SGP
Halo Reach => Halo Reach: Beta => Topic started by: Imppa on April 09, 2010, 22:16:52
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You'll see.
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Don't know what is a Shotcode?
Wikipedia to the rescue.
From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ShotCode/
ShotCode is a circular barcode created by High Energy Magic of Cambridge University. It uses a dartboard-like circle, with a bullseye in the centre and datacircles surrounding it. The technology reads databits from these datacircles by measuring the angle and distance from the bullseye for each.
ShotCodes are designed to be read with a regular camera (including those found on mobile phones and webcams) without the need to purchase other specialised hardware. Because of the circular design, it is also possible for software to detect the angle from which the barcode is read. ShotCodes differ from matrix barcodes in that they do not store regular data - rather, they store a look up number consisting of 40 bits of data. This needs to link to a server that holds information regarding a mapped URL which the reading device can connect to in order to download said data.
(http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/7d/Shotcode.png/200px-Shotcode.png)
Namely, they are encoded URLs.
So, to the point.
Quite some time ago, even before the Halo: Reach Beta wasout, I discovered this from a post (http://www.bungie.net/Forums/posts.aspx?postID=42804206&postRepeater1-p=1) made by JoeRogaine. He pointed out that in this (http://xbox360.ign.com/dor/objects/14276699/halo-reach/images/halo-reach-the-beta-maps-20100407021532348.html?page=mediaFull) picture, on the computer on the right, there is a ShotCode. Later on, a screenshot from the Beta was photoshopped (to make it clearer and usable), and they got this:
(http://i792.photobucket.com/albums/yy201/mikehaysjr/reachpic1-1.png)
ShotCodes can be read with Cellphone cameras together with a application named "ShotReader". It "reads" the picture in real time and prompts the browsers to navigate to a particular site. It can be downloaded from internet for free, and there is a IPhone app similar to it.
This ShotCode IS an URL. When decoded, it gives out a certain website. Who knows which one? Perhaps it's concerning an ARG? Perhaps it is a hilarious Easter Egg? Or maybe it is just a decoration? That is for us to find out.
Right now, this shotcode leads us to http://www.phonifier.com/phonify.php?i=0&m=0&u=http%3A%2F%2Fallantech.blogspot.com (http://www.phonifier.com/phonify.php?i=0&m=0&u=http%3A%2F%2Fallantech.blogspot.com), which is nowhere. The only way to make it work is to cut the address so that only the last part remains: allantech.blogspot.com (http://allantech.blogspot.com).
However, when the owner of this blog was contacted, he said that he has no connection to Halo:Reach. He had created a shotcode that leads to his page, true, but it was 3 years ago.
So why would Bungie use that shotcode?
It could be
- a placeholder
- nothing
- that there is, infact, a connection
- or recreated wrong.
Whatever is the case, we must figure this, one way or another!
(Btw, doesn't it resemble Forerunner glyph (http://halo.wikia.com/wiki/File:Glyphs.gif) a bit?)
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Here is the Bnet thread. (http://www.bungie.net/Forums/posts.aspx?postID=42817052)
Seriously, I think this is something REAL.
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Too bad the official site is down...
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Too bad the official site is down...
Yeah, I know. It could've been a big help.
Here is the Bnet thread. (http://www.bungie.net/Forums/posts.aspx?postID=42817052)
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WTG Imppa. Your work assembling this summary is the GP.
If you dissect the "anatomy" of the shotcode, you can see that there are only two (2) rings of data bits. You can think of the shotcode as a black circle (the "bullseye") with six rings around it, or you could consider it to be seven (7!) circles of decreasing diameter placed on top of one another. Since we like the number 7 here, let's go with that.
The first attached image provides numbers for each of the seven zones. (Please note that I do not have nor have I read the Shotcode specification, which undoubtedly defines these differently.)
Zones 4-7 appear to be constant and are likely used for image alignment and adjustment by the scanning software or "reader". Zones 2 and 3 contain our data. The circle is composed of 24 slices (15 arc degrees each). This provides for 48 separate bits of data, represented by 24 sectors in each of the "rings" created by these "data zones". The Wikipedia article linked by Imppa explains that the Shotcode contains only 40 bits of data. This makes sense: 8 bits are either reserved for a checksum, special flags, or simply for marking the beginning/end of the data. With forty bits remaining, the maximum number of unique "Shotcodes" that could be represented would be 2 to the power of 40 (2^40) or 1,099,511,627,776. The Shotcode FAQ states:
Our current distribution supports over 1.000.000.000.000 ShotCodes.
