There are 3
types of software that you need to operate a MAME machine. The great thing about them is that you can
get all of them for free on the internet. They are as follows…
1)
ROMs. These are the actual
software packages that are used to play the games on your computer. ROMS are nothing more than the product of
taking the original EEPROM chip from the original video game and “sucking” the
data out of the chip into a .ROM software file.
If anyone Asks…Yes the ROM that you play on your MAME machine is the
EXACT same as the one you played in 1985 when you were a snotty nosed kid at
the local arcade. These are illegal to
own if you don’t have the original chip used to create them, and like anything
else on the internet, are freely available for the taking.
Legal Aspects of
Rom Emulation
2)
The
MAME software. This is the program that turns the
proprietary software that was on the original ROM into a program that is
executable on your personal computer.
Thank God for the minds that created this program. Without them I would be forced to watch
television to pass time.
3)
A
Front End program that allows you to
interface all of these ROMS, using the MAME software, in an easy to use GUI
based manner. I like MAMEWAH, but there
are may other programs that you can use.
Did I mention
they are all free?