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"Intelligent Systems ROM burner for the Nintendo DS A ROM image, or ROM file, is a computer file which contains a copy of the data from a read-only memory chip, often from a video game cartridge, or used to contain a computer's firmware, or from an arcade game's main board. The term is frequently used in the context of emulation, whereby older games or firmware are copied to ROM files on modern computers and can, using a piece of software known as an emulator, be run on a different device than which they were designed for. ROM burners are used to copy ROM images to hardware, such as ROM cartridges, or ROM chips, for debugging and QA testing. Creation A ROM dumping device for the Game Boy Advance ROMs can be copied from the read-only memory chips found in cartridge-based games and many arcade machines using a dedicated device in a process known as dumping. For most common home video game systems, these devices are widely available, examples being the Doctor V64, or the Retrode. Dumping ROMs from arcade machines, which are highly customized PCBs, often requires individual setups for each machine along with a large amount of expertise. = Copy protection mechanisms = While ROM images are often used as a means of preserving the history of computer games, they are also often used to facilitate the unauthorized copying and redistribution of modern games. Viewing this as potentially reducing sales of their products, many game companies have incorporated so-called features into newer games which are designed to prevent copying, while still allowing the original game to be played. For instance, the Nintendo GameCube used non-standard 8 cm DVD-like optical media, which for a long time prevented games stored on those discs from being copied. It was not until a security hole was found in Phantasy Star Online Episode I & II that GameCube games could be successfully copied, using the GameCube itself to read the discs. SNK also employed a method of copy prevention on their Neo Geo games, starting with The King of Fighters in 1999, which used an encryption algorithm on the graphics ROMs to prevent them from being played in an emulator. Many thought that this would mark the end of Neo Geo emulation. However, as early as 2000, hackers found a way to decrypt and dump the ROMs successfully, making them playable once again in a Neo Geo emulator. Another company which used to employ methods of copy prevention on their arcade games was Capcom, which is known for its CPS-2 arcade board. This contained a heavy copy protection algorithm which was not broken until 7 years after the system's release in 1993. The original crack by the CPS2Shock Team was not a true emulation of the protection because it used XOR tables to bypass the original encryption and allow the game to play in an emulator. Their stated intent was to wait until CPS-2 games were no longer profitable to release the decryption method (three years after the last game release).CPS2Shock (2001-jan-07) The Future Intent of CPS2shock, accessed 2007-aug-10 The full decryption algorithm was cracked in 2007 by Nicola Salmoria, Andreas Naive and Charles MacDonald of the MAME development team. Another copy prevention technique used in cartridge-games was to have the game attempt to write to ROM. On an authentic cartridge this would do nothing; however, emulators would often allow the write to succeed. Pirate cartridges also often used writable chips instead of ROM. By reading the value back to see whether the write succeeded, the game could tell whether it was running from an authentic cartridge. Alternatively, the game may simply attempt to overwrite critical program instructions, which if successful renders it unplayable. Some games, such as Game Boy games, also had other hardware such as memory bank controllers connected to the cartridge bus. The game would send data to this hardware by attempting to write it to specific areas of ROM; thus, if the ROM were writable, this process would corrupt data. Capcom's latest arcade board is the CPS-3. This was resistant to emulation attempts until June 2007, when the encryption method was reverse-engineered by Andreas Naive. It is currently implemented by MAME and a variant of the CPS-2 emulator Nebula. Uses = Emulation = Video game console emulators typically take ROM images as input files. = Software ROM = ROM images are used when developing for embedded computers. Software which is being developed for embedded computers is often written to ROM files for testing on a standard computer before it is written to a ROM chip for use in the embedded systems. = Digital preservation = The lifespan of digital media is rarely great. While black-and-white photographs may survive for a century or more, many digital media can become unreadable after only 10 years. This is beginning to become a problem as early computer systems may be presently fifty or sixty years old while early home video consoles may be almost thirty years old. Due to this aging, there is a significant worry that many early computer and video games may not survive without being transferred to new media. So, those with an interest in preservation are actively seeking older arcade and video