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| | Broad, Darron M. | |
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| | Interview | (Transcript of an email interview with Darron, conducted by Rüdiger on 2016-11-20:)
1) Have you written other programs for the C-16 Plus/4, which may ever have been released?
You can find all my software at the site given before. Most of it has some text to describe what it is.
http://dev.kewl.org/C16+4/
You look there are read all the info given and make up your own mind about how useful it is or was.
It may not be so obvious but it should be realised that in those days there was little in the way of affordable development systems or even development software available, for example, you can find my own 6502 assembler there which I wrote one summer using the machine language monitor.
I think there are some magazine scans as well, must like software, useful reference guides were scarce, you didn't have much information to go on and had to experiment a lot to understand the platform.
2) Was it the default of Players, the programs necessarily on C-16, thus with 16 KB RAM to run? Were also versions for the Plus/4 with 64 KB planned?
They only wanted me to create two C16 game conversions. They asked if I would do more but I declined. the C16 wasn't a great platform after all. I have no idea if they had any other C16 or even PLUS4 projects at this time.
3) Players has never used a fastloader for cassette. Did you write the fastload routines for this? The Fastloader was never used again elsewhere.
I wrote the fast loader and a utility they used to adjust the timing. If they didn't use it elsewhere then maybe it was because they released no other C16 games perhaps? Initially my timings were too fast and they were slowed down at their duplicators. Players made their own tapes and I seem to remember that they were recorded at 16X speed.
4) Were there also plans for disk versions that the players had not sold for C-16 Plus/4?
I highly doubt it. I did get the C64 versions on disc I believe which is what I was asked to emulate but I am not even sure if they were on sale.
5) Did you have contact with other programmers at the time from the scene or with programmers who worked for other software houses?
My best friend at the time and even now wrote spectrum conversions such as CONFUZION and G.A.C. but you didn't even leave your house in those days so I didn't visit players or meet anyone else. Remember, there was no internet or e-mail, no mobile phones, you only stayed in touch with landlines or letters. |
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darron(at)kewl dot org