Power64 is an emulator for the Commodore 64. It will allow you to run your favorite C64 software on your Apple Macintosh (PowerPC or intel-based) at full speed with smooth graphics and great sound.
2.2 Installation and Registration
There is no special installation procedure necessary to enjoy Power64. Just copy it to a convenient location on your hard disk and run it. It is not necessary to obtain any extra files (such as System ROM images); everything is included in the Power64 application file. Still, you should remember that you need to register your copy of Power64 if you want to play more than 10 minutes at once. Since you've already sent your registration fee as described in the previous section (You have sent it, haven't you?), you should now start Power64. It will automatically display the about dialog (If you've already dismissed it, select "About Power64" from the Apple menu). Now click on the Register button, and enter your name and registration number exactly as stated on your registration email/postcard. Hint: Use Cut & Paste to avoid typos.
2.3 Using the Demo Programs
1) Unless you already have an emulator window open, select File/New (Cmd-N) to open a new emulator window.
2) Select the program you want to test from the Programs menu.SMON and NEW Magician are tools, that are useful to have handy when hacking C64 programs. Joystick Demo lets you check the proper operation of joystick emulation. For more fun choose one of the action games: Block Out, Serpentine (with nice sound) or twist your brain with Quadromania. For a detailed description of these games see section 7.
3) Power64 will display the command necessary to run the program. Press <Enter> to confirm.
4) Enjoy!
2.4 Running a Game from a Disk Image (*.D64, *.X64, *.G41, *.D71 and *.D81) File
1) Unless you already have an emulator window open, select File/New (Cmd-N) to open a new emulator window.
2) Select Devices/Disk Drive #8/Insert Floppy Disk (Cmd-D). A file selector dialog will come up asking you for the *.D64, *.X64, *.G41, *.D71 or *.D81 disk image file. You can now choose a plain disk image file, or select a (ZIP, GZ or LHA) compressed file, that contains a disk image file. There is no need to manually decompress a ZIP, GZ or LHA file. If the archive contains several suitable files (e.g. multi-disk games or demos), Power64 will ask which one you wish to use.
3) The directory of the selected disk image will be listed in a new window.
4) Double-click on the game you want to play. Power64 will execute the commands LOAD"My favorite Game",8,1 and RUN
5) Enjoy!
The above procedure assumes that you are using the default options. If you have modified the Device Options (Options/Device Options), the directory window might not open automatically. Also a different command can be selected at this option dialog.
If you want a more C64 like feeling (a mouse and clicking on things is not really C64 like) you can also pursue the following, more traditional approach:
3a) Type: LOAD"$",8 <Enter>
Power64 will load the directory of the disk.
4a) Type: LIST <Enter>
Power64 will show the name and size (in Blocks of 254 Byte) of all files on the disk.
5a) Select your favorite game from the list displayed and type: LOAD"My favorite Game",8 <Enter>
Note: You do not need to type out the entire filename. You can type only the first few characters and use the wild card '*' to indicate that the first file whose name begins with these characters is to be loaded.
You can use LOAD"*",8 <Enter> to load the first file on a disk.
6a) Type: RUN <Enter>
7a) Enjoy!
Usually Power64 uses a very fast, but not 100% accurate method to access the disk. Some games, that need to fetch additional data from the disk after loading, do not rely on the C64-ROM routines to access the disk, but directly access the hardware to boost the floppy performance. These games will fail to load with this fast methods of floppy access. To run these games it is necessary to select Devices/Disk Drive#8/Complete 1541 Floppy Emulation BEFORE loading the game. If Power64 detects that a C64 program attempts access the 1541 in a way that is not compatible with the fast floppy emulation, while Complete 1541 Floppy Emulation is disabled it will display an error message and offer to reboot the C64 with Complete Emulation. Complete Floppy 1541 Emulation drastically improves compatibility, but unfortunately also faithfully emulates the poor performance for the original 1541 disk drive. It will take several minutes to load a game at original 1541 disk drive speed.
*.G41 disk images always require Complete Floppy 1541 Emulation. Therefore Power64 will automatically enable Complete Emulation for any disk drive containing an *.G41 disk image.
