Rom managment- We could all use this.

[delta88]

OK, So I am framiliar with the Catver.ini file and its use in conjunction with MCM (mame content manager) for sorting/removing unwanted roms from your mame list/folder. well, Have spoken with a few other BYOAC'ers is there a utility that can filter out games in the same manner but to another folder instead of a deletion. sappose I have a full set of mame roms (12-20gigs or so) and I have a 10 gig HD in a cab that I only want a handfull of games on. This "utility" when run might give a GUI like mame 32 the I run through the list of parent roms and select a game(maybe by screen shot even if it looks fun) and then upon selection tell it to move to another folder taking with it the rom file from the roms folder to another and if the game I selected depends on another parent rom and or bios file it might take it or a copy along with it to that folder that I am sorting out my roms to.

--So like either a "cut to" or "copy to" another folder option taking with it the rom and or any other rom file needed by that rom to play.-- I know there are programs to create filtered lists but can we make them cut/copy the selected roms to another folder via a mame32 like GUI so one could run through the list and make a filtered folder of selected roms that take up much less space then a full set.

Cuz theres only like maybe 50 or so games that get played a lot...

Just a thought


 thx

[elvis]

If you've already got a list of games (catver output, sortinfo output, etc) then copying them somewhere is a breeze.  MS Excel and OpenOffice Calc both quite easily import lists of stuff and can be told to uses spaces as separators, and from there generate plain text files with rom names.

Once you have the list of names, the following command at the command prompt or in a batch file will copy yuour games selectively:

for /f "delims=," %%I IN (game_list.txt) DO copy "c:\copy_from\%%I.*" "c:\copy_to\"

Obviously replace "game_list.txt", "c:\copy_from\" and "c:\copy_to" with the correct file names and locations.

I use this method to copy only the vertical roms and snapshots to my cocktail cab.  The end result is an entire OS and all vertical ROMs that squeeze onto a 2 GB drive.  (yes 2GB.  Not 20GB).

No need for third party tools, when a simple command line script will do it for you.

[JoyMonkey]

I've been thinking of a utility like this for a long time. Using Sortinfo and a good text editor is a great way of doing this, and is how I made my vertical/horizontal/clone sorting batch files in the past. Still, a utility that combined the ease of Sortinfo with the ability to move selected roms would be so much easier. Playing with Sortinfo, editing text files and DOS commands isn't for everybody.
I started learning VB with the intention of eventually making a utility like this, but my skills never got off the ground. 

Here's what I had envisioned the thing to look like:

[NinjaEpisode]

Dude, delta88, I just can't concentrate with those damn cans bouncin like that.  It's mesmerizing

[jcroach]

I've been thinking of a utility like this for a long time. Using Sortinfo and a good text editor is a great way of doing this, and is how I made my vertical/horizontal/clone sorting batch files in the past. Still, a utility that combined the ease of Sortinfo with the ability to move selected roms would be so much easier. Playing with Sortinfo, editing text files and DOS commands isn't for everybody.
I started learning VB with the intention of eventually making a utility like this, but my skills never got off the ground.

[screaming]

I've been thinking of a utility like this for a long time. Using Sortinfo and a good text editor is a great way of doing this, and is how I made my vertical/horizontal/clone sorting batch files in the past. Still, a utility that combined the ease of Sortinfo with the ability to move selected roms would be so much easier. Playing with Sortinfo, editing text files and DOS commands isn't for everybody.
I started learning VB with the intention of eventually making a utility like this, but my skills never got off the ground. 

Here's what I had envisioned the thing to look like:

  listgen can do this?  It's commandline based, but it works pretty well.

-sab

[JoyMonkey]

Any chance someone could come up some documentation, or even a ListGen Front-End to make life easier for us tards?

[screaming]

Any chance someone could come up some documentation, or even a ListGen Front-End to make life easier for us tards?

  In lieu of proper documentation or a frontend, try this:

1) Download and extract the latest version of listgen.
2) Edit the listgen.ini and change the rompath and mamepath to match your setup.
3) Make sure skip_final_step is set to 1.
4) Save and close listgen.ini
5) Copy filter.sql to filter.sql.backup
6) Edit filter.sql and delete everything in there.
7) Add SQL statements in filter.sql to taste.  It's pretty easy to take an existing SQL statement and change it to output whatever you want.

For example,

Code: [Select]

--   /-Y means "prompt before overwrite"
--   will output a textfile with a bunch of lines
--   like
--   move /-Y c:\mame\roms\11beat.zip c:\mame\oldroms\
--   
--   rename xxx.txt to moveroms.bat, then run moveroms.bat from the commandline

SELECT 'move /-Y c:\mame\roms\' || romname || '.zip c:\mame\oldroms\'
 FROM gamedata
 WHERE year >= '1990'
 ;

8) Rename xxx.txt to moveroms.bat
9) type moveroms.bat

  I've posted some pretty decent SQL in this forum before, and I don't mind being a "goto guy" for requests for more. I'll see if I can add a quick webpage today that will list some good ones.

