Troels Pleimert

Dude, completely off topic, but I love your avatar. I spent way too much of my childhood watching Robotech with my brother.

Happy birthday, Frans, you wonderful Dutch whirlwind, you! Brandon beat me to it, but yes, giant big-ass thanks for this playground in the sky we have come to know and love as the conjoined monstrosity of "SpaceQuest.net: The Virtual Broomcloset." I hope Your Dutchness has a great, fantastic one -- birthday, that is -- and many more to come.

That means it's working! Oh, and if you want your kids to grow up to be the outstanding examples of human decency that we are -- i.e. morbidly death-obsessed sarcastic misanthropes and ne'erdowells -- then I say it's never too early to play Space Quest with them! :)

Fantastic. I didn't think SQ4 would launch if it couldn't find the resource-file, but huh, I guess it will. And then not tell you something is wrong. How about that. I think we've all learned something today and I hope future generations will benefit from our bold ingenuity. Oh, well, I guess future generations are taken care of, then. :)

Hi, unixdude. Generally, if you're hearing digital sound effects, you should be hearing voices as well. (Voices telling you to kill, kill, kill! Er, ahem ...) However, Sierra made sure that if you only had AdLib MIDI cards, you would still hear sound effects -- albeit synthesized imitations of the digital sound effects. If that's the case, then the Sound Blaster emulator is on the fritz and you're only hearing AdLib music/sfx. So there's two things you want to check up on: 1) Are you hearing digital sound effects or just synthesized sound effects? 2) Are you playing the CD-ROM version? I know this is a duh question, but if you've somehow installed the disk version then there are no voices (although I can't see how that should happen, since only the CD-ROM version comes with the SQ Collection).

Great idea with the avatars and links. Thanks! :)

I didn't do that ...

Very notable, yes. Hi, Denis. See, I told you I'd inadvertently leave someone out. Sorry, friend.

Gah! Thanks. Corrected. :)

