VirtualC64 for Mac OS X

Not a machine I had personally but did play on a friends one every now and again.

 

 

 

 

VirtualC64 for Mac OS X

via Holy Shmoly! by Donncha on 12/29/08

VirtualC64 is a new Commodore 64 emulator for Mac OS X. It's a promising project, let down by the fact that it's still in beta but by the looks of things development is moving at a steady pace.

When you first run the emulator it will ask you for C64 roms: basic, kernal, chargen and vc1541. Ironically, you can find all these roms inside Vice, another C64 emulator. Look in /Applications/VICE.app/Contents/Resources/ROM/. The 1541 ROM is DRIVES/dos1541.

Loading a game or demo is as easy as dragging the d64 or t64 image into VirtualC64. When you do you'll see a dialog like this.

"Flash file into memory" works great for single load programmes but multiload could be a problem. I tried Armalyte. Mounting the d64 as a disk didn't work. I couldn't type anything. Loading the first file on the disk by flashing it brought up the crack intro but failed to load. The neat integrated debugger (click "Inspect") showed the emulator had died doing jsr $2020 and unfortunately at 2020 was another jsr … ($20 is the character code for a space if memory serves, and the machine code for jsr was $20, so memory was full of spaces!)

Blue Max worked much better, as did a 3D Pool game I tried. the crack by Remember included the documentation and again using the debugger I watched as the programme checked for the various key presses. Geeky I know but it brought a smile of recognition to my lips. Here's that debugger in all it's glory. Anyone familiar with the C64 should recognise the code beginning at 1AA0. (I had to look up what D016 does. It's the screen mode. I had completely forgotten. It's only been 16 years.)

One thing it has going for it over Vice, is a real fullscreen mode. The current version of Vice uses some dodgy resolution changing in Linux (that I rarely got to work properly without screwing up my desktop) and I couldn't get to work in Mac OS X at all. Fire this baby up in fullscreen mode and you've got your very own C64 laptop! Cool or what eh?

As luck would have it VirtualC64 has blown a fuse just as I finish this post. If you have a usb joystick plugged in and activated in port 2 it does strange things. First the keyboard wouldn't work, and flashing a file didn't run it automatically. Then the keyboard sort of worked but the left arrow character appeared for most key presses. Odd stuff. Unplugging the joystick and restarting the emulator fixed that problem.
Even my Bits 'n' Bobs demo worked in it! (Bah, all my screenshots failed. They only show white. I wonder if the emulator does strange things to the Mac while emulating mixed video modes? I mixed character and video modes in the screens I tried to capture, ah well.)

VirtualC64 is a very promising C64 emulator, and it's GPL too! I'll certainly be keeping an interested eye on it, and I wish Dirk and the other project members the best of luck with it.

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Media Portal home theater PC app for Windows hits 1.0

Another Home Media solution for PC hardware

 

 

 

 

Media Portal home theater PC app for Windows hits 1.0

via Download Squad by Brad Linder on 12/24/08

Filed under: Audio, Video, Windows, Open Source

Open Source media center application Media Portal has been under development for 5 years. And this week the developers decided the product was stable enough to remove the beta label and launch Media Portal 1.0.

The application was initially based on the popular XBMC application designed to turn Xbox gaming consoles into media playback workhorses. But Media Portal quickly outgrew its beginnings as a Windows port of XBMC. Version 1.0 is a full featured application for accessing music, movies, pictures, weather, and other information from a full screen interface. If you have a TV tuner in your computer you can also use Media Portal to watch and record live TV.

I just installed Media Portal 1.0 on my netbook, and aside from the fact that I had to download and install Microsoft's .NET framework first, the process was pretty much a breeze. There's a one-click install option that lets you select common settings. Or more advanced users can configure the application to their heart's content.

The team is now turning its attention to Media Portal 2, which will be more modular and will may eventually incorporate new capabilities like the ability to stream media across a home network or over the internet to portable devices like cellphones. In the short run, Media Portal 2 will feature mostly backend improvements designed to make it easier to customize the application.

