Atomic Front End Available for US!

[youki]

Hi All,

Few month ago i created a new Front End for Emulator optimized to be used in a Arcade Cabinet with MAME.

[JoyMonkey]

So you're planning to sell this front end with a modified build of Mame included in it? 

[youki]

Hi ,

Thank for your interrest.

Not at all, i didn't plane to sell the frontend with the modified version of mame. 

In short time, the PRO version will not be provided with a mame version anymore. (it is just a prototype now)  But i plane to provide the credit management solution as shareware.  But it will work with all mame version not as the current one.  For now, the PRO version will expire because i don't want somebody use this version in a exploitation context.

the Standard version is fully fonctionnal (except credit management) and it is and will stay a Freeware!

Cheers,

Youki.

[JoyMonkey]

I'll give you one thing, it's very easy to set up initially- probably the easiest front end I've ever installed.

But why is it so slow to start a game? After I select a game from the list, the 'Loading' screen pops up for about 30 seconds before the game starts. Is there a way to make this faster, or is it a bug?

[Goz]

Also agree the speed of loading would be a deterant.

-Goz

[youki]

Hi,

Try to use an older version of mame , or create a MAME.INI with :

skip_validitychecks 1

in it.

You can try to uncheck the "Hide emulator loading" on the option tab.

If you have still the problem. I will investigate in my code, may be i did something wrong in this version.

[JoyMonkey]

Even when using your AtomicMAME build, which has 'skip_validitychecks 1' in mame.ini, it is way too slow to
start a game. Must be a bug.
Also, the AtomicManager won't let me select English again- it is stuck in French. 

Looks promising though! Keep it up!

[papaschtroumpf]

I'll give it a try sometime.

I like the idea of being able to carry your credits from one game to the other.
I don't like the idea of having to pay for it though 

Actually doesn't sound that hard to implement, I'm surprised nobody has done it before.

It'd be nice to be able to click on the thumbnails for the layouts to see a bigger picture,

I like the fact that you can have an overlay over a snapshot like in this pinball skin:

It gives a sense of depth to the layout

MinWah, if you're reading this, any chance to get something like that in Mamewah?

[papaschtroumpf]

Also, may I please have a copy of the source code for the AtomicMame bundled with the "pro" version? A patch rather than the whole source would be even better.
(according to the MAME license you must make the source available: If you use portions of the MAME source code in your program, however, you must make the full source code freely available as well.)

Merci!

[youki]

HI All,

Thank a lot for your feedback.

Concerning the problem of being stucked in french.  You're right it is a bug. I'm going to correct that today.  For now , to work around. Delete the file AtomicManager.lang  which is in the Atomic Folder. When you start the manager, it will prompt you again for the language. Choose English but DON'T save the settings.  I'm going to correct that as soon as possible.

Concerning the speed. Try with a old version of mame (like 0.70) and unchecck "Hide Emulator" on the manager.  Let me know if it is better or not.  The version, i provide is based on 0.90 which is desasperatly long to load in comparion of older version.  But i'm going to double check what can be the cause.

Concerning the source code, it will be available soon. As soon as i will have feedback on the prototype. If it works well , if it is usable..Etc..etc..  All will be provided  according to mame license.

Concerning Layout, you can even apply AlphaBlending (Transparencies) on each objet present on a layout.  When i will have time, i 'm going to allow to see larger screen on my web site.   

Juste a note : A given layout can be used in ALL resolutions and in all position (vertical or horizontal).
You can use a horizontal 800x600 layout on a vertical screen in 320x200 for instance.

cheers,

Youki

[youki]

Hi All,

A patch to correct the Internationnal problem (The manager stayed stucked in French) is available on download page of my site.

http://www.atomicfe.com

Just replace AtomicManager.exe by the file contained in the zip.


Sorry for the bug.

thanks

Youki

[youki]

An Hotfix is available to fix both problems.  "French stuff" and Loading speed.

If you still have loading speed probleme after installing the hotfix. You have to uncheck "Hide Emulator" on the option tab. It will solve it.


Youki

[sWampy]

It seems to crash on windows xp if you try to play an xvid movie made with mame movie maker.

[youki]

Hi,

If you use Atomic in Jukebox video mode  , you need to have the right codec for Windows Media Player. If you can play the video with window media player , you can play it with atomicFe.

if you are speaking about Video SNAP , the format supported is a standard AVI in 16 or 24/bit per pixel. 
What other users uses to make video SNAP is a tool called CamStudio.  The format generated by this tool is readable.

I didn't know Mame Movie Maker until now. I will try it , and try to find a way to support his video format in future release of Atomic.

thanks.

Youki

[Chris]

I like the idea of being able to carry your credits from one game to the other.
I don't like the idea of having to pay for it though

[youki]

There is other interrests too.

If you have a broken coiner.  You can use the Free play mode of Atomic Pro.  It will insert credit for you in each game.

And for me, the interrest was purely technical, a kind of challenge.  The reasons why the Pro version should be a shareware. (not really decided yet). It is just because i'm consious that it will be used in a exploitation context.  But i think for non-commercial user, i wll provide a freeware version which will allow FREE PLAY mode only.  But as i said on my web site, the PRO version is still a prototype , so things can change.

Youki

[Howard_Casto]

I like the idea of being able to carry your credits from one game to the other.
I don't like the idea of having to pay for it though

[sWampy]

I like the idea of being able to carry your credits from one game to the other.
I don't like the idea of having to pay for it though 

Actually doesn't sound that hard to implement, I'm surprised nobody has done it before.

Because the only real reason to do it is to create a commercial MAME cabinet, and most of the FE devs here won't touch that concept with a ten-foot joystick.

Exactly!  This is very uncool.  You are literally giving people the ability to easily pirate games in a commerical envoronment. This could very well lead to the roms community being treated like the file-sharing community if it ever catches on.  Many of the old arcade companies are out of business, but trust me.... if a single cabinet is found with your fe running, making money off of a pirated midway or nintendo game....  the community is as good as toast.

