Scenergy #02 31 декабря 1999

Пресса

AOSS - On journals (thinking aloud).

         About Journals (thinking aloud)

 Did not want to write on this subject, as necessary.
Not so long ago, my hands got pretty
large collection of magazines. In particular
Deja Vu # 6,7,8 and Demo Or Die # 2.
 Here, I allow myself to touch upon some
issues highlighted in the pages of these
magazines.
 Very unpleasant affects the degree of ignorance
Deja Vu authors of many terms related to
algorithms. In particular I have long tried to
understand what is meant by
"Method 1 = 4 * 4" (meaning chunks) or
"Liquid terminator" in the description of the demo The
5th Element (meant the environment
mapping). Such things are confusing
readers and make it difficult to understand the text.
In my opinion, if people really took to write about
something - he must, at least
some sort in this matter, and not
to approach this in terms of
layman. Not so difficult, especially
having more access to the Internet, find and
read the descriptions on the conventional
terminology when describing the algorithms
work with 3D graphics, so that later
is not misleadingly their
own terms.
 The same applies to compression algorithms
video. What is said about the format and AVI
MPEG to Deja Vu # 7 makes me think about how
that either the author of these lines completely
versed in the matter of which
writes, or thinks that these strings are
Read a complete idiot. Further, although
provides a viable algorithm
packing-based video storage
changes in personnel packed RLE-like
method. I can firmly say about it
applicability as this method was
applied by us in Deme ... Binary Love in
1997-year, ie almost 2 years then this
articles! And this same method, only
in relation to chunk'am was used
Packaging animations Deme Forever.
Moreover - in October of 1998, ie for
few months before the Deja Vu # 7 in
echo ZX.SPECTRUM were to throw the full
source player animations using
this method. In addition, there was
posted a description of this method, an example and
complete set of tools for creating such
animations.
 I'm certainly not saying that these
sources have been used as a basis for
writing the article - the idea of ​​such
method of compression is too obvious to
do not think so. Simply authors
magazine, if they want to be objective
and provide relevant information, it is worth
see to it that appears in the world
Spectrum in terms of code, not to write about
is already outdated at the time of publication.
 Similar way, I want to say about
Some materials in Demo Or Die # 2. In
It published a number of quite interesting
materials such as Fake Phong shading
(Just where is the sample implementation, and why
not a word about ways to optimize
the implementation of this algorithm for Speccy?
Of course the source code to C - a good thing, but
only for those who are most C knows!). AND
here next to suddenly show up clearly
flop article by Devil / eTc about moving
shit and a conclusion about chunk'ov. Well, what
The first effect refers to the 1994-th year, I
say nothing, maybe it really is
anyone is interested. But how can you write about
such ways withdrawal chunk'ov in a journal with
release date - September 1999,? By the way,
for those who do not know - similar methods
used demah sample of 1997
year (ENLiGHT'97), ie this algorithm
two years ago and now there are
techniques that work much faster!
The question is - why give the magazine is clearly
outdated material? Especially if this
magazine is focused on the demo
scene. Beginner, this article will teach
only the fact of how not to display chunk'i,
and the more experienced coder, it will generally be
useless.

