Look what arrived in the mail! (Plus playing around with a Windows 98 virtual machine on my Power Mac G4 MDD)

Is online shopping the replacement of thrift stores during COVID-19? If that’s true, I’ve acquired Hot Wheels Beat That for the Xbox 360, and Atari 80 Classic Games in One for Windows 98!

First of all, I played the Hot Wheels Beat That game on the PlayStation 2 when I was a kid! 10 years later, when I got a 4K TV and a 5.1 Sound Bar, the picture and sound quality on the PlayStation 2 version didn’t look and sound good on that setup, due to that version supporting 480p picture quality and stereo sound. What I wanted was the Xbox 360 version, because it looks and sounds better in 1080p and in 5.1 surround sound (Dolby Digital), and yeah, I prefer the Xbox 360 version more than the PlayStation 2 version! Since I am the proud owner of the Xbox 360, might as well get my childhood favourite on the (then) next generation consoles! I’m surprised that Activision did not bring us a PlayStation 3 version of Hot Wheels Beat That, but we do have the PlayStation 2 and Xbox 360 versions; despite how the critics negatively reviewed the game, it should appeal to the younger crowd. Some people had fun with Hot Wheels Beat That, and we waited for the game to be value-priced, and that dream came true! Isn’t that something!

Second, I’ve installed Microsoft’s Virtual PC 7.0 for Mac OS X on my Power Mac G4 (MDD 2003) running Mac OS X 10.2.8 (Jaguar). With the recent trend of watching too many Apple ads on TV as a kid, it forced me to buy a Mac, and that’s how it began in the late 2000s and the early 2010s! But now, with the Mac limited to running Mac-only applications on my MDD G4, I decided to install Windows 98 by using a virtual machine. I used my copy of Windows 98 that I found around one or two years ago at a thrift store, and I just had my beginner’s luck at installing it! After that, I tried a few programs, including Aaron Vs. Ruth (A baseball game by Mindscape, due to the sound being glitchy in the virtual machine), Smart Games Puzzle Challenge (Brain teasing fun by Hasbro and KnowWare), LEGO LOCO (Another of my childhood favourites that I find hard to run on my Windows 10 setups), and the newest acquisition which I will talk about right now: Atari 80 Classic Games in One!

Atari 80 Classic Games in One worked really well on a Windows 98 virtual machine, but there is a bug when running it a second time that the software is unable to initialize DirectDraw, and did you know that I was running the First Edition of Windows 98? I had made sure that I was running the latest version of DirectX 9.0c for the first edition of Windows 98, and doing a few reboots every time I quit any of the games and choosing another one to play. Another workaround is by going to the folder using Windows Explorer of where the Atari 80 Classic Games in One program is installed, and making desktop shortcuts for each and every game you want to play in the collection! Simply Right Click on a game executable, go to “Send To…”, and select “Desktop (Create Shortcut)”. So to recap, Make desktop shortcuts of each game from Atari 80 Classic Games in One, and make sure you reboot the virtual machine on Microsoft Virtual PC after playing a game and before playing another.

After playing Atari 80 Classic Games in One on my Windows 98 virtual machine, I played the console port called Atari Anthology for the PlayStation 2! I brought a friend to play Pong, Centipede, and Asteroids because the PlayStation 2 has two DualShock controllers, and we had a lot of fun! Overall, if you are into retro gaming, and you love Atari Arcade games from the 70s and 80s, then Atari 80 Classic Games in One and Atari Anthology for Windows 98 and the PlayStation 2 is for you!

You might’ve noticed that I’ve used GoldWave as my main go-to audio editor. I actually liked the trial version of GoldWave 5 and GoldWave 6 on my Windows 10 setups, due to being a fan of the program since 2008 during my Windows XP days! I actually purchased GoldWave, and I’m really proud of the many features GoldWave can do! I can never live without GoldWave!

I’ve also actually made good use of the VinylStudio computer software and my Audio-Technica USB Turntable on my iMac 4K running macOS Catalina! It gave me the chance to revisit transferring vinyl records to MP3 after my initial testing back in December 2019! Unbelievable!

