The NEW Build Your Own Arcade Controls
Main => Software Forum => Topic started by: DrewKaree on October 21, 2006, 06:09:34 pm
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Breaking this out of another thread (sorry dot!).
I've stripped out most of the crap that isn't necessary for an XP installation to come up with a smaller install of XP that's useable on older machines.
I HAVE NO IDEA HOW OLD A PROC/SYSTEM THIS WOULD WORK ON
Using some info from that other thread, TinyXP clocks in at 112 megs, 400 megs installed. I've come up with a 90-ish meg .iso, and no idea how large the install is.
Please keep comments about this in this thread, as we're straying from dot's thread, but here's how this started, perhaps you'll like what dot's working on: http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php?topic=59353.0
I DON'T have my LastSession.ini, but I laid this info out elsewhere when trying to come up with suggestions, and I'll simply copy/paste those posts over here. Sorry I can't help you out with that part, gonzo, but you should be able to tell what's what if you download the latest version of nLite.
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From the other thread:
Further looking tells me that the build of TinyXP was done via nLite or at least something very similar (there's several other types of these progs, nLite just seems to be the most doofus-proof).
I can clearly see where even TinyXP can be trimmed. How much it would strip out of the final product, I'm not certain, but I see no need to have the following on a cab setup
MS Paint
Floppy Support
Modem Support
Printer Support
*Toshiba IDE Bus Driver - these are the types of things nLite personalizes
USB Audio Support
Active Directory Service
Task Scheduler
User Account Pictures
SERVICES:
Network Location Awareness (NLA)
Secondary Logon
Wireless Zero Configuration
All of these things I'm pointing to above are for a NON-networked version of XP that's STRICTLY for cab use only. It also doesn't take into account any dependencies that your FrontEnd's may require. nLite allows you to tailor YOUR XP install to YOUR needs, which may or may not include networking capabilities or at least an internet connection. That's for you to decide.
And YES, Howard, I know your feelings on these types of programs. This isn't intended for anyone who feels the need to install XP and keep it current and whatnot. It's to personalize your cab all the way down to the OS you install on it, and isn't meant to serve every need that a full install of XP may. If anyone reading this doesn't like this idea or is excessively worried that by doing this, they won't be able to run X program or Y utility or be able to hook up Z control, then you should have stopped reading by now, or should close this thread at this point. This isn't intended for you.
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For gonzo (and for reference, I used an OEM XP Pro SP1 disc to start with):
First screen I come to: Components
Here's the full list of options. Also, left in display drivers for basic support, but if you have your drivers, remove these to integrate your specific ones yourself. The second pic is what I've left after the removal process
*edit* Save these pics to your drive and open it up to full size.
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The Options screens, both General and Patches
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Tweaks - don't have a clean version of this pic, so you'll see a few of the questions for a "generic" slimmed XP here. Again, save to disc and open on your PC
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Tweaks - Services page.
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TinyXP was made with Nlite. Here's the Last Session.ini I remember trying it with my cabinet but no go. But I forgot what was wrong with it.
[Tasks]
Remove Components
Patches
Tweaks
Options
[Components]
;# Applications #
Accessibility Options
Briefcase
Charmap
ClipBook Viewer
Defragmenter
Games
Internet Games
NT Backup
Pinball
Screensavers
Wordpad
;# Drivers #
Asynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM)
Cameras and Camcorders
Display Adapters
Display Adapters (old)
IBM Thinkpad
InfraRed
ISDN
Logitech WingMan
Modems
MultiFunctional
Portable Audio
Printers
Scanners
SCSI/RAID
Sony Jog Dial
Tape drives
Toshiba DVD decoder card
;# Hardware Support #
ATM Support
Bluetooth Support
Brother Devices
Gravis Digital GamePort
Logical Disk Manager
Multi-port serial adapters
Secure Digital host controller
Smart Cards
Sony Memory Stick
Teletext codec
Video Capture
Windows CE USB Host
Windows Image Acquisition (WIA)
;# Multimedia #
Acm Core Codecs
ActiveX for streaming video
AOL ART Image Format Support
DirectX diagnostic tool
Images and Backgrounds
Intel Indeo codecs
Luna Theme
Media Center
MIDI audio support
Mouse Cursors
Movie Maker
Music Samples
Old CDPlayer and Sound Recorder
Speech Support
Tablet PC
Windows Media Player
Windows Media Player 6.4
Windows Sounds
;# Network #
Active Directory service
Client for Netware Networks
Communication tools
Connection Manager
FrontPage Extensions
Internet Connection Wizard
Internet Information Services (IIS)
IP Conferencing
MAC Bridge
Map Network Drives/Network Places Wizard
MSMail and MAPI
MSN Explorer
Netmeeting
NetShell Cmd-Tool
Network Monitor Driver and Tools
Network Setup Wizard
NWLink IPX/SPX/NetBIOS Protocol
Peer-to-Peer
Synchronization Manager
TAPI Application Support
TCP/IP Version 6
Vector Graphics Rendering (VML)
Web Folders
Windows Messenger
;# Operating System Options #
.NET Framework
16-bit support
Administrative Templates
Administrator VB scripts
Application compatibility patch
Color Schemes
Command-Line tools
Desktop Cleanup Wizard
Disk and Profile Quota
Disk Cleanup
Document Templates
DR Watson
Extra Fonts
FAT to NTFS converter
File and Settings Wizard
File System Filter Manager
Help
Input Method Editor
Logon Notifications
Manual Install and Upgrade
MS Agent
Private Character Editor
Remote Installation Services (RIS)
Save Dump Utility
Search Assistant
Security Center
Service Pack Messages
Shell Media Handler
Task Scheduler
Tour
Web View
;# Services #
Alerter
Application Layer Gateway
Autoupdate
Background Intelligent Transfer (BITS)
Beep Driver
COM+
Distributed Link Tracking Client
Distributed Transaction Coordinator (DTC)
DNS Client
Error Reporting
Event Log
Fax Services
Imapi
Indexing Service
Internet Authentication (IAS)
IPSEC Policy Agent
Management Instrumentation (WMI)
Message Queuing (MSMQ)
Messenger
Network DDE
Network Location Awareness (NLA)
Network Provisioning
Performance Logs and Alerts
QoS RSVP
Quality of Service (QoS)
Remote Registry
Removable Storage
Secondary Logon
Service Advertising Protocol
Shell Services
SNMP
System Event Notification (SENS)
System Monitor
System Restore
TCP/IP NetBIOS Helper
Telnet Server
Terminal Services
Text Services Framework
Volume Shadow Copy
WebClient
Windows Firewall/Internet Connection Sharing (ICS)
Windows Time
Wireless Zero Configuration
;# Directories #
DOCS
SUPPORT
VALUEADD
;# Compatibility #
[KeepFiles]
msconfig.exe
[RemoveFiles]
clock.avi
[Options]
CABRecompress
ClassicSetup
BlackSetupBack
GuestName = ""
AdminName = ""
ProfilesDir = "%SystemDrive%\Documents and Settings"
TargetPath = "WINDOWS"
temp_dir = %USERPROFILE%\Local Settings\Temp
isovol = WinLite
isoatt = -allow-multidot -no-iso-translate -relaxed-filenames -allow-leading-dots -N -l -d -D -joliet-long -duplicates-once -no-emul-boot -b boot.bin -hide boot.bin -hide boot.catalog
[Patches]
TcpIp = 16777215
UsbPoll = 125
DoUxTheme
DoSFC
[Services]
StiSvc,3
AppMgmt,3
AudioSrv,2
CryptSvc,2
HidServ,4
HTTP,3
HTTPFilter,3
IpNat,3
NDProxy,3
Netman,3
PlugPlay,2
ProtectedStorage,2
SamSs,2
SCardSvr,3
TapiSrv,3
UPS,3
xmlprov,3
LanmanWorkstation,2
RasAuto,3
RasMan,3
RemoteAccess,4
IpFilterDriver,3
IpInIp,3
DHCP,2
Browser,2
NetLogon,3
RpcLocator,3
NtLmSsp,3
LanmanServer,2
[Tweaks]
Desktop-Internet Explorer icon-Hide
Desktop-My Computer icon-Show
Desktop-My Documents icon-Hide
Desktop-My Network Places icon-Hide
Desktop-Recycle Bin icon-Show
Explorer-Add 'CMD Shell' to all Drives and Folders
Explorer-Advanced Search: preconfigure options
Explorer-Change Explorer Folder View to: details
Explorer-Classic Control Panel
Explorer-Disable Beep on errors
Explorer-Disable Prefix: Shortcut to
Explorer-Remove Send To on context menu
Explorer-Show all files and folders
Explorer-Show Drive Letters in front of Drive Names
Explorer-Show extensions of known file-types
Explorer-Show Full Path in Address and in Title-Bar
Explorer-Show Statusbar in all windows
Internet Explorer-Disable information bar when popup is blocked
Internet Explorer-Disable Market Place bookmark
Internet Explorer-Disable Media Player 6.4 created bookmarks
Internet Explorer-Disable sound when popup is blocked
Internet Explorer-Enable Google URL-Search
Internet Explorer-Keep IE URL-History for-50 Days (max recommended)
Internet Explorer-Set Homepage-www.google.com
Internet Explorer-Set Internet Explorer to accept 10 connects at a time
My Computer-Add Control Panel to Context Menu
My Computer-Add Device Manager to Context Menu
My Computer-Add Services to Context Menu
My Computer-Add Software to Context Menu
My Computer-Remove Shared Documents
My Computer-Show details in Device Manager
My Computer-Show non-present devices in Device Manager
Network-Disable automatic search for network folders and printers
Network-Disable restoring mapped network drives on logon
Network-Disable Simple File Sharing
Privacy-Clear most recently opened documents list on logoff
Privacy-Disable and Remove Documents List from Start Menu
Privacy-Remove Alexa Spyware
Security-Always show Updates under Software
Security-Disable Screensaver
Security-Disable Web Open With prompt
Speed-Disable Optimize harddisk when idle
Speed-Disable Tracking of Broken Shortcut Links
Speed-Do not cache thumbnails
Speed-Use Windows classic folders / No Tasks Sidepanel
Start Menu-Disable Highlight newly installed programs
Start Menu-Disable popup on first boot
Start Menu-Reduce popup delay
Start Menu-Remove My Music
Start Menu-Remove Search the Internet from Search
Start Menu-Remove Set Program Access and Defaults
Start Menu-Remove 'Windows Catalog' from Start Menu
Taskbar-Disable Balloon Tips
Taskbar-Disable Group similar Taskbar buttons
Taskbar-Disable Hide inactive icons
Visual Effects-Animate windows when minimizing and maximizing-Disable
Visual Effects-Fade effect on menus and tooltips-Disable
Visual Effects-Show shadows under mouse pointer-Enable
Visual Effects-Show translucent selection rectangle-Enable
Visual Effects-Show window contents while dragging-Enable
Visual Effects-Slide open combo boxes-Disable
Visual Effects-Slide taskbar buttons-Disable
Visual Effects-Smooth edges of screen fonts-Enable
Visual Effects-Use common tasks in folders-Disable
[Unattended]
UnattendMode = DefaultHide
ComputerType = Automatic
MaximumDataStorePercentOfDisk = 12
ProgFilesPath = "C:\Program Files"
[GuiRunOnce]
[Drivers]
[Hotfixes]
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For anyone using this... How much of a difference in boot speed/performance do you see vs. a standard copy of XP with the unnecessary Services turned off? Shutting everything off in standard XP, I get into the front end in about 26 seconds w/2ghz P4 with 512 meg of RAM.
I'm only concerned with speed, I don't care about the install size.
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Breaking this out of another thread (sorry dot!).
Thanks guys! I can't believe I didn't get one single flame for that request. You guys rock.
So, do you guys have your cab working with TinyXP/nLite? The funny thing is I was wondering if anyone had done any work to identify the unnecessary components of XP and removed them. I must be living right because you guys showed up and introduced me to something I'd never heard of.
I'm not real concerned about the drive space consumed by the installation, but I *really* hate having a bunch of junk loaded that will never get used.
dot
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For anyone using this... How much of a difference in boot speed/performance do you see vs. a standard copy of XP with the unnecessary Services turned off? Shutting everything off in standard XP, I get into the front end in about 26 seconds w/2ghz P4 with 512 meg of RAM.
I'm only concerned with speed, I don't care about the install size.
I have an HTPC with a slimmER version of XP (left a lot of stuff in there due to program dependencies). I can boot to the "Front End" in 16 seconds. 2200 AMD with 1 gig of ram.
This was done with an earlier version of nLite, and looking through the list, there's more stuff I'd rip out and a few other services I'd remove entirely, so I'm betting I could get it down a few seconds, but not sure how much.
FWIW, this is often done with car-puters, and those guys seem to be ONLY focused on boot time, because they all seem to talk about 300-400 meg .iso's (XP Pro SP2 with Hotfixes thru September come in around 640 megs for comparison). www.mp3.com will have guys telling you about 10 seconds or less for boot times, but I have no idea what they've done to get it to boot that quick. I just know there are other programs like nLite they speak about there to trim XP down, and they're looking to achieve the goal you're referring to.
So, do you guys have your cab working with TinyXP/nLite?
I'm not real concerned about the drive space consumed by the installation, but I *really* hate having a bunch of junk loaded that will never get used.
Got an HTPC and my kid's terminal on my network running an nLite'd version of XP. I ripped out quite a lot on the kid's PC and it runs pretty decent on an old 400mhz beater I had. I was looking at doing this to use another beater to run a jukebox program that was only supported with XP. I've since given up on that jukebox program, but check out nLite (infrequently) to see what's new.
Crap I hate having on there, or prefer to use another program instead:
Briefcase
Calculator
Internet Games
Games
Defragmenter (use a better standalone program if I need it)
NT Backup (use a better standalone)
Paint (Photoshop, if needed)
Wordpad (use Notepad++ instead)
I also prefer to take out as many drivers and hardware support as I can for stuff I won't/don't have, and all the excess keyboard setups and languages I'll never use. Everything else is a personal decision, I think, and you can really tailor this to your needs, wants & desires.
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The 400 mhz pc... by "run decent" do you mean it could handle mame? How much ram did you put in it?
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I stripped out all of the crap from Windows XP by installing Windows 2000 instead :)
It was easy
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I stripped out all of the crap from Windows XP by installing Windows 2000 instead :)
It was easy
Note to anyone who doesn't know... 2k is NOT the same as xp by any means. I would reccomend a crazy tweked version of xp over 2k any day.
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The 400 mhz pc... by "run decent" do you mean it could handle mame? How much ram did you put in it?
That PC was set up for my kids to use for homework and internet access. IIRC, it has 384 megs of ram. The only things it's designed to run are Mozilla and MS Office, and to connect to my network. My kids also use it to rip music to their mp3 players, but that's about it.
I know it ran v0.78 very nicely with the above-mentioned setup before I removed it. My kids play primarily consoles, and I don't allow installation of anything that doesn't relate to schoolwork or basic internet usability on that PC. If I had to guess, I'd say it ran 60% of the games in that version without any problems. I tend to play about 20 particular games no matter what version, and they're older games. No problems with those whatsoever. I could run DOS for those, but I hate dicking around with DOS anymore, so if I can avoid it at all, I do.
I stripped out all of the crap from Windows XP by installing Windows 2000 instead :)
It was easy
There are/were programs to strip crap out of Windows 2000 too. 2000 isn't without its dislikes either, but 2000 still wouldn't be what someone looking to nLite an XP installation would choose. It's simply a different OS that some choose because they're comfortable with it.
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Forgot to add that the Office version on that PC is stripped as well. MSFN is the forum to check out if anyone would like to slipstream Office into their XP install, or any of a number of other programs. Worth your time if you do "part-time tech support" for family members.
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I stripped out all of the crap from Windows XP by installing Windows 2000 instead :)
It was easy
I have 2000 on a second cab I'm building. The PC is up and running, but I haven't got to the point where I'm tweaking the OS on it. Out of the box, XP boots way faster than 2000 so I was thinking 2000 might actually be harder to optimize.
When I did XP, I used that Black Viper tweak guide to Services and disabled everything I didn't need. Figured on doing the same for 2000.
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For anyone using this... How much of a difference in boot speed/performance do you see vs. a standard copy of XP with the unnecessary Services turned off? Shutting everything off in standard XP, I get into the front end in about 26 seconds w/2ghz P4 with 512 meg of RAM.
I'm only concerned with speed, I don't care about the install size.
My XP install in my cab boots faster than my Dos Install.
XP takes 11-12 second to boot to the FE
Dos takes 15 second to boot to the FE! (without CDROM support!!! XP has the CD Rom support)
I just started from a normal XP , and stopped all services i don't need, and few little things , Like manually disable few driver i don't need too.
The machine is a AMD 2000+ with 256mega of ram and a HD of 40giga IDE.
But the machine is dedicated to MAME only. No Internet, No Anti-virus ,No .NET , No other tool or emulator. Except the Front End and Mame.
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Drew:
Is there a program that will strip XP after it's installed?
Jacktucky
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Drew:
Is there a program that will strip XP after it's installed?
Jacktucky
XP Lite, but it's far more harsh to the system. Also, if you accidentally remove something from XP with it, you may not be able to put it back in, which means another format and re-install.
It'll work if you're just trying to strip out useless crap like Paint, Briefcase, Calculator, Themes, etc from your current XP install, and it's a pretty decent solution for someone who wouldn't want to tinker with nLite, it's just not as robust a solution.
nLite is the solution to not even having stuff installed in the first place. XP Lite is the solution to possibly removing some things afterwards.
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Is it conceivable that these barebones OS' can be scaled down to such a degree that they can be flashed to a USB Flash Drive 1Gb< ? A pocket OS....sweeeet.
At any rate, I think DOT's script can be Flashed. That'd be a kewl little tool.
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Is it conceivable that these barebones OS' can be scaled down to such a degree that they can be flashed to a USB Flash Drive 1Gb< ? A pocket OS....sweeeet.
I know for certain that it could be, however, the lifespan of such a beast is questionable, and I'm sure it's not as easy to run as simply sticking in the USB stick and going off on your merry way. It'd also run slower, which is going to pretty much negate any benefit to this method.
Better to stick with Knoppix or some such Linux distro for something like that.
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Is it conceivable that these barebones OS' can be scaled down to such a degree that they can be flashed to a USB Flash Drive 1Gb< ? A pocket OS....sweeeet.
I know for certain that it could be, however, the lifespan of such a beast is questionable, and I'm sure it's not as easy to run as simply sticking in the USB stick and going off on your merry way. It'd also run slower, which is going to pretty much negate any benefit to this method.
Better to stick with Knoppix or some such Linux distro for something like that.
Well what might work is to take xp itself and put it on such a drive but use a tweaking program to move all the writeable stuff (swap space, registry, ect) to a real harddrive. I know that sounds a little silly, but the benefit would be you could adjust the settings on your cab by simply unplugging it and plugging it into your main pc and yet have all your roms and data files on the harddrive.
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This sounds like a perfect Wiki topic... Maybe an addition to what is already there for striping XP...
Hopefully, I'll find some time to play with this type installation.
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Is it conceivable that these barebones OS' can be scaled down to such a degree that they can be flashed to a USB Flash Drive 1Gb< ? A pocket OS....sweeeet.
I know for certain that it could be, however, the lifespan of such a beast is questionable, and I'm sure it's not as easy to run as simply sticking in the USB stick and going off on your merry way. It'd also run slower, which is going to pretty much negate any benefit to this method.
Better to stick with Knoppix or some such Linux distro for something like that.
I second the Knoppis route, as it is easier to install to the pen drive. I'm still toying with the idea of the Knoppis Mame with the 80's roms with a 128mb pendrive. These things go for pennies and I have the whole thing running in system memory.
I tried installing XP with the pendrive, even though I could format for Dos Fat32, with a naked version of XP clocking in a 64mb footprint which is fully functinonal on a CF, but not a pendrive. Something to do with the way the pendrive is formatted.
I think 64mb XP is pushing it. But is cool to think how small you can go. I saw a Win98 install clocking in a 8mb. That's extreme! :o
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Well what might work is to take xp itself and put it on such a drive but use a tweaking program to move all the writeable stuff (swap space, registry, ect) to a real harddrive. I know that sounds a little silly, but the benefit would be you could adjust the settings on your cab by simply unplugging it and plugging it into your main pc and yet have all your roms and data files on the harddrive.
The swap file and registry writings XP does also reduce the lifespan of a USB flash drive. I don't know the amount of life in those things, but there IS a finite life to them, and continually writing/overwriting to them reduces that lifespan. Knoppix will write less and smaller amounts, or even better, can be run fairly quickly from a CD. XP is a bit more limited in that way.
Howard's idea sounds pretty good in that if you've got more than one setup, his suggestion of using the USB drive as a "Settings" saver seems (to me) similar to what dot was laying out in that other thread.
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I don't quite get what "no go" means. Did it install but some piece didn't work, did it not install, did a vital piece not work meaning you stripped out too much....not a lot to go on.
Based on your list, there's a few things that seem like they could have caused a problem but without knowing what the problems you were having are, there's no way to know for sure.
The items to perhaps reconsider stripping:
;# Drivers #
Asynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM)
Display Adapters
Display Adapters (old)
Logitech WingMan
;# Hardware Support #
ATM Support
Gravis Digital GamePort
Logical Disk Manager
;# Multimedia #
Windows Media Player 6.4
;# Operating System Options #
.NET Framework
16-bit support
Application compatibility patch
Command-Line tools
FAT to NTFS converter
Manual Install and Upgrade **easily misunderstood as well
Shell Media Handler
;# Services #
COM+
Distributed Transaction Coordinator (DTC)
Imapi
Message Queuing (MSMQ)
Secondary Logon
Shell Services
[Options]
CABRecompress **This item alone could be the problem, depending on what you're referring to.
Hope that helps you out. I found the last session.ini on my networked disc, but the two discs I have set up for MAME (one for use with USB, gamepad & joystick support, one without) use have no Last Session.ini on them.
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Oh, and use a CD-RW until you've got the disc the way you want it. Test the install with the CD-RW and if all goes well, then burn to CD-R.
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Boy, you guys are a bad influence! After seeing this thread I tried a few versions of TinyXP and liked them...
Especially this one which has no minimum HDD, CPU, or RAM check at install:
link not allowed, Google this exact phrase: (with the quotes)
"Windows TinyXP Professional SP2 Beast Edition Unattended CD" +pirate bay
(it also comes with FireFox installed, joy)
Both TinyXP and Jacked XP authors boast their versions of XP can use as little as 18 MB RAM "when all services are set to manual"
I wonder : Can MAME32 run when "all services are set to manual" ?
If yes, how do I set all services to manual?
Thanks,
Craig
p.s. You can download torrents with a free program called Utorrent
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Boy, you guys are a bad influence! After seeing this thread I tried a few versions of TinyXP and liked them...
Especially this one which has no minimum HDD, CPU, or RAM check at install:
link not allowed, Google this exact phrase: (with the quotes)
"Windows TinyXP Professional SP2 Beast Edition Unattended CD" +pirate bay
(it also comes with FireFox installed, joy)
Both TinyXP and Jacked XP authors boast their versions of XP can use as little as 18 MB RAM "when all services are set to manual"
I wonder : Can MAME32 run when "all services are set to manual" ?
If yes, how do I set all services to manual?
Thanks,
Craig
my guess would be "maybe"
For the install to get that small directx would have to be removed, which newer versions of mame need. Mind you technically you can run mame without directx, it's just very crappy performance wise.
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As far as I know TinyXP "Beast edition" comes with DX9 already installed
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I wonder : Can MAME32 run when "all services are set to manual" ?
If yes, how do I set all services to manual?
Start --> Run --> services.msc --> double-click each service and set startup type to manual.
On one hand, it SHOULD run, since setting 'em to manual still allows the service to run when needed, but I'm guessing Windows has some problems dealing with such a setup, or it becomes a tedious hassle with Windows perhaps having to start several services and slowing down system performance.
TinyXP (and I'm guessing all other iterations of it) was created using nLite, so the customization possibilities are on display with it. Adding other programs as TinyXP does depends on the install routine of each program. Many (IIRC, all of them, but I could be wrong) of the additional programs on TinyXP are programs that do not hook into your PC other than perhaps a few registry keys, and simply can be copied onto the hard drive. Such a feat isn't that hard and is as simple as adding the proper folder structure on your installation disc and perhaps adding an install switch depending on the program, MAYBE you have to write a simple batch file to copy a program folder from the disc to your hard drive in the proper place.
To me, it's about stripping out extraneous crap that doesn't belong on a MAME setup, but I can also see the beauty in a simple install disc that would make all future cab setups or troubleshooting for you something that's as easy as sticking in a disc and restarting the PC :)
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Thanks DrewKaree,
Using 'TinyXp beast' on my virtual PC I was able to set all but RPC to manual, and the settings stayed even after a reboot.
I had mame32 set to automatically launch (via a shortcut in the startup menu) and it worked.
Attached are screenshots, from a fresh boot, with mame32 closed.
It's using 45.3 MB RAM (after minusing task manager)
Tell me what you think.
