________________________________________________ / \ | _________________________________________ | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | DOS & Don'ts | | | | | | | | A Modern Newsletter | | | | for Vintage-minded Folks | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | C:\>Issue #12 October 2024_ | | | |_________________________________________| | | | \_________________________________________________/ \___________________________________/ ___________________________________________ _-' .-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-. --- `-_ _-'.-.-. .---.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.--. .-.-.`-_ _-'.-.-.-. .---.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-`__`. .-.-.-.`-_ :---------------------------------------------------------------: `---._.---------------------------------------------------._.---' ------------------ In this Issue... ------------------ Your Letters! Features ---------- Bonfires, Grizzly Adam General Computer Corporation: Legacy & Legalities, BlueMSX Columns --------- The Latent Image, Jon Mullin Sonic Seasonings, Bea Thurman Retro Living in a Modern World, Grizzly Adam Bits & Bytes -------------- Random Access Memories Unclassifieds Ads ------------------------------------------------------------------------- __ __ __ __ __ \ \/ /___ __ _______ / / ___ / /_/ /____ __________ \ / __ \/ / / / ___/ / / / _ \/ __/ __/ _ \/ ___/ ___/ / / /_/ / /_/ / / / /___/ __/ /_/ /_/ __/ / (__ ) /_/\____/\__,_/_/ /_____/\___/\__/\__/\___/_/ /____/ Travel Tips from Joshua, The Transit Prodigy Do: Research the fare prices BEFORE/upon traveling to other countries/ states. Do: BE MINDFUL of others around you. Don't: For buses, DO NOT WAIT UNTIL THE BUS IS PULLING UP to wanting to get all your loose change to pay the fare. That's a huge pet peeve for me. Don't: Come on the said vehicles blasting your music or talking if the designated coach is a QUIET car. Joshua New Jersey https://www.youtube.com/@JoshuaTheTransitProdigy Raidoactive Dinnerware As I edited Jon Mullin's column this month (The Atomic Age's Gift to Photography), I saw his reference to uranium glass. This past weekend I actually acquired my second piece of uranium glass from a local reseller. It is a bright, jade green colored candy dish with lid that glows beautifully under the blacklights in the disco. I got curious about the radioation levels of it, my other piece of uranium glass, and the hunk of uranium ore in an atomic era rock collection- so I decided to test it. I set my Gieger counter to measure particles per second, which essentially allowed me to "see" as individual radiative particles enter the counter's chamber. As it turns out, the readings was barely above that of the background radiation, so all in all pretty safe. Not that I plan to keep consumables in these dishes. Grizzly Adam Iowa ------------------------------------------------------------------------- ))))) (@ .,. \__=/ ) ) ( ( ( ( .'-'. ( ( /( ( /( )\ ) )\ ) )\ ) )\ ) |\ \|__._ ( )\ )\()) )\())(()/( (()/((()/( ( (()/( | \___|_))----=[]=)((_)((_)\ ((_)\ /(_)) /(_))/(_)))\ /(_)) |--'- )) ((_)_ ((_) _((_)(_))_|(_)) (_)) ((_) (_)) |--'/ // | _ ) / _ \ | \| || |_ |_ _|| _ \| __|/ __| .\_./ // | _ \| (_) || .` || __| | | | /| _| \__ \ |'--/_//_> |___/ \___/ |_|\_||_| |___||_|_\|___||___/ '.___'__> (____(____(____)(BY GRIZZLY ADAM)(___)____)__) Bonfires have been ever present in my life, but never more so than during my youth. I don't know if my family was especially partial to them or if they were just more common at the time, but what I do know is that any weekend between March and November I had about a 50-50 chance of spending time around a firepit. Perhaps it was because we had a property that bordered a woods or because we put in the work to dig a fire pit, or just because Dad and my uncles liked to drink around the fire. No matter the reason, bonfires were a mainstay of my life in the 1980s and '90s. I often hear people refer to bonfires as "bombfires." I am not sure, but I am pretty sure a bombfire is not something most people would enjoy sitting around. That said, it seems like the term has caught on and according to the internet (if it can be trusted) "bombfire" is considered correct. Of course, when I searched the term initially Google corrected the spelling to "bonfire," so I guess the jury may still be out on this one. Either way, I think "Bonfire of the Vanities" and "Bombfire of the Vanities" would be two very different books. Side note, I haven't read the book but I assume that vanities burn hot and fast. I know that pool tables do. As I have mentioned in the past, my dad was the lead singer and rhythm guitarist in a traveling country & western band. He would often bring his guitar and lead everyone in an impromptu hootenanny. Maybe this is why I went to so many bonfires- I came with the entertainment. That and I was good at hauling wood. I always liked it when Dad would play old rock n roll music, like Buddy Holly and Chuck Berry. I always requested Peggy Sue, Johnny B. Goode, Last Kiss, and My Ding-a-ling. If you are unfamiliar with the last song, you should definitely