Before Steemit

For many years, I’ve watched countless YouTube videos and thought about becoming a YouTuber to make funny sketches but I was never motivated enough to start. Since then, I’ve started a family and my interests somehow shifted when I started watching some videos about motivation in general and others about video game guides and tutorials. My goal was then to create video content helping people solve problems related to video games knowing my biggest roadblock was time. After all, I also had to do that while balancing time for my family, my job and of course, sleep.

Discovering Steemit

I was still struggling to make videos faster when one day, someone on Twitter mentionned Dtube, a YouTube competitor but on a decentralized network operating on the STEEM blockchain. This led me to Steemit, a social media similar to Medium but decentralized and operating on the same blockchain. The idea behind those is to enable users to express themselves more freely while monetizing their content via the STEEM cryptocurrency. After some thought, I accepted the fact that for now, writing blogs and tutorials about video games represented the best compromise between expressing myself on the web while still honoring my other commitments. I still intend to create videos but that will wait for the time being.

My time on Steemit

At first, I was warmly welcomed by the community and people kept saying the following:

People come for the money. They stay for the community.

That was in March 2018 and while the crypto market was losing its momentum, people remained on the platform and were still fairly optimistic. They would regularly post content and engage in the comments section.
However, as months pass, I noticed some prolific writers being less consistent with their content and others simply disappearing altogether. Optimism left and pessimism crept in as well as bitterness towards users with more influence thus capable of generating at least 100$ with a simple photo while those who write newspaper-worthy articles could barely scrape 1$. Seeing my readership slowly diminish, I needed to leave my comfort zone and create my own platform.

Combining blogging and social media

While I kept on being consistent with my blog posts (still working on it), I continued watching videos about motivation, entrepreneurship and personal growth. That’s when I decided to create my own website: Les Ateliers PHV
Thanks to the Steempress plugin in WordPress, I was able to publish my blog posts simultaneously on my website and my Steemit account. When it comes to social media, Share2Steem was the tool I used to repost on Steemit whatever I publish on Instagram and Twitter.

What’s next

Before, my main focus was on retro video games and now, I’m adding Linux to the list of subjects I’ll be covering in my next blog posts and tutorials. If you’re reading these lines, it means you’ve decided to join me in my journey as a blogger or at least, you’re considering it. For that, from the bottom of my heart, thank you.

If you have questions or comments, feel free to reach out and see you on the next blog post.

L’article Blogging on Steemit: one year later est apparu en premier sur Les Ateliers PHV.

One thing I usually take for granted, albeit unintentionally, is the ability of certain game consoles of keeping save data for some games that I play for an extended period of time.

With cloud technology, hard drives and more, the various methods of storing data are very reliable as far as I’m concerned.

With that type of mindset, of course I would forget that retro consoles have a limited lifespan when it comes to save game preservation. Eventually, a recent bad experience would quickly remind me of that fact…

This is The Legend of Xanadu (the title in Japanese roughly translates as Xanadu – The Legend of the Wind).

It’s a J-RPG on PC Engine developed by Nihon Falcom, one of my favorite developers until now.

Source: Tigerfog

The game is quite lengthy involving tons of grinding necessary to improve the main hero’s stats and his equipment. Also, the process repeats itself every time a new equipment is used.

In summary, as much as I liked the game, I slowly got tired of it and eventually put it aside for a few months.

Source: Tigerfog

One day, I decided to resume the game from where I left off.

I fired it up, chose the option to continue…

Source: Tigerfog

…arrived at the loading screen and am greeted with this horror.

Source: Tigerfog

My save game is no more!

All the hours I poured in, down the drain!

Apparently, this is due to the fact there’s a battery used by the internal memory of the PC Engine and if it dies, the save data goes along with it.

To avoid that situation, it’s recommended to turn on the console once in a while to slightly recharge the battery, something I’ve never thought of doing.

Not one to give up without a fight and too obsessed with playing on original hardware instead of settling on emulation, I looked for a solution.

