emulation.net News Archives

June 1998

Sorry for the lack of recent postings, but news has been slow.
MacSloMo has been updated to version 0.6! Astro Fighters is now playable, and the emulation of Centipede and Millipede has been made much more precise--timing and interrupts have been changed to match the arcade hardware.
Nonoche and MacFada, two emulator fans, have made a huge icon collection containing hundreds of icons for various computers, consoles and cartridges.
Insignia has announced that SoftWindows 98 will be coming in August.

Virtual Gameboy has been updated to version 1.0.1! This version adds support for Navigation Services and the Appearance Manager.
Users report that Virtual PC seems capable of running Windows 98 without problems.
Not directly related, but many readers have reported the release of a new emulator called Fusion. This program is designed to emulate a 680x0 Macintosh on the PC, and apparently supports excellent compatibility and performance.
SNES9X 1.0.1 has received translations into German, Japanese, and Swedish.
A demo version of MagiCMac 6.0 should be available soon. It has also been claimed by the authors that MagiCMac 6.0 will significantly outperform PowerST (though the latter is a much more thorough emulator).
vMac, a Macintosh emulator, has been updated to version 0.1.9a! This version polishes a few rough edges, and now includes source code.

SNES9X has been updated to version 1.0.1! This version features mouse support, TV mode, support for GZ-compressed ROMs, and in-game freeze and defrost. This version is definitely worth the download.
The SNES ROM Info tool has also been updated, to version 1.0b3.
It seems that MagiCMac has been updated to support MagiC 6.0, but this page is entirely in German so I'm unclear on the details.
emulation.net has been featured in CU Amiga magazine! They feature a two-page article about how to set up an Amiga to run emulators through the Mac OS.

A new Atari ST emulator called PowerST is available from the author of NoSTalgia! It uses an assembly 68000 core, compliments of Aaron Giles, and is shareware. PowerST is approximately three times as fast as NoSTalgia!
The freeware NoSTalgia was also updated to version 0.52, offering enough bugfixes to comfortably run MagiC, an Atari ST OS.
The next release of SNES9X is coming very soon! This version offers mouse support and "TV mode," which simulates the effect of playing SNES on a television.
The MacEmu mailing list notes an interesting article on emulation called New Life for Old Games.
Many readers noted a recent Mac OS Rumors column, relating the story of "an Apple engineer bragging about a Playstation emulator on the Mac." That story proved to be incredibly exaggerated, but the real story is still quite promising.

After a long trip in a U-Haul, I'm back in Berkeley in my new apartment!
SNES9X 1.0 has been translated into French and Japanese.
MO5/MacOS has been updated to version 2.0.4! This version includes state-saving ability and supports Navigation Services.
A new utility called SNES ROM Info will organize and consistently label your SNES ROMs.
A brief page for MESS has been written.
A newer update of True Reality is out--this one tries, but fails, to draw fire in the Fire Demo. (It will open an empty window and wait forever.)

MacMAME 0.33b6 has been released! As usual, this version supports even more games than before.
Swedish, German, Korean and Spanish versions of SNES9X 1.0 have been released!
A currently non-working Nintendo 64 emulator is under development, called True Reality. Currently it only emulates part of the N64's core processor, and none of the graphics, sound or I/O hardware. Currently, True Reality's only use would be as a primitive N64 debugger tool. (On an unfortunate side note, the Project Unreality emulator--the only Nintendo 64 emulator which was making real progress--was cancelled by the author, due to conflict of interest.)

SNES9X has been updated to the illustrious version 1.0! Improved speed, more accurate video rendering and high-resolution support have been added.
Handy has been updated to version 0.4b5, fixing a few bugs and improving speed noticably. This version also supports compressed ROMs to save disk space.
Users with inside connections at Connectix note that Virtual PC will soon feature Windows 98 bundled in! (Although, to be frank, Windows 98 seems relatively insubstantial to me--how many people really want to pay just to have Internet Explorer 4 bundled in their system? I, for one, would sooner pay to have it uninstalled...)
An Apple IIgs developer has released his set of development tools as freeware.
A classic-arcade fan has begun posting his large collection of arcade game flyers online.
A reader writes in to note that emulation.net was mentioned in the design magazine "I.D." Hopefully I'll be able to locate one of these magazines somewhere.

