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CoinDrop v1.3 Released - Now you can insert coins from your front-end!
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dax:

--- Quote from: SirPoonga on December 29, 2005, 04:03:14 pm ---
--- Quote from: dax on December 29, 2005, 12:53:11 pm ---I think it's sad that you've made the program unavailable.  I see nothing wrong with it.  It's just like Bittorrrent or Napster; you can use it for good or you can use it for evil.  If people violate the licensing terms, they deserve to get censured, but not when there are legit uses for such products.

--- End quote ---
You see, bit torrent is different.  There are tons of legit uses.  Companies and the government are using bit torrent for legit reasons.
This program has no legit use outside of what a home user will use it for.  Also, it really isn't needed.  Like I said earlier, you can just add a credit when you select a new game.

--- End quote ---

I don't want to be argumentative, but... I think the software would be useful and I have no aspiration to exploit it commercially, unless you consider me using my MAME cabinet as a piggy bank and rationing my play with available quarters to be some sort of commercial operation.  I don't think so.  Therefore there's at least one application of the software in a non-commercial environment so it IS legit.


--- Quote from: SirPoonga on December 29, 2005, 04:03:14 pm ---
--- Quote ---Has anybody checked to see if commercial software like "Williams Arcade Classics", "Nameco Museum" and the plethora of other vintage arcade game releases contain MAME code?  I'd bet every single one of them does.  And if so, who would be designated to take action and what kind of action could be taken?

--- End quote ---
They are either remakes or use their own emulation.  Why is it whenever people  see an arcade game on a pc they think there MUST be mame code with it?  Does it ever occur to people that mame isn't the only arcade emulator and since it is a commercial product the company didn't hire someone to make an emulator?
Here's a good example.
http://www.microsoft.com/games/arcade/
This came out before atari was even in mame.  I have it on floppy somewhere.  I was curious once if it had mame code.  I read the read me and it does mention emulation, but obviously it couldn't be mame.
Even when the 1999 Hasboro Atari collection hit the market mame was just adding Atari stuff (and not even .36 final yet).

--- End quote ---

I actually have an original copy of that MS game.  However, I don't recall whether or not MAME was around then or not..

I'm just saying... MAME is an incredible body of work.  Anyone who would be in that business and who would want to develop a commercial emulator would be very tempted to look at the MAME code and probably at the least, learn from it.  I am a software publisher (I received "Editor's Choice" from PC Magazine in 1991 for a program I wrote, so I'm not just a casual coder).  I do not pirate other peoples' code for my own projects, and on the rare occasion where I use third-party code, I get explicit permission to do so, but I come across "commercial" apps almost every day that are ripped off from derivative code of dubious sources, so I know this is rampant in the industry.  I'm just saying, I wouldn't be surprised if some of the emu code that's commercially running can be traced back to some of these OS projects - I wouldn't be surprised a bit... too much advancement has been made, and I don't think many of these big corporations are as reputable and ethical as they once used to be.  Call me cynical, but I'm also a realist.  YMMV.

I just think that it's kind of a double standard to assume the commercial emu code that is released is not exploitive of MAME, and then chastize indy developers who release complimentary code that does not violate the licensing terms, conversely assuming that since the product CAN have the potential to be exploited, it must have no legit purpose.  This doesn't seem consistent to me.
SirPoonga:

--- Quote from: dax on December 29, 2005, 05:59:41 pm ---
--- Quote from: SirPoonga on December 29, 2005, 04:03:14 pm ---
--- Quote from: dax on December 29, 2005, 12:53:11 pm ---I think it's sad that you've made the program unavailable.  I see nothing wrong with it.  It's just like Bittorrrent or Napster; you can use it for good or you can use it for evil.  If people violate the licensing terms, they deserve to get censured, but not when there are legit uses for such products.

--- End quote ---
You see, bit torrent is different.  There are tons of legit uses.  Companies and the government are using bit torrent for legit reasons.
This program has no legit use outside of what a home user will use it for.  Also, it really isn't needed.  Like I said earlier, you can just add a credit when you select a new game.

--- End quote ---

I don't want to be argumentative, but... I think the software would be useful and I have no aspiration to exploit it commercially, unless you consider me using my MAME cabinet as a piggy bank and rationing my play with available quarters to be some sort of commercial operation.  I don't think so.  Therefore there's at least one application of the software in a non-commercial environment so it IS legit.

