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  • AppleWin 1.26.0 (pre-release)

    Hi,

    There’s a new pre-release of AppleWin 1.26.0 here:
    https://github.com/AppleWin/AppleWin/releases/tag/v1.26.0.3

    The main changes are:

    – Beta NTSC support
    . TV Color, TV B&W, Monitor Color, Monitor B&W
    – Full-screen native resolution (no longer 640×480 resolution)
    – Save-state file v2: human readable (Yaml-based format)
    . All hardware configurations save/restored:
    . Apple model, sub-systems, memory, cards (except Uthernet and SAM cards)
    . Old v1 .aws file format still loaded
    – Added SAM/DAC sound card support
    – AppleWin built with VS2008 Express (supports Windows 2000 or later)

    We are tagging this release as “beta” as there are big changes in these 3 areas (in order of severity):

    – NTSC video rendering
    – Full-screen native (not 640×480 resolution)
    – Save-state is now yaml format

    Although there’s been a reasonable level of developer testing over the past months, the extent of the changes could mean that there are some edge-cases affecting stability or leading to regressions.

    Please report any issues you find either here (in cea2) or raise a bug here:
    https://github.com/AppleWin/AppleWin/issues/new

    btw. the NTSC support is based on Sheldon’s work from 2011 – thanks Sheldon, we finally got there! :)

    Tom

    Source: Megalextoria: Apple II Emulation » AppleWin 1.26.0 (pre-release)

    applewin-1-26-0-3-tar

    applewin-1-26-0-3

    applewin1-26-0-3


  • MIMIC Spartan

    Commodore_Power-Play_1984_Issue_12_V3_N05_Dec_Jan-033

    Source: Commodore Power Play – December 1984 January 1985

    The Mimic Systems Spartan was an interesting and unique piece of hardware. It has often been referred to as an Apple II/II+ emulator for the Commodore 64, however it wasn’t really an emulator at all. It was essentially an entire Apple II+ that plugged into the Commodore 64 making it essentially an Apple II+ clone.

    There were a couple of advantages to this approach. First and most importantly, it saved quite a bit of money. The Apple II was an expensive computer, at least as compared to other 8-bit computers at the time. The Spartan was $599 but that was many hundreds of dollars cheaper than an Apple II+ system or even the cheapest clone. It could share certain peripherals with the Commodore 64 including monitor, printer, and even disk drive with the addition of an add-on card for the drive that was included. This brings up the other main advantage. If you really needed (or wanted) both an Apple II and Commodore 64, using a Spartan could save you a lot of space over having both a separate Commodore 64 and Apple II.

    So why would you want or need both Apple II and Commodore 64 compatibility? Other than the typical reasons (your a computer freak, need it for work, etc.) there was another compelling reason. When the Spartan was first being advertised in 1984, the Commodore 64 was still pretty new on the market. While the Commodore 64 was an impressive machine for an incredibly good price at the time (and certainly much cheaper than an Apple II), it takes awhile for software to be developed and even longer for GOOD software to be developed. Plus, much of the early software for the Commodore 64 was games because it happened to be quite good at that task. Meanwhile, the Apple II had been around for at least 7 years already and there were many hundreds if not thousands of software titles already available.

    So why wasn’t the Spartan a huge success? Mostly I think it came down to timing. While the Spartan was first advertised in 1984, its release was significantly delayed and it wasn’t actually available until two years after the first ads appeared. By that time, a large variety of Commodore 64 software was widely available. Also, the Apple IIe was the new standard Apple II model which was somewhat improved over the Apple II+ which was what the Spartan reproduced. The price difference between a real Apple II+ and the Spartan would have shrunk somewhat. Simply put, whatever market the Spartan might have had in 1984 was virtually gone by the time it was actually released in 1986.

    However, the Spartan was actually released. The fact that it didn’t sell well and wasn’t on the market long just makes it a prized collectible today. Personally, I would rather just have both the C64 and an Apple II vs. getting this contraption. But some collectors are for more completest than I am :).


