Stella 2.8.1 released

[+stephena]

Here's a quick bugfix release for the 2.8 series of Stella. Most notably, this includes a fix for OpenGL detection sometimes failing in Windows, but I also managed to squeeze in a few bankswitching requests and some other bugfixes. I also went ahead and moved the default folder for Stella config files in Windows. The folder is now hidden, but you can still access it within the Stella filesystem browser. The ability to override with 'basedir.txt' is still available. I hope this ends all discussion on this part of Stella, because this is the third (and final) time it will be changed.

 

  * NOTE: Windows users will have to reset their options or manually move
their config folder in this release, since the location of the config
files has changed.

 * Fixed OpenGL issue for some Windows users whereby the OpenGL TV
effects weren't available, even if the available version of OpenGL
was sufficient.  Related to this, the OpenGL version found by
Stella is now reported in the TV effects dialog.

 * Added fallback to software rendering when OpenGL rendering has been
requested, but for whatever reason fails to initialize.

 * Added native support for 4in1, 8in1 and 32in1 multicart bankswitching
schemes.  When using these schemes, the 'Reload ROM' action
(by default, Control-r) will switch between each game in the ROM.

 * Added bankswitch support for ROMs smaller than 2K in size.  These
will be treated as 2K ROMs natively, without having to manually
'pad' them to 2048 bytes.

 * Added preliminary suppport for autodetection of X07 bankswitching.

 * Tweaked PAL autodetection; it was marking some PAL ROMs as NTSC.

 * Changed default location for Stella config files in Windows to
the users' APPDATA folder (for XP and Vista, this is
'~/Application Data/Stella').  The '~' symbol now represents the
users PROFILE/home directory, matching its usage in Linux and OSX.
The ability to override this with 'basedir.txt' is still
available, but not advised.

 * Changed '-exitlauncher' commandline argument to '-uselauncher'.
This works as before except the launcher is never used at all if
the option is set to false.

 * Fixed crash when launching Stella from the commandline and giving
a directory name instead of a rom filename.

As usual, you can download Stella here, although it looks like Sourceforge is having some trouble right now. Please direct all comments or bug reports to this thread or directly by PM.

[+Random Terrain]

Got it working and it's nice to have the features, but Color TV Texture set to normal or staggered seems too harsh. It's like looking through a dark screen door. None of my TVs looked that bad or that dark.

Mine most certainly did.

Every TV I have used over the years pretty much looked like TV Color Texture set to Staggered and TV Color Bleed set to Medium.

 

Problem is, if I use TV Color Bleed, I can't play any games because it slows everything down. Here is the info on my computer:

 

http://www.atariage.com/forums/index.php?s...t&p=1267243

 

Does anyone know why my computer can't handle TV Color Bleed?

[+stephena]

Got it working and it's nice to have the features, but Color TV Texture set to normal or staggered seems too harsh. It's like looking through a dark screen door. None of my TVs looked that bad or that dark.

Mine most certainly did.

Every TV I have used over the years pretty much looked like TV Color Texture set to Staggered and TV Color Bleed set to Medium.

 

Problem is, if I use TV Color Bleed, I can't play any games because it slows everything down. Here is the info on my computer:

 

http://www.atariage.com/forums/index.php?s...t&p=1267243

 

Does anyone know why my computer can't handle TV Color Bleed?

It't mentioned in the documentation that TV Bleed is currently a slow operation, and will be further optimized in future releases. The link you point to says you have a GeForce 6100 series card. This card is several generations 'behind the curve', and is probably too slow at present to use the effects you want. The TV effects depend almost entirely on the speed/capabilities of your video card, not the main CPU.

 

EDIT: Also, Vista support for OpenGL isn't great as compared to WinXP, so you're probably getting another hit there as well. My only suggestion right now is to lower the resolution as much as possible by playing games in 2x mode.

Edited June 19, 2009 by stephena

[+Random Terrain]

It't mentioned in the documentation that TV Bleed is currently a slow operation, and will be further optimized in future releases. The link you point to says you have a GeForce 6100 series card. This card is several generations 'behind the curve', and is probably too slow at present to use the effects you want. The TV effects depend almost entirely on the speed/capabilities of your video card, not the main CPU.

