Re: Fargo
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>>Wow, a game. (The HP48 has one built into ROM, by the way).
>>Just as ZShell is to the TI85, I suspect that Fargo's real
>>attraction is the whole slew of useless calculator games which
>I guess you haven't really looked at even the TI-85s lately.
>There are power tools that are probably beyond your scope of
>understanding. It's just that the graphical interface assembly
>offers inspires more programmers to program what they like versus
>what is needed. The programmers are partly at fault, and, with
>that many games out there, who could resist? If you could come
>up with a good program for TI assembly, maybe we'd hail you...
Well, whatever it is that you're trying to say here is beyond
the scope of my understanding. Since you won't offer any specifics,
I will. I just looked at the ZShell program archive at ticalc.org,
and I see very little which could be called a "power tool". The
facts are that the ZShell archive is overwhelmingly made up of
games and similar useless junk. See for yourself:
3dviewer.zip 3d stereogram generator
astddemo.zip Asteroids 2042 (v1.0)
basecnv.zip Base Converter (v1.0)
bball.zip Bouncing Ball
bdash10.zip BoulderDash 1.0 Final
bgwav.zip Brian Gray .WAV pack
bjack.zip BlackJack (v1.1)
bombard.zip Bombardment (v1.0)
boneyard.zip Bone Yard (v1.0)
boxes.zip Boxes (v1.0)
brkout50.zip Super Breakout (v5.0)
calcoff2.zip Turns off the calculator (v1.0)
caves40.zip Caves (v4.0)
chemlib1.zip ChemLib: Periodic Table, Lanth/Actinoid...
.03)
chess12.zip Chess (v1.2)
columns3.zip Columns (v3.0)
compiler.zip Compile ZShell programs on the calculator...
comrad.zip Comrad (v0.1)
contrast.zip Contrast Changer
crunch.zip Crunch (v2.5b)
daedalus.zip Daedalus - 3D raycasting engine
debugger.zip Interrupt Debugger
eblepack.zip Original ZShell games by Dan Eble
etch.zip Etch-A-Sketch (v1.0)
eyes10.zip Eye animation
fakeos.zip Fake Memory Clearing Program (beta)
froggies.zip Froggies (v1.01)
gamepak2.zip More of Dan Eble's ZShell games
globe.zip Spinning globe
grafwrit.zip Graf-Write, writes text on the Graph screen
greenday.zip Green Day converted WAV
gwiz.zip Game Wizard cheating aid (v0.9)
hexview.zip Hex RAM Viewer (v0.1)
hidezshl.zip Hide ZShell (v1.1)
imperial.zip Star Wars Imperial March theme player
insane.zip Insane - challenging puzzle game (v1.2)
intzs.zip Interrupt ZShell launcher and utilities
invader.zip Invader (unfinished beta)
itest.zip Interrupt demo
jezzball.zip JezzBall (v2.1)
jonwv.zip Weak version of Weave
kclock85.zip Key Code Lock 85 with encryption (v3.5)
klearmem.zip KlearMem - fake memory reset (v5.0)
knight.zip Knight (v2.0)
labby2.zip Labby (v2.0)
life.zip Life (beta)
link82.zip TI-82 to TI-85 linking utilities
link92.zip TI-92 to TI-85 linking utilities
look.zip A little demo with some nice gfx
lr18.zip Lode Runner (v1.8)
magic.zip Compiler utility
maze.zip MazeMania (v1.0)
mcmiks.zip M.C. Miks (v1.0+)
meister.zip Meister Mind (v1.201)
menutxt.zip MenuText (v1.1)
minehunt.zip MineHunt (like the HP48 game)
mutiny2.zip Mutiny2 (v1.0)
nibbles.zip Nibbles (v1.1)
organise.zip Organiser update (v2.2)
othello2.zip Othello2 (v1.0)
password.zip PassWord protection program
pic2gray.zip Pic2Gray - 8 grayscale pic program
plainjmp.zip Plain-Jump (v1.0)
playwav.zip Play a .WAV file on your calc...
pool.zip Pool (v1.0)
popchar.zip PopChar, inserts extended characters...
protect!.zip Protect! - password protection program...
pwbreak.zip Displays PWProt password
pwbreak2.zip Displays PassWord password
pwp124.zip PWProt (v1.24)
raid.zip Raid (v1.0)
reader.zip Data Reader (v2.1)
record.zip Records sound from link port
recustom.zip Change ZShell's CUSTM menu location
remote92.zip Use TI-92 via remote mode
ricochet.zip Ricochet (v1.0)
rinistys.zip Rinistys - demo presented at Asm'96
road.zip Road - Racing game (0.5b)
scrcap2.zip Screen Capture Program v2
scroll40.zip Scrolls (v4.0)
snooper.zip Snooper (alpha)
speedgam.zip SpeedGame (v0.1b)
spw1b2.zip Spacewar (v1.0 beta 2)
sqrxz.zip Sqrxz game (v0.1)
talk.zip Talk (v2.1)
tetris45.zip Tetris (v4.5)
tiascii.zip ASCII displayer (v1.0)
tictac.zip Tic Tac Toe (v1.0)
tiles20.zip Tiles (v2.0)
tilogo2.zip TI-Logo 2
toad.zip Toad Stomp (v0.1)
toggles.zip Toggles (v1.0)
trimnt01.zip TriMounts (v0.1)
tube.zip A simple game - steer through the tube
turboslo.zip TurboSlow - slow turboed calcs under Zshell
um.zip Ulterior Motive, execute ZShell programs..
