Search found 776 matches

by RMartins
Wed May 27, 2020 3:05 am
Forum: Hardware
Topic: ISSUE4A help needed
Replies: 20
Views: 2408

Re: ISSUE4A help needed

Is the CPU socketed ?
Can you replace it and check if it makes a difference ?
by RMartins
Wed May 20, 2020 4:20 pm
Forum: Games/Software
Topic: The first game you bought
Replies: 24
Views: 5483

Re: The first game you bought

My first games where:
1 - Space invaders (it was a clone, with a different name)
2 - AirWolf
3 - Commando
by RMartins
Wed May 20, 2020 1:52 am
Forum: Hardware
Topic: Recapped +2 - RF Colour bleed appears worse
Replies: 6
Views: 1080

Re: Recapped +2 - RF Colour bleed appears worse

Are you using any modern power brick ? A switched-mode power supply . i.e one of those that are small and have an high frequency oscillator inside ? I have experienced a lot of interference, with some of the cheap ones. Usually some kind of wave going down or up the screen. But usually they don't af...
by RMartins
Wed May 20, 2020 1:38 am
Forum: Programming
Topic: Tearing while scrolling attributes
Replies: 13
Views: 1853

Re: Tearing while scrolling attributes

I would say, that your code is slow enough to process those lines, that the raster line catches up with the character you are changing the color at. Two easy fixes: 1 - Move your graphics to the bottom of the screen, and you will have more time, before the raster line catches up with you. 2 - Wait a...
by RMartins
Tue May 19, 2020 11:41 am
Forum: Other Retro Stuff
Topic: The MSX
Replies: 19
Views: 2405

Re: The MSX

It would have been a nice screen mode to have had on the Spectrum, but with direct access to read and write the video RAM. but character backgrounds are almost useless without hardware sprites, and hw sprites are too costly and too limited at that cost imo i would be much happier if the Spectrum ha...
by RMartins
Mon May 18, 2020 4:32 am
Forum: Other Retro Stuff
Topic: The MSX
Replies: 19
Views: 2405

Re: The MSX

The Memotech MTX500, MTX512 U.K. made computers also use the same video display processor (the Texas Instruments TMS9929A) as the original MSX computers. However they are not compatible. Mark The MTX line of computers, was one that really impressed me for it's quality and design. The computer case ...
by RMartins
Thu May 14, 2020 11:16 pm
Forum: Hardware
Topic: The Startek DT-90 Project.
Replies: 14
Views: 2361

Re: The Startek DT-90 Project.

... https://i.postimg.cc/mr0MypZB/31d2bacdfdb400167402eccaaedc661a.jpg Assuming the board does NOT have DIP components mounted on both sides, you still have some DIP square pins on the wrong position, that are not in pin 1 position, since they appear on one side of the chips but in some other locat...
by RMartins
Thu May 14, 2020 11:12 pm
Forum: Hardware
Topic: The Startek DT-90 Project.
Replies: 14
Views: 2361

Re: The Startek DT-90 Project.

... If you look at the pcb mask, the one that have the components layout, LED4 (green/red) with the 3 legs sawing the negative leg soldered in the ground (top side), but in bottom side of the board soldered again in a ground track ( bottom side) but that time through R1 resistor (91ohm) for current...
by RMartins
Thu May 14, 2020 10:22 pm
Forum: FPGA Devices
Topic: Long Filename Browser for ZX-UNO / esxDOS
Replies: 1208
Views: 154477

Re: New File Browser for ZX-UNO

Wow! This is Perfect! I was waiting a long time for this, Thank You! A little suggestion, I've an omni 128, also a lot of rubber keys 48's, can u please add an option to change the cursors keys to be used without caps (ex. 5,6,7,8 keys) as this machines doesn't have a specifics keys for cursor cont...
by RMartins
Thu May 14, 2020 9:45 pm
Forum: Hardware
Topic: Recapped +2 - RF Colour bleed appears worse
Replies: 6
Views: 1080

Re: Recapped +2 - RF Colour bleed appears worse

Nichicon, are some of the best caps out there, if they are not fake (most probably are not). Without a picture is difficult to evaluate what you are seeing, but in a general if the output is still RF, it's going to have noise, no matter what. You might want to mod the RF into a composite video out, ...
by RMartins
Thu May 14, 2020 8:50 pm
Forum: Hardware
Topic: Another eBay gamble
Replies: 5
Views: 938

Re: Another eBay gamble

Honestly I don't think there's a whole lot to do as long as nothing too weird is happening with the electronics. I would love to restore the face plate, but what can I do except try to paint the areas that have flaked off? I wouldn't be able to match the colour and I don't know any methods to print...
by RMartins
Thu May 14, 2020 8:34 pm
Forum: ZX Spectrum Next
Topic: Next screenshot format
Replies: 41
Views: 7519

Re: Next screenshot format

I might be a bit late to this party, but I have a suggestion PNG is an extensible format, it has chunks and every thing is separated into the proper chunk types. Any PNG compatible application, must process only the chunks it knows how to handle. So my suggestion is that we can devise a new chunk, f...
by RMartins
Wed May 13, 2020 10:49 pm
Forum: Programming
Topic: Extruder
Replies: 1
Views: 513

