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I don't believe it.


nirv

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After all this time, Retromags only has TWO scans of the Next Generation Magazine? Either that section just hasn't been updated, or nobody here owned those magazines. If it's out of date, please direct me the better place to go. http://www.retromags.com/forums/files/category/13-next-generation/

I figured most of them were scanned which is why I was about to throw away all of my issues.....

Edited by nirv
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As far as I know, no one here owns them. If someone does, they aren't a scanner. You could always send yours to someone who is willing to scan them for the site (like myself).

Don't throw them out yet!

Oh man then I'm sitting on a goldmine over here. http://img16.imageshack.us/img16/5563/nextgennirv.jpg

So I've got a scanner here that I haven't used in years. I don't even know if it works. I'll try finding the power to it and see how they turn out. The biggest problems would be

1. Slow scanner.

2. No idea how to debind properly. Post a youtube video?

3. I really hate the idea of these rare magazines being all chopped up but I realize the importance of preserving these incredible retro gaming mags.

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Make sure you find a scanner driver that works.. might not be possible if you're using Windows Vista or 7.

I didn't even know Next Generation had been around that long! I only started reading it from around the Dreamcast era. Hopefully we can get some of these scanned one way or another.

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All right. I just bought a new scanner. It'll be slower than the Automatic Document Feeder that Phil was talking about but whatever. So I could use some help.

1. Is there an up-to-date database that I could compare so I don't scan a duplicate? I have more than just the Next Generation Magazines...many from 1991-1998. I saw Eday talking about a better database in a 2009 thread..

2. Is Comical the best reader for Windows? I'm having problems opening some .cbrs I burned to a DVD-R a year or two ago and one I downloaded off the site yesterday. I don't think they're corrupt files.

3. Should I even bother scanning one with a missing page? If I do scan it, wouldn't it be a pain to keep track of missing pages rather than just missing issues?

I owned these magazines as a kid and although most are in good condition, some are a little worn. I'll probably use Photoshop or something to edit out any stains because I have no clue how to clean magazine paper with chemicals.

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Oh, here's a perfect example. It says in the PROJECT Tracker (not in the downloads section) that Next Generation Issue #08 is uploaded, but the file isn't found: http://www.retromags.com/forums/tracker/issue-127-next-generation-issue-008-aug-1995/

We need to work on a way to clean this up so there's no confusion about what's available. We have to start with an official database with some sort of .sfv checker like GoodNES, GoodGEN, or .sfv files found in other releases to verify the file's CRC. That'd be a huge help. I really don't want to scan something that's a duplicate.

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Could I talk to one of you on some instant messenging program or IRC or something? I could use some support over here... my first scan at the recommended 300dpi, 90% JPEG compression. I have some questions and need someone on standby to answer them so I can get this going.

http://www.retromags.net/wiki/Scanning

Next Generation Issue 01 - Front - http://www.users.qwest.net/~nirv/nextgeneration_issue01-front.jpg

Edited by nirv
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  • Retromags Curator

Ask Phillyman about Issue 8. He's the one who marked it as uploaded. It could have been an error on his part.

For issues with missing pages, you can still scan them. We have a page made up to be put in wherever there is a missing page. In the comments section of the download page, you can make a note that page x is missing. I'll send you the missing page images and the Thank you pages in a private message. If you do not wish to edit the scans yourself, someone else can do it for you.

As far as debinding, it's easy. You need a ruler, and exacto knife of box cutter/utility knife, and a pice of cardboard or something for under the magazine to protect whatever service you are cutting on. Line the ruler up with the spine of the magazine, about 3mm from the edge (about 1/8 of an inch for you people still using Imperial). Push down hard on the ruler so it doesn't slip, and use the knife to sute along the ruler. Remove and pages that were cut through, and repeat the process. Keep removing pages that have been cut. Once you cut enough pages, you won't need the ruler anymore, as you can use the edge of the spine as your straight edge. Easy as pie :)

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I'd rather not keep asking questions here but it looks like no one wants to talk to me live (you psychopaths)

How come some CBRs show up only 1 page at a time like Next Generation issue 20 with 1 page flip per page turn where others are really nicely spread 2 pages per page turn? I want my scans like the latter. I want some standards here.

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  • Retromags Curator

2. Is Comical the best reader for Windows? I'm having problems opening some .cbrs I burned to a DVD-R a year or two ago and one I downloaded off the site yesterday. I don't think they're corrupt files.

I've noticed this a few times myself. Usually this is simply because the extension is wrong; Comical treats a .CBR file as a RAR archive, but if it's a zip file, then RAR won't work with it. Try renaming the .CBR to .CBZ and that should fix the problem. :)

*huggles*

Areala

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All right. The first issue of Next Generation is done. Next Generation January 1995.cbr

Megaupload sucks. It's giving me an error when I upload and I don't have an account with them. It's 218MB and Rapidshare's max is 200. I can put it on Usenet if you want or if you have an FTP let me know.

