SSDR on X1000

I decided to try out a recently released tool called Screen Switching Done Right (SSDR) on my X1000!

You can download SSDR from os4depot.net. Once downloaded and extracted (I extracted to SYS:Utilities/SSDR), simply double click on SSDR to run the screen swapping.

 

In short, SSDR is intended to allow you to see all open screens on your system and switch between them by left clicking on the one you want with your mouse.

Traditionally screen swapping in AmigaOS4 (and earlier) is done using AMIGA + M key combination. This old method has no preview of which screen you are switching to.

SSDR solves this by showing the screen preview graphically, and allows you to choose which one to go to instead of having to AMIGA-M cycling through all screens until the right one appears.

You can even preview a screen in SSDR by pressing the middle mouse button:

Having to double click on the SSDR icon on the workbench in order to switch screens is somewhat annoying though since Amiga-M is needed to get back to the workbench screen to run it (somewhat defeats the point of it). 

SSDR really needs to run as a commodity so it can be assigned to a key function. When I checked the readme for SSDR that is exactly what it says I should do - manually - by using another program called FKey:

So what is FKey I wondered? Looking around the X1000 sys:utilities/commodities folder I found it:

When I ran FKey twice (once to run as a commodity, and then second time to bring up the configuration window), I get the following screen, which was initially empty:

What what I did here is press the Begin Capture mode button and pressed the HOME key on my keyboard. I then clicked on Stop Capture Mode button. Next, under the Command option, I selected Run Program. This then enabled me to browse from the Command parameters option to select the SSDR executable. The result of these actions is shown in the window above. You can use the Test button to try out the keyboard mapping before saving, which worked perfectly.

So now I can press the HOME key to activate SSDR to swap screens, which is much more convenient and logical!

However, when I reboot the FKey mapping no longers works. It means I have to run FKey from the Commodities folder every boot! I found that it is necessary to start FKey as a WBStartup item in order for FKey to be available from bootup. To do this, go into Prefs folder and open WBStartup icon as shown below:

In the WBStartup window that appears, click the Add button:

Next, browse to SYS:utilities/Commodities/ folder and select FKey which should then add it to the WBStartup window as below:

That's it! Now SSDR will be available on bootup for switching screens by pressing the HOME key.

Unfortunately in my testing SSDR has some serious limitations you should be aware of:

• SSDR only works with screens that use over 8bit (256 colours)
• Any screen titled no_title will not show up in SSDR (this is quite common for games)
• I opened uLarn on 16bit and 32bit screen and neither showed in SSDR
• I think that SSDR also uses no_title as scrren title which may be why other no_title screens don't work.
• AmiCygnix v1.2 screen does not show up in SSDR
• SSDR is not dual display aware, so it cannot show screens from multiple monitors, as I have on the X1000.

This SSDR program has a lot of potential - I look forward to seeing updates to further expand it's functionality and remove some of the restrictions on what screens can be seen.

Mini Game Review - Santa Monster Shootout on X1000

Today I am looking at Amiboing's recently released game for AmigaOS4 called Santa Monster Shootout on my X1000.

Amiboing has released this game for free, just in time for the Xmas season!

In this game Santa apparently has developed a need to shoot monsters with bigger and bigger weapons! As you shoot enemies on screen you get more money. This money allows you to upgrade your weapons and ammunition to be more effective!

In the config program you can configure the game to run full screen or in a window.

Once you launch the game itself, you get to the main menu where you can get Help with playing the game, access the Shop to buy higher grade weapons and ammunition, access the Highscores which as usual for Amiboing are synchronised to their internet web server to keep track of scores of players across the world:

Below is the help screens to explain the game screen and shop functions. Joysticks are supported in the game which is good:

I was impressed with the high scores already achieved - I quickly discovered it will take a long time to get that high!

Next screen shows the initial Shop screen - I don't have any money to buy anything yet so we need to play the game now to see more!

I have to say the quality of the graphics is excellent! So now let's see some screenshots from the game itself:

There is a small game world you can walk to the left or right - enemies appear periodically to be killed!

