The petition to get an official Sinclair ZX Spectrum is at: http://www.PetitionOnline.com/Spectrum/ while an example specification is at: http://www.speccyverse.me.uk/comp/accus/petition.htm -- Tarquin Mills ACCUS (Anglia Classic Computer Users Society) http://www.speccyverse.me.uk/comp/accus/
On Thu, 11 Nov 2004 17:32:46 GMT, Tarquin Mills <accus@nojunkmail.com> wrote: >The petition to get an official Sinclair ZX Spectrum is at: > http://www.PetitionOnline.com/Spectrum/ >while an example specification is at: > http://www.speccyverse.me.uk/comp/accus/petition.htm Hrm, I'm in doubting-Thomas mode again. "In 2003 a petition was started to bring Your Sinclair back, now YS is back, and hopefully here to stay." But it isn't and it won't be. A one-off special is out now, but it's not really YS, and it's not a regular mag (although it is very good). And I really don't agree with you claiming that your petition was successful in "bringing YS back" as I haven't yet seen any evidence that it had any impact on either Live or Future in their decision to go ahead with the YS special. As for the +4 petition - beyond the eMailer and a TV joystick thingy, nothing more complex is realistic due to the cost involved in R&D. The best way to go about this is to find someone to take on the design and production work and then licence the Spectrum copyrights from Amstrad. Live Publishing did after all licence the YS name off of Future. In fact I'm convinced that instead Amstrad should be petitioned to offer one-off Spectrum licences for sale to cloners around the world so that all Amstrad would have to do is count the money rather than any real effort, perhaps having a clause for extra fees should demand for a certain clone be high enough. And I think this would be the case already if someone presented them with a serious business proposition. In practical terms I think you're going to have to get someone to design and build the prototype in their spare time using their own funds, and even manufacturing might need to be done either on the cheap or for free, otherwise the RRP of the machine will run to hundreds of pounds quite easily. Amstrad certainly won't take on that loss. Sorry to put a dampener on things, but I don't think you're being realistic. -- ------------------------------------------------------------------------ | Nick Humphries nick@egyptus.co.uk | | The Your Sinclair Rock'n'Roll Years: http://www.ysrnry.co.uk/ | | The YSRnRY TV Show: (1984 SOON) http://www.ysrnry.co.uk/tvprog/ | | The Tipshop: http://www.the-tipshop.co.uk/ | ------------------------------------------------------------------------
"Nick Humphries" <nick@egyptusWIBBLE.co.uk> wrote > In fact I'm convinced that instead Amstrad should be petitioned to offer > one-off Spectrum licences for sale to cloners around the world so that all > Amstrad would have to do is count the money rather than any real effort, > perhaps having a clause for extra fees should demand for a certain clone > be > high enough. These are my thoughts exactly. Colin -- ZXF: Spectrum computing today Download the PDF magazine for free at www.cwoodcock.co.uk/zxf --- Outgoing mail is certified Virus Free. Checked by AVG anti-virus system (http://www.grisoft.com). Version: 6.0.794 / Virus Database: 538 - Release Date: 10/11/2004
Nick Humphries wrote: > As for the +4 petition - beyond the eMailer and a TV joystick thingy, nothing > more complex is realistic due to the cost involved in R&D. The C64DTV (C64 in a joystick) about to be released in the U.S. and Europe when the PAL version is ready is essentially a C64 on an ASIC and, with a bit of soldering on the pads they've apparently left in the design, it's possible to add a PC keyboard and a stock 6 pin serial to connect a 1541 disk drive up. Since the C64 is harder to clone due to the custom chips, doing the same sort of work for the Speccy should be reasonably viable commercially, shouldn't it...? > Sorry to put a dampener on things, but I don't think you're being realistic. There's already been a +4 - it's a Commodore. [evil grin =-] -- ______________________________ _________________________________ / /\/ ___/ / ___/ / / ___/\ / Website: www.cosine.org.uk / / /\_/ / /__ / / / / __/\\/ / ICQ: 44373717 IRC: TMR{C0S} / / /__/ / / / / / / / / /\ /_____________________________/ /_____/_____/_____/__/__/__/_____/ / \_____________________________\/\_____\_____\_____\__\__\__\_____\/TMR
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Colin Woodcock wrote: > "Nick Humphries" <nick@egyptusWIBBLE.co.uk> wrote > > >>In fact I'm convinced that instead Amstrad should be petitioned to offer >>one-off Spectrum licences for sale to cloners around the world so that all >>Amstrad would have to do is count the money rather than any real effort, >>perhaps having a clause for extra fees should demand for a certain clone >>be >>high enough. > > > These are my thoughts exactly. > > Colin Yeah, I can't see it happening - what possible reason would Amstrad have for producing it and who would buy such a machine? Doesn't really have any general appeal in a saturated market.
