Frontend Questions

[chadius]

So my cabinet is finally approaching completion, and the control panel is done, SO, after years of only using Mame32 on my PC I think it's time to setup a good FE.

I will be using mame and a handful of other emulators (for nes, atari, etc..).
I would like the interface to be attractive and professional looking.
I've downloaded all the preview avi's, so I want support for those.
Something that is easy to setup and VERY easy for someone to just jump on my cab and use.
And finally something with great game list support. (see below)

I'd like to be able to navigate to games a couple of different ways: The typical hierarchical tree structure (select emulator, select game), and through different lists (horizontal games, trackball games, sports games, all time favorites). I don't mind if I have to setup these different lists manually over time, as long as they are easy to jump between and navigate for the end user on the cab.

I don't have u360s, so a remapping feature isn't needed. (but maybe in the future?)
I don't have an LED whiz, so support for that won't be needed.

I've downloaded and taken a look at AtomicFE and MameWAH, the learning curve seemed pretty steep, and I couldn't get them to do quite what I wanted (that was probably my own ignorance though).

So, I'm thinking MALA? Is that what you guys would suggest considering my wants/needs? Or should I dig deeper into AtomicFE, or MameWAH, or buy Maximus or something else entirely?

Sorry for the long post, and thanks in advance for your feedback.
-chad

[Circo]

MameWah - Great but hard to set up and little documentation
Mala - Easier to set up but has some issues with videos at the moment
GameEx - What I am currently using, very easy to set up and currently my favorite but I do suggest getting the full version which is $20 but well worth it in my opinion. 
Atomic - The only one that I have not tried but I have heard very good things.

[Cakemeister]

I'm going to do something that I've never done before, namely recommend a frontend application.

There are four critical components to a frontend application. There's the graphical presentation to the user, of course. But you also need a game list generator, a config program, and a skinner. In my humble opinion these applications should be separate.

There is one frontend which has more stuff you can do with skins than any other I have tried, has a great skinner program, is fast, is currently being worked on by the developer, and will run on just about any combination of hardware you care to throw at it. That frontend is Atomic.

My only two complaints about Atomic are that 1) it is not open source, 2) the skins are binary files and can't be edited by hand.

[spystyle]

Mala!

http://mala.arcadezentrum.com/

[unclet]

Swindus is working on a new MALA version (RC10) which I believe is focusing on resolving the video and screensaver issues.  You can find the "RC9 beta2" floating around these boards if you want to try the newest MALA versions out there.

I use MALA and think it is incredibly easy to set up.  It really depends what your tastes are and what you want from a frontend.

[Havok]

The previously listed ones are all good, but make sure to check out Atomic - see my sig for documentation. The plug and play modules will literally get you going in the time it takes you to copy your roms to the plug and play directory.

Hey Circo:

wtf? You haven't tried Atomic? Scared you'll switch from Mala?

 

[headkaze]

The previously listed ones are all good, but make sure to check out Atomic - see my sig for documentation. The plug and play modules will literally get you going in the time it takes you to copy your roms to the plug and play directory.

What about copying the full Mame set with chd's over a wifi connection? That might take a while (jokes)

[loadman]

The previously listed ones are all good, but make sure to check out Atomic - see my sig for documentation. The plug and play modules will literally get you going in the time it takes you to copy your roms to the plug and play directory.

What about copying the full Mame set with chd's over a wifi connection? That might take a while (jokes)

 

[youki]

Chadius,

If you have question about Atomic don't hesitate to ask.

I have a dedicated forums in english here :

http://spaceinvaders.7.forumer.com/viewforum.php?f=13

I know some configuration step a not obvious in Atomic yet (it is going to change).
So the support forums are here for any question and help, bug reports..etc...

I take care of all post  as soos as i can and try to find the best solution i can.

[gonzo90017]

I can attest to everything youki just said. Whenever I had a question he would answer it and try to help as soon as possible

[chadius]

Thanks for everyone's input.

I've been playing around with Atomic, Mala, and MameWAH, and for now I'm going with Mala.

What finally sold me was the combination of:
The HOW TO doc by UncleT
The blue skin be game creature (I actually like the aliendashboard even better, but I'm going to output to a TV)
ROMLister by Jeff

These made setting up a clean, pro looking, easy to use front-end really easy.

Some questions for when I get around to setting up other (non-mame) emulators:
Does Mala let you switch between a tree view of the emulators and custom rom/game lists easily?
Does Mala support game/rom lists with entries from different emulators?
EXAMPLE: All time favorite list may have tron(mame), legend of zelda(nes), tetris(gameboy), and dragon's lair (daphne)

I will probably check out Atomic again in a few months, as I do like what it can do.  It is a bit over my head for now, unless I use a plug-and-play module (which I don't want to do). Maybe someone can create some better/simpler english documentation?

thanks again,
chad

[unclet]

I have asked Swindus(MALA developer) to think about incorporating a Top100 "emulator" game list in MALA which would list the Top100 games played from "any" emulator.   I know he is quite busy so not sure if he is moving forward on this suggestion or not.  However, this is similiar to what you are asking for ..... basically, a way to have a "Favorites" list which is populated from other configured emulators.

Just thought I would mention it ...... again ... not sure if it will be implemented or not, but Swindus does do some cool things ...

[Havok]

I will probably check out Atomic again in a few months, as I do like what it can do.  It is a bit over my head for now, unless I use a plug-and-play module (which I don't want to do). Maybe someone can create some better/simpler english documentation?

thanks again,
chad

Chad,

I created the documentation, what improvements would you like to see?

[chadius]

Havok,

I'll look back through your documentation and give you some better feedback later.

Off the top of my head, I think I was looking for something that falls in between your two documents. I didn't want to use a plug-and-play module so that doc wasn't for me. The more detailed documentation has a tab by tab, feature by feature view of the configuration options. This is great for somebody who is up and running and wants to tweak something, but once again, wasn't what I was looking for.

The way UncleT presented his Mala doc was perfect for me. It was kind of a "Recommended Configuration" guide.  In a simple, step-by-step format, answered the 3 main questions I had:
How to setup your file structure? (in a generic way that was not tied to a specific front end)
How to get various emulators working in Mala?
How to setup layouts/skins?

All the information on where to find various files (installs, layouts, etc.), and the steps for installing mame, pinball emulators, etc. were just an added bonus.


Important Note: Please don't be insulted by this sentence from my previous post - "Maybe someone can create some better/simpler english documentation?". I'm not trying to judge or denigrate your work. It just wasn't presented/structured in a way that I found helpful at the time. For those with more experience with front end software, or with different needs, I'm sure it is great.

thanks,
chad

[youki]

I sent you a PM  with a tutorial.

[Havok]

No worries Chad - I was genuinely interested in why you said that. I'm an IT professional by trade, so sometimes I may not approach a computer in the same way someone who is not in my line of work would. Thanks for the tips, hopefully I can dedicate some time to get the documentation updated.

Plus, if Youki sent you what I think he sent you, nobody else has that...