The comp.sys.sinclair Crap Games Competition 2021: 25th edition extravaganza!

[TMD2003]

END OF WEEK 27:

27... it's a number that keeps coming up in my life numerous times. Born on the 27th, lived at house number 27 for 18 years until earlier this year, watched 31 years' worth of F1 in which that number is still indelibly associated with Ferrari in the 1980s and early 1990s, despite Nico Hülkenberg's efforts to claim it as his won. And it's a perfect cube on top of all that.

Week 27 has seen only the one game submitted, Snail Maze, ripped from the original Sega Master System's memory, translated by Salvador Camacho into C and dumped on the ZX81, which is surprisingly adept at handling it.

The next target I have for this year is 37 entries, which would equal three previous competitions - those of 2001, 2006 and 2009. Then, the ultimate goal for the year can be tackled - will it be possible to make a Cassette 50 out of the Spectrum, ZX81 and ZX80 entries, and maybe those for the SAM Coupé (that I haven't had yet!) and the Jupiter Ace (of which I have one)?

QL entries continue to be very welcome (this year's competition has already smashed the records of all previous competitions put together, not that that was hard), but cassettes don't feature on it. Unless there's something hiding in Dilwyn's cornucopia of obscure QL equipment that I was unaware of.

Incidentally... what would it sound like if you could take the head of a microdrive, QL or Spectrum, either will do, and wire it into an amplifier and speaker? Would it just sound like an incredibly-speeded-up version of Spectrum data?

[martyn_hill]

Incidentally... what would it sound like if you could take the head of a microdrive, QL or Spectrum, either will do, and wire it into an amplifier and speaker? Would it just sound like an incredibly-speeded-up version of Spectrum data?

I wonder... Normal Spectrum cassette recordings oscillate between 1 and 2 KHz, with a corresponding variable bit-rate that would probably sound more 'natural' than the MDVs nominal 50 /100 KHz constant bit-rate encoding - obviously only audible at all after first compressing the MDV signal frequencies down to human hearing range...

Of course, the MDV having two tracks could also deliver 'stereo', after a fashion!

Humm, a project perhaps for a boring Sunday afternoon waiting for the Euro 2020 Final to kick-off on telly... Forza Azzuri!

[Derek_Stewart]

Hi,

The QSPEC2 emualator, which is part of the Speculat Spectrum emulator for the QL is supposed to load Spectrum tapes through the QL Network port connect to a Cassette Tape player.

I have never tired this, only read the documentation and source code files.

[Martin_Head]

Hi,

The QSPEC2 emualator, which is part of the Speculat Spectrum emulator for the QL is supposed to load Spectrum tapes through the QL Network port connect to a Cassette Tape player.

I have never tired this, only read the documentation and source code files.

The ZM emulator is also supposed to as well. http://www.dilwyn.me.uk/spectrum/index.html
I seem to remember trying it, not very successfully once. I seem to remember having to unplug the Gold card before it would work at all. I guess it uses software timing loops.

[stevepoole]

Hi Folks,

Many years ago, I experimented with writing 'stereo' music on my 128ko JS QL. Of course, with one speaker, this is strictly speaking impossible.

So I wrote pulsed square-wave music, where 'low' is stereo one and 'high' stereo 2. The result allows two instruments to play 'simultaneously' in harmony, but is a bit hard on your hearing... I still have the programs somewhere on record, but have never distributed them.

Maybe the idea could be adapted by someone to be useful ?

Steve.
___________

[TMD2003]

Steve... did I read somewhere that you live in France? If so, I can tell. "128 ko" was what gave it away...

Anyway, on a lesser note:

END OF WEEK 28:

Just the one game - though it was quite significant in that it points the finger in a different direction as to who will be hosting next year's competition. For the 128K Spectrum (or a 48K model with an AY add-on): Zombie Dice by name, rather un-crap by nature, another product of Andy Jenkinson and his seemingly never-ending wellspring of creativity.

I look forward to repaying Andy next year with a new torrent of Crap Games of my own...

[TMD2003]

END OF WEEK 29:

Another week with something in it, but also, it was once again only a single entry. I've started wondering if I should still do the weekly round-ups seeing as they're more for the benefit of Sinclair ZX World and this forum which don't get every single entry announced immediately (ZX81/80 entries on the former and QL entries here, obviously) but I've done this for more than half the year so I will continue until the bitter end.

This is the only forum on which I've so far not announced the latest entry, seeing as it's for the 16K ZX81 and hence Sinclair ZX World were informed of its release immediately. Wall of China is another Z88DK-compiled effort by Salvador Camacho - it's what I've come to expect from him now. Salvador is helping me reach another target - this year's CSSCGC is now equal for the highest number of ZX81 entries, tied with the late Jim Langmead's 2004 competition (I contributed to that one - ZX81 and ZX80), and I'm trying to get to double figures. Of course, thanks to this corner of the internet, I've had more QL entries than there ever had been in the combined previous history of the competition, and if there are any more to come, I remind you that it helps to send them to me by email so that I see them immediately! The address is visible on the competition website at rickdangerous.co.uk/csscgc2021 if you'd forgotten.

Next time I post one of these updates, I'll have another year on the clock. How many more there will be to come after that is anyone's guess, but I'd like to think there'll be one more, given how many ideas I have for next year's competition...

[TMD2003]

END OF WEEK 30:

Nothing. For the first time in... a while, admittedly, but still, nothing this week. Maybe you're all on holiday. But it was my birthday week so I was hoping for something, and as I've now turned 42, did I dare to dream of something Hitchhiker's related... anyway, at least this has given me a bit of time to work on my entries for next year. I have one finished and six more that have at least been started.

(And this may not be quite so relevant here, but I'd kick myself if I didn't at least mention it...)

Anyway, there is the small matter than in two days - well, one day and a few hours - it will be AUGUST. And this means that the delivery of the Next is due. Who's checked the CSSCGC website recently - or at all this year? I've reserved a slot on the "individual machines icons" for the Next, rather than lumping it in with the "????" alternative machines such as the Jupiter Ace, SAM Coupé and Z88. And thus I am hoping that the last of the zeroes on the front page is going to be removed soon.

Remember - I intend to review any Next submission on the real machine, so those of you with an Issue 1 Next - or even just those who know how to use the TBBlue settings - get to work!

("QL core for the Next", they said. I'll still be looking out for it, however long it takes...)

[stevepoole]

Hi TMD,

Since there are no entries this month... here is a little program I wrote to show my little grandson how computer games work....

LRUN and watch while the #1 window draws circles which you have to fire at. In #2, you can see the shifting array of data, where .5 indicates a hit.

Then use arrow-keys to keep the cross-wires moving, but on-screen. Bubbles may wrap off edges onto the opposite sides !

Fire with the space-key to burst bubbles, #0 showing the lapsed time. When all burst, RUN again to try to improve time taken, and that's it...

The code is partly bilingual, to show how basic can be translated for foreign language users.... after half an hour explaining, my grandson understood it all !

For educational purposes of course, with demonstration of the use of the three channels, letting him try some direct command changes etc.

Steve.

Adriens_bas.zip

(1.22 KiB) Downloaded 194 times

[TMD2003]

There were entries, just none for the QL, and none for any machine in week 30.

That's an interesting program you have there - and given that it's a game of sorts, can I consider it a competition entry? It certainly fits the remit, even if I've already found it only works with QPC2 and not QemuLator. That's not much of a problem now, seeing as I can always include QPC2 instructions for noobs.

Also, I will drop you a PM, so watch out for that.