ADAM'S Desktop?

[The Evener]

The incompatibility issue with Defender on the ADAM is due to the memory location where the original program places game data. On the CV, the memory location can be used, but not on the ADAM.

 

Jim Marshall / MMSG or Jim Walters / Walters Software Co. dumped the Defender cart and patched the game code to use proper memory locations to make the game compatible with the ADAM with the added side effect being that the radar screen displayed properly on PAL CVs. This patched version was released on cartridge by eColeco with the help of CBS Electronics and Telegames, which allowed ADAMites to dump it to a rom file and this is what you had.

 

A couple years ago, Nanochess patched Defender when this incompatibility with the ADAM was brought up, not knowing that it had already been patched back in the 80s.

 

Did Atari release a revised version of the Defender cartridge so it would work with the ADAM? I found this discussion a bit surprising since Atarisoft Defender has always worked on my stand alone ADAM. Or maybe my version of the game doesn't function as it should and I didn't notice? I can move the ship up and down, move left and right, fire, use smart bombs, and watch ships on the radar.

[NIAD]

 

Did Atari release a revised version of the Defender cartridge so it would work with the ADAM? I found this discussion a bit surprising since Atarisoft Defender has always worked on my stand alone ADAM. Or maybe my version of the game doesn't function as it should and I didn't notice? I can move the ship up and down, move left and right, fire, use smart bombs, and watch ships on the radar.

Not that I or anyone else has ever seen, but it's always a possibility.

 

If you could dump it, then we could compare to the Walters/Marshall and Nanochess modded versions.

[The Evener]

Could I copy the cartridge to a datapack and then send it to you or another individual who could conduct the comparison? I don't have an ADAM FDD. Is there a chance that an ADAM hardware revision might account for the functionality of the game? Actually, I do have another ADAM system, but it's all boxed up for now - I'll drag it out at some point and see how it works on there as well.

[HDTV1080P]

Could I copy the cartridge to a datapack and then send it to you or another individual who could conduct the comparison? I don't have an ADAM FDD. Is there a chance that an ADAM hardware revision might account for the functionality of the game? Actually, I do have another ADAM system, but it's all boxed up for now - I'll drag it out at some point and see how it works on there as well.

As far as I am aware there was never a official second run of the Defender cartridge from ATARISOFT, instead a third party company released a Defender cartridge that was modified to work on the standalone ADAM. Yes you could send a Digital Data Pack to someone with a ADAM computer. And they could use File Manager or another program to do the comparison. If the person owns a MicroFox microSD Floppy emulator then they can do the comparison on a Windows PC by inserting the SD card that has your Digital Data Pack image on it.

Edited June 11, 2018 by HDTV1080P

[ed1475]

I have an ADAM compatible Defender cartridge. Possibly sold by ADAM's House (eColeco).

 

 

The cart on the left was patched for ADAM by Walter's Software and maybe sold by ADAM's House (eColeco). It has one label that wraps over the top of the cart. A Coleco cart shell and the word "ADAM" replaces "Colecovision."

 

The cart on the right was released by Atarisoft and doesn't work right on an ADAM. It has an Atarisoft cart shell and there are two labels - one on the front and one on the top.

 

Edited June 11, 2018 by ed1475

[The Evener]

As far as I am aware there was never a official second run of the Defender cartridge from ATARISOFT, instead a third party company released a Defender cartridge that was modified to work on the standalone ADAM. Yes you could send a Digital Data Pack to someone with a ADAM computer. And they could use File Manager or another program to do the comparison. If the person owns a MicroFox microSD Floppy emulator then they can do the comparison on a Windows PC by inserting the SD card that has your Digital Data Pack image on it.

 

Great! Thanks for the confirmation about the data pack, I'll go that route. Maybe this whole thing is just a quirk of my system, but I'll have to try with my other ADAM set-up later in the week.

[The Evener]

I have an ADAM compatible Defender cartridge. Possibly sold by ADAM's House (eColeco).

 

 

The cart on the left was patched for ADAM by Walter's Software and maybe sold by ADAM's House (eColeco). It has one label that wraps over the top of the cart. A Coleco cart shell and the word "ADAM" replaces "Colecovision."

 

The cart on the right was released by Atarisoft and doesn't work right on an ADAM. It has an Atarisoft cart shell and there are two labels - one on the front and one on the top.

 

 

 

Thanks Ed. My version is definitely an Atarisoft release (I found the original box), it's a "ColecoVision Atarisoft" label and has two labels. I read another message where someone stated that the game loads but you can't fire; I've read that the game also doesn't work at all. Are there varying results when trying the game on the ADAM, or is it uniformly the same problem(s)?

[NIAD]

The_Evener.... you could send me a dump on Data Pack if you like. You can use whatever cart backuo program you have access to such as CopyCart, Multicart Backup or the SmartBasic cart dumper program in the Hackers Guide to Adam Vol. 1 (PDF is available if needed). I can handle whatever you throw my way.

 

Can you take a pic of the Defender cart that you own. It could actually have been made by CBS Electronics/Telegames for the European market since the radar screen does not display correctly on PAL CVs. There were 100s of Defender CIBs floating around in the mid-80s so they could have purchased a large stock of them, replaced the prom(s) and then remade the original label.

 

At NIAD, we had about 50 CIBs of Defender and included the patched version on data pack with each sealed CIB. Even skrinkwrapped the data pack with the box.

 

I doubt the Adam you are using is revised somehow that make your cart work properly, but you never know, since a very small number of the standalone Memory Console can play some SGM games without the Opcode SGM. The issue is where in memory the programmer placed the game code.