So far, so good.
The only remaining questions needing to be answered as far as converting the Shotcode to a 40-bit number are:
- What is the "polarity" of the Shotcode "bits"? (Does black equal 1 or does it equal 0?)
- What order should the bits be read? (Which bit is the first one?)
We also haven't talked about Zone 1. It's possible that Zone 1 is used to mark the starting bit. For example, the period in "Shotcode.com" could mark the first bit in each ring.
If we were to observe that 8 bits in every Shotcode are always set to the same values, we could perhaps deduce that these are the "extra" bits and perhaps they mark the start of the data.
In any event, knowing that there are 48 bits allows us to construct a number- however arbitrary- from the Shotcode found in the Reach Beta. At the very least, we could use this to check whether or not we have reconstructed our "clear version" of the Shotcode properly. To do this, I created the second attached image which overlays a map of the 24 Shotcode Sectors over the image we have of the in-game shotcode. This gives us a common frame of reference to refer to the "bits".
If we were to start from Zone 2, Sector 1 and assign the black sectors to bit value 1, I would guess that the 24 bit number in Zone 2 would be:
Bits: 010111101010110001010101
Decimal Bytes: 94 172 85
Hex Bytes: 5E AC 55
Doing the same for Zone 3 would result in:
Bits: 101111100111111110101010
Decimal Bytes: 190 127 170
Hex Bytes: BE 7F AA
So our full "SGP Shotcode Format" 48-bit number in hexadecimal is:
5E AC 55 BE 7F AA
If you follow the same procedure with the reconstructed Shotcode image provided by Zoidberg25 on BNET, you'll get the same number. This confirms that his reconstructed image is bit-for-bit identical with respect to the encoded data in the original in-game image... or at least he is 100% in agreement with my interpretation of it!
(http://img534.imageshack.us/img534/9088/shotcode.jpg (http://img534.imageshack.us/img534/9088/shotcode.jpg))
If you do this with JoeRogaine's "rough copy" image that Impaa posted here, you'll get a different number. He codes Sector 18 as black in Zone 3, which results in:
Binary: 010111101010110001010101101111100111111111101010
Hex: 5E AC 55 BE 7F EA
So if nothing else, the "SGP Shotcode Format" allows us compare shotcodes numerically and discuss/debate what we feel the proper values of the bits should be.
What would be nice is to have is the actual Shotcode binary translation method, and the ability to specify that number directly to a Shotcode reader. This way, we could take the cell phone camera out of the equation and be sure that we were getting the proper URL back from web service.
Thanks again, Imppa... and thanks to the work of JoeRogaine and Zoidberg25 over on BNET... as well as DeathBringer669 for the clear in-game image.
I need sleep, so someone else needs to take over from here...
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Good stuff, CG. And I may have something that'll interest you.
I managed to get myself a phone capable of reading shotcodes. However, there are a couple of things that are funny:
- The phone gives me the shotcode decoded, but not as an URL
- Almost none of the shotcodes work
Let's start with the funnier one.
When I take a picture of a shotcode with my phone, the application redirects me to the web browser. But when the browser is trying to load the page, after some time, it tells that the connection has timed out. It also tells the address the app gave to the browser, namely, the server from shotcode.com that should redirect you to the real web page (I hope I got my stuff right there :P). That address seems to be the body of the decoded shotcode.
For example: when I read this (http://i792.photobucket.com/albums/yy201/mikehaysjr/reachpic1-1.png) shotcode, the photoshopped version of the original (http://www.bungie.net/Stats/Reach/FileDetails.aspx?fid=11466) shotcode, I get this:
http://www.shotcode.com/resolve/?300:001:07683150562b0001:4305614504936463
Now, when I type this to my browser on my computer, it takes me here:
http://www.phonifier.com/phonify.php?i=0&m=0&u=http%3A%2F%2Fallantech.blogspot.com
-The page that Zoidberg25 got earlier on his research.
So thanks to this "Problem" of my phone, we are able to see what does decoded shotcode look like. I, myself, can't really get anything out of this, but maybe you CG (or someone smart out there) could manage.
