Attract-Mode Support Forum

Attract-Mode Project => Announcements => Topic started by: raygun on July 18, 2018, 12:04:33 AM

Title: Version 2.4 sneaking in!
Post by: raygun on July 18, 2018, 12:04:33 AM
Hello there!  The team is please to announce the release of version 2.4 of Attract-Mode, available now from the download link on attractmode.org (http://attractmode.org)!  We even think we've got the Mac OS X bundle building again (fingers crossed)!

There are lots of great new features and bug fixes with this release, we hope you enjoy.   There are also a couple of potential wrinkles we want to warn you about:

With this release, Attract-Mode is now looking for game overview information in a different place then previously, so if you are upgrading an existing installation you will likely need to re-scrape the artwork or regenerate a romlist for a given emulator before the frontend will be able to find any game overview information related to that emulator again.

There has also been a change to how the the "zorder" attribute works in layouts, by popular request.  The new way makes much more sense and hopefully will not adversely affect existing layouts.  If you are seeing overlapping images and/or texts no longer drawing in the correct order in your favourite layout after your upgrade, this is likely the cause and the layout script will have to be adjusted to fix how it is setting zorders.

cheers!

# Changelog #

## Commits from v2.3.0 to v2.4.0

### Andrew Mickelson (50 commits)

* Bump to version 2.4
* [windows] combine attract.exe and attract-console.exe into the same package
* Issue #401 - Implement proposed changes to zorder behaviour (#408)
* Reduce unnecessary redrawing on some layouts
* Issue #391 - store overview information by emulator
* Issue #456 - properly reset layout state when new layout configured
* Added .travis.yml
* Issue #455 - fix handling of menu artwork
* Issue #454 - fixed thegamesdb.net scraping (url changed)
* Issue #452, #446 - fix compile on old SFML version
* Issue #444 - added "Layout Options" to go straight to layout configuration
* Various changes to merge oomek-fixes branch, including fix_filters() bugfix
* [linux] Issue #393 - fix handling of single quotes and related commandline parameter issues
* Fix compile on older SFML versions after Text .spacing parameter changes
* Fix whitespace and reordering
* Issue #440 - attempt to prevent reported file lockup on missing artwork
* [Windows] enabled d3d11 hwaccel decode option, if available
* Issue #436 - allow user to select which layout.nut file to use from Layout config
* Update Layouts.md for the blend_mode changes
* Added config file parameter output to debug logging
* Added support for "per display" layout parameters.
* Minor fixes to android build, "edit game" option
* [linux] default to "fullscreen mode" window mode
* Don't use network scraping when doing automatic import at startup
* removed stray debug message
* Automatically import emulators that are detected on startup
* Autodetect emulators and generate emulator templates on first run
* Issue #400 - reduce CPU usage when idle
* Issue #407 - fixed fe.Image.video_playing attribute
* Added ability use emulator templates when adding a new emulator
* [linux] enabled exit hotkeys when in fullscreen mode, added debug logging for window creation/destruction
* Made wheel fadeout time configurable for hyperspin-based layouts
* Added fe.path_test() command for layout/plugin scripts
* Relabelled and reworked the 'minimum_wait_time' emulator setting
* Changed scummvm info_source to only use 'scummvm -t' output
* [linux] added VDPAU hwaccel support and fixes for VAAPI
* Added android readme, minor updates to compile.md and gameswf compile
* Fix compile on MacOS Sierra
* [android] initial addition of *experimental* android support
* Added support for touch events if provided by SFML (swipe, tap)
* Added fe_file.cpp to load images, fonts, sounds through a file stream
* Fix window focus detection when min_run_time is set
* Issue #388 - fix compile on Ubuntu 14.04
* Issue #385 - fix recent compile fix for older versions of avcodec
* Fix compile with NO_MOVIE=1
* Fix potential race condition in scraper
* Issue #385 - fix compile error on Jessie

