puNES Emulator

Discuss emulation of the Nintendo Entertainment System and Famicom.

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Eugene.S
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Re: puNES Emulator (ex Fnes)

Post by Eugene.S »

thefox wrote:Probably one of the best test cases is the first level music in Solstice.
Here is Solstice record from TA-03NP1-6527P (without duty cycles bug):
Solstice, Dendy
geoslake
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Re: puNES Emulator (ex Fnes)

Post by geoslake »

Hi

Im using the DBL filter, but Id like to do bilinear filtering at the same time.
Would it be possible to add an option to either allow software (or hardware/video card) bilinear filtering, or better, to have the ability to apply 2 (or more) filters at the same time ?

Thank you
weebeez
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Re: puNES Emulator (ex Fnes)

Post by weebeez »

I just stumbled across your emulator. I have tried many, many different NES emulators, but yours is the first I've seen that actually manages to play "Back to The Future 2 & 3" without the constant "red flash" that has been a persistent nuisance on NNNester J, Jnes and many others... and Ninja Gaiden 2, the crazy "converging layers" glitch during the train level isn't there.

I can actually walk around and jump without fear of falling in a hole between the train carts that I can't see because of the layer error. If you don't know what I am talking about, try downloading NNNesterJ 0.23 and playing those games, I thought maybe it was bad copies of the roms, until I came across puNES. I had always just stuck with NNNesterJ because I was comfortable with its GUI and features, but I may switch to puNES.

Since you are still developing this emulator and making improvements to it, I would like to make suggestions.
I hope that I am not being annoying or bothersome, if I am, I do not mean to be.

1: Would it be possible to give the sound channels their own volume sliders (a feature NNNesterJ has - though it only has mono sound output) as well as adding sliders for manual adjustment of the pans of each channel for the stereo mode, similar to what is available in NotSoFatso, the NSF playing plugin for Winamp? I have tried many NES emulators that have a stereo mode, but their pans are always so sharp to the left or right that it is painful to listen to, especially when wearing headphones, it would be awesome to be able to set individual volume levels for each channel, have sliders (with a bar and number field) for the Left / Right panning of the channels, and have a "Master Volume" slider to adjust the overall loudness of game sound. Perhaps if you talked to Disch, the creator of NotSoFatso, he could lend a hand or at least provide some advice. Scherzo might also have been able to help, since he had incorporated NotSoFatso output into his port of Nester for the Dreamcast (Nester DC SE), but it looks as though he is unreachable... (disappeared from the internet?)

http://s7.postimage.org/5nwvw3qrt/Nester_J_Sound.png
http://s15.postimage.org/oxe9ldubd/Nots ... _Sound.png


2: "You need that the Game Genie rom (that should have the name "gamegenie.rom")
is located in "$HOME/.puNES/bios" on linux or "$Documents$/puNES/bios" on Windows."

-- I'm having a hard time locating this folder, I must say I do not like the fact that it places these folders somewhere other than the location of the emulator itself. Could you perhaps edit the way the emulator auto-creates its directories so that the folders for storing the Game Genie rom file and .CHT files for saved cheat code lists, Save State Files, Screenshots, RPI filter files, etc etc are formed in the same folder as the emulator or are already present in the zip package rather than placing these folders elsewhere, and also add a tab in the GUI for "Paths" where these folders can be re-assigned in the event they would need to be? (they'd only ever need reassignment if the package was transferred to another hard disk location or another computer where the Drive / Partition Letter was different from what was saved in the Paths tab.)

http://s10.postimage.org/nb6p2nhlz/NNNe ... _Paths.png

UPDATE 1: I found the elusive Bios folder and placed two copies of the GameGenie file, one with the .nes extension and one with .rom, yet the emulator still says "Can't find Game Genie rom." Also, on the subject of cheats, and since I cannot get to the Game Genie tab in the GUI to see it, what does it look like? Jnes's cheat menu works without needing the Game Genie rom, and has a "code + description of effect" style list tab, similar to the ones in Zsnes, VisualBoyAdvance and KegaFusion.

