Jump to content
Have You Played Atari Today?
2600|5200|7800|Lynx|Jaguar|Forums|Store  

GarageResearch

Members
 View Profile  See their activity

  • Content Count

    217

  • Joined

  • Last visited

Posts posted by GarageResearch

  1. Posted

    Hello, All!
     
    I have published ColEm 5.1 for Android, a new version of my Coleco emulator:
     
     
    This release is based on the latest Windows/Linux ColEm 5.1, released last week. This release fixes a bunch of cloud-based features, such as State Exchange, Network Play, and Box Art Downloader. I have also fixed a crash on some AndroidTV devices when getting the list of storage locations.As you remember, I had to disable cheat features to avoid Google staff banning ColEm from the store. You can easily reenable cheats though by downloading this file to your Downloads folder:
     
    ALL CHANGES:
    * Based on the latest ColEm 5.1 for Windows and Linux.
    * Fixed stray crash on AndroidTV when obtaining the list of storage devices.
    * Fixed State Exchange feature.
    * Fixed Network Play feature.
    * Fixed box art downloader.
     
    PS: Speccy Deluxe, the complete version of my Sinclair ZX Spectrum and Sam Coupe emulator, is on $2.99 sale this week:
     
    https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.fms.speccy.deluxe
     
    Have fun!

  2. Posted · Edited by GarageResearch

    Hello, All!
     
    I have just published VGBAnext 6.3.10, a new version of my universal GBA, GBC, and NES emulator for Android:
     
     
    In this version, I have fixed State Exchange, Network Play and Box Art Download features, which have been down for a while due to server-side policy changes. Everything should be back to normal again though. If you are still experiencing problems with any of these features, please, email me. I've also fixed a rare crash on AndroidTV systems when obtaining list of storage locations.
     
    As you remember, I had to disable cheat features to avoid Google staff banning VGBAnext from the store. You can easily reenable cheats by downloading this file to your "Downloads" folder:
     
    See below for the complete list of changes in this release.
     
    ALL CHANGES:
    * Fixed stray crash on AndroidTV when obtaining the list of storage devices.
    * Fixed State Exchange feature.
    * Fixed Network Play feature.
    * Fixed box art downloader.
     
    Enjoy!
     
    PS: AlmostTI, my universal TI graphing calc emulator, is on $2.99 sale this week:
     

  3. Posted

    On 6/8/2020 at 1:25 PM, Ikrananka said:

    I found that one has to open the .pal file AFTER loading a game rom.  Loading it beforehand doesn't work.  Also, when doing a CV system hardware reset the new palette is unloaded and you have to again reload the .pal file.  This is rather annoying.  It would be better, in my opinion, to allow the user to specify a custom palette file to use (via the Hardware > Color Palette menu) and that this custom palette is used every time the emulator is started and stays even with a "hardware reset".

    In ColEm 5.1, I implemented global ColEm.pal palette file support, extended -palette parameter with ability to supply a file name (like "ColEm.pal") rather than a number, and also made sure the palette is not reset when resetting the hardware.

  4. Posted

    Hello, All!

     
    I've just released the free ColEm 5.1 for Windows and Linux, with the source code for those interested in porting ColEm to other platforms:
     
        http://fms.komkon.org/ColEm/ -- homepage
        http://fms.komkon.org/ColEm/ColEm51-Source.zip -- portable source code
     
    This release adds configurable global color palette (via ColEm.pal file) and fixes state saving, loading, and rewind for Adam software. I have also added support for more Adam-specific keys. Please note that since Coleco Adam emulation is very new, it may have bugs. If you encounter any problems, or any Adam software that does not run, please, report it here:
     
     
    ALL CHANGES:
    * Added Coleco Adam state saving, loading, and rewinding.
    * Added support for more Coleco Adam keys (see documentation).
    * Disabled loading disks or tapes with no Adam firmware ROMs.
    * Added support for default palette file named ColEm.pal.
    * Now able to supply .PAL filename to -palette parameter.
    * Changing palette in Windows no longer resets emulation.
     
    Enjoy!
     
