8 was certainly cheaper, even with the higher prices for CDs back then.

    CD technology was over a decade old by the time CD-ROM games became a
    thing, and assuming a certain minimum number of copies, was actually quite
    a bit cheaper per disk than floppy disks. CD-ROMs are made by stamping
    an aluminum disk and then sandwiching it between two clear plastic disks. Pre-recorded floppy disks were made in duplication machines that had to
    write out the floppy disk sector by sector, track by track. The more
    advanced ones had 4X speed drives and an automatic feeder, simpler ones
    just used a bank of standard floppy drives that copied at regular drive
    speeds and had to be loaded and unloaded manually.

    So game companies actually saved a fair bit of money switching to CD-ROM. Instead of hiring their own employees to feed disks into expensive
    duplicators they could outsource whole media manufacturing task to one
    the same companies making music CDs.

    I still remember that some publishers went overboard and started to ship >some games on multiple CDs (FMV games mostly, which everybody forgets
    for good reason)

    My copy of EverQuest II came on 10 CD-ROMs. It was also available on
    two DVD-ROMs and while I had a DVD-ROM drive back then I went with the
    CD version because I knew it was probably the most we'd ever see a game
    release on.
    --
    l/ // Ross Ridge -- The Great HTMU
    [oo][oo] rridge@csclub.uwaterloo.ca
    -()-/()/ http://www.csclub.uwaterloo.ca:11068/
    db //
    --- Synchronet 3.20a-Linux NewsLink 1.114
  • From Kyonshi@gmkeros@gmail.com to comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action on Sun Apr 21 18:03:43 2024
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

    On 4/21/2024 5:20 PM, Ross Ridge wrote:


    My copy of EverQuest II came on 10 CD-ROMs. It was also available on
    two DVD-ROMs and while I had a DVD-ROM drive back then I went with the
    CD version because I knew it was probably the most we'd ever see a game release on.


    Oh yeah, Everquest II. But that was at the switch to DVDs arleady.
    But I was thinking about games like Under a Killing Moon from '94, which
    came on 4 CDs at a time when other games might still come on 3.5" floppies.

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Under_a_Killing_Moon
    --
    email: gmkeros@gmail.com
    microblog: https://dice.camp/@kyonshi
    macroblog: https://gmkeros.wordpress.com
    pictures: https://portfolio.pixelfed.de/kyonshi
    --- Synchronet 3.20a-Linux NewsLink 1.114
  • From Xocyll@Xocyll@gmx.com to comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action on Mon Apr 22 14:30:06 2024
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

    Spalls Hurgenson <spallshurgenson@gmail.com> looked up from reading the entrails of the porn spammer to utter "The Augury is good, the signs
    say:
    <snip>

    Floppy disks were a surprisingly costly part of game development in
    the 90s, and ate up a significant chunk of the profits for publishers.
    Disks were expensive and - even purchased in bulk - could cost
    anywhere from 50 cents to 2 dollars US! So with a game that shipped on
    8 floppy disks, that might mean $10 of that might be spent on media
    alone!

    First floppy disk I ever bought: 5.25" 160k SS/SD
    (Single Sided / Single Density.)

    $10

    That was in 1981 or 1982, I forget which now.

    Xocyll
    --- Synchronet 3.20a-Linux NewsLink 1.114
  • From Xocyll@Xocyll@gmx.com to comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action on Mon Apr 22 14:38:29 2024
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

    Justisaur <justisaur@yahoo.com> looked up from reading the entrails of
    the porn spammer to utter "The Augury is good, the signs say:

    On 4/18/2024 1:01 PM, Ant wrote:
    candycanearter07 <candycanearter07@candycanearter07.nomail.afraid> wrote: >>> Kyonshi <gmkeros@gmail.com> wrote at 11:08 this Wednesday (GMT):
    On 4/16/2024 6:30 PM, candycanearter07 wrote:



    I'm sure CRT's will continue to be well known..

    Not sure, when was the last time you actually saw one?
    I mean, my kids know they existed, but mostly from movies and stuff.

    Today.

    Same. Still have them, but not in used.

    I somewhat regret getting rid of my Sony Trinitron monitor, older games
    and consoles looked far better on it than modern LCDs. Unfortunately
    space, and the weight of the thing with all the moves was a problem and
    it's long gone.