### Benjamin Hodgetts (1 commits)

* C++11 Syntax Fix

### Conn O'Griofa (1 commits)

* RPI: update for new vendor library names & add Mesa VC4 override

### Florian (5 commits)

* Update Dolphin config (#417)
* Update Ubuntu version (#416)
* [linux] Update version number and icon path (#414)
* debian/install - Copy single files first (#415)
* Updated Compile.md for a Command line error + Detail (#425)

### Keil Miller Jr (1 commits)

* Buttons scraped with newer mame.xml file

### mbalfour (1 commits)

* Improve Multi Monitor support (#405) and fix NES romlist crash

### Radek Dutkiewicz (15 commits)

* New text alignment modes (#448)
* Added list_size property to fe.ListBox
* Fixed Fill Screen window offset, update
* Fixed Fill Screen window offset
* Fixed back buffer blinking on game launch
* Blend mode refactoring
* Whitespace cleanup
* Added a folder with default shaders for each blend mode
* Blend modes improvements
* Sorting fixes
* Fixed borderless window size
* added blend modes to fe.Image
* Added .spacing parameter to fe.Text
* Added .mipmap parameter to fe.Image
* Fixed video restarting after setting video_playing = false (#411)
Title: Re: Version 2.4 sneaking in!
Post by: bundangdon on July 18, 2018, 01:48:19 AM
Great work once again! Thank you to everyone involved on making this wonderful frontend :)
Title: Re: Version 2.4 sneaking in!
Post by: iOtero on July 18, 2018, 02:31:47 AM
Great notice!

Amazing Work!!

Thanks for all!!!
Title: Re: Version 2.4 sneaking in!
Post by: akafox on July 18, 2018, 11:36:59 AM
About time you code monkeys got it together! I had to ration the banana intake for them to encourage them to work faster  ;)

(No really guys that is awesome. LOVE my AM :D Thanks for all your hard work!  8) )

P.S. Always remember people E=MC2 

That is More Code=Errors   Have to be patient and give them time..never want to rush perfection right?  ;)
Title: Re: Version 2.4 sneaking in!
Post by: keilmillerjr on July 18, 2018, 03:30:02 PM
Awesome fixes and additions!

I’m so glad I made the cut! Looking at everyones commits, I need to step it up! Radek probably fixed my whitespace issues.
Title: Re: Version 2.4 sneaking in!
Post by: progets on July 18, 2018, 09:39:24 PM
Great job guys! Thanks for the hard work.
Title: Re: Version 2.4 sneaking in!
Post by: hermine.potter on July 19, 2018, 12:48:44 AM
Thanks.
Tested on Windows 7 and Windows 10.
x86 and x64.
Works perfect.

short info:
version 2.4 doesn't longer supports native Windows XP/WinXP.
shows different missing .dll errors / .dll files not found
If you're using WinXP use still up to version 2.3 or look for special and seperate version of AM 2.4 for WinXP:
x86 / 32 bit here (https://github.com/mickelson/attract/releases/download/v2.4.0/WinXP-attract-v2.4.0-win32.zip)
x64 / 64 bit here (https://github.com/mickelson/attract/releases/download/v2.4.0/WinXP-attract-v2.4.0-win64.zip)
Title: Re: Version 2.4 sneaking in!
Post by: zpaolo11x on July 20, 2018, 01:56:05 PM
It's great! And Mac OS availability is even better :)

My theme is having problem with zorder (because I never got how it actually worked in the old version LOL). Where I can find a detailed explanation of how zorder works now?
Title: Re: Version 2.4 sneaking in!
Post by: Manual do Fliperama on July 20, 2018, 03:15:56 PM
How to update the version for Ubuntu?