On Thu, 11 Nov 2004 18:24:33 -0000, "Colin Woodcock" <colin@woodcock88.freeserve.co.uk> wrote: >"Nick Humphries" <nick@egyptusWIBBLE.co.uk> wrote > >> In fact I'm convinced that instead Amstrad should be petitioned to offer >> one-off Spectrum licences for sale to cloners around the world so that all >> Amstrad would have to do is count the money rather than any real effort, >> perhaps having a clause for extra fees should demand for a certain clone >> be >> high enough. > >These are my thoughts exactly. What everyone else said. The petition just looks foolish to me, I'm sorry to say. Matthew
In message <cn0ap4$v3p$1@newsg4.svr.pol.co.uk> "Colin Woodcock" wrote: > "Nick Humphries" wrote > > In fact I'm convinced that instead Amstrad should be petitioned to offer > > one-off Spectrum licences for sale to cloners around the world so > > that all Amstrad would have to do is count the money rather than > > any real effort, perhaps having a clause for extra fees should > > demand for a certain clone be high enough. > > These are my thoughts exactly. The petition says "we encourage amateur attempts that may be later endorsed.", the above is covered by it. -- Tarquin Mills ACCUS (Anglia Classic Computer Users Society) http://www.speccyverse.me.uk/comp/accus/
Soni tempori elseu romani yeof helsforo nisson ol sefini ill des Thu, 11 Nov 2004 17:32:46 GMT, sefini jorgo geanyet des mani yeof do comp.sys.sinclair, yawatina tan reek esk Tarquin Mills <accus@nojunkmail.com> fornis do marikano es bono tan el: >The petition to get an official Sinclair ZX Spectrum is at: > http://www.PetitionOnline.com/Spectrum/ >while an example specification is at: > http://www.speccyverse.me.uk/comp/accus/petition.htm Who won the ORSAM prize draw? deKay -- + Lofi Gaming - www.lofi-gaming.org.uk AC: deKay in Sponge |- ugvm Magazine - www.ugvm.org.uk Gamertag: deKay 01 |- My computer runs at 3.5MHz and I'm proud of that |- Currently buying games at a rate of one every 14.33 hours
> > Sorry to put a dampener on things, but I don't think you're being realistic. > > There's already been a +4 - it's a Commodore. [evil grin =-] And my own Spectrum +4 ROM (which was about as good). And I'd be interested in licensing the ROM for a ZX Spectrum SE build project - the hardware design is done, but I don't think the market would pay the price.
Not sure if my other post got through - down side of internet cafes. 1) ZX Spectrum +4 has been done (a ROM by me, but it's not very good so I wouldn't bother with it. 2) Portable colour Speccy games console: See GBA, GP32 and mobile phone based emulators - much cheaper than a new hardware build. 3) A new Spectrum. This has been suggested over and over again during the life of this group. To my knowledge the only genuine mass market new Spectrums have come from the former Soviet Bloc, and a few home brew projects including - my own ZX Spectrum SE, Garry Lancaster's Spectrum +3e, Mike Wynn's SpeccyBOB and Chrome (sorry can't remember the author's name). Of these the ZX Spectrum SE and +3e are emulated. 4) No one will pay for it. Sorry to put the kybosh on it but aside from a few enthusiasts, no one is going to fork out for a new machine. The gamers can use emulators on full PCs or portable stuff (see point 2). Programmers are more likely to use an emulator and/or BASin. The Russian Sprinter was a great Z80 based machine with Spectrum compatibility. It has just gone out of production because of a lack of interest - and it was relatively cheap to buy. If you really want a new machine I'd suggest trying to get one of the short run ATM Turbo 2s currently in production (no idea where from though). 5) Suggested specification A Nintendo DS based emulator with a keyboard in the touch screen area or a GP32 with a keyboard will be the cheapest portable Speccy option. You can't make short-run portables without vast costs. 3.5" HD floppy drive - pointless 16.5MB RAM - what for when mass storage is fast enough and the address space is 64K. CF to be used as a hard disc - been done it's called ZXCF and it's been emulated. Emulators - already exist. And I'm looking at a Z88 emu for the ZX SE. Keyboard to include keywords in colour - out of date - use a tokenizer as in SE Basic. Mouse port - which type. I agree Kempston Mouse is probably worth having. Midi in, out and through standard connectors. - Why would you use a Speccy as a sequencer in this day and age. Parallel port, standard connector - easy to make yourself apparently 2 serial ports (9 pin D), fast, at least 115Kps - done (Jessa I/O) USB - been done, but not sure it's worth it on a Speccy. Sinclair net - a good idea. I'm looking into adding it to the ZX SE specification. Ethernet - been done but Sinclair net makes more sense to me. Case colour=black - I hate PC towers - the ZX SE will eventually be a black rack mount.