    Had one of those, and they were nice. Mine died though and the only way
    to get it fixed was at an NEC facility in Ottawa.

    70lbs that thing weighed, so shipping it there and back would have cost
    more than it was worth.

    I do NOT miss the weight of CRT TVs and monitors.

    Xocyll
    --- Synchronet 3.20a-Linux NewsLink 1.114
  • From Spalls Hurgenson@spallshurgenson@gmail.com to comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action on Tue Apr 23 13:44:51 2024
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

    On Mon, 22 Apr 2024 14:30:06 -0400, Xocyll <Xocyll@gmx.com> wrote:

    Spalls Hurgenson <spallshurgenson@gmail.com> looked up from reading the >entrails of the porn spammer to utter "The Augury is good, the signs
    say:
    <snip>

    Floppy disks were a surprisingly costly part of game development in
    the 90s, and ate up a significant chunk of the profits for publishers. >>Disks were expensive and - even purchased in bulk - could cost
    anywhere from 50 cents to 2 dollars US! So with a game that shipped on
    8 floppy disks, that might mean $10 of that might be spent on media
    alone!

    First floppy disk I ever bought: 5.25" 160k SS/SD
    (Single Sided / Single Density.)

    $10

    That was in 1981 or 1982, I forget which now.

    And - just to make it even more clear about how expensive that was -
    $10USD in 1981 was the equivalent of $35USD in 2024. I've seen used
    flat-screen TVs go for less in thrift stores. ;-)

    I can't remember the year (late 80s, probably) but I recall purchasing
    a box of 3M 10x 5.25" floppy disks (probably DS/SD, since it was for
    my 8-bit) for about $25. It was a significant chunk of change. It was
    the 80s equivalent of buying a new external hard-drive.

    Yet, for all we look down on floppies - so fragile, and holding so
    little data - they were incredibly versatile, useful and so, so
    superior to most alternatives.

    I can't say I /miss/ floppy disks, but I do miss the form factor.
    There was something very reassuring about those slender cassettes
    (especially 3.5" disks); a solidity and presence that said, "Yes, I am
    here holding your data". Slotting the disk into the drive and getting
    that reassuring 'clunk' was quite satisfying too. Smaller form-factors
    - like thumb-drives - never quite recaptured that. I think it's why I
    loved ZIP disks (and its competitors, like LS120 super-floppies) so
    much.


    --- Synchronet 3.20a-Linux NewsLink 1.114
  • From Spalls Hurgenson@spallshurgenson@gmail.com to comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action on Tue Apr 23 13:49:23 2024
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

    On Mon, 22 Apr 2024 14:38:29 -0400, Xocyll <Xocyll@gmx.com> wrote:


    I do NOT miss the weight of CRT TVs and monitors.


    The /only/ thing I miss about CRTs is that you could put things on top
    of them. Files. Disks. A keyboard. It was a useful storage area; out
    of the way enough that you weren't cluttering up your immediate
    work-area, but still accessible enough that you could grab stuff from
    atop it at need.

    Although God forbid something you put on top of the monitor fell
    off... and then you'd have to shift the bastard device to get to your
    lost documents.

    The closest I've gotten, in this age of flat-screens, to that lost functionality was when I bought a little drawer for my tower computer
    that slotted into a 5.25" external drive bay. ;-)


    --- Synchronet 3.20a-Linux NewsLink 1.114
  • From ant@ant@zimage.comANT (Ant) to comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action on Tue Apr 23 19:08:08 2024
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

    Spalls Hurgenson <spallshurgenson@gmail.com> wrote:

    I do NOT miss the weight of CRT TVs and monitors.

    I did miss the pure blackness when flatscreens were new.


    The /only/ thing I miss about CRTs is that you could put things on top
    of them. Files. Disks. A keyboard. It was a useful storage area; out
    of the way enough that you weren't cluttering up your immediate
    work-area, but still accessible enough that you could grab stuff from
    atop it at need.