 And one more point concerns the patient
modern Spectrum magazine, I
wanted to stay. This phenomenon
as the intro to the magazine.
 Many publications admit a blunder,
when they write intro for his magazine. When
They may not even aware of
what they do. The fact that in mind
spektrumistov entrenched view that
intro - that's what the team to casteth
the game that this team is broken or
on the contrary, restored. Respectively
When people hear the term "intro to
magazine - in front of him stands
something like those intros, which he did not
often seen in various versions of Disk
games. As a result, something like that clings
and to the magazine.
 However, this is not true. The fact is that what
that all Spektrumisty used to call
intro really is quite different
name - cracktro. This term denotes
a small intro usually consists of 3
parts on one screen -
logo of the team have any effect, and text
with information about this release. Text as
typically contains information about authors and
the name of the original product, then
credits go to the listing of those who broke
this product did this intro, etc.
greets and information on how to contact
team.
 Well, reminiscent of the intros, you
you can see almost every game? Recalls. AND
in the magazines you've seen something similar? Yes. A
Meanwhile cracktro written only for
One particular type of release team -
for those products that have been broken
this team!
 Thus, intro of this type for
magazine - the thing is completely unacceptable!
Such an intro (cracktro) may appear
only if the team had broken the protection of the journal
and released a freely copied
(Pirated) version. Then the presence cracktro
in the journal will be justified. Making the same
such things its own products -
manifestation of sheer ignorance of the law
scene, to which everyone loves to rank
themselves.
 Intro to the journal should be small
work of art and express themselves
the concept of the magazine, to be his face. Here I
I want to stay more because this
related to another very sick now.
 Let's look at the entire set of journals
as a whole. Only in my collection of more than
fifty, and I saw a lot more. And
all this variety all journals can be
divided into 3 groups:
 1. Related Spectrofon.
 2. Similar to ZX Format.
 3. Original.
 Representatives of group 1 are small,
Still shell Spectrofon'a morally
obsolete. Unfortunately the representatives of the third
groups are not much more. And all the others
can be assigned to group 2, and we
obtain a large crowd of magazines in the
degree or another trying to imitate
ZX Format. To some this may hate it, but
let's not forget that the magazine - on
essentially a work of art and creativity
thoughts of its creators. And what we have -
a bunch of magazines with "translucent" windows
and the reader, in which the top 2 rows
discharged under the title of the article, and key
management. As a result, as a rule, even
difficult to remember - and what, in fact,
is this magazine, because they almost all look the same
face. Such unity can be an interface
welcome in case of system
programs (although just where there is
reverse pattern - each makes its own type
interface), but in the case of magazines is
unacceptable because turns them into a gray
mass, from which it allocated only rare
individuals.
 But enough of this, I started this conversation
only to emphasize one
detail. Namely, the specifics of the intro,
which are all known Max Romanoff did
for ZX Format'a. All of them remembers -
pre-rendered animation (usually something
associated with the issue of the magazine) on the background
static image. And now look back:
in most modern
magazines (those who do not shove cracktro in
as an intro), we see the same proverbial
animation! True it is now divided into
Type 2 - direct copying ZX Format'a
(In-Plane Animation magazine on the background
pictures) and a version - full screen
chunk animation.
 And that really quite strange, until such
things fall even those publications that
produce well-known groups, consisting of
talented people: coders, artists,
Musicians ... Obvious example - the last
Rooms Buzz from Eternity Industry. I do not
I understand - as the authors of a masterpiece such as
Napalm descend to such things? As
can look at it and SaiR00S Paracels?
Or issue Buzz'a holds a
other people, not those who are constantly
declare their rejection of animations
demah? Or they have no concept of
"Taste"? Do not believe it!
 And what about users? They is not sick,
taking another magazine to look at what
they have seen so many times? Or publishers
journals do not care about this issue? Then do not
surprising that their magazines do not pay off -
who would want to read the magazine released on
toilet paper?

 Try to formulate the basic idea
this opus - intro to the journal should be
not simply excuse (like "did - and
okay "), not sticky side of introhoy
unreleased game's release, but an integral
part of the whole shell that aims to
something to attract users to your
product. Unfortunately, in recent times
only the intro to the Miracle # 3 has pleased me
their originality and quality.

 Incidentally, a few words on the same occasion.

1) Remember that, as a rule read magazine
not for a time - this is not a newspaper. But the intro,
As a rule, from start to finish watching
only once. Therefore, before making
intro, from which it is impossible to leave except
after graduation, consider: how
call you the user, which will be
watch this intro for the tenth time? Example
this intro - Flash Time # 1. Same
can be said about the intros that have
so-called "entry" for
2.3 pattern'ov, during which
user is forced to contemplate the black
screen or picture (Demo Or Die # 1,2).
 Well done you can skip intro
completely, by pressing Space at any time. A
better yet look like made in the intro
Scenergy: intro would not even boot
if the user presses a key before
beginning of the boot (of course before this
need to check that he sent the keys
to prevent accidental omission).
In addition, the output is made by pressing any
buttons, joystick'a or mouse.
Remember that everyone has their favorite
device and the same users AMiGA,
accustomed to leave the intro by pressing
mouse buttons are somewhat dissatisfied
they have to reach for the "gap" to
skip intro. However, it also should not be
forget to work correctly with
these devices.

2) This paragraph logically follows from the first.
You can not (!) Insert choice joystick and / or
Mouse intro! First, intro created
for entirely different purposes. Secondly, when
this approach, the user has to
each time to wait for launch introhi only
because in order to enable or disable
mouse - the user is highly unnerving.
Third, as a rule if the settings of these
devices made in the intro, then they are not
stored on disk, this means that
user would have to each time
tune again! Why do I need this
Harassment? And fourth: as a rule
in such cases, the toggle button
described in the magazine! Now imagine
situation where the user is buggy port
kempston joystick'a. He can not turn off
his poll because he did not know button
off and can not get the magazine
to learn it because management there, as
will normally be blocked by improperly
the driver kempston joystick'a. In
result, we have an evil user
-1 Buyer for the magazine in the future.
 As an example, here is a Demo Or
Die # 2, where you can enter in the setup of the
intro by pressing Enter, but read on
the presence of this key can only be run
magazine itself.
 If everything is done on normal, then all
settings for these devices must
make a separate setup in which you can
will always fall, as it did not work
your program on a particular machine. Here
As an example, again bring Scenergy.
When you press 'S' at boot time (as
expressly written in the boot log), you
get into Setup. Moreover, its loading and
you are running in a special mode
when no extension is used.
Thus in any situation, the user will
be able to customize the work of the journal
under his car.

3) Everything that is written before about pairs
"Journal - cracktro" and their incompatibility
with each other to fully respect and
Copyright Games. Remember - you can not poke into
a bunch of autograph game
cracktro and that all their views should
show that this game someone broke. If
so you have enough to write a game that should be
suffice to write the entry to it. A
excuses as cracktros show only
Your dismissive attitude to the
creation.