ZX ULAX emulator
- Lethargeek
- Manic Miner
- Posts: 743
- Joined: Wed Dec 11, 2019 6:47 am
Re: ZX ULAX emulator
Btw i just googled the Vega+ to refresh my memory and almost immediately stumbled upon a very familiar name from these recent events. And next to the words "lies", "paid" and "scam", no less. So it seems i shouldn't have been surprised by the actions and personal qualities of the current WoS staff. Maybe now being a lying crook is even a requirement to be in.
Re: unusual announcement
lolLethargeek wrote: ↑Sat Jan 04, 2020 10:32 pm My emulator thread was just closed on the WoS forum after some dirty liar named rich_chandler came there to flood it with off-topic messages and spreading lies about me personally and (after being asked politely to bring any proof of STFU and still continuing it, later with the support of other trolls) his sweet buddy Lee_Fogarty was quick to take his side without even looking into the case (or maybe it was all staged from the start?)
Anyway, why i am writing this here? No, i'm not complaining, i'm wondering if this makes my emulator the first ZX emulator ever banned on ZX Spectrum site? Does anybody know other examples?
In any case, be quick to grab the last version! This might be a rare chance for you to own a "forbidden ZX emulator"
So far, so meh
- Lethargeek
- Manic Miner
- Posts: 743
- Joined: Wed Dec 11, 2019 6:47 am
Re: unusual announcement
Yes, but somehow at the same time not so funny when recalling the aforementioned dirty little liar was also an emulator threads maintainer. Oh, is he now the first ever emulator threads maintainer directly responsible for intentionally killing an emulator thread on his forum?
With staff like these doing such an excellent work, it's no big wonder once a great forum became a sad and dying place with most activity happening in the chit-chat section and so many productive people left elsewhere.
Also "several complaints" as a reason for the "last warning" is especially precious coming out from someone named Lee Fogarty
Re: unusual announcement
Ohh, I dunno, I am quite productive, and the guys in the zxasm slack group are tooLethargeek wrote: ↑Mon Jan 06, 2020 6:01 pmYes, but somehow at the same time not so funny when recalling the aforementioned dirty little liar was also an emulator threads maintainer. Oh, is he now the first ever emulator threads maintainer directly responsible for intentionally killing an emulator thread on his forum?
With staff like these doing such an excellent work, it's no big wonder once a great forum became a sad and dying place with most activity happening in the chit-chat section and so many productive people left elsewhere.
Also "several complaints" as a reason for the "last warning" is especially precious coming out from someone named Lee Fogarty
With the expertise of the emulator authors in the group, I am working on a Windows version of SpectREM by Mike Daley
Great people, fun banter, and plenty of silly stuff
https://join.slack.com/t/zxasm/shared_i ... DI2MGRjYzE
So far, so meh
- Lethargeek
- Manic Miner
- Posts: 743
- Joined: Wed Dec 11, 2019 6:47 am
Re: unusual announcement
Eh? are you on about post counts on here? If so, then that means that I do nothing through all of my life... In that case, all the apps I write for work, in fact my work in general was all a dream...Lethargeek wrote: ↑Mon Jan 06, 2020 6:14 pmthe numbers (post counters per section and average users online) speak for themselves
My life with my gf, kids, cars, military, troubles, highs were/are all a simulation..
Thank you for notifying me of my mistake, so that my understanding is improved..
If I am wrong in my thinking then please correct me...
So far, so meh
- Ast A. Moore
- Rick Dangerous
- Posts: 2641
- Joined: Mon Nov 13, 2017 3:16 pm
Re: unusual announcement
Oh, did he update it beyond v0.9? Cause that’s the latest version I have.
Every man should plant a tree, build a house, and write a ZX Spectrum game.
Author of A Yankee in Iraq, a 50 fps shoot-’em-up—the first game to utilize the floating bus on the +2A/+3,
and zasm Z80 Assembler syntax highlighter.
Author of A Yankee in Iraq, a 50 fps shoot-’em-up—the first game to utilize the floating bus on the +2A/+3,
and zasm Z80 Assembler syntax highlighter.
Re: unusual announcement
It is working.. Nuff saidAst A. Moore wrote: ↑Mon Jan 06, 2020 7:07 pmOh, did he update it beyond v0.9? Cause that’s the latest version I have.