    PS: AlmostTI, my Texas Instruments programmable calculator emulator for Android, is currently on $2.99 sale:
     

  5. Posted

    Hello, All!
     
    I have released ColEm 5.0 for Android, a new version of my Coleco emulator:
     
     
    This release is based on the latest Windows/Linux ColEm 5.0, released last week. It finally adds complete Coleco Adam home computer emulation, with keyboard, disk drives, and tapes. Both disk (.DSK) and tape (.DDP) image files are now supported and can be run from the File Selector. The "Settings | Emulation" screen adds options for Adam emulation and virtual keyboard. Since Adam emulation is still very new, please, let me know if you experience any issues with it. Hopefully, these should be gone in the next few months.
     
    Additionally, the "Change Folder" dialog now contains buttons for all your storage devices, such as SD cards and USB flash drives. To select a storage device, simply select "Change Folder" from the File Selector menu, click on your storage device, then click on "Ok". As you remember, I had to disable cheat features to avoid Google staff banning ColEm from the store. You can easily reenable cheats though by downloading this file to your Downloads folder:
     
    ALL CHANGES:
    * Based on the latest ColEm 5.0 sources.
    * Coleco Adam emulation is now fully operational.
    * Added support for Adam disk (.DSK) and tape (.DDP) files.
    * Added "Settings | Emulation | Coleco Adam" option.
    * Added "Settings | Emulation | Coleco Adam Keyboard" option.
    * Added "Settings | Emulation | ColecoVision Keypads" option.
    * Added list of available storage devices to "Change Folder" dialog.
    * Added available storage devices to the top row in AndroidTV UI.
    * Changed message indicating that Android denied a directory listing.
     
    PS: ColEm Deluxe is currently on $2.99 sale for the next few days:
     
    https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.fms.colem.deluxe
     
    Enjoy!

  6. Posted

    1 hour ago, zyzzle said:

    I was talking about 10 to 20 years into future, but of course for now emulation provides much more configurability, user base, and programmers (!) at vastly reduced cost compared to FPGA. What costs $35,000 now in FPGA might cost $35 twenty years from now.

    Yes, but why? While I fully understand emulating something like PlayStation GPU in FPGA, what is the point emulating a Z80 or TMS9918 there? They are simple, well defined hardware designs which you can run at 10x speed using 10-year old mobile ARM CPUs. FPGA exists for accelerating things your CPU cannot run well enough. 8bit stuff is not one of these things, mostly.

  7. Posted

    Hello, All!
     
    I have managed to publish the latest version of iNES for Android, 5.7.14, to Google Play:
     
     
    It is essentially the same app as the one available from iNES website. You may want to install it if you prefer automated updates, although pushing each successive update to Google Play has become a hugely difficult task. Every single time, I have to prove to Google meat drones that the app does not include any Nintendo assets, has no NES images anywhere, and does not even mention NES in the app description or the title.
     
    Anyways, enjoy while it lasts.

  9. Posted

    3 hours ago, Ikrananka said:
    1. Thanks - I just wanted to know what it was best to set it as in the palette file for ColEm.
    2. So this is a suggestion then, to make ColEm have a global notion of default palette.  It is rather obtuse in the way that it is implemented at the moment and very annoying that one cannot make a custom palette be set as the default.  There are many emulators out there that operate this way and, in my opinion, would be a great enhancement for ColEm.

    1. Since it is Coleco, with a standard TMS9918, you should probably set it to black. In MSX2, using V9938 with programmable palette, people often set it to dark-dark-blue for the classic green-on-blue system console experience. Any MSX1 game started from MSXDOS prompt (including Konami games converted from cartridges) then runs on the dark blue background.

     

    2. Some of my other emulators actually have a configurable global default. I guess, nobody asked for that in ColEm so far.

