--- hatari/doc/manual.html 2019/04/01 07:13:55 1.1.1.7 +++ hatari/doc/manual.html 2019/04/09 08:47:34 1.1.1.10 @@ -4,7 +4,7 @@ Hatari User's Manual - + @@ -16,25 +16,31 @@ color:#000000; margin-left:10px; margin-right:10px; - font-family:Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size:12pt; + font-family:Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; } - h1 { font-size:28pt; } - h2 { font-size:22pt; border-bottom:solid thin black;} - h3 { font-size:16pt; } - h4 { font-size:13pt; } + h2 { border-bottom:solid thin black;} + h4.gui { clear:right } + h5 { margin-bottom:2px; margin-left:1em; } + + pre { color: black; + background-color: #eeeeee; + margin: 0px 20px 8px 20px; + padding: 2px 8px 1px 8px; + border: solid thin #ccaa88; + } - td { font-family:Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size:12pt; } + td { font-family:Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; } a:link { color:#000099; background-color:#ffffff; text-decoration:none; } a:visited { color:#cc0000; background-color:#ffffff; text-decoration:none;} a:hover { color:#0000ff; background-color:#ffffff; text-decoration:none; } a:active { color:#993399; background-color:#ffffff; text-decoration:none; } - *.commandline { font-family:Fixed,Courier,monospace; font-size:11pt; } + *.commandline { font-family:Fixed,Courier,monospace; font-size:90% } *.file { color: #000088;} - *.button { color: #468E64;} - *.key { color:#550000; font-family:Fixed,Courier,monospace; font-size:11pt; } + *.button { color:#000000; background-color:#c0c0c0; border:outset thin grey; font-family:Fixed,Courier,monospace; padding-left:1em; padding-right:1em;} + *.key { color:#550000; font-family:Fixed,Courier,monospace; font-size:90% } *.backdropped { background-color:#ffffee; } *.image {margin-left: 5px; margin-right: 5px; border-width:2px; border-style:solid; border-color:#eeeeff; padding:1cm; text-align:center; } *.floatimage { clear:right; float:right; margin-left:0.5cm; border-width:2px; border-style:solid; border-color:#eeeeff; padding:0.5cm; } @@ -48,16 +54,15 @@

Hatari User's Manual

-Version 1.0 +Version 1.3

-Project initiator and main developer of Hatari: Thomas Huth -
-Manual written by: Matthias Arndt +Manual written by: Thomas Huth, Matthias Arndt + & Eero Tamminen

-Hatari on the WWW: http://hatari.sourceforge.net/ +Hatari on the WWW: http://hatari.berlios.de/

Index

@@ -84,8 +89,10 @@ Hatari on the WWW: The GUI -

DSP is not emulated, but there's a dummy mode with which some -additional demos work. +

+DSP emulation is still very experimental, but many games and demos +already work with it. If it takes too much CPU, there's a dummy mode +too, which helps to get some demos and games running.

@@ -236,20 +253,17 @@ Certain versions of Hatari have successf the following systems:

Compiling and running

@@ -269,19 +283,25 @@ most cases. Make sure to have the header for it installed as well.

+For optional features like PNG format screenshots and Hatari window +embedding, you need to have the header files for libpng and libX11. +

+

Of course, you need the GNU C compiler and (GNU) Make, too!

-

Change to the hatari/ directory and adapt the configuration file -Makefile.cnf to suite your system. -Alternatively, you can use the supplied configure script to auto-detect -all parameters (type " ./configure --help" +

Change to the hatari/ directory, copy +Makefile-default.cnf to +Makefile.cnf and adapt the configuration file +to suite your system. Alternatively, you can use the supplied configure +script to auto-detect all parameters (type +"./configure --help" to see the options of the script). Don't forget to use some good CFLAGS for the compiler optimizations, e.g. run configure in the following way:

-

- CFLAGS="-O3 -fomit-frame-pointer" ./configure -

+
+CFLAGS="-O3 -fomit-frame-pointer" ./configure
+

Then compile Hatari by typing make. If all @@ -314,7 +334,8 @@ release versions of Hatari. EmuTOS is an it at: http://emutos.sourceforge.net/. It is not the best solution for playing games or running other old software -due to compatibility issues, but it's free and compatible with Hatari.

+due to compatibility issues (see emutos.txt for +more details), but it's free and compatible with Hatari.

If you do not specify a TOS image on the commandline nor can Hatari find a suitable TOS image in the default dir, you'll get the chance to select a TOS image file from the GUI.

@@ -349,220 +370,892 @@ to toggle windowed and fullscreen mode. hatari [options] [disk image name] -

The command line options are following -(the long version is in parenthesis):

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - +

Hatari command line options are split into several categories:

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - + + + +

General options

+
General optionsDescription
-h (--help)Prints command line options and terminates
-v (--version)Prints version information and terminates
--confirm-quit <x>Confirm Hatari quitting (x = y/n)
-c <file>
(--configfile <file>)		Use the given file as configuration file - instead of ~/.hatari/hatari.cfg
Display optionsDescription
-m (--mono)Starts the emulated Atari ST in monochrome - resolution (deprecated)
--monitor <x>Select monitor type (x = mono/rgb/vga/tv)
-f (--fullscreen)Start in fullscreen mode
--windowForces Hatari to use a windowed mode
-z <x>
(--zoom <x>)		Doubles ST low resolution (1=no, 2=yes)
--frameskips <x>Shows only every <x> frame (speeds up emulation!)
--borders <bool>Show screen borders (for overscan demos etc.)
--spec512 <x>Use threshold x to decide when to render a screen with the slower - but more
accurate Spectrum512 screen conversion functions - (0 <= x <= 512, 0=disable)
--bpp <x>Force color bitdepth (x=8/16/32, 0=autodetection)
VDI optionsDescription
--vdi-planesSpecify extended VDI resolution bit-depth, x = 1/2/4
--vdi-width <w>Specify extended VDI resolution width - (320 < w <= 1024, multiple of 128)
--vdi-height <h>Specify extended VDI resolution height - (200 < h <= 768, multiple of text height)
Device optionsDescription
-j <port>
(--joystick <port>)		Activates joystick emulation via cursor keys - for given joystick "port"
(0-5, see joystick dialog)
--printer <file>Enable printer support and write data to the specified file
--midi <file>Enable MIDI output and write midi data to the specified file
--rs232 <file>Enable RS232 communication via the specified file
Disk optionsDescription
-d <dir>
(--harddrive <dir>)		Emulates a hard disk at the GEMDOS level - (<dir> = root directory)
--acsi <imagefile>Emulate an ACSI hard disk with an image file
--slowfdc <bool>Slow down FDC emulation (deprecated)
Memory optionsDescription
-s <x>
(--memsize <x>)		set amount of emulated RAM upto 14MB
- x=0 for 512K, x=1,x=2 or x=4 for 1, 2 or 4 MB
--tos <imagefile>Specify TOS ROM image to use
--cartridge <file>Use file as the cartridge on the ROM port.
- This currently does not work together with GEMDOS hard disk emulation!
--memstate <file>Load memory snap-shot file
CPU optionsDescription
--cpulevel <x>Set the CPU type (x => 680x0) — - works with EmuTOS / TOS 2.06 only!
--cpuclock <x>Set the CPU frequency in MHz (8, 16 or 32)
--compatible <bool>Use a more compatible but slower 68000 CPU mode
Misc system optionsDescription
--machine <x>Select machine type (x = st/ste/tt/falcon)
--blitter <bool>Use blitter emulation (for ST only)
--dsp <x>Select DSP type (Falcon only, x = none/dummy(/emu))
--sound <x>Sound quality (x = off/low/med/hi)
-k <file>
(--keymap <file>)		Read (additional) keyboard mapping from file
Debug optionsDescription
-D (--debug)Activates the simple builtin debugger
--log <file>Direct log output to the specified file
--trace <type1,...>Activate debug traces, use --trace help to see the options
+ + + +
+−h, −−help
+ + + + +
+Print command line options and terminate +
+ + + + +
+−v, −−version
+ + + + +
+Print version information and terminate +
+ + + + +
+−−confirm-quit <bool>
+ + + +
+Whether Hatari confirms quitting +
+ + + + +
+−c, −−configfile +<filename>
+ + + + +
+use the given file as configuration file instead of +~/.hatari/hatari.cfg +
+ + + + +
+−−fast-forward <bool>
+ + + + +
+On fast machine helps skipping (fast forwarding) Hatari +output +
+ +