As it turns out, there exists a HuCard with the sole purpose of storing save data: the Tennokoe Bank (the bank of the voice from heaven).

Source: Tigerfog

With such a boastful name, that product better be good, even if it dates from the PC Engine era.

I then bought it from eBay and as soon as I got it, tested my new save data from Legend of Xanadu without missing a beat.

Source: Tigerfog

Unlike the Mega CD Backup RAM cart, the Tennokoe Bank can only be used as a backup device. It can’t be accessed straight from the game nor used to save a game on-the-fly.

Source: Tigerfog

It’s only through the Tennokoe Bank’s interface that I can sync the entire internal memory of the console to the device or restore its backup to the console.

So yeah, this is basically a cloning machine for the entire internal memory… no way of selecting save data individually.

Obviously, it’s not the end of the world. At least this is a decent solution for my issues with the PC Engine and hopefully, I can finish Legend of Xanadu one day.

If you’ve had a bad experience with save data from retro games, tell us about it as well as how you resolved the situation!

L’article Losing video game save data: a tragedy est apparu en premier sur Les Ateliers PHV.

Hey everyone. Klebs here and today, I will talk about this phenomenon on Linux known as distro hopping and my first impressions of it.

Why jump on another distribution

At first, my goal was to find a distro that would allow me to do as much as possible the same things as I did on Windows. I talked to my colleagues and watched some YouTube videos and here’s what I tend to hear:

If you’re used to a Windows environment and you want to use your computer to play video games, go with Linux Mint. It’s a good distro… to get started.

To get started? Does it mean I’ll have to eventually replace it? Right now, Linux Mint 18.3 Cinnamon fills my needs as well as my family’s so I don’t feel the need to hop on another distro just for kicks. At least, that’s what I thought.

As I started learning more about desktop environments and the stability vs bleeding-edge debate, doubt also slowly started creeping inside my head. Some prefer the Debian/Ubuntu group because a huge number of software and games are developed with this group in mind. Others prefer Fedora/Red Hat and Arch/Manjaro/Antergos that are considered bleeding edge and are evolving more frequently. I’ve decided to leave my family desktop alone and use my wife’s laptop as a guinea pig to try other distros.

Exploring new territories using Live USB

I understand now why Linux users don’t recommend buying a brand-new laptop to install Linux on it. It’s not just a waste of money considering you’re basically paying for a Windows or Mac license you won’t use anyway. You’re not even sure if your distro of choice will work on it. I found that out real quick when I tried to boot Manjaro and then Antergos on a Dell XPS 13 9350 (see picture below).

Source: Tigerfog, iPhone

Of course, everything’s possible with a bit of research but I wasn’t willing to risk destroying my wife’s laptop while poking the BIOS. My adventure with the Arch family will unfortunately have to wait indefinitely. At least, I managed to boot Manjaro on my family desktop so I know my USB thumb drive works fine.

What’s next

In short, it was a positive experience. I succeeded in booting Linux Mint 19.1 Xfce and Fedora 29 GNOME on the laptop so instead of buying my own, I may as well use my wife’s. After all, a colleague explained to me how it’s possible to install Linux on an SSD plugged in via a SATA-to-USB-C cable. With that, it will feel like booting from an internal SSD. Next up, I will put this idea on my project backlog for this year and with this, I should be able to write tutorials for more than just Linux Mint.

Source: Tigerfog, iPhone

Questions? Comments? Let me know, thanks for reading and laters.

L’article Distro hopping on Linux and my thoughts on it est apparu en premier sur Les Ateliers PHV.

Source: Tigerfog, iPhone

Before we begin

First, I’d like to thank ETA Prime for inspiring me to write this tutorial. In his video, he explains how to extract ROMs, rename them and use them in Retroarch, a multi-platform tool for emulators. To find out more:

Source: ETA Prime

Why then do I bother writing this if ETA Prime has already covered the subject? Two reasons:

• he used Windows to explain the process
• he showed how to rename the files without getting into too much details

If you also use Windows or can get around Sega’s odd ROM-naming conventions, ETA Prime’s video is all you need. However, if you prefer a Linux-oriented tutorial or a script that will rename the files for you, I’ll encourage you to keep reading.

