s1axter posted on Sat. February 2nd 2008 at 02:24 PM PST
In 1970 civilian computing was in it's infancy. Few had access to computer systems, and even fewer knew how to program them. Programs and games written for timeshare mainframes were developed and, due to lack of persistent storage, lost. Our partner site myBitBox.com recently found the full source code for a game developed by a high school student on a timshared mainframe back in 1970; Highnoon.
From myBitBox.com:
Highnoon is a BASIC game developed by a student from Syosset High School, NY in early 1970 on a timeshared computer system. The game is single player and set in the Wild West. The objective of the game is a show down between you and Black Bart. Turns are taken to either move closer, run or shoot. Both the player and Bart have four shots and the odds of hitting each other increase as you close the 100 paces between you.
The creator recalls Highnoon was written on a timeshared system leased by Syosset High Scool from 'Call-a-computer' company (Later named Advanced Systems Labs) on Long Island, NY. The program is written in early BASIC and is less than 4 pages printed out. Development was all done via teletype terminal dialed into the server with a maximum user storage of 6.4K. Due to the limited persistent storage, other programs including Highnoon were transfered to paper punch tape off the mainframe. The author still has a copy of the binary program file and an ASCII print out of the code.
Highnoon was a popular game on the Call-A-Computer system and the compiled version was included as a system wide game by administrators.
myBitBox.com has taken the code and made a emulated (and basic) version of Highnoon that is playable using a web browser. The game can be found here: http://mybitbox.com/highnoon/.
firewire posted on Fri. February 1st 2008 at 10:19 PM PST
I was browsing youtube today and came across something mesmerizing. The 'Cloud' digital sculpture created by TROIKA that now sits in British Airways Terminal 5 at Heathrow Airport is an amazing combination of technology and art. The digital sculpture uses 4638 flip-dots that are individually controlled by a computer. The computer animates the sculpture by flipping individual dots to simulate a wave like movement. The result is almost hypnotic.
Next time your in London take some time out of your day to take a look. For more information visit the project website here. The TROIKA website has videos that can be found here or seen below.
Demonstration of the 'Cloud' Sculpture:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=42hgPLL8IrA
Installation of the 'Cloud' Sculpture:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J9LUlADnwAE
s1axter posted on Fri. January 25th 2008 at 08:40 AM PST
Did Microsoft fail the Second-system effect with Vista?
The Second-system effect was coined by Fred Brooks in his book The Mythical Man-Month: Essays on Software Engineering and describes how an engineer's second project is the most dangerous he will ever design. Personally I think Windows Vista is a shining example of this.
While it is the ump-teenth version of Windows, Vista is the second in the series of Windows that focus on the enhanced UI aspects of the system. For those who remember, XP's Luna interface was a major selling point back in 2001; Windows XP: user interface by ZDNet. Well with Vista's new interface Aero the UI is a main focus point again.
Now looking at the broad picture, people over all liked the XP Luna look, businesses adopted it and people didn't really get confused with the green start menu. Now 6-7 years later Microsoft did it again but this time took UI design and went way over the top, redesigned everything from the networking to the file browsing. Soon after Vista's release it became clear that this totally redesigned UI was too much for the average user to handle, "Deny or allow?". Now some people will say, "Look at a Mac, it has a totally different UI from Windows". Yes you are right it does, however people know this, they try the Mac, they like it, loathe it, or they learn it. Microsoft Windows has (at least for the past 13 years) had the same desktop look and feel and people expect that. I know all the Windows boxes I work with I change over to the 'Classic Theme' just to get the same feel across all machines.
I wouldn't be surprised if the next version of Windows or the first service pack for Vista contains the option to dumb down the eye-candy back to a simpler version. And if this 'third-system' generates a better response I think it will clearly indicate Vista is Microsoft's Second-system.
firewire posted on Thu. January 17th 2008 at 10:37 PM PST
So after work today I am surfing the net and come across this article about Time Warner Cable. First off before I get started ranting about the issues with the test they are conducting in Beaumont Texas, let me just say they are overcharging for a service that is faulty and inconsistent. Many people I know including myself have found high speed internet connections to terminate intermittently and bandwidth to be fairly limited depending on the time of day especially during peak hours.
Wednessday Time Warner announced that they will be trying a new payment plan for Internet Access. Instead of paying an outrageous monthly fee for their service customers will be charged for the amount of bandwith that they use. This puts gamers, geeks, and movie buffs in a bind. Now those of us who enjoy spending our free time on the net will now be paying much more for our internet service. For instance, say that you like to download movies. If you download movies through Amazon or Itunes not only will you be paying for the price of that movie but the cost of the download.
The article from Bits points out the reason why. The cable companies are scared that the Internet is going to decrease their business, and you know what.... they are right. I am sick of cable companies setting their prices and forcing customers to use their service because it is the only option in the area. They have horrible customer support and brain dead minimum wagers handling technical phone calls. Let me put it this way if this new payment plan becomes mainstream I will have to find another way to enjoy the internet.
You can view the article here.
s1axter posted on Mon. January 14th 2008 at 07:46 AM PST
Make Magizine had a post today that was a collection of Surface mount device (SMD) articles aimed at the home hobbyist. Titled SMD Soldering (surface mount device soldering) the post has links to a Sparkfun Electronics article on soldering SMD devices using their Simon kit. There are also some cool links and a video on scrounging SMD parts from old computer boards and building an SMD friendly soldering iron.
It's really helpful when you find a link dump all on one topic. So take a look and bookmark!
BTW: Sparkfun's Simon looks really cool but I like the Numeric Simon we did :-P
s1axter posted on Thu. January 10th 2008 at 08:46 AM PST
You ever meet a kid and instantly know they will be an engineer in the future? I think these kids qualify
Sick CG!
s1axter posted on Thu. January 10th 2008 at 12:11 AM PST
If you are a long time visitor you should know the last geeksinside.com redesign happened January 2007. Well, it's 2008 and guess what, redesign time again!
Welcome to Geeksinside 2008!
Geeksinside.com has been redesigned from the ground up to provide a better overall user experience. We hope you like the new look!
Feel free to
Let us know what you think: Leave a comment
Visit the old geeksinside: http://geeksinside.com/GI2007/index.php
Grab our RSS feed: http://geeksinside.com/feeds/main.xml
s1axter posted on Tue. January 8th 2008 at 12:11 AM PST
Lately I’ve been reading up on modifying diesel vehicles to run on vegetable oil and came across this modification to a German 1985 Neoplan Cityliner tour bus on Frybrid.com.
The author has removed almost the entire interior in a conversion from tour bus to fully useable motorhome. The conversion plans call for two rooms, bathroom with shower, a table that seats four, kitchen sink with cabinets, two sitting chairs and even a couch! The last update is June 2007 and there are a bunch of cool pics. I would love to see more info on the electrical system in future updates.
Vegetable oil used as fuel: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vegetable_oil_as_fuel
BioDiesel: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Biodiesel
Also, if anyone in SoCal has an old diesel they want to sell, I’m looking :-P
Testing
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