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WebDog posted:No love for the Microsoft Easyball? I think I'd love it,but at the same time 
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Nov 22, 2012 10:27
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Well, at least it's a trackball that knows its lineage. That is the very first trackball. It was invented for use in a battlefield information system for the Canadian Navy, and yes, that is a Canadian 5-pin bowling ball.
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Nov 22, 2012 11:26
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All your puny joysticks are no match for this beast I had on my Atari ST. This thing was indestructible because it was made from steel. HooRah.
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Nov 22, 2012 11:36
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I wonder how the joystick market is doing these days? Are flight sims still pretty popular? The space sim genre has gotten kind of away from the Freespace model and the 360 controller has become so ubiquitous as the kb+m alternative, especially as people forget what it was like to play in arcades.
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Nov 22, 2012 14:08
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There's a bit of a niche market for fighting game joysticks, usually costing at least $130 and working their way up from there depending on construction, exclusivity, and country of origin (such joysticks are huge and heavy and not cheap to ship internationally). Most high-profile console fighting games will have some form of deluxe stick from MadCatz with the buttons correctly laid out, and they're generally specifically designed to be user-serviceable, either to replace failing components or to upgrade the components with ones which are either better or more familiar to the user (e.g. replacing a joystick with a ball on the top with a teardrop-shaped joystick, or swapping concave buttons for convex ones). Most joysticks and their parts are essentially invincible, though. Those who take their fighting games extremely seriously can usually get joysticks that precisely recreate the button layout in an arcade cabinet; I've seen joysticks like this go for in the $400 range. Interestingly, there are now Wii U sticks for Tekken Tag Tournament 2, so it seems this will continue as long as fighting games keep getting released. I don't think there's much left in the flight stick world, mainly because there's very little in terms of flight sim software being made these days, but they're still available from Saitek and possibly a few other manufacturers.
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Nov 22, 2012 14:30
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Regarding fighting sticks, some people build their own with parts from companies like Ultimarc. Components for a basic 8-button (plus start button) stick will cost about $50-60 bucks if you gut a gamepad or USB keyboard for the electronics. Then you have to make some kind of box for it, but if you do it right you'll have an arcade-quality stick that will last for a long-rear end time and be perfect for that  10000-game MAME collection.This is all-digital controls, though. For fancier games that require analog sticks, things get a lot harder. KozmoNaut has a new favorite as of 14:41 on Nov 22, 2012 |
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Nov 22, 2012 14:39
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einTier posted:Indestructible was this monster. The Kempston, the Bat Handle and the Tac-2 were pro-tier joysticks. 
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Nov 22, 2012 14:42
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univbee posted:Those who take their fighting games extremely seriously can usually get joysticks that precisely recreate the button layout in an arcade cabinet; I've seen joysticks like this go for in the $400 range. Try like 500 to 600 minimum. But yeah, I wouldn't consider Fight Sticks to be obsolete, more people own them then ever before and they're used for a genre of games that has become extremely popular in the last decade. Also your statement is slightly incorrect. Almost commercially available arcade sticks are recreations of an arcade layout. The most common are the SEGA layouts and as of late the Namco Noir layout has been more popular along with a very small segment of people who use the "straight" six layout popularized by American SF2 cabinets. What makes expensive sticks expensive is that they have a large amount of custom electronics work done to them along with woodworking, plexiglass cutting, and art printing to create the casing. Not to mention just the buttons, lever and internals are a about a hundred bucks on their own. Its a huge problem IMHO when it comes to fighting games these days, the barrier to entry is too high even if you buy used (always do this when getting sticks) and even if you take the most economical route to getting a "good" stick (ie one with decent buttons and a good quality stick that wont drop inputs or break) its still about sixty or seventy dollars and that requires some pre knowledge or someone telling you what to do (get a PS1 Namco stick or a Dreamcast ASCII and run it through a converter!). My stick for instance has a custom painted wood box, two etched panels in the bottom of it, buttons that have gold leaf in them, braided cables, LED's that light up when a button is pressed, a custom dust washer and Joystick ball in addition to being able to work on both the PS3 and Xbox 360 (which is a expensive operation if you only want to use one cable because Microsoft doesn't use standard USB drivers like Sony does). poo poo is expensive.