Cheers,
Craig
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That makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside as I got my system down to 10 processes and 50 MB of RAM on a standard XP SP1 install :applaud:
My bloat is on the file system! I won't be able to compete with you there.
dot
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Hi Dot,
I'm not really familiar with this stuff - but if you like what you see, go ahead and download TinyXP 'beast' and do the following (I had to write it out for a friend of mine, so I'll copy/paste below)
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Now that TinyXP is installed
1. Right click on the desktop, click properties, under "themes tab" select "windows classic", then under "screen saver tab" change monitor off to "1 hour" then click apply, OK, OK
2. Now we are back at the desktop and the ugly wallpaper is gone. Right click the taskbar at the bottom, click properties, click "start menu" tab, select "windows classic start menu" , click OK
3. back at desktop, click start > control panel > system
make a note of the amount of ram, we will call this "actual ram"
click "advanced tab" click "performance setting" change to "adjust for best performance", click apply, click the "advanced tab" under "virtual memory" click "change"
change initial size to X2 of your actual ram, change maximum size to X3 of your actual ram, click "set" then OK OK OK
4. back at the control panel, click tools > folder options > view
UNcheck "hide protected operating system files"
UNcheck "remember each folder's view setting"
click apply > OK
5. Back at control panel, double click "system" click hardware > device manager
This is the device manager, any icons with a yellow exclamation point are devices that need drivers, make a note of the devices and install the drivers
---
(That's probably over-explaining it for anyone who can read this thread, but oh well)
After that, run services.msc, click "startup type", right click each "automatic" service, select "properties", set all to "manual"
Cheers,
Craig
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So does anyone know how to get MAME32 to start 'maximized' ?
If not, I 'spose I could use an FE. What FE uses almost no RAM and displays screen shots?
Thanks,
Craig
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Gamelauncher would be your best bet for that. Assuming you can get it running in xp.... but since gamelauncher runs in dos, that kind of defeats the purpose. :)
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Cool, I found out how to start mame32 maximized with windows:
Place a shortcut to mame32.exe in the startup folder (of course)
right click the shortcut, select properties, and change
"run : normal window" to "run : maximized"
Groovy
Also, mame32 (I tested ver .36) doesn't use too much RAM. While mame32 .36 was open 72mb (out of 128mb) were free. Meaning the OS and FE take only 56mb of RAM!
That means only a 64mb stick of RAM is lost, the rest is all resource for the game.
:)
Cheers,
Craig
-
TinyXP "beast" uses only 45.3mb RAM, but what to compare it to? I did some testing with "Windows 98se retail" for comparative data and below are my findings.
---------------------------------
Windows 98se retail for arcade PC
official minmum specs are: less than pentium 1 cpu, 24 mb RAM, 260 MB HDD
1. my testing shows 98se uses 43mb RAM (out of 128) initial **
2. and 23mb RAM (out of 128) after setting disk cache to 8 mb***
3. and 21.5mb after all startup items were disabled****
Installation used 200mb HDD space ("compact installation" was chosen)
**There is no "task manager" in Windows 98, You can see your free memory with the tool "resource meter" (you must add "show unused physical memory" from the edit menu). You find it by going to: Start -> Programs -> Accessories -> System Tools -> System Monitor. (if you don't see it there you can add it from "add/remove programs > windows setup")
***open c:\windows\system.ini , search for line [vcache] and change it to this:
[vcache]
MinFileCache=8096
MaxFileCache=8096
No point in adding more than 128 RAM in Windows 98:
I was reading about Windows 98 and was surprised to find out it can not take advantage of more than 128 mb RAM (http://tinyurl.com/ylmcny)
**** start > run > msconfig > startup tab (uncheck all)
* make sure to diable auto insert notification in Windows 9X, otherwise Windows will scan for changes in the cd-rom drive every few seconds. To do this open device manager and right click the cd-rom drive > properties > uncheck "auto insert notification"
-
Stability issues:
As we all know, Windows can become very unstable (and bloated) over time - a (professional tech) friend of mine has recommended a program called "Deep freeze"* - apparently, once you set up your arcade PC to your liking you can "deep freeze" it, so everytime you boot the computer it will be exactly as it was when you "froze" it. You can have a folder that is unfrozen (called "thaw space") that you can add files (to which will remain after you reboot)
He states that whenever the computer acts up simple press the reset button and all is well again. The program sells for $25 retail.
*
http://www.faronics.com/html/deepfreeze.asp
-
For comparative data I also tested Windows 95b
official minmum specs are: less than pentium 1 cpu, 8 mb RAM recommended, 70 mb HDD
1. my testing shows 95 uses 30.9mb RAM (out of 128) initial
2. and 21mb RAM (out of 128) after setting disk cache to 8 mb*
Installation used 100mb HDD space ("compact installation" was chosen)
*open c:\windows\system.ini , search for line [vcache] and change it to this:
[vcache]
MinFileCache=8096
MaxFileCache=8096
I've read that 8mb of disk cache is good for FAT32 file system, and 2mb disk cache is good for FAT16 file system (http://tinyurl.com/ylmcny). Windows 95b (aka OSR2) supports FAT32
-
Just FYI, I get this when trying to go to that karbos site:
"FORBIDDEN
You tried to access a document for which you don't have privileges."
;D
-
Thanks, I fixed the link, it's
http://tinyurl.com/ylmcny
-
So, since any of these ('the beast', 98se and 95b) will run on under 50mb of RAM, what's you're final decision? Are you choosing the 'beast' version of XP over the 9Xs? Are there other pros/cons?
Also, have you done a virus (trojan) check on 'the beast'? I read a post where somebody claimed Kapersky indicated a trojan in the install. False alarm or ?????
TinyXP "beast" uses only 45.3mb RAM, but what to compare it to? I did some testing with "Windows 98se retail" for comparative data and below are my findings.
---------------------------------
Windows 98se retail for arcade PC
official minmum specs are: less than pentium 1 cpu, 24 mb RAM, 260 MB HDD
1. my testing shows 98se uses 43mb RAM (out of 128) initial **
2. and 23mb RAM (out of 128) after setting disk cache to 8 mb***
3. and 21.5mb after all startup items were disabled****
-
I'm not a computer guru (not MCSE), but I would guess 98 on an older machine, where 64-128 MB RAM is present. And TinyXP on a newer machine, maybe anything above PIII 500 with 256+ MB RAM.
and anything below those specs can run DSL Linux (it is said to turn a 486DX into a workstation and comes with FireFox!) or DOS.
RAM is dirt cheap these days, read your motherboard's manual to discover the maximum amount of RAM it can take and buy that much RAM from pricewatch.com (or maybe ePay)
I was thinking : Maybe 98 can't make much use of RAM above 128 MB, MAME32 running on Win98 probably can make use of the RAM above 128 because it loads the game ROM into the available RAM before loading the rest into the swap file - right?
Cheers,
Craig
-
Holy cow!
IG-88 just e-mailed me and said he installed TinyXP on a 166mhz Pentium 1 with 64 MB RAM, said it got him online and all drivers were plug and play - that's hilarious! I'm going to dig up a P1 from my basement and try this.
But I've done allot of reading about making old computers into workstations, and DSL Linux was the best solution I've seen so far.
It's unfortunate that Windows CE isn't easy to get and install for this purpose. That would run blistering fast on a 100mhz Pentium with 8 MB RAM and turn $10 laptops into $100 PDAs.
But for MAME : I would recommend DOS on a P1
-
No workstation here ;D I just wanted to see if it would work. I actually got Mame32v36 to run Mr. Do after some frame skipping. It didn't look all that bad!
-
I should also say that I tried DSL on this same computer several weeks ago, and while it worked I wasn't all that thrilled with it. "The Beast" works better in my opinion. And it's a snap to install, just stick the cd in and sit back. It's all unattended.
-
I should also say that I tried DSL on this same computer several weeks ago, and while it worked I wasn't all that thrilled with it. "The Beast" works better in my opinion. And it's a snap to install, just stick the cd in and sit back. It's all unattended.
So, would you say that 'the beast' is actually a viable mame setup for a P1 wigh 64meg? I don't have any idea how intense 'Mr. Do' is, but it'd surprise me if it's a tough game to run. How do other classics (pac man, donkey kong etc) work on that setup?
I have a couple old eMachines which are running Win98se (one with an AMD K6, the other with a Celeron 400MHz) and Mame .55 but if this automated XP installation works, I might go that way.
-
Max out the RAM on those - If TinyXP uses nearly 50 MB RAM you will need more RAM for MAME32 to use. If the said computer had 256 MB RAM (cheap to buy) I bet it would work.
Also consider 95 and 98, they use less than 25 MB RAM
But for a P1 that is a MAME box - DOS is king, using less than 5 MB RAM* it leaves lots of resources for MAME. If your P1 has a soundblaster ISA sound card you can use my DOS boot CD : http://tinyurl.com/sexwm
Cheers,
Craig
*
DOS only uses around 300 KB RAM, the drivers and options loaded should weigh in at less than 5 MB RAM usage total.
-
OK,
I installed TinyXP on a 200 MHZ Pentium with 64 MB RAM and 500 MB HDD.
It actually worked, although much too slowly to be practical.
Very interesting was : after install, I swapped out the 64 MB RAM stick for a 32 MB RAM stick and TinyXP did boot, and showed 7 MB free RAM (out of 32).
I will try installing DSL linux on the same system and discover how to display avilable RAM.
But ofcourse all this testing is only for fun - running MAME on a P1 should be done in DOS. If the command line scares you there is a GUI for DOS that uses only 300 K RAM, here: http://gem.shaneland.co.uk/
Cheers,
Craig
-
Max out the RAM on those - If TinyXP uses nearly 50 MB RAM you will need more RAM for MAME32 to use. If the said computer had 256 MB RAM (cheap to buy) I bet it would work.
Also consider 95 and 98, they use less than 25 MB RAM
Yeah, I'm running 98 now on my emachines with MAME .55, they work fine for the classic verticals I'm running.
I'd run DOS except I don't like the front ends. They just look so.... DOSsy. I was a MameWah guy but after too many struggles I switched to MALA and I'm hooked! I'll probably just stay with 98, but I may try out this XP beast just for grins.
Thanks for all the info. This is a great thread.
-
I have wanted to try these on my 333mhz AMD-K6 machine but I cannot get them to boot up. With the help of Spystyle I could get his boot CD to boot but only after using a WIN98 boot disc to install the CDrom drivers so it would recognise the CD drive. Then the install was riddled with "Invalid Drive Specification" errors, which would render the install useless. This is driving me insane, I also wanted to try the TinyXP but I have no idea what to type in to get that to boot up. I have also tried several different settings in the Bios to boot off the CD etc..no go. PLEASE HELP!
Cheers,
Simon.
-
You shouldn't have to type anything in to get TinyXP to boot as long as you have your computer set to boot from the CD-Rom first in the bios. Also make sure you have the .iso burned onto a cd correctly, I had probs with that earlier until I used that Burn4Free program that SpyStyle talked about. It was the only one that seemed to work for me. If you have both of these things done all you should have to do is pop the cd in and watch.
Or maybe try a different cd-rom drive if you have one. I know some of my real old machines won't read cd-rw's....if you are using one of those discs. It just might be a faulty drive too. :dunno
-
If you can get your PC to boot from floppy but not from CD, boot from the floppy, go to the cd's i386 directory and type netsetup.
I think that will do it
If not see this:
http://www.tech-recipes.com/windows_installation_tips578.html
-
OK, for more comparative data I installed "Damn Small Linux" on a 200mhz Pentium with 32 MB RAM and 500 MB HDD.
I found that it uses 9.4 MB RAM (when set to JWM window manager)
(it looks exactly like the attached pic, only the pic is not mine, it's from the web so the ram usage shown is different)
It looks like it would turn an old PC into a nice workstation, I am unsure how to make it useful for MAME but I would imagine you could install XMAME on it.
Below is the install guide I used
Cheers,
Craig
-------------------------------------------
preparing the hard drive
I booted the DSL CD with boot option dsl 2.
From the command line I typed:
fdisk /dev/hda
(This brings up the Linux version of "Fdisk") I made two partitions hda1 type 82 100Meg for swap and hda2 type 83 for the rest.
Then I typed mkswap /dev/hda1, mkfs.ext2 /dev/hda2, and swapon /dev/hda1
Installing DSL linux to the hard drive
1. Boot the computer from DSL Linux CD, at the prompt press enter
2. Once DSL linux has started and you see the desktop - right click the desktop, choose Apps > Tools > Install to hard drive
3. When asked what partition type hda2, answer yes to start install
4. after install is done it asks if you want to install the boot installer > yes
5. When asked what boot loader press "L" and enter
5. after that it asks if you want to reboot > yes. Remove the DSL Linux CD from the CD-ROM drive
Once booted from hard drive I right clicked the desktop and chose "window manager > switch to JWM"
It changed the desktop to JWM and shows the RAM usage as 9.4 MB (out of 32 MB)
Done :)
----------------------------------------
Here are some advanced instructions to turn the PC into a better workstation :
When it reboots, you have a very simple machine. A few web clients, VI (a crippled Vim), several other apps. Enough for simple computer usage, but not what you'd call a real desktop machine.
The installation does not have a functional apt-get or dpkg. You need those if you want to do anything more than browse the net and get email. To enable them, be sure your Internet connection is working and connected, then right click the desktop, then Apps->Tools->Enable Apt. The computer will take quite a bit of time downloading more stuff.
Installing IceWM
The Fluxbox window manager is nice, but if you're like me you prefer a taskbar and start button. The IceWM window manager is almost as efficient as Fluxbox, and it has a start button, task bar, and network and CPU monitors on the taskbar. Install IceWM as follows:
apt-get install icewm
The computer will download and install IceWM. To enable IceWM, edit the /home/dsl/.xinitrc file. Comment out the line that runs fluxbox, and substitute the following:
# set mouse speed
xset m 5 2
# start xterm by default
xterm &
icewmtray &
# silently check if icewm is in your $PATH and start icewm when found
# or a red colored xterm when not found or execution of icewm fails
which icewm >/dev/null 2>&1 && exec icewm || exec xterm -bg red
The result is a rather hard to see black version of IceWM. You need to change the theme. Do so by creating a .icewm directory under the home directory, and creating a preferences file containing the following:
ShowThemesMenu=1 # 0 / 1
Theme="Nice/default.theme"
-
I got Windows 98se to use only 15.45 MB RAM!
The formula was:
1. set vcache to 2 MB min and max**
2. run msconfig, deselect everything on the startup tab
3. from add/remove programs, deselect all items in 'windows setup'
4. set virtual memory* min and max to 2.5X RAM
5. diable windows sound scheme (from control panel > sounds)
After doing all this MAME32 .36 still ran properly, as did IE
* from Control panel > System > Performance > Virtual memory
Choose "Let me specify..." and set both the min and max to 2.5X your RAM, but not exceeding 500 MB.
Dig it?
Craig
p.s. On a MAME cab the CD-rom isn't used often, so you can save 1 MB RAM by disabling the CD-rom cache. Go to Control panel > System > Performance > File system > CD-Rom
Change the cache size to minimum by moving the slider all the way to the left. And change the "optimise access pattern" to "single speed drive"
Also, the Windows loading logo sux on an arcade cabinet, edit c:\msdos.sys and add this line under options:
Logo=0
Then add these lines to autoexec.bat:
cls
@echo Starting arcade
@echo off
(otherwise it would say "starting windows"
**edit c:\windows\system.ini
find [vcache] change it to:
[vcache]
MinFileCache=2048
MaxFileCache=2048
(this also allows Windows 98 to stably use more than 512 MB RAM, an infamous problem)
-
That is sweet !! :applaud: When doing the initial install did you choose the custom setting? How many of the components did you uncheck? I noticed if I unchecked all of them I had to re-install audio & video stuff later on.
I should also ask, what were the system specs that you were testing this on?
-
That is sweet !! :applaud: When doing the initial install did you choose the custom setting?
I just did a "compact" install
How many of the components did you uncheck? I noticed if I unchecked all of them I had to re-install audio & video stuff later on.
I unchecked everything except the shortcut to launch mame32 at startup. I didn't have any problems running mame32 and IE afterward - but if you do lose sound or video you could re-enable just those things.
I should also ask, what were the system specs that you were testing this on?
This was in MS Virtual PC 2004, so the specs were:
Windows 98se
Intel P4 @ 2.80 GHZ
64 MB RAM
Intel 440BX Chipset
Creative Labs Sound Blaster 16 ISA Plug and Play Sound card
DEC 21140A 10/100 network adapter
S3 Trio 32/64 PCI (with 8 MB Video RAM) Video card
Cheers,
Craig
-
So far so good. I got everything except the virtual memory thing done. Do you change that in the msconfig area? Could you go over that a little more thoroughly for me?
-
I edited my original statement to make it more clear.
-
OK. ;D
2 more questions. Is there a way to stop or change the annoying windows start-up tune?
And, as for the loading logo. I got rid of it. Now can you change the size of the font for our new logo and get rid of the c: prompt below it or is that as good as it gets?
-
As for making the font bigger, maybe something like this?
__________________________________________________________
_______@@@____@@@@@@@@_____@@@_____@@@@@____
______@@@@____@@@@@@@@____@@@@____@@@@@@___
______@@____________@@______@@___@@___@@__@@____
_______@@@_________@@______@@____@@___@@_@@______
_________@@@_______@@_____@@@@@@@___@@@@_______
__________@@@______@@_____@@____@@___@@__@@_____
_______@@@@_______@@_____@@____@@___@@___@@_____
________@@@________@@____@@____@@___@@_____@@____
That could take a while to make so I'll leave it to you :)
As for the startup sound, delete the directory C:\windows\media
I don't have any Windows sounds, I disabled them in control panel > sounds
As for the C:> prompt during startup, add the line "@echo off" (without quotes) to the bottom of autoexec.bat
Cheers,
Craig
-
That looks pretty cool! I'll have to try it.
I was thinking about trying win95b also. What do you think of that O/S?
Another thing. Have you ever messed with Arcade.exe for use as a FE? I can't find it on the web anymore but I probably have it on a disc somewhere. It's ultra small and configurable, tho not supported anymore. Might work great for these low end machines.
-
As for 95b - I'll have to try that. But I would imagine 98se is best - it is the last stage of 9X so it probably has all the bugs worked out.
Do you want to try a windows type GUI for DOS? Check out openGem
http://gem.shaneland.co.uk
It uses only 300K RAM on top of DOS that probably uses less than 5 MB after all drivers and devices are installed.
As for arcade.exe, coincidentally I had arcade.exe on my daughter's cab until I discovered how to start mame32.exe with windows, maximized.
It's not bad, I am unsure how much RAM it uses.
I leave it on there if I want to close out of mame32 and run fastMAME (which is command line). Mame32 (.65 IIR?) didn't play Elevator Action 2 correctly.
It can be downloaded here:
http://www.zophar.net/frontends/files/arcade079.exe
and a bunch of other front ends can be viewed here:
http://www.zophar.net/frontends/mame.html
But I like mame32 very much. It uses little RAM, it is solid - made by the real mame guys, not stitched together by teens. It is super user-friendly and configuarable enough for me, turn off folders and you're left with the game list and a screenshot for the highlighted game - that is simple and good.
Cheers,
Craig
-
In my testing arcade.exe front end uses 26 MB RAM.
-
Are there any screenshots of arcade.exe anywhere?
-
Here are some I took.
I like the first one (screenshot 0) It's blue, it runs fullscreen, you can configure what is shown on the game list, and it shows the selected games's history if history.dat is present. (Mame32 also does that if history.dat is present)
It's easy to set up. Just drop it, fastmame, history.dat (and ofcourse hiscore.dat) in a directory together, rename fastmame.exe to mame.exe, and double click arcade.exe - that's it.
-
Thanks spystyle,
I don't dig that list that's present in each one of those. Oh well.
You mention that it uses 26MB of ram. How does this compare to other FEs being run in Win9x? Are there others in the same ballpark? Others that use less?
-
I could test some by request
-
Thanks spystyle,
I don't dig that list that's present in each one of those. Oh well.
You mention that it uses 26MB of ram. How does this compare to other FEs being run in Win9x? Are there others in the same ballpark? Others that use less?
Yes, I would like to know that too.
How about testing:
Mamewah
Atomic Fe
Mala
Game Launcher
Maximus Arcade
Arcade O/S
Emaxulian
and the ever popular Ultrastyle ;)
Hey Quarterback, I think you can make that list look anyway you want actually.
Craig. I like the idea of a GUI dos but I am afraid that will lead me back to driver issues again and no FE.
How hard is fastMAME to set up?
-
OK, I tested Win95b, I found it uses 10.6 MB RAM (after vcache*, file system**, and startup cop***)
Attached are pics of Win98se vs Win95b. Win98se uses 4 more MB RAM but less CPU cycles. In my testing 98 used 0-5% cpu cycles when idling, 95 used 10-20% cpu cycles while idling.
So, I would recommend 98se over any other 9X
Cheers,
Craig
*vcache min and max were 2048
** "network server" and minimize cd-rom cache
***no "msconfig" in 95, use "startup cop"
-
...
How hard is fastMAME to set up?
FastMame is an optimized version of command line Mame for windows, just install it as you would command line Mame and rename fastmame.exe to mame.exe.
-
OK, I tested Mala -
http://mala.arcadezentrum.com/
It looks great, it was easy to set up, very intutive - I didn't have to read any docs*. It uses about 11 MB RAM.
Requires Mame .85 and beyond, but I bet there is a way to get it to work with older versions (I think it's an XML issue). It also supports command line emulators (which I'm sure would include older versions of Mame).
See attachment, it's nice looking in it's "Blue" layout, and there are many layouts to choose from.
Cheers,
Craig
*I think a "really good" program will be intuitive enough that any semi-knowledgeable computer user can set up and use it without reading any docs. This is one of them. I was very impressed after struggling with some other front ends. Mala is an excellent alternative if you dislike Mame32 (which is also very intuitive)
-
I like that. Looks pretty nice.
I am still trying to understand why my computers won't let me load games using your boot cd.
One thing I have noticed that didn't happen when I got the first one to work was some of the hard drives I've been using have this happen when formatting:
"Trying to recover allocation unit" followed by some numbers.
I am not sure what it means but the format does continue after a while. Could this be the reason why my games aren't showing up after I install them? Maybe these HD's are bad 'eh?
-
You should scan any questionable drives.
Boot from a win98 boot floppy (www.bootdisk.com)
type:
scandisk c: /autofix /surface /nosave
If you see any "red squares" on the graphical representation of your drive that means there are bad spots on the hard drive.
Running scandisk can sometimes "patch" the spots so the drive is still useable (it marks those spots as unusable so programs don't write there) and the "patches" stay present until FDISK is used again - "format" will not delete the "patches"
but as a rule of thumb - drives with many red spots are fragged. A drive that makes weird noises is usually fragged too, like clicking and clunking.
Hard drives are very sensitive, they can't be dropped. Carry and handle them as if they are eggs.
They are also static sensitive, when handling computer parts touch the metal of the PC case or something similar occasionally to discharge the static from your body.*
Cheers,
Craig
*I do it all the time without even thinking about it. The other day a friend of mine was watching me fix a computer and saw that I kept touching the PC case - he asked me if I had a compulsive disorder :)
-
OK. I will try that and let you know what they do.
-
Tried it. All I get is the "NTLDR is missing" error. Shouldn't that be on the Boot Disk?
-
That's funky...
Try this boot disk:
http://ephemeral-designs.com/downloads/boot98c.exe
and make sure your computer is set to boot from floppy drive.
If all your floppys are fragged, you can use Nero to make a boot CD from floppy image - I can e-mail you the floppy image.
Cheers,
Craig
-
While you were replying I tried this
http://www.onecomputerguy.com/install/floppies.htm#standalone
and got it to work. I am now at the A: prompt. I'll try the scandisk thing and get back after a while.
-
In my testing arcade.exe front end uses 26 MB RAM.
OK, I tested Mala -
It uses about 11 MB RAM.
That's great news! I started playing with Mala a month or so ago after getting too frustrated with MameWah. I think Mala looks great and, as you said, I got it set up quickly and easily.
Requires Mame .85 and beyond, but I bet there is a way to get it to work with older versions (I think it's an XML issue).
I set it up with Mame .55 and I know I did something tricky to do it.... I think I just pointed it at a newer version of mame or something. Let me see if I have any notes. This is what I said I did:
I downloaded a mame.exe executable from v 1.09 which DOES allow creation of the mame.xml file.
Then I deleted the 1.09 mame.exe and moved the new mame.xml file to the mame.55 directory.
Right-clicking in the MaLa window brings up a pop-up menu where you can select ‘options’ and get everything working correctly.
- I went to the “options” page, checked off the box about only listing available roms and then clicked “OK”. NOW it asked me if I wanted to refresh my game list (which is empty) and I said yes.
Don't know if that makes sense, but that's how I must have gotten it working.
-
Groovy!
In other words, get an XML file from MAME 85 or beyond and you're in business. It makes sense because the XML file is a game list, and a newer version XML would encompass the games supported by older version of Mame.
Good job :)
-
Good job :)
When I first started working with MameWah I decided that I needed to make notes about what goes where and which ini file I needed to change and all that. So I started making a personal 'installation log' of everything I did. It was good because between the OS, mame, MameWah and specific drivers (USB etc) I hated having to re-invent the wheel. And since setting each of these things up was a once-a-year kind of thing, there was no way that I could remember what worked the first time.
Even as I copied/pasted that info about how I got .55 working, I was reading it and thinking "What the heck was I talking about?", but usually my shorthand notes make sense enough to me when I start from scratch and it saves me hours of Googling info on setting up everything.
Glad I could add something to this thread, even it it's minor. I think what you've got going on here is great! :cheers:
-
Cool, I have a heap of notes too - I can't be expected to remember things!
-
"Windows TinyXP Professional SP2 Beast Edition Unattended CD" +pirate bay
(it also comes with FireFox installed, joy)
Thanks,
Craig
I downloded this TinyXp and created the CD for it. I grab myself one of my 20GB HD and try to install it FRESH. I have been thinking into going into XP w/MAME so, I wanted to give this a try.
