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My sense of priority being quite wrecked up, I'm working on a Cheat/Memory Finder for MEKA. Do any of you has suggestion on the kind of features you'd expect in such tools? Feel free to throw your ideas over here, I'm collecting them :)

Expected features:
- You'd be able to search in all kind of memory regions (RAM,VRAM,SRAM,ROM) to make it as open-ended as possible
- Select type of value to search for (8-bits, 16-bits with various endianness, possibly individual bits).
- "Start" a search to initialize the match set to all possible locations
- "Reduce" the set by comparing value to either the previous value, either a manually input value.
- Comparaison types would be the usual Equal,Not Equal,>,<,>=,<=

I'd also like the tool to double as a raw memory searcher you can search for a memory pattern.

Any other ideas?

"NICE!" - Announcer of Asterix (AC) Bonus Stage 1

Bock wrote

My sense of priority being quite wrecked up, I'm working on a Cheat/Memory Finder for MEKA. Do any of you has suggestion on the kind of features you'd expect in such tools? Feel free to throw your ideas over here, I'm collecting them :)

Expected features:
- You'd be able to search in all kind of memory regions (RAM,VRAM,SRAM,ROM) to make it as open-ended as possible
- Select type of value to search for (8-bits, 16-bits with various endianness, possibly individual bits).
- "Start" a search to initialize the match set to all possible locations
- "Reduce" the set by comparing value to either the previous value, either a manually input value.
- Comparaison types would be the usual Equal,Not Equal,>,<,>=,<=

I'd also like the tool to double as a raw memory searcher you can search for a memory pattern.

Any other ideas?

If you could add the option to load in a .tbl text file like Windhex uses so that when you're looking at the memory in the debugger instead of showing ascii it shows your table file values, that would be fookin' awesome.

Also, then you could add an option to search for a text string (based on your .tbl file values) or a hex value. That would be awesome and make translation hacking much easier. Right now I have to keep Windhex open in another window to search the rom file for specific text or hex values.

On a related note, your debugger is the best I've ever used; it's nearly flawless. I did the port of Pitfall 2 Arcade to the ColecoVision last year and if it wasn't for your debugger I never would have gotten anywhere with it (also did a couple SMS translations and it was the same story)! It also was how I basically learned asm, nothing really made sense until I could step through the code and watch things happen in real time. So anyway, a huge THANKS from me for your hard work, it's been massively, massively helpful to me.

A "relative search" would be nice, similar to RomSearcher.

The cheat finder modes in the Action Replay, and replicated in Kega, are a bit more user-friendly as they hide everything behind requests for what you can actually see, but underneath they must have to deal with all sorts of monstrosities (various ways of encoding numbers, mostly).

Here how it is looking so far. It works quite well and can search for invidiual bits.

I will add shortcuts/highlighting in the memory editor and then see how i can support different types of encoding (including BCD). Perhaps search for all types automatically for I want t\o allow manual type selection which is also useful for debugging.

cheat_finder-wip.png (9.7 KB)

Added button to jump to memory editor at the right location, and highlighting matches in the memory editor as well.

I guess I could use the highlighting system for other features in the debugger itself ?

cheat_finder-wip2.png (17.34 KB)

How about implementing a kind of Game Genie decoder (like a GG->PAR in Fusion, since I know the the method do decode the GB/GG Genie codes, but is not that is avaliable in SMS Power!) and a function that can save the codes list?

Sonic of 8! wrote

How about implementing a kind of Game Genie decoder (like a GG->PAR in Fusion, since I know the the method do decode the GB/GG Genie codes, but is not that is avaliable in SMS Power!) and a function that can save the codes list?

I think I will have a separate applet for adding ROM/RAM/PAR/GG code and maybe this could feature a decoder as well.

Added:
- any size search
- comparer types
- ability to compare with old memory values (so you can find a location without entering any constant)
- and few other tweaks to the interface

I think I'm done for now as a first step.
I checked the Kega Fusion cheat finder but I though its interface was not well designed and cumbersome to use.

*EDIT* eventually should add BCD support.

cheat_finder-wip3.png (11.11 KB)

Bock wrote

eventually should add BCD support.

