A N   I N T E R V I E W   W I T H   R O B / D F

                              BY WATTS/DUAL FORMAT

Hello  Rob.   Firstly, may I say a big
welcome  to  our cool crew!  I decided
to  interview  you a few weeks back so
here it is, short and sweet.

WATTS..Let's get the main stuff out of
the  way  first.   What  is your name,
handle, age and shoe size?

ROB....Okey dokey.  My real name's Rob
Sibley  and  my handle's er, Rob.  I'm
20  and three quarters (I would put an
alt-7  in  here  but  one  of  the  VI
editors  would  throw a wobbly at me!)
and  I  wear big 'ole size eleven Nike
air (black ones, of course).






WATTS..How  long  have you been in the
scene?

ROB....I  first  got  my Amiga in 1989
but  I  didn't really do anything with
it  until  about  '91  when me and the
guys   started  CYS.   We've  released
loads  of  stuff  onto  the AMOS scene
since  then  and  most  of it was well
received.  I've only been swapping for
about  a  year,  I started last summer
when I was bored.

WATTS..I  think  just  about everybody
knows you are from the AMOS demo group
"CYS".   Why  did  you  leave  it  all
behind?
ROB....The  main  reason  was  that we
felt we'd done all we could with AMOS.
All  our  demos were worked around the
same  ideas  and  most of the routines
were  just  too  slow.  Another reason
was  that  people  have  got, and will
always   have,   a   certain  attitude
towards  AMOS  users.   They think the
only  reason  we  use  AMOS is because
we're   crap.    They  don't  stop  to
consider  the  fact  that  it's bloody
hard  to  make  an effect look good in
such  a  slow  language.  We also felt
alone  (ahhhh)  on  the scene.  In the
early  days  there  were loads of AMOS
demo groups around, all producing cool
little  prods.   Recently most of them
seem   to  have  disappeared  or  have
joined  larger  groups.  We know loads
of  AMOS  users  but none of them code
demos  any  more,  most  of  them  are
constantly  trying  to make money with
shareware games and the like.  We just
felt  it was time to move on, the only
way  we  could  see  was  to  join the
masses and start coding ASM demos.

WATTS..So  you  have left AMOS PRO and
now  use  DEVPAC, and how do you think
you're doing with the sudden change?
 
ROB....Not  bad.  It's going to take a
long  time  to  become  proficient  in
68000  because it's so deep.  The only
language  I  know on the Amiga is AMOS
so I've got to learn ASM from scratch.
Dug's  really getting to grips with it
now  and  he's always done most of the
code  for  our  demos.   Our first ASM
intro wasn't bad at all considering it
only  took  a little while to produce.
The  next  demo  we're  working  on is
really   big,   it's   got  masses  of
graphics  completed  already,  we just
need  to  get  to  work  on  some cool
routines, and that's the hard part!

WATTS..Ah  Rob  what  is your personal
view on the UK scene at the moment?

ROB....Hmmm,  I've heard a lot of talk
about the scene going downhill in this
country  and it's talk like that which
makes  it  happen.   If people were to
stop  complaining  about  how crap the
scene  is  and get off their butts and
do   something  about  it,  everything
would  be  back  to how it was.  There
are  a  lot  of new groups emerging in
the  UK,  it's  just  a matter of time
before   they   start  producing  real
quality  warez.  I've also heard a lot
of   people   slagging   off  LSD  and
Grapevine.   Why?   LSD are one of the
major  groups in the UK, give them the
support they need and they'll flourish
again.

WATTS..What  are  your  aims, actually
using  your  amy,  just  for  fun  and
friendship  or something a little more
serious?

ROB....I  can't  see  the  Amiga  ever
being  taken  seriously outside of the
Amiga scene, I know it's a bastard but
the  PC is taking control.  Obviously,
I'd love to get a job where I was able
to  use  my beloved Amiga, rather than
some PC effort, there just aren't that
many  available.   I'll always keep my
Amiga,  or  an  Amiga  of some sort at
home, even if I'm using PC's at work.