Well this TINY does not even install.
This is whats done:
1. Created a partition on my 20GB
2. Formated it to NTFS
3. Then it copied wahtever it copies into the HD
4. SYSTEM REBOOTS
This is when this comes up after the Windows LOGO shows up:
" ERROR:
Installation failed: D:\I386\ASMS: Error mesages: Incorrect function
Fatal Erro:
One of the component that windows needs to continue setup could not be installed
Incorrect function: "
I tried 3 times with same error:
This is the TINYXP Beat Edition 666 Pirate Bay.
-
I'm gonna try the older FINAL version
Windows TinyXP (FINAL)[112Mb ISO](eXPerience)[18.11.05]
Anyone use this version ?
Also, I saw a TinyXP Vista Version. Anyone use this?
-
I have used TinyXP Beast sucessfully many times, it's great but lacks printer support - so "no go" for a home rig.
I have used "TinyXP rev 02" a few times, it's great for a home rig.
There is a trick with the naming, "final" is not the last one released. It goes in this order:
TinyXP final
TinyXP rev 01
TinyXP rev 02
TinyXP rev 03
TinyXP rev 04
TinyXP rev 05
I like Win2K and "TinyXP rev 02", both with "bashrat driver packs*" for home rigs. The driver packs installs almost all drivers, in most cases all. So after you install the OS you are done (no driver hunting) it's sweet.
Cheers,
Craig
*
http://www.driverpacks.net/
-
Just finish Dling the FINAL and also the rev 5.
Which one should I burn ? I don't want to make 2 bootable cd's.
Should I stick with rev5 ?
I just want to run MAME with fast boot to FE. Also want to use in a JUKEBOX too (next project).
-
I like "98se optimized" or "TinyXP Beast" for cabs and "98se optimized", Win2K or "TinyXP rev 02" for home rigs
You could fire the ISOs up in "Microsoft Virtual PC*"
I've tested about 25 different OS that way, it's much quicker than burning to CD then installing on a PII.
Cheers,
Craig
*
http://tinyurl.com/6utmu
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I downloded this TinyXp and created the CD for it. I grab myself one of my 20GB HD and try to install it FRESH. I have been thinking into going into XP w/MAME so, I wanted to give this a try.
Well this TINY does not even install.
This is whats done:
1. Created a partition on my 20GB
2. Formated it to NTFS
3. Then it copied wahtever it copies into the HD
4. SYSTEM REBOOTS
This is when this comes up after the Windows LOGO shows up:
" ERROR:
Installation failed: D:\I386\ASMS: Error mesages: Incorrect function
Fatal Erro:
One of the component that windows needs to continue setup could not be installed
Incorrect function: "
I tried 3 times with same error:
This is the TINYXP Beat Edition 666 Pirate Bay.
Ok I finally got the answer to this mystery. After I dloaded the other versions and tried, I still had the same problem.
The answer to it was:
IT WAS LOOKING FOR THE ORIGINAL XP and the i386\asms is not on the the TINYXP cd. YOu have to use the original for the installation to continue.
*** EDIT *** There is a folder I386\asms on the ISO/Burned CD.
/eof (EDIT)
I did not see any info about this anywhere, hence no one here knew about it. They probably had the original on the second cd drive during install.
Now, how do we get this to boot on 10sec ? I'm getting 20sec with 14/15 processes.
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I don't know what you're doing wrong, but it's all wrong. I have installed it repeatedly and only used one disk.
Send me an e-mail and we can compare disks.
Cheers,
Craig
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E-mail sent:
Here is the CRC on the ISO File
BEAST 666 ISO ( 145860 Size ) CRC f7a42fe4
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Mine reads:
; SlavaSoft Optimizing Checksum Utility - fsum 2.51 <www.slavasoft.com>
;
; Generated on 01/14/07 at 21:06:28
;
7ae08a8a65c958c89623da8fbdebb63ffb171938 ?SHA1*TinyXP_Beast_Edition.iso
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MIne
This is with -sha512 parameter
; SlavaSoft Optimizing Checksum Utility - fsum 2.51 <www.slavasoft.com>
;
; Generated on 01/14/07 at 21:20:46
;
beaaba0261194c0b2e4babb76baf0c3754304e90b3e46afc32c66935ceb18ec25141334df6a306f431a79f484ca3be82d1dff23dba48e7f79da6f19
This is just fsum FILENAME
; SlavaSoft Optimizing Checksum Utility - fsum 2.51 <www.slavasoft.com>
;
; Generated on 01/14/07 at 21:25:29
;
8f76cdb6f6aa75f262fadc79b5ed5f7c *TinyXP_Beast_Edition.iso
This is with -sha1 parameter
; SlavaSoft Optimizing Checksum Utility - fsum 2.51 <www.slavasoft.com>
;
; Generated on 01/14/07 at 21:36:30
;
7ae08a8a65c958c89623da8fbdebb63ffb171938 ?SHA1*TinyXP_Beast_Edition.iso
YOu think Burning w/NERO ultra was the culprit ?
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Ok, it looks like NERO was the culprit. I got Alcohol and I started drinking and BURN into a CD and everything works.
So if anyone want to burn TINXP BEAST EDITION, I suggest you use Alcohol 120%.
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Got a question:
I installed this on my 20GB partition it to be only 10GB and TinyXP after install used 1.9GB of space.
I also installed it a laptop w/5GB HD and it tooks only 650MB of space.
Any tips on Optimizing it to bbot faster ? I have done what I read here on the first first I believe and had eveything set to manual except 1.
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I installed TinyXP this weekend and it worked great. I was having lots of trouble getting my emachine recovery disc to work on my new hard drive. The install was quick and after downloading the motherboard drivers it has never been faster. I did have to get a copy of WMP.dll installed so I could rip cds for SK Jukebox. But that should be expected as windows media player was not installedwith TinyXP.
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What version of TinyXP did you use and on what system specs??
Does it load up quickly?
Cheers,
Simon.
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Question regarding keyboards in TinyXP Beast. Seems like it was done with a British English keyboard.
Fixed: Seems like you go to Regional Settings pick Languages and then Details. I deleted the British English KB and it defaulted to the US English KB on reboot. You can toggle but with the keys shown but would rather have only a single KB type.
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That got me for a while also. Some of my keys are still screwed up tho. The backslash is a #, the number sign is a £, and the 'at' sign and the double quotation marks are switched around. Weird. :dunno
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TinyXP is from United Kingdom, so if you are in USA do this:
1. Open "Control Panel"
2. Open "Regional & Language Options"
3. Select the "Languages" Tab
4. Click "Details"
5. Click "ADD" button within "Installed Services"
6. Choose: 'Language - ENGLISH (UNITED STATES)' & 'Keyboard Layout: UNITED STATES - Dvorak'
7. Remove the "English (UK)" item (or any others you dont want)
8. Reboot
9. Smile
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I loaded Tiny XP Beast Edition on one of my PC's, it seems to work great. One problem I found was when I tried playing House of The Dead (HOTD 1 not 2 or 3). when I start the game all I get is a black screen and nothing happens... If I hit the spacebar it returns to the desktop. Not sure why House of the Dead won't run??? Maybe something it needs to run is removed from this version of XP??? Anyone have any ideas? :dunno Thanks.
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It truly is a stripped version of XP, if the exact same software combination works on any other operating system then Tiny must be missing something critical to it.
The only way to test it is with 2 different operating systems, if the error comes up on 98se (for example) it's the software, if it doesn't it's the OS.
Cheers,
Craig
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Thanks for the reply. I do believe it is the stripped down version missing something... using the same PC with full version of XP seems to run the game (HOTD) just fine. Was hoping someone might know what to reinstall to TinyXP to get this working. I guess I'll try making a stripped down version of XP using NLite and see what I come up with...
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On my first cab, I got the XP boot time from a minute & 15 seconds down to 35 seconds. Somewhere in this forum was a link to a site (sorry, don't remember where) that gave a bunch of tips on speeding up the XP boot. No special code to load, just a bunch of settings to turn off and/or tweek. No driver problems at all. Search here for boot, speed, system.ini, etc. You may also find it faster searching Google. Good luck.
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@ TheNasty
If your hardware supports hibernation (the sort of completely powered-off version of system standby) You may be able to power it off and on a few seconds faster than completely rebooting every time. You should only have to reboot when you are making changes to the system. The time it takes to resume from hibernation depends on the amount of data you have in RAM, because without tweaks, most all of the RAM is written to the hard disk before you power down... and reloaded from the hard disk to the ram when you power up.
BTW, most ACPI 1.1 compliant computers can be configured in windows to hibernate when you press the power button instead of turning off.
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I just tried using Nlite to remove some of the excess for my MAME computer (during initial install), but I get an error when trying to install the VIA hyperionpro 5.10A drivers on the Win XP Pro system (after nlite's package is all installed). It comes up with an error dialog box that says "Sorry, some importand files of this package are missed. Please download the package again to contact with the service provider. Please press OK to terminate the setup wizard." (the spelling/grammer errors are theirs, not my typing). Then once you click OK, another dialog box comes up that is titled "Feature transfer error" and reads "Error: -1603 Fatal error during installation. Consult Windows Installer Help (Msi.chm) or MSDN for more information."
I went through and disabled things in the nlite options (almost the same as the options listed by drewkaree, but perhaps some different here and there...) I have an above average knowledge of windows administration and I was fairly aggressive with the services disabling, but I checked each one against Black Vipers description and started/disabled each accordingly. I have since tried restarting several ones and re-running the via hyperion setup program, but it still comes up with that error. Anyone know what I need to turn on/reinstall to get this to work?
I got my ArcadeVGA drivers installed fine before I tried installing these via drivers (probably should have installed the via drivers first...)
Thanks,
Rick
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As a footnote, I started the windows installer service and still got this error. I also downloaded the most recent version of the hyperionpro drivers and still got the error.
Thanks,
Rick
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You would be better served posting this in nLite's forums. The limited number of people doing this here as well as the possibility/probability of someone not having the same hardware or experience is most likely going to result in a less-than-satisfactory answer to a very specific problem.
If I had to give a non-educated guess, you removed something (or compressed cab files) that your driver you're having issues with require unfettered access to. There's also an issue that I can't remember what caused it, and it has to do with removing/not installing some component of Windows that "breaks" .msi types of installers. Again, this is a non-educated guess.
Good luck!
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Yeah, their forums would be the best bet (didn't think of that... or even realize they had forums). I thought that maybe someone here might have had the same experience, as these are chipset drivers that all VIA chipset boards should have installed. But, like you said, maybe I am overestimating the number of people here trying this...
FWIW and hopefully others benefit, this has been with XP Pro and SP1 all along. No network stuff at all. I have since created another nlited install with more things activated, more services running, and with anything that seemed like it might be the cause, but it still gave the error. I then tried a non-nlited (normal) XP gold (AKA SP0). It didn't cause that error. I am now in the process of trying a slipstreamed XP with SP1 with nothing else at all modified. We'll see....
If I get this figured out, I'll post the solution here.
Thanks,
Rick
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Is there any benefit to adding any updates or service packs to XP?
I would blindly assume that all those service packs and updates are to help their crappy web browser and other things we MAMErs don't use on our cabs.
Have you tried the different versions of TinyXP? They may suit you with much less work.
Cheers,
Craig
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The main benefit of SP1 is support for HD's larger than 137 GB. Also, my mobo sound drivers require SP1. But no SPs should be fine for most cab setups if your HD is small enough.
SP1 doesn't seem to add much to the boot time, but SP2 does. Avoid SP2 if you want a quick (as possible) boot time.
WIP - slipstreamed SP1 with nothing deleted works fine. Trying another progressively less aggressive nlited install now...
I haven't tried tinyxp. I briefly looked into it, and it appeared that it was possibly legally sketchy or found at sketchy places. Plus, I wanted a bit more control over the process, so I tried nlite first (and here I am). At this point, I want to know why/what the cause of this is. Can't... let... it... beat... me...
Rick
Rick
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FWIW and hopefully others benefit, this has been with XP Pro and SP1 all along.
Look around on their forums for the .msi installer issue. That's what's ringing in my mind. I can't recall if it was a service or checkbox in the slipstreaming process that was at issue, or if it was "fixed" by slipstreaming SP2.
If you need it, I've got SP2 somewhere (but I dunno if it's too dang big to e-mail ya).
Is there any benefit to adding any updates or service packs to XP?
I would blindly assume that all those service packs and updates are to help their crappy web browser and other things we MAMErs don't use on our cabs.
Security fixes. Not all their security flaws are related to the browser (just the vast majority). If someone isn't hooking their cab up to a network (or the 'net), then it isn't as big a deal, but they also include fixes for installation issues once in a while too. IIRC, if you find Ryan's update packs site, it lays out what each hotfix and service patch addresses.
*edit*
nLite also gives you the flexibility to slipstream ONLY the hotfixes and patches you wish, so you don't have to add in crap you don't want/need
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I got it to work finally. I did notice the fix for the MSI installer registry permission thing. I was using nlite v1.3 beta and this msi issue was corrected in 1.3 RC2. This had me wondering so I downloaded the latest non-beta version (1.3.5) and used that. So perhaps this was the issue all along...
BUT I also went with a bit less aggressive deletion. Added in a few more of the red things that I wasn't 100% sure wouldn't be used. And a few other tweaks. So I can't narrow down the problem between nlite version and my component removals...
I am going to go back and try re-removing some of those things I added back and see what happens...
I have SP2, but I don't want to use it. I am not connecting to any network whatsoever, so security issues are not of a concern. Also, I've observed win installs before that after installing SP2, the boot time increases ~10sec. (before you brought nlite to my attention (thanks BTW) I would install gold, then one of the first things install the SP2.) Using SP2 seems counterproductive in this case as it adds a lot of unnecessary bloat and boot time. Thanks for the offer, though.
Rick
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I've never heard anything good about SP2
It's probably got allot that causes XP to crash and bloat - that keeps everyone rich you know. It also rolls out the red carpet for Vista.
I use "2K SP4" on my PC and optimized 98se on my cabs (also DOS*)
But I could possibly be persuaded to use TinyXP...
Cheers,
Craig
*
http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php?topic=58809.0
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I went back and tried my older 'non-working' version with the newer version of nlite, and it was still a no-go. I think that perhaps my issue had something to do with user permissions. There was something about this on the web regarding the error code I got. Also, FWIW- I got this error just as 'scanning your hardware' dialog poped up. I can't say exactly what it was, as I made several changes...
I got it all installed, chipset drivers, sound card drivers, video drivers. Made a few tweaks, defrag and I'm done. It's weird, I feel like I should have so much more to do to get this done. I'm not even going to bother to image it - this way isn't much more work. (and I've never had to use an image yet) I'm used to installing windows and tweaking everything out, gpedit.msc, updating, ghost, etc. Most of my tweaks were made ahead of time... nLite from now on!
Now on to FE's and such....
Rick
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I have a 2.0ghz P4, 256mb Ram and and a 20gb HDD and have just installed Tiny XP "Beast Edition". I am very happy with the performance of the PC and now with Mala installed and a complete set of Mame v.106 I am ready to go. I have also used bootskin and TweakUI for a few things and the PC boots up to Mala in 30 seconds.....thats not too bad I guess. Any ideas on squeezing it a bit more??
Cheers,
Simon.
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...Any ideas on squeezing it a bit more??
The easiest way is to do what I do : turn the cab (or PC) on then walk away and fix a coffee, when you return it will be ready.
People are always asking about boot times, I get the idea that many people watch the cab (or PC) boot with their breath held. That's a bad idea!
But it got me thinking, so I started Googling "embedded OS" and found this:
http://tinyurl.com/yrfqnu
"MinLogon" is the answer
"WinLogon" is what takes so long to boot
I wonder if someone could use Nlite to replace Winlogon with Minlogon or perhaps hack "XPe" (XP embedded)
Cheers,
Craig
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...Any ideas on squeezing it a bit more??
The easiest way is to do what I do : turn the cab (or PC) on then walk away and fix a coffee, when you return it will be ready.
You are right Craig, 30 seconds is pretty good and I am pretty happy with that.....but all this talk of stripping stuff out to make things faster just gets me carried away! My arcade cab with an Exerion PCB in it probably takes longer to boot up!
Cheers,
Simon.
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...Any ideas on squeezing it a bit more??
The easiest way is to do what I do : turn the cab (or PC) on then walk away and fix a coffee, when you return it will be ready.
People are always asking about boot times, I get the idea that many people watch the cab (or PC) boot with their breath held. That's a bad idea!
But it got me thinking, so I started Googling "embedded OS" and found this:
http://tinyurl.com/yrfqnu
"MinLogon" is the answer
"WinLogon" is what takes so long to boot
I wonder if someone could use Nlite to replace Winlogon with Minlogon or perhaps hack "XPe" (XP embedded)
Cheers,
Craig
Craig, take a gander at this to see if there's something you can use:
http://osf1.gmu.edu/~sfiorito/eXPinstall.htm
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DrewKaree,
That's exactly what I was talking about... creepy!
I will make .bat and .reg files to automate that and put them up here as a downloadable zip.
Cheers,
Craig
By the way - someone should make an XPe that only has the components needed by mame32, mame, and a few front ends like Mala ect. Here are a bunch of video tutorials for the technically gifted:
http://msdn2.microsoft.com/en-us/embedded/aa731297.aspx
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OK, the file is ready.
The 2 MB file is here:
http://tinyurl.com/2r3x2o
I haven't tested the file yet but I plan on it, apparently you can embed regular or Nlite'd XP. I will try to embed TinyXP with these files.
The package is completely self contained, with all files needed from the XPe trial and instructions. Also alternate instructions, boot floppy and boot CD image. If you can read - you can embed XP.
(assuming everything is working)
-----------------------------------------
The instructions talk about running embedded XP off of a CF card. I have done some speed testing with "thumb drives" against regular hard drives and let me tell you - hard drives are much much faster.
If you happen to be running an old P2 or P3 with an Intel mainboard try installing "Intel application accelerator" - for Intel boards it can speed up hard drive access times by 300%
So, if you are crying about XP boot time, and boot your cab (or PC) with your breath held - stay far far away from thumbdrives and CF media.
-----------------------------------------
Also, if you want to test different operating systems with building a bunch of computers, you can test them virtually on your PC with Microsoft Virtual PC 2004, it's free:
http://tinyurl.com/2jr7a7
I use it all the time.
If you need to find of operating systems to test, like TinyXP, Google up 'utorrent' and '---No torrents please - thanks!---' (separately)
Cheers,
Craig
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The instructions talk about running embedded XP off of a CF card. I have done some speed testing with "thumb drives" against regular hard drives and let me tell you - hard drives are much much faster.
Yeah, that link I gave was for running a Car PC, where hard drives would be subject to FAR more abuse and would tend to shorten the life of the drive, whereas the CF card, having no moving parts, would/could easily justify its use, especially since the boot time is less important than hardware durability in a car PC.
I dunno why it struck me all of a sudden, but on a second read-through of your post it dawned on me that I had read something about that in the past and needed to sift through my bookmarks.
MAMEOS - the next frontier ;D
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Truly, for a car PC "thumb drives" are excellent. But for MAME cabinets I think a conventional HDD is the best way to go (inexpensive and fast).
Happy gaming :)
Craig
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I have a 2.0ghz P4, 256mb Ram and and a 20gb HDD and have just installed Tiny XP "Beast Edition". I am very happy with the performance of the PC and now with Mala installed and a complete set of Mame v.106 I am ready to go. I have also used bootskin and TweakUI for a few things and the PC boots up to Mala in 30 seconds.....that's not too bad I guess. Any ideas on squeezing it a bit more??
Cheers,
Simon.
Hey Simon,
You've got it to 30 seconds and would like to squeeze it a little more huh?
Try just swapping Winlogon with Minlogon and tell me if it makes a difference, use the attached file (readme included).
Cheers,
Craig
--------------
everyone : the attached file should make any XP installation boot faster, give it a go on a "non critical" PC and tell me what you think.
This is just the first part of the embedding procedure seen above, but only takes a minute. It's said to increase boot speed because Winlogon performs so many tasks and Minlogon just boots as a user named "system".
If you are going to make modifications to your home PC always make backups of your irreplaceable data onto good quality DVD-r first.
On the topic of backups, make monthly backups! Hard drives are not considered a reliable means of permanent data storage. Some day you will thank me for this tip.
p.s. This file didn't work for me on a modified Win2K, I think it's not 2K compatible.
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Hey! I am about to install TinyXP on a friend's computer so I will test out that "Minlogon" on it. (I had previously only tested it in VirtualPC)
So I am installing Tiny and I decided to check and see which version is the most recent, here are my findings:
(This is also handy to illustrate that "Final" is actually first and "Rev05" is last)
--------------------------------
eXPerience "TinyXP" release dates:
Build, day, month, year
Final 18.11.2005
Rev01 01.01.2006
Rev02 28.01.2006
Rev03 30.03.2006
Beast 06.06.2006
Rev05 06.08.2006
TinyXP Platinum Edition 2 - 17.06.07
MicroXP v0.6b - 04.07.07
TinyXP Vista Edition - 30.07.2006
XP Ultimate Edition - 02.10.2006
Mini-XP SP2 Unattended - 14.11.2005
Tiny XP SP2 Unattended - 16.11.2005
TinyXP "FINAL" - 18.11.05
TinyXP Platinum Edition - 27.12.05
--------------------------------
The author recently released a version called "MicoXP". It was released a year after "TinyXP". I've read about it and it looks unsuitable for the average home PC (I would use "Beast" with "Bashrat's driver packs") but very suitable for a MAME PC. You can read about it via this Google link:
http://tinyurl.com/23982u
-------------------------------
On the topic of torrent clinets : Utorrent, the best client, has been bought by the MPAA!!! Version 1.6.1 was the last "safe" version, so uninstall any newer versions, install 1.6.1, go to "preferences" and disable updating. (I also make "Utorrent.exe" read-only hoping it won't update itself)
Cheers,
Craig
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OK, I did the "startup times" test. I did not have a stop watch so I used an analogue clock (with a "seconds" hand)
OS : TinyXP "Beast" (fresh install)
24 seconds - from the moment I pressed the computer's power button from the time that the "hourglass" dissapears from the desktop.
17 seconds after "minlogon" trick.
Well, that's that. "Beast" is already really fast, but I suspect this could help a regular XP install allot.
Cheers,
Craig
p.s. You know - running MSconfig and disabling everything on the startup tab can help speed up Windows boot too. All the programs that start with Windows (usually unncessarily) really slow things down.
To run MSconfig, click >start > run, and type "msconfig" (without quotes) then go to "startup tab". You can disable everything, though I would leave "antivirus stuff" alone if the PC is connected to the internet.
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Hey! I just found out that Micro$oft made a "TinyXP" of their own! It's called "Windows fundamentals for legacy PCs" aka "Windows FLP"
Read about it here:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Windows_Fundamentals_for_Legacy_PCs
Apparently it's made for corporations who want to upgrade from "Windows 98" but can't afford to update their hardware. It could be thought of as "Windows XP for old computers". But how does it compare to "TinyXP Beast"?
I benchmarked them against each other on a P4 2.8 ghz Dell server. They scored almost exactly the same using "performance test" benchmarking software. (250 points for Beast and 248 points for WinFLP)
Windows FLP is not compatible with Bashrat's driverpacks, so you'll have to hunt down drivers (bummer). Also, when you first install it you have to mess with the user accounts (change administrator's password to blank) and disable Windows security alerts:
start > run > services.msc > Security Center... doubleclick... Startup type: "Disabled"
Also change the "virtual memory" to (1.5X actual RAM) min, and (3x actual RAM) max.
Lastly, it is missing "MSconfig.exe" so you'll have to download it off the 'net and drop it into the "windows" folder. (then you can type msconfig into the run box and edit what starts with windows)
All of the above is already done on "Beast"
But it's interesting anyway, M$ releases it's own TinyXP! I think it's in keeping with the theme of this thread. Most interesting to me is the fact that you can choose to not install Internet Explorer! I never would have thought that M$ would let that go!
Cheers,
Craig
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But 576mb! That's one big iso.
-
The one I got was from Demoniod weighed in at 679 MB
I'm sure all but 200 MB can be stripped, but that's not my area of expertise.
Anyway, download it overnight using DSL and it's no big deal.
I still think "Beast" with driverpacks is the best OS. But for "mission critical" PC I would stick to "2K SP4" (with driverpacks also) not as fast, but think of it like a tank. Tanks die hard.
(http://www.gizmology.net/images/tank11.jpg)
Yet for an arcade computer strip that OS to the bone! eXPerience can do it! See all his stuff here: iffy link removed
I've read on eXPerience's forum* that his version of 2003 is so blazing fast. It's kernal is one newer than "Windows XP" and apparently "2003 server" sells for $3000. I didn't see a big difference in benchmarks but they say everything loads much faster. If you are into testing stuff - see if you get higher MAME framerates with it. You can read about it here:
http://tinyurl.com/2zpkf6
By the way, if you haven't checked out driverpacks yet they are a dream come true. You set up a directory containing all of the drivers on the planet, copy your Windows CD to the hard drive (or unzip your ISO) then inject all the drivers into it. The new CD has every driver on Earth! This makes hunting for drivers a thing of the past (I won't miss that!) ask any tech - hunting for drivers is the misery of our existence. (Also AOL)
http://driverpacks.net/
Cheers,
Craig
*
http://www.retestrak.nl/board/index.php
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I've made a few versions with Nlite. My latest one didn't turn out too bad. You can try it if you want if you have Nlite installed. I posted my Last Session.ini I've deleted many services and disabled others. Let me know how it turns out. It's for Emulators only no printer, no networking. Well you get the idea. :laugh:
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Hey! I just found out that Micro$oft made a "TinyXP" of their own! It's called "Windows fundamentals for legacy PCs" aka "Windows FLP"
Read about it here:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Windows_Fundamentals_for_Legacy_PCs
Apparently it's made for corporations who want to upgrade from "Windows 98" but can't afford to update their hardware. It could be thought of as "Windows XP for old computers". But how does it compare to "TinyXP Beast"?
