Pairs (09/07/94)

Luja · Post by **Luja** » Wed May 14, 2003 2:57 pm

http://marp.retrogames.com/index.cgi?mo ... 00&tourn=0

This doesn´t work for me:

http://marp.retrogames.com/inp/1/e/a/rs ... mame66.zip

I think that is the nvram.... (nor as credit is inserted)
Can anyone verify it?

Regards

Abbe · Post by **Abbe** » Wed May 14, 2003 4:38 pm

It is a nvram problem. Behaves exactly as your first recording, Luja. Without nvram he never inserts a coin. With nvram he inserts a coin, but looses immediately.

Anyone up for a bit of zeroing?

Chad · Post by **Chad** » Wed May 14, 2003 5:28 pm

done, at least he did record with alphamame, But the nvram issue is here with a vengence, definielty a NON-default nvram thing because it playsback different the subsequent times you play it with a changing nvram file...

Almost threatening to make a patch to mame to ignore nvrams internally (this would make certain games unplaybackable (the ones that need nvrams or good F3 timing at playback time) cosmopzl etc, but at least it would help newbies to not have to remember to delete the nvram files).

LN2 · Post by **LN2** » Thu May 15, 2003 12:50 am

alphamame is for competition and replay compatiblity so it definitely shouldn't be reading/writing any .nv files IMHO.

Chad · Post by **Chad** » Thu May 15, 2003 2:25 am

true, but when that is done there will be some (very few) games that actually require nvrams to playback things; thus we'll be making some games uncompetable. Right now they're all competable just require a learning curve.

Buttermaker · Post by **Buttermaker** » Thu May 15, 2003 6:20 am

but at least it would help newbies to not have to remember to delete the nvram files

I wonder why it is so hard for some people to click on RULES.

The NVRAM part of the rules could be updated though.

Post by **mahlemiut** » Thu May 15, 2003 8:10 am

Or the "Please remove NVRAM before recording!" message at the foot of every page generated by the script.

LN2 · Post by **LN2** » Thu May 15, 2003 3:41 pm

Chad wrote:true, but when that is done there will be some (very few) games that actually require nvrams to playback things; thus we'll be making some games uncompetable

Like?

I haven't come across a game yet that needed the nvram folder even present to play or correctly play, record or playback an inp. Given mame/macmame, etc. have no issue with the lack of a nvram folder to even establish an .nv file even if a game wanted to save the state, and it doesn't interfere with recording or playback, then why would it make a difference for alphamame to not even bother to check for the existence of a current .nv file and just assume none is there?

I'm guessing it already has some check where mame checks for an existing .nv file and if the file open fails then it does something else. Well, all that has to be changed for alphamame is just to always set that variable to 0 for "failure" instead of even doing the open file line....simple change. You wouldn't need to change any of the other code except that 1 line. That little change would fool alphamame into thinking the nv file doesn't exist even if it does...essentially ignoring it so it's one less thing any alphamame user would have to worry about.

It seems to me changing alphamame for that would be pretty trivial.

Post by **mahlemiut** » Thu May 15, 2003 4:16 pm

I'm pretty sure that one of the Cosmo Gang games requires valid NVRAM data for it to run. Pushing F3 should never, ever be used, as it's usually not stored in the inp unless there's a valid input port for resetting. I haven't found one that has that yet.