17.Jun.2024
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Image and PDF converter: Image2PDF 2.7 for all Amiga systems
Bernd Assenmacher's Image2PDF is a tool for converting images to PDF and vice versa. Images can also be scaled or saved in a different format (amiga-news.de reported). Changes in version 2.7:
- some small cosmetical fixes were done
- improved tooltips
- expanded scaling range of function "scale image(s) to" (now 10-6000)
- added an "abort" function to have the possibility to abort processes
when having many images in the loop. This does not work with "Convert
PDF to" function.
(dr)
[News message: 17. Jun. 2024, 14:12] [Comments: 0]
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17.Jun.2024
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Game Construction Kit: RedPill 0.9.39
RedPill, developed by Carlos Peris, is a game construction kit written in Amiblitz 3.99, which allows the development of games from various genres (e.g. Agonman). RedPill is compatible with AGA and ECS, the "player" for playing the finished creations requires a total of 1.5 MB RAM. Jens 'Farbfinsternis' Henschel has written a tutorial.
All changes of updated version 0.9.39:
- Copper background can now be used for ECS projects. It has some restrictions
but it can be used from now on.
- Added example project Merc showing the use of the ECS parallax.
- Smooth scrolling transition from game to dialog.
- When editing or reloading a tileset, you can now keep the previous tileset
size.
- In level properties screen, setting music to -2 just leaves music as it was.
- Change in camera code.
- From a menu, press DEL key to get back to Main menu.
- Level .iff files code updated, to be used in future updates.
- Added safety code to make sure previous deleted objects in editor are not
instantiated.
- When building final games, the size of HUD and Sprite back/foregrounds are
now the minimum size. It also fixes issues when using compression.
- Increased compatibility with older projects.
- Improvements in AGA parallax to avoid trembling.
- Some bitmap copy function are now done with CPU to avoid issues with blitter.
- Number of blitz objects reduced for A500 build.
- Improvements on the flow when loading a game.
- Fix when saving levels, sometimes they got erased.
- Fix in mutate when changing from level to level.
- Fix for HUD screen, image background name was hidden.
(dr)
[News message: 17. Jun. 2024, 14:05] [Comments: 0]
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16.Jun.2024
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Aminet uploads until 15.06.2024
The following files have been added until 15.06.2024 to Aminet:
amigassh.lha comm/net 100K 68k SSH2 for the Amiga
BareMetal.lha docs/misc 189K Examples for Bare-Metal Amiga...
Voodoo.lha driver/vid 14K 68k Voodoo P96 driver
catchitadf.zip game/board 321K 68k CatchIt Game
CatchItAros.zip game/board 398K x86 CatchIt Game
giocodel15adf.zip game/board 304K 68k classic puzzle from about 50 ...
catchit.lha game/wb 233K 68k CatchIt Game
AmiArcadia.lha misc/emu 7.6M 68k Signetics-based machines emul...
AmiArcadia-OS4.lha misc/emu 8.2M OS4 Signetics-based machines emul...
0scaryman.zip mods/crash 96K Breakcore/Noisecore. 4 channe...
anewbetteryou.zip mods/crash 204K DJ Vadim-inspired 4 channel 8...
Clone_Death.zip mods/crash 65K Hypno-trance noise core. 4 ch...
VATestprogram.zip util/misc 22M 68k Versatile Amiga Testprogram
isomount.lha util/rexx 31K Mounting ipf,dms,adf,hdf
powerreboot.lha util/wb 172K OS4 Reboot and shutdown utility f...
(snx)
[News message: 16. Jun. 2024, 08:24] [Comments: 0]
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16.Jun.2024
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OS4Depot uploads until 15.06.2024
The following files have been added until 15.06.2024 to OS4Depot:
rxmuis.lha dev/mis 797kb 4.0 Definitive solution to create GU...
amiarcadia.lha emu/gam 8Mb 4.0 Signetics-based machines emulator
snes9x.zip emu/gam 135Mb 4.1 Super Nintendo / Super Famicom e...
powerreboot.lha uti/wor 172kb 4.1 Reboot and shutdown utility for ...
(snx)
[News message: 16. Jun. 2024, 08:24] [Comments: 0]
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16.Jun.2024
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AROS Archives uploads until 15.06.2024
The following files have been added until 15.06.2024 to AROS Archives:
catchit.i386-aros.zip gam/act 398kb Run away and don't get caught
(snx)
[News message: 16. Jun. 2024, 08:24] [Comments: 0]
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16.Jun.2024
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MorphOS-Storage uploads until 15.06.2024
The following files have been added until 15.06.2024 to MorphOS-Storage:
L.M.Calendar&Clock_1.0... System/Utilities A little tool with the ...
