TUTORIAL: How to make your homebrew games bootable

[JKidd]

Just use fast boot, it works, the last 2 weeks i tried make a selfboot game but nothing worked, today i saw a post saying to use fastboot and it worked finally, i changed Virtua Striker 2 in a selfboot game without burning any Cd.

That is what i used but all i get is the bios screen then i go to the controller top start the game it restarts then goes to the bios again.Is it a problem if the game dosent have 1ST_READ.BIN?It dosent have anything else either, except the game folders.

 

[SeiferAlmasy]

Use fastboot method, this really work's in ALL games... i don't have problems with fastboot...

ok, try other archive.BIN instead in ROOT of IMAGE/CD

 

[Ex0skelet0r]

Download ExoBoot. It will helps you a lot for making selfbootable games
http://www.emutalk.net/showthread.php?t=21680

 

[feartetsuo]

I made a tutorial for making a custom MVC2 and how to make it selfboot. You can use the same steps for making any game selfboot. http://dhost.info/combomasher/Intro.htm

 

[navinraj]

i am always receiving this message "please insert game disc" ..When i can play chankast... i am going mad on this chankast.. it seems everybody playing it but i can't.....I insert using alcohol and daemon..but it can't recognised my disc..even i made self bootable cd.....Y?..Please...please help me..
thank u all in advance

 

[blurymind]

I am sory about the naive question,but IS IT possible to make a RMXP/RM2K/3(the rpg makers(3versions2000/2003/xp)made games boot on this emu(or any other).
If I have a rpg maker created game,can I make it bootable for chanka?!I am sure that many many people want to do their rmxp game bootable for un emulator and this way more popular(on roms sites).I would like to make mine bootable for GBA emulator-Visualboy advance...Much apreciated if you answer this question....

 

[Pavlik]

Makeing your homebrew games bootable is the hard way. You can try to descramble Your bin an use with DOS prompt: chankast.exe -nogui -file:1st_read.bin (Your emu name is chankast.exe and Your bin is unscrambled 1st_read.bin) or make special hack of BootCD 1.2 using my patch from my website - www.dreamplay.prv.pl from download section.
Thats all

 

[elmaki2600]

-bleh...

 

[snakekain]

Problem with multi track disks and windows xp

Hi every one,
I have a problem with multi track images (created by dir2boot, exoboot or any similar utility) when mounted to daemon when i open my computer and try to read it i have a message telling me the disk is corrupted or not compatible with windows.

I tried aspi drivers 4.71 and 4.60 from adaptec and tried wnaspi32.dll from ftp.nero.com but alwasys i have the same problem.

I tried daemon v3.47 and alcohol 120% 1.9.:saint:

One exception is the mds/mdf format which was read normally and played in chankast.

Any try to convert to .bin or .iso using magiciso makes a single track readable by windows not playable in chankast, recognized as music cd by bios.

I didn't want to start a new post for this.

Thanks for your time.

 

[eXentric]

1.

I've been trying to use Selfboot, which is supposdily the successor to fastboot? Is that right?

Anyway, the images it produces (CDI) are not correct. I have a few CDIs that boot just fine, and the ones produced by Selfboot do not. After working with DiscJuggler 4.0, I've managed to determine that Selfboot is spitting out two sessions that are both CD-XA, and the game data is actually the first session.

For those of you who know, the first session is supposed to be CD-DA and contain the silent 4-second audio track or the actual audio tracks if the game uses it. The second session is supposed to be the CD-XA game data.

Does anyone know why Selfboot is screwing this up for me?

2.
Can Pavlik or someone please elaborate on the use of the -nogui -file command line switches? I couldn't get them to do much. I tried -file:1ST_READ.BIN and it told me 1ST_READ.BIN not found. I tried -file:E:\1ST_READ.BIN and it just did nothing.

How does -file work?
What is -nogui supposed to do? (start emulation full-screen or what?)
Are there other command line params? Where can I get a list?

3.
I want to be able to use a front-end for Chankast. I can probably figure out a way to get a CDI mounted, but a file option would be even better. Does anyone have suggestions?

 

[DJRobX]

eXentric, that's actually correct for that method of self-booting. The DC only cares that there's two sessions on the disc. The 4 second audio track was just an easy way to make a small session that produces a known offset into the next session. The "original" way to convert a non-booting into a self booting disc was to create the small first session with the 4 sec audio WAV, and then extract and remaster the non-booting data to be in a second session with mkisofs.

Someone smart later figured out that the remastering could be skipped entirely by configuring the 2nd session to point back to the data in the first. The result is two CD/XA sessions.

wish people would stop saying that like it's the truth. It's NOT True. You cannot "push" data out to the outer edges. Remember CDs (unlike CD-RW) are ROM (Read Only Memory). You cannot change how session data is allocated. What the "dummy file" really does is create SPACE between readable chunks of data on the CD. Files are written to a CD SEQUENTIALLY (therefore why we have numbered sessions). Those sequential blocks are too closely packed together for the DC's laser reader (and therefore its stepper motor) to keep up with. Therefore in terms of the first Rips such as Crazy Taxi those who burnt them with no dummy file found that data wouldn't load (such as textures and other models) for non player objects (ie everything but you and your car) so it looked WRONG. By adding the dummy file, the time between readable or appropriate data blocks actually passing under the DC's laser reader is decreased (ie time BEFORE next readable block) as it "spaced" (for want of a better term) by blocks of the "dummy file" (which has data that is not relevant to the ripped game).

