CrossBow

I really like all these controller offerings but the man...the space needed for them is getting to be as much as the consoles require?! I really liked gaming with my Curt Vendel controller I have for the 7800. But still find it a bit too big to find a dedicated easy to get to space for it. So...it is back in the box it came from and I use the Brat controller for 7800/2600 stuff now. For the 5200, as I have an entire rolling Atari cart for that system alone, I pretty much stick to the stock controllers since I can keep them in the storage compartment in the back of the console...you know like it was designed for :)

I wouldn't really call it a cheat. More like an exploit of the programming. What I think happens is that when you are in the map screen, you can still more or less move around since stuff is still happening while the map screen is up. If the enemy is in front of your according to the scanner, then the system simply happens to redraw the enemy ship dead center in front initially when you switch back. So again, I wouldn't call it an intended cheat.

Really easy to explain. It seems that when you switch from the galactic chart to the foreview, the enemy is always dead center initially in the view before moving. So if you basically fire off a shot while in galactic chart view and then switch to foreview just before the shot is done, you end up killing the enemy immediately. Then you switch back to galactic view...rinse/repeat. I first learned of it here and I think @Scott Stilphen even mentions this on the old Digital Press website too? https://www.atariage.com/software_hints.php?SoftwareHintID=152

The 5200 version of Star Raiders and Rescue on Fractalus were the main reasons I even got a 5200 in the early 2000s. Although on the case of Star Raiders I rarely even change my speed at all to play. So I mainly just use buttons 4,5, & 6. Especially true once you know the cheat for taking out the enemies when switching from the galactic chart to the fore view LOL! Makes needing to change speed seem much less required after that. I also don't know if I have played it using a digital stick either... I own a redemption adapter along with a Wico keyboard command and use it along with a Genesis 3 button when I use the redemption. But I honestly don't know that I've tried to play Star Raiders with it. In fact, I rarely use the Redemption because I'm fine with the stock controllers in most cases.

They stated that as they believed these games were slated to be released back in 1983, that 1,983 copies will be made. But they haven't stated if that just 1983 copies of the limited editions or all of them...or what. The biggest issue is that they have also stated that HSW was involved in all of these titles. Only Saboteur is his creation as Aquaventure was done by Tod Frye and another programmer and as was already stated Yar's Return (which should be corrected to say Yars' Return), was a hack off the original game that Curt Vendel had commissioned for the FB2 but was glitchy as get out. It was fixed along with some other changes by Dennis Debro, but apparently Atari never approved of the corrected ROM so it is unknown what version is being used for this at this point. There is also quite a bit of talk in regards to how much AtariXP seems to have lifted inspirationally in regards to the artwork they are using from Saboteur and Yar's Return to how similar it appears design wise to other artwork for the game. The logo for Saboteur especially was designed by others in the community and not by Atari back in the day. Seems Tempest over on the AA forums especially is curious to see what manuals they include with that one as he designed and did the original that AA still sells. Howard also states he was never consulted about this and how no idea this was being done. Albert did know but didn't know specifically which, titles would be chosen. I did order all three f the standard version of the games if for no other reason than to see what actually arrives, the quality of it, and because...hey! Atari released is going to put out 'new' 2600 physical carts.

I've read what there is posted on it yes and I'm anxious to see if it actually get a public release when it is finished. But yeah people are even discussing the cart needs to try to get this new hacked 32x version of the game onto physical metal because it really redeems the 32x in a way I didn't think was even possible!

You say this only because you haven't played the new 32x rom hacked version called Doom 32x Resurrection. It has some of the best FM music for the game I've heard, much better and cleaner sound effects, runs at a larger screen with little to no slowdown, and... They included the levels from the Jag version into it and I believe maybe a few more? Also the enemies aren't always facing you just like on the Jag and PC versions. So... what I'm saying is... Aside from the Playstation version, I think it might be the next best console port of the game now. I know... I know that is some big talk but you have to check it out if you have an Everdrive that can run 32x roms with a 32x on your Genesis. I've tried to capture some live streaming from it, but had to reduce the stream settings a bunch and it still wasn't quite showing as good as it really is.

I really like quite a few of the games on the Jag. I think the Jag's version of Wolf3D is the best one to play and I also really enjoyed Iron Soldier and I-War. I got pretty far in Battlemorph. Tempest 2k is a no brainer too! And I really liked Lamatron so you will have a lot of fun with it too. I find it to be more fun than the game it is strongly influenced by of course and I know I'm likely to catch some crap for that.