The gameplay is a bit repetitive though...

 

The timer is used to calculate your bonus at the end of the level based on how much time is left. If it hits zero the game still keeps running but just no bonus for time remaining is given...I did eventually get enough money for a weapons upgrade ($500), so at the end of the level I went to the shop:

 

Weapon now upgraded, it's back to the game again, collecting health and additional ammo. With the default weapon you have unlimited ammo, but with the higher weapons you need to collect the ammo that appears when you shoot the enemies:

 

You can also collect the health bonuses as you go through the game, which restore your health. The game ends if your health goes down to zero...

Looking at the Level indicator on screen, I played this for quite some time initially and I was still stuck on level 1...

After a hint from AmigaWorld.net and some extra time with this game I learnt that you need to keep walking to the right to get to the end of level boss and the end of the level. Perhaps an arrow at the start of the level and a end of level door would make the progression more obvious. I did make it as far as level 12 - Unfortunately I got bored with the repetitive shoot - walk right - turn - walk left - shoot and repeat gameplay method!

I am really sorry Amiboing, but this game is not really my kind of thing. I think it needs platform style gameplay or more exploration element in the game to spice it up a bit. The shop is a nice touch though.

But it must be remembered that the game is free, the graphics are well done, and for those who like this type of game and treat it as just a little short term Xmas fun I am sure you will enjoy it!

Mini Game Review - 7 Boings on X1000

Today I am looking at a game called 7 Boings on my X1000, released this year by Mrdarek and available for download on os4depot.net.

Mrdarek also brought us Ami-Ingenious earlier in 2012. I reviewed that game in another earlier blog entry here. His website is http://www.lineapolis.dizzy.pl/other.shtml

7 Boings is a sort of Tetris style puzzle game with a different spin on the usual gameplay on how balls are placed in columns, and how the rules determine which balls are removed from the game when matches are made. The rules are a bit involved and confusing at first, especially regarding when balls are exploded and removed (well for me it was confusing anyway!). It is certainly different!

Fortunately a readme is included with the game than it explains the gameplay better than I could so I include it below to get you up to speed (click to expand):

Basically, you move the ball you are given into position using the left and right cursor keys and down arrow to drop into position. Then the next ball appears. The game continues until the game field is full of balls and no further moves can be made.

After running the game, you are presented with the Main menu, which allows you to select from a number of game modes. Mountain Trip is the easiest mode, and the higher modes get more difficult:

The game runs on the workbench screen - there is no option to run full screen.

At first I was confused by the colours and numbering in the game, as it made it appear that placing the same numbers and colours together it the goal, when it is not. The number on the ball dictates a match when the number of balls in a line (vertical or horizontal) will match the number on the ball being dropped. When a match is made the ball explodes, only with other similar numbered balls in the same line.

In addition to this, as the game progresses, Amiga Boing Balls appear which take 3 explosions to get rid of. The first fractures the ball, the second changes the boing ball to reveal a normal number ball, and then third gets rid of it altogether.

Confused? Me too.

But I kept trying and eventually got the hang of it. Reading the readme helps but playing it makes it easier to follow what the readme rules explain.

There are 7 columns and 7 rows in the main game, along with the Amiga Boing Balls, which makes sense why the game is called 7 Boings!

So now some gameplay screenshots, first at the start of the game, using Mountain Trip mode:

In the next screen shot you can see the 4 ball about to be dropped onto the 4th position vertically, which means it will explode, removing itself from the game:

As the game progresses, you can now see the Amiga Boing Balls start to appear. As mentioned they take 3 explosions to remove from the game. The probability of the Amiga Boing Balls appearing as the next ball increases, the further you get into the game:

 

Now I am about to drop the 6 ball into the 6th position vertically, which will remove the 6 ball and the 6 ball below it:

Moving on a bit in the game, there are lots of Amiga Boing Balls. After a while a row of Amiga Boing balls is added to the bottom of the game window and moves everything up one row:

The game gets harder the more Boing Balls are around as it takes many more explosions to get rid of them:

Oh dear, at this stage I am in a lot of trouble:

Sure enough, one last move and Game Over!:

7 Boing is now free, and it is an interesting game. Although there is no music and just spot sound effects, the game is fun to play, although difficult to work out at first.

