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Demo News 136
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Subscribers : 2601
DemoNews 136 - 08 December 1996 Archive Size : 3614M
>------------------------------------------------------------------ Contents --
Introduction
Calendar
Top Downloads
New Uploads
Articles
Safety for Women at Demoparties ............. Anonymous
A Graphician's Tip Book - Part 8 ............ Shaithis
Interview: Jeffrey Lim (Pulse) .............. GD
How The Hornet Archive Works (part 2) ....... Snowman
The Future of Demos ......................... 3NO
TRI Game Developer Needed ................... Paul Nettle
General Information
>-------------------------------------------------------------- Introduction --
Hello all, and welcome to DemoNews.136.
_____Introduction
Right now it is excessively late and I must go to sleep shortly. I will keep
this introduction brief.
_____Offline CD #1
On 06 December 1996, I moved 640 megs of files off the Hornet Archive. All
/music songs and disks rated ** and under, cataloged before 19 November 1996
were pulled. The lack-of-space issue has been resolved for several months.
Greetings and thank-you's go out to the _dozens_ of people who wrote me about
this.
_____hornet.org Replaces cdrom.com
Please note that I have registered and put into effect the domain hornet.org.
We are now officially located at:
http://www.hornet.org
ftp://ftp.hornet.org/pub/demos
Each Hornet member also has an X@hornet.org email address. We now also have
a group contact address (questions@hornet.org). We haven't moved away from
cdrom.com or anything, just slapped on a nifty new nickname.
_____Warez
Hey cutie-pie. Please stop trying to upload Photoshop 4.0 to /incoming, ok?
_____Ping-Pong is Not New
What's with people thinking that ping-pong looping in trackers is a new
concept? I remember my registered version of Ultra Tracker having it back in
late 1993. It was called "bidi" looping (bi-directional). I guess I like
the sound of "ping pong" more though. I've seen a lot of discussion recently
about Impulse Tracker inheriting Fast Tracker 2.0's ping-pong looping
capability and wanted to remind you where perhaps FT2 took it from.
_____Junk Mail Extravaganza
Is it just me or has everyone else been getting 3x the normal amount of
junk mail the past 2 weeks or so?
If you receive unsolicited commercial email, consider it an excellent
opportunity to let the world know about the demo scene and our archive!
Download several very large .zip files (think of it as making your own little
Hornet Archive "sampler"), and uuencode it to the original sender. Ask them
"Have you ever wanted to have your music and demos reviewed and stored on a
well-organized archive... ABSOLUTELY FREE!? Here's your introduction to the
Hornet Archive..."
Here's another approach I've been taking. This one probably isn't nearly so
effective but it makes me feel better. I critique their mail, looking for
misspelled words, improper formatting, grammar mistakes, etc. and ask them
"How can you expect me to take you seriously when your company doesn't even
know how to send email correctly?"
I've also heard rumors of there being security holes in: Perl 5.000,
sendmail, cgi in webservers older than 1 year, "death ping" for Unix
operating systems except FreeBSD and SunOS, etc. Now, I don't really think
any of that is true, and I certainly wouldn't recommend you research any of
it in the hopes of using it against your spamming assailants.
_____Conclusion
Good night, pleasant dreams... zzz...
Snowman / Hornet - r3cgm@hornet.org
>------------------------------------------------------------------ Calendar --
Date Event Location Contact Points
------------ ----------------- --------- ------------------------------------
09 Nov 1996 Gravity Poland losiu@p26.f8.n484.z2.fidonet.org
22 Nov 1996 Demolition2 Finland mpiirone@lut.fi
www.hut.fi/~jhheinon/demolition.html
CANCELED! Demobit Slovakia demobit@elf.stuba.sk
internet.sk/demobit/english.htm
CANCELED! Tesko UK party@tesko.demon.co.uk
* <-- YOU ARE HERE
09 Dec 1996 Movement Israel civax@kinneret.com
27 Dec 1996 The Party 6 Denmark theparty@vip.cybercity.dk
www.theparty.dk
28 Mar 1997 Mekka & Symposium Germany amable@aol.com
04 Apr 1997 X Takeover Holland x97take@freemail.nl
22 Aug 1997 AntIQ Hungary aboy@ttk.jpte.hu
www.jpte.hu/~aboy
>------------------------------------------------------------- Top Downloads --
This represents combined ftp/http transfers for the last 7 days.
Sorry, my "get description" subroutine broke and I didn't have time to fix it
before these statistics were generated.
Please note that something else is wrong. On the global transfer log for
wcarchive, I'm showing an average of 280,000 downloads and 38 gigs
transferred this week in the /demos archive. What accounts for this
discrepancy? Hopefully I'll find out soon.