    I remember my 6th grade teacher told me to put 5.25" floppy disks on top on Apple 2 monitors. :/
    --
    "[Jesus continued his message, saying:] 'Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in spirit and in truth.'" --John 4:23-24
    Note: A fixed width font (Courier, Monospace, etc.) is required to see this signature correctly.
    /\___/\ Ant(Dude) @ http://aqfl.net & http://antfarm.home.dhs.org.
    / /\ /\ \ Please nuke ANT if replying by e-mail.
    | |o o| |
    \ _ /
    ( )
    --- Synchronet 3.20a-Linux NewsLink 1.114
  • From Justisaur@justisaur@yahoo.com to comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action on Wed Apr 24 07:25:55 2024
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

    On 4/23/2024 10:44 AM, Spalls Hurgenson wrote:
    On Mon, 22 Apr 2024 14:30:06 -0400, Xocyll <Xocyll@gmx.com> wrote:

    Spalls Hurgenson <spallshurgenson@gmail.com> looked up from reading the
    entrails of the porn spammer to utter "The Augury is good, the signs
    say:
    <snip>

    I can't say I /miss/ floppy disks, but I do miss the form factor.
    There was something very reassuring about those slender cassettes
    (especially 3.5" disks); a solidity and presence that said, "Yes, I am
    here holding your data". Slotting the disk into the drive and getting
    that reassuring 'clunk' was quite satisfying too. Smaller form-factors
    - like thumb-drives - never quite recaptured that. I think it's why I
    loved ZIP disks (and its competitors, like LS120 super-floppies) so
    much.

    At least they were much harder to lose than the numerous USB thumb
    drives I've got now, and all fit in the same container the same way.
    --
    -Justisaur

    ø-ø
    (\_/)\
    `-'\ `--.___,
    ¶¬'\( ,_.-'
    \\
    ^'

    --- Synchronet 3.20a-Linux NewsLink 1.114
  • From Kyonshi@gmkeros@gmail.com to comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action on Wed Apr 24 19:38:40 2024
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

    On 4/24/2024 4:25 PM, Justisaur wrote:
    On 4/23/2024 10:44 AM, Spalls Hurgenson wrote:
    On Mon, 22 Apr 2024 14:30:06 -0400, Xocyll <Xocyll@gmx.com> wrote:

    Spalls Hurgenson <spallshurgenson@gmail.com> looked up from reading the
    entrails of the porn spammer to utter  "The Augury is good, the signs
    say:
    <snip>

    I can't say I /miss/ floppy disks, but I do miss the form factor.
    There was something very reassuring about those slender cassettes
    (especially 3.5" disks); a solidity and presence that said, "Yes, I am
    here holding your data". Slotting the disk into the drive and getting
    that reassuring 'clunk' was quite satisfying too. Smaller form-factors
    - like thumb-drives - never quite recaptured that. I think it's why I
    loved ZIP disks (and its competitors, like LS120 super-floppies) so
    much.

    At least they were much harder to lose than the numerous USB thumb
    drives I've got now, and all fit in the same container the same way.


    it also was harder to put them in the wrong way round more than once,
    unlike usb drives which you have to try in at least three different ways
    until they work as they should
    --
    microblog: https://dice.camp/@kyonshi
    macroblog: https://gmkeros.wordpress.com
    pictures: https://portfolio.pixelfed.de/kyonshi
    --- Synchronet 3.20a-Linux NewsLink 1.114
  • From ant@ant@zimage.comANT (Ant) to comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action on Thu Apr 25 00:25:39 2024
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

    Kyonshi <gmkeros@gmail.com> wrote:
    On 4/24/2024 4:25 PM, Justisaur wrote:
    On 4/23/2024 10:44 AM, Spalls Hurgenson wrote:
    On Mon, 22 Apr 2024 14:30:06 -0400, Xocyll <Xocyll@gmx.com> wrote:

    Spalls Hurgenson <spallshurgenson@gmail.com> looked up from reading the >>> entrails of the porn spammer to utter  "The Augury is good, the signs
    say:
    <snip>

    I can't say I /miss/ floppy disks, but I do miss the form factor.
    There was something very reassuring about those slender cassettes
    (especially 3.5" disks); a solidity and presence that said, "Yes, I am
    here holding your data". Slotting the disk into the drive and getting
    that reassuring 'clunk' was quite satisfying too. Smaller form-factors
    - like thumb-drives - never quite recaptured that. I think it's why I
    loved ZIP disks (and its competitors, like LS120 super-floppies) so
    much.

