operating
Play Meter Service Schools to Continue
On December 14, 15 and 16, a
special state-of-the-art video logic
seminar was held at the Denver
Hilton hotel in Denver, Colo . The
school was the joint effort of Play
Meter and Kush N' Stuff. The
school was presented by Robin l.
Minnear, head instructor at Kush
N' Stuff and technical editor for Play
Meter.
This school was the second in a
series of schools that are to be held
regionally around the U.S. The first
school took place in New Orleans in
October.
The school opened with an
impromptu talk by Play Meter Editor
Ralph Lally on the need for
up-to-date education and on what
Play Meter is doing to help the
serviceman. Then Ralph introduced
Robin Minnear and everyone was
off to a land of ones and zeros.
The Play Meter-Kush N' Stuff
schools begin with a random logic
presentation. The random logic
presentation takes up the entire first
day and is equivalent to most
two-day logic schools that have
been presented in the past . Subjects
covered are basic T. V . monitor
theory, raster scanning, analog vs.
digital, basic TTL logic, binary logic,
clocked logic and random logic
troubleshooting techniques. The
troubleshooting portion consists of
a test instrument analysis of a
common paddle game.
Minnear admits that "the first
day's pace is a little fast for people
who have .had no previous exposure
to digital logic. But random logic
schools have been around for a long
time. To go to work in this industry
as a technician requires the ability to
repair on all levels of video logic."
This school, Minnear continues,
"was specifically put together to be
a state-of-the-art presentation. That
means random logic (phase I and II)
~ and processed logic (phase III) ."
100
The second day begins with a
• discussion of how memory devices
; (ROM's) are used in random logic
~ systems. The ROM address-multi-
16
plex scheme as seen in Tank was
used as an example at the Denver
school and led into a discussion of
interlaced raster scanning .
After lunch begins the processed
logic or phase III portion of the
school. The discussion starts with
an explanation of why the industry
has moved to microcomputor sys-
tems to control game operation.
" The reason CPU's (central pro-
cessing units) are used is simple,
Minnear states," moneyl CPU sys-
tems today contain one-half to
Fun Factory Starts Tours
Fun Factory tours have been
initiated to educate children and
adults to the workings of arcade
equipment, beginning with the elec-
tromechanical games, through the
integrated circuit / T.V. games, to
the microprocessor / calculator
games . The California Fun Facto-
ries, Inc ., based in Redondo Beach,
run a chain of fun arcades in the
state .
What is offered is a tour of the
San Diego or Redondo Beach
facilities, with a light instruction of
how the different games operate
and a visual demonstration and look
into the various pieces of equip-
ment.
The instruction period is
followed by allowing the guests to
play some of the games. These
tours are offered before opening
hours or during slow periods. The
ideal group is about thirty people
although there are groups sched-
uled with as many as three hundred.
Initially started to stimulate sales
and raise public opinion of the
amusement business, the Fun Fac-
tory tours are becoming an integral
part of the operation in that the
tours give the employees a better
understanding of the customers,
according to Stephen P. Shoemak-
er, Jr. , president of California Fun
Factories .
The managers explain how they
keep the games clean and demon-
strate the preventive maintenance
programs the firm has developed .
Having the employees go over the
material with customers as critics
keeps them on their toes, Shoe-
maker says .
Also it gives the
individual employee additional pride
in his particular location .
The people who usually come to
the Fun Factory to play after the
instruction find themselves often
impressed with the intricacies of the
games . This education into the
complicated and delicate equip -
ment, according to Shoem.aker,
greatly stimulates customer respect
and eliminates much of the abuse
common in the business .
The Fun Factories have also
found the effect on parents and
teachers beneficial; the often mis-
taken opinion that arcade games
and pinball machines are in some
way bad and breed degeneration
quickly changes.
These adults
realize that the child who wants to
be a pinball mechanic is not really
crazy but, in reality, is interested in a
progressive and complicated field
which requires thorough electrical
and mechanical skills as well as an
understanding of solid -state design .
Through the tours, people be-
come aware that the amusement
business is alive and well and that
places such as Disneyland, Knotts
and hundreds of smaller operations
need qualified mechanics and are
willing to offer good salaries and
benefits to them.
"Originally conceived as a promo-
tional tour, the Fun Factory tours
are fast becoming a part of our
regular business," Shoemaker said .
" So popular have the tours become
that organizations are scheduling
trips as far as a month or two in
advance."