Copyright: (C) 1997 - Jim Pragit Software - Programmed by Jim Pragit
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What is Game Menu?
JP-Soft's Game Menu is the most advanced universal emulator front end in existence today. It presents a simple and easy to use menu for game selection.
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Why use a front end?
Because it completely eliminates the endless and error prone monotony of constantly typing lengthy DOS commands. It can also display actual game names as opposed to DOS filenames. In other words, instead of seeing CALIFGMS.BIN, you get California Games.
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How do I install Game Menu?
Copy GameMenu.exe and GameMenu.txt to the same directory as the emulator. Then, YOU need to create a GameMenu.ini file.
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What is this GameMenu.ini file?
The GameMenu.ini file is a simple text file that gives Game Menu information on how to run a particular emulator. Three example ini files have been included in the GameMenu.zip file: Stella.ini for Stella (Atari 2600 emulator), ColEmDos.ini for ColEmDos (ColecoVision emulator), and DVE.ini for DVE (Vectrex emulator). If you use any of these three emulators, simply rename the appropriate example file as GameMenu.ini. If you use any a different emulator, use these files as examples and modify them accordingly. Further explanations can be found in these ini files themselves.
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Why use an initialization (ini) file?
To make Game Menu a universal front end. This way, JP-Soft's Game Menu can be used with virtually all emulators available today by simply changing a few lines in the GameMenu.ini file. This makes Game Menu very flexible and saves you the trouble and confusion of using a different front end for each and every emulator you use.
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How do I modify GameMenu.ini?
You can use any text editor you want, such as EDIT or Notepad. Personally, I prefer to use UltraEdit. UltraEdit is available for Window 3.1x and Windows 9x. You can download a shareware version from: http://www.idmcomp.com.
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What needs to be in the GameMenu.ini?
At the bare minimum, only three lines are needed in the following format:
CMD emulator_filename
DIR directory_where_the_ROM_images_are
EXT dos_filename_extension
The CMD line gives the filename of the emulator. The DIR line gives the directory where the ROM images are. The EXT line gives the filename extension of these ROM images. (It is also a good idea to include the drive and complete path in the CMD and EXT lines.) For example:
CMD C:\Stella\Stella.exe
DIR C:\Stella\ROMs\
EXT BIN
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What if I have more than one emulator?
Copy GameMenu.exe and GameMenu.txt to each emulator's directory and create a GameMenu.ini file for each of these emulators. Make sure the appropriate ini file is in the correct directory. For more details on how to create an ini file, read the example ini files included in the GameMenu.zip file.
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I'm using Game Menu for more than one emulator. How can I get each copy of Game Menu to use the same settings and colors?
Create a directory called JP-Soft on the root directory of your drive.
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What do I have to do to use Game Menu's support for Stella's VCS files?
Nothing. This feature is automatic.
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While using Game Menu, I often download new ROM images in the background. Is there a way to "refresh" the main menu so that these new games will appear?
Yes. Simply press F5 and the Main Menu will be reinitialized showing all new games as well as any changes that you may have made in the GameMenu.ini file.
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What if I discover a bug?
Send E-mail with a complete and accurate description of the problem to JPSoftCo@aol.com.
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Is Game Menu copyrighted and how much does it cost?
Yes, Game Menu is copyrighted by the author, James Pragit. Although, it is copyrighted, no fee is charged for this program. You are free to distribute this program to anyone you want, just keep all the files together.
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Is there any disclaimer?
Of course there is! Game Menu has been thoroughly tested and debugged on a variety of emulators, computers and users and found to be perfectly safe. However, it is impossible to anticipate every possible situation or contingency that may arise. Therefore, neither Jim Pragit nor Jim Pragit Software make any guarantees towards its safety and accepts no responsibility for any harm it might do, however unlikely.
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Why did I write Game Menu?
Because the other front end programs I've seen (and used) always seemed to lack certain features I wanted. For example, Game Menu is the only universal DOS front end I know of that lets you use a mouse. Also, Game Menu has a nice, three dimensional look that other programs like this lack. Further, my program is the only one that I know of that has automatic support for Stella's VCS files. This is one of the advantages of being a programmer; if there isn't a program out there that does what you want it to, you can write your own.
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What other programs does Jim Pragit Software offer?
Although I've written many programs, Game Menu and Free Space are the only ones being freely distributed at this time. CompuSearch is also available for a nominal fee.
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What is Free Space?
Free Space is a unique program that should have been included with DOS and Windows years ago. You can get it free by downloading it from America Online. What makes Free Space so invaluable is that it gives you an instant status report that quickly tells you how big your drive is, how much space you've used, and how much you have left. You'll never have to wonder if you're running out of disk space again. And like just like Game Menu, its free.
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Will any other programs by Jim Pragit Software be made available?
Possibly. You can always periodically check this site or by doing a search for Jim Pragit Software on America Online.
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What if I have a suggestion or comment about Game Menu?
Send E-mail to JPSoftCo@aol.com.
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Last Requests: If you create a gamemenu.ini file for an emulator other than the three examples previously mentioned, please email it to JPSoftCo@aol.com so that it can be included with future editions of Game Menu. Any help you can provide will be greatly appreciated!
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