Buying the games and locating them

You can legally buy certain Genesis/Mega Drive games on Steam individually or as part of a special package called Sega Mega Drive & Genesis Classics through this affiliate link on Humble Bundle. From this point on, I’ll use the term Sega Classics when I refer to Sega Mega Drive & Genesis Classics for the sake of simplicity.

Since the Sega Classics game isn’t natively available on Linux, we need to make sure Steam is configured to run all games in SteamPlay mode using Proton. That way, Sega Classics will appear in the list of purchased games making it available to be downloaded and installed.

Once installed, right-clicking on Sega Classics and choosing Properties will make the pop-up window appear (see image below).

Source: personal screenshot

Clicking on the Browse local files under the Local files tab will show the exact location of Sega Classics on the computer (see image below).

Source: personal screenshot

Normally, if the username is klebs and the default location set by Steam hasn’t been changed, the folder should be at /home/klebs/.steam/steam/steamapps/common/Sega\ Classics

In my case as the above screenshot clearly shows, the folder is located at /mnt/DATA/Jeux/Steam/steamapps/common/Sega\ Classics

Renaming the files

Assuming the username is klebs and is using Steam’s default game location, the following commands in the terminal will create a copy of the ROMs in another folder and create a CSV file with nano:

cd /home/klebs/.steam/steam/steamapps/common/Sega\ Classics
cp -R uncompressed\ ROMs/ ~/Documents/SegaROMS
cd ~/Documents/SegaROMS
nano segaclassicslist.csv

Before copying the list below in nano, it’s important to make sure nothing’s missing. Also, the original filenames should match those in the SegaROMS folder.