So, Hot Wheels Beat That for the Xbox 360, the Windows 98 Virtual Machine on my Power Mac G4 (MDD 2003), the Atari 80 Classic Games in One, the GoldWave purchase, and the revisit of transferring vinyl records to MP3! That’s what I’ve been up to! And if you like this blog post, stay tuned for more! In the meantime, I’ll be back to working on my computers! During those difficult times of COVID-19, stay safe and see you in another blog post! Take care!

Windows 10 build 2004 drops support for 32-bit PCs.

I’ve updated my Custom Built High Performance Windows 10 PC to the latest build 2004 (It’s a 64-bit PC with a 64-bit operating system!). As far as I know, build 1909 is the last version of Windows 10 to support 32-bit PCs, similar to Apple dropping support for 32-bit applications starting with macOS Catalina. My HP Pavilion a6010n is still on build 1909 of Windows 10, and since I didn’t get a feature update notice, I might be running a 2007 32-bit PC with a 32-bit operating system!

If you are using a 32-bit PC with build 1909 of Windows 10 like I do, you can still use it, but I don’t know how long the support will last! If support ends and you decide to no longer use your 32-bit PC anymore, upgrade to a new 64-bit Windows 10 PC and update to build 2004! And if you like this blog post, stay tuned for more here at Katie Cadet’s Computer and Video Game Collection! For those difficult times of COVID-19, I’ll be back to working on my computers! For now, take care!

Indigo iMac G3 and Mac OS X v10.1

As COVID-19 continues, I was working on another project: Upgrading the iMac G3 to Mac OS X v10.1!

Previously, Mac OS 9.2.2 (the French-language version) was pre-installed when I first got it back in April 2016 on Kijiji Canada. As I was looking for new ways to test more finds after COVID-19 diminishes (and after getting a proper vaccine), I thought I should install Mac OS X v10.1 for a reliable (yet buggy) way to run games and applications incompatible with Mac OS X v10.2 and later, and since it was using a 350 MHz processor, I did notice a couple of slowdowns here and there, but other than that, it’s better than Mac OS X v10.0 and its competitor, Windows ME!

I think the first most useable macOS is v10.2, as I mentioned before, but it was a great experience reliving Mac OS X v10.1 nowadays since I was trying out a PowerBook G3 back in 2008!

All I did before the upgrade was to reformat the entire hard drive on the Indigo iMac G3, because it has some stuff that I’m not keeping anymore and some stuff from the previous owner! Once that’s done, I inserted the Mac OS X v10.1 installation disc and followed the on-screen instructions! After that, I applied a few updates, including a security update from 2001, an installer update, the v10.1.5 update, QuickTime 6.3.1 (officially requires a 400 MHz processor but does fine on a 350 MHz processor), and finally iTunes 4.7.1. It took a lot of time finding the QuickTime 6.3.1 installation program, which was needed by iTunes 4.7.1.

The only thing I did encounter while installing Mac OS X v10.1 (and using the Indigo iMac G3) was that the CD-ROM drive is a bit buggy, as it was occasionally ejecting discs after a few minutes of inserting the CD to the drive. The Indigo iMac G3 is not a new machine, it was released in the Summer of 2000. The Indigo iMac G3 could be a good performer for Mac OS X v10.1 up to v10.3, provided that you max out the memory to 1 GB of PC133 SDRAM like I did with mine!

So, the Mac OS X v10.1 upgrade on my Indigo iMac G3 is complete! But there’s more exploring to do, even with COVID-19, of other cool computers and video games throughout the entire two years of the Katie Cadet’s Computer and Video Game Collection blog! Stay tuned for more, and take care! I’ll be back to working on my computers!

Sound glitching issues for Rockett’s Tricky Decision on Windows 10 64-bit.

Liyana from Toronto contacted me saying that she wasn’t able to get Rockett’s Tricky Decision to work right on a modern PC.