You have no idea what you're talking about. If you're going to complain about spreading misinformation, you should get your facts straight first.

Of course you can "push" data to the outer sectors of a disc. Mkisofs gives you all kinds of control over where data ends up. By your own admission, CDs are mastered with files written to them SEQUENTIALLY, which means a dummy file is not going to somehow get sprinkled in between readable chunks. No, the sequentially numbered sectors with data on them go in a spiral, from the center of the disc out. Inside the session, there's the root directory information, which points out the locations of the files. So if the first file that the disc points to is a huge, empty file (say sectors 50 through 5000), the innermost portions of the disc are, in fact, going to get filled up with dummy data, effectively pushing the real data further out towards the edge of the disc. The outer edges of the disc are faster because more data passes underneath the laser per revolution. Unlike audio CDs, modern CD drives do not read with a constant linear velocity (CLV). Also for random access, the next chunk of data read is more likely to be nearby since there is more data in a revolution.

Dummy files are not the only way to accomplish this, however. The problem is the dummy file will leave the root directory information far away from the data, requiring the head to seek all the way back to the beginning of the disc every time it needs to access the root directory. The better thing to do is to use a large dummy .WAV file in the first session, with all of the data in the 2nd session. That way the root directory info is placed near the data. This assumes that you are actually placing the data in the 2nd session. The newer "tricks" used to make a disc bootable are making a 2nd session that points back to the data conained in the first, so that method would not apply.

 

[eXentric]

Thank you very much DJRobX, I stand wholly corrected. I souldn't prefix sentances with "for those who know" when I've only just learned it myself :blush:. Unfortunately, this information is sparce and I did not know about the option of CD-XA and having the second session point at the first.

So, now that you've cleared that up for me, do you have any suggestions to help me determine why my images do not work?

I have one CDI that is bootable. Mounted in Daemon 3.47 Chankast loads it and plays it fine. I have another CDI that is not bootable. I mount it with Daemon and copy all the contents to a temp folder (705MB). Then I have to clear the read-only flag on all files and folders or selfboot.exe crashes when it starts to generate the disc. I choose that folder as the source for selfboot.exe and I choose to have it create a CDI.

After selfboot is complete, I have an 821MB CDI file. I mount it in Daemon and start DiscJuggler 4.5. I do Tools -> Device Explorer, select my virtual drive, Check Extended Scan and click Refresh.

I see CD-XA, 2 sessions, 2 tracks.

First session is CD-XA with a Mode 2 track starting at 00:00:00 with a length of 79:53:51. This is the game data right?

Second session is also CD-XA with a Mode 2 track starting at 82:23:51 with a length of 00:06:02. I'm guessing this is generated padding?

Finally, I close out of DiscJuggler, etc. and launch Chankast. The Dreamcast logo spins through and then I get a very small message box with no title and it simply says error with an OK button. When I click OK, the box just displays itself again. After clicking the button about 50 times or so, Chanka comes back and it's in the audio player playing track 02. Going back to the main menu and clicking on Play causes a reboot back to the logo and the error message box.

Any suggestions you have are GREATLY appreciated.

Thanks man,

eXe

 

[yarragam]

hey guys please send me fastboot

I'm find ever where but don't download please send me mail [email protected] :bouncy:

 

[tucka3]

can anyone post a guid how to run a resident evil:code veronica?
plz post some guid i am noooob ((
i have downloaded code veronica and cant play becouse dont know how?
plz people who now help me becouse emulator cant load a file from mine computer

 

[Pavlik]

Now Yiou can use BootDreams [ http://www.consolevision.com/members/fackue/prj_bootdreams.shtml ] to selfboot games. Just step by step with small note: binhack (from echelon pack) all commercial games to 0 and not scramble them in BootDreams (one of steep). With homebrews just step by step. It will make sb cdi image from directory. You can also add custom license logo in mr format.

 

[Swierk]

i have error message from bootdreams:

unknown error: 52 bad number or filename in cmdDJ_click()

WTF ???

 

[Pavlik]

i have error message from bootdreams:

unknown error: 52 bad number or filename in cmdDJ_click()

WTF ???

Use complete paths in options and try again.

 

[chooserslain051]

How to know which game is not self-bootable?

Excume, I'm newbie here. Reading this forum scared me.Creep. Looks
like one have to work for one's meal. I've refered to your help about
Dead or Alive 2, and DOA 2 works on my Chancast now. Thanks very much.
But ... I only download the IP.BIN and 1st-read.BIN to use b2bboot.bat.
I've not yet known how to hack those files and by which soft.

Um, could you post a definition of non-selfbootable game or disc?
And what is the sign to know which game is not self-bootable? About
missing IP.BIN or 1st-read.BIN or anything else?

 

[Agozer]

If Chankast detects a game as an audio disc, it's most likely a non-selfboot game (of course, tht could also mean that the image is corrupt).

 

[hwoarang5]

hi guys, i'm very very new at this, dont even understands most what u guys says , so can u be brutally basic to me?

i got a virtual-on OT, game and i wanna boot it with chankast on my pc,
but i dont really know how,

i got chankast working ,ente ta menu and all but cannot detect there;s a game loaded.

how?