    At least they were much harder to lose than the numerous USB thumb
    drives I've got now, and all fit in the same container the same way.


    it also was harder to put them in the wrong way round more than once,
    unlike usb drives which you have to try in at least three different ways until they work as they should

    USB-C fixed that though. :P
    --
    "[Jesus continued his message, saying:] 'Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in spirit and in truth.'" --John 4:23-24
    Note: A fixed width font (Courier, Monospace, etc.) is required to see this signature correctly.
    /\___/\ Ant(Dude) @ http://aqfl.net & http://antfarm.home.dhs.org.
    / /\ /\ \ Please nuke ANT if replying by e-mail.
    | |o o| |
    \ _ /
    ( )
    --- Synchronet 3.20a-Linux NewsLink 1.114
  • From Dimensional Traveler@dtravel@sonic.net to comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action on Wed Apr 24 18:05:51 2024
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

    On 4/24/2024 5:25 PM, Ant wrote:
    Kyonshi <gmkeros@gmail.com> wrote:
    On 4/24/2024 4:25 PM, Justisaur wrote:
    On 4/23/2024 10:44 AM, Spalls Hurgenson wrote:
    On Mon, 22 Apr 2024 14:30:06 -0400, Xocyll <Xocyll@gmx.com> wrote:

    Spalls Hurgenson <spallshurgenson@gmail.com> looked up from reading the >>>>> entrails of the porn spammer to utter  "The Augury is good, the signs >>>>> say:
    <snip>

    I can't say I /miss/ floppy disks, but I do miss the form factor.
    There was something very reassuring about those slender cassettes
    (especially 3.5" disks); a solidity and presence that said, "Yes, I am >>>> here holding your data". Slotting the disk into the drive and getting
    that reassuring 'clunk' was quite satisfying too. Smaller form-factors >>>> - like thumb-drives - never quite recaptured that. I think it's why I
    loved ZIP disks (and its competitors, like LS120 super-floppies) so
    much.

    At least they were much harder to lose than the numerous USB thumb
    drives I've got now, and all fit in the same container the same way.


    it also was harder to put them in the wrong way round more than once,
    unlike usb drives which you have to try in at least three different ways
    until they work as they should

    USB-C fixed that though. :P

    Upped it to 5 different
    ways?
    --
    I've done good in this world. Now I'm tired and just want to be a cranky
    dirty old man.

    --- Synchronet 3.20a-Linux NewsLink 1.114
  • From JAB@noway@nochance.com to comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action on Thu Apr 25 08:29:58 2024
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

    On 25/04/2024 02:05, Dimensional Traveler wrote:
    On 4/24/2024 5:25 PM, Ant wrote:
    USB-C fixed that though. :P

    Upped it to 5 different
     ways?

    The USB-C on my phone is a bit rubbish as the port has a habit of
    collecting dust which means the cable gets a bit loose and prone to
    falling out. Every few months it's out with the specially crafted
    toothpick and for an extra clean the compressor I use with my airbrush.
    --- Synchronet 3.20a-Linux NewsLink 1.114
  • From Xocyll@Xocyll@gmx.com to comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action on Thu Apr 25 03:43:35 2024
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

    JAB <noway@nochance.com> looked up from reading the entrails of the porn spammer to utter "The Augury is good, the signs say:

    On 25/04/2024 02:05, Dimensional Traveler wrote:
    On 4/24/2024 5:25 PM, Ant wrote:
    USB-C fixed that though. :P

    Upped it to 5 different
     ways?

    The USB-C on my phone is a bit rubbish as the port has a habit of
    collecting dust which means the cable gets a bit loose and prone to
    falling out. Every few months it's out with the specially crafted
    toothpick and for an extra clean the compressor I use with my airbrush.

    That's all my complaint with the new computer, instead of the case
    having the USB on the front, it's on the top, where it would be
    guaranteed to fill up with dust until it became non-functional if I
    didn't have the external CD/DVD covering the hole.

    What retarded ass monkey thought that was a good idea?

    And it's not some brand-x it's a fucking corsair 4000d.