ALEXKIDD_U.68K,Alex Kidd in the Enchanted Castle (USA).gen
AlienSoldier_Europe.SGD,Alien Soldier (Europe).md
AlienStorm_USA.SGD,Alien Storm (USA).gen
ALTEREDB_UE.68K,Altered Beast (USA).gen
BEYONDOA_E.68K,The Story of Thor (Europe).md
BEYONDOA_F.68K,The Story of Thor (France).md
BEYONDOA_G.68K,The Story of Thor (Germany).md
BEYONDOA_J.68K,The Story of Thor - Hikari o Tsugumono (Japan).bin
BEYONDOA_S.68K,The Story of Thor (Spain).md
BEYONDOA_U.68K,Beyond Oasis (USA).gen
BONANZAB_JE.68K,Bonanza Bros. (Europe).md
Columns3_USA.SGD,Columns III (USA).gen
COLUMNS_W.68K,Columns (World).gen
COMIXZON_U.68K,Comix Zone (USA).gen
CrackDown_USA.SGD,Crack Down (USA).gen
Crying_USA.SGD,Bio Hazard Battle (USA).gen
DECAP_UE.68K,DEcapAttack (USA).gen
DYNAHEAD_J.68K,Dynamite Headdy (Japan).bin
DYNAHEAD_UE.68K,Dynamite Headdy (USA).gen
ECCO2_U.68K,Ecco - The Tides of Time (USA).gen
eccojr.smd,Ecco Jr. (USA).gen
ECCO_UE.68K,Ecco the Dolphin (USA).gen
ESWAT_U.68K,ESWAT - City Under Siege (USA).gen
EternalChampions_USA.SGD,Eternal Champions (USA).gen
FATALLAB_JU.68K,Fatal Labyrinth (USA).gen
FLICKY_UE.68K,Flicky (USA).gen
GAING_UE.68K,Gain Ground (USA).gen
GalaxyForceII_UE.SGD,Galaxy Force II (USA).gen
GAXE2_W.68K,Golden Axe II (World).gen
GAXE3_J.68K,Golden Axe III (Japan).bin
GAXE_W.68K,Golden Axe (World).gen
Gunstar Heroes U.bin,Gunstar Heroes (USA).gen
KIDCHAM_UE.68K,Kid Chameleon (USA).gen
LandStalker_USA.SGD,Landstalker (USA).gen
LightCrusader_USA.SGD,Light Crusader (USA).gen
MonsterLair_JUE.SGD,Wonder Boy III - Monster Lair (Europe).md
MonsterWorld3.SGD,Wonder Boy V - Monster World III (Japan).bin
MonsterWorld3_USA.SGD,Wonder Boy in Monster World (USA).gen
PhantasyStar2_UE_GreenCrossFix.SGD,Phantasy Star II (USA).gen
PhantasyStar3_USA.SGD,Phantasy Star III - Generations of Doom (USA).gen
PhantasyStar4.SGD,Phantasy Star IV (USA).gen
RISTAR_UE.68K,Ristar (USA).gen
ROBOTNIK_U.68K,Dr. Robotnik's Mean Bean Machine (USA).gen
ShadowDancer.SGD,Shadow Dancer - The Secret of Shinobi (World).gen
SHINING2_U.68K,Shining Force II (USA).gen
SHININGD_UE.68K,Shining in the Darkness (USA).gen
SHININGF_U.68K,Shining Force (USA).gen
SHINOBI3_U.68K,Shinobi III - Return of the Ninja Master (USA).gen
SONIC2_W.68K,Sonic The Hedgehog 2 (World).gen
SONIC3D_UE.68K,Sonic 3D Blast ~ Sonic 3D Flickies' Island (USA).gen
Sonic_Knuckles_wSonic3.bin,Sonic & Knuckles + Sonic The Hedgehog 3 (World).gen
SONICSPI_U.68K,Sonic The Hedgehog Spinball (USA).gen
SONIC_W.68K,Sonic The Hedgehog (World).gen
sov.smd,Sword of Vermilion (USA).gen
SPACEHARRIERII.bin,Space Harrier II (World).gen
STHUNDER_W.68K,Super Thunder Blade (World).gen
STREETS2_U.68K,Streets of Rage 2 (USA).gen
STREETS3_E.68K,Streets of Rage 3 (Europe).md
STREETS3_J.68K,Bare Knuckle III (Japan).bin
STREETS3_U.68K,Streets of Rage 3 (USA).gen
STREETS_W.68K,Streets of Rage - Bare Knuckle - Ikari no Tetsuken (World).gen
TheSuperShinobi_JUE.SGD,The Revenge of Shinobi (USA).gen
ToeJamEarl.SGD,ToeJam & Earl (World).gen
ToeJamEarl2_USA.SGD,ToeJam & Earl in Panic on Funkotron (USA).gen
VECTMAN2_U.68K,Vectorman 2 (USA).gen
VECTMAN_UE.68K,Vectorman (USA).gen
VIRTUAFIGHTER2.bin,Virtua Fighter 2 (USA).gen

After saving and closing the CSV file, next up, it’s time to write a script that will rename the files:

nano segaclassicsrename.sh

#!/bin/bash
IFS=","
while read f1 f2
do
echo "rename from : $f1"
echo "to : $f2"
mv $f1 "$f2"
echo "done"
done < segaclassicslist.csv

After saving and closing the script, all that remains is to make it executable and run it:

chmod +x ./segaclassicsrename.sh
./segaclassicsrename.sh

If everything goes according to plan, the new filenames should be more straightforward.

Conclusion

Questions? Comments? Let me know, thanks for reading and laters.

L’article Extracting ROMs from Sega Mega Drive & Genesis Classics bought on Steam on Linux Mint 18.3 est apparu en premier sur Les Ateliers PHV.

Source: Tigerfog, Humble Bundle

What’s a Humble Partner?