WATTS..What  would you describe as the
best part about the UK scene?


ROB....Definitely    the   friendship.
There  are  so many guys (oops, that's
sexist, I meant persons, honest!), all
with  a  common interest in the Amiga.
If   the   friendship   wasn't  there,
parties  wouldn't  take place and disk
mags  would  die  a  slow  and painful
death due to a lack of articles.

WATTS..Is  there a favourite time that
you have had whilst in the scene?

ROB....Not  really.  I haven't been to
any  parties yet, my first will be the
next  one  I hear about.  It was quite
cool when our demo "The Awakening" was
reviewed  in  Amiga Mart, that was the
only issue I ever bought of the mag!

WATTS..Do  you  have  a  girl,  if  so
what's her idea of the scene?

ROB....No,  I  don't,  so  she doesn't
have  one,  so I can't tell you.  If I
did, then she would, so I could, but I
haven't,  so  she  hasn't, so I can't.
Got that?

WATTS..Out  of  a  scale  of 1-10 what
would   you   give   yourself   on  

A) SWAPPING,
B) LETTERS,
C) SEX (he he he)

ROB....I'm  certainly not elite!  That
doesn't  bother  me at all though 'cos
it  means  I've  got  time  for  other
things  too!   If 10 is elite and 1 is
completely  sad, I'd probably be about
an 8.  My letters range from half page
scribbles to multi-page epics, they're
usually  about a page though.  None of
this  "Hi  m8, sent my l8est, u do the
same,  C  U!" crap, I can usually find
something  to  write about.  Yep, I'll
have  an  8  again!   As for sex, well
you'll have to ask Kay!  (Hi Sime!)

WATTS..That's a cracking handle, where
does it originate from????

ROB ...FUCK OFF!

WATTS..Is  it  true you wear one green
sock and one blue sock or is that just
on Sundays?

ROB....I don't know where you get your
information but it's totally false.  I
replaced the green sock with a day-glo
pink  one  over a year ago!  Also, I'd
never  dream of wearing a blue sock on
a  Sunday!!!  What sort of a person do
you think I am?

WATTS..No  but seriously, do you think
the Amy scene is slowly dying?

ROB....I  can't  see  the  Amiga scene
ever  dying,  Commodore  are  actually
supporting the new machines quite well
for  a  change  and  there are so many
scene  users  who'll always have their
Amigas.     If    Commodore    stopped
producing  Amigas the scene would have
to  die  eventually,  but there are so
many  possibilities  now  the 1200 has
become  the  base  machine, there's no
reason  for  them to do so.  You often
hear  about  guys leaving the scene or
moving  to  the  PC scene but what you
don't  hear  about is all the new guys
who  join.   Sure,  these  guys aren't
going  to be as well known as somebody
who's  just left Sanity, but everybody
has to start somewhere!

WATTS..What  are  your views on piracy
of software?

ROB....This is a tricky one.  I've had
pirated  games  in  the past and never
thought anything of it.  Over the last
year  or  so,  I've  got rid of all my
illegal  games,  mainly  'cos I needed
the disks and because I wasn't playing
any  of  them!   I  don't buy computer
mags  anymore so the only time I see a
game  is when somebody sends it to me.
Because  of  this,  I  tend to use the
pirated  version like a playable demo.
I  usually  delete games the same day,
unless  they're  really good, in which
case  I  usually  go out and buy them.
One   of  the  major  factors  in  the
argument  is always price.  One of the
best  examples is Stardust, it's not a
cracking  (no  pun intended!) game but
at  that  price (16.99) you might just
as  well  buy  it.  If more games were
that  price  it would encourage people
to  buy more.  It's certainly damaging
the  industry,  but  when  I hear that
software  companies  have  dropped the
Amiga because of piracy I just have to
laugh.   Piracy exists on all formats,
these  companies just want some excuse
so  they  don't seem ungrateful to all
the  people  who  paid  good money for
their  games  in  the  past.  The only
reason  they drop the Amiga is because
they   can   make   more   money  from
consoles.