Here are some other shotcode bodies I got:
The shotcode (http://csf.plymouth.ac.uk/greenhouse/files/images/greenhouse_shotcode.preview.png)
The body: http://www.shotcode.com/resolve/?300:001:0768345056250006:4305614515936473
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The shotcode (http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/archive/7/7d/20091122120940!Shotcode.png)
The body: http://www.shotcode.com/resolve/?300:001:07d83a705f2b0002:63058145b69344e3
Hope you can use that.
Now, the second part: The shotcodes don't work. Well, many of them, at least. Now that I've surfed some more, I have found some working shotcodes, and I don't have confidence as much as I had in the beginning of making this post. But I'll try to keep this together.
Let's take this Photoshopped shotcode (http://i792.photobucket.com/albums/yy201/mikehaysjr/reachpic1-1.png). It works, and even though it has some harsh corners, it works fine, as fine as the real one (http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_9xVo3hVKsko/Rmmz1igp2PI/AAAAAAAAAUk/wY50Je2nDKs/s1600-h/shotcode.png). It just isn't enough.
As you probably have already read from Zoidbergs post in the Bnet thread, the shotcode doesn't work, and gives out the address:
http://www.phonifier.com/phonify.php?i=0&m=0&u=http%3A%2F%2Fallantech.blogspot.com
And that doesn't work. Only when you take all the "phonifier.com/phonify" crap out, it works.
This is the part where I'm uncertain.
"Phonifier" seems to be something that turns the page into something that a phone browser can show. This seems to be built in the shotcode. It seems as the pages such as "allantech.blogspot.com" can't be phonified (that is a right term), and therefore don't work with a shotcode. The shotcodes that work give out a page that seems to be made just for phone browsing. Perhaps this is the problem? But couldn't the Shotcodepeople fix it?
Agh, I feel like I missed a point there...Hopefully you get it :P(I'm so tired...)
Additional theory *Crazytalk!*
Phonifier.com (http://phonifier.com) gets you to a page of a man from Netherlands (seemingly) named Erwin van den Boer. Translated with Google Translate, the front page says (In Dutch):
On this website I'd like to bring along some of the projects I've made over the past 15 years or that I have been involved. You can also find information on travel and I made my vision of design.
I wish you an inspiring journey.
This is the weird part: whatever side page you take (on the left), the text in the page is always this;
Sed non dolor sit amet diam rhoncus condimentum. Aliquam erat volutpat. Donec ut mi eget nisl mattis condimentum. Nulla euismod leo in nunc scelerisque congue pharetra magna tempor. Etiam libero nulla, cursus vitae sodales quis, malesuada eget quam. Vestibulum rhoncus fermentum tortor a gravida. Class aptent taciti sociosqu ad litora torquent per conubia nostra, per inceptos himenaeos. Aenean rutrum eros quis odio placerat a adipiscing diam venenatis. Sed congue, leo sed aliquam vehicula, nulla diam dignissim erat, eget scelerisque massa lacus eget lacus. Phasellus vitae velit velit, nec molestie dolor. Donec placerat risus at mi dapibus facilisis sit amet sed eros. Nam interdum eleifend ligula eget tristique. Fusce eget tortor in justo iaculis auctor. Morbi lobortis lectus vitae erat tempor sit amet commodo eros suscipit.
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SoooOoo tired...Later.
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Great work guys! This site seems mysterious... Lets get crackin!
I went to the contact page, and its probably just a coincidence, but the guy lives in some place called Rotterdam. Has anyone read Enders Shadow? Because Bean, the main character, lives in that town scavenging for food. Im pretty sure there are alot of Enders Game references in halo, so that similarity strikes me. Enders Shadow is the book Enders Game from one of the Battle School students point of view. Its very interesting.
My four shotcodes are attached. The first two are the picture drawn over, and the last two are effects. The first two the same, just one is inverted. The same goes with the last two.