ColEm has been updated to version 1.0! This version fixes several games which experienced problems with previous versions of ColEm, makes video generation more accurate, and supports Navigation Services.
The Swedish translation of iNES 0.7 Plus has been released! Thanks, SkalMac!
House of Coins has announced the grand opening of their Mac OS emulation page. This site was previously dedicated entirely to MacMAME, but now they cover a wide variety of consoles and computers as well. (Please note, however, that House of Coins is written entirely in German.)
SNES9X 0.9.6 should be coming very soon! Among other things, this version finally supports high-resolution graphics (fixing glitches in games such as Secret of Mana and Tokimeki Memorial).

MacMAME has been updated to version 0.33b5! Several new games are supported in this version.
MacSloMo has been updated to version 0.58! This version includes preliminary support for Astro Fighter--however, it's not playable yet.
emulation.net is now the official home of the LisaWorks project, an effort towards creating a working Apple Lisa emulator!
The next version of MESS promises to have support for the Vectrex! As this would be the only working Vectrex emulator for Macintosh, it's definitely exciting news.
ColEm 1.0 should be coming soon!
An Insignia press release has informed me that PowerBook G3s sold in the Asian Pacific are now being bundled with RealPC.

I'm back! It's great to finally be home. emulation.net updates should be back to normal for the time being.
Handy, a Lynx emulator, has been updated to version 0.4b4! This version is faster in some video modes and also allows key configuration.
MacSloMo has been updated to version 0.56! This version fixes some minor glitches in the emulation.
Several users who had problems with MESS 0.1 have found that it requires the installation of an Apple extension called InputSprocket.
A new emulator called PowerST is under development; written by the author of NoSTalgia, this emulator uses an assembly core to triple the speed of emulation.
MacMAME 0.33b5 is coming within the next few days!

I've managed to secure a Macintosh in the Harvard Labs, and so I've been able to add a few updates while on vacation.
MacMAME has been updated to version 0.33b4! Several new games are supported, and some games have been optimized to draw video faster.
Korean and Swedish versions of SNES9X 0.9.5a are now available!
A new emulator called MESS has been released! This emulator is written in the spirit of MAME, but is meant for consoles and computer systems. Currently, MESS emulates the Colecovision, Nintendo Entertainment System, Sega Genesis, TRS-80 and Colour Genie. When I return home from vacation, a page will be made for MESS.
SIDPLAY, a Commodore 64 music emulator, has been updated to version 1.36a, which fixes a variety of small bugs.

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Back to emulation.net.