I'm not sure if I have ever mentioned my ITC Shorts playlist videos here. My shorts are not that short, but are shorter than most of my other videos. They basically cover some simple tech tips and troubleshooting that I've encountered or discovered over the years. In my latest ITC Shorts#16, I go over the process to installing one of my 7800 Chroma fix boards. Originally discovered and designed by marauder666, and juansolo over in the AtariAge forums, I designed a simple PCB to have made up and allow for easy installation into new or existing UAV installs. The Chroma fix is a simple and therefore elegant solution that helps correct for some of the color skewing and bleed that can occur with the stark contrasting colors in 7800 games. The results were immediate to my eyes on my personal 7800 and have provided good results in the 7800s I've installed it into. That said, the amount of 'fix' this does will vary from console to console so it might not make much of a difference to some on their consoles. But one thing for sure, is that it doesn't hurt it to add it in! I have a few of the through hole versions available now like you see in the video available for installation and have a batch of SMD versions that are even smaller on the way. Those SMD versions will likely be available to purchase online through some of the more well known retro gaming DIY mod parts and shops. And here is a peek at the smaller surface mount chip version of the board. That main chip only measures about 5 x 4.5mm in size. So this smaller board is designed to be installed anywhere within the consoles confines and not for sandwiching on top of the UAV as the through hole version does. It will likely be the smaller SMD boards that will be available for sale online in the very not too distant future.

Foil HVAC tape all the way baby!!!

The game also supports the savekey / AVox+ if you have it attached in the player 2 port for saving high scores as well. It will show the save key detection on that initial screen. Lewis (Muddyfunster) seems pretty set on always supporting the savekey/Avox devices for high score saves and I really appreciate that given the original HSC or High Score Carts are unicorns.

I opted to NOT get a smart thermostat when we had our furnaces and AC units replaced out over the past few years. It was offered but since I was able to setup scheduling directly on the thermostats I didn't see a need to adjust that when I'm not home anyway. That is, I had that ability until we had the downstairs units replaced out. Because I opted to NOT use a smart 'stat, they decided to put the most basic thing they could offer and so it just has the current temp setting and nothing else. It kinda sucks... but to keep the warranty etc. I have to use their equipment and maint plan else I end up voiding everything. Just how HVAC business works I guess. Likely why even with a more efficient furnace and AC unit my bills are still basically the same as they were with the older system. However, the older system did at least allow me to install my own Honeywell thermostat that had some smart features in it. They removed that of course when they installed the new units.

That is why I liked how the WD cloud worked. Just buy the device, plug it into the network, browse to it and setup your security, users...etc. It shows up as a mapped drive on the actual computers in the house to easily use it. On mobile devices and tablets, I have to use a MyCloud app that connects to it through the local network wireless and when I'm not in the house. Again, no additional cost to have the MyCloud service and it just worked. Higher end NAS devices basically require you to setup an app on the actual device that allows it to communicate to the open web and then either another app is downloaded and used on your PC/Tablet or you can create your own web hosting from the device and essentially browse to it directly on the web if needed. In other words, it would be a more complex setup. If I wanted the extra stuff I'm looking to get and keep the simplicity, I could just get a more expensive MyCloud that has removable drives...etc. But if I'm going to be spending $400+ for such a device and drives, I'd like to know if WD's options or another company are better choices.

Not new tech by any means but I like it most of the time (App for it doesn't work so well with my old cell phone). But I really like our Ring doorbell. I have one of the Doorbell 2 models on the side door of the house. I know that sounds weird but you would have to see the 'Tower's layout to understand why the side door. Long story short, the side door entrance is the one that faces the main street and is where the mailbox is located. But yeah, it has been really good. If the app worked better on my phone it would be even more useful for actual 2 way comms and the like to interact with visitors or package deliveries. Because combine it with the garage app and if a delivery person is willing to wait a few more seconds, I can open the garage for them to place a package inside. I prefer this to Amazon Key since with the Key app, the delivery people just have access to open your door without you really controlling that easily. Anyway, the ring is pretty cool. I've thought about getting a second one for the actual front door since large deliveries do tend to end up at that door and it would be nice to get notifications for that. I would need to upgrade the door bell transformer in the attic in order to handle the power requirements but yeah...

The MyCloud service didn't cost anything extra. I just had to setup the shares and users for my drive and make sure some stuff on my router was setup so allow it to communicate out on the open web and that was it. To actually use it now, I login to Western Digital's website simply called MyCloud.com and click on the model of the device I own. From there it will then ask me for my user and password that I have setup on my actual drive itself and then I'm in and able to browse, add stuff, download, delete as needed without being at the house at all. It is actually quite helpful for me when I'm at my day job and a person has a question about services I've provided on their console and I can easily jump onto the MyCloud website, login to my actual MyCloud NAS and I can access their prior invoices along with all the pics I've take for reference from anywhere. I need that same basic level of functionality but with the added benefit of a built in RAID1 mirror incase something should go afoul. Currently I've more storage in my PC than I actually know what to do with. I've got a 250gb NVMe as the boot drive and only the main apps and windows is on there. I then have 2x 1TB older WD Black Caviar spinner HDDs in a stripe RAID0 for maximum storage and performance. And two other 1TB Samsung 970 SSDs also in a RAID 0 stripe. Both of those stripe sets is where the games and temporary stuff is stored as I wouldn't be too upset should I lose one of those drives in the array. But none of my storage arrays are more than about 50% filled currently. Still I've got a get a new NAS as some point hence why I was asking here.