While we were riding the ultimate frontier by communicating via message boards in the late 90's, times have changed and attention spans have decreased even further. I'm not one to complain, though; as much as I love this board, I also love social media and especially Twitter, because it enables me to jump in and out of conversations I wasn't even invited to and meet new people in the process. And, forgive me for saying this, but Twitter is really where the Space Quest action is at the moment. Scott Murphy is on almost every day, talking to fans and muttering some crazy stuff about Formula 1 cars. You can count on at least a couple of interesting tidbits about Space Quest, Sierra adventures or just nostalgic gaming in general. Oh, and we shouldn't forget the official news from the Guys From Andromeda also gets filtered through their joint Twitter profile. So there was some muttering in the corners about maybe we should make a list of those prominent tweeters who are also in on the fun. Maybe this will inspire other people to join Twitter, snoop around and join in. Right, so -- before I post this as a news article or a sub-page, I want to let you guys pitch in, because I'll almost certainly forget someone and it'll make me slap myself in the forehead and I'll grow a bruise and none of the other forest animals will ever play with me again. So, er, here's a list of people I check in on and annoy on pretty much a daily basis: @SlashVohaul Well, first and foremost, Scott Murphy. He's the most active Guy From Andromeda on Twitter, no contest. Not only does he tweet multiple times daily, he also takes time out to respond to fans and join in on some seriously warped conversations. @Wilcofever "The other" Guy From Andromeda, Mark Crowe (I bet he's gonna love being called "the other guy"), is also on Twitter. It's fair to say he's not as into it as Scott is, but the Space Pope is frequently prodding him to do some updates. Mark seems to prefer writing on the svrewards.com site. @TheChrisPope Speaking of Chris Pope, he's on here, too. Well, he would be, wouldn't he? After all, social media's his bread and butter. And games. And maybe real butter. @DecafJedi Jess Morrissette, a.k.a. Decaffeinated Jedi, a.k.a. the guy who started The Virtual Broomcloset, a.k.a. the guy I never get tired of introducing. He threw himself into Twitter because of the SpaceVenture Kickstarter and, blessed be his kind soul, never left. @Frederik_Olsen Olzen's here. Yes, Olzen's here. I'm going to duck now because I sense Ferde's about to slap me. Anyway, Fred's one of the most active Space Questers on Twitter, regularly retweeting what's going on around the Wilcoverse. If you sort of want the cliff's notes for what we're doing, Fred's usually a good bet. @SpaceQuestNet If Fred's not on the case, then chances are, someone minding the official SpaceQuest.net Twitter is. Most of the times, it's pcj and me doing the tweeting, but I know Brandon and some other peeps have the key to this playground. @BrandonBlume Speaking of Brandon, there he is. Music virtuoso extraordinaire. Don't know Brandon? He did that fantastic 8 minute heavy metal medley of Space Quest IV that I won't shut up about. @JamesMulvale Better get Mulvale in there, now that we're on musicians. Don't know James? He did that fantastic cover album of the Space Quest III soundtrack that I won't shut up about. @pcjtulsa Thought I'd forget about you, huh, Patrick? Nah, just slipping you in here next to the musicians. Maybe the fumes will help brighten your day. @JoshoMandel Josh Mandel, legendary game writer (co-designer of such classics as Freddy Pharkas: Frontier Pharmacist, Callahan's Crosstime Saloon and, yes, Space Quest 6) is also here, talking with fans and promoting the huge amount of work he's doing for Replay's Leisure Suit Larry 1 remake. https://twimg0-a.akamaihd.net/sticky/default_profile_images/default_profile_2_bigger.png @Spikey699 It seems like Alistair Gillett of Sierra Music Central is still feeling out what all this Twitter nonsense is about, but he's here. https://twimg0-a.akamaihd.net/profile_images/2536798198/30vbcwpt1e0w0cna1eox_bigger.jpeg @WarbirdGames The developer of the game Jack Houston is also a massive Space Quest fan and regularly butts in. https://twimg0-a.akamaihd.net/profile_images/1908006127/image_bigger.jpg @jdhjanus Josh Henry appeared out of nowhere and charmed us all with his ability to get excited about pretty much everything. https://twimg0-a.akamaihd.net/profile_images/2975906980/11059e1f2a28964e632d6e7ad8ef95e8_bigger.jpeg @CadburyWookie My good friend and long-lost writing partner, Daniel Stacey, is also here and still feeling his way around. But I am actively prodding him to get more involved by relentlessly tagging him whenever I get the chance, and you should, too. https://twimg0-a.akamaihd.net/profile_images/2815697653/602aef4f3033052166dfe91f70538a4f_bigger.png @Akril15 Everybody's favorite Space Quest fan artist (don't hit me, Chris) dares to speak up in 140 characters. https://twimg0-a.akamaihd.net/profile_images/586139515/chrisfingers_bigger.jpg @ChrisUshko Everybody's favorite Space Quest fan artist (don't hit me, Akril) loves gentle massages and strolls on the beach. Oh, and he made Space Quest Incinerations practically by himself. https://twimg0-a.akamaihd.net/profile_images/2967794663/5c78f88219f7e76e81eb7bf16e887ca7_bigger.png @IQ_Adventures Infamous Quests, formerly Infamous Adventures, did the remake of SQ2. Manning the Twitter station is Blackthorne, who, despite his name, frequently goes mushy whenever someone brings up his gaming childhood. https://twimg0-a.akamaihd.net/profile_images/1232129117/ms-dos_00_bigger.jpg @dosnostalgic Speaking of people who get mushy easily, er... well, Anatoly doesn't. But he's a hardcore DOS gaming enthusiast who has his daily #MorningDOSTalk, which is almost ALWAYS derailed into a discussion on adventure games by us Space Quest