Third-party Apps and Plugins
218 files
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SteamLauncher
By Lahma
SteamLauncher
A LaunchBox plugin designed to allow roms/emulators to easily be launched with Steam, directly from the LaunchBox/BigBox interface, without any complicated setup or technical know-how. Simply enable SteamLauncher and all LaunchBox/BigBox game/rom launches will be intercepted and launched via Steam. This will provide access to the Steam overlay, custom controller configurations, and will display the game/rom your are currently playing to any of your Steam friends.
Features
Here are a few of the features provided by SteamLauncher:
Allow LaunchBox to do what its good at - be the sole organizer and maintainer of your rom/game collection, without having to duplicate its functionality in Steam (something it was not designed for).
Keep the Steam library clean and uncluttered by hundreds of emulator/rom shortcuts.
Get all of the benefits of Steam's excellent overlay system while playing any rom or emulator.
Take advantage of Steam's infinitely customizable controller configuration (bindings) for both the Steam Controller and nearly all other DirectInput/XInput controllers.
Use per-rom/per-emulator/per-game controller configurations that are automatically remembered between gaming sessions (without having to create convoluted Steam shortcuts for every rom).
Bypass or improve upon many emulators' extremely limited controller bindings and hotkey options.
Share the game/rom currently being played with Steam friends (ex: JohnDoe is currently playing 'Super Metroid (SNES)').
Requirements
.NET Core 3.1 Steam for Windows LaunchBox/BigBox Getting Started
Installation
Download the latest plugin release from the LaunchBox forum plugin download page. This GitHub repository is meant as more of a resource for developers. While test builds and other pre-release packages may occassionally be posted on GitHub, the latest public release builds will always be posted on the LaunchBox forum plugin download page first:
LaunchBox Plugin Download: https://forums.launchbox-app.com/files/file/972-steamlauncher/
Extract the 'SteamLauncher' directory from the compressed package into your LaunchBox plugins directory.
Example: If LaunchBox is located at 'C:\LaunchBox', you would copy the 'SteamLauncher' directory to 'C:\LaunchBox\Plugins'. This would result in 'SteamLauncher.dll' and any additional files being inside the directory 'C:\LaunchBox\Plugins\SteamLauncher'.
How to Use
Note: Obviously, Steam must be running to launch games via Steam so one can either manually start Steam before opening LaunchBox/BigBox or SteamLauncher will automatically launch Steam when needed.
To launch a game/rom/emulator in LaunchBox/BigBox via Steam:
Ensure SteamLauncher is enabled by using 1 of the 2 following methods:
Selecting the 'Tools' menu item and clicking 'Use SteamLauncher'. When SteamLauncher is enabled the menu item will be labeled '(ON)'. This menu item can also be found in BigBox.
Selecting the 'Tools' menu item and clicking 'SteamLauncher Settings', resulting in the SteamLauncher settings dialog being displayed. By then checking the checkbox labeled 'Enable SteamLauncher' and clicking the 'Save' button, SteamLauncher will be enabled. The SteamLauncher settings dialog cannot be accessed in BigBox.
Once SteamLauncher is enabled, all games/roms/emulators will be intercepted by SteamLauncher and launched through Steam. Customize Platform Names
When games/roms are launched with SteamLauncher enabled, the title and platform of the game/rom will be displayed in one's Steam status in the format of: 'Game Title (Platform Name)'.
Example: Super Mario Bros. (Nintendo Entertainment System)
Friends on Steam will see this title in one's status whenever a particular game/rom is being played. If desired, the platform name displayed can be customized. For example, the platform 'Nintendo Entertainment System' can be changed to 'NES'. This customization can be performed by navigating to the 'Platform Names' tab in the SteamLauncher settings dialog.
Note: To entirely omit a platform name from one's Steam status, leave the 'Custom Platform Name' entry blank (as seen in the 'Windows' entry in the screenshot below).
Selective Use
The 'Selective Use' feature allows one to precisely customize the circumstances under which SteamLauncher will be enabled/disabled. The settings for this feature can be found in the 'Selective Use' tab in the SteamLauncher settings dialog.
Filter Mode
'Filter Mode' defines how the entries in the 'Filter List' will be applied.
Blacklist: SteamLauncher will always be enabled except when a matching filter is found. Whitelist: SteamLauncher will always be disabled except when a matching filter is found. Off: Disable the 'Selective Use' feature entirely. Filters List
The 'Filters List' is a list of user defined filters that control when SteamLauncher will be enabled/disabled.
Enable: This checkbox must be checked for a particular filter list entry to be enabled. If not checked, it will be completely ignored. Description: Used purely as a means of helping the user describe what the filter list entry does. It is entirely optional and has no impact on the actual functionality of the entry. Filter String: This is the string which is matched against the target 'Filter Type', dictating whether or not this entry matches a particular game title, platform name, etc. The filter string is not case sensitive and it supports 2 types of wildcards: '*' Wilcard: matches one or more of any character. '?' Wildcard: matches any single character. Filter Type: Dicates what field the 'Filter String' is compared against. The 'Filter Type' options are: Game Title: Title of the game or rom (ex: Celeste, Super Mario World, Donkey Kong Country, etc). Platform Name: Name of the platform (ex: Windows, Nintendo 64, Sony Playstation, etc). Emulator Title: Title of the emulator (ex: Retroarch, Dolphin, Cemu, etc). Exe Path: The path of the game or emulator EXE file (ex: 'C:\PC_Games\GOG\*', 'D:\*', '*\DOSBox\*', etc). Additional Application Name: Name of an 'Additional App' (a LaunchBox feature which allows you to specify additional commands to run for a game). Status: A field in LaunchBox's metadata for games (right click game, 'Edit' -> 'Edit Metadata') which specifies what platform/launcher/store a game was imported from (ex: '*Xbox*', '*Microsoft Store*', '*GOG*', etc). Ignore Custom Fields: Enabling this feature causes SteamLauncher to ignore all 'SLEnabled' custom field entries. What are 'SLEnabled' custom field entries? Right click on a game in LaunchBox, click 'Edit' -> 'Edit Metadata', and then select the 'Custom Fields' menu item. By adding a new entry named 'SLEnabled' and setting its value to '1' or '0', SteamLauncher can be made to always be enabled for this game (1) or always be disabled for this game (0). This custom field value will always take precedent over all other filtering features (filter strings, filter modes, etc). The only exception to this is when 'Ignore Custom Fields' is enabled (which will cause all 'SLEnabled' custom field entries to be ignored).
VTables 'Automatic Online Updates'
'Automatic Online Updates' of vtables definitions can be enabled/disabled in the 'Miscellaneous' tab of the SteamLauncher settings dialog. For SteamLauncher to properly work it has to access internal Steam features that are not meant to be accessed by developers outside of Valve. To access these undocumented, unexported functions, SteamLauncher uses a set of definitions which define what these functions are, their function signatures (their parameters, return values, and how to call them), and where to find them within the Steam client DLL. These definitions can change whenever Valve releases a new Steam update and if they change significantly, they can cause SteamLauncher to stop working correctly. In order for SteamLauncher to continue working properly, without the author manually patching the plugin and releasing a new SteamLauncher update every time this happens, an online database was created that can be updated when one of these changes happens, allowing SteamLauncher to continue functioning normally. If 'Automatic Online Updates' is enabled, SteamLauncher will automatically check for new updates every time LaunchBox/BigBox is launched. If new definitions are available, it will silently update and continue working normally. If automatic updates are not enabled, one can manually check for new updates by clicking the 'Force Update' button.
Support
If you have ANY problems with the plugin, I want to know about them. If you need help with any technical issue (see 'Logs'), want to suggest a new feature (I'm very open to any ideas), just want to chat, or anything else related to the plugin, visit the support thread at the link below. I am also available to chat on Steam for any urgent issues or if more direct help is needed.
Plugin Support Thread: https://forums.launchbox-app.com/topic/43142-steamlauncher/
Logs
To provide help with any technical problems or to investigate a bug, I will need a copy of the debug log that is generated whenever 'Log Level' is set to 'Verbose'. To enable and collect 'Verbose' debug logs, do the following:
Open the SteamLauncher settings dialog.
Click the dropdown box under 'Log Level' and select 'Verbose'.
Click the 'Save' button.
Restart LaunchBox/BigBox.
Now simply repeat whatever behavior was causing the issue and/or bug, and after you're sure you've replicated the behavior, close LaunchBox/BigBox.
Look inside of the SteamLauncher directory for a file named 'debug.log' (there may be more than one sequentially named log file if there was an enormous amount of output but this is unlikely if verbose logging was turned on just briefly).
Open this 'debug.log' file in a text editor, copy its entire contents, and paste/upload it to pastebin.com.
In the SteamLauncher support thread, provide the PasteBin URL, the details of the problem you encountered, and the particulars of your setup (Windows version, 32-bit or 64-bit, LaunchBox version, Steam version, SteamLauncher plugin version, etc). The more information the better.
Contact Information
Alias: Lahma
Email: lahma0@gmail.com
Steam Alias: lahma0
Friend me on Steam: You can click on my alias above or you can copy/paste the following URL into your address bar:
steam://friends/add/76561198237461630
GitHub Project URL: https://github.com/lahma0/SteamLauncher
LaunchBox Community Forums Profile: https://forums.launchbox-app.com/profile/89710-lahma/
Plugin Support Thread: https://forums.launchbox-app.com/topic/43142-steamlauncher/
Credits
ChippiHeppu: Logo
m4dengi: steamclient_tracker (unfortunately, no longer updated)
cammelspit: Help with developing the idea and direction for the project
Nielk1: Initial inspiration for the project and just a talented programmer to bounce ideas off of
Helpful members of the LaunchBox community: The_Keeper86, JedExodus, FromLostDays, HTPCei, Corgana, Benuno, Neil9000 (sorry for anyone I'm forgetting)
Known Issues
MAME Compatibility Fix
It has been observed that MAME crashes when launched through a non-Steam shortcut. This problem is not directly related to SteamLauncher, but since SteamLauncher relies on non-Steam shortcuts, launching MAME via SteamLauncher was no longer working. After a lot of investigation and tinkering by some dedicated users on the LaunchBox forums (cammelspit and JedExodus), a fix was eventually found for the issue. Whether launching MAME directly via a non-Steam shortcut or via SteamLauncher using LaunchBox/BigBox, the fix is simply to modify the launch parameters to include the following:
-joystickprovider xinput -keyboardprovider win32 If one of these parameters already exists when modifying MAME within LaunchBox, you will obviously need to replace it (don't just add a 2nd instance of '-joystickprovider' or '-keyboardprovider'). You can safely ignore any popups/warnings that LaunchBox displays about pause screen compatibility.
