Internet Archive can emulate games and old software. (archive.org)
from Apollo2323@lemmy.dbzer0.com to technology@lemmy.ml on 20 Sep 2023 04:46
https://lemmy.dbzer0.com/post/4484432

!textfiles@mastodon.archive.org - A silly milestone we passed sometime this year: The Internet Archive now emulates (to various degrees, of course), over 250,000 pieces of software, hardware, and electronics, thanks to the effort of a dozen emulation projects and all of them running in the browser. Live again, ancient software!

#technology

threaded - newest

MossyFeathers@pawb.social on 20 Sep 2023 05:06 next collapse

Damn, that’s fucking awesome. How long until they start receiving DMCAs from AiPlex or Nintendo?

(AiPlex is an Indian anti-piracy company who’s becoming known for spamming DMCAs and extorting content creators for even the slightest IP violations (sometimes striking reviews which contain no infringing content whatsoever or spamming DMCAs on irrelevant videos to force content creators to cave to their demands). They do it claiming to represent companies who have previously not given a shit.)

ram@lemmy.ca on 20 Sep 2023 05:30 collapse

Internet Archive’s been victim to anti-preservation efforts for years. They’ll deal with them likely the same way they always do, and are dealing with a lawsuit right now over The Great 78 Project.

TimLovesTech@badatbeing.social on 20 Sep 2023 05:14 next collapse

They have had some game emulation for years. I remember playing Oregon Trail on Archive.

BlueLineBae@midwest.social on 20 Sep 2023 05:45 next collapse

This is amazing! I haven’t opened up After Dark since I was a child!!! Thank you! I’m going to have to look through this for more nostalgia deep dives.

guyrocket@kbin.social on 20 Sep 2023 06:08 next collapse

Headline is wrong. Internet archive has been emulating software for a long time now.

Maybe they just got to 250k titles, but them emulating is not new.

ink@r.nf on 20 Sep 2023 08:51 next collapse

yea. it already had more than 2000 MS DOS games back in 2015

Apollo2323@lemmy.dbzer0.com on 20 Sep 2023 12:28 collapse

I apologize I will change the title.

Asudox@lemmy.world on 21 Sep 2023 12:40 collapse

It has been a day since you said that.

Apollo2323@lemmy.dbzer0.com on 21 Sep 2023 15:46 collapse

Lol sorry I been busy

Asudox@lemmy.world on 21 Sep 2023 16:00 next collapse

It doesn’t take even a minute to edit a piece of string.

Apollo2323@lemmy.dbzer0.com on 21 Sep 2023 19:06 collapse

Fuck off , what is your problem? You don’t have anything to do today?

Asudox@lemmy.world on 21 Sep 2023 19:11 next collapse

no, not really.

dangblingus@lemmy.dbzer0.com on 21 Sep 2023 19:42 collapse

This many replies indicates you have very little to do today yourself.

dangblingus@lemmy.dbzer0.com on 21 Sep 2023 19:42 collapse

And you still haven’t. Classic.

kadu@lemmy.world on 20 Sep 2023 06:27 next collapse

Love the Internet Archive. They’re my second favorite place to get ROMs, and it’s specially important now that most ROM sites are borderline useless with most links removed.

First place goes to one specific FTP server that contains a clean copy of every single possible ROM, for every system imaginable, with high speed downloads and the correct file extensions. I have copies of their IP address in multiple places, hell, I might tattoo it, I’ll die with this number imprinted on my brain my fear of losing it is so high.

d3Xt3r@lemmy.nz on 20 Sep 2023 08:33 next collapse

Just a few days ago, I was looking for an obscure copy of an old CD called “Walnut Creek Game Patches CDROM” - I found references to this inside an old DOS game cheats program, so I got curious and wanted to check it out - and was pleasantly surprised to find it on the Internet Archive.

TheAnonymouseJoker@lemmy.ml on 20 Sep 2023 20:50 collapse

You can find most of the CDROM game patches and special patches at old-games.ru as well. This is a website as organised as Vimm’s Lair.

JoeBigelow@lemmy.ca on 20 Sep 2023 13:04 next collapse

Can you DM that ip address please?

TheEntity@kbin.social on 20 Sep 2023 15:07 next collapse

Seconded.

guyrocket@kbin.social on 20 Sep 2023 19:55 collapse

Thirded!

Maven@lemmy.sdf.org on 21 Sep 2023 12:13 collapse

Fourthed

KSPAtlas@sopuli.xyz on 21 Sep 2023 14:02 collapse

fifthed

LievitoPadre@feddit.it on 21 Sep 2023 19:52 collapse

Sixthied!

HouseOfJazz@lemmy.world on 20 Sep 2023 13:49 next collapse

Vimm’s lair is awesome for roms. Its downloads are slow, but the website is organized and no spammy ads.

kadu@lemmy.world on 20 Sep 2023 14:34 collapse

Vimm is great for most retro systems, but when you get into the disc-based era, the proprietary or alternative formats are pretty bad. For Wii, you download a weird stripped down ISO format that requires a random piece of software to restore into an usable format, for instance.

HouseOfJazz@lemmy.world on 20 Sep 2023 18:21 collapse

Ah, I didn’t realize that. I mostly have played PS2 games that seem to work pretty well. I’ve downloaded, but haven’t actually tried any of the newer system stuff. I’ll give the internet archive a shot then.

guyrocket@kbin.social on 20 Sep 2023 19:56 collapse

Agree.

I got a huge file of arcade ROMs there...but many of them are MAME broken so ymmv.

ETA: FTP?!?! Ppl still FTP?

M500@lemmy.ml on 20 Sep 2023 06:35 collapse

I just want to play fisher price castle and Wild West games. How can this be done? I have the isos for those games.

gaylord_fartmaster@lemmy.world on 20 Sep 2023 13:45 collapse

PCem. I took that same nostalgia trip a year or two ago and they worked fine.