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https://www.vintagecomputing.ch/?browseid=5934
Hah, I might not be the best to explain Amiga history, but I’ll do my best :) Fish disks were the main way to distribute public domain, open source, shareware etc. before the internet was wide-spread. People would send Fred Fish software, and he’d compile them into individual disks that people would copy. Magazines would have lots of companies that would allow you to order copies of these disks etc. He ended up creating over a 1000 disks this way. When cd-roms became a thing, you could order the whole collection on those. Those were strange times :)
Aminet was the most famous ftp-archive for amiga software. It was run by the same guy that made Brainfuck, Urban Müller. Rather than chronologically like fish disks, it was organized by topic, with readme’s for every file. You could upload to a staging area, and he’d put them in place. Much like fish disks, companies would print cd-roms with the latest from aminet for those not hooked up to the internets (or on 56k modems, which was most people).
/TELL ()
game theater
2022-04-22 08:29:45
https://www.p1ng.ch/?browseid=465
der begriff ist auch irreführend
/basel ()
goethes tell
2022-07-02 23:43:30
https://www.p1ng.ch/?browseid=2622

böhlers talk in stäfa

/aminnet ()
/Coding ()
https://www.vintagecomputing.ch/?browseid=5522
  • don't write specs. Users should consider themselves lucky to get any programs at all and take what they get.
  • don't comment their code. If it was hard to write, it should be hard to read.
  • don't write application programs, they pro- gram right down on the bare metal. Application programming is for feebs who can't do systems programming.
  • don't eat quiche. Real programmers don't even know how to spell quiche. They eat Twinkies, Coke and palate-scorching Szechwan food.
  • don't draw flowcharts. Flowcharts are, after all, the illiterate's form of documentation. Cavemen drew flowcharts; look how much it did for them.
  • don't read manuals. Reliance on a reference is a hallmark of the novice and the coward.
  • programs never work right the first time. But if you throw them on the machine they can be patched into working in only a few 30-hours debugging sessions.
  • don't use Fortran. Fortran is for wimpy engineers who wear white socks, pipe stress freaks, and crystallography weenies. They get excited over finite state analysis and nuclear reactor simulation.
  • don't use COBOL. COBOL is for wimpy application programmers.
  • never work 9 to 5. If any real programmers are around at 9 am, it's because they were up all night.
  • don't write in BASIC. Actually, no programmers write in BASIC, after the age of 12.
  • don't document. Documentation is for simps who can't read the listings or the object deck.
  • don't write in Pascal, or Bliss, or Ada, or any of those pinko computer science languages. Strong typing is for people with weak memories.
  • know better than the users what they need.
  • think structured programming is a communist plot.
  • don't use schedules. Schedules are for manager's toadies. Real programmers like to keep their manager in suspense.
  • think better when playing adventure.
  • don't use PL/I. PL/I is for insecure momma's boys who can't choose between COBOL and Fortran.
  • don't use APL, unless the whole program can be written on one line.
  • don't use LISP. Only effeminate programmers use more parentheses than actual code.
  • disdain structured programming. Structured programming is for compulsive, prematurely toilet-trained neurotics who wear neckties and carefully line up sharpened pencils on an otherwise uncluttered desk.
  • don't like the team programming concept. Unless, of course, they are the Chief Programmer.
  • have no use for managers. Managers are a necessary evil. Managers are for dealing with personnel bozos, bean counters, senior planners and other mental defectives.
  • scorn floating point arithmetic. The decimal point was invented for pansy bedwetters who are unable to 'think big.'
  • don't drive clapped-out Mavericks. They prefer BMWs, Lincolns or pick-up trucks with floor shifts. Fast motorcycles are highly regarded.
  • don't believe in schedules. Planners make up schedules. Managers 'firm up' schedules. Frightened coders strive to meet schedules. Real programmers ignore schedules.
  • like vending machine popcorn. Coders pop it in the microwave oven. Real programmers use the heat given off by the cpu. They can tell what job is running just by listening to the rate of popping.
  • know every nuance of every instruction and use them all in every real program. Puppy architects won't allow execute instructions to address another execute as the target instruction. Real programmers despise such petty restrictions.
  • don't bring brown bag lunches to work. If the vending machine sells it, they eat it. If the vending machine doesn't sell it, they don't eat it. Vending machines don't sell quiche.
/amicon ()
https://www.vintagecomputing.ch/?browseid=5812
Amicom of Spreadpoint has been interviewed by Com and Orlando of Brainstorm at the Escpape and Spreadpoint copy party on Oktober 7th. 

When did you join Spreadpoint ? 
-A month ago. 

Your task in Spreadpoint ? 
-Coder, but in Spreadpoint everybody can do what he wants to. 

For how long have you been programming on the Amiga ? 
-For 2 years. 
What computers did you work on before? 
-Spectrum, Sinclair QL. I did some graphic programming with BASIC. 