  • Computist – Issue Number 52 – February 1988

    page-01

    Source: Computer & Video Game Magazines – Computist – Issue Number 52 – February 1988

    Computist was always primarily an Apple II oriented magazine but later in life it did cover other machines such as the PC (DOS) and Macintosh to a lesser extent. I large portion of the content was always dedicated to the publication of “softkeys” or “A.P.T.S.” Softkeys were pieces of code designed to work with special software for copying copy protected disks. A.P.T.s were basically disk sector edits that functioned like a Game Genie.

    The February 1988 issue included the following:

    Softkeys

    • Apple Gradebook v2.6
    • Award Maker Plus
    • Black Cauldron
    • Black Magic
    • California Games
    • Car Builder
    • Color Print Shop
    • Computer Ambush
    • Concepts In Science
    • Disney’s Comic Strip Maker
    • Elite
    • Empire I, II
    • European Nations & Locations
    • Fooblitzky
    • Grid Designer
    • H.E.R.O.
    • Ikari Warriors
    • Infiltrator II
    • Le Francais par Ordinateur
    • Little Computer People’s House on a Disk
    • Main Street Filer (mac)
    • Master Diagnostics IIe
    • MegaFiler (mac)
    • MegaMerge (mac)
    • Microzine 23
    • Might & Magic
    • Millionaire (mac)
    • Mindplay software
    • Music Construction Set IIgs
    • Nibbler
    • Operation Market Garden
    • Phatasie
    • Planetfall (mac)
    • PrintMaster Plus
    • Print Shop IIgs
    • Questron
    • Regatta
    • Ring Quest
    • Ringside Seat
    • Rings Of Ziflin
    • Shanghai
    • Silent Service IIgs
    • Snooper Troops
    • Spy’s Adventure in N. America
    • Super Print
    • Tass Times in Tometown
    • Think Quick
    • Transylvania (mac)
    • Ultima I re-release
    • Where in the USA is Carmen Sandiego
    • World Games
    • Zork I (mac)

    A.P.T.s

    • Alternate Reality: The Dungeon
    • Arctic Fox
    • Bard’s Tale II
    • Beyond Zork
    • Black Magic
    • Cavern Creatures
    • Drol
    • Goonies
    • Ikari Warriors
    • Zorro

    Playing Tips

    • Beyond Castle Wolfenstein
    • Championship Lode Runner
    • Conan
    • King’s Queen II
    • Lode Runner
    • Lurking Horror
    • Station Fall
    • Ultima IV
    • Zork

    IBM Softkeys

    • Lotus 1-2-3
    • Flight Simulator
    • PFS Report

    IBM A.P.T.s

    • Bard’s Tale

    Features

    • The Product Monitor – Jeff Hurlburt’s review of the Apple IIgs manuals: Technical Introduction To The Apple IIgs and the Apple IIgs Hardware Reference.
    • Macintosh Softkeys! – John Doe’s examination of Macintosh protection schemes and softkeys for…Transylvania, Zork I, Planetfall, MegaFiler & MegaMerge, Mainstreet Filer and Millionaire.
    • A.P.T. Cornucopia – Willem Moolenaar’s APT’s gives you unlimited men, grenades & bullets for Ikari Warriors, unlimited men for Drol, unlimited lives for Goonies and Zorro, and unlimited ships in Cavern Creatures.
    • APT for Alternate Reality: Dungeon – Create A Super-human – Thomas V. Rapheld’s A.P.T. tables and your sector editor will make your character invincible.
    • Softkey for SSI’s RDOS disks
      • I. ProDOS RDOS – M.M. McFadden’s PDOS.SYSTEM makes SSI’s RDOS disks compatible with ProDOS. His PDOS.FIXLEN program will help make DOS filenames ProDOS compatible, too.
      • II. RDOS Transfer Utility – M.M. McFadden’s RDOS TRANSFER and TRANSUBS program lets you easily move RDOS files to ProDOS disks.
    • Making Cracked II Plus Disks Work On The IIc – Christopher Dean shows you how by fixing Drol, Hardball, Ogre, and Arctic Fox.

    …and more!