In message <03p7p0hoqpguq4n1nauuhkingq0u4l8vj5@4ax.com> deKay wrote: > Soni tempori elseu romani yeof helsforo nisson ol sefini ill des Thu, 11 > Nov 2004 17:32:46 GMT, sefini jorgo geanyet des mani yeof do > comp.sys.sinclair, yawatina tan reek esk Tarquin Mills > <accus@nojunkmail.com> fornis do marikano es bono tan el: > > >The petition to get an official Sinclair ZX Spectrum is at: > > http://www.PetitionOnline.com/Spectrum/ > >while an example specification is at: > > http://www.speccyverse.me.uk/comp/accus/petition.htm > > Who won the ORSAM prize draw? The prize was spilt into two, and both winners were locals. More about one of the prize winners is quoted from the QL mailing list, Tony I hope you do not mind me quoting you. Tony Firshman wrote: > Tarquin Mills wrote: > > I have a story that is at the level of the cup holder joke, and a man > > walking into Dixons asking for Workbench for the Amiga, except having > > seen it with my own eyes I know it is true. A man went to the TF > > Services stand and asked if they fixed Spectrums, Tony agreed to have a > > look. The man said he had last been using it in 1986 and had not been > > able to use it since (18 years) because it was broken. He had being > > using it on a monitor but when he got back from working in Saudi Arabia, > > the monitor was gone. On the television left in it's place no picture > > could be had. It turns out he did not know you had to tune in the > > television to the right channel. > > The story I got from him was that he was using it on a 405 television! > His wife made him buy a 625 TV. > Your version sounds more likely. I tuned it in on my emergency TV - a > Nintendo Gameboy with a TV adapter. It had -exactly- the same frequency > as the QL (channel 36 I believe). > > > He won 12 speccy games in the prize draw. > > I wonder whether he will ever load them. > Next episode in 18 years time (8-)# -- Tarquin Mills ACCUS (Anglia Classic Computer Users Society) http://www.speccyverse.me.uk/comp/accus/
In message <c371076d.0411112023.79bcd56c@posting.google.com> Andrew Owen wrote: > Not sure if my other post got through - down side of internet cafes. > > 1) ZX Spectrum +4 has been done (a ROM by me, but it's not very good > so I wouldn't bother with it. > > 2) Portable colour Speccy games console: > > See GBA, GP32 and mobile phone based emulators - much cheaper than a > new hardware build. > > 3) A new Spectrum. > > This has been suggested over and over again during the life of this > group. To my knowledge the only genuine mass market new Spectrums have > come from the former Soviet Bloc, and a few home brew projects > including - my own ZX Spectrum SE, Garry Lancaster's Spectrum +3e, > Mike Wynn's SpeccyBOB and Chrome (sorry can't remember the author's > name). Of these the ZX Spectrum SE and +3e are emulated. > > 4) No one will pay for it. > > Sorry to put the kybosh on it but aside from a few enthusiasts, no one > is going to fork out for a new machine. The gamers can use emulators > on full PCs or portable stuff (see point 2). Programmers are more > likely to use an emulator and/or BASin. The Russian Sprinter was a > great Z80 based machine with Spectrum compatibility. It has just gone > out of production because of a lack of interest - and it was > relatively cheap to buy. If you really want a new machine I'd suggest > trying to get one of the short run ATM Turbo 2s currently in > production (no idea where from though). > > 5) Suggested specification > > A Nintendo DS based emulator with a keyboard in the touch screen area > or a GP32 with a keyboard will be the cheapest portable Speccy option. > You can't make short-run portables without vast costs. > > 3.5" HD floppy drive - pointless > > 16.5MB RAM - what for when mass storage is