Someone who’s partnered with Humble Bundle can help the latter sell its products in exchange of a commission by sharing what’s known as affiliate links. When you click on one of these links and you buy the advertised product or anything else on the Humble Bundle website, I receive a seller’s commission. The best part? It comes at no additional cost on your end. However, by using my affiliate links to purchase something on Humble Bundle, you contribute on helping the blog grow (e.g. buying retro video game accessories for review, investing in the development of this website, etc.).

How does it work?

First, you click on the image below or another one just like it on the homepage to access the Humble Bundle website.

Second, you buy something on that website.

Third? That’s pretty much it.

I don’t know what to buy

Here’s the first affiliate link in image form I’d like to share with you:

Source: Sabotage, Devolver Digital

The Messenger is a 2D action platformer with retro-style graphics and heavily inspired by Ninja Gaiden on the NES. It’s been released for a while now and I’ve long hesitated to buy it because Linux wasn’t officially supported. Knowing that it’s now playable on Steam with Proton (I’m currently using version 3.16-6 Beta), I gave it a shot and am glad I did.

The most amusing part? Seeing a ninja speak in Québécois, a form of Canadian French.

Source: iPhone, Tigerfog

Need more than mere images and recommendations? Don’t take my word for it. See for yourself:

Source: Sabotage, Devolver Digital

Hurry up because The Messenger is 30% off until Monday, February 11th 2019 at 2PM EST (Montreal time).

Questions? Comments? Let me know, thanks for reading and laters.

L’article Humble Partner + The Messenger Sale est apparu en premier sur Les Ateliers PHV.

Snow-filled balcony in Verdun (before)
Source: iPhone, Tigerfog

Why I’ve been less active these days?

Normally, we tend to be busier with our family during the holidays. Hoewever, I’ve also started taking online courses on blogging and website creation. This has led me to obsess over minute details and work non-stop on my website. Only when a certain influencer named Sean Cannel from Think Media TV has said on social media that done is better than perfect did I come to my senses. That’s why I’ll aim to publish more frequently regardless of the state of my website.

What do I have in store for this year?

For a few months, I’ve started to get interested in development on FPGA circuits that simulate computers and video game consoles on the hardware level, mainly the MiSTer project with the Terasic DE10-nano. I plan to share my new interest with you and also help Linux users get into this by writing tutorials for them.

Speaking of Linux, I also aim to write tutorials to help people run some Windows games using Proton in Steam. That’s because some guides on ProtonDB aren’t always straightforward enough.

Another problem I’ve had is I spend too much time writing complex blog posts thus affecting my productivity. I believe by focusing on writing more for fun instead of overanalyzing stuff, that should help me publish more content more frequently. Hopefully, that will also encourage more discussion among readers.

Closing thoughts

I’m very excited for 2019 and I hope you are as well. Questions? Comments? Let me know, thanks for reading and laters.

Snow-filled balcony in Verdun (after)
Source: iPhone, Tigerfog

L’article My plans for 2019 est apparu en premier sur Les Ateliers PHV.

If you wish to support me, you can buy the games I mentioned in this blog post via these Humble Bundle affiliate links and it comes at no additional cost from you. Thanks.

The King of Fighters 2002 (Steam multi-platform and DRM-free)
The King of Fighters 2002 Unlimited Match (Steam Windows only)

Hey everyone. Klebs here and today, I’ll show you how to assign your keyboard to your controller using AntiMicro in Linux Mint 18.3.

I generally don’t have issues with games detecting my controller during startup but it happens sometimes that it either doesn’t recognize or just don’t natively support it. Such is the case with The King of Fighters 2002 on GOG which I will use as an example for this tutorial.

Source: iPhone, Tigerfog

Getting started

First of all, I’d like to thank Travis (Ryochan7) for developing this application as well as the organization who has been maintaining it since on GitHub.

