[Amiga] Amiberry + WHDLoad = Holy Grail - Amiberry's official thread

HoraceAndSpider

@maxbeanz said in [Amiga] Amiberry + WHDLoad = Holy Grail - Amiberry's official thread:

@HoraceAndSpider Will you be updating the .xml file ? I had a look at it when it was added on Github and it seemed to be a couple of months out of date already. As it detects using version numbers and CRC some of our games are not going to be detected ? Wouldn't it have been better to use a wildcard after the '_' in the filename then the .xml wouldn't need updating (except for new games) . Are you using RetroPlay's rebuilt LHA's ? (I think everyone should from now on as they can be found in 4 different places and everyone will have the same set). I suggest not using the ones from Pleasure**** tracker as they are very out of date and have missing files.

Looking forward to RetroPie detecting these. Another thing, how would we get a decent scrape when using these filenames with no spaces etc. ? Are you also releasing a artwork/metadata/gamelist pack ?

The XML file will become updatable directly from Amiberry, at a push of a button (like FS-UAE)

I am surprised you saya couple of months out of date as I verified against the latest RetroPlay packs only a few weeks ago. I dont know how regularly those are updated with the latest slave though, but they had stuff from February in them. I have never heard of Pleasure**** etc, and would always go back to the source.

I will not use wildcards as i want to get a more accurate detection. The SHA1 values are not presently used by Amiberry (just names) but that will be the way forward.

We are currently working on an online database which is going to store all compatibilty settings, SHA1 values etc. This means that it will be pretty easy to 'inherit' settings for new installs from the older versions. It is from this DB that the XML will be pulled.

Scraping will be recommended to use Skyscraper, and i'm working with @muldjord on the maximum results we can pull from this. Since the XML will contain both SHA1s and the OpenRetro ID refererence, you should be able to get some pretty comprehensive results when done, although the work done already bulls in a considerably high number already.

HoraceAndSpider

@crumbs said in [Amiga] Amiberry + WHDLoad = Holy Grail - Amiberry's official thread:

Up goes left, Down goes right, Left goes up and Right goes down

There is an issue here with inverted AXIS.

Is the custom panel showing an [R] figure? The setting you are looking for is in the Paths panel. (Remember to use the 'scan' function after setting to another path)

If the [R] is detected, you can try creating an alternative Dragonrise .cfg file and manually swapping the AXIS values, but i think an underlying bug that affects certain controllers might be part of the cause here.

I will look into it with the next controller updates, but i am actually taking a short break away from Amiberry coding for a few week whilst the 'dust settles' on the latest WHDLoad / LHA features.

muldjord

@maxbeanz I can confirm that Skyscraper already works quite well with the NoSpaces filenames. I implemented this specifically for the new lha files. And as @HoraceAndSpider says, we're working on an even better solution. But for now, it's already pretty good.

maxbeanz

@horaceandspider

I am surprised you saya couple of months out of date as I verified against the latest RetroPlay packs only a few weeks ago.

Yeah, slight exaggeration. I searched for 'Leander' in the .xml file and it said v2.3 but v2.4 came out over a month before you submitted the .xml. Is there any chance you could put a timestamp on the next .xml commit showing when the most recent game in your set was updated ? For instance, the WHDLoad site says the last game updated was 'UFO' on the 22nd March, this way will we know which games won't be detected after that date. Retroplay normally updates his datfile on the same day as the latest update.

HoraceAndSpider

With the move of RetroPie to Stretch, MidWan and i have ironed out the couple of bugs on the WHDLoad booter that were affecting it there.

It's in the Dev branch, and i just want to get it tested for backwards (Jessie) compatibilty before we move the fixes into the Master branch.

@maxbeanz I am sure the online Database that is being worked on, which will generate the new XML files will cover your needs here.

shaf78

@horaceandspider Zool seems to have a graphics glitch? However the same game seems to work just fine in WinUAE.

polpettedorso

After updating to 4.4 amyberry + whdload doesn't work ammore. When i try to launch a game, keep on showing ablinking red screen. Previously it was all' ok... :-(

AnalogHero

@polpettedorso I think blinking red has something to do with missing kickstart files. Check your path again.

AnalogHero

@horaceandspider Just want to point out that although the flag line_double is working in hostprefs.conf, it isnt added by default. So when doing a fresh install you have to add the line.

dudleydes

Many thanks for this excellent project.

The only game I have not been able to get running is North and South. I'm just getting a black screen. I accidently left North and South running overnight and still a black screen.

Checking the debug script, I get the message DOS-Error #205 (object not found) on reading "Disk.1". After searching this error, I found that North and South requires the file kick34005.A500.RTB.