     

     

  10. Posted

    5 hours ago, Ikrananka said:

    Ah - okay - I got that to work.  Couple of questions/suggestions:

    1. What hex code should be used for the first "colour", i.e. transparent?  It seems to be that a hex code must be included for transparent which is odd.
    2. I found that one has to open the .pal file AFTER loading a game rom.  Loading it beforehand doesn't work.  Also, when doing a CV system hardware reset the new palette is unloaded and you have to again reload the .pal file.  This is rather annoying.  It would be better, in my opinion, to allow the user to specify a custom palette file to use (via the Hardware > Color Palette menu) and that this custom palette is used every time the emulator is started and stays even with a "hardware reset".

    1. There is really no such thing as "transparent" color in TMS9918. Color #0 can be treated as "transparent" in certain situations, but it is still a valid color in general. Most systems set it to black (#000000).

     

    2. As I have said before, the current ColEm code does not have a notion of global default palette file. The "File | Open" functionality is part of generalized file types recognition. You can open .CHT and some other files in the same way.

     

  12. Posted

    29 minutes ago, Ikrananka said:

    So, does that mean that custom palettes are game specific?  If I say have 200 games and I want to always use the same custom palette then I have to have 200 identical custom palette files but with each named differently to match each game name?  Or have I misunderstood?

    At the moment, this is correct, since the emulator assumes that one of the three supplied palettes (chosen with -palette <n>) should be enough for general case. I can add more flexibility though. Like adding an option to supply a filename to the -palette parameter.

  13. Posted · Edited by GarageResearch
    URLs broken

    Hello, All!
     
    I've just released the free ColEm 5.0 for Windows and Linux, with the source code for those interested in porting ColEm to other platforms:
     
        http://fms.komkon.org/ColEm/ -- homepage
        http://fms.komkon.org/ColEm/ColEm50-Source.zip -- portable source code
     
    This release adds the complete Coleco Adam emulation, including keyboard, printer, disk, and tape drives. Both .DSK and .DDP file types are now supported. There are multiple new menu and command line options for working with printers, disks, and tapes. Please note that since Coleco Adam emulation is very new, it may have bugs. If you encounter any problems, or any Adam software that does not run, please, report it here.

    Recent ColEm releases also added support for 2kB SRAM found in the Lord Of The Dungeon game, Super Game Module (SGM) emulation, AY8910 PSG, 24c08 and 24c256 EEPROM emulation, and other modern features important to the homebrew community. See below for all the changes in the latest release.

     

    ALL CHANGES:
    * Coleco Adam emulation is now operational, with keyboard, printer, disk, and tape drives. Use -adam command line or "Hardware | Adam" menu to enable. Requires EOS.ROM and WRITER.ROM files.
    * Emulator will load .DSK files into disk drive A: and enable Adam mode.
    * Emulator will load .DDP files into tape drive A: and enable Adam mode.
    * Printer output can be sent to a file with -printer option.
    * Adam disk drives can also be loaded with -disk* options.
    * Adam tape drives can also be loaded with -tape* options.
    * Windows version has got full support for Adam-specific media images and hardware.
    * Added "File | Save Printer Output" menu to ColEm-Windows.
    * Added "Hardware | Disk Drives" menu to ColEm-Windows.
    * Added "Hardware | Tape Drives" menu to ColEm-Windows.
     
    Enjoy!
     
    PS: fMSX Deluxe, my complete MSX and MSX2 emulator for Android, is currently on $2.99 sale:
     
    • Like 2
    • Thanks 2

  14. Posted

    On 6/1/2020 at 10:02 AM, Ikrananka said:

    Am I correct in thinking that users can add their own colour palettes to ColEm (using .PAL files)?  If so, what is the format of the PAL file and how does one add it to ColEm?

    Yes, if you have got something like Game.rom, ColEm will automatically try to load and use palette from Game.pal. The format is very simple and consists of 16 lines like this one: 

    #RRGGBB

     

  15. Posted

    Hello, All!

     

    I've released the free iNES 5.7.14, a new version of my NES and Famicom emulator for Android:

     

    http://fms.komkon.org/EmuAndroid/iNES-Android.apk

     

    I am releasing this version as a standalone APK, since I am unable to get it published via Google Play any more. This release adds the list of available storage devices (SD cards, USB drives, etc) to the "Change Folder" dialog to make it easier to switch. Same devices can be found in the top row of AndroidTV UI icons. See below for all the changes.