I sortof like the idea, I bought mame tokens, got my coin doors working, and even hooked up a relay to the solenoids in my coin doors, where they only take tokens if you are in an emulator, or the jukebox.   The added ability to not loose credits when you exited a game/jukebox would be a cool addition.  I'm sure it would be abused though.

[Chris]

I sortof like the idea, I bought mame tokens, got my coin doors working, and even hooked up a relay to the solenoids in my coin doors, where they only take tokens if you are in an emulator, or the jukebox.

[sWampy]

I sortof like the idea, I bought mame tokens, got my coin doors working, and even hooked up a relay to the solenoids in my coin doors, where they only take tokens if you are in an emulator, or the jukebox.   The added ability to not loose credits when you exited a game/jukebox would be a cool addition.  I'm sure it would be abused though.

But since you have the key to the coin box, is it really a big deal?

However, for a commercial cabinet, the potential for losing credits is a big deal, and possibly one reason we haven't seen more MAME cabs cropping up on location.

Reminds me of the time I had a guy asking me for printable cash flow reports for WinCab Jukebox.  A little overkill in a home environment, I think... 

No, It's not important, neither are the tokens really, since you can hold down player 1 and hit button one to get a credit if you want.  It would just be a cool thing.    Now you get in to cash flow reports is just wierd. ;-)

[papaschtroumpf]

But since you have the key to the coin box, is it really a big deal?

I agree, not a big deal, but again then, is having a coin mech a big deal? you can make a prefectly good cab without one.
It seems like a neat feature to me, even for a home cab, especially since I ration my kids' daily token allowance 

cashflow reports on the other hand scream "commercial use".

[youki]

Hi All,

First of all, last time i was in your country (last october, in N.C) , i saw 3 mamecab in a exploitation context.  Two using MameWah  and the other using AdvanceMenu. Credit was not managed from the frond end, but there was a big sign like an user guide. Saying "Choose your game and insert coin only when the game runs".. or something like that.   I know that in spain Mamecab in arcade are very commun.  It is not legal, but it is not the fact to allow credit insertion on the front end which will cause the illegal usage of roms and mame.

A commercial system already exits called Ultracade. 

It is up to you to follow law of your country. I think.

But don't worry. The current Pro version available is not commercially usable due to limitation i included in it. It is just a proof of concept. May be this version will diseapear or not. It depends on feedback i can have. If the entire community is against this kind of Feature , i have no reason to provide it.  I'm not a business man, i 'm just a retrogaming lover as you all i think. 

But i use the PRO version at home in my cabinet, and personnaly i find this feature very usefull. 

Youk

[Chris]

I'm not a business man, i 'm just a retrogaming lover as you all i think.

[)p(]

It is not legal, but it is not the fact to allow credit insertion on the front end which will cause the illegal usage of roms and mame.

True, but as fe authors we can do at least our best to keep it as difficult as possible!

Looks like a great fe that you have there

peter

[Gunstar Hero]

Howard, check it out! It's KHAN's dream come true! 

Ahem, on the subject...

I like the idea. Really. I'd like to set it up on my home cab. But honestly, we've seen alot of guys who don't have much in the way of scruples around here who don't think it's especially wrong to make a commerical-use MAME machine, like they're some sort of pirate Ultracade. I'm sure nothing's going to deter you from the idea, but remember, if you start selling a commerical-use version of your program, you're making yourself a party to this kind of exploitation, and I'm sure that opens you up to some kind of liability.

[terryd]

I for one think that this FE is nice and the author can make any features available he wishes.  I personally like the idea of having credits carry from one game to the next.  For those individuals who would exploit this feature for profit are probably already doing so. 
Just my $.02....

-Terryd

[btoddkelley]

I believe that many of the people who like the "credit feature" simply want to make the arcade experience more authentic at home. I have no desire to set up a commercial mame cab but I like believing that I am in an arcade. (without the dirty carpet!). If Min ever adds it to mamewah I will use it, if not I will deal with it!
     I think a nice feature would be to add a credit based timer system to a front end as well. (I know, then people could charge for Atari 2600 games.) The real question the community has to answer is whether we allow the actions of a few unethical users to prevent FE developers from making there product as "arcade like" as possible.
     In my experience I have found that if something can be done in responce to profit motive, it probably will. While I applaud the FE developers attempts to prevent unethical uses of emulators in general and mame in particular, in the end, there efforts will be vane.
     5 years ago there was no such thing as a "burner". The mame doc's stated that you should only possess roms you own.  As time passed burning became the prefered metheod of aquiring roms. Our ethics evolved.  (In many ways they are situational. When someone complains about roms what they normally mean is " you shouldn't have them if you do not own them but I can". )
     I betting FE's will evolve too!


Todd "I have never used a burner" Kelley

[Chris]

I believe that many of the people who like the "credit feature" simply want to make the arcade experience more authentic at home.

How is this authentic?  I have personally never played a machine in an arcade that allows you to carry credits from one game over to another.  If I walked away from a machine I had credits in to play another machine, I lost the credits.

[jsansoterra]

I agree btoddkelley!

I have no intent on making my MAME cabinet a commerical success but I would like the option to transfer the credits between games.

My MAIN reason is simple, if not even a little lame.

My kids RESPECT the MAME machine MORE when they started having to put quarters in to play. When it was unrestricted it took a lot more abuse (maybe those of your with children will understand).

At the end of the week we usually take all the money and go have pizza.

Lookng forward to trying out this new front-end.

[btoddkelley]

I believe that many of the people who like the "credit feature" simply want to make the arcade experience more authentic at home.

How is this authentic?

[Magnet_Eye]

I think it is a cool and viable feature for home use. Why do so many of us spend the extra $ for coin boxes and all those custom made BYOAC & MAME tokens if it wasn't?

