LaunchBox 14.1.0 Beta Thread

[MysterNybble]

2 hours ago, JoeViking245 said:

Pretty sure I never had combine enabled (but stranger things have happened).

All tests were ROMs imported from an internal HDD.

Fortunately/un-fortunately, my 4 tests this morning were all under 15 seconds. With each import of 10 [different] ROMs being faster than the previous one.  e.g. 15 sec, 13 sec, 11 sec and the last, seemingly near instant. 

The only difference from previous test was, today, the local db didn't get updated alongside the import process. And to clarify, all Saving Games times mentioned (1 minute, 4 minutes...) by me were from the time Saving Games appeared, to the end.  aka, They did not include the update local db time.

I'll try again tomorrow and see if I can find something in my/the process that triggers the anomaly.

 

I was able to recreate something similar, finally. It wasn't Combine ROMs after all or related to metadata download or anything like that.

When importing (and at startup with auto-import on), LaunchBox checks every game's file path on disk while holding up the import. We were inadvertently leaning on Windows/filesystem caches and when importing on a "cold" disk that took quite a while which is likely why I didn't see it originally as have tests running all the time. I was able to reproduce it on external drive (since you can easily reset windows cache by unplug/plugging it in) and I saw it go from 100 seconds to under a second.

But we don't need to do those file system checks as we already know about all your games from the datafiles so less spinning and less waiting. Beta 3 will include this tweak and hopefully this is what you were seeing, if not, I added more logs to help pinpoint it as well.

[SqHd]

Looking forward to this fix. I've noticed it for a while now. (Note: I use external drives.)

[xmas]

10 hours ago, MysterNybble said:

I was able to recreate something similar, finally. It wasn't Combine ROMs after all or related to metadata download or anything like that.

When importing (and at startup with auto-import on), LaunchBox checks every game's file path on disk while holding up the import. We were inadvertently leaning on Windows/filesystem caches and when importing on a "cold" disk that took quite a while which is likely why I didn't see it originally as have tests running all the time. I was able to reproduce it on external drive (since you can easily reset windows cache by unplug/plugging it in) and I saw it go from 100 seconds to under a second.

But we don't need to do those file system checks as we already know about all your games from the datafiles so less spinning and less waiting. Beta 3 will include this tweak and hopefully this is what you were seeing, if not, I added more logs to help pinpoint it as well.

I think your latest finding is exactly my issue.

My ROMs are on an internal HDD (F:), and LaunchBox runs from an SSD (J:). Imports used to be fast on this same drive, so it seems to be a change in LaunchBox, not the drive.

Matching is fast. Only “Saving Games” is slow, and only on the first import after opening LaunchBox. Automatic imports are off for my platforms (only storefronts are on), so this happens with manual drag & drop imports. Combine ROMs is off when importing. My library is about 70k games across many custom regional platforms, so a cold check of every game path on a spinning drive would explain 2–5 minutes.

I’ll test Beta 3 and report back with logs!

[AzgoRAth]

Hey guys I found another bug in Beta 2. It looks lik BB doesnt save/remember the last game and last platform because every time i exit BB and relaunch it, it starts on 3DO (The 1st platform) instead of the last platform i used. I've tried disabling and reenabling the options but no change.

[launchretrogirl2562]

9 minutes ago, AzgoRAth said:

Hey guys I found another bug in Beta 2. It looks lik BB doesnt save/remember the last game and last platform because every time i exit BB and relaunch it, it starts on 3DO (The 1st platform) instead of the last platform i used. I've tried disabling and reenabling the options but no change.

You are right, I hadn't even realized that this was related to the beta. But for me it happens also in LB
So each time I do something in LB, I get back to platform ALL...which is a downer cause that are over 100K games that it reverts back to.
So I think then that it's not just BB, but also LB.

[JoeViking245]

3 hours ago, launchretrogirl2562 said:

each time I do something in LB, I get back to platform ALL

Can you elaborate a little on "do something"? 

Unless by "do something" you mean restart LaunchBox, I don't think it's the same thing as AzgoRAth was experiencing in Big Box.  Also, I just started up LaunchBox and it opened to my "last" platform. (vs. defaulting to "All").

 

3 hours ago, AzgoRAth said:

It looks lik BB doesnt save/remember the last game and last platform because every time i exit BB and relaunch it, it starts on 3DO (The 1st platform) instead of the last platform i used.

I just tested here and Big Box [for me] did startup in last Platform I had opened.  

There may be something else in a setting somewhere (e.g. starting in Platform View) but I haven't finished my 1st cup of coffee to "think" about it.  The only other possibility I can think of is how is BB being shut down and is it getting a chance to properly save the "Last Platform" used?

Edit:  I did not check for, if it was remembering the last game.