UPDATE 2: I got it working and wow... I see, your method actually makes it work like a real Game Genie cart in an NES, running the code input screen first where the user can enter 3 codes and then press start to run the game. I have not seen any NES emulator do this before, it's unique and does bring back a lot of nostalgia, although I have gotten used to and like Code List tabs as they are able to hold a lot more codes and have descriptions of what they do, if the user chooses to add such info. There have also been many "multi-section codes" created and floating around the internet that require more than the 3 spaces that the real Game Genie allowed. (Like this "Jump In Mid Air" code for Duck Tales 2 on the NES that needs 4 spaces. - http://gamehacking.org/?s=v2&sys=5&gid=8365) or this "Jump in Mid Air" code for Ninja Gaiden 2 that needs 8 spaces. - http://gamehacking.org/?s=v2&sys=5&gid=841 - Perhaps there is a way to have both as options listed under the "Cheating" tab, "Use Real Game Genie Mode" and "Use Code / Description Tab Mode."

http://s9.postimage.org/4lbhuh97h/Kega_ ... ie_Tab.png
http://s16.postimage.org/5afwj653n/VGBA_Cheat_List.png
http://s11.postimage.org/41hug1ve9/Jnes_Genie_Tab.png
http://s14.postimage.org/95khm7hin/NNNe ... ie_Tab.png


3: NNNesterJ has a very nice feature where the user can set most function keys to their preference:
http://s18.postimage.org/dn294o85z/NNNe ... tons_1.png
http://s15.postimage.org/wxsk9vb95/NNNe ... tons_2.png

4: Would it be possible to make "keep configurations unique to rom" an option, rather than
a default? Zsnes added a function similar to this in their last release, causing roms to have their
own unique "settings profile" when the option is check-marked, but I chose to have this un-checked.


5: NNNesterJ has the option to set a user-defined frequency of repetition on Turbo Buttons. Some games have a set rate at which the user can fire / attack. Sometimes I would play a Mega Man game and have the Turbo setting in NNNesterJ set on maximum, I could fire 3 shots rapidly in less than a second. If I went to play a game like River City Ransom, the Turbo was so high / fast that the button presses were too successive and tight for the game to even sense them, so nothing happened when I held down the Turbo buttons.

http://s7.postimage.org/98xuzze4p/NNNes ... bofire.png


6: NNNesterJ has a "Speed Toggle" feature, the user can define a button that serves as the on/off switch for an "alternate speed" mode, in my case it is "V" and I have that key mapped to the L(eft) shoulder button of my controller in Joy2Key. Depending on the setting of the adjustable slider, it can serve as either a "Fast Mode" or "Slow Mode." I have the slider set to 25, so it acts as Slow Mode when I press it.
http://s10.postimage.org/c2x3slt5z/NNNe ... Toggle.png


7: The Ability to set Full Screen Mode to "Use Video Memory" or "Use Hardware" so that when the user Full Screens the game, if they are using a filter, such as 2xSAI or HQ2x, the image is still as smooth as it looked while in Windowed Mode... at present, in puNES, full screening the game even with a pixel smoothing filter turned on still shows a slightly pixelated image.

http://s14.postimage.org/fujcv4oun/NNNe ... ilters.png

8: Add "State# Saved" and "State# Loaded" notifications similar to Zsnes and J-Nes,
and have them display in the same font as the notifications that show upon starting the emulator.
(have these notifications display while a game is in Full Screen mode as well! ^^)


By the way, I really like the "CRT" mode that makes the game look as though it is being played on an older television, but I must say that the top part looks too narrow compared to the bottom part, which is more wide, giving the overall image a "tilted" look and it doesn't seem to retain a consistent shape, could just be me, but it seems that the corners deviate from game to game, but still, a pretty interesting effect. I also like "Phosphorus."
http://s16.postimage.org/msa0gob6b/Coco ... Filter.png
http://s17.postimage.org/4pns4eul9/MM6_TV_Filter.png

On the subject of crazy and geeky filters, have you ever thought of creating a "Pixel Emboss" filter that would make the individual pixels look like embossed blocks that had their own pseudo-3D depth, like little Lego blocks?