Display options

+ + + + +
+−m, −−mono
+ + + + +
+Start in monochrome mode instead of color +
+ + + + +
+−−monitor <x>
+ + + + +
+Select monitor type (x = mono/rgb/vga/tv) +
+ + + + +
+−f, −−fullscreen
+ + + + +
+Start the emulator in fullscreen mode +
+ + + + +
+−w, −−window
+ + + + +
+Start the emulator in window mode +
+ + + + +
+−−grab
+ + + + +
+Grab mouse (also) in window mode +
+ + + + +
+−z, −−zoom <x>
+ + + + +
+Zoom low resolution (1=no, 2=yes) +
+ + + + +
+−−frameskips <x>
+ + + + +
+Skip <x> frames after each displayed frame to +accelerate emulation (0=disabled, >4 uses automatic +frameskip with given value as maximum) +
+ + + + +
+−−borders <bool>
+ + + + +
+Show screen borders (for overscan demos, ST(e) color mode +specific etc) +
+ + + + +
+−−statusbar <bool>
+ + + + +
+Show statusbar (with floppy leds etc etc) +
+ + + + +
+−−drive-led <bool>
+ + + + +
+Show overlay drive led when statusbar isn’t +shown +
+ + + + +
+−−spec512 <x>
+ + + + +
+Hatari uses this threshold to decide when to render a +screen with the slower but more accurate Spectrum512 screen +conversion functions (0 <= x <= 512, 0=disable) +
+ + + + +
+−−bpp <bool>
+ + + + +
+Force internal bitdepth (x = 8/15/16/32, 0=disable) +
+ +

VDI options

+ + + + +
+−−vdi <bool>
+ + + + +
+Whether to use VDI screen mode +
+ + + + +
+−−vdi−planes <x>
+ + + + +
+Use extended VDI resolution with bit depth <x> (x = +1, 2 or 4) +
+ + + + +
+−−vdi−width <w>
+ + + + +
+Use extended VDI resolution with width <w> (384 +<= w <= 1024) +
+ + + + +
+−−vdi−height <h>
+ + + + +
+Use extended VDI resolution with height <h> (200 +< h <= 768) +
+ +

Devices options

+ + + + +
+−j, −−joystick +<port>
+ + + + +
+Emulate joystick with cursor keys in given port (0-5) +
+ + + + +
+−−joy<port> +<type>
+ + + + +
+Set joystick type (none/keys/real) for given port +
+ + + + +
+−−printer <file>
+ + + + +
+Enable printer support and write data to <file> +
+ + + + +
+−−midi−in <filename>
+ + + + +
+Enable MIDI support and write MIDI data to <file> +
+ + + + +
+−−midi−out <filename>
+ + + + +
+Enable MIDI support and read MIDI data from <file> +
+ + + + +
+−−rs232−in <filename>
+ + + + +
+Enable serial port support and use <file> as the input device +
+ + + + +
+−−rs232−out <filename>
+ + + + +
+Enable serial port support and use <file> as the output device +
+ +

Disk options

+ + + + +
+−−disk-a <file>
+ + + + +
+Set disk image for floppy drive A +
+ + + + +
+−−disk-b <file>
+ + + + +
+Set disk image for floppy drive B +
+ + + + +
+−d, −−harddrive +<dir>
+ + + + +
+Emulate an ST harddrive (<dir> = root +directory) +
+ + + + +
+−−acsi <file>
+ + + + +
+Emulate an ACSI hard disk with an image <file> +
+ + + + +
+−−ide <file>
+ + + + +
+Emulate an IDE hard disk with an image <file> +
+ + + + +
+−−slowfdc <bool>
+ + + + +
+slow down FDC emulation (deprecated) +
+ +

Memory options

+ + + + +
+−s, −−memsize <x>
+ + + + +
+Set amount of emulated RAM, x = 1 to 14 MiB, or 0 for 512 +KiB +
+ + + + +
+−t, −−tos +<imagefile>
+ + + + +
+Specify TOS ROM image to use +
+ + + + +
+−−cartridge <imagefile>
+ + + + +
+Use ROM cartridge image <file> (only works if +GEMDOS HD emulation and extended VDI resolution are +disabled) +
+ + + + +
+−−memstate <file>
+ + + + +
+Load memory snap-shot <file> +
+ +

CPU options

+ + + + +
+−−cpulevel <x>
+ + + + +
+Specify CPU (680x0) to use (use x >= 1 with EmuTOS or +TOS >= 2.06 only!) +
+ + + + +
+−−cpuclock <x>
+ + + + +
+Set the CPU clock (8, 16 or 32 Mhz) +
+ + + + +
+−−compatible <bool>
+ + + + +
+Use a more compatible but slower 68000 CPU mode +
+ +

