2010-12-01, 22:42
Problem solved... but I'm not sure why.
I can now launch mednafen, mupen64plus and zsnes via the launcher.sh method (killing XBMC Live when emu launches) and it works great. Here's the weird part. Before when I set this up with Dharma Beta 3 on a USB thumb drive, I needed to install a windows manager (xfwm4) to make it work. This time, I didn't. I have no idea why.
Like I said in a post a few back, I installed Dharma RC1 to the HDD of my Revo 3610. I could launch the emus directly (calling the emu application from the <application> section of the launchers.xml file), but when I edited the launchers.xml file to call the launcher.sh file it would blink directly back to the menu. I installed a windows manager (xfwm4) and set it to run when XBMC starts. The emus still wouldn't start correctly.
Out of frustration, I tried installing Dharma RC1 again (on the same PC where it was on the HDD) on a USB thumb drive in the hope that it might work this time. It worked this time, and without the windows manager. I then reinstalled it to the HDD using the exact same steps, and it worked as well. I've got the install steps below.
1) Download Dharma RC1 Live iso and burned it to a disc, then booted to it.
2) Create a bootable USB thumb drive with BDW from the programs section of the Dharma RC1 Live Disc.
3) Boot to that USB thumb drive on Revo and do a guided full disc install to either the HDD or to another USB thumb drive. That art doesn't seem to matter other than a HUGE speed increase when running it off the HDD.
4) Reboot when done.
5) Install Launcher add-on in Programs
6) Press ctrl+alt+F2 to get to prompt and login as xbmc
7) Change root password...
sudo passwd root
8) update the system...
sudo apt-get update
9) Install the emu...
sudo apt-get install mupen64plus (or any other emu)
10) Make a roms folder...
sudo mkdir /home/xbmc/roms
11) make a system specific rom folder...
sudo mkdir /home/xbmc/roms/N64 (or any other system specific rom folder)
12) FTP rom files into recently created folder (/home/xbmc/roms/N64) as root
13) Start Launcher
14) choose file launcher option
15) point it towards the emu application and the roms, add the arguments and the file extensions and give it a name (N64). I used most of the info from the first post of this thread. (for mupen64plus, I used --fullscreen --nogui --no ask)
16) Exit to the menu where it lists your emulator (N64). Bring up the context menu (letter "c" on the keyboard when you're highlighting the correct emu) and choose scan directory for roms (not the exact wording). If you select the emu (N64) and it asks you to add roms, it tends to hang, so I do it this other way and it works.
17) Now, I choose a rom and launch the emu to make sure it works when it's set up like this. If your sound is working (another topic completely), you'll probably hear clicks from XBMC in the background when you're playing a game. Assuming it works, move on. If it doesn't, I found that the arguments are finnicky. Try playing around with them by editing them in nano.
18) Now, make the launcher.sh file...
sudo nano /home/xbmc/launcher.sh
19) enter the code below, then write it out (save it) by "ctrl + o", then "enter" to select the name, then "ctrl + x" to exit nano.
20) make the launcher.sh file executable...
sudo chmod +x /home/xbmc/launcher.sh
It doesn't tell you it did anything... but it does.
21) edit the launchers.xml file. The <application> section should now point to the launcher.sh file and the path to the emu should be in the <args> section. I've shown the useful part of mine below.
22) Reboot
23) Try launching the emu by choosing a rom. Hopefully it works. It did for me. I know XBMC is killed in the background, because I don't hear the background clicks from XBMC when I'm playing the games, and the emu runs more smoothly.
A few minor notes...
- I tried to do all editing changes in nano with the sudo command. In the past, I would FTP the file to my desktop, edit it and FTP it back, but this occasionally caused permissions issues. Editing the files in nano doesn't seem to cause these problems.
-To get the sound to work on the Revo, I modified my .asoundrc file in nano as per this post and changed all the audio settings to HDMI. I then rebooted and it fixed my menu sounds and the emu sounds.
-I'm NO Linux genius. I'm constantly learning. If there are some commands i used or steps I took that seem silly, it's because I didn't know any better.
I hope this helps someone.