[SOLVED]
I compiled it for Linux 64 bit and it worked.
Title: Re: Version 2.4 sneaking in!
Post by: jedione on July 20, 2018, 05:08:54 PM
Zorder.



it is listed in the "Layouts.txt" file in the main folder

* `zorder` - Get/set the Image's order in the applicable draw list.  Objects
     with a lower zorder are drawn first, so that when objects overlap, the one
     with the higher zorder is drawn on top.  Default value is 0.
Title: Re: Version 2.4 sneaking in!
Post by: zpaolo11x on July 21, 2018, 01:15:03 AM
Zorder.

it is listed in the "Layouts.txt" file in the main folder

* `zorder` - Get/set the Image's order in the applicable draw list.  Objects
     with a lower zorder are drawn first, so that when objects overlap, the one
     with the higher zorder is drawn on top.  Default value is 0.


I'm on a Mac right now and can't find that file, but from what I remember from Windows installation that wording is not very different from what was in the old version, but the way zorder works is not so straightforward without further explanation. For example, can I put zorder = 9999 to fix something on top of anything? This didn't always work in the past because that was not the intended use
Title: Re: Version 2.4 sneaking in!
Post by: keilmillerjr on July 21, 2018, 02:28:08 AM
Zorder.

it is listed in the "Layouts.txt" file in the main folder

* `zorder` - Get/set the Image's order in the applicable draw list.  Objects
     with a lower zorder are drawn first, so that when objects overlap, the one
     with the higher zorder is drawn on top.  Default value is 0.


I'm on a Mac right now and can't find that file, but from what I remember from Windows installation that wording is not very different from what was in the old version, but the way zorder works is not so straightforward without further explanation. For example, can I put zorder = 9999 to fix something on top of anything? This didn't always work in the past because that was not the intended use

Doing what you just said always worked for me, unless your assigned multiple things the same zorder perhaps?

Looking at the commit, explanation of the changes in layouts.md it’s basically the same intended usage but processed slightly different. I don’t see how it would be an issue, unless some one wants to explain to me otherwise?

https://github.com/mickelson/attract/commit/e53655f697e178dfa0bfe3c1bf350e1afa94c349
Title: Re: Version 2.4 sneaking in!
Post by: qqplayer on July 21, 2018, 02:33:07 AM
Thanks for the update.
What do you mean exactly with "Attract-Mode is now looking for game overview information in a different place then previously" , I have tons of overview scrapped descriptions and I prefer to move them to another place than re-scrape all the stuff.
Which is the new location?
Title: Re: Version 2.4 sneaking in!
Post by: zpaolo11x on July 21, 2018, 04:31:01 AM
Doing what you just said always worked for me, unless your assigned multiple things the same zorder perhaps?

Looking at the commit, explanation of the changes in layouts.md it’s basically the same intended usage but processed slightly different. I don’t see how it would be an issue, unless some one wants to explain to me otherwise?

https://github.com/mickelson/attract/commit/e53655f697e178dfa0bfe3c1bf350e1afa94c349

Thank you for the link to the commit, I wasn't able to find it :) At the beginning I thought that I could use zorder like defining a "layer" over which items were drawn, but the fact that the order was intended as a number from 0 to number of objects -1 made me think that the trick of putting 999 as a zorder was not going to work. The new way seems more straightforward.

I'll have to check how it works with nested surfaces....
Title: Re: Version 2.4 sneaking in!
Post by: raygun on July 21, 2018, 09:23:32 AM
Thanks for the update.
What do you mean exactly with "Attract-Mode is now looking for game overview information in a different place then previously" , I have tons of overview scrapped descriptions and I prefer to move them to another place than re-scrape all the stuff.
Which is the new location?

Here is the description of where the overviews are now stored:

https://github.com/mickelson/attract/commit/88595c811b2ebe717d1c9ea116373531b92cc6cb (https://github.com/mickelson/attract/commit/88595c811b2ebe717d1c9ea116373531b92cc6cb)

hope that helps!
Title: Re: Version 2.4 sneaking in!
Post by: nevincho on July 21, 2018, 09:59:08 AM
I have e problem with new version. After run - crash.

last_run.log:

Attract-Mode v2.4.0 (Windows, SFML 2.5 +SWF +7z)
avcodec 58.18.100 / avformat 58.12.100 / swscale 5.1.100 / swresample 3.1.100

Config file not found: C:\MAME\pROGRAMS\Frontend\attract-v2.4.0-win32\attract.cfg
 - Constructed 1 filters in 0 ms (1 comparisons)

Any one?
Title: Re: Version 2.4 sneaking in!
Post by: akafox on July 21, 2018, 12:42:14 PM
In the next version I want it Attract Mode to pay off my debts...Okay Okay..I know let's be realistic..you can't make it do that.

