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Here we go again folks. After making this post when I discovered my copy of LEGO Stunt Rally did not contain all the command-line parameters mentioned by @TykeDean, I went tracking down this elusive other copy of LEGO Stunt Rally that contained more parameters. I managed to find it, and I've tried to write out all the file differences I found as best as I could. I think the gameplay is the same otherwise. Executables _msr.exe: The 0.3.5.1 version is dated Monday, August 21, 2000, 8:40:10 AM, is 1,785,913 bytes, and is signed as version 0.3.5.1, "Copyright © 2000 Intelligent Games Ltd". The 0.3.8.1 versionis dated Friday, October 06, 2000, 9:12:32 AM, is 1,785,913 bytes, and is signed as version 0.3.8.1, "Copyright © 2000 Intelligent Games Ltd". The Russian version is dated Monday, June 04, 2001, and is 1,658,880 bytes. It uses all the same parameters. Though I'm not entirely sure what they all do yet, all of the following command-line parameters should work with the 0.3.5.1 version of _msr: /ALLAI /CDIN /DEBUGINFO /FILES /FREEFORM /FROMLAUNCHER /IGTEST /LOAD_TEXT /NORES /NOINTROVIDEO /RES_FILES /WINDOWED /XAFTOXBF The 0.3.8.1 version of _msr can only use these parameters: /FILES /FREEFORM /FROMLAUNCHER /IGTEST /NOINTROVIDEO /XAFTOXBF StuntRally.exe/Setup.exe: The 0.3.5.1 version is from Thursday, August 17, 2000, 8:00:22 AM, is 409,600 bytes, and is signed as version 0.3.1.1, "Copyright (C) 1999". The 0.3.8.1 version is from Wednesday, September 13, 2000, 5:56:34 AM, is 421,888 bytes, and is signed as version 0.3.7.9, "Copyright (C) 1999". Installed files But wait! That's far from all that's different between these games. A good deal of files were removed or altered between the two versions of the game: For starters, 0.3.5.1 is the version of the game that has the credits sequence tacked onto the end of the outro video. That version of the outro was created August 17, 2000, while the FMV without the credits was created August 30. The elusiveness of the credits sequence leads me to believe 0.3.5.1 is probably the rarer version of the game. In version 0.3.5.1, the MIDI files of George Stone's "Trip Through the Grand Canyon" and Yello's "Oh Yeah" that can be found with the direct music files in ART0001.RFD are sitting uncompressed in the folder called art\music. They're still also in the archive file though. The folders for the direct music files are also in art\music here, but are all empty. A bunch of empty folders are also in art\frontend. These aren't here in the CAB data, so it must be something left over in the installer that was removed in 0.3.8.1. ART0001.RF: The 0.3.5.1 version of ART0001.RFD is from Wednesday, August 16, 2000, 10:55:08 PM, and is 78,815,447 bytes. The 0.3.5.1 version of ART0001.RFH is from Wednesday, August 16, 2000, 10:55:08 PM, is 298,924 bytes, and links to 2793 files. The 0.3.8.1 version of ART0001.RFD is from Monday, September 11, 2000, 10:50:50 AM, and is 63,618,752 bytes. The 0.3.8.1 version of ART0001.RFH is from Monday, September 11, 2000, 10:50:50 AM, is 151,112 bytes, and links to 2793 files. Why the big size difference but no file difference? Well, for some reason, with version 0.3.5.1, if I extract the game data directly from the CAB files, the ART files are dated 4:55 PM instead of 10:55, and even though the content of all files is completely identical, extracting the CAB-extracted RFD file will dump out 5303 files. I have no idea why the RF Tool treats these two archives totally different just because one was extracted while the other was installed, and the RF files from the 0.3.8.1 version don't act like this. A number of strange things extract from the 0.3.5.1 cab-extracted ART RF file. Most of the extra files seem to be .txt versions of already-existing files, and redundant audio files. In aidata, there are txt files for the car AI alongside bin files that are used in the final game. Bluemon.txt (presumably Glacia's car?) contains this: While Bluemon.bin is not human-readable: Maybe this is another situation like the unused NRM/NRN files in Rock Raiders that were used to create the final NPL files that the game uses. Oddly, according to these files, Mr. X isn't actually faster than the other bosses, he just has faster "reflex", more rubber-banding, and higher "intelligence" whatever that means, so I don't know. Again though, why I can only access these files if I rip the RF file directly from the CAB instead of installing it, I have absolutely no idea. If they are related though, maybe they could help us figure out how to edit the AI files. There's a new folder "Sounds", which seems to just contain a lot of the same stuff from the SPEECH RF file. In this extraction, it's all in Dutch for some reason. Same thing happens when I extract SPEECH directly from the CAB of either version - now that I think about it, I'm not exactly sure how installers handle language files, but I guess that has to do with a lot of this stuff acting differently. There's also a new folder called "text", which mostly seems to contain short .txt files that each have a single bit