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http://www.cwhdallas.com/lot-commodore/
Lot Commodore
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Amplified Speaker System 2.0
List Price: $22.99
Sale Price: $10.00
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Headphone jack for private listening
Cloth grilles provide a stylish appearance
6' cord to source and satellite with 3.5mm plugs for easy setup
Includes complete cable assembly and 7.5V AC/DC adapter
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What do you do when the season is over? When snow at last lies thick on the local football field and the last Bowl games are decided does that mean that you've got to spend the rest of your winter weekends actually cleaning the garage or sweeping out the attic? No...Not if you're lucky enough to own an Atari Home Computer and a neat little program from Game star, Inc. called STARBOWL FOOTBALL (SF). Limber up your throwing arm, football fans, it's STILL football time!
SF is a sports program which was released in 1982 but which has only recently received attention from the media. The general lack of good sports games for the Atari makes this program particularly attractive, because it is one of the best football programs for the Atari currently on the market. Although many types of computer games can afford to be visually abstract, we expect a sports game to reflect reality as closely as possible. In this regard, SF fits the bill very nicely. It is visually full of nice touches such as a green, one hundred yard field that is marked off in ten, five and one-yard intervals with proper end zones, goal posts and yard markers.
The football players themselves are reasonably well-designed and are quite nicely animated. Sounds include a couple of rousing college fight songs, a bit of the "Star-Spangled Banner," referees' whistles, crowd roar and even the sound of the ball being kicked.
Overall, the graphics rate an above-average evaluation and, I suspect will be pleasantly satisfying even for us hard-to-please Atarians. Okay, so the game looks good. But what about the game-play? First of all, SF is easy to play. Even though it claims to have 196 different combinations of plays to choose from, it really only offers a choice of four pass plays and three running plays on Offense, and the same number of counter-plays on Defence. While this may not seem like a lot, it serves to keep the game moving along at a brisk pace. Thus, after only a few minutes study of the easily understood game instructions, you'll be managing your team like John Madden, himself. Nevertheless, the game is not easily mastered.
It requires a combination of strategy and timing in order to score big. In this, you'll be more successful against a human opponent than against the computer, since the computer opponent is much too formidable to be of much use, even for practice. (For instance, in a typical game against the computer, a friend of mine threw in the towel after the score had reached 100 to 0. However, the game designers claim that the computer CAN be beaten, so maybe it's a matter of persistence).
Besides the one or two-player play mode, you can select from two different skill levels College or Pro. I would suggest the College level at first, but the Pro level offers the most fun once you have mastered the basics of the game. In SF, the action takes place on a horizontal football field of which only about 35 yards are visible at any one time. The television screen automatically scrolls the length of the field to keep up with play as the teams move up and down the gridiron.
As in real football, the object in SF is to' out score your opponent with touchdowns, field goals or safeties. While trying to accomplish this, you must learn to contend with the game clock, the 30-second clock, interceptions, fumbles and penalties. The entire contest is controlled with the joystick, including play selection. There are six men on each team, only one of which you control the ball carrier on Offense, and the Free Safety on Defence. The computer controls the movements of the other men. However, you get to program the pass patterns for each Receiver and the blocking assignments for the Offensive line, as well as the pass coverage for the Corner backs and the rushing assignments for the Defensive line.
Once the ball is hiked, the quarter- back has the option of running with the ball, or passing it to a receiver assuming that you have previously (in secret) designated one as eligible. The free safety may blitz the QB or hang back and try for an interception or to tackle the runner. To complete a pass, you must hit the trigger the instant the ball arrives at the receiver.
Becoming proficient at this takes some practice, so be patient! (Even then, if the receiver is closely covered, the pass may fall incomplete). Running into anyone while carrying the ball, even your own man, can result in a tackle, which sometimes can turn into a fumble an automatic turnover. However, score a touchdown and your man does a little victory dance in the end zone a fitting "in-your-face" to a successful drive! Anyone looking for a reasonably accurate and visually enjoyable simulation of the game of football is sure to be pleased with SF. The major deficiencies lie with the discouragingly and unrealistically tough computer play and perhaps in the overemphasis of the pass as opposed to the run. All in all, however, I would recommend this game to anyone with a friend who is looking for an excuse not to have to clean the garage next weekend.
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Transport Tips For Traveling Australia
Australia has six states and two territories, all of which are rather large- 32 times the United Kingdom. For instance cattle stations in Western Australia are the size of some European countries!
Whether it be by air, car, train or bus be prepared to spends hours traveling! Don't despair though Australia has some of the most breath taking scenery on the planet.