[launchretrogirl2562]

4 minutes ago, JoeViking245 said:

Can you elaborate a little on "do something"? 

Unless by "do something" you mean restart LaunchBox, I don't think it's the same thing as AzgoRAth was experiencing in Big Box.  Also, I just started up LaunchBox and it opened to my "last" platform. (vs. defaulting to "All").

 

I just tested here and Big Box [for me] did startup in last Platform I had opened.  

There may be something else in a setting somewhere (e.g. starting in Platform View) but I haven't finished my 1st cup of coffee to "think" about it.  The only other possibility I can think of is how is BB being shut down and is it getting a chance to properly save the "Last Platform" used?

Edit:  I did not check for, if it was remembering the last game.

My apologies for being unclear.
I will check again with clear steps with which I hope u can reproduce it.

[skizzosjt]

3 hours ago, AzgoRAth said:

Hey guys I found another bug in Beta 2. It looks lik BB doesnt save/remember the last game and last platform because every time i exit BB and relaunch it, it starts on 3DO (The 1st platform) instead of the last platform i used. I've tried disabling and reenabling the options but no change.

 

 

13 minutes ago, JoeViking245 said:

I just tested here and Big Box [for me] did startup in last Platform I had opened.  

There may be something else in a setting somewhere (e.g. starting in Platform View) but I haven't finished my 1st cup of coffee to "think" about it.  The only other possibility I can think of is how is BB being shut down and is it getting a chance to properly save the "Last Platform" used?

Edit:  I did not check for, if it was remembering the last game.

 

 

I reported this previously.

LAST PLATFORM being properly recalled has been bugged for last few releases. 

last game being remembered is working fine for me

I found it has some bad logic being used for when the last platform is saved. Previous post for reference. devs, please address this issue. 

 

 

in my opinion it should work where I don't even need to go into a platform for it to be remembered as last platform. for ex, scrolling through the platform wheel, land on Sega Genesis, back out to system menu, right then and there Sega Genesis should be written to BigBoxSettings as the last platform. instead it waits for users to enter then exit platforms to make that write, but the logic used isn't working right as it can save platforms that were previously selected rather than the most recent platform. 

[JoeViking245]

49 minutes ago, skizzosjt said:

I reported this previously.

LAST PLATFORM being properly recalled has been bugged for last few releases. 

I recall that previous post now.

If I'm understanding correctly, the concern is not that when you restart BB, it doesn't start on the last platform you left on.  But that it's not physically writing to the BigBoxSettings.xml file every time you select a different platform.  

It's only writing to the xml file if:
a)  you go into the platform [to look at the games] then go back to platform View
b)  when shutting down Big Box

 

Is that correct?  Or did I miss something [again] (which I sometime do, and I apologize for that).

[AzgoRAth]

LB is saving the last selected platform on my side. I've also confirmed beta 1 saves the last platform and game fine so I would have to guess that beta 2's super fast saving upon exit isnt quite saving everything.

 

Edited 23 hours ago by AzgoRAth

[MysterNybble]

Quite a week but Beta 3 is finally out!

Thanks again to everyone testing these betas. This beta is inspired quite heavily by feedback here and from our bug reporting tools So thanks for your reports, logs, and back-and-forth.

tl;dr; imports no longer stall on "Saving games", closing LaunchBox no longer shrinks your mouse pointer, cloud sync stops inflating play time, badges are sharp again on high-DPI screens, quick filters can exclude values, RetroAchievements is now a managed plugin, Save Management restores are a lot safer, and the usual pile of fixes

FIXES FROM THIS THREAD

• "Saving games" for-ev-er: The first import would sit on "Saving games" for minutes. @xmas, @JoeViking245, @SqHd report back if this seems better, the same, worse?!
• The Incredible Shrinking Mouse Pointer: Is no longer out in theaters. @Drybonz, @launchretrogirl2562, @dukdukgoos, @eMonster420 lemme know!
• Cloud sync loves Animal Crossing: a bug in beta 2, fixed in beta 3. @Hanz this is fixed going forward, I'll need to sort out the bad data on our servers though.
• Blurry Badges we don't need no stinking Blurry Badges: fixed, was  14.0 bug, fixed here. @Kedog
• Help > Fine Don't Help: button no goes to the right place @xmas
• "Applying metadata" for-ev-er Part 2: The progress bar no longer gets stuck after the database update, and automatic imports no longer interrupt you with a metadata download prompt @JoeViking245
• Curious case of Edit Game media: title cap changes, swapping image types deleting images, and prev > < next issues @xmas this has a chance of fixing the Alternate Names "file in use" error you reported as well