I would like it because the n00bs that play on my cab always try to insert coins in Mamewah, and then they usually screw mamewah up or have to ask me where their credit went. I think it would be cool for those of us with coin boxes, using tokens and so on.

Looking forward to trying out this FE. 

Youki:  Any instructions on how to make layouts and the Animated Backgrounds?

[Minwah]

It is a cool feature, and I'm sure youki doesn't mean any harm.  The FE looks very good and this feature is a neat one for sure.

I do think it is a bad idea however.  Some people somewhere will exploit it - a case of a few spoiling it for everyone if you like.

I've had people put money in my machine while in my FE...but it doesn't take people long to learn after nothing happens and I tell them 'put the money if when the game is loaded' for them to get to grips with it

[terryd]

I just want to use the coin feature because I'm too lazy to keep entering coins for each game. 

[GGKoul]

I believe that many of the people who like the "credit feature" simply want to make the arcade experience more authentic at home. I have no desire to set up a commercial mame cab but I like believing that I am in an arcade. (without the dirty carpet!). If Min ever adds it to mamewah I will use it, if not I will deal with it!

[GGKoul]

I just want to use the coin feature because I'm too lazy to keep entering coins for each game.

[btoddkelley]

Burners are charging the service at little to no profit.

[GGKoul]

I've been here long enough to have read every post about Mame and its legalites.

[SirPeale]

And do you think burners do it for FREE? Most offer other roms at a mark-up that allows them to justify there time while still given away mame roms.

I suppose it depends on the burners.  The Laz guys do it straight - you send them media, they put the ROMs on the media.  You do pay for the postage, both ways

[GGKoul]

And do you think burners do it for FREE? Most offer other roms at a mark-up that allows them to justify there time while still given away mame roms.

I suppose it depends on the burners.

[youki]

Hi All,

Thanks for all your feedback. I read them carefully , and it will determine the future of the pro version.

I saw a question concerning "how to make layout" , if you look in the docs folder , EN subfolder, open index.htm , and you should find a section which explain how to make your own layout.
I didn't write documentation myself , unfortunaly i don't have lot of time. So it is surely not perfect, but it will change.  The Layout tools i provide, if very ugly. I'm will make a real easy to use tool soon.

If coder who have time read this post!.. if you want write a Nice Layout Editor for me.. you 're welcome!...  Contact me. 

Please if you have technical question , or configuration problem, do a new post which explain your problem, i will answer on it , it will be more clear.

I really aprecciated the comment of MinWah. Thanks. 

Thanks

Youki

[Lilwolf]

I second the do not add coin option.  Sure a few will say this is cool... but you wont be a real problem other then them saying oh cool.  But you will get the same from a always on freeplay options also (which doesn't have the same problems)

But the chance (not a chance... the fact) of people putting it on bootlegs should be enought to take it out.

Its been known for a while that its not hard to add (at least for some games).... But making it trivial...

btw, good looking frontend! 

[Magnet_Eye]

I second the do not add coin option.  Sure a few will say this is cool... but you wont be a real problem other then them saying oh cool.  But you will get the same from a always on freeplay options also (which doesn't have the same problems)

As I said, for all of us with coin boxes and tokens it is a cool feature. What good is freeplay?  None. It is good for those without tokens and coinboxes. 


Youki:

I will say perhaps keep it unavailable at the moment until you make a final decision. Do some polls or something to see what the vote on that feature is.

[mahuti]

Do what YOU want. If that means polls... then do that, but ultimately, use your scruples and do what makes sense for your product. No one needs to approve it except you.

[Magnet_Eye]

Do what YOU want. If that means polls... then do that, but ultimately, use your scruples and do what makes sense for your product. No one needs to approve it except you.

True dat. I was gonna say the same thing, but I am sure he knows that. I think he genuinely wants to do "the right thing" here.   

[youki]

Hi,

Yes, not easy decision. may be you 're right, i should make it unavailable. But if i do that, i think i will have less feedback.  Lot of people speak about things without proving is doable or are simply dreaming. When i began to speak about my project on French Forums , trying what they would like in their "ideal" frontend. I didn't have lot of feedback. But when i released the first version, i had lot of feedback.  When i spoke about "coin insertion", the only feedback i had, it was "I don't think it is possible".  So the Fact to prove the concept, it is a good thing to have feedback!..  This topic is itself the proof! 

Some other forums , i less open on the question, i've been bannished just because i provided the version on my website. i won't say the name of the Forums because i contacted administrator and i'm trying to convaince him. And may be we will find a solution.

A part the "coin insertion" thing,  do you like the Front End?

Thanks all.

Youki

[nipsmg]

I think the frontend is great. 

I also think that the coin thing is a great feature, especially that they carry over as well, I love that.  I had toyed with figuring out a way to do that as well, because I too have tokens and a coinbox.  It's good to be able to pump in 25 tokens and get 25 plays of whatever you want.  Great when friends are over.

Maybe adding some kind of text in the bottom corner of the screen that says "Use of this product commercially is in violation of domestic and international laws" would deter people from actually using it in public?

-- Youki:

The frontend is great.  It is definitely the easiest I've seen to configure right out of the box.  I love the animated backgrounds too.  Great work.

[youki]

thanks a lot for your comment! 

That's a good idea the "warning message" on the screen on the pro version. What do you thing guys?


Concerning easy configuration. It was my goal , keep it as easy possible to configure. It is not yet perfect, but each time i try to make it more easier.

Youki.

[terryd]

I think nipsmg had a GREAT point.  If you did make (I hope you do) the coin forwarding mechanism in your FE, then this would surly make it difficult to put in a money making environment.

If you hear comments that you must make your source code available to stay in the compliance of the MAME license, I say NO.  The MAME license applies to MAME and derivatives of MAME only.  In my personal opinion does it reflect in any way to how a FE should be treated.  Making the source code available COULD ultimately nullify the warning system.