    Xocyll
    --- Synchronet 3.20a-Linux NewsLink 1.114
  • From Xocyll@Xocyll@gmx.com to comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action on Thu Apr 25 03:50:34 2024
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

    Spalls Hurgenson <spallshurgenson@gmail.com> looked up from reading the entrails of the porn spammer to utter "The Augury is good, the signs
    say:

    On Mon, 22 Apr 2024 14:38:29 -0400, Xocyll <Xocyll@gmx.com> wrote:


    I do NOT miss the weight of CRT TVs and monitors.


    The /only/ thing I miss about CRTs is that you could put things on top
    of them. Files. Disks. A keyboard. It was a useful storage area; out
    of the way enough that you weren't cluttering up your immediate
    work-area, but still accessible enough that you could grab stuff from
    atop it at need.

    The only thing that got "stored" on top of a CRT (monitor or TV) at our
    place, was the cat.

    Kitties loved CRTs for the delicious heat they produced.


    Although God forbid something you put on top of the monitor fell
    off... and then you'd have to shift the bastard device to get to your
    lost documents.

    The closest I've gotten, in this age of flat-screens, to that lost >functionality was when I bought a little drawer for my tower computer
    that slotted into a 5.25" external drive bay. ;-)

    So you almost created that age old tech support tales of the cup holder (putting a coffee cup on the extended cd-rom.)


    My monitor sits on a little "hutch" which is actually the top case of an ancient desktop XT, turned back to front - old burned dvds in cases
    underneath (and the new sound bar) and pills/watches/rings/etc on top.

    I used to put the CRTs on it to lift them high enough so I wasn't
    looking down at them, the lcds put much less strain on it, but then
    those old cases were strong enough to stand on easily.

    I swear new case material is so thin you could bend it if you sneezed in
    it's general direction.

    Xocyll
    --- Synchronet 3.20a-Linux NewsLink 1.114
  • From Zaghadka@zaghadka@hotmail.com to comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action on Thu Apr 25 08:33:48 2024
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

    On Thu, 25 Apr 2024 03:43:35 -0400, in comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action,
    Xocyll wrote:

    JAB <noway@nochance.com> looked up from reading the entrails of the porn >spammer to utter "The Augury is good, the signs say:

    On 25/04/2024 02:05, Dimensional Traveler wrote:
    On 4/24/2024 5:25 PM, Ant wrote:
    USB-C fixed that though. :P

    Upped it to 5 different
     ways?

    The USB-C on my phone is a bit rubbish as the port has a habit of >>collecting dust which means the cable gets a bit loose and prone to >>falling out. Every few months it's out with the specially crafted >>toothpick and for an extra clean the compressor I use with my airbrush.

    That's all my complaint with the new computer, instead of the case
    having the USB on the front, it's on the top, where it would be
    guaranteed to fill up with dust until it became non-functional if I
    didn't have the external CD/DVD covering the hole.

    What retarded ass monkey thought that was a good idea?

    And it's not some brand-x it's a fucking corsair 4000d.


    Get USB covers. Cheap.
    --
    Zag

    No one ever said on their deathbed, 'Gee, I wish I had
    spent more time alone with my computer.' ~Dan(i) Bunten
    --- Synchronet 3.20a-Linux NewsLink 1.114
  • From Dimensional Traveler@dtravel@sonic.net to comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action on Thu Apr 25 07:39:34 2024
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

    On 4/25/2024 12:50 AM, Xocyll wrote:
    Spalls Hurgenson <spallshurgenson@gmail.com> looked up from reading the entrails of the porn spammer to utter "The Augury is good, the signs
    say:

    On Mon, 22 Apr 2024 14:38:29 -0400, Xocyll <Xocyll@gmx.com> wrote:


    I do NOT miss the weight of CRT TVs and monitors.


    The /only/ thing I miss about CRTs is that you could put things on top
    of them. Files. Disks. A keyboard. It was a useful storage area; out
    of the way enough that you weren't cluttering up your immediate
    work-area, but still accessible enough that you could grab stuff from
    atop it at need.

    The only thing that got "stored" on top of a CRT (monitor or TV) at our place, was the cat.

    Kitties loved CRTs for the delicious heat they produced.