fast enough and the address > space is 64K. > > CF to be used as a hard disc - been done it's called ZXCF and it's > been emulated. > > Emulators - already exist. And I'm looking at a Z88 emu for the ZX SE. > Keyboard to include keywords in colour - out of date - use a tokenizer > as in SE Basic. > > Mouse port - which type. I agree Kempston Mouse is probably worth > having. > > Midi in, out and through standard connectors. - Why would you use a > Speccy as a sequencer in this day and age. > > Parallel port, standard connector - easy to make yourself apparently > 2 serial ports (9 pin D), fast, at least 115Kps - done (Jessa I/O) > > USB - been done, but not sure it's worth it on a Speccy. > > Sinclair net - a good idea. I'm looking into adding it to the ZX SE > specification. Good :-), will it be fully QL compatible, unlike Interface 1. > Ethernet - been done but Sinclair net makes more sense to me. > > Case colour=black - I hate PC towers - the ZX SE will eventually be a > black rack mount. What if you cannot build hardware, also all these addons have never been in the same machine at the same time. As for the ex-Soviet clones they are nearly impossible to get (in particular the Russian ones which are better, I would love a GMX), not one has been shown at ORSAM, even though people want to see them. I will be bringing a Didactik Kompakt to next years show, thanks to help from a German importer. As to PeterPlus, if they had a British importer it would have helped their sales in the UK. Considering the exchange rate, the Sprinter could have been cheaper, there must be demand or the ATM Turbo would not be manufactured. Portable games consoles often have small screens, a laptop would be better. I prefer a real spectrum to an emulator, an official spectrum will be more popular than a clone. It's about trying to move forward, get the ideal, that can be bought easily. We all know a SAM accelerator would be good, I bet some CSS think this will not happen. -- Tarquin Mills ACCUS (Anglia Classic Computer Users Society) http://www.speccyverse.me.uk/comp/accus/
Tarquin, I really doubt that Amstrad will be making a new Spectrum. Specially based on a petition which will just be answered by us nutters. We'll be lucky if they just release an enhanced version in a future emailer. And SAM is not compatible with Spectrum 128K paging - the paging techniques are quite different - so how can you get a SAM & Speccy 128K based one combined? (Besides, 128K games are apparently straight-forward to convert anyway) (Besides, SAM isn't natively a Spectrum anyway - it's more of an evolvement of the Spectra's) SIAC (SAM-in-a-Can) Owner :)
Tarquin Mills <accus@nojunkmail.com> wrote in message news:<b6b0b90c4d.planet14@localhost.local>... > In message <03p7p0hoqpguq4n1nauuhkingq0u4l8vj5@4ax.com> > deKay wrote: > > Soni tempori elseu romani yeof helsforo nisson ol sefini ill des Thu, 11 > > Nov 2004 17:32:46 GMT, sefini jorgo geanyet des mani yeof do > > comp.sys.sinclair, yawatina tan reek esk Tarquin Mills > > <accus@nojunkmail.com> fornis do marikano es bono tan el: > > > > >The petition to get an official Sinclair ZX Spectrum is at: > > > http://www.PetitionOnline.com/Spectrum/ > > >while an example specification is at: > > > http://www.speccyverse.me.uk/comp/accus/petition.htm > > Have you seen C One already? Just look closer and you'll see CPC emulation running on it: http://www.siliconsonic.de/c-one/cpc/startscreen.jpg Spec: 20Mhz 65c816 CPU /taken from SNES?/, SDRAM -> 1GB, processor slot for real 6502, Z80, 6809 or even the Z8S180... What are you waiting for? Just hack the code for this platform to run some Speccy modes on it. Please.[1] stanley [1] It's more clever to not fragment hardware world dedicated to 8bit emulation scene I think.