Total files downloaded : 167,059
Size of files downloaded : 28,070,635k
Times File Description
----- -------------------------------- --------------------------------------
-- /demos ------------------------------------------------------------------>
162 /1995/n/nooon_st.zip
153 /1995/a/animate.zip
146 /1993/0-9/2ndreal1.lzh
133 /1993/0-9/2ndreal2.lzh
125 /1993/u/unreal11.zip
118 /1996/a/ai_strok.zip
112 /1993/s/symbolog.zip
110 /1996/a/atw_prot.zip
101 /1996/m/machines.arj
97 /1996/m/machines.a01
-- /music ------------------------------------------------------------------>
66 /songs/1996/xm/r/raf-bost.zip
66 /songs/1995/s3m/a/aryx.zip
63 /songs/1996/s3m/a/athought.zip
52 /songs/1994/s3m/chariot.zip
50 /songs/1996/s3m/f/fa-bung.zip
49 /songs/1995/s3m/c/ctgoblin.zip
48 /songs/1992/mod/space.zip
48 /songs/1992/mod/beyond.zip
48 /disks/1996/f/fc-trib1.zip
47 /songs/1996/s3m/i/im_empir.zip
-- /graphics --------------------------------------------------------------->
19 /images/1994/i/incest5.zip
13 /programs/vector/veced300.zip
13 /images/1996/a/abc_pien.zip
13 /images/1996/a/abc_land.zip
12 /programs/vector/akm-mm10.zip
12 /images/1996/a/airwar.zip
11 /programs/players/cybrshow.zip
10 /programs/editors/fedit11.zip
10 /programs/editors/akm-md36.zip
10 /images/1996/c/chantal.zip
-- /code ------------------------------------------------------------------->
86 /effects/3d/3dtext.arj
78 /effects/fire/flame184.zip
75 /effects/tunnel/araidsrc.zip
73 /effects/rotozoom/pasroto.zip
72 /tutor/tut21.zip
71 /effects/plasma/plaswarp.zip
66 /effects/blobs/blobs.zip
65 /effects/feedback/dunesrc.zip
62 /3ds/3dsrdr12.zip
61 /effects/fire/firetiny.zip
-- /incoming --------------------------------------------------------------->
154 /code/p3dve.arj
77 /demos/wired.a01
76 /TMDC/tremor2.zip
75 /demos/wired.arj
71 /code/pmw132.zip
63 /demos/ktv_1296.zip
60 /mags/cheese9.zip
59 /TMDC/rcn-orzo.zip
56 /code/azr_bump.zip
55 /code/Tgarx2b1.zip
>--------------------------------------------------------------- New Uploads --
All ratings are subjective.
Filename Size Rated Description
------------------------------- ---- ----- ----------------------------------
-- /demos ------------------------------------------------------------------>
/1996/0-9/14ndreal.zip 1455 [n/a] ABD96:demo:15: Sqrt(2) Reality by
| Future Screw
/1996/a/afterdt1.zip 1341 *** [1/2] WIR96:demo:04: After Death
| by Real-Time
/1996/a/afterdt2.zip 1327 *** [2/2] WIR96:demo:04: After Death
| by Real-Time
/1996/a/allinb.zip 919 *+ WIR96:demo:12: All In the Name of
| Bump by Mr. Bios
/1996/a/amb_sell.zip 58 *** WIR96:in64:05: Sell Out by Amable
/1996/c/caffeine.zip 55 ** WIR96:in64:06: Caffeine by Warm
| Inside
/1996/c/creation.zip 589 ** Creation by ZOB
/1996/c/cyber.zip 64 ***+ WIR96:in64:02: Famous Cyber People
| by Pulse
/1996/d/dop.zip 19 + WIR96:in64:13: Dirty Old People by
| Fuel
/1996/e/e.zip 1276 **** WIR96:demo:05: (E) by Zden, Moshe
/1996/e/e9-frame.zip 67 *** WIR96:in64:07: Frame by Ethos 9
/1996/i/itsari.zip 434 ** WIR96:demo:10: Itsari by Itsari
/1996/k/k_orb_f.zip 61 ***+ WIR96:in64:07: Orbital by Kloon
/1996/k/karanga.zip 1103 ***+ WIR96:demo:08: Karanga by Color
/1996/k/knowthng.zip 38 *** WIR96:in64:15: Known Thing by
| Maroon
/1996/m/maximum.zip 19 *** WIR96:in4k:04: Maximum by Bear
/1996/m/molejo.zip 54 ***+ WIR96:in64:03: Molejo by Valhalla
/1996/p/paper.zip 62 ****+ WIR96:in64:01: Paper by Psychic
| Link
/1996/p/patchwrk.zip 1241 *+ NAID96:demo:??: Patchwork by Intra
/1996/p/phatkryt.zip 46 *+ WIR96:in64:11: Phat Krijt by
| Trepaan
/1996/p/prg-ich.zip 2172 **** WIR96:demo:02: Ich Kann Euch Sehen
| by Purge
/1996/r/r_urya_f.zip 50 [n/a] WIR96:in64:04: Urya by Ribbon
/1996/r/reverse.zip 59 **+ WIR96:in64:09: Reverse by Ketchup
| Killers
/1996/r/rox_rf.zip 1195 ***+ WIR96:demo:01: Hard Rox by Skal
/1996/s/samsalp.zip 452 **+ Samsalp by Intra
/1996/s/snc_lbd2.arj 9 **** WIR96:in4k:01: Little Big Demo 2
| by Sanction
/1996/s/stc-ext.zip 794 *** Extasy by Substance
/1996/u/useit.zip 1419 *** WIR96:demo:07: Use It As An
| Illusion by Useless
/1996/v/vacdemo.zip 49 [n/a] WIR96:in64:12: Back to the Roots
| by Vacuum
/1996/v/velvet2.zip 63 **** WIR96:in64:10: Velvet 2 by N-
| Factor
/1996/x/xaos_f.zip 737 ***+ WIR96:demo:06: Xaos by Mist
/1996/y/yoda.zip 63 **+ WIR96:in64:13: Yoda Lives by Blup
-- /music ------------------------------------------------------------------>
/programs/trackers/it209.zip 271 Impulse Tracker v2.09 by Pulse
/programs/unusual/itinfo.zip 23 ITInfo v0.1 : ITInfo gives
| information of IT Modules and IT
| Samples
-- /graphics --------------------------------------------------------------->
/disks/1996/pls_wild.zip 2055 ****+ Wild by Pulse
/images/1996/b/blm-absn.zip 87 *+ Abstruction by GreenPix7
/images/1996/c/crs-l2mb.zip 92 *** Love to my Baby by Java
/images/1996/d/de-anima.zip 31 **+ SAT96B:grfx:11: De-Anima by Made
/images/1996/d/dl_fture.zip 180 *** Future by REM
/images/1996/i/imphound.zip 39 **** SAT96B:grfx:XX: Hound Attack by
| BenJ
/images/1996/i/impsnake.zip 25 **** Snakewoman by BenJ
/images/1996/i/impspecs.zip 43 **** WIR96:grfx:02: Species by BenJ
/images/1996/p/pls_smok.zip 610 **** GRV96:grfx:01: Smok by Lazur
/images/1996/t/temple.zip 83 **+ Temple by Horn
/images/1996/t/twilight.zip 54 **+ Twilight by Horn
/images/1996/u/univers2.zip 117 ** Universe 2 by Horn
/images/1996/u/universe.zip 66 ** Universe by Horn