Before installing the application, it’s important to add the LibreGeek repository and then make sure Linux is up-to-date by entering this command line in the terminal:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:mdeguzis/libregeek
sudo apt update

It’s also possible to take a step further in the update process by using this command line instead:

sudo apt update && sudo apt upgrade

Installing the AntiMicro application

To install the aplication, enter this command line:

sudo apt install antimicro

Testing AntiMicro with a game

Mapping one controller

Source: Cropped screen capture

1. Plug in the controller.
2. Start AntiMicro.
3. Start the game that will be run alongside AntiMicro (e.g.: The King of Fighters 2002) preferably in windowed mode to have both windows sharing the screen.
4. In the in-game Options menu, find the controls section.
5. Under the only controller tab in AntiMicro, press on each key followed by its controller button counterpart to pair them together.
   • NOTE: according to the screenshot above, it may seem as the keys mapped to the controller buttons don’t seem to match the ones in the options menu in the game but that’s because the in-game image is wrong (the A and Z keys are used instead of Q and W).

Maping multiple controllers

Source: Cropped screen capture

1. Plug in the controllers.
2. Start AntiMicro.
   • Depending on the number of plugged-in controllers, there will be an equal number of tabs in AntiMicro used to map the keys to each controller.
3. Start the game that will be run alongside AntiMicro (e.g.: The King of Fighters 2002) preferably in windowed mode to have both windows sharing the screen.
4. In the in-game Options menu, find the controls section.
5. Under each controller tab in AntiMicro, press on each key followed by its controller button counterpart to pair them together.

Testing the game

1. With AntiMicro still running, use the controller in-game to see whether the buttons have been mapped properly.
2. If it works, click on the “Save” button in AntiMicro to create a new profile.
3. If it’s not done already, switch the game to fullscreen mode and have fun playing it with the controller.

Deleting the AntiMicro application

It’s also possible to delete the application by entering the following:

sudo apt remove antimicro

Conclusion

Questions? Comments? Let me know, thanks for reading and laters.

L’article How to map the keyboard to the controller in Linux Mint 18.3 est apparu en premier sur Les Ateliers PHV.

If you wish to support me, you can buy the games I mentioned in this blog post via these Humble Bundle affiliate links and it comes at no additional cost from you. Thanks.

Brütal Legend (Steam multi-platform and DRM-free)
Injustice: Gods Among Us – Ultimate Edition (Steam Windows only)
Jotun (Steam multi-platform)
The King of Fighters ’98 Ultimate Match Final Edition (Steam Windows only)

Hey everyone. Klebs here and today, I’ll show you how to setup an Xbox One controller for Linux Mint 18.3.

I’d like to point out that at the time of this writing, I haven’t yet found a way to make the controller work in wireless mode with the official USB wireless dongle. I’m also aware of its Bluetooth capability although this only applies to the 3rd revision of the controllers that were made available in 2016 while mine were bought before that period.

Getting Started

First of all, I’d like to thank Pavel Rojtberg for developing this driver on GitHub because without him, this wouldn’t have been possible.

Source: iPhone, Tigerfog

Since the controller needs to be plugged in to work, only that and a USB-to-MicroUSB cable are required. AA batteries and the USB wireless dongle won’t be needed.

Before installing the driver, it’s important to make sure Linux is up-to-date by entering this command line in the terminal:

sudo apt update

It’s also possible to take a step further in the update process by using this command line instead:

sudo apt update && sudo apt upgrade

Installing the Xpad driver

In case this hasn’t been done already, make sure these components are installed:

sudo apt install git dkms joystick jstest-gtk

To download and install the driver, enter the following command lines:

sudo git clone https://github.com/paroj/xpad.git /usr/src/xpad-0.4
sudo dkms install -m xpad -v 0.4

Testing the controller in general

Testing the controller with a native Linux version of a game on Steam

Source: iPhone, Tigerfog

For the test under the Linux client of Steam, I chose Brütal Legend and it worked right away.

Testing the controller with a native DRM-free Linux version of a game

Source: iPhone, Tigerfog

For the test of a DRM-free game, I chose Jotun from my GOG library and it worked right away.

Testing the controller with a Windows version of a game on Steam using Proton

Source: iPhone, Tigerfog

For the test of a Windows game under the Linux client of Steam using the Proton feature, I chose Injustice: Gods Among Us Ultimate Edition and The King of Fighters ’98 Ultimate Match Final Edition and both worked right away.