What did you program on the Amiga? 
-A 3D-Demo (Summer of 88 for TLB), various intros and copiers for cracked games, Powerutility (sold it), a level editor for a shoot'em up, AMICOM-Kickstart (Antivirus, Copier etc.) 

What are you doing at the time ? 
-I'm working on Demo, called ATOM-demo. 
What's this about ? 
-Colored, shaded, permeating(!) 3D-Objects. 

Your future projects ? 
-3D vectorgrafics, 3D editor (ev. sell it), copier with multitasking capility, various utilities. 

What hardware do you have ? 
-An Amiga 1000  (1.5Mb, Harddisk 20 Mega SCSI), And an Amiga 2000 (A2620 Unix card, 68020 processor, 68881 math. coprocessor, 68851 Memory Management Unit, harddisk 80 MB SCSI, Modem 2400 Baud) 
Tell us something about your Master Seka. 
-It's based on the Seka V3.0 by Kefrens/Promax. It has been reassembled  and revised by my collegue Buddha. 
The main advantages are: 
Better editor commands, a finally working optimize function, auto runback, the workspace can be changed without exitting the Seka. 

Is there anything you want to advise to Amiga coders ? 
-Unfortunetly, there are more and more good programs, recently, which run only on one special Amiga. So I advise to try out the programs on different Amigas and to avoid unproper coding (absolute addresses, selfmodifing code, DBF-waiting-loops running to fast on the 68020.) 
And I hate programs, which you only can exit by a reset! 

Thank you for your answers. 

     Translated by The Acc{sed/BRS
/aminnet ()
https://www.vintagecomputing.ch/?browseid=9073
Subject:
'Re: VIC-II colors'
From: Robert 'Bob' Yannes
To: Philip
'Pepto' Timmermann
Date: 27.09.1999
I was involved with the development of the VIC-II, however the actual implementation of the design, including the Color
Palette, was done by someone else. I have forwarded your message to him, but it is up to him if he wants to respond.
I can tell you that the design was based on the principle that adding a sine wave of a particular frequency and amplitude
to an inverted version of the same sine wave at a different amplitude produces a phase-shifted sine wave of the same
frequency. The amount of phase shift is directly proportional to the amplitudes of the two sine waves.
The VIC-II used the 14.31818 MHz master clock input (4 times the NTSC color burst frequency of 3.579545 MHz) to produce
quadrature square-wave clocks. These clock signals were then integrated into triangle waves sing analog integrators. The
triangle waves were then integrated again into sine waves (actually rounded triangle waves, but good enough for this
application). This produced a 3.579545 MHz sine wave,
inverse sine wave, cosine wave and inverse cosine wave.
An analog summer was used to create the phase-shifts in the Chroma signal by adding together the appropiate two waveforms
at the appropiate amplitudes. The Color Palette data went to a look-up table that specified the amplitude of the waves by
selecting different resistors in the gain path of the summer. The end result was that we could create any hue we wanted by
looking at the NTSC color wheel to determine the phase-shift and then picking the appropiate resistor values to produce
that phase-shift.
Color Saturation was controlled by scaling the gain of the summer. When we picked the resistor values to determine the
output phase-shift, we also scaled them to produce the desired output amplitude. Luminance was controlled using a simple
voltage divider which switched different pull-down resistors into the open-drain output. We could create any Luminance we
wanted by choosing the desired resistor value.
I'm afraid that not nearly as much effort went into the color selection as you think. Since we had total control over hue,
saturation and luminance, we picked colors that we liked. In order to save space on the chip, though, many of the colors
were simply the opposite side of the color wheel from ones that we picked. This allowed us to reuse the existing resistor
values,
rather than having a completely unique set for each color
I believe that Commodore actually got a patent on this technique. It was certainly superior to the Apple or Atari approach
at the time, as they ended up with whatever colors that came out--ours allowed the designer to freely select Hue,
Saturation and Luminance.
Since all of this was based on selecting different resistor values and resistance varied from chip lot to chip lot, there
was variation from one Commodore 64 to another. It wasn't as bad as it could have been though, since all of the Chrominance
selection was based on resistor ratios, which could be kept constant even if the actual resistor values varied. Luminance
was more of a problem. A trimmer resistor should really have been used to pull up the output. This would have allowed the
Luminance to be adjusted for consistency from unit to unit, however Commodore didn't care enough about consistency to
bother with adjusting each unit
Robert
'Bob'
Yannes
basel
2022-04-26 09:13:34
https://www.p1ng.ch/?browseid=648
basel stadt am rheinknie. mittelalterstadt, universität und industriestadt: durch die stadt auf dem rhein fahren immer noch lastenkäne. darum müssen die brücken hoch und passierbar sein. fähren von vor 200 jahren setzen noch heute leute hinüber über den rhein. letztlich die letzte grosse stadt am rhein mit sehr viel rheinkultur bis hin zum dialekt. 
https://www.vintagecomputing.ch/?browseid=3800
Performance war natürlich immer schon ein Teil von Interaktion in Games. Das leugnet niemand. Aber es ist halt leider nur ein Teil. Im Moment gibt es einen Diskurs, die gerade die Archivierung von Medienkunst/GameArt eintüten wollen bei ‘Performance’. Etwa: 'Es sei ja vergänglich, es sei darauf ausgelegt, vergänglich zu sein. Es sei einmalig' und darum reiche ja auch die Sammlung/Archivierung, wie bei anderen vergänglichen Kunstformen eben Performance-Künsten. Man kann die alte Narratologen-Idee dahinter sehen, Ignoranz oder einfach das Konzept Geld zu sparen. Die Beweggründe mögen verschieden sein, die Ansichten dahinter sind mehr als schwierig (Ewigkeitskunst?)
 
