FAQ
:: Quickstart
:: Troubleshooting
:: User's
Guide
Q
U I C K S T A R T
[What's the quickest way to get started with
MacMAME?]
The current version of MacMAME requires a Power Macintosh
running Mac OS 9.0.4 or higher. (For specific operating
system and memory requirements, see the "Common
Questions" section in the FAQ.) Any speed of computer
will do, but G3 and G4 systems offer the best performance.
If you got this 'Frequently Asked Questions' file with
a copy of MacMAME you already downloaded, then skip
ahead to step 3.
1. First, download a copy of the MAME program.
Go to the Invader downloads
and choose the most up-to-date version according to
your OS.
2. If the file you download doesn't unstuff
automatically into a 'MacMAME' folder after it downloads,
use Stuffit Expander to do this. (You probably already
have a copy of Stuffit Expander somewhere on your computer,
but if you don't, you can download it here.)
3. Next, download the Robby Roto game file.
You can find it as 'robby.zip' at the bottom of
http://www.mame.net/downmisc.html.
Don't expand this zip file (there's no need to unzip
it), but if your computer expands it into a folder anyway,
that's okay as long as you name the folder 'robby'.
4. Put the 'robby.zip' file or the 'robby' folder
into the 'Roms' folder inside your 'MacMAME' folder.
5. Double-click on the 'MacMAME' icon in your
'MacMAME' folder to run it. Click 'OK' to the warning,
and then you should see a window listing 'Robby Roto'
in the top left corner. Click on it, then click 'Play'
in the bottom right corner.
6. Type 'OK' when it asks you whether you are
legally entitled to play this game (because you are!),
then press any key to pass the summary screen. Your
screen should turn blue, and a little guy should start
drawing the word 'ROTO'. This is exactly what someone
would have seen in an arcade in 1981!
To play the game, press '5' to insert a coin, '1' to
start a one-player game, then use the arrow keys to
move and the Control key at the bottom left of your
keyboard to temporarily stun your enemies (once per
level). Rescue the frowny faces and bring them out of
the maze, but beware of the spiders!
When you're done playing, press the Esc key at the
top left of your keyboard to get the menu bar back,
and from there you can select 'Open' to return to the
MacMAME window or 'Quit' to leave the program entirely.
If the game's window is too small, go to the 'Video'
tab of the MacMAME window and set the first pulldown
menu to 'Triple Size' (or to 'Triple Size with Scanlines'
if you want to give it the horizontal black lines that
a real arcade monitor has).
[Great! Now where can I download Pac-Man and
Space Invaders and Asteroids and ...?]
The reason we can't point you directly to a place to
download these games is that their legal status is still
in question. The copyrights on the games last for 75
years from their date of creation, and if the people
who currently hold those copyrights ever want to take
legal action against people who have copies of the game
programs, they might be able to find a lawyer willing
to take the case. That's why MacMAME is careful to make
clear that it allows you to play the old arcade game
programs, but it does not provide any of the game programs
on its own.
Some people believe that it's okay to have a copy of
a game program if you own the original arcade game hardware
itself, or if you own a copy of the game on one of the
arcade collections which have been released for the
Playstation and other game systems. Other people believe
it's okay to play a copy of a game program for twenty-four
hours after you download it. None of these opinions
are likely to have much legal standing.
Robby Roto is the only game so far which has been declared
free by its programmer (who holds the copyright on it)
for use by MAME gamers; if you want to download and
play any other game with MacMAME, you're obligated to
own the actual arcade hardware.
[What do I do with the ROM files I download?]
Leave them as "zip" files; don't uncompress
them or rename them. Quit MacMAME, then put the zip
files into the "Roms" folder, which is in
the same folder as the MacMAME application. When you
run MacMAME again, it should see the new games you downloaded.
Here is a list of the most commonly used keys. For
a complete list of keys which MacMAME uses, or to change
any key settings, start a game then press Tab and select
'Input (general)' or 'Input (this game).'
5, 6, 7, 8 |
Insert coin (players 1, 2, 3, 4) |
1, 2, 3, 4 |
Start (players 1, 2, 3, 4) |
Arrow keys |
Move |
Control (left of keyboard)
|
Button 1
|
Option (left of keyboard) |
Button 2 |
Spacebar |
Button 3 |
Esc |
Pause |
Command-O |
Return to the MacMAME window to
select a different game to play |
Command-Q |
Quit MacMAME |
F2 |
Put the game into "service
mode" (press F2 again to return to game mode) |
F3 |
Reset the game |
Tab |
Access MacMAME's configuration menu,
where you can adjust key settings and dipswitches |
` (backquote) |
Adjust volume, gamma, and other
sliders (use up/down arrows to move to other sliders) |
[Where can I download sound samples, screenshots,
flyers, marquees, and other files for use with MacMAME?]
Visit the Invader Artwork
Downloads page - we have everything from Marquees
to Flyers, Control Panels to Cabinets.
When you download supplementary files, put them into
the appropriate folders ("Flyers", "Cabinets"
and so forth) under the MacMAME folder so that MacMAME
will find them. Remember that each supplementary file
must be named correctly: a zip file with sounds for Donkey
Kong must be named "dkong.zip" and not "donkeykong.zip",
for example. Refer to "mamelist.txt" in the
"Documentation" folder to find the 'driver name'
which should be used for the file.
(this help section by Brian Kendig, edited from the original
documentation by Brad Oliver and Nathan Strum, with much
help from them
and from Andrew Blum, John H, Chris Newton, and Will Perez)
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