Updating the Xpad driver

It’s good practice to visit the GitHub project page once in a while to check for updates.
In case a newer version is available, here are the steps to proceed with the update:

cd /usr/src/xpad-0.4
sudo git fetch
sudo git checkout origin/master
sudo dkms remove -m xpad -v 0.4 –all
sudo dkms install -m xpad -v 0.4

Deleting the Xpad driver

It’s also possible to delete the driver by entering the following:

sudo dkms remove -m xpad -v 0.4 –all
sudo rm -rf /usr/src/xpad-0.4

Conclusion

Although I’d rather use the controller in wireless mode like I used to do on Windows, I don’t think it’s worth it to replace my old controllers with the newer ones because mine still work just fine. Moreover, I’ve been told using the 3rd revision controller in Bluetooth mode isn’t without its issues. Therefore I’ll keep plugging mine in until a better solution is made available.

Questions? Comments? Let me know, thanks for reading and laters.

L’article Setup the Xbox One controller for Linux Mint 18.3 est apparu en premier sur Les Ateliers PHV.

Quite often, game companies will release improved revisions of their existing consoles on the market. Even if this practice isn’t as popular, sometimes these revisions come with interesting improvements compared to the previous iterations.

In the case of the PS VITA, I gave in to the temptation of getting that second version (which I’ll refer to as “SLIM” and “OG” for the old one) despite the fact I’ve already owned the original model for a while now.
As a matter of fact, my impulse purchase was caused by the fact the price of PS VITAs never seem to drop and, judging by what’s happening to the PSP GO, it might even go up and be harder to find as the hacking part gets better and better.

Anyway, I’ll just give my first impressions of the SLIM since there’s already tons of in-depth articles comparing the two PS VITA models.

I’ve primarily tested the ergonomy (look and feel) and the screens of both consoles by playing Super Meat Boy, a very colorful game that stresses me enough to hold the console with an iron grip.

Ergonomy-wise, the SLIM is slimmer (no pun intended) than the OG.
That means it’s easier to carry which doesn’t matter as much to me since I always put it in a case and then, in my bag.
However, after a few gaming sessions with Super Meat Boy, I started developing hand cramps with the SLIM, something I’ve never experienced with the OG.
Ironically, the thickness of the OG is essentially what’s making it more comfortable to hold.
On the other hand, the SLIM feels lighter in my hands so I may be in for longer gaming sessions.

Regarding the screen, the fabulous OLED screen that comes with the OG was replaced by an LCD one for the SLIM which isn’t so bad… for the most part.
The general tint of the screen tends to be yellower on the SLIM than the OG, something some people consider as “more natural”. Of course, that’s the kind of detail you easily forget once you start playing.
I, for one, prefer the higher contrast of the OG’s OLED screen.
While I was playing the levels featuring Bandage Girl in Super Meat Boy, the light rose color seemed to blend more with the gray background on the SLIM’s LED screen than the OG’s OLED one. Unfortunately, for a game that relies heavily on your character’s precise location on the screen at any given time in order to win, this can be a problem.
It was only in that specific case I’ve had problems though… with other games like Spelunky, I’ve had no issues with the SLIM.

In conclusion, no matter which revision you choose, you can’t go wrong with either of them.
The differences are so minuscule in the end, you’ll still have access to an impressive library of RPGs and visual novels as well as all PSP games currently available on the PSN Store… and even more if you decide to hack your console!

Share your thoughts on which PS VITA you’ll choose if you had to pick one or what’s your experience with it if you own one. See ya!

L’article PS Vita vs PS Vita Slim est apparu en premier sur Les Ateliers PHV.

Source: iPhone, Tigerfog

Hi everyone. Klebs here and today, I would like to share with you the steps I’ve taken to install Linux on my gaming PC as well as my first impressions after my first steps in this new world. Knowing that a lot of games in my collection are exclusive to Windows, why on Earth would I leave an environment I’ve known almost all my life?