I guess I'm trying Hotfile. Seems to be working.

Edited by nirv
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Comical treats a .CBR file as a RAR archive, but if it's a zip file, then RAR won't work with it. Try renaming the .CBR to .CBZ and that should fix the problem. :)

I zip all my magazines and change the extension to cbr, and they work just fine :)

I've also approved the issue in the Download Manager, so it should now show up for everyone.

On a side note, how did you scan and edit that issue so quickly?

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Next Generation Issue 02 February 1995 is now up: http://hotfile.com/dl/45714715/895ef2b/next_generation_february_1995.zip.html

I zip all my magazines and change the extension to cbr, and they work just fine :)

I've also approved the issue in the Download Manager, so it should now show up for everyone.

On a side note, how did you scan and edit that issue so quickly?

I don't know, I just followed your directions. The second issue I did in about an hour and a half from beginning to end. I used this HP F2120 scanner and used Hypersnap 6.80 which can acquire the scan directly in it for chopping or editing and quick JPEG saving.

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Next Generation Issue 003 March 1995 is now up! http://hotfile.com/dl/45829691/1a49faa/next_generation_march_1995.zip.html

This was a fantastic issue. The articles and screenshots keep taking my attention away during scanning and slowing me down. This is also my best scan so far with the least amount of artifacts and crooked pages because I edited some of them in Photoshop CS5 unlike, admittedly, my previous 2. I may have to go back and clean them up.

I could still use some live support - I still have questions!

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I'm downloading Issue 1 right now. I am curious to see how well your scanner and software did since you did the editing with the scanner software. I know with my scanner I can scan about 90-100 pages in an hour, and I do my editing in Photoshop. The slowest part of editing is having Photoshop open the TIF files. Most everything else has an action, so the rest is pretty quick :).

P.S. - Unless someone else beats me to it, I will add your scans to the download manager later this week. I don't know if you can do it yourself, being a Newcomer, but if you want to try, you can upload a scan on this page: http://www.retromags.com/pages/Help/Uploading_A_Magazine (works in Internet Explorer only). If you need help on how to add something in the download manager, just let me know (if you are able to) :)

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I'm downloading Issue 1 right now. I am curious to see how well your scanner and software did since you did the editing with the scanner software. I know with my scanner I can scan about 90-100 pages in an hour, and I do my editing in Photoshop. The slowest part of editing is having Photoshop open the TIF files. Most everything else has an action, so the rest is pretty quick :).

P.S. - Unless someone else beats me to it, I will add your scans to the download manager later this week. I don't know if you can do it yourself, being a Newcomer, but if you want to try, you can upload a scan on this page: http://www.retromags.com/pages/Help/Uploading_A_Magazine (works in Internet Explorer only). If you need help on how to add something in the download manager, just let me know (if you are able to) :)

Well, I'm not entirely using just the scanning software. I'm actually using 3: the HP Scanning software for lighting/color adjustments, Hypersnap 6.80 for the cropping/saving as a JPEG, and then Photoshop CS5 for touch-ups such as removing dirt or any stains. It could change based on advice from expert scanners, but check the results on Issue 04 coming soon. :)

I'd be happy to upload directly but I'm not authorized to do it: [#10CCS3] You do not have permission to view this page.

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I can give you a set of actions for Photoshop that will adjust the levels, colour balance, and saturation of your scans, as well as resize them to the standard 1440 or 1600 pixels wide. I also use Photoshop for cropping and straightening out the pages, and made an action to turn F2 into Crop, since there is no shortcut for it. Now I can't use Photoshop unless I have Crop mapped to F2 :). Doing the cropping in Photoshop may save you a bit of time by redusing the number of programs to three. But I don't know how quick HyperSnap is, so maybe it would take longer in Photoshop.

The only thing I get my scanner to do is Descreen, and usually I get it to adjust the colour slightly, but that's pretty much unneccessary since I get Photoshop to do it all for me.

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Next Generation Issue 004 April 1995 now available: http://hotfile.com/dl/45950370/d274231/next_generation_april_1995.zip.html

It was already done scanning when E-Day mentioned the construction paper under the lid of the scanner trick so I'll probably have to do this one again, too. Are there any other tips and information you have? I'll take all of the information now because I don't want to redo anything and I really don't want people having to edit my scans - that really takes the wind out of my sails.

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Your doing an excellent job. There is no fast way to do it. Eday has a good idea with shortcuts. If you have a game controller, download Joy2key and map whatever key combination you need to the controller and set it somewhere. It saves the wrists. My cheap WalMart Logitech Wingman came with a mini disc that also makes button combos.

I didn't notice anything wrong. When I scan with the lid open and there's a bright light above, it can bleed the pages together when your at the very beginning or end of a magazine.

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No, there is no quick way to do all this. That's why you must really believe in this project to have the patience to do it :). You can only work as fast as your scanner and computer let you. I used to use an old Canon scanner that would take two minutes to scan each page. That was a test of patience.

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