So I'm wasn't sure where else to put this and I've not asked this in any other forums/groups so giving people here a first shot on their opinions on this. First if you didn't know.. NAS simply means Network Attached Storage. Usually a box with a set of Hard drives in it that contains a bare bones OS for the drives to work and operate. Having a NAS is pretty cool since you essentially have a bank of storage that isn't in your main PC that is always up and ready to use. In addition, many of them have cloud type apps or services so that you can actually grab files from your NAS from pretty much anywhere on the planet. Now, what I have current and have been using for quite a number of years, is an old Western Digital MyCloud 3TB storage device. It has been excellent and done exactly what I needed over the years and it was cheap when I bought it. However, starting next year, WD due to secure concerns and updates will no longer support my device and in fact, I won't be able to use it for anything other than local network storage only so it won't be usable on their MyCloud website anymore. As it is a basic NAS I figure if I have to upgrade, now is the time to get something perhaps a little more? First of all, I've only used up about 50% of the 3TB of storage my current one offers. That is because I don't copy a ton of stuff on there other than my digital music library and pictures. I used to store my rendered YT videos on it but then decided that was dumb since I can download any of my vids directly off YT whenever I want. However, my current device is just a single sealed 3TB spinner HDD and it is beyond its warranty timeframe already. Here are the questions I've been thinking about for my upgraded NAS: - I want at least RAID1 support so that means I need a least a two drive bay NAS device. - Is it better to go with those that are sealed or hot swappable? - I don't really plan to stream any high end videos from it so I don't know if I need one that can decode/encode on the fly as some now offer? - Not sure if I need one with dual NICs since I only have a single Gigabit router and switch anyway - Should I look at one with expandable RAM like the ones I've seen that actually use NVMe drives for cache use? - What is the average size you think someone like myself might need? - Is there a preference on brand and also with what HDDs to use? Again, my apologies if this isn't the right place of group to discuss this but as I've only a few months before WD completely kills my current drive off I need to look at something now rather than later I guess.

At work on my desk there I have quite a bit more space and use another 27" as my main display (only 1080P on that one), with the other being the 15.6" that the laptops we use as our computers hardly ever being used.

I actually use a 27" 4K as my main PC display and have for about 2 years now I guess? My and I each have one. I would like to use additional monitors as I do at work, but I simply haven't the room on my desk for it. I did pick up an old (Made in 2006) Dell LCD 4:3 24" last week for use on the work bench. It has composite, s-video, VGA, and DVI inputs it can accept. I'm not sure if I will actually use over the my other setup though as the s-video from it isn't as good as what I get from other stuff and as it doesn't have any audio inputs, I still have to use my small CRT next to it for pipe in audio. So... ehh..

I'm not sure that I can post the roms. Someone over at AA asked about it there and was met with crickets. So I'm assuming there is a reason the roms aren't easy to find these days. Just another reason why when I find someone has posted something they are offering to others, I jump on it and download it at that time. Let me see if I can do a little digging. Hmm..yeah I found the original thread at AA where it was first posted back in 2015. But the links are now dead and I can't find any other places hosting them or even mentioning it. The Bad Apple one link still works so I will post that one here: badapple.zip

Yes there is at least two that I know about. One of them is Bad Apple the other is a complete run of Dragon's Lair. But for them to run semi smooth you need a fast... like class 10 SDcard and even then it can still pause from time to time in playback as it streams data from the SDcard. So they only work on Atarimax Ultimate SD flash carts. I don't think they work in emulation.

I've pretty much had this CD running nonstop in my car since I purchased it on release day last week. And this song is pretty excellent and quite the earworm.

I recently replaced the SDcard slot on my Atarimax cart with a spring loaded one. So much easier to know that I have the card fully inserted and I was getting some inconsistent reads from the older slot.

Mine was a much simpler setup. The main opener has a wireless antenna hanging off it and was already tied to the transmitter base it came with. So it isn't wi-fi in my case. The transmitter base plugs into my home network switch and that communicates through the internet that way. The transmitter talks to the opener via some encrypted radio. My guess is that it is just a remote button like what you use in your car. So again a much simpler setup but I knew they had modules for other openers you could use.

When did you order them? Last time I ordered covers from Printer Boy it took over a month for me to get them? Does he have a US distro now to speed that up? I also saw that he offers custom covers but only for modern consoles...ugh. Might be cool to have a few made up with my ITC logo on them or something. Maybe I need to talk to Barb...Hmm....

I believe Chamberlain sells the module's separately and they can be used on existing openers without such tech built into them. Not sure exactly how it works, but I would imagine it is a simple remote relay that is put in the middle between the opening and your actual wall open/close switch on the wall and then the transmitter talks to the remote relay to open and close the door that way? My main issue now is that I've had to readjust my opener about 3 times now because I have a very heavy garage door and it seems that even a 4hp opener has issues with it. I actually miss the 20+ year old Sears Craftsman opener the house came with. But the motor eventually didn't have the omph to open the door anymore and we had to replace it out with the best we could buy that we have now. https://www.chamberlain.com/myq-smart-garage-hub/p/MYQ-G0301-E