===========================================================================



     SSSS    tt          lll  lll

    SS  SS   tt           ll   ll

    SS     tttttt  eeee   ll   ll   aaaa

     SSSS    tt   ee  ee  ll   ll      aa

        SS   tt   eeeeee  ll   ll   aaaaa  --  "An Atari 2600 VCS Emulator"

    SS  SS   tt   ee      ll   ll  aa  aa

     SSSS     ttt  eeeee llll llll  aaaaa



===========================================================================

                               Release History

===========================================================================



4.6 to 4.6.1: (April 22, 2015)



  * Fixed bug whereby text input could not be entered in certain widgets

    in the debugger.



  * Updated UNIX configure script to work with GCC 5.x compilers.



-Have fun!





4.5 to 4.6: (March 21, 2015)



  * Finally fixed fullscreen rendering issues on some OpenGL

    implementations in Linux (mostly Intel-specific).  Basically, the

    concept of 'dirty updates' has been removed; the window is now

    updated continuously.  This may also fix issues some people were

    having with triple-buffering in Windows Direct3D, etc.



  * Fixed sound corruption that happened when running a ROM for the

    first time.  This was most obvious under OSX, but occasionally

    happened on other systems too.



  * Reverted some minor C++11 features (std::regex and cbegin/cend

    iterators) in a few places, since otherwise GCC 4.9 is required to

    compile Stella, and it isn't available on many systems yet.  These

    changes allow Stella to be built with GCC 4.8, which is present in

    the latest 'long term release' of Ubuntu.



  * Fixed error messages on state loading; sometimes multiple messages

    were being added together and displayed.



  * Fixed bug when running ROMs using AtariVox controllers; the app would

    crash upon exiting the ROM.



  * Snapshot functionality now works while the emulation is paused.



  * Certain textfields in the UI now have filtering enabled, preventing

    insertion of illegal characters.  This will be extended throughout

    the code in future releases.



  * DataGridWidgets in the debugger now respond to keypad '+' and '-'.



  * Updated included PNG library to latest stable version.





4.2 to 4.5: (January 1, 2015)



  * The conversion to C++11 has begun :)  From this point on, to build

    Stella you will need a C++11 compatible compiler (Visual Studio 2013,

    Clang 3.3, gcc 4.9, Xcode 6, etc).  Eventually, this will bring more

    bug-free and (hopefully) faster code.



  * Fixed major bug with joysticks, where mapping was being lost on reset,

    the app would crash when plugging/unplugging certain sticks, etc.



  * Fixed major (but rare) crash that could occur when state files were

    zero'ed or corrupted.



  * Added dialog which shows the internal joystick database (all the

    joysticks that Stella knows about) and the ability to remove

    (currently unplugged) joysticks from this database.



  * Added preliminary support for 'WD' (Wickstead Design) bankswitching

    scheme, used for a previously unreleased prototype ROM.



  * Improved ZIP file handling, so that it now works as a normal

    filesystem does (it properly shows nested files and directories).



  * The debugger 'reset' command now does a complete system reset,

    instead of simply setting the PC to the reset vector address.



  * The 'listdelay' command now accepts a value of zero, indicating that

    list-skipping (jumping to a line in a list by keypress) is disabled.



  * The 'ctrlcombo' command now has a GUI item, allowing it to be changed

    from within the application.



  * Added 'Shift-Alt/Shift-Cmd s' keyboard shortcut, to enable continuous

    snapshot mode for each frame.  This is really only useful if you

    save snapshots in 1x mode; using it in high-resolution mode is

    not recommended.  Special thanks to SvOlli for the idea and code.



  * The minimum supported version for the OSX port is now OSX 10.7.

    Because of this, the 32-bit version is also discontinued, as 10.7

    supports 64-bit Intel only apps.



  * Updated internal ROM properties database to ROM-Hunter version 10

    (thanks go to RomHunter for his tireless research in this area).

    Related to this, updated the snapshot collection.



  * Updated included PNG library to latest stable version.





4.1.1 to 4.2: (October 28, 2014)



  * Text input from non-US keyboard layouts is now supported.  Note that

    all text in Stella is still ASCII-only, but at least it can now be

    entered using a native layout.



  * Related to the text input changes, the debugger Alt-combo shortcuts

    have been changed; they now use the same key but with Control instead

    of Alt (Control-F for frame advance, etc).



