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Author Topic: Box-Soft (Read 47669 times)

Offline Zozosoft

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Re: Box-Soft
« Reply #15 on: 2007.May.07. 20:38:45 »
We need that Insane game! :)
There is it :-)

Offline endi

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Re: Box-Soft
« Reply #16 on: 2007.May.09. 21:55:43 »
Hm very simple game... but original EP game! I love the original EP programs!!!
Vigyázat! Szektás vagyok! :)

Offline Zozosoft

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Re: Box-Soft
« Reply #17 on: 2007.May.29. 16:08:57 »
The Paintbox manual is talking about NEOS mouse and Boxsoft intelligent mouse/joystick interface.
Anyone can talk more about these items?

Offline John Fante

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Re: Box-Soft
« Reply #18 on: 2007.June.07. 20:04:45 »
The NEOS mouse was a mouse originally produced for the C64. Search the net for a ton of references.

Box-Soft produced a small interface (plastic covered pcb) with a size of 2 cm. in with and 5 cm. in length that was plugged into the joystick port on the EP. The interface had a connector (standard atari format) for the joystick/mouse placed flat on top of the interface. Because the interface used a lot of power you had to connect a second small interface in another port in the EP (smaller than the joystick) that had a wire with a jack-plug (some as for tape) in the end that you plugged into the mouse/joystick interface. It looked a bit weird but worked as a charm.

I also had a couple of the Hungarian joystick interfaces but the BoxSoft version was better. Unfortunately I don't have any more information / drawings etc.
« Last Edit: 2007.June.07. 21:37:19 by John Fante, Reason: After a run I suddenly remembered much more :-) »

Offline Zozosoft

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Re: Box-Soft
« Reply #19 on: 2007.June.08. 10:28:06 »
This is the Boxsoft interface?

Offline John Fante

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Re: Box-Soft
« Reply #20 on: 2007.June.08. 10:37:39 »
Yes  :)

Just found the same picture.

The version I had was covered with thin black plastic. But is is the same.

Offline Zozosoft

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Box-Soft Screenplay series
« Reply #21 on: 2008.February.19. 23:47:04 »
"New" :-) softwares from the Boxsoft! (previously I never see any of them!)
Screenplay one (Pacman)
Screenplay two (Orbs)
Screenplay three (Galaxians)
(The .BAS files is the original programs, the .ZIP files the compiled versions, used the Boxsoft ZZZIP Basic compiler)

[ Guests cannot view attachments ]
Big thanks for the tapes to Bagpuss22!!!

Offline andrew

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Re: Box-Soft
« Reply #22 on: 2008.March.17. 23:34:56 »
Hello, Thanks for being so complementary about my programming abilities. I think I must have been about 16 when I wrote Out of this World. I never knew it had its name changed and my name removed when it went to Hungary. I knew Tim sent his software off to Eastern Europe, because he got some software back in return. He could never get any money out, though. Does anyone know what happened to Tim?

I found this while Googling around and was surprised to see the Box-soft name. But, John, I can't quite remember you. Did we meet? I do remember going to one or 2 Enterprise meetings in London.

Sorry if the Insane game disappointed you. I was quite young and got bored writing a game quite quickly. I always wanted to write shoot-em-ups, and still do get hooked on R-type from time to time (currently on the Wii). But I could never quite write them right. Just couldn't get the right playability.

I helped Tim work on the Spectrum emulator for a while, but I don't know if it was released. It was a remarkably simple piece of hardware, with some software that would convert the colour (or "attribute") information from Spectrum format to Enterprise format. I think I re-wrote that code, but whether that's the version that is being talked about on some of these boards, I don't know. I then went on to use the Spectrum emulator to help write some Spectrum games for Codemasters (none of them any good, I'm afraid). My Enterprise eventually got totally destroyed with all the re-wiring and hacking that went on, so I have no hardware to show, I'm afraid.

I still have some Enterprise disks lying around that I keep meaning to copy over and upload somewhere on the net. I don't know which could be acceptably released and which might still be considered copyright. I run a software company now, so have to be careful about legal issues.

That Paint program was a challenge. Someone else wrote it and then I added to it. The source was too large to load into memory, so we used a version of WordStar running under CP/M to edit the source. Then there was a CP/M assembler to assemble the source code into the program. It took about 15-20 minutes each time to assemble that one source file.

And I still configure every editor I use to treat shift-left as beginning of line, shift-right to go to the end, shift-up to go up a page, and alt-up to go to the top of the file. I'm used to it and I'm not going to change now. Does anyone else here do this?

Offline Zozosoft

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Re: Box-Soft
« Reply #23 on: 2008.March.17. 23:55:15 »
Welcome here Andrew!
Nice to see one of the Box-Soft members in our forum!

We have many-many questions about the Box-Soft and about the Enterprise user groups in the UK!

Offline MrPrise

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Re: Box-Soft
« Reply #24 on: 2008.March.18. 13:22:56 »
Welcome Andrew!

I'm glad you found us! :-)

Offline endi

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Re: Box-Soft
« Reply #25 on: 2008.March.18. 19:09:11 »
Helo andrew. Dont afraid about the old EP game copyrights... I think...

I want to see new (new for me) EP programs. :-)
Vigyázat! Szektás vagyok! :)

Offline Zozosoft

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Re: Box-Soft
« Reply #26 on: 2015.February.17. 21:23:22 »
Dan! Do you know anything about Tim Box?

I tried to search him on the net, but it looks a very common English name, impossible to find him :-(
« Last Edit: 2015.February.20. 17:09:10 by szipucsu »

Offline gflorez

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Re: Box-Soft
« Reply #27 on: 2015.February.18. 13:16:09 »
¡Yesterday I've found Tim Box!
And he promises to come here to speak...

He answered this:

Dear Gustavo

You have indeed found that Tim Box. Its been a long time since I was
involved with the Enterprise, Private Enterprise etc. From memory when
Enterprise folded we carried on a for a while. Just at the time the
developer of the post compiler ZZZIP (I do not remember that name but it
sounds right) was about to sign a deal with them but was told to leave asap
as once signed he would not be able to sign with anyone else. He came to me
and I added it to the collection. Really I did not sell much but it was fun
while it lasted.

The mouse I developed i.e the hardware adaptor. I think I sold a few 100
from memory. It was a reboxed commodore or Amiga device and I just made an
adaptor for it. I then got someone to write a driver for it.

The specy emulator was one of those things that should not have been
mentioned until done. I came up with the idea.
It was basically a copy of the Spectrum rom on a chip. Then a FPGA that
mapped the spectrum keyboard address to a ram location. An interrupt at
50hz would read the Enterprise keyboard and write it to the FPGA so the
Spectrum code would read the keypress's.
But I relied on others to do some of the hardware and they never made the
time so it got delayed and delayed. There were issues that I never
understood. Also if it had taken of I'm sure Sinclair would have done me
for coping there rom.

I will try and look up web page and continue the conversation there.

I a very long time ago got rid of all my stock but know a friend who still
has one I think.

All the best

Tim Box

Offline Zozosoft

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Re: Box-Soft
« Reply #28 on: 2015.February.18. 13:21:45 »
¡Yesterday I've found Tim Box!
Wow :!: :smt038

Offline geco

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Re: Box-Soft
« Reply #29 on: 2015.February.18. 13:48:05 »
Great :smt041 :smt041 :smt041
Thank you very much :)