(snx)
[News message: 16. Jun. 2024, 08:24] [Comments: 0]
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16.Jun.2024
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WHDLoad: New installers until 15.06.2024
Using WHDLoad, games, scene demos and intros by cracking groups, which were originally designed to run only from floppy disks, can be installed on harddisk. The following installers have been added until 15.06.2024:
- 2024-06-12 improved: Lotus 2 (Magnetic Fields/Gremlin) option to remap 2P keys to A and S (A1200 keyboard limitations) (Info)
- 2024-06-10 updated: Workbench 3.1 (CBM) recompiled with latest sources (Info)
- 2024-06-10 updated: Workbench 1.3 (Amiga Inc.) recompiled with latest sources (Info)
- 2024-06-10 new: Grand National (Elite) done by paraj (Info)
- 2024-06-10 fixed: Super Tennis Champs (Audiogenic) gfx displayed on Indivision now, chipmem requirements reduced (Info, Image)
(snx)
[News message: 16. Jun. 2024, 08:24] [Comments: 0]
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16.Jun.2024
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Twin-stick shooter: Cecconoid available (update)
In addition to the boxed edition, starting to be available from tomorrow, the download version of Cecconoid is now also available at the title link. The game is "an 8-bit inspired, flick-screen, twin-stick-shooter, set in an alternate dimension where the pixels are still chunky, and the bad guys are black and white" (amiga-news.de reported).
Update: (18.06.2024, 17:14, dr)
A zip version of the game is now also available, which contains a WHDLoad version and selected tunes from the game in MOD format. (snx)
[News message: 16. Jun. 2024, 08:23] [Comments: 0]
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16.Jun.2024
Andreas Magerl (ANF)
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Print magazine: Issue 143 of Amiga Future readable online
The German and English issue 143 (March/April 2020) of the print magazine "Amiga Future" can now be read on the magazine's website in the form of image files of the individual pages. Remaining copies of the magazine as well as a higher resolution PDF version can be purchased from the publisher. (snx)
[News message: 16. Jun. 2024, 08:23] [Comments: 0]
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16.Jun.2024
jPV RNO (E-Mail)
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Event: "Finnish Amiga Users Group" at Vectorama 2024
Last weekend, Vectorama 2024, an online gaming event aimed at people of all ages, took place in Oulu (Finland). The Finnish Amiga Users Group was also there, organising an Amiga stand at the gaming event.
There were high score competitions in Blocky Skies and Volfied, and 8 player tournament in Stunt Car Racer (the Turbo version of the game with two A1200/030@50MHz setups and null-modem link). The stand featured several A1200 setups (with Blizzard 1230 accelerators and PiStorm32-lite), A500 with Gotek, THEA500 Mini, and two MorphOS setups for entering scores and displaying a live leaderboard and other information on big screens.
The latest videos and photos from the event have now been uploaded to the Finnish Amiga Users Group event page, such as this photo report. (dr)
[News message: 16. Jun. 2024, 06:37] [Comments: 0]
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15.Jun.2024
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Preview video: Beta versions of Gorky 17 and Heretic II
Even though George 'walkereo' Sokianos concentrates mainly on the development of AmigaOS4 software, he also has classic hardware at his disposal. In a detailed video he shows beta versions of Gorky 17 and Heretic II running on his Amiga 1200 upgraded with a PiStorm-lite. (dr)
[News message: 15. Jun. 2024, 09:22] [Comments: 0]
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15.Jun.2024
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Survival game: Zombie Survivor V1.10
Sami Vehmaa continues to work on his current project "Zombie Survival", a game for Amigas with a graphics card in which you have to fight off an endless army of the undead (YouTube video). The current version 1.10 offers the following changes:
- more settings to let you tweak the game
- info window in settings
- Bottom Weapon display switch (F1)
- added max Zombie 300
- new blood animation
- after killing a zombie a body lays in ground for some seconds
- several bugs found and fixed
- new speed progress system
(dr)
[News message: 15. Jun. 2024, 08:39] [Comments: 0]
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14.Jun.2024
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Creating and reading disk images: Disk Jockey V3.4 for macOS
At the end of March, we reported on Jean-Michel Durand's "Disk Jockey" (DJ), with which you can easily create and analyse (Disk-O-Matic) disc images for retro computers and emulators under macOS 10.13 to macOS 14. After version 3.0, he continued to work on the programme and has now made version 3.4 available.
In addition to bug fixes and performance improvements, DJ now understands HFS+ and makes it possible to extract files from it. Also, whenever possible, Disk-O-Matic now displays the file type in the file browser. It is now much easier to recognise which files are text files, which are images and which are programs, for example.