games and attempting to dump them to ROM images. When stored on standardized media such as CD-ROMs and DVD-ROMs, they can be copied to future media with significantly reduced effort. The trend towards mass digital distribution of ROM image files, while potentially damaging to copyright holders, may also have a positive effect on preservation. While over time many original ROM copies of older games may deteriorate, be broken or thrown away, a copy in file form may be distributed throughout the world, allowing games which would otherwise have been lost a greater chance of survival. = Hacks and fan translations = Once games have been made available in ROM format, it is possible for users to make modifications. This may take the form of altering graphics, changing game levels, tweaking difficulty factor, or even translation into a language for which a game was not originally made available. Hacks can often take humorous forms, as is the case with a hack of the NES version of Mario Bros., titled Afro Mario Brothers, which features the famous brothers wearing Afro haircuts. The Metroid Redesign mod is a hack of Super Metroid that revamps the game and adds new objectives. A large scene has developed to translate games into other languages. Many games receive a release in one part of the world, but not in another. For example, many role- playing video games released in Japan go unreleased in the West and East outside Japan. A group of fan translators will often translate the game themselves to meet demand for titles. For example, the 1995 game Tales of Phantasia was only officially released in Japan; DeJap Translations translated the game's on-screen text into English in 2001. Further to this, a project called Vocals of Phantasia was begun to translate the actual speech from the game. An official English version was not released until March 2006, some five years after the text translation was released. Another example was that of Mother 3, a Japan-only sequel to the cult-favorite Earthbound. In spite of massive fan response and several petitions for an English translation, the only response from Nintendo was that Mother 3 would be translated and released in Europe, which it never was. Instead, the fan website Starmen.net undertook a massive translation project and released the translated version of Mother 3 in October, 2008. The translation was praised by fans and even employees from Nintendo, Square Enix, and other industry professionals. The Japanese N64 game Dōbutsu no Mori (Animal Forest) has also been translated into English. The game was originally only released on N64 in Japan, but it was ported to GameCube and renamed Animal Crossing. Hacks may range from simple tweaks such as graphic fixes and cheats, to full-blown redesigns of the game, in effect creating an entirely new game using the original as a base. Similar image types Image files derived from computer tape are known as tape images, while those derived from floppy disks and CD-ROMs (and other disk formats) are known as disk images. Images copied from optical media are also called ISO images, after one of the standard file systems for optical media, ISO 9660. Creating images from other media is often considerably easier and can often be performed with off-the-shelf hardware. For example, the creation of tape images from games stored on magnetic tapes (from, for example, the Sinclair ZX80 computer) generally involves simply playing the magnetic tape using a standard audio tape player connected to the line-in of a PC sound card. This is then recorded to an audio file and transformed into a tape image file using another program. Likewise, many CD and DVD games may be copied using a standard PC CD/DVD drive. References External links * Nintendo's Intellectual Property FAQ * GameFAQs Help : Game Piracy: ROMs and Warez Information * EmuFAQ Addendum - The Question of ROMs Computer memory Embedded systems Firmware Video game emulation "
"The white-bellied woolly mouse opossum (Marmosa constantiae) is a small pouchless marsupial of the family Didelphidae. It was formerly assigned to the genus Micoureus, which was made a subgenus of Marmosa in 2009. The specific epithet was given in honour of Constance Sladen (née Anderson), wife of the naturalist Percy Sladen. She funded the 1902 expedition which collected the type specimen. Description This is one of the larger mouse opossums, with a head=body length of , a tail in length, and weighing from . The fur is thick and woolly, and is grey over most of the body, fading to buffy-yellow on the head and underparts. There are clear, but narrow, rings of black fur around the eyes. The tail is furred only at the base, and is near black for most of its length, but changes suddenly to pale pink along the last third or so. The feet are broad, with stout claws and ridges on the underside of the toes that aid in climbing trees. Females do not have a pouch, but have fifteen teats arranged in a circle - more than in any of this species' closest relatives. Distribution and habitat The opossum is found across northern Bolivia, in the Brazilian states of Mato Grosso and Mato Grosso do Sul, and in northern Argentina as far south as Tucumán Province. It has also recently been reported from Paraguay. Across this region, it inhabits moist tropical forests, often near the boundary with drier habitats, and has been found from near sea level to montane forests as high as elevation. Biology and behaviour The opossum is arboreal, solitary, and nocturnal, spending most of its time in the forest understory. It is omnivorous, feeding on insects (especially bugs) and vegetable matter. Little is known of their reproductive biology, but they appear to breed throughout the year, and mothers have been captured with up to seven young attached to their teats. References Opossums Marsupials of Argentina Mammals of Bolivia Mammals of Brazil Mammals described in 1904 Taxa named by Oldfield Thomas "