[via Geek Tonic]

Media Portal home theater PC app for Windows hits 1.0 originally appeared on Download Squad on Wed, 24 Dec 2008 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

 

 

Manipulate Vector Images with Open Source Inkscape [Featured Download]

Been using this for years, top download tip.

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Life GH Com Pipes Output

Manipulate Vector Images with Open Source Inkscape [Featured Download] All platforms: Inkscape is an open source vector editing program. If you are looking for a free alternative to the Adobe Illustrator, Inkscape has a host of features that make it worth taking for a spin. Inkscape can be run on Windows 2000/2003/XP, Mac OSX, and Linux. Skilled users of Adobe Illustrator or Corel Draw may find more advanced features missing, but I found in testing— as a casual Illustrator user— that all the features I regularly rely on for vector editing were present and easy to use. Common functions like shape and text tools, drawing, linked images, clones, layering, path markers, etc. are well marked and easy to apply. Inkscape maintains a gallery at Deviant Art to show off work submitted by users, worth checking out if you'd like a quick peek at the capabilities of Inkscape. For more free image editing goodness, check out GIMP. Inkscape is open-source, with installation packages available for Windows, Mac OSX, and Linux. Inkscape [via gHacks]

12 days of bugmas

Since it’s holiday season already, let’s keep the tech jokes coming with this parody of a famous song entitled "The Twelve Days of Christmas." You can sing along if you like:

The 12 Bugs of Software

For the first bug of Christmas, my manager said to say:
"See if they can do it again."

For the second bug of Christmas, my manager said to say:
"Ask them how they did it and
See if they can do it again."

For the third bug of Christmas, my manager said to say:
"Try to reproduce it,
Ask them how they did it and
See if they can do it again."

For the fourth bug of Christmas, my manager said to say:
"Run with the debugger,
Try to reproduce it,
Ask them how they did it and
See if they can do it again."

For the fifth bug of Christmas, my manager said to say:
"Ask for a dump,
Run with the debugger,
Try to reproduce it,
Ask them how they did it and
See if they can do it again."

For the sixth bug of Christmas, my manager said to say:
"Reinstall the software,
Ask for a dump,
Run with the debugger,
Try to reproduce it,
Ask them how they did it and
See if they can do it again."

For the seventh bug of Christmas, my manager said to say:
"Say they need an upgrade,
Reinstall the software,
Ask for a dump,
Run with the debugger,
Try to reproduce it,
Ask them how they did it and
See if they can do it again."

For the eighth bug of Christmas, my manager said to say:
"Find a way around it,
Say they need an upgrade,
Reinstall the software,
Ask for a dump,
Run with the debugger,
Try to reproduce it,
Ask them how they did it and
See if they can do it again."

For the ninth bug of Christmas, my manager said to say:
"Blame it on the hardware,
Find a way around it,
Say they need an upgrade,
Reinstall the software,
Ask for a dump,
Run with the debugger,
Try to reproduce it,
Ask them how they did it and
See if they can do it again.

For the tenth bug of Christmas, my manager said to say:
"Change the documentation,
Blame it on the hardware,
Find a way around it,
Say they need an upgrade,
Reinstall the software,
Ask for a dump,
Run with the debugger,
Try to reproduce it,
Ask then how they did it and
See if they can do it again."

For the eleventh bug of Christmas, my manager said to say:
"Say it's not supported,
Change the documentation,
Blame it on the hardware,
Find a way around it,
Say they need an upgrade,
Reinstall the software,
Ask for a dump,
Run with the debugger,
Try to reproduce it,
Ask them how they did it and
See if they can do it again."

For the twelfth bug of Christmas, my manager said to say:
"Tell them it's a feature,
Say it's not supported,
Change the documentation,
Blame it on the hardware,
Find a way around it,
Say they need an upgrade,
Reinstall the software,
Ask for a dump,
Run with the debugger,
Try to reproduce it,
Ask then how they did it and
See if they can do it again."

