PurpleTentacle

Yup, although I think you could stick to stuff like turn based RPGs & be fine with touchscreen controls. That's why I enjoyed Knights of Pen & Paper 1 so much. Very easy to control, yet still fun. That bluetooth controller that ETA Prime was using looked really interesting, though! Apparently, it's the Saitake 7007X. Maybe if I get into this enough I'll pick one up for myself (I kind of dislike syncing my controllers up all the time, so it would be nice to have a dedicated one).

Liking what I see so far. Looks fairly straightforward, too. I actually need to buy a new smartphone, coincidentally. The Moto G7 Plus currently seems like the best bang for the buck, but I usually don't keep track of smartphone models until I need to buy one, so just curious if anyone here has some experience with it or some recommendations in that price range (roughly $250 USD). I typically don't enjoy mobile gaming due to touch screen controls, but fortunately, I bought one of those cellphone clips that work with 8bitdo controllers, so it looks like I'll be getting more use out of that! There are plenty of good solutions like that. Looking forward to messing around with this!

Ok, thanks! I think thinks are running as they should at the moment.

I think I'm gonna hold off on doing LaunchBox syncing, at least for now. I did just add a third PC, and I made the mistake of syncing my RetroArch saves from the new PC onto my laptop's ScummVM saves... so that was interesting to delete, lol. It did get me thinking, with 3 computers, is it best to have one main computer that the other 2 base their syncs off of, or should I do what I'm currently doing, which is to have each computer sync with the other two at the same time. I.E. computer A shares it's RetroArch saves with computer B & C, computer B shares it's RetroArch saves with computer A & C, etc... I was thinking of daisy chaining them, so that A shares with B, B shares with C, and C shares with A (so that it becomes circular), but my 3rd computer is set to sleep after enough downtime... and I'm guessing SyncThing stops working then... Fortunately, I have a backup of LaunchBox with all my saves on both a MicroSD card & another hard drive on my desktop PC... but on Google Drive as well! Yeah, I've put so much time & effort into this that I'm not taking chances.

Their website says, "Easily save your settings on a game by game basis with custom profiles", but I have to assume that requires you to use the program to switch profiles. I don't know anything more about the software than what that video review shows. It is an interesting concept, though!

To add onto what everyone else has said, I'm currently using the 8bitdo SF30 Pro controller (I also have the SN30, same thing, but with SNES style buttons), and find that it works wonderfully for balancing between a retro feel with modern functionality. They just released a new model, called the SN30 Pro+, which has some software that lets you customize some aspects of it. I just watched this review of it, and the guy who tested it said that it has 44 ms of lag via USB, which is the same as the X-Box One controller, and 64ms via Bluetooth, which he claims is among the best he's tested. The only problem I have with the SF30/SN30 Pro is that, after a bit of wear-in time, the d-pad, analogue sticks, and X/Y/A/B buttons become *slightly* stiff. Not that I've had any problem with them, but after a few weeks, they lost a bit of the smooth quality. To be fair, I'm not sure most people would really notice, but people reading a message board on the subject of controller recommendations for emulation are going to be a bit more discerning than your average gamer. They still feel fine, but I do wish they were slightly better. I read that the Pro + has improved components, but that's according to the manufacturer, so I'd be curious to see if anyone else has tested it. I also wish that it had analogue L & R buttons for consoles that benefit from incremental values to their L&R buttons instead of just on or off. Not sure if the Pro + has it. I also bought the 8bitdo M30, which mimics the 6 button controller for the Sega Genesis. It didn't feel right playing Genesis games on a SNES style layout, and I wanted a D-pad closer to the Genesis style, and this filled that need for me. Retro-Bit also makes a similar style controller, but it's wired.

Alright, thanks for your help. From all my testing, it seems to be working the way I want it to (I haven't tried deleting anything, but given that it's syncing things when I create a save state, I have to imagine it works). I do need to set it up on my 3rd PC (I have it connected to my living room TV), but otherwise, I think everything is the way I want it. I'm still debating whether I want to go as far as syncing the data xmls & media. I probably will, although I'm mostly done adding stuff for now (we'll see how long that lasts, lol). The one thing I need to avoid is that sometimes I'll delete my entire LaunchBox folder on my laptop, and then copy the latest version from my PC. I need to do that one last time, so I'll have to close SyncThing on both computers. I might try syncing the data xml & media folders after I do that so that I don't have to delete the whole thing ever again, although I feel like I'll inevitably leave something out (I was thinking it just needed to be LaunchBox.xml, Images & Video, but I took a look at the folders, and there's also Manuals, Music, etc... And even though I don't use those much, I'd still need to sync them, and I'd also need to sync the games folder as well, so... I'll have to think about it). I'm definitely glad you suggested SyncThing. I'm always a bit hesitant to have programs running in the background due to how easy it is for them to mess things up, but so far, it's been very smooth, works the way I want it to, and it's fairly straightforward.

