Feb 9,2010 - System 80 Driver boards are back in stock!
Nov 4,2009 - Whoof! where to begin... Well, first; if you want to mod./design an early Bally/Stern game, let me know, the CPU's are done, the Elektra code is complete to production levels, and Ed is off writing up "Paragon" for on the software/hardware. So it's far past ready for prime time.
Aug 6,2009 - The System 80 boards are back in stock! Hmmm... Black PCB's - that's a little different, but I'm going to have to go with "nouveau chic" on the color, yeah, let's go with that...
July 14,2009 - We will be temporarily out of stock on the Gottlieb System 80 CPU for a little over two weeks while we wait for a shipment from the assembly plant. The boards should be back available the first week in August. Sorry!
Mar 17,2009 - Bally... DONE! We now have a Ni-Wumpf Bally CPU, all hardware API's are complete and tested, and the board had passed all API functional testing. First game to be coded (to establish the platform coding routines) will be Elektra!
Feb 6, 2009 - OK! Jim's Boston Pinball LED display hassle is passe now. If you have a set of these displays and need to address the "ghosting" that may be visible on some digits the new version of the FPGA code on thes site will handle it.
Jan 23, 2009 - If you are having problems compiling your code through the IDE - let me know!, this 64-bit hardware on the new server running the Java interpreter is crashing very frequently, and causing havoc with code upload/builds. (sorry!)
Jan 22, 2009 - Jeez! Who designed this Bally RIOT operation?!? Not a pretty hardware interface to the lamp driver board... Heads up! Revision 2.37 of the Gottlieb platform code is released and addresses errors in the threshold award routine (again) that crop up when an operator manages to set a threshold value for subsequent thresholds that are lower in value than the previous one. AND!!! There are a half dozen code corrections in Black Hole - that release should be coming next week (rollovers, extra ball, and lower PF lamp order.) So, look for all new code releases online next week.
Dec 28, 2008 - The Bally CPU hardware API's are complete, and the software necessary to test, and control the Bally platform through the Ni-Wumpf CPU hardware is done. Sound decoding to replicate the Bally sound sequences is some ways off until that separate hardware to monitor the sound command lines can be designed and built, but the first step on creating a Bally platform is now complete. ...gotta be honest, the guys who developed the Bally hardware were pretty nasty hackers... First game code to be developed; "Elektra". Anyone know where Mark Clayton has gone off to? We should could sure use his sound board design now for a custom pinball development environment.
Another update - on Volcano code, there are 4 beta boards out there that need new code. The existing image has a bug in it that will cause the game to lock up in idle mode after a period of time. A new code image is on the way as soon as the changes complete testing.
Dec 23, 2008 - Hold off on the FPGA download for the BPC displays. There is a coding problem with the last FPGA code, and we are restoring the older image (rev 2.23) until that problem is addressed.
Nov 19, 2008 - The Boston Pinball company, in the form of Jim Frontero, and I, sat down to remove some slight ghosting of the display digits on his very bright LED displays for the System 80 games (and System 1's), this resulted in new FPGA code for the System 80 games that will remove any ghosting on the left-most digits. The code is available from Jim or here. Oh! and the parts are in for the second Bally CPU prototype. So, for those developers who were looking for a Bally platform to write code on - it shouldn't be too long now...
Oct 12, 2008 - Got the call last night that a drunk driver drove into the barn last night where we store all of my pinball machines, video games, jukeboxes, and the like... and it's all been burned to the ground. Ni-Wumpf is unaffected, none of the development or production was stored there, however I can't say the same for me - repairs, and new code are going to be held up for a period while we sort through all this... Over 100 machines are no longer of this earth...
May 31, 2008 - Revision 3.49 of the Ni-Wumpf System 1 code is available for download. This revision handles a tweak in Close Encounters to correct scoring on the upper left spots, and puts in a bit of a delay at the end of the game (and after a tilt), after the ball drains.
Apr 30, 2008 - They're in! The new System 1 driver boards. Yes, there are other boards out there in the market, but I think users will appreciate the features on this board quite a bit. A product page is coming soon!