 

EDIT: Also, Vista support for OpenGL isn't great as compared to WinXP, so you're probably getting another hit there as well. My only suggestion right now is to lower the resolution as much as possible by playing games in 2x mode.

Thanks. Looks like I'll have to forget about OpenGL and the special stuff when playing. Although I can't play using it, still might be good for quickly checking what a work in progress might look like on a real TV.

[Wickeycolumbus]

ROMs smaller than 2K and X07 autodetection work great

[mos6507]

Vista support for OpenGL isn't great as compared to WinXP

 

Like we needed another reason to hate Vista.

[+SpiceWare]

Like we needed another reason to hate Vista.

The tide is turning

According to a survey of more than 1,000 IT professionals nationwide conducted in March by Dimension Research, 50% said they were considering leaving Windows altogether rather than switch to Windows 7. Apple's (AAPL, Fortune 500) Mac OS X was the system they are most likely to switch to.

[+Nathan Strum]

Once bitten, twice shy.

 

Microsoft really alienated their user base with Vista, and I don't think people are going to be in any hurry to go out and buy Windows 7. I think initially, most sales will go to those already stuck with Vista and are looking for improvements. I don't think we'll see many XP users moving to 7 until they're certain it's not going to be the same kind of mess as last time. And even then, I suspect they'll be considering other options. Vista seemed to be the final straw for a lot of people who had just been tolerating Microsoft over the years, because it's what they were used to, or had to use. Computing has changed so much though now, that Windows isn't nearly as indispensable to many people as it was in the 90's.

 

We have yet to switch to Vista at work. The IT people and PC lab managers refuse to install it. Even with XP, I hear about all of the nightmares they have to deal with that never crop up in our Mac labs. (And for the record - Mac OS X is far from perfect. But at least it isn't continually fighting against you when you're trying to get work done.)

 

Apple still isn't a "threat" to Microsoft though, and probably never will be (from a market share standpoint). Microsoft just hates to see anyone else succeeding in an area they consider to be their territory. The truth is - Microsoft is their own worst enemy. Their multi-tiered version scheme for Windows 7 is just as idiotic as for Vista. Didn't they learn anything?

 

Oh, and to stay semi-on topic - thanks for the update! Stella is an amazing emulator and I use it all the time. I can't wait to see what v. 3 brings.

Edited June 19, 2009 by Nathan Strum

[mangamuscle]

I just compiled 2.8.1 and I tried to enable the opengl renderer but I see a "OpenGl mode Failed. Fallback to software" when I restart Stella. Sigh, I suppose it is back to 2.7.7 for me until this bug is fixed.

[SeaGtGruff]

Am I supposed to be able to type a backslash in the various path fields on the Config Files screen, or am I required to edit the paths directly in the config file itself?

 

Michael

[+selgus]

Am I supposed to be able to type a backslash in the various path fields on the Config Files screen, or am I required to edit the paths directly in the config file itself?

I had the same issue with 2.8.1 under Win32, but was able to use forward slashes in path names and Stella seems to handle those internally to get the correct paths.

--Selgus

[+stephena]

I just compiled 2.8.1 and I tried to enable the opengl renderer but I see a "OpenGl mode Failed. Fallback to software" when I restart Stella. Sigh, I suppose it is back to 2.7.7 for me until this bug is fixed.

I'll look into it. I really don't see why it should be happening. Are you sure you were getting OpenGL mode in 2.7.7?

[+stephena]

Am I supposed to be able to type a backslash in the various path fields on the Config Files screen, or am I required to edit the paths directly in the config file itself?

 

Michael

Doh, yes, I see why this is happening. I specfiically disallowed '\' in the text edit fields, because it could screw up the input (for reasons that are too boring to go into). I also disallowed the double-quote. I didn't think anyone would need '\', but I forgot about Windows directory separators. Again, my Linux/OSX/UNIX leanings are showing through. The reason it works is that newer versions of Windows can use '/' as a directory separator. I don't think Win98 can, though.

 

Anyway, I'll address this in 2.8.2, I guess.

[mangamuscle]

I just compiled 2.8.1 and I tried to enable the opengl renderer but I see a "OpenGl mode Failed. Fallback to software" when I restart Stella. Sigh, I suppose it is back to 2.7.7 for me until this bug is fixed.