look it up- it is full of innuendo and is just a riot in general! My uncle Roger was (and still is) known for building very large bonfires that you couldn't sit anywhere near for the first couple hours. I remember that we would typically know when the fire was going because the windows on the backside of the house would rattle from the initial blowback. We used to paraphrase Eddie Murphy's old bit: "Why's the fire so big, Gus?" My foster brother soon began helping Roger build even larger fires, and ever since we have referred to my foster brother as Gus. Any discussion about bonfires wouldn't be complete without talking about campfire grub. Hotdogs and marshmallows were always the perennial favourites, but foiled wrapped "hobo packets" of veggies, sometimes with hamburger mixed in, were also often available. My paternal grandfather apparently had no taste buds as he would just toss his hotdogs into the fire until it was burnt and covered in ash. He would then dust it off, put it on a bun with catsup, and rave about how good it was that way. In fact, he would often just claim other people's hotdogs that fell off of their roasting fork. It was nice that the hotdog wouldn't go to waste, but it always grossed me out. When I was in 5th grade I went on a class trip to a nearby Boy Scout camp. My cousin Danny was in the same grade and his mom, my aunt, was one of the chaperones. It was on this trip that I was introduced to both baked apples and s'mores. To make a baked apple, one simply removes the core, adds cinnamon, and stuffs the inside of the apple with two marshmallows. You then cap the apple with the two ends of the core, wrap the whole thing up in foil, and toss it into the fire. Eventually the marshmallows dissolve and sweeten the apple, which softens with cooking. S'mores (a contraction of "some more") are much better known, but at the time I had only heard the name on cereal commercials. The combination of toasted marshmallow and milk chocolate sandwiched between graham crackers was a revelation! If you somehow have never had one, I highly recommend it. Later that night I would experience another long-held tradition that was new to me: the telling of spooky stories around the fire. There is something about fire light that adds a touch of intrigue and ambiance, and being surrounded by wilderness made me feel vulnerable to the villains of the story. This made for a much different experience than watching a Freddy or Jason slasher flick. Since my imagination had to fill in the blanks, everything seemed more realistic and hit me that much harder. Not that I was scared, or at least I wasn't willing to admit it! If you would like to share your bonfire memories, do write in! ------------------------------------------------------------------------- About Grizzly Adam: Grizz is one of those eccentrics that you read about. The type that people say marches to the beat of their own drum. His hobbies include writing, programming, computers, electronics, telephone systems, pyromania, and lawn care. Grizz's Website: grizz.atwebpages.com ------------------------------------------------------------------------- +------------------------------------------------------------------------+ | __ __ __ | | / _ _ _ _ _ _ | / _ _ _ |_ _ _ / _ _ _ _ _ _ |_. _ _ | | \__)(-| )(-| (_|| \__(_)||||_)|_||_(-| \__(_)| |_)(_)| (_||_|(_)| ) | | | | | | +---------------------------------+ | |=================| Legacy & Legalities, by BlueMSX |====================| | +---------------------------------+ | +------------------------------------------------------------------------+ General Computer Corporation, while unknown to some, was the driving force behind many innovations in the arcades. They began in the early 1980s when former MIT students Doug Macrae and Kevin Curran started a video game distribution business. They peddled many popular games from the era, such as Space Invaders, Asteroids, and Missile Command. As time went on, they became frustrated at having to buy whole new games from the manufacturers as this was not only expensive (each machine cost thousands of dollars), but as time went on many games fell out of favor or were rendered obsolete. In hopes to remedy this issue, General Computer Corporation or Gencomp devised a conversion kit of an older game, one of the first of its kind. The game was called Super Missile Attack, which was an upgrade kit of Atari's Missile Command. The kit took the form of a daughter board that would be installed over the original Missile Command board. The daughter- board would patch the original game's code in real time. In order to make this kit a reality, Gencomp decompiled the original Missile Command and were able to modify the code to change the colors, add more enemies, and increase the game's speed. While hacks and modified versions of arcade games weren't new, (Space Invaders and Head On being widely hacked and copied for instance), at only $300 US Gencomp's kit could be sold at a fraction of the cost of a new machine and offered enough changes from the original to keep things fresh. Super Missile Attack kits were hastily put into production with over one