MAMEWorld Forums - News - ClientServerMAME 0.7c Released

CS-MAME 0.7c is out. It is 0.7c and not 0.8 because it involves an overhaul of the underlying network architecture.

To get the latest version, go to the github site here:
http://github.com/MisterTea/ClientServerMAME/downloads

For more details and to follow the progress of ClientServerMAME, check out my blog:
http://10ghost.blogspot.com/

I've also published a video with step-by-step instructions on how to run ClientServerMAME. Check it out here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=be1_3Lp0xq0

Here's a list of changes since 0.7:

-Initial game state is now compressed. Keep in mind that the initial game state can still be several megs depending on the rom.

-There is now a message telling users that the initial game state download is in progress and to be patient.

-BUG FIX: The server will now continue to send delta game states while the initial game state is downloading. This prevents desyncs that were occurring when the server would fail to send game state updates while the client was downloading the initial state.

-There is now a UI message letting users know that the first few minutes of gameplay will be lagged while the client digests all of the server deltas that have been building up while the client downloaded the initial game state. In practice this has resolved itself in under 30 seconds, but it could take a few minutes for some of the larger roms.

-The initial sync is now sent in chunks and a progress bar is included.

-Delta syncs are now sent over the course of time. This keeps the UDP stream from getting clogged with large delta syncs

-Delta syncs are now transparently sent in the background. Instead of the client waiting for a delta sync, the client performs a save state to memory at the time where the sync should take place, then continues processing. When the delta sync comes in from the server, the client compares the sync to its snapshot and if they match, ignores it. If they don't match, the client goes back in time, replaces its ram with the server's ram, and then fast forwards to the present. This makes delta syncs almost unnoticeable

-Added the "secondsbetweensync" option to mame.ini. This option allows the user to control how often to perform a sync. NOTE THAT THE CLIENTS AND SERVER MUST HAVE EXACTLY THE SAME VALUE

-Added the "synctransferseconds" option. This controls the rate at which a sync is sent to the client. Lower number means faster rates and less recovery time from a sync, but result in increased network bandwidth and may cause delays. NOTE THAT THE CLIENTS AND SERVER MUST HAVE EXACTLY THE SAME VALUE

-If the client performs a delta sync, it will fast forward without updating the video to allow for rapid catch-up

-BUG FIX: The chat feature was broken for client, and only the server could talk. This has been fixed (remember, press 'T' to start a chat)

-Press 'N' to hide the networking UI (ping and traffic statistics)

-BUG FIX: Server messages were getting overwritten by a memory overrun, this has been fixed.

Check out MAMEHub here: http://www.mamehub.info/