Retrospective 2024

One year has passed since my post called Retrospective 2023. I really enjoyed writing it (especially after receiving some positive feedback about it), so why not create a follow-up for 2024!

This article is not intended to provide a close representation of the progress of the Amstrad community. Instead, it's an annual overview of my activities around my favorite hobby: the Amstrad CPC/Plus.

I'm going to start with literature. This topic has been a serious focus for me for a few years now, and I'm giving an increasing interest on books, magazines, and other publications related to my preferred 8-bit machines. I had a lot of fun this summer isolating myself on my patio to immerse in such readings, or simply as a healthy screen-free activity before bedtime.

To begin with, I received some high-quality magazines in my mailbox.

The first is the issue #2 of 64 NOPs (January 2024, French content). To me, that issue represents a great step-forward: varied content, mainly for advanced programmers, complemented by satellite articles (interviews and meeting reports). I admit I haven’t "digested" everything yet, but trust me that’s a good thing -- 64 NOPs is the kind of publication I enjoy revisiting, especially for its fascinating snippets of source code that grabbed my attention but take a few reads to fully understand.

But my favorite discovery of 2024 is CPC FANZ BZH #2 (March 2024, French content). I expected an enjoyable read, but I wasn’t prepared for something so captivating. The presentation is impeccable: breathtaking illustrations paired with flawless printing. The content is exactly what I expect from a magazine -- varied, technical, accessible, informative, cutting-edge, written with an humor that does not alter the professionalism of the authors.

For both 64 NOPs and CPC FANZ BZH, I’m impressed by the print quality. It’s such a leap forward compared to what was produced in the ’80s and ’90s -- I'm truly amazed!

Again, I acquired numerous books, mainly from Micro-Application (French publisher). BTW, if you read this -- I’m actively searching for the book Trucs et Astuces 2 (Volume 17), please contact me if you want to sell me a copy. But back on the topic, I had a great surprise for some of the English-language books, as I was able to purchase few of them shipped directly from the United States at a very cheap price (I live in Canada).

Few unexpected new books of 2024 also caught my interest: Generation Amstrad CPC written by Patrick Hellio and Marion et les crocodiles d'AMSTRAD by David Hecq. Both are amazing reads, I highly recommend them (I'm still not done with Generation Amstrad CPC !).

Last year, I shared photos of my printed reference documents. What I can’t buy (or buy affordably), I print myself. I have taken a step further by purchasing proper binders for better organization. As a result, I now have documentation for all major software on the Amstrad, along with classical fanzines, various articles, and few rare books.

I also keep my other Amstrad computers well-organized (I own every model of CRTC), including my beautiful Amstrad CPC 464, which I occasionally bring out for nostalgia. With such a setup, my wish of having at least one functional machine for my retirement days is secure :)

I had already printed some articles from the venerable Amstrad Cent Pour Cent magazine. But I went much further, printing even more technical articles, all neatly organized in new binders too.

If the Internet was about to collapse, thanks to all those reference materials I would have absolutely no trouble continuing my hobby solo, haha!

Moving on, another highlight has been on the hardware front. I didn’t need anything major for my 8-bit machines (I still have so much to explore with my UniDOS setup!), except for a minor speaker replacement for my Amstrad CPC 464 due to some unpleasant crackling sounds. Thanks again, Rob! :)

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On the other hand, I acquired two expansions for my Amiga 600. The first is a simple Gotek drive emulating a second floppy drive (affordable and compact -- how could I resist?). The second, more exciting addition is a SDBox connected to the parallel port. It allows hot-swapping SD cards (no need to reboot) for reading and writing data. This has been a long-time wish of mine because, for the first time (in my house, at least ;-) my Amiga can exchange files with my Amstrad (via Albiero under UniDOS) without requiring a PC as an intermediary. Two fully autonomous machines that can now communicate each other, wohoo!

Finally, I have kept a good pace with my own creativity. I have made a significant progress on the programming of Sonic GX, whose latest preview released earlier this summer seems to have been well received. Since then, the game has continued to advance, and all my efforts for the rest of the year are now focused on the two final levels of the game. I’m optimistic and I now think that a release by the end of 2025 is achievable, with no pressure and at the high level of quality we are aiming for.

Earlier, I mentioned my love for CPC FANZ BZH #2. I reached out to the authors, and after few great discussions, they gave me the opportunity to write two quality articles for CPC FANZ BZH #3. It’s a true privilege for me to be published! The first article covers the best practices for programming with respect to the system (a theme too often ignored, in my opinion), and the second one explores my advanced use of sprites in Sonic GX. Don't blame me: it's all written in French. I can’t wait to see the final result once printed!

And here we are, with another year that comes to an end. The next 12 months looks just as busy, with the completion of Sonic GX and likely an in-person appearance at the next Amstrad meeting organized by Eliot in France (the timing seems perfect for me).

I'm NoRecess, I'm a geek and I'm an Amstrad nerd!!!
See you in 2025, which promises to be truly exciting (the Amstrad CPC 6128 will be 40 years old!!!).