Doodle's Geek Monkey by Alastair Montgomery

If programming languages were religions

"If programming languages were religions"

C would be Judaism - it's old and restrictive, but most of the world is familiar with its laws and respects them. The catch is, you can't convert into it - you're either into it from the start, or you will think that it's insanity. Also, when things go wrong, many people are willing to blame the problems of the world on it.

Java would be Fundamentalist Christianity - it's theoretically based on C, but it voids so many of the old laws that it doesn't feel like the original at all. Instead, it adds its own set of rigid rules, which its followers believe to be far superior to the original. Not only are they certain that it's the best language in the world, but they're willing to burn those who disagree at the stake.

PHP would be Cafeteria Christianity - Fights with Java for the web market. It draws a few concepts from C and Java, but only those that it really likes. Maybe it's not as coherent as other languages, but at least it leaves you with much more freedom and ostensibly keeps the core idea of the whole thing. Also, the whole concept of "goto hell" was abandoned.

C++ would be Islam - It takes C and not only keeps all its laws, but adds a very complex new set of laws on top of it. It's so versatile that it can be used to be the foundation of anything, from great atrocities to beautiful works of art. Its followers are convinced that it is the ultimate universal language, and may be angered by those who disagree. Also, if you insult it or its founder, you'll probably be threatened with death by more radical followers.

C# would be Mormonism - At first glance, it's the same as Java, but at a closer look you realize that it's controlled by a single corporation (which many Java followers believe to be evil), and that many theological concepts are quite different. You suspect that it'd probably be nice, if only all the followers of Java wouldn't discriminate so much against you for following it.

Lisp would be Zen Buddhism - There is no syntax, there is no centralization of dogma, there are no deities to worship. The entire universe is there at your reach - if only you are enlightened enough to grasp it. Some say that it's not a language at all; others say that it's the only language that makes sense.

Haskell would be Taoism - It is so different from other languages that many people don't understand how can anyone use it to produce anything useful. Its followers believe that it's the true path to wisdom, but that wisdom is beyond the grasp of most mortals.

Erlang would be Hinduism - It's another strange language that doesn't look like it could be used for anything, but unlike most other modern languages, it's built around the concept of multiple simultaneous deities.

Perl would be Voodoo - An incomprehensible series of arcane incantations that involve the blood of goats and permanently corrupt your soul. Often used when your boss requires you to do an urgent task at 21:00 on friday night.

Lua would be Wicca - A pantheistic language that can easily be adapted for different cultures and locations. Its code is very liberal, and allows for the use of techniques that might be described as magical by those used to more traditional languages. It has a strong connection to the moon.

Ruby would be Neo-Paganism - A mixture of different languages and ideas that was beaten together into something that might be identified as a language. Its adherents are growing fast, and although most people look at them suspiciously, they are mostly well-meaning people with no intention of harming anyone.

Python would be Humanism: It's simple, unrestrictive, and all you need to follow it is common sense. Many of the followers claim to feel relieved from all the burden imposed by other languages, and that they have rediscovered the joy of programming. There are some who say that it is a form of pseudo-code.

COBOL would be Ancient Paganism - There was once a time when it ruled over a vast region and was important, but nowadays it's almost dead, for the good of us all. Although many were scarred by the rituals demanded by its deities, there are some who insist on keeping it alive even today.

APL would be Scientology - There are many people who claim to follow it, but you've always suspected that it's a huge and elaborate prank that got out of control.

LOLCODE would be Pastafarianism - An esoteric, Internet-born belief that nobody really takes seriously, despite all the efforts to develop and spread it.

Visual Basic would be Satanism - Except that you don't REALLY need to sell your soul to be a Satanist...


Doodle's Geek Monkey by Alastair Montgomeryions

Install Linux on a USB drive with UNetbootin

Finally a use for my 4GB thumb drive

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gHacks technology news A technology blog covering software, mobile phones, gadgets, security, the Internet and other relevant areas.