But I DO expect to make my coffee for me in version 2.5  :P

No problems that I can see on Linux 64-bit smooth and awesome as always great job guys :D
Title: Re: Version 2.4 sneaking in!
Post by: qqplayer on July 22, 2018, 02:16:29 AM
Thanks for the update.
What do you mean exactly with "Attract-Mode is now looking for game overview information in a different place then previously" , I have tons of overview scrapped descriptions and I prefer to move them to another place than re-scrape all the stuff.
Which is the new location?

Here is the description of where the overviews are now stored:

https://github.com/mickelson/attract/commit/88595c811b2ebe717d1c9ea116373531b92cc6cb (https://github.com/mickelson/attract/commit/88595c811b2ebe717d1c9ea116373531b92cc6cb)

hope that helps!

Thanks I have converted the "old ones" to the new "format".
Should be easy to make a python script if anyone wants to help.
I have used the find and replace feature of notepad ++ , just deleting the first "Overview " word at the begining and "n/n/"
Then just changing the .cfg extension for .txt with flexible renamer.
Title: Re: Version 2.4 sneaking in!
Post by: zpaolo11x on July 22, 2018, 11:46:02 PM
Some comments after playing a bit more with the new version:

- Issue #407 - fixed fe.Image.video_playing attribute

This was driving me nuts while trying to stop video playing in my layout, I tried all sort of tricks to avoid it and ultimately scrapped all the start/stop code :D So glad it's been fixed, maybe I'll have to recover the old code then...

- Added fe_file.cpp to load images, fonts, sounds through a file stream

What does this mean for a layout developer? Or is it only an internal change?

- Relabelled and reworked the 'minimum_wait_time' emulator setting

I'd like to have more info on this minimum wait time... anyone can help or provide a link?

For some reasons on Windows, when loading my theme 2.3 took some time to start, letting me wait in front of a white screen, now in 2.4 it starts much faster, like 2.3 on the Mac, which is very good.

Overall I managed to use the new zorder system, makes more sense to me.

I noticed my layout is a bit slower and a bit more stuttering on 2.4 with respect to 2.3, I made a side by side video since the difference is quite strong https://youtu.be/bXEFtRepDt4 . I used many tricks on my layout to make it smooth (rawset_index_offset, adding and updating hidden text objects in a nested surface), debugging this will be hard since this tricks I have no idea why they worked like they did lol
Title: Re: Version 2.4 sneaking in!
Post by: zpaolo11x on July 24, 2018, 08:49:24 AM
I think the reason why 2.4 feels slower on my machine is because of the way tick works now... it seems that the tick_callback ticks less often. To prove this I created a simple layout like this:

Code: [Select]
fe.add_ticks_callback( this, "tick" )

function tick(tick_time){
   print (tick_time + "\n")
}

And monitored the console output, for 2.4 it's like this:

63
103
118
133
148
163
178
193
196
211
226
229
244
259
262
277
292
295

while 2.3 is like this:

35
149
150
151
152
153
154
155
156
157
158
159
160
161
162
163
164
165
166
167
168

as you can see 2.3 "ticks" almost every millisecond, while 2.4 doesn't. I noticed this because some tick-related scrolling routines were slower on 2.4, and i'm rewriting all these routines to work with timings. Any reason why this happens?