thousand of them being sold. Its lower cost paired with bringing life into an older machine helped its popularity, but did bring unwanted attention from Atari Inc. A lawsuit was soon filed by Atari Inc who were seeking to halt production of Super Missile Attack along with compensation for lost sales. After some back and forth between the two parties a settlement was reached out of court with the following agreement: in exchange for halting production of Super Missile Attack, Gencomp would receive fifty thousand dollars a month until 1983. Additionally, as part of the settlement Atari Inc would be given the rights to three games being developed by Gencomp, Food Fight, Quantum, and Nightmare. The latter of which would sadly be unreleased. Having dodged a bullet with Atari Inc, Gencomp would take a different approach to the conversion kit they'd been developing concurrent to the legal action with Atari Inc. This kit was known as Crazy Otto. Like Super Missile Attack, this was a conversion kit for a very popular game- none other than Pac-Man. Compared to Pac-Man, Crazy Otto featured multiple mazes, moving items, new cutscenes, a new color palette, and other small gameplay improvements. In hopes of not repeating what had taken place with Atari Inc, Gencomp would instead bring their work to Pac-Man's main US distributor, Bally Midway. After a demonstration of the game, Bally Midway liked it so much they signed a deal with Gencomp to make the game official. Bootlegs, hacks, and conversions of Pac-Man were quite rampant at the time and this would be Bally Midway's form of payback. While much of the game wouldn't need to be changed, Bally Midway was worried about a number of the design choices with Crazy Otto. The rather unsettling designs of the titular Crazy Otto, who resembled Pac-Man with legs, would need to be changed. Since the game would be made into an official Pac-Man game, the characters were replaced with those from the original game. At first, this was Pac-Man himself, with the game being dubbed Super Pac-Man. Coincidentally, Pac-Man's creator Namco was also developing a game with that name around the same time. In order to help the game stand out more compared to the original, plus hoping to appeal to the female crowds the original Pac-Man had drawn, the game would be made to feature a female protagonist. After a number of design revisions, name changes, and Namco's approval, Ms. Pac-Man would be created and released. Ms. Pac-Man was a huge hit for all involved and Midway would continue to work with Gencomp for later games, such as Jr. Pac-Man. A minor issue would arise when Bally Midway's business partner, Dave Nutting Associates, would help develop Baby Pac-Man. This would lead to a dispute between Gencomp and Bally Midway in which Gencomp argued they were owed royalties for creating the Pac-Man family and for Ms. Pac-Man merchandise. The matter would be settled out of court with Gencomp receiving royalties for both. After this, Gencomp would once again work with Atari Inc, helping to develop games. This included a port of Centipede for the Atari 2600, along with most of the first party games released on the ill fated Atari 5200. Soon after Gencomp and Atari Inc would collaborate to develop the Atari 7800, based on the hardware Gencomp had designed for Food Fight and Quantum, along with developing many of its games. After the Video Game Crash of 1983, Gencomp would switch its operations to developing hardware for other platforms, such as Apple Computer's Macintosh. This ranged from the Hyperdrive, which was an external hard drive for later Macintosh systems, along with generic laser printers. Meanwhile, Bally Midway and Namco would end up parting ways due to the former's abuse of their Pac-Man License Agreement. While additional legal actions would take place in regards to who owned what when it came to Pac- Man, the majority of the rights would be transferred to Namco while the existing agreements with GCC for royalties would be largely maintained until the year 2000. It was in this year that Namco would release the Class of 81 arcade machine for the 20th anniversary of Ms. Pac-Man and Galaga. Unlike prior Ms. Pac-Man games released by Namco, this particular machine violated a legal clause in the royalty contract with them and Gencomp, which required royalties for coin operated machines. This would lead to a legal battle between them and Namco which would last for many years. When Gencomp had created what would become Ms. Pac-Man, they'd left a message in the games code as a developer credit, and possibly as an anti piracy measure, which stated "GENERAL COMPUTER CORPORATION Hello, Nakamura!". Nakamura refers to Masaya Nakamura, Namco's founder and president at the time. This message was present in the Class of 81 machine, which proved that Namco reused Gencomp's code. The hidden line of code helped Gencomp win their case. In the aftermath, Gencomp would not only receive royalties for any coin operated machines but any new releases of Ms. Pac-Man in the years to follow, with the exception of non coin operated machines. Notably, the "Hello Nakamura" message would be blanked