fans. https://twimg0-a.akamaihd.net/profile_images/3178166806/7bed67e0439bc81c085da9fa3a631a11_bigger.jpeg @SpaceVentureFan I have no idea who this guy is, but he rocks. https://twimg0-a.akamaihd.net/profile_images/633662042/icon_128_bigger.png @Sokarsstudio Michael Smith is a wonderful man who knows his way around video editing. He helped me out with rendering Space Quest Historian videos, so he deserves a shout-out. https://twimg0-a.akamaihd.net/profile_images/1331718095/image_bigger.jpg @ChrisGiegerich Germany represented by the unstoppable force of Christian Giegerich. During the Kickstarter, Chris and I used Tumblr and Twitter to create the Death Of The Day Calendar (deathoftheday.tumblr.com) which we thought was hilarious. Chris also did the intro animation for the new SQ Historian videos that you haven't seen yet. https://twimg0-a.akamaihd.net/profile_images/1182814268/avatar_bigger.jpg @Bluscreen_Jason Jason, a.k.a. Skyefyre, was the guy who did the YouTube playthroughs of the SpaceVenture prototypes. He's a fun guy and does comics, too. https://twimg0-a.akamaihd.net/profile_images/2801147895/6fc32b634a8750c23381c5ab4f3c6384_bigger.jpeg @DutchMagic Jeroen is a long-time Space Quest fan who digs beer and getting into scraps with @Estirdalin, @SlashVohaul and myself. https://twimg0-a.akamaihd.net/profile_images/3367988029/e5b6f144a0b10d34a119dec241ce8876_bigger.jpeg @Estirdalin Graphic artist at @IQ_Adventures and frequent scrapper. https://twimg0-a.akamaihd.net/profile_images/1743917098/c390e965-ab7b-45b9-bb51-320dca264865_bigger.png @JeysieC You probably remember Jeysie from the olden days. I hear she was particularly active on the #sq IRC channel when I wasn't. https://twimg0-a.akamaihd.net/profile_images/2424841001/g49xx6l4bir6n77z22tg_bigger.gif @AnasAbdin Anas Abdin did the sci-fi adventure game Anastronaut, but more importantly also the kick-ass animation of "Anastronaut misses Roger Wilco by five minutes." https://twimg0-a.akamaihd.net/profile_images/3185573590/31bf58ebaed626ca8b74536b16679ef7_bigger.jpeg @Irishmile Justin lies about being Irish (I think) but he's a fun character nonetheless. https://twimg0-a.akamaihd.net/profile_images/3237076171/92d9207c92ecc055855c38b1e4589384_bigger.jpeg @AgustinCordes Agustin is the creator of the indie horror game Scratches and the upcoming Asylum, which was successfully funded on Kickstarter recently. I think he and Scott shower together. https://twimg0-a.akamaihd.net/profile_images/2291380061/s8cqxt04bhmq7z2mml1w_bigger.jpeg @DisconnectD Jared deserves a mention purely for his avatar. And also for being a nice guy. https://twimg0-a.akamaihd.net/profile_images/2711230812/eede81ade56aef7730c22fd11ad5d3b7_bigger.png @StellarSoul2001 "Stellar" occasionally shows up on IRC and usually tweets about either his love for Space Quest or his love for Michael Jackson, depending, I think, on the moon. https://twimg0-a.akamaihd.net/profile_images/2190457839/photo-797_bigger.jpg @Chrono2012 "Chrono" is almost always on IRC, but he's also on Twitter. Fancy that. https://twimg0-a.akamaihd.net/profile_images/2285145930/2ziwrl4qkk0avyze4f5u_bigger.jpeg @hansadventures The maker of the indie game Han Solo Adventures is also a massive Space Quest fan. I mean, check out his avatar. Ain't that freaky. https://twimg0-a.akamaihd.net/profile_images/1162615846/avatar125_bigger.png @MillieQED Our British connection Gareth, a.k.a. drslashvohaul, is loose and there's nothing you can do to stop him. https://twimg0-a.akamaihd.net/profile_images/3050158533/a66e57db54d04c5dba6b564eda89e050_bigger.jpeg @SimoSakari Our Finnish connection, sensitive poet Simo Sakari Aaltonen, also has a dark hole in his soul which can normally be sated by prolonged exposures to either Space Quest or Cthulhu stories. https://twimg0-a.akamaihd.net/profile_images/3118429544/6129a50c9f9a6ce6cc9284ba73547691_bigger.png @MrKenAllen Ken Allen, musical maestro of Space Quest IV and Space Quest I VGA -- and now also the SpaceVenture, is on Twitter, promoting his Under The Half Dome project and being very responsive and kind to fans. https://twimg0-a.akamaihd.net/profile_images/1988299902/pic_bigger.png @e1ven Colin Davis is here. Well, isn't he everywhere? The man at the helm of www.sq7.org brings his wisdom to us -- but of course most of his tweets are about programming, so it's kind of like reading a foreign language. https://twimg0-a.akamaihd.net/profile_images/71481456/vectorfish_bigger.png @DopefishLives This is Chris Geroux who did the Eureka Trash Pickup and Pinkunz on Patrol fan games. He's here. No, really. https://twimg0-a.akamaihd.net/profile_images/2634572526/d19786f86bdfa20359ef7e44b4adf39f_bigger.jpeg @Wilcoweb So is Kevin Wallace, the man who did the Astro Chicken FAQ. https://twimg0-a.akamaihd.net/profile_images/3331715811/670ef80f68ac55c05be7152c7bb9b53b_bigger.png @mhaley Adventure game nut and SpaceVenture supporter. https://si0.twimg.com/profile_images/1269518991/IMG_0634_bigger.jpg @DenisLemire Frequent FAQ contributor back in the day and die-hard Space Quester. https://si0.twimg.com/profile_images/3136530777/f11c958769b64dcc8b2c7029d8330bd6_bigger.jpeg @cshel23 An absolute miscarriage of justice was carried out when Conrad wasn't mentioned on this list. This wrong has now been righted. Conrad tweets about SpaceVenture, Sierra stuff and not much else, really, bless him. https://si0.twimg.com/profile_images/3515730462/df1d0b44f275179ca1abb43474143045_bigger.jpeg @Indendant_S The gal wrote her own bio, so I'll just let her at it: "If you wanna follow the original hero of the Adventure Game Revival Movement, head on over and follow @Intendant_S." Well, you heard her. Say "yes, ma'am!" (Oh, and I'm https://twimg0-a.akamaihd.net/profile_images/88255296/twittyfuck_bigger.jpg @TorbenFrost. Say hi!) That's about all the ones I can remember off-hand (and cheating by going through my "following" list). Feel free to add! This post has been promoted to an article