	Sorry for the lack of recent postings, but news has been slow. MacSloMo has been updated to version 0.6! Astro Fighters is now playable, and the emulation of Centipede and Millipede has been made much more precise--timing and interrupts have been changed to match the arcade hardware. Nonoche and MacFada, two emulator fans, have made a huge icon collection containing hundreds of icons for various computers, consoles and cartridges. Insignia has announced that SoftWindows 98 will be coming in August.
	Virtual Gameboy has been updated to version 1.0.1! This version adds support for Navigation Services and the Appearance Manager. Users report that Virtual PC seems capable of running Windows 98 without problems. Not directly related, but many readers have reported the release of a new emulator called Fusion. This program is designed to emulate a 680x0 Macintosh on the PC, and apparently supports excellent compatibility and performance. SNES9X 1.0.1 has received translations into German, Japanese, and Swedish. A demo version of MagiCMac 6.0 should be available soon. It has also been claimed by the authors that MagiCMac 6.0 will significantly outperform PowerST (though the latter is a much more thorough emulator). vMac, a Macintosh emulator, has been updated to version 0.1.9a! This version polishes a few rough edges, and now includes source code.
	SNES9X has been updated to version 1.0.1! This version features mouse support, TV mode, support for GZ-compressed ROMs, and in-game freeze and defrost. This version is definitely worth the download. The SNES ROM Info tool has also been updated, to version 1.0b3. It seems that MagiCMac has been updated to support MagiC 6.0, but this page is entirely in German so I'm unclear on the details. emulation.net has been featured in CU Amiga magazine! They feature a two-page article about how to set up an Amiga to run emulators through the Mac OS.
	A new Atari ST emulator called PowerST is available from the author of NoSTalgia! It uses an assembly 68000 core, compliments of Aaron Giles, and is shareware. PowerST is approximately three times as fast as NoSTalgia! The freeware NoSTalgia was also updated to version 0.52, offering enough bugfixes to comfortably run MagiC, an Atari ST OS. The next release of SNES9X is coming very soon! This version offers mouse support and "TV mode," which simulates the effect of playing SNES on a television. The MacEmu mailing list notes an interesting article on emulation called New Life for Old Games. Many readers noted a recent Mac OS Rumors column, relating the story of "an Apple engineer bragging about a Playstation emulator on the Mac." That story proved to be incredibly exaggerated, but the real story is still quite promising.
	After a long trip in a U-Haul, I'm back in Berkeley in my new apartment! SNES9X 1.0 has been translated into French and Japanese. MO5/MacOS has been updated to version 2.0.4! This version includes state-saving ability and supports Navigation Services. A new utility called SNES ROM Info will organize and consistently label your SNES ROMs. A brief page for MESS has been written. A newer update of True Reality is out--this one tries, but fails, to draw fire in the Fire Demo. (It will open an empty window and wait forever.)
	MacMAME 0.33b6 has been released! As usual, this version supports even more games than before. Swedish, German, Korean and Spanish versions of SNES9X 1.0 have been released! A currently non-working Nintendo 64 emulator is under development, called True Reality. Currently it only emulates part of the N64's core processor, and none of the graphics, sound or I/O hardware. Currently, True Reality's only use would be as a primitive N64 debugger tool. (On an unfortunate side note, the Project Unreality emulator--the only Nintendo 64 emulator which was making real progress--was cancelled by the author, due to conflict of interest.)
	SNES9X has been updated to the illustrious version 1.0! Improved speed, more accurate video rendering and high-resolution support have been added. Handy has been updated to version 0.4b5, fixing a few bugs and improving speed noticably. This version also supports compressed ROMs to save disk space. Users with inside connections at Connectix note that Virtual PC will soon feature Windows 98 bundled in! (Although, to be frank, Windows 98 seems relatively insubstantial to me--how many people really want to pay just to have Internet Explorer 4 bundled in their system? I, for one, would sooner pay to have it uninstalled...) An Apple IIgs developer has released his set of development tools as freeware. A classic-arcade fan has begun posting his large collection of arcade game flyers online. A reader writes in to note that emulation.net was mentioned in the design magazine "I.D." Hopefully I'll be able to locate one of these magazines somewhere.
	ColEm has been updated to version 1.0! This version fixes several games which experienced problems with previous versions of ColEm, makes video generation more accurate, and supports Navigation Services. The Swedish translation of iNES 0.7 Plus has been released! Thanks, SkalMac! House of Coins has announced the grand opening of their Mac OS emulation page. This site was previously dedicated entirely to MacMAME, but now they cover a wide variety of consoles and computers as well. (Please note, however, that House of Coins is written entirely in German.) SNES9X 0.9.6 should be coming very soon! Among other things, this version finally supports high-resolution graphics (fixing glitches in games such as Secret of Mana and Tokimeki Memorial).
	MacMAME has been updated to version 0.33b5! Several new games are supported in this version. MacSloMo has been updated to version 0.58! This version includes preliminary support for Astro Fighter--however, it's not playable yet. emulation.net is now the official home of the LisaWorks project, an effort towards creating a working Apple Lisa emulator! The next version of MESS promises to have support for the Vectrex! As this would be the only working Vectrex emulator for Macintosh, it's definitely exciting news. ColEm 1.0 should be coming soon! An Insignia press release has informed me that PowerBook G3s sold in the Asian Pacific are now being bundled with RealPC.
	I'm back! It's great to finally be home. emulation.net updates should be back to normal for the time being. Handy, a Lynx emulator, has been updated to version 0.4b4! This version is faster in some video modes and also allows key configuration. MacSloMo has been updated to version 0.56! This version fixes some minor glitches in the emulation. Several users who had problems with MESS 0.1 have found that it requires the installation of an Apple extension called InputSprocket. A new emulator called PowerST is under development; written by the author of NoSTalgia, this emulator uses an assembly core to triple the speed of emulation. MacMAME 0.33b5 is coming within the next few days!
	I've managed to secure a Macintosh in the Harvard Labs, and so I've been able to add a few updates while on vacation. MacMAME has been updated to version 0.33b4! Several new games are supported, and some games have been optimized to draw video faster. Korean and Swedish versions of SNES9X 0.9.5a are now available! A new emulator called MESS has been released! This emulator is written in the spirit of MAME, but is meant for consoles and computer systems. Currently, MESS emulates the Colecovision, Nintendo Entertainment System, Sega Genesis, TRS-80 and Colour Genie. When I return home from vacation, a page will be made for MESS. SIDPLAY, a Commodore 64 music emulator, has been updated to version 1.36a, which fixes a variety of small bugs.