Traveling by air
The East Coast of Australia is serviced by 4 major airlines: Qantas, Jetstar, Virgin Blue and newcomer Tiger Airways. Qantas is the major airline and the rest are what you would call budget carriers. Having used three of the four (haven't used Tiger) I can personally vouch that they all comfortable and all have great fares depending on current specials (check their websites!).
As a rough guide here are some air travel times between the major centres of the Australian East Coast:
Sydney to Brisbane: 1.5 hours
Sydney to Melbourne: Just over an hour
Melbourne to Brisbane: 3 hours
Gold Coast to Sydney: 1-2 hours
Sydney to Cairns: 2.5-3 hours
Brisbane to Cairns: Just over 2 hours
Sydney to Gold Coast: 3 hours
Melbourne to Gold Coast: 2.25 hours
Brisbane to Gold Coast: Don't bother just drive it
Sydney to Canberra: About 45 minutes
Traveling by car
Remember, as I said in the beginning Australia is a vast country so if you're choosing to travel by car then expect long drives. Please make sure you stop, revive and rest after 3-4 hours of driving to avoid any incidents. Also be careful of kangaroos and wallabies on the open road, they can cause quite a lot of damage to vehicles. If you're hiring a car and going to be on the open road a lot then consider reliable sturdy cars like Holden (Australian company), Ford and Toyota. A 4 cylinder car is just as good as a 6 cylinder theses days and cheaper on fuel. The Holden Commodore 6 cylinder has been around a long time and is built for Australian conditions but most car companies are producing quality cars these days.
Always make sure you have plenty of water with you on the off chance your car breaks down.
If on a budget consider a van from Wicked or Britz which can be used as accommodation as well. Just do your safety checks on the car to ensure they are safe e.g. tyres, oil, lights etc. Here is a rough guide to driving times between the major centres:
Sydney to Brisbane: 9 hours
Sydney to Melbourne: 12 hours
Melbourne to Brisbane: 20 hours
Gold Coast to Sydney: 11 hours
Sydney to Cairns: 40 hours (better off flying!)
Brisbane to Cairns: 22 hours
Sydney to Gold Coast: 11 hours
Melbourne to Gold Coast: 23 hours
Brisbane to Gold Coast: 1 hour
Sydney to Canberra: 4 hours
Traveling by bus
I've done a lot of travel by bus and I find it relaxing. Modern coaches (as we call them) are very comfortable and safe. With cheap airfares, traveling by bus these days may work out more expensive then flying but then again not every destination is catered for by the airlines. If you want to experience major regional centres like Toowoomba in Queensland or Armidale in New South Wales, or country towns then bus might be the best way to go. The major bus company in Australia is: Greyhound, and they have a variety of packages to suit your travel plans. They also have affiliations with backpacker hostel providers: YHA and Nomads. Check out their website for more information. Hint most Australian websites end in.com.au
Traveling by train
All Australian capital cities have a train network most of which runs very efficiently. While not of the London tube standard I have experienced trains in all capitals except Perth and they are safe, inexpensive and might I say fun to travel by. A tip though most capital cities expect you to use travel cards rather than cash e.g. in south east Queensland they now use the GoCard. Now if you want to travel long distances by train then that's fine too. Here are the major routes and providers for long distance travel around Australia:
Sydney - Adelaide - Perth (The Indian Pacific)
Adelaide - Alice Springs - Darwin (The Ghan)
Melbourne - Adelaide (The Overland)
Sydney - Melbourne (CountryLink)
Sydney - Canberra (CountryLink)
Sydney - Brisbane (CountryLink)
Brisbane - Townsville - Cairns (Queensland Rail)
Rockhampton-Longreach & Cairns-Forsayth lines
Kalgoorlie - Perth (Transwa)
So that is a summary of options you have for getting around the Australian East Coast. My tip would be to combine them all so you get to experience the scenery but not blow the budget at the same time.
About the Author
Want to know more secrets about East Coast Australia. For tips, advice and destinations only the locals know about go to www.australian-east-coast.com
C64 mountain climbing game - Name?
I remember really enjoying a mountain climbing game on the Commodore 64, I can't remember the name or recall much about how it worked now but you could choose different routes up a mountain which varied in difficulty and you could use various bits of equipment. I'm thinking there can't have been a lot of them... anyone got any ideas what it may have been called?
Final Assault
Trivia challenge raises funds for RSVP
LA CROSSE, Wisconsin (WXOW) -- The Coulee Region RSVP hosted their own spin of the television show 'Are you smarter than a 5th grader?' Saturday at Valley View Mall. The brain-busting challenge is RSVP's
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