Also, I noticed a glitch. While I have the rendering mode set to Open GL GLSL, and I have the "Overscan" set to ON (I prefer to have the game fill out its space, rather than have that nasty black bar on the left side, it doesn't bother me to see any of the "jumblie left overs" hidden by the black bar) and I have the HQ2x filter turned on, when I attempt to Full Screen the image is just distorted lines, like a TV channel that got scrambled.
Last edited by weebeez on Sat Nov 03, 2012 4:09 pm, edited 78 times in total.
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Dwedit
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Re: puNES Emulator (ex Fnes)

Post by Dwedit »

NNNesterJ is really old, and outdated. Other emulators like FCEUX, Nestopia, and Nintendulator are more modern.
I think FCEUX has almost every feature you are asking for, except for the custom autofire rate. You can freely configure the GUI hotkeys, and there is speed control.

Nestopia and Nintendulator are more accurate emulation-wise than FCEUX, but FCEUX was designed to cram in all kinds of cool features regardless of how sloppy the code looks afterwards. (Nintendulator's code on the other hand is like reading a good reference manual)
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weebeez
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Re: puNES Emulator (ex Fnes)

Post by weebeez »

Dwedit wrote:NNNesterJ is really old, and outdated. Other emulators like FCEUX, Nestopia, and Nintendulator are more modern.
I think FCEUX has almost every feature you are asking for, except for the custom autofire rate. You can freely configure the GUI hotkeys, and there is speed control.
Meh... so is MAME 32 0.102, but I stick with things because I am used to them and I like the features. I remember trying one of the other more modern NES emulators in my quest to find one that didn't have the glitches I mentioned previously; crazy bulky lookin' thing that looked more like a playlist for a really fancy MP3 player. I like the ones that look like Jnes and PuNes, nice and minimal approach to GUI without a sacrifice of features and options.

...Also, I was going to take some fullscreen captures for comparisons of Jnes, puNES and NNNesterJ, but it seems that when I hit the Print Screen key while PuNES is in fullscreen, it doesn't capture game image... instead I get a screencap of my desktop, I actually had to go into FRAPS (a utility designed for making screen captures and recordings) and get a capture that way.

http://s7.postimage.org/54o2ofl49/Littl ... n_JNES.png
http://s17.postimage.org/yakbiequ5/Litt ... pu_NES.png
http://s8.postimage.org/f28sfslgz/Littl ... ster_J.png

And I have another question / suggestion (you're probably getting tired of these by now, yeah? lol) the filters in the emulator, those are embedded, yes? Would it be possible to add support for the downloadable "RPI" filters, like the ones that can be used on Kega Fusion and VisualBoyAdvance? There are hundreds of RPI filters and people are creating new ones all the time, so if a user wants a to use a specific filter to effect the graphics, all they have to do is find it, download it and place it in the RPI Filters folder and set the emulator to use it.

http://s14.postimage.org/plm8ph2lr/Kega ... ilters.png
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weebeez
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Re:

Post by weebeez »

FHorse wrote:I could also call it Nesquick, what do you think? :)
blargg wrote:Nope, that might be confused with QuickNES.
byuu wrote:Seriously though, you don't have to work NES into the name, all the clever ones are taken anyway.
You could call it "KitsuNES" and use one of the old "happy fox" emoticons from Livejournal, lol.
I just like this name and idea because it's cute...

You could call it "Nes^2" (NES to the second power) and have the icon be an N with a small numeral 2 to the right corner.
(I like this name because it makes your emulator sound "powered up" and extended with lots of awesome tweaks and features.)

You could call it "TooNES" and reverse the arrangement of the N and the 2 as described above. (2N or TooN)
(I like this name because it makes reference to the fact your emulator has many nostalgia-facilitating features,
like the Game Genie pre-rom and the imitation CRT TV modes, so it's almost "too" Nes-like, or "too much" NES.)

You could call it "YourHighNes" or "UrHighNes" and have the icon be an N with a gold crown.
(Because it will eventually "usurp the throne" of other popular NES emulators and become the king.)

In the vein of "non NES pun names" you could try "Mr. Ed," or "Palomino" since your internet handle is "FHorse."

