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ColEm Emulator for Windows, Android, and Linux


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19 hours ago, GarageResearch said:

I think the problem there is that the voice is done via some PSG hack, since AY891x PSG does not provide sampled output capabilities. Such hacks are not emulated by ColEm at the moment.

FYI, the AY code from MAME supports it... You could check that out.

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29 minutes ago, bhall408 said:

FYI, the AY code from MAME supports it... You could check that out.

I have a policy of writing my own code. Having said that, it is more or less clear what is going on. The software stalls a PSG sound channel, then manipulates its volume in real-time, as if it were a DAC of sorts.

 

Since PSG emulation in ColEm works in terms of frequencies/volumes, rather than audio samples (letting you record PSG music into MIDI), simulating this pseudo "DAC" behavior is very messy. I do have it on the todo list, but the two or three games using this "feature" make it a low priority.

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13 minutes ago, GarageResearch said:

Since PSG emulation in ColEm works in terms of frequencies/volumes, rather than audio samples (letting you record PSG music into MIDI), simulating this pseudo "DAC" behavior is very messy. I do have it on the todo list, but the two or three games using this "feature" make it a low priority.

One nice side effect of using the frequencies is that (at least to me) the result sounds much nicer/"upscaled" to taking the more hardware faithful approach. Downside is lower compatibility (AY was also used on Vectrex, which had a bunch of original era games that made use of sampled sounds).

 

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3 hours ago, bhall408 said:

One nice side effect of using the frequencies is that (at least to me) the result sounds much nicer/"upscaled" to taking the more hardware faithful approach. Downside is lower compatibility (AY was also used on Vectrex, which had a bunch of original era games that made use of sampled sounds).

 

The DAC trick mentioned above is pretty much the only incompatibility, as far as AY891x is concerned. YM2608/YM2612 and other FM chips really require a sample-based approach.

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On 7/30/2020 at 7:56 PM, GarageResearch said:

I think the problem there is that the voice is done via some PSG hack, since AY891x PSG does not provide sampled output capabilities. Such hacks are not emulated by ColEm at the moment.

Oh ok no worries, thank you!! Love the emulator regardless!!  Thank you!!!

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  • 1 month later...

Hello, All!

 
I've published the free ColEm 5.3 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/ColEm53-Source.zip -- portable source code
 
This release comes with refactored scaling and special effects framework, optimized for larger screens and windows. It improves the Windows version behavior with multiple screens. I have also added separate options for linear interpolation, loading palette and cheat files. See below for all the changes.
 
ALL CHANGES:
* System ROM files location now defaults to where executable is.
* Refactored scaling and special effects framework.
* Optimized scaling for large screens and windows.
* Fixed ColEm-Windows behavior with multiple displays.
* Added "File | Load .PAL Palette" option to ColEm-Windows.
* Added "File | Load .CHT Cheats" option to ColEm-Windows.
* Added "Video | Interpolate Video | Linear Scaling" option to ColEm-Windows.
* Enabled "Video | Stretch Full Screen" option with effects enabled.
* Enabled "Video | Force 4:3 Screen" option with effects enabled.
* Renamed snapshot saving options in ColEm-Windows.

 
ColEm Deluxe, the complete ColEm app for Android, is on $2.99 sale at Google Play this week:
 
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Hello, All!
 
I have released ColEm 5.3 for Android, a new version of my Coleco emulator:
 
 
This release is based on the latest Windows/Linux version released earlier this week. The scaling and special effects framework has been completely refactored. There is now a separate scaling option for linear image interpolation. 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:
* ColEm Deluxe is on $2.99 sale at Google Play this week.
* Based on the latest ColEm 5.3 sources.
* Refactored scaling and special effects framework.
* Added separate option for linear image interpolation.
 
Enjoy!
Edited by GarageResearch
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  • 1 month later...

Hello, All!

 
I've published the free ColEm 5.4 for Windows and Linux, a new version of my ColecoVision and Coleco Adam emulator. There is also source code for those interested in porting ColEm to other platforms:
 
    http://fms.komkon.org/ColEm/ -- homepage
    http://fms.komkon.org/ColEm/ColEm54-Source.zip -- portable source code
 
This release adds a simple CPU-based linear interpolation scaler, used when GPU-based scaling is unfeasible. The Windows version now supports drag'n'drop for files. See below for all the changes.
 