Misc system options

+ + + + +
+−−machine <x>
+ + + + +
+select machine type (x = st, ste, tt or falcon) +
+ + + + +
+−−blitter <bool>
+ + + + +
+Enable blitter emulation (ST only) +
+ + + + +
+−−timer−d <bool>
+ + + + +
+Patch redundantly high Timer-D frequency set by TOS. This about doubles +Hatari speed as the original Timer-D frequency causes most of the +interrupts. +
+ + + + +
+−−dsp <x>
+ + + + +
+Falcon DSP emulation (x = none, dummy or emu, Falcon +only) +
+ + + + +
+−−sound <x>
+ + + + +
+Sound frequency: 6000-50066. "off" disables the sound and speeds up +the emulation. To prevent extra sound artifacts, the frequency should be +selected so that it either matches evenly with the STE/TT/Falcon sound +DMA (6258, 12517, 250033, 50066 Hz) or your sound card frequencies +(11025, 22050, 44100 or 6000...48000 Hz). Check what your sound card +supports. +
+ + + + +
+−k, −−keymap +<file>
+ + + + +
+load keyboard mapping from <file> +
+ +

Debug options

+ + + + +
+−D, −−debug
+ + + + +
+Toggle whether CPU exceptions invoke the debugger +
+ + + + +
+−−bios-intercept
+ + + + +
+Enable Bios/XBios interception +
+ + + + +
+−−trace <trace1,...>
+ + + + +
+Activate debug traces, see --trace help for available tracing options +
+ + + + +
+−−control-socket <file>
+ + + + +
+Hatari reads options from given socket at run-time +
+ + + + +
+−−log-file <file>
+ + + + +
+Save log output to <file> (default=stderr) +
+ + + + +
+−−log-level <x>
+ + + + +
+Log output level (x=debug/todo/info/warn/error/fatal) +
+ + + + +
+−−alert-level <x>
+ + + + +
+Show dialog for log messages above given level +
+ + + + +
+−−run-vbls <x>
+ + + + +
+Exit after X VBLs +
+

Type hatari --help to list all the command line options supported by a given version of Hatari.

@@ -570,7 +1263,7 @@ the command line options supported by a

Using the emulated system

Once you've started Hatari succesfully, you can use the emulator as -an allmost complete Atari ST computer system.

+an almost complete Atari ST computer system.

The GUI

@@ -578,24 +1271,24 @@ an allmost complete Atari ST computer sy with the mouse. The GUI is rather self explanatory.

-

The Main Menu

+

The Main Menu

-Hatari's GUI - the main menu +Hatari's GUI - the main menu

From the main menu, you can reach the other setup dialogs by clicking on the appropriate buttons.

You can load the current settings from a configuration file by clicking -on the Load config button and you can save the -current settings to a configuration file with the Save -config button.

+on the Load config button and you can save the +current settings to a configuration file with the +Save config button.

-

Click Okay to go back to the emulated +

Click OK to go back to the emulated ST. All changed options will be applied.

-

Check the Reset ST option if you want -the emulated ST to perform a cold reset. This is equal to +

Check the Reset machine button if you want +the emulated machine to perform a cold reset. This is equal to switching the power off and on again on a real ST.

Click Quit to terminate Hatari and @@ -603,10 +1296,35 @@ return to the host OS.

Click Cancel to abandon any changes that you have made.

-

The System Dialog

+ +

The File Selector Dialog

+ +
+Hatari's GUI - the fileselector +
+ +

+ The file selector dialog appears whenever you are prompted to choose a file + or folder. +

+

+ To enter a folder or choose a file, simply click on the entry in the main box + of the dialog. You can use the arrows at the right, the cursor up and down + keys and the page up and down keys to navigate through the list. +

+

+ You can use the three buttons in the upper right corner for additional folder + navigation. Use the .. button to go up one level + in the directory tree. Use the ~ button to return + to your home directory. The / button can be used + to go to the root directory of the file system. +

+ + +

The System Dialog

-Hatari's GUI - the system dialog +Hatari's GUI - the system dialog

@@ -642,8 +1360,8 @@ that you have made.

work with an STE, it's normally safe to always work in STE mode.
TT and Falcon are more advanced, but they are not as compatible to the ST as - the STE was. So many old games and demos do not work with these machine types - anymore. There were only very few programs that were made for the TT + the STE was. Therefore many old games and demos do not work with these machine + types anymore. There were only very few programs that were made for the TT exclusively, while there were some interesting games and demos specially made for the Falcon. Note: TT and Falcon emulation are very incomplete. They may not work @@ -663,6 +1381,15 @@ that you have made.

the emulation of 68k address errors and the CPU prefetch buffer. This is needed for best compatibility, but it slows down emulation a little bit so you can disable it if you don't need it.

+

+ For Falcon mode, you can choose whether you want to enable DSP emulation, + fake it or completely disable it. Most Falcon programs only play sound or work + correctly when you enable the DSP emulation, but it needs a lot of host CPU + power (more than 2 GHz). So if you have a slow host CPU, you can try if your + Falcon program also runs with DSP disabled or in "dummy" mode. + Note that you can not change this option while the DSP based program already + runs. +

You can also enable/disable Blitter emulation here. The Blitter is a custom chip that accelerates some graphical operations. This switch only toggles the Blitter in plain ST mode. In STE mode, the Blitter is always enabled (since all @@ -675,36 +1402,28 @@ that you have made.

value slows down the emulation. The patch gives you a better performance. It is normally safe to enable the patch, but if you encounter a program that does not work, you can try to disable the patch to see if it works then.

-

Select if you want to use slow FDC emulation. Slow is more compatible esp. - with games and demos that use custom loaders.

NOTE: These parameters are very sensitive to the emulated ST and it is strongly recommended to reset the emulated ST after changing these options.

-

The Disks Dialog

-
-Hatari's GUI - the disks dialog -
- -

Use the upper dialog to choose which floppy disks should be emulated -in the disk drives.

+

The Floppy Disks Dialog

-

You can use most standard Atari ST disk image files. See the chapter -"Floppy disk images" -for details.

-

Click on the button Browse next to the -A: and B: option to go to the fileselector. -You may select and browse zipped disk images as well.

+
+Hatari's GUI - the floppy disks dialog +

-The fileselector looks like this: + This dialog can be used to choose which floppy disks should be emulated + in the disk drives. You can use most standard Atari ST disk image files. + You may select and browse also zipped disk images. See the chapter + "Floppy disk images" for details. +

+

+ Click on the button Browse next to the + A: and B: option to go to the fileselector to choose a disk image for the + corresponding drive.

- -
-Hatari's GUI - the fileselector -
-

Click on Eject to eject a disk image from the emulated drive. The emulated ST will act as if had no floppy disk in its drive.

@@ -721,38 +1440,70 @@ you have to insert the second disk in dr first disks ends with an 'a' before the extension and the second disk name ends with a 'b'.

-

If you need to create a new blank disk image, click on Create disk image. -Parameters for the new image can be set in the following dialog. Click -on create to create the image or on back to get back to the -disk dialog. -

-

-After clicking create, a fileselector -appears. You can browse the filesystem now. Select the target -directory, click beside File: -and type in a name for the new disk image. The name should terminate -with .st or .msa. -

-

Hatari can currently create plain .ST and .MSA disk images -exclusively.