  * Controllers are now detected dynamically by Stella.  This means that

    you can plug/unplug joysticks/paddles/etc while Stella is running,

    and they will be added and removed automatically.  Also fixed is

    a bug whereby sometimes custom joystick mappings weren't being saved.



  * The 'cpurandom' option is now broken down by register type, so you

    can selectively enable/disable randomization for each one.  The

    default is to disable randomization for all registers.



  * Fixed 'MDM' scheme to trigger bankswitching on writes to hotspots

    (previously it only triggered on reads).  Also, the scheme has been

    modified as originally designed by E. Blink; hotspots are now in the

    range $800-$BFF instead of $800-$FFF.



  * The OSX app-icon now includes 32x32 and 16x16 versions, so 'small'

    icons will be viewable in 'Finder', 'Get Info', etc.



  * The Linux port now uses an app-icon; this seems to be needed for

    some window managers.





4.1 to 4.1.1: (September 14, 2014)



  * Re-added 'uipalette' option due to popular demand (of at least one

    person :)).



  * Fixed bug in Windows port where pressing 'Alt' key combos resulted in

    an annoying system beep.  Currently this is fixed by patching the SDL2

    library and including a modified version with Stella.





4.0 to 4.1: (September 1, 2014)



  * Improved 'DASH' bankswitching scheme support; there is now a debugger

    tab for changing banks and viewing internal cart RAM, and

    autodetection is now implemented.



  * Added 'MDM' (Menu Driven Megacart) bankswitch scheme as described on

    AtariAge and originally developed by Edwin Blink.



  * Improved snapshot viewing in the ROM launcher; snapshots are now

    scaled to the available space, and can better accommodate sizes

    other than those generated by Stella itself.



  * Improved support on multi-monitor systems.  Stella will now use the

    same monitor for fullscreen-windowed mode switches.  Special thanks

    to Magnus Lind for patches that added this functionality.



  * Removed the 'bank' command from the debugger prompt, as it only worked

    (inconsistently) with certain bankswitch types.  The bankswitch UI

    should now be used to query/set bank state.



  * Fixed bug in disassembly output; instructions at $F000 were never

    being highlighted during execution.



  * The UNIX configure script now supports newer versions of Hurd.

    Special thanks to Stephen Kitt for the patch.





3.9.3 to 4.0: (July 1, 2014)



  * Ported Stella to SDL2, which brings many new features.  Among the

    largest improvements is native hardware acceleration support for

    Windows (Direct3D) and Linux/OSX (OpenGL).  It is also now possible

    to port Stella to iOS and Android devices using OpenGLES.

    Hardware acceleration is now required, which means up-to-date drivers

    are needed.  Software rendering is still present, but is somewhat

    unoptimized and unsupported going forward.



  * Fullscreen video modes now use the desktop resolution.  Switching

    to fullscreen and back to windowed mode no longer rearranges icons

    on your desktop.



  * TIA TV effects are now available in all video modes, since hardware

    acceleration is a requirement.



  * Added a much more detailed view of cart extended RAM to a new

    debugger tab.  Special thanks to SpiceWare for this implementation.



  * Added preliminary support for 'DASH' bankswitching scheme by A. Davie.



  * The AtariVox and SaveKey controllers now have the ability in the

    debugger to completely erase the virtual EEPROM data.



  * Added 'savesnap' debugger prompt command, and also associated

    context menu item to the debugger TIA output area.  This saves the

    current TIA image to a PNG file.



  * Added 'hidecursor' commandline option, which allows to completely

    disable showing the mouse cursor (useful on systems that don't have

    a mouse).



  * Removed 'uipalette' option, as the original palette is no longer

    supported.



  * Updated included PNG library to latest stable version.





3.9.2 to 3.9.3: (January 20, 2014)



  * Added bankswitch schemes BF, BFSC, DF, DFSC and 4KSC, thanks to

    RevEng and CPUWIZ of AtariAge.

 

  * Updated ROM properties for several ROMs, thanks to Omegamatrix of

    AtariAge.



  * Fixed program crash when specifying a bankswitch type that Stella

    didn't recognize; an error message is now displayed.





3.9.1 to 3.9.2: (August 31, 2013)



  * Improved parsing of the DASM lst file for the debugger disassembly;

    it sometimes missed constant declarations.



  * Changed 'usemouse' argument from a true/false option to accept

    'always', 'analog' and 'never'.  This allows to use the mouse as a

    controller under more specific circumstances.  The default is

    'analog', which means the mouse is only used to emulate analog-like

    devices (paddles, trackball, etc).