I can now launch mednafen, mupen64plus and zsnes via the launcher.sh method (killing XBMC Live when emu launches) and it works great. Here's the weird part. Before when I set this up with Dharma Beta 3 on a USB thumb drive, I needed to install a windows manager (xfwm4) to make it work. This time, I didn't. I have no idea why.
Like I said in a post a few back, I installed Dharma RC1 to the HDD of my Revo 3610. I could launch the emus directly (calling the emu application from the <application> section of the launchers.xml file), but when I edited the launchers.xml file to call the launcher.sh file it would blink directly back to the menu. I installed a windows manager (xfwm4) and set it to run when XBMC starts. The emus still wouldn't start correctly.
Out of frustration, I tried installing Dharma RC1 again (on the same PC where it was on the HDD) on a USB thumb drive in the hope that it might work this time. It worked this time, and without the windows manager. I then reinstalled it to the HDD using the exact same steps, and it worked as well. I've got the install steps below.
1) Download Dharma RC1 Live iso and burned it to a disc, then booted to it.
2) Create a bootable USB thumb drive with BDW from the programs section of the Dharma RC1 Live Disc.
3) Boot to that USB thumb drive on Revo and do a guided full disc install to either the HDD or to another USB thumb drive. That art doesn't seem to matter other than a HUGE speed increase when running it off the HDD.
4) Reboot when done.
5) Install Launcher add-on in Programs
6) Press ctrl+alt+F2 to get to prompt and login as xbmc
7) Change root password...
sudo passwd root
8) update the system...
sudo apt-get update
9) Install the emu...
sudo apt-get install mupen64plus (or any other emu)
10) Make a roms folder...
sudo mkdir /home/xbmc/roms
11) make a system specific rom folder...
sudo mkdir /home/xbmc/roms/N64 (or any other system specific rom folder)
12) FTP rom files into recently created folder (/home/xbmc/roms/N64) as root
13) Start Launcher
14) choose file launcher option
15) point it towards the emu application and the roms, add the arguments and the file extensions and give it a name (N64). I used most of the info from the first post of this thread. (for mupen64plus, I used --fullscreen --nogui --no ask)
16) Exit to the menu where it lists your emulator (N64). Bring up the context menu (letter "c" on the keyboard when you're highlighting the correct emu) and choose scan directory for roms (not the exact wording). If you select the emu (N64) and it asks you to add roms, it tends to hang, so I do it this other way and it works.
17) Now, I choose a rom and launch the emu to make sure it works when it's set up like this. If your sound is working (another topic completely), you'll probably hear clicks from XBMC in the background when you're playing a game. Assuming it works, move on. If it doesn't, I found that the arguments are finnicky. Try playing around with them by editing them in nano.
18) Now, make the launcher.sh file...
sudo nano /home/xbmc/launcher.sh
19) enter the code below, then write it out (save it) by "ctrl + o", then "enter" to select the name, then "ctrl + x" to exit nano.
Code:
usr/bin/killall -STOP xbmc.bin
$@
usr/bin/killall -CONT xbmc.binsudo chmod +x /home/xbmc/launcher.sh
It doesn't tell you it did anything... but it does.
21) edit the launchers.xml file. The <application> section should now point to the launcher.sh file and the path to the emu should be in the <args> section. I've shown the useful part of mine below.
Code:
<name>N64</name>
<application>/home/xbmc/launcher.sh</application>
<args>/usr/games/mupen64plus --fullscreen --nogui --noask </args>
<rompath>/home/xbmc/roms/N64/</rompath>
<romext>zip|Zip|ZIP</romext>23) Try launching the emu by choosing a rom. Hopefully it works. It did for me. I know XBMC is killed in the background, because I don't hear the background clicks from XBMC when I'm playing the games, and the emu runs more smoothly.
A few minor notes...
- I tried to do all editing changes in nano with the sudo command. In the past, I would FTP the file to my desktop, edit it and FTP it back, but this occasionally caused permissions issues. Editing the files in nano doesn't seem to cause these problems.
-To get the sound to work on the Revo, I modified my .asoundrc file in nano as per this post and changed all the audio settings to HDMI. I then rebooted and it fixed my menu sounds and the emu sounds.
-I'm NO Linux genius. I'm constantly learning. If there are some commands i used or steps I took that seem silly, it's because I didn't know any better.
I hope this helps someone.