Install Linux on a USB drive with UNetbootin By jack on unetbootin There are so many reasons why having a Linux distribution on a usb drive can come in handy. Fram having a "rescue" OS on your keyring to being able to install a new distribution on your EeePC, a "thumb drive" Linux has many uses. But getting Linux onto a usb drive can't be simple. Right? Wrong. There is a tool, UNetbootin, that makes installing Linux on a usb drive simple. UNetbootin can be used on either Linux or Windows. In this article, we'll be illustrating the Linux side of things (naturally). Note of warning: Not all usb installations will work on all machines. This can be an issue with your Bios or your USB drive. If you install an OS that doesn't work, try another. But after all that work, you might wind up with a machine that simply won't boot from a USB drive. You have been warned. Now, on with the installation. Getting and using UNetbootin The first thing to do is download a copy of UNetbootin. For our purposes we'll download the Linux universal install binary (named unetbootin-linux-299). Once that has finished you will need to issue the command chmod u+x unetbootin-linux299 in order to make the file executable. Once the file is executable, su to the root user and issue the command (from the same directory unetbootin-linx-299 is stored) ./unetbootin-linux-299 to see the application running. But you're not ready just yet. Depending upon your distribution, you might come across an error involving p7zip-full. This might be in your distribution's repositories. If you use Mandriva you can install p7zip but you will not have the full package. If you use Unbuntu you can get p7zip-full with the command apt-get install p7zip-full. Before you run the application you will need to insert and mount your usb drive. Stick in your usb drive and then issue dmesg to find out where your usb drive is located. Mount that and then issue, as root, ./unetbootin-linux-299. When yo issue the command you will see the UNetbootin window. UNetbootin Main Window Once this window is up and running you are almost there. If you have very specific needs for your distribution you will most likely have an image file downloaded to use. If you do not you can select your distribution from the drop down list. First you select the distribution and then you select the version (or release). NOTE: Unless you have a very large USB drive you will most likely want to use a netinstall  version of your distribution.If you do happen to have a large USB drive you can go ahead with a full distribution. If this usb drive is for rescue purposes, or just to have a version of Linux with you at all times, a distribution like PCLinuxOS Minime is a greate choice. Once the process is done you will have two buttons to click, Reboot and Exit. Don't bother with the Reboot button. Click the Exit button and UNetbootin will close. You can now unmount your drive and reboot your machine to see if the installation works. When your machine boots you will need to make sure it first boots from the usb device. If you're interested to see what PCLinuxOS Minime looks like, take a look. PCLinuxOS Minime And that's it. Install Linux on a USB drive with UNetbootin Tags: eee pc, Linux, Linux on USB, PCLinuxOS Minime, ubuntu, unetbootin Related posts Use spare processing power for science (4) Installing and Configuring Enlightenment E16 (6) How to dual boot Linux and Windows XP (5) How to dual boot Windows Vista and Linux (7) Ghacks Christmas Giveaway: Crossover (83) Comments

Extensoft Free Video Converter - flexible, functional and competent

Might be worth a try.

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http://www.extensoft.com/?p=free_video_converter

Extensoft Free Video Converter - flexible, functional and competent By Nigel on freeware Extensoft's Free Video Converter is a nice example of the genre. There are a load of these programs on the market, but I like the interface and speed of this one in particular. I also like the fact that you can combine multiple clips together in a rudimentary fashion (e.g. no transitions etc) and make [...]

Five Best Media Center Applications [Hive Five]

Need to set one of these puppies up....one day...

