Some *bad* things about NesterDC SE that should be addressed

This forum is for discussion pertaining to homebrew and indie software for the Dreamcast, such as homebrew games, emulators/interpreters, and other homebrew software/applications. Porting requests and developmental ideas are not to be made here; you can make those here. If you need any help burning discs for homebrew software, this is the place to ask as well.
nakamichi
DCEmu Super Poster
DCEmu Super Poster
Posts: 1205
https://www.artistsworkshop.eu/meble-kuchenne-na-wymiar-warszawa-gdzie-zamowic/
Joined: Wed Oct 17, 2001 7:44 pm
Location: The Land of the Rising Umeboshi
Has thanked: 0
Been thanked: 0

Some *bad* things about NesterDC SE that should be addressed

Post by nakamichi »

Some "bad" things about NesterDC and necessary additions for your site:

The emulator is simply amazing,and everybody knows that...but let's see what are the worst things about it that prevent many users to even try it.
These issues should be fixed very soon,or you may lose a lot of potential users starving for NesterDC SE:

1. Add a video (mpg or divx avi,not wmv) of the latest NesterDC SE in action,so we can show those who still don't know/believe how much better NesterDC SE is from ANY other existing console-on-console emulator so far (even on the XBOX) to see it in action before they download and create their image.
It needs to cover the simplicity of image creation,the goodies it offers,the cool menu interface,the EX sound support,the NSF player and the DC peripheral support in one single video.

2. Many of my friends are still not willing to download and try this amazing emu.They both have a DC and an XBOX,and they say: whoo needs this inferior product,when we have a perfect NES emu on XBOX? Hmph! They have to see the video and glue their mouths with Super Glue :)

3. Do you know there are still users on dialup (and in some poor countries 56k dialup is still charged by minute and no flatrate is available),so when downloading the goodies,aborting the process and resuming again,it has to download again the large .db file and waste a lot of time checking the goodies you already have downloaded.This costs a lot of money.
It would be better to host separate packages (downloads) (7zips) of NSFs,Manuals,screenshots,etc. and there has to be a txt file inside with instruction to point them where to extract the files)

4. Also,it's NOT a good idea for the image builder that it MUST connect to the internet to be able to make the image.This shold also be possible to do offline,EVEN if goodies are not downloaded at all.There should be just a warning message saying that without goodies,the experience will be not that great and they should download the extra stuff if they want maximum enjoyment.
So,it should be possible to make the image without downloading a single goodie and without ever connecting to the net.

5. The "image cannot be created" error should be fixed as soon as possible.It prevents ALL users on WinXP SP2 to create the image...and you know that the majority of PCs are on SP2...
Strapping Scherzo
DC Developer
DC Developer
Posts: 2285
Joined: Fri Feb 21, 2003 7:37 am
Location: Chicago, IL
Has thanked: 0
Been thanked: 1 time
Contact:

Re: Some *bad* things about NesterDC SE that should be addre

Post by Strapping Scherzo »

nakamichi wrote:Some "bad" things about NesterDC and necessary additions for your site:

The emulator is simply amazing,and everybody knows that...but let's see what are the worst things about it that prevent many users to even try it.
These issues should be fixed very soon,or you may lose a lot of potential users starving for NesterDC SE:

1. Add a video (mpg or divx avi,not wmv) of the latest NesterDC SE in action,so we can show those who still don't know/believe how much better NesterDC SE is from ANY other existing console-on-console emulator so far (even on the XBOX) to see it in action before they download and create their image.
It needs to cover the simplicity of image creation,the goodies it offers,the cool menu interface,the EX sound support,the NSF player and the DC peripheral support in one single video.

2. Many of my friends are still not willing to download and try this amazing emu.They both have a DC and an XBOX,and they say: whoo needs this inferior product,when we have a perfect NES emu on XBOX? Hmph! They have to see the video and glue their mouths with Super Glue :)
I'm not going to make such a video. If someone else wants to that's great.
nakamichi wrote:3. Do you know there are still users on dialup (and in some poor countries 56k dialup is still charged by minute and no flatrate is available),so when downloading the goodies,aborting the process and resuming again,it has to download again the large .db file and waste a lot of time checking the goodies you already have downloaded.This costs a lot of money.
It would be better to host separate packages (downloads) (7zips) of NSFs,Manuals,screenshots,etc. and there has to be a txt file inside with instruction to point them where to extract the files)
The "master_nes.db file is only 1.5MB big. I have it downloaded everytime so that if I update the library on the website, the builder know which new stuff to get.