Finally trying Syncthing... I have it set up on 2 computers, where each computer is sharing its RetroArch saves & states directories. The thing is, each one has a different file path because the username on each computer is different. So, for instance, let's say one of them is C:\Users\PurpleTentacle\LaunchBox\Emulators\RetroArch\saves whereas on the other computer it's C:\Users\GreenTentacle\LaunchBox\Emulators\RetroArch\saves. I changed the filepath on each computer so that it saves to correct folder, but what happens if I overwrite a save on one of them? I noticed that when I synced one of the folders, it asked me to take care of some conflicts. Will it does that every time? I'd kind of like it to operate as if they're literally the same folder, but I assume it doesn't quite work that way? What happens if I delete a file on one of my computers? Does it resync that file? Or does it delete it on the other computer? Also, just curious if you've happened to notice, but is running Syncthing resource heavy? My laptop struggles running emulation sometimes, as it is... Dunno if you have the answers to those questions - just wanted to make sure I set this up right.

That's pretty neat! I hadn't settled into setting up a synced save state/save game directory yet, since I was still updating my LaunchBox setup on my desktop PC & hadn't finalized things yet (maybe I never truly will, lol), but I've essentially reached the point where I'm ready to setup a synced system. Are you able to set it up so that if you update LaunchBox on one computer, it automatically updates LaunchBox on the other computers? I.E. so that if you add a game on one computer, it will automatically update on the other computers? I had considered that, but I wasn't sure if it would work smoothly.

Ah, ok, I was thinking that the Backup/Restore settings was closer to just automating the process of making a total backup of LaunchBox (similar to manually copying LaunchBox to another drive or such). Both of those features sound great to me.

So on the idea of, "Big Box Theme-Specific Settings (Save and Restore Settings for Each Theme)", I'm kind of curious as to what this would entail. I was there for the live stream, but I kind of forgot the concept behind this. What aspect(s) would be saved/restored? One feature that I thought of that I wanted (but forgot to suggest) was the idea of having the ability to save what themes are being used for what platforms. Sometimes I want to switch themes, but I've put a lot of work in choosing the theme I like the most for each platform, and I don't want to lose that. I'd love to be able to save/load different setups to make it easier to change themes without losing the way I have it now. Is that essentially what that option means? Or are there other settings that it's referring to?

I've got a collection of NES/SNES/Genesis rom hacks, and I'm while I've enjoyed some of them, I don't know which games are good & which are bad. I also don't know which rom hacks are worth getting that I don't already have. I'm mostly familiar with the Kaizo/Grand Poo World Super Mario hacks, I'm terrible at them, but I do find them fun.

Ah, okay, I see it's purpose then. I'll keep that in mind.

I'm actually not even sure what the "VideoURL" category is for, unless that's just another name for the video that LaunchBox downloads when you download media... But the videos I saw in the moderator queue was over 3 minutes. Some of the videos also had either watermarks or the names of the video creator on the side bezels. So far, I've just skipped those, since I didn't want to approve/reject something I wasn't sure about, but what are the guidelines on this?

Just tried the new version, and it works for me! Tried it a few times, and it worked just like normal.

I was suspecting that might be the case, given that after I posted about the issue here, I tried using a YouTube video downloader website, and it also had issues. Glad to know it's not just me, at least. Thanks for working on!

Alright, I posted in that thread. Thanks for the idea!