-

You can choose if you want Hatari to writeprotect your disks. Atari ST virii can spread on disk images too so it is ok to -enable the write protection option. However you can't save highscores or games to your disk images then.

-

Use the lower dialog to change the harddisk settings.

-

You can select a harddrive image for harddrive emulation via image -file here or you may select -a directory of your local filesystem to be emulated as the ST's -harddrive.

-

Check "Boot from HD" if you want Hatari to execute the AUTO folder -on the harddrive. -This option is checked by default if you specify a harddrive image or a -directory via the command line.

+

+ Select if you want to use slow FDC (Floppy Disk Controller) emulation. + "Slow floppy access" is normally not required, except for some few + slideshows / intros which run too fast without this option. +

+

+ You can choose if you want Hatari to write-protect your disks. Atari ST virii + can spread on disk images too so it might be a good idea to enable the write + protection option. However you can't save highscores or games to your disk + images in that case. +

+ +
+Hatari's GUI - the new floppy dialog +
+ +

+ If you need to create a new blank disk image, click on + Create blank image. + Parameters for the new image can be set in the following dialog. + Click on Create to save the new image or on + Back to return to the disk dialog. +

+

+ After clicking Create, a fileselector + appears. You can browse the filesystem now. Select the target directory, + click beside "File:" and type in a name for the new disk image. + The name should terminate with .st or .msa. +

+

+ Hatari can currently create plain .ST and .MSA disk images exclusively. +

+ + +

The Hard Disks Dialog

+ +
+Hatari's GUI - the hard disks dialog +
+ +

+ This dialog can be used to change the harddisk settings. +

+

+ You can select a harddrive image for ACSI or IDE hard drive emulation via + image file here or you may select a directory of your local filesystem to be + emulated as the harddrive of the emulated system. +

+

+ Check "Boot from HD" if you want Hatari to execute the AUTO folder + on the harddrive. + This option is checked by default if you specify a harddrive image or a + directory via the command line. +

+

+ Note that for IDE hard disk emulation you also need a TOS version >= 2.05. + And ACSI hard disk emulation does not work with TOS 4.0x in Falcon mode. +

+ -

The Memory Dialog

+

The Memory Dialog

-
-Hatari's GUI - the memory dialog +
+Hatari's GUI - the memory dialog

You can select the amount of RAM for the emulated ST here. Only @@ -770,10 +1521,11 @@ restored.

different versions of Hatari. E.q. if you compile a newer Hatari, you cannot load your old memory snapshots back.

-

The ROM Dialog

-
-Hatari's GUI - the ROM dialog +

The ROM Dialog

+ +
+Hatari's GUI - the ROM dialog

Here you can select the TOS image to use. Click on -

The Joystick Dialog

+ +

The Joystick Dialog

Hatari's GUI - the joystick dialog @@ -825,7 +1578,7 @@ multi-player games like "Gauntlet 2

For each ST joystick, choose whether you want to disable it, use the keyboard for emulation or use a real PC joystick.

For keyboard emulation, you can select the keys by pressing the -Define keys button. You will be prompted to press +Define keys button. You will be prompted to press the keys for up, down, left, right and fire.

If you want to use a real PC joystick for the emulation, you should connect it to your PC before you start Hatari. Then you can choose the joystick with @@ -835,10 +1588,11 @@ on the fire button in shoot'em-up games. certain games. In some other games, it gets worse if you enable this option.

See also the chapter "Emulated Joystick" for details.

-

The Screen Dialog

+ +

The Screen Dialog

-Hatari's GUI - the screen dialog +Hatari's GUI - the screen dialog

@@ -863,14 +1617,20 @@ certain games. In some other games, it g enabled on slow computers.

- "Force 8Bpp" will force Hatari to use an 8bit video mode. - You don't need this for modern video cards. + "Statusbar" toggles the statusbar at the bottom of the screen. + The statusbar shows the floppy drive LEDs, the current frameskip value, + the machine type including TOS version and memory size, and whether + recording is currently active.

The "Frame Skip" option can be set to speed up the emulator - if it is running too slow on your system. 1 to 8 frames will be dropped - after each frame that has been drawn. Disable frame-skip if you have a - fast computer. + if it is running too slow on your system. Disable frame-skip if you have + a fast computer. When selecting 1, 2 or 4, drawing of corresponding number + of frames will be skipped after each frame actually shown by Hatari. + Select "Auto" to let the emulator to decide whether, and + how many frames will be skipped.
+ Note: The frameskip option also affects the frame rate of the + screen animation recording!

You can select which sort of monitor to use. This option depends on the @@ -897,17 +1657,18 @@ Uncheck to get back to a normal ST behav conformant applications. 99% of all games and demos will not run if you activate any extended resolution here.

-

Click Capture Screen to create a -screenshot in .BMP format to the current working directory or click Record Animation to record a sequence of single +

Click Capture Screen to create a +screenshot in PNG (or BMP) format to the current working directory or click +Record Animation to record a sequence of single screenshots. You can opt to only record new movie frames when the screen content really changed.

-

The Keyboard Dialog

+ +

The Keyboard Dialog

-Hatari's GUI - the keyboard dialog +Hatari's GUI - the keyboard dialog

Here you can select the keyboard mapping to use. Two different mappings @@ -928,60 +1689,75 @@ screen content really changed. mapping for all keys that are not defined by your map file. Have a look at the supplied example mapfile (keymap-sample.txt) to see how to create your own keyboard mapping.

+

+ When the emulator runs in fast forward mode, and you want to type text, + it can be annoying that the emulated system detects multiple key events + due to the key repetition of the emulated system. To avoid this you can + disable the key repetition in fast forward mode here. +

-

The Sound Dialog

-
-Hatari's GUI - the sound dialog +

The Sound Dialog

+ +
+Hatari's GUI - the sound dialog

Here you can control the sound subsystem.

Check if you want emulated sound at all. Emulation is faster if sound emulation is turned off.

-

3 frequencies from low to high quality are available. Experiment a -little bit to find out which fits best for your setup. -Medium quality will work ok in most cases.

-

You can select to record a piece of sound here. Check which format -to use and click the button. It is a toggle button so -you will need to return to the GUI to switch sound recording off again.

+

+ Nine frequencies from low to high quality are available. Experiment a + little bit to find out which fits best for your setup. + For most modern computers, 44100 Hz or 48000 Hz should be fine. + For older or slower host systems, you should use a lower frequency. + 12517, 250033 and 50066 Hz are frequencies supported by + the STE/TT/Falcon sound DMA. +

+

+ You can select to record a piece of sound here. + Use the Browse button to choose a file. + The file name extension that you use (.WAV or .YM) determines in which format + the sound is recorded in. The Record sound button + is a toggle so you will need to return to the GUI to switch sound recording off + again (or to use the keyboard shortcut for that). +

-

The Devices Dialog

-

Check here if you want to enable experimental printer support. See -the chapter "Emulated printer" for details.