GameArt (gilt meist auch für Medienkunst) ist mehrheitlich designed  unabhängig von Menschen zu laufen in der Ausführung (Ausgenommen Ingame-Fotografie, Filme), ist abhängig von der Ausführung/Interaktion der Menschen (siehe 1) und lässt sich wiederholen als Interaktion/Erfahrung.
 
All dies zeigt nur Ansatzweise warum die Idee GameArt und Medienkunst, sei so banal zu behandeln und zu archivieren wie Performanzkünste*, eigentlich nicht haltbar ist. Mehr noch, die Frage stellt sich, wie kommt man auf diese Ansicht. Und hier scheinen die visuell orientierten Medienkunst/GameArt ihre volles Potential zu entfalten. Menschen sehen inzwischen ganz viele read-only Kunstwerke und erleben sie als Experiences. 
 
* Wie schief das geht sieht man übrigens bei der Kunstform ‘Game theater’ etwa bei Machina Ex, Signa oder Prügel. Ein Filmchen reicht da bei weitem nicht. Es müssten bekanntlich 100 von Filmen sein entlang den Möglichkeiten und auch das ist nur ein Teil des Möglichkeitsraums der interaktiven Rezeption.
prügel
2022-06-06 08:32:32
https://www.p1ng.ch/?browseid=2314
echtzeit battler mit menschenavataren 
/TELL ()
.
2023-07-23 10:05:36
https://www.p1ng.ch/?browseid=5529
»Schweizerisch:
Mit Blei
ausgegossenes
Deutsch.«
Franc Kafka in seinem Reisetagebuch
aus dem Augusc/September 1911
»Allerdings wusste
er, dass die
Schweizer Polizei alle
Nachrichten dieser
Art unterdrückte, um
den Fremdenverkehr
nicht zu stören.«
Edgar Wallace in
»Der Selbstmörder«, 1928
»Dies kleine Volk
ist uns ein Stein
im Weg - So
oder so - Es muss
sich unterwerfen.«
Hermann Gessler, Reichsvogt in Schwyz und Uri,
in »Wilhelm Tell« von Friedrich Schiller, 1804

»Und dann ihr Sauberkeits-
fimmel! Eine Orgie hat
schmutzig zu sein! Hört auf
zu schrubben, beim Jupiter!«
Der römische Statchalter Feistus Raclettus
in »Asterix bei den Schweizern«
von René Goscinny und Uderzo, 1973

»Wie düster, wie traurig ist hier alles!
Und wie selbstzufrieden und
prahlerisch die Leute hier sind!
Es ist ja ein Anzeichen ganz besonderer
Dummheit, wenn man so
selbstzufrieden ist. Alles hier ist hässlich,
durch und durch faul und teuer.«
Fjodor M. Dostojewski
in einem Brief aus Genf, 1867
»Was wäre das für
eine Welt, in der wir
einem Schweizer
Bankier nicht mehr
trauen können?«
Pierce Brosnan alias James Bond im Film
»Die Welt ist nicht genug«, 1999
»Weiß Gott, wie Dr.
Mengele haushaltet,
sagt Tante Augusta:
»Aber ich erwarte
schon, dass er ein
Nummernkonto in der
Schweiz hat.«
Graham Greene in »Die Reisen mit
meiner Tante«, 1970
»Die Schweiz ist ein
Land, in dem nur
wenige Dinge be-
ginnen, aber viele
Dinge enden.«
F. Scott Fitzgerald
in »Eine Reise ins Ausland«, 1930
»Die Hälfte der
Schweiz ist die
Hölle, die
andere Hälfte
das Paradies.«
Voltaire in einem Brief, 1767
»Geht in die Schweiz, in welcher
alles verkommen ist, die Schweiz ist
das charakterloseste Land Europas,
sagte er, ich habe in der Schweiz
immer das Gefühl gehabt, ich bin in
einem Bordell, sagte er. Alles
verhurt, ob in den Städten oder auf
dem Land, sagte er. Sankt Morit
Saas Fee, Gstaad, alles offene
Häuser, ganz zu schweigen v
Zürich, Basel, Weltbordel)
sagte Wertheimer mehrere )
nichts als Weltbordelle
Thomas Bernhard in
»Der Untergeher«, 1983