My first experiences with Linux as a tourist

Back when I was a college student, I was exposed to both Red Hat and Fedora during a few courses but I was quickly discouraged by library dependency issues and missing files during simple installation processes. For example, when I tried to compile something I’ve downloaded from the Internet like a free and open source project, I would end up missing 12 libraries and once I’ve found and installed each and every one of them individually, I would discover 60 additional missing libraries. Once on the job market, I shared my experiences with a colleague who’s a Linux user and he assured me things have improved and I could give it another shot with Ubuntu. While I had fun with it, I eventually remained with Windows 7 because in addition to my Windows-only games, I was still comfortable with the OS at the time.

The straw that broke the camel’s back

At first, I thought I was in full control of Windows 7 by managing the reboots myself after major system updates and I even skipped Windows 8 that seemed to target mainly tablet users. It was when I let myself be tempted by a free update to Windows 10 that things started to go downhill. I soon realized my data was sent without my consent by default to Microsoft and I had to opt out manually. In time, Windows 10 started automatically rebooting itself after some updates despite my numerous attempts to prevent it and that was the last straw. Nowadays, more and more games are now available on Linux and there are plenty of ways to run Windows games (e.g. Wine, PlayOnLinux, Lutris, Proton on Steam, etc.). I then decided it was time to do the switch.

My preparations with a virtual machine and the Live USB

Source: iPhone, Tigerfog

First, I installed 8 GB of additional RAM on my PC that already had 8 in order to test Linux distributions using virtual machines. After I talked to a few colleagues and read a few articles on the web, I decided to test Linux Mint. In order to do that, I created a virtual machine in VirtualBox to get familiar with the environment and write down the steps to install a few programs. I then booted in Live mode using a USB drive to test the OS in general:

• Install and configure OpenVPN
• Install and configure Dropbox
• Install KeePass, a password manager
• Install the Steam client and test a game
• Install the itch.io client
• Install ScummVM, a retro computer game engine
• Install DOSBox, an MS-DOS emulator for very old games
• Setup the Xbox One controller to be usable under Linux
• Setup access to external hard drives formatted in either FAT32 or NTFS
• Install and configure Plex, a media server where I manage my digital backups of DVDs and Blu-rays and family pictures and videos

The big leap

Source: iPhone, Tigerfog

Once I was satisfied with the test results, the time had come to install Linux for real and for that, I used a USB installation drive and I plugged in a new SSD after I unplugged everything else as a precaution. Having taken notes while testing a virtual machine, I used them to install Linux Mint on my SSD and once that was done, I shutdown the PC, replugged everything back, turned the PC back on and configured the BIOS to boot in Linux by default instead of Windows.

The next steps

Source: iPhone, Tigerfog

During the transition period, I discovered Nextcloud, a free and open source counterpart to Dropbox where I can store my files on my own server and EmulationStation, a Linux equivalent to Launchbox, a Windows frontend I normally use to play my console backups. While I’m installing my multi-platform games on Linux, here are the remaining steps:

• Install and configure Nextcloud
• Install and configure EmulationStation for my video game backups
• Setup the PlayStation 3 controller to be usable on Linux in wireless mode since the Xbox One 1st gen controller can only be used with a USB cable
• Install Linux games and delete their Windows counterparts from my Windows partition
• Test Windows games using the Steam Linux client with Proton in beta
• Test games using itch.io
• Test games using DOSBox and ScummVM

As I progress through this adventure, I’m thinking about writing tutorials for those interested in running their games on Linux, be it natively or using tools like Wine, PlayOnLinux, Proton or Lutris. If you have questions or comments since I’m still new at this and can make mistakes, let me know. Back to work!

If you liked this post, please consider upvoting and resteeming it and to be further updated on future posts, follow us on Steemit. Thanks for reading and see you next time.

L’article My first steps towards Linux as a gamer est apparu en premier sur Les Ateliers PHV.