Tarquin Mills <accus@nojunkmail.com> wrote in message news:<f831bd0c4d.planet14@localhost.local>... > What if you cannot build hardware, Pay someone else to do it, like Yarek Adamski (www.yarek.com) > also all these addons have never been in the same machine at the same time. Well as many are add-ons you could plug them all in to the same machine. > I will be bringing a Didactik Kompakt to next years show That's really just a Speccy 128 clone with a disk drive bolted on. A grey +2 with a homebrew +D is probably a better option. > PeterPlus, if they had a British importer it would have helped their > sales in the UK. They had a Spanish one, and the scene is pretty big there but it wasn't enough. > there must be demand or the ATM Turbo would not be manufactured. True, but you can't match Russian pricing when you manufacture in the UK. > Portable games consoles often have small screens, a laptop would be > better. A cheap second hand laptop would be cheaper than a new machine with a double sized screen. > I prefer a real spectrum to an emulator Depends on what you want to do with it. GBA based emulator through the GameCube GBA box would be interesting. > an official spectrum will be more popular than a clone. Not unless it's dirt cheap - and you'd be looking at a Speccy 128 in a Joystick with a selection of games at best. > It's about trying to move forward Hardly anyone wants to. Speccy sceners are mostly purists, unlike C64 sceners.
Soni tempori elseu romani yeof helsforo nisson ol sefini ill des 12 Nov 2004 20:12:28 -0800, sefini jorgo geanyet des mani yeof do comp.sys.sinclair, yawatina tan reek esk aoweninoz@yahoo.com.au (Andrew Owen) fornis do marikano es bono tan el: >Depends on what you want to do with it. GBA based emulator through the >GameCube GBA box would be interesting. I often play Run Baby Run this way :) deKay -- + Lofi Gaming - www.lofi-gaming.org.uk AC: deKay in Sponge |- ugvm Magazine - www.ugvm.org.uk Gamertag: deKay 01 |- My computer runs at 3.5MHz and I'm proud of that |- Currently buying games at a rate of one every 14.33 hours
I remember you first mentioning your idea of a Spectrum +4 in passing during your talk at the ORSAM show last year (November 2003), and I have to wonder why you always assosciate the Sam as a Spectrum. Having a 'new' ZX Spectrum which just happens to be Sam compatible as mentioned in your petition is not something I would want to see, nor would other major Sam figures I have talked to since your original post appeared. I don't think you quite understand the Sam's capabilities or the unique scene that has formed around the blue footed machine, although the Sam can emulate the Spectrum (more on that later...) it really is a completely different platform and shouldn't be seen as just an upgraded Spectrum, just as the Spectrum shouldn't be seen as an upgraded ZX80! I also have to say I was rather stunned at your first question you asked me when you saw the prototype of the 'Mayhem Accelerator' I had at the ORSAM show last weekend, which I demonstrated speeding the Sam Coupe up to 12MHz with uncontended memory. (The Mayhem Accelerator is still only at the half built prototype stage - it will be faster when finished, i'll be printing info in the show report in issue 11 of Sam Revival, followed on by my development article in issue 12.) Anyway, back to your question at the show: "Is it 128K Compatible?".... As I said on the day the answer is NO! Adding 128K ZX Spectrum compatiblity in hardware would be a definite backwards step for the Sam Coupe. We all know the Sam's roots were planted deep in the Sinclair community, with the first Sam prototype in early 1988 only had MODE 1 (Spectrum style screen) and MODE 2 (8x1 attribute cells), 64 to 256K memory and possibly an AY soundchip (See issue 50 of Crash for the first details of the Sam in development) . But by the time the Sam was finally released in December 1989 its superior capabilities (including graphic MODEs 3 and 4, 512K memory, SAA soundchip) really made the machine stand out on its own, and making it much more interesting than the fact that one of its four graphics modes was identical to the ZX Spectrum and it had a 48K Emulator bundled with it. (Even other 8 bit machines could emulate the Spectrum such as the Einstein and Memotech but they haven't been classed as super-spectrums!) Yes, the Sam can emulate the 48K Spectrum (and for that matter the ZX81, the 6510 C64 CPU, pacman arcade machine.. to name a few other emulators!), and 128K software has been hacked to run on the Sam in graphics MODE 1 and with a software AY to SAA audio translator which all removes the need for a hardware based solution. I really think that MGT and SamCo pushed the Spectrum Emulator side too much in publicity. It is still quite unfortunate that after 15 years the Sam is still only seen as a 'super spectrum'... and how the press have still never let go of this fact and even to this day the phrase "Super Spectrum" lives on and has appeared in Retro Gamer a few times to date. I'll say it again, the Sam isn't a ZX Spectrum! And I would be correct to say that the majority of Sam users will see emulating the speccy on the Sam as just an added bonus really. The true capabilities of the Sam Coupe running its own software and using the full capabilities of the machine really show the Sam as a true platform itself and the sooner it can lose the 'super spectrum' stigma the better. Colin ===== Quazar : Hardware, Software, Spares and Repairs for the Sam Coupe Website: http://www.quazar.clara.net/ and http://www.samcoupe.com/ Issue Ten of "Sam Revival" Magazine Out Now
