IsaacStorm updates and more!
Okay folks, I’m going to use the next couple of days or so to build up a backlog of IsaacStorm videos, in order to get them released on a regular schedule again. I am hoping to get this started from Thursday, but more likely, it’ll be from Saturday, and maybe Tuesday, so look out for further announcements in that regard! However, the extra time I have won’t be wasted, as I plan to use it to refine and redo some stuff relating to future projects, in order for me to be able to get them more ready to go sooner; this notably includes Whatware right now, but I do want to start making some additional progress with my “retro laptop” projects, and also a project involving albums on floppy disk, but that’s a teaser, as I currently have no idea what I want to do regarding that yet!
I currently am at the stage where I’m still waiting for a couple more Linux games to arrive in the post, one being Mandrake Linux 8.1 Gaming Edition, and the other being the jewel and boxed copies of Theocracy, one coming from Germany (boxed), the other from Thailand (jewel), though I will say that this game has been tricky to get a hold of, at least for a relatively decent price! I have also been trying to get my hands on Quake III Arena on Linux too, but I unfortunately couldn’t win a bid on eBay! Additionally, I want to try and get the PC (DOS/Win) versions (boxed ideally) of these games too, essentially for comparison, though these will be much easier to get a hold of because they’re much more common, especially as Linux gaming was in its infancy back then, although certain PC games had both versions on the discs, or required a PC version of the game, as it was only an installer that was available.
Two games where I likely have to go down this route is Unreal Tournament (need a copy) and Neverwinter Nights (have a copy), and maybe Doom 3, which I have a PC copy of. I do also need to go to my storage unit to pick up some of these games to put in the box I have set aside for this project, seeing as it’s taking time to get everything together! I also want to do a video on a Pentium MMX build eventually too, but that again will take time to get all the components for! So far I’ve the motherboard, CPU/heatsink/fan, and some video cards I can use with it (PCI), and also some RAM coming, although I have no case, PSU, or sound card yet! The sound card will need to be ISA and provide decent Sound Blaster support, but other than the storage drive, which is probably going to be Compact Flash via CF to SD converters, I can’t think of much else that is needed, especially as it has both USB and PS2 connections, and I have spare keyboards knocking around.
I also have spare VGA cables too, which woule be useful to check on my secondary monitor. I do also want to get a 486 build one day, as well as also a P2/P3 build so I can test certain AGP cards with it, but the latter is definitely more likely than the former currently, because once you go older than a Pentium MMX, you have a lot of other considerations to keep in mind! As it stands, there are DIP switches on the PMMX motherboard I have, and they’ll feature on the 486 boards too, as well as needing to consider extra components on top, such as cache memory chips, amongst other things! Ideally, I want the 486 build to be like my first PC (probably a common wish), except a bit better, so I’ll be using a DX4 CPU, rather than a DX2; this will also be using CF/SD card storage, though as wth the PMMX, I still need to work out how I’m going to handle the drive partitions and the like.
Given the 486 and the PMMX have more space for cases, there’s no reason why I couldn’t even use a small SSD as a sort of storage drive for files, games, etc, though rather than the micro SD to CF converters, I’d use some full SD converters instead, especially if I wanted to switch over to a regular SD card later, though alternatively, I may also just use the CF cards I have spare for the time being, as I have 4 of them I could use to install Windows 95 and 98 and DOS/Win 3.x, so that’s an option too; it’ll at least do for the time being, but I need to wait for them to get here from China first! I also have a proper PC speaker for each board too, because with retro builds, you need that proper PC speaker sound! I’ve just ordered 2 each of 4GB CF cards, and also a full SD card to CF adaptor, which at least opens up options for me, in case I can use the adaptor and an SD card, but the adaptors are good to have, as I never had any single ones anyway, plus I can use mini and micro SD cards via an adaptor anyway, so I have options, especially as I’m not sure if the double ones caused issues because of their nature.
In any case, I’ll eventually be experimenting with stuff when I get it all and I have the space to do some recording. In any case, what I learn with the PMMX build will help me with the 486 build, especially as I can use EDO RAM with it, which is likely what the 486 will use, so I have a test platform for that at least! I’m influenced by LGR for some of my choices, and eventually, I want to have a front loader for the CF/SD card to make things easier to change, but like him, I may eventually need to resort to SCSI, but that isn’t an issue right now, so one step at a time. From what I’m seeing with one of his videos, it’s viable to use CF/SD for Pentium IIIs as well, so that might be the route I’d go for the boot drive at least, although I can use an SSD in the P3 build for installing stuff potentially, though I have a lot I need to think about re that.
In any case, many things are progressing, but I need to start properly planning stuff out, as well as make sure I organise stuff better to get stuff more ready to go! In fact, it may be time to start up a new spreadsheet for projects, so I know what needs to be done, and how ready things will be. In any case, keep an eye out between Thursday and Tuesday for updates as to when IsaacStorm videos will be uploaded, as well as also hearing about some other updates.
Until then though, take care and I’ll see you all next time.