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Sed non dolor sit amet diam rhoncus condimentum. Aliquam erat volutpat. Donec ut mi eget nisl mattis condimentum. Nulla euismod leo in nunc scelerisque congue pharetra magna tempor. Etiam libero nulla, cursus vitae sodales quis, malesuada eget quam. Vestibulum rhoncus fermentum tortor a gravida. Class aptent taciti sociosqu ad litora torquent per conubia nostra, per inceptos himenaeos. Aenean rutrum eros quis odio placerat a adipiscing diam venenatis. Sed congue, leo sed aliquam vehicula, nulla diam dignissim erat, eget scelerisque massa lacus eget lacus. Phasellus vitae velit velit, nec molestie dolor. Donec placerat risus at mi dapibus facilisis sit amet sed eros. Nam interdum eleifend ligula eget tristique. Fusce eget tortor in justo iaculis auctor. Morbi lobortis lectus vitae erat tempor sit amet commodo eros suscipit.
Working on it....
In Spanish, 'sed' and 'dolor' mean thirst and pain respectively. It seems to be a mix of Latin, Romance languages and maybe Greek?....
Here it is with the Latin parts translated into English by some random translator website. (And yeah, are they messing with me? There are lions everywhere I go.):
But not pain he is amet diam rhoncus condimentum. Some was volutpat. Up to the time when when mi eget nisl mattis condimentum. Nulla euismod lion upon now crime to congeal a quiver magna transitory. As yet to set free nulla , a race life fellowship anyone malesuada eget how. Vestibulum rhoncus fermentum tortor a pregnant. A fleet of a hundred ships aptent silently sociosqu to to propitiate to turn very conubia our , very beginner himenaeos. Eneus rutrum eros anyone to hate to please a to come up to diam venenatis. But to congeal , lion but some conveyance nulla diam dignissim was eget crime massa a hollow eget a hollow. Phasellus life skirmish skirmish , and not annoyance pain. Up to the time when to please laughter but mi seneschal easy he is amet but eros. For sometimes eleifend ligula eget to make sad. Fusce eget tortor upon equity a thrower person responsible. Sickness lobortis bed life was transitory he is amet to make fit eros to raise up.
Here with the Spanish translated:
Odd thirst pain sit amet diam rhoncus condimentum. Aliquam erat volutpat. Donec ut my eget nisl mattis condimentum. Nulla euismod I read in nunc scelerisque congue pharetra great tempor. Etiam I free nulla, cursus vitae sodales quis, malesuada eget quam. Vestibulum rhoncus fermentum tortor to gravida. Class aptent taciti sociosqu ad litora torquent per conubia nostra, per inceptos himenaeos. Aenean rutrum Eros quis I hate placerat to adipiscing diam venenatis. Thirst congue, I read thirst aliquam vehicula, nulla diam dignissim erat, eget scelerisque massa lacus eget lacus. Phasellus vitae velit velit, nec molestie pain. Donec placerat risus at my dapibus facilisis sit amet thirst Eros. Nam interdum eleifend ligula eget tristique. Fusce eget tortor in just iaculis auctor. Morbi lobortis lectus vitae erat tempor sit amet commodo Eros suscipit.
And WHAT IN THE WORLD? Why does the text example in this Wikipedia article (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fmt) about text-formatting bear so many resemblances to the text in question?
Ah, I see. :o The text appears to be "dummy copy," (http://www.lipsum.com/) which is derived from Cicero's "The Extremes of Good and Evil." It does appear altered though (though dummy copy often is). We probably should find the "best" version of this so-called dummy copy, overlay it with the text in question, and highlight the altered sections. I'm handing this off for the moment. Great find, Imppa.
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@Imppa:
That is clearly Lorem Ipsum.
@The Arkaeologist:
Lorem Ipsum is generated "always free from repetition" so, even if you generate 150 paragraphs of Lorem Ipsum, only some sentences from Imppa's LIpsum will match the text you generated.
The site you linked, lipsum.com (http://lipsum.com), generates up to 150 paragraphs of LIpsum, so you could actually try to get some matches, if you're inclined to do so.. Don't waste your time, though.
@Everyone about Imppa's LIpsum:
There's nothing here, just forget it...
The only remotely relevant thing is LIpsum's derivation from Cicero's "The Extremes of Good and Evil", but I wouldn't waste time with that...
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Hmmmmm....Bungie made a reference to "Tokyo Rules" in its ad campaign for ODST (http://www.bungie.net/News/content.aspx?type=topnews&cid=15526). I don't know if it's legit - it looks like a google adsense con - but in the comments section of this joystiq article (http://www.joystiq.com/2008/09/20/bungies-superintendent-sighted-new-project-announcement-hinted/) Shmil refers us to http://tokyorules.com/ (http://tokyorules.com/), where we encounter Lorem Ipsum.
