Seriously some people need a reality check on what they think they can sell at any price just by bundling
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=170622278041#ht_1186wt_1139
and like a couple of others, repeat selling 78 microdrives for £79, who are they kidding?
Thursday, 31 March 2011
Saturday, 26 March 2011
I Ain't Misbehaving
I just cannot believe it I have just been a victim of one of my own practical jokes, the 'boards have been pretty quiet today except for one item, which made me check a directory and file on the Quanta library CD.
Instead of looking at the directory I was trying to find, I got distracted by another directory, as I recognised the name as being one I created 'EYE LOCK'. This very simple SuperBasic programme was pretending (not very well) to be a protection utility for other QL programmes, however, I couldn't remember exactly how the joke panned out. So I loaded the Superbasic programme in to QPCII and ran it. For quite a few minutes I was trying a variety of changes to the listing in order to get it working under QPCII, especially as it was a relatively simple programme.
After awhile, I got it to the point where I could more or less see on the screen the pseudo instructions. It was also telling me, to note the date on the screen, which was April 1st, hence the joke and spookilly close to the same date this year. Well, I quickly got tired of that and then realised I needed to pick my car up from being fixed with a few repairs to get it through the MOT. I got back an hour later and went to check my emails, Outlook gave me a strange message saying the server is not giving the correct certificate, did I want to continue.
Without much thought I said yes, well actually I clicked on Yes (I am not up to speaking commands to the computer yet), I had one from a bidding website saying I had a winning bid on a QL book, great I thought. Pay Now? it asked and clicking the normal responses took me to the PayPal site, however Google Chrome interrupted saying the server was not secure, come back later.
After a few tries, with it reporting the same message I thought, I will try later and then sent an email to the seller saying PayPal site was down. Did a bit of surfing the web, and about an hour later I checked emails, same server message, checked PayPal still the same message, it was at this point I started to get a little concerned that I had a virus or something worse.
I was trying different websites, that an hour ago were quite accessible, now they were being blocked with this same 'uncertified server error' and telling me to 'try again later', getting more panicky I looked around the computer screen for inspirational clues as to why this was happening to me. It was then I noticed the clock was showing significantly the wrong time, so I checked it. Not only was it showing the wrong time, it was showing the wrong month and the wrong year, it was, according the the clock the 1st April 1986.
It was set by my Superbasic programme 'EYE LOCK' I was playing around with earlier. This program was meant to be a bit of fun for OTHER Quanta people and a little dig at the 'SuperCharge Compiler' 25 years ago, nearly to the day and it was me it caught out. Talk about what goes around comes around, 25 years!!! suffice to say I have paid my winning bid now.
Instead of looking at the directory I was trying to find, I got distracted by another directory, as I recognised the name as being one I created 'EYE LOCK'. This very simple SuperBasic programme was pretending (not very well) to be a protection utility for other QL programmes, however, I couldn't remember exactly how the joke panned out. So I loaded the Superbasic programme in to QPCII and ran it. For quite a few minutes I was trying a variety of changes to the listing in order to get it working under QPCII, especially as it was a relatively simple programme.
After awhile, I got it to the point where I could more or less see on the screen the pseudo instructions. It was also telling me, to note the date on the screen, which was April 1st, hence the joke and spookilly close to the same date this year. Well, I quickly got tired of that and then realised I needed to pick my car up from being fixed with a few repairs to get it through the MOT. I got back an hour later and went to check my emails, Outlook gave me a strange message saying the server is not giving the correct certificate, did I want to continue.
Without much thought I said yes, well actually I clicked on Yes (I am not up to speaking commands to the computer yet), I had one from a bidding website saying I had a winning bid on a QL book, great I thought. Pay Now? it asked and clicking the normal responses took me to the PayPal site, however Google Chrome interrupted saying the server was not secure, come back later.
After a few tries, with it reporting the same message I thought, I will try later and then sent an email to the seller saying PayPal site was down. Did a bit of surfing the web, and about an hour later I checked emails, same server message, checked PayPal still the same message, it was at this point I started to get a little concerned that I had a virus or something worse.
I was trying different websites, that an hour ago were quite accessible, now they were being blocked with this same 'uncertified server error' and telling me to 'try again later', getting more panicky I looked around the computer screen for inspirational clues as to why this was happening to me. It was then I noticed the clock was showing significantly the wrong time, so I checked it. Not only was it showing the wrong time, it was showing the wrong month and the wrong year, it was, according the the clock the 1st April 1986.
