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 _.________
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  \   /____(\_       \_    _   \_     __/\_   ____/__
  /______    /   /____/    _    /    /    /    /    /::::::::::::: :  :
_.¡    |/   /|_____( (____/(___(_________(_________(k4K!
\||____!___(          _.________                             _.________
                      \     _  /_._________.______  _.______ \    _   /_
                       ¡    /_  \_    _   \_     /__\_     /__\   /____(__
     :  : :::::::::::::|    |/   /    _    /    /    /    /   /______    /
                       |________(____/(___(_________(_________¡    |/   /__
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                              scenery project
                                 - c 6 4 -

                   scenery64 version 2.00 (january 2004)
               (c) 1996-2004 Glenn "menace/spaceballs" Lunder

                               www.c64hq.com
                        www.exotica.org.uk/info/scenery/


---[ editorial ]-----------------------------------------------------------

Welcome, first of all, to scenery64 version 2.00. We hope this collection
of information will be of use to you, and provide an interesting read as
well as serve as reference material for those of you who collect and love
everything about the c64 demoscene. We still make no claims (far from it)
of being neither perfect nor 'definite', but we try as hard as we can, and
hopefully at least some of you will be pleased with the results :] As you
can see for yourself, the list of major new additions/changes since the
last release is pretty big, but still doesn't even come close to suggesting
the amount of fixes and additions since our last release. Enjoy...

But the biggest change is not with the content, really, it's in where we
are now. As of january 2004 we are officially a part of the c64hq website.
This does not only mean hosting of the text, there are plans for bigger
and (much) better things in the future. ;] Keep checking back often!
I would like to extend my thanks for the tireless support and boundless
enthusiasm from Ville, Andry and especially Andreas in this ongoing
process. You guys rule! :]

A few words on scenery amiga and pc as well, as long as I've got your
attention: Amiga is currently undergoing a major overhaul. I was aiming
for a january 1st release, but this proved impossible and it has now been
postponed until a more realistic "when it's done." PC is in a state of
minor limbo atm, and will not be released in its current state. We have
just over 500k of pure text atm, but we will need to expand it a lot before
we are pleased enough to do anything like even consider a release. Sorry
for the delays, but time is a sparse commodity. Interested parties may
contact me for snapshots, as usual.


menace/spaceballs^boozoholics
glenn at dritings dot no



---[ news ]----------------------------------------------------------------

These are the MAJOR news since the last version;

2000 AD (review "Party"), Abnormal (review "Hawkeye, The Rip"), Actual
Trading Generation (review "Corruption #1"), Agony (review "Love"), Beyond
Force (review "Oh No, More Dots!"), Black Mail (review "So-Phisticated 3"),
Blaze (review "Addybook #7"), Byterapers (review "Unsound Minds: Follow The
Sign 3"), Clique (incomplete review "Script #5"), Creators (review "CTR
Sonix #09"), Crest (updated review "2 Years Crest", review "Trust Your
Eyes" and "Krestage - Back 2 The Roots"), Depth (review "Partyscroller"),
Domination (review "Domination #18"), Dominators (review "Corruption #12"),
Dual Crew (review "Gunnar-2: Galne Gunnar"), Excess (review "Nitro #19"),
Extend (updated "Orangi."), Fairlight (major long-overdue overhaul; reviews
"Legoland", "Reformation #4", "Reformation #5"), Gloom (all demos added),
Light (review "Brutal"), Oxyron (review "Attitude #5", "Skyhigh #2"), Padua
(review "Breakpoint Invitation"), Phuture (review "Relax #15"), Rebels
(review "News Press #16"), Reflex (review "Access Denied"), Shadows (review
"The First Pimplesqueezer"), Smash Designs (productions added), The
Remembers (review "Sidburners #1"), The Sharks (review "Technophobia"),
Triad (new reviews "Gamers Guide #1" to "Gamers Guide #5" with additional
new info), Zoko Team (reviews "Exquisite" and "Exquisite II").

...and a few hundred - nay, THOUSAND minor fixes/additions! ;]


---[ releaselist ]---------------------------------------------------------

Having recently introduced the (still massively underdeveloped ;])
releaselist to the scenery64 package, we felt it was perhaps appropriate to
explain some of the philosphies we fund its development on. We hope that as
the list grows longer (and thus becomes more complete), it can help us
answer many questions regarding scene history. Well, at least that's the
idea ;)

We have chosen to list the release date (if known), the specifications of
the crack (trainers, docs included, loaderpicture included etc), the
cracker(s) and the size of the crack (files/blocks). Any additional
information that seems important is included as a comment in that month's
notes section. This might include information such as who imported a
specific title to the usa etc. We have decided to put an emphasis on size.
While size is not the final word in the quality of a crack, a smaller size
does in many cases signal a better understanding of the game data, and thus
a better crack.