I placed this file in the BIOS folder and no luck. I created a amiga-data/_BootWHD/Devs/Kickstarts/ folder in the roms folder and placed the file there together with the Kickstart v1.3 and v3.1 renamed kick34005.A500 and kick40068.A1200 respectively. I have also placed them in /opt/retropie/configs/amiga/amiberry/whdboot/save-data/Kickstarts. Neither have been successful.

Here are the files I have tried:

NorthAndSouth.lha
NorthAndSouth_v1.7_Files_0194.lha
NorthAndSouth_v1.7_Files_NTSC_1780.lha
NorthAndSouth_v1.7_Image_0194.lha

Does North and South work in Amiberry? If so, what configuration do I need to get it running?

ballboff

@dudleydes said in [Amiga] Amiberry + WHDLoad = Holy Grail - Amiberry's official thread:

Many thanks for this excellent project.

The only game I have not been able to get running is North and South. I'm just getting a black screen. I accidently left North and South running overnight and still a black screen.

Checking the debug script, I get the message DOS-Error #205 (object not found) on reading "Disk.1". After searching this error, I found that North and South requires the file kick34005.A500.RTB.

I placed this file in the BIOS folder and no luck. I created a amiga-data/_BootWHD/Devs/Kickstarts/ folder in the roms folder and placed the file there together with the Kickstart v1.3 and v3.1 renamed kick34005.A500 and kick40068.A1200 respectively. I have also placed them in /opt/retropie/configs/amiga/amiberry/whdboot/save-data/Kickstarts. Neither have been successful.

Here are the files I have tried:

NorthAndSouth.lha

NorthAndSouth_v1.7_Files_0194.lha

NorthAndSouth_v1.7_Files_NTSC_1780.lha

NorthAndSouth_v1.7_Image_0194.lha

Does North and South work in Amiberry? If so, what configuration do I need to get it running?

as well as the kickstart, you will also need to change the chipset setting from AGA or whatever you have it set to. Don't know if that helps...

gordonfreemanjr

OK, so I'm giving Amiberry a shot, instead of uae4arm. So far I'm a bit confused: I'm loading a game - this time it's Sensible World of Soccer - choosing Amiberry1200 from the presets, and the game is terribly slow, with the keyboard and the gamepad not responding. I quit and try the amiberry500 - the result is exactly the same. I find the F12 menu very not intuitive and can't really figure out what to switch and how (I had never owned an Amiga, so).

What am I doing wrong?

Littleman

Hey there, a lot has changed recently! I've just upgraded to stretch and rebuilt my retropie / amiberry setup from scratch, but I can't find any clean / simple / recommended instructions anymore.
Could the initial post be updated?
so far, what I understand is that games in the .lha format are now the preferred way to go & that uaeconfigmaker is not needed anymore?
Anything else we're supposed to know?
Thanks.

HoraceAndSpider

@dudleydes said in [Amiga] Amiberry + WHDLoad = Holy Grail - Amiberry's official thread:

Many thanks for this excellent project.
The only game I have not been able to get running is North and South. I'm just getting a black screen. I accidently left North and South running overnight and still a black screen.
Checking the debug script, I get the message DOS-Error #205 (object not found) on reading "Disk.1". After searching this error, I found that North and South requires the file kick34005.A500.RTB.
I placed this file in the BIOS folder and no luck. I created a amiga-data/_BootWHD/Devs/Kickstarts/ folder in the roms folder and placed the file there together with the Kickstart v1.3 and v3.1 renamed kick34005.A500 and kick40068.A1200 respectively. I have also placed them in /opt/retropie/configs/amiga/amiberry/whdboot/save-data/Kickstarts. Neither have been successful.

if you are still using the boot loading in /amiga-data/ then you are using an out-of-date method for this. The function is now built into Amiberry and RetroPie. Kickstart files needed by WHDLoad will also be automatically symink'ed if avaiable in your bios/ folder.

@littleman said in [Amiga] Amiberry + WHDLoad = Holy Grail - Amiberry's official thread:

Could the initial post be updated?

For both of the above, please note that the guide on Ultimate Amiga has already been updated, but simply lacks an FAQ update.

http://ultimateamiga.co.uk/HostedProjects/RetroPieAmiga/index.html

The first post by @nemo93 could do with being updated to match though.

HoraceAndSpider

@gordonfreemanjr said in [Amiga] Amiberry + WHDLoad = Holy Grail - Amiberry's official thread:

OK, so I'm giving Amiberry a shot, instead of uae4arm. So far I'm a bit confused: I'm loading a game - this time it's Sensible World of Soccer - choosing Amiberry1200 from the presets, and the game is terribly slow, with the keyboard and the gamepad not responding. I quit and try the amiberry500 - the result is exactly the same. I find the F12 menu very not intuitive and can't really figure out what to switch and how (I had never owned an Amiga, so).