Hi. I left a big mush on your forum. Sorry about that.

Well, I wasn't gonna say anything, but I did a game about the That Guy With The Glasses universe of on-line review personalities. It's free and all. http://checkthis.com/jqzm

Oh, for heaven's sake, I leave you people alone for two minutes and-- -- awww ...

Tonight's not good for me, but Fred has the power of Greyskull.

I think that may have had more to do with his bitterness at how Sierra folded rather than anything to do with Space Quest. If you talk to him about just Roger Wilco and the plots of the Space Quest games, he gets very excited and starts talking at length about what he had planned that never came out. But if you talk Sierra and its politics, particularly towards the mid-to-late 90's, the stories turn less rosy. ;) That said, Scott seems genuinely at peace with it now - despite a few outbursts to the contrary in Hangouts, but that's just him having a laugh - and a lot of sour blood from the past has been sweetened. Ken and Roberta coming out to support them was, he said, particularly heartwarming.

Screw it. I'm not offended. Let people comment how they want. We can ignore them how we want. ;)

Sam: No, he wanted to join, but he was having problems of an undisclosed nature. He could watch, but was unable to join.

Well, that was ... interesting. ;) Great fun to see Chris again; Sam got the short stick as usual; Akril did her thing; Jess popped in for a surprise (and I forgot to say goodbye) ... so I think a good time was had by all, but we had a terrible time with the connection (had to restart three times) and our special guest (LordKat) was unable to join for some peculiar reason. Fred suggested we do this again some time and do it right. I agree.

Oh, and - so no one can blame me for any confusion - these are the times we're talking about: http://www.timeanddate.com/worldclock/fixedtime.html?msg=Space+Quest+Superfan+Sierra+Classics+Hangout&iso=20130210T16&p1=69&ah=4

Then, by golly, in five hours time, we shall have a Hangout. Now I just gotta figure out how to run Jones on a Mac ... ;) Might want to get on a PC, just in case.

Sunday's looking hot so far. I think it's a keeper.

Good catch, Patrick. I've updated the announcement. Well, sadly, Brandon's out. But apart from that, things are looking better. Awaiting more confirmations ...

Well, at any rate, I'm thinking we pull the plug on Saturday as a Hangout day. It's not that I want this to turn into a closed society or anything. But with Jess, Akril, Brandon and Sam all being out of the picture, it might get awfully quiet in there. ;) The Sunday date is still open for discussion.

Yeah, we should probably move it back a couple of hours if we do it Sunday. How do these updated times sound? http://www.timeanddate.com/worldclock/fixedtime.html?msg=Space+Quest+Superfan+Sierra+Classics+Hangout&iso=20130209T16&p1=69&ah=4

This is starting to sound slightly problematic for Saturday. Would Sunday work better for you?