So far, so meh
- Lethargeek
- Manic Miner
- Posts: 743
- Joined: Wed Dec 11, 2019 6:47 am
Re: unusual announcement
i'm on about more directly-spectrum-related activity here, counts are just indicators being spot on
many times i was annoyed in that other place clicking "discussions" and getting a list populated with too many "chit-chat" messages
Re: unusual announcement
In that case, we have 3 emulator authors in that chat,,,,Lethargeek wrote: ↑Mon Jan 06, 2020 7:37 pmi'm on about more directly-spectrum-related activity here, counts are just indicators being spot on
many times i was annoyed in that other place clicking "discussions" and getting a list populated with too many "chit-chat" messages
So far, so meh
- Lethargeek
- Manic Miner
- Posts: 743
- Joined: Wed Dec 11, 2019 6:47 am
Re: ZX ULAX emulator
maybe i will check it later, i don't usually join when i can't see at least some of the content before
Re: ZX ULAX emulator
Many of us remember well and haven't forgotten the history of censorship and bans of Fogarty's company on wos.Lethargeek wrote: ↑Sun Jan 05, 2020 2:23 pm Btw i just googled the Vega+ to refresh my memory and almost immediately stumbled upon a very familiar name from these recent events. And next to the words "lies", "paid" and "scam", no less. So it seems i shouldn't have been surprised by the actions and personal qualities of the current WoS staff. Maybe now being a lying crook is even a requirement to be in.
Probably you didn't know it and that was why you were an easy target, but some of us who have spent more than a decade there, know their methods very well.
You reacted impulsively to their provocations, but you were absolutely right, because you noticed what kind of liars and manipulators you were dealing with and you told them straight in the face.
So, relax...and don't pay attention to some wos trolls, this is Spectrum Computing forum.
Their mockery, lol and facepalm performance, simply doesn't bring much success here.
- Lethargeek
- Manic Miner
- Posts: 743
- Joined: Wed Dec 11, 2019 6:47 am
Re: ZX ULAX emulator
One of the oldest ones... it was just a test of full color-per-pixel repaint of something. The background in Destiny Mission was chosen to get most effect for the least amount of work. Usually i prefer to change sprite colors.
Maybe i will do Arkanoid someday. And you people may name other titles you'd like to see improved.
Not even the russian documentation is properly finished, some changes happen time to time and it needs more tutorials. Starting the translation now means more work in the end, and it's hard enough for me to write so much in english already.
Maybe i will do Arkanoid someday. And you people may name other titles you'd like to see improved.
Not even the russian documentation is properly finished, some changes happen time to time and it needs more tutorials. Starting the translation now means more work in the end, and it's hard enough for me to write so much in english already.
Re: ZX ULAX emulator
This is a hoax. Everyone knows that Destiny Mission doesn't have any sprites.
Re: ZX ULAX emulator
Those are the ones that really poke my interest, no extra colors but just the lack of colour clash, but I like the other ones also, they are not overdone as most of the Spec256 ones.Lethargeek wrote: ↑Wed Jan 15, 2020 8:39 pm One of the oldest ones... it was just a test of full color-per-pixel repaint of something. The background in Destiny Mission was chosen to get most effect for the least amount of work. Usually i prefer to change sprite colors.
Oh, and how you colorized vector games like Total Eclipse and Academy? Are those using the new video mode you mentioned?
Haha ok, no pressure then, but I showed your work on a small Spectrum group and some artists are intriguedLethargeek wrote: ↑Wed Jan 15, 2020 8:39 pm Not even the russian documentation is properly finished, some changes happen time to time and it needs more tutorials. Starting the translation now means more work in the end, and it's hard enough for me to write so much in english already.
- Lethargeek
- Manic Miner
- Posts: 743
- Joined: Wed Dec 11, 2019 6:47 am
Re: ZX ULAX emulator
that's mainly because i'm too lazy to make a full repaint
(and an extra reason i dislike xored sprites, as these need it)
no, ZX textures are very similar to sprites - read screen, read texture byte, mask it at the polygon edge, write screen
so recolorable the same way, replacing the corresponding pixels in ULAX memory with solid color or simpler pattern
hardest part is to preserve attribute effects, reloading the (limited) dynamic palette at the right moment
in Academy (as it is a multiload) the palette had to be constructed from any attribute with some tricks
also i recommend playing the freescape games with adapturbo (LAlt+F1 toggle, LAlt+F2/F3 & RAlt+F11/F12 tweak, see emuL-info.txt)
Re: ZX ULAX emulator
I would really like to see Sabre Wulf, Atic Atac and Heartland with colorful main sprites and without color clash.
Just a few questions ...
How difficult is the recoloring process?
I remember the ULA + recoloring was relatively easy and really fun.
Are there any tools, that make this process easier?
Just a few questions ...
How difficult is the recoloring process?
I remember the ULA + recoloring was relatively easy and really fun.
Are there any tools, that make this process easier?