I benchmarked them against each other on a P4 2.8 ghz Dell server. They scored almost exactly the same using "performance test" benchmarking software. (250 points for Beast and 248 points for WinFLP)
Windows FLP is not compatible with Bashrat's driverpacks, so you'll have to hunt down drivers (bummer). Also, when you first install it you have to mess with the user accounts (change administrator's password to blank) and disable Windows security alerts:
start > run > services.msc > Security Center... doubleclick... Startup type: "Disabled"
Also change the "virtual memory" to (1.5X actual RAM) min, and (3x actual RAM) max.
Lastly, it is missing "MSconfig.exe" so you'll have to download it off the 'net and drop it into the "windows" folder. (then you can type msconfig into the run box and edit what starts with windows)
All of the above is already done on "Beast"
But it's interesting anyway, M$ releases it's own TinyXP! I think it's in keeping with the theme of this thread. Most interesting to me is the fact that you can choose to not install Internet Explorer! I never would have thought that M$ would let that go!
Cheers,
Craig
I snagged this version a while ago for some reason, but I never really looked into it. The one reason I'm assuming they allow non-installation of IE is that XP uses a newer version of IE that more than likely wouldn't work with the older video cards that would probably be in such machines. They won't even let you connect to the 'net to download the thing if your screen res doesn't meet minimum specs, IIRC.
For anyone considering it, nLite allows the complete removal of IE as well, and also breaks it out even further - you can choose to leave the IE core installed, in case some program requires it (I think there might have been an emulator or front end that required at least the core in order to work properly). Standard MAME doesn't require it at all.
It also appears that in taking a look recently, you can also slipstream your MAME setup into your installation disc with nLite or RunOnceEx (see the MSFN forums for exactly how you might go about doing such a thing). What this'd mean is that you'd have one disc (or DVD, or perhaps DVD sets - yes, it's possible) for install, and you just pop the disc(s) in when prompted, and let your PC chew on 'em for a while. When it's all done, your entire system can be already set up with MAME and the programs you desire. I'm not certain how well some registry tweaks can be integrated, but it appears that you can even customize your install disc to the extent that you have all the startup and login screens hidden (see the wiki to see what's possible to make your MAME system hide all traces of Windows!) and whatnot.
I've been slowly refining a disc for personal use - I think it came up in the past, so either here's a reminder, or a first-time tip: Find and install a Virtual Machine to use as a "sandbox" or "test bed" for your nLite'd ISO's.
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That sounds like allot of work. I will leave all that work to you - and you can upload it to ---No torrents please - thanks!--- for the rest of us when you are done. Good?
Thank you!
Craig
p.s. As he wrote, test your ISOs "virtually" to save time and disks. M$ Virtual PC 2004 and 2007 are free:
http://tinyurl.com/2jr7a7
If your OS doesn't support 2007, try 2004.
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That sounds like allot of work. I will leave all that work to you - and you can upload it to ---No torrents please - thanks!--- for the rest of us when you are done. Good?
Thank you!
Craig
;D
Much like all the rest of these "builds", there's no "magic ISO". I AM thinking of doing a writeup on how to have it dump files (roms, artwork, flyers, sound, etc) onto your PC in the proper place, but I can't distribute MAME, so that part of the writeup will have to be a tute in how to slipstream your own version into your install disc.
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Awww, you're no fun...
Oh well. It really only takes a few minutes to install MAME anyway.
I'll keep doing it the hard way, it builds character!
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I have a 2.0ghz P4, 256mb Ram and and a 20gb HDD and have just installed Tiny XP "Beast Edition". I am very happy with the performance of the PC and now with Mala installed and a complete set of Mame v.106 I am ready to go. I have also used bootskin and TweakUI for a few things and the PC boots up to Mala in 30 seconds.....that's not too bad I guess. Any ideas on squeezing it a bit more??
Cheers,
Simon.
Hey Simon,
You've got it to 30 seconds and would like to squeeze it a little more huh?
Try just swapping Winlogon with Minlogon and tell me if it makes a difference, use the attached file (readme included).
Cheers,
Craig
--------------
everyone : the attached file should make any XP installation boot faster, give it a go on a "non critical" PC and tell me what you think.
This is just the first part of the embedding procedure seen above, but only takes a minute. It's said to increase boot speed because Winlogon performs so many tasks and Minlogon just boots as a user named "system".
If you are going to make modifications to your home PC always make backups of your irreplaceable data onto good quality DVD-r first.
On the topic of backups, make monthly backups! Hard drives are not considered a reliable means of permanent data storage. Some day you will thank me for this tip.
p.s. This file didn't work for me on a modified Win2K, I think it's not 2K compatible.
Hi Craig,
Sorry I haven't gotten back to you, I haven't checked this thread for a while. I will let you know how I get on with this......thank you very much.
Simon
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Howdy Simon, as seen above a few posts, I tested this and it didn't kill my computer.
But back up your irreplaceable family photos first, just in case.
It should bring your boot time down to 17 seconds.
Cheers,
Craig
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Hi Craig,
I tried the 'Minilogon' and it worked great. It cut down the time from when I hit the power button to when Mala's gamelist is displayed by about 12 seconds. It booted up in 17 seconds! The only problem I came across is when I exit out of Mala it is suppose to exit to explorer, but it flashes up explorer briefly and then boots straight back into Mala??? Not sure what the go is there. I put it back to how it was for now while I am still setting up the arcade PC. But I can definately say that it works!
Cheers,
Simon.
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Mala is weird upon exit!
I have Mala running on my brother-in-law's cab, and I have a hacked powerstrip, so to power off everything in the cab simply press the (extended) ATX power button. (The button found on the front of the PC case)
It works with MAME32 but with Mala I have to exit the FE first, then power off with the ATX button.
In other words - Mala prevents soft off via the computer's power button! Weird huh?
So I am not surprised to hear that you have trouble with Mala upon exit.
I wonder if there is a fix for that. It's like Mala has a very aggressive program priority routine (I'm not sure what to call it)
I can't think of any other programs like that. Normally you van shut down windows regardless of what programs are running.
But Mala is the king of all FE's. I like to couple it with FastMAME.
(http://mala.arcadezentrum.com/layouts/blue.jpg)
I like MAME32 because it is so very "user friendly" - but for the savvy you may as well use Mala.
http://mala.arcadezentrum.com/
Good luck!
Craig
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there's an even slimmer version of windows called XSOS v2.0 (tim konings repack). it is a stripped down version of windows 2000. on a p3 1ghz/128mb it boots in 20 seconds, longer if network card is attached. memory footprint is 40mb, about 150mb for disk space. google says there's a version 2.02 and a usb version. iirc, only 4 services were started.
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In other words - Mala prevents soft off via the computer's power button! Weird huh?
So I am not surprised to hear that you have trouble with Mala upon exit.
It works fine here. I don't have my smart strip yet BUT I do have an extended ATX power button and windows does power off gracefully when I press it.
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Maybe that issue was fixed since I tried (last year?)
Or maybe we are using two different OS. I'll have to try again and see.
Cheers,
Craig
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I'm runnning Tiny XP on my cab. I'm having a problem getting the screen saver to work. I think it's because it was taken out of this version of tiny xp.
Is there a registry tweak or anything that can be used to put screen savers back?
Any help would be greatly appreciated.
Encryptor
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I tried putting printing back into TinyXP Beast, files and registry, it finally appeared as a service but did not work.
I don't think there is any easy way to put stuff back into TinyXP
I switched to using "TinyXP (final) rev 2" which did have printer support.
Cheers,
Craig
p.s. Screen saver? On an arcade machine? That's what "attract mode" is for.
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Yeah I'm trying to get the screen saver in MaLa to work. I'm thinking the screen saver disabled in TinyXP might have something to do with that. Thanks.
Encryptor
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Hey guys,
I'm running TinyXP Rev05 and it's unbelievable how quickly it loads! However, I have a few key questions which will result in either me keeping it or reformatting to an XP version that'll work.
1. I'm using the U360's ... however when I plug in the joysticks, the drivers won't load so I assume they were uninstalled in this build. Any solutions?
2. Did you ever get the screensaver to work in Mala?
3. Does anyone have the last session.ini for TinyXP rev5 so I can add those couple things back in and keep everything else the same?
Thanks all!!!!!!
LF
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You can try the one I posted, a couple of posts back. It's for a version I made using Nlite.
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Thanks gonzo. Did you leave the joystick drivers on and do the screensavers work? Just curious before I start messing with things. Oh, and also if I want to add a wireless network, I can just use the drivers that came with it and I don't need to add anything back into you last session file, correct?
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It's a big no for the wireless network, sorry.
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No need to apologize. I'll figure it out!
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Just to clarify: By wireless network I meant adding a wireless adapter so I can access by cab from my desktop PC using RealVNC.
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Ya I know what you meant. The reason is that I deleted everything having to do with networking.
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Just to clarify: By wireless network I meant adding a wireless adapter so I can access by cab from my desktop PC using RealVNC.
Your adapter can physically be attached to your PC, but without any networking component, it's as useless as tits on a bull. You'll also need the Wireless Zero (IIRC, that's the service) service enabled if you can add the networking components back in. Just so's you don't end up pulling your hair out ;D
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OK, I'm late to the game but have started messing with Nlite.
While it would have been much easier to simply use a version of TinyXP, I think the author removes too many drivers. His releases can't be tested in Virtual PC 2004 because those drivers are missing. Also I want to integrate "Minlogon" and "SP3". In my benchmarks I found that SP3 is faster than SP2, also I can imagine it adds lots of hardware support that is good for installing XP on newer machines. I like to add Bashrat's driverpacks too.
While testing an Nlite build in Virtual PC 2004, I discovered that Virtual PC 2004 does not support Direct3D. So for the newer MAME's that use direct3D you have to tell it to use GDI instead.
Also Minlogon can be slipstreamed via Nlite as a "hotfix".
Here is the Minlogon manual package (for existing installations):
http://tinyurl.com/3ytuwc
Here is the Minlogon "hotfix" package (for slipstreaming with Nlite)**:
http://tinyurl.com/2kkdmu
Minlogon is truly fantastic for a MAME cab! It's so fast and no "log in" required.
Cheers,
Craig
** Windows File Protection must be disabled in Nlite for that to work. This is found in Nlite under "options / patches"
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Thank you for the files. Anyways has sp3 been officially released?
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I think SP3 is still beta, but I have installed it on several new PCs (rescuing them for suXy Vista)
It can be downloaded here:
http://tinyurl.com/2ak5v7
alt:
http://tinyurl.com/2dkzou
In my benchmark tests it was faster than SP2.
Cheers,
Craig
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...
Here is the Minlogon "hotfix" package (for slipstreaming with Nlite)**:
http://tinyurl.com/2kkdmu
oops, I messed up on that, but I have re-uploaded it.
What you get should not be cab compressed. I tested the new version and it works.
Minlogon rocks!!!!
Cheers,
Craig
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So what exactly does this minlogon do? Just speed up the boot process? What do you do with the manual package?
Also I thought I read, but now it's gone, that you were thinking about incorporating Mala and something else into Nlite. What going on with that?
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What does MinLogon do? It makes Windows XP start up much faster! It's radical :)
The manual install comes with instructions.
As for Mala - I had a long post before where I mentioned that but it boring so I deleted it. I mentioned that I had the idea to make a stripped out XP that can only run MAME, MAME32, and MALA. "Bare essentials" and all that. I also listed all of their dependency files, but I was not able to cross-reference that with Nlite "removables".
As for Nlite:
I have made an Nlite'd XP I like very much!
It has SP3 and Minlogon integrated, only 6 services running, DirectX installs, and MAME32 runs. It uses only 51.08 MB RAM (out of 256 MB) - that's acceptable as far as I'm concerned - only a 64 MB DIMM is lost to the OS. The entire Windows CD, before I add driverpacks, is only 130 MB. The "Windows" directory is only 336 MB. and the PF use is about 30 MB.
Though it is stripped so much I am having trouble getting the driverpacks to install. Also taskman won't work so I have to use a 3rd party app.
Otherwise it is really sleek. I have attached my lastsession.ini if anyone cares to look at it.
What are the specs on the Nlite installs you guys are making?
Cheers,
Craig
(http://www.postimage.org/aV4HpnS.jpg) (http://www.postimage.org/image.php?v=aV4HpnS)
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If you're using it strictly for mame, wouldn't it be better to leave any service packs out? My Last Session.ini is posted on one of the previous posts. All works well even Task Manager. Only thing is you have to make all the registry changes manually for auto logon since TweakXP won't work on it. It also has around 4-6 services running. No sp's whatsoever. Haven't done much benchmarking but it's running Mamewah on a 400mhz pc with 256mb.
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I have the idea that service pack 3 increases hardware compatibility for newer PCs, also speed and stability. If you think about it - XP without any service packs is old (2001) and they've had time to work out the bugs.
Just think of all the hardware that has gone mainstream since XP's first release, dual core CPU, 2 GB RAM is now the norm, SATA, ect. But if you are using a low tech computer I'm sure SP0 would be fine.
In my benchmarks I found that SP3 was faster than SP2, so that's what caught my attention initially.
As for taskman and tweakxp - they probably just need their dependencies to work. To discover a program's dependencies examine it's EXE in "Dependency Walker" - then verify those dependency files exists in the "Windows directory", if they do not, add them to the program's directory first and see if that works. If it does not you can register them with regsvr32.exe .
I'll use that to get taskman working when I have some time.
Cheers,
Craig
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IIRC, SP2 was required for dual trackball support (or spinner, or mouse hack.....crap, SOMETHING required it! ;D )
I dunno about SP3.
Craig, give this a looksee too, I think you might find it useful:
http://www.softsea.com/review/WinServices.html
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Hey Nlite fans,
I finally made my vision of "MAME-XP"
Here are the specs:
Made from Windows XP professional corporate SP3
In my finished configuration, in which MAME32 ver 36 ran perfectly, and DirectX 9.0c installed, I had these services running :
1. Plug and play
2. Remote procedure call (RPC)
3. Windows Audio
This much RAM was used : 46.61 MB of RAM out of 256.
Minlogon was integrated for fast startup and shutdown
Driverpacks were integrated so no hunting for drivers
Here are pics:
(http://www.postimage.org/aV8ZXfi.jpg) (http://www.postimage.org/image.php?v=aV8ZXfi)
(http://www.postimage.org/aV8_bd9.jpg) (http://www.postimage.org/image.php?v=aV8_bd9)
(http://www.postimage.org/aV90JuJ.jpg) (http://www.postimage.org/image.php?v=aV90JuJ)
(http://www.postimage.org/aV92gMi.jpg) (http://www.postimage.org/image.php?v=aV92gMi)
Attached is lastsession.ini
How low are you guys able to get your RAM usage?
Cheers,
Craig
-----
edit
-----
The above was all done in VirtualPC, that's how I test all my goodies without making dozens of coasters. I was so impressed with the above that I burned my MAME-XP to a CD and installed it on an old P3 700MHZ with 192 MB RAM and 30 GB HDD, these days that type of computer could be found for free or cheap.
Boot up was lightning fast due to minlogon.
It uses only 40.62 MB of RAM out of 192 :)
(http://www.postimage.org/Pq4OilA.jpg) (http://www.postimage.org/image.php?v=Pq4OilA)
Mala also works :)
(http://www.postimage.org/aVeL5fA.jpg) (http://www.postimage.org/image.php?v=aVeL5fA)
Cheers,
Craig
-----
edit
-----
Oh, hard lesson : apparently if you don't choose "ComputerType = Standard PC" in the unattended section of Nlite your power button won't shut down your computer. I mistakenly left it as "default"...
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Without having to reinstall xp:
If the computer is not ACPI-compliant, you may be able to work around this issue by installing the NT APM/Legacy Device. Before you install the NT APM/Legacy device, you must first disable the Microsoft ACPI Device if it is installed.
To disable the Microsoft ACPI Device: 1. Open Control Panel, and then double-click System.
2. Click the Hardware tab, and then click Device Manager.
3. On the View menu, click Show Hidden Devices.
4. Expand Non-Plug and Play Drivers.
5. Do either of the following: • If Microsoft ACPI Driver is not listed:
In the NT APM/Legacy Support branch of the device tree, you will see the item NT Apm/Legacy Interface Node. It will show a red X to indicate that it is disabled.
Right-click NT Apm/Legacy Interface Node, and then click Enable.
After you follow these steps, Windows will shut down correctly.
• If Microsoft ACPI Driver is listed, follow these steps: a. Double-click Microsoft ACPI Driver.
b. Click the Driver tab, and then in the Type box, click Disabled.
c. Click OK, and then restart the computer.
d. When Windows restarts, repeat these steps to open the Microsoft ACPI Driver Properties dialog box, and then click the Driver tab.
Verify the following: • Disabled appears in the Type box.
• Stopped appears in the Status section.
After you verify that the Microsoft ACPI Device is disabled, continue with the following steps to install the NT APM/Legacy device:
e. Open Control Panel, and then double-click Add Hardware.
f. When the Hardware Wizard stops searching for new hardware, click Yes, I have already connected the hardware, and then click Next.
g. Scroll to the bottom of the Installed Hardware list, click Add a new hardware device, and then click Next.
h. Click Install the hardware that I manually select from a list (Advanced), and then click Next.
i. Under Common Hardware Types, click NT Apm/Legacy Support, and then click Next.
j. Click NT Apm/Legacy Interface Node, and then click Next.
k. Click Next again, and then click Finish.
The computer will now correctly shut down.
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1. does xp embedded require a full reinstall?
2. can minlogon.exe replace winlogon.exe on an existing winxp pro sp2 with multiple users? what functionalities will be lost?
3. if memuse.exe is a free tool, where can i get it?
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Without having to reinstall xp.....
Thanks :) However I don't have the mentioned items, see this pic:
(http://www.postimage.org/Pq5WhGJ.jpg) (http://www.postimage.org/image.php?v=Pq5WhGJ)
Either I removed too much (I removed all services, IIR) or the "standard PC" thing will work, I will test it.
UPDATE : The "standard PC" thing fixed it :)
1. does xp embedded require a full reinstall?
This whole thread is about Nlite modified versions of retail XP. Embedded XP is a different OS :
http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php?topic=79218.0
As far as I know no one is using embedded XP on their cabs.
2. can minlogon.exe replace winlogon.exe on an existing winxp pro sp2 with multiple users?
Yes, but...
what functionalities will be lost?
...minlogon will make it one user only.
3. if memuse.exe is a free tool, where can i get it?
http://www.gena01.com/memuse/
Attached is minlogon for Nlite, Minlogon for exisiting installations, and memuse.exe.
Cheers,
Craig
p.s. You should install service pack 3, it's faster than SP2.
http://www.soft32.com/download_123572.html
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OK, changing the Nlite "unattended" setting to "computer type = Standard PC" fixed the problem, now the computer's power button works in windows.
This is evidence that you can remove every single "service" in Nlite and the OS will still work.
In my experience you only need :
Windows audio
Remote call procedure (RPC)
Plug and play
So what are you guys getting for "RAM usage" on your Nlite'd XPs ?
Cheers,
Craig
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i found a newer version of minlogon.
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Groovy, I'll have to take a look at that.
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Craig. Have you thought about adding this whole nlite thing to your tutorial collection on your website?
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Craig. Have you thought about adding this whole nlite thing to your tutorial collection on your website?
Coincidentally, after I was able to transform a lowly Pentium 3 rig into a fantastical arcade computer I decided I will do a write up. Along with Mala, also a super simple and cheap bartop design for new builders with no cash and no tool-confidence.
Now if I only had time to do all that...
Cheers,
Craig
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Craig. Have you thought about adding this whole nlite thing to your tutorial collection on your website?
As well as an .iso of your latest version of XP??
Simon.
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Craig. Have you thought about adding this whole nlite thing to your tutorial collection on your website?
As well as an .iso of your latest version of XP??
Simon.
The ISO with driverpacks is nearly 700 MB, that's pretty big to be uploading and downloading. Also M$ could sue me dead (as far as I know) for sharing XP. But I can tell you how to make it from your own XP CD. I will send you a PM.
Cheers,
Craig
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super simple and cheap bartop design for new builders
I'm looking forward to this.
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super simple and cheap bartop design for new builders
I'm looking forward to this.
That too is not yet done, but PM me and I can send you my incomplete stuff so far, it would give you an idea of where this project is going.
I'm actually working right now... I need more free time!!!
:dizzy:
Cheers,
Craig
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OK, changing the Nlite "unattended" setting to "computer type = Standard PC" fixed the problem, now the computer's power button works in windows.
This is evidence that you can remove every single "service" in Nlite and the OS will still work.
In my experience you only need :
Windows audio
Remote call procedure (RPC)
Plug and play
So what are you guys getting for "RAM usage" on your Nlite'd XPs ?
Cheers,
Craig
A tutorial or a little more info would be much appreciated!
You actually removed services or just Disable them all?
At what section using Nlite did you try this?
Also How do you apply the Minilogin?
I tried it a couple months back now just tried downloading
and applying your minilogin hotfix.
It was a "NO GO" Gave some error I cant remember
asked If I wanted to continue.....
I clicked yes completed everything else saved the iso
burnt tested ... no change still using winlogin.
Do you have to have a certain build of Nlite or do something
else to the "minilogin hotfix" before applying?
Appreciate any info.
Thanks,
*** Teutonic Darkness ***
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He's got a tutorial either finished or real close to it. I've seen the pics. Patience. ;)
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It's true, I will have that written up soon, in the meantime I have sent you a PM.
Cheers,
Craig
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It's true, I will have that written up soon, in the meantime I have sent you a PM.
Cheers,
Craig
Got your PM... thanks!
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OK, changing the Nlite "unattended" setting to "computer type = Standard PC" fixed the problem,
In my last few days messing with Nlite in conjunction with minilogin
Standard PC did not work for me but uniprocessor did.
Got that worked out.
Still having problems with a few installs such as bootskin free
(their install was apparently made with install wise wizard)
most other installs work fine.
checked and windows installer is intact....
can't help but wonder if this has something to do with
using Minilogin.
anyways that's another subject I'll hopefully work out :)
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I tried using Beast XP on my cab a couple of months ago and removed it because I couldn't VNC into the machine.
I would like to get it working however being able to VNC into the machine is essential. Has anyone been able to do this?
Also, with Beast installed, has anyone set up there machine to boot straight into Mala?
Thanks
-
VNC stands for "Virtual Network Computing"
If you want XP with all of it's networking abilities, you should probably just use XP SP3 "full" and disable the services you don't need, manually.
Alternately, I just recently acquired an Nlite'd XP made tiny specifically for the Asus EEE internet laptop. I haven't tested it but it was, allegedly, a smaller XP with networking support. Attached is the lastsession.ini.
I, personally, would add driverpacks, service pack 3, and minlogon to it. Then test the ISO in virtualPC.
Cheers,
Craig
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...
Also, with Beast installed, has anyone set up there machine to boot straight into Mala?
Mala has an option to "start with Windows". If that doesn't work see below.
--------------------------------------------------------------
You can get any program to start with Windows:
Create a shortcut to the executable (ie: Mame32.exe)
Right click the shortcut and tell it to run "maximized" (as opposed to "normal window")
Locate the start menu's "startup" folder
(ie: C:\documents and settings\administrator\start menu\programs\startup)
Place the shortcut in that folder
Now every time you start Windows the program will start, maximized.
Cheers,
Craig
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Thanks spystyle...that's pretty much what I was thinking.
You mentioned driverpacks. Can you elaborate on them and where they can be found.
Thanks
-
http://driverpacks.net/DriverPacks/
For more than 10 years, every time I built a computer I had to see the "device manager" and install every driver that was missing from it. I had to scour the internet looking for obscure drivers if Windows didn't have said driver built in. It suXed.
Then they created "driverpacks" - you can download all the drivers and integrate them into your Windows disk, so Windows automatically has all drivers. It is so sweet :)
Then there is "Nlite", another essential tool for creating your Windows disk. You can remove the useless components, or leave everything. You can make the install "automated" by integrating the CD-key, integrate a service pack*, and set windows up the way you like**.
Life is sweeter these days due to these two utilities :)
*In my testing SP3 was much faster than SP2, integrate it.
**Why does the desktop have a trash can on it? Do you want to see a trash can every time you look at your computer? Remove it from the desktop and put it in "my computer" folder instead.
Also, why does "networking neighborhood" need to be on the desktop? Most computers are not part of a network, and those that are aren't accessing the other computers so often to warrant a desktop icon. Remove it from the desktop and put it in "my computer" folder instead.
These are just examples. Almost every windows option can be pre-set with Nlite, it rocks!!!
And if that wasn't enough - you don't have to study all day to see what can and what can not be removed from Windows - just use some smart guy's "last session.ini" and all of his selections will be in your Nlite - you don't have have to study a thing!
Cheers,
Craig
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Spystyle...Thanks for the detailed explanation!!
