Spook's C64 Tribute CD V 1.0
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(c) Copyright 2000 Martin Frech ('Spook of Powerzone'). Email: mail@frech.net

Online at http://www.c64demos.com



Frequently Asked Questions (and their answers), Text version v 1.0
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The FAQ are grouped under subtitles. These are the questions that are answered in this document
(look for the answers further towards the end of this document):


Getting started: What to do and where to start
----------------------------------------------
How do you suggest I browse the CD? How do I get started?
How can I find products I once released in the scene?

The Format: Where can I find which file?
----------------------------------------
Please explain the (directory-)format of the CD (ok, so this is not technically a question)
What are the naming conventions for folders within the 'demos' directory?
Why is my group not included / why don't you have the production I released?

The Collection: About the collection
------------------------------------
How many original c64 disks does this collection include?
I can't find any of my favorite games I loved and used to play. Why aren't there any cool games on this CD?
Which timeframe is covered or spanned in this collection?
Does this c64 tribute include all products released in that timeframe?
How many groups are covered in this tribute CD?
Why don't you have all editions of a certain diskmag? Why don't you have all demos released in a series?
Are all groups that ever existed represented in this collection?
Some of the demos included in your collection are really lame! Why did you include them?
Did you include everything from your original disks in this collection? Is this all that was on the disks?
Is this CD available online?
Can I spread the material on this CD?
Can I redistribute the CD?
Can I sell copies of your CD?

The Process: What Spook went through...
---------------------------------------
Is it true you single-handedly tested each and every file included on this CD?
What was the biggest surprise for you while working on the Tribute CD?
How long did it take you to complete this CD?
Why the hell did you do all this - don't you have a life?
Is it true you single-handedly did this? Who helped you?

The Source: Where all of the files come from
--------------------------------------------
How did you get all the demos / files?
Where did the scene get new stuff?

The Technique: How do you do this?
----------------------------------
How did you convert all of the data?
Which equipment did you use to convert the files?

The Details: technical stuff
----------------------------
Which format are the files in?
Why did you chose the .d64 format?
Are the files in their original state or did you convert/change them in some way to put them on the CD?
On some of the disks there are many blocks free. Why did you not zip the diskimages?
How did you deal with double files?
You say all demos and files were hand-tested singally, but my demo looks funny. Why?
How did you deal with files (e. g. demos) released by more than one group / individual?
Did you single-file copy all files?

The Future: What happens next?
------------------------------
Will there be future editions of this CD?
What can I do to help with your quest to preserve C64 history?
Will you convert my old disks? Can I send you disks to convert for me?

The Collector: Who did all this
-------------------------------
Who are you, and what was your handle in the scene?
In which groups were you when you were in the scene?
Who or what is 'Powerzone'?
Who or what is or was 'Ability'?
When did you enter the scene, and when did you leave it?
Who were your best friends in scene?
With whom did you swap in the scene?
Where in the world did you have contacts?
Which was your all-time favorite group / individual / demo?
What do you look like?
How can you be reached?




And now the questions with their answers:
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Getting started: What to do and where to start
----------------------------------------------

Q: How do you suggest I browse the CD? How do I get started?

A: This collection is huge, as you will soon notice. It can be hard to get a grip on what you want to see and what not (and believe me, you don't want to see everything!). There are two basic ways to get started on this collection. Most people using this CD are people who used to be in the scene. Chances are, they are looking for a way to indulge into nostalgia by looking at their own releases from back then. If this is what you want to do, I suggest you familiarize yourself with the format of this CD (see "Please explain the (directory-)format of the CD"). It should be easy for you to find your products if they are included in this CD. Also have a quick look at diskcovers, votesheets etc. If you just want to look around, feel free to just load any demo within the directories. Just look around and browse. One way to do this is to use the included HTML-directory, with which you can preview all releases from within a browser. Just look around and try whatever you think is interesting.