  * Added ability to use bold fonts within the debugger window, which can

    be set with the 'dbg.fontstyle' commandline argument as well as in the

    debugger UI Settings dialog.  This is useful for those that find the

    current font too narrow.



  * Renamed 'debuggerres' argument to 'dbg.res'.  All future debugger-

    specific options will start with 'dbg.'.



  * The TIA 'zoom' area in the debugger now supports scrolling the

    mouse wheel (currently up/down only, as I don't have a sideways

    scrolling mouse to test with).





3.9 to 3.9.1: (August 21, 2013)



  * Note: because of TIA/6502 changes, the state file format has changed

          again, and old state files will not work with this release.



  * Several bugfixes and improvements to the debugger:

      - Improved display of debugger when using larger video modes.  There

        are now three font sizes, which are automatically selected when

        the debugger is sized accordingly.  When using larger fonts, the

        extra space is now used more efficiently.



      - Fixed bug in disassembly when the mirror used for the current

        PC didn't match the mirror for the current bank.  In this case,

        the disassembler became confused and didn't properly track the

        PC address.



      - Fixed bug in display of current TIA frame number in the UI;

        depending on how breakpoints were set, it was sometimes off by

        one.



      - Fixed RAM widget Search/Compare textboxes; entering any data and

        then pressing 'Enter' / clicking 'OK' locked the UI until exiting

        and re-entering the debugger.



      - Changed display for various TIA position counters to decimal

        (from hex) in the TIA tab.  Related to this, all data input

        widgets in the UI now have the ability to enter binary,

        decimal or hex values by using the proper leading character

        (\, #, $, respectively).



      - Added 'INTIM Clks' to the 'I/O' tab. which shows the number of

        clocks between each 'step' of the INTIM timer.



      - Added ability to modify 'tiadriven' commandline argument to the

        'TIA' tab, and 'ramrandom' to the 'I/O' tab.  These options were

        available for quite some time, but they weren't exposed in the UI.



      - Added 'cpurandom' commandline argument, and associated UI item

        to the 'I/O' tab.  This works similar to 'ramrandom', and

        randomizes the contents of the CPU registers on ROM startup.



      - Added 'uhex' debugger prompt command, which toggles all

        hexadecimal display between upper/lower case.  This setting is

        also saved in the settings file as argument 'dbg.uhex'.



      - Removed 'loadsym' command from the debugger prompt, since the

        DASM symbol file is always loaded anyway, making the command

        redundant.  Related to this, fixed loading symbols with

        ###.name convention; the leading number is now stripped.



      - Added support for DASM lst files (created with the -l option).

        For now, the contents are only partially used, to detect

        constants vs. symbolic addresses in the symbol file.  Eventually,

        further information from the lst file may be used.



      - The GRPx and PFx registers in the TIA output now show inactive

        background pixels as either blanked or with the underlying object

        colour, instead of always being black.   This gives a more accurate

        representation of how the registers are actually drawn onscreen.

        Thanks to Tjoppen of AtariAge for this idea and sample code.



      - The 'Source Address' locations for the CPU registers now show

        labels where appropriate.



  * Renamed 'Override properties' dialog (accessible from the ROM

    launcher by a right-mouse-button click) to 'Power-on options', with

    the following new options:

      - Set start-up state for both joysticks as well as console select/

        reset buttons.  Related to this, added 'holdjoy01' and 'holdjoy1'

        commandline arguments, and removed 'holdbutton0' argument.



      - The ability to load the ROM directly from this dialog, after

        changing any settings, and also to start in the debugger.



      - Added more detailed information as to how to use this

        functionality to the UI.



      - Buttons held down are reset approx. 0.5 seconds after starting

        the ROM, to simulate pressing and releasing the buttons on a

        real console.



  * Fixed bug when using event remapping; changes were being saved only

    when launching a ROM from the launcher, not in standalone mode.



  * Improved bankswitch autodetection for newer EF and EFSC ROMs

    generated by batari Basic, thanks to RevEng of AtariAge.



  * Added properties database info for "Princess Rescue" ROM.



  * For the Linux/UNIX port:

      - Fixed bug whereby a maximize button was always present in the

        window title bar.  Stella could not be expanded in this way,

        so the button was removed.



      - Added Startup notification protocol patch to the .desktop

        file from Dan Fandrich.



  * Updated included PNG library to latest stable version.