Legal Stuff
©2022 Valve Corporation. Steam and the Steam logo are trademarks and/or registered trademarks of Valve Corporation in the U.S. and/or other countries.
2,860 downloads
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Bulk Add/Remove Additional Applications
By JoeViking245
Thanks to the new (since v13.5) plugin feature that supports menu nesting, 2 plugins have been combined into 1.
(Bulk) Add Additional Applications - https://forums.launchbox-app.com/files/file/2866-bulk-add-additional-applications/
(Bulk) Remove Additional Applications - https://forums.launchbox-app.com/files/file/2980-bulk-remove-additional-applications/
These combined plugins have both been overhauled both functionally and visually to 'keep up with the times' and have a smaller footprint plus added features.
This plugin Requires LaunchBox v13.5 (or newer)
If you haven't updated to LaunchBox v13.5 (or newer), you really should. But until then, the original versions of the plugins (for now) still work. (see links above)
Installing:
After downloading the file, open the zip file and copy the contents into \LaunchBox\Plugins\
i.e. D:\LaunchBox\Plugins\BulkAddRemoveAdditionalApps\BulkAddRemoveAdditionalApps.dll
If you didn't use 7Zip to extract the contents,
Navigate to the plugin folder and right-click the file. Select 'Properties' Click "Unblock" and then click OK. If switching to this plugin from either of its predecessors, be sure to remove the older version(s) from your 'Plugins' folder.
Using:
Select one or more games Right-click on one of the selected games Select Bulk Add/Remove Additional Apps to expand 2 more options Select either: Bulk Add Additional Apps Bulk Remove Additional Apps
Bulk Add Additional Apps
The intent of this is to add the same Additional Application to more than one game, all in one shot.
It can also be used to add an Additional App to a single without having Edit the game.
What's new:
UI completely overhauled for that 'modern look' Removed restriction requiring multiple games be selected aka: You can now add an Additional App directly to a single game without having to Edit the game NEW Feature: Add %romfile% to the Command-Line Parameters to insert the "full\path\to\ROM\file.ext" (including quotes) when saved Option: Remove quotes Option: Remove file extension and folder path Tip: press Ctrl+R to insert %romfile% Bonus Feature: Add %title% to insert the games full Title Add %platform% to insert the games platform Name Tip: press Crtl+T or Ctrl+P to insert these (respectively) Hint: You may want to enclose these in quotes if they consist of more than 1 word %platform% = Atari 2600 "%platform%" = "Atari 2600" Huge Thanks to @Headrush69 for the idea of adding the %romfile% option!!! (%title% and %platform% was also his.)
Bulk Remove Additional Apps
The intent of this plugin is to Remove the same* Additional Application for all games in a given Platform, all at one time.
*Same is determined by the Additional Applications Application Name and Application Path. If they match exactly, they are the ‘same’.
Why use this?
Quite possibly you used Bulk Add Additional Apps and you clicked “OK” before realizing you forgot to add in the Command-Line Parameters, or the Additional App is simply not needed anymore.
Using:
When opening, the plugin will default to the selected games' Platform. You can select a different platform using the dropdown box.
By default, the plugin will 'combine' all Additional Apps that have the exact same Application Name AND Application Path, and only display one of those.
When you remove that "one", all occurrences (having the same Name and App Path) will be removed. Regardless of Command-Line parameters.
To separate these out by Command-Line parameters, check Split By Command-line.
Once you click Remove, there's no going back.
Some icons by Yusuke Kamiyamane
762 downloads
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MouseHideAndLock2
By Nixx
https://github.com/nixxou/MouseHideAndLock2
It's a rewritten version of my plugin MouseHideAndLock, while using the original one, i got some issues & crash that's why i did an other version.
Also, i'm not using startup screen and since disabling mouse requiere startup screen enabled, this plugin is useful for me.
So, in the configuration file, you got something like this :
You can select the configuration for each platform & emulator.
Hide Cursor : Will hide the cursor once the game is launched.
Show Cursor On Move : You need to also have Hide Cursor checked for this to work, with this option enabled, moving your mouse will show up the cursor, it's only hidden when it's not moving.
Lock Cursor : Will lock your cursor on your main monitor, if you press Shift while moving the cursor, you will be able to go to other screen.
60 downloads
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IsoEnablerForRPCS3
By Nixx
It's basic as it get, and there is probably ton of similar tools around but mine is really "fire & forget"
So, you extract the archive somewhere, you execute IsoEnablerForRPCS3.exe to register it and that's it.
There is no launcher, no menu, nothing, if you want to unregister, you click again on IsoEnablerForRPCS3.exe
To use it ? You just use rpcs3.exe as usual, except that now, if you use an iso as an argument, it will just work (mounting the iso thought powershell)
Works only with decrypted iso.
I make mine from jbfolder with makeps3iso. ( https://github.com/bucanero/ps3iso-utils/tree/master )
Also, not included in this release, but i package updates DLC and rap files inside a folder called UPDATES_AND_DLC that i put inside my iso file, dlc package have name that start with "DLC--".
I'm telling this because i plan to add an option to auto install updates & dlc in a future rlz.
Not compatible with BigBoxProfile because it use the same trick to hijack the process, (i will update BBProfile it to include that as a module)
84 downloads
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StreamIsoToPS3
By Nixx
I own a jailbreaked PS3, i mostly use rpcs3 from launchbox, but sometime, i want to launch a game on my real ps3.
With this tool, i can select the game from launchbox and make it run on my ps3.
You need WMan Mod, go to http://yourps3ip/setup.ps3/sman.ps3 and add your PC IP as PS3NETSRV#1
StreamIsoToPS3.exe <IsoFile> <PS3IP>
18 downloads
(0 reviews)0 comments
Submitted
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BigBoxProfile
By Nixx
BigBoxProfile is an app that allows you to alter how Launchbox/BigBox and each of the emulators works, adding a profile system and tons of features that allow you to alter/customize how emulators work.
What is BigBoxProfile ?
This app is made of two parts that work together but can be used independently.
1- There is a part that alters how Launchbox/BigBox works and add a new command line parameter “--profile=” that will trigger users' configured settings.
It allow you to bind a specific monitor, sound card for a profile or even use a specifics launchbox profile settings (for example make a bigbox profile that only show some of the platform/playlists)
2- The other part allow you to alter how emulators works, change the command line that they receive on the fly and do tons of stuff (change monitor settings, execute ahk code, use fallback path for rom, copy rom from distant path to local drive or ramdisk, extract archive, executes pre/post command lines, including command line as admin, force the game to be run as admin …)
How does it works ?
The app makes extensive use of a hidden feature of windows called the “Image File Execution” injection.
If you edit the registry at “HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Image File Execution Options\” you can register a key with the name of an executable to target and an app that will replace it.
So, in my case, it create this kind of keys :
That way, when you launch an executable called BigBox.exe, instead of launching it, it will call BigboxProfile.exe. My app will do actions and call bigbox (or launchbox) itself.
So, it’s like an exe wrapper, but from an user standpoint, it’s invisible.
As for emulator, it works the same, once a emulator exe is registered inside BigboxProfile the app will register a registry key to hijack it, do some user configured actions and then launch it.
I’ve written modules that you can chain and order the way you want.
Technically each module have 3 functions, ExecuteBefore, ExecuteAfter and AlterCommandLine
If you chain Module1, Module2, Module3, it will do something like that when you launch the emulator :
Execute ExecuteBefore for module 1, 2, 3.
Pass the command line to module1 and alter it with the AlterCommandLine, then pass it to module2, and then pass it to module3, launch the game with the altered command line.
On game close, execute ExecuteAfter on module 3, 2, 1.
There is a slight subtlety when using launchbox auto-generated m3u for multidisc, but i will get to that later.
I- Altering BigBox / Launchbox
Ok, so first you can create BigBoxProfile Profiles
Beware, here i’m talking about profile for BigBoxProfile (my app), it’s not related to Launchbox/BigBox settings (xml files inside the Launchbox/Data folder).
You can actually alter how and witch xml files launchbox will use with a specific BigboxUtils program, but i will get to that point later.
So BigBoxUtils is shipped with a “default” profile, you can add as many as you want. For example, you can add a profile called “tv” when you plan to use your BigBox on your TV
Once a profile is made, you can call launchbox/bigbox to use this profile when you add –profile=<profilename> to the command line. Like BigBox.exe –profile=tv
This use case is actually what made me code this app. I use bigbox on a computer that’s plugged to both my PC monitor in my room, and to my TV on the living room. I play mostly on my PC monitor, but i wanted to also be able to launch BigBox on my tv from a simple shortcut.
The basic options for a BigBox Profile are here :
Monitor Priority
Set the monitor on witch BigBox (and eventually Launchbox if click on the checkbox) will launch.
It change the monitor option in BigBoxSettings.xml before Bigbox start. (And for launchbox, it will try to move the window)
By default it use as default “main”, and myself, i only use that.
Main means “Main Display”, it’s a primary monitor, the one with that checkbox enabled :
So, with the option set a Main, you are sure that you will not encounter weird Bigbox bug when the monitor change, it will always use the primary one, and if you change the primary Bigbox will launch on it, that’s really handy.
But you can also specify an other display if you want.
I actually wanted to show the real monitor name alongside DISPLAYX, but i ran into technical limitations.
Use Monitor Disposition :
So, here is the game changer, here you can register and set monitor layout.
It actually use code from this excellent software : https://sourceforge.net/projects/monitorswitcher/
But it’s slightly altered to also manage DPI change/restoration.
So, if i go back to my exemple with my TV profile, i will register a monitor layout where my TV is set as main monitor and since my monitor priority is set as main, when i launch bigbox.exe –profile=tv, it set my TV as main display, launch bigbox on it, and once bigbox is close it will restore my usual monitor layout.
As a side note, on the last version of the app, in the bottom of the main form, i added a quick combo list : Quick Monitor Disposition Switch. You can use that to manually switch between saved monitor layouts.
Set Primary SoundCard :
It’s straightforward, once set, it will change the main playback device.
Like with my tv profile, i will force the sound to use the TV HDMI.
Use Specific Launchbox Data profile :
It’s an hidden and experimental feature, please backup your data LaunchBox\Data before !!!
So, with this features you can use a copy of some or all xml files of the Launchbox/Data folder for a BigBoxProfile.
Restriction : It use hardlinks, so that only works if Launchbox/BigBox is used on a NTFS drive, not gonna work if launchbox is used from a network drive.
Like, let says that for some reason, you want a custom InputBindings.xml for your tv profile.
You create a folder called “Profile_tv” and put a copy of InputBindings.xml inside and that’s it.
