Name: Econet LAN Party
Start: 2024-05-18T09:30:00+01:00
End: 2024-05-19T17:30:00+01:00
Location: The National Museum of Computing

If you own an Acorn computer with an Econet port, come join the party!
About this Event

The Econet LAN Party is back! On 18-19th May we want to create 2024’s biggest Econet network at TNMoC!

We currently have 14 machines and two servers connected to our Econet network. For one weekend only, we want to see just how big we can make it go. Last year we got 57 machines and several remote connections - how many can we do this year?

If you have any BBC or Archimedes machines with an Econet interface, please bring them along. We’d be very interested to see any other machines too, so if you have a rare System rack or an Atom, you’ll definitely attract our attention.

Econet Programming Challenge

To make the event more memorable, we want to do some multiplayer gaming. Would you be interested in writing a simple game for the event? We’ve got Colossal Cave, but what about some other games? So we are putting a challenge out there. Could you write or convert another game to make it multiplay over the network? If you're new or need a helping hand, we recommend the following guides on Econet programming:

BBC Computer user guide - a brilliant introduction to the world of BASIC programming.

Econet advanced user guide - contains an excellent tutorial to build a program to communicate across the network.

15-Minute Stand-Up Talks

As part of the event, we’re planning some short talks with an Econet theme. We’re anticpitating four talks on each day, exploring the past and present of Econet:

Mark Moxon - Making the Game Elite Work Over the Econet

Jarod Nash - Reverse Engineering Econet Bridging Protocols

Tom Camps - Teardown of a Acorn Filestore

Sheridan Williams - Beebug and Acorn Machines

Andrew Gordon - SJ Research and Econet Developments

Details

Doors open 9:30am on both days. Clear up by 5pm on Sunday. The room will be locked overnight, so your equipment will be secure. If you wish, we can stay open late on Saturday night (with prior arrangement), or we can decamp to a local pub.

We will provide chairs and tables, a nearby mains socket and an Econet point(s). Please bring your own Econet cable and mains leads. To avoid confusion, we recommend you label your kit. We’ll be allocating Econet station numbers when you book. There will be several sub-nets, linked by bridges.

Please do not plug in any equipment that is damaged, unsafe or may have faulty mains capacitors. If you are unsure, we can work together to repair any power supplies on the day. Please do not have covers open on any equipment which runs at more than 12V. i.e. you can run your Beeb or Arc with its cover off, but not a monitor or partly dismantled power supply unit.

Some people have asked about monitors. We may be able to loan some monitors, so please get in touch with [email protected] to discuss your needs.

Admission

Admission is £15/day or £25 for both days. The museum will be open to normal visitors too, and you are welcome to look around. Lunch is included in the ticket price.

Getting there

Sat-Nav postcode is MK3 6DS. Parking is available very close to the room. There is an electric car charging point on site, although this is a short walk from TNMOC’s building. Bletchley train station is a 5-10 minute walk away with two direct trains per hour to London and Birmingham.

Schedule for the Day*:

Saturday 18/05

0930; Arrival and welcome

1000 - 1200; Machine/network set-up

1200 - 1300; Lunch (catering TBC)

1300 - 1400; 2 x 15 min talks, each with short Q&A (topics TBC)

1500 - 1600; Econet record attempt

1600 - 1700; Pack down

Sunday 19/05

0930; Arrival and welcome

1000 - 1030; Machine/network set-up

1030 - 1130; 1300 - 1400; 2 x 15 min talks, each with short Q&A (topics TBC)