-Not sure where else this would go. Some command line questions.

[kamyk2000]

I have a few questions regarding command line parameters for some dosbox games I have, and for potentially adding my PCEngine CD games to Launchbox. I recently bought Dungeon Keeper Gold and Dungeon Keeper 2 from GOG because I was tired of some various windows 7 issues. Dungeons Keeper 2 is a windows .exe so that's not in question, but Dungeon Keeper Gold and Deeper Dungeons are both run through Dosbox shortcuts. I'd like to add them to Launchbox but I don;t know the first thing about Dosbox. The shortcut command lines are: Target "C:\GOG Games\Dungeon Keeper Gold\DOSBOX\DOSBox.exe" -conf "..\dosboxDK.conf" -conf "..\dosboxDK_single.conf" -noconsole -c exit Start in "C:\GOG Games\Dungeon Keeper Gold\DOSBOX" and Target "C:\GOG Games\Dungeon Keeper Gold\DOSBOX\DOSBox.exe" -conf "..\dosboxDK.conf" -conf "..\dosboxDK_addon.conf" -noconsole -c exit Start in "C:\GOG Games\Dungeon Keeper Gold\DOSBOX" My question is how do I put those into Launchbox? I mean, what goes where? Sorry if this is a n00b question, but as far as Dosbox is concerned, or how to put all that info into Launchbox I am a n00b. My other question relates to PCEngine, the emulator for the Turbografix-16/Turbografix CD. It has no issues when launching .pce images, but irritatingly the creator deliberately left out emulated mounting of CD images. I did some research and discovered the command lines for the virtual hard drive software I use - Alchohol 52%, and some more research gave me command line options for loading a pre-mounted CD image into MagicEngine (PCE.exe). I have created a batch file (it works perfectly) that mounts a Turbografix CD game and then launches it into MagicEngine, but I'd really like to simplify things a little if possible rather than have to create a batch file for every CD game. Naturally I mean that I want to simplify adding them to Launcbox if that's a possibility. AxCmd.exe is the virtual hard drive mount/unmount command line program. /M for Mount /U for Unmount. I had to use quotes because Windows 7 is an ass, and didn't include modern naming conventions for the command line (no spaces allowed), but uses them when installing things. The batch file I have is as follows (my virtual drive is drive K): ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Echo off "C:\Program Files (x86)\Alcohol Soft\Alcohol 52\AxCmd.exe" K: /M:"G:\Games (E)\Emul8\Turbo16\CD Games\Rondo of blood cd\Dracula X - Rondo of Blood.cue" "G:\Games (E)\Emul8\Turbo16\Magic-Engine 1.1.3\pce.exe" -cd:K pause "C:\Program Files (x86)\Alcohol Soft\Alcohol 52\AxCmd.exe" K: /U ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Is it possible to use Launchbox somehow to send all that info for me for each game so I don't have to make batch files for them all? Like have the "emulator" Launchbox uses in that instance be "C:\Program Files (x86)\Alcohol Soft\Alcohol 52\AxCmd.exe" K: /M: and pass along the iso/cue name, then have it send the command "G:\Games (E)\Emul8\Turbo16\Magic-Engine 1.1.3\pce.exe" -cd:K ? Or am I stuck making batch files for each game, and adding the batch files to Launchbox as the game entry?

[Jason Carr]

No worries, easiest thing to do for GOG games is to use the GOG-provided shortcut file in the application path. Otherwise, you can customize the DOSBox configuration and such if you put it into LaunchBox proper (select the DOS startup exe and DOSBox config file), but there's no reason to do that if you're happy with the GOG configuration. Per the batch file thing, you might be able to do all that by adding multiple additional applications and marking them to auto-start before running the game, but I'm not sure that would really be any easier. It would certainly be nice to have an automated solution, so I'll see if there's any way to do that for a future version.

[kamyk2000]

As for the latter question, I actually figured it out myself just a bit ago, although it's not an ideal solution. But it works. I added an emulator I called TurboGrafix CD with the application path C:\Program Files (x86)\Alcohol Soft\Alcohol 52\AxCmd.exe and the command line switches k: /m: with "no space before rom" checked. Then I imported the cue file for Rondo of blood to it. Then I simplified my batch file to: ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- @echo off start "" /wait pce -cd:K "C:\Program Files (x86)\Alcohol Soft\Alcohol 52\AxCmd.exe" K: /U ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- and added that to additional apps, with "Automatically run after main application" checked. Works flawlessly. The only reason I say it isn't ideal is because I have to add that bit manually to every CD game I add. I was hoping that there would be an entry for additional apps in batch edit, but sadly no such luck. As for the Dosbox question, I'm afraid I still don't understand. I want to get rid of the shortcuts from my desktop, and I'm clueless where all that info goes if I add those games to Launchbox. Are you saying to point Launchbox at the shortcuts as the app to run? When you say "Otherwise, you can customize the DOSBox configuration and such if you put it into LaunchBox proper (select the DOS startup exe and DOSBox config file)", that's exactly what I'm unsure of. I'm afraid I'd need step by step instructions. I know right? I figured out that batch file stuff, but I'm lost on the Dosbox thing. Go figure.