Now when you launch bigbox, if you use –profile=tv, it will replace the InputBindings.xml with that one.
Now, to go on a more practical use case, if you create a folder inside Profile_tv called Platforms and you put only a copy of Nintendo 64.xml from your original Platforms folder, if you launch with –profile=tv, you will see that’s now it only show the N64 platform.
Same goes with the Playlists folder.
As a side note, if your end goal is to do something like kid profile with a subset of platform and playlist, instead of copy the original files, you should hardlink them (mklink /H linkName target) so in the future, if you change something in the Plateform/Playlist, the change will apply to your kid profile too.
II - Emulator Hijacking
So, if you didn’t do it yet, to understand how it works, you should read the explanation at the start of my documents.
So, basically, you can add modules and order them, when you launch the app, it will do the action of all module, one by one, altering the command line if needed and pass it to the next module until it launch the emulator.
A simple (and totally useless) exemple :
With this configuration, i chain 4 modules, a Prefix, a Replace and two Suffix.
You can play with the Exemple Command IN Textbox to get an idea of how the command line would be impacted.
Once saved, if i use a cmd prompt and execute :
CalculatorApp.exe "C:\MyRomDir\MyRom.bin"
It will go to the first Prefix module and add a -f before, so the second module Replace will receive as input :
CalculatorApp.exe -f "C:\MyRomDir\MyRom.bin"
This module will replace .bin with .rom so the next module will receive :
CalculatorApp.exe -f "C:\MyRomDir\MyRom.rom"
It will add -extraarg so the last module receive :
CalculatorApp.exe -f "C:\MyRomDir\MyRom.bin" -extraarg.
And since the filter condition match and the command line contains -extraarg, it will add -otherarg.
So, bigboxProfile will execute :
CalculatorApp.exe -f C:\MyRomDir\MyRom.rom -extraarg -otherarg
If you want some more real exemple, that whati’m currently using for retroarch and tecknoparrot :
Quick Module list review :
Prefix : Add some argument before the rest of the command line
Suffix : The same, but after the rest of the command line
Replace : Replace something in the command line, support regex
ChangeExe : change the target Exe
FixRetroarchMonitor : Will force Retroarch to use main monitor
FixMameMonitor : Will force Mame to use the main monitor
UseFileContent : Let say you run emulator.exe “D:/ps3/metalgearsolid.txt” and inside this text file you have D:/ps3/metagear/eboot.bin, it will execute emulator.exe “D:/ps3/metagear/eboot.bin”
ChangeRomPath : You can do stuff like, if the file is not on your hard disk anymore, use another path (your NAS for exemple)
CopyFile : You can run something like emulator.exe “\\nas\mygame.bin” and it will copy the file locally before launching. Support Ramdisk and show a progress bar. Great for games stored on cloud like Google Drive.
ChangeDisposition : Use a specific monitor layout
FakeFullScreen : Turn a windowed windows into a fake full screen, removing borders and maximize.
RunAsAdminTask : Execute the emulator.exe as admin.
ExecutePrePostCmdAsAdmin : Execute extra command as admin before and after the emulator launch (like for example, start and stop DS4Windows)
ExecuteAHK : Make your own custom module in AHK
RomExtractor : Show a GUI to choose and extract a game inside an archive that contains multiple versions of the same rom.
About Launchbox Auto-Generated M3U :
There is a special case when BigBoxProfile receive a m3u generated by launchbox (like for Multi-Disc games)
In the command that will be received by nearly all modules, the m3u file will be replaced by the first file in the m3u. Module then will not be allowed to alter the file path in the command line (but they can still alter the rest of the command line, just not the file argument.
Why this design choice ? Because often, you will do stuff like filter on specific rom path, so that way, even when you use a launchbox auto-generated m3u, if you have a trigger on let say D:/roms/n64, that will still trigger it.
Also, there is two modules that will behave differently, CopyFile and ChangeRomPath.
They will run for each element in the m3u.
Modules Deep Dive :
Prefix :
Add some argument before the rest of the command line
You can use a filter to only do that if the cmd line contain something
Suffix : The same thing but as Suffix
Replace :
The thing to not here is that Replace support Regex, the format is similar than those used for Notepad++
ChangeExe :
Nothing to say here, it change the exe, i should add a filter condition when i have some free time
UseFileContents :
Let say you run emulator.exe “D:/ps3/metalgearsolid.txt” and inside this text file you have D:/ps3/metagear/eboot.bin, it will execute emulator.exe “D:/ps3/metagear/eboot.bin”
You can use relative path inside the file too, and use one of the two option in the radiobox
ChangeRomPath
Ok, so this one is a little more tricky. It will trigger when you launch a file as argument to your emulator that match path to replace.
You have two side : Hight Priority Path and Low Priority Path.
Hight Priority path is when you have an extra copy of your file on a quicker drive. Like you launch emulator.exe D:/rom/plateform/mygame.bin , D:/ is a slow hdd mecanical drive.
If you have set C:/rom/ as Hight priority path and C:/rom/plateform/mygame.bin exist, it will use this one instead and your final command line will be
emulator.exe C:/rom/plateform/mygame.bin
Low Priority Path is triggered when the file passed as argument does not exist
Like if i remove the file D:\rom\mygame.bin and i launch
emulator.exe D:/rom/plateform/mygame.bin
Since, the file does not exist, it will search in my low priority path if Z:\home\mehdi\coffre\sf_POOL_JEUX\Roms\mygame.bin exist, and if yes, it will launch
emulator.exe Z:\home\mehdi\coffre\sf_POOL_JEUX\Roms\mygame.bin
Side note : By default, launchbox does not allow you to launch games where the file is missing, you get :
To solve that issue, you can use this addon here :
https://forums.launchbox-app.com/topic/74181-bypass-rom-path-verification-before-launch/#comment-438354
CopyFile :
You can view a demo here where is use ChangeRomPath to point the file to my cloud drive if the file is missing, and then CopyFile to copy from Gdrive to my local storage before launching the game :
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KI64EIPFmxk
Note : It does support Ramdisk if you don’t want to keep the file and preserve your ssd.
For that you need to install this app : http://www.ltr-data.se/files/imdiskinst.exe
ChangeDisposition :
Use a specific monitor layout
Note : the button to create new screen disposition do not work, to create disposition, use the option on the main window config.
Btw, here you have an use case i do regularly, when i want to apply a filter for a bunch of games, instead to use a filter with the rom name inside, i use a new argument (here –2k) and then i add this extra argument in launchbox
This changeDisposition feature is really handy with tecknoparrot when you have game that can be very picky with monitor framerate and resolution.
FakeFullScreen
Turn a windowed windows into a fake full screen, removing borders and maximize.
It only support search by executable name, you can use emulator.exe, but you can also set one or search in the command line by regex. (i do that because i have a case of instead using the emulator.exe directly i use an application wrapper that do something like launcher.exe emulator.exe argos. )
Timeout is the time to wait for the application.
RunTaskAsAdmin :
I have a few games on tecknoparrot that actually requiere admins rights to be launch. And since launchbox/bigbox is launched without thoses rights, i have an issue and i don’t want to be bother by UAC prompt.
So, how does it works ? When the condition to launch as admin is fufill, it will register a shreduled task (only asking once with UAC).
In my exemple, instead of triggering by some element in the command line, i check into the file passed in the command line if it contain a specific string.
ExecutePrePostCmdAsAdmin
Execute extra command as admin before and after the emulator launch (like for example, start and stop DS4Windows)
ExecuteAHK
This one is tricky, it’s for power users. It allow you to make custom module in AHK.
Execute Before is the code that will execute before emulator launch,
Execute After will execute on emulator close.
And in Modify command line you can alter an array variable called Args
Modify Command Line Exemple only only apply to the exemple command line, so it’s used only for test.
With this module you can create stuff like append specific config if you are remote playing and do a lot of stuff.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NxezepuAkLI
RomExtractor
So, i’m using the Hackset with 8bits/16 bits era consoles. Instead of using roms, i have archives filled with alternative versions of the same game.
So, it’s vital for me to have a way to select and launch a game within the archive. As of today, i was using the awesome plugin ArchiveCacheManager ( https://github.com/fraganator/archive-cache-manager ) but i wanted something more suited for my own need, and be able to chain it at the end of my module list.
Also, since BigBoxUtils is a third party application and not a plugin, that allow me to use it outside launchbox/bigbox and do not fear that a future update would break the plugin.
So, if you used ArchiveCacheManager before, this module is straightforward. Some of the feature of ArchiveCacheManager are missing, it only manage archives (zip, rar, 7z), not iso, chd and don’t have a batch extract feature.
On the other side, it have a few features and supports the metadata files packed with the Hackset. (you should put them either in a metadata subfolder on the Bigbox profile install dir or on the parent directory of your rom files)
So, the config :
If you set a max size of the Cache Dir, oldest files inside will be removed if the total size go over the threshold.
You can set multiple priority profile
SmartExtract is similar than ArchiveCacheManager, if a file contains only files with extensions that match the standalone rom extensions and the metadata extensions, when you select a file to extract, it only extract this one. If SmartExtract is not enabled or the archive contains files with unknow extensions, it will extract the whole archive.
If ImDisk is installed, you can use ramdisk to receive the extracted rom file.
The priority list allow you to automatically select witch file should be extracted by default.
On execute, you will see a windows like that :
The file selected by default will be either the first one that match a priority rule or the last played files. It also feature a short list of games (Your favorites games, up to 5 games that match your priority rules and up to 5 last games played)
It does support gamepad, but only Xinput on controller 1.
If you press F1 and have metadata files, you will see something like that allow you to browse the whole archive and show the metadata files.
If you press F2, you will have a desktop version that go a little deeper.
Note : if you use the muppen core or Project64 V3, it will also manage htc/hts texture for N64.
Yellow star is the file that is the first to match one of your priority list.
Blue star are other files (up to 5) that match your priority list
Red star are files that you set as favorite
If the file name is written in dark red, it’s because you launched them recently.
Right click menu allow some extra stuff :
You can filter roms, set favorite, Copy/paste savestate across roms (only for retroarch) and extract them.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z3SGPnVr8SU
92 downloads
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(Bulk) Remove Additional Applications
By JoeViking245
(Bulk) Remove Additional Applications
(July 10, 2023)
This plugin is no longer supported. But [for now] still works.
Please see its successor: Bulk Add/Remove Additional Applications
The intent of this plugin is to Remove the same** Additional Application for all games in a given Platform, all at one time.
**Same is determined by the Additional Applications Application Name and Application Path. If they match exactly, they are the ‘same’.
