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[bobson]

Originally Posted by Saccade

Sooo - you mean that you want to "preserve" the game by having it run EXACTLY as it was supposed to in its Native OS, but on any operating system..?
Is that correct, Liorman?

If so, what OS are you thinking of..?

If I understood him correctly - he is not trying to point one OS, but is trying to find a solution for something which will come to us in the future. Something independent of OS like currently DOSbox available for multiple systems.

[The Fifth Horseman]

Well.
486 motherboards are still produced - mostly for industrial use, but should be useable for other purposes. Lots of compatible components also are. Maybe someone could get in touch with hardware manufacturers to see if it would be possible to produce a nettop-format machine meant specifically for DOS gaming?
Just a thought.

[RRS]

"Hi guys, my name is Mark and I speak to you from the year 1930. I just saw a great flick called "Star-Spangled Squadron" and I'd like to hear some tips on how to preserve it for future generations, so that people can watch it after, say, 80 years."

"Hi Mark, this is the future speaking. I'm sorry to disappoint you, but the movie is lost to time..."

Nothing in this world can withstand the test of time. The greatest people die, the biggest monuments fall. Old knowledge is forgotten as the collective mind assimilates new data.

Networks offer data redundancy, but are you sure they survive EMP effect of nuclear strike?

Preserve physical medium. Factory-pressed discs are better than home-recorded DVD-Rs.

Keep an old rig running. Assemble an old computer running old OS. Keep it offline and not updated. As if the time stopped for this unit.

Keep related material as backup. Even if you won't be able to run the game, you can still present examples of gameplay on printed screenshots or captured videos.

Store one piece of each in an underground vault. Just in case China/Russia/USA/Burkina Faso/whoever wants to play Fallout as LARP

It may seem I'm joking about it. But have you heard about http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Time_capsule ?

[liormann]

Thank you all for your answers

In digital preservation, the fundamental perinciple is to retain content in its original form and try to test solutions that - as many of you have suggested- are independent from current Operating Systems. Backwards compatibility is by no means preservation, this is why we are looking at other methods. For instance, I have installed a DOS virtual machine using VirtualBox where games are stored on a virtual drive. When CD-ROMs are required, these are kept in ISO format. The advantage of this approach is that the OS with the storage media can be bundled in a self-contained entity. The problem is that running the VM still relies on current software needs.

The idea of keeping obsolete technology (and I'm referring here to physical machines) has been tested and points to what we call a "computer museum". Unfortunately, the problem with this approach is that machines take up a lot of space; they are prone to deterioration over time (whereas data can be copied and refreshed into new portable media as necessary); when deterioration occurs, it is arguable whether new parts will be found. Thus, keeping a 386 pc running DOS as a method to preserve video games introduces a high level of risk. Furthermore, the information stored on this machine cannot be shared with a wide audience; it is tied to the physical location of that PC.

Since we don't know how computers will evolve in the future, we are currently trying to introduce alternative solutions at present. For instance, I just did some experiements using Wine in Linux to run old video games. I then used a Windows virtual machine on a Mac. In all these cases there are differences in the way the game is rendered. Although I can record these differences based on my observations, there is still the need of a more formal measurement so that I can claim that, eg. DOSBox is currently better for preserving DOS games than Wine on Linux because it ticks the following boxes. It is the information in these "boxes" that I believe you could help me with.

Some scholars have suggested that the "look-and-feel" of a game is more important than anything else. Hence, they suggest using emulation to simulate aspects such as how the game looked on a CRT monitor as opposed to an LCD display. Also, emulate the behaviour of input, such as a trackball mouse as opposed to a modern laser one. As gamers, do you think these are inportant? Should I include them in my experiments and measurements or is it just the visual, audible and input response characteristics that matter? If so, which in your opinion are these characteristics that will help me say, eg. "DOS Game X renders better on DOSBox than a virtual machine running DOS"?

Thanks again, I really appreciate your input

[The Fifth Horseman]

Unfortunately, the problem with this approach is that machines take up a lot of space; they are prone to deterioration over time (whereas data can be copied and refreshed into new portable media as necessary); when deterioration occurs, it is arguable whether new parts will be found.

A more pressing concern is deterioration of storage media itself. CD-ROM discs can last a while, sure. Cartridges with the game stored on read-only chips should also be rather durable. But floppy disks deteriorate quite easily - in some cases becoming unusable within less than half a decade.

Some scholars have suggested that the "look-and-feel" of a game is more important than anything else. Hence, they suggest using emulation to simulate aspects such as how the game looked on a CRT monitor as opposed to an LCD display. Also, emulate the behaviour of input, such as a trackball mouse as opposed to a modern laser one. As gamers, do you think these are inportant?

Emulating the behavior of the display device is - in my opinion - generally redundant for computer software unless there is a significant difference in how the game is rendered on modern displays (mostly a non-issue). Earlier machines which utilized a TV screen as their output method may however benefit from that to some degree.

The sound hardware has to be emulated, as that is one of the most common problems with the compatibility between these games and modern operating systems.

Far as I see it, there is little to no practical difference between the behavior of the old fashioned ball mice and modern optical or laser ones - same goes for most input devices, really.

[Saccade]

Originally Posted by RRS

Preserve physical medium. Factory-pressed discs are better than home-recorded DVD-Rs.

You can get discs where you can apply the extra coating of protective stuff, as regular CD/DVD-R(w) are missing a skin to enable writing.
It makes them as un-scratchable and reliable as factory ones.

so far...

Store one piece of each in an underground vault. Just in case China/Russia/USA/Burkina Faso/whoever wants to play Fallout as LARP

LOL

[RRS]

Originally Posted by Saccade

You can get discs where you can apply the extra coating of protective stuff, as regular CD/DVD-R(w) are missing a skin to enable writing.
It makes them as un-scratchable and reliable as factory ones.

Yes, I've heard about some solutions, but never tested them. Here is an example (I'm not endorsing that company, they didn't pay me)


Regarding input: sometimes it does make a difference. Compare old digital joysticks (8-bit computer world) and analog ones. Take joysticks featuring force feedback effect into account.

And since we're on an academical level: don't forget such rare input devices as driving wheels (racing games), rudder pedals, throttles (flight sims), VR helmets and ersatz (cheaper) solutions, like TrackIR.