Emulation Theory.

vb_master · Post by **vb_master** » Thu Aug 24, 2006 8:53 am

Haha oh wow.

Read this. All it seems you need to do is emulate the CPU, have a memory subsystem, and have input and output device emulators.

sammy · Post by **sammy** » Thu Aug 24, 2006 9:54 am

A game is very simple to store on your pc. That is if you have all the basic components emulated. A game is basically just some data on a storage device. The processor links all things together and processes the code (hince the name processor).

Different people emulate several chips and components and they are widely available. I have no idea however how to begin emulating a chip. Some people coded the whole FX chip and I think that is really remarkable. I know that a N64 cart is one of the most simple circuits available. It's just a board with a ROM and some transistors on it. The N64 does all the work. The SNES cart is something completely different since it has co-processors and graphic chips in it too.

Several devices are available for emulating your own GBA carts, if you wanna now something about it I suggest you buy one and open it up. Be cautious though cause this is not exactly something people tend to talk about in the open.

sam fisher · Post by **sam fisher** » Fri Aug 25, 2006 5:44 am

Actually, its talked about openly. Creating an emulator isn't illegal. It shows you have skill. Using dumped gamedata, roms, is illegal.

sam fisher · Post by **sam fisher** » Fri Aug 25, 2006 6:06 am

Yep, roms also aren't. Well its illegal to download them but there are ways to legally have them yourself. Like dumping the cartridge yourself and then smashing hte cartridge up beyond repair

totokan · Post by **totokan** » Fri Aug 25, 2006 7:13 am

actually, Sam, that's not true. Read the back of a nintendo manual and you'll see that they say that is also illegal.

sam fisher · Post by **sam fisher** » Fri Aug 25, 2006 7:31 am

Tis legal in England. We are allowed to digitally backup our software for use in the even that the original is damaged beyond repair. That's the law over here, anyhoo.

totokan · Post by **totokan** » Fri Aug 25, 2006 7:34 am

Ah. But I thought that nintendo prevents you from doing this by offering free replacements in such an event..?

Reaperman@home · Post by **Reaperman@home** » Fri Aug 25, 2006 10:15 am

Yeah I asked a guy taking a programming course at Uni over msn and the first thing he said was that it was illegal... Obviously it isn't. I don't know why people assume that

I've always wondered about emulation legality--confusing stuff.

when you buy, say, sim city on snes you have the ability to play that game on your console because the company that published it had console rights (or at least snes rights). now, if you play that same game in a snes emulator on your computer, do you infact have a the legal right to do that at all? somebody else worked very hard to put out the PC version, and you're stepping on their toes.

software rights have limits. If I remember the coleco lawsuit--relating to the coleco adam computer system--a big beef was that coleco had the rights to put donkeykong out on console while atari had computer rights. but then coleco made a coleco computer system, with a coleco cart slot on it--oops. that one didn't work out very well for coleco.

for this reason, I suggest that what people do with emulation is very often illegal even if they own the original copies. My issues clear right up when you play backups of your game on the console it was intended to run on, however. Though there are other legal issues (especially in US) when it comes to evading copy protection, and if a proprietary cart format (by itself) counts as copy protection. emulation is very gray indeed.

sam fisher · Post by **sam fisher** » Fri Aug 25, 2006 10:18 am

totokan wrote:Ah. But I thought that nintendo prevents you from doing this by offering free replacements in such an event..?

Yeah, when a nes cartridge breaks the big N comes running to replace it

Reaperman@home · Post by **Reaperman@home** » Fri Aug 25, 2006 5:40 pm

Ah. But I thought that nintendo prevents you from doing this by offering free replacements in such an event..?

wait a second, they do offer replacements don't they? Has anybody gotten one? are they boxed?

The reason I ask, is that I sold a copy of legend of zelda (nib) for $100. now I have 4-5 more trash copies around here with dead batteies. If I got replcements for these, maybe I could move them for $50 a pop or so...

I could buy them in thrift stores, make them broken, and sell new copies...

totokan · Post by **totokan** » Fri Aug 25, 2006 5:47 pm

er... it's just a cart.

Reaperman@home · Post by **Reaperman@home** » Fri Aug 25, 2006 5:52 pm

but it's a brand new cart, in some kind of a box, correct? I'm not expecting retail packaging, but the odder the cart looks the better it will sell.

even better if it comes in a plain white box labeled "new replacement cartridge, not for resale." I'd better give them a call next monday.

maybe they have some kind of generic cart full of pom that they just stick into their magical nintendo writer that looks nothing like the original. I figure that's some kind of collectable right there.

seriously, has anybody done one of these?