Updated EmulationStation for Windows

Jeck11

@herb_fargus said in Updated EmulationStation for Windows:

@jdrassa wait as in your automated build work and they run?

Well you just saved me an evening and a weekend! Time to update my portable game station!

Are you going to share the update? I loved your old one.

robertybob

@Jeck11 Are you keeping an eye on this?
https://github.com/HerbFargus/Portable-Game-Station/releases ;)

Jeck11

@robertybob said in Updated EmulationStation for Windows:

@Jeck11 Are you keeping an eye on this?
https://github.com/HerbFargus/Portable-Game-Station/releases ;)

No... obviously I'm an idiot. ;)

Thanks!

Squilenator

@jdrassa bug reporting here, the shutdown/restart system don't work on windows 7/8.1, dunno about windows 10 tho.

jdrassa

@Squilenator This build is based directly off of the RetroPie fork of EmulationStation. This appears to be a bit of linux specific functionality contained within. My main intent behind providing these Windows builds is to make them available for theme makers who find it easier to use while creating themes. I will add this issue to my TODO list, but I can't say that it will be a high priority. I also I am not really interested in maintaining a separate windows code base and I am not sure how receptive the RetroPie team will be to windows specific code changes.

Nismo

@jdrassa Hi mate, I finally updated to the latest build, but I have notice that I lost the fix from @fieldofcows made months ago for an old bug of Emulationstation, that doesn't make work L and R buttons to fast navigate up and down inside the gamelist.

I have tested it for months and works perfect.

Can you add it to your build, and if it's not in the main retropie build do a PR?

Here is the code:
https://github.com/fieldofcows/EmulationStation/commit/97f56a1c0c2e0ff70a2ca6cdaafc3b83af44e75f

Edit: I did the PR, I hope I dit it in the right branch: https://github.com/Aloshi/EmulationStation/pulls

Edit 2: I think that is the wrong branch... I don't know where to do the pull request.

Thanks.

Nismo

@jdrassa Also I don't see the use random video as screensaver option in menu, but that's not all, if you try to set something in menu settings, when you come back emulationstation crashes. EDIT: solved by deleting my old es_settings.cfg

It's a pity because in the old @fieldofcows fork for windows all was working perfectly.

And it's a pity because the main intention for emulationstation was to be multiplatform but it's becoming "only for linux". :(

Nismo

@jdrassa
Also the system change sound still not there... https://github.com/fieldofcows/EmulationStation/commit/3c5bd864c07e45ab4cc2c43fc5b0c3a851492197

:(

jdrassa

@Nismo
I will take a look at the fast navigate bug fix and I still need to look into the system change sound.

As far as I know, the random video as screen saver option only exists in @fieldofcows repository. Until he pushes it to the RetroPie repository, it won't be included in any of my builds. I suspect the crash you encountered was due to an unrecognized setting value (probably the video screensaver), which is why deleting the settings file corrected it.

I don't think emulationstation is becoming "only for linux". I recognize the value of supporting windows which is why I put in the effort to setup automated builds, but I am not interested in maintaining a fork that diverges from the RetroPie repository.

Nismo

@jdrassa I understand you perfectly, you are one of the few great persons that still support windows builds. Thank you very much for that, I appreciate it a lot.

I was thinking that video screensaver was added months ago to the main branch, sorry for that.

Have you added the shutdown/restart system to your "to do" list?

Have you take a look to my PR? I think it's in the wrong branch.

Thanks.

duiz

Where can we download the new automated builds for Windows? I'm not too familiar with github and the likes...

mattrixk

@duiz The first post in this thread has a link to the most recent Windows build, but for the lazy:

https://github.com/jrassa/EmulationStation/releases/tag/2.1.5-116-win

Just save the EmulationStation.zip

As an alternative you can download the Full ES Toolkit binary which includes the latest @jdrassa Windows Build, but is also pre-populated with the whole ES Toolkit, which includes 100 (fake) roms, with prescraped gamelists, images and videos. It also comes with a custom theme called BaseVid which supports Video Previews and the Carousel Mod, so you can learn how they work.

DavidinCT

Thanks for this. I am running the WIndows version off emulationstation.org. As I already have it running on the machine I want to use it on, what is different that I have to do to set this one up ?

Do I extract the files on my current machine and it will take from my current config file, or do I need to do something different ?

I have never setup a RetroPie device only installed the Windows version of emulation station (that I love !)

jdrassa

@DavidinCT Download, extract and find out. If your config files are in the default location, It should find them. I normally use the windows build for testing and use a script to override the default config location, so I can guarantee anything.

jdrassa

Updated build now available.
https://github.com/jrassa/EmulationStation/releases/tag/2.2.2.220

duiz

@jdrassa said in Updated EmulationStation for Windows:

Updated build now available.
https://github.com/jrassa/EmulationStation/releases/tag/2.2.2.220

Excellent! What's the changelog for this version basically?

retroisbest

@jdrassa
Thankyou for your hard work on the Windows builds, I currently use your build on my Win 10 machine with no known issues, so thankyou again.

On a side note have you seen the great work @Zigurana has done with the child friendly version of emulationstation? You can now lock it down into kiosk mode, child mode or the most important missing feature for me a favorites mode!

No windows version as of yet though :(

mattrixk

@retroisbest: @Zigurana actually does have a windows build of the Kid's Mod. I don't know if it has the Kiosk and Kid's mode, but it has the ability to add "favourite", "kids" and "hidden" values to the metadata of a game.

retroisbest

@mattrixk said in Updated EmulationStation for Windows:

@retroisbest: @Zigurana actually does have a windows build of the Kid's Mod. I don't know if it has the Kiosk and Kid's mode, but it has the ability to add "favourite", "kids" and "hidden" values to the metadata of a game.

Well found! Serves me right for not reading every post in that topic!
Thankyou very much for pointing it out!

Unoptimal

I don't have a Pi device myself, so RetroPie isn't much use to me itself, but I wanted to register to say thankyou to @jdrassa for providing an updated Windows build of ES.
Thanks.

I'm using it with an edited version of the default theme from Recalbox that I made.
I'm using video view so that I can use the marquee tag to show both the boxart and snaps.
alt text

I've only noticed one minor problem with the version 2.2.2.220 build; Occasionally it will flicker 1 or so frames where I think the theme is being rendered garbled in some way, though I would have to try video capturing it get a better look at what happens.