*.D71 and *.D81 disk images are used to emulate 1571 and 1581 disk drives. Power64 only offers fast floppy emulation for these drives. Since these drives have never been as popular as the 1541 their specific features have not been exploited by C64 programmers at the same level of detail. Therefore the lack of Complete Floppy Emulation for 1571 and 1581 disk drives generally does not decrease compatibility.
See chapter 5.7 for more details on this topic.
2.5 Running a Game from a ZipCoded (1!, 2!, ...) Disk Image
ZipCode is an alternative to D64 and X64. A ZipCoded Disk Image consists of 4-5 parts, each covering a certain stripe of the disk. To mount such a disk image, proceed just as if you were mounting a D64 image, and select any ONE (not all 4-5) segment in the file selector dialog. Power64 will automatically load the other parts of the disk image. Once the ZipCoded disk image is mounted, it can be used just like a D64 image.
Power64 supports ZipCoded Disks images that have been compressed using ZIP, GZ or LHA. The 4-5 segments of a ZipCoded Disk image can be contained in a single ZIP/LHA file, or each be separate ZIP/GZ/LHA files. Please note, that a single GZ compressed *.D64 disk image requires less disk space, than a single ZIP file containing the 4-5 segments, which in turn is smaller that 4-5 ZIP files containing a single segment of a ZipCoded disk each. Thus using ZIP/GZ compressed ZipCoded Disk Image is not a smart choice for a file format.
2.6 Running a Game from the Hard Disk (*.PRG/ *.C64/ *.CBM or *.P00) File
1) Unless you already have an emulator window open, select File/New (Cmd-N) to open a new emulator window.
2) Select Devices/Disk Drive #8/Attach Hard Disk (Cmd-Shift-D). A folder selector dialog will come up asking you for the folder on your Mac hard disk where you keep your *.C64/*.CBM or *.P00 files.
3) The directory of the selected folder will be listed in a new window.
4) Double-click on the game you want to play. Power64 will execute the commands LOAD"My favorite Game",8,1 and RUN.
You can also select a ZIP, GZ or LHA compressed file. Power64 will automatically decompress the game before loading.
5) Enjoy!
Similar the the note in section 2.4 this assumes standard options. The traditional way, explained there is also usable for Hard Disks. If the (Macintosh) file name ends in .C64 or .P00 then it is not necessary to type this extension when specifying the file to load.
2.7 Using ZIP Archives with C64 programs
If you have lots of C64 programs in *.PRG/*.P00 format each in a separate file, then your hard disk is likely to be cluttered and it is easy to become confused. Often it is convenient to join all these small files into a single ZIP archive, restoring order and saving space on the Mac hard disk.
Power64 can mount ZIP archives just like folders of the Mac hard disk and load games from them. Writing to a ZIP archive is not possible in Power64.
1) Unless you already have an emulator window open, select File/New (Cmd-N) to open a new emulator window.
2) Select Devices/Disk Drive #8/Attach ZIP Archive. A file selector dialog will come up asking you for the *.ZIP archive.
3) The directory of the selected archive will be listed in a new window.
4) Double-click on the game you want to play. Power64 will execute the commands LOAD"My favorite Game",8,1 and RUN.
5) Enjoy!
Similar the the note in section 2.4 this assumes standard options. The traditional way, explained there is also usable for ZIP archives.
If you plan to create ZIP archives yourself, please take care that you do NOT accidently perform linefeed translations (Option LF in ZipIt) or MacBinary encoding (Option MB in ZipIt). Both options make it impossible to use the archive.
Power64 removes all directory structures in ZIP archives. You should therefore place all files at the top level of the archive.
2.8 Running a Game from a Tape Image (*.T64) or Lynx File
Power64 can mount tapes both on a disk drive or on a tape drive. As some games will not work when run from the tape drive, Power64 will by default (i.e. via Cmd-T) mount tapes to a disk drive #8. This behavior can can be modified in the Options/Disk & Tape Drives dialog. Furthermore it is always possible to select the Mount Tape Command from a specific Device Submenu to state the desired disk or tape drive.