Title: Re: Version 2.4 sneaking in!
Post by: Oomek on July 24, 2018, 10:57:07 AM
From what I remember it was supposed to save the power on idle. The tick function is suppsed to be called on each redraw ( if any of the object’s properties has changed since the last frame ) not every millisecond.
Title: Re: Version 2.4 sneaking in!
Post by: Oomek on July 24, 2018, 11:07:05 AM
I noticed my layout is a bit slower and a bit more stuttering on 2.4 with respect to 2.3, I made a side by side video since the difference is quite strong https://youtu.be/bXEFtRepDt4 . I used many tricks on my layout to make it smooth (rawset_index_offset, adding and updating hidden text objects in a nested surface), debugging this will be hard since this tricks I have no idea why they worked like they did lol

add this to your layout:

Code: [Select]
local bar = fe.add_text( "", 0, 0, 32, flh )
bar.set_bg_rgb( 255, 255, 255 )
bar.bg_alpha = 200


function tick( ttime ) {
bar.x += 4
if ( bar.x > 1920 ) bar.x = 0
}
fe.add_ticks_callback( "tick" )

and start disabling objects. If you'll manage to identify the cause of stuttering I can look and see why it happens.
Title: Re: Version 2.4 sneaking in!
Post by: zpaolo11x on July 24, 2018, 11:26:44 PM
From what I remember it was supposed to save the power on idle. The tick function is suppsed to be called on each redraw ( if any of the object’s properties has changed since the last frame ) not every millisecond.

Understood, the millisecond timing is probably because I did the test on a Xeon workstation that has plenty of power... I'll check with the code you sent me after the holidays. Looking at the numbers it seems that 2.4 is ticking at roughly 60Hz, which makes sense, while 2.3 was ticking way too fast. I guess then that relying on a counter in a tick_callback is not a good way to manage transitions :D
Title: Re: Version 2.4 sneaking in!
Post by: iOtero on July 25, 2018, 06:38:35 AM
In Windows and in Macos High Sierra it works very well, but it does not work in mac os x Mountain Lion...  :'(

Would there be some way to make version 2.4 work in Mountain Lion? Version 2.2 of AM was compatible.  :-[
Title: Re: Version 2.4 sneaking in!
Post by: Oomek on July 25, 2018, 01:07:35 PM
Could you run AM  with —loglevel debug parameter and post a log here? (It’s double dash - - without a space)
Title: Re: Version 2.4 sneaking in!
Post by: iOtero on July 26, 2018, 04:35:57 AM
Could you run AM  with —loglevel debug parameter and post a log here? (It’s double dash - - without a space)

In Windows, this command
Code: [Select]
attract --logleveldoes not work in AM 2.4 (not generate "last_run.log").

Yes it does in AM 2.3

If i run AM 2.4 without the "--loglevel" option, AM does generate the "last_run.log" file.  ;D

In MAC, with AM 2.3 and AM 2.4, in terminal, "open Attract.app" not run. Shows "LSOpenURLsWithRole() failed with error -1810 for the file /Applications/Attract.app."
And running attract from the launchpad. It does nothing, nor generates any log, that i have seen. And i've searched everywhere for the "last_run.log" without finding it.
AM 2.2 runs perfectly, but it does not work "per display" option.  :'(
Title: Re: Version 2.4 sneaking in!
Post by: Oomek on July 26, 2018, 07:10:02 AM
It’s
Code: [Select]
attract --loglevel debug
Title: Re: Version 2.4 sneaking in!
Post by: iOtero on July 26, 2018, 02:34:37 PM
About Attrac-Mode 2.4 at Mountain Lion, nothing can be done.

Version 2.4 searches for libraries that Mountain Lion does not have and that can only be installed through homebrew.

And in Mountain Lion now there is no way to install homebrew.

So you have to settle for version 2.2  :'(
Title: Re: Version 2.4 sneaking in!
Post by: keilmillerjr on July 28, 2018, 05:43:11 AM
About Attrac-Mode 2.4 at Mountain Lion, nothing can be done.

Version 2.4 searches for libraries that Mountain Lion does not have and that can only be installed through homebrew.

And in Mountain Lion now there is no way to install homebrew.