/programs/editors/char_122.zip 95 Char Editor 1.22 by Escape
/programs/editors/gfx2b090.zip 325 Grafx v2.00 by Sunset Design :
| Multi-resolution Dos paint
| program
-- /info ------------------------------------------------------------------->
/contact/group414.zip 28 Zyklop Group Acronyms List v4.14
| by Yogi : more than 400 groups
| listed including infos about the
| crew! Also included are group
| and party acronyms lists
/demonews/demonews.134 86 DemoNews 134 - 24 Nov 1996 by
| Hornet
/demonews/demonews.135 28 DemoNews 134 - 01 Dec 1996 by
| Hornet
/dn_other/dn114_3d.zip 14 Introduction to 3D Programming -
| Article #1 by Kiwidog of Hornet,
| Terraformer : from DemoNews.114
/dn_other/dn116_3d.zip 18 Introduction to 3D Programming -
| Article #2 by Kiwidog of Hornet,
| Terraformer : from DemoNews.116
/dn_other/dnr143.zip 81 DemoNews Reader v1.43 by Phoenix
| of Hornet
/traxw/traxweek.079 31 TraxWeekly 079 - 06 Dec 1996
-- /mags ------------------------------------------------------------------->
/1996/bsr-0007.zip 10 ** Belgian Scene Report Issue 7 by
| Baxter : Text Magazine
/1996/cheese9.zip 245 Cheese Issue 9 by Cheese Team :
| **+
-- /party ------------------------------------------------------------------>
/misc/w96_ansi.zip 213 WIR96::: Wired '96 Ansi Compo
| Entries
/results/1996/da15res.zip 1 Digital Art 1.5 Results
>------------------------------------------------------------------ Articles --
---------------------------------------------------------------------------->
:: "Safety for Women at Demoparties"
:: Anonymous - responses may be directed through questions@hornet.org
Until recently, I thought there was little difference between being a male at
a demoparty and being a female. Then something happened to make me question
that view: I was sexually assaulted. No one expects it to happen to them,
and a demoparty was the last place I thought it could happen. I really
started wondering just how safe I am or will be when I attend parties. I
wondered how it could have happened, and what could have been done to prevent
it. That is the issue I want to address: how to make demoparties safer for
women.
Demoparty security is all well and good when it comes to preventing or
dealing with things like fights and thefts, but not much thought has been
given the safety of women at the parties. I think this is largely due to the
fact that organizers have traditionally not had to worry about it and have
not thought about dealing with it.
I personally never worried about it much either. I always felt perfectly
safe at demoparties. I suppose this was rather naive of me, and in the
future, I will certainly look out for myself more carefully. Clearly this is
part of the solution: for women to be on their guard when they can. However,
there are times when we can't. (Everybody has to sleep sometime) At those
times, we need someone else looking out for us, too. This is the other part
of the solution, but I'm not so sure what should be done or how to do it.
One obvious answer is to have a separate sleeping area for women. This would
work, but I don't know how willing people would be to do it. It would
guarantee the safety of the women at the party, but it also takes away from
the party atmosphere. Everybody SHOULD be able to trust everybody else and
just have a good time, but sadly that isn't possible.
Another element of the solution is to have a way for people to get in touch
with organizers or security people immediately if there is a problem. If
anybody had seen what was happening and reported it to someone, maybe
something could have been done about it then and there. Occasional security
checks of the sleeping areas and other isolated places would also be a good
idea, on the chance that somebody walking by might notice something wrong.
Aside from these few suggestions, I really don't know what can be done to
increase safety for women at demoparties. What it really comes down to is
everyone looking out for herself, and friends looking out for each other. I
welcome any additional suggestions any of you may have. Please send them to
the address listed above.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------->
:: "A Graphician's Tip Book - Part 8"
:: Shaithis / Immortal Coil - shaithis@buffnet.net
[note: "Part 7" of this series is labeled "A Work of Art (Start to Finish)"
and is in DemoNews.133]
Hello all,
Hope everyone had a cool thanksgiving break (and for those of you non-US
readers a uhm...good weekend. :) I went home, and lo and behold when I
returned there was a shiny copy of DemoNews sitting in my mailbox. Sadly,
this shiny copy of DemoNews didn't contain an article from me. This is
because I was away. Oh well. I'm back now so let's get on with it.
You're probably expecting me to talk about Photoshop right? You're probably
expecting me to go right into technical detail on what it does and how to use
it, right? I mean...that's what I've been saying I was going to do, right?
Well...uh...the problem with that is that there's a new version of Photoshop
out in the stores. Being a poor college student, I simply don't have enough
money to afford it (donations are accepted however. :) At any rate, I'll be
able to check out Photoshop 4.0 when I get home in a few weeks, and can use
the one that my cousin has already purchased. (It must be nice to have
money. :) So until that time I think I'll write about something else
entirely.