[youki]

Hi Terryd,

For the prototype version of the PRO version, i modified mame source because it was the fastest way to test.  But in case i 'd "release" the pro version, the Credit management system will be not a part of MAME itself. It will be outside MAME.  I few solutions one working only on win98 , the other only on XP /NT , and a third one working on both. But each one have advantage and disadvantage. But the technical thing is not my problem now, it is easy to decide. It is the ethic things i'm working on!. 

And thats sure, i will not provide full sources of my coin forwarding mechanism. But if i'm able to do that, other people are too , and may be with less ethic...

[terryd]

I understand your delima...  I'm not sure that the implications of having a MAME machine in a money making environment is as detrimental to the MAME effort as some would have you believe.  There have been MANY instances of operators using MAME to make money.  So far no one has broken down any doors or hauling people away.  I'm not saying it's not possible, I'm just saying that it has not happened yet and I doubt it would ever happen.

I know your interest is to see if a credit system is possible at all.  Even though some have said it was impossible.  Just keep in mind that many things thought impossible at one time are now possible!

[youki]

>I know your interest is to see if a credit system is possible at all.

I know it is possible. It works well on my Front End! You can try it, if you download the version from my website. (the version is volontary limited to avoid illegal use)

It was a challenge i wanted to attempt. I succeeded.  Now, the question , should i deliver it freely to the world of mame...  That's the question i try to find answer here. 

[vibez]

I really like the look of this front end.

One problem, I run my cab at 368x240 res. On that res the fonts are not blurred to read. Are there any fonts that will work at that res?

Oh, & would it be possible to make a menu structure like mame32. Where you can browse games based on the catargory.

example

sports----> football

[lokki]

Looks like a pretty cool FE. A little dissapointed there aren't many vertical layouts.

Will try it tonight.

[iwillfearnoevil]

don't worry about the whole commercial thing. lots of people here use mame and the roms illegally but feel better telling other people what they are doing is wrong. i guess it helps them sleep better at night. good luck.

[youki]

Hi All,  Thanks for your feedbacks!

One problem, I run my cab at 368x240 res. On that res the fonts are not blurred to read. Are there any fonts that will work at that res?

The solution is to make a layout which fit to this resolution. In that case Atomic will not stretch the image and the font will be more readable. What layout do you use?  If i have time , i can make a 368x240 native version.

Code: [Select]

Oh, & would it be possible to make a menu structure like mame32. Where you can browse games based on the catargory.

example

sports----> football
Currently, with atomic you can chain layouts to make what i call "multi-configuration" .  There 2 multi-configuration mode, one very simple , the other a little more advance.

TO do that :
-go in AtomicManager, check the "advance option" check box,  new tabs will appear.
-Go on the "Advanced" tab. 
-Check "use predifined game list" check box
-a new tab appears (called "Game List")
-Go on the "Game List" tab
-On the Left you will see all roms you own
-on the "categorie file" combo box , choose "+Sports"
-then on the "select category' combo box , choose "FootBall Amer."
-then click "Transfer category"
-All "FootBall" roms you own will appear now in the right list.
-Click on "Save" Button
-Name your config file "Football.cfg" (the .CFG is mandatory) (Call it Atomic.CFG only if you want it is the configuration loaded when you run atomic) SAVE IT on the same folder of Atomic.exe
-then exit.

Now run Atomic.exe ,  when you are on the frontEnd , press on the "Player 2 Button 1" , a menu will appear with all .CFG file you defined. Choose FootBall.CFG , by clicking on "Player 1 Start" button. A now you will see your football configuration as you defined it.

If you can not display the "select configuration" menu, go to AtomicManager, open the "Atomic.CFG"  go on the "Options" Tab , and check if the "Allow on Fly conf selection" is enabled.  This checkbox need to be enabled for all of your configuration file you can do.

there is another "multi-configuration mode" , where you can navigate directly from the Front End with having to open que "Select Conf" windows. Check the Documention in the Docs\English folder.  It is described in the chapter 5 (Configuration) , paragraph 5.6 (Multi-configuration)

little dissapointed there aren't many vertical layouts.

You can use Horizontal Layout as vertical too. Layout are a little bit deformed due to Horizontal/vertical ration but it works. Just select a Horizontal Layout and select "Vertical" as screen orientation on AtomicManager.

cheers,

Youki

[vibez]

The solution is to make a layout which fit to this resolution. In that case Atomic will not stretch the image and the font will be more readable. What layout do you use?  If i have time , i can make a 368x240 native version.

Thank you! I will check out a few more layouts & see which one I like best.

Currently, with atomic you can chain layouts to make what i call "multi-configuration" .  There 2 multi-configuration mode, one very simple , the other a little more advance.

TO do that :
-go in AtomicManager, check the "advance option" check box,  new tabs will appear.
-Go on the "Advanced" tab. 
-Check "use predifined game list" check box
-a new tab appears (called "Game List")
-Go on the "Game List" tab
-On the Left you will see all roms you own
-on the "categorie file" combo box , choose "+Sports"
-then on the "select category' combo box , choose "FootBall Amer."
-then click "Transfer category"
-All "FootBall" roms you own will appear now in the right list.
-Click on "Save" Button
-Name your config file "Football.cfg" (the .CFG is mandatory) (Call it Atomic.CFG only if you want it is the configuration loaded when you run atomic) SAVE IT on the same folder of Atomic.exe
-then exit.

Now run Atomic.exe ,  when you are on the frontEnd , press on the "Player 2 Button 1" , a menu will appear with all .CFG file you defined. Choose FootBall.CFG , by clicking on "Player 1 Start" button. A now you will see your football configuration as you defined it.

