MAMEWorld Forums - EmuChat - Re: Saving in Puzzle Uo Poko Revisited

> Mame version 0.170 I'm using this version because it is (one of?) the last 32 bit
> supported by MAMEUI and the system I'm using right now is 32 bit. Puzzle Uo Poko will
> not save. Shift F7 does nothing, but F7 will ask for a position to load from.
>
> My real question is is there an easy to find out about bugs and if/when they were
> fixed? Or is going through the "what's new" for each MAME version the only way. I
> would like to figure out how to answer these types of questions for myself.

First things first, while MAMEUI.info only offers 64-bit builds, 32-bit builds of MAMEUI are still compiled and published by users here at MAMEWorld, including MAMEUI's main developer right now, Robbbert.

So you're wrong.

Case in point, here's a source for MAMEUI 0.184 32-bit.
http://messui.1emulation.com/
Scroll to the bottom of the page and follow the directions.

But you're also right.

MAMEUI in general has been on life support for quite a while now. Knowledgeable long-time MAME users have also been becoming more experienced with standard MAME's internal UI, frontends such as QMC2, John-IV's own IV/Play, etc.

Support for MAMEUI is almost non-existent, while support for standard MAME remains strong.

---

But addressing things more generally than Tafoid's earlier response:

So first off, since you're a MAMEUI user, see if you can duplicate the behavior with standard MAME. Current release is here:
http://www.mamedev.org/release.html

You don't have to update all your ROMs, in this case you just need to ensure you have the latest ROMs for Puzzle Uo Poko. MAME will let you know if you don't.

So, let's take a look.

Let's start by determining the ROM set name for Puzzle Uo Poko:
http://www.progettoemma.net ->
http://www.progettoemma.net/indice.php?f...urer=&year=

OR

http://adb.arcadeitalia.net/ ->
http://adb.arcadeitalia.net/lista_mame.php?ricerca=puzzle+uo+poko&arcade_only=0

= "uopoko"

(MAME / MAMEUI interface can also tell us this.)

Using those websites, I can see that the database indicated that the game supports Save States in the current version of MAME (ProgettoEMMA's website is current as of 0.181, ADB as of 0.184.) (er, I think)

...

but I can also browse the sourcecode!

https://github.com/mamedev/mame/ ->
https://github.com/mamedev/mame/search?utf8=%E2%9C%93&q=uopoko&type=

aha, there's cave.cpp for current MAME.

https://github.com/mamedev/mame/blob/master/src/mame/drivers/cave.cpp

searching to the bottom, where the old GAME definitions are, I see:

Code:

GAME( 1998, uopoko, 0, uopoko, cave, cave_state, uopoko, ROT0, "Cave (Jaleco license)", "Puzzle Uo Poko (International)", MACHINE_SUPPORTS_SAVE )

So Puzzle Uo Poko DOES support Save States in MAME 0.184! Dunno about MAME 0.170 any more, time marches on, but it may have then, too!

(MAME / MAMEUI can also tell us this.)

So let's go see if a bug has been reported.

Since we're currently sitting in https://github.com/mamedev/mame/blob/master/src/mame/drivers/cave.cpp
is there any notes at the top of the file to indicate that save states are partially working? like a "To-Do" section? Let's go READ!

... Answer: Nothing seems to apply!

So now let's go to a place where bugs in MAME get reported by end users: MAMETesters.

http://mametesters.org ->

We know the name of the game (Puzzle Uo Poko) and we know the name of the driver it's in (cave.cpp), let's do a search!

http://mametesters.org/view_all_bug_page.php

Since there's thousands of bugs, I'm going to make a filter:
http://mametesters.org/view_all_set.php?type=1&temporary=y&search=cave.cpp

Looking at this list, they're all resolved or closed, with very few exceptions. Are the exceptions related to save states?

Answer: No.

So, a problem with Save States in cave.cpp is not expected.

You may have discovered a bug in MAME!

But first, you're using MAMEUI. So see if you can reproduce it in standard MAME.

If the game's not marked as MACHINE_NOT_WORKING or any other flag that covers what you're reporting, and if you can reproduce it in standard MAME, then you can report the bug on MAMETesters: http://www.mametesters.org.

If they're marked as not working then the issues are probably already known, don't support bugs for these games!

Other people may be able to reproduce it. If they cannot reproduce it, then the problem is with your specific computer and installation of MAME!

Look to Tafoid's comments to ensure it's not a problem with your setup.

Hope this helps!

- Stiletto