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Life GH Com Pipes Output

Five Best Media Center Applications [Hive Five] The past ten years have completely changed the way we listen to music, watch movies and television, and take photos, and one thing is abundantly clear: The future of your media lies undeniably in the digital realm. Now you just need to find the perfect media center application to pull it all together. Earlier this week we asked you to share your favorite media center applications, and today we're back with the five most popular answers. Keep reading for a closer look at the favorites, then cast your vote for the media center app you count on to manage your digital media life. Photo by Aaron Escobar. XBMC (Windows/Mac/Linux/Xbox/Apple TV) XBMC (aka Xbox Media Center) is a free, open-source media center application designed, in the beginning, for the original Xbox. XBMC has made serious progress over the past year or so and can now run virtually anywhere—including Windows, Mac, Linux, and Apple TVs. Not only is XBMC an incredible media center app with tons of great add-ons and customization options, but it's also spawned several popular forks, including Boxee (mentioned below). XBMC is in constant development and has gotten better and better at running on your PC, but if you've got an old Xbox hanging around, here's how to transform your classic Xbox with XBMC. Boxee (Mac OS X/Apple TV/Linux) Boxee is an XBMC fork with an emphasis on taking your media center into the social realm. Like XBMC, Boxee is free and open source, but while it's aiming for the same platforms, Boxee currently only supports Mac OS X, Linux, and the Apple TV. Still, a pre-alpha release of the Windows version was released to a small group of testers just last week, so if you're on Windows and you like what you see, it may not be long before there's a Boxee for you. Despite its aim to be your social media center, Boxee's great interface and impressive features—including recent support for Netflix playback and integration with online video sites like Hulu—demonstrate that Boxee isn't slacking on overall innovation. Windows Media Center (Windows/Xbox 360) Windows Media Center brings a full and robust media management to your Windows operating system. Not only does Windows Media Center provide access to all your music, videos, photos, and more, but it also sports fantastic DVR functionality (it's like having a TiVo without the monthly bills). Microsoft released the first version of Windows Media Center with Windows XP Media Center Edition 2005, but Vista comes with Windows Media Center built in to its Home Premium and Ultimate editions. Sound interesting? Check out how you can turn your Windows PC into a media center powerhouse on the cheap with WMC, watch and schedule Media Center recordings from any computer, and stream Netflix Watch Instantly videos in WMC. Lastly, if you've got an Xbox 360, it works beautifully as a Media Center extender for Windows Media Center. SageTV (Windows/Mac/Linux) SageTV is a cross-platform media center and DVR application. SageTV works great if all you want is a straightforward DVR, but it's also an awesome app for the consummate tweaker. In contrast to Windows Media Center, SageTV recordings are DRM free, so it's easy to convert your media and play back the files anywhere—and on any device—you like. SageTV is a commercial application that'll set you back $80, but a 21-day free trial is available if you want to kick the tires. For more, check out our old guide to building your own DVR with SageTV and adding a web interface that lets you play back and set up recordings from any web browser. MythTV (Linux) MythTV is a Linux-based DVR and media center application designed as a free, open-source alternative to TiVo and Windows Media Center. First started way back in 2002, MythTV is the granddaddy of many of the media centers in this Hive Five and many that aren't. Currently several Linux distributions come bundled with MythTV, including the popular KnoppMyth live CD and Mythbuntu. MythTV's biggest hurdle for new users is probably Linux, but if you're willing to roll up your sleeves or you've already got a little know-how, this saucy media center has a lot to offer. Now that you've seen the best, it's voting time. This week's honorable mentions go out to the open-source Windows-based media center and DVR, MediaPortal, and Mac OS X-based XBMC fork, Plex. Whether the media center love of your life made the short list or not, let's hear more about it in the comments.

Build Your Own Paper Airplane Launcher

his is what you buy the man who has everything....oh and a ream of A4 paper.

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Geekologie - Gadgets, Gizmos, and Awesome

Build Your Own Paper Airplane Launcher In wheels Want to launch paper airplanes but don't have any arms? Then good luck folding one in the first place. But for those of you that are lazy or just don't know when to let go comes the $18 Electric Paper Plane Launcher from Urban Outfitters. Ready for take off. Take your paper airplane experience to electrifying new heights with The Electric Paper Plane Launcher! This fun kit was designed at Middlesex University, one of the leading design Universities in the UK. With simple assemble, you can discover how spinning motors and plastic discs can be used to launch a plane at over 30 mph! Oh boy, I can't wait to discover how spinning motors and plastic disks can be used to launch a plane! You think it's anything like discovering how spinning motors and sharp metal disks can be used to cut your fucking fingers off? Product Page Thanks to krabivana, who launches planes the old fashioned way, with explosives.