It is great to see yet more original games for AmigaOS4 in 2012!

It takes some time to understand the game mechanics in 7 Boings, but it is worth it, because behind the slightly confusing rules is a good game!

Game Mini-Review - Equilibrio on X1000

This week saw the release of a new game for AmigaOS4 called Equilibrio. It is available from download on www.amigasoft.net and is written by DK Games. It was originally released as a game for the Nintendo Wii. I had never heard of the game before, so I was keen to try it out on my X1000.

Please note that this game does require MiniGL to run, which means as an X1000 owner you need to have a dual graphics card setup using a Radeon 9250 (I showed a detailed blog entry on how to do this here). It is also possible to use Wazp3D to run it on the X1000 if you don't have the dual graphics card setup, but note that it will be slow (I included some help with this in my Hurrican game review blog entry here).

After extracting the archive, you get the folder below:

After clicking the Launcher you can choose to create a profile, select an existing profile, adjust the sound level, and whether you want to run the game in 4x3 Window, 6x9 window, or Full screen:

In Equilibrio, the gameplay is that you control different types of balls using left and right movements of the mouse to rotate the screen to move the ball around each level to the exit, jumping and avoiding obstacles. The introduction screen shows the simple control instructions very clearly:

There are a number of game modes to select from, and you can randomly select a game mode too:

You then get to see the levels available, which ones you have completed, which ones are still locked, and your game progress:

Below is some gameplay shots from Level 1, level 3 and level 4. You get extra points for good jumps, landings and collecting stars through the level:

There  was (what I assume is) small graphics corruption in the background on level 1, which I think is because I was running the game in a window. I changed it to full screen and this no longer appeared. (I didn't have time to redo the screen shots though)

On to level 3, the curves mean careful jumping is needed. The inertia roll of the ball is excellent and responds how you would expect it to:

Level 4 - time to use the cannon - landing is tricky without breaking the ball - if you break the ball it is game over:

I have also recorded a YouTube video of the gameplay so you can get a better feel for the game - I used my iphone 4 to record it, so the video is a bit wobbly as I was trying to play the game and hold the phone at the same time!

In summary, Equilibrio's game graphics are good, the sound is great, the ball movement is realistic, and the speed of the game works well without becoming disorienting - with the constant need to move the whole screen left and right.

The game is free to download and play, and is a fun game - I recommend giving it a go!

AmigaOS4.1 Update 6 Install for X1000

Overnight (30/11/2012) saw the release of AmigaOS4.1 Update 6 for the AmigaOne X1000 and other AmigaOS4.1 based hardware. Today I wanted to cover the installation process and changes in Update 6 focussing on AmiUpdate!

To download the update you need to go to http://hyperion-entertainment.biz/ and login using your credentials you used to register your AmigaOS 4.1 software. You can create an account to register (on the same site) if you don't already have an account. Once logged in and in the downloads area you will be able to download the Update 6 archive (click to expand):

Next you have to agree to the software license agreement (as usual) before you can download it:

After downloading the file, I opened the archive and took a look at the contents:

Looking in the archive contents, of interest is the update files for the AmigaOne X1000 include new IDE, Xena, and Kicklayout files, as well as the AmiUpdate program, which is used to allow automatic updates to be deployed for AmigaOS4.1 Update 6 in the future, allowing for a simpler method to deploy updates for users, and also allowing more frequent minor updates to AmigaOS4.1 rather than large update packages. Good stuff!

