Zork Series Availability

On Jan 26, 6:25 pm, Jim Aikin <midigur... RemoveThis @sbcglobal.net> wrote:

> What I couldn't find at the time were Enchanter, Sorcerer, and
> Spellbreaker. Are these available, either in MS-DOS or as .z5 files?

I've had good luck downloading files from Home of the Underdogs
<http://www.the-underdogs.info/>, an abandonware site that has a great
interactive fiction section. They have downloads of both IF that is
freely redistributable (shareware, freeware, free software, etc), and
IF that is no longer published (like old Infocom titles). I'm pretty
sure that downloading the ZIP, taking the .DAT files out, and renaming
them to .z5 (or other .zn extensions) rendered something I could play
in modern interpreters, though it's been a while since I tried it.
 >> Stay informed about: Zork Series Availability 

Jim Aikin wrote:
> I have a vague recollection that a couple of years ago I downloaded Zork
> I, II, and III in MS-DOS format, but I can't find them on my hard drive.
> Are they still available anywhere?
>
> What I couldn't find at the time were Enchanter, Sorcerer, and
> Spellbreaker. Are these available, either in MS-DOS or as .z5 files?
>
> I would never pirate software, but it does seem as if the potential for
> commercial exploitation of these copyrighted materials is not what it
> once was. It would be sort of like pirating Windows 3.1 or something.
> Not precisely, as the games are still fun, but in terms of the
> commercial potential, there's not all that much of a difference.

IIRC, Zork was available legally from Activision at some point but was
pulled back later. I guess trying your luck at eBay is the only legal
option. As it happens, people were known to sell illegal copies of
classic games at eBay while advertising them as genuine.

Personally, I don't have any moral constraints when copying software
from the stone age
 >> Stay informed about: Zork Series Availability 

Nikos Chantziaras wrote:
>
> IIRC, Zork was available legally from Activision at some point but was
> pulled back later. I guess trying your luck at eBay is the only legal
> option. As it happens, people were known to sell illegal copies of
> classic games at eBay while advertising them as genuine.

Al's link worked on that one. ZI, ZII, and ZIII are available. I'm
wondering what format a copy of any of the other games would be in that
could run in WinXP. I suppose DOS....

> Personally, I don't have any moral constraints when copying software
> from the stone age

Well, if the company (a) still exists and (b) has marketed the software
within the last two or three years, I think a strong case could be made
that copying it would be wrong. Absent those two factors, I would tend
to agree with you.

In my own field, I would say something similar about sheet music: If a
publisher still offers it, photocopying it would be wrong (and that's
true even if the underlying composition is in the public domain, though
the argument in that case is weaker). But if it's out of print, what
other recourse do you have?

--JA
 >> Stay informed about: Zork Series Availability 

On Jan 26, 4:33 pm, Jim Aikin <midigur....TakeThisOut@sbcglobal.net> wrote:
> Nikos Chantziaras wrote:
> > Hope this won't become another Copyright Thread (TM)...
>
> Indeed. Been there, done that, bought the coffee mug.
>
> I found a site called thepiratebay.org that has some sort of torrent
> that purports to include all of the infocom games. But I've never used a
> torrent, and, well, I'm a bit concerned about malware and stuff. Can
> anyone offer any suggestions on how to handle this type of download safely?

Just use a well-known torrent client like Azureus or uTorrent, read
the comments that other downloaders have left, and use common sense
when it comes to opening the files you get. For example, a torrent of
Infocom games probably contains some .DAT files which are the actual Z-
code; there's no need to run any .EXE files you find there. Depending
on how the torrent is set up, you might be able to tell your torrent
client to only download the .DATs and ignore everything else.

You only need to worry about malware in a torrent if (1) you have a
habit of clicking on everything, including executables that aren't
part of the stuff you're looking for, or (2) you're pirating PC
software, in which case the executables *are* what you're looking for
and you just have to trust the torrent creator.

vw
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On 27 Jan, 00:33, Jim Aikin <midigur... RemoveThis @sbcglobal.net> wrote:
> Nikos Chantziaras wrote:
> > Hope this won't become another Copyright Thread (TM)...
>
> Indeed. Been there, done that, bought the coffee mug.
>
> I found a site called thepiratebay.org that has some sort of torrent
> that purports to include all of the infocom games. But I've never used a
> torrent, and, well, I'm a bit concerned about malware and stuff. Can
> anyone offer any suggestions on how to handle this type of download safely?
>
> --JA