Why use this? Quite possibly because you used the Bulk Add Additional Applications plugin and you clicked “OK” before realizing you forgot to add in the Command-Line Parameters or it's simply not needed anymore.
Setup:
Download and extract "BulkRemoveAdditionalApps.dll" from the zip file and place it in your Plugins subfolder of LaunchBox.
Right click the dll file, select Properties, and click "Unblock" (if it's there) and click OK.
Using the plugin:
- Click Tools and select "Bulk Remove Additional Apps".
- Click the dropdown box and select a Platform.
- Click Get to show the Additional Apps for that Platform.***
- Check the Remove box(s) for the Additional Apps you wish to delete.
- Click Remove to delete/remove all occurrences of those selected Additional Apps.****
*** The plugin will 'combine' any Additional Apps that have the exact same Name AND App Path, and only display one of those. When you remove that "one", all occurrences (having the same Name and Path) will be removed.
***Example: You used the Bulk Add Additional Applications plugin to add an Additional App to 245 different games. You named it “My Run-Before App” and set the Application Path to “D:\MyApps\RunBefore.exe”. This plugin will only display it in the list once, instead of 245 times. (Because they all “have the exact same Name AND App Path”.)
**** Once you click Remove, the apps you had selected will get removed/deleted forever. There is no undoing this once OK is clicked! (unless of course you have your backup file that was created with the LaunchBox built-in Automatic Backup feature.)
300 downloads
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(Bulk) Add Additional Applications
By JoeViking245
(Bulk) Add Additional Applications A.K.A. (Bulk) Add Run Before/After Main Application
(July 10, 2023)
This plugin is no longer supported. But [for now] still works.
Please see its successor: Bulk Add/Remove Additional Applications
The intent of this plugin to add the same Additional Application to more than one game, all at one time. More specifically, it is to add an Additional Application you want to run Before and/or After the selected games.
*Works with LaunchBox versions 10.14 and newer.*
Setup:
Download and extract "Bulk Run Before-After.dll" from the zip file and place it in your Plugins subfolder of LaunchBox. Right click the dll file, select Properties, and click "Unblock" (if it's there) and click OK.
Using the plugin:
Select more than one game (or all of them) in your Platform. Right click on one of the selected games and select "Bulk Run Before/After Main Application". Fill in the Application Name, Path to the program, any necessary Command Line Parameters and then check the appropriate box if you want it to run Before or After (or both or none) the Main Application. Click OK You should probably test this on only 2 or 3 games first BEFORE you decide to do your entire Platform. There is no [bulk] undo (See Additional Notes).
Additional Notes:
Once you click "OK", the Additional Application is added to each game you had selected. There is no Bulk Edit or Bulk Remove**Additional Application(s). (at least by me)
It does require that you give it an Application Name and an Application Path.
It will verify that your Application Path points to an existing file but it will not check if there's an existing Additional Application with the same Name.
**If you clicked OK when you should have clicked Cancel, you can remove them with this plugin: (Bulk) Remove Additional Applications
761 downloads
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Copy Metadata (plugin): Apply metadata from someone else's XML file to your own.
By JoeViking245
Scenario:
"I have a build where I'm manually changing every game genre to a single genre/subgenre value and would love to share it, but without a tool to apply my metadata to their own it's kinda pointless."
Solution:
Copy Metadata plugin.
Purpose:
Import selected metadata from someone else's platform_name.xml file into one of your existing Platforms.
This will scan a LaunchBox platform_name.xml file and compare it your existing platform. For all matching games*, it will update the metadata you chose to have imported.
(*See Finding Matching Games for how games are matched up.)
Metadata fields to import (can select one or more):
Genre Series Developer Publisher Notes ReleaseDate DatabaseID VideoUrl WikipediaURL CustomField (up to 3)
Warning:
This will REPLACE any existing metadata for the fields you've selected. There is no un-do button. The exception is Custom Field(s). This will add new Custom Fields. If an existing Custom Field with the same Name as one be imported is found, you have the option to Overwrite your existing Custom Field Add a new Custom Field (creating 2 with the same Name but different Values)
How to:
Requires LaunchBox 13.3 or newer
Download, unblock the zip file, copy the contents of the zip to ..\LaunchBox\Plugins\ i.e. D:\LaunchBox\Plugins\CopyMetadata\CopyMetadata.dll Start LaunchBox Click Tools Select "Copy Metadata" Click Browse to locate and select the xml file you want to import from (optional) Drag & Drop the file onto the TextBlock (directly above the Browse button) Select your platform you want the metadata imported to (The plugin will attempt to 'select' the appropriate one for you) Check the metadata items you want imported To import a Custom Field Click "Include Custom Field(s)" Click the dropdown box and select the one you want imported Check the box next to it to have it imported (optional: you can select up to 2 others to be imported) Click Import
Finding Matching Games:
Every effort is made to properly match games in your existing platform to an external platform_name.xml.
It will first use the games LBDatabaseID # to ensure an exact match. If there are no matching database ID #'s, it will compare the games file_name.ext. If there are still no matches, it will look for a matching game Title.
Concept for this plugin was inspired by @C-Beats who caught me when I was bored and looking for a plugin idea.
246 downloads
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Launchbox-RetroPie-Batocera-Miyoo Export
By dingodan
Launchbox is great, but it doesn't run on linux. RetroPie is great, but the scraper is terrible. This script will copy your roms, metadata and images from LaunchBox for use with RetroPie (or Batocera/Miyoo). If desired, it will also reduce the size of the copied images to make them load faster on the Pi. Edit the attached file to choose your platforms, and decide if you want everything, or only your favourites.
If selecting Batocera XML format it will attempt to copy the first box art, marquee, screenshot and video file for each of your titles.
If selecting the Miyoo Onion OS XML format the gamelists will be called miyoogamelist.xml and the boxart will be reduced to 250px and converted to PNG. See their github for more info.
How to Install:
Download and install Python Choose All Users and add it to your Path Open cmd, and type 'pip install Pillow' Download the attached file and edit it accordingly (specify your LaunchBox folder, desired output folder and platforms) Run 'python launchbox_retropie_export.py' Transfer the files to your Pi using WinSCP or similar Copy the gamelists, roms and images to /home/pi/RetroPie/roms Enable the 'Parse Gamelists Only' option in EmulationStation843 downloads
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Autoplay Attract Mode
By skizzosjt
This was inspired by "Play N Quit" and I wanted to create an improved version that would work for anyone regardless of settings in Big Box
Description: This is an AHK script that will automatically launch and close selected games for an in game playable take on Attract Mode. In between each game being selected, it will randomly scroll through your game wheel. Please note at this time it will only work in a single game wheel (it's not smart enough to know how to go into different platforms/playlists) and though can be easily configured for different emulators, it can only be configured for one at a time. Once the script is running you can easily start playing whatever game is currently being ran by hitting the designated hotkey to stop the script and proceed with your gaming session!
Here are the improvements:
Takes into consideration whether or not Startup/Shutdown screens are enabled Takes into consideration whether or not Game Details View is skipped Can work with any emulator Uses a random number for the game wheel selection to change Can set a max value for this random number Randomizes direction for the game wheel to move Will work with a vertical or horizontal game wheel Removed all the extra non-functional lines
How to use:
In the header section of the script there are detailed comments directing users what a handful of variables are doing and how to set them
GameDetails - Use a value of 1 if you have Game Details View enabled. Use a value of 0 (or anything but 1) if you have Game Details View disabled GameWheelOrientation - Use "V" (must be in quotes) for vertical game wheels (ie up and down) and use "H" for horizontal game wheels (left and right) GameRunTime - Enter the number of minutes each game should run before closing and choosing the next game MaxGames - the maximum random number to be generated. Tip: make this at or smaller than the total qty of games in the platform/playlist. (if you make it same or greater as total qty it is possible for the random number to select the same game twice in a row) EmulatorEXE - Enter the file name with extension of the emulator (must be in quotes) Exit Hotkey - last line in script is a hotkey to terminate the script. Use this at any time the script is running to stop it
Default values:
GameDetails - 0 (disabled) GameWheelOrientation - "V" (vertical) GameRunTime - 3 (minutes for game to run) MaxGames - 150 (max number for wheel to move to select new game) EmulatorEXE - "retroarch.exe" (emulator's executable file name with extension) Exit Hotkey - Joy8 (commonly the "start" button on joypads)
How to use (continued):
Place the script file in a desired location In LaunchBox, edit a game entry In the game's Additional Apps, add the script file as the Additional App Select for the Additional App to start automatically at game launch Now when this game is launched, this script will start the Autoplay Attract Mode Alternative launching method:
Alternatively, you could add a hotkey to the script that would start it If so place this hotkey at the spot designed in the script, specifically it is line 28 For ex: +Home:: The above example starting hotkey would be shift+home keys Recommended to add the script to startup programs in LaunchBox if using the start with hotkey method. Do this instead of adding it to a game as an Additional App This is due to the script will instead launch automatically at start of LaunchBox/Big Box. But it will not execute the main part of the script until the hotkey is pressed This may be a better method for some to start/stop the script depending on your use case
Leave any feedback in this thread! Cheers!
57 downloads
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Launchbox Database Restore
By MadCoder
As I'm sure most of us have experienced more than once, launch box can corrupt itself from time to time, but it's becoming less and less of an issue as versions progress. However, it does happen especially. Considering the amount of data launch box processes it's to be expected. This makes restoring back to previous state one click simple.
76 downloads
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Auto Play N' Quit - AHK Script by IzzIsHOr
By izzishor
I've been fiddling around with trying to make BigBox run a game and then switch it with another if no play is detected...
I tried looking at Arcade EIP, however... it seemed too complicated to configure for me at 4 a.m. last night, so I got ChatGPT out, and tried to come up with a AHK script that does the following:
Launches a game from a BigBox playlist Waits 3 minutes in-game, to show it's attract mode Brings RetroArch to the foreground Closes RetroArch Beeps Once Brings BigBox to foreground Holds "Down Arrow Key" to scroll trough games LOOPS the script again (game changes every 3 minutes) Script can be closed at any time by pressing the "START" button for me that's Joy8
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
How I activate the script personally is,
Created a New Playlist with games I'd like to scroll trough (named it Attract mode) Edited the metadata of a game (I chose 1941 because it's top of list) Under Additional Apps I've added the AHK script Set it to Automatically Run Before Main Application Everytime I run 1941 it starts the script and scrolls trough random games until you press "START"
I have been testing it for a full day, it never once failed if you have it set up like me.
IMPORTANT!
It will not work "out of the box" without modifications if you're running anything else than RetroArch as an emulator, and a BigBox Theme that has vertical scrolling, also BigBox must have its default keyboard binds.
