Spectrum game disassemblies
Hello,
I was wondering if anybody knows if there are any websites which collect spectrum game disassemblies or listings? I have been thinking it would be great to get as many listings of spectrum games together in one place. I imagine the only ones that exist are ones that have been reverse engineered by other people but it would be great to get hold of some original listings complete with comments etc. Do any exist?
I have partially disassembled Knight Tyme 48k and I wanted to share it with like minded others, but I couldnt find such a site.
Maybe I'll have to start my own :)
I was wondering if anybody knows if there are any websites which collect spectrum game disassemblies or listings? I have been thinking it would be great to get as many listings of spectrum games together in one place. I imagine the only ones that exist are ones that have been reverse engineered by other people but it would be great to get hold of some original listings complete with comments etc. Do any exist?
I have partially disassembled Knight Tyme 48k and I wanted to share it with like minded others, but I couldnt find such a site.
Maybe I'll have to start my own :)
Post edited by speccy4eyes on
Comments
best wishes,
Edy / WSS
http://wss.sinclair.hu
LOL
That's the only piece of original code for a classic Speccy game that I've ever seen, it's hard to find it in the net.
Glad I can be of help :D.......
Saying that, maybe it could be part of the WOS archive? It would be nice to see a "Game Listing" stored with the other items in the database, like screenshots, adverts etc.
I wonder if any game authors could be persuaded to supply the original listings? :)
Anybody know what the legal situation would be with placing reverse engineered listings in the public domain (ie on the web?)
So, basically its the same as putting the game snapshot on the web then?
We could always do what WOS do and put them up until somebody objects to them being there and then take them down. Would this work?
Well, yes. It basically is a snapshot!
I've recently discovered a fascinating page which calls itself the comp.sys.sinclair FAQ, but don't know what it is or how to use it. Could you tell me if there's a place on the web where I can find a guide to using this "CSS FAQ", or if there's another FAQ which explains its purpose? Perhaps you could post a link? :p
Ta muchly.
Tbh, I've never found him to be anything but helpful. Sure, 75% of his posts point out where people are mistaken, and the other 25% are pointers to an FAQ...
But only where it's needed. You lot wouldn't believe how much he's helped some of us behind the scenes.
D.
O really? Aw shucks then, I'll forgive you Philip for your boundless sarcasm.
May your daffodils never wilt.
Cordially,
Jamie
Most certainly!
and if your one of us that`s just pleasantly plodding along (possibly drunk or high) and asks a stupid question then... hehe, then you can be a bit intimidated... :)
...............
It`s been mentioned how having the source is basically the same as publishing/hosting the/a snapshot...
Surely its worse, in that it`s the actual code to the game and hence something from a company that`s never been released, as opposed to a snapshot of something that was released...
But, maybe, that`d be a good thing, as with films, books, even art it is by law that for learning or even discussion/review purposes you can include/use/publish like 15-20 percent of a subject matter, and surely no-one wants a complete dissasembly for game X, menu, generic keyboard snanning etc, but merely anything that is exceptionally relevant or amazing/fast code, just cool, then this could be waay cool...
I know there`s probably software laws apart from general film/book type ones, you lot know more `bout that than me... so ah`ll get me bomber jacket ...
Philip Kendall may be a (ahem) "sanctimonious twit" sometimes, but surely "rude obnoxious tosspot" is taking it too far? :p
Besides, he's always helpful, even in sanctimonious mode... :)
misteaksmistrakesmisyaleserrurs— oh, sod it.That probably depends on what's actually being published: if it's a disassembly of the released code, that's a purely automatic process and adds no "value" over the raw binary data itself. Any value added content would be the comments etc on the disassembly, for which the copyright would be owned by whoever wrote them.
If you're talking about the actual original source code from which the game was first compiled, you're probably right (although I'd be much more interested in where you got the source from in the first place!)
Please provide a reference to the statute (or possibly case law) to which you are referring. The fair use provisions in the CDPA 1988 (deliberately) do not specify what proportion of a work is fair use and what is not.
On other notes, the Shadow Skimmer author did publish (some of) the source for that a few years ago. I'll see if I can find the copy I grabbed at the time.
[ This Message was edited by: Philip Kendall on 2005-02-19 00:14 ]
Have you read the 11 Rules of Writing Related FAQs about the use of "a" and "an"? :)
That link suggests "let your ear be your guide", so I guess it depends on whether you pronounce "FAQ" as the initials "F A Q" or a one-word "fack". :cool:
http://www.seasip.demon.co.uk/Jsw/manic.mac
As for distributing disassemblies while (hopefully) not infringing copyright, my suggestion would be to use IDA scripts. The version of IDA I use is 3.7 freeware (downloadable from http://sac-ftp.externet.hu/utilprog7.html as IDAFW.ZIP). This can be made to write script files containing your comments and labels but none of the original code, and to merge them back in.
For examples, see http://www.seasip.demon.co.uk/Jsw/jsw.idc (JSW) and http://www.seasip.demon.co.uk/ZX/sna.idc which is a generic get-you-started IDC file for .SNA snapshots.
[ This Message was edited by: John Elliott on 2005-02-20 11:06 ]
Lol.
I pronounce that particular acronym as "eff ay cue", so the "an" is justified in this case. That doesn't mean I pronounce all TLA's that way...
D.
This probably isn't what you're after, but anyone who asks is welcome to the commented source code for my Area 51 and Amusement Park 4000 minigames.
Egghead Website
Arcade Game Designer
My itch.io page
Fack that... :p ;)
misteaksmistrakesmisyaleserrurs— oh, sod it.www.skratchy.co.uk/knighttyme
I used the interactive disassembler (IDA) to produce the listings. If you've never heard of IDA and are interested in disassembling stuff you should defo check it out. Its an amazing piece of software.
http://fuse-emulator.sourceforge.net/
I'll take a look at the Area 51 source, that would be pretty cool, and if it's commented that'll be even better. Of course my Z80 skills are rustier than Mels wanking elbow, but I like looking at stuff like this. I might learn something from it.
As most on here know ye olde platform games are just my thing, from Manic Miner to Coconut Capers, love em' all (well most of em').
Is the source code for these games on your website?
Or will you post them up somewhere?