Pulse is probably right though....a time suck.
And btw reading Bungie and game mag threads makes my head hurt! Three cheers for the sgp!
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*bangs head to the wall*
I so saw this coming. I was aware of Lorem Ipsum, but I wasn't aware that there are variations of it. I feel dumb now.
Oh well, it WAS just crazytalk. :P
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I posted this on the bnet thread, but just for the sake of proper documentation I will copy it here. I contacted Allan and here is what I found:
Hi Allan,
Please forgive me if you've got tons of email over this, but there is a shotcode in Halo Reach Beta that seems to point toward your blog Allan Tech.
Were you aware of this?
Sorry to bother you, and if I am the first I hope you don't get many more requests like this, but Bungie is famous for starting Alternate Reality Games before coming out with Halo games and if it is a coincidence it is most unfortunate for you, but if it is legit, is there something I should be looking for on your blog?
By the way, I also loved those Quest games.
Thanks
Dunder Moose
Hi Dunder
Thanks for letting me know. I have no connection with Halo Reach Beta - but many years ago I put a shotcode on my blog - maybe they just reused the image. Anyway - you are the first to email me about it - and I don't mind. Any traffic is good traffic :-)
Allan
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Then why is Bungie using his shotcode?
Perhaps
-It's an ad
- That could be. But why to choose some random, 3-year old Shotcode instead of (for example) a shotcode that leads to Shotcode.com?
-It is just a placeholder
- But that would be just stupid. Again, why to put something so random? You could just leave the computers blank, if nothing else.
-We are reading it wrong
- But how could that be? Even though the code has been rotated 'bout 90 degrees, it doesn't affect the reader (as planned). Also, I can't see what could've been done wrong in the re-creating. Should we just take out a block or add more of them? ???
-It's a red herring
- Bungie is fooling with us. >:(
-There is a connection we haven't noticed
- Maybe Allan has a connection to Bungie he doesn't realize?
Just throwing out ideas. What else could it be? :P
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Then why is Bungie using his shotcode?
Perhaps
-It's an ad
- That could be. But why to choose some random, 3-year old Shotcode instead of (for example) a shotcode that leads to Shotcode.com?
-It is just a placeholder
- But that would be just stupid. Again, why to put something so random? You could just leave the computers blank, if nothing else.
-We are reading it wrong
- But how could that be? Even though the code has been rotated 'bout 90 degrees, it doesn't affect the reader (as planned). Also, I can't see what could've been done wrong in the re-creating. Should we just take out a block or add more of them? ???
-It's a red herring
- Bungie is fooling with us. >:(
-There is a connection we haven't noticed
- Maybe Allan has a connection to Bungie he doesn't realize?
Just throwing out ideas. What else could it be? :P
Ad: Doubt it. Bungie wouldn't advertise a game unless they had sole reason to.
Placeholder: Bungie is amazingly effiecient. I dont think they need placeholders this close into the game on trash cans.
We are reading it wrong: See my attached picture. See if it works.
Red Herring: If none of the other choices written here seem accurate, then maybe it is a red herring.
Bungie Foolin': Doubt it. They wouldnt fool with us unless theirs something bigger to research (red herring)
Btw, someone said the shotcode looked like a covenant glyph. Anyone wanna change a glyph form into a shotcode?
Edit: Looking at these shotcodes put together, two changes can be made. Someone please scan the 2 images on this post and the 1 on the next post. It might be something legit.
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See attachment. Scan it.
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While I can't scan your codes right away, I must say that the 5th will not work, and I know that. The outer rim must be completely black for it to work (this is why the earliest recreations failed).
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It looks like the raw shotcode data is being encrypted before showing up in the URL parameters. Typically, encryption (e.g. RSA Encryption) increases the size of the data, which is why there isn't simply six pairs of hex digits in the URL. We won't be able to get to the actual raw data that way, in other words.
Nice work, though! And you, too Dunder... way to take the initiative and contact the blogger... and thanks for sharing the response.