Once extracted we have the Update6 folder with an installer and Readme:

Being the cautious type with updates, I read the Readme.guide which contained some useful information about system requirements (needing AmigaOS4.1.5 to install), Installation help, known issues (mainly affecting non-X1000 systems) and AmiUpdate program information, as shown below:

 

So first I double check my X1000 version, which (yes I know) should be AmigaOS4.1.5, and is:

Ok, so let's start the Update 6 Installation, which requires us to agree (yet again) to the Software license agreement to proceed:

Next we are prompted where we want to install the update to. SYS: is the default location and I would imagine for nearly everyone this would not be changed:

The Installation now proceeds:

Installation is now complete, and by default it ticks the box to reboot the X1000 when clicking Finish:

After the reboot, my desktop title bar is updated to reflect the version upgrade to AmigaOS4.1 Update 6 (click to expand):

As covered in the Readme.guide, there is now an option in the Title Bar Menu when right clicking that shows the new Update Software... link to run AmiUpdate. I wanted to look a bit deeper before running AmiUpdate, so I checked out the System: drive for new folders and icons. First, I found a new icon called Updates, under the Prefs folder:

When I open the Updates icon, I get the following preferences options to control how AmiUpdate behaves. The first window tab covers update check frequency, set by default to never check, and where downloaded archives and updates are stored, by default in RAM Disk:Unpacked...

The Servers tab shows which servers AmiUpdate uses to get updates from:

The Install and Rollback tabs cover options to control the use of the AutoInstall functionality of downloaded updates, and the Rollback functionality default lcoation for older files, to allow rollback of updates if needed:

The General tab allows configuration of the log file for AmiUpdate, by default in RAM Disk:au.log with the option for more verbose logging for assistance when problems are encountered, and the option to keep unpacked updates that don't install automatically in the Unpacked folder so that the user can manually install them (more on this later!!), and iconifying options:

Next I had a look in the System folder, where there is now a AmiUpdate folder:

In the folder is AmiUpdate and the System_Rollback program:

Ok, so next let's run the Update Software link in the Workbench title menu bar, as this is how I expect everyone will run it! After selecting it, AmiUpdate first checks if there are any updates for itself (click to expand):

Now we get the initial AmiUpdate window, ready for us to click Scan to check for updates:

After clicking Scan, we are prompted for the same login details we used to log on to the Hyperion Website earlier to download the Update 6 archive. Clearly Hyperion wants to make sure the only licensed users are able to access any updates:

After putting in the credentials, AmiUpdate comes back with one AmigaOS System update (Calculator) and several third party updates to install:

All updates are selected by default. I clicked on Update to start the Update process. It then starts downloading the archives and running Automatic installation of the programs where available:

When it got to the SDL update, it hit an error:

After I clicked OK, the update process continued without further errors. I did get a prompt for the installation of XAD RAR Autoinstall, which warned me that the AmigaOS4 version of the file I have has different fucntionality to this third party version:

At the end of the updates, AmiUpdate prompts me to tell me that a couple of the updates require manual installation and have been stored in RAM Disk:Unpacked for me to action later:

The update is now complete:

Ok, so next I went to review the au.log file contained in RAM Disk:au.log to review the log of the install, and to show the error encountered with the SDL install (second image):

Hmmm, ok...the error doesn't help me much. I go next to look into the Unpacked folder on the RAM Disk to see what manual installs I have to do:

I ran the Codesets Installer with no issues. The SDL folder, contained a README.install file which explained that I had to copy a file manually to SOBJS: folder, which I did also, no problems. Makes sense why it didn't install automatically:

However, the Mixer folder is a mystery:

No help to explain how to install the Mixer - the readme doesn't provide installation instructions. Sorry but this update needs some work! I copied the folder to my WORK: drive to work it out later. I would love to know how to install it! Perhaps non-auto install updates should be separately listed in AmiUpdate to make it easier to deselect them.

I went to the Calculator to check the Autoupdated program works still:

Finally, I went to check the version of AmigaOS from the Workbench Titlebar, selecting the About option under Workbench:

So there you have it, AmigaOS 4.1 Update 6 installed successfully on the AmigaOne X1000!

I hope to see more frequent updates via AmiUpdate now on the X1000 and more information distributed of what enhancements were made to the IDE and Xena drivers in due course!