Q: How can I find products I once released in the scene?

A: If you know what you are looking for, there are a number of ways to reach the .d64-file in question. The most simple way is to go through the directory structure, it is self-explanatory (also see "Please explain the (directory-)format of the CD"). You can also browse through the HTML-directory, which allows you to conveniently preview all files from within your browser. The last option is to look at the file called "allfiles.txt", which has all c64-files on this CD listed in it. You can perform a specific search with your text-editor.


The Format: Where can I find which file?
----------------------------------------

Q: Please explain the (directory-)format of the CD.

A: The directory structure is as follows:
   1. 'help': This folder has helpfiles such as the FAQ you are reading now.
   2. 'index': This folder includes the file allfiles.txt (including all files on this CD in a textfile), allfiles.dbf (including all files on this CD in a database in dbf III format) and the browsable HTML-index (including subdirectories).
   3. 'paperware': This folder includes all the scanned scene memorabilia that I had in my original collection. It has the subdirectories 'diskcovers' (scanned diskcovers from various groups), 'misc' (includes things like posters or stickers), 'parties' (includes paper invitations to various scene parties), 'swapping' (includes papers typical for big-time swappers, like polls and formletters) and 'votesheets' (scanned votesheets from mags).
   4. 'software': This folder has the actual .d64 files, which include all of the ported C64 data.

      Within the 'software' folder, the actual heart of the Tribute CD, there are several subdirectories. These are as follows:
      a) 'demos': This folder has 28 subdirectories, each letter of the alphabet and 'unknown' and '0-9'. It includes all productions that can be called 'demos', but not mags etc. All files in the folder 'demos' are sorted by the group or individual which programmed them. Since this list would be incredibly large, it is split up by the first letter of that specific group or individual. For example, if you were looking for a demo from 'powerzone', you would go to the folder 'demos', then to the subfolder 'p' and finally to the folder 'powerzon'. For naming conventions regarding group names, see 'naming conventions' within this FAQ.
      b) 'games': This folder includes all PD games I ported from C64 disks. There are no subfolders.
      c) 'graphics': This folder includes all graphics ported from C64 disks which were not included in demos etc. Pictures are in the diskimages called 'pics' and then a number .d64. Charactersets ('Fonts') are within the images called '1x1char' (plus a number.d64), 2x2char (plus a number.d64) and diffchar, which includes chars that are neither 1x1 or 2x2.
      d) 'mags': This folder includes all diskmags I ported from C64 disks. They are sorted by the name of the mag. Within the mag-folder, the images have the name of the mag, and then a number (corresponding with the number of the issue), and 'a' or 'b' indicating the a- or b-side of the individual disk from which the mag was converted.
      e) 'music': This folder includes all raw music files ported from C64 disks. They are stored directly in .d64 files in no specific order. However, the complete (!) vibrants-disk-collection has the naming convention 'vibrnts' (plus a number.d64).
      f) 'tools': This folder includes all tools ported from C64 disks. It has the subdirectories 'assemblr' (assembler programs), 'demomakr' (demo makers), 'disktool' (disk tools, like speeders or disk formatters), 'graphics' (graphic programs, like painters or logo designers), 'misc' (miscellaneous tools that didn't fit into any other category), 'online' (tools used for communication on phone lines, such as automatic dialers), 'packer' (compression tools, a.k.a. packers), 'printer' (all tools used with printers, such as label makers), 'sound' (tools for sound, such as composers), 'utildisk' (Utility-disks, collections of tools which would not make any sense when distributed along the tools-directory) and finally 'writer' (including all the writer-programs).

      If a certain production had files that spanned more than one diskside, the files that were on the flipside of the original disk (or the 'next disk') are on the following diskimage.


Q: What are the naming conventions for folders within the 'demos' directory?