If you can not display the "select configuration" menu, go to AtomicManager, open the "Atomic.CFG"  go on the "Options" Tab , and check if the "Allow on Fly conf selection" is enabled.  This checkbox need to be enabled for all of your configuration file you can do.

there is another "multi-configuration mode" , where you can navigate directly from the Front End with having to open que "Select Conf" windows. Check the Documention in the Docs\English folder.  It is described in the chapter 5 (Configuration) , paragraph 5.6 (Multi-configuration)

Yes I really like the multi-config feature. The only problem is that there are approx 140 catagories in the most current catver.ini. This would take forever to create a cfg for each one. Plus it would need updating everytime a new mame build came out. It would be nice if there was a way of automating the generation of these cfg files based on an external list. such as catver.ini available here http://www.mameworld.net/catlist/

[youki]

It would be nice if there was a way of automating the generation of these cfg files based on an external list.

It is already  on my to do list!    May be not in the next version, but in a near future.

Thanks

Youki

[vibez]

It would be nice if there was a way of automating the generation of these cfg files based on an external list.

It is already  on my to do list!    May be not in the next version, but in a near future.

Thanks

Youki

Great! Can't wait to see it

[vibez]

Possible bug?

No matter which Atomic.cfg I use, when I create a game list & press save, the gameslist always gets saved as Atomic.cfg.gamelist.txt. Unless I manually change it in the option tab. This mean that if I create multi configs, the latest config overwrites the orinal gameslist.

For example a profile called test.cfg should create a list called test.cfg.gamelist.txt but instead it creates Atomic.cfg.gamelist.txt

[youki]

Yes , it is a  bug.  Sorry.

To work around:

solution 1 :
-uncheck the checkbox :
"Let atomic choose file name"
- Enter the name of your gamelist file you choose.

Solution 2 :
-Before starting building the game list . Save your Config with the name you want.
- Re-open your config you just saved.
- Uncheck and re-Check the "Let atomic choose file name".
Now the name should be correct.

I'm going to correct that bug as soons as possible!  Thanks for reporting it to me! 

[youki]

Ok, i fixed it.   and Updated the hotfix.  Re-download the hotfix and just replace the AtomicManager.exe file.  It should be better now. 

thanks again.

[vibez]

Thanks, it works perfect now.

I know you already touched on this. But do you know of a way to create a games.llist.txt for each genre?

Maybe using an external tool?

[youki]

Hi,

Waiting my tool, one solution could be to use a Textpad Macro.

You start from CatList.ini or another .ini files ,and each time you find a section [....]
You get the content and put it in a new file. 

But i don't really thing it will be faster than using AtomicManager.

cheers,

Youki

[vibez]

Yeah I was looking at importing the list into excel & when it see's a [...] it would start I new column. But I couldnt get it to work. Oh well, guess I just wait

[JonnyBoy]

I just checked out the frontend. Wow, you are doing one heck of a job making this user-friendly for idiots like myself  . But seriously, it is looking fantastic and you are doing heck of a job updating and fixing all the bugs. By the time I finish my cab I may change to the newest version of Atomic FE, by then it'll probably one heck of a contender.

[youki]

Hi JonnyBoy!

Thanks a lot for your comment!.  And the simple fact you like Atomic Fe it is the proof your are NOT an idiot at all! 

Yes, i do my best to make it easier as possible, and answer all user's needs.

Cheers,

Youki

[papaschtroumpf]

I can't get it working because I need to install it on drive D: (C: is OS only on my cab and has very little room).
Here are some comments/bug reports from what I've seen so far:

- a real installer would be better, the "use stored path" option is not explained so it's hard to know what would happen if you install in "C:\Program Files" or D:.

- I installed to D:, installed Hotfix 2, the ran AtomicManager, choose English, and started the program, got a "Nom de Fichier Incorrect". It's OK, I speak French 
This is probably due to the isntallation on D: (see below)

- I tried to change the paths ("folders" tab): even though I got a cursor when I click on the path text tab, I can't edit it. Too bad, because all the paths would have been correct by changing C: to D:. Instead I had to browse to each folder individually (just takes longer)

- When I tried to save the config, it tired to save it on C: instead of D:, so it wouldn't since the directory didn't exist. I can't try this FE any further until this is fixed.

- when you click on "close" the confirmation dialog shows "Annuler" instead of "Cancel"



All of these are minor, especially for a beta version, except for the inability to install on a different drive, which prevents me from using the FE at all.

[Buddabing]

I have the exact same problem as papa. Same symptoms.

[youki]

Hi PapaSctroumpf,

I just tested on another drive. And you 're right there is a bug here.. it seems noboby tried to install it on another drive.

[youki]

Hi,

Waiting a fix. To workaround this problem.

if you installed Atomic on a folder which is not a  C:\

You can edit the file Atomic.CFG with the notepad and replace all reference to C:\ by D:\ for instance. It will solve your problem.

In fact , i wanted to deliver a default configuration with the tool , it i had provided a empty one you wouldn't have this problem... but for the 90% of user which install the tool on C: it would required more configuration for the first start.

Hope it helps

Youki

[Popcorrin]

I played around with the frontend some mainly to see what the credit manager was like.  I noticed that if you load up a game and press p1 or p2 start and continue to press either after the game has started you can cause the credit manager to go into the negative on the frontend even though you may have only used 2 out of your 10 available credits in the game.
Another thing I noticed is that it constantly crashes and I think it may have something to do with the mmm videos I created.  Someone else said they were having problems with this.

[youki]

Hi,

concerning the installation Problem of PapaSchtroumpf and buddabing. I put a fix on my website.  I update the Hotfix. Download it, it should fix the problem you should be able to install it on d: or where you want.

Popcorrin. concerning the credit management, it make sense!. I will fix that in case i give a future to this version.   Thanks to reporting to me.

concerning Video , Atomic manage only very simple video format.
mng , Divx..etc.. could be used in Jukebox video mode if you have the right codec for Windows Media player 7 installed .  If you talk about SNAP VIDEO, the format need to be very basic. 16 bit or 24 bits per pixel. AVI.  For format generated by CamStudio works.