43 downloads
- bigbox autoplay game
- bigbox ahk script
- (and 3 more)
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LaunchBox ROM Patch Manager
By Fry
LaunchBox ROM Patch Manager
LaunchBox ROM Patch Manager is a plug-in for LaunchBox that intends to streamline the process of applying a patch to a ROM file and importing the patched ROM into your LaunchBox library
Demo
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WFBjIEwC-v4
Installation
Download LaunchBoxRomPatchManager.zip Extract LaunchBoxRomPatchManager.zip to a folder. Inside the LaunchBoxRomPatchManager folder is a folder called LaunchBox. Inside the LaunchBox folder will be two folders: LaunchBoxRomPatchManager and Plugins. Copy these two folders. Go to your LaunchBox installation folder and paste the copied folders Included Patchers - Floating IPS
The plug-in includes Floating IPS by Alcaro to be used as IPS patcher. This patcher should be automatically included when following the installation instructions and can be found in your LaunchBox folder under LaunchBoxRomPatchManager\Patchers. By default, the plugin will be configured to use Floating IPS to patch games for the following platforms:
Nintendo Entertainment System Nintendo Game Boy Advance Nintendo Game Boy Color Nintendo 64 Super Nintendo Entertainment System Sega Genesis Sega 32X NEC TurboGrafx-16 Included Patchers - Paradox PPF
The plug-in includes Paradox PPF 3 by Icarus of Paradox to be used as a PPF patcher. This patcher should be automatically included when following the installation instructions and can be found in your LaunchBox folder under LaunchBoxRomPatchManager\Patchers. By default, the plugin will be configured to use Paradox PPF to patch games for the following platforms:
Sony Playstation Sony PSP Managing ROM Patchers
The plug-in includes a menu item called "Manage ROM Patchers" under the LaunchBox Tools menu. The plug-in uses these configurations when applying a patch to a game.
Name - Specify a name for the patcher File path - Specify the path to the patcher Command line - Specify the format of the command line that should be used when applying a patch to a game file. There are two special values that need to be included in the command line field for the plug-in to know how to apply a patch to a game file. {patch} indicates the patch file and {rom} indicates the game's rom file. Platforms - Select the platforms that the patcher can be used with Importing a ROM Hack
The plug-in includes a menu item called "Import ROM Hack" when you right click on a game. To import a rom hack, right click on a game and select "Import ROM Hack". A file dialog will open prompting to select a patch file. Select the file that contains the patch file. The "Import rom hack" screen will be displayed with information about the selected game and selected patch file. Enter values for the imported ROM hack as desired and click OK. The plug-in will make a copy of the source game, extract files as needed, apply the selected patch file to the source ROM file, and import the game into your LaunchBox library.
Source code
https://github.com/AtomFry/LaunchBoxRomPatchManager
349 downloads
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XBLA Shortcut Generator
Create shortcut from XBLA file. So that would help to import games into Launchbox or launch game directly from shortcut.
Shortcut is base on the root folder name (any underscore will be remove, helps to grab metadata in launchbox) emulator execute path, rom and arguement will be embed into shortcut file. it only create the shortcut from base game (not included title update and DLC. Those file need to copy to xenia's content folder manually.)
181 downloads
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Kodi addon for LaunchBox
By CoinTos
Launches LaunchBox in Big Box mode from within Kodi - It will close or minimize Kodi, launch LaunchBox in Big Box mode and when Big Box is exited Kodi will restart or maximize, with the option to run programs pre/post LaunchBox. It works with Windows only.
Features:
BigBox Startup video and splash screen support
LaunchBox and BigBox Updater support
LaunchBox (Free or Premium) and BigBox mode selection
Multiple Monitor detection and handling
Pre/Post scripts
Minimize or close Kodi option
Launcher Helper script version check
Supports Kodi 19, 20 and Kodi Windows Store versions.
Requirements:
Windows PC
LaunchBox (Premium or Free)
Kodi 19, 20 or Windows Store for Windows
Kodi 16, 17, 18, 19 for Windows (Up to version 1.5.9, BigBox only)
Known Issues:
Due to Windows Store's UWA security restrictions, user must set a save directory under the plugin's Advanced Settings to a directory of the user choice where the plugin's ahk helper script and icon file can be saved.
Taskbar will flash on Kodi Windows Store version (UWA) using 1.5.4+. Current workaround is to switch to Kodi non-UWA or to minimize effects, enable hide taskbar in advance options, remove Cortana search bar and change taskbar to black.
Starting with version 1.5.6, due to windows security restriction on SMB shares over IP (eg. \\192.168.1.1\shared-folder\), the addon will produce an error saying it is not supported. Current workaround is to enable SMB fix in Advance settings to replace IP with supplied server name or enable SMBv1 on server and computer to allow NetBIOS name resolutions in Kodi.
Kodi-six package is now required with 1.5.6-1.5.9, addon will fail if after first installation of Kodi-six package dependency, Kodi was not restarted.
Install instructions:
Use 'Install from Zip' in Kodi and browse to the directory the plugin's zip was downloaded to and select it.
Configuration:
This plugin requires the user to set the location of their LaunchBox directory in the addon settings before first use. eg. C:\Users\<username>\LaunchBox\
PLEASE NOTE:
THIS PLUGIN WILL PRODUCE AN ERROR DURING INSTALL IN KODI ON ANY OPERATING SYSTEM THAT CANNOT RUN LAUNCHBOX.
SINCE LAUNCHBOX IS CURRENTLY WINDOWS ONLY THAT IS THE ONLY OPERATING SYSTEM THE PLUGIN CURRENTLY SUPPORTS.
ATTENTION: WILL NOT WORK ON ANDROID (BOX, SMART TV, ETC.), IOS or MAC AND LINUX.
17,377 downloads
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Stream Deck Emulation Icon Pack.
By MadK9
This is a small set of Stream Deck icons (23 in all). It covers the most used emulators.
I cant directly share the PSD but heres a link to the creators.
The original author was David Lanham over at https://dlanham.com/ui/flurry/
This remake of the PSD is by Crussong over at https://www.deviantart.com/crussong/art/Flurry-Icon-Template-PSD-343546231
301 downloads
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Archive Cache Manager
By fraganator
A LaunchBox plugin which caches extracted ROM archives, letting you play games faster. Also allows launching individual files from archives, and loading preferred file types from an archive.
New in v2.16
New M3U name option - "Disc 1 Filename" Always use the filename of the first disc of a multi-disc game for the m3u file, regardless of which disc was launched Allows better support for The Bezel Project config files, which use config files based on the ROM name New batch caching option to pause on caching errors (default is to skip and continue) Minor config window tweaks Description
When a compressed ROM (zip, 7z, rar, gz, chd, rvz, etc.) is first extracted, it is stored in the archive cache. The next time it is played, the game is loaded directly from the cache, virtually eliminating wait time.
As the cache size approaches the maximum size, the oldest played games are deleted from the cache, making room for new games.
Features
Skip the extraction wait time for recently played games. Configurable cache size and location. Configurable minimum archive size (don't cache small archives). Option to extract all discs in a multi-disc game, and generate M3U file. Option to copy ROM files to cache without extraction. Option to keep select ROMs cached and ready to play. Select and play individual ROMs from a merged ROM archive. Batch cache feature for extracting or copying multiple games to cache at once. Filename and extension priorities per emulator and platform (cue, bin, iso, etc). Support for additional archive formats (chd, rvz, etc) Support for Xbox iso to xiso conversion Badge to indicate cached games Example Use Cases
Why use Archive Cache Manager? Here's some example use cases.
ROMs located on NAS or external storage, where disk read or transfer time is slow. ROM library maintained as accurately ripped/dumped collections, where specialised compression formats not an option. Extract and play archives from location other than LaunchBox\ThirdParty\7-Zip\Temp, such as platform specific folder (for RetroArch Content Directory settings). Playing ripped PS2 games with PCSX2 where the disc image is bin/cue format, avoiding the "CDVD plugin failed to open" error message. Playing zipped MSU versions of games, where need to launch the rom file instead of the cue file from the archive. The library contains GoodMerged sets, and you want a quick way to play individual ROMs. Installation
Download the latest release from https://forums.launchbox-app.com/files/file/234-archive-cache-manager/ or https://github.com/fraganator/archive-cache-manager/releases Unblock the download if necessary (right-click file -> Properties -> Unblock) Extract this archive to your LaunchBox\Plugins folder, then run LaunchBox / BigBox. Within LaunchBox, ensure the emulator or emulator platform has the "Extract ROM archives before running" option checked. Uninstallation
Quit LaunchBox / BigBox, then navigate to the LaunchBox\Plugins folder and delete ArchiveCacheManager. Delete the archive cache folder (default is LaunchBox\ArchiveCache). Usage
Extracting and Caching
Archive Cache Manager runs transparently to the user. All that is required is the emulator or emulator platform has the "Extract ROM archives before running" option checked. Extraction and cache management is carried out automatically when a game is launched.
Cache and extraction behaviour can be modified in plugin's configuration window.
Multi-Disc Games
To use the multi-disc cache feature, check the "Multi-disc Support" option in the Archive Cache Manager config window. The next time a multi-disc game is launched, all the discs from the game will be extracted to the cache and a corresponding M3U file generated.
If the emulator \ platform supports M3U files (as configured in LaunchBox), the generated M3U file will be used when launching the game. Otherwise a single disc will be launched, and swapping between cached discs can be done manually in the emulator.
Batch Caching Games
Multiple games can be cached at once using the Batch Cache Games window. Select one or more games in LaunchBox, then right-click a game and choose the "Batch Cache Games..." option.
A window will popup displaying the list of games, and begin checking the extracted ROM sizes. Once the checks are complete, click the Cache Games button to begin caching.
Games are cached according to the plugin's emulator and platform settings. A game may be extracted, copied, or no action taken if it doesn't match a caching rule, or it's already cached.
Each game's caching progress will be displayed in the Status column, and a progress bar at the bottom of the game list shows the overall caching progress. If an error occurs during caching, it will be flagged in the Status column and caching will skip to the next game. If the "Pause Caching On Error" is checked, an error message is displayed with the option to continue or stop.
Tip: For games stored on a NAS or an external drive, use Batch Cache Games to cache a selection of them locally. Enable the plugin's Always Bypass LaunchBox Path Check option to allow the cached game to be launched directly, even if the network or external drive is disconnected!
Selecting and Playing Individual ROMs From an Archive
To play an individual ROM from an archive containing multiple ROMs (different regions, hacks, or discs), right-click it and choose "Select ROM In Archive...".
A window will popup with a full listing of the archive contents. Select the desired ROM file, then click Play. That ROM will now launch with the configured emulator.