As a continuation to one of my earlier posts, I will add a couple of things if you are trying to run Rockett’s Tricky Decision under modern PCs, in this case, I’ve tested it under Windows 10 64-bit on an HP Pavilion 15 Gaming Laptop. The instructions for installing Rockett’s New School also applies to Rockett’s Tricky Decision because both games use the same layout by the same developer.

  • Before you launch Rockett’s Tricky Decision, even if you have a full installation, you will need to mount your disc image or physical CD. I don’t know why, but Rockett’s New School worked fine without it!
  • There appears to be some sound glitching issues in Rockett’s Tricky Decision, whereas Rockett’s New School works OK without any problems. I’ve tried with and without Creative Alchemy (also fiddling around with the buffer and duration options), and tried both the integrated audio of my gaming laptop (Realtek) and my Sound Blaster X-FI Surround 5.1 Pro, and that didn’t resolve the problem, and have yet to try InDirectSound as another step in getting the mentioned game to work on modern PCs.

The graphical glitches in Rockett’s New School also apply to Rockett’s Tricky Decision by the way.

Anyways, if you still can’t get Rockett’s Tricky Decision to work properly on your modern PC, let me know. Right now, for those difficult times of COVID-19, I’ll get back to work on my computers! Thanks for reading, and take care!

Katie Cadet’s Computer and Video Game Collection and COVID-19 (Coronavirus)

Here at Katie Cadet’s Computer and Video Game Collection, I always love collecting computers and video games (even consoles and computer software on CD-ROM) of all generations, from the early 1980s up to the late 2010s, acquired from thrift stores, garage sales, gaming conventions, flea markets, and even classified ads and online retailers such as Amazon and Kijiji!

My side-project is collecting music on vinyl records (LP’s and 45’s), cassettes, DVD-Audio discs, and Music CD’s from the early 1950s up to the late 2010s, as well as TV Shows and Movies on VHS videocassettes, Video CD’s, DVD-Video discs, and Blu-ray Discs from the early 1980s up to the late 2010s. You can find my music collection through the Discogs database, where you can look up millions of entries of music in the physical format, and shop for what title or version you want online, but most importantly, you can store a collection of what you have, or make a want list for titles that are important and that you really want for your collection.

Now, here’s the big problem of the new decade: COVID-19 (The Coronavirus) is spreading throughout the entire world, including Canada, which is where I live. All the places I usually go to, such as thrift stores and flea markets, have been temporarily shut down, and everyone needs to stay at home so that they will not get sick! It happened in around March 14th (PI Day!), and it is still occurring as I am writing this blog post. I know this is a difficult month when it started, but hey, I had enough acquisitions to keep me occupied until the virus is cured. This is a big project for the world, and research for a suitable vaccine will be completed as soon as possible.

In the meantime, I am keeping myself occupied with my computers and video games, but recently, I preserved more of my CD-ROMs by uploading the ISO disc images to the Internet Archive, including Garfield’s Typing Pal, Looney Tunes Daily Desktop, and a couple of Greeting Card Maker software from SoftKey and Expert Software. If you are at home because of the virus, I might as well provide you with some software! Also, these CD-ROMs are at least 10 to 30 years old, so they are qualified as abandonware before the upload process began.

So, I hope everyone is OK in their homes! And remember to check back for more blog posts here at Katie Cadet’s Computer and Video Game Collection! For now, take care!

#COVID-19 #StaySafe #KeepOnPlaying

Sixth Thrift Store Acquisition Log for 2020!

Ah, nothing like a recent acquisition of Tetris and Star Trek (a couple actually). But anyways, I went to various thrift stores just for the Trekkies, among the other acquisitions.