So let me see if I got this correct, nLite takes an existing Windows XP CD and creates an ISO file with any driverpacks, SP3, minlogon and lastsession.ini applied. At which point the ISO can be tested via Virtual PC. Once it is determined that the ISO works properly a bootable xp cd can be created.
Tom
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Correct, only I forgot to mention : Nlite first, then driverpacks.
Cheers,
Craig
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And if I may add. I used a version of this on an old machine that I hunted the ENTIRE (it seemed) net for drivers because of its onboard audio and video. I didn't want a full blown install of XP cause of limited hardware resources. And the freakin' thing worked like a champ. I was up and playin with it in 20 minutes. I'm never using anything else from now on. Sucker boots super quick too :applaud:
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I told Craig this already but earlier this week, for heck of it, I tried an Nlited version of XP on an old Pent 1, 200mhz, 64mb ram laptop that was lying around collecting dust. I initially was going to go with DOS O/S & DOS Mame but coming up with drivers and setting it up was a daunting task. So I tried the Nlited XP with Mame32 v36 and it worked perfectly. I was playing Beastie Feastie in about 30 minutes from start too finish. Now, I will say it's a little slow navigating around windows, but for a small little classics bartop or something it will work great. :cheers:
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Thanks Craig! You are the man!
I was fiddling around with nLite on my own before I even noticed this thread!
Thanks for your lastsession.ini, I will give it a shot!
Me and my Pac-man cab thank you in advance
Alex
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Hi Craig. Nice work. What the theme for Mala ? Looks like RetroGUI by Nexus6 but the background seems to be black instead of brown.
Cheers,
ian.
:)
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Hi Craig. Nice work. What the theme for Mala ? Looks like RetroGUI by Nexus6 but the background seems to be black instead of brown.
Cheers,
ian.
:)
For MALA they are called "layouts"
http://mala.arcadezentrum.com/layouts.html
And yes, that one is RetroGUI. I modified it's INI file to make the fonts bigger. As for the background, I don't recall.
Cheers,
Craig
-
I installed TinyXP Beast edition for my cab. Working brilliantly. Definatly recommend this for cabinets.
-
You can get much lower resource usage than "TinyXP Beast" by "rolling your own", however, if you aren't inclined "Beast" is not bad.
-
You can get much lower resource usage than "TinyXP Beast" by "rolling your own", however, if you aren't inclined "Beast" is not bad.
I'm so sick and tired of this old machine and it's craziness that I'm sticking with what I've got for now. When I get a better machine that doesn't randomly choose what is does and doesn't boot to I may just give it a go :)
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OK, I finally wrote the tutorial detailing how I made "MAME-XP" :
Click here (http://spystyle.epizy.com/index71.htm)
(please don't spread the link)
It should be handy for those confused by nLite and DriverPacks.
Cheers,
Craig
-
Hey, I also tried the same "lastsession.ini" from MAME-XP on Windows 2000 SP4, it works. Only minlogon is not 2K compatible. Other than that all is compatible, nLite, DriverPacks, ect.
Not surprising, 2K uses a little less RAM and only needs to have 2 services running (as opposed to 3)
It uses only 33 MB RAM out of 196.
MAME32 runs, with sound.
It has a couple of problems though... at boot I have to click "OK" for the username logon, even if there is no password. But I'm sure they is a way to fix this. Also, windows explorer acts funny - I have to type "C:" in the address bar to get to the hard drive... Not really a big problem though.
Anyway, I am sticking with MAME-XP, it was just an experiment.
Here are some screen shots from MAME-2K
(http://www.postimage.org/aV2bAWdi.jpg) (http://www.postimage.org/image.php?v=aV2bAWdi)
(http://www.postimage.org/Pq274WcA.jpg) (http://www.postimage.org/image.php?v=Pq274WcA)
(http://www.postimage.org/aV2bBwDr.jpg) (http://www.postimage.org/image.php?v=aV2bBwDr)
Attached is the last session.ini if anyone cares.
Cheers,
Craig
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**Why does the desktop have a trash can on it? Do you want to see a trash can every time you look at your computer? Remove it from the desktop and put it in "my computer" folder instead.
Also, why does "networking neighborhood" need to be on the desktop? Most computers are not part of a network, and those that are aren't accessing the other computers so often to warrant a desktop icon. Remove it from the desktop and put it in "my computer" folder instead.
I've never really been into desktop icons, anyways. I've looked into and not warmed to nlite, and right now all my machines are already set, but I'll keep it in mind for the future.
-
Those were just examples, I'm just explaining the level of detail that nLite's customization goes into. From as a large as integrating a service pack to as small as removing an icon from the desktop.
Dig it?
Craig
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:applaud:
thanks spystyle! I used your guide and created my own build, it only uses 44 MB of memory. Great work :cheers:
edit: oh yeah, installed and tested (very shortly ) maximus arcade. Seems to work just fine , fyi.
-
I'm glad it worked out for ya :)
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Hey there spystyle, awesome piece of work with your MAME-XP!
I followed your tutorial and I've now got a very lean and mean install of XP to use on all my setups, so for that I thank you. :cheers:
The only "issue" I have is that the PC no longer does a full shutdown, which I suspect is to do with Minlogon as I've never had this happen with XP or any other version of TinyXP I've used.
Instead, it now seems to do a suspend of WIndows and pops up a screen saying "Your computer is now safe to switch off". This isn't all bad, because once it's all in a cabinet you then know it's OK to turn the whole thing off at the wall, however I'd like to CHANGE that screen to get rid of the Windows logo and swap it for something else more arcade related.
I know Bootskin can be used to relpace the STARTUP screen, but is there anything that does the same thing to this Shutdown screen?
Any suggestions would be appreciated.
Cheers,
Chris
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Hi Chris,
I'm glad you like my MAME-XP tutorial. But rather than change the shutdown screen, perhaps we could figure out which service is missing that would have allowed a proper shutdown...
I'll have to ask around.
Cheers,
Craig
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Hi Chris,
I'm glad you like my MAME-XP tutorial. But rather than change the shutdown screen, perhaps we could figure out which service is missing that would have allowed a proper shutdown...
I'll have to ask around.
Cheers,
Craig
Thanks Craig,
It's interesting you say that - the first time I installed MAME-XP I used a crappy little 2Gb Fujitsu HDD, left it to do its thing and when I came back it had an error message stating it couldn't continue because the folder "\h" had not been created.
I suspected it may have filled the drive so I swapped it for a 10Gb HDD and this is now what I have.
SO for you to say that there may be a service missing has me thinking it is possibly the install CD at fault.
I might do some tinkering myself and if I work it out I'll let you know.
Cheers,
Chris
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it may have to do with acpi/apm power management. i remember i had to tweak something in control panel --> power options for this kind of problem. at least disable hibernate and make "power off" button shutdown the pc.
in the device driver, "computer" should be on acpi or standard pc, whichever has the good driver for you mobo. i don't remember how to change that.
look in your bios and check your power management settings. make sure shutdown really makes the pc shutdown and not sleep,hibernate or standby.
turn off PNP OS even with win2k/xp/vista/linux so everything is set and done by the time your os loads. the only downside with this is some hardware may require a reboot after installing the drivers.
-
I will have more time soon to set up a 'puter with MAME-XP on it and do some testing. I'll report my findings.
It's likely a registry setting, a bios setting, a windows setting, or MinLoigon should be updated.
Have fun :)
Craig
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...it may have to do with acpi/apm power management...
*Ding* *Ding* *Ding*
We have a winner :)
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Start > Control panel > Power options > APM >
Make sure "Enable Advanced Power Management Support" is checked
(http://www.postimage.org/aVyPrii.jpg) (http://www.postimage.org/image.php?v=aVyPrii)
(http://www.postimage.org/aVyPILi.jpg) (http://www.postimage.org/image.php?v=aVyPILi)
Cheers,
Craig
-
...it may have to do with acpi/apm power management...
*Ding* *Ding* *Ding*
We have a winner :)
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Start > Control panel > Power options > APM >
Make sure "Enable Advanced Power Management Support" is checked
(http://www.postimage.org/aVyPrii.jpg) (http://www.postimage.org/image.php?v=aVyPrii)
(http://www.postimage.org/aVyPILi.jpg) (http://www.postimage.org/image.php?v=aVyPILi)
Cheers,
Craig
I have 3 computers and none of them even have that option.
Maybe a service I killed when n-liting?
Anyway they work now... I had to set the right setting for
different PC's 2 work with the Nlite "Computer type" setting
the one would only work when uniprocessor was selected.
Just took a little time and a CDRW and I got a unique setup
for each PC.
maybe that helps?
-
That's interesting...
There is no power option in control panel for you?
Cheers,
Craig
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For what it's worth, I'm running TinyXP Beast on this machine and I don't have that option either.... :dunno
-
A theory!
I bet the power options that are in my MAME-XP and not in yours would have something to do with the difference between "XP home" and "XP Professional"
Mine was built from "WinXP Corporate Professional".
I take it you guys were using "Home" ?
I am using XP SP3 Home on my actual home PC and here is what my power options look like :
(http://www.postimage.org/Pq1iDThS.jpg) (http://www.postimage.org/image.php?v=Pq1iDThS)
So ... we know how to fix the "it is now safe to turn off your computer" problem on "pro" versions of Windows. How do we fix it on "Home" versions of Windows ?
I will have to make a MAME-XP from a "Home" disk to replicate the problem then try to fix it...
Cheers,
Craig
-
That's interesting...
There is no power option in control panel for you?
Cheers,
Craig
the apm tab disappears after enabling. it happened on my pc but it fixed my problem after that. thay's why i couldn't remember it when i was reviwing my steps on how i did it. maybe they don't have it in the first place.
-
tinyxp is corporate. looking at the pics, maybe the service pack has something to do with it too. this xp pro i'm using started with slipstreamed sp1 and updated later with sp2 and sp3.
-
TinyXP is a version of Windows XP SP2 that is Nlite'd.
If you built MAME-XP from an already "stripped" XP ... well that could explain why some things are missing :)
If you aren't satisfied with your MAME-XP, try making another from a full XP CD. You can import the Nlite settings from your first MAME-XP so you won't have to make all the selections in Nlite again.
Cheers,
Craig
-
That's interesting...
There is no power option in control panel for you?
Cheers,
Craig
The is a power option just no "Advanced Power Management"
option..
I have done this with XP Pro Corporate Sp2
on 3 different PC's none have the Advanced Power Management
option under power!
However they will all shutdown correctly with the proper Nlite "Computer type" setting applied. I think 2 were set for standard PC and
one uniprocessor. I never had to even mess with that before
and it worked on all my systems.
There is no doubt in my mind that this is a result of using
minilogin.. not a problem as long as you know what you
must do.
Hope that helps!
-
Interesting.. Did you integrate SP3 into your MAME-XP's ?
-
Interesting.. Did you integrate SP3 into your MAME-XP's ?
No not yet... Been kind of scared too!
Everything has been working good just afraid something won't
work right, or I'll have driver issues, etc.
I will break down and try soon on a separate partition.
-
I see, that could be the difference.
-
A theory!
I bet the power options that are in my MAME-XP and not in yours would have something to do with the difference between "XP home" and "XP Professional"
Mine was built from "WinXP Corporate Professional".
I take it you guys were using "Home" ?
I am using XP SP3 Home on my actual home PC and here is what my power options look like :
(http://www.postimage.org/Pq1iDThS.jpg) (http://www.postimage.org/image.php?v=Pq1iDThS)
So ... we know how to fix the "it is now safe to turn off your computer" problem on "pro" versions of Windows. How do we fix it on "Home" versions of Windows ?
I will have to make a MAME-XP from a "Home" disk to replicate the problem then try to fix it...
Cheers,
Craig
Hi again Craig,
I had a look at Power Options on my setup and that APM tab is not there. I'm running XP Pro SP3 on mine.
I've got another CD with my own stripped version of XP (before I read your tutorial and "knew" what I was doing) into which I have manually inserted Minlogon after the install and it shuts down fine, however the bootup process seems to take about the same amount of time as with the standard Winlogon.
I'd be happy to run with my version, but I now want to replace the bootup screen using BootSkin and it crashes when I do the swap!!
Any suggestions as to what I may be doing wrong?
Cheers,
Chris
-
It sounds like you should uninstall minlogon (use regular winlogon) and see if bootskin works.
As for the APM tab I have and no one else has - I am beginning to think it is a feature found only in "corporate" version of XP...
Cheers,
Craig
-
It sounds like you should uninstall minlogon (use regular winlogon) and see if bootskin works.
As for the APM tab I have and no one else has - I am beginning to think it is a feature found only in "corporate" version of XP...
Cheers,
Craig
Yup, already tried that and it made no difference!
I've just made a change to the BOOT.INI file via MSCONFIG to switch on the /NOGUIBOOT option and now all I get is a blank screen instead of the regular startup screen, which is a good compromise.
To be honest, the most "agreeable" stripped version of XP I've tried so far was MicroXP, as it is lightning fast to install, has only the necessities that I NEED and is very quick on startup and shutdown. However I don't like the "MicroXP by eXperience" splash screens it comes up with just prior to the desktop loading on startup and on shutting down. If I could get rid of them then I'd be a happy person!!!
Cheers,
Chris
-
I tried all the Tiny and Micro OS's. But they were missing some of the important drivers - like legacy video and audio who's drivers are built in to XP, you can not download those drivers, no one hosts them because they are built in to XP. They are called "native drivers".
I wanted to make something that had 100% of the available drivers. It makes it much more compatible with the full spectrum of computers and no hunting for drivers is necessary.
Why did "eXPerience" make a teeny-tiny OS but make it incompatible with most old computers? What better platform for a teeny-tiny OS than an old computer? They are a match made in heaven.
Obviously his goal was to make an XP that was an 80 MB download, and that's it.
As for the splash screens, I bet that is easy to remove. If no one here knows, I'm sure these guys know :
http://www.msfn.org/board/forums.html
They know everything about computers.
Cheers,
Craig
-
:o
i am new to this full-on emu-in-a-cabinet hardcore stuff....
but i know all about XP.
and im totally shocked that the 'cabinet community' isnt cranking out custom windows isos. it is a *perfect* way to minimize the pain of a custom rig.
im just learning about all of the details of the FEs and emus, but it doesnt seem to far out of the question to create a giant iso that installs a barebones XP, all the emus, and an FE, in one shot. and id imagine you could create a bootable dvd install disc, and make it unattended.
bang!
i only know enough about all of the pieces to know its possible, and that it would be absolutely effin amazing!
a dual booting box with one side as tinyxp booting to maximus sounds real nice to me.
and i will say, the eXPerience released isos are amazing. they *really really* know what they are doing. moreso than i think possibly anyone else, even at microsoft. there are a TON of reg hacks and little changes done to most of those releases, and they work flawlessly.
the only one that is tricky is the ultra tiny one. the iso is like 106mb. thats the one with nothing. again, i dont know enough to know what would cause problems with the emus, but i used it for pro audio, and the .NET framework was the *only* thing i had to add to the install to make it run smooth. it was actually amazing.
if someone could hack that one into an install disc with an FE and some roms, thatd be one pop-u-lar iso......
also, "TinyXP_Platinum_2" from eXPerience is an amazing install. check out the docs that come with it... that might be a good one to start with too. not as much left out, but still has the tweaks done...
i just had to post after finding this thread. i was wishfully thinking someone may have whipped up an iso and tossed it on a torrent already and that id find the entire community was using this one rock solid install.... not quite yet, but it seems there some people experimenting. :applaud:
if i end up staying involved with the emu thing and learning more of the details, i will most definitely be experimenting with some hacked down XP installs.
and either way, nice to see you guys' work!
-
......if someone could hack that one into an install disc with an FE and some roms, thatd be one pop-u-lar iso......
Careful with spoutin' them words around here. ;) As a matter of fact this has been done a few times before and the legality issues caused some major headaches. Not to mention it really pisses some people off. :timebomb:
People put these discs together and then put roms (the legality of those is a constant issue) on them and then try and profit from them on ebay. Basically stealing others work and taking a chance on getting the attention of people/companies we in this hobby would rather not irritate.
Frankly I'm surprised it hasn't got shut down yet....
-
...I'm totally shocked that the 'cabinet building community' isn't cranking out custom windows isos. it is a *perfect* way to minimize the pain of a custom rig.
I show how to do that in my tutorial :)
But distributing the ISO would be so illegal, Microsoft might send Mappy the mouse to arrest me!
I'm just learning about all of the details of the FEs and emus, but it doesn't seem too far out of the question to create a giant iso that installs a barebones XP, all the emus, and an FE, in one shot. and I'd imagine you could create a bootable dvd install disc, and make it unattended.
I also show how to do that in my tutorial, though not in step by step detail. The key is in the $1 folder on the CD.
$OEM$\$1
Everything placed in that folder is copied to C:
Therefore, if you put your emulator and roms in a folder called "MAME" and placed it in the $1 folder on the disk it would be copied to C:\MAME
To place a shortcut on the desktop and in the "startup" folder you would have to use the exact same folder names in the $1 folder. For example :
$OEM$\$1\documents and settings\default user\desktop
$OEM$\$1\documents and settings\default user\start menu\programs\startup
It would be really easy :)
..."TinyXP_Platinum_2" from eXPerience is an amazing install. check out the docs that come with it... that might be a good one to start with too. not as much left out, but still has the tweaks done...
In my opinion it is much too big. MAME-XP is a purpose built OS made specifically for the arcade machines. Anything else is a "desktop operating system" made to do many things a MAME computer doesn't need to do, like surf the internet ect.
I just had to post after finding this thread. I was wishfully thinking someone may have whipped up an iso and tossed it on a torrent already and that I'd find the entire community was using this one rock solid install.... not quite yet, but it seems there some people experimenting...
If you can focus for 3 hours you can make it yourself. Then upload a torrent and be the hero you are looking for :)
...Frankly I'm surprised it hasn't got shut down yet....
Well it would be hard to shut down an entire "hobby"
But everyone is really careful, like the info screens on the MAME programs are a "CYA"
The moderators of this forum being quite strict about linking to ROMsets and Warez is "CYA"
Disclaimers here there and everywhere, we are all very careful :)
As a result I think this hobby will endure :)
Cheers,
Craig
-
Does anyone know how to *remove* minlogon from an existing xp system? I *accidentally* installed it and while it works, I'd like to go back. Restoring the original winlogon.exe doesn't seem to work???
-
Does anyone know how to *remove* minlogon from an existing xp system? I *accidentally* installed it and while it works, I'd like to go back. Restoring the original winlogon.exe doesn't seem to work???
It should be very easy, when you installed it you renamed "winlogon.exe" to "winlogon.bak" and you renamed "minlogon.exe" to "winlogon.exe", right? Simply undo that by renaming "winlogon.exe" to "minlogon.exe" and "winlogon.bak" to "winlogon.exe". Then restart.
You could do a search on the hard drive for "winlogon.exe", you might have to replace it in 2 folders... maybe if the windows file protection thing is activated.
Cheers,
Craig
-
Yeah, I got into some funky trouble with windows activation. After I reverted to the original winlogon.exe it would start to log on then come up with an error about windows activation. Clicking okay just started the boot process again, so it was an infinite loop. It was the same in safemode.
The only thing that worked was doing a repair install. Which worked out okay I guess.
I did the same procedure on my arcade cabinet and it worked just fine (minlogon didn't work too well booting straight into my FE). Same basic installation, so I don't know what the deal was.
-
Windows activation? Did you try a crack to circumvent that or do you actually go online and activate?
I hate "activation" and "genuine" and all that hassle, M$ really hassles it's users. I avoid all of that mess.
Cheers,
Craig
-
LOL, didn't give me a chance to do either.
-
I think I had that problem with one corporate version... IIR home and corporate reacted differently to milogon integration. That what's good about "Virtual PC", you can make an OS and quickly test it to see if it works.
Cheers,
Craig
-
I think I had that problem with one corporate version... IIR home and corporate reacted differently to milogon integration. That what's good about "Virtual PC", you can make an OS and quickly test it to see if it works.
True. It was my fault and I hadn't intended to install it on that particular machine at all, so I have only myself to blame. I've been needing to repave it for a while anyway.
-
Wow Spystyle, nice work! I'm going to follow your tutorial and install Mame-XP on an older cpu that I have. Do you know if it will run any of the popular console emulators? Like zsNes, stella, etc. I'd also like to have headkaze's CPWizard running. Thanks!
-
...Do you know if it will run any of the popular console emulators?...Thanks!
You're welcome, I'm glad you find it useful.
As for compatibility - try your disk in VirtualPC, try to get the emulators you like running and let us know if it worked.
MAME32 and MALA / FastMAME work, I would imagine most other emulators will work as well. I think, for the most part, emulators are "self contained" and don't use a bunch of the windows components we remove to make MAME-XP.
Good luck,
Craig
-
Anyone try "Micro XP"? Curious if it has everything needed for Mame and Mala...
-
Anyone try "Micro XP"? Curious if it has everything needed for Mame and Mala...
Too many drivers are missing. If you happen to have a computer that doesn't need the "Window's native drivers" that those goofs removed then you'll be all set. Otherwise your computer won't work. Try testing it in VirtualPC and see the device manager.
Adding Bashrat's driverpacks doesn't replace the native drivers either.
Cheers,
Craig
-
OK, I finally wrote the tutorial detailing how I made "MAME-XP" :
Fantastic tutorial, Craig. I created my MAME-XP CD, and I am going to try it out this weekend.
Thanks!
-
You're welcome :)
-
Hi Craig. Thanks alot for the tutorial. I have a few questions though. 1.) When i copied my xp cd to the xp cd folder it is bigger than yours (>600Mb). I'm using XP Pro Corporate but it has service pack 2 integrated so maybe that explains the extra size ? Would it be "cleaner" if i tried to remove the sp2 files before integrating sp3 ? If so, i don't know which files to remove. 2.) The driverpacks structure has changed i think. I cannot see the 10 individual 7zip files in the folder like you said but instead i have one 7zip file (DP_MassStorage_wnt5_x86-32_805) - what do i do here ?
Cheers,
ian.
-
Hi Craig. Thanks alot for the tutorial. I have a few questions though. 1.) When i copied my xp cd to the xp cd folder it is bigger than yours (>600Mb). I'm using XP Pro Corporate but it has service pack 2 integrated so maybe that explains the extra size ?
There are folders on the 'retail XP CD' that are safe to delete if you want to have a smaller overall size. Comparing my 'retail SP2 disk' to my 'MAME-XP disk' I think the following are safe to delete :
d:\docs (7 KB)
d:\dotnetfx (40 MB)
d:\support (13 MB)
d:\valueadd (3 MB)
d:\I386\COMPDATA (700 KB)
d:\I386\DRW (200 KB)
d:\I386\LANG (100 MB)
d:\I386\WIN9XMIG (2 MB)
d:\I386\WIN9XUPG (4 MB)
d:\I386\WINNTUPG (800 KB)
Would it be "cleaner" if i tried to remove the sp2 files before integrating sp3 ?
No - SP3 contains SP1, SP2 and of course, SP3. So starting with SP0, SP1, or SP2 should have the same result ... I think
The driverpacks structure has changed i think. I cannot see the 10 individual 7zip files in the folder like you said but instead i have one 7zip file (DP_MassStorage_wnt5_x86-32_805) - what do i do here ?
That is incorrect - each driverpack is represented by a single 7zip file - if you only have "DP_MassStorage" that means you only have a single driver pack - specifically the one for mass storage.
The folder should have these 7zip files :
DP_ChipSet
DP_CPU
DP_Graphics_A
DP_Graphics_B
DP_Graphics_C
DP_MassStorage
DP_Sound_A
DP_Sound_B
If you intend to add driverpacks to home computer OS, rather than just MAME computer OS, the following driverpacks should also be present :
DP_LAN
DP_WLAN
\3rd party DriverPacks\DP_Modem
Cheers,
Craig
-
Thanks Craig for the info. I don't think Google threw up exactly what i was looking for - sorry, i should of followed up on it a bit more. I went ahead and created an iso. I noticed i have a few more files in my $OEM$\$1\ folder than you have (although i changed one or two options). Does this look abnormal. Thanks.
-
Hmmm, looks OK to me. Does it work?
You can test your ISO in VirtualPC
Here is what my directory looks like :
-
Cheers Craig. I don't know anything about virtual pc. I have an old pc i got out of work which i don't mind mucking around with - so i'll probably give it a shot within the next couple of weeks. Thanks again.
:)
-
OK, good luck :)
-
looked for ever last night for a way to do this and finally found NLite. Could have saved my self hours of work had I came here first. Good info.
-
Hey Craig, couple of questions.
1. How big is the "footprint" of your MameXP after it's installed? Mine is 2GB. Is that normal?
2. Does it help or hinder to compress the c: drive to save space?
Thanks,
d.
-
Hi Dana,
There is a temporary folder "C:\D", that is the unpacked driverpacks. The directory is supposed to be deleted during install - oops. Mine messes that up as well.
My MAME-XP, an old installation on virtualPC :
1.96 GB before D folder is deleted
669 MB after folder D is deleted
Apparently MAME-XP's footprint is approximately 700 MB.
As for compression - I wouldn't do it.
Cheers,
Craig
-
Boot time is too long for me. Its on a celeron test machien with 1GB of mem, 5400 drive, and ~2GHZ proc. It takes 25 seconds from button push till desktop and no hour glass.
-
Cool, thanks. One other thing. Is there a setting in XP that allows the computer to shut off completely rather than going to the screen where it says "Its now OK to shut off your computer"?
-
Oh that's a good question! I think we discussed that earlier in this thread at length...
As for boot time - Hmmm, 25 seconds. Is that with Minlogon installed and the bios set up to post quickly?