What I want to write about today actually hearkens back to a few articles ago
when I was talking about dpaint. The past few weeks of my life have given me
the opportunity to work with that program more than I have in the rest of my
life combined. I'll not go into great detail, lest I be accused of
mercilessly plugging my group, but let me say that Immortal Coil is in the
process of creating an RPG. This RPG will run in 320x240x256, which is a
more or less standard vesa mode. Since it is not a 3D game, however, it must
be hand drawn. Every...single...pixel.
Working with 256 colors is a difficult thing, as I have found much to my
dismay, especially when palette limitations are imposed that make it
generally a bad idea to use more than sixteen or so colors for an object. My
respect goes out to those of you who do 256 color pixel work on a daily
basis. It's not always a lot of fun, but I must say it's damn rewarding to
sit back and look at a piece that you _know_ looks good despite the
limitations imposed upon you.
So that's more or less what the rest of this article is about. I'm going to
speak (or write I suppose I should say) a bit on the subject of generating
recognizable pictures under heavy restrictions such as the ones the I must
impose on myself in order to make graphics that our coders can actually use.
Just a few tips that I've come up with that I thought might interest you.
*Don't outline your sprites in black* For those of you who don't know the
term "sprites", I'm simply using it to denote a character, a rock, or
whatever other graphic it may be that you'll be animating (ah animating...
I'll probably talk about that next week. :) At any rate, this is a big
no-no. Sure, it looks great on a white background. Nice and crisp. Now put
it against a grass tile (tiles are similar to sprites but are perfectly
square). Doesn't look at all natural, does it? This is easily solved. Shade
your characters so that the colors _imply_ the outline.
One way to do this, and a way I definitely advocate, is to take a good amount
of time setting up your palette before doing any actual work. My group spent
a week and a half just passing around a palette between us, giving it little
tweaks until we had the exact colors we wanted. Now that we have these
colors, it is much easier to see how best to shade a character. All of our
colors are in straight lines, running from near-black to near-white, with the
truest form of the color in the center of the gradient.
We have sixteen colors in sixteen shades, giving us a total of (you guessed
it), 256 colors. With the method of laying out the colors explained above,
it is relatively easy to find the colors you want in order to shade your
character correctly. This leads us into the next tip:
*Solid lines of color usually don't work* This is a basic truth. Your eyes
betray you on this one though. We interpret much of what we see as solid
lines of color, despite the fact that upon closer inspection what we are
actually seeing is hundreds, possibly thousands of colors interacting with
each other. Shadowing, printing, monitor displays, whatever it is you're
looking at, I can assure you you're probably not seeing a solid line of
color.
"So okay...I'm not seeing a solid line of color...your point is?" Wait. I'm
getting to that. Let's assume you're drawing something relatively
simplistic. A 16x16 tile for example, trying to imply grass. The first
thing you try really doesn't look much like grass does it? It's quite likely
that instead it looks very stiff, like a bunch of light green lines running
on a darker green background. This was what my first attempt looked like
anyway. Some of you more experienced pixel-ers may giggle at that, but keep
in mind that I haven't done any serious 256 color work in about a year.
Whoah...this article's getting long. In my next installment, I'll give
finish up explaining how to get a better grass-tile (which will in turn
explain how to shade better, in general). After that, I'll give a few more
tips, and move on to some basics on animation.
256 color work can often seem like a chore, but the real key is not to think
of it that way. Instead, think of it as a challenge...a test. You have put
yourself up against some pretty severe limitations. Now it's time for you to
create what you want to create _anyway_. You can do it. I have faith. Go
experiment! Here's a hint. The spraypaint can with a little tweaking can do
wonders for a grass tile. More next time!
Until Then
---------------------------------------------------------------------------->
:: "Interview: Jeffrey Lim (Pulse)"
:: GD / Hornet - gd@hornet.org
_____Introduction
About a year ago, Impulse Tracker v1.00 was released. Users immediately
noticed the similarities between IT and Scream Tracker 3. With time, Impulse
Tracker has been improved with non-ST3 features familiar to users of Fast
Tracker 2, such as 16-bit samples, ping pong sample looping, and volume and
panning envelopes.
Impulse Tracker also has introduced innovations such as virtual note
controls, and native support for a large number of soundcards, including the
Soundblaster Awe32 and Interwave-based soundcards.
Enter Pulse, the man behind Impulse Tracker.
_____Questions and Answers
Q: State your name and occupation.
A: My name is Jeffrey Lim. At the moment, I'm studying Computer Systems
Engineering at the University of Adelaide, South Australia.
Q: Where do you currently live, and with whom?
A: I currently live at my family's home in Adelaide, South Australia. I have
two sisters (and two parents!) who live here with me. My university
education doesn't require me to stay/board anywhere - I just catch a bus
down and back each day.
Q: Are you employed?
A: I have a holiday job lined up that should produce the most AWESOME 3D game
known to man. :)
Q: What will your role be in this project?
A: My role will be first to design and implement the audio system, after
which I will do miscellaneous coding. I'm working in a team of four
programmers, an artist and musician. We hope to make something really
quite spectacular.
Q: Will some variation of the .it module format will be used for this?
A: Actually, I suspect that the .it module format won't come into the idea
at all. :) The game is designed to go into the arcades, more than for
home usage. The .it format isn't particularly suited for games with the
virtual note mechanism which can get absolutely out of control. (wave to
Ozone!) :)
Q: What was your earliest involvement with music?
A: My earliest involvement with music would be my violin lessons which I have
undertaken since the age of about 5! Soon after, I also started learning
piano.
Q: What instruments do you own?
A: I own several violins (I still have the smaller sized violins somewhere),
an upright piano, a Roland E-70 synth and recorder from primary school.
Q: What was your first computer system?
A: My first computer system was an Apple IIE. Awesome machine with a whole
64kb of memory I think!
Q: When did you start programming?