So you have to settle for version 2.2  :'(

False. I had it installed on mountain lion. You need to install XQuartz I believe. I’ve been consistently running brew for a long time now.
Title: Re: Version 2.4 sneaking in!
Post by: nevincho on July 28, 2018, 08:34:48 AM
New version can`t create .cfg file

last_run.log:

Attract-Mode v2.4.0 (Windows, SFML 2.5 +SWF +7z)
avcodec 58.18.100 / avformat 58.12.100 / swscale 5.1.100 / swresample 3.1.100

Config file not found: C:\MAME\pROGRAMS\Frontend\attract-v2.4.0-win32\attract.cfg
 - Constructed 1 filters in 0 ms (1 comparisons)

Pls help.
Title: Re: Version 2.4 sneaking in!
Post by: iOtero on July 28, 2018, 08:58:41 AM
About Attrac-Mode 2.4 at Mountain Lion, nothing can be done.

Version 2.4 searches for libraries that Mountain Lion does not have and that can only be installed through homebrew.

And in Mountain Lion now there is no way to install homebrew.

So you have to settle for version 2.2  :'(




False. I had it installed on mountain lion. You need to install XQuartz I believe. I’ve been consistently running brew for a long time now.

And in Mountain Lion NOW there is no way to install homebrew. And if you can, prove it  8)

And I would really appreciate an Attract.app 2.4 that worked correctly in Mountain Lion. ;D
Title: Re: Version 2.4 sneaking in!
Post by: Oomek on July 28, 2018, 09:46:19 AM
New version can`t crwate .cfg file

last_run.log:

Attract-Mode v2.4.0 (Windows, SFML 2.5 +SWF +7z)
avcodec 58.18.100 / avformat 58.12.100 / swscale 5.1.100 / swresample 3.1.100

Config file not found: C:\MAME\pROGRAMS\Frontend\attract-v2.4.0-win32\attract.cfg
 - Constructed 1 filters in 0 ms (1 comparisons)

Pls help.

Thanks for reporting it. If it happens on a clean state AM installation it may be some overlooked bug. Please use the cfg file generated by the previous version as a temporary workaround. We will look into it.
Title: Re: Version 2.4 sneaking in!
Post by: keilmillerjr on July 29, 2018, 06:14:31 AM
About Attrac-Mode 2.4 at Mountain Lion, nothing can be done.

Version 2.4 searches for libraries that Mountain Lion does not have and that can only be installed through homebrew.

And in Mountain Lion now there is no way to install homebrew.

So you have to settle for version 2.2  :'(




False. I had it installed on mountain lion. You need to install XQuartz I believe. I’ve been consistently running brew for a long time now.

And in Mountain Lion NOW there is no way to install homebrew. And if you can, prove it  8)

And I would really appreciate an Attract.app 2.4 that worked correctly in Mountain Lion. ;D

Try this: https://gist.github.com/myobie/1860902

Ps I have a website with an initial git commit using image magik installed via Homebrew when mountain lion came out in 2012. Until recently, I would sometimes even update on developer releases since os10 came out. I remember getting it working.
Title: Re: Version 2.4 sneaking in!
Post by: iOtero on July 30, 2018, 04:03:09 AM

Try this: https://gist.github.com/myobie/1860902


Step 5:

Code: [Select]
5) Reinstall your brews
How am I going to reinstall my brew if I have not been able to install it before?

In https://brew.sh (https://brew.sh) this not work:

Code: [Select]
/usr/bin/ruby -e "$(curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/Homebrew/install/master/install)"
And this either:

https://docs.brew.sh/Installation

I have already tried everything. But if you have a clean installation of Mountain Lion, you can NOT install Mountain lion
Title: Re: Version 2.4 sneaking in!
Post by: keilmillerjr on July 30, 2018, 08:01:10 PM
@zlagos what’s your error output on the curl for brew? Did you install command line tools?
Title: Re: Version 2.4 sneaking in!
Post by: iOtero on July 31, 2018, 06:34:14 AM
@zlagos what’s your error output on the curl for brew? Did you install command line tools?