As for downloading the library as a whole or in parts, I will do it. The builder as it is can take a URL or a local path for the "Library URL" field. So it'll just work once I post the library for separate download.
nakamichi wrote:4. Also,it's NOT a good idea for the image builder that it MUST connect to the internet to be able to make the image.This shold also be possible to do offline,EVEN if goodies are not downloaded at all.There should be just a warning message saying that without goodies,the experience will be not that great and they should download the extra stuff if they want maximum enjoyment.
So,it should be possible to make the image without downloading a single goodie and without ever connecting to the net.
Yes, I guess you're right. But it wasn't my concern with this release to support people without internet connections.
nakamichi wrote:5. The "image cannot be created" error should be fixed as soon as possible.It prevents ALL users on WinXP SP2 to create the image...and you know that the majority of PCs are on SP2...
This is a funny problem to me. The reason is because I myself run XP SP2 and I don't have the problem. So since I haven't been able to recreate this problem on a physical machine in front of me, it makes it hard to fix it.

Either way, NesterDC SE will see another release with more things fixed in the future. I just need a break right now.
Image
D-Roc
DCEmu Freak
DCEmu Freak
Posts: 50
Joined: Mon Jun 27, 2005 6:15 pm
Location: New England
Has thanked: 0
Been thanked: 0

Post by D-Roc »

"...how much better NesterDC SE is from ANY other existing console-on-console emulator so far (even on the XBOX) "
- I think thats a bit of a stretch. IMHO it's the best emulator on the DREAMCAST. While the interface is one of the best I've seen anywhere, I don't think the in-game emulation even comes close to playing NES on XBOX.
Born to lose. Live to Win.
hrb2k3
DCEmu Nutter
DCEmu Nutter
Posts: 754
Joined: Sun Jun 15, 2003 4:31 pm
Location: Tidewater, VA, USA
Has thanked: 0
Been thanked: 0

Post by hrb2k3 »

i run SP2 and have no problems creating an image either.
DC FoReVeR.!!!
User avatar
GyroVorbis
Elysian Shadows Developer
Elysian Shadows Developer
Posts: 1873
Joined: Mon Mar 22, 2004 4:55 pm
Location: #%^&*!!!11one Super Sonic
Has thanked: 79 times
Been thanked: 61 times
Contact:

Post by GyroVorbis »

I think NesterDC SE puts any NES emulator to shame. Even my M$ fanboy friend who camped out for a 360 admitted he liked it better than his NES Xbox emu.
nakamichi
DCEmu Super Poster
DCEmu Super Poster
Posts: 1205
Joined: Wed Oct 17, 2001 7:44 pm
Location: The Land of the Rising Umeboshi
Has thanked: 0
Been thanked: 0

Post by nakamichi »

About the master_nes.db file:

You can make the builder hash the already present .db file loaded on your HD from a previous session and compare MD5 or SHA-1 hashes with the file on the server,and ONLY if the hashes don't match,it will download the updated master_nes.db file.Otherwise it will use the old one.That will solve this "problem" :)

(you should put a md5 hash text file on the server in order for this to work)
User avatar
THE#1SonicFan
DCEmu Crazy Poster
DCEmu Crazy Poster
Posts: 35
Joined: Wed Oct 13, 2004 9:20 pm
Has thanked: 0
Been thanked: 0
Contact:

Post by THE#1SonicFan »

For some reason my NesterDC SE won't save my stuff in options and it won't run Sonic 3-D Blast 6 (pirate) Which I'd really like to play. And no other NesterDC plays it, only PC NES emulators. Oh yeah, What about frame skip, I like my games a little bit faster.
Don't like me or just don't like what I've said, click here.
Oh yeah, as Sonic fan's go, I would kick your ass in to next week.
User avatar
MetaFox
Adventure Gamer
Adventure Gamer
Posts: 2818
Joined: Wed Oct 17, 2001 7:44 pm
Has thanked: 0
Been thanked: 12 times
Contact:

Post by MetaFox »

D-Roc wrote:I think thats a bit of a stretch. IMHO it's the best emulator on the DREAMCAST. While the interface is one of the best I've seen anywhere, I don't think the in-game emulation even comes close to playing NES on XBOX.
Can I ask you why you say this? NesterDC SE has a higher compatibility than any other Nester based NES emulator, even higher than the Nester based emulators on the PC and Xbox. It also plays 99% of all NES games at full speed without frameskip.
User avatar
Lunchbox
1337 Food Container
1337 Food Container
Posts: 4171
Joined: Sat Aug 16, 2003 12:30 pm
Location: Right where I can see ya ;)
Has thanked: 0
Been thanked: 0
Contact:

Re: Some *bad* things about NesterDC SE that should be addre

Post by Lunchbox »

nakamichi wrote:
5. The "image cannot be created" error should be fixed as soon as possible.It prevents ALL users on WinXP SP2 to create the image...and you know that the majority of PCs are on SP2...
I'm using SP2 and i had no problems
Image
User avatar
MetaFox
Adventure Gamer
Adventure Gamer
Posts: 2818
Joined: Wed Oct 17, 2001 7:44 pm
Has thanked: 0
Been thanked: 12 times
Contact:

Re: Some *bad* things about NesterDC SE that should be addre

Post by MetaFox »

Lunchbox wrote:I'm using SP2 and i had no problems
ditto. The "ALL" comment is highly overstated.
User avatar
Juan
DCEmu Commie
DCEmu Commie
Posts: 3398
Joined: Sun Jun 15, 2003 11:47 pm
Location: Montevideo
Has thanked: 39 times
Been thanked: 3 times

Post by Juan »

I don't like the fact that you need the CD builder to download the goodies. It's buggy and I don't need it to build the image; sure it's a good idea, but it'd be better if it was optional.
User avatar
GustavoSM
DCEmu Freak
DCEmu Freak
Posts: 63
Joined: Wed Aug 11, 2004 5:50 pm
Location: Pernambuco, Brasil
Has thanked: 0
Been thanked: 0

Post by GustavoSM »

My main problem with NesterDC SE right now is getting past Elec Man.
BlackAura
DC Developer
DC Developer
Posts: 9951
Joined: Sun Dec 30, 2001 9:02 am
Has thanked: 0
Been thanked: 1 time

Re: Some *bad* things about NesterDC SE that should be addre

Post by BlackAura »

nakamichi wrote:5. The "image cannot be created" error should be fixed as soon as possible.It prevents ALL users on WinXP SP2 to create the image...and you know that the majority of PCs are on SP2...
No it doesn't. There are two problems with bin2boot that crop up of WinXP machines. One is easy to reproduce and easily solvable (replace some corrupted or missing files in the Windows\System32 directory), and the other (where bin2boot simply quits) is impossible to reproduce, and thus impossible to fix. Both seem independent of service packs, although the first seems to be fairly common on XP SP2, and the second seems to be more common on XP SP1. Either problem effects ANY selfboot program that uses bin2boot, and neither are problems with the builder application itself.
D-Roc wrote:"...how much better NesterDC SE is from ANY other existing console-on-console emulator so far (even on the XBOX) "
- I think thats a bit of a stretch. IMHO it's the best emulator on the DREAMCAST. While the interface is one of the best I've seen anywhere, I don't think the in-game emulation even comes close to playing NES on XBOX.
So, meerly emulating 99% of all NES games ever produced perfectly isn't good enough for you?
User avatar
Quzar
Dream Coder
Dream Coder
Posts: 7497
Joined: Wed Jul 31, 2002 12:14 am
Location: Miami, FL
Has thanked: 4 times
Been thanked: 9 times
Contact:

Re: Some *bad* things about NesterDC SE that should be addre

Post by Quzar »

BlackAura wrote:So, meerly emulating 99% of all NES games ever produced perfectly isn't good enough for you?
As well as 99% of those never produced. Some people think that beggers can be choosers.
"When you post fewer lines of text than your signature, consider not posting at all." - A Wise Man
nsps
DCEmu Fast Newbie
DCEmu Fast Newbie
Posts: 24
Joined: Mon Apr 25, 2005 1:52 am
Has thanked: 0
Been thanked: 0
Contact:

Post by nsps »

I agree that the emu is awesome, but I have a question that may or may not be a problem with the emu, and I might as well bring attention to it while this thread is around.