What am I doing wrong?

Get hold of SensibleWorldOfSoccer9697_v1.7_0842.lha , update to the latest Amiberry ('from source') and you should be good to go.

I heavily test with SWOS as it's one of my favourite games.

youxia

Okay, but what about .hdf? All my packs are in this format. Is the previous method still valid?

dudleydes

@horaceandspider Thanks for the reply. I think there may be some confusion. I have been launching .lha files directly in Amiberry, the only modification being creating .uae files for games that require a mouse (Cannon Fodder, Lemmings).

The only game that hasn't worked is North and South. The debug script gives the message DOS-Error #205 (object not found) on reading "Disk.1". I only used the amiga-data folder option in an attempt to get it working.

These are the Kickstart roms I have in the BIOS folder.

pi@retropie:~/RetroPie/BIOS $ ls | grep -i kick
kick34005.A500.RTB
Kickstart v1.2 rev 33.180 (1986)(Commodore)(A500-A1000-A2000).rom
Kickstart v1.3 rev 34.5 (1987)(Commodore)(A500-A1000-A2000-CDTV).rom
Kickstart v2.04 rev 37.175 (1991)(Commodore)(A500+).rom
Kickstart v3.0 rev 39.106 (1992)(Commodore)(A1200)[!].rom
Kickstart v3.1 rev 40.63 (1993)(Commodore)(A500-A600-A2000).rom
Kickstart v3.1 rev 40.68 (1993)(Commodore)(A1200).rom
Kickstart v3.1 rev 40.68 (1993)(Commodore)(A4000).rom

Any advice in getting North and South running would be appreciated.

rhester72

A few ignorant Amiberry questions, if I may:

WHDLoad Booter:

Does this completely eliminate the need for the amiga-data directory (and contents)?
All the 'important' Kickstarts do indeed get symlinked from the BIOS directory...except the 2.05 A600HD one, which is needed when CPU=68000/68010 (see associated notes about crash bug here: https://github.com/midwan/amiberry/issues/310). Is this normal/expected (i.e. should Amiberry try to load that specific Kickstart directly from the BIOS directory)?
The Amiberry splash screen...why does it change colors and what do they mean (it appears to be related to resolution and/or NTSC vs. PAL), and can it be disabled entirely?
Can we get LINE_DOUBLING moved from hostprefs to whd configs? I don't think it should necessarily be a global - some demos benefit from not having it present (otherwise you lose half the vertical resolution), other titles (like Arcade Pool) need it to prevent nasty image shaking.

Thanks much for any help/commentary :)

HoraceAndSpider

@dudleydes I will check N&S but i see no reason it should not work, unless the installer / slave has a bug that requires the data folder specified (Jaguar XJ220 has this problem and i have reported it to the slave author)

Games that require a mouse should be specified by the XML file, but this is a WIP so apologies but a lot are probably missing for now. This will improve.

@rhester72

Does this completely eliminate the need for the amiga-data directory (and contents)?

Yes, although i retain mine for development files, HD folders, CD folders etc which i do not want RetroPie to cache on load.

All the 'important' Kickstarts do indeed get symlinked from the BIOS directory...except the 2.05 A600HD one, which is needed when CPU=68000/68010

The symlink creates files for WHDLoad 'internally' (i.e. in the Amiga environment). The CPU=68000 is setting an option for Amiberry, so wouldnt need the symlink, and i dont think 2.05 is one that WHDLoad generally needs. Amiberry will use whatever folder you have specified in it's 'paths' panel. On the RetroPie distro, the default path is symlinked back to /home/pi/RetroPie/BIOS/ , so ... in answer to your question (...eventually!...) .. yes, Amiberry should try to load that kickstart from the BIOS folder in this instance.

The Amiberry splash screen...why does it change colors and what do they mean

It means the randomly selected colour today is 'red'. Or maybe 'blue'. And very occassionally 'pink'. It's there for fun, no hidden meaning!

Can we get LINE_DOUBLING moved from hostprefs to whd configs?

This was a user request for this to be a hostprefs, and i think can be important with certain sizes of display, but i can certainly look into having the .whd specification for it act as an override at user preference.

I see you asked on GitHub about the best place to ask about support, but to be honest, I am much more likely to pick it up on Github, although here other used may be able help instead.

The other option is to join the very popular 'Amiga RetroPie WHDLoad Group' which has lots of users sharing their experiences with the solution.

rhester72

@horaceandspider

Understood. One other quick question re: the splash screen - is it presented while the lha is being unpacked? Is there any way to disable the splash?