Torrents with evil in them usually get flagged, so as long as it's not
a torrent that's only just appeared and not many people have
downloaded, it will probably be what it claims. A decent torrent
client (ìtorrent is the best if you're using windows) will let you
pick which files in a torrent you want to download, so you can see if
there's any suspicious files there beyond the ones you're looking for.
If you download an executable you're taking the same risk getting it
from a torrent as you would getting it from a link on a website.
 >> Stay informed about: Zork Series Availability 

On 27 Jan, 00:54, Khelwood <Khelw... RemoveThis @gmail.com> wrote:
> On 27 Jan, 00:33, Jim Aikin <midigur... RemoveThis @sbcglobal.net> wrote:
>
> > Nikos Chantziaras wrote:
> > > Hope this won't become another Copyright Thread (TM)...
>
> > Indeed. Been there, done that, bought the coffee mug.
>
> > I found a site called thepiratebay.org that has some sort of torrent
> > that purports to include all of the infocom games. But I've never used a
> > torrent, and, well, I'm a bit concerned about malware and stuff. Can
> > anyone offer any suggestions on how to handle this type of download safely?
>
> > --JA
>
> Torrents with evil in them usually get flagged, so as long as it's not
> a torrent that's only just appeared and not many people have
> downloaded, it will probably be what it claims. A decent torrent
> client (ìtorrent is the best if you're using windows) will let you
> pick which files in a torrent you want to download, so you can see if
> there's any suspicious files there beyond the ones you're looking for.
> If you download an executable you're taking the same risk getting it
> from a torrent as you would getting it from a link on a website.

The "mu" symbol in my last post seems to have been garbled in transit.
mu-Torrent (aka uTorrent) is the client I mentioned.
 >> Stay informed about: Zork Series Availability 

Well, there's enough stuff on GameTap to warrant the subscription fee.
GameTap offers access to over 900 games, including its fair share of
adventure titles (including Myst Online: Uru Live) for $60 a year.
I.e., for the price of a deluxe limited collector's edition game, you
get a year's worth of GameTap access. That same amount might also buy
you six XBox Live Arcade titles, or eight to ten Virtual Console
games. (Though in their defense, you can't get Puzzle Quest, Rez, Sin
and Punishment or Super Metroid on GameTap. ^_^

I was a bit leery about the whole "once you stop paying, you lose your
games" scheme, but they offer a free trial now with unlimited access
to a small subsection of the GameTap library. If you're not impressed,
you can still keep your free account; they change up the roster every
month or so.
 >> Stay informed about: Zork Series Availability 

vaporware wrote:
>
> Just use a well-known torrent client like Azureus or uTorrent, read
> the comments that other downloaders have left, and use common sense
> when it comes to opening the files you get.

Ah, phooey. I looked at the FAQ on the uTorrent site, and quickly
realized that I don't have the patience to learn a whole new technology
this weekend. I still haven't gotten around to taking a close look at
tiddlywiki, so any technology learning time I have available really
ought to go there.

If anyone has the dat files on enchanter, sorcerer, and spellbreaker and
feels generous, drop me an email and we can arrange a barter. Like, I'll
beta-test your game or something.

--JA
 >> Stay informed about: Zork Series Availability 

Is gametap only for PC or can us mac guys try it as well? I suspect
there wouldn't be much for me as a blind player but my partner would
enjoy it, we have XBox 360 games like Thrill Vill and she likes that.

Best

-James-

Ryusui wrote:
> Well, there's enough stuff on GameTap to warrant the subscription fee.
> GameTap offers access to over 900 games, including its fair share of
> adventure titles (including Myst Online: Uru Live) for $60 a year.
> I.e., for the price of a deluxe limited collector's edition game, you
> get a year's worth of GameTap access. That same amount might also buy
> you six XBox Live Arcade titles, or eight to ten Virtual Console
> games. (Though in their defense, you can't get Puzzle Quest, Rez, Sin
> and Punishment or Super Metroid on GameTap. ^_^
>
> I was a bit leery about the whole "once you stop paying, you lose your
> games" scheme, but they offer a free trial now with unlimited access
> to a small subsection of the GameTap library. If you're not impressed,
> you can still keep your free account; they change up the roster every
> month or so.
 >> Stay informed about: Zork Series Availability 

Jim Aikin wrote:
> Nikos Chantziaras wrote:
>> Personally, I don't have any moral constraints when copying software
>> from the stone age
> [...]
> In my own field, I would say something similar about sheet music: If a
> publisher still offers it, photocopying it would be wrong (and that's
> true even if the underlying composition is in the public domain, though
> the argument in that case is weaker). But if it's out of print, what
> other recourse do you have?

