"You don't have to own a TI-83+ to enter;"

83+ is the only flash z80 calc (well, & 73)
how can anyone test a flash app without one of these calcs? i suppose you could write a program that you intend to convert, but that's not gonna be easy unless you fully understand the requirements for flash apps to begin with. and then what would be the motivation to convert the program after you've won the contest? it's not like you could just add the line ".org flash_space" and have it converted, it'll take a lot of work.

The 83+ simulator/debugger (see above link) can be used to test apps in development.

ds: Cool shtuff. Glad that someone is encouraging app development :)

Actually, doesn't it say you can write it as a plain ASM program?

yeah, if you plan to convert it later, which is the hard part, like i said.

the simulator/debugger apparently comes with a copy of the rom that you can legally use without owning a calc. i guess that pretty much solves the whole problem.

i just wish they'd make an 86+. that would rock. well, as much as a calculator could rock...

Think carefully before you sign up. If you look in your local news paper from time to time, you will see "amature photography contests" where you send in your best photos in hopes of getting a prize. The photographs are now proporty of the people who you sent them to and you will never get them back. Its a totaly legal way to get stuff they can sell later. Why is TI doing this? Havent we always seen them as a rather shady company? How can we trust them? They may say that they are trying to increse demand for their 83+ calculators, but people write programs for them for free anyway. Could they just be stealing your code or your program entirely?

Opps, dont read or reply to the above post, i accidentaly posted twice =P. See bellow post.

Think carefully before you sign up. If you look in your local news paper from time to time, you will see "amature photography contests" where you send in your best photos in hopes of getting a prize. The photographs are now proporty of the people who you sent them to and you will never get them back. Its a totaly legal way to get stuff they can sell later. Why is TI doing this? Havent we always seen them as a rather shady company? How can we trust them? They may say that they are trying to increse demand for their 83+ calculators, but people write programs for them for free anyway. Could they just be stealing your code or your program entirely? This may be dumb, but dont sell yourself like this.

We have no intention to steal people's programs or code in this contest, and Texas Instruments has no part in obtaining the programs that are submitted. Only the Detached Solutions staff and I will have access to the entries and will judge them. No entries will be made public either, unless at the author's discretion, and we will give the 6 winners of the contest the privaledge to host their apps on the DS Features page as 3rd-Party developers. Also, Detached Solutions does not gain any right to the work of the people entering. Please discard this negative view you have and understand we want people to enter our legitimate, friendly contest with the intent of more flash applications being developed.

Sorry, i just dont trust TI and I suspected some huge evil conspiracy =)

I've got some inside info for you. Your phone company is listening to all your calls. They know everything about you and are planning on hijacking your identity. Your water company is working in conjuction with the phone company by poisoning your water with nanites who will infect your brain and allow the phone company to take over your body. TI created the nanites who will be in control of you shortly, and has an interest in your mad programming skills. They plan on using you to create more sophisticated nanites, and will eventually take over the world through their use.

You need to run away, run far away, and quickly, or else you will be the downfall of the human race.

I wouldn't worry about TI trying to steal your programs. ;) Thats why they hire me....if they want a hard but useful program out there for people to use...they pay me, and I write it...they are really a company bent towards helping education/people...of course, that doesn't mean they don't want to make money...but helping people just makes their product all that more appealing. You should see the conferences they sponsor, and the time they spend promoting stuff they don't even charge for NOR own. I retain all rights and ownership of my code and programs that I write for them, even though they pay me. So far :)

-Corey

i don't trust Ti completely either. First off, a few months ago, a friend was flashing my calc, but the link grew unstable in the middle of thelink, and my 89 had no rom. all it said was "Texas Insturmants Ti-89, boot version 5.00, press "i" to install software". I called 1-800-ti-cares(i doubt it) to ask them what to do, and after i stated my problem, they redirected me to some other "super technical" support number where i waited almost 30 minutes for someone to respond. Finally i gave up and asked someone on this discussion board, and they were A LOT MORE HELP.
Secondly, Ti closed down, or at least tried to close down Ti-news.

