Any frontend that allow me create this?

[Stormrider]

Hello. I'd like to ask about frontends. The point is that I know exactly what I want in a frontend, and I have not found any that already meet my needs. I'm not talking about something like Emu Loader, which is perfect for a high res screen and a computer of daily use. I mean something which suits a cabinet, using ArcadeVGA. I'd like to create my own frontend according to the designs you can see in the attached images. I don't know programming, so I presume I'd need something like MAMEWah, AtomicFE, MALA, etc. I don't know if any of these programs can provide all the features I need, which are the following:

- It will be displayed in 368x240 non-interlaced full screen.

- The possibility to scroll up and down smoothly and without any initial delay using the stick in my control panel.

- The possibility to quickly select a game by writting the first letters of its name with my keyboard.

- It should let the user instantly switch between two different modes (horizontal and vertical), as you can see in the pictures.

- The management of two different game lists (horizontal and vertical), which will be selected and displayed according to the current mode.

- It should be able to display the in-game-snapshot and the cabinet picture at the same time.

- These pictures should be displayed with stretch and filtering, fitting the size in my designs.

- Information about manufacturer, year, category, resolution, version added y driver status.

- The possibility to show a bitmap picture (help indications).

- It should let me program the buttons in my control panel for different functions, even with button combinations (in the designing/programming stage I mean).

- Sounds associated to different events (in the designing/programming stage I mean).

As you can see, the style and designs are simple, but perfect to me as regard clarity, functionality and the amount of information on screen. I hope you can tell me how to start this project and what tools I need for this. Thanx a lot!

[youki]

Hi,

To do 100% what you want, you can with AtomicFe but it would require you use Scripting. And as you are not a programmer it is not so easy.

if you can do some compromise on your spec , you can manage to do about 90% without need of scripting.

but Mala could also i think respond to 90% of your needs also (may be even more) , i think.

Concerning Atomic :

- It will be displayed in 368x240 non-interlaced full screen.

YES

- The possibility to scroll up and down smoothly and without any initial delay using the stick in my control panel.

YES

- The possibility to quickly select a game by writting the first letters of its name with my keyboard.

YES with scripting .  Without Scripting YES also but with your stick not the keyboard , Atomic displays a "virtual keyboard" on screen you can use with your stick.

- It should let the user instantly switch between two different modes (horizontal and vertical), as you can see in the pictures.

YES : Atomic can autorotate the layout according to the last game launched.  But by default the layout is the same but simply rotated.
Other possibility : do 3 screen, one for selecting vertical or horizontal  , then  one menu for vertical  and the 2nd for the horizontal. and You can navigate between screens.

- The management of two different game lists (horizontal and vertical), which will be selected and displayed according to the current mode.

YES see previous answer.

- It should be able to display the in-game-snapshot and the cabinet picture at the same time.

YES

- These pictures should be displayed with stretch and filtering, fitting the size in my designs.

YES

- Information about manufacturer, year, category, resolution, version added y driver status.

YES with scripting  /  Without Scripting you need to use a scroll text that display these info.

- The possibility to show a bitmap picture (help indications).

YES

- It should let me program the buttons in my control panel for different functions, even with button combinations (in the designing/programming stage I mean).

YES   , but not combination.

- Sounds associated to different events (in the designing/programming stage I mean).

YES

[Stormrider]

Thak's a lot for the detailed replay. About the keyboard, issue, it was only an idea for those who keep a keyboard in their cabs for quickly selecting games. It's a common problem of many frontends that you are in aerofighters and want to go to zero point and this takes ages. Another idea I've had, which would avoid the need for a keyboard is keeping pressed a control panel button together with the stick up or down, increasing the scroll speed a lot, which lets you move throw the whole list in just a few seconds.

[youki]

Thak's a lot for the detailed replay. About the keyboard, issue, it was only an idea for those who keep a keyboard in their cabs for quickly selecting games. It's a common problem of many frontends that you are in aerofighters and want to go to zero point and this takes ages. Another idea I've had, which would avoid the need for a keyboard is keeping pressed a control panel button together with the stick up or down, increasing the scroll speed a lot, which lets you move throw the whole list in just a few seconds.

The Filter function of Atomic, allows to find game very quicky.

And Atomic also have the "Turbo Browse" option that do exactly what you say.  more you maintain the joysticl in a direction faster the list will scroll , you can browse the all list in very few seconds.

