I have a working set of MAME roms (0.231) in merged format.
For every one of them that I tried so far, they work with current MAME (0.232) with the latest Linux AppImage RetroarchInstallation I got (1.9.8).
Still, I tried every way of scanning them without success.
With directory/file scanning with their “dos stile” name, i.e. blktiger.7z, they are not recognized.
With manual scanning, a playlist gets created,and I can run from it.
The very odd thing is that If I rename the zip file to “Black Tiger.7z”, and try to run it from Load Content menu I get error:
[libretro INFO] Starting game:/home/tarrasque/Documents/Emulation/roms/Renamed/Black Tiger.7z
[libretro WARN] Driver Black Tiger not found -1
[libretro ERROR] Driver not found Black Tiger
[libretro WARN] Driver Renamed not found -1
[libretro ERROR] System not found: Renamed
[libretro INFO] RES:-2
What if I wanted a better readable list of arcade games, with full game names?
It seems a bit lame in 2021 for Retroarch to be so severely limited, if we think that even the simplest free fromtends such as Dig are perfeclty able to identify games and do other stuff like downloading snapshots.
What the last thing I tried to do was just to launch a file. The fact that it crashed Retroarch just because, I guess, it has a space in the file name is very very bad.
Maybe start by reading settings in manual scan ? Because it explains how you can do that.
Arcade emulators are name-based, which is why romsets must never be renamed, RetroArch is only following how those emulators work upstream, feel free to go complain to MAME developpers, i’m sure you’ll be very welcome, or even better, write your own emulator with all your amazing ideas ?
@Tarrasque Arcade roms will scan automatically but the archives must be set up and compressed in a very specific way for the zip CRC to match the database. This usually goes way beyond what a normal user would do to get scanning to work (if the set is not already database-compatible), but it can be done.
The alternative is to use manual scan and provide the mame dat file which will set the game titles in the playlist, I understand that this is now the recommended method for arcade sets.
It wouldn’t work either, because the database is also outdated. MAME’s is 16 months old, meaning 16 releases late. Manual scan is the only way to deal with arcade cores, that or 3rd party tools that generate RA playlists.
You mean the settings that are not documented in the official user documentation page?
There’s no real gain in being snappy to an user that points out a blatant weak spot in a program. I like Retroarch and I keep on usng it, that does not bean that while it’s great in some areas is severely limited in others.
Importing arcade content is one of those. It’s not a surprise if almost every project bypasses the frontend/user interface of RA entirely. You can not expect an average user to find out what DAT files are, how to find them or how to generate them just to have a list of games to run.
I mean the setting which is explained on the manual scan screen, if you gonna complain about documentation next, how about contributing to it ? You know that’s an open project and everyone can contribute ?
I still have some hope that the average user will do some search on the forum.
I mean the setting which is explained on the manual scan screen, if you gonna complain about documentation next, how about contributing to it ? You know that’s an open project and everyone can contribute ?
I’t not explained at all. It assumes that the user knows what a Logiqx or MAME list file is, which is beyond the knowledge of a casual user.
I still have some hope that the average user will do some search on the forum.
Average users should not need to search forums for basic features of a program. In program help and/or official doc pages should be more than enough. Forums are or should be for advanced users.
Importing content is so basic for an emulator that is indeed required. So, I really think that it should be easy to do and explained fully with in program text, which is localized. Yuo know, not all the world speaks English so that they can follow the forum.
And in order to contribute to the project, I must have the knowledge to properly edit and integrate the documentation. I don’t have, that’s why I’m asking here. You seem to have. Why haven’t you contributed?
Complaining does ?
Yes. Complaining is the main source of feedback to any kind of product. If many users complain about a feature, or lack there of, developers might shift focus on that. That’s valid for software the same as for any other kjnd of product. That’s why companies have support mails and run user satisfaction tests and surveys.
What you say is funny since arcade DAT files are covered in the “Getting Started with Arcade Emulation” documentation…
I wrote parts of those documentations
I write emulators
I help users on forum
Positive criticism does, blaming a project for things that aren’t in its control, or things that are covered in its documentation and/or in program help, isn’t positive criticism, it’s just casual whining. Also, this isn’t a “product”, this is a free open-source software.
Which is buried under a sumbenu called “Core Library: Emulation”. Not exactly the friendliest choice, seems it really look some advanced topic. The “Getting started” higher level menu or “User Guides -> Importing Content” would IMO seem a more natural place to cover this basic feature.
Nice to read this. Kudos for this. Really.
I strongly argue that my criticism is negative. I’m pointing out issues that I honestly think objective. I like Retroarch. I use it. I recommend it to friends. But I can’t ignore it has some great obstacles, the major of this is difficulty of use.
While it’s outstanding and unique in many areas, the first that come to mind now are shaders, diversity of supported platforms and control abstraction, it’s severely hindered by it’s user experience.
You write emulators. I write user interfaces. Let me tell you that RA’s UI is one of the worst I came across, and it’s widely regarded as the greatest issue that keeps casual users away from it. It’s no mistery or wonder that most launchers rely on RA cores but ditch away entirely the frontend/launcher stuff. And with good reasons. Cores and “invisible frontend” stuff are great. User interface frontend (let’s say launcher) stuff isn’t.
Faking this isn’t true is no use to anyone. And yes, RA is a product like anythink else that’s made by someone. The fact that the price tag is free, or that its source code is free like in beer and speech, is another matter entirely. Being a product it can improve. Not easy. Takes time.
Maybe the main developers are happy this way and prefer to focus on cores and low level stuff things. Great. Maybe someone else that has the skills will write an alternate usable launcher that’s able to recognize roms and create playlist and scrape assets for them all by itself. That’s the beauty of open source.
As far as i’m concerned, since you didn’t read the "Getting Started with Arcade Emulation” documentation before starting with arcade emulation, and had apparently no previous knowledge of how arcade emulation works (and i’m not talking specifically about RetroArch, DAT files are the bread and butter of arcade emulation), this discussion is finished, you were in the wrong. And again, if you are unhappy with how the documentation is, feel free to contribute, there are lots of users who make the effort while they have originally no knowledge on how this works, this is how open-source projects improve themselves. Saying “i don’t have the knowledge” is a bit too easy, i wasn’t born with my knowledge, and i didn’t learn it at school either.