3.8.1 to 3.9: (June 27, 2013)



  * Greatly extended functionality of the debugger disassembly:

      - There is now a new tab which lists information specific to the

        cartridge bankswitching scheme in use.  This includes the ability

        to modify internal state even for esoteric ROMs which don't

        follow the standard layout of 4K per bank.



      - The debugger now generates DASM-compatible disassembled code,

        which can be saved to an external file.  This disassembly is

        based on both a static and runtime analysis, and is extremely

        accurate.  It also automatically differentiates between

        CODE/PGFX/GFX/DATA/ROW areas, whereas normal Distella

        only differentiates between CODE/GFX/ROW.  For now, only

        single-bank (4K and smaller) ROMs are supported; support for

        multi-bank ROMs will come in a future release.



      - The disassembly now recognizes various TIA/RIOT read/write

        mirrors, and marks them as such (for example, INPT4|$30 instead

        of INPT4 for address $3C).  Special thanks to Omegamatrix for

        sample code and idea for this feature.



      - ROMS less than 2K in size (so called 'Sub2K' ROMs) now show only

        the actual data in the binary.  This means, for example, that a

        256 byte ROM will show only 256 bytes in the disassembly, instead

        of padding duplicated data to 2K boundary.



      - Fixed bug when entering patched bytes; the current number base

        wasn't being used.



      - Fixed labelling in ROW directives; it wasn't accurately setting

        a label in the case where it occurred in the middle of the data.



      - Added a new dialog for changing Distella settings, located by

        right-clicking the disassembly code.



      - The commandline option 'dis.resolvedata' has been renamed to

        'dis.resolve', with new usage (see manual for further details).



  * Fixed regression in handling ZIP files (as compared to version 3.7.5)

    created with newer versions of the ZIP program.  Related to this, added

    better error messages for invalid/missing/unreadable ROM files.



  * Added 'snapname' commandline argument and associated UI item, for

    specifying whether snapshots should be saved using either the internal

    ROM database name or the actual ROM filename.  This feature was

    present in older releases of Stella, and due to popular demand it's

    now back again.  Related to this, added a new dialog specifically for

    the numerous snapshot-related items.



  * Fixed bug in Linux/OSX versions when starting Stella for the first

    time; it was previously creating mislabeled directories to store

    settings, snapshots, etc.



  * Fixed redundant "New console created" message when entering the same

    ROM multiple times from the ROM launcher.



  * Updated profile database for "BasketBall" ROMs; the joysticks are now

    swapped by default, which allows one and two-player games to work

    correctly.



  * SuperCharger/AR ROMs now ignore the 'ramrandom' setting, and start with

    RAM containing all zeroes.  This seems to fix issues with Dragonstomper

    always starting in exactly the same state.



  * Fixed issue when debugging CompuMate ROMs; keystrokes entered while

    debugging would be interpreted as typing on the CompuMate keyboard.



  * Changed colour of the 'current PC indicator' in the debugger to

    match the one used for line selection.  This makes it easier to

    see for those with problems seeing lighter colours.



  * Improved functionality of the various pop-up dialogs and context

    menus in the UI; they can now be navigated more fully by the keyboard

    and mouse.



  * Updated internal ROM properties database to ROM-Hunter version 9

    (thanks go to RomHunter for his tireless research in this area).

    Related to this, updated the snapshot collection.



  * Updated included PNG and ZLIB libraries to latest stable version.





3.8 to 3.8.1: (March 3, 2013)



  * Added support for TIA RSYNC writes, thanks to Omegamatrix of AtariAge.

    This allows the recently released "Extra Terrestrials" ROM to run, as

    well as improving emulation of "Fatal Run" and several other test ROMs.



  * Fixed typo in TIA HMOVE writes, thanks to Thomas Jentzsch.  This fixes

    the constant collision issues in "Kool-Aid Man", and several other

    homebrew ROMs.



  * Fixed sound issues on OSX PPC machines (all sound was in little-endian

    format, but PPC is big-endian).



  * The OSX DMG archive now contains proper modification dates.





3.7.5 to 3.8: (February 21, 2013)



  * Huge changes to the sound system:

      - The sound code now uses 16-bit signed samples instead of 8-bit

        unsigned samples, making it more compatible with a wider variety of

        systems.

      - Improved sound output for several ROMs, including "Space Rocks"

        (the 'heartbeat' sound can now be clearly heard).

      - The 'volume clipping' option has been removed, since in 16-bit

        mode it's no longer needed.