7 Best Free/Open-source Image Viewers for Linux

7 applications to view images on your Linux box.

TECH SOURCE FROM BOHOL Source for technology hacks, insights, tutorials, news, reviews and more...

7 Best Free/Open-source Image Viewers for Linux By noreply@blogger.com (jun auza) on free/open-source An image viewer (also known as image browser) is a desktop application that can quickly display or handle stored graphical images in different graphics file formats. It can render images according to properties of the display such as display resolution, color depth, and color profile. Other image viewers have advanced features like editing and web publishing. Some Linux users may not care much on whatever image viewer they are using. But to those who are rather picky, they can always get and install other image viewers with different features to suit their needs. Here's a list of popular free and open source image viewers that you may want to check out: imgSeek imgSeek is a photo collection manager and viewer with content-based search and many other features. The query is expressed either as a rough sketch painted by the user or as another image. Other key features: * Transform images or batches automatically: Place text captions, change brightness, contrast, blur, etc. Apply lossless rotations automatically if jpegtran is available. * Supported file formats are jpg, gif, bmp, png, xbm, and pnm. If you have ImageMagick installed, imgSeek will also support over 87 image formats. Gwenview Gwenview is an image viewer for the KDE desktop environment. While it was available in KDE 3, the KDE 4 version has a simplified user interface, making it more suitable for quickly browsing through collection of images. It provides full-screen interface that can be used to display images as a slide-show. Other key features: * Metadata comment editor * Thumbnail image view of current directory * Use of KIPI (KDE Image Plugins Interface) plugins for manipulating images Eye of GNOME Eye of GNOME is the official image viewer for the GNOME desktop environment. Unlike some other image viewers with advanced features, Eye of GNOME will only view images. It does, however, provide basic effects for improved viewing, such as zooming, full-screen, rotation, and transparent image background control. Supported file formats: * ANI - Animation * BMP - Windows Bitmap * Graphics Interchange Format (GIF) * ICO - Windows Icon * JPEG - Joint Photographic Experts Group * PCX - PC Paintbrush …And a lot more; KSquirrel KSquirrel is another image viewer for the KDE desktop environment with a disk navigator, file tree, thumbnails, extended thumbnails, dynamic format support, DCOP interface, KEXIF and KIPI plugins support. It supports more than 50 image formats, including PNG, JPEG, PSD, APNG, GIF, WMF, OpenEXR and many other. gThumb gThumb is a feature-rich image viewer and organizer for the GNOME desktop environment. It was originally based on GQView, and is designed to have a clean, simple interface. gThumb allows the filesystem to be browsed for images. They can be organized into catalogs, or viewed as a slideshow. Folders and catalogs can be bookmarked, and comments may be added to images. Many basic image-editing features are included, such as: rotation, resizing, cropping, and image enhancing filters such as color, brightness and contrast adjustment. gThumb can also export Web-based albums with various theme templates. GQview GQview uses the GTK+ toolkit, designed to run on the X Window System. Its key features include single click file viewing, external editor support, thumbnail preview, and zoom features. Some image management features are also included. Other key features: * One-click photo organizer/sorter * Slideshow and full-screen modes * Viewing Exif data for images F-Spot F-Spot is lightweight image viewer and organizer for the GNOME desktop. It aims to have an interface that is simple to use, yet still supports advanced features such as tagging images and displaying and exporting Exif and XMP metadata. All major photographic image formats are supported, including JPEG, PNG, TIFF, DNG and several vendor-specific RAW formats (CR2, PEF, ORF, SRF, CRW, MRW and RAF). Basic functions such as crop, rotate and resize are available alongside more advanced features such as red-eye removal and versioning.