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The owner of the blog pointed to by the shotcode has published an entry regarding the appearance of his shotcode in Reach:
http://allantech.blogspot.com/ (http://allantech.blogspot.com/)
It reads:
Wednesday, May 5, 2010
Yo, Halo Reach Beta Peeps
A long time ago I wrote about shotcodes and for that purpose I even put a shotcode on the web site linking to this web site. It would finally seem like I now get my 15 sec of fame, since Halo Reach supposedly have used a graphic with some similarity to my shotcode in the game (see the computer terminal to the right here). After Zoidberg25 “cracked†this in the Bungie forums I’ve gotten a certain amount of visitors looking through my blog for hidden clues – or maybe even an ARG.
Although I appreciate all traffic and every single visitor to my blog is very welcome, I feel that I should probably come clean. I can deny any and all rumors that this blog is part of an intricate scheme to hide secret game codes or Easter eggs. Or maybe not. Feel free to read through every single post and comment – look for hidden codes and clues (remember that the classical Substitution Cipher is always a popular way to hide secret stuff in plain view. While you are trying to crack this one, feel free to click the links and read what my sponsors have to say. And if the adds generate enough revenue I might even buy that silly game of yours and see what all the fuzz is about (if I actually manage to clean the dust off my Xbox 360).
The question remains: why was that darn shotcode in the Beta? Is "Allen" a "puppetmaster" for an upcoming Reach ARG? Or was it really just a Bungie Blunder?
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Or are shotcodes not really as unique as we think? :o
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They can represent over 1 trillion different values. So... they're pretty unique.
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Imppa:
In the attached image, I changed Zone 3, Sector 2 from white to black. Looking at the original image in the Beta (I'm still in Beta Theater Mode!) it appears slightly possible that this sector was whitened due to "weathering" of the image. In any event, it'll be interesting to see what one bit of difference in the image will get us.
Thanks in advance!
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I scanned it, gave me this:
404: code not found
The Shotcode you scanned is not valid.
Same case with Cycles images, too. It really is Allan's shotcode.
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Someone made a new post here (http://www.bungie.net/Forums/posts.aspx?postID=45554949) where they found a new shotcode. Imppa, would you please scan it?
(http://img514.imageshack.us/img514/8679/56942701.jpg)
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Soon. But first, I'm gonna correct their mistrust in phonifier.com.
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Done with teaching the heretics (http://www.bungie.net/Forums/posts.aspx?postID=45573415). And that does not go for a shotcode: It must be shopped to receive SOME kind of a result.
EDIT: Forget it, it is not a shotcode. Not enough rows.
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Those people still think that phonifier.com has something to do with Halo...
Well, the site owner will hopefully respond soon, and they (hopefully) will realize.
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While the snd "shotcode" doesn't work, because of the lack of proper bullseye and circles (only 5 + "bullseye"), it is to be noted that there are enough slices in it for a shotcode: 24.
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While the snd "shotcode" doesn't work, because of the lack of proper bullseye and circles (only 5 + "bullseye"), it is to be noted that there are enough slices in it for a shotcode: 24.
Snd? The one i posted? Well, before i toy with it, should the middle be black or white??
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I made some new ones, regarding your info Imppa. I doubt they will work at all.
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Has anyone noticed this? (referring to attached image) Or is that what Scat's been working on?
Found here (http://www.bungie.net/projects/reach/article.aspx?ucc=intel).
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Yes that is the one we're working on, but its good that you found it on your own.
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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4-yC6yfHq0o&playnext_from=TL&videos=8zrh1vBWKIk
Guys... Shotcodes are everywhere. I think bungies trying to draw our attention to THEM, while something secret is going on in the backround... maybe we need to search a bit harder. As SBTTLS said, maybe we need to think outside the box.
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Someone at b.net made this (http://img375.imageshack.us/img375/9115/roughshotcode.png).
Here's a good shot at the shotcode:
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Coolio, cycle. Maybe they all can be put together at some point...Or then it's just another Bungie's attraction.
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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4-yC6yfHq0o&playnext_from=TL&videos=8zrh1vBWKIk
Guys... Shotcodes are everywhere. I think bungies trying to draw our attention to THEM, while something secret is going on in the backround... maybe we need to search a bit harder. As SBTTLS said, maybe we need to think outside the box.
They're definitely trying to draw our attention.
[Well, maybe.]
Right now, we have 3 shotcodes:
-1. from Powerhouse: Works, but doesn't lead anywhere right
-2. from CAA Factbook: Is not real
-3. from The Noble Team Legendary Edition Statue: Is not real
Let's do some analyzing, shall we?