Nick Humphries wrote: > And I really > don't agree with you claiming that your petition was successful in "bringing > YS back" as I haven't yet seen any evidence that it had any impact on either > Live or Future in their decision to go ahead with the YS special. Indeed. If anything, the Retro Gamer supplement has actually made it less likely that the stated terms of the petition will actually be carried out, because Future have presumably now signed away a not-insignificant chunk of the rights. The YS revival went exactly the way I'd like to see any new official Spectrum going: with genuinely enthusiastic people taking the initiative and putting their money where their mouth is [1], getting the blessing from the rights holder along the way. Whether any group will find it cost-effective to do that remains to be seen (the fact that it happened for YS was a pleasant surprise for everybody), but it's got to be more constructive than gathering together untold thousands of names to tell Amstrad, "put YOUR money where OUR mouth is". [1] yes, it's a metaphorical mouth, which is why this group of people only has one. Stupid idiom.
At some point in the past (Fri, 12 Nov 2004 04:23:49 GMT, as it happens), somebody called aoweninoz@yahoo.com.au (Andrew Owen) made the following views known to all at comp.sys.sinclair > 4) No one will pay for it. > > Sorry to put the kybosh on it but aside from a few enthusiasts, no one > is going to fork out for a new machine. The gamers can use emulators > on full PCs or portable stuff (see point 2). Programmers are more > likely to use an emulator and/or BASin. The Russian Sprinter was a > great Z80 based machine with Spectrum compatibility. It has just gone > out of production because of a lack of interest - and it was > relatively cheap to buy. If you really want a new machine I'd suggest > trying to get one of the short run ATM Turbo 2s currently in > production (no idea where from though). Excellent point, and, sadly, true. I was talking to someone about this the other day, how the Windows PC more or less has the monopoly on the home computer market now - aside from the Macintosh family, there's nothing to rival the PC in the home computer market. I know, you can get PCs with different operating systems (Linux and such) but it's still a PC. Yes, I miss the times when the PC and Mac had rivals - when there was more choice. Up until ten years ago, as well as the PC and Mac (in fact the Mac was barely in contention back then), you had the Amiga, ST and Archimedes, all at similar specs to a PC, although less upgradeable. Okay, some hobbyists have upgraded their Amigas and Archimedes (RISC PC) to modern day specs, but none of these have been commercial. I think there needs to be more choice in the home computer market, just as there was ten years ago, just as there is in the console market - and I don't just mean different brands of PC. If one of these choices was to carry the Sinclair brand, and of course be backwards-compatible (not just emulation) then so much the better. Yes, I know I'm living in a dreamworld. Steve -- 'Hey hey 16k, where does that get you today?' ----== Posted via Newsfeeds.Com - Unlimited-Uncensored-Secure Usenet News==---- http://www.newsfeeds.com The #1 Newsgroup Service in the World! >100,000 Newsgroups ---= East/West-Coast Server Farms - Total Privacy via Encryption =---
On 15 Nov 2004 15:47:20 -0600 da kidz on comp.sys.sinclair were rappin' to MC Steve Farrell: > Yes, I miss the times when the PC and Mac had rivals - when there was more > choice. Up until ten years ago, as well as the PC and Mac (in fact the Mac > was barely in contention back then), you had the Amiga, ST and Archimedes, > all at similar specs to a PC, although less upgradeable. I'd argue that ten years ago, the "Wintel" (I hate that word) PC may have had the edge on price, but specs-wise - and certainly in the user-friendliness stakes - it fell way behind. Windows 95 wasn't even out then, and tinkering with memory settings and drivers in config.sys just to get one game working isn't my idea of fun (okay, I lie, it is my idea of fun but only as a one-off, and I certainly wouldn't part with my hard-earned cash for such a machine) > Okay, some > hobbyists have upgraded their Amigas and Archimedes (RISC PC) to modern day > specs, but none of these have been commercial. AmigaOne (http://www.eyetech.co.uk) and OS4 (http://os.amiga.com/os4) are very much commercial. The RISC PC is still alive and commercially available too, with RISC OS (http://www.riscos.com) still being developed. Darren