unlockit.zip UnLockIt - helps crack Master locks (v1.0b)
vidpoker.zip Video Poker (v1.0)
weave33.zip Weave (v3.3)
xc1701.zip XC-1701 v1.3 - grayscale with new enemies
xmem.zip XMem Memory Unresetter (v0.5)
zbasic.zip Execute ZShell programs from TI-BASIC (v0.5b)
zbike13.zip ZBike (v1.3)
zcasino.zip ZCasino - blackjack and poker (v0.9b)
zgenie.zip ZGenie (v1.3.7)
zjoust20.zip ZJoust (v2.0)
zpong201.zip ZPong (v2.01)
ztetris.zip ZTetris (v1.1)
>>If you can figure out how to connect your TI-92 to an external
>>modem? Pretty big if, since the TI92 has no standard RS-232
>There are electronic engineers in these mailing lists that can
>perform miracles, which a bunch of them are already making a
>modem for TI-85s and TI-92s. Too bad it will beat the HP at
>its speed. Anything you can argue about that?
Nope, it's hard to argue with someone who's talking out of his
butt (again). "Too bad it will beat the HP at its speed"?
Care to back that up with some facts, like the actual transfer
rate? And even if it is faster, my original point was that it
is hard to come up with a legitimate use for a calculator
connected to a modem - interesting as a novelty, but hardly
useful.
>>Can anybody help me out here and post what kinds of things
>>they're planning to do with their TI92 once Fargo is released?
>>
>>Like:
>>Expand the calculator's RAM to 1.256Mb? Add a clock, alarms,
>boy are you out of it! A RAM Extender is being built that holds
>4MBs for less than $100! Does the HP have that? I DON'T THINK SO!
What does this have to do with Fargo?? You completely missed the
whole point of my post, which was to ask how a Fargo-equipped TI92
was going to outperform (functionality-wise) an HP48. As expected,
I've received a bunch of flames and emotional upchuck, but not so
much as one reply which indicates how Fargo is going to improve
the basic functionality of the TI92.
>>and date arithmetic? Add a speaker? Add infrared file transfer
>who needs a clock in there anyways when you got a WATCH!? WHAT ARE
>THOSE THINGS YOU HAVE ON YOUR WRIST FOR?! Speakers eh? Well,
>that's already OUT IF YOU DIDN'T NOTICE! Much easier to attatch
>than to the HP! And Infrared eh? Well, IR as well as radio links
>are being made, and since the ports speed is 9600bps, it's probably
>much more efficient than the old, outdated HP. Worthless junk.
Your ignorance is showing. A built-in clock is useful for setting
alarms which control program execution, and for allowing date
arithmetic like finding the number of days between any two
arbitrary dates. And how can your external speaker be much
easier to attach the the *internal* HP speaker, as the
HP speaker requires no "attachment" at all? And to quell some
some talk out the ole anus, the amazing 9600bps IR port speed
of which you speak is the same rate at which the "old, outdated HP"
operates at today. "Worthless junk"? Maybe. Worthless talk?
Definitely.
>>capability? Add an equation library? Add card slots? Drop
>With assembly, anything's possible, especially with the nice
>processor! And who needs card slots when the thing can use anything
>through the link port?
No, anything is not possible if the basic hardware won't support
your end goal. See, this is exactly my point - everyone seems to
think that Fargo is some kind of panacea which will cure cancer
and beat the HP's. And, as you said above, the work is being
done by "a bunch of electronic engineers on this mailing list".
You can believe whatever you want, but why exactly would "a bunch
of electronic engineers" spend their time tinkering with a
calculator on their own time and for no profit?? Ain't going
to happen.
>>Drop the QWERTY keyboard so that it can be used on college
>>entrance exams?
>The QWERTY keyboard is an improvement over conventional ones
>since it probably helps with experienced computer users and
>only uses that because
>it comes closer to a computer than the HP does.
>It signifies its power.
The QWERTY keyboard signifies its power? Are you serious?
Emotional blathering aside, all it really does is render
the machine unusable for many entrance exams, courses, tests,
etc.
>>If Fargo's purpose in life is to slay the HP, it had better
>>find a more capable machine with which to do it.
>If that ain't capable enough, I'd really hate to see what the
>HP's like.
Look, the point is simply this: Fargo will no doubt plug some
basic holes in the TI92's functionality, but it can't make gold
out of lead. If everyone would take a deep breath and look at
what Fargo is likely to do (or not do) for them, maybe all this
crying and bitching about release dates would stop.
And to my buddy "Zenon", some advice: "it's better to keep your
mouth shut and look foolish than it is to open it and remove all
doubt".
<pre>
--
Karl E. Yeanoplos
Denver, CO
kyeanopl@ast.lmco.com
</pre>
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