In Terminal:

Code: [Select]
MacBook-de-admin-2:~ admin$ ruby -e "$(curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/Homebrew/install/master/install)"
==> You are using macOS 10.8.
==> We (and Apple) do not provide support for this old version.
This installation may not succeed.
After installation, you will encounter build failures and other breakages.
Please create pull-requests instead of asking for help on Homebrew's
GitHub, Discourse, Twitter or IRC. As you are running this old version,
you are responsible for resolving any issues you experience.
Title: Re: Version 2.4 sneaking in!
Post by: keilmillerjr on July 31, 2018, 12:37:20 PM
You posted a warning. No error.
Title: Re: Version 2.4 sneaking in!
Post by: iOtero on July 31, 2018, 12:41:31 PM
You posted a warning. No error.

Is a warning and an error.

I continued with the installation. He made many errors. And at the end, homebrew was not installed.

I installed xcode 4 and its command line, but homebrew I could not.

Today I tried to install it again. And I have not had any success.

And on the homebrew website I have not found any solution. And I'm not alone. From what I have read in the homebrew forum there are more people in my same situation.

Title: Re: Version 2.4 sneaking in!
Post by: Joe737 on August 03, 2018, 08:44:39 PM

short info:
version 2.4 doesn't longer supports native Windows XP/WinXP.
shows different missing .dll errors / .dll files not found
If you're using WinXP use version 2.3

I was bummed when 2.4 didn't work in XP, but I reported it on Github and there is a build now that works! Thank you!
https://github.com/mickelson/attract/issues/464#issuecomment-410533812
Title: Re: Version 2.4 sneaking in!
Post by: raygun on August 04, 2018, 09:46:25 PM

short info:
version 2.4 doesn't longer supports native Windows XP/WinXP.
shows different missing .dll errors / .dll files not found
If you're using WinXP use version 2.3

 >:(  No!!! Please tell me there is going to be support for XP, I have a MAME Arcade PC that I have spent so much time configuring!  Is there any way to get all these new features and fixes for us XP users?  Please tell me there is!

Please try the binary packages linked here: https://github.com/mickelson/attract/issues/464 which should work on WinXP
Title: Re: Version 2.4 sneaking in!
Post by: iOtero on August 05, 2018, 04:59:20 AM
Please try the binary packages linked here: https://github.com/mickelson/attract/issues/464 which should work on WinXP

Thanks very much, i'll try it... :D
Title: Re: Version 2.4 sneaking in!
Post by: farique on August 07, 2018, 07:48:18 AM
Thanks for the update.
What do you mean exactly with "Attract-Mode is now looking for game overview information in a different place then previously" , I have tons of overview scrapped descriptions and I prefer to move them to another place than re-scrape all the stuff.
Which is the new location?

Here is the description of where the overviews are now stored:

https://github.com/mickelson/attract/commit/88595c811b2ebe717d1c9ea116373531b92cc6cb (https://github.com/mickelson/attract/commit/88595c811b2ebe717d1c9ea116373531b92cc6cb)

hope that helps!

Thanks I have converted the "old ones" to the new "format".
Should be easy to make a python script if anyone wants to help.
I have used the find and replace feature of notepad ++ , just deleting the first "Overview " word at the begining and "n/n/"
Then just changing the .cfg extension for .txt with flexible renamer.

I have an Autoit script I made to convert normal text files to the old overview format and vice-versa.
I think I can easily repurpose it to make the conversion from the old to the new overview format, however on my test runs with AM 2.4 the overviews are coming blank (tried with Odyssey 2 and Vectrex) I am flooded at the moment and unable to chase the problem. Can anyone tell me how the new files are formatted? Apart from ditching the "overview " at the beginning and changing the extension from ".cfg" to ".txt" anything else has changed? Are they still using "\n" as linefeeds?