The next time the game is launched via the normal Play option, the previous ROM selection will be automatically applied. To select another ROM, use the same "Select ROM In Archive..." menu.
The same menu is also available in BigBox, though currently only supports keyboard input.
Keeping Games Cached
Games can be marked 'Keep' so they stay cached and ready to play. To keep a game cached, open the plugin configuration window from the Tools->Archive Cache Manager menu. From there a list of games in the cache is shown. Check the Keep box next to the game, then click OK.
Badge
The plugin includes a badge to indicate if a game is currently in the cache. It is available under the Badges->Plugin Badges->Enable Archive Cached menu. There are additional Simple White and Neon style badges, which can be found in the LaunchBox\Plugins\ArchiveCacheManager\Badges folder. Copy your preferred icon to the LaunchBox\Images\Badges folder and rename it Archive Cached.png.
Configuration
Configuration can be accessed from the Tools->Archive Cache Manager menu. An overview of each of the configuration screens and options is below.
Cache Settings
This page shows a summary of the cache storage and currently cached items, and provides options for cache configuration.
Configure Cache
Clicking the Configure Cache... button opens the cache configuration window.
Configure Cache - Cache Path
This is the path of the cache on disk. The path can be absolute or relative, where relative paths are to the LaunchBox root folder.
Default: ArchiveCache
If the cache path is set to an invalid location (LaunchBox root for example), an error message will be displayed when clicking OK.
If the cache path is set to an existing path that already contains files or folders, a warning will be displayed when clicking OK. Click Yes to proceed, or No to go back and change the path.
Configure Cache - Cache Size
This is the maximum cache size on disk in megabytes. The oldest played games will be deleted from the cache when it reaches this size.
Default: 20,000 MB (20 GB)
Configure Cache - Minimum Archive Size
This is the minimum size in megabytes of an uncompressed archive before it will be added to the cache. Archives smaller than this won't be added to the cache.
Default: 100 MB
Keep
A Keep flag can be applied to a cached item. When set, the item will be excluded from cache management and not be removed from the cache. This is useful for less frequently played games which need to load without waiting (very large games, party games, favourites, children's games, etc).
Default: Disabled
Open In Explorer
Clicking the Open In Explorer button will open the configured cache path in Windows Explorer. This button is disabled if the cache path does not exist.
Refresh
Refreshes the cache summary and list of cached items from disk.
Delete
Clicking on the Delete button will remove the selected items from the cache (including items with the Keep setting).
Delete All
Clicking on the Delete All button will delete everything from the cache (including items with the Keep setting).
Extraction Settings
This page provides settings for archive extraction and launch behviour. Each row in the table applies to the specified emulator \ platform pair. If a game is launched which doesn't match an emulator \ platform, the settings in All \ All will be used.
Emulator \ Platform
The specific emulator and platform for the settings to be applied to. Add a new emulator and platform row using the Add... button. Remove an emulator \ platform row using the Delete button.
When a new row is added its settings will be copied from the All \ All entry, except for Priority which will be blank.
Priority
Files from an archive can be prioritized in the case where an emulator requires a certain filename or file type. This setting defines the filename or extension priority for the specified emulator and platform combination.
The priorities are a comma delimited list, where the highest priority is the first entry, the next highest priority is the second entry, and so on. If a match is not found in the archive when a game is loaded, the priority in All \ All is used.
A wildcard (*) can be used to perform partial filename matches. Examples include:
bin, iso - Files ending with bin, then files ending in iso, then all other files. eboot.bin - Files named eboot.bin, then all other files. *(*E*)*[!].*, *(*U*)*[!].*, *[!].* - GoodMerged style, prioritizing European 'good' ROM dumps, then USA 'good' ROM dumps, then other region 'good' ROM dumps, then all other files. Note that the priority is applied to all archives, even if they are not cached.
The fallback All \ All priority is the basis for the contents of the multi-disc M3U file generation. Be careful removing entries such as cue, unless a specific emulator \ platform is used to handle cue and similar file types.
Default:
All \ All | mds, gdi, cue, eboot.bin PCSX2 \ Sony Playstation 2 | bin, iso Action
The action to take when processing a ROM file.
Extract - Extract an archive to the cache. Non-archive files will be passed directly to the emulator. Copy - Copy the game file to the cache. Archive files will copied, but not extracted. Extract or Copy - If the game file is an archive, extract it to the cache. Otherwise copy the game file to the cache. Default: Extract
Launch Path
The path within the cache to launch the game from. Useful for managing common settings in RetroArch which are based on the game's folder.
Default - The archive folder in the cache, which is in the form <Filename> - <MD5 Hash> Title - The game's title set in LaunchBox (e.g. Final Fantasy VII) Platform - The game's platform set in LaunchBox (e.g. Sony Playstation) Emulator - The emulator title set in LaunchBox (e.g. RetroArch) Games will always be extracted \ copied to the <Filename> - <MD5 Hash> location. If the Launch Path is set to something other than Default, the corresponding folder will be created within the cache, and NTFS hardlinks will be created which point to the extracted \ copied files.
Default: Default
Multi-Disc
Check this option to enable multi-disc support. When enabled, the following actions occur when playing a multi-disc game:
All discs from a multi-disc game will be extracted \ copied and added to the archive cache. M3U files will be generated, with the name based on the M3U Name setting. The M3U contents will list the absolute path to one cached file per disc, where the file is chosen based on the emulator \ platform file priority, or the special All \ All priority. If the emulator \ platform supports M3U files, the generated M3U file will be used when launching the game. Default: Enabled
M3U Name
The name of the M3U file created when launching a multi-disc game, and Multi-Disc is enabled. The M3U file name is used by some emulators to create a save file and match settings.
Game ID - The unique ID for a game, generated by LaunchBox. This is the same M3U naming convention used by LaunchBox (e.g. 2828d969-4362-49d5-b080-c2b7cc6f7d59.m3u) Title + Version - The game's title and version combined, with (Disc N) removed from the version (e.g. Final Fantasy VII (Europe).m3u) Disc 1 Filename - Use the filename of the first disc as the name of the M3U, regardless of which disc was launched (e.g. Final Fantasy VII (Europe) (Disc 1).m3u). Allows for The Bezel Project support, while maintaining a consistent name for emulators to manage save files across multiple discs. Default: Game ID
Smart Extract
Check this option to enable smart extraction, which will only extract a single file from an archive if a number of rules are met. See the Smart Extract Settings section for details.
Default: Enabled
chdman
Check this option to extract a chd file to cue+bin files using chdman. The executable chdman.exe must be copied to the folder LaunchBox\Plugins\ArchiveCacheManager\Extractors.
Default Disabled
DolphinTool
Check this option to extract rvz, wia, and gcz files to iso files using DolphinTool. The executable DolphinTool.exe must be copied to the folder LaunchBox\Plugins\ArchiveCacheManager\Extractors.
Default Disabled
extract-xiso
Check this option to extract and convert full iso files to Xbox iso files using extract-xiso. Supports both zipped and stand-alone iso files. The executable extract-xiso.exe must be copied to the folder LaunchBox\Plugins\ArchiveCacheManager\Extractors.
Default Disabled
Smart Extract Settings
When enabled, the Smart Extract option will check if it's possible to extract only a single file from an archive. For merged archives containing multiple ROM versions and hacks, this avoids the need to extract a potentially large number of files to play a single game.
Smart Extract will extract and launch a single file from an archive if the following conditions are met:
All of the file types in an archive are the same, excluding files with Metadata Extensions.
OR
All of the file types in an archive are Stand-alone ROMs, excluding files with Metadata Extensions.
The file to extract will be (in priority order):
The individual file selected through the "Select ROM in Archive..." right-click menu. The first file which matches a configured Priority. The first file in the archive. Stand-alone ROM Extensions
A comma delimited list of file extensions which can run stand-alone (no dependencies on other files).
Default: gb, gbc, gba, agb, nes, fds, smc, sfc, n64, z64, v64, ndd, md, smd, gen, iso, chd, gg, gcm, 32x, bin
Metadata Extensions
A comma delimited list of file extensions which indicate ROM metadata, and aren't required to play a ROM file.
Default: nfo, txt, dat, xml, json
Plugin Settings
Always Bypass LaunchBox Path Check
When enabled, bypasses LaunchBox's check that a game's application path (ROM file) exists before launch. If a game is cached and the source ROM storage is slow or unavailable, the game will still launch immediately.
The bypass check happens automatically if the extract action is Copy, or the file is not zip, 7z, or rar.
Default: Disabled
Check For Updates On Startup
Enable this option to check for plugin updates when LaunchBox starts up. This is a simple version check of the latest release on github, and nothing is automatically downloaded or installed. If a new update is found a message box will appear shortly after LaunchBox is started, with the option to open the download page in a browser.
Default: On first run, a message box will appear asking the user if they'd like to enable the update check.
Source Code
This plugin is open source, and can be found on github: https://github.com/fraganator/archive-cache-manager
1,431 downloads
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LaunchBox Controls
By gbiscoo
About
This will display the controls for the selected game on a secondary monitor (will work on 2+ monitor setups).
It will either read the controls from the required xml file or display the control image from: LaunchBox > Images > [System] > Arcade - Controls Information
It includes an xml control file for MAME and a default configuration for LaunchBox and Windows.
Game controls can be manually added copying the existing format.
Installing
Extract the zip into your LaunchBox plugins folder and ensure that all files remain in the LaunchBoxControls folder
ie. Launchbox\Plugins\LaunchBoxControls\
Edit the settings.xml file as required. The screen number to display the controls on being the most important, currently set to 2. You can get this number from computer Display Settings.
97 downloads
(1 review)0 comments
Submitted
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Marquee Intro Video Support
By superrob3000
*** Edit: Note that you can use this plugin to add startup marquee video support if you are using BigBox's native marquee handling. However, I recommend you switch to my new plugIn, ThirdScreen, for startup marquee video support because it also adds support for platform marquee videos and unlimited screens. ***
Plugin that adds Marquee Intro video support. After installing the plugin you can simply place your Marquee intro videos into the LaunchBox/Videos/StartupMarquee folder. One will be chosen randomly at startup. Static images (jpg or png) will work as well.
The marquee video will always automatically end at the same time as the main screen intro video. If the marquee video is shorter than the main screen video, it will loop until the main screen video ends (or until you hit a button to skip the intro).
See demo:
Installation:
Unzip the file and drop the contents into your LaunchBox folder. Place your marquee startup video(s) into LaunchBox/Videos/StartupMarquee.