"Karaikal (/kʌdɛkʌl/, French: Karikal /kaʁikal/) is a town of the Indian Union Territory of Puducherry, with a population of 222,589 and an area of 30 km2. Karaikal became a French Colony in 1674 and held control, with occasional interruption from the British and Dutch, until 1954 (de jure in 1956), when it was incorporated into the Republic of India, along with Chandernagore, Mahé, Yanaon, and Pondichéry. Etymology The origin of the word Karaikal is uncertain. The Imperial Gazetteer of British India gives its meaning as 'fish pass'. Both the words ‘Karai and 'Kal' have several meanings, of which the more acceptable ones are 'lime mix' and 'canal' respectively. Hence it has been suggested that the name may mean a canal built of lime mix, however, no trace of such a canal is evident. History = Kingdom of Tanjore = Before 1739, Karaikal was under the regime and control of Raja Pratap Singh of Tanjore. In 1738, Pierre Benoît Dumas was anxious to extend the French territory in India by smooth means and negotiated with Sahuji of Thanjavur for possession of Karaikal, the fortress of Karakalcheri and five village for 40,000 chakras. On 14 February 1739 the French took possession of Karaikal town, the fort of Karakalcheri and eight dependent villages. At this point, the King of Thanjavur raised the price for the town of Karaikal and the fort of Karakalcheri to 50,000 chakras. He also demanded a loan of 150,000 chakras without interest repayable in three years against the hypothecation of Mayavaram lands, and an annual rent of 4,000 pagodas for five villages. The French agreed to all the terms except for the payment of 150,000 chakras, which was then reduced to 10,000 chakras, while the annual rental was reduced to two or three thousand chakras. The villages received were Kilaiyur, Melaiyur, Puduthurai, Kovilpathu and Tirumalairayanpattinam. Subsequently, two villages were ceded to the French. Pratap Singh, who succeeded the throne, renewed the demand for a loan of 100,000 chakras, and on receipt of the first instalment of 4,000 chakras he assigned eight more villages to the French viz., Codague (Kondagai), Vanjiyur, Arimullimangalam, Niravi, Dharmapuram, Uzhiapathu, Mattakudi (probably Mathalangudi) and Polagam. On 12 February 1740, he sold these villages for 60,000 chakras, which he had assigned only the previous year for 40,000 chakras. = French colony = Colonial Karikal (1931) The same year, Dumas pledged Thirunallar Mahanam for 55,350 chakras and also pledged 33 villages for 60,000 chakras. By a treaty signed on 12 January 1750 Pratap Singh ceded to the French 81 villages around Karaikal and cancelled the annual rent of 2,000 pagodas payable for the villages. This was all the territory the French possessed around Thanjavur when they surrendered to the British in 1761. The territory then passed twice to British control before it was finally handed over to the French in 1816/1817 under the Treaty of Paris, 1814. = Independence struggle = The formation of the Karaikal National Congress on 13 June 1947 and the Karaikal Students' Congress on 31 January 1947 symbolised the first concrete expression of popular desire in Karaikal for independence from French India. The French ruled this district until 31 October 1954, on which date the French flag flying atop the government house at Karaikal was lowered with due military honors before a large gathering of officials and non-officials. Thus the de facto transfer of power took place on 1 November 1954 followed by de jure transfer on 16 August 1962. = Part of India = Even though the territory was handed over to the Republic of India on 1 November 1954, Karaikal's municipal administration was continued pursuant to the Arrêté dated 8 March 1880. This was replaced by the promulgation of the Pondicherry Municipality Act, 1973, with effect from 26 January 1974. Mr. Gaudart was the first Mayor of Karaikal in 1884. Geography Tree stumps and debris remain on Karaikal beach several years after the 2004 tsunami Karaikal is a small coastal enclave which was formerly part of French India. Together with the other former French territories of Pondicherry, Yanam, and Mahé, it forms the Union Territory of Puducherry. Karaikal is bounded on the North and South by Nagapattinam district of Tamil Nadu state, on the west by Tiruvarur district (also belonging to Tamil Nadu), and on the East by the Bay of Bengal. The enclave is located south of the city of Pondicherry, east of Trichy and is known for its rich cultural heritage. Karaikal town, about north of Nagappattinam and south