[Stormrider]

I've seen that idea in Atomic FE (left-ight) for browing page by page instead of line by line, and I think it's quite interesting. One question about this frontend, or about MALA, can everything be hidden? I mean, for instance, no intro screen, no quit confirmation dialogue, etc. I mean I don't want to start creating my frontend and find some details like these that can ruin the result.

As regard the rotation issue, which is essential for me, I think I could create a menu which would be the first screen you see when the frontend is loaded with this options for selection: horizontal orientation, vertical orientation, and operating system, or even: horizontal frontend, vertical frontend, horizontal so, vertical os. I don't know if this would be possible. Windows and the ati panel have options for rotating the desktop display, and you can also define hotkeys, but how to tell the frontend to quit to desktop in horizontal or vertical mode? Anyway, that's not very important. What really matters is how to make this initial screen for selecting horizontal or vertical frontend. You could add a menu for up/down selection with the stick, but if the screen is vertical, then it would be left and right. Morever, I'd have to divive the selection screen in two parts, one with the horizontal text and other one with vertical text, so it would be readable no matter if you have your screen rotated or not. A solution for this could be selecting horizontal or vertical with the first of the second button. I could add a picture or a text: press button 1 for horizontal frontend, button 2 for vertical frontend, button 3 for os. What do you think? Any other ideas?

[youki]

I've seen that idea in Atomic FE (left-ight) for browing page by page instead of line by line, and I think it's quite interesting. One question about this frontend, or about MALA, can everything be hidden? I mean, for instance, no intro screen, no quit confirmation dialogue, etc. I mean I don't want to start creating my frontend and find some details like these that can ruin the result.

For the left-right ,  if you look in Atomic options , you say Atomic to instead of going page by page to jump to the next Letter in the list.  There is ton of options in Atomic (may be too much) .
But this kind of feature can be found on others front end i think it is pretty standard.
Concerning Hidding things , you are talking of hidding disclaimer, confirmation , intro screen in the emulator that in launched? Or in the Front end?   Concerning the Front End itself, in Atomic you can hidde all what you want.  But if it is something "extern" it really depends and it is not under the responsability of the FE directly.  For instance Hidding Game Info and Disclaimer in recent version of Mame is not possible (except compiling your own version ) .

As regard the rotation issue, which is essential for me, I think I could create a menu which would be the first screen you see when the frontend is loaded with this options for selection: horizontal orientation, vertical orientation, and operating system, or even: horizontal frontend, vertical frontend, horizontal so, vertical os. I don't know if this would be possible. Windows and the ati panel have options for rotating the desktop display, and you can also define hotkeys, but how to tell the frontend to quit to desktop in horizontal or vertical mode? Anyway, that's not very important. What really matters is how to make this initial screen for selecting horizontal or vertical frontend. You could add a menu for up/down selection with the stick, but if the screen is vertical, then it would be left and right.  Morever, I'd have to divive the selection screen in two parts, one with the horizontal text and other one with vertical text, so it would be readable no matter if you have your screen rotated or not. A solution for this could be selecting horizontal or vertical with the first of the second button. I could add a picture or a text: press button 1 for horizontal frontend, button 2 for vertical frontend, button 3 for os. What do you think? Any other ideas?

You don't have to use your video driver to manage rotation of the front end.  Atomic (and Mala) can rotate his screen without having to rotate the desktop. and in Atomic you can mix horizontal screen and vertical screen, there is no problem.
You can also , if you really need swith command to browse the list from Up/down to left/right.

I suggest with Atomic you do a first "screen"  where you can select :

Vertical Games
Horizontal games

Then  2 other "screens"  one in vertical , one in Horizontal .   Each screen list respectivly vertical and horizontal game and will run mame rotated accordingly.   (to run the game rotated with mame, it is an option to put in your mame.ini or as command line parameter)

And as i said,  Atomic and Mala are able to rotate their screen in function of the orientation of the game launched.

ex :   

your cabinet's screen is horizontal  , the frontend menu is horizontal , you run Jungle King (which an horizontal game) , you play, you go back to Atomic , your menu is horizontal.

You select "PACMAN" (a vertical game) , pacman run , you rotate your cabinet screen , you play pacman, you exit pacman , you go back to Atomic , now your menu is vertical (and your cabinet's screen too).