      - The 'Tia freq' option has been removed.

      - Selecting more common sample rates (other than 31400) now works

        much better, but there are still a few ROMS (like Quadrun) where

        31400Hz still works best.



  * Many changes to handling ZIP archives:

      - Files in multiple levels are now recognized.  This fixes issues

        in Windows where such files couldn't be loaded at all, and in all

        systems where ROMs with the same name (but in different

        directories) weren't being recognized.

      - ZIP contents are now handled more intelligently.  Archives

        containing only one ROM are automatically loaded, whereas those

        with multiple files are treated as directories.

      - Opening an archive from the commandline now works as in the UI,

        where opening a multi-ROM archive will pop up the UI and show the

        archive contents (as a directory).

      - The ZIP code behind the scenes is now much faster by making use

        of caching (the old code was actually from 1998!).

      - This new 'archive' infrastructure may eventually lead to 7-Zip

        support, as well as 'virtual' formats (such as showing the list

        of files for 2in1/4in1/8in1/etc within the UI).



  * Improved bankswitch autodetection for FA2 ROMs; 29K and 32K versions

    (meant for Harmony cart) are now recognized.



  * Improved bankswitch autodetection for X07 ROMs (although there's only

    two known ROMs in existence, so the detection probably isn't robust).



  * Tweaked bankswitch autodetection for the 0840, F8 and FE schemes;

    several homebrews that didn't run before now work correctly.



  * Fixed regression in RIOT INTIM reads; at least one known ROM

    (Mr. Roboto Berzerk hack) wasn't working properly.



  * Fixed bug in the debugger with RIOT INTIM/TIMINT display; reads

    were being done multiple times, changing the state of the

    registers and resulting in incorrect emulation.



  * Worked around bug in debugger disassembly of zero-page RAM; for now,

    the resolving of address vs. data sections is turned off in such a

    case.  This fixes lockups in 'Meltdown' ROM.



  * Added support for different directories for saving/loading PNG

    files.  These are set with the 'snapsavedir' and 'snaploaddir'

    commandline arguments (which replace the old 'snapdir'), and are

    also available within the UI.



  * Changed 'eepromdir' commandline argument to 'nvramdir', and changed

    the default location to BASEDIR/nvram (where BASEDIR depends on your

    OS).  This means all your EEPROM and Flash files will have to be

    manually moved to this new directory.  This affects developers, and

    those people playing ROMs with AtariVox/SaveKey support as well as

    the newer 'Star Castle' FA2 ROMs.



  * Updated included PNG and ZLIB libraries to latest stable version.





3.7.4 to 3.7.5: (December 22, 2012)



  * Improved regressions in PAL format autodetection, introduced in the

    past several releases.



  * Fixed crash when loading invalid PNG files in ROM browser.



  * Snapshots generated by Stella now include more informative info, such

    as the build number, platform architecture, TV effects in use, etc.





3.7.3 to 3.7.4: (October 31, 2012)



  * Fixed screen blanking regression in 'Video Chess', and improved

    behaviour of ROMs that don't use VSYNC.





3.7.2 to 3.7.3: (October 26, 2012)



  * Note: because of TIA/RIOT changes, the state file format has changed

          again, and old state files will not work with this release.



  * Improved handling of 'illegal' VSYNC signals, which sometimes created

    'short' frames that caused massive flickering.  Also improved

    related behaviour when VSYNC isn't used at all.



  * Improved sound generation with ROMs that have irregular scanline

    counts.  This fixes many demo ROMs as well as Quadrun, where

    previously there would be 'gaps' in the sound output.



  * Improved emulation of RIOT chip, in particular the behaviour of

    reading from TIMINT.  Also, D6 of the Interrupt Flag register is now

    properly set on active transition of the PA7 pin.



  * Fixed bug in DPC+ bankswitch scheme; the music in several ROMS wasn't

    playing correctly.



  * The ROM properties database now uses 'Auto' instead of 'Auto-select'

    everywhere.  This makes for less typing when running from the

    commandline.



  * Updated included PNG library to latest stable version.





3.7.1 to 3.7.2: (June 10, 2012)



  * Fixed bug in handling filenames with the '~' character, as is used

    extensively by RomHunter rom-sets.





3.7 to 3.7.1: (June 8, 2012)



  * Note: because of TIA changes, the state file format has changed again,

          and old state files will not work with this release.



  * Improved TIA emulation with ROMs that have too few or too many

    scanlines; the output is now more accurate compared to a real TV.