It was set by my Superbasic programme 'EYE LOCK' I was playing around with earlier. This program was meant to be a bit of fun for OTHER Quanta people and a little dig at the 'SuperCharge Compiler' 25 years ago, nearly to the day and it was me it caught out. Talk about what goes around comes around, 25 years!!! suffice to say I have paid my winning bid now.
Friday, 25 March 2011
It sounds so nice, what you're proposin'
As we approach the Quanta's AGM, the first one for me, I note two things, the first is that there seems to be a flurry (if that is the right word I am thinking of) of activity on the 'boards (a name I will use to describe forums; mailing lists; emails and whatever from now on). Lots of things are being brought up, legalities, procedures, what should be voted on and what shouldn't, what is appropriately proposed and what isn't, my thought on what I observe is "is this normal a few weeks before an AGM?", for seasoned veterans of Quanta, they would know, for the first year for me, I don't.
My only other recall way back in I think, 1986 of the Quanta AGM was of a furore involving Freddy Vacha (I think I have got that right) from Digital Precision and a possible take-over. I am very hazy about the details mainly because, the only form of instant communication was the land line telephone then, you didn't have everyone's numbers stored up and readily available. So it was when you saw someone who then related it third hand, or reading it in a magazine (a watered down version) or in a letter from a friend or someone in the know, and if it was sent first class then you got the following day whoohoo.
The second thing I am reminded of from noting the goings on is that I haven't got time to reply, or that commenting on it is low on my list of priorities, I am reaching maximum capacity on things I am doing at the moment in regards to the QL. What amazes me is that I seem to be juggling about nine or ten things at the moment, and that I am still doing it, the fact that my brain hasn't given up on me and decided to have a lost memory shut-down sequence, unlike my laptop which has done so three time now.
The fact that I call it juggling and not multitasking is interesting, my other half would have a fit if she new I was doing more than three things at once. For some unknown reason, if I am washing up stuff and she is talking to me, I have to ask her to repeat what she has been saying, and then get accused of not listening to her, how unfair is that? When the boot (no QL pun intended) is on the other foot and I start talking to her about QL stuff, Quanta AGM on any STAR WARS related fact she falls asleep, and I am not allowed to criticise that situation, as if I do I then get accused of sounding nerdy. Oh well, roll on Friday 15, I am going up to Manchester early.
My only other recall way back in I think, 1986 of the Quanta AGM was of a furore involving Freddy Vacha (I think I have got that right) from Digital Precision and a possible take-over. I am very hazy about the details mainly because, the only form of instant communication was the land line telephone then, you didn't have everyone's numbers stored up and readily available. So it was when you saw someone who then related it third hand, or reading it in a magazine (a watered down version) or in a letter from a friend or someone in the know, and if it was sent first class then you got the following day whoohoo.
The second thing I am reminded of from noting the goings on is that I haven't got time to reply, or that commenting on it is low on my list of priorities, I am reaching maximum capacity on things I am doing at the moment in regards to the QL. What amazes me is that I seem to be juggling about nine or ten things at the moment, and that I am still doing it, the fact that my brain hasn't given up on me and decided to have a lost memory shut-down sequence, unlike my laptop which has done so three time now.
The fact that I call it juggling and not multitasking is interesting, my other half would have a fit if she new I was doing more than three things at once. For some unknown reason, if I am washing up stuff and she is talking to me, I have to ask her to repeat what she has been saying, and then get accused of not listening to her, how unfair is that? When the boot (no QL pun intended) is on the other foot and I start talking to her about QL stuff, Quanta AGM on any STAR WARS related fact she falls asleep, and I am not allowed to criticise that situation, as if I do I then get accused of sounding nerdy. Oh well, roll on Friday 15, I am going up to Manchester early.
Sunday, 20 March 2011
Oh!, think twice, its another day for you...
I am reliably informed by the students I teach that having a 'blonde moment' is not sexist nor insulting against blonde women it is just a normal expression used by the youth apparently, so taking that at face value, I have recently had a blonde moment, engaging in a thread (I wont say where but you can guess) just before doing something else, the conversation was about Miracle Systems floppy disk interface, I quickly added I recently got hold of two but they were not working and left it at that.
Suffice to say that later when looking at that thread the response was quizzical as it referred to Trump Card, now I have heard this before on various mailing lists, websites etc. the Trump Card was a bit like the Gold Card or the Super Gold Card fancy name and it did stuff but I never got to know exactly what or I made assumptions about what it did.