ALL CHANGES:
* Added simple CPU-based linear interpolation scaler.
* Added file drag'n'drop support to ColEm-Windows.
* Added "-linear" command line option to ColEm-Linux.

 
ColEm Deluxe, the complete ColEm app for Android, is on $2.99 sale at Google Play this week:
 
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Hello, All!

 
I have released ColEm 5.4 for Android, a new version of my ColecoVision and Coleco Adam emulator:
 
 
This release is based on the latest Windows/Linux version published earlier this week. It adds a simple CPU-based linear interpolation scaler, used when GPU-based scaling is disabled or unfeasible. 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 5.4 sources.
* Added CPU-based simple linear interpolation algorithm.
* ColEm Deluxe is on $2.99 sale at Google Play this week.
 
Enjoy!
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  • 1 month later...
  • 2 weeks later...

Hello, All!

 
I've just published ColEm 5.5 for Android, a new version of my ColecoVision and Coleco Adam emulator:
 
 
Starting this November, Google no longer allows Android apps to access files on Android10+ devices, outside app's sandbox. All storage access is now supposed to be done via something called "Storage Access Framework".
 
I had to make major changes to ColEm in order to comply with the new regulations. If you have a newer Android10+, you will see the list of storage volumes in the File Selector. Once you click on a volume, the app may ask you for permission to access it. Otherwise, things should work the same as before. If you find any new problems with the app though, please, report them to the support group or email me directly. See below for all the changes.
 
ALL CHANGES:
* Refactored app to comply with Google's latest ban on file I/O.
* On Android 10+, all file access is now done via content providers.
* Content is copied to a temporary folder for use, changes moved back on exit.
* You may have to give app separate permission to read each storage location.
 
Have fun!
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  • 3 weeks later...

Hello, All!

 
I've released ColEm 5.5.1 for Android, a new version of my ColecoVision and Coleco Adam emulator:
 
 
This release fixes multiple issues that popped up after refactoring the app for "Storage Access Framework" compatibility. Files with parentheses and spaces in their names should work once again, among other things. See below for all the changes.
 
ALL CHANGES:

* Fixed several crash sources that popped up after refactoring.
* Fixed handling of spaces and parentheses in "content://" URIs.
* Fixed list of volumes in "Change Folder" dialog.
* Fixed "Change Folder" functionality.
 

PS: VGBAnext, my universal GBA, GBC, GB, NES, and Famicom emulator is on $2.99 sale at Google Play until the end of this week:
 
 
Happy New Year!
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Love it! And love ColEm 5.4 Windows. Been following this stuff since the days of Mike Cuddy's Gyruss sound emulator.

 

Found 2 roms that don't work. Or at least I can't get them going. Uridium and Gauntlett. I PM'ed them to you for convenience.

Edited by Keatah
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  • 3 weeks later...

Hello, All!

 
I've published the free ColEm 5.5 for Windows and Linux, a new version of my ColecoVision and Coleco Adam emulator. There is also source code for those interested in porting ColEm to other platforms:
 
    http://fms.komkon.org/ColEm/ -- homepage
    http://fms.komkon.org/ColEm/ColEm55-Source.zip -- portable source code
 
This release makes VDP compute 5th sprite status even when it is not drawing the screen, fixing the recent Uridium port to ColecoVision. The Windows version now has "Hardware | Paste Clipboard" to paste Windows clipboard contents into Coleco Adam apps. See below for all the changes.
 
ALL CHANGES:
* Made VDP compute 5th sprite status even when not drawing screen.
* Recent Uridium and Gauntlet ports to ColecoVision work now.
* Added "Paste Clipboard" option to ColEm-Windows in Adam mode.

 
ColEm Deluxe, the complete ColEm app for Android, is on $2.99 sale at Google Play this week:
 
    https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.fms.colem.deluxe
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On 1/19/2021 at 12:51 PM, Itchy Scratchy said:

I don't know if it is just me but I can not get any sound to come out unless I run this with Admin privileges.

