Second Marquee Monitor - can't get it quite right.

[langlem]

I know I have posted this before and not trying to wear anyone out here...

I just can not get MameHooker and HyperSpin to play nice for some reason.  It constantly crashes on start up with both in the startup folder.

Gonna try to do this all thru Mame using the artwork files to see if I have any better luck.  Has anyone done this recently?  I see some brief tutorials but all seem to be several years old.  I believe some of the video options have changed in the recent (160 and up) versions of mame???  feel free to set me straight if I am wrong!!

I have managed to create the artwork files using a .bat file I found in a post a few years old (sorry...cant remember the "Blip" creators name?  Mark74 maybe???  pretty sure he was the one who did that.. to give credit where it is due).

My second monitor does not display the marquees but the game as in the primary monitor.  I know mame is recognizing the second monitor because it will allow me to change bezels.

Wondering if someone can shed a little light on this for me.  I believe I either have ...

a. video setting in the mame ini wrong.
b. labeling the artwork wrong OR placing it in the wrong spot
c. wondering if the bezel artwork is creating some confusion possibly

Running .167 with a fairly freshly compiled set of ROMS.  If I have left any obvious information out please let me know!

Thank you.
Matt

[stigzler]

Yeah - twas Mark74.

Guessing you'd stick with Hyperspin, but if you used GameEx, you could use this simple plugin I knocked together:

http://www.gameex.info/forums/topic/17017-plugin-marquee-masher/

Automates it all.

You could use another Frankenstein I put together, but it may be a little over-featured for your task, but you could just pass the mame rom name via cmd line, then set up the marquee default background folder as the marquees and check "dynamic marquee." Haven't tested that, but think should work:

https://cpwizbiz.codeplex.com/

Good luck

[mattsoft]

I'm using HyperMarquee and then using an AHK script to launch HyperMarquee with the [romname].png art file, then launch MAME. When you exit MAME, the AHK script closes HyperMarquee too. It all works pretty slick and is simple (once I figured it out). PM me if you need help setting it up.

[NickG]

I use this one with hyperspin:

https://hyperspinhelper.wordpress.com/

I was able to set it up after failing with other programs, but I do not remember if it was easy, exactly.  I do remember having to specify the display number of my emulator and marquee display in the helper app config.  Now that I run an analog VGA as my primary and HDMI marquee (which forces the analog to be display2), I had to also set MAME config to use only display2, showing only non-marquee artwork within mame - if at all, and marquee artwork via the helper program.

[langlem]

Thanks Nick...

Do yo by chance have a copy of an artwork lay file for a popular game?  Maybe mspacman or galaga or something tjat I can test with?

Thanks again. I am really struggling to get this working.  Close to giving up

[langlem]

Oops....that last reply made no sense.  Had a few kids in full on freak mode in the background...forgot what I was responding to.

What I am curious of is your mame.ini settings.  I have HS Helper up and running but the second monitor only displays the selected game playing.  No artwork of any kind.

Do you know of any tutorial out there on this application...cant seem to locate one.

Thanks again...sorry for any confusion.

Matt

[langlem]

Hyperspin Helper worked like a champ!  Thank you NickG!!!

Thanks a bunch....hope it remains stable!

Matt

This ends quite the quest!!!