of interface text in them. Not sure what it was replaced with, but nothing really interesting here, aside from some planned bio texts for the racers. Most of them just contain "placeholder" with a driver's name below that, but two of them actually have more stuff written in them (The first one is the file for Baron Flambo): Finally, there's a worlds folder that seems to contain textures for all the roads and scenery, as well as their sprites for the construction zone. I don't see how this would be unused though, where else would this stuff be stored? I don't know where the used textures are located, so if anyone else is familiar with the file structure of Stunt Rally please help out - if they aren't anywhere normally then somethings up and the RF Tool isn't perfected, if they are then maybe I'm just unobservant lmao. SPEECH0001.RF: The 0.3.5.1 version of SPEECH0001.RFD is from Wednesday, August 16, 2000, 4:48:06 PM, and is 9,698,913 bytes. The 0.3.5.1 version of SPEECH0001.RFH is from Wednesday, August 16, 2000, 4:48:06 PM, is 8,508 bytes, and links to 156 files. The 0.3.8.1 version of SPEECH0001.RFD is from Friday, September 8, 2000, 1:43:32 PM, and is 9,698,317 bytes. The 0.3.8.1 version of SPEECH0001.RFH is from Friday, September 8, 2000, 1:43:32 PM, is 8,508 bytes, and links to 156 files. The only difference I can find is with the the "congratulations, world champion" line that plays over the outro. In 3.5.1, the audio clip starts at the same time as the video does, and contains silence for the time until he starts speaking. In 3.8.1, the audio clip only contains his line with no silence at the beginning. Presumably they changed the audio syncing code to be a little fancier, so they could save a full half-kilobyte of storage space. Demo executables Finally, I checked the Eidos Interactive Japanese demo of the game, as well as one of the English demos - I'm not sure if there's only one version of that though. The Japanese demo version renames _msr.exe to LegoSRally.exe. This version is dated Friday, January 12, 2001, 5:49:18 PM, is a larger 2,039,808 bytes, and is signed as version 0.3.8.1, "Copyright © 2000 Intelligent Games Ltd" (and strangely still claims its language is UK English). The following parameters work with this version of the game: /FILES /FREEFORM /FROMLAUNCHER /IGTEST /NOINTROVIDEO /NORES /RES_FILES Unlike the English 0.3.8.1, it's missing /XAFTOXBF and now has /RES_FILES and /NORES included from the former 0.3.5.1 version. Unfortunately, I don't know if the main Japanese version is like this, nor do I know what the Russian and Hebrew versions of this game are like. If anyone has or finds those please let me know. The English demo that I have seems to rename "moto.exe" to StuntRally.exe. This version is dated [I forgot lol], is 1,785,918 bytes, and is signed as version 0.4.0.7. Only the following parameters work with it: /FREEFORM /FROMLAUNCHER I don't know what release versions of the game corresponds to what version of the game files. My 0.3.8.1 copy seems to be an original release version by LEGO Media International, IB2G-STUFRS 2298851, might've come in a big box but it was just the case when I got it. I don't know what region it's from, the back of the case has the LMI copyright in French first, then English below it, and both full versions have a bunch of European languages available in the installer but default to English. I'm not sure how to check the exact region formatting - maybe it's from Canada? I guess if any of you have Stunt Rally, try to find which version of the files you have, the one with credits and parameters or the one without credits and few parameters (or any other ones that might be out there like the 0.4.0.7 that the en-demo uses), and what release of the game yours is if you can tell.

Much like the FREE GAME counterpart, this one is for neat software. Avoid posting rubbish shareware gone free that's probably loaded with adware or software that you have to sell your soul to get. I'll start - DxO OpticsPro 11 Essential http://www.dxo.com/us/practicalphotography

This summer just gone I picked up the original 1997 Infomaniac minifig that came with the big box version of LEGO Island but it's one I've never seen before nor can find any info on. The entire purchase was a bit of an oddity, I found it on a glitched listing on eBay that only showed up under certain circumstances, you couldn't find it through a regular search even though the title was perfectly fine, after buying it I tried to find info on this issue of the figure. I have the polybag release which has suffered from the usual internal paint disintegration but this other version is in a purpose made clam shell that fits perfectly into the big box version of the game, does anyone else have this particular fig? Below are the two box designs I've found online, and yes one of them is not a stock photo and a picture from eBay of one that sold last December, did anyone here get this copy that was sealed with an Infomaniac in it? I was super bummed to have missed this, especially since it sold for 15 bucks! Any help would be greatly appreciated.

