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Diffstat (limited to 'gp2x/readme_gp2x.txt')
| -rw-r--r-- | gp2x/readme_gp2x.txt | 340 |
1 files changed, 0 insertions, 340 deletions
diff --git a/gp2x/readme_gp2x.txt b/gp2x/readme_gp2x.txt deleted file mode 100644 index 26a5a87..0000000 --- a/gp2x/readme_gp2x.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,340 +0,0 @@ --- porter's foreword --
-
-Even though ZX-81 ported my Wiz version to Caanoo, some people kept
-asking me to do the port instead because of apparent sound problems,
-so here it is. Note that I did not use ZX-81's work for this release,
-because I had various changes for Pandora version and wanted to have
-them in, so different set of bugs then in ZX-81's version are
-possible. Savestates might also be incompatible.
-
-To use this, you'll first need to copy authentic GBA BIOS to gpSP
-directory. It must be named gba_bios.bin and should be 16kB in size.
-
-I've appended the original gpSP GP2X readme file as it contains lots
-of information that is still relevant for this version, as well as
-development history of this project.
-
-- notaz
-
-Changelog:
-
-0.9-2xb u8
-- Caanoo port
-- fixed tv-out for pandora
-- integrated M-HT's neon scalers (pandora only)
-- merged an assortment of calc84maniac's bugfixes
-
-0.9-2xb u7
-- Pandora port, using hardware scaler for video output.
-- Fixed a few portablility issues in ARM asm and sound code.
-- Tweaked timing to suit pandora's LCD refresh nicely.
-- Maybe fixed GBC/digital sound channel desync over time.
-- Some other not-that-relevant cleanups and tweaks.
-
-Source code should be available at:
-http://notaz.gp2x.de/cgi-bin/gitweb.cgi
-
-
--- gameplaySP2X Gameboy Advance emulator for GP2X --
-
-gpSP2X is a version of my (Exophase)'s emulator originally for Sony PSP.
-A large amount of effort has been done to make it more optimized for the
-ARM CPU present in the GP2X, however it is still very much a work in
-progress.
-
-See readme.txt for the PSP version readme, which contains a lot of
-information relevant to the GP2X version (note that some of it does
-not apply however).
-
-
-Changelog:
-
-0.9-2xb u6
-- Fixed clock and scaling config saving.
-- Fixed occasional crash on first ROM load on 1.1 firmware.
-- Added LCD timing setup code, which can be controlled through
- 'pollux_dpc_set' environment vatiable (see gpsp.gpe wrapper script).
-
-0.9-2xb u5
-- Added portrait drawing modes. They eliminate tearing but are slightly
- slower.
-- Added page scrolling in ROM browser with L/R.
-- 32MB ROM support fixed.
-
-0.9-2xb u4 (unofficial notaz release, done on Exophase's request)
-- Wiz port. No emulation related changes.
-- Wiz: dropped SDL for video and hitting hardware directly (GPH SDL can't
- be trusted, it doesn't do double buffering as of firmware 1.0).
-- Added new optimized software scaler with interpolation.
-- gpSP is now saving ROM dir on exit. Delete romdir.txt if you don't
- want that.
-- gpSP now comes with wARM, new kernel module+lib for ARM cache control
- (replaces mmuhack).
-- gpSP no longer invalidates whole icache after recompilation, might
- cause minor speedup.
-
-0.9-2xb u3 (unofficial notaz release, released with permission):
-- Removed built-in CPU/LCD/RAM-Tweaker.
-- Improved usability of volume control.
-- Removed PSP-specific GUI options, adjusted help text.
-- Overclocking from menu now works, keep it at 200 if you don't want that
- (if you want to overclock using launcher, for example).
-- Fixed centering-on-first-run problem.
-- 3:2 scaled option now does what it says.
-
-0.9-2xb u2 (unofficial notaz release):
-- Replaced non-working mmuhack.o with proper one, added cache flush calls
- to avoid artifacts.
-
-0.9-2xb u1 (unofficial notaz release):
-- Fixed a problen in thread synchronization which caused deadlock after
- some time.
-
-0.9-2xb:
--- IMPORTANT-- If you're overwriting an old version, be sure to delete the
- gpsp.cfg file first, or be prepared to have a bunch of weird button
- settings that would require fixing.
-
-- Fixed some bugs stunting compatability.
-- Optimized alpha blends in renderer.
-- Some more optimizations to dynarec output.
-- Savestates should work better now.
-- Cheat/misc menu won't crash the emulator.
-- Main button config window works (not all buttons are in yet)
-
-0.9-2Xa: (Exophase release)
-- Redid autoframeskip. Should work more reliably.