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Nov 22, 2012 17:34
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I love champloo and that is an awesome stick. I used Zipsticks and Competition Pro Joysticks exclusively on the Amiga until I realised Mega Drive controllers plugged straight into it and gave me access to a second button 
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Nov 22, 2012 18:01
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I would definitely say that up until very recently those old style joysticks that use the rubber membrane to center themselves were pretty much obsolete. But now all the major Tekken and Soul Cal players swear by them so they're starting to come back in a big way.
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Nov 22, 2012 19:58
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That is a thing of beauty man, if you don't mind me asking, how much did it cost to build in the end?
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Nov 24, 2012 14:32
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Those old school sticks may have great form and last forever but I am extremely happy that I haven't had to do a joystick calibration in ten or fifteen years. That was not fun.
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Nov 24, 2012 16:49
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Base Emitter posted:Weren't these absolute positioning devices that you used with something like a Wacom style tablet? You could digitize off an actual drawing... Yes they are. There's some sort of wire grid embedded in the tablet itself that they use to determine position. They're sort of obsolete, but still used in some situations. I've actually ordered a new one in the last couple of years. The main manufacturer is GTCO-Calcomp, but they used to be made by Lockheed. Calcomp still uses the Lockheed star in their logo. They come in wacom-sized tablets, drafting table sized ones(complete with legs) and roll up mats in a few different sizes. I've seen them used for digitizing maps for oil and gas stuff, and for performing construction takeoffs from plan sheets. My current employer uses digital takeoffs(You do the takeoff entirely in a program) either using plan sets printed to PDF and set scales, or with some of the newer BIM stuff, directly from the building model. I've had a few people, including some of the younger guys, tell me that using a digitizer is slightly more accurate, though I don't buy it in the case of the BIM stuff. Interesting tidbit: They do make modern, USB versions but no one loving buys them. Every single one I've ever set up has used a serial interface. Citizen Z has a new favorite as of 17:13 on Nov 24, 2012 |
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Nov 24, 2012 17:07
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univbee posted:
You said it, bro. God,I miss myself some flight/space sims. Descent:Freespace and it's sequel will always hold a place in my heart. They really should reboot the regular Descent series.
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Nov 24, 2012 18:26
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DicktheCat posted:You said it, bro. OR how about a spiritual successor of Wing Commander by the man who created the series in the first place. http://www.robertsspaceindustries.com/ If only he could get the license back...
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Nov 24, 2012 19:06
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Here's something that's pretty obsolete, though I'm impressed that a computer can still work after that long. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-20395212 I love the clickety clack sounds it makes: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mT6FHLnCT28
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Nov 24, 2012 19:11
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  My first cochlear implant processor, way back when I was 6. It's long since been replaced by much smaller, more compact, cordless versions, but I'll never forget this one. It gave me back my ability to hear.
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Nov 24, 2012 20:53
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Elim Garak posted:Those old school sticks may have great form and last forever but I am extremely happy that I haven't had to do a joystick calibration in ten or fifteen years. That was not fun. Those joysticks that were just posted are digital. Four directions and one fire button. The diagonals are just the two component directions combined.
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Nov 24, 2012 21:49
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WebDog posted:I always thought this was the bastard grandchild of these. Oh, this predates Star Wars by a couple of decades. In old issues of Famous Monsters from the early Sixties, the back pages were full of ads for Super 8 edits of old sci-fi and monster movies. And if you were willing to pay the grand price of $35 you could even get complete 8 or 16mm silents like Nosferatu or Cabinet of Dr. Caligari. Stuff that predates home video is interesting. There was a line of film books of classic movies, which used pictures of actual frames from the film with dialogue alongside them.