What boots faster than MAME-XP? What are you comparing it to?
Have you considered hibernate mode? Can MAME-XP even do that?
So many questions ...
IT guy, where are you?
-
Hello,
Does Anyone by any chance have any idea how you could make a
MAME - XP install the OS pre-shelled?
I have allready Started hacking the Windows XP installation
screens Logon etc, Looking to remove basically all hints
of Windows XP from Install to Shell..
I saw the post about how to have it copy Mame files
to C:/mame... which is a good start however .....
I'm looking for something that can start Mamewah
instead of exploer.
Is this even possible?
Kinda thought maybe some hidden
registry setting packed away in a cab file or something..
any thoughts?
-
Oh that's a good question! I think we discussed that earlier in this thread at length...
Ah yes. So it was. And not too long ago either. Thanks alot!
-
Hi...
I was just wondering is TinyXp (Rev09) a good solution for a multi emulator cab ?
I mean I'm planning to have Play Station 1 emulator and a couple of other emulators...
The Play Station emu works fine on my full xp pro 2002 version when I add zlib1 and ForceASPI_v17.
Planning to use Maximus Arcade as the front system. So is TinyXp just good for Mame or many other emulators as well ? I'm a newbie by the way ;D
-
As far as I know :
TinyXP is based on XP SP 2.
It is missing Windows Native drivers (in the unlikely event you need them, you'll be out of luck as they are not easily downloaded like regular drivers).
I'd sooner use an SP3 based Windows.
But to answer your question - would TinyXP be good for a multi-emulator cab - probably, but I bet some OS would be better. Your best bet is to try a few different OS in virtual PC - see if they can run your software. Benchmark the ones that can and use the one that was fastest.
Cheers,
Craig
-
Hi...
I was just wondering is TinyXp (Rev09) a good solution for a multi emulator cab ?
I mean I'm planning to have Play Station 1 emulator and a couple of other emulators...
The Play Station emu works fine on my full xp pro 2002 version when I add zlib1 and ForceASPI_v17.
Planning to use Maximus Arcade as the front system. So is TinyXp just good for Mame or many other emulators as well ? I'm a newbie by the way ;D
I use TinyXP r09 on my cab and it runs good. Before I added drivers and MAME stuff it was 18-19 seconds from button-press to hourglass-gone.
Asus A7V333 w/ ~2GHz Athlon (I dont really remember) & 1GB RAM & nVidia 4400Ti card with bulging caps :o
The r09 version I got had SP3 included. I also fired driverpacks in there, as well as .NET for some headkaze sweetness. I run MaLa with .127u4 and currently figuring out CPWizard. I havent tried networking yet, but it looks like sharing drives is no problem.
I havent tried any other emu on it, but Id say "go for it". It installs very quickly with minimal prompts. I would think the hardware will be the hurdle before r09.
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OK, you guys have me all curious now. I will run some benchmarks against said OS and also a few more recent releases from the same author against MAME-XP.
I see he's released 4 in the past 4 months. Maybe he's smartened up and left the Windows native drivers by now so I can test it in Virtual PC?
I have the idea those OS will not be as zippy as MAME-XP on account of them being "desktop operating systems", rather than purpose built for the arcades.
Those OS definately have a lot of components for going on the internet and other things an arcade machine doesn't need to do.
I'll post the scores.
Cheers,
Craig
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Craig,
I am in the process of building a vertical cab running your Mame XP and using Mala as a FE. Everything is great except that I can't get the game video previews(emumovies) to show in Mala. Do you know if there's some windows component that was removed that might need to be installed in order for the videos to show? I can't seem to figure this out - Loadman(Mala master) has a standalone video player for testing, and they play fine in that, just not within Mala. And yes, I've checked and triple checked all the settings in Mala...
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It sounds like you should uninstall minlogon (use regular winlogon) and see if bootskin works.
As for the APM tab I have and no one else has - I am beginning to think it is a feature found only in "corporate" version of XP...
Cheers,
Craig
For the record here is why none except you has this option:
From XP Help and support
"The APM tab is unavailable on ACPI-compliant computers. ACPI automatically enables Advanced Power Management, which disables the APM tab."
I knew their was something to this as I have pure versions
of XP both retail and corporate none have that option.
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TeutonicDarkness, that solves that mystery, good Googling :)
DP Louie, I don't know what to tell you, though Mala has a forum and I bet it's creators could tell you what services need to be enabled for that to work.
http://malafe.net/
http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php/board,43.0.html
Movies on a cab huh?
A cab that strays so far from minimal perhaps shouldn't have a minimalist OS...
Was that in the styling of a Chinese proverb?
Cheers,
Craig
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Craig,
I hate to bring this up again..
but was really hoping someone might know!
Is Their a way I an alter the XP install so that after
first full launch it does not load explorer but a front - end
instead?
This would save a lot of time for all of us if we could figure
out a way to have Windows install pre-shell things for us...
as compared to doing it later.
a .Bat file launched on run ounce, registry setting tucked away somewhere....?
Any ideas?
*** Teutonic Darkness ***
-
I think you could install a replacement shell for explorer, one that has the option to automatically launch an executable upon startup. I am not IT enough to comment further...
Oh IT guy, where are you?
This thread needs an official IT guy!
Cheers,
Craig
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I think you could install a replacement shell for explorer, one that has the option to automatically launch an executable upon startup. I am not IT enough to comment further...
Oh IT guy, where are you?
This thread needs an official IT guy!
Cheers,
Craig
Well I'm not giving up on the idea!
I'll keep messing around and digging about on the internet!
I'm kind of leaning to maybe a batfile on runonce
that applies the registry changes for it to be shelled...
as opposed to installing Windows and then applying the
registry tweaks.
If I find anything I'll be sure to post so other can benefit
from this Pre-shelled Arcade XP idea.... :)
*** Teutonic Darkness ***
-
Well, keep up the good work! I really hope you figure this out as it would make a fantastic addition to the "O/S".
-
Personally, I adore explorer shell. Besides 3rd party software support that is the reason I use Windows.
I like having explorer shell on a cab in the event I want to tweak something. Without explorer shell you'd have to boot from a CD or something when you want to make adjustments.
The only benefit I can see to ditching explorer shell for a "MAME front end" is a small amount of RAM gained and not seeing the explorer shell at boot.
To me it would be like a radio that's missing the knob - you can adjust it but you need to go get a butter knife from the kitchen...
But good luck, people get a kick out of things like that. If it's not practical it must be a novelty :)
Cheers,
Craig
-
Personally, I adore explorer shell. Besides 3rd party software support that is the reason I use Windows.
I like having explorer shell on a cab in the event I want to tweak something. Without explorer shell you'd have to boot from a CD or something when you want to make adjustments.
The only benefit I can see to ditching explorer shell for a "MAME front end" is a small amount of RAM gained and not seeing the explorer shell at boot.
To me it would be like a radio that's missing the knob - you can adjust it but you need to go get a butter knife from the kitchen...
But good luck, people get a kick out of things like that. If it's not practical it must be a novelty :)
Cheers,
Craig
I never said anything about removing it!
You must be missing what I'm saying... ::)
Yes for maintenance and such explorer is a absolute must in my book!
Just no reason to have to look at it every time we boot up
in a Arcade Environment right?
So We shell it and start Mamewah, Mala, whatever,
and call it from Task Manager when needed..
This part I have done successfully many times as others here!
I'm just talking of Refining a little further and have
XP Pre- Shell for you..
I hope you understand me now?
*** Teutonic Darkness ***
-
I thought you meant complete shell replacement.
So we want Mala to boot before explorer, but upon CTRL ALT DEL (task manager) explorer.exe can be launched?
I don't have a keyboard on my cabs... Just a mouse for maintenance. So that would be tricky for me. I am a minimalist.
But as I said, if it ain't practical it must be fun :)
Good luck!
Craig
-
Craig,
I understand what you mean about the keyboard..
This whole pre-shell Mame XP is going to be
more for people who have Mame, emulators, etc
already pre-configured.
That being said in a ideal world After installing
the proposed "Mame - XP" you would not have
to touch the keyboard again. Your work would
already be done after installation and your ready to play!
...
AH HAH...
I got it! :D
I'm making further adjustments will post back soon with further
details, maybe even a download and a read me test file!
:) :) :)
Knew I would turn something up... ;)
*** Teutonic Darkness ***
-
So We shell it and start Mamewah, Mala, whatever,
and call it from Task Manager when needed..
This part I have done successfully many times as others here!
I'm just talking of Refining a little further and have
XP Pre- Shell for you..
I hope you understand me now?
*** Teutonic Darkness ***
reg edits with nlited xp installs. Maybe helps if you add this part last to your unattended cd.
First make a reg file wich has tweaks you want. Change the explorer.exe to FE you are using with full path if its not in SYSTEM folder.
Like "Shell"="C:\MAME\FE\uBerFE.exe" or whatever whereever.
copy all thats between the 2 -------------- and paste it to notepad and save as shange.reg .
-------------------
Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\IniFileMapping\system.ini\boot]
"Shell"="USR:Microsoft\\Windows NT\\CurrentVersion\\Winlogon"
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Winlogon]
"Shell"="explorer.exe"
--------------------
Then copy this shange.reg to \$OEM$\$1\install\ folder .
Then edit RunOnceEx.cmd file in \$OEM$\ folder (create if its not there) and add these 2 lines to it.
REG ADD %KEY%\050 /VE /D "Importing Shell Registry Tweak" /f
REG ADD %KEY%\050 /V 1 /D "REGEDIT /S %systemdrive%\install\shange.reg" /f
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I actually already figured that much a few days ago..
Been trying to Add The Mame Bootskin to the mix.
I used a program called install watch monitor all files, registry
settings, etc....
I can get it down to a complete Pre-Shelled MAME XP...
except:
Copying 1 file:
C:\WINDOWS\system32\drivers\vidstub.sys
Its the bootloader file added by Bootskin
and 2 necessary registry entries for bootskin..
They copy over to the 2 install fine but re-fuse to merge
into the registry during install.
XP install errors and say file "vidstub.sys"
did not copy correctly..(though it did)
just screws up a smooth install with errors.
I have all icons removed.. Shell launches, Games are
preloaded! Just after first login I have to copy
vidstub.sys and merge bootskin entries to registry.
I have even considered manually editing ntoskrnl.exe
and applying my bootskin directly.. this just doesn't
seem to be the logical approach.
I'm guessing the registry entries for bootskin not
taking has to do with vidstub.sys not copying correctly.
I'll bet when I get it to copy to the drivers folder
successfully the registry entries will take just fine!
I'll keep toying around...
-
http://www.msfn.org/board/Stardock-Silent-Installer-t37488.html&pid=259435&mode=threaded
unattended install using "bootskin103.exe /silent"
See if you can get something out of those, maybe less trouble directly haxoring the ntoskrnl , bootskin would allow better gfx thru vidtub.sys tho. Vidstub doesn't work with all mobos. If you go ntoskrnl way, you only need to redo it if MS brings update for it.
-
http://www.msfn.org/board/Stardock-Silent-Installer-t37488.html&pid=259435&mode=threaded
unattended install using "bootskin103.exe /silent"
See if you can get something out of those, maybe less trouble directly haxoring the ntoskrnl , bootskin would allow better gfx thru vidtub.sys tho. Vidstub doesn't work with all mobos. If you go ntoskrnl way, you only need to redo it if MS brings update for it.
Thanks,
unforunatly the download link dosn't work!
Nothing else there helps.
Bootskins works fine with this mobo.. used it before.
Yes I was thinking that directly applying the skin
would be less graphical..
If the page actually gave a working link to
applying Stardock bootskin silently to a XP
install that would have been just perfect!
I'll keep digging... :(
-
Bootskin (the original freeware setup.exe from stardock) should take that /silent switch too , i posted above link so u can see the registry part related to what skin is selected / to figure out what to change. Have you tried with the older one you can dl from bootskins homepage?
-
Bootskin (the original freeware setup.exe from stardock) should take that /silent switch too , i posted above link so u can see the registry part related to what skin is selected / to figure out what to change. Have you tried with the older one you can dl from bootskins homepage?
I allready have the necessary registry setting all exported to .reg files
Immediatly after fresh install I must copy the vidstub.sys
and then merge the .reg files and its done.
Perhaps I am missing what your saying here?
-
Big thanks to spystyle for his step by step guide.
Very comprehensive and thorough, an impressive document to say the least/
-
spystyle,
thank you for the very thourough tutorial on Mamexp, i have been able to get a working ISO for my cab running on virtual pc but for the life of me i cannot seem to get the build less than 874 mb. i have burned it to DVD but it will not boot. is there something that i am missing? do you know how to make a DVD bootable?
thanks again.
shags
-
I boot from DVDs all the time.
Of course you'll need a DVD reader in the MAME PC
Have Nlite make your ISO, burn your ISO with Nero - slowly. Well, then you should be in business.
If you really want to make the ISO smaller, when installing driverpacks skip the Video card drivers - I estimate that those are big and you should easily be able to find and install yours manually simply by looking at your video card then Googling for the driver.
Though I'm not sure if you can install drivers in that super stripped OS ... it's worth a try I guess :)
Good luck!
Craig
-
That is exactally what i have been doing... (many coasters later) i still cannot get either of my computerd (equipped with DVD Readers) to boot from them....
maybe i am overlooking something. i dunno.
thanks for your advice
mike
-
Stupid question maybe but have you tried burning it as an .iso?
Burn for free does an excellent job of this.
-
computerd = computurds.......lol
-
IG-88
i don't think i have... i have been using the bootable dvd selection.
let me try that
ta
-
It's true, a few people have burned ISO "on to" CD rather than "as a" CD
Here are my old instructions for Burn4Free :
-----------------
How to burn the ISO:
Download burn4free*, it's free. Install it, then go to add/remove programs and uninstall it's toolbar. The program remains
start burn4free, click: drive > burn iso
use it to burn the ISO "as" a disk
some users accidentally burn it "to" a disk using other programs, that is why I recommend burn4free
Cheers,
Craig
*
http://tinyurl.com/b8mco
-
yet another coaster.........:(
-
I have been reading this thread and spystyle/Craigs nlite version is exactly what I have been looking for but I can't get his last session file or get to his walkthrough could someone point me in the right way or hook me up with the file. Also to use minlogon is a can that be done through nlite or do you have to do it after the fact? I guess this might be answered in the walkthrough but can't get there :'(
Edit:
Well I finally figured out a way to get the files by using the opera browser. I have let the mods know about my problem but as of right now if you want these files in you might want to get opera.
-
OK I fixed the link :)
Also I have attached to this thread my most recent "Last Session.ini" files.
Again thanks to Saint for hosting it and making this a fun hobby!
Hooray for Saint!
Some of you younger guys might not know, were it not for Saint (the owner of this message board) the "DIY arcade hobby" probably would have faded into history. While he didn't single handedly invent it, as far as I know he almost single handedly brought it into the mainstream.
Were it not for Saint we'd probably be into a lame hobby like knitting! Or maybe even getting work done! Gasp!
:)
Have fun,
Craig
OK, I finally wrote the tutorial detailing how I made "MAME-XP" :
http://tinyurl.com/2befhpn (http://tinyurl.com/2befhpn)
(please don't spread the link)
It should be handy for those confused by nLite and DriverPacks.
Cheers,
Craig
-
Thanks for the updated link. Impressive walkthrough. And of course thanks to Saint for making this super awesome website. :applaud:
Edit:
Got everything setup on a athalon 2200 with 256 memory. I boot, load mala, and pacman, a hair over 1 min. I can't figure out how to turn my mem test off though that would probably get me under one min.
-
I have deleted (or am currently deleting as this is a big thread) questionable links. Discussing hacking an OS to optimize your system is fine. Links to copyrighted material are not. Please self-police such things. Thanks!
--- saint
-
Aww....you're no fun Saint.
-
Actually Saint is more fun than a barrel of monkeys, but lawyers ruin lives so he does what he must.
I forgot anyway, what did the deleted links lead to? Was I posting naughty links?
:hissy: Have I become a criminal? :dizzy:
-
I'm having a bit of a problem after trying out your tutorial. Once I boot the CD and the first screen (list of partitions) comes up my keyboard no longer responds, I managed to install my vanilla XP disc fine and for some wierd reason I also managed to install a MAME-XP version on this computer a while back but now it doesn't want to work.
It's a USB Keyboard if that matters, thanks for the help.
-
Do you have a PS2 port on the computer? If so, try a regular PS2 keyboard and see if that helps any.
Also, check the power supply (PSU) with an "antec" PSU tester. They are cheap and really essential when dealing with older 'puters. I test every PSU that comes through here before I even power the computers up. A bad PSU can make a computer act "haunted".
I've also seen Dell USB ports go bad, Dell uses the cheapest ... well let's not have that conversation :)
Keep us posted,
Craig
-
Do you have a PS2 port on the computer? If so, try a regular PS2 keyboard and see if that helps any.
Also, check the power supply (PSU) with an "antec" PSU tester. They are cheap and really essential when dealing with older 'puters. I test every PSU that comes through here before I even power the computers up. A bad PSU can make a computer act "haunted".
I've also seen Dell USB ports go bad, Dell uses the cheapest ... well let's not have that conversation :)
Keep us posted,
Craig
Ok a PS/2 keyboard worked, now getting an 'insert Windows XP disc, asms file is need' after the first reboot or something to that effect.
Not to worried about the PSU, I through the one out that came with that computer as a new one came with the case I'm using.
-
If you make your own version of Windows and your computer asks for a "windows disk", try the disk you made first, if the computer still asks for a "windows disk", try your original windows disk and see if that solves the problem.
As for testing PSU - I test "new ones" as well. Also make sure you are using a real surge protector and your power strip is not marked "temporary tap" on the bottom. A lot of people use regular power strips and think they are surge protectors.
Good luck,
Craig
-
Managed to get it working by swapping out the IDE cable, no idea if that was actually the problem or not but it worked. Thanks for the brilliant Tutorial ;D
EDIT: Argh spoke to soon, Windows is up and running but none of the USB ports are working. guessing it has something to do with 2 "SiS 7001 PCI to USB Open Host Controller" having this error : "This device cannot find enough free resources that it can use (Code 12)". New one on me :S
EDIT: They all work in safe mode though :S
-
Well, it seems like you should try using regular XP, it seems that MAME-XP simply doesn't get along with your computer.
Also test the RAM with MEMtest86 boot CD (free) and test the hard drive with HDtune (also free).
If after all that your computer still acts haunted get yourself a PSU tester.
My own computer's RAM went bad and I was very surprised, I thought it was the CPU until I ran the MEMtest CD. I also just fixed an old lady's computer (from 1995 - old people often have very old computers) and she had a bad 32 MB DIMM causing the computer to act crazy. And I've seen plenty of bad power supply units (PSU) probably caused by power surges. Also bad sectors on hard drives can cause funkyness.
Everything must be tested! Test the world!
:soapbox:
-
Yeah I've left MAME-XP on a tiny partition at the end of the drive and have installed Vanilla XP on the rest. It's a shame but I can't for the life of me figure it out. Seeing as Vanilla XP works fine I guess it could be something that got ripped out by nLite, any ideas?
I'll try running some tests
-
Hi all...without flames...LOL...Does this thread point to a download where one can get the version you guys have fixed, or Do I have to download and fix myself. Can someone PM me with some details and spec. :-) Thanx all for your help
Camper
-
Hi Camper,
Short answer :
No, we can't legally distribute MAME-XP. And even if it was legal, it is very large (700MB and possibly more) on account of the driverpacks. So it wouldn't be something hosted casually.
Long answer :
I don't know all the legalities but I know we strive to keep all things on this message board perfectly legal. Lawyers are scary and Saint hates going to jail :)
So until we figure out a legal method to distribute pre-made "MAME-XP" we all must make our own. But it's easy using any XP CD and following instructions for a couple hours.
It's a couple hours well spent that will not only allow you to make a "MAME-XP" CD but also introduce you to "Nlite" and "DriverPacks". With those you can make any type of "custom XP" for your various projects.
I am running a custom XP on my own computer as I type this, it's nice and fast.
Once you learn Nlite you can try other people's versions of "custom Windows XP" as well, legally, by trying their "lastsession.ini" file. "Lastsession.ini" is a tiny file that tells Nlite how to modify your XP CD.
So go ahead and follow my tutorial and make your own MAME-XP. You can burn it to a CD and try it on a spare computer or test it on a "virtual computer" using a free program called "virtual PC".
You can make many custom versions of Windows and try them all in virtual PC - doing benchmarks and installing programs to verify compatibility ect, all without making "coasters" (wasting blank CDs).
Be creative and make a custom version of Windows XP that really suits you :)
Optional :
For fun, attached is the lastsession.ini I use to make a custom Windows XP SP3 I install on my computer and all of my customer's computers. I call it "Skinny XP" and so far we all like it a lot.
Also attached is the lastsession.ini from my last version of MAME-XP.
Cheers,
Craig
edit : I updated the lastsession.ini files - apparently if you "Nlite" and already "Nlited" OS the lastsession.ini doesn't save your previous "Nliting" - only your most recent "Nliting" - so be sure to get it all done in one session if you plan to upload it to the internet :)
Here are the files :
http://www.megaupload.com/?d=C6XT6HYM
-
awesome...So if I have my latest version of windows, NLITE, and your ini file...I can basically do this with no problem...GREAT... It's really no big deal, I just have several computers that I want to try and I want to make sure everything works as well....
Thanx
-
If you follow my tutorial on Nlite and Driverpacks you should be all set.
The (optional) lastsession.ini files will save you the time it takes to select each item for removal in Nlite, so that could shave an hour off the process.
Once you do it one time the directories and files will all be in place on your computer (driverpacks, SP3 update, Nlite ect) and you can quickly try other people's lastsession.ini files in like 10 mins.
My opinion (worth 2 cents) :
When first introduced Windows XP was pretty buggy, then with SP2 it was terribly bloated, all that time I used 2K and wouldn't touch XP with a 10 foot pole. Finally SP3 made it good - then Nlite and driverpacks made it perfect :) Now I can't imagine a better OS.
Sure Vista is newer, and Linux is more virtuous - but an SP3 with driverpacks that is slimmed down with Nlite has a perfect balance of speed, ease of use, and compatibility. I really dig it :)
People don't choose Microsoft OS because they love Microsoft, they choose it for 3rd party compatibility. Everything is compatible with XP... for now anyway :)
Have fun!
Craig
-
Hmmm...weird...the link that you have gives an error
-
This one works
OK, I finally wrote the tutorial detailing how I made "MAME-XP" :
http://tinyurl.com/2befhpn (http://tinyurl.com/2befhpn)
(please don't spread the link)
It should be handy for those confused by nLite and DriverPacks.
Cheers,
Craig
-
Great...Hey...Does it matter if I use a DELL version of XP that I will be installing on a non dell...Is there a work around...etc...
-
I'm not entirely sure but you should be able to. I think any XP disk has the directory "i386" and that contains the meat and potatoes of Windows XP. I bet you can simply copy that directory to your computer and point Nlite to it. I think Dell disks probably have additional directories and that's where they put their wares.
I have an unopened Dell "restore" disk around here somewhere ...
Let us know if it works for ya :)
Craig
-
do i need that framework...what if i have the latest already?
what I mean is...somewhere you say to download 2.0 net framework... Can we use 3.0?
-
do i need that framework...what if i have the latest already?
what I mean is...somewhere you say to download 2.0 net framework... Can we use 3.0?
I would imagine yes, give it a try :)
-
What is the benefit of SP3? Does it make it boot slower? Im doubting what service pack to do. Does mame-XP still let you use things like networking?
-
SP3 = good, it makes XP faster and more stable in my experience.
MAME-XP is not for networking
I don't see why you'd want networking on an arcade machine... Of course I don't see why people put LEDs on arcade machines either, I'm wacky :)
-
If you want to add roms remotely instead of physically opening the stuff inside the cabinet or something.
I installed Tiny-XP Rev 9. Works but not extremely fast. How do you guys measure the boottimes exactly?
-
I do it by counting like "one Mississippi, two Mississippi" from pressing the power button until the emulator launches.
It's not a very scientific way to do it, but I was concerned if I bought a stop-watch I'd start obsessively timing everything :)
-
Mine boots up in about 30 secs. Does that suck or is it okay?
-
I think alot of it depends on your hardware. I got one that boots in 17 sec. while another takes over a min. :dunno
-
Mine boots up in about 30 secs. Does that suck or is it okay?
It's true, like he said it's relative to your hardware. To test it, install MAME-XP and compare the boot times.
"minlogon" makes it quick to boot :)
But if you aren't hip to such a skinny solution :
Hibernation might help your current set up... With that the computer doesn't boot, it wakes up. You might find it's faster than 30 seconds.
Good luck!
Craig
-
I updated the lastsession.ini pack here :
http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php?topic=59373.msg962785#msg962785
if anyone cares :)
Nlite + Service Pack 3 + DriverPacks = make XP a great OS :)
-
I updated the lastsession.ini pack here :
http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php?topic=59373.msg962785#msg962785
if anyone cares :)
Nlite + Service Pack 3 + DriverPacks = make XP a great OS :)
Hi,
Back into MAME after a 10 break. Semi retirement rocks! :cheers:
I'm having no luck downloading the file from the above posted location. Keep getting this message:
/tmp/sy1kBIcs.zip.part could not be saved, because the source file could not be read.
Try again later, or contact the server administrator.
Can someone please help as I would really like this file so we can proceed with the build of our Mame box.
Thanks.