Just started getting this error today, never had problems in the past (outside of when I tried to use a URL with a timestamp, and I believe if I had tried to download a video if one had already existed, but I don't think that's the issue here.) Anyway, here's the error report: Value cannot be null. Parameter name: value App: LaunchBox Version: 9.10 Type: System.ArgumentNullException Site: U Value[T,U](System.Collections.Generic.IEnumerable`1[T]) Source: Newtonsoft.Json at Newtonsoft.Json.Linq.Extensions.Value[T,U](IEnumerable`1 value) at YoutubeExplode.Internal.Parsers.VideoEmbedPageParser.ParseSts() at YoutubeExplode.YoutubeClient.<GetVideoPlayerContextAsync>d__43.MoveNext() --- End of stack trace from previous location where exception was thrown --- at System.Runtime.ExceptionServices.ExceptionDispatchInfo.Throw() at System.Runtime.CompilerServices.TaskAwaiter.HandleNonSuccessAndDebuggerNotification(Task task) at YoutubeExplode.YoutubeClient.<GetVideoMediaStreamInfosAsync>d__45.MoveNext() --- End of stack trace from previous location where exception was thrown --- at System.Runtime.ExceptionServices.ExceptionDispatchInfo.Throw() at System.Runtime.CompilerServices.TaskAwaiter.HandleNonSuccessAndDebuggerNotification(Task task) at YoutubeScraper.Youtube.<youtubeAsync>d__4.MoveNext() --- End of stack trace from previous location where exception was thrown --- at System.Runtime.ExceptionServices.ExceptionDispatchInfo.Throw() at System.Windows.Threading.ExceptionWrapper.InternalRealCall(Delegate callback, Object args, Int32 numArgs) at System.Windows.Threading.ExceptionWrapper.TryCatchWhen(Object source, Delegate callback, Object args, Int32 numArgs, Delegate catchHandler) Recent Log: 12:38:52 PM Music.Prepare Start 12:38:52 PM Music.Kill Start 12:38:52 PM Music.Kill Finished 12:38:52 PM Music.NotifyTrackList Start 12:38:52 PM Music.NotifyTrackList Invoke WPF 12:40:06 PM Music.Play Start 12:40:06 PM Music.Kill Start 12:40:06 PM Music.Kill Finished 12:40:06 PM Music.Play Empty Music Path 12:40:06 PM Music.NotifyTrackList Start 12:40:06 PM Music.NotifyTrackList Invoke WPF 12:40:41 PM Music.Stop Start 12:40:41 PM Music.Kill Start 12:40:41 PM Music.Kill Finished 12:41:26 PM Music.Play Start 12:41:26 PM Music.Kill Start 12:41:26 PM Music.Kill Finished 12:41:26 PM Music.Play Empty Music Path 12:41:26 PM Music.NotifyTrackList Start 12:41:26 PM Music.NotifyTrackList Invoke WPF 12:41:43 PM Exception

YouTube Scrapper is one of the plugins that helped me keep my sanity in being able to download videos for games that didn't have any on the LaunchBox/EmuMovies servers, so I'm a little disappointed that I'm suddenly having issues with it. Anyone have any ideas? The only time it used to crash was when I used an invalid URL, like one with a time stamp. I think it also crashes when there's already a video, but I can't remember... (I don't remember what the debug report said for that) Edit: In the past, I had unblocked the dll files. I tried redownloading the files (it was the first idea I had), and there was no option to unblock them... Just wanted to mention that. Anyway, here's the error report: Value cannot be null. Parameter name: value App: LaunchBox Version: 9.10 Type: System.ArgumentNullException Site: U Value[T,U](System.Collections.Generic.IEnumerable`1[T]) Source: Newtonsoft.Json at Newtonsoft.Json.Linq.Extensions.Value[T,U](IEnumerable`1 value) at YoutubeExplode.Internal.Parsers.VideoEmbedPageParser.ParseSts() at YoutubeExplode.YoutubeClient.<GetVideoPlayerContextAsync>d__43.MoveNext() --- End of stack trace from previous location where exception was thrown --- at System.Runtime.ExceptionServices.ExceptionDispatchInfo.Throw() at System.Runtime.CompilerServices.TaskAwaiter.HandleNonSuccessAndDebuggerNotification(Task task) at YoutubeExplode.YoutubeClient.<GetVideoMediaStreamInfosAsync>d__45.MoveNext() --- End of stack trace from previous location where exception was thrown --- at System.Runtime.ExceptionServices.ExceptionDispatchInfo.Throw() at System.Runtime.CompilerServices.TaskAwaiter.HandleNonSuccessAndDebuggerNotification(Task task) at YoutubeScraper.Youtube.<youtubeAsync>d__4.MoveNext() --- End of stack trace from previous location where exception was thrown --- at System.Runtime.ExceptionServices.ExceptionDispatchInfo.Throw() at System.Windows.Threading.ExceptionWrapper.InternalRealCall(Delegate callback, Object args, Int32 numArgs) at System.Windows.Threading.ExceptionWrapper.TryCatchWhen(Object source, Delegate callback, Object args, Int32 numArgs, Delegate catchHandler) Recent Log: 12:38:52 PM Music.Prepare Start 12:38:52 PM Music.Kill Start 12:38:52 PM Music.Kill Finished 12:38:52 PM Music.NotifyTrackList Start 12:38:52 PM Music.NotifyTrackList Invoke WPF 12:40:06 PM Music.Play Start 12:40:06 PM Music.Kill Start 12:40:06 PM Music.Kill Finished 12:40:06 PM Music.Play Empty Music Path 12:40:06 PM Music.NotifyTrackList Start 12:40:06 PM Music.NotifyTrackList Invoke WPF 12:40:41 PM Music.Stop Start 12:40:41 PM Music.Kill Start 12:40:41 PM Music.Kill Finished 12:41:26 PM Music.Play Start 12:41:26 PM Music.Kill Start 12:41:26 PM Music.Kill Finished 12:41:26 PM Music.Play Empty Music Path 12:41:26 PM Music.NotifyTrackList Start 12:41:26 PM Music.NotifyTrackList Invoke WPF 12:41:43 PM Exception