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Nov 24, 2012 21:50
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DicktheCat posted:They really should reboot the regular Descent series. You're in luck, kinda: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OxOxiOQ4sXU
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Nov 24, 2012 21:55
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Toast Museum posted:You're in luck, kinda: drat. If that ever goes anywhere I'd play the hell out of it. After stocking up on Dramamine, of course.
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Nov 24, 2012 22:56
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Maxwell Lord posted:Oh, this predates Star Wars by a couple of decades. In old issues of Famous Monsters from the early Sixties, the back pages were full of ads for Super 8 edits of old sci-fi and monster movies. And if you were willing to pay the grand price of $35 you could even get complete 8 or 16mm silents like Nosferatu or Cabinet of Dr. Caligari. Early 16mm Kodascopes are actually rather rare now, since they were printed on good quality, high silver content film. During WWII, the price of silver shot up and many film libraries melted down their less popular titles to reclaim the silver. For silent film collectors, original Kodascopes and Show-At-Homes are prized second only to nitrate. quote:Stuff that predates home video is interesting. There was a line of film books of classic movies, which used pictures of actual frames from the film with dialogue alongside them. Edit:  For illustration, here's some home movies from the '20s. The 28mm film (the big one) was released in 1920. It's a one-reel version of System Is Everything (1918), which was originally a two-reeler. The 16mm film (the Kodascope) was released in 1924. It's Monkeyland (1923) and isn't actually a digest -- it's the whole one-reel short. A lot of Kodakscope are either the full film or only slightly abridged. The 9.5mm film (in the box) was released in 1929. It's Trumpet Island (1920). The film was originally a seven-reel feature. This digest is shortened to around 1.5 reels. Like most 9.5mm releases, it's been renamed. They call it The Hand of Fate. Like I was saying before, home movie versions are often invaluable because all other material has been lost to archive fires. In the case of Trumpet Island, this edit is all that survives. Qotile Swirl has a new favorite as of 01:43 on Nov 25, 2012 |
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Nov 25, 2012 01:24
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If you want to talk weird film formats, there's Scopitones. An early version of music videos you could watch in a jukebox. Here's an example: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=io7taNUIly4
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Nov 25, 2012 01:43
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Qotile Swirl posted:nitrate Ugh gently caress nitrate. I've been collecting film half my life (I'm 26) and I have a couple of nitrate newsreels that I'm still too scared to run with the lamp on. For those that don't know, nitrate film was the only film stock used for 35mm film prints up until the 1950s, although prints circulated later than that. It is essentially guncotton and extremely flammable. As it breaks down it spontaneously combusts. You cannot put nitrate film fires out with water, it generates oxygen as it burns and will burn underwater once alight.
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Nov 25, 2012 01:43
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Ron Burgundy posted:For those that don't know, nitrate film was the only film stock used for 35mm film prints up until the 1950s, although prints circulated later than that. It is essentially guncotton and extremely flammable. As it breaks down it spontaneously combusts. You cannot put nitrate film fires out with water, it generates oxygen as it burns and will burn underwater once alight. It was also used in pyrotechnic effects, which is what happened to most of the "lost movies" of the silent era - studios weren't going to reissue the movies, so why waste space archiving the reels when there was a good use for them? 
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Nov 25, 2012 01:54
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NonzeroCircle posted:That is a thing of beauty man, if you don't mind me asking, how much did it cost to build in the end? Well it was always pretty much my favorite custom stick I'd ever seen when it was built, so when the guy who originally owned it sold it I bought it from him almost instantly. I paid a bit over 200 USD for it, and I think it cost him about 650 or 700.
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Nov 25, 2012 02:39
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Ron Burgundy posted:Ugh gently caress nitrate. I've been collecting film half my life (I'm 26) and I have a couple of nitrate newsreels that I'm still too scared to run with the lamp on. You could probably rig something up with a high-powered LED light - they make some bright enough to make reasonable projector lamps these days, at least in dark rooms, and they barely get 1/100th as hot as comparable filament or arc bulbs.