Would it be possible to add support for entering constants in hexadecimal? This would be useful in its own right, as well as making it easier to handle BCD "manually".

For example, to search for a BCD value of 99 currently requires entering 153, but it would be easier to enter $99.

I'll do that yes, it should be an easy fix.

As a temporary workaround you can convert hexedecimal/decimal in the debugger windows using the P command (eg: p $99).

I commited a chance that you can input any type of value in that box now:

Default in decimal,
or
$xxxx (hex)
0xXXXX (hex)
%xxxxx (binary)
#xxxxxx (decimal)

Same format the debugger, only different is that the default with no prefix is decimal. Do you think it make sense to default to decimal here ?

If you update SVN you can get it
svn://svn.smspower.org/meka/branches/20110530-allegro5-sound

Bock wrote

Same format the debugger, only different is that the default with no prefix is decimal. Do you think it make sense to default to decimal here ?

I think it does make sense: the Cheat Finder is aimed at a fairly non-technical audience while the debugger is targeted at developers.

However, it would be good to make the difference clear. I wonder if there is a nice way to add the information to the UI itself?

Author	Message
Bock Site Admin Joined: 08 Jul 2001 Posts: 8649 Location: Paris, France	Cheat Finder Posted: Thu Oct 27, 2011 8:39 pm
	My sense of priority being quite wrecked up, I'm working on a Cheat/Memory Finder for MEKA. Do any of you has suggestion on the kind of features you'd expect in such tools? Feel free to throw your ideas over here, I'm collecting them :) Expected features: - You'd be able to search in all kind of memory regions (RAM,VRAM,SRAM,ROM) to make it as open-ended as possible - Select type of value to search for (8-bits, 16-bits with various endianness, possibly individual bits). - "Start" a search to initialize the match set to all possible locations - "Reduce" the set by comparing value to either the previous value, either a manually input value. - Comparaison types would be the usual Equal,Not Equal,>,<,>=,<= I'd also like the tool to double as a raw memory searcher you can search for a memory pattern. Any other ideas?

Sonic of 8! Joined: 21 Jun 2010 Posts: 200 Location: Earth Planet	Posted: Fri Oct 28, 2011 1:09 am
	"NICE!" - Announcer of Asterix (AC) Bonus Stage 1

kingofcrusher Joined: 15 Aug 2009 Posts: 74 Location: Portland, Oregon	Posted: Fri Oct 28, 2011 3:53 am
	Bock wrote My sense of priority being quite wrecked up, I'm working on a Cheat/Memory Finder for MEKA. Do any of you has suggestion on the kind of features you'd expect in such tools? Feel free to throw your ideas over here, I'm collecting them :) Expected features: - You'd be able to search in all kind of memory regions (RAM,VRAM,SRAM,ROM) to make it as open-ended as possible - Select type of value to search for (8-bits, 16-bits with various endianness, possibly individual bits). - "Start" a search to initialize the match set to all possible locations - "Reduce" the set by comparing value to either the previous value, either a manually input value. - Comparaison types would be the usual Equal,Not Equal,>,<,>=,<= I'd also like the tool to double as a raw memory searcher you can search for a memory pattern. Any other ideas? If you could add the option to load in a .tbl text file like Windhex uses so that when you're looking at the memory in the debugger instead of showing ascii it shows your table file values, that would be fookin' awesome. Also, then you could add an option to search for a text string (based on your .tbl file values) or a hex value. That would be awesome and make translation hacking much easier. Right now I have to keep Windhex open in another window to search the rom file for specific text or hex values. On a related note, your debugger is the best I've ever used; it's nearly flawless. I did the port of Pitfall 2 Arcade to the ColecoVision last year and if it wasn't for your debugger I never would have gotten anywhere with it (also did a couple SMS translations and it was the same story)! It also was how I basically learned asm, nothing really made sense until I could step through the code and watch things happen in real time. So anyway, a huge THANKS from me for your hard work, it's been massively, massively helpful to me.