You of course have to make sure your marquee screen is set up first in your BigBox settings:
Set your marquee screen number in Options->General->Marquee Screen If you want the intro video to stretch fill the entire marquee, then set Options->Marquee Screen->Set Marquee Images to Fill the Screen If you have a cut-off type marquee, then make sure your screen compatibility mode is set correctly in Options->Marquee Screen->Screen Hardware Compatibility Mode. Currently this plugin does not support the squeeze 1/2 or squeeze 1/3 modes, but all of the following screen compatibility modes are supported:
- None
- Monitor Cuts Off Bottom 1/2
- Monitor Cuts Off Top 1/2
- Monitor Cuts Off Bottom 2/3
- Monitor Cuts Off Top 2/3
- Monitor Cuts Off 1/3 Top and Bottom
314 downloads
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Big Box Voice Search
By Fry
BigBoxVoiceSearch
BigBoxVoiceSearch is a plug-in for BigBox that enables searching for games using your voice and a microphone via microsoft's speech recognition. To make use of this plug-in, the plug-in components must be installed to the LaunchBox plugins folder and a few lines of XAML code must be added to the themes where you wish to use it.
Demo
Installation
1. Download the latest version of BigBoxVoiceSearch.zip from the LaunchBox forums or from this github repositories Releases
2. Extract BigBoxVoiceSearch.zip to a folder. Inside the BigBoxVoiceSearch folder is a folder called LaunchBox. Inside the LaunchBox folder is a folder called Plugins. Copy the plugins folder
3. Go to your LaunchBox installation folder and paste the copied folder
4. To verify the installation - confirm the following files exist in your LaunchBox\Plugins folder
- BigBoxVoiceSearch.dll
- System.Speech.dll
5. You can delete the downloaded zip file and extracted folder once the files have been copied into your LaunchBox plugins folder
Adding the voice search element to a theme
In order to use the voice recognition function, a few lines of XAML must be added to the views of the themes that you would like to use this with. Since it's easy to make simple mistakes while tinkering with XAML, it's strongly recommended to make a copy of whatever theme you plan to use this with and make your changes to a copy of the theme so that you can revert to the original theme if mistakes are made. Inside your copied theme there is a views folder. Inside the views folder are xaml files that correspond to the views that you use in BigBox. Select the view(s) for which you wish to include voice searching functionality and edit them in a text editor like notepad or visual studio.
XMLNS
Each view starts with a UserControl element. The user control element will include several lines that start with xmlns. Add the following line to the user control element along with the other xmlns lines.
xmlns:BigBoxVoiceSearch="clr-namespace:BigBoxVoiceSearch.View;assembly=BigBoxVoiceSearch" Examples of adding the voice search user control to a theme
Once the above XMLNS line has been added to a views user control element, you can add the BigBoxVoiceSearch:MainWindowView anywhere inside the theme that you would like it to appear. There are a few properties that you can set on the voice search control to specify how it should behave. First, here are some examples of how it would look to add the voice search control inside a theme:
<!-- Trigger voice recognition with page up, the control is always displayed --> <BigBoxVoiceSearch:MainWindowView ActivationMode="PageUp" ShowInitializing="true" ShowInitializingFailed="true" ShowInactive="true" ShowActive="true" ShowRecognizing="true"/>
<!-- Trigger voice recognition with page down, the control is only displayed while recognizing --> <BigBoxVoiceSearch:MainWindowView ActivationMode="PageDown" ShowInitializing="false" ShowInitializingFailed="false" ShowInactive="false" ShowActive="false" ShowRecognizing="true"/>
<!-- Activate the user control with Up - you will need to press enter to trigger the voice search, the control is always displayed --> <BigBoxVoiceSearch:MainWindowView ActivationMode="Up" ShowInitializing="true" ShowInitializingFailed="true" ShowInactive="true" ShowActive="true" ShowRecognizing="true"/>
<!-- Trigger voice recognition with page up, the control is always displayed, override default images with theme specific images --> <BigBoxVoiceSearch:MainWindowView ActivationMode="PageUp" ShowInitializing="true" InitializingImagePath="Plugins\BigBoxVoiceSearch\Media\MySpecialTheme\Initializing.png" ShowInitializingFailed="true" InitializingFailedImagePath="Plugins\BigBoxVoiceSearch\Media\MySpecialTheme\InitializingFailed.png" ShowInactive="true" InactiveImagePath="Plugins\BigBoxVoiceSearch\Media\MySpecialTheme\Inactive.png" ShowRecognizing="true" RecognizingImagePath="Plugins\BigBoxVoiceSearch\Media\MySpecialTheme\Recognizing.png"/>
ActivationMode
By specifying the ActivationMode property on the voice search user control, you can control how the voice search control is activated and how the voice search is triggered with the following options:
Off The plug-in is effectively disabled No button will activate the user control or trigger speech recognition Up The up button will activate the user control The down button will deactivate the user control Once activated, press enter to start speech recognition Down The down button will activate the user control The up button will deactivate the user control Once activated, press enter to start speech recognition Left The left button will activate the user control The right button will deactivate the user control Once activated, press enter to start speech recognition Right The right button will activate the user control The left button will deactivate the user control Once activated, press enter to start speech recognition PageUp The page up button will trigger voice recognition immediately You do not need to press enter after pressing Page Up You do not need to press any button to deactivate the user control PageDown The page down button will trigger voice recognition immediately You do not need to press enter after pressing Page Down You do not need to press any button to deactivate the user control VisibilityMode
The VisibilityMode property from previous versions has been replaced with individual boolean properties ShowInitializing, ShowInitializingFailed, ShowInactive, ShowActive, and ShowRecognizing.
ShowInitializing
The ShowInitializing property accepts the values "true" or "false" to indicate whether the user control should be displayed while initializing. When the view is loaded, there is an intialization period where the titles in the launchbox game library are parsed to create the speech recognition grammar. Setting this property to true can give a visual indication that the speech recognition functionality is not yet ready to use. This property defaults to false if not specified on the UserControl.
ShowInitializingFailed
The ShowInitializingFailed property accepts the values "true" or "false" to indicate whether the user control should be displayed if initialization fails. Failures could occur while the user control is initializing if there is no default audio device for the speech recognition engine to use. Setting this property to true can give the indication that speech recognition was not setup successfully and is therefore disabled. If errors are encountered, check the log.txt file in the LaunchBox\Plugins\BigBoxVoiceSearch folder for any error details. This property defaults to false if not specified on the UserControl.
ShowInactive
The ShowInactive property accepts the values "true" or "false" to indicate whether the user control should be displayed while it is inactive. The user control will be inactive after initialization completes successfully. Setting this property to true can give the indication that speech recognition is setup and available to use. The property defaults to false if not specified on the UserControl.
ShowActive
The ShowActive property accepts the values "true" or "false" to indicate whether the user control should be displayed while it is active. The user control is put in an active state when you press Up, Down, Left, or Right and the ActivationMode property is set to Up, Down, Left, or Right. Setting this property to true can give the indication that the speech recognition user control is active and will perform a search of enter is pressed. The property defaults to false if not specified on the UserControl.
ShowRecognizing
The ShowRecognizing property accepts the values "true" or "false" to indicates whether the usr control should be displayed while recognizing speech. The user control recognizes speech when you press Page Up or Page Down and the ActivationMode is set to PageUp or PageDown or when you press Enter while the speech recognition user control is active (if ActivationMode set to Up, Down, Left, or Right). The property defaults to false if not specified on the UserControl.
Default image paths
If no custom image paths are specified on the user control, the plugin will look for images with the following path to display in various states:
| State | Default image path | |--------------------|-----------------------------------------------------------------------------| | Initializing | ..\LaunchBox\Plugins\BigBoxVoiceSearch\Media\Default\Initializing.png | | InitializingFailed | ..\LaunchBox\Plugins\BigBoxVoiceSearch\Media\Default\InitializingFailed.png | | Inactive | ..\LaunchBox\Plugins\BigBoxVoiceSearch\Media\Default\Inactive.png | | Active | ..\LaunchBox\Plugins\BigBoxVoiceSearch\Media\Default\Active.png | | Recognizing | ..\LaunchBox\Plugins\BigBoxVoiceSearch\Media\Default\Recognizing.png |
Custom image paths
Images displayed by the user control can be overridden or customized by specifying a relative path to the image file on the user control with the following properties:
- InitializingImagePath
- InitializingFailedImagePath
- InactiveImagePath
- ActiveImagePath
- RecognizingImagePath
Settings
When BigBox loads for the first time, a settings file will be created that will allow you specify how the plugin should behave. Currently there is only one setting to configure
{ "VoiceSearchTimeoutInSeconds": 5 } VoiceSearchTimeoutInSeconds
Specify the number of seconds that the voice search should stay open before it stops listening
Link to GitHub repo
https://github.com/AtomFry/BigBoxVoiceSearch
138 downloads
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Arcade64 No-Nag 0.248
By MadK9
This is the no nag for Arcade64.
Please only use this if you know about Arcade64 and how it works, there will be NO support for this no-nag. You also need to have setup Arcade 64 in advance as there are required files in the official release that are not added to this no-nag.
If you are looking for Mame no-nag's then click here.
135 downloads
(0 reviews)0 comments
Updated
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Sega Naomi, Naomi 2, Atomiswave, Hikaru, Gaelco game importer (for Demul)
By JoeViking245
Import games for use with Demul (Sega * Emulator).
Purpose:
This purpose of this plugin is to import only the MAME machines that can be emulated in Demul. A sort of MAME machine ‘filtered’ importer to supplement LaunchBox’s Import Tool.
Why:
LaunchBox can already import these machines (games) for you using the built-in Tools - Import - MAME Arcade Full Set. All you need to do is un-check the skip games unplayable in MAME checkbox. The concern is this results in over 6000 additional entries imported (even more if you uncheck any other boxes and include clones). And as in most cases, more is NOT always better. Alternatively you can also simply drag-and-drop the roms into LaunchBox. Which is great when you already have them sorted out.
Included Systems:
The list of machines included for this plugin was generated by running the command “demule.exe –listroms” using Demul v0.7 (Apr 28, 2018). The systems included are Naomi, Naomi 2, Atomiswave, Hikaru, Gaelco, Cave3rd (CV1000) and System SP. (Sega Dreamcast, though emulated, is not included in the list. [It’s not a MAME machine])
Naomi and Naomi 2 are each broken into 2 separate systems: Cartridge System (rom only) and GDROM (chd).
