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MAME is missing the download button


vavavr00m

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My LB installation was on the latest Stable release and the download button was neither showing up for RetroArch nor MAME. I tried to manually install RetroArch but then decided to switch to Beta to check if the missing download button issue had been fixed. RetroArch's download button was indeed fixed but MAME still doesn't have it. I already repaired twice (Stable & Beta) and relaunched Launchbox on both occasions. Did I misunderstand what the MAME plugin was for?

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Missing from where? Exactly. Just checked the plugin manager and Mame still shows (both latest beta and in latest stable). Also did a test import for Mame roms and the automatic installer shows there as well. 

Can you provide a pic of what you are seeing. 

Screenshot 2024-08-20 at 7.14.45 AM.png

Screenshot 2024-08-20 at 7.10.15 AM.png

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54 minutes ago, vavavr00m said:

Sure. See the screenshot below. I was expecting a download button but it's only a link. RetroArch was just a link but became a download button after installing the beta.

image.thumb.png.f94a207f7ae96a04cc356c181dc598fa.png

This is by design due to MAME's unique case of needing matching versions between the emulator and romset.

The MAME plugin contains all the logic we already had within the program, and therefore in order to download MAME you need to use the MAME Arcade Full Set wizard. Nothing has changed in that respect. The primary benefit of decoupling existing code into a plugin is the idea that we can fix the program in-between major updates, and allow legacy versions of LaunchBox to have better support in the long run.

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Posted (edited)

1. Thanks. So, do the plugins neither auto populate emulator settings nor add the Download button in the Emulator Manager?

2. The confusion stems from the tooltips and plugin descriptions being generic.

image.png.13df74fc2d9b3c510b78464b28016ed3.png

image.thumb.png.2362a36bd4d240c9f82cf4639e89ae13.png

With regards to the plugins, the plugins have the description "Provides functionality to allow [emulator name] to be automatically installed [and updated] within LaunchBox" and an dropdown tooltip saying "We've auto-populated proper settings for [emulator name]. You shouldn't need to change them. Simply use the link to the left to download the emulator (if necessary) and then click the Browse button." I feel like it would be good to describe what the plugin does in detail and have the MAME plugin description say that it needs "matching versions between the emulator and romset" and must "use the MAME Arcade Full Set Wizard to auto-download/install MAME."

This is an example of how I believe the plugin description should look like (below may or may not reflect the actual functionality of the plugins):

  • Automatically downloads, installs and configures the emulator if added via: [ROM files import wizard] [MS-DOS games import wizard] [MAME Arcade Full Set import wizard] [Emulator Manager]
  • Automatically updates the emulator if added via: [ROM files import wizard] [MS-DOS games import wizard] [MAME Arcade Full Set import wizard] [Emulator Manager]
  • Automatically populates Emulator settings in the Emulator Manager when selecting the emulator from the dropdown list
  • Adds a [link] [Download button] in the Emulator Manager
  • IMPORTANT: If you have romset, MAME needs matching versions between the emulator and romset and it is strongly suggested to use the MAME Arcade Full Set import wizard to automatically download MAME. If you wish to download the emulator manually, use the link/download button to the left to download the emulator (if necessary) and then click the Browse button to select the executable's location. Please note that only the full set is accepted by the MAME Arcade Full Set import wizard.

About the tooltips, if you're saying that they should have matching versions, shouldn't the tooltip for MAME be also updated? I've only just recently started checking out LB again despite being a forum member for years. While what you're saying may be common sense to some people, it is not to someone who is "new", not keeping track of MAME/LB and only prefers having a few ROMs instead of the full set which leads me to the last 2 questions... 

4. Why must I import the full set and use the MAME Arcade Full Set import wizard if I don't have the space for the romset and only want to import a few ROMs which I have no way of remembering/knowing what version of MAME they're for?

5. Can't I have LB's Emulator Manager:

  • install specific versions without going through the full set import wizard
  • auto-download and auto-update to the latest MAME version while maintaining the old versions intact just so that it satisfies "matching versions between the emulator and romset"
Edited by vavavr00m
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