As the author points out somewhat smugly, there is still no AI in Disk Jockey. It's "aall hand-made with human fallibility, questionable design choices and, most of all, love for the craft. And coffee."
As the author kindly explained to us on request, in addition to the version for macOS, which is being actively developed, there is also a Disk Jockey for Windows, which can also be used to create empty images. However, he left it at that and did not implement the rest of the Disk Jockey, as there are already good solutions for Windows.
Finally, there is Disk Jockey Jr (djjr), Disk Jockey for the command line, which runs on macOS and Linux. It received a major update a few months ago and can now do things that the full Disk Jockey for macOS can do (such as analyse disk images, including ADF). This "branch" is also in active development. (dr)
[News message: 14. Jun. 2024, 12:05] [Comments: 0]
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14.Jun.2024
Individual Computers (ANF)
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Individual Computers: Features of Indivision ECS V4
V4 of the Indivision ECS flickerfixer and scandoubler developed by Individual Computers will be available in limited quantities from 15 July. The previous version V3 is sold out. In a forum post, developer Jens Schönfeld explains new functions and details of the new version:
- the FPGA has almost twice the capacity. This lets us implement more features, yet keep the same form factor as the previous versions.
- all-new appearance in all-black. This is in line with the colour of our most successful product ever, the ACA500plus. Not that it matters much in a closed computer, but after 16 years, I felt it was time for a change from the blue that the three previous versions have used. Even the cable to the VGA connector is black!
- more sophisticated clock generation. While Indivision ECS V2 and V3 were completely async, we now have the possibility to generate precise whole-number multiples of the native Amiga pixel clock. This improves the VSync feature a lot, because the monitor's capability requirement is reduced to 50Hz for PAL or 60Hz for NTSC modes, but it doesn't have to be a specific V-Sync-capable monitor any more (like an expensive gaming monitor). Your choice of low-cost monitors with VGA input increases a lot with this - it's the same feature that Invidision AGA MK3 users already enjoy under the name "auto resolution mode".
- EDID monitor identification: The config tool can detect the monitor and read supported modes, so fiddling with monitor settings is vastly simplified
- CIA adapter for keyboard signals: This lets us implement the live-config feature, which is highly appreciated by Indivision AGA MK3 users. Bringing this to OCS/ECS machines, which are often used for gaming, was a "must" - you can pan/zoom the picture with the mouse after pressing a magic keyboard combination while the game is running.
- Graffiti false-positive avoidance: Generally, Graffiti mode is activated on a line-by-line basis using the Genlock Audio bit (GAUD). Some games set this bit without actually wanting to use Graffiti mode. We're developing a heuristic that also looks at more criteria to tell if it's really a program for the Graffiti hardware, or if it's a false positive that would otherwise result in garbled graphics.
- I have kept the amount of memory on the flickerfixer at 8MBytes. Although I'm constantly trying to reduce prices, it would not have made any sense to reduce the amount of memory to 2MBytes (whích is the next-smaller chip you can buy), because it would make double-buffering impossible. Instead, I have wired this Ram differently, so we can address it byte-by-byte. This doesn't impact the current functionality (which only uses 16-bit accesses to this memory), but will allow us to add things in the future that would be very slow to do on the previous versions of this flicker fixer.
- the OSD now has true transparency and can be positioned in any corner of the output picture. I know that many people find the OSD just annoying and always switch it off, which is of course still an option. For those of you who have the OSD visible, it can now softly fade out to complete transparency, adding a little modern "bling" to the look-and-feel.
- Improved interlace handling: If you drag sreens and you have a non-interlace screen in front of an interlace screen, the whole picture will turn to interlace if you drag the front screen down. Previously, this resulted in a screen mode change on Indivision, which may result in the monitor going into re-sync mode, showing a black screen for a few seconds. The new interlace handling can now avoid this.
As the developer goes on to explain, there are further plans. The price of Indivision ECS V4 will remain the same as that of V3 until the functions have been completed. There is no timetable for the implementation of the following features:
- change position and zoom factor in auto-resolution modes
- improve auto-resolution to support 3x and 4x pixels
- detect and support A2024 "Hedley monitor" screen modes
- make OSD auto-sizing, so readability on high-resolution monitors is improved
- inhibit Amiga's access to mouse movement data during live configuration (movement only - LMB can't be inhibited!)