  For good measure, here's another one I posted not too long ago:

Code: [Select]

--  This SQL will give you a batch file that when run, will move all roms that
--  are clones and have parents that have a MAME status as 'good', but NOT
--  clones who's parents are not working.  (effectively leaving you with the most
--  complete list of working games, but none of the extra clones)

SELECT 'move c:\mame\roms\' || a.romname || '.zip c:\mame\old_cloneroms'
  FROM gamedata a, gamedata b
WHERE a.isclone = 1
   AND a.cloneof = b.romname
   AND NOT (b.status = 'preliminary' AND a.status = 'good')
ORDER BY a.romname
   ;

  Once again, put this SQL in your filter.sql file and run listgen.exe.  Then rename xxx.txt to moveroms.bat and run it.

  To change this to only get newer games (leaving you with only pre-1990 games after you run the output), add a "AND a.year >= '1990'" before the "ORDER BY" line:

Code: [Select]

SELECT 'move c:\mame\roms\' || a.romname || '.zip c:\mame\old_cloneroms'
  FROM gamedata a, gamedata b
WHERE a.isclone = 1
   AND a.cloneof = b.romname
   AND NOT (b.status = 'preliminary' AND a.status = 'good')
   AND a.year >= '1990'
ORDER BY a.romname
   ;

  I'll see about getting that list of helpful SQL today.

-sab

[Lilwolf]

btw, I have an app that looks just like above.  You can select all 8way games.  Then unselect all adult games...  move them from one directory to another... and it will also move all extra files (art, samples ect).

Also launches games and displays all its configuration (so you can make sure its the right game before moving it)

But it currently only works with my frontend setup (setup two configurations and you can freely move games between them)..

I asked if anyone would be interested in a generic solution (would only required changing the config from control panel / emulator to rom\director + extra directories...  But nobody seemed interested.

The only thing left is to have a button to add all children / parents of selected files. 

[delta88]

That joymonky pic is close but I would want to move specific games besides genre as well as a picture display in case I dunno what game I wanted to move.. btw, I dunno nuttin bout  programinin.

anything else..

[Timstuff]

Pretty much all I'm interested in doing is making it so that MameWah doesn't list the roms that don't work, and maybe make a favorites list or have different lists for different genres. Anyone have any reccomendations for how to do this?

[Lilwolf]

Mine you select all you want...  By hand or by auto selecting ranges (based on category.  Actually ANY catver looking ini file... you can have multiples so nplayers.ini works) or listinfo.

So you can Select all 2player sim games.  Unselect all 4way games.  Select Asteroids or any others by hand then move them... Them select all 4 button games in the right side... select them... and copy them back.

The only option I still want to add is to select a group then find and select all its children with a button press.  Since catver.ini and others sometimes miss children roms.

That joymonky pic is close but I would want to move specific games besides genre as well as a picture display in case I dunno what game I wanted to move.. btw, I dunno nuttin bout

[delta88]

Lilwolf, Could your Fe just be modified a little to take on this task?

[wakerlet]

One thing I would like as well is the ability to "create" a category, e.g., "Must have Games."  This way I'm not looking for that one version of Joust that has the pterodactyl cheat or remembering that I need to grab bump'n'jump from the clones list.

Heck, if you all aren't against installing the .NET Framework, I'll put it together.  I already have something that should work as a base...although it's in VB.NET and I'll have to relearn it...C# is much better IMO.

-Todd

[Lilwolf]

Delta.  I'll take a look at it after the next release.  I've been putting if off for ages... And keep adding more....

But you don't have to use the frontend.  You just have to describe the emulators there.  IE, it wouldn't be all that hard just to use it even if you don't run it from the frontend.  Basically you tell it where the mame.exe is, and where the rom directory is.  Then after that you can move them around with the rom manager.

If there is some people interested, I will either add the feature to setup the emulators from within the rom manager or make it so you can specify the directories.

[delta88]

Well DW, why not add your site to your profile and of toss me a link to the Fe...

[Buddabing]

Any chance someone could come up some documentation, or even a ListGen Front-End to make life easier for us tards?

Rename xxx.txt to moveroms.bat

You can also put "output moveroms.bat" in listgen.ini, or run listgen with "-output moveroms.bat" on the command line.

The ListGen command line options can be displayed with listgen -showusage, just like the MAME options.

[screaming]

Flippin sweet!

I just found a decent .NET wrapper for SQLite, so taking a cue from Buddabing, I'm on my way to making a GUI for ListGen.  I have the backend programming down, but now it's time to come up with a decent GUI layout.

I hope I'm not stepping on anyone's toes here... Buddabing's ListGen untility is super and it's high-time people realized what you can do with it!!

-sab

[delta88]

Krazy cool everyone.. I guess from what I am reading it sounds like we are on our way to a cool utility that we can single out parent child roms possibly link the pair and then move them to another folder ... btu will these utilities use the rom file name or can they display the whole name ..like sfii and mspac will display as street fighter 2 and ms pacman.. cause this is part of the main cause for something like this..


killa ya'll

-d88

[Sprucemoose]

Very cool Screaming.  This would be very useful. 

PS. nice avatar

[delta88]

so, sup lilwolf? btw, my capin america is gettin mamed   twins! but not by me..

[screaming]

Very cool Screaming.  This would be very useful. 

PS. nice avatar

  In the words of the immortal Mike D: check, check, check it out.



-sab
P.S. Thanks!