Salt can probably fill you in on the details of this one. Even the ST has newer commercial versions from http://www.milan-computer.de (I'm not sure you can still get hold of these, but they certainly existed commercially up until a few years ago), which AFAIK is a direct descendant of the original technology (ie. not a clone). The problem with the above three, is that the technology from the original companies has been split up, passed around, sold to the highest bidder, gone through periods of little or no development, parts have become obsolete or unobtainable in the process, and you can no longer walk into Dixons and buy one. That doesn't mean they aren't commercially available. Not commercially viable, maybe. > I think there needs to be more choice in the home computer market, just as > there was ten years ago, just as there is in the console market - and I > don't just mean different brands of PC. If one of these choices was to > carry the Sinclair brand, and of course be backwards-compatible (not just > emulation) then so much the better. I absolutely agree. I'm not sure there is less choice these days, I think it is about the same. However, if you want to buy software or your computer in the High Street (and, let's face it, 99% of people do), then you only really have two choices - "Wintel" PC or Mac. Maybe if you are really lucky, you might be able to pick up a Linux distribution to install on your PC... erm, that you have already paid for Windows on. Any other hardware, you are out of luck (unless you head towards the Internet). There are possibly hundreds of different OSs available, but 95% of them run on standard PC hardware, 98% of those have little or no software, and 99% of them most people probably haven't heard of, let alone found a good reason to use them, and <1% are available in PC World. So, the choice seems to have largely moved to which OS you want, rather than which computer you want. The perceived choice by the majority of the population is whether to buy this PC running Windows, or that one (which also runs Windows). They don't realise that this is an enforced choice, they are all rubbish, they will all crash and there are better alternatives available - if you know where to look. The bad thing about the main choice (when you discover you have a choice) being the OS, is that normal PC hardware, is crap. What you can do with the OS is limited by the hardware. If the hardware isn't up to it, you might be able to emulate the missing functionality in software. That would give you the feature, but it wouldn't work as well as it could. The good thing about 80's home computers was the OS (which might be a bit too grand a term for most of them) was tied to the hardware, and the hardware was known, so you could access the full power of the machine. This also happened to be their downfall, as the hardware couldn't be changed significantly without breaking the existing software. These days, a properly coded OS and APIs for accessing the hardware could solve this problem, due to advancements in processor speed and memory. The hardware could be changed, and existing software (as long as it played nice) could continue to run. Unfortunately Microsoft were already doing this (albeit badly), and along with competition driving the prices down, it helped them take over the computer market. They now have such a monopoly, that you could release the best computer in the world and sell it for 75p and a packet of Rolos, and most people probably wouldn't even notice. Chris -- +-------------------------------------------+ | Unsatisfactory Software - "because it is" | | http://www.unsatisfactorysoftware.co.uk | | Your Sinclair: A Celebration | +- http://www.yoursinclair.co.uk -----------+ DISCLAIMER: I may be making all this stuff up again.
Matthew Westcott <gasman@raww.org> wrote in message news:<2vpum2F2krodjU1@uni-berlin.de>... > The YS revival went exactly the way I'd like to see any new official > Spectrum going: with genuinely enthusiastic people taking the initiative > and putting their money where their mouth is [1], getting the blessing > from the rights holder along the way. Whether any group will find it > cost-effective to do that remains to be seen (the fact that it happened > for YS was a pleasant surprise for everybody), but it's got to be more > constructive than gathering together untold thousands of names to tell > Amstrad, "put YOUR money where OUR mouth is". I second that. The thing is, nobody's ever been able to agree on what a new Spectrum should be. With the ZX Spectrum SE my aim was to create a machine with the broadest possible base of software and compatibility - It will run anything written for the ZX80 through to the +2, including the Timex 2068 (including cartridges) (it also runs BBC Basic). So in that regard it's quite a desirable machine. However, while a working prototype exists, I don't have the skills to translate that into a mass produced machine. If someone was interested in producing a clone of the SE I'd be happy to lend them the original hardware for that purpose. Any takers?