- add a framebuffer mode with 256 colours out of 21 bits colour, 1024x768 and 1280x1024 pixels
- add 64x64-pixel sprite with 4 colours to framebuffer mode
- add 2D acceleration to framebuffer mode
- add second draggable screen to framebuffer mode (must have same resolution as first screen)
- implement P96 driver for framebuffer mode - don't expect wonders here! It's questionable if Picasso-II performance can be reached.
(dr)
[News message: 14. Jun. 2024, 06:32] [Comments: 0]
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13.Jun.2024
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Worth a read: 42 years of programming - The Amiga
Matthias Wiesmann is a Swiss computer scientist who took part in a programming camp 42 years ago, where he learned to program for the TRS-80. As he writes in his blog, programming languages have changed a lot over time, and the computer world used to be much more diverse back then:
"These days, a lot of concepts in computer science settled on one solution: there is one network stack, one type of filesystem, one low-level programming language, etc. It certainly makes things simpler, but this kind of consensus is also a big risk. What I will do is go over the various devices I interacted and explain how they were weird compared with today’s mental model."
In a previous article in English, Wiesmann took a look at the Commodore 64. Now he has turned his attention to the Amiga under the title link and describes the special features of the system from a personal perspective: chipset, planar graphics, weird graphics modes such as HAM8, interlaced graphics and sound modules. (nba)
[News message: 13. Jun. 2024, 13:39] [Comments: 0]
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13.Jun.2024
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Floppy disk images: Disc Image Manager V1.47 for Linux, macOS and Windows
Gerald J Holdsworth's Disc Image Manager is an application used to load a retro disc image, read the catalogue and output any required files. In addition, it will also add files to the image, delete, and rename files and directories. On the Amiga side, reading and writing of AmigaDOS disks and hard disks with OFS and FFS formatting are supported (not fully tested with FFS). Support for directory cache and international characters is still missing (amiga-news.de reported). Version 1.47 provides several new features and bug fixes.
The author also provides a detailed PDF manual. (dr)
[News message: 13. Jun. 2024, 08:43] [Comments: 0]
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12.Jun.2024
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Book: AmigaOS 3.2 Reference Manual - Limited print run, pre-orders being taken
Press release: Following the successful release of the German edition, Look Behind You is delighted to announce the English version of "AmigaOS 3.2 Reference Manual". This comprehensive guide is essential for anyone using the AmigaOS in its latest and greatest version 3.2 (up to and including 3.2.2.1).
In this upcoming reference book, which will span around 450 pages, readers will not only find a clear explanation of the basics and advanced functions of AmigaOS 3.2, but also valuable insights into the Amiga system, from A to Z. Whether readers are experienced Amiga users or are just getting started (or even restart), this book will accompany them at various levels of knowledge.
Step by step, the editorial team guides the reader through the installation on classic Amigas, on emulated Amigas and even on the THEA500 Mini, demonstrates the setup of the Kickstart ROMs in 68k Amigas and explains the basics of the operating system, its operation and structure. It is shown how the system is optimised with the various prefs (presets) and how the tools, utilities and commodities are used efficiently.
A large chapter is dedicated to the Shell, the command line interface of the AmigaOS - all commands, including new ones, are explained and the use of the Shell is illustrated with many practical examples. In addition to shortcuts and start scripts, advanced users will also discover a comprehensive guide to ARexx and script control of the Workbench, MultiView and TextEdit.
Furthermore, there is a lot of content beyond AmigaOS 3.2: data exchange between PC and Amiga, internet access, as well as many recommendations for new hardware and software to make the Amiga ready for the future.
The authors are experienced Amiga enthusiasts from the very beginning: IT journalist Martin Steigerwald (among others, Amiga Magazin, AMIGAplus), graduate engineer Simon Neumann (owner of Alinea Computer) and digital expert Nico Barbat (among others, editor-in-chief of AMIGAplus). During the work on the book, they were supported by the development team of AmigaOS 3.2, including the beta test team for quality control.
Please note that the print run of "AmigaOS 3.2 Reference Manual" will be strictly limited. The expected launch date is 26th August 2024.
Early bird customers who purchase their book until 21st July 2024 will benefit from our special offer: the combined price of the book plus digital edition (PDF) is 35 ¤, saving 10 ¤.