+

The Devices Dialog

-
-Hatari's GUI - the device dialog +
+Hatari's GUI - the device dialog
+

Check the first checkmark to enable experimental printer support. +See the Emulated printer section for +details.

+

As Hatari currently only supports printing to file, click on Select to select the file to print to. You can + class="button">Browse to select the file to print to. You can enter a new filename as well.

-

NOTE: As the printer emulation is not perfect yet, -activated printer support may interfere with the emulated sound. -This is due to the fact that the Atari ST uses some general I/O ports -of the soundchip for the printer port. The Hatari team suggests to -disable printing while using games and demos. -

-

Check the second checkmark if you want to enable experimental RS232 -support. The RS232 device is configured according to the settings of +

Check the second checkmark to enable experimental RS232 support. +The RS232 device is configured according to the settings of the emulated RS232 of the Atari ST. This means Hatari will automatically use baudrate and handshaking as configured for the emulated ST.

-

Select a suitable device file for input and output. Click on Browse to select. -A good choice is /dev/ttyS0 or /dev/ttyS1. -

-

You can enable MIDI as well. This currently works for outputting -MIDI data only. A good choice is /dev/midi00.

-

Click on Browse to select a suitable -MIDI device file for output.

-

Your sound driver must support MIDI to make this work.

-

NOTE: RS232 and MIDI emulation are very experimental, too. -Don't enable them unless you really need them! +

Click on Browse to select suitable +device files for serial input and output. On Linux a good choice is +/dev/ttyS0 or /dev/ttyS1. +

+

Check the third checkmark to enable experimental MIDI support. +Click on Browse to select a suitable +MIDI device files for MIDI input and output.

+

midi-linux.txt file explains how to +select the correct MIDI device file, how to set up softare sound +synthetizing on Linux (using Alsa), if your sound card/driver doesn't +support MIDI, and how to set up MIDI networking between multiple +Hatari instances.

-

Keyboard shortcuts

+ +

Keyboard shortcuts

While the emulator is running, you can activate or toggle various features via Hatari keyboard shortcuts. Below are listed the default @@ -998,21 +1774,21 @@ shortcut key bindings:

ALTGR+g - grabs a screenshot + grab a screenshot ALTGR+i - boss key: leave full screen mode and iconify -window + boss key: leave full screen mode, pause Hatari +and iconify its window ALTGR+j - toggles joystick emulation via cursor keys -between port 0, port 1 and being off from those ports + toggle joystick emulation via cursor keys +on/off between ports 0 and 1 ALTGR+m - (un-)locks the mouse into the window + (un-)lock the mouse into the window ALTGR+r @@ -1024,6 +1800,10 @@ between port 0, port 1 and being off fro switch) + ALTGR+d + open dialog to select/change disk A + + ALTGR+s enable/disable sound @@ -1033,7 +1813,7 @@ switch) ALTGR+x - toggle normal/max speed + toggle normal speed/fast forward ALTGR+y @@ -1049,23 +1829,26 @@ switch) ALTGR+f or F11 - toggles fullscreen and windowed mode + toggle between fullscreen and windowed mode ALTGR+o or F12 - activate the GUI + activate the options GUI PAUSE - will go to the debugger if Hatari was started with - the -D option + pause emulation + + + AltGr+PAUSE + invoke the internal Hatari debugger

You can change the key bindings from the Hatari configuration file. -The required key values you can see from the SDL_keysym.h include file -(usually in /usr/include/SDL/). +The required key values can be seen in the SDL_keysym.h include file +(usually in /usr/include/SDL/).

Emulated Atari ST keyboard

@@ -1106,13 +1889,11 @@ key on the ST. The following keys have s -

The right CTRL key is used by default as the -fire button of the emulated joystick when you turn on joystick emulation -via keyboard.

-

The cursor keys will be used by default as the emulated ST joystick, -unless you are using joystick emulation via a real joystick or have disabled -joystick emulation completely. Then the cursor keys will act as the cursor -keys of the emulated Atari ST, of course.

+

If joystick emulation via keyboard is enabled, by default cursor keys +are used for the directions and right CTRL key +as the fire button. Otherwise they act as corresponding keys of the emulated +Atari ST.

+

Emulated mouse

@@ -1122,9 +1903,12 @@ the ST mouse pointer.

However it is a little bit different in windowed mode. To make the mouse work there as expected you need to grab it first or lock it into the Hatari window. Do this by pressing the ALTGR+m -hotkey combination. -Press it again to go back to normal mouse behaviour which allows you to -work in other X11 windows while Hatari is up and running.

+hotkey combination or starting Hatari with the +--grab command line option. +Press the shortcut key (again) to go back to normal mouse behaviour +which allows you to move mouse outside outside the Hatari window while +Hatari is up and running. Note: pausing the emulation will also +(temporarily) release the mouse grab.

Mouse scrollwheel will act as cursor up and down keys.

Emulated joystick

@@ -1141,7 +1925,7 @@ firebutton will act as the normal firebu second firebutton will emulate a keypress of the SPACE key on the ST as many ST -games utilitze the SPACE bar for secondary game functions. (Xenon for +games utilize the SPACE bar for secondary game functions. (Xenon for example)

If you do not have a PC joystick or joypad, then you do not need to desperate. You can emulate one of the two Atari ST joysticks via the @@ -1149,19 +1933,19 @@ cursor keys. Just activate it in the GUI as the joystick directions, the right CTRL key will act as the firebutton. You can still use the cursor keys as the ST's cursorkeys in this mode as long as you press SHIFT -along with the cursorkeys.

+along with the cursorkeys. You can also configure these keys from the +joystick options.

Emulated video

-

Hatari by default only handles ST modes, ST-LOW, ST-MED and ST-HIGH.

-

Overscan effects and so called "Border Removal" are possible too.

-

Due to the fact that these effects are achieved by using quirks and -glitches in the original chips to do things beyond their specification -emulation is a bit tricky for these and not all ST applications -utilizing these techniques will work properly in Hatari. -Especially so called "Sync Scrolling", a special technique to emulate -the low byte of the video address, currently does not work properly in -Hatari. +

Hatari emulates all screen modes of the original machine.

+

+ST/STE shifter overscan effects are emulated, but due to the fact +that these effects are achieved by using quirks and glitches in the +original chips to do things beyond their specification, emulation is +a bit tricky for these effects. As a result, some demos using these +techniques might not be displayed correctly in Hatari, known ones are +listed in the compatibility.html file.