A: The 'demos' directory includes all the demos ported from original C64 disks. They are sorted by the name of the group or individual that released that specific file. A leading 'The' was omitted (i. e. 'The Smashing Freak' would become 'Smashing Freak'). The list of groups and individuals is quite long, so it was split up by the first letter of the specific name (of the group or individual). This results in the 28 subdirectories (the letters of the alphabet plus 'unknown' (demos released by unknown groups or individuals) and '0-9' (for groups or individuals with numerical names, like the 1001crew). For example, if you were looking for a demo by Powerzone, you would go to the 'software' folder, then the 'demos' folder, then the 'p' folder and finally to the 'powerzon' folder. All the folders have a maximum of 8 characters. As a general rule, if a groupname was longer than 8 characters, the name was cut off ('powerzone' results in 'powerzon'). If there are several groups resulting in the similar cut off name, they are numbered (e. g. 'command1' and 'command2' for 'commando' and 'commandofrontier', respectively). For full names of groups or individuals, please refer to the HTML index, which includes all names in full length.


Q: Why is my group not included / why don't you have the production I released?

A: Of course, my collection is not complete - by far. I don't have ALL the productions released in the time this Tribute CD spans. I wish I had all the demos or PD wares ever released, but I don't. If your production is not included, I didn't have it in my original collection, or was unable to port the file (see 'Did you include everything from your original disks in this collection?' in the 'The Collection' category of this file). Sorry. Perhaps in the future, there will be a more complete collection of all demos ever released.


The Collection: About the C64 Tribute CD
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Q: How many original c64 disks does this collection include?

A: This C64 Tribute CD includes the data from 1798 original C64 diskettes, all of which were collected by Martin Frech (Spook of Powerzone) during his scene-days.


Q: I can't find any of my favorite games I loved and used to play. Why aren't there any cool games on this CD?

A: This C64 Tribute CD includes only the data from disks I had when I was still in the scene. Back in those days, I was a legal demoswapper, so I didn't have huge game collections. I only had what was known as PD (Public Domain) wares, such as demos, writers and other tools. For game collections, look anywhere on the internet, they're everywhere these days. The only games included on this CD are those which were released with the expressed permission to spread them freely ('PD games').


Q: Which timeframe is spanned or covered in this collection?

A: Short answer: 1985 to 1999. Long answer: It's a hard question to answer, and it can't be answered precisely. Presumably this collection spans scene productions from way before 1985 to late 1999. Unfortunately, very early productions were often not dated, or they were even dated incorrectly. One of the earliest PROVEN release is a demo from 'Federation Against Copyright', released sometime in 1985, but it is likely that other demos, such as productions from groups like Section 8 or the 1001 Crew date back even farther than that. Some tools might date back as far as 1983 or even earlier, but were not dated.


Q: Does this C64 Tribute CD include all products released in that timeframe?

A: No. I am missing a lot of productions, but it is almost impossible to have a complete collection of all released files.


Q: How many groups are covered in this tribute CD?

A: Not counting groups that published only tools or graphics (so we're just counting demo groups here), there are 1278 groups covered on this CD. This covers most of the groups that were rather active and released productions that were wide-spread.


Q: Why don't you have all editions of a certain diskmag? Why don't you have all demos released in a series?

A: The demo-scene of the C64 was not perfect. Often times (especially in the times before Venlo), demos were not spread very well. Most of the spreading was done via postal mail, and delays were natural. Many demos never made the round, or just didn't get around to me. I didn't supplement or try to complete my collection with demos from the internet, because this project was meant to just include my own collection. If there are issues or demos missing, they can often times be downloaded from some site on the internet.


Q: Are all groups that ever existed represented in this collection?

A: No. There are quite a few groups that released productions that just never reached me. It is safe to assume, however, that most publicly known groups are represented in this collection.


Q: Some of the demos included in your collection are really lame! Why did you include them?