You could also maybe call it "Captain N," or "Capitano N," or "N-Team" as an homage to
the old saturday morning cartoon. The icon could be a smaller pixel art representation
of the "high school varsity jacket" with the N on the right side of the chest that Kevin
(The Game Master) wore in the cartoon.

http://i.ytimg.com/vi/eI8tF8sbAP0/hqdefault.jpg
http://fc07.deviantart.net/fs16/f/2007/ ... fpax82.jpg
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Eugene.S
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Re: puNES Emulator (ex Fnes)

Post by Eugene.S »

NesCycle is also pretty name. Old-good Nesticle inspired, but with cycle-accuracy timings.
AnnaWu
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Re: puNES Emulator (ex Fnes)

Post by AnnaWu »

Dwedit wrote:NNNesterJ is really old, and outdated. Other emulators like FCEUX, Nestopia, and Nintendulator are more modern.
I don´t think so.
I still prefer to use NNNesterJ, Nestopia and VirtuaNES, especially for the Family Basic and its tape recorder support.
Just for info. The last version of NNNesterJ have a Gameboy/PC Engine emulation (limited) support too.
Last edited by AnnaWu on Wed Oct 31, 2012 1:09 am, edited 1 time in total.
weebeez
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Re: puNES Emulator (ex Fnes)

Post by weebeez »

AnnaWu wrote:For your information, the last version of NNNesterJ have a Gameboy/PC Engine emulation (limited) support too.
The person(s) who made NNNesterJ still work on it???
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Re: puNES Emulator (ex Fnes)

Post by AnnaWu »

Google for nnnesterJk023.
I fixed the lang_eng.dll library because the Rec Recorder (Data Recorder) was disabled before.
weebeez
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Re: puNES Emulator (ex Fnes)

Post by weebeez »

I could never find anything other than the vers. 0.23 that says it was last worked on in 2000. It's the one with phrases like "Game, it end?" the engrish makes me laugh sometimes but it's still a damn good emulator which I've stuck with since 2004. Every time I would try to search out later versions I got nothing... oh, and I found a site in Japanese that had a screenshot of the emulator you told me to look for, download link is dead or just says "You do not have permission." I also would have liked to have seen Disch's emulator, Schpune (it apparently had NotSoFatso features) but all the download links I find are through GeoCities, and they're all dead. : (
AnnaWu
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Re: puNES Emulator (ex Fnes)

Post by AnnaWu »

I think it is the wrong place here to talk about another emulator.

http:// patpend.net/ftp/emulators/nes/nnnesterJk023.zip
www. sendspace.com/file/pm3chf (lang_eng.dll fix)
weebeez
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Re: puNES Emulator (ex Fnes)

Post by weebeez »

I'm sorry, I am not trying to offend anyone or cause trouble...
And most of what I have been doing here is talking about / leaving screen
caps of (pages in) other emulators (even ones that aren't for emulating the NES)
not because I am deliberately trying to "advertise for the competition," but rather
because I wanted to give FHorse ideas for his emulator... u.u

And I found an old beta of Schpune. It's pretty minimal (can't seem to get it
to fill the screen out in full screen mode) but that Sound tab is pure awesome...
Individual volume sliders and pan sliders for everything, just like NotSoFatso.
I wonder if FHorse were to ask Disch about it, if he would be willing to assist
him in adding a feature like this into puNes (or whatever he is going to call it).

http://s12.postimage.org/qb0iytn7f/Schp ... an_Tab.png

On that note, I wonder how it was that Scherzo had incorporated NotSoFatso into his
Nester port for the DreamCast, I would assume that he had Disch's help and blessing...

OH! And I just thought of another possible name... "NEStalgia."

EDIT: Crud... nevermind. Apparently there is an MMO RPG already using that name.
http://silkgames.com/nestalgia/

How about remiNESence?
DCMullins
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Re: puNES Emulator (ex Fnes)

Post by DCMullins »

FHorse,
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Dwedit
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Re: puNES Emulator (ex Fnes)

Post by Dwedit »

Usually you don't want to write to the EXE directory as a limited user on Windows 7, because then you'd get a UAC prompt.

But I think there is a good way to satisfy everyone: If no config file exists in the program directory, use the appdata directory as normal. But if it exists, AND the user also has write permissions, use the program directory to store the config file.
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