1) Unless you already have an emulator window open, select File/New (Cmd-N) to open a new emulator window.
2) Select Devices/Disk Drive #8/Mount Tape/Lynx. A file selector dialog will come up asking you for the *.T64 or Lynx file. You can now choose a plain *.T64 or *.Lynx file, or select a (ZIP, GZ or LHA) compressed file, that contains a *.T64 or *.Lynx file. There is no need to manually decompress a ZIP, GZ or LHA file.
2a) If you want to mount the tape on the tape drive, select Devices/Tape Drive/Mount Tape instead of the above Devices/Disk Drive #8/Mount Tape/Lynx.
3) The directory of the selected tape image will be listed in a new window.
4) Double-click on the game you want to play. Power64 will execute the commands LOAD"My favorite Game",8,1 (or LOAD"My favorite Game",1 if you opted for the tape drive) or and RUN.
5) Enjoy!
Similar the the note in section 2.4 this assumes standard options. The traditional way, explained there is also usable for Tape Images and Lynx files. Please note that the tape drive does NOT permit the use of explicit wild cards. The first file where the requested filename matches the beginning of the filename will be loaded.
2.9 Running a Game from a Tape Image (*.TAP)
Power64 can also mount raw tapes on a tape drive. Raw tape images offer very high precision of emulation, but *.TAP files are at least 8 times (usually about 10 times) as large as *.T64 files containing the same game. Futhermore the exact emulation of the tape drive brings along the precise emulation of the tape drives speed, which, using the orignal ROM routines of the C64, is about 50 bytes/second, and which can, with the use of special fastloaders, can be boosted to a breathtaking 200-500 bytes/second. Thus loading a game from a *.TAP file will usually take several minutes. Use Options/Turbo Boost (Cmd-B) to accelerate the C64 while loading.
1) Unless you already have an emulator window open, select File/New (Cmd-N) to open a new emulator window.
2) Select Devices/Tape Drive/Mount Tape (Cmd-T). A file selector dialog will come up asking you for the *.TAP file. You can now choose a plain *.TAP file, or select a (ZIP, GZ or LHA) compressed file, that contains a *.TAP file. There is no need to manually decompress a ZIP, GZ or LHA file.
3) The directory of the selected tape image will be listed in a new window. Usually a TAP file will contain a little loader program stored using the regular C64 ROM routines, and lots of data stored in a special fastloader format. Power64 can only interpret the code stored in original C64 format for display in the directory. All other data areas are shown as 'TurboTape Data'. In addition to that, most TAP files contain lots of empty space without useful data.
4) Double-click on the game you want to play. Power64 will execute the commands LOAD"My favorite Game",1 and RUN. Loading can easily take several minutes! Many programs (not all) will display flickering, colored stripes on the screen to indicate that the C64 is still loading. This is no reason to worry.
5) Enjoy!
The characters '?' and '*' that can be used as wildcards for the disk drives have NO special meaning for the tape drive. They are just plain symbols like any other letter. Still there is no need to type the entire filename. The tape drive will load the first file, whose name starts with the the given filename and than continues any way it wants. To load the first file on a tape, use the command LOAD"",1 (or, if device 1 (or 1-8-9) is the default device, just use LOAD without any parameters).
Many tape programs cause trouble, when loaded to an absolute adress. Thus you should always use LOAD"",1 and not LOAD"",1,1
2.10 Running a Game from a ROM Cartridge Image (*.CRT)
1) Unless you already have an emulator window open, select File/New (Cmd-N) to open a new emulator window.
2) Select Devices/ROM Cartridges/Attach ROM Cartridge. A file selector dialog will come up asking you for the *.CRT file. You can now choose a plain *.CRT file, or select a (ZIP, GZ or LHA) compressed file, that contains a *.CRT file. There is no need to manually decompress a ZIP, GZ or LHA file.
3) The cartridge will be attached and automatically started (by a Reset).
4) Enjoy!