So, while this site was down, for LEGO Island's 20th anniversary (Oct. 2) I tried to organize a Reddit AMA with people who worked on the game, as many as I could contact and would be interested. I got in touch with a number of people, ~12-16 iirc. Unfortunately, the AMA ultimately never materialized, mostly because an AMA requires verification, and I didn't know how that could happen for such an old game. (Then the r/games mods got peeved at me for being overenthusiastic, basically saying I'll never be able to try to do any AMA there again.) And during that time, Wes Jenkins passed away (about a week from LI's 20th anniversary original release date, iirc), which basically sealed the "not gonna happen" deal. However, as a result of my contact, one of the animators wrote up an interesting article on his time working on the game (he emailed it to me, and I saved it in this document just now) - https://docs.google.com/document/d/1chL_iGfo-h559vnR6ds_ZDnLWicZ48RYxFlf1wmV2aE/edit?usp=sharing EDIT: Talked to Kathleen "Brick-by-Brick" Salvia, very nice lady.

So you want to learn 3D modeling with NewTek Lightwave 3D? This tutorial will go over the different features of Lightwave V9.0, which contains almost all, if not all, of the features covered by previous versions of the program. However, there are quite a few features that this tutorial covers that previous versions do not contain. Main Overview First, let's look at all the different areas of Lightwave 3D V9.0 and explain what each area's functions are. The Main Menu File New Object (SHIFT + N): Creates a new object file, opening in a different 'tab'. You can switch between objects in the Object Browser (see the picture) Load Object (CTRL+ O): Loads an existing .lwo file, saved somewhere on your computer/external media Save Object (S): Saves your .lwo file to the file location Save Object As (CTRL + S): Saves your .lwo file as a new file in the browsed directory with a given filename Save Incremental SHIFT + S): Apparently functions as the Save Object As, but rather automatically creates a new file in the same directory with a new version 'tag' (Ex: My file was called Box; the first save was called Box_v001; the second save was called Box_v002) Save All Objects (no default hotkey): Functions as the Save Object, but it saves all opened objects, rather than the one currently viewed in the modeler Sections (no default hotkeys): I am unsure as to the purpose of these Save-Object-Section: Save-Object-Section-Cut: Save-Object-Section-Points: Save-Object-Section-Points-Cut: [*]Recent Files --> [select a File]: Opens the chosen file [*]Close Object (no default hotkey): Closes the current opened object [*]Close All Objects (no default hotkey): Closes all current opened objects [*]Import: I am unsure how exactly to use these EPSF Loader: pdbreaderv3: Vertex Loader: [*]Export: Export 3DS: Exports to .3ds Export DXF: I am unsure what this exports to Export Encapsulated PostScript: I have absolutely no idea what the heck this is Export LightWave 5: Exports to .lwo, version 5 (Lightwave changed file formats after V5.X; LRR uses this file format) Export OBJ: Exports to .obj PathToMotion: No clue what this is Throw: No clue what this is, either [*]Edit Cut, Copy, Paste, Undo, Redo, Delete: You guys know what these do and what their shortcuts are (with the exception of redo, which is 'Z', not CTRL+Y), right? Copy Tool: Same as 'Paste', except you can drag where the center is, rather than keep the object's previous position Edit Keyboard Shortcuts: Brings up the keyboard shortcut editor, where you can add, remove, or change different keyboard shortcuts; I won't get into how all this works, so you'll just have to experiment. You can, however, save your keyboard shortcuts to a file and load them elsewhere, so that you can keep the same shortcuts wherever you are. Edit Menu Layout: Same as above, except it edits which items are in which of the menu tabs (Create, Modify, etc). Note, I have not used this, although I have used the Keyboard Shortcut Editor Edit Modeler Tools: I have not actually used this, but I believe this allows you to change the options of a couple different tools (I have Cut, Divide, and Make Poly) Preferences: I am not exactly sure to the exact functionality of this button General Options: Allows you to change a few options, such as the polygon mode, and the amount of undo levels that the program will keep record of Display Options: Allows you to change different options for the viewing (how each viewing window displays, the colors of different things, what actually displays on the screen, units, and much more Backdrop Options: Simply goes to the "Backdrop" tab of the "Display Options" menu Set Content Recovery: Not 100% sure what this does Recent Content Directories: Keeps record of the recent directories that was chosen in the "General Options" window (I think) In-progress