A: As a general rule, I included everything salvageable from my original C64 disks (for what was not included, please see the next question). It is my philosophy that I can not inherently tell what is cool and what is not. What is cool to one person might not be to the next. My thought was: "Who am I to judge what is a good production and what is lame?". If a group put together all of their knowledge and their time to make a demo, for all I'm concerned it qualifies to be included in this collection.


Q: Did you include everything from your original disks in this collection? Is this all that was on the disks?

A: No. There are certain files I chose not to publish on this CD. These include files that didn't work (presumably corrupted files - unfortunately, data on floppy disks becomes corrupt after a few years, and not all files are salvageable), files that didn't make sense (joke-files that just displayed a text or a sprite or files that just changed the screen color etc. ) and files that were not intended by their creators to be spread (like disk-letters to me). Almost all files I ported, however, are included.


Q: Is this CD available online?

A: As of now, this CD has no real 'home' online, but I am working on it. My long-term goal is to publish this entire CD on the web, including the disk images. However, for now only the index is available online. The actual web address might change from time to time, but my own personal homepage (which links to the current location of the C64 collection) will stay the same. Go to http://www.frech.net and follow the link to my C64 collection from there. If you would like to offer the server space for this collection (about 200 MB), or know of a space, please let me know at mail@frech.net. Thank you.


Q: May I spread the material on this CD?

A: Yes. As far as I can tell, the material included on this CD was intended by their original creators to be spread around the world. However, I take no liability for copyrighted materials.


Q: May I redistribute the CD?

A: Yes. This CD is public domain software, just as its components. Feel free to spread this CD, but please only distribute it as a whole. DO NOT REMOVE my comments or other files if you intend to spread the CD as a whole. Please show some respect for all the time I invested in building this collection.


Q: May I sell copies of your CD?

A: No. The software on this CD was not meant to be sold. These productions 'want' to be free for everyone. Selling this CD is against everything the C64 scene stood for. Show some respect! You are free to give away this CD to fellow C64 fans, provided you respect the two previous questions.


The Process: What Spook went through
------------------------------------

Q: Is it true you single-handedly tested each and every file included on this CD?

A: Yes. I really did test every single file on this CD. So if it doesn't work for you, presumably you need a better emulator or your file is corrupted. EVERY SINGLE FILE ON THIS CD worked fine for me.


Q: What was the biggest surprise for you while working on the Tribute CD?

A: There were many unexpected things for me while compiling this Tribute CD. For example, when I began the project back in early 1997, I never thought it would take me until 1999 or even 2000 to finish it. I knew I had a lot of disks to port, but never thought it would take that long. Another surprise for me was the number of multiple files in my collection. I knew that with almost 2000 disks to port there were bound to be a lot of double files, but when I really began the collection and sorted all of my files for the first time in history, I realized that I had files multiple times. The last thing I want to mention here is how surprised I was to see how many files there were where it is unclear who published them. Back in the scene days, it often seemed the most important thing was the group name, with logos flying all over the screen. In spite of that, were are 23 diskimages in this collection with files of unknown origin.


Q: How long did it take you to complete this collection / CD?

A: It took me about two and a half years to port the almost 2000 disks. I started the project in early 1997, porting the first file sometime in January. The last file was ported in August of 1999, when I released version 0.5 of this Tribute CD.


Q: Why the hell did you do all this - don't you have a life?

A: For me, the scene was always more than just 'some little kids trading funny programs', as my mother sometimes put it. Long before the internet became known to the general public, long before microsoft.com was a domain, C64 sceners all over the world traded demos we made ourselves. In our free time, while others were watching TV. We had ideas, founded international demo-groups, and built lasting international friendships. In a way, we were the internet of the 1980s. Sceners coded, painted and composed for hours and hours at end, without sleeping, just to get the most out of a little machine we know and love as the Commodore C64. It was not about money. It was not about commerce. It was about honor, it was about exchanging international ideas. It was about friendship. This CD is what I want to give back to the scene for what I received: A great time, a lot of friends, and memories I will always treasure. Thank you to all of my swap partners. I have no regrets, and this is what I'm giving back to the scene.