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Nov 25, 2012 02:40
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Dial Up Internet Can't get more irritatingly obsolete than that. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WFLkGoSHQXM tldr of the lovely cell phone video: I dialup at 33.6k and attempt to load this very page. It takes too long to connect from a bookmark and I have to refresh. After 5 minutes of trying to load, the SA servers just say "gently caress You!" and quit and leave the page half loaded.
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Nov 25, 2012 05:15
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El Estrago Bonito posted:Try like 500 to 600 minimum. wait what? You can get a really nice EightArc for like ~220 dollars tops and a madcatz TE stick will only run you around a hundred.
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Nov 25, 2012 06:08
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Ron Burgundy posted:Ugh gently caress nitrate. Indeed gently caress nitrate. I've had quite a few magnetic (reel-to-reel) audio tapes and they would snap in you gave them a mean look. Fix it up with sticky tape? No I don't think so. The tape would catch on the capstan and the result was that the tape unraveled from BOTH spools, and if you tried to stop the reeels manually, the tape would snap. gently caress nitrate.
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Nov 25, 2012 18:16
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GAY 4 ORGANS
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Toiletron 9000 posted:Dial Up Internet Post the very best in obsolete and failed technology [56k No Way!]
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Nov 25, 2012 19:25
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Scionix posted:wait what? You can get a really nice EightArc for like ~220 dollars tops and a madcatz TE stick will only run you around a hundred. I'm talking high quality custom sticks not commercially made ones. Eightarc and Madcatz make good sticks (I own a TE-S and it works quite well, for instance) but there is a big gap between something like an Eightarc Fusion and stuff made by these guys: B15DSM    Tek Cases  Souji  Shadaloo  
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Nov 25, 2012 23:08
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El Estrago Bonito posted:I'm talking high quality custom sticks not commercially made ones. Eightarc and Madcatz make good sticks (I own a TE-S and it works quite well, for instance) but there is a big gap between something like an Eightarc Fusion and stuff made by these guys: Is there anything steampunk can't do ? 
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Nov 25, 2012 23:25
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Fozaldo posted:Is there anything steampunk can't do ? Yes. 
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Nov 25, 2012 23:35
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Ron Burgundy posted:Ugh gently caress nitrate. I've been collecting film half my life (I'm 26) and I have a couple of nitrate newsreels that I'm still too scared to run with the lamp on. Jedit posted:It was also used in pyrotechnic effects, which is what happened to most of the "lost movies" of the silent era - studios weren't going to reissue the movies, so why waste space archiving the reels when there was a good use for them?
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Nov 26, 2012 00:18
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That steamstick looks pretty good except for the goddamn loving useless gearsMadScientistWorking posted:Actually its a problem endemic to a lot of film stock because if I remember correctly the next technological development in film stock still degraded but wasn't actually explosive. That would be cellulose acetate film. Wiki: quote:Decay and the "vinegar syndrome"
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Nov 26, 2012 00:57
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My film storage area smells like a salad.
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Nov 26, 2012 01:46
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I saw this on Youtube, and I thought I had saved it, but there was a piano using British(?) technology that used pieces of audio tape to play music. Anyone know what I am talking about? It might have even been posted in this thread.
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Nov 27, 2012 01:58
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b0nes posted:I saw this on Youtube, and I thought I had saved it, but there was a piano using British(?) technology that used pieces of audio tape to play music. Anyone know what I am talking about? It might have even been posted in this thread. The Mellotron. A staple of 70s music.
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Nov 27, 2012 02:03
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Mister Kingdom posted:The Mellotron. A staple of 70s music. Thanks that's it! Well going on that link I guess they are not obsolete since people are still using them today.
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Nov 27, 2012 02:10
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