of Tarangambadi, is the regional headquarters. The Arasalaru river The main branches of Kaveri below Grand Anicut are the Kodamurutti, Arasalar, Virasolanar and the Vikramanar. Although Arasalar and its branches spread through Karaikal, the waters of Kodamurutti and Virasolanar also meet the irrigation needs of the region. Forming a part of the fertile Cauvery delta, the region is completely covered by the distributaries of Cauveri. Covered completely by a thick mantle of alluvium of variable thickness, the lie of the region is flat having a gentle slope towards the Bay of Bengal in the east. It is limited on the north by the Nandalar and on the south-east by the Vettar. The group of rocks known as Cuddalore formations is met with in the area contiguous to Karaikal region in Nagappattinam District. = Climate = Köppen-Geiger climate classification system classifies its climate as tropical wet and dry (As). Governance The District Collector is the official representative to the Lieutenant Governor and Chief Co-ordinator and Liaison Officer to all Government departments of Karaikal district. District Collectorate, Karaikal is the functional headquarters of Karaikal District. Karaikal region is made up of Karaikal municipality and the Communes of * Nedungadu * Kottucherry * Neravy * Thirunallar * Tirumalarajanpattinam * Poovam * Varichikudy Demographics In 2011, Karaikal had population of 227,589 of which male and female were 111,492 and 116,097 respectively. In 2001 census, Karaikal had a population of 170,791 of which males were 84,487 and remaining 86,304 were females. There was change of 17.23 percent in the population compared to population as per 2001. The initial provisional data released by census India 2011, shows that density of Karaikal district for 2011 is 1,275 people per km2. In 2001, Karaikal district density was at 1,067 people per km2. Karaikal district administers of area. Average literacy rate of Karaikal in 2011 were 87.05 compared to 81.94 of 2001 with male and female literacy at 92.37 and 82.02 respectively. For the 2001 census they were 89.40 and 74.68 respectively. Total literate in Karaikal District were 164,916 of which male and female were 84,903 and 79,013 respectively. In 2001, Karaikal District had 142,453 in its district. Culture A Church in Karaikal Beach Road, Karaikal Karaikal Ammaiyar Temple Thirunallar Saneeswaran Temple Located south of the city of Pondicherry, south of Chennai and east of Thiruchi, Karaikal is known for its rich religious heritage, and is a destination for those seeking leisure and serenity. The town is made up of Hindus, Muslims, Christians and people of other religious persuasions. The French flavor still persists in the peaceful land of Karaikal, sometimes called Fremil (a combination of French culture and Tamil culture). Tamil is the predominant native language of the people. As the area was formerly a French possession, the French language is also found, especially among the elder generation. Karaikal is known for the only temple devoted to the Lord Saneeswara at Thirunallar. Our Lady of Angels Church is the most prominent church in the town. Karaikal Grand Mosque In Tirumalairayanpattinam, there is a famous temple called Ayirankaliamman temple, ayiram means 1000. We can see this god once in 5 years, because whatever offerings are given to this god, it should be 1008. So they will open for 3 days once in 5 years, and many devotees from all over Tamil Nadu and Puducherry will come and worship. Karaikal is the Gateway to various places of worship in the eastern coast of Tamil Nadu. Two famous shrines, Velankanni for Christians and Nagore for Muslims are nearby Karaikal. Ganduri Festival =Karaikal Ammaiyar= Theppa Kulam Karaikal Ammaiyar is one of the 63 nayanmar that lived in Karaikal. She is one of the renowned saints, who devoted their life for lord shiva. She was called "ammaiye" means mother by lord shiva. She married Paramathathan, a rich merchant of Nagapattinam in 6th century. Paramathathan sent 2 mangoes to his house for eating in lunch time. A Shaiva devotee came there.Ammaiyaar gave the devotee, curd rice and one of the two mangoes which her husband gave earlier. Later, when Ammaiyar's husband came home, Ammaiyar served him the other mango. The mango was very delicious, and her husband requested that the other mango be served. Ammaiyaar went inside kitchen, and Ammaiyar didn't know what to do since the Mango is already served to the adiyaar[siva's devotee]. With Lord Siva's grace a Divine Mango appeared in her palm. Ammaiyaar was very happy and Ammaiyar served the Mango to her husband.As this fruit was divinely sweet and was infinitely delicious compared to the previous one, her husband inquired as to how Ammaiyar obtained this mango. Since her husband was not a proper devotee, Ammaiyaar was afraid of revealing the God's grace. The rule is that God's grace should not be revealed to non-devotees. But there is one more rule that when a husband is asking something, the wife has to truthfully answer his questions. Subsequently, Ammaiyar worshiped Lord's feet and revealed the truth to her husband. Her husband didn't believe it. He asked her to produce another mango with divine help. Ammaiyar prayed to Lord Shiva