Q: Is it true you single-handedly did this? Who helped you?

A: Yes, it is true that I ported every file single-handedly myself. I did not copy files from other collections, every file on this CD was in my own original collection. I did, however, receive a lot of generous help from Andreas Cloess ('Gobo of Powerzone'), who built a program for me to index all of my files. And, of course, none of this would have been possible without the scene: My friends all over the world that swapped with me back in the days.


The Source: Where all of the files come from
--------------------------------------------

Q: How did you get all the demos / files?

A: Back in the 1980s and beginning 1990s, there was a thing called the 'scene'. It was a collection of owners of the Commodore 64 that traded programs on floppy disks. We sent programs we had just received or programmed ourselves around the world. Back in those days I was known as 'Spook of Powerzone', and traded quite a bit. In fact, at times I was arguably the world's largest mega-swapper, with more than 400 contacts all over the world. I never erased a single demo, and so I ended up with a huge collection that is now available on this CD.


Q: Where did the scene get new stuff?

A: After a demo or other production was finished, it was 'spread', usually via postal mail. Other times, there were big copy-parties, where sceners met and traded software. One of the most famous regular parties of this kind was held in Venlo, in the Netherlands.


The Technique: How do you do this?
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Q: How did you convert all of the data?

A: The 5.25 inch floppy disks used with the C64 are not compatible with the ones used by 'modern' PCs. Therefore, they can not be read out through the 5.25 inch diskdrives included in PCs. To port all of this data, I connected my good old 1541 Commodore disk drive to my PC at home, and used 'Starcommander' to port the data.


Q: Which equipment did you use to convert the files?

A: I used a 486 PC, two 1541 (-II) disk drives (the first one broke about half way through) and a big harddisk to store all of the data. I also used a connector to hook up the 1541 to the PC. The software I used to port the data is 'Starcommander', an excellent tool.


The Details: technical stuff
----------------------------

Q: Which format are the files in?

A: The files I ported from original C64 disks were all left in their original state, they were not reprogrammed or changed in any way. On this C64 Tribute CD, they are all collected in .d64 diskimages.


Q: Why did you chose the .d64 format?

A: Besides being the most widely accepted and spread format at the time, the .d64 format offers a number of advantages. For one, it preserves the original format of the files. Another advantage is that there is an easy possibility to collect files from the same group or individual in one file.


Q: Are the files in their original state or did you convert/change them in some way to put them on the CD?

A: The files are all in their original state. They were not changed in any way (reprogramming, recompiling, packed etc. ). The only change made was a rearranging of single files, i. e. I did not leave the files of one group spread over many different disks. I collected and combined productions from one group or individual into one folder with multiple diskimages.


Q: On some of the disks there are many blocks free. Why did you not zip the diskimages?

A: I wanted the files to be runnable directly from the CD. This way, you can read and start productions directly from the emulator.


Q: How did you deal with double files?

A: As far as I can tell, this CD does not include double files. I included every file only once to save space.


Q: You say all demos and files were hand-tested singally, but my demo looks funny. Why?

A: Yes, every single file included in this CD was hand-tested and works fine. If it doesn't work on your computer, chances are you need a better emulator. The one I use and highly recommend is CCS64, available at www.computerbrains.com.


Q: How did you deal with files (e. g. demos) released by more than one group / individual?

A: If there were productions released by more than one group (e. g. in a coop), I stored the demo under the first name mentioned. If for example a demo was released by Genesis Project and Fire Eagle, I stored it under whichever's group name was mentioned first (in the file name, in the depack text, or on the screen).


Q: Did you single-file copy all files?

A: No. Most files were copied with a single file copy to reveal the true blocksize in case it was altered in the disk itself. Where this was not possible, I used a disk backup.


