Carbon Copy Cloner – micro review

Carbon Copy Cloner a.k.a. CCC is a donation-ware disk duplication application for Apple Mac OSX. I recently used the app to successfully move my data from a HDD to an SDD and I decided to give it a go as part of my regular backup system. Here’s my mini review…

My gripe with the app is that while the scheduled events do start on time, even waking the computer up to do so, the app doesn’t keep the system awake. This means that your power settings are likely to cause your system to sleep and therefore the backup to pause in the middle. This of course means that it will resume when your computer wakes again and that will most likely be when you get back on your system in the morning to start work and be faced with the rest of the backup job.

Further to this last point, if you have ‘sleep when done’ as a setting then it will do just that. Good in one sense but not good when it’s resumed because you’ve woken it up and you’re in the middle of some work and then your system just drops to sleep. I appreciate this is as designed but the app should recognise who woke the system up and only sleep if it woke it up.

Summary

On the whole, it’s a great free disk duplication software for OSX with a few gripes related to scheduled backups that can be worked around.

References

• Carbon Copy Cloner
• SuperDuper

I walked into a minefield of problems when attempting to connect back to my Synology DS210j after a regular firmware update. The approved desktop application DSAssistant was used to upload and apply the firmware but something just went wrong. DSAssistant claimed the IP address was set, but the device wouldn’t accept web connections. I eventually found a solution that helped me get the device back up & running.

I’ve spent a little while this week whiling away the hours with a couple of music related apps for iPhone / iPad I’d recommend you check-out. Perfect for a Sunday morning.

BIT.TRIP BEAT

I saw a video of BIT.TRIP being played over on YouTube and it looked exactly like my kind of game. It look fun and furious with a great graphic style all of its own. I had to have it!

BIT.TRIP BEAT is the arcade game for the new millennium, fusing Pong with interactive beats. Use the accelerometer or touch controls to move the paddle up and down bouncing beats back from which they came! Listen and react to different beat progressions as you try to survive an onslaught of spectacular retro visuals. Successfully chain beats and obtain the megasphere to go for insane scores, not to mention the elusive “Perfect Score.” Team-up with your friends for the intense Multiplayer Gameplay Mode! Bounce to the beat with BIT.TRIP BEAT!

BIT.TRIP for iPad

BIT.TRIP for iPhone

Modizer

Modizer is a great way to check out those old game tracks like Chris Huelsbeck’s Turrican 2 Intro, and Rob Hubbard’s Lightforce and Zoids played on SID and MOD, not only does it sound amazing but it includes a nice visualiser too.

It has built in access to HVSC and other libraries of music making it a breeze to find your favourite tunes and be amazed at what can be achieved in a tiny bit of memory.

Get your self some old skool tunes!

Modizer is a multiformat modules & chiptunes player which allows you to listen to computers and consoles music (C64, Amstrad CPC, Atari ST, Amiga, PC, GB, NES, SNES, SMS, Genesis/Megadrive, PcEngine, PSX, …).
Minimum requirement is iPhone 3G/iPod 2G, iOS 3.0 or more.
Modizer is also optimized for iPad & iPhone 4.

Based on multiple high quality playback engines and using either the FTP server, the builtin WEB browser or the integrated Modland & HVSC databases you can discover or listen again to the best music from the videogames (8/16bits era) and demoscene history.

Discover some real gems from famous people like Chris Huelsbeck, Jochen Hippel, Purple Motion, Lizardking, Audiomonster or Rob Hubbard, …

Modizer for iPhone
Modizer for iPad

I always get a warm fuzzy feeling when I get to know that people enjoyed the games I made all those years ago…in todays world it’s relatively easy to find people who were previously shrouded in mystery and you could never reach them.

Do you connect with people who make things you enjoy? 

Arabian Knights (via satansam@YouTube)

Just a little message to say this game was one of the staple games of my childhood. There was one level I could never get past, I think it was on a pirate ship… by that point in the game I had no lives left so it was a struggle for a 10 year old xD.

But yea. You programmed a brilliant game. Every part of that game was well made, the controls, the music, the artwork. Great stuff.

So with that in mind, cheerio!

This is what it feels like when the production manager visits to see how you’re game is doing…

Well, it looks like Develop 2010 is over for this year (the clue is in the name) and the next event is Gamescom in just over 4 weeks time. Just enough time to detox ready for the next wave of ‘networking’.

I wonder if Paul the Psychic Octopus predicted the correct Develop Award winners? It looks like he’s patrolling the Gamescom web-site too, so BEWARE!

Stick with us during the break and don’t go changing channels!