for another mango and said to her Lord that if He didn't give her another Mango, his name will get affected. Immediately Lord gave her a similar mango, which she gave it to her husband. The mango then disappeared, and Paramathathan realised the divine nature of his wife. Paramathathan understood that Ammaiyar was worthy of worship and Ammaiyar cannot be treated as his wife. He then deserted Ammaiyar, becoming a trader and married the daughter of a merchant who then gave birth to their child. After knowing this she went to kailash mountain by her head, since she don't want her feet to touch the sacred mountain and by getting a ghost body as a boon from shiva. Economy Most of the people in town are office goers and industrial workers. There are a number of iron and steel rolling mills, spinning mills, tiles, polythene, rubber and chemical industries in Karaikal. Other common sources of the people's income come from business. The prominent source of income of this district is agriculture and fishing. Karaikal is a coastal town with a total coastline of . There are 12 big fishing hamlets and around more than 25000 fishermen (6000 families) are living in these coastal villages. Their main employment is fishing, exporting and fishing related activities. The other main source is the liquor business, the tax being less and the cost almost half when compared to the neighbouring state of Tamil Nadu. Karaikal is one of the towns in South India with high cost of living due to French NRI's presence. Thousands of families of origin of Karaikal live in France. The ONGC's office Kaveri rig is at Karaikal. Transport =Airways= Karaikal Airport is being constructed as a greenfield project. It is the first airport in the country built entirely with private capital. The project received in-principle clearance from the Ministry of Civil Aviation in February 2011. Karaikal Airport's Air Traffic Control, however, will be operated by the Airports Authority of India (AAI). The Airport, spread across , is being developed by Karaikal Airport Private Limited, a subsidiary of Super Airport Private Limited. The first phase of construction includes construction of a 1200-metre runway and a terminal building capable of handling 120 passengers during peak hours. The airport is expected to handle regional turboprop airliners like the ATR-42. The company plans to expand the airport after five years, extending the runway to and increasing terminal building capacity to 500 passengers per hour. A further expansion is planned ten years down the line with a 3500-metre runway and a passenger capacity of 1,000 per hour. =Seaways= Karaikal port is a new deep sea water port being constructed in Karaikal. More than of land was leased out to MARG corporation in year 2005 for 30 years and can be renewed for every 10 years thereafter. The port will have a total of nine berths and is constructed for primary transport of coal, textile and cement. The Karaikal port is intended to primarily handle cement and coal to serve the hinterland in Ariyalur, Perambalur and Tiruchi districts. The port is also expected to provide an alternative to the Chennai and Tuticorin ports, which are the major ports in the coastline but are separated by long distance. Further, Karaikal is in the middle of the Tamil Nadu coast, midway between the two deepwater ports of Chennai and Tuticorin. =Roadways= Karaikal is lying in NH45A highway. It is located 300 km from Chennai, 145 km from Puducherry, 145 km from Tiruchirapalli and 20 km from Nagapattinam. Karaikal is connected with both National Highways and State Highways. Both Govt. and Private buses available from Karaikal to Bangalore, Chennai, Coimbatore, Tiruchirapalli, Kumbakonam, Mayiladuthurai, Puducherry, Chidambaram. =Railways= Karaikal having rail line connected from Tiruchirapalli via Thanjavur, Tiruvarur, Nagapattinam, and Nagore. Presently Rails are available from Karaikal to Bangalore, Mumbai, Chennai, Ernakulam, Tiruchirapalli, Tanjore, Tiruvarur, Nagapattinam, Nagore, Velanganni and currently Karaikal to Peralam Railway line work is under progress Education Young pupils of the Karaikal School (Archival photograph 1905) According to the 2001 Census, Karaikal has literacy rate of 83%. There is a wide network of Educational Institutions right from the Elementary level to Collegiate level in Karaikal region. Jawaharlal Institute of Postgraduate Medical Education and Research (JIPMER) was established in Karaikal in 2016 with an initial intake of 50 students. The students are selected through entrance exams conducted nationwide. National Institute of Technology Puducherry was established in Karaikal in 2010. The students are admitted based on Joint Entrance Examination – Main entrance exam score. Famous Personalities * K. A. Thangavelu * Peter Hein * K. N. Dandayudhapani Pillai * M. O. H. F. Shahjahan See also *French India *French colonial empire *French East India Company *Municipal Administration in French India *Marakkar *Karaikal Carnival *Serumavilangai *Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru College of Agriculture and Research Institute References External links www.KaraikalPort.com Port cities in India Enclaves and exclaves Cities and towns in Karaikal district "