Hardware & Technical Intel 486 compatability issues

Smauler

S
I was the first person in my circle of friends to manage to set up a 4 player LAN doom game. It took a lot of work, and no one wanted to be sat on the 286 in the corner, but it did work, and was astonishing for the time. Multiplayer back then was a revelation.

I had to run a lot of tweaks.

A few years later I was connecting to quake servers with literal single digit ping times (including the monitor). How the mighty have fallen.
 

adoredtv

adoredtv
Smauler said:
I was the first person in my circle of friends to manage to set up a 4 player LAN doom game. It took a lot of work, and no one wanted to be sat on the 286 in the corner, but it did work, and was astonishing for the time. Multiplayer back then was a revelation.

I had to run a lot of tweaks.

A few years later I was connecting to quake servers with literal single digit ping times (including the monitor). How the mighty have fallen.
Click to expand...

First time I was blown away by multiplayer gaming was at uni in 1996 when on of my mates installed Quake on the uni LAN. Must have been 10 or so of us playing it, just mindblowing stuff back then. Think the uni PCs were 286's also.
 

Calico Jack

C
Finally unboxed my Amiga 500 version of ED - can't wait to get playing!

2dbs7k7.jpg
 

Commander Jusu

Commander Jusu
Drinking whiskey at the bottom of the sofa and reading this thread...all the memories crawling from behind the left corner of my drunken mind. I'm just about to start crying. +1rep to all of you guys.
 

Jpotter

Jpotter
Smauler said:
I was the first person in my circle of friends to manage to set up a 4 player LAN doom game. It took a lot of work, and no one wanted to be sat on the 286 in the corner, but it did work, and was astonishing for the time. Multiplayer back then was a revelation.

I had to run a lot of tweaks.

A few years later I was connecting to quake servers with literal single digit ping times (including the monitor). How the mighty have fallen.
Click to expand...

LOL - I remember that. I actually got some deathmatch games working over a modem with a neighbor. I recall it took more time to get working than we ever did successfully play. OMG when someone would pick up the phone.... or call-waiting tried to click in.... it ruined the game. "MOM - don't pick up the PHONE!!!!" lol the memories...
 

adoredtv

adoredtv
Jpotter said:
LOL - I remember that. I actually got some deathmatch games working over a modem with a neighbor. I recall it took more time to get working than we ever did successfully play. OMG when someone would pick up the phone.... or call-waiting tried to click in.... it ruined the game. "MOM - don't pick up the PHONE!!!!" lol the memories...
Click to expand...

I'll never forget the rigmarole I went through to get my first modem working. I didn't have an RS232 cable which was the requirement back then but I was desperate to get online so I actually made one from another cable.

Both sides had 9 pins...actual sewing needles :D I had chopped the ends of whatever cable I used and soldered 9 pins at each side, then stuck the needles into the PC (can't remember which one but I guess maybe an ST or Amiga back then) and the modem. It worked fine lol.
 
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Jpotter

Jpotter
Ahh here is a gem; so for all you young-ins; this is how we used to get online. Pulled from the original Doom instructions : www.classicdoom.com/doominfo.htm

-------------------------------------------------------------
RUNNING DOOM FROM THE COMMAND LINE
-------------------------------------------------------------
Much of the information you give to DOOM through the SETUP
program can be provided by passing program parameters to
the appropriate device driver on the command line.

NETWORK PLAY
------------
When you want to run a network game, you use IPXSETUP.EXE which
is the device driver for DOOM's network mode. The parameters
are as follows:

-NODES starts DOOM as a network game and sets the number of
players who are going to play. If you don't specify the number
of nodes, the default is 2.
-nodes <# of players>

-PORT sets the port from which to play DOOM multiplayer on
the network. By setting a different port, more than one
group of players can play DOOM on a single network.
-port <# of the port>

MODEM PLAY
----------
When you want to play a modem or null-modem game, you need to
run SERSETUP.EXE which is the device driver for DOOM's serial
communications mode. The parameters are as follows:

-DIAL tells the program which number to dial, if you're going
to do the calling.
-dial

-ANSWER puts your modem into Answer mode so someone can call
you and play DOOM.
-answer

-COM1, -COM2, -COM3, -COM4 specifies which COM port your modem
or serial cable is connected to. Very important!
-com1

-8250 tells SERSETUP to set the UART to 8250. Just in case your
16550 UART is acting up at the higher speed.
-8250

-IRQ sets the IRQ for the COM port.
-irq

-PORT sets the COM I/O port that SERSETUP uses to communicate
with your modem. To use hexadecimal, such as the number 0x3f8, you
would type "-port 0x3f8".
-port

-<#> sets the baud rate of your COM port, overriding the value in
the MODEM.CFG if you're running a modem game. Legal values are
9600, 14400, 38400, 57600.
Example: -14400

Note that to run a null-modem game, you must have a null-modem
cable plugged into a serial port on both computers and each
computer runs SERSETUP.EXE with a -COM# parameter as well as
any General Parameters. Do not use the -ANSWER or -DIAL
parameters, or SERSETUP will think you're using a modem. To get
a null-modem cable, go to CompUSA or Radio Shack and say,"I need
a null-modem cable to run a DOOM multiplayer game."
Click to expand...
 
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graham.reeds

G
adoredtv said:
First time I was blown away by multiplayer gaming was at uni in 1996 when on of my mates installed Quake on the uni LAN. Must have been 10 or so of us playing it, just mindblowing stuff back then. Think the uni PCs were 286's also.
Click to expand...

Doubt it. Doom required the Watcom 386 extender, the famous DOS4GW. So 386 and above. You could of played Wolfenstein and fantisied about how cool playing it with your mates would be.
 

adoredtv

adoredtv
graham.reeds said:
Doubt it. Doom required the Watcom 386 extender, the famous DOS4GW. So 386 and above. You could of played Wolfenstein and fantisied about how cool playing it with your mates would be.
Click to expand...

Must have been 386's then (possibly 486's...really no idea just that uni PCs are usually a bit older). It was definitely Quake though - first time I'd ever seen or heard of it. No chance of forgetting that experience lol.
 
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steevaavoo

steevaavoo
Morbad said:
T was the type. I believe 4 was Sound Blaster Pro compatible. T6 was Sound Blaster 16.
Click to expand...

AHHH!!!!!

Fantastic!

I know I could have Googled it - but where's the fun in that?

I have actually gotten closure on one of the longest standing (even if relatively minor) questions from my early PC gaming days!

Thank you Cmdr Morbad - sincerely :)
 

Patrick_68000

Patrick_68000
Commander Jusu said:
Drinking whiskey at the bottom of the sofa and reading this thread...all the memories crawling from behind the left corner of my drunken mind. I'm just about to start crying. +1rep to all of you guys.
Click to expand...

Yes it is very true. I believe that even if the computing today is extraordinary, our era of "pioneers" with the Z80, Motorola 68000, Intel 286, 386 etc ... is irreplaceable in our hearts.
 
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