    Although God forbid something you put on top of the monitor fell
    off... and then you'd have to shift the bastard device to get to your
    lost documents.

    The closest I've gotten, in this age of flat-screens, to that lost
    functionality was when I bought a little drawer for my tower computer
    that slotted into a 5.25" external drive bay. ;-)

    So you almost created that age old tech support tales of the cup holder (putting a coffee cup on the extended cd-rom.)


    My monitor sits on a little "hutch" which is actually the top case of an ancient desktop XT, turned back to front - old burned dvds in cases underneath (and the new sound bar) and pills/watches/rings/etc on top.

    I used to put the CRTs on it to lift them high enough so I wasn't
    looking down at them, the lcds put much less strain on it, but then
    those old cases were strong enough to stand on easily.

    I swear new case material is so thin you could bend it if you sneezed in
    it's general direction.

    Cheaper to make, encourages re-purchases, pure profit!
    --
    I've done good in this world. Now I'm tired and just want to be a cranky
    dirty old man.

    --- Synchronet 3.20a-Linux NewsLink 1.114
  • From Justisaur@justisaur@yahoo.com to comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action on Thu Apr 25 07:43:57 2024
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

    On 4/24/2024 6:05 PM, Dimensional Traveler wrote:
    On 4/24/2024 5:25 PM, Ant wrote:
    Kyonshi <gmkeros@gmail.com> wrote:
    On 4/24/2024 4:25 PM, Justisaur wrote:
    On 4/23/2024 10:44 AM, Spalls Hurgenson wrote:
    On Mon, 22 Apr 2024 14:30:06 -0400, Xocyll <Xocyll@gmx.com> wrote:

    Spalls Hurgenson <spallshurgenson@gmail.com> looked up from
    reading the
    entrails of the porn spammer to utter  "The Augury is good, the signs >>>>>> say:
    <snip>

    I can't say I /miss/ floppy disks, but I do miss the form factor.
    There was something very reassuring about those slender cassettes
    (especially 3.5" disks); a solidity and presence that said, "Yes, I am >>>>> here holding your data". Slotting the disk into the drive and getting >>>>> that reassuring 'clunk' was quite satisfying too. Smaller form-factors >>>>> - like thumb-drives - never quite recaptured that. I think it's why I >>>>> loved ZIP disks (and its competitors, like LS120 super-floppies) so
    much.

    At least they were much harder to lose than the numerous USB thumb
    drives I've got now, and all fit in the same container the same way.


    it also was harder to put them in the wrong way round more than once,
    unlike usb drives which you have to try in at least three different ways >>> until they work as they should

    USB-C fixed that though. :P

    Upped it to 5 different
     ways?

    They just made it so small it's hard to align to get in at all.

    At least it's better than micro-usb which is both directional, and small enough that you had to get a good look to see which way it went in and
    hard to align.
    --
    -Justisaur

    ø-ø
    (\_/)\
    `-'\ `--.___,
    ¶¬'\( ,_.-'
    \\
    ^'

    --- Synchronet 3.20a-Linux NewsLink 1.114
  • From Spalls Hurgenson@spallshurgenson@gmail.com to comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action on Thu Apr 25 11:41:22 2024
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

    On Thu, 25 Apr 2024 03:43:35 -0400, Xocyll <Xocyll@gmx.com> wrote:

    JAB <noway@nochance.com> looked up from reading the entrails of the porn >spammer to utter "The Augury is good, the signs say:

    On 25/04/2024 02:05, Dimensional Traveler wrote:
    On 4/24/2024 5:25 PM, Ant wrote:
    USB-C fixed that though. :P

    Upped it to 5 different
     ways?

    The USB-C on my phone is a bit rubbish as the port has a habit of >>collecting dust which means the cable gets a bit loose and prone to >>falling out. Every few months it's out with the specially crafted >>toothpick and for an extra clean the compressor I use with my airbrush.

    That's all my complaint with the new computer, instead of the case
    having the USB on the front, it's on the top, where it would be
    guaranteed to fill up with dust until it became non-functional if I
    didn't have the external CD/DVD covering the hole.

    What retarded ass monkey thought that was a good idea?

    And it's not some brand-x it's a fucking corsair 4000d.