-
Try this :)
http://www.megaupload.com/?d=C6XT6HYM
-
Try this :)
http://www.megaupload.com/?d=C6XT6HYM
Thankyou very very much. This is going to make life so much easier.
-
You are welcome :) Make it fun
-
can anybody please help me make a mame-xp install. i have tried it heaps of times and I can never seem to get it tow ork right. I have followed the guide on spsystyles site and still no go. I need the Mame-Xp guide for dummies!
If I use spystyles last session log do all I need to do is load that in n-lite and then skip straight thru and make an iso? I also have trouble slipstreamign the drivers in.
I made a build this afternoon and then ran it in virtual pc and it booted but when it tries to install it comes up with error messages saying windows can't find this file and there are HEAPS of files it says can't be found. is this becuase they were removed by n-lie? I'm confused and tearing my hair out (what little I have left!) as really want a mame-xp install for my mame cabinet and jukebox cabinet!
Please any help greatly appreciated!
-
I sent you a PM, I'll try to figure out where you are going astray.
-
HI All,
I have scanned thru all the posts up to here and have a useful tidbit of info that may help MaLa users:
If you remove Windows Media Player from your MAME-XP then videos on MaLa will not work!
I found this out the hard way, however all was not lost as I was able to manually install WMP9 and now videos DO work in MaLa. The install process failed as it wasn't able to find MSCAT32.DLL, so I simply copied it across from C:\WINDOWS\SYSTEM32 and then re-ran the install and it worked.
It makes me wonder whether simply copying the DLL file would have done the trick but it's too late for me to try that now!!!
I hope this info helps.
-
Interesting :)
-
spystyle, what a walkthru!
i'd love to trim my xp install but i would need networking / internet as i use the pc in the cab as a media center also. the cab keeps my beer cold but thats another story :) ...
back on topic, are there any simple resources that list what each option that can be trimmed with nLite actually do?
thanks
-
Well I think I might have trimmed too much off my XP install :)
For my new cabinet, a restored and MAME'd Gauntlet, the computer's power button turns the cab on but not off. There is no ACPI.
Apparently working in "virtual PC" is different than working in real life :) I think real cabinets should have ACPI if using a one button power solution (like a relay hacked power strip) - but otherwise could just unplug the cab / shut off the power strip.
I'm going to check into that now ...
Cheers,
Craig
(http://s2.postimage.org/1fgX50.jpg) (http://www.postimage.org/image.php?v=Ts1fgX50)
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...are there any simple resources that list what each option that can be trimmed with nLite actually do?...
Hi Tony :)
Nlite does describe the stuff like so :
(http://s4.postimage.org/rGjEi.jpg) (http://www.postimage.org/image.php?v=aVrGjEi)
I bet Googling for an "Nlite XP guide" (without quotes) would come up with a lot of guides that are very detailed.
Have fun,
Craig
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Hi Craig. I just made an nlited version of xp using your lastsession.ini version 3 but i noticed that when i selected to shutdown the pc from the start menu it doesn't actually turn the pc off. It displays the screen 'It is now safe to turn your pc off'. I'm using the corporate version of xp. Any ideas on what i did wrong or is it supposed to do that. I did make a few minor changes when using your ini.
Cheers,
ian.
:)
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Try this out and let me know if it helps :)
(http://s3.postimage.org/1vqIAr.jpg) (http://www.postimage.org/image.php?v=Pq1vqIAr)
Unfortunately I'm stumped :(
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Hi Craig. I just made an nlited version of xp using your lastsession.ini version 3 but i noticed that when i selected to shutdown the pc from the start menu it doesn't actually turn the pc off. It displays the screen 'It is now safe to turn your pc off'. I'm using the corporate version of xp. Any ideas on what i did wrong or is it supposed to do that. I did make a few minor changes when using your ini.
Cheers,
ian.
:)
Did you use the Mini- login?
I remember having problems with that!
( Eventually found it unusable in my Setup)
anyway I had to change the field from "Standard PC"
to "uniprocessor".
Though some computers require a different setting here..
Might be something to try?
-
I always use Min-Logon, I love it as I'm a speed freak.
And yeah, I think different computers might require a different setting there - I'd like to find a way to change that setting post-install.
Where are the IT guys when I need them?
-
Any more info on having the computer shut all the way down using Shutdown in Windows? I'm having issues with this as well. Also, my Control panel->Power options does not have the option of using the power button to shutdown windows. Would this be related at all?
Thanks,
Dennis
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Try this out and let me know if it helps :)
(http://s3.postimage.org/1vqIAr.jpg) (http://www.postimage.org/image.php?v=Pq1vqIAr)
Unfortunately I'm stumped :(
Well, I just made a disc with this setting and I now get the option in Power options to shutdown Windows with the power button. Unfortunately it doesn't do anything when I press the power button.
Also, Windows does shutdown completely for me now, turning my computer off.
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i have tried to make a mame-xp install a thousand of times but it doesn'twork right. I'm looking for a good guide to follow. drivers don't work right i suppose
-
Did you try the guide in this thread? What is your specific error?
-
I'm loading all my roms and programs and stuff remotely to my cabinet while I'm configuring it.
Is there a Mame-XP that still has internet/networking access? If not, does anyone have a Last Session.ini that will do trim down the install but still allow networking/internet?
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Hey it's JakoBud !
I'd imagine you could just make a stripped XP as normal with Nlite, but leave most of the services in the networking folder.
Maybe an IT guy will chime in with the names of the specific services you need - this thread needs an official IT guy :)
Good luck!
Craig
-
I using this... I have a question.How much of a difference in boot speed/performance do you see vs. a standard copy of XP with the unnecessary Services turned off?
(http://www.ghdtradezone.com/images/funny/GHD_Hair_Straighteners_101.jpg)
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I'll have to get a stop watch and try a retail XP versus MAME-XP timed boot on a low end P4. I'd imagine it cuts the boot time in half :)
-
Well, being a former IT guy at the Prison I work at, I thought I'd chime in. Craig's "MameXP" does get the job done at slimming down XP, but you loose a lot of functionality. Definitely made for someone who is solely using their rig for an arcade cab, and if that's you then I highly recommend his version of XP. However, if you're like me and would like the computer to access the internet, share files, and have access to a printer then my recommendation would be to install a full version of XP and work your way down, so to speak. Use Black Viper's website (google it) to disable useless services using his "Tweaked" settings. Use "Add and Remove Programs" to get rid of Windows components such as; MSN Explorer, Messenger, and Outlook Express. Disable all the visual eye candy, and so on and so forth.
Craig, a couple things I have found that caused a problem for me when using "MAMEXP", outside of the lack of internet access, networking, and file sharing, is I couldn't install the .net framework, or some updates. I discovered that "Windows Installer" service had been disabled. This service is key to many programs being able to install and should be left running. Another thing was the "Windows Audio" service was disabled. When I tried to run a game in MAME through Maximus Arcade I would get a sound error. When I set "Windows Audio" to "Automatic" and started the service, the error cleared up. Also, without Windows Media Player, the opening movie I use for Maximus Arcade, which is in .wmv format, wouldn't play.
I may work up a guide to slim down a fully installed XP.
-
Hello IT guy :)
We'll have lots of questions for you so stick around :)
But first to reply to you. MAME-XP documentation states that audio and installer services need to be started manually. There are a few post install steps :
MAME-XP rev5, by SpyStyle, January 29 2009
A super tiny XP that is perfect for MAME computers.
-----------
Features:
Built on WinXP SP3
Minlogon for lightning fast boot
Driverpacks, so drivers are automatically installed
Uses only 41 MB of RAM (out of 192)
Only 3 services running
-----------
Instructions :
Install this OS, deleting the existing partition (AKA a "clean install")
Once installed, click :
start > settings > control panel > administrative tools > services
(right click a service to modify it)
Enable "Windows Audio", set it to "automatic"
Disable "DCOM", set it to disabled
Disable "Criptographic", set it to disabled
Disable "Security", set it to disabled
Then restart
-----------
The only services that need to be running are :
"Plug and play"
"Remote call procedure (RPC)"
"Windows Audio"
(do not disable any of the above)
-----------
To navigate around click :
Start > Programs > Windows explorer
-----------
To get a program to automatically start with windows:
Make a shortcut to it's executable, then place the shortcut under :
c:\documents and settings\default user\start menu\programs\startup
-----------
To make that program start "maximized" (as opposed to in a window) :
Right click the shortcut, click "properties", and change the "run" drop down menu to "maximized"
But I guess I forgot to mention the installer :)
Anyway MAME-XP is a stripped and skinny OS with low end hardware, fast boot, and small footprint in mind. It is skinny yet very compatible because it's XP SP3 and has Driverpacks added to it.
There is no internet or file sharing. To add ROMsets I'd use an external USB hard drive or thumbdrive.
It's my idea of a good OS that is specifically for arcade machine and not for desktop.
However it's not for everyone. Of course you can install full XP then disable superfluous services and adjust it for speed. I'd rather do it pre-install with Nlite, but it can be done post-install.
Once in a while I have to do it on a home computer, not reinstall the OS but optimize it. Here are a list of services I can disable from my notes, let me know what you think :)
Alerter
Application Layer Gateway Service
Application Management
Automatic Updates
Background Intelligent Transfer Service
ClipBook
COM+ System Application
Computer Browser
Distributed Link Tracking Client
Distributed Transaction Coordinator
DNS Client
Error Reporting Service
Fax Service
Telephony
FTP Publishing Service
Help and Support
IIS Admin
IMAPI CD-Burning COM Service
Indexing Service
Internet Connection Firewall and Internet Connection Sharing
IPSEC Services
Logical Disk Manager
Logical Disk Manager Administrative Service
Message Queuing
Message Queuing Triggers
Messenger
MS Software Shadow Copy Provider
NetMeeting Remote Desktop Sharing
Network DDE
Network DDE DSDM
Network Location Awareness
Performance Logs and Alerts
Portable Media Serial Number
Print Spooler (disable on arcade machine but not home computer)
Protected Storage
QoS RSVP
Remote Access Auto Connection Manager
Remote Access Connection Manager
Remote Desktop Help Session Manager
Remote Procedure Call (RPC) Locator
Remote Registry
Removable Storage
RIP Listener
Routing & Remote Access
Secondary Logon
Security Accounts Manager
Server
Shell Hardware Detection
Simple Mail Transport Protocol (SMTP)
Simple TCP/IP Services
Smart Card (needed for Apple i-pod and i-tunes)
Smart Card Helper
SNMP Service
SNMP Trap Service
SSDP Discovery Service
Plug and Play Device Host
System Event Notification
System Restore Service
Task Scheduler
TCP/IP NetBIOS Helper Service
TCP/IP Printer Server
Telephony
Telnet
Terminal Services
Themes
Uninterruptible Power Supply
Universal Plug and Play Device Host
Upload Manager
Volume Shadow Copy
WebClient
Windows Image Acquisition (WIA)
Windows Time
Wireless Zero Configuration (disable only on computer with no WiFi)
WMI Performance Adapter
Workstation
World Wide Web Publishing Service
-
Ahhhh, this is the downfall of being a self taught IT Guy, skimming over instructions, bad habit of mine. I didn't see the part on setting the Audio to automatic, I assumed it was an install and go. Well, we all know what assuming gets ya. I did initially try to use nlite to get the internet and network working. I used the check boxexes when the program starts up to pick the things I did not want deleted or disabled. That sort of worked. There was still a couple of hidden settings I had to find in the Device Manager to get it working. I figured for the not so computer literate person that would be too much of a hassle. But then again having that same person mess around with Services could lead to some sticky situations. :o I was also using Revision 3 of your LastSession file. I may have missed a post or two that contained Revision 5.
Your list of disabled services looks pretty spot on to what Black Viper (http://www.blackviper.com/) has on his "Tweaked" services. Things like Network Location Awareness, Logical Disk Manager he has set to manual, and Logical Disk Manager Administrative Service he has set to Automatic. The latter I use to change drive letters. My USB dive I set to X: cause thats what all the Access databases are pointing to at my work, so when I bring them home, I don't have to change anything. I also have XP running on a separate partition from the rest of my programs (a habit I picked up from installing Vista and Windows 7, because those OS's are prety tight on security when it comes to the C: drive). So that second partition for me is Y:.
-
I can dig it :)
Welcome aboard, we can use an IT guy for sure.
One problem I had was with the power button not shutting windows down and powering off the computer. Instead it said "It is now safe to turn off your computer".
What did I remove with Nlite that caused this problem ?
Thanks,
Craig
p.s. Hey I asked for an IT Guy 4 times in this thread !
Oh that's a good question! I think we discussed that earlier in this thread at length...
As for boot time - Hmmm, 25 seconds. Is that with Minlogon installed and the bios set up to post quickly?
What boots faster than MAME-XP? What are you comparing it to?
Have you considered hibernate mode? Can MAME-XP even do that?
So many questions ...
IT guy, where are you?
I think you could install a replacement shell for explorer, one that has the option to automatically launch an executable upon startup. I am not IT enough to comment further...
Oh IT guy, where are you?
This thread needs an official IT guy!
Cheers,
Craig
I always use Min-Logon, I love it as I'm a speed freak.
And yeah, I think different computers might require a different setting there - I'd like to find a way to change that setting post-install.
Where are the IT guys when I need them?
Hey it's JakoBud !
I'd imagine you could just make a stripped XP as normal with Nlite, but leave most of the services in the networking folder.
Maybe an IT guy will chime in with the names of the specific services you need - this thread needs an official IT guy :)
Good luck!
Craig
I am always asking for an EE Guy here and an IT Guy there, then occasionally and Asian lady :)
-
I had that problem too, I think it may have to do with a logon setting, but that's just a theory.
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OK I've been reading at M$ website (it's very boring) and I think I figured out the problem :) Help me write this :
-----------------
1. Problem :
When you press the power button on your Windows XP computer it reads "It is now safe to turn off your computer", rather than turning off. It's annoying.
2. Causes :
a) A non ACPI (advanced configuration and power interface) computer. Windows simply can't turn it off. It could be an old computer like Pentium 1.
b) An ACPI computer who's bios had ACPI setting disabled when Windows was first installed.
c) An incorrect setting in nLite's unattended installation :
Computer type = "StandardPC" (no ACPI)
or "MPS Uniprocessor PC" (single core CPU with no ACPI)
or "MPS Multiprocessor PC" (dual core CPU with no ACPI)
3. Timeline :
ACPI was first released in 1996. Pentium 4 was first released in 2000 so all should be fine. Pentium 3 was released in 1999 so most should be fine. Pentium 2 was released in 1997 so I bet many are not ACPI. Pentium 1 was released in 1993 so I bet almost none are ACPI.
4. Solution :
a) Pre XP-install solutions :
*Make sure ACPI is enabled in the computer's bios
*In Nlite's Unattended page, set computer type to "Automatic"
(previously I used "Standard PC" but that is not ACPI)
b) Post XP-install solutions :
???
-----------------
I also wonder if min-logon is incompatible with some settings in Nlite's Unattended.
-
"It is Now Safe to Turn Off Your Computer" (annoying problem)
OK, as stated above I don't know how to fix the computer type (or "HAL") after Windows is already installed.
But I did take a stab at fixing the problem before Windows is installed, by correcting the "computer type" setting in Nlite's unattended page (while creating MAME-XP).
(http://i35.tinypic.com/k9xvuf.jpg)
So I followed my entire MAME-XP tutorial and created a MAME-XP from a Windows XP SP2 Professional disk. I set the computer type to "Automatic" in Nlite's unattended page, otherwise everything else was exactly the same. I even added MAME 53 set to the MAME-XP disk so Windows automatically copied a MAME set to the root of the hard drive (without clones it's only 3 GB). Anything placed in "$OEM$\$1" on the disk will be copied to the root of the hard drive during install. I burned it all to a DVD-R and it works. The ACPI computer (AMD P4 single core clone) does shut down as it's supposed to :)
If you have problems with your MAME-XP disk crashing during install, go back and verify that all driverpacks can be opened (don't extract them, simply make sure they are able to be opened). I had some driverpacks that didn't download correctly and I had to download them again. You can also make your MAME-XP disk again but without driverpacks, then test it in M$ Virtual PC (that doesn't need driverpacks). This would make it clear if your problem is related to driverpacks or not.
Also if the driverpack's slipstreaming seems to be taking a long time give it overnight, my most recent one mysteriously took 5 hours :
(http://i34.tinypic.com/110ylq8.jpg)
While testing MAME-XP with most recent driverpacks in "Microsoft Virtual PC 2007"
During Windows setup I get the error :
STOP C0000221 unknown hard error
\systemroot\system32\ntdll.dll
I think it's due to :
DP_MassStorage_wnt5_x86-32_1006.7z
I tried the same disk in a real computer and it worked fine. I think the problem is only between that one driverpack and Virtual PC program.
It's worth noting in case anyone is testing their ISO's in Virtual PC before actually burning them.
-----
It's also worth noting that "format" versus "quick format", during Windows setup, is whether or not you want to test the hard drive for bad sectors. If you are not in a hurry it's always a good idea to do a slow format. During a slow format Windows will make a record of any bad sectors and not use them.
-----
Here is the lastsession.ini for MAME-XP rev 7 :
http://rapidshare.com/files/412241450/LAST_SESSION.zip.htm (http://rapidshare.com/files/412241450/LAST_SESSION.zip.htm)
alt :
http://www.megaupload.com/?d=BYEOM162 (http://www.megaupload.com/?d=BYEOM162)
And I updated my tutorial with that one change, so we should be rid of the power button issue for good :)
MAME-XP creation tutorial :
http://tinyurl.com/2befhpn (http://tinyurl.com/2befhpn)
(Please don't spread the link)
Long live Saint !
:burgerking:
-
Will def try it. Thanks !
PS : will it work on a french version of XP ?
-
Ummm. you probably should blank out that CDkey in the picture. Though it's probably too late now.
-
Bumping an old thread...I'm just getting around to this now. It appears that Driverpacks has gotten much bigger lately. My .iso after adding driverpacks swells from ~150mb to over 1.4 gigs. No way it will fit on a CD. Anyone have any luck trimming back the driver packs to make their installation fit on a CD? Should I omit some categories?
-
It's been my experience that some older computer's bios won't boot a DVD, while most modern ones will.
I make a skinny XP with fat driverpacks and a small R0Mset on a single DVD, but if the computer won't boot it I use a CD version.
The CD version can have less driverpacks, for example video and sound, if you know what video card and what sound card are in the computer you can install those drivers manually.
And an arcade machine already doesn't need LAN, WiFi, and similar.
So try it on DVD first and if that doesn't work, make a CD version :)
Have fun!
Craig
-
So, Spystyle so when is the Winmame7 64 walk through going to be done ?? :drool
-
MAME-XP creation tutorial :
http://tinyurl.com/5mfsrl (http://tinyurl.com/5mfsrl)
(Please don't spread the link)
Hi Craig,
Is there a new link to your guide?
-
Here you go :)
MAME-XP creation tutorial :
http://tinyurl.com/2befhpn (http://tinyurl.com/2befhpn)
(Please don't spread the link)
-
So, Spystyle so when is the Winmame7 64 walk through going to be done ??
In my testing skinny XP benchmarks were better than Win 7
64-bit OS is only necessary if you have more than 4 GB of RAM, see this chart of Windows memory limits :
http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/aa366778%28v=vs.85%29.aspx (http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/aa366778%28v=vs.85%29.aspx)
My home PC is running a skinny XP 64-bit with 8 GB of RAM LOL
You can use Nlite to make a 64-bit skinny XP, but driverpacks are for 32-bit only. You'll need to integrate your SATA drivers with Nlite, then install your other drivers after the OS is running.
You can use Vlite to mess around with Vista and Win 7, but I don't know why you'd want to (?)
Have fun!
Craig
-
Thanks for the link, Craig.
I know it's a long shot, but any idea what I need to keep to still have networking capability? I don't need internet, however I would like to be able to log in remotely via a service such as TightVNC to make configurations, transfer files, etc.
Thanks
-
"GalagaFan74" is the official IT guy of this thread :)
Calling GalagaFan74, where are you ?
Until he answers the call, he recommended earlier in this thread that folks who want some of the bells and whistles should install full XP SP3, then follow black viper's guide to disable unneeded components.
http://www.blackviper.com (http://www.blackviper.com)
Also, if you just want to use a super skinny XP, you can pull the hard drive and transfer files the old fashioned way, you don't need a NIC card LOL
Good luck!
Craig
-
Thanks for the link, Craig.
I know it's a long shot, but any idea what I need to keep to still have networking capability? I don't need internet, however I would like to be able to log in remotely via a service such as TightVNC to make configurations, transfer files, etc.
Thanks
You could try this, a one time install and then you wouldn't need any key board or mouse hook up either, just a USB port and a laptop.
http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php?topic=110440.0 (http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php?topic=110440.0)
-
So, Spystyle so when is the Winmame7 64 walk through going to be done ?? :drool
Hey I stumbled upon this :
http://www.msfn.org/board/topic/136960-7slimmer-mmx-r2/ (http://www.msfn.org/board/topic/136960-7slimmer-mmx-r2/)
Thanks for the link, Craig.
I know it's a long shot, but any idea what I need to keep to still have networking capability? I don't need internet, however I would like to be able to log in remotely via a service such as TightVNC to make configurations, transfer files, etc.
Thanks
You could try this, a one time install and then you wouldn't need any key board or mouse hook up either, just a USB port and a laptop.
http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php?topic=110440.0 (http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php?topic=110440.0)
I used one of those cords last night to transfer files from a Win 7 machine to a Win XP machine :
http://www.targus.com/us/productdetail.aspx?sku=ACC96US1 (http://www.targus.com/us/productdetail.aspx?sku=ACC96US1)
It has software inside of it, so it probably only uses the "windows installer" service, so it would probably work on stripped out versions of windows. But I haven't tried it on MAME-XP.
An alternative to that is a USB drive. I have a 120 GB small USB drive made from a spare laptop hard drive and an inexpensive enclosure. It draws it's power right from USB so no AC adapter is needed. It's as convenient as a thumb drive but with bigger capacity :)
And the most affordable alternative is to pull the hard drive out of the MAME computer and put it in your home computer either as slave or with a USB adapter, then copy the files directly. The old fashioned way :)
Have fun!
Craig
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Do you guys have a list of Windows Services to disable for use in an arcade cabinet?
I'm using XP Pro x64 Edition and I want to speed up the boot process and reduce shutdown time.
I'm not too concerned about memory footprint or hard disk usage. I have plenty of both.
-
You can Google up Black Viper's guides to disable services post-install (easy)
Or you can follow my guide to do it pre-install with Nlite (harder)
Cheers,
Craig
-
You can Google up Black Viper's guides to disable services post-install (easy)
Or you can follow my guide to do it pre-install with Nlite (harder)
Cheers,
Craig
Perhaps this isn't so, but it seems to there is greater effect selecting services pre-install. If this isn't so, then I would probably do it post, in case you ever needed those things.
-
I created an Nlited version of XP today and when I run mame.exe (DOS VERSION) it says it is not a valid windows application. the exact same file, from same hard drive, runs perfectly on my regular win xp install.
I wonder what I trimmed from nlite that is breaking this exe?!
-
There are several version of MAME
MAME command line for Windows (this is what you seek)
Grab the version that matches your rom set here :
http://mamedev.org/oldrel.html (http://mamedev.org/oldrel.html)
MAME for DOS (it's command line of course)
MAME32 (now called MAMEui) is for windows and a graphical interface, it's great, try it!
I like to couple command line MAME with MALA front end, and use Blue skin
Also if MAME-XP is too stripped down for your application, you could just install regular XP and follow BlackViper's guide to slim it :
http://www.blackviper.com/2008/05/19/black-vipers-windows-xp-x86-32-bit-service-pack-3-service-configurations/ (http://www.blackviper.com/2008/05/19/black-vipers-windows-xp-x86-32-bit-service-pack-3-service-configurations/)
Keep me posted :)
Craig
-
In regards to the Black Viper guide, wasn't there some ".Bat" files to quickly turn off or restore the services for different levels of slimming, to see what works for you? I can't find them, I thought I had them somewhere...
-
That would be a time saver :)
-
Im running MAME command line for Windows ... nlited XP not running it though!
There are several version of MAME
MAME command line for Windows (this is what you seek)
Grab the version that matches your rom set here :
http://mamedev.org/oldrel.html (http://mamedev.org/oldrel.html)
MAME for DOS (it's command line of course)
MAME32 (now called MAMEui) is for windows and a graphical interface, it's great, try it!
I like to couple command line MAME with MALA front end, and use Blue skin
Also if MAME-XP is too stripped down for your application, you could just install regular XP and follow BlackViper's guide to slim it :
http://www.blackviper.com/2008/05/19/black-vipers-windows-xp-x86-32-bit-service-pack-3-service-configurations/ (http://www.blackviper.com/2008/05/19/black-vipers-windows-xp-x86-32-bit-service-pack-3-service-configurations/)
Keep me posted :)
Craig
-
Maybe our IT guy will chime in ?
I'll check it in VirtualPC ...
-
Woops, I figured it out... I was launching a 64 bit version of MAME within 32 bit WinXP. Ugh!
-
ZD7 - Windows 7 x64/x86 SP1 Lite
[link removed by moderator]
I personally use the x86 myself, really happy with it.
