Ariel Millennium Thornton @arielmt@computerfairi.es

The vendor URLs trying to find anything about this disc led me to:

calm: https://www.cyberlink.com/stat/edms/bb/cms/16/18w23/enu/index_ulm.jsp?BBProductId=30&BBProdVerId=1316&BBnLangId=1&SRTYPE=OEM&DAY_LEFT=0&FIRSTLAUNCHDATE=2019%252F04%252F06&GLOBALEXPID=0&CDKey=&TypeId=4&Patch=0&Ca=Banner_MainPage&RESIZE=1

panic: https://www.cyberlink.com/stat/edms/bb/cms/16/18w23/enu/index_oem.jsp?BBProductId=30&BBProdVerId=986&BBnLangId=1&SRTYPE=OEM&DAY_LEFT=0&FIRSTLAUNCHDATE=2015%252F05%252F13&GLOBALEXPID=0&TypeId=4&Patch=0&Ca=CLUpdater_Upgrade

I let that "panic now, pay later" offer expire, and nothing happened. On reloading the page, it reset to three days but left all the other information, including the supposedly limited-time price, the same.

Also, amusingly not helping their image, each split-flap digit animation in the countdown timer is flipping up, not down like real split-flap displays.

The disc and sleeve have text and a Code 39 barcode reading "SAC35781924". Searching for it on CyberLink's website yields exactly zero results.

For a disc bundled with a hardware purchase last week and delivered today.

If their DVD didn't come free with ~~cereal~~ my new cheap DVD drive, I would swear CyberLink was either a scam or hocking some really slick spyware.

The OEM disc says it's "CyberLink Media Suite," the installer says it's version 16, the few programs it wants to install are at least 2 versions behind what the website says 16 has, & the website gives radically different upgrade prices for the same product depending on which search engine result is followed.

Bots-Wana https://computerfairi.es/@iconolog/114581334652010651

Weekend achievements:

Install Mac OS 7.5.3 m68k in QEmu, although I don't know how to move data in & out yet, only in through ISO & floppy image files.

Get Windows 3.11 working at a higher resolution than 640x480, no small feat because compatible Cirrus drivers don't like QEmu's '-vga cirrus' option, & the usual SuperVGA patches don't like any of QEmu's VGA options.

Get mGBA to run Gameboy roms in blissful silence, so I don't have to rely on Mame for that.

All in FreeBSD as host OS.

A fever dream:

An obscure and short-lived '80s cartoon, "The Commodore's SixtyForce," in the style of the (very real!) comic book series, "Tandy Computer Whiz Kids."

In the first two seasons, they were led by Commodore Vick Twanei, while in the third season, they were led by Commodore Juan Tweniate, without an adequate explanation for the leadership change.

Did you know that FreeBSD 14.2 runs very well on a Dell Inspiron 518 desktop PC?

Did you know that a Dell Inspiron 518 can put in 40 hours of power-on time a week for 17 years and counting?

Even running massive applications like LibreOffice and Firefox? (Firefox with NoScript and uBlock Origin, of course.)