Retrochallenge Winter Warmup '08
Week One: 12/30/07 - 01/05/08
12/30/07:
Today and tomorrow will be spent ensuring Ami-chan is in top shape.
I've been running a few tests, checking that everything (software as well as hardware) is working as it should, so there are no unwelcome surprises halfway through the Winter Warmup.
I've been thinking about my proposed web redesign, specifically the graphical accompaniment. I know I'll be putting up a few more of my banner ads (look around the site for some examples such as my anti-cellphone ad, the Usenet ad, the anti-MSN ad, etc), but I'm more concerned about what else I'll be adding. Images and adverts are one thing, but buttons, borders, and anims are a whole 'nother story.
Ah well. I have a few ideas in my head, but won't be putting pen to paper or pixel to screen until the 1st. I don't want to have a head start.
I've also purchased a couple of items for my A2000 which should arrive halfway through January. I don't specifically plan on using them in the Winter Warmup, but if they do arrive before the WW ends, it may add to the fun and creativity.
01/01/08:
Happy New Year!
It is I, the ever-verbose Conceited Jerk. The fun has begun!
The big Retrochallenge news? I've committed to doing an endurance run... using nought but my 22-year-old Amiga 2000. Shouldn't be too hard considering I can do essentially everything I NEED to do (internet via cable modem, MP3s, word processing, graphics work, etc). My only real handicaps are web related. None of the three browsers I have will render CSS, and I haven't installed SSL yet, so I can't pay my bills online. Yet. Well, that and I can't play video clips either, but I rarely do that anyway.
Today will be spent fooling around and recovering from New Year's Eve. I may hit the net to download an RSS reader, IM client, and to listen to last week's episode of Off The Hook. Might even try to take a couple of screenshots of Ami-chan's Workbench screens to show how it looks before I start tweaking the look and feel...
Anyhow, I'm off to 7-Eleven for a Double Gulp of Dr. Pepper. My ultimate hangover cure.
01/05/08:
Cooler heads prevail!
I somehow managed to kill Ami-chan earlier today. Well, kill is a strong word... maybe "buggered the damn thing"? I installed a newer version of the Picasso II drivers, and it pretty much killed the display. Took a bit of doing, but I managed to fix most of the damage I caused. Reinstalled the old drivers and nearly everything's back to normal. Just have to fix a few problems with glowicons that seem to have disappeared...
Also had another little bit of bad luck... the install disks for Turboprint 7, the 3rd-party 24-bit colour printer drivers, were damaged! Lots of read errors! Tried installing the Turboprint 6 drivers instead, but that disk was dead as well. So, off to my OS 3.5 cd... alas, no drivers for my printer were found. At this point, I was ready to grab the nearest blunt object in order to smash everything in sight... Decided to walk away from Ami-chan for a few minutes to calm down (and to grab a quick cup of decaf).
Luckily, there was a CanonStudio package on Aminet that supported my printer (a Canon BJC-240), and I'm happy to report I am able to print once again!
I also installed my VLab video capture card and drivers, and took a nice little snapshot of my PC Engine's boot screen! Why? It was the only video equipment I had nearby... forgot I gave my brother's camcorder back to him. Ah well, at least I know the card works! Hopefully I'll be able to get my Toccata soundcard working, as it can be used in conjunction with the VLab software to capture video and sound! I may yet record a vodcast!
That's about all I intend to do for today. It's 7PM and I've been at it for eight hours already and I'm getting a serious bloody headache. Tomorrow I'm going to concentrate on getting the Toccata working, maybe recording a couple of samples, and putting up a few shots of Ami-chan, both screengrabs from Workbench, pics of her hardware, and my desk.