out in subsequent re-releases of Ms. Pac-Man, perhaps to avoid any further legal trouble. In the years after, there were some efforts by Namco to make a replacement for Ms. Pac-Man as a character, but for the most part these went nowhere. Ms. Pac-Man would find her way onto many plug and play TV games, and many re-releases of the original game on various platforms. While Gencomp as a company would be disincorporated in 2015, the legal battle over their properties would remain. When their successors and Namco would renegotiate their royalty contracts in 2019, things would quickly go off the rails. AtGames, an infamous manufacturer of plug and play TV games known for low quality and dubious advertising was attempting to buy off the royalty contract from Gencomp's successors for a large sum of money. Despite denying that negotiations were in the works, AtGames would ultimately acquire the royalty contract. After additional legal action, delayed by the plague of 2020, Namco and AtGames would finally settle out of court. With the royalty contract in AtGames' hands, Namco and others would have to pay AtGames for the use of Ms. Pac-Man- with the exception of arcade systems without coin slots. This marked the end of the short lived relationship between Namco and AtGames. Beginning in 2022, Namco would begin to replace or alter Ms. Pac-Man in releases of both old and new games. This was likely done to avoid paying AtGames for her usage. Notably, her original game would be removed from many online storefronts, likely for the same reason. Considering how Namco responded to Bally Midway's Pac-Man antics, these moves do make some sense. Overall, Gencomp's story is one with many twists and turns, not unlike the Ms. Pac-Man game they helped to create. While the legal issues between Namco and AtGames did sour the waters, it's important to remember the trails blazed by Gencomp, the characters they created, and the joy they brought to so many. Happy Gaming! ------------------------------------------------------------------------- About BlueMSX: BlueMSX, Blue for short, enjoys retro technologies, history, and learning for the sake of learning. She has been interested in retro electronics and media for nearly as long as she can remember. This fascination means that she has a lot of great stories to recount. Blue's philosophy can be summed up by the quote, "History is like a puzzle- the more pieces you have the more sense it makes." ------------------------------------------------------------------------- ----------------------------------------------------------------------- [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] ----------------------------------------------------------------------- | The Latent Image - with Jon Mullin | | | | This Month: | | The Atomic Age's Gift to Photography | ----------------------------------------------------------------------- [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] [] ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Many people know about uranium glass. It fluoresces under a black light, and emits low levels of radiation that raises cause for concern among some. What else is made of glass and radioactive? Lenses from the mid 20th century! Lenses in the mid 1900s were commonly infused with Thorium Oxide due to its unique properties. Let's discover why they chose Thorium though, and why do we not use it today? A better place to start would be with how a lens for a camera even works. Camera Lenses are more than just one piece of glass in most cases. Most are multiple lens elements stacked together. These lens elements focus the light onto the film to create a sharp image. There are also other glass elements that are moveable that allow the lens to choose at what point it focuses. The problem with stacking elements is that different colors of light refract differently and will start to separate. A good way to visualize this is to imagine the rainbow of light shining through a prism. This causes an effect known as "chromatic aberrations" which appear as color fringes, most notable in areas of high contrast. Lens manufacturers use other materials like fluorite in parts of the construction to correct or prevent this from happening. They may also mix different elements into their glass recipe to create better performing lenses. It's in the use of other elements in the glass that Thorium Oxide (ThO2) appears. ThO2 has great properties when it comes to low dispersion, thus preventing wavelengths of different colors from separating. This means that the chromatic aberrations mentioned previously no longer appear or are minimized. ThO2 is also useful because of its high refractive properties allowing for thinner and lighter elements or elements that don't need as much of a curve. These two properties help to solve the issues with using standard glass elements in lens manufacturing. THo2 Lenses aren't nominally dangerous to humans, so what is the problem with Thorium lenses then? ThO2 glass turns brown over time. This isn't something that can be prevented. ThO2 is constantly emitting alpha and beta particles that physically change the lens over