Technical Note: The *.CRT file format groups a wide range of cartridge types. Power64 supports all those types, that only contain ROM. RAM cartridges and mixed RAM/ROM cartridges are not supported. Since all game cartridges contain only ROM, this limitation will cause trouble when playing games.
Note: Unfortunately, there is no standard RAM image format among C64 emulators. Thus it is likely that RAM Images created with Commodore 64 emulators other than Power64 will not work properly with Power64. A warning message will be displayed when Power64 discovers that the RAM image was created by a different emulator. Power64 is not able to load RAM Images created with Frodo.
Note also that loading a RAM image not only restores the RAM, but also the I/O area and the CPU-registers of the C64. Futhermore Power64 tries to restore the state of all disk drives. However it should be noted that the D64 images are NOT part of the RAM snapshot, and that Power64 needs to find these files (unmodified) at the original location in order for the reattachment to work.
2.12 General Hints on Game Controls
Once a game is successfully loaded and started it will usually display some kind of intro-screen. To start the actual game you usually have to press a key on the keyboard or press the joystick fire button. Which key must be pressed depends on the game you want to play. Usually it is one of the following: Space, Return, F1, F7 (or F3, F5).
The original C64 featured two joystick ports. Some games can only be controlled using a joystick in port 2, others require port 1 and some can be played with a joystick in any port. Usually the only way to tell the correct port is trial and error. By default Power64 uses the keys 4568-0 of the numeric keypad (or if your keyboard does not have a numeric keypad (e.g. PowerBook) the cursor keys and Control) to simulate a joystick in port 2. If this is not the correct setting for your game, press Cmd-J to switch to a joystick (using the same keys) in port 1.
Note: Some games jump back to their intro-screen if they are played using the wrong joystick port - Press Cmd-J to switch ports.
Power64 also supports USB-joysticks connected to the Macintosh. See chapter 5.5 (Joysticks) for more details.
2.13 Troubleshooting
Here are some common problems explained in Question and Answer form:
Q: Could you please send me a copy of my favorite game XYZ?
A: No! I do not distribute games to play with Power64! Check out section 3 of this document for FTP sites that have all the games that your heart might desire.
Q: My favorite game fails to load or the message 'COMMAND (XYZ) NOT EMULATED' appears in the bottom line of the disk directory window. What can I does that mean and what can I about it?
A: Power64 usually uses a disk emulation that is tuned for speed rather that optimal compatibility. If it encounters a command that it can not handle it displays the 'COMMAND (XYZ) NOT EMULATED' message (It is possible that this message is not visible if the game loader read the error message and thereby resets it to OK). You can choose a better, but slower disk emulation by selecting Devices/Disk Drive #8/ Complete Floppy 1541 Emulation. The disk emulation mode must be chosen BEFORE you start loading the game. Drawback: Complete Floppy Emulation is slow. It will take several minutes to load a game (like on a real C64).
Q: What do those number in the top/right corner mean?
A: The first number (x.xxMHz) indicates the speed of the virtual M6510 CPU of the emulated Commodore 64. Its value should be 0.98 for PAL-mode (preferred) or 1.02 for NTSC-mode. The second number (yy%) indicates how busy the Macintosh CPU is. When this number approaches (or even exceeds) 100% you will get bumpy motion and wailing sound.
In the second line you can see the frame rate of Power64. The first number gives the number of frame redraws/second and the second number tells how often the screen is recomputed (e.g. for sprite collision checks). The number in parentheses shows how often the screen would be redrawn on a real C64 (50 for PAL-mode, 60 for NTSC)
Q: Why is there a countdown at the bottom of the emulator window, and why does the game automatically stop after when the countdown expires?
A: Power64 is shareware, and fully functional even without registration. However to remind you that registration is required if Power64 is used for an extended period, each emulator session is limited to 10 minutes for unregistered copies.
Q: When I press Cmd-K to reset the emulated C64 it does not reset, but restarts the current game or just dies.
A: You have been playing a reset-protected game. To force a complete reset press Option-Cmd-K. This will circumvent the reset protection.
Q: Is there a newer version of Power64?