[Duckeenie]

kamyk2000 said As for the latter question, I actually figured it out myself just a bit ago, although it's not an ideal solution. But it works. I added an emulator I called TurboGrafix CD with the application path C:\Program Files (x86)\Alcohol Soft\Alcohol 52\AxCmd.exe and the command line switches k: /m: with "no space before rom" checked. Then I imported the cue file for Rondo of blood to it. Then I simplified my batch file to: ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- @echo off start "" /wait pce -cd:K "C:\Program Files (x86)\Alcohol Soft\Alcohol 52\AxCmd.exe" K: /U ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- and added that to additional apps, with "Automatically run after main application" checked. Works flawlessly. The only reason I say it isn't ideal is because I have to add that bit manually to every CD game I add. I was hoping that there would be an entry for additional apps in batch edit, but sadly no such luck. As for the Dosbox question, I'm afraid I still don't understand. I want to get rid of the shortcuts from my desktop, and I'm clueless where all that info goes if I add those games to Launchbox. Are you saying to point Launchbox at the shortcuts as the app to run? When you say "Otherwise, you can customize the DOSBox configuration and such if you put it into LaunchBox proper (select the DOS startup exe and DOSBox config file)", that's exactly what I'm unsure of. I'm afraid I'd need step by step instructions. I know right? I figured out that batch file stuff, but I'm lost on the Dosbox thing. Go figure.

RE: Your CD mounting problem I've not really worked with Alcohol so I may be misunderstanding your problem but might something like this save you having to add parameters to every game? LB emulator target = My Batch ....................................... @echo off REM My Batch "C:\Program Files (x86)\Alcohol Soft\Alcohol 52\AxCmd.exe" K: /U start "" /wait pce -cd:K .......................................

[kamyk2000]

I don't understand what you mean by "LB emulator target = My Batch"? I'm not having any issues mounting CDs or running them at this point, just adding the proper commands to the relevant Launchbox entries en-masse instead of game by game... If you saw my post, I already wrote that batch file, including a command to unmount the game when I'm done. The problem is I had to use Launchbox's main emulator command line to mount the CDs, so I have to call the batch file from the additional apps entry and I have to add that info to each Launchbox entry manually. That, and otherwise still having no clue how to enter those other games into the Dosbox entries in Launchbox. I have been fiddling with them in Launchbox and I still don't get it. They both seem to require two -conf files, and Launchbox seems to only allow adding one. They also have a bunch of switches. I'd really appreciate someone looking over the command lines I posted for Dungeon Keeper and Deeper Dungeons, and telling me exactly what bit of information goes in what lines in the Launchbox entries for them. When I paste the command lines from the shortcuts directly into the main command lines in Launchbox it tells me "The specified file cannot be found" when I try to run them.

[Duckeenie]

kamyk2000 said I don't understand what you mean by "LB emulator target = My Batch"? I'm not having any issues mounting CDs or running them at this point, just adding the proper commands to the relevant Launchbox entries en-masse instead of game by game... If you saw my post, I already wrote that batch file, including a command to unmount the game when I'm done. The problem is I had to use Launchbox's main emulator command line to mount the CDs, so I have to call the batch file from the additional apps entry and I have to add that info to each Launchbox entry manually. That, and otherwise still having no clue how to enter those other games into the Dosbox entries in Launchbox. I have been fiddling with them in Launchbox and I still don't get it. They both seem to require two -conf files, and Launchbox seems to only allow adding one. They also have a bunch of switches. I'd really appreciate someone looking over the command lines I posted for Dungeon Keeper and Deeper Dungeons, and telling me exactly what bit of information goes in what lines in the Launchbox entries for them. When I paste the command lines from the shortcuts directly into the main command lines in Launchbox it tells me "The specified file cannot be found" when I try to run them.

My disclaimer was right there at the top, so not sure why you're surprised that my answer is off the mark Anyway, I was aiming to guide your thought process more than anything. So: You did say you were having to add stuff to each game manually, which isn't ideal. The only piece of the puzzle you're missing really is parameter passing. The solution is to get your batch to do all the work Just use LB as usual but in LB set the emulator as your batch for PCE games; Then read the parameter/s that you sent from LB as %1 %2 etc in your batch. This batch code should be some like you need: -------------------------------------------- C: CD "C:\Program Files (x86)\Alcohol Soft\Alcohol 52\" AxCmd.exe k: /m %1 CD [where ever PCE is] start "" /wait pce -cd:K CD "C:\Program Files (x86)\Alcohol Soft\Alcohol 52\" AxCmd.exe" K: /U -------------------------------------------- Have a good day

[kamyk2000]

Unfortunately no, that didn't work. The 1% didn't register the game name and path for some reason. I don't know if it just didn't pick it up or if it's Achohol 52% being picky. Damn, that would have made a lot of my clunkier games and emulators much easier. Like yesterday I added a 3 CD windows game, and had to make a batch file for each CD. Sigh, thanks for the suggestion anyway... Edit: Woot! Yes actually that does work. I had to put the %1 like /m%1 with no space. Whoohoo! Thanks for the tip! That just simplified my batch file use with Launchbox enormously. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Still hoping someone will give me an answer on the Dosbox thing though... Right now I moved the shortcuts from my desktop to the actual game folders and linked the shortcuts as the application to run, but I'd really like to know the right way to set it up.