Beside that you can setup extended VDI modes. These only work with GEM-compliant applications and they are equal to fitting a videocard @@ -1218,7 +2002,7 @@ might have to use another device name he /dev/fd0u720 for 720kB disks). However, if the disk is copy-protected or doesn't use a MSDOS compatible file system, this might fail. So be very -careful if you're not sure about the disk format.

+careful if you are not sure about the disk format.

The other possibility is to image the disk on a real Atari ST. There are programs like the Magic Shadow Archiver for this task. Hatari @@ -1269,33 +2053,22 @@ so your highscores and savegames are lost if you load the game from such a zipped disk image.

-

Hard disk support

-

Hatari supports two ways of emulating a ST hard drive: The low-level -ACSI hard disk emulation and a GEMDOS based drive emulation.

+

Hard disk support

-

ACSI hard disk emulation

-To use the ACSI hard disk emulation, you need a hard disk image file -with a pre-installed HD driver in it. So either try to image your old -ST hard disk or grab one from the internet (e.g. from the Hatari website). -Please note that AHDI 5.0 is the only hard disk driver that -is currently working and supported. Other hard disk drivers likely will not -work. +Hatari supports three ways of emulating Atari hard drives: The low-level +ACSI and IDE hard disk emulation and a GEMDOS based drive emulation. +In most cases the GEMDOS based hard disk emulation is best as it allows +exchanging files easily between the emulated and the host environment.

-To create a new ACSI hard disk image, you can start with an empty image that -you have for example created with the following command: -dd if=/dev/zero of=hd.img bs=512 count=xxx. -Then copy the complete AHDI 5.0 package to a floppy disk image, and enable -this floppy disk image and the fresh hard disk image in the emulator. -Start HDX.PRG from the floppy disk and format and partition the hard disk -with this tool. When you're finished, you have to restart the emulated system, -run AHDI.PRG from the floppy disk and HINSTALL.PRG afterwards. -With HINSTALL.PRG you can install the hard disk driver to the fresh HD image, -so you can directly boot from the hard disk image in the future. +Please note that changing the HD-image or the GEMDOS HD-folder will reset +the emulated Atari since it is not possible to switch the hard disk +while the emulator is running.

+

GEMDOS based hard disk emulation

With the GEMDOS based drive emulation, you can easily "mount" a folder from the host file system to a drive of the emulated Atari. To @@ -1308,23 +2081,493 @@ don't want to rename all files to get ca possible to store that folder on a FAT filesystem since those filesystems are case-insensitive.

GEMDOS drive emulation is an easy way to share files between the -host system and the emulated Atari, but it is known to be incomplete -and +host system and the emulated Atari, but it is known to be incomplete and a little bit unstable, especially if you use it together with the ACSI hard disk emulation. So if your programs complain that they could not find/read/write files on the GEMDOS HD drive, you should try to copy them to a floppy disk image or a real hard disk image!

-

Due to the way the GEMDOS drive emulation is implemented at the -moment, it is not possible to use a cartridge image together with -GEMDOS drive emulation.

-

Note that changing the HD-image or the GEMDOS HD-folder will reset -the emulated Atari since it is not possible to switch the hard disk -while the emulator is running.

+

+There are also some known limitations which are due to the way the GEMDOS +drive emulation is implemented: First, it is not possible to use a cartridge +image together with GEMDOS drive emulation at the same time. +Second, the GEMDOS HD emulation does not work very well with TOS +1.00 and 1.02. So you should use at least TOS 1.04 if you want +to use the GEMDOS HD emulation. +

+ +

ACSI hard disk emulation

-That's all for the moment. -May the fun without the price to be with you ;-) ! +To use the ACSI hard disk emulation, you need a hard disk image file +with a pre-installed HD driver in it. So either try to image your old +ST hard disk or grab one from the internet (e.g. from the Hatari website). +Please note that AHDI 5.0 is currently the only hard disk driver +that is officially supported. Other hard disk drivers might not work.

+

+To create a new ACSI hard disk image, you can start with an empty image that +you have for example created with the following command: +dd if=/dev/zero of=hd.img bs=512 count=xxx. +Then copy the complete AHDI 5.0 package to a floppy disk image, and enable +this floppy disk image and the fresh hard disk image in the emulator. +Start HDX.PRG from the floppy disk and format and partition the hard disk +with this tool. When you're finished, you have to restart the emulated system, +run AHDI.PRG from the floppy disk and HINSTALL.PRG afterwards. +With HINSTALL.PRG you can install the hard disk driver to the fresh HD image, +so you can directly boot from the hard disk image in the future. +

+ +

IDE hard disk emulation

+

+Create an empty image file with the size of your choice with: +dd if=/dev/zero of=hd.img bs=1k count=xxx. +Then get the Cecile hard disk driver from +http://centek.free.fr/atari/softs/s_cecile.htm +and put it on a floppy disk image (named "cecile.st") e.g. with: +zip2st.sh cecile.zip. +

+

+Run Hatari with +hatari --machine falcon --tos tos404.rom --ide hd.img cecile.st, +warm up your French language skills, start the Cecile hard disk driver +CECILE.PRG, then use the tool CC_TOOLS.APP to partition your hard disk +image: click to "Partition", select "Hatari IDE disk" and set suitable +partition size. Then click "Valider". +

+

+If you only want to use your HD image in Falcon mode, you can install +the Cecile hard disk driver to the image from the Cecile CC_TOOLS.APP: +select "Installer" from main menu and save the Cecile driver to the +1st partition on "Hatari IDE disk". If you want to also use your HD +image in ST/STE mode, you need to get and install AHDI 6 driver on it +instead (see "ASCI hard disk emulation" section for AHDI usage +instructions). +

+

+Then you can boot from your hard disk image by simply specifying it +with the --ide parameter. +

+ + +

Accessing disk image partitions outside of Hatari

+

+If you want to access the partitions also outside the emulation, +the disk image needs to have a DOS partition table. The +atari-hd-image script included +with Hatari can be used to create such an image. +

+

+Inside the Hatari emulator, EmuTOS can access partition(s) on these +kind of images directly without any driver software. Of the Atari HD +drivers, Centek's Cecile (mentioned above) and Uwe Seimet's +HD Driver +(demo) work fine with them. E.g. AHDI and CBHD don't. +

+

+Note also that plain EmuTOS supports only ACSI and the drivers support +only IDE (emulation). Cecile needs TT or Falcon and HD driver doesn't +work with EmuTOS or TOS4. To summarise; if ASCI emulation and EmuTOS +are enough, use those. Otherwise, if you want to use TT or Falcon +emulation, use Cecile (or full HD Driver version if you have it), +otherwise use HD driver (demo). +

+

+To access the content of the partitions on Linux host, there are two +possibilities: + +