Could you send me, of small video file at your format?.  I could try to see what happends.  Because the crash is not normal. If the format is not valid i should simply display the snap.

Coming soon a new hot fix (sorry) a bug has been discover in advanced multiconfig mode , i working on it.

thanks

Youki

[papaschtroumpf]

for non-mame emulators you forgot to translate "repertoires EXE/BAT" in the Folders tab

[Magnet_Eye]

Just wondering how you are progressing with AtomicFE?

[hulkster]

Hi,

concerning the installation Problem of PapaSchtroumpf and buddabing. I put a fix on my website.

[daywane]

It is a cool feature, and I'm sure youki doesn't mean any harm.

[Thenasty]

I run my Spykiller and it reports the file hook.dll is an Adware loo n search from my Atomic Fe folder. Is this something I have to be concerned about ?

[Gunstar Hero]

Delete it.

Then we'll know if it was important or not! 

WTF would a file called hook.dll be for? 

[Thenasty]

Delete it.

Then we'll know if it was important or not!

[Magnet_Eye]

I run my Spykiller and it reports the file hook.dll is an Adware loo n search from my Atomic Fe folder. Is this something I have to be concerned about ?

info i found about it:

Information about hookdll.dll file
File: hookdll.dll
Name: hookdll or SetupHook or Hook DLL
Product: hookdll or Wise Solutions, Inc. SetupHook or Productivity Software Common Files
Company: Wise Solutions, Inc. or Logitech Inc.

[Gunstar Hero]

http://www.freevbcode.com/ShowCode.Asp?ID=1308

Seems pretty harmless... maybe your spyware killer is wack.

Still, with a name like hook.dll... 

[daywane]

spybot has no problems with Atomic FE.
thanks anyway. I found 3 other problems I had.
I only have Atonic on this PC to test it out. My Arcades are not on the web so I am not worried about it.

[youki]

Sorry i was not here yesterday to answer.

Don't worry about Hook.dll , (my hookdll) , i created this dll to manage a functionnality of Atomic Fe.

On option of the screensaver is to run random game.

[daywane]

so far , I like it.
I downloaded the pro version.  Anyone else think the sound is off in the menu that comes with the main download? Sounds  Clanky and strange on my PC.
Also after running spybot and testing the FE (all worked well) but... when I tuned off the FE and came back here to7 reply all is well, I had to reboot because the web page was HUGE... like three pages wide
I am at 1024 x 768 highest 32 bit color
radion 7000 video card (agp 4x)
creative SB live 5.1 sound card (pci)
xp pro SP1 ( I do not want Sp2)

[youki]

The sound, you mean the background music?

Yes, in fact due to size for Download, i resample the music to a really low quality. may be 11khz mono... But you can put the music you want , just replace the BkMusic.mp3 file in the layout folder by the one you want. Just rename it to BkMusic.mp3. I just put this "music" as a example.

I don't think the probleme you have is due to the FE. I think the cause could be spybot.

[daywane]

Nope I forgot to save my settings 
problem solved
Thanks for the heads up on the music. (i am off to replace it  )

[papaschtroumpf]

By the way Youki, I love your avatar, reminds me of how much time I spent watching Goldorak as a kid.

[youki]

Yes, I'm looking foward to see this mange in DVD.  But it seems unfortunaly it had only success in Europe.     Goldorak was Grandizer in US.

[Invader_Stu]

Burners are charging the service at little to no profit.  The second someone make a decent profit off of Mame, is the day Mame development stops. 

Comments like yours will only need to the death of the Mame Project.

I hate to break it to you, but people are ALL READY MAKING A PROFIT OFF MAME!!!
Unless you don't count the sale of Ipac's, trackballs, cab kits, spinners .........you get the idea. Without mame people would not be buying that stuff. Bare in mind, I do not look at this as a bad thing. New industries and jobs have been created. I say good for them.
     Mame takes products that are no longer commercially  viable (roms) and creates derived demand for other products. And do you think burners do it for FREE? Most offer other roms at a mark-up that allows them to justify there time while still given away mame roms.
     I do not think that anyone should use MAME in a commercial, for profit environment. I also do not believe that the inclusion or the lack of inclusion of a "coin system" in a FE will prevent or even slow down someone who chooses to set up a cab. I do believe that we would be better off if we dispensed with the righteous indignation over people making a profit off mame while ignoring profit made from supporting mame.
     Once again, I do not develop FE's and I have no influence (other than someone reading my rantings on this board, which is time that would be better spent developing!) over people who do develop FE's. Irrational arguments like "comment like your will lead to the end of development" serve no developmental purpose and show ignorance of the real world.
     I do not mean this to sound rude or harsh. I think the "coin system" is a good idea. You are entitled to disagree, present arguments as to why you disagree and criticise my arguments.  And I am entitled to criticise yours!


Todd " never purchased a product that made profit off mame" Kelley

Here here, well said! I know I'm not a major contributor to this board and obviously there are a lot of people here that care a lot more about MAME and related issues than I do - so I dont want to tick any of you off.

My somewhat ignorant opinion - This feature is good, I like it, it should stay, and some people really sit on a high horse around here - your butts are tighter than the coin slots on your cabs.

Seriously, this one little feature is suddenyl going to bring down MAME in its entirety? Oh, this feature *could potentially possibly maybe* mean that it makes some spainol's life easier to lifting quarters from little kids, in a country arcade down Mexico way? Newsflash, who cares!

As stated there are already people making money from illegal Mame cabs. And there is an industry made for supporting home cabs. I dont think its fair that we deprive ourselves (us, the personal owners) of features just because of what some people may or may not do with them. Its a land of free choice people, lighten up and enjoy the FE (top work to the dude who wrote it too).

[youki]

Thanks for your comment invader_Stu.