Editions
Hardback (full colour, 450 pages):
¤ 35,00 / £ 30,00 / $ 37,80
ISBN 978-3-9826022-6-4
Digital Edition (PDF):
¤ 17,50 / £ 14,90 / $ 18,90
ISBN 978-3-9826022-7-1
Hardback + Digital Edition:
¤ 45,00 / £ 38,90 / $ 48,90
Early Bird (until 21st July 2024): 35,00 ¤ (snx)
[News message: 12. Jun. 2024, 11:50] [Comments: 1 - 12. Jun. 2024, 16:06]
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12.Jun.2024
Sven Scheele (ANF)
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Event: Interface XXXVIII in Kiel, Germany, on 22.06.2024
Sven Scheele writes: On Saturday, June 22, 2024, the second "Interface" in 2024 will take place in Schwentinental near Kiel, Germany. This will be the 38th edition of the retro computer get-together. As always, the organizers are the Vintage Computer Club (VCC), the Amiga Club Schleswig-Holstein (ACSH) and the Computer Club Klausdorf (CCK).
Registration by e-mail to interface@jugendhaus-klausdorf.de is recommended. Without registration there is no guarantee of a free place.
There are again two large rooms available. The café on the first floor (as a "workshop" for hardware projects, repairs, etc.) and the top floor offer enough space to talk and play on the computers and consoles you have brought with you. Participants must bring their own power strips and network cables.
The official start is at 2 p.m., the organization team will begin setting up the tables etc. at around 12 noon. The venue is the Jugendhaus Klausdorf, Dorfstraße 101 in Klausdorf, which is part of 24222 Schwentinental. (snx)
[News message: 12. Jun. 2024, 11:49] [Comments: 0]
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12.Jun.2024
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Developer log: Weapons for the strategy game "Ecliptic"
At the beginning of April, a new demo version of the strategy game "Ecliptic", which is currently under development, was released (amiga-news.de reported). In another detailed developer diary, the author now writes about some of the weapons that can be used to send these monsters to the afterlife (flamethrower video, grenade video) (dr)
[News message: 12. Jun. 2024, 06:25] [Comments: 0]
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11.Jun.2024
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Video game history: Amiga Germany trading cards
The team behind Amiga Germany, which founded and manages the Facebook group of the same name and publishes the associated magazine, has presented a new project that should be of interest to collectors who are interested in the history of video games: the "Amiga Germany Collector's Cards" are high-quality, double-sided cards that celebrate the long history of Amiga games.
Each of the four sets currently available contains five of those high-quality cards with box artworks of popular games and logos of legendary developer studios on the front. On the back of each card, you will find additional information about the motifs, such as the year of publication and the name of the artist (for game artwork) or the year of foundation and the games published (for developer logos), as well as a star rating and the number of the issue of Amiga Germany Fanzine in which the corresponding game was discussed.
The following four sets of five cards are available initially:
- Set 1: Apidya Box Artwork, Dune Box Artwork, Kaiko Entwickler Logo, Midnight Resistance Box Artwork, Nathan Never Box Artwork
- Set 2: Monkey Island 2 Box Artwork, Psygnosis Entwickler Logo, Starglider 2 Box Artwork, Apprentice Box Artwork, Black Crypt Box Artwork
- Set 3: Turrican Box Artwork, Thalion Entwickler Logo, Lethal Xcess Box Artwork, Simon the Sorcerer Box Artwork, Defender of the Crown Box Artwork
- Set 4: Toki Box Artwork, Golden Axe Box Artwork, Turrican 2 Box Artwork, Lionheart Box Artwork, Factor 5 Entwickler Logo
Further sets are in the pipeline. Each set costs ¤2.50, while the starter pack containing all four sets is available for ¤9.50. For ¤26.50, there is a "Deluxe Supporter Pack" that contains all initial four sets and a matching collector's album. (nba)
[News message: 11. Jun. 2024, 20:43] [Comments: 0]
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11.Jun.2024
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Using image files and discs in PC drives: DiskFlashback V1.0.1.0
Developer Rob Smith has written DiskFlashback, a convenient software for Windows 10/11 (64-bit) that enables PC floppy drives to read and write image files such as ADFs (Amiga Disk Files) during operation. It also allows you to process real discs in Amiga or Atari format, with the appropriate hardware extensions. To use it, you need the FloppyBridge plugin, which in turn requires additional hardware (amiga-news.de reported). Now he has released version 1.0.1.0 of the software. Changes:
- Fixed disabling "auto-detect com port" being ignored
- Better support for hard disk image files larger than 4G (some partitions got ignored before)
- Upgraded to use the new ADFLib v0.9
- Changed error handling when reading from disks to include the Always Ignore option
- Added Amiga PFS3 file system support (this was a real PITA!)
Editorial update, 12 June 2024 (nba): Our original news article stated that no special hardware is required to process physical Amiga disks. That is not accurate. The FloppyBridge plug-in is required, which in turn requires DrawBridge, Greaseweazle or Supercard Pro hardware. The article has been updated accordingly. (dr)
[News message: 11. Jun. 2024, 06:18] [Comments: 0]
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