    The general trend of putting top-mounted anything on the top of cases
    needs to die. Power buttons, USB ports, volume sliders, 3.5" jacks...
    Just put it on the front face like it used to be.

    My case in particular is annoying. I've powered off my PC several
    times accidentally just because the power button is on top of the case
    and I dropped something on top of it.

    And, while we're at it, get off my lawn! Damn kids...


    --- Synchronet 3.20a-Linux NewsLink 1.114
  • From Spalls Hurgenson@spallshurgenson@gmail.com to comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action on Thu Apr 25 11:49:30 2024
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

    On Thu, 25 Apr 2024 07:43:57 -0700, Justisaur <justisaur@yahoo.com>
    wrote:
    On 4/24/2024 6:05 PM, Dimensional Traveler wrote:
    On 4/24/2024 5:25 PM, Ant wrote:
    Kyonshi <gmkeros@gmail.com> wrote:

    USB-C fixed that though. :P

    Upped it to 5 different
     ways?

    They just made it so small it's hard to align to get in at all.

    At least it's better than micro-usb which is both directional, and small >enough that you had to get a good look to see which way it went in and
    hard to align.

    Far be it from me to say anything nice about Apple, but I always liked
    their 'Lightning' connector. USB3 actually feels like a step back from Lightning, at least in terms of plugging the damn things in. It
    socketed with a very satisfying feel too; USB3 always feels a bit
    loose in comparison.

    Too bad Apple made it proprietary, which not only limited its use and
    upped its cost, but also kept it from getting necessary upgrades to
    keep it competitive.


    --- Synchronet 3.20a-Linux NewsLink 1.114
  • From Spalls Hurgenson@spallshurgenson@gmail.com to comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action on Thu Apr 25 11:53:20 2024
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

    On Thu, 25 Apr 2024 07:39:34 -0700, Dimensional Traveler
    <dtravel@sonic.net> wrote:

    On 4/25/2024 12:50 AM, Xocyll wrote:


    I swear new case material is so thin you could bend it if you sneezed in
    it's general direction.

    Cheaper to make, encourages re-purchases, pure profit!

    Not that a lot of those older cases were so good either. A lot of them
    used really cheap plastic that snapped at the littlest of pressure.
    Yes, Compaq home PCs from the late 90s and early 2000s, I'm looking at
    you!


    --- Synchronet 3.20a-Linux NewsLink 1.114
  • From Kyonshi@gmkeros@gmail.com to comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action on Thu Apr 25 20:15:47 2024
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

    On 4/25/2024 5:53 PM, Spalls Hurgenson wrote:
    On Thu, 25 Apr 2024 07:39:34 -0700, Dimensional Traveler
    <dtravel@sonic.net> wrote:

    On 4/25/2024 12:50 AM, Xocyll wrote:


    I swear new case material is so thin you could bend it if you sneezed in >>> it's general direction.

    Cheaper to make, encourages re-purchases, pure profit!

    Not that a lot of those older cases were so good either. A lot of them
    used really cheap plastic that snapped at the littlest of pressure.
    Yes, Compaq home PCs from the late 90s and early 2000s, I'm looking at
    you!



    they can't respond on account of all being broken and in a landfill.
    --
    microblog: https://dice.camp/@kyonshi
    macroblog: https://gmkeros.wordpress.com
    pictures: https://portfolio.pixelfed.de/kyonshi
    --- Synchronet 3.20a-Linux NewsLink 1.114
  • From Anssi Saari@anssi.saari@usenet.mail.kapsi.fi to comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action on Fri Apr 26 11:14:13 2024
    From Newsgroup: comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action

    Xocyll <Xocyll@gmx.com> writes:

    That's all my complaint with the new computer, instead of the case
    having the USB on the front, it's on the top, where it would be
    guaranteed to fill up with dust until it became non-functional if I
    didn't have the external CD/DVD covering the hole.

    What retarded ass monkey thought that was a good idea?

    And it's not some brand-x it's a fucking corsair 4000d.

    My case (Fractal Design's Define 7) is on the floor so the top side USB
    ports and power switch seemed like an OK design choice. At least they
    haven't filled up with dust in the couple of years I've had the
    case.
    --- Synchronet 3.20a-Linux NewsLink 1.114