@Mr. Do:
You know, the things that you say are all basically correct. Yes, I agree that preserving the hardware workings is MAME's primary focus.
But: There's a huge difference between something that is a secondary focus and something that is "a nice side effect". And being able to play the games is probably the second most important aspect of MAME (with the ability to emulate the visuals of the CRT screen and the bezels being the third most important thing).
MAME is developed so that you can play the games. The task to emulate the hardware correctly might be more important, but playing the game is the second most important apsect. It's hardly "a nice side effect". Calling it like that is nonsense. But it perfectly matches what the developers try to make you think: "Oh, we're only interested in preserving hardware. Playing the games? Pff. Who needs that? We surely don't. Yes, you can play with it. But seriously, that was never our concern."
I agree that hardware preservation is the primary focus and gaming only comes next. But it does come next. A side effect is something that's there, but that isn't really needed. Not the thing that's the second most essential attribute of the product. Having an easy to navigate menu for a plasma TV is a nice side effect. But the possibility to actually hear the sound of the movie on TV is not just a side effect. It's not as important as the picture, but it's still essential. But if you argued like the MAME developers, it would be: "It's a television. The main focus is on a perfect visual output of the picture. Being able to hear the sound is merely just a nice side effect."
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