Development of module-script generator for lr-mess, lr-mame and mame standalone

Folly

Good idea.

Though I am not having much time right now but in time we can start a topic (in general discussions i presume).
I would suggest to preserve the fist 5 posts for summarizing stuff.

Sadly I have an issue again with the newest versions of "lr-mame/lr-mess" in Debian 11 now :
https://github.com/libretro/mame/issues/371
Seems Ubuntu 22.04 isn't affected.
Edit : Issue seems to be solved now

Other news for "lr-mame/lr-mess" is that we are waiting for 0.255.
Hopefully it will come soon, this seems promising :
https://github.com/libretro/mame/issues/373

Folly

@DTEAM @Ashpool

Seems I broke all my scripts with my previous updates.
Something to do with skipping things when we install a predefined systems or categories.
Seems I was skipping a bit too much, so it did not install many stuff at all.

The problem was quite ugly.
I hope I have fixed it all with my updates to 253.15 ;-)

Ashpool

@Folly said in Development of module-script generator for lr-mess, lr-mame and mame standalone:

Though I am not having much time right now but in time we can start a topic (in general discussions i presume).
I would suggest to preserve the fist 5 posts for summarizing stuff.

ACK, I think I can do that tomorrow (This evening i am going to relax with actually playing some game(s) ;)).

Wow, noticed that current mame was updated to .254 some time ago but last time i checked the libretro cores wasn't on par.

Folly

@Ashpool said in Development of module-script generator for lr-mess, lr-mame and mame standalone:

Wow, noticed that current mame was updated to .254 some time ago but last time i checked the libretro cores wasn't on par.

Correct, the libretro is still on .251.
Hopefully it wil be synced to .255 soon ;-)

Folly

I updated all scripts to 255.00 using the latest data from mame 0.255 :
https://github.com/FollyMaddy/RetroPie-Share/commit/6f9d64de8e838950eedbb47cd588fbe2f70d5cf8

I also updated the test versions in the workdir :
https://github.com/FollyMaddy/RetroPie-Share/commit/8232367accf37e32d6202d7250d27f5b9efe4a28

Note :
Seems coco2 has been merged with coco so the installl-lines from systems with extras need updating.

duglor

@Folly Is there support via this method for the BBC Micro? Or is there another thread somewhere, Folly? I remember reading something about it sometime ago. I'm looking for a BBC Micro Emulator that works through the Emulation Station like most other games do (like the archimedes emulator) and with joystick support via remapping or what have you? Also any bios files if needed's names and where they go. And location for any roms or .ssd files? etc etc i recently downloading the electron versions you had and the electron bioses and tried to run them but it always kicked me back out. Seems like Mame was trying to run them, but no luck. Perhaps i needed exact roms or exact updated bioses. Anyway, I'm now trying to get a BBC Micro going since the Electron failed on me. Still enjoying Archimedes and FM Towns. - be well!

Folly

@duglor

Well, there is support for bbc micro on mame/lr-mess.
However there are many games that will not run on it.

In the past I made some module-scripts that use other emulators like you mentioned the one for electron.
Sadly everything in linux world is going quick and compiling older source code on newer linux/gcc will not work anymore.
That is probably the cause why my bbcmicro and electron scripts do not work correctly anymore.
Sadly I have too little knowledge to fix these problems for newer linux/gcc.
So in time these emulators can't be used anymore unless somebody has the knowledge to fix these older emulator sources.

Remember what I told you about fmtowns.
Try to do the same with bbc micro.

duglor

@Folly Thanks for the tip. Yes, I remember about the fmtowns. Off hand , do you know if Boffin or Citadel will run on the lr-mess mame bbcmicro? Those are the main two I wanted to play on the pi, but i'll play it on windows if i must . Also to make those work , what is the bios i need for that if you know? Be well and :D Take care!

duglor

@Folly thank you

Folly

@duglor

These are the systems you can choose from :

pi@Bullseye-VM:~$ cat '/opt/retropie/emulators/mame/mame0253_systems_sorted_info' |grep "BBC Micro"
Driver bbca (BBC Micro Model A): @computer@good@home_system@non-arcade
Driver bbcb (BBC Micro Model B): @computer@forum@good@home_system@non-arcade
Driver bbcb_de (BBC Micro Model B (German)): @computer@good@home_system@non-arcade
Driver bbcb_no (BBC Micro Model B (Norway)): @computer@good@home_system@non-arcade
Driver bbcb_us (BBC Micro Model B (US)): @computer@good@home_system@non-arcade
Driver bbcbp (BBC Micro Model B+ 64K): @computer@good@home_system@non-arcade
Driver bbcbp128 (BBC Micro Model B+ 128K): @computer@good@home_system@non-arcade

pi@Bullseye-VM:~$ cat '/opt/retropie/emulators/mame/mame0253_systems_sorted_info' |grep "BBC Master"
Driver bbcm (BBC Master 128): @computer@good@home_system@non-arcade
Driver bbcm512 (BBC Master 512): @computer@good@home_system@non-arcade
Driver bbcmaiv (BBC Master AIV): @computer@home_system@non-arcade
Driver bbcmarm (BBC Master (ARM Evaluation)): @computer@home_system@non-arcade
Driver bbcmc (BBC Master Compact): @computer@good@home_system@non-arcade
Driver bbcmc_ar (BBC Master Compact (Arabic)): @computer@good@home_system@non-arcade
Driver bbcmet (BBC Master ET): @computer@good@home_system@non-arcade
Driver bbcmt (BBC Master Turbo): @computer@good@home_system@non-arcade