WATTS..There are still a lot of people
out  there  who ain't aware there is a
scene.   How  would you help them into
the  scene,  as  probably  most of 'em
think every little bit of the scene is
illegal?

ROB....Ah,  you  mean  the  people who
read  Amiga  Computing.  Yeah, I think
most  Amiga  owners  have got demos in
their   collection,  they  just  don't
realise that the people who wrote them
are actully nice guys!  It really does
depend  on  the person though, because
if  they  want  to  get  invloved they
will, it's not all that hard.  I can't
understand  what  people off the scene
use  their Amigas for.  Unless they've
got  a  good  use  for it, like DTP or
something,  all  they're ever going to
do  is  play  games!   I  can't belive
there  are  still people who think the
whole  scene  is  illegal, you've only
got  to  look at something like Visual
Intensity  to see that there's so much
more going on.

WATTS..Are  you  going  to  the  first
available UK party?
ROB....Yep!  I think there's a Digital
party  coming up sometime soon so I'll
see  you  all  there!  I haven't got a
clue  when  it  is  though,  so if you
know, get in touch!

WATTS..Is   there  any  certain  scene
member  that  gives  you  inspiration,
kind  of  sets  you  a standard if you
catch my drift?

ROB....There   are   loads   of  scene
members  I  respect,  not just coders,
but artists and musicians too.  If you
look  at  a production by someone like
Laxity  you can see the amount of time
and  effort that's been put in to make
it  look just right.  Not everybody is
talented   enough   to  make  blinding
routines,  but  as  long as the effort
has  been put in, it should look good.
As for setting standards, well I'm not
sure  about  that.   When we release a
demo  it's important to feel that it's
as  good  as it can be, but it doesn't
have  to  be  better that the rest.  I
could  list  loads  of  names but that
would be boring, to get the same list,
boot  any cool trackmo and look at the
credits!

WATTS..If  any  scene  mag was to do a
lame  list,  disk  thieves etc.  would
you think it was a good idea?

ROB....It's  a  good idea and it could
help  stop some of the assholes on the
scene, but you'd have to be so careful
about  the sources of the information.
You  could, in theory, ruin somebody's
scene   or   swapping   life   if  you
mistakingly  said  they  were a thief.
You  would  really  have  to watch for
people  with  a grudge trying to slate
guys  they've never contacted, just to
piss them off.

WATTS..In   your  own  words  describe
yourself to best possible description?

ROB....Do    you   want   a   physical
description  or what?!  Well, I'm sort
of  tall  (how  can  you  be "sort of"
tall?),  I've  got  short  hair, apart
from  on  top,  where it's long.  This
isn't   working   is   it.   I'll  try
something  a  bit  deeper....   It was
dark,  out  of the shadows came Rob of
Dual  4mat.  He was tall, sort of, and
he  had long hair, apart from the back
and  sides, where it was short.  Nope,
this isn't working either!  Nevermind.

WATTS..What's   your  favourite  food,
drink, women?

ROB....Cheese  and Marmite sandwiches,
definitely.   I can't go a day without
eating at least one, Toffee Crisps are
cool  too!   Liquid  wise,  I  usually
drink coke.  I know I should have said
Newcastle Brown or something 'ard like
that  but I really do prefer Coke (sad
git!).   As  for  female  women of the
opposite sex, I'm really not fussy, as
long  as  her name's Sherilyn Fenn and
she's a sex goddess.

WATTS..Well  that  was short and sweet
thanx  Rob  4 da time.  Please comment
if ya like.







           ROB'S COMMENTS..

I haven't got a lot else to say except
thanks  to Lee for doing the interview
and   for  doing  the  music  for  our
forthcoming   demo,   cheers   m8!   I
suppose  I'd  better say hi to all the
other guys in Dual 4mat too!  Hi guys!

                                  End.
               {PG