The Future: What happens next?
------------------------------

Q: Will there be future editions of this CD?

A: As of now, that is not planned. This CD includes all of the data that I could salvage from my original collection. This Tribute CD is not meant to represent the entire scene's releases, but just what I had collected in my times of active trading. I do not intend to 'complete' the collection and release another version.


Q: What can I do to help with your quest to preserve C64 history?

A: As far as I can do on my own, my work is done - all the files that could be rescued and archived are on this CD. The only thing that is not yet really complete is the large number of unidentified files. In the '/software/demos/unknown/' folder there are a lot of production which were released by unknown groups or individuals. It would be great to know where they are from. If you KNOW anything, please let me know.


Q: Will you convert my old disks? Can I send you disks to convert for me?

A: No. My job here is done. If you want to save your files from being corrupted over time, I suggest you start your own project. It is a lot of fun and is very rewarding once you're done. Unfortunately I'm not able to convert files for other people as there would probably be far too many.


The Collector: Who did all this
-------------------------------

Q: Who are you, and what was your handle in the scene?

A: My name is Martin Frech. My handle in the scene was/is 'Spook of Powerzone'. My first handle in the scene was 'TSF', and I was in a group called 'M&M Worldwide'. I was also founder and leader of 'Ability'.


Q: In which groups were you when you were in the scene?

A: My first group was 'M&M Worldwide', a group I founded with my best friend. I then joined 'Powerzone', and later founded 'Ability'. For a short while, I was also a member of 'Spirit' under the handle 'Hike', but there were never any releases. Also, as 'Powerzone' was a member of 'Amok' for a while, so was I.


Q: Who or what is 'Powerzone'?

A: 'Powerzone' is the group that I was a member of in the C64 scene during my main swapping days.


Q: Who or what is or was 'Ability'?

A: 'Ability' was a programming connection I founded. The goal was for legal C64 sceners to put their talents to work and make some money programming games. There were quite a few commercial Ability releases, in fact (SoundBlaster and TriGet, to name a few).


Q: When did you enter the scene, and when did you leave it?

A: Well, I got my Commodore C64 sometime around 1984. It is hard to pinpoint when I entered the scene, but one of my very early swapping contacts via postal mail was Ultimax, later of the 'East Agents'. That must have been late 1984. I left the scene before finishing school in 1993.


Q: Who were your best friends in scene?

A: Well, having around 400 contacts means you have a lot of friends around the world. The most memorable are: All Powerzonians (Andreas Cloess, Markus Cloess, Thomas Wagner, Andre Weckeiser), Ruben and Rune Spaans (Scroll and Sparkler of Megastyle), Colyn Brookes, Martin Seegert (TGO of M&M), Nigel Brittain (Nigga of Ikon Visual), Tor Kemps (Scipio of Role), Ruediger Kohl (Stad of Magnetix) and Thorben Gerdes (Little Stegman) and Peter (The Destroyer) of the Coke Group.


Q: With whom did you swap in the scene?

A: Unfortunately, I never had a complete list (for obvious reasons...). However, I had contacts in a lot of countries, including all European countries, East Germany (when it was still the 'DDR'), Cyprus, Australia, New Zealand, Tasmania, South Africa and Canada.


Q: Where in the world did you have contacts?

A: I had contacts in a lot of countries, including all European countries, East Germany (when it was still the 'DDR'), Cyprus, Australia, New Zealand, Tasmania, South Africa and Canada.


Q: Which was your all-time favorite group / individual / demo?

A: Hard to say. I can not name just one. Some of the greatest groups of all time in my opinion are Megastyle and Horizon. Runners-up would be Science 451 and the Whiz-zard Association.


Q: What do you look like?

A: You can see a picture of me and all of the disks I ported in the '/help/pics/' folder.


Q: How can you be reached?

A: The best way to reach me is via email. I can be reached at: mail@frech.net . Postal mail addresses can be asked for via email.