Cheers.
Title: Re: Version 2.4 sneaking in!
Post by: progets on August 08, 2018, 12:23:20 AM
Thanks for the update.
What do you mean exactly with "Attract-Mode is now looking for game overview information in a different place then previously" , I have tons of overview scrapped descriptions and I prefer to move them to another place than re-scrape all the stuff.
Which is the new location?

Here is the description of where the overviews are now stored:

https://github.com/mickelson/attract/commit/88595c811b2ebe717d1c9ea116373531b92cc6cb (https://github.com/mickelson/attract/commit/88595c811b2ebe717d1c9ea116373531b92cc6cb)

hope that helps!

Thanks I have converted the "old ones" to the new "format".
Should be easy to make a python script if anyone wants to help.
I have used the find and replace feature of notepad ++ , just deleting the first "Overview " word at the begining and "n/n/"
Then just changing the .cfg extension for .txt with flexible renamer.

I have an Autoit script I made to convert normal text files to the old overview format and vice-versa.
I think I can easily repurpose it to make the conversion from the old to the new overview format, however on my test runs with AM 2.4 the overviews are coming blank (tried with Odyssey 2 and Vectrex) I am flooded at the moment and unable to chase the problem. Can anyone tell me how the new files are formatted? Apart from ditching the "overview " at the beginning and changing the extension from ".cfg" to ".txt" anything else has changed? Are they still using "\n" as linefeeds?

Cheers.

I think you have all the information.

1. remove the first 9 characters of each old .cfg file ("overview ")
2. rename the file from .cfg to .txt
3. move files to the new location (/attract/scraper/<emulator>/overview/<romname>.txt)

Simple in a Linux console but in Windows I think most are using Notepad++ for batch converions.
Title: Re: Version 2.4 sneaking in!
Post by: iOtero on August 08, 2018, 02:25:14 AM
I need an AM 2.4 version for Mac Os X Mountain Lion 10.8.4, please...

Mountain Lion, now, does not let install the homebrew. If someone had it installed before, would be so kind to compile a version for Mountain Lion ...

It would also be good for someone to tell me how to install the homebrew now. I already installed xcode and command line, but the instructions of the homebrew forum to install it in Mountain Lion does not work ...
Title: Re: Version 2.4 sneaking in!
Post by: farique on August 08, 2018, 08:37:11 AM
Thanks for the update.
What do you mean exactly with "Attract-Mode is now looking for game overview information in a different place then previously" , I have tons of overview scrapped descriptions and I prefer to move them to another place than re-scrape all the stuff.
Which is the new location?

Here is the description of where the overviews are now stored:

https://github.com/mickelson/attract/commit/88595c811b2ebe717d1c9ea116373531b92cc6cb (https://github.com/mickelson/attract/commit/88595c811b2ebe717d1c9ea116373531b92cc6cb)

hope that helps!

Thanks I have converted the "old ones" to the new "format".
Should be easy to make a python script if anyone wants to help.
I have used the find and replace feature of notepad ++ , just deleting the first "Overview " word at the begining and "n/n/"
Then just changing the .cfg extension for .txt with flexible renamer.

I have an Autoit script I made to convert normal text files to the old overview format and vice-versa.
I think I can easily repurpose it to make the conversion from the old to the new overview format, however on my test runs with AM 2.4 the overviews are coming blank (tried with Odyssey 2 and Vectrex) I am flooded at the moment and unable to chase the problem. Can anyone tell me how the new files are formatted? Apart from ditching the "overview " at the beginning and changing the extension from ".cfg" to ".txt" anything else has changed? Are they still using "\n" as linefeeds?

Cheers.

I think you have all the information.

1. remove the first 9 characters of each old .cfg file ("overview ")
2. rename the file from .cfg to .txt
3. move files to the new location (/attract/scraper/<emulator>/overview/<romname>.txt)

Simple in a Linux console but in Windows I think most are using Notepad++ for batch converions.

Ok, there you go.
Just run OWZR.exe and press the buttons, the Readme.txt explains it all.
It does not move the files to the new location but you should be working on copies anyway, so...