    Special thanks to Omegamatrix of AtariAge for test ROMs in this area.



  * Modified hotkey for "Change console palette" (Control-f) to also

    change the display properties of the TIA.  This allows you to switch

    between NTSC/PAL/SECAM (and variant) modes dynamically.  Related to

    this, added Shift-Control-f key to step backwards through the

    available modes.



  * Added '64in1' and '128in1' multicart bankswitching schemes, which work

    the same as the 2in1/4in1/etc ones (Control-r switches to each

    consecutive game in the ROM).



  * Fixed several bugs in DPC+ bankswitching scheme, including ability

    to load and save state files.  As well, ROMs now work correctly after

    console format autodetection.



  * Fixed bugs in handling relative filenames on the commandline,

    introduced in the last release.  The new functionality should be much

    more robust.





3.6.1 to 3.7: (June 1, 2012)



  * Added Blargg TV effects, with presets for Composite, S-video, RGB,

    and badly adjusted TV, and well as a custom mode with full

    configurability of contrast, brightness, gamma, etc.  Many

    keyboard shortcuts and commandline arguments were added to support

    this; see the documentation for a detailed explanation.  These

    effects are OpenGL-only.  Special thanks to Ian Bogost and the

    Georgia Tech Atari Team for the preliminary implementation.



  * Updated the CompuMate keyboard handler to recognize more keys on an

    actual keyboard, instead of having to remember the weird combinations

    used on the original CompuMate keyboard (although those original keys

    will continue to work).  Related to this, fixed bug whereby

    'ghost keys' would be detected by the CompuMate, particularly after

    pressing 'Enter' to start a game from the ROM launcher.



  * Added emulation for MindLink controller using the mouse; the 'Bionic

    Breakthrough' and 'Telepathy' ROMs now work.



  * Updated FA2 bankswitch scheme (Star Castle) to emulate load/save

    high score functionality to the Harmony cart flash RAM.



  * Added ability for ROM launcher to 'descend' into ZIP files when it

    contains more than one ROM file.  This means you no longer have to

    unzip a multi-file archive before using each ROM.  Thanks go to Roland

    Schabenberger (webOS maintainer) for this idea and sample code.



  * Several improvements to the debugger/disassembler:

      - The 'resolvedata', 'showaddr' and 'gfxformat' commandline

        arguments are renamed to start with 'dis', indicating that

        they're used with the built-in disassembler.

      - Zero-page code addresses no longer have their high-byte

        truncated, and system equates (TIA and I/O registers) are now

        properly marked as such.

      - The Distella '-r' option (Relocate calls out of address range)

        is no longer the default, resulting in output more consistent

        with normal usage of Distella.  Related to this, added the

        '-dis.relocate' commandline argument (and associated UI item)

        to toggle this dynamically.



  * Fixed bug in EFSC bankswitch scheme state saving; the Superchip RAM

    wasn't actually being loaded and saved to state files.



  * Improved speed of loading and saving state files, as well as slightly

    reducing their size.  Because of this, old state files will not work

    with this release.



  * Replaced commandline argument 'uselauncher' with 'exitlauncher'.  The

    new option specifies the behaviour of the ROM launcher when exiting

    a ROM (always exit to launcher, or only when the launcher was actually

    used).  This setting can now be changed in the GUI.



  * Several updates to the internal properties database:

      - 'Juno First' ROMs now use an AtariVox/SaveKey when possible

      - 'Astroblast' ROMs now use the paddles by default

      - 'Star Castle 2600' ROMs added



  * Changed key-combo for enabling TIA objects and collisions to be

    toggled on and off with the Alt-period and Shift-Alt-period

    respectively (instead of having two separate keys to turn them on

    and off).



  * When working on the commandline, relative filenames are now

    correctly handled (current working directory is used).



  * The Windows 98/ME/2000 builds have been discontinued, due to code and

    features that are only available on Windows XP/SP3 and later.



  * Updated included PNG library to latest stable version.





3.6 to 3.6.1: (March 30, 2012)



  * Extended FA2 bankswitch scheme to handle 28K ROMs (in addition to

    the previously supported 24K ROMs).





3.5.5 to 3.6: (March 16, 2012)



  * Added support for 2600-daptor II device, including native support

    for 7800 controllers, BoosterGrip and Keypad controllers.  Special

    thanks go to Tom Hafner for a complimentary test sample of this

    device, and also for donating a BoosterGrip controller.



