Obscure IGS Graphics Protocol For Atari ST BBSes Celebrated with New Artpack (breakintochat.com)
(Sunday January 05, 2025 @11:34AM (EditorDavid)
from the back-to-bulletin-boards dept.)
- Reference: 0175829405
- News link: https://tech.slashdot.org/story/25/01/05/0155227/obscure-igs-graphics-protocol-for-atari-st-bbses-celebrated-with-new-artpack
- Source link: https://breakintochat.com/blog/2024/12/31/ignite-the-first-all-igs-artpack/
Developer/data journalist Josh Renaud is also long-time Slashdot reader [1]Kirkman14 — and he's got a story to tell:
> How do you get people interested in an obscure Atari ST graphics format used on BBSes in the late 1980s and early 1990s? Recruit some folks to help you make an [2]artpack full of images and animations showing it off! That's the idea behind IGNITE, a new artpack from [3]Mistigris computer arts and [4]Break Into Chat , featuring 18 images and animations created in "Instant Graphics and Sound" format.
>
> I love telling unknown underdog computer stories, and IGS sucked me in. This fall, I published a [5]six-part, 14,000-word history , introducing readers to a cast of characters that included [6]Mears , the self-described "working man without a degree" who often downplayed his own coding ability; [7]Kevin Moody and Anthony Rau , two Navy guys in Florida who bonded over their love of Atari and BBSing; [8]Steve Turnbull , an artist and scenic designer working in Hollywood; and many others.
>
> But IGS isn't just a thing of the past. Two years ago, on New Years Eve 2022, Mears made a [9]surprise announcement — he was releasing a new version of IGS, thirty years after he had stopped working on the project.
>
> Because I (inadvertently) had spurred Larry to action, I felt an obligation to make some art using his new tools. I completed my first piece — a drawing of a ship from the sci-fi game FTL — in early 2023. Over the subsequent months, I kept at it, and ended up creating a number of fun animations. I'm particularly proud of theStar Trek -themed] animated [10]Guardian of Forever login sequence , and a brand-new Calvin and Hobbes-themed animation I created just for this pack.
> How do you get people interested in an obscure Atari ST graphics format used on BBSes in the late 1980s and early 1990s? Recruit some folks to help you make an [2]artpack full of images and animations showing it off! That's the idea behind IGNITE, a new artpack from [3]Mistigris computer arts and [4]Break Into Chat , featuring 18 images and animations created in "Instant Graphics and Sound" format.
>
> I love telling unknown underdog computer stories, and IGS sucked me in. This fall, I published a [5]six-part, 14,000-word history , introducing readers to a cast of characters that included [6]Mears , the self-described "working man without a degree" who often downplayed his own coding ability; [7]Kevin Moody and Anthony Rau , two Navy guys in Florida who bonded over their love of Atari and BBSing; [8]Steve Turnbull , an artist and scenic designer working in Hollywood; and many others.
>
> But IGS isn't just a thing of the past. Two years ago, on New Years Eve 2022, Mears made a [9]surprise announcement — he was releasing a new version of IGS, thirty years after he had stopped working on the project.
>
> Because I (inadvertently) had spurred Larry to action, I felt an obligation to make some art using his new tools. I completed my first piece — a drawing of a ship from the sci-fi game FTL — in early 2023. Over the subsequent months, I kept at it, and ended up creating a number of fun animations. I'm particularly proud of the