OTHER HIGHLIGHTS

• RetroAchievements is now a plugin: allowing updates through the Plugin Manager, it's also better with rate limits and errors
• Quick filters can exclude: Click a filter value once to include it, again to exclude it, and once more to clear it. Exclusions carry over when you save filters to a playlist.
• Save Management: Restoring into another save-state slot now asks first and backs up what it replaces. Saves made through Launch With are tracked with the emulator you actually used, and Dolphin and PCSX2 restores no longer duplicate or clobber other saves. @Nixx I think you reported most of these
• Big Box: Large artwork no longer freezes browsing, artwork survives the Sleep command, video previews keep playing into Game Details and full screen, and transparent box art stays flat with 3D boxes on.
• Mappings: Assigning a key or button that's already in use now warns you and offers to replace it, and one controller press triggers one action.
• VLC playback smoothness (experimental): If you tried "EXPERIMENTAL: Use smooth high frame rate rendering for VLC" under Options > Video during the 14.0 betas and it didn't help try it again! @skizzosjt, @Rlad, @Heartless1Riku this is a carryover from 14.0 testing - It still needs a restart after changing it.
• Startup Performance: Also better, a lot better.
• Plugin developers: New shared services let plugins read achievements, profiles, recent activity, leaderboards, and game data from any source. If you built against the 14.1 beta APIs I probably broke everything again. 14.0 APIs are unchanged, though the old RetroAchievements stuff is considered obsolete now.

Same rules as before - read what I typed, include the details from the first post with your feedback, and if something breaks, more details are more helpful which is more better for more of us.

[Drybonz]

Ok, no more shrinking mouse pointer and my launch and exit speeds are wtf fast now.  Very happy with beta 3 so far... thank you.

(for anyone with the mouse issue... you will have to upgrade to beta 3, reset your mouse size in Win one more time, then when you restart beta 3 it will be fixed).

Edited 22 hours ago by Drybonz

[MysterNybble]

9 hours ago, AzgoRAth said:

Hey guys I found another bug in Beta 2. It looks lik BB doesnt save/remember the last game and last platform because every time i exit BB and relaunch it, it starts on 3DO (The 1st platform) instead of the last platform i used. I've tried disabling and reenabling the options but no change.

 

9 hours ago, launchretrogirl2562 said:

You are right, I hadn't even realized that this was related to the beta. But for me it happens also in LB
So each time I do something in LB, I get back to platform ALL...which is a downer cause that are over 100K games that it reverts back to.
So I think then that it's not just BB, but also LB.

I'll do my own testing as well, but if you learn anything as you play around would appreciate more details. Thanks!

[launchretrogirl2562]

4 hours ago, Cosmosis said:

i get this error now, here is my .xal, there's also a "textgameview" without the s

 

7 minutes ago, MysterNybble said:

 

I'll do my own testing as well, but if you learn anything as you play around would appreciate more details. Thanks!

I'll try, and hope I can reproduce it. Cause u know how it goes, u are clicking left and right and doing ordinary stuff, not paying attention to things.
And maybe it's nothing, then all the better. If I find anything I'll post it here.

[MysterNybble]

2 minutes ago, launchretrogirl2562 said:

 

I'll try, and hope I can reproduce it. Cause u know how it goes, u are clicking left and right and doing ordinary stuff, not paying attention to things.
And maybe it's nothing, then all the better. If I find anything I'll post it here.

I would never. Everything I do is refined, methodical, and intentional. j/k, me on an average day >

[MysterNybble]

24 minutes ago, Drybonz said:

Ok, no more shrinking mouse pointer and my launch and exit speeds are wtf fast now.  Very happy with beta 3 so far... thank you.

(for anyone with the mouse issue... you will have to upgrade to beta 3, reset your mouse size in Win one more time, then when you restart beta 3 it will be fixed).

wtf fast, I like it

and yea, good callout on the if it was broke, you'll need to manually fix, thanks for that!

[dukdukgoos]

Startup/Shutdown speed is remarkably improved. Quick filter feature is much appreciated.

...and no more tiny cursor!

[kobaturtle]

+1 on the WTF fast on the exit or switch between Launchbox and Bigbox!  Congratz, this was an annoying one for a long time!

Also, I just noticed a weird behavior with 3D rendered boxes, (not sure if it was in previous beta), using default theme in Bigbox with a view supposed to render 3D boxes, some works when other just stick to the 2D box image. It happens on different games even under the same platform. I didn't notice any config difference.

Edited 21 hours ago by kobaturtle

[launchretrogirl2562]

44 minutes ago, MysterNybble said:

I would never. Everything I do is refined, methodical, and intentional. j/k, me on an average day >

LOL😁...with the clicking left and right and not paying attention I was actually referring to myself😂
too many projects, too much stuff I still need and want to do so the mind does tend to slip now and then.

[launchretrogirl2562]

@MysterNybble : The wee tiny mouse pointer is indeed gone and issue is solved. Confirmed. 🍺