  * Added ability to dynamically swap the port order of Stelladaptor/

    2600-daptor devices with the 'Control-1' key combo (useful if you

    have only one 2600-daptor and want to use it as a left port

    normally, but as a right port for Star Raiders, etc).



  * Added CompuMate bankswitching/controller support to the emulation

    core; the Spectravideo CompuMate ROMs (NTSC and PAL) now work.

    Frequently used keys on the CompuMate are directly mapped to your

    keyboard (ie, Func-Space for backspace is mapped to Backspace, etc).

    Loading/saving from the cassette player is not yet supported, and

    will come in a future release.



  * Fixed bug in BoosterGrip controller emulation; the functionality

    of the booster and trigger buttons was reversed.  Related to this,

    renamed these actions in the Event Mapping dialog to be more clear.



  * Reverted to SDL 1.2.14 for the Windows 98/2k release, since SDL

    1.2.15 isn't supported in that environment.



  * Updated included PNG library to latest stable version.





3.5 to 3.5.5: (February 4, 2012)



  * Due to changes in the debugger, old state files will not work with

    this release.



  * Fixed bug in sound restructuring introduced in the last release; in

    some cases, there could be some sound 'crackling' when starting a

    ROM after at least one ROM had already been loaded.



  * Several significant improvements to the debugger I/O tab:

      - added controller input widgets for many of the built-in

        controllers, allowing to control joysticks, paddles, etc

        from within the debugger.

      - added ability to modify the SWCHB/SWBCNT port B registers.

      - added ability to view TIA INPTx and VBLANK latch/dump bits.



  * Reworked 'mcontrol' argument, and added ability to map the mouse

    axes separately for paddles 0-3 or driving controllers 0-1.  In

    such modes, the left mouse button is tied to the x-axis, and the

    right button is tied to the y-axis.



  * Mouse 'specific-axis' mode is now saved per-ROM, meaning that each

    ROM can have separate settings.  For example, this allows one ROM to

    use paddles 0 and 1, while another can use paddles 0 and 2, etc.



  * The key-combo for switching the mouse between controller modes is now

    'Control-0' (Control-1,2,3 have been removed).  This switches

    between all possible modes for the current virtual controllers.



  * Fixed bug in 'Fixed Debug Colors' mode; under certain circumstances,

    playfield graphics could be coloured as being player graphics.



  * Fixed bug in PAL color-loss setting in Video Settings; changing the

    settings wouldn't take effect until the ROM was reloaded.



  * Fixed bugs with cheatcode handling; loading a ROM with a cheat

    disabled would sometimes trash the emulation.  More work is

    required in this area, including the ability to create more

    advanced types of cheats.



  * Updated ROM properties database for all Sega Genesis controller

    compatible ROMs.  Also, the mouse can now emulate a Genesis

    controller, with the left/right buttons mapped to buttons B and C,

    respectively.



  * Added 'FA2' bankswitch scheme, thanks to code from Chris D.

    Walton.  This scheme will be used in an upcoming 'Star Castle' ROM.



  * Updated internal ROM properties database to ROM-Hunter version 7

    (thanks go to RomHunter for his tireless research in this area).



  * Added several PERL tools to help in automation of analyzing RomHunter

    ROM set releases.



  * Fixed compile issues in Irix when using the default compiler

    instead of gcc.  Thanks go to Rainer M. Canavan for this code.



  * Updated included PNG library to latest stable version.





3.4.1 to 3.5: (December 29, 2011)



  * Stella is now DonationWare!  Please see the DonationWare link on the

    main webpage for more information.



  * Added several improvements to the joystick management code.  Joystick

    event mapping is now saved per device, meaning that if you map events

    to a certain joystick device, remove the device and then later insert

    it again, Stella will remember the original mapping.



  * The total number of joysticks present and their associated properties

    (number of axes, buttons and hats) is now dynamic.  That is, there's

    no longer a hard-coded limit on the number of joysticks that Stella

    can use, or the number of buttons, etc that it contains.  This fixes

    a serious bug with PS3 controllers with 27 buttons, whereby adding a

    mapping for joystick 0 would inadvertantly change settings for

    joystick 1, and could potentially lead to a program crash.



  * Added 'mcontrol' commandline argument, which can specify to use each

    mouse axis as a separate paddle.  The old (and default) behaviour can

    be activated by setting this argument to 'auto'.  Related to this,

    removed redundant 'usemouse' argument.