A: I started programming in BASIC on an Apple IIE when I was about 8 or 9.
At the time, I never took it really seriously, just a little thrill to get
some machine to do my bidding. :) I was more interested in playing
Ultima IV generally.
Q: When did you move to the PC platform?
A: I got my first IBM (20mhz 8086, fully equipped with EGA and a 20MB HDD,
whee!!) about 1986. My mother bought a few programming books on an
overseas visit around 1990 (as I asked her to) and I taught myself basic C
programming. I never really produced anything truly useful in those
times, just little editors and utilities (which I still use today).
About 3 years ago, I finally read the last chapters of one of the C books
which dealt with assembler in debug. That was my first introduction to
Intel 80x86 assembler. After that, I've become very familiar with the
language; it's almost second nature!
In the last few years, I have been through many computers: a 386, 486DX100
and now a Cyrix 120, which I do all my work/internet/composing with.
Q: How did you first become aware of the demo "scene"?
A: My first encounter with the demoscene was when my cousin played "Unreal"
to me on his 486. I was amazed at the graphics and sound. After that, I
spent a lot of time downloading many demos on my blazingly fast 2400
modem.
In the last couple of years, my interest in the demo-demo scene has
diminished. I have focused much more on the music side. I suppose that
I couldn't get enough of the demos I wanted to see, and in the end, just
gave up looking for them. :)
Q: What demo parties have you attended?
A: I have only been to Coven in South Australia which was more of a games
fest than anything else. Still, there were a few people there that
actually knew what demos were and a few musicians around.
I hope to go to a more 'demoy'-demo party sometime. Get me a plane ticket
and I'll see you at Eclipse 97. :)
Q: What were you thinking the very first time you used Scream Tracker?
A: The first time I used Scream Tracker was about a week after it was
released. At the time, I had no idea what I was downloading. I saw the
name "Future Crew" and thought, "hey cool..." I'd seen Unreal and Second
Reality before that, and they interested me.
But when I first RAN Scream Tracker, I was impressed. Most of the
computer music that I'd heard before had been FM synthesis stuff; not so
realistic at all.
After getting ST3, I started composing in a big hurry. I produced about
10 modules (all crap and worse, but luckily I didn't release them due to
lack of internet access/restricted BBS rules). For a long time, ST3
became a huge distraction to my studies/general life. :)
Q: When did you start working on Impulse Tracker?
A: My first milestone for Impulse Tracker was when I wrote an S3M player
called "Impulse Player" at the end of 1994. It only supported SB, but it
was an experiment to see if I could do anything with the assembler I had
learned.
After that, I intended to start a full ST3-like tracker immediately. But
I never started it until the last week of my holidays, in which I coded
all the basic routines.
Through the course of 1995, I think I stopped work entirely on the tracker
for about 6 months. Then one of my friends (Red Haze) started bugging me
to put consistent effort in. :) (You can also thank him for a whole lot
of other little features and ping pong loops, etc.)
I think I tried to spend a couple hours a day after that, right up until
a couple weeks before exams. At that time, I *REALLY* started spending
time on the tracker. :) (I always tend to code much more fervently
around exam time!)
And by the time the exams were over, the tracker had a player and almost
everything complete. I gave a few copies to some friends to beta-test and
towards the end of December 1995, IT1.00 was released (only a few days
before Velvet Studio and Digitracker 3).
Q: Have you used any substances to keep you awake during coding sessions?
A: I've never taken caffeine pills, but I've drunk lots and lots of coffee.
:) My favourite, though, is the bottle of Creme de Cacao which I have
within an arms reach from the computer. It doesn't keep me awake, but I
like it all the same.
I haven't gone overboard programming recently. At most, I've done 12-15
hour stretches. I have done over 40 hours straight before.
Q: What was the first improvement over ST3 that you considered for your
tracker?
A: The very first necessary improvement that I considered was panning. Not
just pure left/pure right. I know that ST3.2 had panning for GUS cards,
but at the time, I only had an SBPro.
After that, there were many basic ideas taken from FT2. Instruments,
envelopes, ping pong loops, etc. And on top of that all, I've added my
own ideas such as Virtual Note Controls with NNAs/DCTs.
Q: What has been the most difficult part of developing Impulse Tracker?
A: The most difficult part of producing Impulse tracker was to find the time
to spend on the code. I had very poor documentation on SB cards at the
time and the code looks like a total mess.
The other major problem was that I didn't have Turbo Debugger. Yes,
versions of Impulse Tracker up to 1.03 were written ENTIRELY without a
debugger. I have bought my own TASM, just that I couldn't get TD working
properly until recently. :)
Windows 95 has to be undoubtedly the biggest headache of all though! :)
Soundcard routines had to be completely rewritten for stability within
Windows 95. And there are still some restrictions that I haven't worked
around under that environment.
Q: What has been the most outrageous suggestion someone has made to you about
a feature for IT?
A: Generally, I don't like to mention possible features in IT, because I have
found that as soon as I mention it, people realize what they're missing
out on! There are many suggestions that may be considered outrageous, but
the most amusing part is most of them probably have been considered
already. :)
Q: Have you created any "tools" to aid in the development of IT?
A: I have written some really small tools to generate tables... apart from
that, there was nothing that was specifically written for IT. I often use
a sector editor that I wrote many years ago for pulling apart files (eg.
.XMs). The font editor for IT was written by Zastar (which I'm very
grateful for).
Q: Are there any interesting undocumented features in IT?
A: There are a few undocumented features in IT. Most of them are almost
totally useless but provide "interesting" information. The earlier 2.xx
versions of IT had the diskwriter as an undocumented feature. The pattern
editor has an undocumented feature which can tell you the exact size of a
pattern.
