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AnakiMana

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Posts posted by AnakiMana

  1. If you plan on using the Atari side of the system, it's recommended to use the internal SSD as extra Atari storage because the soldered storage is only 32GB. You don't want to fill any operating system to the brim or updates will fail, etc. 

     

    Atari designed the VCS for other OSes to be run via USB. I found it's plenty fast and I didn't even use an NVMe drive - I used a cheap SATA SSD, the 500GB WD Blue in 2.5" form factor + $12 drive enclosure. My plan is to set up multiple external drives for different OSes to experiment. It's also easy to connect to a computer and make clone backups if I want to. 

  2. I hadn't turned on my VCS in a few weeks, but did so today. I got this same error. What ended up working for me was this: go to the store tab, get the error, press cancel, sit on the store tab screen which isn't loading (flashing "loading" icons as store item placeholders), walking away for a time - 20 minutes? When I came back, woke the system, and tried the store again it worked.

     

    I think it just needs more time to load the store content. That initial error came up way too fast.

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  3. 7 hours ago, mr_me said:

    The arcade versions should have mouse/trackball support like vault for the pc.  It would be disappointing if it didn't.  The comments are about optimising for the vcs controllers.

    Atari staff have verified that trackball PC mice were tested on the VCS and worked great as arcade rollerballs.

     

    I was going to get a good one after learning that, and ended up getting an X-Arcade Tankstick with roller. I'm pretty much all set since I've got 2 of their modern & two classic on the way too.

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  4. 4 minutes ago, Keatah said:

    I'll guess and say it's because "Atari" is a sacred name and was a sacred company long ago. Many haters simply feel betrayed by "new atari". And that's because they're more IP holders than real engineers pioneering a new art.

     

    That pioneering is what made Atari Atari. Trying to ride into fame and fortune by controlling someones IP and applying the name to non-game projects like hotels or speakerhats or tokens doesn't sit right. Has nothing to do with being innovators at the forefront of gaming.

    I'm not happy to see people using derogatory names for Atari, like "Fauxtari". Going into the Atari VCS section and insulting the company making our product - essentially saying they're fake, an imposter, illegitimate or that they suck - isn't very welcoming.

     

    You say Atari is a sacred name. I guess that's why people who like what today's Atari is doing are treated like ignorant heathens needing to be re-educated? 

     

    Look, Atari was essentially dead until the current CEO purchased it. He made a decision to resurrect it and do what he could with his investment to recover from debt. As a small business it took a while using the IP to get to a healthy financial place to start getting back into hardware. Now instead of celebrating Atari isn't dead, or the evolution and return to hardware engineering and innovation, people seem to be too biased to see all this and instead mock the company and its supporters.

     

    Atari Hotels, by the way, was not Atari's idea. It was a developer who approached Atari and is funding it. Good for everybody I would think.

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  5. Whether you like or dislike ANY of the many iterations of Atari, the Atari VCS (2020) is an "Atari System" made by today's Atari company.

     

    Therefore it should not be lumped into the "Modern Consoles" section with Xbox, Playstation and Switch.

     

    Even Flashback, made by AtGames rather than Atari, is in the "Atari Systems" section. AtGames produced these in cooperation with (the very same) today's Atari. Shouldn't today's Atari be even more eligible to be there?

     

    Thank you.

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  6. In the November 12th blog post focusing on the new classic joystick, they highlight 10 of the 150 enhanced games (between Volume 1 & 2 of the enhanced Vault).

     

    Personally I think this is going to make playing the Vault games a lot more fun than on my Steam copies. And I sure don't mind that the first volume is FREE and 2nd is super cheap!

     

    Atari VCS Vault: Fully-Optimized for the Classic Joystick

    The Atari VCS Vault that comes free with every Atari VCS, and the Atari VCS Vault Vol. 2 DLC have been optimized for the new Wireless Classic Joystick and the team has compiled it’s Top Ten favorite Atari Vault classics they suggest fans play first:

    1. Pong — paddle function and vibration
    2. Red Baron — acts like a plane joystick
    3. Breakout/Super Breakout — paddle function and vibration
    4. Tempest — precise rotation
    5. Warlords — precise rotation helps gameplay
    6. Centipede/Millipede — fast simplified movement works well
    7. Liberator — Enhanced aiming
    8. Lunar Lander — Combination of rotation and joystick direction blends really well
    9. Major Havoc — Rotation control adds to the fun
    10. Missile Command — Fast movement for precise aiming

    Also, as previously announced, the Atari VCS version of Missile Command: Recharged has also been optimized for use with the Atari Wireless Classic Joystick (or Modern Controller) and there are more optimized games coming.

     

    image.thumb.png.d98c017cdd2f5a00bb23e0b625ca2626.png

    • Thanks 1
  7. I don't have my new VCS yet, but I have been on Antstream's Discord server.

