Some Quick Relevant Updates Need Addressing...

Post by **Nach** » Fri Sep 29, 2006 11:04 am

Hehe, thanks. Enjoy!

Deathlike2 · Post by **Deathlike2** » Sun Oct 01, 2006 5:13 pm

The SDL port section needs a section on SDL audio. For example, selection of OSS/ALSA for output or whatever.... also, the point of disabling arts or esd or whatever that hogs the sound output (someone with better Linux experience can explain this better).

Deathlike2 · Post by **Deathlike2** » Thu Oct 12, 2006 4:26 am

The IPS patching order thing I mentioned earlier needs to be included in the FAQ.

Also, if a DOS port user sees snow, their only options to avoid seeing the snow is to not use MMX (not recommended) or use the default Gaussian filter only. The sound filters that have MMX code will produce the snow... I'll edit this post when I've test them out. This is DOS port only (there is code that automatically disables the MMX version of the gaussian filter for the DOS port). The features aren't broken, there's just an unfortunate price/bug that's there....

One other thing.. if I had not mentioned this earlier..

The path AND filename must be put in for Same Game and G-Next in order for it to work. This looks to be true for the BS-X BIOS as well. Fortunately... SPC7110 games only need the paths though.

Edit: Cubic Spline, 8-point interpolation, and High Quality Low Pass Filter are affected (the latter two are obvious, Cubic Spline is not).

Second Edit:
I've just remembered something. Load Savestate w/SRAM needs to be updated (probably needs a FAQ question as well). Some games, like Star Ocean.. when this option isn't enabled.. it causes rather inconsistant/odd behavior and odd stuff happens. There have been some threads on this issue...

Post by **Nach** » Thu Oct 12, 2006 4:25 pm

Deathlike2 wrote: The path AND filename must be put in for Same Game and G-Next in order for it to work.

Unless the ROMs are using the default names and are in the same directory as the child ROMs being loaded.

Jipcy · Post by **Jipcy** » Thu Oct 12, 2006 6:57 pm

xamenus wrote:I'm also waiting to see what Jipcy is going to do. Apparently, he has some things in mind for all of the stickied topics in this forum, but I don't know what his intentions are for some of them. Hopefully we'll hear more from him in the fall.

Heh, guess I'm a little late. However, I am back now, and actively working on the docs.

I think it'd be nice if we could meet on IRC some time to discuss some stuff. At the very least: xamenus, Deathlike, and me. I'd also love to have input from AspiringSquire, and Clements if he cares to.

Anyway, these docs are going to be BEAUUUUTIFUL for the final release.

Deathlike2 · Post by **Deathlike2** » Tue Oct 17, 2006 6:57 pm

The SDL port display is very much the same as the current modes, except that there are OpenGL modes designated with an O in the legend.

Hires Mode 7 needs a minimum of 512x448 to have the option available.
NTSC filter requires a minimum of 600x446 to have the option available (unfortunately, this option is not available for OpenGL in the SDL port... also, the DOS port's version doesn't work atm).

The Small Screen+Full Screen options are missing in the Misc Options in the Filters tab. It should be obvious what both options do.. namewise. Both only apply to the DOS port.

I'm going to tweak the docs in a moment.

IIRC, OBC-1 support is probably complete, but ask Nach about that one.

Post by **Nach** » Tue Oct 17, 2006 8:01 pm

I forgot if we ever fixed the ending text bug in Metal Combat or if that was something due to something else, however other than OBC-1 is completed.

Jipcy · Post by **Jipcy** » Wed Oct 18, 2006 4:31 am

Deathlike2 wrote:The SDL port display is very much the same as the current modes, except that there are OpenGL modes designated with an O in the legend.

Perhaps a screenshot of the video modes box, plus a detailed explanation, and I will add it to GUI.htm.

NTSC filter requires a minimum of 600x446 to have the option available (unfortunately, this option is not available for OpenGL in the SDL port... also, the DOS port's version doesn't work atm).

