Hi, new here. Over the past year or so, I've been trying to preserve all my original games (FD & CD) by dd'ing them to image files.

One thing I noted about FD images is that the image checksums will change when files are accessed from the image. After further investigation I found that this is due to the access time/date in the FAT table changing for each file that is accessed.

If you want to preserve the original disk, use dd (as described on this site) then make coopies of the images and use these copies instead. Back up the originals in a zip file or something.

Having said that, finding perfect "out-of-the-box" images would be next to impossible as the files on the original disks would have accessed thus changing the access dates in disk FAT table. However, provided dd was used to create the image, it is possible to "restore" the image to an "out-of-the-box" image. Open the image file in a hex editor and zero the access time/date bytes for each file.

Also, I have an original copy of Conquests of Camelot and have created 3.5 images of them which I can submit. However, seeing that there is no link to download Conquest of the Longbow let alone disk images, I don't know whether you will accept them or not. If I can ever get my hands on a 5.25 disk drive, I'll create disk images of these as well.

Let me know if you're interested of not. Hate for these to disappear into history.

I think you're overreacting a bit.. and i thought i was authenticity nazy, heh. I don't think it really matters what time & date is ascribed in the fat table or whatever, it's enough that all the files preserve their original timestamps, something that we can immediately behold and not the internal intricacies and technicalities. In my humble opinion. If you go that far then we might think we need the original floppies data with perfectly preserved envelopes (freshly purchased) and later converted into a digital code and stored in a huge archive, until Star Trek era comes and we could replicate them and once again feel happy and content. Nah, dude. I think this time it's just plain old OCD. Let it go. However, it's still just my opinion, i think we need admins' confirmation on this.



So wait.. Conquest of Camelot or Longbow? These are two different games as you of course know, and either you mean one, or another or both. Eitherways, try checking here: http://www.goodolddays.net/diskimages/

You may have missed this section, and all the entries belong to the games presently on hand. So i'm afraid that both these games have been submitted including all possible floppy verions. However, you may still have a unique version of the game itself (check 'version' file), so i suggest you give it a shot.

More like a perfectionist. Well... I strive to be.:P

More to the point is that the sha1 for disk image is of "less" value, except for initial download. Once files on the disk image has been accessed the disk image will have a different sha1.

I only discovered this as I use md5 checksums against my backups and working files. (Just an extra check against HD bit corruption).

I guess I missed that section. Strange that a search for "Camelot" came up empty.

I think those sha's have to do with access points and not real modification. So.. i dunno if there's any point in being obsessed with that. The real problem here is.. you KNOW about them, and thus you have organized your own hell Oh well.. what can i say.. good luck with shas and checksums

Yes, you couldn't find it using search because it wasn't looking in the floppy disk section. The reason being that this site has 2 separate game sections, one pertains to full database including screenshots, reviews, videos etc (which is exactly where the search function works), while the other is like a storehouse with just floppy disk images, like raw material. There is no search feature at all, you have to manually page through the games in order to find anything. I know, it's a little inconvenient, but such is life. It may be changed in future.

The main objective of the disk image project is to conserve as many files as possible, so we are definitely interested in any game you might be willing to offer, even if it can't be found in the regular database. We would hate to lose those files too.

While the image database might be slightly inconvinient to browse, keep in mind that the main focus of the site is still on the reviews, game information and sharing some thoughts.

Some answers to the how and why the disk image project was set up this way might be found in this thread. The short version of it (as far as I see it, Mr Creosote might be of a different opinion though): While we are aware of the fact that the disk image project is one of the major draws of the site, we don't want to give the files away to some anonymous leeches. And although we don't want to force anyone to deliver more than the 50 points to trust them with full access to the database, there is always the slim hope that you start to like contributing to the site and keep the spirit of the good old days of gaming alive.

I'd say this is spot on. Along the lines of the museum allegory, you could also say you have real exhibits and a dusty attic of stuff still to be processed in order to make it presentable. As long as a game isn't presentable, it's not really a priority to make it discoverable. Hence, I have no plans to make disk images more exposed right now (although it would not be a problem from a technical point of view).