Now you decide to replay Jungle King (horizontal) , jungle king run, you roate your cabinet screen, you play jungle king, you exit, you go back to Atomic, now your menu is horizontal (as your cabinet's screen).

It is automatic.   (of course it needs that the FrontEnd Set up is done correctly).

[Stormrider]

As regard hidding, I meant hidding the frontend intro and other screens. I want a very simple and minalistic frontend, with nothing that is not really necessary. No problem with mame ok screens, since I compile my own version with that stuff removed. However, the idea of a screen while the game is loading, which I have seen in some videos, is interesting.

Rotation. There's no problem at all with rotation in my mame setup. I have inis with avres witch indicate if a game needs to be rotated or not. I never use vertical games on horizontal monitor. So, anything regarding MAME is already setup and perfect.

Your idea of the frontend automatically switching to vertical or horizontal depending on the selected game is nice, but it's not the way I wish for my setup. I need to separate verticals from horizontals. When my monitor is vertical, it should only list vertical games, and viceversa. Now, if I decided to rotate my monitor, I understand that I have two possibilities: 1- exit the frontend, load it again and select vertical orientation from a main menu, or 2- switch to vertical mode without leaving the frontend (not sure here how this can be done). Obviously, when in vertical mode, the frontend orientation and browsing controls should be vertical and viceversa.

My idea is a frontend that loads with Windows starts, hidding Windows boot at all. The first screen will let you choose to go to desktop/op.system or to load the game list and start using the frontend (with the h/v option). The problem is how to desing this screen, since it has to be valid for vertical and horizontal view and control (obviously the frontend don't know how I left my monitor, in vertical or horizontal position).

[Stormrider]

Today I've downloaded Atomic Fe and a tutorial with the idea of beginning my project. The first thing I read in the tutorial is about the nag screen encouraging you to visit a webpage. Can that be disabled? Moreover, I don't have internet in my cabinet. This is the kind of things that I may be aware of before starting, because I will not accept a message like this in my cab, so that thing alone would discard AtomicFE as the tool for my frontend.

[Stormrider]

I've been able to do some things at the moment with AtomicFe. However, I cannot find the way to show the game information on screen: manufacturer, year, category, version, etc. Can you help me?

[Stormrider]

After some hours with AtomicFe, I tried with MALA. It's easier and seems more configurable in the aspects that I'm interested in. It's 3 o'clock in the morning, but I've finally make this thing work. Now it's just a matter of improving. --->

[youki]

Today I've downloaded Atomic Fe and a tutorial with the idea of beginning my project. The first thing I read in the tutorial is about the nag screen encouraging you to visit a webpage.

There is no nag screen at all in Atomic .  The things you see, is just an advert you can click on if you want help me, but it is not mandatory and nothing force you to click or wait or something else . And it is only on the configuration tool   and it does not limit atomic at all, if if you don't have internet connection,  just click ok.   

I've been able to do some things at the moment with AtomicFe. However, I cannot find the way to show the game information on screen: manufacturer, year, category, version, etc. Can you help me?

For this part nothing is built in.  You have to generate files with info you want in a folder then create a plugin to display them or use the scrolltext feature. But on that specific  feature is clearly more integrated.

After some hours with AtomicFe, I tried with MALA. It's easier and seems more configurable in the aspects that I'm interested in. It's 3 o'clock in the morning, but I've finally make this thing work. Now it's just a matter of improving.

I think too that for your target Mala is an excellent choice .


 

[ivwshane]

For my mala configuration I have my stick set to page up/page down via up and down and I can browse games by their first letter by pressing left or right.

As far as getting from a to z, it's easy in mala, just select the "wrap games and emulators option". So if I'm in the #'s I just press up and it will scroll to the beginning of the #'s and then wrap to the Z's. Or I can press left and it will go straight to the Z's.

[Stormrider]

Yes, I think AtomicFE is more powerful as regards ui desing, animation, multimedia, etc, but since I want a very simple and functional frontend, those features are not really a need for me. I think Mala is doing everything fine at the moment. There's a shift key, which allows quick broswing, which is exactly what I had in mind. However, I still have to try with my stick. I don't have my cp right here and I guess if it will let you assing the shift function to any of the cp buttons. In case it doesn't, I could use joytokey to emulate the key.