So without further ado, let’s jump right into the acquisition log:

  1. Star Trek D-A-C (Hybrid Intel Mac OS X/Windows 32-bit)
  2. Star Trek Starship Creator (Hybrid PowerPC Classic Mac OS/Windows 95)
  3. Tetris Elements (Hybrid PowerPC Mac OS/Windows 98)
  4. MotoGP 08 (PlayStation 2)
  5. Mojo! (PlayStation 2)
  6. Leap Ahead 2nd Grade (Hybrid Classic Mac OS/Windows 3.1)

Well, I think it’s time for me to get back to work on my computers. Our collection is almost full, so we might keep thrifting till we run out (aside from the price increases)! 😀

For now, take care!

Fifth Thrift Store Acquisition Log for 2020!

Today’s theme is all about 90s nostalgia! Also, the theme is PC-Centric. Back in the 90s, you had Windows 3.1, Windows 95, and Windows 98, and while a couple of titles won’t work on the latest Windows 10, some of them will do! I have a 32-bit version of Windows 10 installed on my HP Pavilion a6010n, as well as a 32-bit version of Windows Vista Ultimate installed on my HP DX5150 SFF, so I will test them for compatibility and will give out the results when I make a blog post about it!

So here’s the list of retro goodness that has just arrived to the shelves of Katie Cadet’s Computer and Video Game Collection:

  1. You Don’t Know Jack XL (Hybrid Classic Mac OS/Windows)
  2. Sim City 2000 CD Collection (DOS/Windows)
  3. King’s Quest VI: Heir Today, Gone Tomorrow (IBM PC Compatible)
  4. Cosmopolitan Fashion Makeover Deluxe (Windows)
  5. Corel CD Power Pak (1993-1995, Windows 3.1)
  6. 12000 Clip Art Plus (Global Star Software, Windows 3.1)
  7. CorelDraw 5 Disk 2 (1994, Windows 3.1)
  8. Corel Professional Photos CD-ROM Sampler IV (1995, Hybrid Classic Mac OS/Windows)
  9. Corel Multimedia Projects Group Resource CD Volume 1 – December 1993 (Windows 3.0)

These are mostly for the 32-bit Windows PC’s, and I’m well covered with my royalty-free stock library of clip art, photos, sound, and videos on CD-ROM, so yeah, I’m not gonna get another one of those CD’s, but with the advent of the Internet, browsing on e.g. Google Images is much easier than browsing from a physical format on Windows Explorer, but I still keep the CDs for nostalgic purposes. A couple of titles are 16-bit (Windows 3.x era), and when it comes to Windows 10, the Virtual DOS Machine on the 32-bit flavour is an optional component to the OS if you have old software on floppy disks and CD-ROM’s lying around your house, and I can never live without it!

Compatibility is a mixed bag for older titles when using them on Windows 10. As always, I will reveal the testing results once I’ve got my 32-bit HP desktop PC’s out, but anyways, stay tuned for more computer-related blog posts here at Katie Cadet’s Computer and Video Game Collection, and take care!

Fourth Thrift Store Acquisition Log of 2020!

Beginning February with a few nice finds! Here they are:

  1. Centipede (1998, Windows)
  2. You Don’t Know Jack 5th Dementia (Windows)
  3. Star Wars Pit Droids (Hybrid Classic Mac OS/Windows)
  4. The Curse of Monkey Island (Windows)
  5. LEGO Rock Raiders (Windows)
  6. The Italian Job (Windows)

So it’s PC-Centric, right? Anyways, I have a lot to go through so stay tuned for more blog posts here at Katie Cadet’s Computer and Video Game Collection! Take care!

P.S. I secretly found some 45’s at one of the thrift stores, and I’ve created a Discogs account just for cataloging them, so yeah, that’s what I’m doing other than computers and video games! They will be revealed as they are being cleaned! 😀

First Flea Market Acquisition Log of 2020!

Finally, a better day to go out flea marketing! Here’s what I found:

  1. Rad Racer (NES)
  2. Need for Speed Pro Street (PlayStation 3)
  3. PlayStation Move controller for PlayStation 3 and PlayStation 4

Here’s hoping that there is more to explore with these and my other thrift store acquisitions here at Katie Cadet’s Computer and Video Game Collection! Stay tuned for more, and take care!