On 15 Nov 2004 23:09:21 +0000, "Chris Young" <ng@yoursinclair.co.uk> wrote: >Maybe if you are really lucky, you might be able to pick up a Linux >distribution to install on your PC... erm, that you have already paid >for Windows on. Legally, you are entitled to have the shop remove Windows from the PC, and buy the PC at a price minus the cost of Windows -- pete [at] � W H E N B A C K E D I N T O A C O R N E R . . . horseshoe � "such a waste of space, such a small turd hanging on tightly to [hyphen] � the arsehole of humanity, that he just isn't worth spending any inn [dot] � time on." - Copyright infringer Nick Humphries talking about me. co [dot] uk�
On Tue, 16 Nov 2004 00:25:03 +0000, Peter Thomas <see-my-sig@hotmail.com> wrote: >On 15 Nov 2004 23:09:21 +0000, "Chris Young" <ng@yoursinclair.co.uk> >wrote: > >>Maybe if you are really lucky, you might be able to pick up a Linux >>distribution to install on your PC... erm, that you have already paid >>for Windows on. > >Legally, you are entitled to have the shop remove Windows from the PC, >and buy the PC at a price minus the cost of Windows Now find a shop that will do that. Many will prefer not to sell you the PC at all rather than take Windows off it, otherwise MS will get all pissy and charge them more for licenses or even revoke their license full stop. MS have got the market by the balls and no fancy-pants legallity is going to change that, it needs a grass roots movement of the buying public away from MS. But practically everything they see, buy and use has MS on it so where is it going to come from? Even with very fast, very stable, very powerful, very beautiful Macs people still flock to Wintel. Too many people think that Windows is all there is and that every computer in the world runs it (that's an actual quote from a family friend). I don't mind people being ignorant or stubborn but not when it cocks up lots of things for people who want or have to use something else, although that's hardly the sole preserve of IT. Frink -- Doctor J. Frink : 'Rampant Ribald Ringtail' See his mind here : http://www.cmp.liv.ac.uk/frink/ Annoy his mind here : pjf at cmp dot liv dot ack dot ook "No sir, I didn't like it!" - Mr Horse
On Thu, 25 Nov 2004 20:13:55 -0500, Steve Farrell wrote: > In related news, I have Linux now. Hurrah! Obviously, it's already better > than Windows, and I've so far managed to avoid connecting to IRC > embarrasingly as 'root'. http://funroll-loops.org/ one of my favs on that page is about conecting to #debian as root ;-) and yes I am a debian user so I am fully entitled to laugh at people who just don't get it ;-) > > Steve sparkes ----== Posted via Newsfeeds.Com - Unlimited-Uncensored-Secure Usenet News==---- http://www.newsfeeds.com The #1 Newsgroup Service in the World! >100,000 Newsgroups ---= East/West-Coast Server Farms - Total Privacy via Encryption =---
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Peter Thomas wrote: > On 15 Nov 2004 23:09:21 +0000, "Chris Young" <ng@yoursinclair.co.uk> > wrote: > >>Maybe if you are really lucky, you might be able to pick up a Linux >>distribution to install on your PC... erm, that you have already paid >>for Windows on. > > Legally, you are entitled to have the shop remove Windows from the PC, > and buy the PC at a price minus the cost of Windows In related news, I have Linux now. Hurrah! Obviously, it's already better than Windows, and I've so far managed to avoid connecting to IRC embarrasingly as 'root'. Steve
sparkes wrote: > On Thu, 25 Nov 2004 20:13:55 -0500, Steve Farrell wrote: > > >> In related news, I have Linux now. Hurrah! Obviously, it's already better >> than Windows, and I've so far managed to avoid connecting to IRC >> embarrasingly as 'root'. > > http://funroll-loops.org/ > > one of my favs on that page is about conecting to #debian as root ;-) and > yes I am a debian user so I am fully entitled to laugh at people who just > don't get it ;-) Ah, I opted for Knoppix, which, apparantley, is Debian-based. But it is embarrasingly easy to *not* connect to IRC as 'root', so it baffles me why so many Linux newbies manage this. Ah well, I suppose that's where the funny is. Steve