     

    One of the staff at Antstream said this four days ago to an existing Antstream user inquiring about gaining access to the exclusive content:

    Quote

    So when you get it, you will get a VCS access version. There may be some complications as you already have an account. Just let us know and we will open you up to VCS access too. The only difference is you will get all of the Atari games. I think there is 50 of them

     

    image.thumb.png.fc13de505a7cdd233ee0e17041b18526.png

     

    I've seen in my other searches of their Discord that they think a new Atari game will be added each month.

    • Thanks 1
  8. Rest In Peace, Curt. The Atari community will never be the same.

     

    Besides my condolences, I also wanted to share these images, which I thought were very nice.

     

    SmartSelect_20200902-230731_Firefox.jpg

    SmartSelect_20200902-232220_Twitter.jpg

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  9.  

    there is no first party product, its like what 4 sales guys in a rent an office

    It'll be interesting to see what their employee count is at the end of March when they release their annual report.

     

    Last March they had 19 employees. Then in September they created their 4 operational departments, creating their new console department. Since they changed their business structure to reflect this department, and they report directly to shareholders on it in their public reports, it's completely logical in my opinion that the new VCS is indeed a 1st party product.

  10. I'm glad those rose can colored glasses are working for you. Your naïveté is going to bite you in the ass, and your small business will suffer as a result. You'll remember what I tried to tell you then. If you ever get to the point of servicing enterprise businesses over home PCs and small offices, you'll learn that what people present as truth Is often far from it. A lot of unscrupulous businesses are going to eat you for breakfast, if you get big enough that they take your calls.

    Are we talking about different things? I'm talking about trusting but verifying my technicians' when they give updates on project status. If there wasn't any verification I could see it being naïveté... you must be assuming we're talking about dealings with the client themselves?

     

    My company IS small right now and that keeps everybody in our team accountable and on point. It also allows me to easily build a good relationship with my staff. We've whittled down to staff we can depend on.

     

    There's a difference between having rose colored glasses and being optimistic. My optimism isn't like everybody's - it's based on logic and facts in addition to hope. There are different personality types, and that's good - just because someone has a different perspective than yours doesn't mean they're an idiot. I choose to be positive while realistic; glass half full.

  11.  

    being optimistic that your ship will come after a few months of "oh he will come back" start to sound sad, or planned

     

    so after a couple years are you sad or planned...

     

    either way your rooting for a cheap china watch that plays pong and does some other shit like 2 years after that fad shipped cause its got some logo embroidered on the strap... and they failed at that as well

    Hi Osgeld,

     

    I never believed in the watch, nor backed it or followed it. It was never a first party Atari product either.

     

    The optimism I referred to was for the 2019-2020 Atari VCS, and Atari SA who have created an entire 4th division of the company for it (1st-party product).

  12. That's an interesting perspective. Here's another, starting with the Nov 22 "update." Page forward and backward for some more opinions.

     

    Are you a backer, or do you work for them?

    What, so optimists must work for Atari? Or, they're mentally lacking or scalpers or have lower standards than you. These assertions of yours are ridiculous.

  13. That's not Feargal, that's the Alone in the Dark dispute.

     

    I would not expect the spinoff companies to have detailed descriptions of their activities in the Atari SA financial report. Given all its shady behavior, the company would probably be better off going private, but then it would lose access to other peoples' money, which is its raison d'être.

    Ah, ok.

     

    What makes you think Gameband's company (FMTwo) is a spinoff company of Atari SA? I'm trying to prove it but nothing I've found even indicates it. Seems like another super small company that got licensing from Atari, mismanaged horribly (unlike most of the other licensees Atari has) and got it revoked. I'm trying to figure out if people are blaming Atari simply because they hate Atari SA.

  14. What kind of staff do you possibly have that you do not understand the concept of a bullshit update full of double talk, excuses, and flim flam. My crew is constantly trying to pass off nothing as a project status update. I've been known to do it myself from time to time when the direction from above is the usual ill conceived, politically motivated, busy work nonsense with no real intention of seeking resolution, just the effort to claim something is being given top priority. Sounds like typical business dysfunction just like the clowns at Infotarigrams. You won't make it as a supervisor if you can't sniff out bullshit from both above and below.

    Sounds like your crew sucks. I'm co-owner of a small managed IT company. I oversee projects where my technicians are either on site, working remotely or in the shop. My crew knocks things out and moves on to the next project with no BS. I'm in touch with them and the client before and after and jump in myself sometimes. Maybe I'm lucky, maybe I'm just better at this kind of thing than you. The way you come across here, so jaded and cynical, I'm guessing why your crew disrespect you. Good luck with that!

  15. I don't recall (or am happily oblivious to) this amount of BS and politics and blabbering when the real VCS was conceived of, designed, developed, and marketed. It just kinda happened.

    You mean it wasn't on social media in 1975? :lol:

  16. That PDF I linked is an 8-page report dated today (December 20, 2018) called "Results of the first half of 2018-2019" and it's an interesting read.