[ed1475]

 

 

Thanks Ed. My version is definitely an Atarisoft release (I found the original box), it's a "ColecoVision Atarisoft" label and has two labels. I read another message where someone stated that the game loads but you can't fire; I've read that the game also doesn't work at all. Are there varying results when trying the game on the ADAM, or is it uniformly the same problem(s)?

 

It always the same problem. The game runs but a few of the controls don't work. Joystick "up" doesn't work. Right fire button doesn't work. Left fire button fires both smart bombs and lasers when it should only fire lasers.

Edited June 11, 2018 by ed1475

[HDTV1080P]

 

Did Atari release a revised version of the Defender cartridge so it would work with the ADAM? I found this discussion a bit surprising since Atarisoft Defender has always worked on my stand alone ADAM. Or maybe my version of the game doesn't function as it should and I didn't notice? I can move the ship up and down, move left and right, fire, use smart bombs, and watch ships on the radar.

 

 

It always the same problem. The game runs but a few of the controls don't work. Joystick "up" doesn't work. Right fire button doesn't work. Left fire button fires both smart bombs and lasers when it should only fire smart bombs.

Yes that is always true the unmodified Defender rom image and cartridge always has the same problem on the standalone ADAM computer. Perhaps Evener is using the Expansion Module #3 ADAM computer that plugs into the standard ColecoVision. That configuration works fine with Defender and Super Cobra.

Edited June 11, 2018 by HDTV1080P

[The Evener]

NIAD, ed1475, and HDTV1080P, thanks for indulging my questions about Defender in this thread. As it turns out, I think I “solved” the mystery.

I’m 99% certain my cartridge is a standard Atarisoft release.

I experimented with a second ADAM computer to see how the game plays. On this unit, the left fire button would shoot the canon plus set off a smart bomb. The right button would set off a smart bomb alone. I was able to fully manipulate my ship.

Next, I played the cartridge on the ColecoVision, and the game was fully functional as you would expect without any of the aforementioned fire button/smart bomb issues.

Ultimately, it appears that my main ADAM stand alone console plays extra nice with the Defender cartridge, and permits fully functional game play like on the ColecoVision. I could still send your way a ROM copied to data pack if you’d like to take a closer look, but I think the explanation for a working game lies in the quirks of my console.

 

[HDTV1080P]

If Defender is working fine on your standalone ADAM computer, then here are the 3 possible reasons why:

1. The Defender cartridge was opened up by a third party and a eprom was installed with the third party modified version that works with the standalone ADAM computer (getting a copy of that cartridge rom image is the only way to find out).
2. The other possibility is that ATARISOFT released a new Defender cartridge that also works with the standalone ADAM computer (not likely but a possibility).
3. The other possibility is that someone internally modified the standalone ADAM computer so that the ColecoVision motherboard is 100% compatible with ColecoVision cartridges. This would most likely be a third party, but there is always the possibility that in Jan 1985 the last run of standalone ADAM’s had this issue fixed (not likely since many people have the latest ADAM’s and they still have the issue).

 

Now if Evener had a USB or SD cartridge from ATARIMAX, Evener could check and see if Defender has been released into public domain and download an unmodified Defender rom image. Then Evener would know for sure. Not sure what the copywrite rules are on this Defender program, but I have seen it all over the Internet being posted.

Edited June 12, 2018 by HDTV1080P

[ed1475]

 

NIAD, ed1475, and HDTV1080P, thanks for indulging my questions about Defender in this thread. As it turns out, I think I “solved” the mystery.

 

I’m 99% certain my cartridge is a standard Atarisoft release.

 

I experimented with a second ADAM computer to see how the game plays. On this unit, the left fire button would shoot the canon plus set off a smart bomb. The right button would set off a smart bomb alone. I was able to fully manipulate my ship.

 

Next, I played the cartridge on the ColecoVision, and the game was fully functional as you would expect without any of the aforementioned fire button/smart bomb issues.

 

Ultimately, it appears that my main ADAM stand alone console plays extra nice with the Defender cartridge, and permits fully functional game play like on the ColecoVision. I could still send your way a ROM copied to data pack if you’d like to take a closer look, but I think the explanation for a working game lies in the quirks of my console.

 

 

No problem. That is the first time I've heard of an original Defender working on an ADAM. There's probably some minor differences in OS roms in some ADAM's.

Edited June 12, 2018 by ed1475

[The Evener]

Interesting update on the subject of Defender on the ADAM. I was getting ready to film a short video of the game on my stand alone unit for those interested, but the game wouldn't function! It displayed the similar behaviour that others described - "up" wouldn't work at all, but fire just "fired" - no smart bombs. The smart bombs couldn't be used with simply the right button - I had to push "up" plus right button. Needless to say, I was completely confused. Resetting the game multiple times led to no change in behaviour. The only difference in loading Defender for the short video is that I inserted the cartridge and then turned on the system. Normally, I use the non-sanctioned method of turning on the system to typewriter, inserting the cartridge, and then pulling the cartridge reset.

 

I went out for the rest of the morning and early afternoon, and upon returning home and booting up Defender, it worked this time without issue. Very strange stuff!

 

I'll upload the video soon, but in the meantime I wanted to share a photo circa 1986-87 from a Princess Auto (basically an automotive/hardware store, plus surplus) in Edmonton, Alberta. As you can see, two of my friends are posing in front of a wall of ADAM Expansion modules, plus some keyboards. Years later I read some info about the liquidation of ADAM stock here on AtariAge, which I understand included a significant quantity of stock that simply wasn't boxed. Princess Auto is a national chain, so it appears they scooped some of that surplus. I also ended up purchasing my 5 1/4 ADAM disk drive there, again without the box.

 

Enjoy!

 

Edited June 16, 2018 by The Evener