Has anyone tested four-player support? It seems to work fine in games like M.U.L.E. but Superspike Volleyball and Harlem Globetrotters seem to lock controls 1 and 3 and 2 and 4. Are these bad roms?
Yes I would hit that
DCEmu Newbie
DCEmu Newbie
Posts: 3
Joined: Sat Dec 17, 2005 9:51 am
Has thanked: 0
Been thanked: 0

Post by Yes I would hit that »

I'll just throw this out there, not that it's killing me or anything. In the game genie menu, if you want to read a code with a name longer than box where they are provided you have to let it scroll and the scrolling is very slow. There's even a few codes where the name gets cut off as it starts scrolling back before I get the full description of what it the code does.

Also, even though it was already explained, I'm running on SP2 and burned it just fine.
I don't know if I'll ever get a lippy the lion and hardy har har sig.
law56ker
DCEmu Cool Poster
DCEmu Cool Poster
Posts: 1034
Joined: Wed Oct 17, 2001 7:44 pm
Has thanked: 0
Been thanked: 1 time

Post by law56ker »

There is nothing "bad" with this emulator imo just things that can be tweaked.
For games that don't have box-art or a game cartridge I think it would be good to use just a generic blank nes case and maybe a black rectangle the size of the box in place of the missing box etc. Also I'd like to see the ability to auto playing a seletc or random nsf on startup that would be cool. Then of course the abilty to have translated or hacked roms on the disc. It would be cool if those hacks and translations could also have the boxart of the game if they are a modified version of an existing rom.
User avatar
Salamander2
Insane DCEmu
Insane DCEmu
Posts: 150
Joined: Mon Apr 05, 2004 8:38 pm
Location: Rio Grande,RS - Brazil
Has thanked: 0
Been thanked: 0

Post by Salamander2 »

i will add my suggestion to this topic:

when we will play nesterdc against other players across the internet?
i have 56k and desire to play it like the kaillera servers.
could it be done?

I REALLY WANT IT, AND I THINK IT COULD BE GREAT FOR OTHER PLAYERS TOO!

and finally, this may be an UNIQUE feature too, eh?
"...they are carrying the last hope: to save planet Gradius...on their wings..."
GRADIUS TRIBUTE for Dreamcast!
DCmad
Psychotic DCEmu
Psychotic DCEmu
Posts: 724
Joined: Sat Mar 02, 2002 3:22 pm
Location: Salvador - Bahia - Brasil
Has thanked: 0
Been thanked: 0

Post by DCmad »

Salamander2 wrote:i will add my suggestion to this topic:

when we will play nesterdc against other players across the internet?
i have 56k and desire to play it like the kaillera servers.
could it be done?

I REALLY WANT IT, AND I THINK IT COULD BE GREAT FOR OTHER PLAYERS TOO!

and finally, this may be an UNIQUE feature too, eh?
A little Altered Beast-esque quote:
Return to your grave!
Please, don't start the random feature requests list.

There's not a 56k modem homebrew driver for DC yet.
No driver = no online play = no dumb request.
Image
User avatar
lackofsense
Psychotic DCEmu
Psychotic DCEmu
Posts: 545
Joined: Sat Nov 20, 2004 9:50 pm
Location: dobson just north of your carolines and your other sisters
Has thanked: 0
Been thanked: 0
Contact:

Post by lackofsense »

if i have one complaint, It's that their is no way to configure the audio in game. Unless, this is done in the nsf player which seems a little odd to me.
sense-lacking is a tough job but somebody's got to do it
Post Reply