Using Mtools

+

+For this you need to add an entry for the hard disk +image to your ~/.mtoolsrc and +specify which partition you want to access from the image. For +an image created with the above mentioned script, the line in +the configuration file should look something like this: +

+
+MTOOLS_NO_VFAT=1
+drive c: file="/home/user/hatari/hd.img" partition=1
+
+

+Note that Mtools is instructed to use FAT compatibility mode because +EmuTOS cannot deal properly with VFAT file information. If you don't +want this setting for all your Mtools drives, you can set it also via +the environment like this: +

+
+MTOOLS_NO_VFAT=1 mcopy foobar.txt c:
+
+ +

Using a loopback device

+

+This is recommended even by Mtools documentation, but it's less +convenient as it requires root rights. First you need to "loop" +mount the image: +

+
+$ su
+# image="hd.img"; mountdir="hd"
+# start=$(parted $image unit s print | awk '/ 1 /{print $2}' | tr -d s)
+# losetup -f $image -o $((512*$start))
+# loop=$(losetup -a | tail -1 | cut -d: -f1)
+# mkdir -p $mountdir
+# mount -t msdos $loop $mountdir
+
+

+This uses parted to find out the first +partition offset in sectors and then tells losetup +to bind the first free loop device to a corresponding offset from +the hd.img image. +mount is then used to mount the file system +from the loop device on top of the "hd" directory. +

+

+After you've copied the relevant files to the "hd" directory, you need +unmount the file system and remove the loop device binding before using +the disk image from Hatari: +

+
+# umount $mountdir
+# losetup -d $loop
+
+ +

The debugger

+ +

+Hatari has a built-in debugging interface which can be used for +analyzing the program that runs in the emulated system. The debugger +uses Hatari's parent console window, so make sure you run Hatari from +the command line when you want to use the debugger. To invoke +the debugger, press the AltGr + Pause key +combination. +

+ +

+If you start Hatari with the "-D" command line option, m68k +exceptions will automatically invoke the debugger. You can toggle +this also later from the debugger with the "setopt -D" +command. +

+ +

+When entering values to the debugger in other number bases than the +default/selected one, they need to be prefixed with a character +indicating this. For decimals it's "#" (#15), for +hexadecimals "$" ($F), and for binary values it's +"%" (%1111). By default the debugger expects all values +without a prefix to be decimals, but you can change the default number +base with the "value" command. +

+ +

+At the debugger prompt, type "help" to get a list of all +the available commands and their shortcuts: +

+
+Available commands:
+   dspaddress (da) : toggle or list (traditional) DSP address breakpoints
+     dspbreak (db) : set/remove/list DSP register/RAM condition breakpoints
+    dspdisasm (dd) : disassemble DSP code
+   dspmemdump (dm) : dump DSP memory
+       dspreg (dr) : read/write DSP registers
+      dspcont (dc) : continue emulation / DSP single-stepping
+      address ( a) : toggle or list (traditional) CPU address breakpoints
+   breakpoint ( b) : set/remove/list register/RAM condition breakpoints
+       disasm ( d) : disassemble from PC, or given address
+       cpureg ( r) : dump register values or set register to value
+      memdump ( m) : dump memory
+     memwrite ( w) : write bytes to memory
+      logfile ( f) : open or close log file
+      loadbin ( l) : load a file into memory
+      savebin ( s) : save memory to a file
+       setopt ( o) : set Hatari command line options
+        value ( v) : set number base / show value in other number bases
+         cont ( c) : continue emulation / CPU single-stepping
+         quit ( q) : quit emulator
+         help ( h) : print help
+
+ +

+In the beginning, probably the most interesting commands are +"m" and "d" for dumping and disassembling memory +regions. +

+
+> help memdump
+'memdump' or 'm' - dump memory
+Usage:  m [address]
+        dump memory at address or continue dump from previous address.
+
+
+> help disasm
+'disasm' or 'd' - disassemble from PC, or given address
+Usage:  d [address]
+        If no address is given, this command disassembles from the last
+        position or from current PC if no last postition is available.
+
+
+> d
+0000aa6e: 2f08 0241 0fff 207c 00fe MOVE.L A0,-(A7)
+0000aa70: 0241 0fff 207c 00fe 78c0 AND.W #$0fff,D1
+0000aa74: 207c 00fe 78c0 2070 1000 MOVEA.L #$00fe78c0,A0
+0000aa7a: 2070 1000 4ed0 0241 0ffe MOVEA.L (A0, D1.W*1, $00) == $00fe34ae,A0
+0000aa7e: 4ed0 0241 0ffe 6712 e549 JMP.L (A0)
+
+ +

+Hatari has two kinds of breakpoints. First, there are the fast and +simple address breakpoints which trigger when the CPU (or DSP) program counter +hits a given address. Use "a" (or "da" for the DSP) to +manage them. Then there are the conditional breakpoints which are a little bit +slower but can handle more complex break conditions. Use "b" (or +"db" for the DSP) to manage them. "b help" explains +the syntax: +

+ +
+breakpoint = <expression> [ && <expression> [ && <expression> ] ... ]
+expression = <value>[.mode] [& <number>] <condition> <value>[.mode]
+
+where:
+      value = [(] <register-name | hatari-variable | number> [)]
+      number = [#|$|%]<digits>
+      condition = '<' | '>' | '=' | '!'
+      addressing mode (width) = 'b' | 'w' | 'l'
+      addressing mode (space) = 'p' | 'x' | 'y'
+
+ +

+If the value is in parenthesis like in '($ff820)' or '(a0)', then the +used value will be read from the memory address pointed by it. +

+

+M68k addresses can have byte ("b"), word ("w") or +long ("l", default) width. DSP addresses belong to different +address spaces: "P", "X" or "Y". Note +that on DSP only R0-R7 registers can be used for memory addressing. +

+ +

Examples:

+
+pc = $64543  &&  ($ff820).w & 3 = (a0)  &&  d0 = %1100
+(r0).x = 1 && (r0).y = 2
+
+ +

+The debugger supports also setting breakpoints on values of some +internal Hatari variables (listed by "b help"). For example +if you want to stop at a specific cycle within a frame (that is, PC +relative to the current VBL/HBL in cycles), set breakpoints to specific +"HBL" and "LineCycles" variable values. + +

+After analyzing and/or setting new breakpoints, you can continue the emulation +with the "c" command. You can continue for a given number of +CPU instructions (or DSP instructions when "dc" is used), or +you can continue forever (until a breakpoint triggers) if you omit the +instruction count. +

+ +

+By the way, if you want to continue with real-time disassembling, you +can enable it by typing "setopt --trace cpu_disasm" at the +debugger prompt. Disable it with "setopt --trace none" when +you enter the debugger again. "--trace help" can be used to +list all the supported trace points. (Similar things can be done even +from a program within the emulation if you enable Hatari +"--bios-intercept" option and call XBios 255 from +the program with a suitable command line string.) +