1st Shotcode:
While being the only Shotcode that works, decoding it didn't give us any results, and it seems to be a plunder. *cry*
So why did Bungie show this to us?
So we would be aware of Shotcodes.
2nd Shotcode:
It doesn't work, because of the lack of bulls eye and a datarings.. It also has some extra databits on the inner sectors that shouldn't be there.
However: beside it's round shape and other similarities in it's look to real Shotcodes, it has exactly 24 sectors in it. Just like in a real shotcode.
3rd:
Nope, doesn't work: Lack of bulls eye, too much stuff...
But when you take out the thinner sectors in it, and count the remaining ones: Guess how much that is? 24. (At least if I counted right...)
So while the 1st one was a wake-up call, these two others could already be something. Either that, or there are more Shotcodes to be revealed.
You know what would be an nice tool for this? A Shotcode maker; An app where you could 'draw' your own shotcode, clicking the databits in the circle...
Hey, any handy Engineers out there? A little favor, pretty please? :)
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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4-yC6yfHq0o&playnext_from=TL&videos=8zrh1vBWKIk
Guys... Shotcodes are everywhere. I think bungies trying to draw our attention to THEM, while something secret is going on in the backround... maybe we need to search a bit harder. As SBTTLS said, maybe we need to think outside the box.
They're definitely trying to draw our attention.
[Well, maybe.]
Right now, we have 3 shotcodes:
-1. from Powerhouse: Works, but doesn't lead anywhere right
-2. from CAA Factbook: Is not real
-3. from The Noble Team Legendary Edition Statue: Is not real
Let's do some analyzing, shall we?
1st Shotcode:
While being the only Shotcode that works, decoding it didn't give us any results, and it seems to be a plunder. *cry*
So why did Bungie show this to us?
So we would be aware of Shotcodes.
2nd Shotcode:
It doesn't work, because of the lack of bulls eye and a datarings.. It also has some extra databits on the inner sectors that shouldn't be there.
However: beside it's round shape and other similarities in it's look to real Shotcodes, it has exactly 24 sectors in it. Just like in a real shotcode.
3rd:
Nope, doesn't work: Lack of bulls eye, too much stuff...
But when you take out the thinner sectors in it, and count the remaining ones: Guess how much that is? 24. (At least if I counted right...)
So while the 1st one was a wake-up call, these two others could already be something. Either that, or there are more Shotcodes to be revealed.
You know what would be an nice tool for this? A Shotcode maker; An app where you could 'draw' your own shotcode, clicking the databits in the circle...
Hey, any handy Engineers out there? A little favor, pretty please? :)
Wow. I think you nailed it. Nailed it better than when Doughnut stuck Tex.
Possibly combining them. I could do an simply complicated Scratch program. I'm on it.
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Lol scratch. Not complicated, easy.
Heres how.
Get a grid of all the spaces of a shotcode. make each one a sprite (time consuming, lawl), then make a costume as black. (orignally its green) if you click once, it changes costume to black, if click twice changes costume to white. Easy peasy. Hell, sounds fun. I might make one.
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Possibly combining them. I could do an simply complicated Scratch program. I'm on it.
Oh yeah, thanks for pointing out the point I was trying to point.(:D)
Either they have to be put together, or then adding the bulseye and removing the scrap will make it readable.
While working on the app, remember this about shotcodes.
There are:
-7 rings[Halo :)] in it when the bulls eye is counted;
- Bullseye and the 3 first ring are always the same: bulls eye, white ring, black ring, white ring.
- The 5th and the 6th ring are the datarings, containing all the data. Naturally, they vary. These are the rings that are meant to be customizable (and only these).
- The 7th and the most outer ring is always completely black.
-24 sectors
- which means that the degree of one sector equals 360/24=15 degrees.
I will go back to the countryside next day , and I am not sure when I return...
I hope you can manage this by yourself!;)
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I have created a fill in shotcode, with help from Nightcrafter and Imppa. Thanks to both of you. Tell me if it has any problems.
You can download it, then fill in the blanks. For example, that shotcode on the statue? Now you can fill it in.
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Here is my grid before the finishing touches were done, if you shall need it for anything.
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Snap. Shotcode.com is down AGAIN.
>:(
We wont be trying our shotcodes for some time I guess...
My mistake! Still, for some reason, my phone or computer can't find it...