time. The only thing that may make a THo2 lens last longer is just the fact it has less thorium than another lens. Eventually we will lack any ThO2 lenses that haven't been browned, and that time is coming much sooner than you think. UV light can help reverse browning to a degree, but it only works with certain lenses based on their glass compositions. Worst of all, the browning will eventually return. The last lenses that had Thorium Oxide in them were produced in the '70s, and still produce a measurable amount of radiation. Don't worry, it's less than that of a chest X-Ray. You will be subjected to more radiation taking a flight across the US than using a ThO2 lens for a couple hours. Honestly, they are pretty safe for the average person to enjoy. If you see a camera with a Thorium Oxide eyepiece though steer clear- that monster will be launching alpha and beta particles straight into your eyeball! Those are dangerous, and please don't try to use one. The Atomic Age brought us many things, but I don't think any of us expected radioactive lenses to be one of them. They were the peak of lens design for the time, but they sadly are becoming less and less usable as they slowly turn brown. These days materials like flourite are more common due to it lacking the browning effect while retaining the great refraction and dispersion properties. If you find one of these atomic lenses, add it to your collection. It's one of the few safe radioactive things you can own, and will be the coolest talking point at your next Atomic themed 60s Party. ------------------------------------------------------------------------- About Jon Mullin: Jon has been photographing professionally since 2008, but has been surrounded all his life by the small and quirky point and shoot Kodaks that his father collected. Now he photographs pets and people in unique and interesting ways. Jon's Website: jonmullin.com ------------------------------------------------------------------------- +-------------------------------------------------------------------------+ |___|)____________________________________________________________________| |___/______ __ _ ___ _ _____________________________________________| |__/|______ (_ / \|\ | | / ______________________________________________| |_/(|,\___ __)\_/| \|_|_\_ _____________________________________________| |_\_|_/_____ __ _ __ _ ___ __ __ _____________________________| | | (_ |_ /\ (_ / \|\ | | |\ |/__(_ | | (_| __)|_/--\__)\_/| \|_|_| \|\_|__) With Bea Thurman | | | | "The New England Digital Synclavier Series" | +-------------------------------------------------------------------------+ In 1967, a man named John Chowning was placking away at the computers in the Stanford Artificial Intelligence Lab. A self taught percussionist and classically trained musician under the wing of French composer Nadia Boulanger, John sought to merge the then very different worlds of computers and music(much to the chagrin of his Stanford colleagues). While experimenting with vibrato, he discovered that if he cranked the speed up to ludicrous levels he could then used it to modulate a second, audible "carrier" waveform. He had just unwittingly invented FM synthesis. In 1972, Dartmouth professor Sydney Alonso was tinkering with a 16-bit computer automation system and had tweaked it to play simple tones. By 1974, thanks in part to extra funding from Dartmouth, the simple tones had been expanded into one of the first FM synths using Chowning's Research. With hardware built by Sydney and software programmed by budding student programmer Cameron Jones, the first prototype of the Sycnlavier was born. New England Digital brought the Synclavier I to market in 1978, and it was the first FM synth commercially available. Mostly sold to universities, Jones described the units as "Pretty Rickety". Regardless of this, the Synclavier brought things to the table that hadn't really been seen before, including a built-in digital sequencer. By the early '80s it had been superseded by the superior, and more available, Synclavier II. If you've never seen a Synclavier you've certainly heard one. The iconic synthesized gong sound on Michael Jackson's "Beat It" was a factory preset on the Synclavier II. The ridiculous and expressive sounds on Yes's "Owner of a Lonely Heart" were, in part, provided by the Synclavier. The Synclavier wasn't only an FM powerhouse, it could also do sampling, putting it on par with the Fairlight CMI. Now, it's impossible to mention sampling on the Synclavier without mentioning resampling. A system that would take your samples and then reinterpret them as FM sounds. This was used extensively on the soundtrack to 1986's "Stand by Me" by composer Anthony Marinelli, who also used the synth on the soundtrack to the 1983 film "Wargames" starring a young Matthew Broderick. By the mid '80s Synclavier had expanded from the synth to what they called the "Tapeless Studio", a fully digital music workspace that was, as promised, 100% tape free. This was used to great effect by Frank Zappa on his 1987 album "Jazz From Hell" which used the Synclavier exclusively to make compositions that were