[Coco] Re: Nick's Survey results

[Richard E. Crislip]

Hello Nickolas

Good hearing from you again, I was wondering what happened to you. We met
breifly at the 2000 PennFest. Anyway, I'd buy another of your games if you
wrote one. I'm not a big gamer, but I do like the mindless ones like Speed
Racer, Mahjongg, Solitair and any other that I have some prayer of winning
8-). The one thing I HATED about the 80's games was that you never won
(except by seeing who could accumulate the highest score before you LOST
again. That provided no joy for me.

Also I'd like to see some useful budget/checkbook managers too. You know
something one can actually use the CoCo for on a daily basis. I know there
were and are proggies like already, but many were locked into the 32
character screen modes and restricted by the 156k diskette limit. With
modern equipment available and affordable HD systems available... anyway
that's my wish list and I'm stick to it 8-)).

On 11/26/03, Nickolas Marentes wrote:
> The survey so far isn't a raging success with only 6 responses so far. I
> guess it's still early to call but I am getting some data about the
> current CoCo market and community.
> 
> The results so far are of no surprise. Here is my summary, adding in some
> of my own personal observations from the list.
> 
> My purpose for the survey is to ascertain the viability of me spending the
> next 6-12 months of my precious little spare time to develop another CoCo3
> game. I like developing games for the CoCo but the enjoyment falls a bit
> flat if there are few people to appreciate the effort.
> 
> I see the CoCo community as a mature group of adults who are past the
> games stage and primarily interested in communicating with one another and
> are fond of OS9.
> 
> While there are over 100 users on this list, the number of "active users"
> appears far less, probably 20-25 with the majority taking a "back seat
> observers post". Correct me if I'm wrong on this.
> 
> As for active developers of saleable/commercial level products, this
> number falls even further with people such as Mark Marlett and Curtis
> Boyle as the main ones that I can see at this point. Again, correct me if
> I'm wrong.
> 
> 
> 
> I have a few questions to ask.
> 
> 
> 
> 1) Has anyone developed a new (and better!) gui for OS-9?
> 
> It's probably a bit late to suggest this but I feel OS-9 really needs an
> injection of user friendliness that may attract other less OS-9 centric
> people to OS-9. I know I've tried 3 times in my lifetime and each time I
> threw it across the room in discust with it's unfriendliness, slowness and
> bugginess. This was in the early days of CoCo OS-9 when there were bug
> lists for OS-9 spanning several pages. I understand the Nitros9 is far
> better but has anything been developed to utilize this added power of
> Nitros9?
> 
> 2) It seems to me that what the CoCo needs a central website that all CoCo
> users can look at to keep up with what's going on in the CoCo world. Back
> in the "good-old-days" we had the CoCo magazines as a way of keeping up to
> date. Later, there was ???? (forgot his name) website that was kept
> up-to-date with CoCo developments. Now it seems all that is lost. Apart
> from this CoCoList (thanks Dennis!) We need a site were we can look and
> see what products are in development by others, read up on the latest CoCo
> news and going on's (Fests etc).
> 
> 3) Anyone interested in a good pinball game for the CoCo? What about an
> arcade perfect version of Defender? A new CoCo3 update of Zaxxon, like
> Z'89 only faster and extended gameplay?
> 
> 4) And lastly, has anyone been able to find out more info about this
> mystical 256 color mode of the GIME? Does it or does it not exist? I'm
> still looking for the author of the book, "Super Extended Color Basic
> Unravelled". Does anyone know where I can contact someone from Spectral
> Associates? These guys worked closely with Radio Shack during those CoCo3
> development days and may have some answers.
> 
> 
> 
> Ok, off my soap box now before the tomatoes start to fly!
> 
> Nickolas Marentes
> 
> 
> 
Regards
-- 
Cruisen                                                         _|_
              on AutoPilot with an Amiga   ---o-( )-o---   and a CoCo
 
                                             Richard