Is the NTSC filter intended to work in the DOS port? Also, I don't know anything about the video modes for SDL. When does the NTSC filter work in the SDL port?

The Small Screen+Full Screen options are missing in the Misc Options in the Filters tab. It should be obvious what both options do.. namewise. Both only apply to the DOS port.

Their functions are not obvious, although I might be able to figure them out with dosbox.

EDIT: Answered in IRC, thanks Deathlike.

EDIT2: These items have been added to the docs. I'll let the developers edit the Current Progress section when the time comes.

AspiringSquire · Post by **AspiringSquire** » Wed Oct 18, 2006 6:58 am

Note: Movies recorded without sound cannot be played when sound is enabled and vice versa.

This line was removed from the html GUI page some time ago, but I have kept it preserved in the text docs because I don't think it has changed. It still holds true, doesn't it?

Jipcy · Post by **Jipcy** » Wed Oct 18, 2006 7:05 am

Perhaps it means: Movies recorded when sound is disabled cannot be played back if sound is enabled.

I plan on doing some thorough and comprehensive movie testing at some point in the near future. Perhaps in the next week or so.

Deathlike2 · Post by **Deathlike2** » Thu Oct 19, 2006 12:28 am

I think it means exactly what it says.

When you record movies w/o sound enabled, it doesn't record/sync the SPC data, so you're not going to sound back on playback.

On the other hand, some stuff that should be added into the FAQ. The Cheat Menu has an important note that people NEED to read (I know that sounds stupid, but it is important info after all).

Also, the FAQ should include a simple hint:

Any code for a game that mentions a term similar to "Start with" means that the game must be reset in order to take effect.

Deathlike2 · Post by **Deathlike2** » Sun Oct 29, 2006 7:32 am

Just in case it wasn't mentioned... here's a list of file extensions supported via the GUI file loader by default:

SMC,SFC,SWC,FIG,MGD,MGH,UFO,BIN,
GD3,GD7,USA,EUR,JAP,AUS,ST,BS,
DX2,048,058,078,1,A,GZ,ZIP,JMA

creaothceann · Post by **creaothceann** » Sun Oct 29, 2006 11:46 am

ModeX: a variation of the standard VGA mode 13h (320x200). Video output is slower since all required video RAM can't be accessed immediately.

ModeQ: another variation of Mode13h. The 256x256 variant has 1:1 (square) pixels; dunno which mode actually outputs 4:3 pixels...

A ZSNES readme.txt says: "Using the ModeQ variants is much faster than using the ModeX variants, only use ModeX if your monitor has a problem with the ModeQ timings."

Oh, and btw...

New Gfx Engine - Enables/Disables the new graphics engine in 256 color modes or 320x240x16b mode. You should leave the new graphics engine enabled by default. However, in some situations, using the old graphics engine will produce better results. Enable and disable it as needed. It is on by default.

Currently it says that the new gfx engine won't be available in other 16-bit modes.

Jipcy · Post by **Jipcy** » Wed Nov 01, 2006 8:29 am

creaothceann wrote:ModeX: Video output is slower since all required video RAM can't be accessed immediately.

Where did you get this information from? Anyway, I've added some information about these modes to GUI.htm.

I also changed the description of the New GFX Engine.

Deathlike, I've linked from the Files table to Current Progress to show what file extensions are supported.

Does anyone know why Scitech still offers the older v5.3 of SDD? Why would anyone use it over v6.53?

I've changed the information for that utility in Readme.

Deathlike2 · Post by **Deathlike2** » Wed Nov 01, 2006 9:06 am

Jipcy wrote:Does anyone know why Scitech still offers the older v5.3 of SDD? Why would anyone use it over v6.53?

No idea. The only thing that comes to mind it was probably the last version of the 5.x series. There may/may not have been some video cards dropped from 5.x to 6.x. In any case, both provide VESA 2 modes (6.x allowed some cards to use VESA 3, but not really relevent here).

creaothceann · Post by **creaothceann** » Wed Nov 01, 2006 1:29 pm

Jipcy wrote:
creaothceann wrote:ModeX: Video output is slower since all required video RAM can't be accessed immediately.
Where did you get this information from?