There's a 3-key combo to access the debug screen. And there's a 5-key
"ultra-sekrit" key combination in IT which no one will ever find. :)
Q: So, why did you write Impulse Tracker?
A: That's a very difficult question that has no single particular answer.
I suppose I was in love with the ST3 interface, but I really wanted some
of the features in FT2 made available to me. Also, I had an idea that the
virtual controls could be something to produce extremely high quality
music, and I didn't think that anyone else was about to code a tracker
with these.
I wrote IT because *I* track, not because someone I know or someone in my
group tracks. I'm not that kind. :) I don't intend to give up tracking
if I can help it.
Q: Is there anything in FT2 that you particularly dislike?
A: My greatest dislikes of FT2 include:
1) I don't know any of the keys, and I'm too stupid to learn them :)
2) I can't preview samples
3) I can't edit a pattern properly while it's playing!
4) I can't load .IT files :)
In writing IT, I wanted to let the user take samples from almost any
source. Previewing samples is very important IMHO.
Q: In developing the soundcard drivers for IT, have you found any aspect of
any of that hardware to be absurd?
A: Oh yes. The GUS MIDI input is totally absurd. (I'm just saying that
because I can't get it to work simultaneously with digital out). :) The
GUS memory restrictions are less than ideal also (16-bit samples can't
exceed 256 kb). The AWE*30*'s pitch limitations are a little silly too,
imho. :)
Q: How do you respond to people who say "Pulse is stupid for using 100%
assembler to write IT" ?
A: They're right! :) Ahahahaha... I love assembler. I'm very quick at it
and very comfortable with it. My record coding has been about 1000 lines
of code in an hour. The XM loader in IT208 took about 3 hours.
Q: Do you have any immediate plans for IT2?
A: I have so many ideas for IT that I'd like to try, but I haven't had the
resources/time to do so. :) The biggest idea that I'm seriously
considering is network tracking. So that you can come online (TCP/IP,
IPX) and connect into a song group, and all work on a single module
together. (I want to see how fast Necros REALLY tracks!)
There are some incredibly difficult technical aspects to sort out for
this, so don't expect it anytime soon. :)
Q: Have any Future Crew members ever talked to you about IT?
A: So far, I have only had feedback from Skaven, who was extremely positive
about it. I haven't had any feedback from Psi (Sami Tammilehto) or Purple
Motion.
There have been a few people interested to know where I got the source
code for ST3 from - well, the answer is that I DON'T HAVE IT! :)
Q: Have you ever loaded ST3 into a debugger or 'sourcer' type utility?
A: Yes. I tried; ST3's compression scheme is pretty nifty, and I'm too
impatient to work through it. :) I thought I'd get more value out of
debugging Music Disk Player (that came with the Journey 1, 2, and Skaven's
disk). I took the original hardware DMA autodetection ideas from there
which have since been changed... :)
Q: What tracker music have you been listening to recently?
A: Lately, I have really enjoyed Falcon's Wir96 entry (cosmic2.xm). I also
enjoy listening to MickRip's music immensely.
Make sure you check out Ozone's CD when (if) it ever gets released. He
has written some of the most amazing material, although you probably
wouldn't want to ever have to download the files! :)
Q: What types of non-tracker music do you enjoy?
A: I listen to almost any music other than hardcore techno and country.
Whatever's on the radio. (I'm too cheap to buy many CDs.) :) I also
listen to a lot of violin/piano music, as I play and teach the violin.
Q: Where can people send their donations to encourage further IT development,
or to sponsor your Eclipse'97 trip? :D
A: I don't know about the Eclipse'97 trip, but my home address is in IT.DOC.
If you do wish to send a donation, please send cash or cheque - postal
orders have incredible overheads. :(
Q: Ok, I'm going to throw a curve... when was the last time you cut yourself
shaving?
A: Man, I'm gonna get emails about this one! I still don't shave. :) (I'm
19).
Q: When is your birthday?
A: My birthday is in the "middle-middle" of winter (southern hemisphere).
If you wanna send me presents, my birthday is on the 15th of July. :)
Q: Do you have any demoscene predictions for 1997?
A: I would very much like to say that I see it booming with new ideas, but I
believe the reality is that we'll see more of the same. I think the music
component of the demoscene will grow, but the "demo" component will
diminish slightly.
The "demo" part of the scene is increasingly hard to make an impression
on; you have to do so much more for people to take notice than you used
to. Music is much easier. You choose your favourite tracker program and
upload all the junk you create. :)
[Editor's note: we do not recommend this.]
Q: Would you like to send greetings out to anyone?
A: Oh.. there are heaps of greetings, I just hope that I don't miss anyone:
All you guys on #trax: mickrip, ozone, hunz, firelight, yannis, chuckb,
jase, astrid, clef, stote, turrican (the ozzie gang), and all you freaks
that live elsewhere in the world. :) (I *know* I'm going to miss someone
if I try, so I'll just say hi to WAVE :) )
Q: At what email address can someone contact you?
A: You can contact me at pulse@student.adelaide.edu.au . The old address
(pulse@smug.student.adelaide.edu.au) may bounce, so don't send mail there.
Q: That just about wraps it up... thanks for doing the interview!
A: Ok... thanks for your time too. Everyone pay a visit to
http://www.citenet.net/noise/it and download IT209 from there (or
ftp://ftp.cdrom.com/pub/demos/music/programs/it209.zip if that's not
ready).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------->
:: "How The Hornet Archive Works (part 2)"
:: Snowman / Hornet - r3cgm@hornet.org
_____Introduction
Ever wonder what happens to your upload once you stick it in /incoming?
The answer may be more complicated than you expect...
_____File Uploaded
Believe it or not, this is where a lot of new uploads meet their death.