meant to be unplayable by humans. The Synclavier, like the Fairlight, was incredibly expensive and. By the 1990s the need for a system that big and expensive was dwindling in the face of more affordable and just as powerful digital and FM synths, and New England Digital closed their doors in 1992. Needless to say, the Synclavier left a considerable mark on the world of digital music and synthesis, and its contributions are still felt in the hardware and software we use to this day. --------------------------------------------------------------------------- About Bea Thurman: Bea has been plinking away on keyboards since the age of 8, and is lead singer and keyboardist for the new wave synthpop band Superphone. She has a very particular set of skills, but nobody really knows what those are and I don't think she does either. Bea's Website: superphonerecordings.com --------------------------------------------------------------------------- ,---. ,---. / /"`.\.--"""--./,'"\ \ \ \ _ _ / / `./ / __ __ \ \,' / /_O)_(_O\ \ | .-' ___ `-. | .--| \_/ |--. ,' \ \ | / / `. / `. `--^--' ,' \ .-"""""-. `--.___.--' .-"""""-. .-----/ \------------------/ \--------. | .---\ /----------------- \ /------. | | | `-`--`--' `--'--'-' | | | | Retro Living in a Modern World | | | | | | | | with Grizzly Adam | | | | | | | | This Installment: My Personal Disco | | | |_________________________________________________| | |_____________________________________________________| When I first made the retro room (see my Retro Living column in issue #1), I had one thing that continuously bothered me. From my seat I had a fantastic view of an eyesore: the unfinished 2x4 wall in the large, open area of the basement. While it was easy to close the door and ignore it, the cats would soon push the door open again. It wasn't long before I couldn't stand it and installed some wood grain paneling for that retro look. Strangely, though, this simple task snowballed and the next thing I know I was converting the space into my own personal disco. As I stated during last month's installment of this column (entitled My Personal Arcade), the basement of our home was partially remodeled by its previous owner, and this open area is what is left of that project. The carpet there was very stained and pretty damaged, so naturally we wanted it gone. The carpet had other plans, though, and hung on stubbornly to the floor. Eventually we were able to get it and its foam backer loose from the floor. We planned to cover the whole floor with a durable black paint, but other tasks needed to be completed first. Most of the framework for a suspended ceiling was still hanging, and this made it easy to run wiring for the lighting I would put up. I was astonished at how affordable multicolor lighting rigs were on Amazon. I got a three pack of rotating lights and a more complex rig for a total of less than $100. I added four black lights for another $40. I already owned an 8" mirrored disco ball and lighting rig, but it was intended to be powered by three AA batteries, so I ordered a $2 4.5v power supply and hardwired it to the light. I put up all new wiring and outlets above the suspended ceiling and ran everything through a single wall switch. While I worked on the ceiling track (and after a small amount of drywall repair) my spouse gave the walls three coats of purple paint, and together we finally painted the floor black. I mounted a cupboard on the wall, for disco snacks, and installed a door into the empty doorway that divides this part of the basement from the bathroom and laundry areas. I stained and installed 1x4 baseboard trim and my spouse painted a couple large shelves black. Next, I made 2'x2' ceiling tiles from 1/4" plywood that had been painted black. I securely mounted the disco and black lights onto my plywood tiles and plugged the lighting into the new outlets that I installed earlier. Finally, I finished my carpentry work by building a cabinet to hide the house's electrical panel and the open chases on either side. The last step, and the most satisfying, was arranging and decorating the space. I ordered a gigantic 9'x12' shag rug that was the same shade of purple as the walls. The rug has a thick backing that cushions the "dance floor" so my middle aged knees can last longer. We also added a gold coloured, glass covered bar cart to house all of our adult beverages. We filled the shelving that my spouse had painted with Atari 2600 cartridges, VHS tapes, and an assortment of memorabilia from yester-year. Between the two shelving units sits a mirrored cocktail table that we also built custom for the project. We decorated the walls with a variety of things, most of which we had acquired over the past decade. On one wall is a large hippy-style paisley tapestry that glows under the blacklight. On another wall is an original concert poster for the January 25th, 1959 Winter Dance Party show in Mankato, MN- only 8 days before the final performances of Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, and the Big Bopper. All three would die in a plane crash on February 3rd. A print featuring Jimi Hendrix, another legendary musician who's life was tragically cut short, hangs on a nearby wall. With the final touch, two house numbers which I affixed to the door, my personal disco was officially dubbed "Studio 69." Until next month, stay retro and shake that groove thang! ------------------------------------------------------------------------- About Grizzly Adam: Grizz is one of those eccentrics that you read about. The type that people say marches to the beat of their own drum. His hobbies include writing, programming, computers, electronics, telephone systems, pyromania, and lawn care. Grizz's Website: grizz.atwebpages.com ------------------------------------------------------------------------- ,--------------. ( Random ) > Access < ( Memories ) `---------(_)--' 0 o .