There is a new problem with this version now. As you know (or may be not yet) the boss from Ultracade is trying  to gain rights of MAME. And he is already claiming he owns MAME. And already shutdowned some ebay action about MAME (even same legals ones) , pretending he is the owner of MAME.

If the "exploitation" feature of my FrontEnd is freely available, i'm sure it will have a influence on his business. Don't know how big will be this influence but sure it will be.  Because with about 500$ (including cab, pc, arcadeVga, Jpac) and 1 days of work , you can have something like a Ultracade Cab which cost lot of more!
Sure, the cab will be illegal for a commercial usage but who will check? I don't know how it works in U.S .  But in France, Authorities just check if you pay your taxes for the cab and they don't check what there is in the cab.

The ultracade boss won't like that i think.  Even if personnaly just because he is trying to steal mame i would like to break his market. (but it is another story)

[Chris]

so I dont want to tick any of you off.

<...>

... some people really sit on a high horse around here - your butts are tighter than the coin slots on your cabs.

You don't want to tick any of us off?  Wow, you failed miserably.

[daywane]

The ultracade boss won't like that i think.

[Witchboard]

Youki, if he finds out about your FE he'll probably end up using it.     I hope you have it trademarked.

[nostrebor]

Youki, if he finds out about your FE he'll probably end up using it.     I hope you have it trademarked.

I fully agree. Take steps NOW to protect your hard work before he slides up and snags it from you.

[JoyMonkey]

Does the Ultracade front end have some kind of coin management system like this?

[Witchboard]

I'm sure it does considering it's for commercial use.  From what I understand, you insert a quarter then see the game list that's available for play.

[Alpha17X]

Oh   I love the skinnability on this thing.   *makes skins*

[daywane]

Thanks for your comment invader_Stu.

There is a new problem with this version now. As you know (or may be not yet) the boss from Ultracade is trying

[youki]

Oh   I love the skinnability on this thing.   *makes skins*

Yes, makes Skin! and send it to me, i will put it on my website.

The LayoutManager (the skin tool) is not very good but i will recode it soon (just have to find time to do that!).

[RitchieTheBrit]

Just downloaded this, excellent!  Set up in minutes!  Highly recommended!

Just a quick request, are you planning to add IDv3 tagging for the Jukebox?  My bro wants to build a JB, and although this is primarily an Emu FE, the skinnability has got him interested!

Again, nice work, looking forward to trying this in my cab!   

[youki]

Thanks RichiTheBrit,

JukeBox features will be enhanced in future versions , but now it is not on top priority on my todo list. Unfortunaly i don't have enough time to do all what i would like. 

[screaming]

Wow, great job youki!  I haven't tested it out yet, but it looks fantastic!  I love the animated backgrounds!

Aside from the ass-kissing, I have a comment regarding "forwarding" credits to MAME.  Personally I wouldn't use it because I have more than just MAME in my cabinet and I favor continuity over "coolness".  I do, however think it would be perfect for MAME-only cabinets but I hate having to worry about what "other people might do".

 Like having a bank account, if you take reasonable steps to protect yourself you should feel confident that your product won't be used for maliciousness. I vote for having a warning prominently displayed that would scare off any potential paying customers for someone. A banner at the bottom that's on all the time is good. I giant message before the game loads that says "Making money off this arcade is a CRIME. If you deposited coins, seek the proper authorities now!" would be scary enough but less intrusive to people that make nice layouts.

-Steve

[youki]

Thanks! 

Yes, i think the Big warning message when roms are loading would be a good idea.

[vibez]

Thanks! 

Yes, i think the Big warning message when roms are loading would be a good idea.

that would be awful! I'd like to run this in my cab, but having warnings plastered all over the place would just spoil the feel of my cab.

[youki]

But just when you load a Rom, not everywhere.  And we can try to do something nice.

a little bit something like the "Winners don't use drugs" message there were in arcade game in U.S.   

[screaming]

But just when you load a Rom, not everywhere.  And we can try to do something nice.

a little bit something like the "Winners don't use drugs" message there were in arcade game in U.S.   

  Yeah, that's what I was thinking.. but "Winners don't use MAME" just doesn't work for some reason...

-Steve

[vibez]

Well could you keep the warnings out of the non pro version?

Also, how is the multiconfig creation tool coming along? I love this front end but would really like a way of automatically creating game lists based on a current dat file

[RitchieTheBrit]

Erm, all good so far apart from one thing...

The background, and indeed, all sound in the FE, doesn't seem to work when I change the skin from anything but the default skin!

I've checked and double checked every thing, skin manager, the sound settings, the BkMusic filename (or what ever it is!) and nothing looks amiss!  The skins that I have been trying to use are the excellent set from Youki's own site, the set with the neat Mortal Kombat theme with the movie theme as the background.

Help!  I want the music playing on my cab!   

[gonzobrian]

Erm, all good so far apart from one thing...

The background, and indeed, all sound in the FE, doesn't seem to work when I change the skin from anything but the default skin!

I've checked and double checked every thing, skin manager, the sound settings, the BkMusic filename (or what ever it is!) and nothing looks amiss!

[youki]

No sounds? 

I need more precision. Because i tried and it works for me.

You lost sound when you switch from one configuration to another? (using the "on Fly configuration switch" ?)

- if you spoke about Sounds (not the BkMusic) , it is normal. You have sound specific to a layout or if not global sounds.  If you want your sound are present for all layouts which don't have his own sound , just go in the Nuss_space layout folder and copy all .WAV files you can find in the folder where is Atomic.exe  . And be sure that the "enable sound" checkbox is check in AtomicManager.

- Concerning the BackGround music.  this music is specific to each layout. If a layout have a music you will find a file BkMusic.mp3 in the layout folder.  If the music doesn't play, it is may be you have a problem of Codec.  Try to play the BkMusic.mp3 with windows media player to be sure it plays.