This is usually for one of the following reasons:
Corrupted - The most common error. Something got screwed up during the
upload and the file is bad. History dictates that the user try to reupload
the file with a ".good" extension tacked on the end of the filename. About
50% of people actually do this. Assuming the .good file is actually good,
the old file is removed and the .good one renamed to the original intended
filename. Currently, there is no way to send notification to the uploader
if their file was corrupt. This will be added in the future.
UPPER CASE FILE - This is a moderately lame error on the user's end.
Usually they are using some crappy ftp program or forgot to convert to
lower-case before uploading. If I were the only archive maintainer, all
these files would be deleted on the spot. However, since we have a few
other maintainers who are more forgiving than I many of these files are
politely fixed and continue on through the system.
Not Including .txt - All uploads are required to have a .txt description
accompanying them. This .txt file is not to exceed 500 bytes. People have
been pretty good about doing this over the past few years. It is standard
practice to delete files without descriptions. Two possible future
enhancements : auto-extraction of the .txt from the .zip file and web-based
describing of new uploads.
Wrong Compression Format - If you read the .message file in /incoming,
you'll see the first rule of uploading is "file must be .zip format,
multi-file uploads may use .arj, .a01, etc." There has been some talk of
using .rar as a replacement to .zip. However, since no Unix port of RAR
(to my knowledge) supports all of the options users have become accustomed
to, we don't support it either.
Incorrect Directory - Occasionally someone uploads a song to
/incoming/demos or a diskmag to /incoming/info. Standard policy is to
delete these. More often than not they are politely moved to the correct
directory.
Warez - These are removed as soon as discovered. I am working with Murray
(Perl coder for /pub/artpacks) on a script that will auto-detect most files
fitting this description.
The Exceptions - We have actually removed new uploads that didn't exhibit any
of the problems listed above. I can recall a couple demos and intros that
featured nothing but animal deification and butt fucking. Now, I'm all for
creative expression and freedom of speech, but I have yet to see an anal
intercourse demo that had some redeeming artistic value. Do note that
nudity, vulgarity, and racial / ethnical / sexual / political attacks are
_not_ usually grounds for a file's removal. Personal attacks and blatant
defamation of character usually _are_ grounds for a file's removal.
Fortunately we don't have to deal with this too often.
_____File Reviewed
Assuming a file gets through all the possible pitfalls listed above, it is
reviewed. Who it is reviewed by depends on which /incoming subdirectory it
was uploaded to. See part 1 of this series for a list of who does what.
So what does it mean to "review a file"?
First, a file is downloaded by a reviewer.
Second, the reviewer gathers the following information: destination
directory, title, author, group, party of origin, party competition (intro,
graphics, etc.), party rank (1st place, etc.), language it was coded in (if
/code), and part of part (for multi-part uploads).
Third, the file is then watched, listened to, read, or otherwise processed.
Forth, the file is assigned a rating of + to *****, [n/a], or [rip]. [n/a]
usually implies a demo that wouldn't run correctly. [rip] means a file that
was stolen from someone else. Not all files are given a rating. In
particular, stuff in the /info tree and a few other directories like
/music/programs and /party/results are not rated. This is because it either
doesn't make sense or we are too lazy. :)
Historical Note (optional reading):
The use of '*' to represent a star and '+' to represent a half-star was
introduced to the Hornet Archive by Phoenix in a diskmag review article on 15
February 1995 (DemoNews.084). They were first used in the /music subarchive
on 26 February 1995 (DemoNews.085), the /alpha (demos) subarchive on 26 March
1995 (DemoNews.087), the /code subarchive on 07 May 1995 (DemoNews.089), and
the /graphics subarchive on 04 November 1995 (DemoNews.107).
The [n/a] and [rip] conventions were introduced by myself on 26 March 1995
and 11 June 1995 (DemoNews 87 and 94) respectively.
By way of comparison, the first issue of TraxWeekly started on 17 March 1995.
I find it ironic that TraxWeekly, a newsletter whose readers have often
condemned our rating system, featured ratings of its own in the very first
issue (using an ugly 1-100 number system). But I digress... :)
_____File Moved and Added to Database
Files are then moved (manually for the most part) from /incoming to their
final resting place out in the main archive. The information collected by
the reviewer is run through a script called "ha4_add".
ha4_add checks:
- to make sure that the file being cataloged actually exists
- that not too much data was given
- that not enough data was given
- that the file does not already exist in the database
If a file passes these tests, ha4_add figures out the current date and the
file's size. Repeat, the _current_ date and file's size. NOT the file's
date.
Diablo and I went back and forth on this one for a long time. In our
database, should the file's "time" field refer to the actual file date or the
time it was cataloged? Because of problems faced in trying to correctly date
files and because I needed a way find all files that had been cataloged X
days ago (for things like DemoNews), we opted for catalog date.
Here's a little exercise you kids can try at home. Think of several reasons
why accurately determining the file date (for all types of files... demos,
music, graphics, etc) is extremely difficult. No need to mail me your
answers. I already know them. :)
_____File Indexed
So now the information for the file is in the database. Big deal. That data
is useless unless the normal archive user can access it. "ha4_list" is the
script responsible for taking the database and forming all sorts of output
with it. You'd be amazed at just how many ways that information is used:
Function on
Index Type Format Location Generated Aimed At Mirrors?
-------------- ------- ------------------ ------------- --------- ------------
00_index.txt 00 current directory 04:00 daily ftp yes
index.cgml cgml current directory 04:00 daily http no
index.html html current directory 04:00 daily http yes
all?????.zip DN2 /pub/demos/????? 04:00 daily ftp yes
ALLFILES.ZIP DN2 /pub/demos 04:00 daily ftp yes
DemoNews DN2 DemoNews each issue ftp/http yes
Search Engine cgml* /cgi-bin upon request http no
* = default format, can be changed
Each index type serves a different purpose. Until late 1995, we were only
able to generate DemoNews, 00_index.txt, and ALLFILES.ZIP indicies. Recent
progress in this area has been substantial.