Folly

@duglor

Both games are in the hash table.
You can find in which they are by doing, for example :

pi@Bullseye-VM:~$ cd '/opt/retropie/emulators/mame/hash' 
pi@Bullseye-VM:/opt/retropie/emulators/mame/hash$ grep -r Boffin
bbc_cass.xml:		<description>Boffin</description>
bbc_cass.xml:		<description>Boffin 2</description>
electron_cass.xml:		<description>Boffin</description>

Then look into the bbc_cass.xml file and you will see that it probably will run as there is not a mentioning of "not supported".
For Citadel it is the same.
The load command is also found in the hash table for Boffin :
<info name="usage" value="Load with *RUN" />

Otherwise look in the page of @dmmarti :
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1AQ28J9OUKg55R3d-TZkWO3GH50KjC2hHteCP1Bx59Ns/edit#gid=0

Folly

@duglor said in Development of module-script generator for lr-mess, lr-mame and mame standalone:

what is the bios i need for that if you know?

Decide what driver you want to use.
Then use the same trick that I told you about fmtowns.
Bios files are found in the mame-merged romset (arcade game bios files + non-arcade bios files)
Cass files can be found in the bbc_cass.zip from mame-sl (sl = softlist = software list)

Folly

@duglor

I used bbcb and both games worked.
load command for boffin is :
*TAPE
*RUN

For citadel it is :
*TAPE
CHAIN ""

Use "page-down" to speed up loading in mame. (or space in lr-mess)

duglor

@Folly Yep. Both games worked here too! Thanks a ton for your help. If not for you, I probably would not have 4 systems on the pi, and so many games. THANKS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

DTEAM

MAME 0.256 is release

New working systems

Addometer Company Addometer Calculator [hap, Sean Riddle]
Lakeside Strobe [hap, Sean Riddle]
Mortal Race [Museo del Recreativo, David Haywood, ClawGrip]
Player's Edge Plus (X000014P+XP000055) Standard Draw Poker [Brian Troha]
Player's Edge Plus (X000127P+XP000038) Deuces Wild Poker [Brian Troha]
Player's Edge Plus (X002004P+XP000038) Double Double Bonus Poker [Brian Troha]
Player's Edge Plus (X002046P+XP000038) Ace$ Bonus Poker [Brian Troha]
Systemhuset / Loproc Conchess Plymate Glasgow Plus (set 1) [Mr. Lars]
Tiger Electronics Finger Bowl [hap, Sean Riddle]
Yamaha DD-9 Digital Percussion [BCM, Devin Acker]

nothing for us
Maybe Tiger Electronics Finger Bowl . Doesn't look easily playable with a gamepad or a keyboard

Folly

@DTEAM

Indeed not much new for us.
I will do an easy update of the database or skip updating to 256.

I have compiled some mame binaries for rpi0 / x86 / x86_64.
(rpi0 will only do channelf, apfm1000 and svmu at around 100% for now)
I will probably add them into the "wip test" script.
What do you think, would that be an interesting "addon" ?

I also tried the first lr-mess0255.
Probably something to share too in a future script.
Somehow the progress of lr-mess seems to become very weak.
Added some comments in the pull-request today :
https://github.com/libretro/mame/pull/376

DTEAM

@Folly said in Development of module-script generator for lr-mess, lr-mame and mame standalone:

I will probably add them into the "wip test" script.
What do you think, would that be an interesting "addon" ?

Good idea

Folly

Here some information about lr-mame / lr-mess :

lr-mame / lr-mess source has been updated to 0255
and compiling for arcade and mess sub-targets has been implemented again

Hopefully everything will work like it did before.

For those who still want to play the arcade games :

cave's akai katana
dodonpachi saidojou

Then be sure to make a backup of the lr-mame0251 mamearcade_libretro.so as @HoJo215 described over here.

Folly

Some latest news about mame / lr-mame / lr-mess :

All binaries in retropie are now on 0256.
The lr-mame 0256 binary has the issue that vertical (3:4) games, like galaga are somehow wrongly displayed in rotated mode.
The lr-mame 0251 binary did not have this issue.
Not sure yet where to fix or disable this rotation.
The lr-mess 0256 binary has the issue that many handhelds run far too slow.

Hopefully the issues will be solved in the future.
The advice is not to update or certainly backup your old binaries so you can turn back to an older ones.

For now I will not update the script until, hopefully, better lr-mame / lr-mess versions come out.

Folly

@Folly said in Development of module-script generator for lr-mess, lr-mame and mame standalone:

The lr-mame 0256 binary has the issue that vertical (3:4) games, like galaga are somehow wrongly displayed in rotated mode.
Not sure yet where to fix or disable this rotation.

RetroArch has the default core option :
mame_rotation_mode = "libretro"
(choices with older RetroArch are : libretro|internal|none )
Setting rotation mode to internal will fix the problem for a non rotating screen.
( strange but setting it to none doesn't help, it will still rotate )

Newer ReatroArch versions seem to have more options which has been comitted to lr-mame / lr-mess :
mame_rotation_mode = "libretro"
(choices with newer RetroArch seem to be : libretro|internal|tate-rol|tate-ror|none )

The mame2003-plus doc describes the TATE mode :
From the Japanese 縦 (ta-te) meaning "vertical", TATE Mode renders vertical games lengthwise along the display. This mode is intended for use with rotating monitors and portable devices that can make the full use of their viewable area for games which used vertical monitors

Presumably "tate-rol|tate-ror" will force to rotate to 1 specific direction whereas "libretro" depends on the how the game wants to rotate.

Overall this could somehow be an improvement although rotation is now enabled by default in "libretro" rotation mode.