-- Rewrote dynamic recompiler from x86 source (arm_emit.h, arm_stub.S).
- Has some more sophisticated behavior than the last version, more is
- still to come... Should notice a slight speed improvement over the
- last version.
-- Tweaked GUI to be a little more useable. Buttons are now mirroring the
- PSP version's.
-- Code unification + cleanup amongst versions.
-
-
-v9008: (zodttd release)
-- Updated the way autoframeskip works. Should be better now. Still has a max
- frameskip value.
-- Added a slight performance increase to the dynarec.
-- Added sync() to make sure files such as savestates and in-game saves are
- saved properly to the GP2X.
-
-v9006: (zodttd release)
-- Initial public release
-
-
-Installation:
-
-1. Place the "gpsp.gpe" and "game_config.txt" file in a directory on your SD
- card used with the GP2X.
-
-2. Place your GBA BIOS in the directory from step 1. This file must be named
- "gba_bios.bin" in all lowercase as shown, so rename it if needed.
-
- -- NOTE --
-
- There are two commonly available BIOSes - one is the correct one used in
- production GBA's worldwide and the other is a prototype BIOS. The latter
- will not cause some games to not work correctly or crash. If you attempt
- to use this BIOS you will be presented with a warning before being
- allowed to continue. This screen will give you a checksum of the real
- BIOS image (see readme.txt for further information).
-
-3. Place your GBA games in the directory from step 1. These files should have
- a ".gba" or ".bin" file extension. Zip compressed games should be supported
- and are recognized with the ".zip" file extension. Note that 32MB ROMs will
- probably not run if zipped. 16MB and smaller should be OK.
-
-4. Done. Run gpsp.gpe.
-
-
-Controls:
-
-How to use gpSP on the GP2X:
-Buttons are mapped as follows (GBA/ingame buttons can be changed in the menu):
-
-GP2X--------------------GBA
-X -> A
-B -> B
-L TRIG -> L TRIG
-R TRIG -> R TRIG
-START -> START
-SELECT -> SELECT
-
-GP2X--------------------------------gpSP
-
--- IN-GAME --
-
-VOL MIDDLE (UP + DOWN) -> menu
-PUSH STICK -> fps display toggle (second number is
- frames actually drawn)
-
--- IN-MENU --
-B -> select option
-X -> cancel/exit menu
-A -> escape (up one director level in the
- file selector)
-
-When gpSP is started, you are presented with the option to overclock your
-GP2X. Use the L/R TRIG to change the CPU clockspeed and press START to
-continue. You may also change RAM timings here - experiment with what
-works well. Note that going too high on overclocking or low on RAM
-timings can cause the game to crash or the GP2X to outright freeze up.
-
-If you do not want to overclock, press START without using L/R.
-You will now be presented with a menu to choose a game. Press the IN-MENU
-"SELECT" button shown above to pick a game to load.
-
-If you would like to test gpSP for the GP2X with a homebrew (free public
-domain) game, a game by Russ Prince works very well with gpSP. It is called
-Bust-A-Move and is a remake of the classic game it's named after.
-
-
-How to build from source:
-
-The makefile included in the source is geared towards the Open2x toolchain.
-If you use Open2x and installed it in the way recommended then it should
-work okay, assuming you also have up to date HW-SDL (and have
-arm-linux-sdl-config installed in the right place). The makefile is in the
-gp2x directory, so go there first then just type make to build gpsp.gpe.
-Might need a little tweaking if your setup is different. If you need help
-you can ask me, but I'll probably nag you about why you want to build it in
-the first place.
-
-
-GP2X version FAQ:
-
-Q) Help! This game doesn't work. Am I using a bad version of the ROM?
-
-A) First, make sure you're using the correct BIOS version. If you aren't
- gpSP should tell you. Other than that, there are some games that are
- known to not work now (and will probably work later), and perhaps
- many more games that I don't know about that don't work. I haven't
- launched a full scale compatability test at this version, so it might
- take a while before the compatability levels are high.
-
-
-Q) Why is this version slower than the PSP version?
-
-A) gpSP is still a work in progress. It might be possible to obtain more
- speed from both this version and the PSP one too (and others in the
- future). With that in mind, know that even a very agressively overclocked
- GP2X is still less powerful than a PSP, generally speaking. Still, I
- have a lot of ideas. It's unlikely that the GP2X version will ever be as
- fast/faster than the PSP version for anyone but anything's possible.
-
-
-Q) How high does my GP2X have to overclock to enjoy gpSP?