Here is a list of the packages I removed with DISM for instance:
Microsoft-Hyper-V-Common-Drivers-Package~31bf3856ad364e35~amd64~~6.1.7601.17514
Microsoft-Hyper-V-Guest-Integration-Drivers-Package~31bf3856ad364e35~amd64~~6.1.7601.17514
Microsoft-Windows-Anytime-Upgrade-Package~31bf3856ad364e35~amd64~~6.1.7601.17514
Microsoft-Windows-Anytime-Upgrade-Results-Package~31bf3856ad364e35~amd64~~6.1.7601.17514
Microsoft-Windows-Backup-Package~31bf3856ad364e35~amd64~~6.1.7601.17514
Microsoft-Windows-BLB-Client-Package~31bf3856ad364e35~amd64~~6.1.7601.17514
Microsoft-Windows-BusinessScanning-Feature-Package~31bf3856ad364e35~amd64~~6.1.7601.17514
Microsoft-Windows-Client-Wired-Network-Drivers-Package~31bf3856ad364e35~amd64~~6.1.7601.17514
Microsoft-Windows-CodecPack-Basic-Encoder-Package~31bf3856ad364e35~amd64~~6.1.7601.17514
Microsoft-Windows-Common-Modem-Drivers-Package~31bf3856ad364e35~amd64~~6.1.7601.17514
Microsoft-Windows-EnterpriseEdition-wrapper~31bf3856ad364e35~amd64~~6.1.7601.17514
Microsoft-Windows-Help-CoreClientUAUE-Package~31bf3856ad364e35~amd64~~6.1.7601.17514
Microsoft-Windows-Help-Customization-Package~31bf3856ad364e35~amd64~~6.1.7601.17514
Microsoft-Windows-HomeBasicEdition-wrapper~31bf3856ad364e35~amd64~~6.1.7601.17514
Microsoft-Windows-HomePremiumEdition-wrapper~31bf3856ad364e35~amd64~~6.1.7601.17514
Microsoft-Windows-Indexing-Service-Package~31bf3856ad364e35~amd64~~6.1.7601.17514
Microsoft-Windows-IE-Troubleshooters-Package-wrapper~31bf3856ad364e35~amd64~~6.1.7601.17514
Microsoft-Windows-IE-Troubleshooters-Package-wrapper~31bf3856ad364e35~amd64~en-US~6.1.7601.17514
Microsoft-Windows-Links-Package~31bf3856ad364e35~amd64~~6.1.7601.17514
Microsoft-Windows-LocalPack-AU-Package~31bf3856ad364e35~amd64~~6.1.7601.17514
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Howdy :)
I'll test that ISO in Virtual PC
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does anyone happen to have the tinyxp x64 nlite lastsession.ini?
Just got a new dual core x64 rig together and i want to run something simillar to tinyxp x64.
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Well that never got answered, I'll take a stab at it :
404 Are you referring to "TinyXP" by "eXPerience" or "MAMExp" recently discussed in this thread ?
Also, Raitsa, I forgot to test that Win7 ISO ... I'll do it now :) Good thing I got it before the site went down :)
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Which site would you be referring too.... >:D
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Which site would you be referring too.... >:D
I assume the mega upload site w/ ZD7 - Windows 7 x64.
PS What is ZD7 windows 7 anyhow? I noticed some "Superior XP64 " floating around that supposedly can use 128gb of ram and run faster and stripped of bloat version.
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Megaupload dot com was seized by our fascist dictat... um, I mean democratic loving g0vernment :)
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Well that never got answered, I'll take a stab at it :
404 Are you referring to "TinyXP" by "eXPerience" or "MAMExp" recently discussed in this thread ?
Also, Raitsa, I forgot to test that Win7 ISO ... I'll do it now :) Good thing I got it before the site went down :)
Thanks for your response. I was speaking about the tinyxp64 build specifically. Not sure how the services and other apps differ between the 32bit and x64. I'm assuming there were some things different but since i couldn't find out for sure so i never bothered trying out some of the lastsessions from other XP builds to slipstream my own build.
A word of warning for the DekkerXPX64 iso floating around the interwebz, I used this build only to find out some days later that they botched the wga stuff. The WGA nag screen during startup appears and the build does not let you activate as it's missing some dependencies to allow you to do so. This build gives you constant boot loops during the login process because of this. I have plenty of legitimate XP serials at my disposal; couldn't even get to the license screen in order to use any.
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404
I tried TinyXP before and found that they removed drivers from the Windows CD.
Those drivers aren't available for download anywhere, as they are assumed to be native to Windows XP.
So if you have a device and they decided to remove the driver for it, you can't use it.
I'm all for a tiny sized XP, but device compatibility should be priority #1. So I like to keep the Windows native drivers and add Bashrat's driverpacks.
I like to make my own tiny sized XP using Nlite. It's easy if you do it following Black Viper's services guide and other guides. It's pretty easy to discover what window's components are superfluous and what is important. And you can tailor that to your specific needs.
These guys are just using Nlite to make these releases. You can do it too :)
Raitsa
As for "Windows 7 lite ZD7x86v12c.iso"
I tested it in Virtuial PC, it looks good.
It was slightly slower than MAMExp, 17% difference. But that's not a big deal.
It should be a treat for folks that want to use Windows 7 in their cabinets :)
OK have fun!
Craig
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404
I tried TinyXP before and found that they removed drivers from the Windows CD.
Those drivers aren't available for download anywhere, as they are assumed to be native to Windows XP.
So if you have a device and they decided to remove the driver for it, you can't use it.
I'm all for a tiny sized XP, but device compatibility should be priority #1. So I like to keep the Windows native drivers and add Bashrat's driverpacks.
I like to make my own tiny sized XP using Nlite. It's easy if you do it following Black Viper's services guide and other guides. It's pretty easy to discover what window's components are superfluous and what is important. And you can tailor that to your specific needs.
These guys are just using Nlite to make these releases. You can do it too :)
I'm not a n00b at all when it comes to PC's. Mame on the other hand, I've only recently been exposed to the inner workings of.
I have slipstreamed my own copies of XP before using Nlite so that has never been a major issue for me. Biggest thing holding me back right now are the driver issues you and others have mentioned. I'm not really in the mood to install and test run so many different versions. Don't really have the patience for that.
Currently i have two test mame rigs going. One athlon x2 running xp x64 and one small 1ghz celeron system. The celeron currently runs the MicroXP build available on the net. Great memory footprint for such a small, diminutive system. I did run into the usual driver issues. I also encountered an issue with some Mame front ends. Some, like Mala tend to call up some windows media player dependencies, I'm assuming this is for playing sample game videos.
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LOL, I took a look at the new "Tiny XP" release and it has driverpacks in it.
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LOL, I took a look at the new "Tiny XP" release and it has driverpacks in it.
tried searching for it last week or so but couldn't find it. :(
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If you are interested, there is a version of MicroXP "out there" that comes with multiple options including driverpacks. It's the one I've been using for quite awhile. Rock solid. Every-time I put it on something it recognizes all the hardware which is soooo nice.
In fact, I just put it on a 400mhz, 128mb boat anchor (as Craig would say) that got rescued from the garbage several days ago. Boots in about 20 sec and runs Mala and Mame v84 fantastically.
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LOL I'll have to bench it against MAME-XP
As for places to find it, Google this :
TinyXP Rev10 Multi Boot 6 in 1 DVD eXPerience pirate bay
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Ya. If you get the time do that. I would like to see how Micro holds up next to your build. (which I have had pretty good luck with also if I may say)
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If you are interested, there is a version of MicroXP "out there" that comes with multiple options including driverpacks. It's the one I've been using for quite awhile. Rock solid. Every-time I put it on something it recognizes all the hardware which is soooo nice.
In fact, I just put it on a 400mhz, 128mb boat anchor (as Craig would say) that got rescued from the garbage several days ago. Boots in about 20 sec and runs Mala and Mame v84 fantastically.
What might that version of Micro be called, there are quite a few.
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This is it.
Micro-X.Multi.Boot.CD.eXPerience
From the Pirate Bay.
Can't remember what version off the top of my head....
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LOL I'll have to bench it against MAME-XP
As for places to find it, Google this :
TinyXP Rev10 Multi Boot 6 in 1 DVD eXPerience pirate bay
yeah, found the TPB link some time ago but it seemed as if the torrent wasn't seeding. Maybe ill try again a bit later on. :)
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What might that version of Micro be called ? There are quite a few.
Apparently "micro" is the 3rd option when using the most recent "TinyXP" release.
1. Full Windows XP (nothing is removed)
2. TinyXP (large components removed, but usable for most)
3. MicroXP (extremely small, only takes 221Mb of HDD space)
yeah, found the TPB link some time ago but it seemed as if the torrent wasn't seeding. Maybe ill try again a bit later on. :)
There are 10 seeds at the moment, I'm getting 1 MB per second
Ya. If you get the time do that. I would like to see how Micro holds up next to your build. (which I have had pretty good luck with also if I may say)
Yeah I'll have to try that some time :)
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I did a separate post about this, but wanted to follow up here since folks here have used it.
1. I had no trouble finding "TinyXP Rev10 Multi Boot 6 in 1 DVD" - it is fully downloaded.
2. I had no trouble burning it to a disk. I also did it at a very low speed and had
3. I set the BIOS to boot from the CD. No problem there.
4. When I try to boot from the CD, it won't boot from the CD. I noticed that there is no "bootmgr" file on the CD. Shouldn't there be?
What am I missing?
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Did you burn it as an ISO or just copy the ISO to the disk?,
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Yes, in other words - list the files that are on the root of the CD. If it's just one file you've done it wrong-ly :)
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Here is the root of the drive.
Folders - Apps, B00T, HBCD, ISO, OEM, XP01, XP02, XP03
Files
eXPerience, SPINTRITE.EXE, SPINRITE.IMA, WIN51, WIN51IP, WIN51IP.SP3, XP01.DAT, XPO2.DAT, XP03.DAT
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Also, I did try going into the ISO folder and running the batch files there (specifically 02a and 04). In both cases, the batch file runs and then gives me a Windows cannot find cdimage.exe error.
Basically, I am just messing around trying some different things since I cannot seem to get this to work.
Thanks in advance for your help.
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Also, I did try going into the ISO folder and running the batch files there (specifically 02a and 04). In both cases, the batch file runs and then gives me a Windows cannot find cdimage.exe error.
Basically, I am just messing around trying some different things since I cannot seem to get this to work.
Thanks in advance for your help.
2 potential problems, you did burn it to a DVD, not a CD correct? ( 1st post you used cd/dvd interchangeably). Preferably use a DVD-R.
I'm guessing it is an older pc. The DVD laser might not be working correctly. I tossed a box full of old drives that had cd / and or dvd reading problems. Try a known good bootable cd and dvd.
3rd option it's not a old "Dell" is it? Beside not being able to boot from USB half of the time even though it is in the BIOS, they have problems booting "aftermarket :)" windows install disks. You could try USB booting a flash drive or DVD drive maybe with "Plop" boot magager (It's on most versions of "Hirens boot disks"
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Here is what I do. CDBurnerXP is the software that I use. Works great every time and is free!
http://tinyurl.com/8boxen (http://tinyurl.com/8boxen)
After installing, click on the icon to open up program and then highlite "Burn ISO Image" and click "OK"
then.....
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...browse to your .iso image and then hit "Burn disc"
Easy - peasy
ps. Burns CD or DVD's. I just use which ever medium I need the most space for, and/or the machine's particular hardware.
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Tommyinajar - nope, not a Dell it is an old emachines - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16883114027 (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16883114027)
IG-88 - thanks for the info, but I did a burn using CDBurnerXP with the same result - won't boot from CD/DVD.
Can someone confirm for me that indeed the iso is not supposed to have any files beyond those I listed below. I don't see how it could boot just based upon the files that are there.
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Does it boot other bootable DVD's? Can you boot it on other machines?(Don't install it!) :laugh:
Anyways- Here is mine I just booted it on 2 machines, pressed "enter" to boot, seems to boot fine. I got it at TPB (Tinyxp rev10 boot 6 in 1 dvd) "Tinyxp-rev10.iso" is what it downloads the torrent as.
P.S. Tinyxp 11 is also out there...
And as always make sure you use the key from your original Version :angel:
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Tommyinajar - I got mine same place and same torrent. And our directories and files look the same.
Interestingly I can boot using Hiren's Boot CD (I am running diagnostics and wiping the old HD to make sure that isn't the issue). I will try using a different brand of DVD (I tried to pick some up yesterday but they were out).
Again, the assistance is appreciated - this was supposed to be a quick reinstall and upgrade on my working cab, and it is really quite frustrating.
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I'd still bet the DVD laser is bad in the drive. Try to boot a DVD or try a USB install. 100's of post on it. Here is one from cnet http://download.cnet.com/Windows-7-USB-DVD-Download-Tool/3000-18513_4-10972600.html. (http://download.cnet.com/Windows-7-USB-DVD-Download-Tool/3000-18513_4-10972600.html.) You have to change the bios. I do all my installs from USB now, quicker and no more scratched disk.
Also since you have Hirens cd there, try the plop boot from the Hirens cd drive and put the 10-in1- dvd in there. I think that was the only way I got old dells to boot some hacked windows install disk.
It's been a while but now that I think about it, they might not have wanted to boot DVD's, only cd's. The plop has CD/DVD boot without BIOS support (IDE)
http://www.plop.at/en/bootmanagers.html (http://www.plop.at/en/bootmanagers.html)
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OK. I can confirm that it can boot other DVDs. I can also confirm that the TinyXP disk does boot on other computers. I have now tried 2 different brands of DVDs with no success.
Also, no joy from Plop Boot - I tell it to boot from the drive and it just freezes.
I tried your suggestion of using the Microsoft Download Tool - it says that the iso is not valid (which is weird, since I already burnt it on a DVD and tested it on another computer - it works fine).
Just plane strange. I appreciate the ideas, but any other suggestions?
Oh - and re: your earlier post. Yes, my XP license code is printed on the side of my tower. :)
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Oh, and just to add to the puzzle, I just tried booting a burn of Micro-X with the same result.
:banghead:
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I might of missed it but did you try a different DVD drive in the computer you are wanting to install the OS on? And you are sure that you have your system set to boot from the CD/DVD right?
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IG-88 (love the name, BTW),
I only have the one drive for this computer, so no, I haven't tried it in a different drive.
But I can confirm that the BIOS is set to boot from CD/DVD.
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Thanks. Been my fav character since I first saw him in the theaters some 30+ yrs ago :o
OK. The reason I ask is in my experience of installing these modified XP's, (and I've done it 100's of times trust me), 75% of it installing correctly depends on the hardware you are using to install it with/onto. I have boxes & boxes full of various DVD drives, CD Drives, ribbon cables, memory modules, audio cards, video cards, power supplies ect ect. and it often requires me to swap out parts SEVERAL times in order to get it to go correctly.
AND, there are irregularities within the various .iso versions that you get off the internets, so that doesn't help either.
Now I'm not saying all installs give me a headache but some do. These eXperience mods are pretty good and when they work they are usually rock solid. But sometimes.... :banghead:
For instance I have one up on the bench right now that got "saved" form the curb down the street that will hopefully make it into a bartop this summer. It may find its way back there tho. I've tried installing an O/S on it 7-8 times in the last 2 days and it's just not co-operating.
So I guess I'm saying it could be alot of things yet.
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I had the same problems with a P3 dell a few years back. It's in the way they make the boot menu- If I remember correctly a USB was the only way I could get it to boot(use a usb port in the back)
Here is the one I use for USB windows creation. I couldn't remember the name before, it's Wintoflash http://wintoflash.com/download/en/ (http://wintoflash.com/download/en/)
Just mount the iso to copy to usb. Hopefully that will work.
Also I think you could boot to a dos with dvd drivers and run the .EXE off the disk, run it from Live Windows XP off of the Hirens dvd, or maybe even use "WinNTSetup " off of Hirens(I never tried it before)
Otherwise maybe it will boot a cd- you could mount the 10-in-1 dvd and create an iso and burn to a CD instead of a DVD, Create it with the windows version you want to try. The instructions are in the Experience.txt-
Aren't old computers fun :) !! :censored:
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Actually, I can run XP through Hirens and I can see the disk in file explorer. I can navigate the contents no problem.
What is maddening is that I cannot figure out what to do next. There is no "install.exe" or "autorun" or anything. There is a "Spinrite.exe" but I don't think that is what I want (although, at this point I could try it). I seem so close to being able to make it work, but it still doesn't. :hissy:
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I'm not sure if anyone here mentioned MicroXP, but I use it and it runs extremely well. Boots in approximately 12 seconds, great install! I think the most it supports is DirectX 9 though so keep that in mind.
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Just to close the loop for future generations. I never could get this to work right. I don't think it had anything to do with the software, but with the combination of the software with my particular old hardware.
But on the bright side I did use it as evidence to persuade the wife to let me upgrade the PC in my cab. :cheers:
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I'm still going to dig out that dell that does the same thing in the basement. I quickly looked at the tinyxp iso and am not sure what the "install" program was either. Then you can throw the old pc into another project!
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Anyone know where I can get this yet? all links I have tried are dead.
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Calling Spystyle...! Craig you still out there?
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LOL, I am here.
Actually the newest version of TinyXp is good. They resolved the problems that previously bothered me, and added driverpacks - what more could you ask for ? The author also makes a Tiny7.
[link removed by moderator]
Or you can use BlackViper's guide to disabling services to make any Windows OS "Tiny", post install:
http://www.blackviper.com/ (http://www.blackviper.com/)
What I've recently discovered that is so nice is the DriverPacks Solution - it's a DVD you run after installing an OS, it installs all the drivers. Grab the DVD torrent here :
[link removed by moderator]
Feel free to ask any questions :)
Craig
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LOL, I am here.
Actually the newest version of TinyXp is good. They resolved the problems that previously bothered me, and added driverpacks - what more could you ask for ? The author also makes a Tiny7.
[link removed by moderator]
Or you can use BlackViper's guide to disabling services to make any Windows OS "skinny" :
http://www.blackviper.com/ (http://www.blackviper.com/)
What I've recently discovered that is so nice is the DriverPacks Solution - it's a DVD you run after installing an OS, it installs all the drivers. Grab the DVD torrent here :
[link removed by moderator]
Feel free to ask any questions :)
Craig
I've looked for the tinyxp OS but I've found many versions of it. What do you recommend?
Thanks!
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I believe it's TinyXP Rev12 by "eXPer1ence". I looked before and had trouble finding it alone. It came in an "Windows XP 2003 eXPerience Edition October 2011" DVD with micro and hirens on it.
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He has his own forum, apparently :
[link removed by moderator]
And I think the newest version is called "Windows XP 2003 eXPerience Edition (October 2011)", current as of April 15 2013.
Click this :
[Link removed by moderator]
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I will say eXperience's builds of XP are outstanding. I bought the full blown bloated XP once and learned my lesson. Now I run his stuff exclusively. And have been for about 7 yrs. His builds are rock solid and lightning fast. Highly recommended.
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Thanks for the information! :applaud:
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LOL, I guess "Windows XP 2003 eXPerience Edition (October 2011)" makes this entire thread obsolete. Unless one wants to do it all the long way. Windows services, Nlite. Driverpacks.
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Does anyone know if the MicroXP version from Windows XP 2003 eXPerience Edition is enough to run emulators and Hyperspin?
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It can't hurt to try :)
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Ha, fair enough!
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Just to follow this up, I installed MicroXP last night and after some fiddling - which I'm not finished with yet as I've not tested everything - I managed to get Hypersin working (specifically, the Hyperlaunch side) with at least Fusion and ZSNES, but only after I'd installed .NET Frameworks 1.1, 3.5 (+ SP1) and 4, and a C++ distributable I can't remember the full name of. In particular, if you've not installed the 3.5 SP1 .NET frameworks then Hyperlaunch won't be able to launch it's hyperlaunch.dll (this flummoxed me for a bit). 4.0 is needed for HyperLaunchHQ, and I don't remember fully what 1.1 was or but it was for something!
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Thank you, please keep us (me?) updated.
:soapbox: RANT - I hate nothing more than when a question is posted that I was curious about. Then the OP gets and answer himself or else where and doesn't share.
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just wondering if you can install an nlited build on a new partition, thus keeping the full os install on the original partition and then test the nlited build to see if it does everything you need it to do and then delete the full os or the nlited build depending on how testing goes???
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Hi, do you guys have any recommendations for as nlited edition of Windows 7 for groovymame and the emulators/games in general ?
Thanks
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I haven't tried windows 7 in any emulator benchmarking way, but from what I've been reading there might be no difference if any (maybe worse) in a stripped windows 7 install. Performance supposedly is good as long as you turn off unused services. I was looking for this before & he has some good settings for all windows xp, 64, 7 & 8 and can make a "tool" to do them automatically!
http://www.blackviper.com/service-configurations/ (http://www.blackviper.com/service-configurations/)
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Thanks tommyinajar! ;)
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Hey, just wanted to drop a line here and say thanks for this thread. Getting XP installed on this little poverty system I rigged up has proven a lot trickier then I thought, and it's ultimately lead me here. I had no idea nlite was even a thing, so thanks for the resources and tips for build a slim, trim version of XP. :)
(The last hoop, hopefully, is that I actually need to create the .iso on my WinXP system. Apparently there's an issue with making XP .isos on Win7 w/ slipstreamed service packs that causes the product keys to stop working. If it's not one thing it's another amirite?)
edit: And starting from the bottom of the thread and looking up I find that someone out there has put together excellent, all-purpose small xp installations. I'll try that out first. :D
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If it's not one thing it's another amirite?
So I might have trimmed out a little too much. ;D Tried to test a game on it and running into enough issues with dx, then issues trying to get it installed manually that I might put together another iso.
Or I saw a link to BlackViper's XP trimming guide. If hard drive space isn't a concern, is that the way to go? If not, what do I need to keep in for full dx9 functionality? Because man I'm loving how fast this baby runs otherwise.
On a related note, if I do go with a (mostly) full install, what do I need to trim out to bypass the eula agreement? One problem I was running into when I was just trying to do full install was I would get an error during setup saying that the eula couldn't be found and would kick me back out to startup.
(Note: I'm booting/installing from a flash drive, which I understand WinXP doesn't like so much, but I was able to install the trimmed version from my flash drive just fine, so...)
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Havin dabbled with some of this stuff in the past I just went with a vanilla windows 7 install in the end. Depends how old your computer is if course but if its only a few years then you're not really getting that much benefit out of xp.
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Here's a working Last Session.ini that I created many moons ago. You can load up to make a working .ISO:
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Havin dabbled with some of this stuff in the past I just went with a vanilla windows 7 install in the end. Depends how old your computer is if course but if its only a few years then you're not really getting that much benefit out of xp.
It's a 1.2ghz via c7, with only 1gb of memory (which I'm currently trying to fix since it only reads half of it)... so yea, Win7 probably not the best option. ;)
Here's a working Last Session.ini that I created many moons ago. You can load up to make a working .ISO:
Thanks! I'll give that one a shot. :)
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I just tossed 6 1+ ghz pc's I was saving for Mame's...
You can buy a more "modern" pc setup so cheap, (with SATA, pci-e, DDR ram 8 usb 2.0 ports) to me it's just not worth fussing with the slow as molasses computers. I still use a stripped windows install though.
However If you got one free thats laying around and have the time ( patience) and want the satisfaction of doing it, go for it! ;D
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I just tossed 6 1+ ghz pc's I was saving for Mame's...
You can buy a more "modern" pc setup so cheap, (with SATA, pci-e, DDR ram 8 usb 2.0 ports) to me it's just not worth fussing with the slow as molasses computers. I still use a stripped windows install though.
However If you got one free thats laying around and have the time ( patience) and want the satisfaction of doing it, go for it! ;D
same here, always used old p4's, but for around 200€ you can buy a modern fast pc, with lower temperatures and they are more power efficient and quiet.
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Quite right on the satisfaction part of it. I like fiddling with old hardware. In the end what I built will have cost me under a hundred bucks, so I'm pretty cool with it.
Still haven't gotten around to really trying out the lastsession you uploaded, gonzo. I made an .iso off of it last night, but I couldn't help myself and I started trimming more stuff again and I borked it. I really should probably do a little more research when I do this. :laugh:
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Ultra old post, but are people still using TinyXP or nLited XP for cabinets these days? Or have people moved on to Windows 7?
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Is there a Tiny7? :dunno
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There is a Tiny 7. I have a PC running it right behind me. Jury is still out on its usefulness and stability IMO.
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Ultra old post, but are people still using TinyXP or nLited XP for cabinets these days? Or have people moved on to Windows 7?
I still use it exclusively on older systems. I have about 50 (literally) PC's with it installed. Can't beat it for stability and ease of use.
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I'm still using Windows XP x64. To make system a bit lighter I've made some scripts that in 3 steps will strip system for some components and will change look to my taste.
In the past I had bad experience with stripping windows. This involves a lot of work especially testing.
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Are you willing to share the scripts? Always looking for improvement.
You can always tell a great subject thread 'cause it never dies....
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Sure, I hope those files will be usefull for other people. I still planning to disable even more services but right now it's ok. mame64, groovymame64, daphne, nestopia, model2emu works together with mamewah 1.69.
I suggest to analize cmd files prior to installation (unless you are installing in virtual env.). Though there are some explanations during running.
Scripts are intended to use on clean, fresh installation of Windows XP x64 with default settings and without any patches.
Tested with exactly this version:
en_win_xp_pro_x64_with_sp2_vl_x13-41611 - SHA1: cd9479e1dbad7f26b8bdcf97e4aa71cbb8de932b
NOTE: I didn't include three KBs:
KB936357 (microcode update - might be usefull for new processors)
KB955704 (exFAT support - I have pendrives formatted with ExFAT)
KB967715 (disabling autorun (partially)on removable devices)
Just download those form MS site and rename.