-=-._.-=-._.-=-._.-=-._.-=-._.-=-._.-=-._.-=-._.-=-._.-=-._.-=-._.-=-. Stumpman from Connecticut writes: My second family PC (third if you count my dad's Atari 800) had a sound card that did not support windows 3.1. So if you wanted to play a game with sound, you had to reboot into DOS and launch with commands to get the sound working. I also remember my father and I playing the Jurassic Park for Sega Genesis together, and he managed to figure out the algorithm used to generate the code at the end of the level to 'save' your progress. So we could then start level 2 with maxed out lives and items! Our own BlueMSX writes: It was among the first systems I could ever call my own, a plug and play TV game my mom got for me at Walmart. It was the Retro Arcade Featuring Pac-Man, it had a ton of games on it and it not only introduced me to my favorite video game character, Pac-Man, but also to Namco's work in general. Playing it felt like what playing those games back in the arcade must have been like, not just with the controls, but also playing these games for the first time with no prior knowledge of them. Learning the patterns, and game mechanics, all without having to put quarters in every time that I lost. From here, I began to look into the original machines these games came in, then to arcade games in general, and finally to retro games and tech. It was this system that truly sparked my interest and love of things retro, and I'm not sure I'd have wound up on my current path without it. I had it for years, but it would wind up breaking due to my younger self's rough handling. I've been meaning to find a replacement for it. .-=-._.-=-._.-=-._.-=-._.-=-._.-=-._.-=-._.-=-._.-=-._.-=-._.-=-._.-=-. ------------------------------------------------------------------------- ================== | UNCLASSIFIED ADS | ================== ######################################################### # Enter the WONDERFUL WORLD of AMAZING LIVE SEA-MONKEYS # ######################################################### Own a BOWLFULL of HAPPINESS--Instant PETS! You'll gasp with AMAZEMENT when you see adorable baby Sea-Monkeys INSTANTLY being born ALIVE before your eyes! Guaranteed to live and to grow, this MIRACLE OF SCIENCE has been granted Patent #3,673,986 by the United States Government for our astounding discovery of the formula for making INSTANT LIFE. MILLIONS THRILLED BEYOND WORDS! Sea-Monkeys, a laboratory developed variety of Artemia salina, are SO EASY to raise, even a six-year old child can do so without help. 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FREE *A 1 YEAR SUPPLY of Sea Monkey FOOD *LIVING PLASMA *A fully-illustrated Manual of Sea Monkey Care, Raising, Training and Breeding *LIFE and GROWTH GUARANTEE CERTIFICATE ------------------------------------------------------------------------- | GUARANTEED TO LIVE AND GROW | | Nature House, Dept. SCG-1 | | 380 Madison Ave., New York, N.Y. 10017 | | | | I CAN HARDLY WAIT! Please send my Sea-Monkey kit(s) and my FREE | | supplies and GUARANTEE. I must be 100% satisfied or you will refund | | my money. I enclose $1.00 plus 30c for postage/handling for each kit. | | | | Send ___ kit(s) []cash []check []money order | | Total amount enclosed $............. (No C.O.D.'s please) | | Address....................................... Apt. no....... | | City....................... State............ Zip............ | | RUSH ORDERS (50c extra) | ------------------------------------------------------------------------- *************************************************************************** ========== ============= | SERVICES | | PERSONALS | ========== ============= _________________________________ | _____________________________ | Yes, I like piña coladas | | HARRY HOGGE | | And gettin' caught in the rain | | NASCAR DRIVING SCHOOL | | I'm not much into health food | | | | I am into champagne | | "You Can build a driver | | I've got to meet you by | | like you build a car" | | tomorrow noon | | | | And cut through all this red tape | |108 Morrison Plantation Pkwy,| | At a bar called O'Malley's | | Mooresville, NC | | Where we'll plan our escape | |_____________________________| | *********************************** |_________________________________| EMPEROR PALPATINE seeking NIGHTMARE ENTERPRISES BOUNTY HUNTERS Fine purveyors of monsters to locate the Han Solo of any occassion. Call Today! and the Millenium