I'd also be ok with how to switch from the analogue stick to the D-pad, but I'm having trouble with that too... I was playing Ms. Pacman last night, and noticed that using the analogue stick was rather wonky. Since it's an 8 way stick for a 4 direction game. it doesn't always interpret my intentions well, even if I'm careful. So I tried to redo the controls for the D-pad by going into RetroArch's Settings--> Input --> User 1 Binds. Then I switched the binds for the D-pad & analogue stick. It worked... *except* for the the fact that up & down no longer worked! Just left & right. Just to be sure, I have tried other games that use the D-pad, and the up & down buttons work on my gamepad (It's the 8bitdo SN30 Pro). Oddly enough, when I tried my X-Box One controller, nothing I remapped changed anything, making me even more confused as to what's going on. Ideally, I'd like both the D-pad & left analogue stick to work, although I don't know if there are games that use those separately, so I'm not sure that's a good idea. But as a backup option, I wanted to be able to remap the D-pad so that it works. I've never had problems in the past, so I'm a bit confused as to why it's not working now. Any ideas?

So my main version of Launch Box is on my desktop, but I also keep a version of it on my laptop. I tried running a DOS game last night, and while DOS Box launched, it crashed before it properly loaded. I tried running DOS Box outside of Launch Box, and it had the same problem. I had a version of DOS Box on my laptop, unrelated to LaunchBox, and when I ran it, it opened up fine. I tried deleting DOS Box in my Launch Box folder & replacing it with that version. When I ran it from that location, it ran fine. So I booted up LaunchBox (noticed that it updated something in the DOS Box folder), and when I tried to run a DOS game, it crashed again. Now, on my laptop, I don't remember having a problem in the past. I copied the version of Launch Box from my desktop PC to my laptop (and DOS Box runs on my desktop without issue), and when I tried to run a DOS game from within Launch Box, DOS Box crashed again. Any ideas on what the issue might be?

My situation right now is that I have my desktop PC where I keep my main copy of LaunchBox for editing (I usually keep a backup on another drive in case something goes wrong, which, fortunately, it never has). Then I also have my laptop in my room, and a PC in my living room connected to my TV. I'll often update the laptop version often, which means deleting everything, but making a backup of the save states/saved games beforehand. As you can imagine it would be quite handy to have either a cloud storage save spot, or that automated sync. It's great that we're at the point where either option is easy to setup.

I actually uninstalled OneDrive (or maybe I just disabled it, don't remember) because it kept interrupting what I was doing to ask me to sign in (like, even in the middle of a game). I assume that if you actually sign in & use it, that it's not invasive in ways like that? I might give it a try.

I was looking at another program, Syncthing, but it seemed a bit complicated for such a small thing. FreeFileSync does look a bit less complicated.

Oh, nice! I've never used cloud storage beyond just usage Google Drive as a general way to transfer things, but I never set it up as a folder/auto storage. I was hoping there was something like that, but I wasn't sure. Thanks for the reply, I'll look into setting it up!