This is really cool...but i know M68k ASM. If some would like to port my M68k ASM program to 83+ z80 ASM id be happy to share the prize if we won. E-mail me or reply to this post if your interested.

i know this has nothing to do with this...though i was wondering if anyone know what kind of error is "load: applet cannot be instantiated" if you post an applet to the web and it wont run?
www.geocities.com/dakron15 /files/VPP.html
www.geocities.com/dakron15 /files/VirtualPP.java
www.geocities.com/dakron15 /files/VirtualPP.class

I think this contest is a little vague, since theoretically I could just submit everything I have ever worked on for the 83+, and i think that many people will do this. So, conceivably if i read the rules correctly, any existing program for the 83+, or a port to the 83+ by the same author is a valid entry. Don't be suprised if you are overwhelmed by entries.

Perhaps we need to update the rules then to say it should be a new original program, and a person should make use of those 3 months we are allowing. However, that wouldn't be fair to you and other programmers whose past projects are worthy, so we may still allow it. One clause I am thinking of adding however, is allowing only One submission per person total (not between both categories) in order that someone can not win a major prize multiple times, and that way each person can only get one slide case. Having that One entry would motivate programmers to submit their best project, which will be competing against many other people. Also keep in mind that submitting a past project will not suffice if it does not have the potential to be a flash app, and that is one of the judging categories. You may think to evade that and fill 16K of app space by putting many programs together, and that would valid too. Just remember the judging is at our discretion and I probably wont select a pack of programs over an innovative app that uses all its potential space to do something, which is worthy of becoming a Flash Application. I am a hypocrite right now by contradicting that I made the TCPA Puzzle Pack, but that was a good idea at the time. Now that I think about it, it is better to have several individualized programs for a user to pick and choose what they want on their calculators. Therefor, I dont recommend submitting another Program Pack -type application, because I wont vote for it.

Also, remember that one of the judging categories is Originality. A port is certainly not original... And if an author simply re-submits his/her(?) program, then that too would not be very original.

--Andrew

Actually, I think that was the point he was trying to make, if an author who made an original program at one time entered, it would still be original, just a past work, and thus still valid. We cant hinder that fact... I guess we will just see what happens over the next 3 months (geez, thats a long time... :p)

It's original if the original author were to submit it, probably with a few edits for the better. It's unoriginal if someone makes a clone of the game without adding new features. At least that's my take on this.

I've read a couple of concerns about the contest, and instead of replying to each post and cluttering up everything, I'll just answer them all together.

As for groups, we don't really care whether you work in a group or by yourself, but don't think that you'll get multiple prizes because you have multiple people working on the project :) Whatever your want to do with potential prizes afterwards is your responsibility.

To reitterate what was already posted in the news item (read!), you don't have to submit an entry in application format. You can submit in RAM (assembly program) format. We expect that if you win an SDK or signing you'll want to convert your program to an application, but there's nothing forcing you to do so. We (read: I) will provide help to winners if they would like to convert their programs to applications. And if you want to submit entries but have no 83 Plus, you can do testing on VTI or the Flash Sim. Or you can create the program for whatever calculator you are familiar with, and then convert it to the 83 Plus when you are ready to submit it.

As to the person who suggested that we're going to sell, abuse, eat, or otherwise do things with entries after we get them, go bug off. The only thing we'll do with entries after they're submitted is:
a) announce the winners
b) post a copy of the app on our features page *IF YOU WANT US TO*

As per the question on submitting old stuff that's already been released: First, you can only submit one entry per category, so you can't submit tons and tons of things. Second, one of the things we're judging on is originality. You're not going to get high marks for originality if you just submit old programs. Third, a quote from the rules, "The program must be original. That means no ports, no copies, and no periodic tables." Notice the "no ports".

And we were serious about that we want as many people as possible to enter, regardless of skill level. Even if this is your first z80 program, you've got a chance at the cases, and you'll be getting lots of experience from programming your project.

you can't test with vti unless you have a legal copy of the rom. the only way i knew of to get a legal copy of the rom was to buy an 83+.

however the flash simulator comes with the rom also, so i would assume you could convert the hex file to binary and use it with vti.

And what if we want to distribute the source?

No, wait. That goes against capitalism, and TI can't sell you back your Flash ROM.

So opensource Flash Apps are impossible, and according to TI, not permitted, as they're unprofitable.

I'm sorry, but this whole "signing" thing is bullshit, and wrong.

Wait...What?
You can do whatever you want with the source to an application you write...

Apparently TI wants to collect a toll on a road they don't own.

Does TI own your flash ram? Can TI dictate how you handle your programs/source?

In a sense, yes.

Without a signing, the opensourcing of your program was futile, since your users CAN NOT use anything they make of the source without paying TI.