EGA/VGA cards have 4 * 64 KB banks = 256 KB VRAM, from which 64 KB are mapped to CPU bank A000 (addresses A000:0000 to A000:FFFF). Standard VGA mode 13h configures the card so that accesses go to all 4 banks; ModeX unchains the banks so that they can be accessed independently. The downside is that certain registers must be set to map different parts of VRAM to the A000 bank.

Read about it e.g. here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/VGA

Deathlike2 · Post by **Deathlike2** » Fri Nov 03, 2006 4:21 am

Mmm.. we need a question about SDL+audio... something like "Why does the sound lag and/or crackle?"

If someone would answer this as well.. that would be great (seriously, this issue will not go away)

Deathlike2 · Post by **Deathlike2** » Tue Nov 07, 2006 10:09 pm

Hmm, a question about why ZSNES runs too fast needs to be added. IIRC, XP (maybe 2k) needs some patches in order for dual core systems to run at the correct speed. This generally affects AMD users, but I suspect the patch will help Intel users as well.

Post by **Nach** » Wed Nov 08, 2006 1:59 am

I noticed several patches from MS for X2 processors.

AspiringSquire · Post by **AspiringSquire** » Sun Nov 12, 2006 2:50 am

Two items that were removed from Things To Know could perhaps be added to the Readme's Disclaimer section. I just like these particular lines, and they could fit as a third paragraph in the disclaimer.

Code: Select all

    - There are still many bugs left in ZSNES, so don't expect it to run all
      your favorite games.
    - If ZSNES doesn't work for you, then don't use it. Use Snes9x, SNEeSe,
      Super Sleuth, or bsnes instead! In fact, even if you use ZSNES, use those
      emulators too!

Post by **Nach** » Wed Nov 15, 2006 4:08 pm

The feature to pick a game randomely in the load menu should be mentioned.

Deathlike2 · Post by **Deathlike2** » Thu Nov 16, 2006 7:59 am

Should there be a FAQ question about Dolby Digital stuff? There are only a few games that apply and this might be helpful to them.

Jipcy · Post by **Jipcy** » Fri Nov 17, 2006 11:42 pm

Nach wrote:The feature to pick a game randomely in the load menu should be mentioned.

Added.

Jipcy · Post by **Jipcy** » Mon Nov 20, 2006 5:27 am

Deathlike2 wrote:Should there be a FAQ question about Dolby Digital stuff? There are only a few games that apply and this might be helpful to them.

What's an example of a question and answer? There seem to be so few games, and it doesn't seem like a question that is very frequently asked.

EDIT:

Deathlike2 wrote:Any code for a game that mentions a term similar to "Start with" means that the game must be reset in order to take effect.

Added to Readme.htm#cheat_codes.

EDIT2:

Deathlike2 wrote:The path AND filename must be put in for Same Game and G-Next in order for it to work. This looks to be true for the BS-X BIOS as well.

Nach wrote:
Deathlike2 wrote:The path AND filename must be put in for Same Game and G-Next in order for it to work.
Unless the ROMs are using the default names and are in the same directory as the child ROMs being loaded.

Added.

EDIT3:

Deathlike2 wrote:Also worthy of note, users of 2k/XP (probably Vista as well) need to pipe the output of the command line in order to see the possible command line options. Also, I believe the list of extensions are all mentioned in this output.

"zsnesw -? | more" will work.

"zsnesw -?" will not just work as is (it produces no output).

However... "zsnesw -? > cmdopts.txt" will work for Win9X+2k/XP.

Added.

Jipcy · Post by **Jipcy** » Tue Nov 21, 2006 12:06 am

Nach wrote:
Deathlike2 wrote:The path AND filename must be put in for Same Game and G-Next in order for it to work.
Unless the ROMs are using the default names and are in the same directory as the child ROMs being loaded.

What are the required filenames for both the base ROMs and child ROMs, in order for this to work? I was testing it a bit and I couldn't make it work without specifying the full path and filename.