     

    ! Also interesting is that you can backspace that URL for the PDF and browse their FTP site, finding other cool stuff! I'll just let you explore. :)

     

    Edit: but here's a much bigger look into Atari, a 139 page report: https://www.atari-investisseurs.fr/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/DDR-2018-VDEF-N-visa_EN_FINAL2.pdf

     

    There's no mention of anything related to FMTwo, Gameband, watch, Feargal (by name) but I found this (page 30):

     

    Main Disputes to which the Group is Party

     

    Dispute between a Former Employee and the Company

     

    During a previous financial year, a significant dispute arose between the Company and a former employee of the Group who claimed to have co-authored one of the Group’s main franchises. The plaintiff is seeking monetary and non-monetary damages arising from the allegedly illegal distribution by the Group of games based on this universe. The lawsuit is for approximately €17 million. At this stage of the proceedings, the Company categorically denies the plaintiff’s status of author and/or coauthor, and considers the latter’s claims as unfounded on the merits and on their amount. The respective submissions of the parties have been lodged with the competent courts. On September 8, 2016, the Court of First Instance of Lyon rendered a provisional judgment refusing certain requests and ordering an expert opinion on certain aspects of the case. The expert’s assignment was cut short as the plaintiff did not pay the advance on costs requested by it. The plaintiff has since increased his claims to €25 million and the procedure is still ongoing.

  17. They certainly HAVE been merely a brand custodian, but Chesnais has been wanting to do more than that for a long time. With the unexpected interest in the new VCS project, they got serious, ditched Feargal, made it into an entire company division, invested in Wyatt and I'm sure a team for him, and discuss it repeatedly in their reporting to "The Atari Group" (investors/shareholders) https://www.atari-investisseurs.fr/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/CP-2018-12-20-Resultats-semestriels-VLAST_EN.pdf. Wyatt discusses in detail many of the technical aspects and shares about where they're at. I liked the details on progress on the Atari OS, such as this bit (more in the actual article):

    [video clip shown of video output from prototype/reference system, motherboard shown]

    Audio is working via alsa, graphics is working with vulkan and Open GL, we have a full screen graphics app.
    The Atari OS is enumerating and identifying USB devices on either USB2 or USB3 ports. It will identify any USB device and libusb can talk to all of them from user mode so things like custom/game specific usb devices are possible in a very standard way. For standard devices we have a few class drivers built in for things like HID, Mass Storage, UVC/camera etc. I am not planning on supporting every known USB device as there is no point and we don’t support kernel modules. It whatever we support plus whatever developers write for libusb.
    Audio is working… I think the application side of ALSA is way too complicated, we might need to create ‘atari audio library’ which uses the same kernel side backend but a much simpler front end. Alsa has crazy configuration options which mean nothing to us, we have fixed hardware and only one output. If we do something custom keeping it looking like ALSA will help upstream code. Keeping standard is good but only where it makes sense.
    Graphics support is still flakey and annoying. Mostly because it kills the screen, so you can’t see what you’re typing. I built a new kernel with remote TTY over serial USB, so you can type on another system and not need the local display. It helps but I really need to fix the graphics.
    Right now we are still using the ‘standard-ish’ bios on the reference hardware. From when this hands over control to the OS loader I can load the entire OS and a simple 3D ‘front end’ app in about a second and a half, although the real speed depends on USB enumeration. I said above that we don’t support kernel modules, right now we do because it’s convenient for development.

     

  18. It's because they have shown no progress, and in many respects, appear to have slid backwards from what they have implied previously.

     

    If you think that's looking pretty good, your standards must be lower than ours.

    I don't understand what you mean by showing no progress. Did you not read their Nov 22nd post, or their others?

     

    I don't think I have low standards. But neither am I predisposed or prejudiced against current-Atari. I'm pretty close to being neutral, which probably makes me seem like an extremist to some of you! (what is this, politics?)

     

    The Atari VCS is one of Atari's four company divisions, along side Atari Games, Atari Casino, and Atari Partners. It's not a 3rd party group of venture capitalists licensing Atari's name and game rights, like the Gameband was.

  19. @AnakiMana

    it's hard to take what you say at face value given in your own avatar it appears the lady is doing a facepalm .... just saying.

    Hahaha, that was my wife when we 1st started dating. Didn't want her picture taken, but it's the first one I know of of us. That was about 18 years ago! And I don't get facepalms from her, but "the look" has been practiced very regularly!
  20.  

    No surprise at all. Did anyone ever expect it to turn out differently ? Time for another kickstarter from Atari SA for the money grab to steal money from stupid people. Kickstarter / Indiegogo and Crowdfund in general should be outlawed as nothing successful ever has come. The most successful projects may actually ship something but always end up as commercial failures after the Crowdfunding.

    Atari SA didn't do a Kickstarter, wasn't working on the Gameband (right?) -that was FMTwo Games. And they got their Atari license revoked for, I'm assuming, good reasons.

     

    The updates are looking pretty good on the new VCS. They just confirmed the new joysticks are definitely getting the paddle action on the joystick stick.

     

    There's been two updates in less than a month's time: https://medium.com/@atarivcs

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