--- End quote ---
I'm not saying putting quarters into your arcade is commercial.  I'm saying since it doesn't cost you aynthing to push a button for a credit how is a program like this useful?  Couldn't you just add more credits when you switch to a new game?
dax:

--- Quote from: SirPoonga on December 29, 2005, 06:06:03 pm ---
--- Quote from: dax on December 29, 2005, 05:59:41 pm ---
--- Quote from: SirPoonga on December 29, 2005, 04:03:14 pm ---
--- Quote from: dax on December 29, 2005, 12:53:11 pm ---I think it's sad that you've made the program unavailable.  I see nothing wrong with it.  It's just like Bittorrrent or Napster; you can use it for good or you can use it for evil.  If people violate the licensing terms, they deserve to get censured, but not when there are legit uses for such products.

--- End quote ---
You see, bit torrent is different.  There are tons of legit uses.  Companies and the government are using bit torrent for legit reasons.
This program has no legit use outside of what a home user will use it for.  Also, it really isn't needed.  Like I said earlier, you can just add a credit when you select a new game.

--- End quote ---

I don't want to be argumentative, but... I think the software would be useful and I have no aspiration to exploit it commercially, unless you consider me using my MAME cabinet as a piggy bank and rationing my play with available quarters to be some sort of commercial operation.  I don't think so.  Therefore there's at least one application of the software in a non-commercial environment so it IS legit.

--- End quote ---
I'm not saying putting quarters into your arcade is commercial.  I'm saying since it doesn't cost you aynthing to push a button for a credit how is a program like this useful?  Couldn't you just add more credits when you switch to a new game?

--- End quote ---

The problem is.. if you are using quarters then you have to make sure you put the coins in at the right time or else they don't work.  Maybe this software isn't completely fool-proof because it doesn't transfer unused credits back out if you exit a particular game, but I think that would be a neat feature.  Granted, most people wouldn't see a use for it, but I like the idea of regulating my game usage with real money, and it also serves as an incentive to maintain a piggy bank of spare change that, for example, you could use to upgrade your cab or something.

Seriously, I look at my MAME cab as basically a piggy bank with an incentive system.  If I want to play, I cough up cash (most of the time. ha ha)  If people come over, I open the cabinet up, but right now I don't have an easy way to rack up credits without having the coin door open and I'd like to generally leave it closed -- eventually I'll put a credit switch somewhere but I don't have that now, but even if I did, I'd have a toggle inside the cab to turn it on or off, because I like the idea of forcing myself and my family to cough up quarters to play, so they don't necessarily sit there all night playing endlessly with nothing to show for it but blisters.  (And we all know how that is!) 
Crazy Cooter:

--- Quote ---...some of these OS projects
--- End quote ---
MAME is not open source.


--- Quote ---code that does not violate the licensing terms
--- End quote ---
The MAMEdevs have said they do not want to see this kind of app.


--- Quote ---There are a hundred sites that would host the files for FREE without engaging the user in some sort of commercial solicitation.
--- End quote ---
MAME32 is available all over the place for "free" download if you do not want to go through fileplanet (I personally hate fileplanet for reasons similar to yours).


--- Quote from: Necro on December 29, 2005, 02:30:11 am ---If you don't like it, don't use it.  No one's forcing you to use it :)

--- End quote ---
Same could be said about MAME. :angel:

Napsters downfall was because the "bad" far outweighed the "good".  I would like to have this program as well, but the "bad" FAR outweighs the "good".  It lends zero to the goal of the MAME project (I know some disagree with the legitimacy of said goal), and gives more reason AND makes it easier to make a con-cabinet.

I just don't see the sense in offering software where you might get sued for coding it (ala napster).
SirPoonga:

--- Quote from: dax on December 29, 2005, 06:24:15 pm ---The problem is.. if you are using quarters then you have to make sure you put the coins in at the right time or else they don't work.

--- End quote ---
Then you learn quickly when the right time is.  Just like you learn quickly that you need to put the oil plug back in the car BEFORE you put oil in it :)  After a couple of times it will not be a problem.


--- Quote from: Crazy Cooter on December 29, 2005, 06:33:28 pm ---
--- Quote ---...some of these OS projects
--- End quote ---
MAME is not open source.

--- End quote ---
Actually it is.  Here's the source code for you
http://mamedev.com/source.html
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