The problem here is that when you are trying to catch up several years worth of history, a lot of reading about STUFF tends to blur together, as reading most of the articles is a bit like watching the film The Exorcist with present day expectations, so what, mediocre special effects, naff storyline. Its all out of context as The Exorcist was a turning point film with ground breaking special effects and covering taboo subjects.
With this mind, the STUFF tends to blur and I don't know what any of the significances are as I am reading about it all, just taking note of names that seem familiar, anyhoo, following the follow-up post I went to photograph the two interfaces realising they were not Miracle Systems but Micro Peripherals, if you squint your eyes at the two you will see that it is difficult to see the difference. That was my blonde moment.
I suppose all this will come with time but making those sorts of silly mistakes is inevitable as you get older, however its not until you look in to the history of the QL you then start to realise how many companies were involved. the ones that sold the most, notorious or lasted the longest are now familiar, but there were loads of others.
Finally I put a spin on the oft said CD-ROM publicity phrase Write once Read many times, for posting however it should be Read many times, Write once...
Suffice to say that later when looking at that thread the response was quizzical as it referred to Trump Card, now I have heard this before on various mailing lists, websites etc. the Trump Card was a bit like the Gold Card or the Super Gold Card fancy name and it did stuff but I never got to know exactly what or I made assumptions about what it did.
The problem here is that when you are trying to catch up several years worth of history, a lot of reading about STUFF tends to blur together, as reading most of the articles is a bit like watching the film The Exorcist with present day expectations, so what, mediocre special effects, naff storyline. Its all out of context as The Exorcist was a turning point film with ground breaking special effects and covering taboo subjects.
With this mind, the STUFF tends to blur and I don't know what any of the significances are as I am reading about it all, just taking note of names that seem familiar, anyhoo, following the follow-up post I went to photograph the two interfaces realising they were not Miracle Systems but Micro Peripherals, if you squint your eyes at the two you will see that it is difficult to see the difference. That was my blonde moment.
I suppose all this will come with time but making those sorts of silly mistakes is inevitable as you get older, however its not until you look in to the history of the QL you then start to realise how many companies were involved. the ones that sold the most, notorious or lasted the longest are now familiar, but there were loads of others.
Finally I put a spin on the oft said CD-ROM publicity phrase Write once Read many times, for posting however it should be Read many times, Write once...
Thursday, 17 March 2011
And another one down
Further to the post below I have now had a look at the fuss over the FPGA Programmable Gaming Hardware website here http://www.fpgaarcade.com The site doesn't tell you a lot on the main page just a few pictures and a revision type version blog really, so to find out a bit more to start with what does FPGA stand for me be a good start. The pictures do show what the board contains, how small it is and the plethora of connections, it also shows it connected to a power supply, a monitor and running something akin to workbench an Amiga operating system front end, emulating apparently a 68000 processor interesting.
So going down the left hand side navigation bar the next option under News, as that is the default, is Games. The games page just shows picture and further links to the code for the games, pretty basic games at that, frogger, pacman, space invaders all the classics but still no further in finding out what FPGA stands for.
Next is Platforms, again a memory lane trip showing early consoles from the 80's and even one from '78, however this is an emulation page where you can download the software for the consoles and also the Amiga and Atari, hmm 68000 now this is getting interesting except again another acronym to solve VHDL software, what is that?
Next is Parts, guess! go on guess!, yep
Next is FAQ, well hopefully this will contain:
Q. what does FPGA stand for? and
Q. what does VHDL stand for? and yes it does
VHDL stands for Very HarD Language, no seriously it stands for VHSIC Hardware Description Language, a high level language but with another added acronym, fortunately that is explained too.
VHSIC stands for Very High Speed Integrated Circuit
The footnote to the explanation was that IEEE adopted the language VHDL in the 1987, three years after the QL. However that gives us another acronym, IEEE which stands for the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, an association for promoting electrical based technology.
Finally we get to FPGA it stands for Field Programmable Gate Array and the explanation goes on to talk about its operation sounding very much like I understood a ULA was described in the ZX SPECTRUM days, oops sorry reader (Uncommitted Logic Array). It is also on this page we get to see another name Xilinx which is significant to the QL, but thats later.
Next is Developer, that just say's Soon! so lets go back to the console page, and last picture at the bottom seems like a test screen, it was clicking on this that was really interesting.
The Spartan 3e Starter kit made by Xilinx is described as having only 1bit RGB output meaning it can only cope with eight colours including black and white (though technically...), does that ring a bell anywhere at all?
http://www.fpgaarcade.com/displaytest.htm
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