How to install and configure Xmame

From ArticleWorld

For many of us, the days of our childhood have been haunted by arcade machines. These old monster-like cabinets made a dream for us, along with very interesting games.

Xmame is an emulator that allows you to bring those days back to live. Xmame is, however, somewhat unfriendly. This guide explains you how to install it and configure it.

Steps

1. Get Xmame, first of all. You should install it from your distribution's package repository if possible. If not, it is safe to compile it from sources, as long as you have the dependencies (./configure will show you if you do not have any of them). It is recommended to compile it with SDL output capabilities.

2. Generate a configuration file. To do so, open a console window and run:

xmame -showconfig > ~/.xmame/xmamerc

3. Open the file ~/.xmame/xmamerc in your favorite file editor ('~' denotes your home folder). Skip to the line labeled rompath and add the directory or directories that contain the game ROMs to it, sepparating directory entries with a ':' character.

4. Get some ROMs. You should be careful with this: some ROMs are public domain. Some or not, and, in the later case, you may be breaking some law. Download them or obtain them otherwise, and put them in any of the directories listed in the rompath line.

5. To play a game, execute:

xmame gamefile.zip

replacing gamefile.zip with the name of the ZIP file containing the ROMs which you have downloaded.

6. If you need to perform any additional configuration, you can use the ~/.xmame/xmamerc file or press TAB immediately after a game starts.