JoeViking245

After some messing around, I was able to recreate the black screen and it looks to be the Pause screen. But all black. 'Stuck in limbo', you might say. Opening up Task Manager and End Task DOSBox.exe fixes it. But closes the game too (after selecting Resume Game or Exit). However I also found... not having BezelLauncher in the mix at all what-so-ever, (i.e. Delete the BezelLauncher folder altogether, then starting LB), I can still recreate the black Pause screen. But this is on my old test PC, so it very well could be my antiquated, minimalistic video card that's creating the issue all around. That, or I changed so much crap back-and-forth in the DOSBox settings, I inadvertently screwed something else up. Or a combination thereof. I haven't stress tested like this with other emulators to possibly rule out my video card. But I also did not test it in what might be considered a real-life situation: actually playing it for 15 minutes or more, pausing a few, resume play for another 15-20 minutes, Pause, resume etc. My guess is that's how it's designed to be used. The best solution in my mind (and I still contend) is to only start the game when you actually plan to play it. And just play it. Thanks for the thorough explanation! I did look through your AHK script and saw what you're doing there. I was going to test the plugin with similar checks and triggers (that are above and beyond what's already there). But then I tested DOSBox without the plugin being in the mix and saw the issue was still there. So no point. I think (I'm just guessing here) why ReShade Manager works well is that it "attaches" itself (for lack of better words [or understanding of it]) directly to the emulator's executable. So when something happens to the emulator and its window, ReShade is right there to tag along. But that still doesn't explain the black pause screen.

For any plugin, if it's causing LaunchBox to crash, best thing would be to remove it from the Plugins folder. Just tested and the plugin works fine to show badges. BUT... if you run the RetroAchievements Badge Updater from the Tools menu (which is probably what you meant to let me know) it will crash, causing LaunchBox to (forcibly) close. Not good. When updating, the plugin is getting a (403) Forbidden error. Most likely they changed the structure of the site once again. Since this plugin is no longer being updated, you have a couple of options: Completely remove it from the Plugins folder and resort to using LaunchBox's built-in achievement badges. Don't remove any of the plugin files and keep its badges activated. If you come across a game that supports RetroAchievements and the plugins badge isn't showing, right-click the game and select RetroAchievements Badge to add it. But (as you've already discovered) DO NOT click RetroAchievements Badge Updater from the Tools menu. This plugin was passed along to me by @jayjay and I've kept it updated for the past 2.5 years. I am more than happy to pass along the repo to anyone who wishes to continue its legacy. Until that time, there will be no more updates to accommodate changes in the R-Achievements web site.

Do you by chance have your monitors set as.. what Windows identifies as 'Monitor 2' is your primary monitor? Or something flip-flopped like that? When 'the bezel remains and the game is dark black', if you hold alt and press tab until you get to the game, and then let go, does it reappear? Also you said you "have no problems with other games...". Is it just certain DOSBox games? Or just one game that does have issues? Or is it, all DOSBox games have issues [with the plugin], and ScummVM and all other emulators are OK? Thanks again for all your testing and feedback! Much appreciated.

I think (hope) this should fix that. BezelLauncher v2.0.0-beta-4a BezelLauncher (2.0.0-beta-4a).zip

Stop pausing and just play the game. It's still not set up for multitasking during gameplay. All testing was done on a dual monitor setup without issue but admittedly, I didn't try switching between apps while playing and only paused the game 1 to 3 times per session, as that seemed (what I felt to be) realistic. Thanks for stress-testing this. I'll keep experimenting.

BezelLauncher v2.0.0-beta-4 Fixed: Returning from Pause Menu for DOSBox created undesirable visual effects. Setting up DOSBox recommendations: (at least, this is what worked for me) In the \LaunchBox\ThirdParty\DOSBox\ folder, create a new .conf file (i.e. "BL-dosbox.conf"). in this file, put: [sdl] fullscreen=false fulldouble=false fullresolution=1440x1080 windowresolution=1440x1080 output=overlay priority=higher,pause [render] aspect=true scaler=normal3x "1440x1080" (2 locations) is the dimension of the transparent area of your bezel. Adjust as necessary. Save. In LaunchBox, select all your DOSBox games and press Ctrl+E (starts the Bulk Edit Wizard) On the 2nd screen, select the Field DOSBox Configuration File for Value, Browse to and select the new file you created (BL-dosbox.conf) Click Next. Next (again). And No.... Alternately, you could just edit the existing dosbox.conf file. But this way (above), you won't get any inadvertent changes. For the MS-DOS.ini file (under \Plugins\BezelLauncher\Bezels\MS-DOS\, set all 4 values accordingly. i.e. [General] Bezel Screen Top Left X Coordinate=240 Bezel Screen Top Left Y Coordinate=0 Bezel Screen Bottom Right X Coordinate=1680 Bezel Screen Bottom Right Y Coordinate=1080 (above is based on a 1920x1080 bezel with a 1440x1080 transparent (centered) area) Again, this is what worked for me. ⟶ Edit: see 3 posts down for v. beta-4a

Thanks! Glad to hear that part's working now. Appears I failed to mention: Game specific bezels for DOSBox need to be named the same as the games Data Folder (just like ScummVM) (the folder name that the launching game file is located in) In your example, the file would be named Novastor.png (which is the launching bat files' parent folder). Also note, if the platform bezel (MS-DOS.png) and the game(s) bezel(s) have the same sidebar dimensions (making their ini files have the exact same info inside), you only need to have the platforms ini file (MS-DOS.ini). No need to have both ini files if they're the exact same.