Distribution packaging support?

[JeffBai]

Hello fellow members...

I am a developer of AOSC OS (https://portal.anthonos.org/aosc-os) and some of the users have shown strong interest in seeing a distribution package of PCem (i.e. installing from the repository).

But turns out that PCem will seek for a ROM file from the current directory and shipping PCem with a ROM image is impossible, obviously...

Just posting to ask if there would be a possibility for PCem to support a global ROM directory or even a file browser for selecting a ROM image?

Best regards,
Jeff Bai

[leilei]

I think the only legal way around that is to have support for those Free Bochs roms and ship those Bochs roms, even though they don't represent an actual particular computer system by being as generic as possible, which kind of takes the fun (and point) out of using PCem...


PCem (like MAME or MESS perhaps) is designed to run very specific roms of very specific hardware; selecting different roms in their place won't do you any good. (You might get away with different branded S3 Trio64 video cards and 430VX BIOSes, and that's all I can think of)

DISCLAIMER: I do not represent the PCem project; my 2 cents etc

[SarahWalker]

Linux PCem is also fairly poor, so I'm not sure that encouraging wider distribution in its current state is a great idea.

[JeffBai]

Linux PCem is also fairly poor, so I'm not sure that encouraging wider distribution in its current state is a great idea.

Or might as well just work on a file browsing dialog? Not just a Linux matter, I believe it is a good idea to just allow PCem users to use their own way of organizing files...?

Just a simple rationale, though...

Best Regards

[SarahWalker]

Or might as well just work on a file browsing dialog? Not just a Linux matter, I believe it is a good idea to just allow PCem users to use their own way of organizing files...?

I suspect if I do that, it would encourage people to believe that any random BIOS they find would work, which is a belief I've been trying (and not entirely succeeding) to dissuade people of for the last few years.

[JeffBai]

Or might as well just work on a file browsing dialog? Not just a Linux matter, I believe it is a good idea to just allow PCem users to use their own way of organizing files...?

I suspect if I do that, it would encourage people to believe that any random BIOS they find would work, which is a belief I've been trying (and not entirely succeeding) to dissuade people of for the last few years.

Okay, I guess you have a point on this... But thanks for your good work, please keep it up!

Best Regards,
Jeff Bai