Topic:   GameMaker full version history   (Read 11504 times)


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GabrielCA


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GameMaker full version history
« on: March 11, 2010, 08:47:49 PM »
I've always been interested in version history of various programs. I was surprised to know that GM existed since 1995 .

I did a little "e-archeology" and copy-pasted version history from various old GM docs, which were made easily accessible by the Web Archive.

There are 108 versions, the first of which was released on July 30, 1995.

http://manual.gamemakersgarage.com/index.php?title=GameMaker:Version_History


« Last Edit: March 11, 2010, 09:02:24 PM by GabrielCA »
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GabrielCA


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Re: GameMaker full version history
« Reply #1 on: March 11, 2010, 09:02:35 PM »
One of the more interesting bits :
"Improve randomness of RANDOM command. " (in v2.4 - 9/23/98 )
I wonder if in 1998, "random" had the same connotation it has today...
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GMG Mike


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Re: GameMaker full version history
« Reply #2 on: March 11, 2010, 09:42:56 PM »
The very first versions were written in Microsoft BASIC, which crashed on Macs with more than 16 MB of RAM.

v0.98b introduced the new Runtime, and v0.98d introduced the new main program, re-written in FutureBasic II.

The first paid version I ever used was v2.8.6. The PICT bug in v2.8.7 was fixed as a result of my development of "Dude".

I remember when v3.2 came out. Al finally converted to FutureBasic 3 so he could compile PPC apps. Everyone's scripts were twice as fast. Carbon support took another two years though.

It's too bad that the FutureBasic guys have decided to abandon their old compiler. The new version of FB merely converts your BASIC code into C code so that it can be passed on to gcc.

EqwanoX


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Re: GameMaker full version history
« Reply #3 on: March 12, 2010, 10:07:03 AM »
gm is gonna be 15 years old in 4 months, and still no methods. even sc 1.0 had methods  and that was 8 years ago :o  http://www.silvercreator.net/cgi-bin/yabb2/YaBB.pl?num=1078131752
« Last Edit: March 12, 2010, 10:09:45 AM by EqwanoX »

Al Staffieri


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Re: GameMaker full version history
« Reply #4 on: March 30, 2010, 09:19:56 AM »
Quote
One of the more interesting bits :
"Improve randomness of RANDOM command. " (in v2.4 - 9/23/98 )
I wonder if in 1998, "random" had the same connotation it has today...

I think the problem was it seemed to give very similar sequence of numbers all the time.

Al Staffieri


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Re: GameMaker full version history
« Reply #5 on: March 30, 2010, 09:24:22 AM »
Quote
I remember when v3.2 came out. Al finally converted to FutureBasic 3 so he could compile PPC apps. Everyone's scripts were twice as fast. Carbon support took another two years though.

It's too bad that the FutureBasic guys have decided to abandon their old compiler. The new version of FB merely converts your BASIC code into C code so that it can be passed on to gcc.

If I could have gotten GameMaker 3 running in the new FutureBASIC it would have been a lot faster even if I didn't make it Universal, but some of the code was just too old and messy to get gcc to ever compile it. That's why I had to start over from nothing. A lot of the code was left over Microsoft QuickBASIC gosubs from 15 years ago with hacks and fixes over the years to keep it working on newer Macs and with FutureBASIC.


Al Staffieri


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Re: GameMaker full version history
« Reply #6 on: March 30, 2010, 09:26:15 AM »
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gm is gonna be 15 years old in 4 months, and still no methods. even sc 1.0 had methods  and that was 8 years ago

I just don't have the time or desire for programming like I used to. Working full time and going to school takes most my time.


Gan


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Re: GameMaker full version history
« Reply #7 on: March 30, 2010, 11:19:44 AM »
I feel that way some times...
That's why I rotate my projects and also bring them up on new languages.   Fertilizes my interest...

Try learning Obj-C, bucket full of fun.


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Re: GameMaker full version history
« Reply #8 on: April 04, 2010, 10:54:57 PM »
I liked surfin' through the archives. Priceless.
This Cannot be, NOOOOOOOO!!!!

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GabrielCA


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Re: GameMaker full version history
« Reply #9 on: April 10, 2010, 12:05:44 PM »
16 MB... Funny facts
  • The oldest versions of GameMaker required that it be run on a computer with less than 16 MB of RAM.
  • The newest versions of GameMaker require that the game applications be less than 16 MB in size.

Quote
The very first versions were written in Microsoft BASIC, which crashed on Macs with more than 16 MB of RAM.

GM site : "There is approximately a 16Mb file size limit for GameMaker files. Creating a project that is larger than 16Mb can cause GameMaker to crash"
« Last Edit: April 10, 2010, 12:07:23 PM by GabrielCA »
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Al Staffieri


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Re: GameMaker full version history
« Reply #10 on: April 10, 2010, 12:12:52 PM »
Quote
I've always been interested in version history of various programs. I was surprised to know that GM existed since 1995 .

I did a little "e-archeology" and copy-pasted version history from various old GM docs, which were made easily accessible by the Web Archive.

There are 108 versions, the first of which was released on July 30, 1995.

As you can see I was very active with GameMaker back in the 90's and early 2000's.

Al Staffieri


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Re: GameMaker full version history
« Reply #11 on: April 10, 2010, 12:26:29 PM »
Quote
16 MB... Funny facts
  • The oldest versions of GameMaker required that it be run on a computer with less than 16 MB of RAM.
  • The newest versions of GameMaker require that the game applications be less than 16 MB in size.


That's because the first versions of GameMaker were made with Microsoft QuickBASIC which was not 32 bit compatible. That meant it could not access or run in any memory area past the first 16Mb. Since the OS takes up way more than that these days there's no way to run anything made with QuickBASIC.

In those days Macs had 1Mb or 2Mb of memory, so it was unthinkable that we would hit 16Mb in such a short time. I made the first GameMaker version on a 1991 black and white Mac Classic with 1Mb of memory.

This is why I'm having so much trouble creating a 4.0 version. A lot of the code still relies on old 16Mb limits, such as saving data and images in a resource fork. Resource forks of a file are limited to 16Mb. Again, that's why I finally decided I had to start from scratch and rewrite the entire GameMaker. I was having too much trouble trying to update it. I practically had to rewrite every line of code anyway and it would have still been a mess because my old programming habits were so bad.

GabrielCA


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Re: GameMaker full version history
« Reply #12 on: April 10, 2010, 12:29:25 PM »
Wow, a rewrite...

BTW I still have a Mac Classic ^_^
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GabrielCA


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Re: GameMaker full version history
« Reply #13 on: April 19, 2010, 07:10:43 PM »
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I feel that way some times...
That's why I rotate my projects and also bring them up on new languages.   Fertilizes my interest...
I like the idea of rotation.
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