Historical Note:
The "DN2" format (new DemoNews style) was introduced last weekend, _after_ I
had written this article. The previous format was just "DN". Needless to
say, I have now gone back and updated the text above. :)
_____Conclusion
Are you starting to get a feel for how complex this archive really is?
Believe me, we've only scratched the surface.
Next issue I'll talk about SDDs and how our database is structured.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------->
:: "The Future of Demos"
:: 3NO (formerly Vector) / Vinlandia, Tpolm Kanada - jnoel@public.nfld.com
One of the original purposes of writing demos -- other than to have fun --
was to push the hardware to the limit, to find out what the programmer and
the machine were capable of. This has been done on many platforms, such as
C64, Amiga, and PC, yet I think we are reaching a stagnation point. Some
claim it will never happen. Others say it already has, arguing that demos
nowadays all look the same except for a few design-oriented productions.
Now I am not here to debate whether or not the scene is/has/will become
stagnant, but to talk about a new virtually-unexplored area which I believe
we could use to enhance the scene. This is, of course, Java.
"Java?", you say, "but... why???". Well, let me first explain my view on the
future of computing. Thus far, the personal computer industry has been
dominated by proprietary platforms. The same CPUs, the same operating
systems, often stifling better technology. Java was designed to eliminate
this, by providing a standard for all computers to run programs without the
need to provide source code.
Basically, a Java application compiled to the "Bytecode", which is simply the
machine code for a Virtual Machine, can be interpreted by any computer
designed to emulate it's execution. This can be very slow, but better
compiler technology is emerging which allows you to convert this bytecode to
the native machine code of the platform you are using.
What does this mean? It means simply that programs compiled to this Bytecode
/ Virtual Machine specification will be able to run on any platform which
offers Java support. And, with these bytecode -> native code compilers,
performance need not suffer.
Java also refers to a high-level language, much like C++, which is used as
source code to be compiled to the bytecode. I must emphasize, however, that
it is _not_ necessary to write bytecode applications in the Java language.
There is apparently a Java bytecode assembler, and there is no reason why
other languages could be compiled to the bytecode (though there are some
restrictions).
There has been a little bit of discussion on comp.sys.ibm.pc.demos about
making Java demos, and I truly believe this is a worthwhile new area for us
to explore. The demoscene has been responsible for some amazing advances in
realtime graphics and music, so I think we should start trying to push this
"platform of platforms" to it's limit and continue. It's only a matter of
time before Java takes over computing, allowing people to use whatever
computer / operating system suits them.
With this in mind, I would like to start a little newsletter about demos and
Java. This way, we can explore the possibilities together, set up a place
for exchanging ideas and experiences, and hopefully make the demoscene more
interesting. Anyone interested in contributing to the newsletter or helping
me set it up, or if you have any ideas at all please email me.
Imagine a demo that will run on anything? It's just a matter of time.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------->
:: "TRI Game Developer Needed"
:: Paul Nettle / TRI - pauln@terminalreality.com
TRI is looking for a software developer who holds a passion for doing what
they do best.
So far, TRI has developed four popular titles: Terminal Velocity, Microsoft
Fury3, Microsoft HellBender and Microsoft Monster Truck Madness.
It's no secret that game projects can be some of the most challenging. We're
looking for the individual not simply willing to tackle a project of such
magnitude, but eager to. Past game development experience is not a
requirement. What's most important to us is the desire, the passion and the
know-how.
We are currently staffed with creative individuals with a strong desire to
produce fun and interesting games. This makes for a tightly woven team of
individuals that are willing to do just about anything to get the job done.
The occasional team member might work until dawn to finish that last model or
polish off that last 3D effect, although this is never required. What is
required, however, is that kind of dedication.
Of course, this dedication does have its rewards. Aside from the
gratification of a successful title, TRI also offers an aggressive bonus
system.
We're currently ramping up for a flagship title and we're one developer short
of three. So, if you have the passion, and a desire to create a fun game
along with the drive to see the project through to the end, then we would
like to talk to you.
Technical requirements:
Thorough working knowledge of C++ and object design
The ability to work well under pressure
Thorough working knowledge of the PC
Familiarity with Windows '95 and the MFC is a plus
A good understanding of 3D is a plus
A good understanding of any other game-related topic is a plus
A good sense of humor
Interested individuals should contact pauln@terminalreality.com with a
resume. Be prepared to offer source code samples, a running demo of your
best work (not necessarily a game-related demo) and don't forget the grueling
technical interview. :)
>------------------------------------------------------- General Information --
_____The Hornet Archive
Master Site : USA (California) - (ftp|www).hornet.org/pub/demos
Mirrors : Portugal - ftp.telepac.pt/pub/demos
Sweden - ftp.luth.se/pub/msdos/demos
South Africa - ftp.sun.ac.za/pub/msdos/demos
USA (Wisconsin) - ftp.uwp.edu/pub/demos
USA (Pennsylvania) - ftp.co.iup.edu/code (from /demos/code)
_____DemoNews
New issues are posted to /incoming/info.
Old issues are in /info/demonews.
Supplemental files are in /info/dn_other.
How to subscribe:
Mail - listserver@unseen.aztec.co.za
Body - subscribe demuan-list FIRST_NAME LAST_NAME _or_
Body - subscribe demuan-list HANDLE
DemoNews is sent to your e-mail's "Reply-To" field.
_____Contact Address
questions@hornet.org
>------------------------------------------------------------------------------
EODN