Mar 26, 2008 - NEW! System 1 code has been updated for Joker Poker operation in 5 ball mode (problem during the 2nd ball lighting the multiplier too early.) Latest release is 3.47. Download it now.
Mar 26, 2008 - Finally! Dumped Verizon, bit the bullet and had to buy Comcast static IP service. NOT FUN! The site has been down for weeks now trying to get Verizon tech. support to figure out how their networks work... Whatever - we're back online...
Dec 31, 2007 - PLEASE NOTE!: the Ni-Wumpf repair return address has changed! The new address to send boards in for repair is:
David Humphrey
49 Bradford Rd.
Framingham, MA 01701
Nov 30, 2007 - System 1 platform update! Steve has (once again) found a bug in the Joker Poker code that will allow the Special to light prematurely if one of two banks has been 'spotted' (i.e. at the beginning of ball number 4 and 5, you are 'spotted' the king and the ace bank respectively). The newest rev. on site will be 3.44.
Nov 11, 2007 - Platform update to flash the "Game Over" lamp on Spiderman, Haunted House, Devil's Dare and Panthera. Also the Panthera code was updated to correct "HSTD" / "Game Over" lamps reversed.
Oct 30, 2007 - OK. Please tell me that nobody else is tinkering around with the "Operator Override" setting for awarding specials... Well, if so, code updates for the System 80 and System 80A platform are uploaded now. Setting this will crash the game when scoring a second special.
Oct 25, 2007 - Mars is close - entering now into QA. Be aware that there is a bug in boot rev. 1.11 that prevented using the emergency image load functionality in the bootloader. If you are a developer, this will impact recovery from a bad code image download to the board. Update of that boot image is a free return-to-factory service. Also, if you are having trouble with your coin-lockout coil not energizing (using coin cutters?), or setting the "options" back to free-play, by the 26th, all of the code images will be updated to address these bugs as well.
Oct 13, 2007 - Counterforce is now available. Check the downloads section for code to put on your board.
Oct 10, 2007 - FINALLY! I found a bug in the sound decoder board that prevented me from figuring out the sound on Counterforce! That game should be done and available soon. Next up: Mars - God of War.
Sept 27, 2007 - Corrected Haunted House update! Please use revision 1.56 if you are updating your board (online now). The changes were in the animation code, and the game over sound sequence (minor - but glitches none-the-less).
Sept 19, 2007 - Updated Haunted House code (rev. 1.52) to handle VUK failure at the top of the PF, and to keep the HSTD lamp out of the animation routine!
Aug 27, 2007 - Vacation week Aug. 20th - Aug. 26th, sometime in there, the heat overcame my server while I was away. Website has unavailable then - sorry. Can't seem to finalize the Counterforce sound yet - software is done, but the sounds are not coming out right...
July 26, 2007 - Paypal buttons on the products page - now you can buy direct through paypal - or through our distributors.
July 24, 2007 - The new System 80 driver boards came it today! I had a chance to test 'em, and QA is good! So they are now available! Pricing will be $95. ...more information in "Products"
July 2, 2007 - Websites PfffAAH! We don't need no stinking websites. BACK WOMAN! Sales are not everything! Bother... here we go again. Trying to hack up a website...
July 1, 2007 - Update to the platform code - revision 2.30. This revision removes the occasional diagnostic errors shown on the displays for production code. Update recommended to remove the game idle stalling on a "vector error"
June 28, 2007 - The System 80 driver board is in production at the assembly plant, and first customer shipments are due in the beginning of August.
June 16, 2007 - Update to Black Hole code (now rev. 1.53), corrected glitch with flashing 2x bonus multiplier lamp. Disabled flippers and sound at end of last ball with 2 balls locked, and ball ejected from lower PF. Corrected spurious debug entry.
Oct 21, 2006 - Corrected pricing errors in platform code for System 80 games.
June 8, 2006 - Major update to platform revision 2.00. This is an interface change between platform code and FPGA code in the way that characters are rendered on the displays. No production units should be supporting this revision, if so contact the factory for a board upgrade. Any code updates will require new FPGA code.
May 5, 2006 - Boot loader code update to support recovery of bad FLASH updates in the field. Return to factory for a PIC code update if revision query comes back lower than revision 1.12