Dream Explorer (VMU Tool) v0.8.5 released !

SiZiOUS · Post by **SiZiOUS** » Fri Jun 30, 2006 4:17 pm

VMU Tool - Dream Explorer 0.8.5 has just been released!

VMU Tool - Dream Explorer is an application for the Dreamcast that allows you to explore the content of your VMU, PC, and CD/GD, and open their files in the numerous bundled tools.
Read the full description on this page.

New version fixes many bugs, improves menus graphics and implements new features.
The list of changes from version 0.8.0 can be found on this page.

The CD image includes almost 6000 VMU saves, 400 Shenmue VMU Goodies, 130 VMU games, 350 VMU icons, 32 new wallpapers and 9 new musics.

Download VMU Tool - Dream Explorer 0.8.5 in the format of your choice on the downloads page.

Source : DC-France
Original source : Blue Swirl

emptythought · Post by **emptythought** » Fri Jun 30, 2006 5:50 pm

Does the CD image work? The files on the CD seem to be corrupted somehow.

emptythought · Post by **emptythought** » Fri Jun 30, 2006 9:22 pm

I didn't test the image on a Dreamcast since I don't own one right now but I got this reply from speud about the CD image.

speud wrote:As mentionned on the downloads page the image works and can't be mounted or explored.

speud wrote:That's just because the image uses a special format, files are readed correctly in Dream Explorer but not by PC explorers.

hrb2k3 · Post by **hrb2k3** » Sat Jul 01, 2006 12:24 pm

i tested it last night, and it looks amazing. one of the cool features is that you can edit the codes in your Gameshark CDX save. i'll mess with this a little more and try to find some bugs.

btw, i was able to mount this with some software and rip files from it. and it worked.

emptythought · Post by **emptythought** » Sat Jul 01, 2006 1:33 pm

I mounted it too, but all the files were bad (they wouldn't open right and were 4 KB).

hrb2k3 · Post by **hrb2k3** » Sat Jul 01, 2006 9:59 pm

not for me. i ripped the shenmue wallpaper, opened it in XnView fine.

emptythought · Post by **emptythought** » Sat Jul 01, 2006 11:02 pm

What did you use to mount\rip it?

hrb2k3 · Post by **hrb2k3** » Sun Jul 02, 2006 11:12 am

i can't tell you. my vmu saves are on the cd, too. so i guess its a bad idea for me to tell you.

emptythought · Post by **emptythought** » Sun Jul 02, 2006 1:05 pm

I didn't realize speud purposly made that image like that. Anyway thanks, I guess.

SiZiOUS · Post by **SiZiOUS** » Sun Jul 02, 2006 3:03 pm

hrb2k3 wrote:i can't tell you. my vmu saves are on the cd, too. so i guess its a bad idea for me to tell you.

Yes i believe it's a copy protection, and i think you shouldn't write the method you used in public, for respecting speud.

Tonfa · Post by **Tonfa** » Tue Aug 01, 2006 12:55 pm

I have my own odd question for this tool. It's concerning a hex edit, and I hope this falls within rules. If not, I apologize profusely.

I select a saved game file for something on the sms emu. I want to edit it for more money. Now, I've found a so called guide to the game in question, I look up the supposed section dealing w/ money.

I edit it, load my saved game in the emu, nothing. No change that I can even see. I'm not sure what I've done wrong, or how to find the money value.

I have 546 credits in the game. I'd not really be worried about even hexing it, but as I was on my fifth hour of playing the rpg last night, the power went out at my Ma's where I was housesitting. Obviously, I don't feel like redoing all that.

Anyways, the supposed value I need to look for is Meseta = 0547, 0548. It tells me to turn that to FF (255). Doing that to both, did nothing. In short, can anyone explain what I'm doing wrong? I have noticed this hex editor doesn't seem to do letters, just numbers. At least, if it does letters, the readme doesn't show it as such.

Any help at all would be appreciated.

Tonfa · Post by **Tonfa** » Wed Aug 02, 2006 9:26 pm

1504 through 1508 are the correct address, according to most hex editors. This hits the money range. As you know, the hex editor included in this doesn't list anything up that high in my saved game. It maxes out at 0x005FF.

So, if I knew what 1504-1508 translated to in this hexeditor, I'd be all set. Anyone?

emptythought · Post by **emptythought** » Wed Aug 02, 2006 9:54 pm

A little tip speud taught me was to use Calculator if you need to deal with hex/binary/decimal conversion. The address you need to look for is 0x005E0 through 0x005E4.

