MAME

[ArcadeNoob]

what does it stand for?  And is it just when a home console is put in an arcade cabinet, and hooked up to work?

[pointdablame]

are you kidding??

http://www.mame.net


read

[ArcadeNoob]

yea, i was reading that over........and was still kind of confused.  are they just downloaded games, then?  sorry, i know these questions are pretty stupid...........but refer to my name   .  no arcade intelligence is present or implied

[pointdablame]

sounds like you don't really know anything about emulation either, so I'll try to give you the short SHORT version.

An emulator is basically a program that tricks a computer into thinking it is a different piece of hardware, like an old arcade machine or a Nintendo/Genesis/whatever.

MAME, or Multiple Arcade Machine Emulator... is an emulator that emulates a LOT of arcade machines.  It only does arcade machines/games.  If you wanted to play Genesis games, you'd need a Genesis emulator.... NES emu for NES games, etc.

It is NOT when you hook a console to an arcade machine, that's just putting a console in a machine heh.  Mame is a computer program.  You download it, and if you have ROM files, you can play old arcade games on your PC.

ROM files are files that contain all the data that was in the original game boards ROM chips.. teh actual chips that made up the game.  People extract the data and turn it into a computer file, more often than not a .zip file, and it is then capable of being played through the MAME emulator.

That's the basics.  You need a ROM file of say.. Pacman.. to play Pacman.  And it will be played through the MAME emulator.  Currently the MAME emulator can play thousands of games if you have the rom files.... practically every arcade machine you can imagine.

Also, do not ask for ROMs here.  Legally, you are only allowed to have ROMs for game boards that you currently own, and are technically supposed to extract the data yourself. 

Yes the files are out there... but we can't tell you where.
Yes people use ROMs for games they don't own... but most won't admit it simply to avoid debates and conflicts

Hope that helps.  Go read up on the front page of arcadecontrols.com and read the FAQs and stickies here.  All this info is out there already, and you'll get a lot less flack if you make this your last question like this hehe   We like to poke harmless fun at n00bs who don't like to search and learn for themselves 

[Thenasty]

pointdablame,
you think he gonna read that ? He did not even read whats on your first LINK (mame.net), I say that because he ask what MAME is. If he did read, he would have know what it stands for.

Either that or you're dealing with a 5 year old

[monkeybomb]

I doubt the sincerity of these questions.  He says he doesn't know any of this, but he wants to start a business selling arcade machines.    How would you even think to make an arcade machine if you don't already know what some of this stuff is?

Are you subzero23 or Dave R Foley or something?  I'm not buying this. 

You've been given links and there is tons of info.  If you are real then make use of what you've been given.  I read this board for 6 months before I posted.  Read the faqs as the board asks that you do.  And if you're really going to do this.  BUY THE BOOK!

[Fat_Trucker]

Are you subzero23 or Dave R Foley or something?  I'm not buying this.

First thing that popped into my head too!.

[pointdablame]

I did it because I've been acused of being mean to n00bs before.  Maybe he'll read it... who knows...