PANIC on the TI-tanic by Intrigue Software - .... asking Help

[ti99iuc]

 

Hello TIers

"MrGonker" here in AtariAge DUMPed this Game in 2 .Wav files, the first BASIC program load the second one and i had some problems for convert the second .wav file.

 

So, because this kind of .wavs was the same kind of the Atlantis ones, ( http://atariage.com/forums/topic/158724-raising-atlantis/?hl=%20atlantis )

i tried to contact Trev2005 asking for his help, because he was been able to convert that game

 

Well, he done the conversion of the second part of the program and now i am happy to share with all you the result

 

Panic Dropbox link

 

Just we need some help to start the game in Classic99 or any other emulators but also on the real machine with a HxC/Floppy or nanoPEB

 

yes, because also if the game is fully converted, it can't start because a " MEMORY FULL" Message will break the second part of the program some seconds after the RUN.

 

i also tried using CALL FILES (0) in Classic99, same error maybe in a different line :

 

 

in the zip file, you can found: - the TIFILES files created along with a DSK image containing them.

- There is the original file (TITANIC)

- the data file (TITANDAT)

- the conversion program that Trev2005 used to move the data to disk in TI BASIC (TICONV)

- the version of the game changed to read from disk (TITANICD).

 

Me, Trevor and Mr.Gonker, asking now for your help to RUN this Game, we hope that someone of you will have the solution

Edited October 14, 2015 by ti99iuc

[+Ksarul]

Try starting this program using RXB and expansion memory (or Winkler's XB3 and expansion memory). Winkler's program loads the program file directly to memory expansion (and I believe RXB does too), so it should run that way--although of the two, if it is using the last two character sets, your only option is RXB.

[Fritz442]

It does start and run in RXB, on classic99.

Edited October 15, 2015 by Fritz442

[sparkdrummer]

Ciro

 

You could try:

CALL INIT

CALL LOAD(-31888,63,255)

NEW

 

Then load it to see if it will run.

[ti99iuc]

Thank you for all suggestions, i will try all them, but the best should be to be able to run it in TI Basic also for who haven't the RXB cartridge on real hardware (me too as well)

i just hope TI BASIC solution if possible, anyway RXB is coulb a good workaround, and also sparkdrummer's suggestion want a try, i just will be able to try in the weekend, so is someone have the possibility early i beg him to post the result

[Tursi]

If it's meant for TI BASIC, it's weird that it doesn't work with CALL FILES(0). Are you remembering to do NEW afterwards?

 

Is it possible that it was intended for XB with 32k, even if it's written with BASIC code?

[RXB]

Just wondering what year was it written?

 

Is it possible it was originally written for RichGK Extended Basic that later I renamed RXB 5.55?

[+Ksarul]

This would have been written and sold for the British market, Rich--and in the 1984/1986 time frame. As hardware beyond the console was pretty hard to find there back then, it was probably for a bare system. I'm suspecting it was a few bytes from the maximum code size for the TI--and that the conversion process may have added just enough to kill it on a standard system, even using CALL FILES(0) in Classic99. It may be possible to shorten some of the variable names (if they are longer than one character) or use some other compression tricks to cut the code size down enough to get it to run on a sandard console. . .

[Fritz442]

I'm suspecting it was a few bytes from the maximum code size for the TI--and that the conversion process may have added just enough to kill it on a standard system, even using CALL FILES(0) in Classic99. It may be possible to shorten some of the variable names (if they are longer than one character) or use some other compression tricks to cut the code size down enough to get it to run on a sandard console. . .

I believe this is the case, I simply replaced the variable OBJ$ to OB$, and with call files(0)...it runs in TI-Basic. Compression it needs! just a few bytes.

 

Is there any instructions for this game?

TITANICD2.zip

Edited October 16, 2015 by Fritz442

[Tursi]

Removing line 14 (a CALL SCREEN) will let the game run with CALL FILES(0) without any impact on game play -- it just cycled the screen color 6 times at the beginning of the data file load. With DSK you would barely notice the difference.

 

Making it run with CALL FILES(1) so it can work on real iron is tougher. My progress so far gets it up to line 49, but it's still got four big strings to load. Going to need some deeper analysis to solve that, but I'm out of time here. I'm including just the TIFILES image - copy it back onto the DSK image for testing. It probably needs 50-100 bytes more, I'd guess, but each byte is hard won without knowing what they do.

 

There were also two embedded control characters - though it costs a bit more I changed them to CHR$ references so that they don't get lost in copy/pasting around.

 

 

Replace all instances of '1' with '@' (Variable reference saves 2 bytes over raw number)
Delete line 14 (unnecessary screen color change during data file loading)
Delete lines 30130 and 30140, replace jump to 30124 (duplicated code)
Replace some explicit math (ie: 2*3.14) with absolute values (6.28)

 

 

TITANICD.zip

 

 

[Tursi]

Is there any instructions for this game?

 

All I could work out from the source is it uses the keys Q,P,A,L and space. Q and P turn your character and A seems to control whether he's running forward.

[Fritz442]

I believe this is the case, I simply replaced the variable OBJ$ to OB$, and with call files(0)...it runs in TI-Basic. Compression it needs! just a few bytes.

 

Is there any instructions for this game?

Yes those control characters are lost in the file in message #9, was only testing the size of the code. Please don't use it(I can't delete it!)

 

*** Here's one hand edited with the same changes and characters retained. ***

TITANICD2.zip

Edited October 16, 2015 by Fritz442

[Tursi]

This version appears to work. It was a challenge but the only visible difference is I replaced the initial CALL HCHAR with a CALL CLEAR. It makes a messier copyright screen, but freed up enough bytes.

 

Lots of changes now -- I found some tiny redundancies, I replaced a complex draw function with a simpler one, but most of the savings came from replacing numbers with variables. I wrote a little tool to look for the best candidate and did them. This makes the code much harder to read but saves 2 bytes per instance (minus the code needed for the initial declaration and the stack needed to store the value).

 

Seems to work with CALL FILES(1). Note I changed the DSK to DSK1 (it was DSK2 before). I tested by running around the ship for a while and it seemed okay. I wasn't sure what to do overall. No promises that I didn't introduce new bugs - any distribution should probably keep the original version just in case.

 

I think this game might benefit from being compiled instead of adapted to disk.

 

TITANICD.zip

 

[Tursi]

Oh, I wanted to note too -- I also wrote a tool to scan the original program for all control codes, and found several more that were missing. They are all converted to CHR$() references now and should all be accounted for in that archive.

[ti99iuc]

Great Success Friends MrGonker, Trevor, Fritz442, Tursi, and all who helped to found a solution, Thank you !

 

now i will be able to build an almost complete page added to others already done for software by intrigue

 

i just hope that Mr. Gonker will be able to scan the docs stuff in a good quality, in the meantime we i have all needed for complete a card.

so i will share the original converted prog with the final version created by Tursi.

 

Thank you again ... another "new" old nice game DUMPED succesfully