I believe that software is an exception and can't be compared 1:1 with
other forms of intellectual property. It simply ages too fast. I'm not
sure about the law in the EU, but I believe in the US software copyright
expires at the same rate as all other intellectual property (75 years?)
So I choose to be an "outlaw" because I disagree with the law.
Literature from 75+ years ago is still useful. Software from 20 years
ago is not useful to the copyright owner anymore, but can be useful to
others.

And let's not forget the stand some members of the Green EU party made:
"I wouldn't steal a car, but I still download movies!" ;P

Hope this won't become another Copyright Thread (TM)...
 >> Stay informed about: Zork Series Availability 

Nikos Chantziaras wrote:

> Hope this won't become another Copyright Thread (TM)...

Indeed. Been there, done that, bought the coffee mug.

I found a site called thepiratebay.org that has some sort of torrent
that purports to include all of the infocom games. But I've never used a
torrent, and, well, I'm a bit concerned about malware and stuff. Can
anyone offer any suggestions on how to handle this type of download safely?

--JA
 >> Stay informed about: Zork Series Availability 

Nikos Chantziaras wrote:

> I believe that software is an exception and can't be compared 1:1 with
> other forms of intellectual property. It simply ages too fast. I'm not
> sure about the law in the EU, but I believe in the US software copyright
> expires at the same rate as all other intellectual property (75 years?)
> So I choose to be an "outlaw" because I disagree with the law.
> Literature from 75+ years ago is still useful. Software from 20 years
> ago is not useful to the copyright owner anymore, but can be useful to
> others.

I've seen commercial software still running and earning that's 30+ years
old. I might even be working on one soon There are probably Fortran
math libraries from the 60's that are still in use. Bear in mind that
software copyright applies to the source code.

In the games department, an FPS might not age well, but games like IF,
solitaire, and chess age better.

(Note that I don't have any great objection to abandonware, for a sufficiently
rigourous definition of "abandoned". It doesn't take much to offer these
kinds of games for sale by download.)
--
David Tanguay Brantford, Ontario
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Jim Aikin wrote:
> Nikos Chantziaras wrote:
>
>> Hope this won't become another Copyright Thread (TM)...
>
> Indeed. Been there, done that, bought the coffee mug.
>
> I found a site called thepiratebay.org that has some sort of torrent
> that purports to include all of the infocom games. But I've never used a
> torrent, and, well, I'm a bit concerned about malware and stuff. Can
> anyone offer any suggestions on how to handle this type of download safely?

What vaporware said, but also keep in mind that BitTorrent is just a
download tool. Compared with other P2P tools, it's safer because if you
download a specific *.torrent file and open it in your BitTorrent
client, then the files you'll get will be exactly those described in the
*.torrent; no one can send you fake/malware by simply uploading
something with the same filename to you (as is the case with other P2P
networks). That won't work, since torrents are based on hash values.
If the checksum of the data you get won't match, the data gets rejected.

If you trust the creator of the torrent, you can trust the files you
receive to be the exactly those the creator intended. It's the same as
with a regular direct link URLs. I'm using BitTorrent primarily for
legal downloads (Linux distros for example are heavily distributed by
BitTorrent to decrease server bandwidth usage). I trust those.

That being said, I don't trust PirateBay or any other site with warez in
it where everyone can upload Not because the creators of those sites
have ill intentions (not that I know if they do or don't), but since
everyone can upload stuff there... I guess you get the picture. It can
be used by malware distributors just the same as by honest guys. If you
really need to download something from a "freaky" site (and it really
doesn't matter if the download is legal or not; see the blinking "Click
here for the awesome screensaver!" ads of some sites that trick you into
installing spyware), I urge you to *not* run any executable files from
there before you upload them to http://www.virustotal.com and have them
checked there by about 15 different malware scanners.
 >> Stay informed about: Zork Series Availability