Let me know what layout (and resolution) you use.

I did a test switching from Nuss_space_640x480 to Zarouk7_640x480 (the mortal kombat one) , it works for me.

Let me know.

[youki]

Well could you keep the warnings out of the non pro version?

Of course.

Also, how is the multiconfig creation tool coming along? I love this front end but would really like a way of automatically creating game lists based on a current dat file

I can not say you a Date , but i think a first usable version should arrive this month (end of month).

[RitchieTheBrit]

Hey YOUKI, do you ever sleep!?!?!   

My own fault for not explaining myself in my last post...

The MK theme plays fine in Media Player and MP3Edit.  Everything is as it should be, from what I can see... 

It isnot yet multi-config, I used (nearly) ALL of Zarouk's skins for in a config picker, and although the skins and configs worked fine, still no BG music on ANY of them!  Again, all of the files would play externally, and everything seemed set up correctly.  After this I switched to using a single (atomic.cfg) config, using ZAROUK's MK skin, and still the same problem!  For the record, I'm running the 800x600 version.

As soon as you get a WSIWIG skinner in place I'm gonna' knock some skins up in Cinema4D (me like 3d skins!  ), and I'm waiting with baited breath for the hierachal config util to come out.

AtomicFE is starting to become my choice of FE now, with Kymaera and ArcadEpic running a close joint second, but I am a sucker for seeing someone beavering away at a project!  Expect a little something from PAYPAL in the near future!   

[youki]

Hey YOUKI, do you ever sleep!?!?!   

Yes, but i'm in Europe.. so i don't know where you are but there is jet lag between 6 and 9h! 

Concerning the problem. I almost sure it is a codec problem. I suppose you are using a media player above version 7 ?   I think Api function i use , use the old format.

Can you try to install Codec for media player 6.4 ?  You can find it on microsoft site, or i put the .exe of my site for you here :

http://www.atomicfe.com/divers/wmp6cdcs.exe

Let me know if it  solves your problem.   thanks.

[RitchieTheBrit]

Sure, I'll give that a try when I get home!  As for the time difference, I'm in the UK, mate!  What I meant is that you seem to be dedicating a phenominal amount of time to this project!  Dedication, man!

As my testing machine is actually my workhorse, it should really have all the codecs that I would ever need on it (including a few obscure asian ones!).  I'm actually studying a degree in Multimedia!  But then again, this is XP, and it can do some weird and wonderfull things from time to time!

Take care Y, and as sonn as I get some time tommorrows, I'll look at that file!

[gonzobrian]

- if you spoke about Sounds (not the BkMusic) , it is normal. You have sound specific to a layout or if not global sounds.

[papaschtroumpf]

Somewhere along the line I forgot about what's different about AtomicFE (except for the credit stuff in the Pro version).
Lat time I tried to run it it wasn't working right, although I think Youki has fixed those problems by now.

I'm trying to decide if I want to give it another go or not, can someone remind me of the differences between this and Mamewah? I run SKJukebox (launched from mamewah) so I'm not interested in the jukebox functionnality either at this time.

Thanks

[youki]

There is absolutly no difference between the pro and no pro version of Atomic.  The pro is provided with a special version of mame. But the Front end is the same.

I don' t really know mamewah , i never tested it. so i can not enumerate differences. But here some feature of Atomic.
-Animated layout
-Multilayer layout
-Alpha blending on Layout
-a layout can work in any resolution and any orientation. You can use an Horizontal designed layout on a vertical screen.
-CockTail mode
-Background MP3 music . 
-Configurable sounds.
-2 Multi configuration modes . (Simple and hierachycal)
-FULL Support of ArcadeVGA
-Built in JukeBox
-Built in Video JukeBox
-Can play Video as Snap Shot. (suppose you have the right codec for media player 6.4)
-Totally customizable
-Build in support for Zinc
-Can display Snap, Marquee, Flyer, Cab or on you want on layouts.
-Support JPAC and home made keyboard hack.
-Can work with all command line emulators.
-Easy to configure
-And a almost Real Time Support! (i always try to do my best to solve all problems as soons as possible) , I even add special feature on request.
-more and more... 

[papaschtroumpf]

multilayer/animated/alpha blending is the biggest draw for me.
I might be interested in hierarchical config too.

Mamewah has basically everything else (not sure what the AtomicFE jukebox looks like. you can sort of do a jukebox using mamewah but it's not very friendly for large music collections).

Thanks for your asnwer.

[youki]

The jukebox feature of Atomic is relativly Light.  This part need to be enhanced.
It allows to do a play list and play song.  Combinated with hierachycal multiconfiguation you can do something good. ex : Select an Album and display the CD Snap , enter in it and see all song of the album.  You can do really lot of thing with atomic. It is a very flexible tool, but sometime you need a little bit more configuration and Trick.  I plan to write a set of wizards to help for some "tricky" configuration you could have to do.

One other feature of Atomic is  Screensaver. You have the slideshow of snap , or a slideshow of what you want. But it can run randomly game you have for a duration you set.  And if you enter a credit on the game which has been launched by the screensaver , you will stay on the game. (Atomic won't shutdown the game if you are playing!). I detect credit insertion. This features works on the Normal version , you do not need the pro version for that.

[daywane]

once I found some arcade music in mp3 format (took some time to find)
(Thinks killer clown!) I used wolverine.
I showed it to my wife. She loved it. That is a big complament. She is not much into the arcades, When I told her I was getting into this arcade stuff she said I could do what ever I like , But I had to build a Mspacman 1st. (it was second  I plan on using your front end on the Mspac for good.
well done

[SirPoonga]

I was wondering if you were interested in supporting the controls.dat project in your fe....

[youki]

Could you tell me more about that?  Why not.

[SirPoonga]

http://fe.donkeyfly.com

[youki]

Thanks. I will support that in a very near future version.  it is something i need for my FrontEnd.