Commodore 64 Book - available now

merman · Post by **merman** » Mon Feb 05, 2007 4:58 pm 0

You can now pre-order your copy of "The Commodore 64 Book 1982 - 19xx" from the website at:

http://c64goldenyears.com

This is the follow-up to Andrew Rollings' ZX Spectrum Book that was released at the end of 2006. You can find out more about that title at http://zxgoldenyears.com

Author Andrew Fisher, who has written for magazines including Commodore Force, Commodore Format and Retro Gamer, will be covering over 200 classic (and not so classic) Commodore titles, with fascinating trivia about the machine, the programmers and companies and the games themselves.

Note that the book will have a limited print run, and pre-ordering will help guarantee the book goes to print.

PVB · Post by **PVB** » Mon Feb 05, 2007 5:40 pm 0

Two copies pre-ordered.

IMPORTANT! Before you click on the link, please be aware that this is a PRE-ORDER.

The idea being that - in a very similar way to the ZX Spectrum book - we will use the pre-orders to fund the printing.

The book itself will not be ready for several months, and in fact may not ever get printed if not enough pre-orders are received!

However, in the event that not enought preorders are received to cover the bulk of the printing costs, anyone who did support us with a pre-order will have their money refunded (MINUS PAYPAL FEES!) and be sent an electronic copy of the book as a thanks for their support!

Note that this system worked very well for the ZX Spectrum book, which was printed in December of 2006.

Note that there will be a limited number of copies of the book printed. First come, first served!

fog · Post by **fog** » Tue Feb 06, 2007 2:04 pm 0

Cracking I'll order tonight.

Just out of curiosity how long did it take for the Speccy version to get from pre-order to print?

merman · Post by **merman** » Tue Feb 06, 2007 6:03 pm 0

fog wrote:Cracking I'll order tonight.

Just out of curiosity how long did it take for the Speccy version to get from pre-order to print?

It took a year, but that was due to the project taking longer to write and layout than expected (since there was only one person involved).

I'd estimate I'm about a quarter of the way through writing it, Andrew is doing the design work as we go, and we're aiming to release it this year. (Summer 2007 if all goes to plan)

fog · Post by **fog** » Tue Feb 06, 2007 6:15 pm 0

merman wrote:
fog wrote:Cracking I'll order tonight.

Just out of curiosity how long did it take for the Speccy version to get from pre-order to print?
It took a year, but that was due to the project taking longer to write and layout than expected (since there was only one person involved).

I'd estimate I'm about a quarter of the way through writing it, Andrew is doing the design work as we go, and we're aiming to release it this year. (Summer 2007 if all goes to plan)

Excellent. I hadn't seen the Speccy version before but it looks superb so I just ordered one of those as well as a C64 pre-order

merman · Post by **merman** » Wed Feb 07, 2007 11:45 am 0

Preview pages online:

http://c64goldenyears.com/test/barrymcguigan-test.pdf
http://c64goldenyears.com/test/trashman-test.pdf

seewolfe · Post by **seewolfe** » Wed Feb 07, 2007 11:19 pm 0

goddam it - just gone and ordered the spectrum book after I promised myself not to. Browsing and beer must not to be mixed!

exobuzz · Post by **exobuzz** » Wed Feb 07, 2007 11:42 pm 0

merman wrote:Preview pages online:

http://c64goldenyears.com/test/barrymcguigan-test.pdf
http://c64goldenyears.com/test/trashman-test.pdf

Those backgrounds need toning down. It's unreadable.

Also printing it all black makes the books absolutely stink!.
I got high by page 5 in the speccy book

Post by **Muttley** » Thu Feb 08, 2007 1:13 am 0

exobuzz wrote:
merman wrote:Preview pages online:

http://c64goldenyears.com/test/barrymcguigan-test.pdf
http://c64goldenyears.com/test/trashman-test.pdf
Those backgrounds need toning down. It's unreadable.

Also printing it all black makes the books absolutely stink!.
I got high by page 5 in the speccy book

Yeah, it's an admirable project, but the layout designer needs to be shot.

Muttley

Ant · Post by **Ant** » Thu Feb 08, 2007 12:58 pm 0

Actually, I think it looks kinda cool. Must check the bank balance.

biggestjim · Post by **biggestjim** » Thu Feb 08, 2007 1:23 pm 0

Muttley wrote:
Yeah, it's an admirable project, but the layout designer needs to be shot.

Muttley

Unfortunately, I have to second this.
Someone's getting paid for doing this 'design'?
The only thing missing is comic sans!

Merman, it would be a shame if you put all your writing effort in such a book and get it released with this look. Do something!

Help!

andrew_rollings · Post by **andrew_rollings** » Thu Feb 08, 2007 4:02 pm 0

exobuzz wrote:
merman wrote:Preview pages online:

http://c64goldenyears.com/test/barrymcguigan-test.pdf
http://c64goldenyears.com/test/trashman-test.pdf
Those backgrounds need toning down. It's unreadable.

They'll be fine in print. They appear darker.

exobuzz wrote: Also printing it all black makes the books absolutely stink!.
I got high by page 5 in the speccy book

I should've charged extra!

muttley wrote: Yeah, it's an admirable project, but the layout designer needs to be shot.

That's a bit harsh... especially considering both the file names prominently features the word 'test'.
I just tweaked the spectrum book layout to get something up on screen quickly. In other words, it's a test render.

biggestjim wrote: Someone's getting paid for doing this 'design'?
The only thing missing is comic sans!

Technically, no I'm not getting paid. I'm doing it for the love of the subject matter. However, if you can think of somewhere I could put comic sans in there, I'd appreciate the advice. I love that font...

... no really.

Seriously though, take a look at the sample pages from the ZX Spectrum book (see my sig). They're much more polished, seeing as the book is finished. Also, they look much much better in print than they do on screen.

Andrew

merman · Post by **merman** » Thu Feb 08, 2007 4:56 pm 0

The layouts are still at an early stage, bearing in mind Andrew's only been working on them a few days (it's essentially the Spectrum layout with the new text poured in).

And he's a Spectrum fan, so you gotta expect a bit of colour clash

PVB · Post by **PVB** » Thu Feb 08, 2007 9:06 pm 0

merman wrote: And he's a Spectrum fan, so you gotta expect a bit of colour clash

Welcome andrew_rollings, to the fluffiest: fluffy: forums

on the

net!

biggestjim · Post by **biggestjim** » Thu Feb 08, 2007 9:41 pm 0

merman wrote: And he's a Spectrum fan, so you gotta expect a bit of colour clash

I should've known. Hehe.

Andrew wrote: Seriously though, take a look at the sample pages from the ZX Spectrum book (see my sig). They're much more polished, seeing as the book is finished. Also, they look much much better in print than they do on screen.

I'm just talking general lay-out 'rules' here. The do's and do not's about type, text flow, use of color etc. and they've all been ignored so far. And yes, also in the Spectrum book.

Don't get me wrong, I love these kind of projects and I hope they're a huge succes for both the other Andrew and you, I'd support them whenever I can. I really do care, so I have to tell that this lay-out hurts my eyes and brains and only the thought of how excellently mindblowing this book could look makes me dazzle.

Is there no-one around with a bit more experience and an eye for design to give some tips/advice/support?
It would make it so much more worthwhile and interesting.

Look for example at Retro Gamer. Look at the type, look at the text, look at the way they present screenshots. Be inspired, copy some ideas, give them your own twist and it will surely make the book better looking and therefor more attractive for your potential buyers.

This is supposed to be positive criticism, I hope you understand.
Succes!