+ +

+Lastly, the debugger is much nicer to use with the command line +editing support. If you're building Hatari yourself, please make sure +that you have the GNU readline development files installed (on Debian +/ Ubuntu these come from the libreadline5-dev package). Otherwise +this doesn't get enabled when you configure Hatari. +

+ + +

Performance

+

Improving Hatari performance

+ +

+Unless you've disabled compiler optimizations (like GCC's -O2 or -O3 +options) in the Hatari build, the extra optimization flags (like GCC's +"-mtune=i686") don't seem to have very large effect on Hatari +performance. +

+

+However, Hatari can be sped up considerably by giving up some +emulation or emulator accuracy. Most of these options should +be needed only on slow devices like handhelds. +

+ + +

Emulation options

+ +

+Emulation options have the largest impact on performance. +These options can be changed from the Hatari GUI System dialog and +the emulation needs to be rebooted for any of these changes to take +an effect! +

+ +
DSP
+

+Emulating the DSP is performance-wise several times more demanding +than emulating the m68k; DSP runs at higher frequency, executes many +instructions for each m68k instruction and emulation isn't as mature +and optimized. Unless some program needs DSP, none or +dummy DSP emulation mode could be used. Even of the programs +that do use DSP, many use it only for background music and work +fine without the real DSP emulation. +

+
Timer-D
+

+The single largest factor contributing to general Hatari emulation +performance is the handling of interrupts. Enabling Timer-D patching +option (about) doubles Hatari performance as it significantly reduces +the number of interrupts generated by the emulated Atari machine. +Using this has adverse effect only for very rare programs. +

+
Compatible CPU
+

+After the DSP and Timer-D interrupts, m68k emulation takes most time. +Disabling the "Slower but more compatible CPU" option will speed up +the emulation a lot, but it won't anymore be cycle accurate. This can +be fine for many games and other programs, but won't work e.g. for demos +using overscan or rasters. +

+ +

+Roughly speaking, for DSP emulation, one needs at least 2Ghz machine; +for normal (unpatched) Timer-D frequency on some specific cases (like +demos with overscan 512 color animations) one may need over 1GHz +machine. For Compatible CPU one needs at least 1/2Ghz machine. +

+

+Above options may cause some programs not to work correctly. +The Hatari Software Compatibility List lists +programs known to need real DSP emulation or Timer-D frequency. +

+ + +

Emulator options

+ +

+Emulator options don't have as large effect on performance as +emulation options, but they don't affect the emulated programs at all, +just the quality of the emulation "output". These options can also +be toggled at run-time without rebooting the emulation. +

+ +
Sound
+

+Internal Hatari sound handling and the SDL_mixer sound thread +libALSA sound processing can account up to 1/3 of the Hatari CPU usage +(depending on other options you're using). Disabling sound will get +rid of that. Using low sound frequency or one matching your sound +card may also help. Best is if you disable also background music +from the programs you run in Hatari as this can significantly reduce +the number of generated interrupts. +

+
Frame skipping
+

+Screen rendering can take noticeable amount of CPU time. The default +Hatari "auto" frame skipping should be used unless there's a good +reason not to. It will skip converting and showing some of the frames +if there's not enough time for them. If your monitor refresh frequency +is lower than the selected Hatari monitor frequency (e.g. LCD monitors +usually use 60Hz whereas Atari monochrome monitor uses 72Hz), you +should use frameskip of one. The reason is that if your SDL library +uses VSync to synchronize the output to screen (like OSX one?), with +zero frame skip that forces the emulation to run slower than a real +Atari. If SDL doesn't use VSync, Hatari does redundant work to +convert frames you can't see. +

+
Low-rez zooming
+

+If you are not using frame skip, disabling zooming can have +noticeable improvement on performance. If you still want to have a +nice fullscreen mode, you should rather add the right resolution +mode-lines (e.g. "320x200") to your xorg.conf file. If you still +want to use zooming, disabling borders may help a bit. +

+
Spec512 color handling
+

+Handling Spec512 color modes which change the ST/e palette constantly +takes some extra CPU. If you have problems with CPU usage in such +screens and you care more e.g. from the sound quality than visuals, you +can disable the Spec512 mode handling by zeroing the threshold for that +with the --spec512 0 option. +

+
Statusbar and drive LED
+

+If your version of libSDL uses VSync to synchronize the screen +output, drawing of the statusbar or the drive LED (when statusbar is +disabled) may have some minor impact on performance too. Normally +they shouldn't. +

+ +

+Btw. Hatari currently runs best in 16 or 32 bits per pixel color depth +mode, so try to avoid 24 bits per pixel display modes if possible. +16-bit mode is fastest. +

+

+If nothing else helps, try an earlier Hatari version. More accurate +emulation or emulator output in newer Hatari versions means that they +can be slower despite optimizations. +

+ + +

Measuring the performance

+ +

+There are a couple of ways to monitor and measure Hatari performance. +

+

+By default Hatari has Statusbar visible and automatic frameskip +enabled. When Hatari has enough time that it can sleep a little each +frame, the statusbar frame skip ("FS") value keeps at zero. If Hatari +is completely busy, it will increase to the maximum specified +(automatic) frame skip value. +

+

+Hatari has also a facility to measure FPS i.e. Frames Per Second. +Just enable the --fast-forward option +on command line (or use the corresponding keyboard shortcut), and +after a while, press the "Pause" key. Whenever Hatari emulation is +paused, Hatari will show how many VBLs it could show per second along +with some other numbers. +

+

+It depends on what you want to measure, but usually it's best to +disable sound and set high frame skip like +--sound off --frameskips 60 so that +the associated external overheads are minimized. E.g. video output +can on some platforms do VSync and measurements would then show +your monitor refresh frequency instead of actual Hatari performance. +

+

+On Unix systems with times() function +call, only the time spent by the Hatari process itself is measured. +On other systems much less accurate SDL "wall clock" timings are +used. To make latter more accurate you could use also +--run-vbls option to specify how many +VBLs Hatari should run in fast forward mode before it exits. In this +case it's best to either have the test-case run automatically from the +AUTO-folder or given as memory snapshot to Hatari with the frame skip +set equal to the VBL count. +

+

+Note that the numbers can fluctuate quite a bit, especially +when the SDL timings are used, so for (statistically) reliable numbers +you may need to repeat the measurement several times. You should of +course make also sure that the system doesn't have any other activity +at the same time you're making the measurements. +

+

Appendix

@@ -1396,7 +2639,7 @@ parts of the emulated system is much tri src="http://www.w3.org/Icons/valid-html401" alt="Valid HTML 4.01!" border="0" height="31" width="88"> - February 29th 2008 + August 2009