What this plugin will do:
Let you select some or all of the games in the selected system to import. Select games from just 1 or multiple systems. (though may only be a good idea for Naomi/Naomi 2 Cartridge System (and GDROM System, respectively) because of the different command lines needed between systems**) Import selected games into an existing Platform or create a new one. When creating a new Platform, assigns “Scrape as” to “Arcade”. (useful when downloading metadata and media) Attempt to automatically detect/select your Demul emulator. (But you can select any of your existing emulators.) (optional) Copy roms to a new location for the games you’re importing. (optional) Only import games that have a corresponding rom in your selected Source folder. (i.e. If you selected 20 games and you only have the roms for 5 of those, only those 5 games will get imported. What this plugin won’t do:
Add Demul as a new emulator. Make Demul work for you. Filter parent and clone roms. Add the required command line to the emulator (**see below). ‘Bulk’ import into separate Platforms. Add metadata and media to the imported games. If copying roms (optional), only the games main rom file is copied. It will not look for nor copy any required BIOS, Device or chd files.
Installing the plugin:
After downloading the zip file, ‘Unblock’ the zip file.
(Right click, Properties, and click Unblock)
- Now copy the "DemulImporter" folder from the zip file into your ..\LaunchBox\Plugins\ folder.
i.e. D:\LaunchBox\Plugins\DemulImporter\
Using the plugin:
Click Tools and select Demul game Importer
Select a system This will populate a list (in the middle) of all the games for that system. Select games By default, none of the games will be checked. As you start ‘checking’ games, they will get added to the list of games to be imported (on the right). Click again to remove them from the import list. Click Check All to add all games for the selected system to the import list. You guessed it, click Check None to uncheck all the boxes, removing them from the import list. At this point, you can select a different system and continue to add more games to the import list. Not recommended because of the different command line parameters needed for the different systems. (it'll make a mess when you go to ad them) Once you’re satisfies with your import list, click Next.
Select a platform to import the games into You can select an existing platform from the dropdown list or click Add New Platform to create a new one. Select an emulator The plugin will automatically try to detect your Demul emulator from the ones you have in LaunchBox. If it isn’t already selected, look for it in the dropdown list.
Select the folder where your roms are located (optional) If you wish to have your roms copied to a new location, type in (or better yet, Browse to) the folder [Source Folder] where they’re located. Select the folder where you want to tell LaunchBox the roms are located This is required to set each games Application Path. It’s also handy if you [optionally] choose to have your roms copied.
Setup is done. It’s time to import. You have 2 options:
Select Copy AND Import if you wish to have your roms copied to a new location and then the games imported into LaunchBox. Select Import Only to just import the games into LaunchBox.
If you have a curated set of roms for the system you’re importing for, you can check Import games that only exist in the ROMs Source Folder. This is useful if, for example, you have a broken out set of roms just for Demul that consists of only the games you like. When selecting the games to import, select a system (i.e. Naomi Cartridge System) and then click Check All. You will need to add the Source Folder for where these rom are located (even if you don’t plan to copy them). During the final Import process, the plugin compares the list of games to be imported to the roms located in the Source Folder. If a game has a matching rom, it will be imported. Otherwise it’ll be skipped.
Of course, if your “broken out set of roms just for Demul” are also already broken down by System, save yourself time and just drag-and-drop them into LaunchBox.
When everything’s Complete, click Exit.
NOTES:
**Default Command-Line Parameters
System Command Line Parameter Naomi -run=naomi -rom= System SP -run=naomi -rom= Gaelco -run=gaelco -rom= Atomiswave -run=awave -rom= Hikaru -run=hikaru -rom= Cave3rd -run=cave3rd -rom= Once import is completed, simply select the newly imported games and click Tools, Download Metadata and Media....
Information on getting these systems to run in Demul can be found here: https://forums.launchbox-app.com/topic/30622-sega-naomi-demul-in-launchbox/
Disclaimer:
I personally only have a few of these games on my cab. So I’m not very familiar with the systems mentioned here. Also, I have no idea if Demul is even “the best” emulator for these systems. I just knew Demul had a definitive list of games it can emulate, that list was easy to get and probably isn’t going to change (it hasn’t since 2018). Which means I shouldn’t have to update the plugin (except for maybe fixing a programmer error here or there ).
605 downloads
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Mount compressed cd images and play
By Anthes
This script was born to resolve this issues:
you want to save disk space you are a rom/iso collector that uses dat file to check your collection with rom manager tool. Actually you cannot find any DAT that support CHD files, so to save disk space you are forced to compress all your isos or cue/bin images in .zip or .7z format you want to play with compressed iso, bin/cue games without extract files you don't want specify cd image extension in command line, but only zip file extension. This script automatically will search for chd, iso, cue, bin (in this order) contained in compressed file. This script can use one of the following tools to mount compressed cd image files:
WinArchiver => recommended tool with the best performance. It supports .zip, .7z and rar format. It is a commercial software with a trial period. Prismo File Mount => good tool, totally free, it supports only .zip files. Bad performance with large compressed file, so I don't recommended it for PS2, PS3, PS4 and Wii emulation Daemon Tools => really bad performance, it is free with lite version. It supports only .zip files. Futhermore the script supports these emulators:
1) Retroarch with all cores
Command line structure:
ZipMountAndRun nameOfCoreOfRetroarchWithoutExtension zipfileWithExtension
Real example for Dreamcast emulation:
ZipMountAndRun flycast_libretro "4 Wheel Thunder (Europe) (En,Fr).zip"
2) PCSX2 in standalone mode
Command line structure:
ZipMountAndRun pcsx2 zipfileWithExtension
Real example for PS2 emulation:
ZipMountAndRun pcsx2 "Ace Combat - Squadron Leader (Europe, Australia) (En,Fr,De,Es,It).zip"
3) Dolphin in standalone mode
Command line structure:
ZipMountAndRun dolphin zipfileWithExtension
Real example for Gamecube emulation:
ZipMountAndRun dolphin "Casper - Spirit Dimensions (Europe) (En,Fr,De,Es,It).zip"
4) Mednafen in standalone mode
Command line structure:
ZipMountAndRun mednafen zipfileWithExtension
Real example for Saturn emulation:
ZipMountAndRun mednafen "2Tax Gold (Japan).zip"
How install the tool for mounting
Search setup on google Download and install the tool Create a virtual drive and remember the letter that you should set in my script How to install my script in Launchbox
1) Copy the downloaded file in Launchbox Emulators folder assuring that my script was saved inside own folder:
LaunchBox root folder -> Emulators -> ZipMountAndRun -> ZipMountAndRun.cmd
See the image below
2) Set variables in my script for setting the tool for mounting files and its directory and the directories of emulators.
Please open my script with a text editor and fill " Variables to set" section
Variable name => Descrition
mountTool => define the tool used for mounting. Value accepted are winarchiver, pfm, daemon
daemonPath => path of Daemon Tools Lite, if you install it in default folder it is not necessary to change it
winarchiverPath => path of WinArchiver, if you install it in default folder it is not necessary to change it
letterForMounting => it is the letter used from virtual drive. This letter must be equals to virtual drive letter that you have created in previous phase.
retroArchPath => retroarch path. if your retroarch folder is called "RetroArch" in your Emulators folder don't change the setting.
pcsx2Path => PCSX2 path. if you have saved the PCSX2 emulator in RetroArch system folder then don't change the setting. If you have PCSX2 installed in the folder
LaunchBox root\Emulators\PCSX2 then you can change this variable to "..\PCSX2" (without quotes)
dolphinPath => path for dolphin standalone emulator. if your dolphing folder is called "Dolphin" in your Emulators folder don't change the setting.
mednafenPath => path for Mednafen standalone emulator. if your Mednafen folder is called "Mednafen" in your Emulators folder don't change the setting.
All the paths that you can set can be absolute or relative. By default the paths of emulators in my script use relative paths.
3) Add ZipMountAndRun like emulators in Launchbox
Click on Tools -> Manage -> Emulators
Click Add button
Insert "ZipMountAndRun" in emulator name textfield
Select ZipMountAndRun in Emulators\ZipMountAndRun folder
Copy other settings in image below
4) Edit linked platform for ZipMountAndRun emulator
Click on Tools -> Manage -> Emulators
Select ZipMountAndRun and click on Edit button
Select linked platform on the left bar
Fill rows like image below including your preferred platforms
I hope you can apprecciate my sharing and enjoy your games!!
55 downloads
(0 reviews)0 comments
Updated
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Bulk Convert .cue/.bin (or files other than .bin) to .chd
By JoeViking245
Bulk Convert .cue/.bin (or files other than .bin) to .chd
Using MAME’s chdman.exe (“Compressed Hunks of Data (CHD) Manager”, included with MAME), this plugin will convert CD based game files to a single .chd file in your selected Platform. Example:
Before Loom (USA).cue Loom (USA).ccd Loom (USA).img Loom (USA).sub
After Loom (USA).chd
Before Arctic Thunder.cue Arctic Thunder.bin
After Arctic Thunder.chd
If you are looking to convert gdi or iso files (as well as cue) to CHD, see this plugin instead.
Bulk Convert cue/gdi/iso files to CHD - Third-party Apps and Plugins - LaunchBox Community Forums (launchbox-app.com)
Why convert?
You end up with just a single file per game A CHD file is, well… compressed. Resulting in less storage space requirements Arctic Thunder.cue + .bin = 601MB Arctic Thunder.chd = 466MB Spider-Man 2: Enter Electro = 684MB CHD format = 318MB Because we can and it's easy to do
Requirements
This plugin file chdman.exe (included with MAME) Game rom-sets that include a .cue file. (Loom (USA).cue, Arctic Thunder.cue etc.)
What happens after converting?
After successfully creating a CHD Image, the games application path will be changed to the new .chd file.
Also, after the files have been converted you have the option to
Leave the old files in place (default) Move the old files to a separate [backup] folder Delete the old files
Installing the plugin
Download the plugin Unblock “cue2chd (v1.00).zip” by right clicking the file and checking “Unblock” and clicking “OK”. Open the zip file and copy the contents (1 folder containing 1 file) into /LaunchBox/Plugins/ i.e. G:/LaunchBox/Plugins/cue2chd/cue2chd.dll
Using the plugin
Start LaunchBox Select Tools, Convert cue to chd Select a Platform Click Convert (Optional) Check Delete old files when complete This will permanently delete the old files (.cue, .bin, .img etc) after successfully converting them to .chd. Check Move old files when complete This will move the old files (.cue, .bin, .img etc) after successfully converting them to .chd to a folder you specify [for ‘backup’].
If you do not select Delete or Move, all files will remain in their current location along with the newly created .chd file.
If you opt to delete the old files and later want/need to convert the CHD files back to .cue etc., you can use chdman.exe to "reverse the process". The command line is:
chdman.exe extractcd -i “file_name.chd” -o “file_name.cue”
Special thanks to @faeran for coming up with the idea for this plugin and his support and testing.
As always, all comments and suggestions are welcome.
2,970 downloads
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