Re: Extruder

Since no one tried to find the problem, let me continue on that. The issue, is that when a POP happens, it can have a lot of balls in other columns besides the original where the POP started, if there is connection between balls of the same color to those places. This indirectly means, that there ca...
by RMartins
Wed May 13, 2020 11:46 am
Forum: Showcase your work!
Topic: Digital AY synth
Replies: 38
Views: 6336

Re: Digital AY synth

I've now added a scrolling (well, paging) tracker display synchronised with the music. You can try it here: synth-v0.1.0-0-g2bd8639_128.tap The problem is, the rendering speed is not great (even when the code is placed in uncontended memory) and this causes noticeable gaps in the song playback. Is ...
by RMartins
Tue May 12, 2020 10:54 pm
Forum: Hardware
Topic: The Startek DT-90 Project.
Replies: 14
Views: 2361

Re: The Startek DT-90 Project.

Hello RMartins. First i have to say that i am not well experience making pcb's. I do every project first for my own pleasure and practise. That's not a problem, since they are easy to do at home (photo-hatching process), for a single sided, board. However, for a 2 sided board, you need to be a lot ...
by RMartins
Tue May 12, 2020 9:19 pm
Forum: Programming
Topic: Extruder
Replies: 1
Views: 513

Extruder

Yesterday, I started to analyze some of the gameplay footage that I have made from Arcade Magical Drop II. And it's very interesting, what one can find, when checking the video frame by frame. It's even possible to deduce how some of the game logic is implemented, by catching some specific sequences...
by RMartins
Tue May 12, 2020 7:55 pm
Forum: Hardware
Topic: The Startek DT-90 Project.
Replies: 14
Views: 2361

Re: The Startek DT-90 Project.

Still some work to do on that lower half. Do you have the parts list ? Could be an interesting project to build. NOTE: On DIP chips, usually only pin 1 as a square footprint, the others should be all round. Are you mimicking the board by hand ? I'm asking, because I don't see the usual lines, repres...
by RMartins
Tue May 12, 2020 6:13 pm
Forum: Brand new software!
Topic: Moon Ranger- AY
Replies: 18
Views: 4176

Re: Moon Ranger- AY

this graphics looks like it's possible to scroll it in smaller steps almost without the attribute artifacts I have the same feeling ... Those mountains in the back, really need to scroll slower, than the track in front, or the parallax effect won't sell the 3D perception it is supposed to. If there...
by RMartins
Thu Apr 30, 2020 4:58 pm
Forum: Emulators
Topic: Testing emulators using z80test-1.0. Quick results
Replies: 134
Views: 58696

Re: Testing emulators using z80test-1.0. Quick results

Is there any test, that we can run, to determine if the floating bus is correctly implemented ?
by RMartins
Sun Apr 26, 2020 6:38 pm
Forum: Hardware
Topic: Is it evil to downgrade a Spectrum...?
Replies: 16
Views: 2396

Re: Is it evil to downgrade a Spectrum...?

I posted on WoS at the time that it would only load from tape for the first few minutes of being on then the ULA would get hot enough to burn your finger on. The upgrade stuff didn't cause that. Then it failed completely. You didn't need to justify yourself, I was just joking. :D But anyway, the pr...
by RMartins
Sat Apr 25, 2020 3:08 am
Forum: ZX Spectrum Next
Topic: Games behaving differently on the Next
Replies: 263
Views: 41147

Re: Games behaving differently on the Next

Just did my daily work out, just reading this whole thread from start. :shock: :lol:
by RMartins
Thu Apr 02, 2020 12:33 am
Forum: Hardware
Topic: Is it evil to downgrade a Spectrum...?
Replies: 16
Views: 2396

Re: Is it evil to downgrade a Spectrum...?

patters wrote: Sat Mar 28, 2020 7:03 pm I had a 16K issue 2 from my childhood and in about 2006 it died as I tried to upgrade it to 48K. e.
It appears that it didn't die.
What happened is that you killed it ! :evil: :lol:
by RMartins
Wed Mar 18, 2020 10:14 pm
Forum: Sinclair Miscellaneous
Topic: Specchums and the coronavirus.
Replies: 395
Views: 73511

Re: Specchums and the coronavirus.

... Maybe they could turn them into optional daycare centres for children of medical staff, and send the rest home? :? Here in Portugal, that is exactly what as been done. Schools are now "transformed"/adapted into day care facilities for the children of essential personnel, namely: - sec...
by RMartins
Mon Mar 16, 2020 11:14 am
Forum: ZXDB Discussion
Topic: Suggestions for use of the 'is_crap' flag
Replies: 14
Views: 2553

Re: Suggestions for use of the 'is_crap' flag

Shouldn't we be using a tag instead of a flag ?
by RMartins
Sun Mar 15, 2020 8:47 pm
Forum: Sinclair Miscellaneous
Topic: Specchums and the coronavirus.
Replies: 395
Views: 73511

Re: Specchums and the coronavirus.

This information, might be useful for the British guys around here, as well as others.

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfr ... s-covid-19