I'll look into it. I really don't see why it should be happening. Are you sure you were getting OpenGL mode in 2.7.7?

I recompiled 2.7.7 and the config file says video=gl so I suppose it is using the opengl render. Maybe newer versions of Stella are using a 1024x1024 texture to map the screen while older versions used several 512x512 (or 256x256) textures that older videocards like mine support. This is simply a guess as I cannot say I am a programmer ^^;

[+stephena]

I just compiled 2.8.1 and I tried to enable the opengl renderer but I see a "OpenGl mode Failed. Fallback to software" when I restart Stella. Sigh, I suppose it is back to 2.7.7 for me until this bug is fixed.

I'll look into it. I really don't see why it should be happening. Are you sure you were getting OpenGL mode in 2.7.7?

I recompiled 2.7.7 and the config file says video=gl so I suppose it is using the opengl render. Maybe newer versions of Stella are using a 1024x1024 texture to map the screen while older versions used several 512x512 (or 256x256) textures that older videocards like mine support. This is simply a guess as I cannot say I am a programmer ^^;

OK, I think I've found the issue. It was in code that I didn't write directly, so it took a little while to realize what was going on. Basically, it was testing for OpenGL support for everything (both basic usage and the new GLSL stuff for TV effects), and if any of the initialization failed, OpenGL was completely disabled. I fixed it so that OpenGL is still available even if GLSL (and TV effects) are not. So it fixes what I said I already fixed in 2.8.1 (although this bug could obviously bite anyone, not just Windows users).

 

As with the backslash bug, I'll address this in 2.8.2 early next week.

[mangamuscle]

As with the backslash bug, I'll address this in 2.8.2 early next week.

Thank you very much

[Keatah]

On 3 of my systems stella will not detect and report the version of opengl..

[+stephena]

On 3 of my systems stella will not detect and report the version of opengl..

You actually have to be using OpenGL mode for it to detect the version. If you're in software mode, the version will always show up as 'None' (because in software mode, logically, there is no version of OpenGL; ie, it's not being used). Try switching to OpenGL and starting Stella again and see what it says.

[+Random Terrain]

On 3 of my systems stella will not detect and report the version of opengl..

Wouldn't switch from Software to OpenGL mode for me until I closed it and restarted it (as stephena posted above).

[+stephena]

On 3 of my systems stella will not detect and report the version of opengl..

Wouldn't switch from Software to OpenGL mode for me until I closed it and restarted it (as stephena posted above).

Yes, right next to the dropdown box for software/OpenGL there's a (*) symbol, and on the bottom it says '(*) Requires application restart'. Meaning things marked as (*) need Stella to be restarted to take effect

Edited June 21, 2009 by stephena

[+Random Terrain]

Yes, right next to the dropdown box for software/OpenGL there's a (*) symbol, and on the bottom it says '(*) Requires application restart'. Meaning things marked as (*) need Stella to be restarted to take effect

But that would require reading and reading is so 20th century.

[mangamuscle]

Yes, right next to the dropdown box for software/OpenGL there's a (*) symbol, and on the bottom it says '(*) Requires application restart'. Meaning things marked as (*) need Stella to be restarted to take effect

But that would require reading and reading is so 20th century.

I vote for removing the * and the explanatory text and replace it with a dialog box that states "Enabling this option requires restarting Stella. Do you want to restart it now? (Yes) (No)"

[Keatah]

starting or reschtsmarting Stella didn't make none difference any on the 3 failing systems. No big deal. They're just everyday utility machines.

Edited June 22, 2009 by Keatah

[atwwong]

Wow! I haven't had the chance to try out the TV modes until now... I must say I'm very impressed.

 

It has this uber coolness and geeky factor - okay, enough of me gushing over this feature. (But it's so cool... I feel like a kid again!)

[+stephena]

starting or reschtsmarting Stella didn't make none difference any on the 3 failing systems. No big deal. They're just everyday utility machines.

You have to make sure that proper, up-to-date OpenGL drivers are installed. Any even if they are, and Stella starts in OpenGL mode, you need version 2 to make use of he TV effects. At least that's what's supposed to happen. I'll be addressing a bug in 2.8.1 tomorrow where if you don't have OpenGL 2.0, you may not get OpenGL support at all.