Maxim Site Admin Joined: 19 Oct 1999 Posts: 14740 Location: London	Posted: Fri Oct 28, 2011 8:56 am
	A "relative search" would be nice, similar to RomSearcher. The cheat finder modes in the Action Replay, and replicated in Kega, are a bit more user-friendly as they hide everything behind requests for what you can actually see, but underneath they must have to deal with all sorts of monstrosities (various ways of encoding numbers, mostly).

Bock Site Admin Joined: 08 Jul 2001 Posts: 8649 Location: Paris, France	Posted: Fri Oct 28, 2011 4:49 pm
	Here how it is looking so far. It works quite well and can search for invidiual bits. I will add shortcuts/highlighting in the memory editor and then see how i can support different types of encoding (including BCD). Perhaps search for all types automatically for I want t\o allow manual type selection which is also useful for debugging. cheat_finder-wip.png (9.7 KB)

Bock Site Admin Joined: 08 Jul 2001 Posts: 8649 Location: Paris, France	Posted: Fri Oct 28, 2011 5:55 pm
	Added button to jump to memory editor at the right location, and highlighting matches in the memory editor as well. I guess I could use the highlighting system for other features in the debugger itself ? cheat_finder-wip2.png (17.34 KB)

Sonic of 8! Joined: 21 Jun 2010 Posts: 200 Location: Earth Planet	Posted: Fri Oct 28, 2011 10:18 pm
	How about implementing a kind of Game Genie decoder (like a GG->PAR in Fusion, since I know the the method do decode the GB/GG Genie codes, but is not that is avaliable in SMS Power!) and a function that can save the codes list?

Bock Site Admin Joined: 08 Jul 2001 Posts: 8649 Location: Paris, France	Posted: Sat Oct 29, 2011 9:53 am
	Sonic of 8! wrote How about implementing a kind of Game Genie decoder (like a GG->PAR in Fusion, since I know the the method do decode the GB/GG Genie codes, but is not that is avaliable in SMS Power!) and a function that can save the codes list? I think I will have a separate applet for adding ROM/RAM/PAR/GG code and maybe this could feature a decoder as well.

Bock Site Admin Joined: 08 Jul 2001 Posts: 8649 Location: Paris, France	Posted: Sat Oct 29, 2011 4:32 pm
	Added: - any size search - comparer types - ability to compare with old memory values (so you can find a location without entering any constant) - and few other tweaks to the interface I think I'm done for now as a first step. I checked the Kega Fusion cheat finder but I though its interface was not well designed and cumbersome to use. EDIT eventually should add BCD support. cheat_finder-wip3.png (11.11 KB)

RetroSpark Joined: 08 Dec 2005 Posts: 488 Location: Melbourne, Australia	Posted: Wed Mar 07, 2012 10:02 am
	Bock wrote eventually should add BCD support. Would it be possible to add support for entering constants in hexadecimal? This would be useful in its own right, as well as making it easier to handle BCD "manually". For example, to search for a BCD value of 99 currently requires entering 153, but it would be easier to enter $99.

Bock Site Admin Joined: 08 Jul 2001 Posts: 8649 Location: Paris, France	Posted: Wed Mar 07, 2012 1:35 pm
	I'll do that yes, it should be an easy fix. As a temporary workaround you can convert hexedecimal/decimal in the debugger windows using the P command (eg: p $99).

Bock Site Admin Joined: 08 Jul 2001 Posts: 8649 Location: Paris, France	Posted: Fri Mar 09, 2012 1:09 am
	I commited a chance that you can input any type of value in that box now: Default in decimal, or $xxxx (hex) 0xXXXX (hex) %xxxxx (binary) #xxxxxx (decimal) Same format the debugger, only different is that the default with no prefix is decimal. Do you think it make sense to default to decimal here ? If you update SVN you can get it svn://svn.smspower.org/meka/branches/20110530-allegro5-sound

RetroSpark Joined: 08 Dec 2005 Posts: 488 Location: Melbourne, Australia	Posted: Fri Mar 09, 2012 4:19 am
	Bock wrote Same format the debugger, only different is that the default with no prefix is decimal. Do you think it make sense to default to decimal here ? I think it does make sense: the Cheat Finder is aimed at a fairly non-technical audience while the debugger is targeted at developers. However, it would be good to make the difference clear. I wonder if there is a nice way to add the information to the UI itself?

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