-
-A) That depends on you. Higher overclocking will mean less frames skipped
- on autoframeskip, or less frameskip needed if on manual. Or it can
- make the difference between whether or not virtual 60fps can be reached.
- For some games no GP2X in the world will be able to run them fullspeed,
- with any amount of frameskip. A few might run well with no overclocking
- and a generous level of frameskip (probably manual). If you don't care
- about battery life (or you're plugged into an outlet) you should push
- it as high as you can while still maintaining stability, because
- chances are high that whatever you play will benefit from it. Right now
- you'll probably want 260MHz if you can achieve it, but with a lot of
- luck this number will lower slightly in the future (and is just a vague
- ballpark figure anyway). I don't want to scare anyone off from using the
- emulator, you should give it a try and see how it plays for you
- regardless of how high you can overclock. Just note that this is far
- from a locked smooth experience for everyone on every game.
-
-
-Q) GBA has an ARM processor, GP2X has an ARM processor. GP2X is more
- powerful than GBA. This emulator should run great without overclocking,
- so therefore you're doing it wrong.
-
-A) That's not a question, but I'll field it anyway. Two things: first,
- "virtualization", or running the GBA code "natively" on the GP2X is
- probably not possible, at least not with the way I want to do things.
- For reasons why go read my blog (see below). So yes, you actually
- do need more than 16.7MHz of ARM9 power to emulate the GBA's CPU.
- Second: there is a whole lot of work behind emulating the pretty 2D
- graphics on the GBA, something it can do in hardware a lot better than
- this platform can.
- End result: GBA emulation on GP2X isn't as easy as you think it is.
-
-
-Q) What are you working on now? When will you release the next version?
-
-A) See the gpSP development blog:
-
- http://gpsp-dev.blogspot.com/
-
- Note that I don't give release dates, ever, unless I'm right on the verge
- of releasing. Be grateful that I've decided to be much more open about
- the development of the emulator now.
-
-
-Q) Thanks to your blog I heard that you made some improvement. Can I have
- a copy of the new code?
-
-A) No. Builds in transition often have a lot of problems, and I like for
- releases to be relatively substantial. I can probably be bribed out of
- them with donations though. :P
-
-
-Q) Why do the menu suck so much? Why do half the options not work or not
- make any sense?
-
-A) Sorry, the menu still hasn't been modified very much to fit the GP2X
- version instead of the PSP version.. hopefully this will improve in the
- future.
-
-
-Q) Who's in charge of the GP2X version anyway?
-
-A) Originally, zodttd was. I, Exophase, have basically usurped control of it
- now to encourage zodttd to work more on his PS1 emulator (that and I'm
- possessive of gpSP and get nervous when people work on it too heavily).
- zodttd will most likely still be around to work on things though.
-
-
-Q) I'm a super nice person and would like to donate some of my hard earned
- money to this one-off GBA emulator. Where do I send my money to?
-
-A) Exophase: exophase@gmail.com on PayPal
- zodttd: https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=_xclick&business=heirloomer
- %40pobox%2ecom&item_number=1&no_shipping=1&no_note=1&tax=0&cy_code=USD&bn=
- PP%2dDonationsBF&charset=UTF%2d8
- ^ Click there for donating on PayPal (remove whitespace/linebreaks).
-
- GP2X people have already donated a lot more to me than PSP people have,
- even though there's an order of magnitude or two less users. And they've
- donated far more to zodttd than they have to me. So I'm not going to ask
- people to donate..
-
- However I won't lie: donating ups the chances of me actually working on the
- next version (for which I have a lot of ideas, but not necessarily time to
- dedicate to.. that time might need more incentive to be allotted from other
- things). This could change depending on my employment situation, but right
- now I feel guilty doing anything that doesn't help guarantee that I'll be
- able to buy food a year from now.
-
-
-Q) Tell me all of your personal information.
-
-A) Again not a question, but why not. I'm Exophase, real name: Gilead Kutnick,
- male, 23 years old, current residence Bloomington, IN; straight/single/not
- actively looking, almost have an MS in Computer Science (do have a BS
- underneath it), likes PSP more than GP2X, will not write a Nintendo DS
- emulator for either, am currently looking for a job for after I graduate.
-
-
-Q) You said you're looking for a job.
-
-A) Yes. If you have one or know someone who needs a low level oriented
- programmer then I'm up for grabs. And this is my resume:
- http://exophase.devzero.co.uk/resume.pdf
-
-
-Credits:
-
-Original codebase: Exophase (exophase@gmail.com)
-Foundation gp2x code: zodttd
-GP2X dynarec/stubs + current code maintainance: Exophase
-
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