     

    ALL CHANGES:
    * Added list of available storage devices to "Change Folder" dialog.
    * Added available storage devices to the top row in AndroidTV UI.
    * Changed message indicating that Android denied a directory listing.

     

    PS: MasterGear, my Sega MasterSystem, GameGear, and SG1000 emulator, is currently on $2.99 sale:

    https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.fms.mg

  16. Posted

    On 4/11/2020 at 1:05 AM, zyzzle said:

    Can't edit my post above, but attached is a zipped version, with no-delay BIOS and current Docs from v. 4.8 converted to ASCII text format for DOS friendliness. All options including cheats work except video effects scale 2x, TV (scanline) effects. I think it has to do with 640x480 and higher VESA modes not being correct or complete in the original DOS source code from version 2.6.

    ColEmv48_MS-DOS.zip 92.17 kB · 10 downloads

    Pretty cool, if you ask me :) Anyway, the special effects should work as well, but they require an upgrade to LibMSDOS.c code, similar to how LibWin.c looks. And yes, you probably want 640x480 or higher video mode with that, but the current LibMSDOS.c should be able to do that already.

  22. Posted

    On 1/9/2020 at 11:28 AM, ChuckH said:

    As mentioned before, Squish'em Sam and Sewer Sam still do not have the digitized voices and now Wizard of War doesn't either. If I'm missing some audio setting I apologize. Otherwise, It would be nice to have that added to your fine emulator.

    Sorry, just noticed this. It is normal for some games not to have digitized voice at the moment, but are you saying that Wizard Of War had audio and now it does not? Are you sure about this?

  24. Posted

    Hello, All!
     
    VGBAnext 6.3.8, a new version of my universal GBA, GBC, and NES emulator for Android, is now available from Google Play:
     
     
    This release fixes file system navigation problems with inaccessible folders. The app will no longer allow entering inaccessible folders and will go to the default "/sdcard/VGBAnext" folder if the current folder becomes unavailable. If you need to quickly jump to a different folder, use the "Change Folder" menu option. As you remember, I had to disable cheat features to avoid Google staff banning VGBAnext from the store. You can easily reenable cheats by downloading this file to your "Downloads" folder:
     
    See below for the complete list of changes in this release.
     
    ALL CHANGES:
    * Fixed AndroidTV file browser getting stuck on unavailable folders.
    * Fixed File Selector getting stuck on unavailable folders.
    * AndroidTV browser will point to "Folders" row after changing folder.
    * Advanced Settings now switch to app folder when current folder unavailable.
    * Advanced Settings will not allow to select unavailable folders.
    * Toolbar now tries running paid apps before defaulting to free ones.
    * Added a message dialog when directing users to Google Play.
     
    PS: MasterGear, my Sega MasterSystem and GameGear emulator, is currently on $2.99 sale at the Google Play store:
     
    https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.fms.mg

  25. Posted · Edited by GarageResearch

    Hello, All!
     
    I have released ColEm 4.8.2 for Android, a new version of my ColecoVision console emulator:
     
     
    This release fixes a few file system navigation issues, not allowing the user to enter inaccessible folders. I've also made sure that when you click on an app in the toolbar, it attempts to launch paid versions of the apps before falling back to free versions. As you remember, I had to disable cheat features to avoid Google staff banning ColEm from the store. You can easily reenable cheats though by downloading this file to your Downloads folder:
     
    ALL CHANGES:
    * Fixed AndroidTV file browser getting stuck on unavailable folders.
    * Fixed File Selector getting stuck on unavailable folders.
    * AndroidTV browser will point to "Folders" row after changing folder.
    * Toolbar now tries running paid apps before defaulting to free ones.
    * Added a message dialog when directing users to Google Play.
     
    PS: In related news, VGBAnext, my universal GBA, GBC, and NES emulator, is on $2.99 sale for the next few days:
     

    https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.fms.emu

    • Like 1
AtariAge
Forums
Store
General
Follow AtariAge

Copyright ©1998-2021 AtariAge

×
×
  • Create New...