- Lethargeek
- Manic Miner
- Posts: 743
- Joined: Wed Dec 11, 2019 6:47 am
Re: ZX ULAX emulator
it depends on how well you understand disassembled z80 code and how complicated this code is
easiest ones (like Phantis 2 - 1st tutorial is about it) took less than one hour, hardest ones needed several evenings
and then most of the time went into the actual repaint, finding all the graphics to repaint, and checking after
besides primitive homemade tools to match the colors and to repaint sprites when i have to, i use mostly:
this very emulator for finding the gfx routines and figuring out what these are doing exactly (see pics in the tutorial)
ZXSpin to get nicely formatted disassembly of the aforementioned routines
Xpeccy for finding gfx data and sometimes tracing the code
...and i hope we will have this in working condition before long - viewtopic.php?f=9&t=2155
Re: ZX ULAX emulator
Hah! Well, call me oldschool because I like that kind of minimalist work. Another one: Chuckie EggLethargeek wrote: ↑Thu Jan 16, 2020 2:30 pm that's mainly because i'm too lazy to make a full repaint
Oh I did that! In fact, my first gameplay was Red Shift on turbo mode and it is a blast.Lethargeek wrote: ↑Thu Jan 16, 2020 2:30 pm also i recommend playing the freescape games with adapturbo (LAlt+F1 toggle, LAlt+F2/F3 & RAlt+F11/F12 tweak, see emuL-info.txt)
Re: ZX ULAX emulator
Definitely, that unpretentious style is great.
For example, Crystal Kingdom Dizzy looks awesome.
At first glance, it looks like nothing has changed and then you realize how bright and polished the game looks with those carefully done enhancements.
Total Eclipse is another such example and it's a real pleasure to play it.
On the other side, I also liked Commando 128 the most, graphically it's a whole different game now.
I haven't tried all the examples yet, but overall this engine are very promising.
I like these recolored games more than the ones in EmuZWin, because the original Spectrum feeling was kept here, much better.
Well done.
For example, Crystal Kingdom Dizzy looks awesome.
At first glance, it looks like nothing has changed and then you realize how bright and polished the game looks with those carefully done enhancements.
Total Eclipse is another such example and it's a real pleasure to play it.
On the other side, I also liked Commando 128 the most, graphically it's a whole different game now.
I haven't tried all the examples yet, but overall this engine are very promising.
I like these recolored games more than the ones in EmuZWin, because the original Spectrum feeling was kept here, much better.
Well done.
- Lethargeek
- Manic Miner
- Posts: 743
- Joined: Wed Dec 11, 2019 6:47 am
Re: ZX ULAX emulator
oww, commando was a real pita: spaghetti code, different sprite formats, interrupt corrupting sprite data, almost every object has its own output procedure... but i think the end result was worth the effort (even managed to reduce the amount of flicker)
Re: ZX ULAX emulator
I'm assuming this emulator currently only exists in the windows version.
Is there a plan for a Linux port?
It would be really nice to play these recoloring games on Raspberry pi for example.
Also this example with enhanced Spectrum BASIC is great:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kiRqRV5Cffc
I didn't notice it bundled with games pack, can it be downloaded as well?
Also, Is it possible to do custom Spectrum Rom, with this engine installed (more color, no color clash etc) or any Basic program must be recolored individually, like every other game?
Is there a plan for a Linux port?
It would be really nice to play these recoloring games on Raspberry pi for example.
Also this example with enhanced Spectrum BASIC is great:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kiRqRV5Cffc
I didn't notice it bundled with games pack, can it be downloaded as well?
Also, Is it possible to do custom Spectrum Rom, with this engine installed (more color, no color clash etc) or any Basic program must be recolored individually, like every other game?
- Lethargeek
- Manic Miner
- Posts: 743
- Joined: Wed Dec 11, 2019 6:47 am
Re: ZX ULAX emulator
not in the near future (at least not by me, maybe some linux emulator author will be interested)
it is inside "ULAX-emuL\test\" folder named "webas3"Pegaz wrote: ↑Sat Jan 18, 2020 10:52 am Also this example with enhanced Spectrum BASIC is great:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kiRqRV5Cffc
I didn't notice it bundled with games pack, can it be downloaded as well?
it would be simpler to make one proper dux for the usual ROM and then edit any BASIC programs wherever you need it
custom ROM is possible, but it would add just some syntactic sugar ("extended" BASIC operators instead of pokes used in this example)
- Lethargeek
- Manic Miner
- Posts: 743
- Joined: Wed Dec 11, 2019 6:47 am
Re: ZX ULAX emulator
you can check the preliminary version of Heartland now
(clash between fore/back objects is still there, but not with sprites)
same folder https://cloud.mail.ru/public/3Rzu/33GtNmUof