404 D:
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SBTTLS informed here (http://www.bungie.net/Forums/posts.aspx?postID=45576601&postRepeater1-p=44#46559791) about this (http://img30.imageshack.us/i/58970909.png/): another circle/"shotcode". Looks like the one on the statue, but is different.
If I counted right, this one has also The 24 sectors, when the thin parts are taken off...
Hm.
I have already tested the CAA 'shotcode' turned into a shotcode: no result. The reader simply wont accept it...
The other circles could be 'shotified', but I'm not sure how would it work to separate the thin sections...
Aaagh, my creativity is running out...Maybe I can use the last of them to create a post to Bnet about this.[I hope it wont go unnoticed even though there is like 5 pages of new posts...]
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Thread started. (http://www.bungie.net/Forums/posts.aspx?postID=46632070) I just feel like I failed to catch interest...
Well see. Well, I won't, cause I'm leaving in an hour to internet-free zone for quite some time again. I believe in you!
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:)
Nightcrafter27
And i will keep it alive. Its hard with all the forge threads.
I am greedy... can i have proof where you link to the picture? :]
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Well, Scat;
•B.net scares me. I've gotten used to the comfy SGP.
•I might get involed in some forge threads.
•I'm an engineer, so I really like ^.
•I'm away from home, and B.net h8ts my phone.
In short, I would if I could, but I can't :(
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You would what? I dont understand what we're talking about... :|
Do you have a copy of that old powerhouse shotcode? We need one, and reach stats are gone!
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I would get distracted by the forge threads
>>SENT: [FOREMAN.ADMIN.SGP] 2010.09.30 >> ACHIEVEMENT CRITERIA MET - 100 POSTS - SGP MEMBER 'nightcrafter27' : BLOOP BLEEP!
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Has anything happened yet? Has the ARG started? Has the thread died? *cough* bump *cough*
(I just realized I could access SGP via phone :D)
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the thread, has died. I bumped it up to hot topic though. No one cares about us :(. Stupid foarge threads.
No, it hasnt started... but i remember me and night found something... and we were like "THE ARG!" Night remember what that was???? And then i got a HUGE virus. Then after super hard work and many failures i got rid of it, Night got sim city 4, (irrelevant, but cool) and something is sposed to happen at bungie tomorrow. Many are getting ready for an ARG, or in my case, any sort of thing they release i am sure the ARG will be hiding in it.
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You were trying to get my attention, we did not find any ARG
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I remember that, but then i actually found something after that and we joked about it... but it may have actually been it O_O
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Myth busted (http://www.bungie.net/images/Games/Reach/intel/CAA_2.png).
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Myth busted (http://www.bungie.net/images/Games/Reach/intel/CAA_2.png).
Yes, that one is, but we are looking for a next one... :D
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Spotted this in the new Bnet Avatars:
(http://www.bungie.net/Forums/skins/default/avatars/a_reach_10.jpg)
Seems like they hunt is STILL on.
Which reminds me, we've got to check Powerhouse as soon as we get our hands on it (I can handle it, I hope :))
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Spotted this in the new Bnet Avatars:
(http://www.bungie.net/Forums/skins/default/avatars/a_reach_10.jpg)
Seems like they hunt is STILL on.
Which reminds me, we've got to check Powerhouse as soon as we get our hands on it (I can handle it, I hope :))
I saw and thought the same thing, was about to post. Can someone make a code of that with my image?
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I don't have a picture right now, but if you download the trial version of Marathon Durandal, and start it up you will see some doors with a very similar design on them to the shotcode. I know earlier someone had said that perhaps Bungie was deliberately separating the brands from Halo and Marathon (hence the Marathon logo coming off of the sheild for easy difficulty). If these shotcodes are from Durandal, maybe Bungie is still subtly keeping an obscure link in.
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I don't have a picture right now, but if you download the trial version of Marathon Durandal, and start it up you will see some doors with a very similar design on them to the shotcode. I know earlier someone had said that perhaps Bungie was deliberately separating the brands from Halo and Marathon (hence the Marathon logo coming off of the sheild for easy difficulty). If these shotcodes are from Durandal, maybe Bungie is still subtly keeping an obscure link in.
It would be awesome if you could get the picture Moose. If shotcodes were part of Durandal design, then we may have an answer for the question "why shotcodes?" :)