Some of the the shortforms you'll encounter while browsing the releaselist
are these;

1st - a claimed first release.
dox - documentation included in a separate file, not counted as part of the
      game's size.
pic - Loader picture included as a separate file.
fix - fixed for the american ntsc video system.
iffl - an iffl loader system was installed.

We are planning more extensions for these files; once we reach a certain
amount of entries, we are contemplating including some statistics - top
cracker, top cracker group etc - for each month and each year. We are
currently considering how to implement these ideas.

Stay tuned...


---[ how to read ]---------------------------------------------------------

A number of people (including some in our own team, hi Ville ;]) have
expressed concerns over the readability of some of scenery. I have taken the
first steps towards a better explanation of it all, and a general guide,
with what is here...

*** WORK IN PROGRESS, SEE SEPARATE FILE ***


---[ net ]-----------------------------------------------------------------

We are proud to recommend the following excellent c64 sites for your own
further exploration. For your convenience, we have sorted them into
subcategories.

:: general ::

Sites listed under this heading are portals or resource sites, and excellent
starting points for an exploration of the c64 universe.

http://www.c64.sk - Is simply the best news portal for c64 users, a site we
  personally visit each and every day, and who deserves the support of
  everyone with in an interest in the c64.

http://www.c64hq.com aims to provide exclusive nostalgic content and rare
  demos and games to the public, and has helped us secure hard-to-find
  productions in the past. Another recommended bookmark.

http://www.c64.org is a portal, offering a link database and a an automated
  news service.

http://www.c64.com offers lots and lots of game downloads.

http://www.lemon64.com offers lots and lots of game downloads.

http://pirates.emucamp.com is the "Pirates Portal", maintained by Rough, who
  has helped us with information in the past. Give it a look, it's worth it!

http://www.totalkaos.de is a forum for oldskool c64 sceners... a lot of
  celebrities from times past hanging out here.


:: ftp sites ::

These are the motherlode, where all the new releases can be found first, and
which also hosts massive archives of c64 software.

The Digital Dungeon
  ftp://ftp.scs-trc.net/pub/c64/

Gangsta's Paradise
  ftp://c64.rulez.org/pub/c64/

Banana Republic
  ftp://ftp.elysium.pl

Going For Gold
  ftp://ftp.padua.org/pub/c64/

Rash Refection [no longer updated]
  ftp://ftp.ludd.luth.se/pub/c64/


:: emulators ::

Emulators are a necessary evil for the modern c64 scener. They will never
replace legacy hardware completely - no emulation ever can, and in an ideal
world everyone would own the necessary hardware to transfer and view demos
on their native hardware. Not so in the real world, I'm afraid. While there
are many emulators available, the two most commonly-used for the windows
platform are likely CCS64 and VICE. Each have their strong and weak points,
though CCS64 appears to be in a development limbo at the moment. We urge
users to make up their own mind over which they prefer. Users on other
platforms (linux, mac) also have emulators available, though unfortunately I
am not well informed enough about these to make a recommendation. If anyone
wants to help out by writing a few lines about c64 emulators on alternative
platforms, feel free to email us!

http://www.computerbrains.com - CCS64 emulator by Per Håkan Sundell. Sundell
  is known to amiga sceners as the cracker PHS/CCS - and, under his real
  name, as one of the authors of PlaySid. No new version has been released
  for nearly a year as of this writing, but the project has apparently NOT
  been taken abandoned.

http://viceteam.bei.t-online.de - The VersatIle Commodore Emulator (VICE) is
  an emulator for the C64, C128, VIC20, PET and CBM-II machines, and is in
  constant development. Check back often for new versions.


---[ winners  ]------------------------------------------------------------

For statistical reasons (and perhaps to finally find worthy candidates for
EACH year), here are the 'demo of the year' winners...

1987 - n/a
1988 - Vision "Legalise It" (holland)
1989 - n/a
1990 - n/a
1991 - Blackmail "Dutch Breeze" (holland)
1992 - n/a
1993 - Camelot "Tower Power" (denmark)
1994 - Reflex "Access Denied" (germany)
1995 - Oxyron "Dawnfall" (germany)
1996 - Byterapers Inc. "Unsound Minds: Follow The Sign 3" (finland)
1997 - Smash Designs "Second Reality" (germany)
1998 - n/a
1999 - n/a
2000 - Crest "Deus Ex Machina" (germany)
2001 - Booze Design "Royal Arte" (sweden)
2002 - Crest "Digital Magic" (sweden)
2003 -

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