Must be a local configuration problem, since I would see more reports like this over the years. The app does not do anything special with the sound: it uses Win32 waveOut API.

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Hello, All!

 
I've just published ColEm 5.5.2 for Android, a new version of my ColecoVision and Coleco Adam emulator:
 
 
This release fixes handling of the 5th sprite flag in the TMS9918 VDP, so that recently ported Uridium game works without glitches. I have also fixed compatibility with Android 4.2, File Selector UI on newer AndroidTV devices, and opening Coleco files from other apps. Finally, I enabled adding home screen shortcuts on newer Android devices. See below for all the changes.
 
ALL CHANGES:
* ColEm Deluxe is on $2.99 sale this week.
* Based on the latest ColEm 5.5 sources.

* Made VDP compute 5th sprite status even when not drawing a screen.
* The recent Uridium port to ColecoVision works now.
* Fixed compatibility with Android 4.2/4.3.
* Fixed file selection UI on newer AndroidTV devices.
* Fixed opening files from File Managers and other apps.
* Enabled adding home screen shortcuts on newer devices.
* Fixed leaked dialog window on app exit.
* Added rounded corners to legacy icons.
 

PS: ColEm Deluxe, the complete version of ColEm, is on $2.99 sale at Google Play until next Tuesday:
 
 
Enjoy!
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  • 1 month later...

Hello, All!

 
I've published the free ColEm 5.6 for Windows and Linux, a new version of my ColecoVision and Coleco Adam emulator. There is also source code for those interested in porting ColEm to other platforms:
 
    https://fms.komkon.org/ColEm/ -- homepage
    https://fms.komkon.org/ColEm/ColEm56-Source.zip -- portable source code
 
This release makes most command line options work on Windows and adds optional frame rate display. The emulator will now automatically switch between ColecoVision and Coleco Adam modes when loading ROMs or disk images. See below for all the changes.
 
ALL CHANGES:
* Now switching between ColecoVision and Adam modes when loading ROMs.
* Most command line options should now work in Windows version.
* Added "Video | Show Framerate" menu option to ColEm-Windows.
* Increased synchronization timer precision in Windows version.
* Added "-fps" command line option to ColEm-Linux.

 
ColEm Deluxe, the complete ColEm app for Android, is on $2.99 sale at Google Play this week:
 
    https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.fms.colem.deluxe
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  • 3 weeks later...

Hello, All!

 
I've just published ColEm 5.6 for Android, a new version of my ColecoVision and Coleco Adam emulator:
 
 
This release is based on the ColEm 5.6 sources, released earlier this month. It will automatically switch between ColecoVision and Adam modes depending on the ROM being loaded. I have also improved File Selector scrolling performance on newer Android devices, by not checking for all auxiliary files.
 
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 5.6 sources.
* Now switching between ColecoVision and Adam modes when loading ROMs.
* Disabled querying content providers for auxiliary files to improve performance.
* Scrolling in File Selector has become much more responsive.
 

PS: VGBA, my universal GBA, GBC, GB, NES, and Famicom emulator, is on $2.99 sale at Google Play this week:
 
 
Enjoy!
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  • 3 weeks later...

Hello, All!

 
I've released ColEm 5.6.1 for Android, an update to my ColecoVision and Coleco Adam emulator:
 
 
This release adds spinner controllers emulation, used in such games as Destructor. These spinners can be "spun" by touching the screen. Each of the two spinners can be simulated with either horizontal or vertical screen coordinate, with the screen center being neutral position.
 
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:

* Added "Settings | Hardware | Spinner #X" config options.
* Enabled spinners emulation by touching the screen.
* Fixed vertical coordinate processing by spinners.

 
ColEm Deluxe, the complete version of ColEm, is on $2.99 sale at Google Play this week:
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  • 1 month later...
23 hours ago, Carlos Baldo said:

It is possible to add an option in ColEm to use the Splicevision or Microdigital Onyx BIOS instead of the Colecovision one? That would be nice for preserving those pieces of hardware for being lost forever. ?

Have you tried renaming the SpliceVision BIOS rom image file to COLECO.ROM and placing it in the ColEm directory to see if it would work?

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