Falcon. _________________________________ Substancial Reward, Call to apply! | POUND FOR POUND BEST VALUE! | $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$ |---------------------------------| $$ I am Duece Bigelow and women $$ | NEW from Cardiff | $$ pay me to give them pleasure. $$ | THE GIANT | $$ $$ | The World's Heaviest Luggable | $$ $10, price negotiable $$ | at a Whoping 102 LBs! | $$ $$ | __________________________ | $$ Ask for the Sushi Special!! $$ | / [=====] /| | $$ 555-3469 $$ | /_________________________/ | | $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$ | | _________ __ | | | | Dear Princess, | | | | [|] |__| | | | | I was very upset when I got to | | | CARDIFF | [|] |__| | | | | your castle and you were not there, | | | GIANT | [|] |__| | | | | Please send me correct address! | | |_________| [|]o|__| | | | | -Mario | !_______________________!__!/\ | | ____________________________ )| ============= | | |/ | | MEMORIALS | | | [][][][][][][][][][][][][] | | ============= | |[][][][][][][][][][][][][][]| | --<>-=-[]-=-()-=-<>-=-()-=-[]-=-<>-- | | [][][][____________][][][] | | | Apollo Creed Memorial Service | | |____________________________| | + to be held this Sunday O | | | at Grand Park | | Why pay for one of our | O "Stand by my side + | competitors' dainty | | this one last time." | | 30 lb machines | --<>-=-[]-=-()-=-<>-=-()-=-[]-=-<>-- | when you can own | | THE CARDIFF GIANT? | * L O V E * * L O V E * * L O V E * | for $31,899 | * * |---------------------------------| L Li'l Sebastion left us left a L | That's only $312.74 per LB! | O giant hole in our hearts when O |_________________________________| V he passed away earlier this V E year. E Hello Friends, looking for hot * _,--._.-, * new deals on used parts? * /\_r-,\_ ) * Visit planet Junkion, L .-.) _;='_/ (.; L our new improved Junkion planet O \ \' \/S ) O is sleek and sexy import V L.'-. _.'|-' V with turbo handling! E <_`-'\'_.'/ E We'll have your parts good as new * `'-._( \ * with 90 day warranty. * ___ \\, ___ * Yes friends act now, L \ .'-. \\ .-'_. / L your satusfaction gaurenteed. O '._' '.\\/.-'_.' O Happy Motoring, Cockadoodledoo! V '--``\('--' V E \\ E Set a course for adventure * `\\, * and great deals at Gazpacho's! * \| * What goes better with adventure * * than barrels of sweet, sweet candy! L To honor Li'l Sebastion's mem- L Indivigual candies not for sale. O ory, we are holding a cele- O Ahoy, it's a pile of sardines! V bration of his life this Sat- V I have no idea what these are E urday afternoon at Ramsett E worth. Wash them fishies down with * Park. We invite anyone who * some smooth, delicious, Maple * knew and loved Li'l Sebastion * Syrup! For you beardless wonders, L to attend, celebrate his life L we've got Slippery Pete's Whisker O and join in singing "5000 Can- O Elixir half off! Need a hand? I'll V dles in the Wind". Ben Wyatt V give you one, that is I'll give you E has been asked not to attend. E two for one on our Realistic * * Adventure Hand! Cuz when it comes * L O V E * * L O V E * * L O V E * to deals you gotta hand it to _________________________________ Gazpacho! | New Coke on sale now! | --------------------------------- | So much better than old Coke! | Gazpacho's! For random stuff | We swear it doesn't | you can't find, anywhere else! | taste like Pepsi! | Look for our new Stormalong Harbor |_________________________________| location off Dock 5. =============== -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- | TRADING POST | | Have a lot of money and don't | =============== | know what to do with it? | Does ANYONE have Boardwalk for | Come on down to the KRUSTY KRAB | Mcdonald's Monopoly? | home of the world famous | I have like 15 parkplaces. | KRABBY PATTY! | Willing to pay 20 bucks. | Only the most mouthwatering, | Call me today. 555-420-2393 | appetizing food in the seven | ( )( )( )( )( )( )( )( )( )( )( )( ) | seas. We start with a fresh | ( ) STEP RIGHT UP! ( ) | patty, add some crisp undersea | ( ) ---------------------------- ( ) | veggies and cheese, topped off | ( ) See if you can out drive ( ) | with secret sauce, and some | ( ) the amazing Golf Ball, uh, ( ) | buns. Come on down and try a | ( ) Whacker Guy! ( ) | KRABBY PATTY today! | ( ) ---------------------------- ( ) | THE KRUSTY KRAB | ( ) Friday nights at the ( ) | Come spend your money here! | ( ) Waterbury Country Club ( ) -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- ( )( )( )( )( )( )( )( )( )( )( )( ) ----------------------------(\/) (;,,;) (\/)----------------------------- (((_.-=-._.-=-._.-=-._.-=-._.-=-._.-=-._.-=-._.-=-._.-=-._.-=-._))) ))~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~(( (( > < )) )) EDITOR: Grizzly Adam (( (( > ASSISTANT EDITOR: Jon Mullin < )) )) PUBLISHER: Grizzly Adam (( (( > PUBLISHER: Grizzly Adam < )) )) (( (( > WRITERS < )) )) --------- (( (( > Grizzly Adam < )) )) BlueMSX (( (( > Jon Mullin < )) )) Bea Thurman (( (( > < )) )) http://dosanddonts.mywebcommunity.org (( (( > < )) ))...............................................................(( (( > SHARE ME! 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