Tonfa · Post by **Tonfa** » Wed Aug 02, 2006 11:18 pm

Thank you for the advice. I altered 0x005E0 through 0x00534 and changed them to FF. Still no luck, however.

emptythought · Post by **emptythought** » Wed Aug 02, 2006 11:30 pm

Anyways, the supposed value I need to look for is Meseta = 0547, 0548. It tells me to turn that to FF (255). Doing that to both, did nothing. In short, can anyone explain what I'm doing wrong? I have noticed this hex editor doesn't seem to do letters, just numbers. At least, if it does letters, the readme doesn't show it as such.

Assuming 0547 and 0548 are hex values [it should be bytes 1351 through 1352].

1504 through 1508 are the correct address, according to most hex editors. This hits the money range. As you know, the hex editor included in this doesn't list anything up that high in my saved game. It maxes out at 0x005FF.

Where are you getting 1504 through 1508 from?

Thank you for the advice. I altered 0x005E0 through 0x00534 and changed them to FF. Still no luck, however.

Try changing the values for 0x00547 and 0x00548 to FF.

Tonfa · Post by **Tonfa** » Thu Aug 03, 2006 12:29 am

fackue wrote:
Anyways, the supposed value I need to look for is Meseta = 0547, 0548. It tells me to turn that to FF (255). Doing that to both, did nothing. In short, can anyone explain what I'm doing wrong? I have noticed this hex editor doesn't seem to do letters, just numbers. At least, if it does letters, the readme doesn't show it as such.
Assuming 0547 and 0548 are hex values [it should be bytes 1351 through 1352].

1504 through 1508 are the correct address, according to most hex editors. This hits the money range. As you know, the hex editor included in this doesn't list anything up that high in my saved game. It maxes out at 0x005FF.
Where are you getting 1504 through 1508 from?

Thank you for the advice. I altered 0x005E0 through 0x00534 and changed them to FF. Still no luck, however.
Try changing the values for 0x00547 and 0x00548 to FF.

The hex value thing on 547-548, I'm pretty sure that's about it.

The other thing, 1504 through 1508, I got from an sms emu forum where someone claimed that's the addy range he hexed to give him full money in game.

I tried 0x00547, as per my original post. It, nor 0548 worked. I'm at a loss.

emptythought · Post by **emptythought** » Thu Aug 03, 2006 12:45 am

I'm not sure then.

emptythought · Post by **emptythought** » Fri Aug 04, 2006 3:49 am

I got an email from speud saying the save from SMSPlusDC is most likely different from the one you're comparing it to. You might like to know that the actual game save data starts after the VMS header 0x00280 (byte 640). The save is most likely compressed too, but I don't know how you'd go about working with that...

If you wanna read more on how to use the hex editor within Dream Explorer, check this out.

speud also mentioned that if you're still running into problems you can contact him by email. His email address is in the readme for Dream Explorer.

Tonfa · Post by **Tonfa** » Sat Aug 05, 2006 7:21 pm

fackue wrote:I got an email from speud saying the save from SMSPlusDC is most likely different from the one you're comparing it to. You might like to know that the actual game save data starts after the VMS header 0x00280 (byte 640). The save is most likely compressed too, but I don't know how you'd go about working with that...

If you wanna read more on how to use the hex editor within Dream Explorer, check this out.

speud also mentioned that if you're still running into problems you can contact him by email. His email address is in the readme for Dream Explorer.

Thank you heaps for this information, and thank you Speud as well. I'll email him sometime tonight, I'd love to get all this figured out. I had a silly notion that if I get this to work, maybe I can see about starting a list of hex edits for same games for emu's someplace. If that breaks rules then I'll forget it. I just figure, if I learn something, might as well share it with everyone and contribute something.

bucanero · Post by **bucanero** » Sun Aug 13, 2006 6:37 pm

fackue wrote:I didn't realize speud purposly made that image like that. Anyway thanks, I guess.

IMHO this whole "copy-protection" stuff its just plain bad for the DC community... not cool at all.
I could understand it if it was a commercial software (like bleemcast discs), but if its freeware, then it does not have much sense at all.

and btw, its really easy to get the files from the image, using just a couple of widely available disc image tools.

and it would be nice if speud shared the source codes too... so anyone can continue his work if he can't keep working on it in a future.

c ya