A: Power64 4.9.5 has been released in February 2008. A newer version might be available on the official Power64 Homepage: http://www.infinite-loop.at
or its mirror at: http://www.salto.at
Q: Is there an Intel version of Power64?
A: No, Power64 contains lots of PowerPC assembler code, that was once necessary to achieve 100% emulation speed and that now needs to be manually rewritten for Intel-Macs. Never the less Power64 will work fine (with full functionality and speed) on Intel-Macs thanks to Apples Rosetta emulation layer.
Q: I would like to have feature XYZ added to Power64.
A: Send me an Email:
Q: I have a different question!
A: Have you read the manual completely and not found an answer?
Q: I have read the manual from top to bottom and I still have a question!
A: Send me your question (via Email:
) and I will attempt to answer it. Please describe your problem as detailed as possible. Here are some hints as to what information you should include with your question:
What version of Power64 do you use? Have you checked the Power64 homepage to see if a newer version is available that fixes your problem?
What type of Mac do you use? What is your MacOS Version? Are there any unusual hardware or software extensions?
Have you tried booting your Mac without System Extensions? Did it help? Have you been able to determine which Extension is making trouble with Power64? Even if you managed to solve your problem by eliminating that Extension, please tell me that there is a problem that I should fix.
Try starting Power64 with the Control-key pressed. This disables various 'potentially harmful', non-essential features (e.g. access to USB-joysticks, printers (and their drivers), automatic opening an emulator window) of Power64. Did this cure your problem? Please let me know that there is a problem even if you managed to solve it!
What precisely did you do to cause the problem (Step-by-Step)? Can you reproduce the problem? (Always? Sometimes? Only at an odd chance? Never?) Can you reproduce it at your friends machine?
If Power64 crashes on you please state how severe the crash was. (The C64-game does not respond any more, but the emulator window kept on working (look at the CPU Load indicator!) - One Power64 window crashed, but the rest of Power64 still works - Power64 crashes but you can still work with other Macintosh applications - The Mac comes to a complete stop and a reset is necessary.)
If the problem is related to a specific game? - Where did you obtain that game? Have you tried a different source? I am not familiar with all games. If a game has problem with Power64 let me know; If you have a problem with a game (Where is item ABC in adventure XYZ? What is the best strategy to get rid of the bad guys in the shoot-'em-up XYZ?) please do NOT write to me - I lack the time to solve such puzzles.
Note: I will do not distribute C64 games to play with Power64! Check out the FTP-servers listed in section 3.
2.14 What is new in Power64 4.9.5?
Version 4.9.5: (Feb. 2008)
The fonts in the directory and debugger window are now scalable, to accomodate high-res screens, where 9-point Monaco is simply to hard to read.
Added Support for Gamepads
Minor Bugfix for Joystick Support in MacOS 10.4.9
Improved Mouse Handling for Amica Paint
Improved Timing for Barbarian
Sound Output is broken on some Macs. This used to cause extremly fast emulation in Power64. While the root cause of this bug is still not understood, Power64 now detects the problem and safely falls back to mute emulation.
Power64 no longer crashes when drawing screens in black/white mode.
Power64 sometime had trouble mounting disks via Drag&Drop. This bug has been fixed.
Lots of links in the documentation have been updated/fixed.
For more information on the History of Power64 please read the chapter 9: Version History.
2.15 Future of Power64
Development of Power64 still continues. Features planned for the next releases include:
Native support for Intel-based Macs
Vertical Retrace (VBL) Synchronisation for OpenGL
Support for HardSID and/or Catweasle
Support for Network gaming
Support for Modem emulation via Ethernet (QuantumLink - http://www.quantum-link.org)
Support for CRT-Files (Cartridges with multiple memory banks)
Add a Watch-window to the debugger, to make it possible to observe variables / memory ranges in real time.
General Bug-fixes (esp. 1541 via hard disk)
Database system for organising C64 games / disk contents
Converter for audio signals for C64 tape drives to WAV/TAP/T64
Documentation:
System Variables (low 1KB)
System ROM Routines
Please feel free to tell me about any additional features that you consider important. (Email:
)
