Wednesday, March 24, 2010

Excuses, excuses.

First of all, I'd like to say sorry since it's been so long since my last update. You're all probably wondering what's going on. I'll get to that right now so no one is left in the dark.

1. Q: Where have you been all this time?
A: As it has already been stated, I'm really busy IRL and there's lots of work to be done. I'm doing okay, but I've been better. If all goes well, I'll be getting a new job soon (an IT job, finally). How it's going to effect my work on Cxbx is unknown; either way, I want to let you know that whatever happens, it's not over until I say it is, got it? It's only been 2 months so far. Cxbx and other emulators have gone much longer without updates before, remember that.

2. Q: Where's our release?
A: Good question. I emailed my release to Caustik before hoping that he'd release it on the homepage, but he's already busy enough as it is going through some rough transitions. "Why not release it here?" That's not my call. I'm just "The co-author", remember?

3. Q: Is there anyone else still working on Cxbx while you're away?
A: Yes, a fairly new programmer, Verteks is working on Cxbx's D3D8LTCG support for XDK 5849. It's preliminary, and will take a long time to complete, but it's worth waiting for once it finally works. It's tougher to create signatures for this library as it is not directly compatible with IDA, so it will take some time to get things working with it. "What about defiance?" Lately, he's been busy too. I don't know what his details are, but he's made some good progress fixing bugs and advancing towards Direct3D9 support.

4. Q: What about the OpenGL port?
A: That's only partially implemented right now. When it's done, you'll know! Just be prepared with a card with decent OpenGL drivers as it might be using OpenGL 2.x instead of 1.5 as originally planned.

5. Q: When are you going to update the SVN?
A: Good question. The reason I haven't yet is because I really hate having to delete the entire SVN and then re-upload it and missing out on the changes for everyone to see. It takes longer and is much more work. TSVN solves this problem, but I need to take some time to figure out how to syncronize my dev folder with TSVN so I can update the SVN each and every time I make an update automatically. If anyone knows how to do this, let me know.

6. Q: What about x86-64 support?
A: I don't remember if I answered that before or not on my blog. The status of this remains the same. Unfortunately, it still doesn't work. Afaik, it can be done, but quite frankly you're asking the wrong person for this type of update. Since I didn't write the LDT code for this emulator, it's the hardest part for me to understand. A Sony employee claimed to get it working and even left us with his source code to do it. I added it, but didn't get it working due to the fact that I didn't know how it was implemented. Caustik says he can do a workaround eventually, but in that case we might be waiting a while longer.

So there you have it. I'd like to work on Cxbx right now, but I still have lots to prepare for in terms of pursuing a new job, place to stay, and hopefully a vehicle (and more that I'll share with you all at a later time). Until then, stay tuned.

Shogun.

16 comments:

  1. I appreciate everything you do for this project (And everyone else who is participating). Life comes first and I'm in no rush. Thank you for taking time out of your busy life to keep us updated on things. Take care and I hope things work out for you. God bless. - Joe K.M.

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  2. As for the OpenGL requirement, I'm assuming it'll be like Dolphin - basically any GPU made in the last 6 (for Nvidia) to 8 (for Ati) years not made by Intel?

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  3. A NVIDIA GeForce 3 or an ATI Radeon 8500 should work, but I recommend a 4th generation GPU or better. I'm debating whether I should attempt to use GLSL or Cg. Leaning towards Cg TBH.

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  4. Well I myself have a Radeon 9600, so hopefully everything will work fine and there won't be any issues like Dolphin's earlier ATI issues.

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  5. Well, ATI and Cxbx didn't really get along from the start. ATI's OpenGL drivers aren't exactly the greatest, but only time will tell. A Radeon 9600 should be more than enough. I have a GeForce 8400 GS (Moblile) myself and it's good for most things.

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  6. I know their drivers supposedly aren't the greatest, but at least according to OpenGL Extension Viewer, my 9600 has full OpenGL 2.1 support.

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  7. What about x64? Did you find some workaround or is it still unsolvable?

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  8. How much gpu performance(like what series of card) does Cxbx take to play well so the gpu isn't bogged down? From what I'm thinking (as it appears as of now) Cxbx takes less gpu power than Dolphin. Any ideas as to why?

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  9. NNX, that's really simple. The Wii & Gamecube have PowerPC-based CPUs, and since PCs are x86 CPU, you have to completely emulate them.

    The Xbox however, actually used x86 CPU (Pentium III-based @ 733MHz). Therefore you can run much of the CPU code directly.

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  10. Lawl, a Sony emloyee? What's he trying to do, get less people to buy Xboxs? :P

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  11. Maybe a stupid question, but you can't rip the code from DOSBOX?

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  12. I don't think DOSBox would be really useful here.

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  13. Well I thought It has coded the missing stuff from x64.

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  14. DOSBox and Cxbx are two completely different emulators with completely different emulation methods. So, no, that would not help.

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  15. Hi blueshogun96 keep the good work pal ;).
    I will stay tuned :P

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