pouët.net

Hi glöps fans!

In the old days (1989-1997), when we used floppy discs to spread the demos : Some groups created some 'packs of intros' collections to put lots of intros/dentros on one floppy disk (i know them on Amiga and AmstradCPC, it exists perhaps on AtariST too and more?)

These packs had a menu, this menu was coded with gfxs and music like a little intro. It was allways different for each pack's issue, or using a common template like for diskmags.
Few (bad) packs used a basic text mode menu or a fixed gfx, these ones are not interesting in my opinion, i'm interested only if the pack use code+music+gfxs.

These packs are a part of our demoscene culture, they was the best way to spread the demos and was send by snail mail by spreaders (see top10 spreaders and top10 packs in old diskmags).

My question is :
Do you think it can be interesting and useful to add each intro-pack (with a coded/gfx/music menu only, all issues like diskmags) on pouët.net database ? (and add a new prod category in the same time)

example of pack series (Amiga) :
Hemoroïds - TCP
Hemoroïds - Street Pack
Psykotrope - Spayce Pack
Nova - Toxic Pack
Eremation - Dragon pack
Eremation - Motor Breath Pack
Steelers - Steelpack
Pussy - Compussylation
Saturne - Fruity Pack
Simplex - Spleeping Pack
Syndrome - Kickdown
Scoopex - Nevermind
TRSI - Overdose
... more and more ...

I'll like this new category :)

actually a farbrausch intropak would be cool :D

useless if the single intros are allready listed here.

sure if theres enough good ones. Because i remember that at every party back then when the stuff was released the party was FLOODED with packs.
i had like 15-25 from each tp up to tp96 :D

the interest is not the content (all intros are or will be on pouët) but the menu of the pack when it is coded+gfxs+music (+scrolling+effect ...)

As long as it isn't called "intro-pack", because that name is just completely wrong. It doesn't make much sense in adding only menus either (what about CLI-packdisks? Or packs with other stuff than the demos and menu on them?) ..

i think adding packs has been mentioned before.. and as long as there are already musicdisks and slideshows, why not.. the big difference is that most of the prods in the pack would already be here, but like zone said, the interest is more in the pack menu/music.

it's too bad packs aren't popular these days, especially not on pc. i know that leeching is easier than ever, but it would be cool to hand out 3" CD-R compilations at parties, and 180MB would be enough room for several demos, photos, and even an MP3 album or two.

Do you mean releasing all the party prods and materials in a CD, phoenix?

that's one idea.. although you'd need a whole 5" CD, or more, for some parties. other than that, you could just compile the latest releases so people will have stuff to watch/listen to before the compos start.

I don't see anything wrong with this. I'd like to start seeing Pouet branch out to Musicpacks and Artpacks as well, personally. Then Pouet would be the central resource for basically all-things scene related.

What about just doing a MISC category? :P

I think it would be cool. A lot of packs had scrollers, music and graphics (Infestation gfx ruled!). If Pouet has a cracktro category why not pack menu category?

"that's one idea.. although you'd need a whole 5" CD, or more, for some parties."
yeah andy its called the asm dvd. :P

so whats the name for the intro-packs category? i heard opinions against that name but no better suggestions..

"demopack" i guess? we could dump mindcandy and asmdvd and naid memorabilia and bcn and whatever other cds with party releases on that category aswell.. along with the old intropacks and more recent demoshow cds by crest and radio24... would be acceptable provided there is a devoted page for it or preferably the url to the iso/disk image.. :)

radman: i personally dont see why not create an artpack category on pouet, but im no so sure about the musicpack thing. i wouldnt mind calling it a musicdisk if its tracked but has no interface, but with the whole mp3 thing and the netlabel scene getting bigger and bigger, there are lots of releases from ppl who dont even know what the demoscene is.. i dont think pouet is the place to database releases from those groups.

Nah. Don't confuse the users.

good idea, but the name "intropack" is just stupid :) how about just "pack"? or "packdisk"?

and btw, i've never understood why a bunch of tunes without an interface could be called a musicdisk :)

reed: why not? i always thought 'musicdisk' was a floppy filled with tracked songs from a group or random tracker. Like an album, but then computer style.

Okkie : humm, 'musicdisk' (like 'slideshow') in demoscene feeling means you use an interface (player and menu choice) coded by the group involved in the production, it's not only the datas. Spread only the datas in a single 'archive' like LHA or ZIP is not interesting because nothing is coded or designed, so without this creativity it's not really demoscenish.

ps : artpacks like collection of ascii art can be interesting in my opinion only if the makers create a coded menu to display the datas. I'll be interested in ascii art when i'll find a menu and a player to view properly the artwork.

Reed : you're true, "packdisk" is perhaps the best word, because it say 'disk' and it will avoid basic 'archives' to be added

MrKing (probably the most known spreader of the gold age) where are you ? ;)

Phoenix: I've been waiting for a long time for demos to get big enough that only <10 would fit on a CD. Then I could start making CD packs with a menu and everything. :p

Of course, this is just a silly fun idea, totally pointless with the internet and everything. But if everything in the scene had to be rational and intelligent.. well there wouldn't be much scene to speak of now would there. :)

those old intro packs were cool in those days. And they're a part of our heritage, so they should surely be added to pouet. I'd suggest pack-disk or something similar too, since i remember some had other things than just intros, like maybe a small game or some music etc. Also, i suggest only ones with a proper coded front end too, anything else is just a collection of intros that are already on the database...

I'm against adding music /art / whatever packs tho, seeing as thats blurring the boundaries of scene/nonscene stuff too far for me. Pics + tunes aren't demos at all.. and where would it end? Collections of pics by a famous scener? Collections of stuff from somebody who once contributed to a demo? It would end with a massive database full of irrelevant stuff, which is why i guess its not been done.

ps: umm, well a pack should have an interface, like a musicdisk or slideshow does. anybody can zip up a bunch of images or songs, it's the frontend that makes it a real release. so that would disqualify the naid cd as a pack. likewise, products for sale (such as the asm dvd) shouldn't be on pouet, only prods that you can download. and yeah, i like just "pack" as the term.

o<

most five musicians musicdisks didnt have an interface for example, that didnt stop them from beeing 5 stars back in the days.

having a customized viewer with an artpack would make it more "leet" and "scenefriedly" but i dont think that should be only line to take into account when determining if thats a demoscene realted release or not. not to mention that no one really wants to bundle their own version of acidview or xmplay into their artpack/muscidisk :P a good player/viewer exists already, why recode the wheel? just to make it officially "scenefriendly"? :) its already made by sceners, shouldnt need more then that to be considered a real scene release imho

anyways, i guess i'll create the "pack-disk" category along with the before requested "misctro" this weekend.

a "packmag" category would be cool indeed... it could include "intro-packs" as well as "chipmags" like those by appendix, veezya and floppy for example. pc artpacks should be explicitely excluded from this category though.

how about an "appz" and "gamez" category?

we also need a photo category