  * Huge restructuring of the OpenGL code, making it compatible with 

    OpenGL 2.x+ features (such as vertex buffer objects), while at the

    same time keeping compatibility with OpenGL 1.5 / OpenGL ES.

    Because of the required changes, TV effects were removed (they will

    be added again for the next release).



  * Improvements to audio handling, particularly for certain cases of

    Windows, ATI video cards, and OpenGL mode.  The sound device is now

    opened only once when Stella starts, and is paused between loading

    different ROMs.  This fixes a problem whereby sound could possibly

    not be functional after loading the first ROM.  Related to this,

    removed the 'audiofirst' commandline argument as it's now redundant.



  * Fixed bug with displaying the ROM launcher in Windows XP; the initial

    load was sometimes taking up to 30 seconds to complete.



  * Added logging facility, whereby the output of the application is

    available within Stella itself.  This can still be printed to the

    console, or also saved to a file.  Add the 'loglevel' and

    'logtoconsole' commandline arguments which control these settings,

    and removed the 'showinfo' argument as it's now redundant.



  * Updated DPC+ bankswitching scheme to latest code provided by

    SpiceWare.



  * Added MAMCR handling to the Thumb ARM emulation code.  Note that

    MAMCR isn't actually emulated, it is just ignored for now.  This

    fixes a bug whereby accessing MAMCR would crash the ARM emulation.



  * Added 'thumb.trapfatal' commandline argument, which causes the

    Thumb ARM emulation to either trap on a fatal error (throw an

    exception to the debugger and exit emulation) or simply log the

    error and continue.  This should normally always be enabled, but

    can be disabled by developers for testing reasons.



  * Updated default snapshot directory to be much saner and easier to

    find.  For most systems, it now defaults to the users 'Desktop'.

    Note that the commandline argument has changed to 'snapdir'.



  * The debugger 'print' command now indicates "special" addresses if

    they are read-only (R), write-only (W) or read-write (R/W).



  * Fixed a bug where scrolling the mouse-wheel in certain debugger UI

    items would cause the program to crash; scrolling now works as

    expected.



  * Fixed minor display issue in the debugger RAM area; some addresses

    were being displayed as '...'.



  * Fixed compile issues in the latest versions of Ubuntu and Debian, and

    fixed UNIX desktop file so that Stella will launch with a ROM when

    selected from its icon.  Thanks go to Stephen Kitt for this code.



  * Updated included PNG library to latest stable version.



  * Updated the credits list in the documentation, listing people that

    have donated hardware to the Stella team.





3.4 to 3.4.1: (June 11, 2011)



  * Re-enabled 'grabmouse' commandline argument and associated

    functionality with the following changes:

      - it is changed in the "Input Settings' UI, not in 'Video Settings'

      - it only has meaning while in emulation mode

      - it is enabled by default



  * Fixed bug with emulation of paddles using the mouse most evident in

    Warlords; movement was being filtered out if the mouse was moved too

    fast.  There's still more work required in this area, however.



  * Fixed bug with analog axes on gamepad devices, whereby jittering in

    these axes would override input from digital axis, hat or keyboard

    input.



  * Fixed bug when switching to the debugger and back again would

    sometimes cause an extra mouse motion event (which would cause the

    emulation to think the mouse was moved and move the player

    accordingly).



  * Tweaked bankswitch autodetection code for 4A50 bankswitching; several

    more test ROMs are automatically detected.



  * The 'saverom' debugger command now saves ROMs in your home

    directory by default if you don't specify a valid path.  This fixes

    a bug whereby ROMs were saved in strange locations and couldn't later

    be found.



  * Fixed bug in automatically executing the debugger 'autoexec.stella'

    file; any commands it contained weren't actually being executed.



  * Zero-byte ROMs are no longer loaded and mis-detected as Supercharger

    images.





3.3 to 3.4: (May. 29, 2011)



  * Many improvements to input handling, particularly with the mouse and

    paddles:

    - The mouse can now be used to emulate a joystick, booster-grip or

      driving controller.



    - The mouse now controls only one device at a time (1 of 4 paddles,

      1 of 2 joysticks, etc), instead of devices from both virtual ports.



    - The sensitivity for digital and mouse input (for paddles) can now

      be set separately with the 'dsense' and 'msense' commandline

      arguments, and from within the Input Settings UI.



  * Added support for the 2600-daptor device (2600-daptor.com), which is

    similar to a Stelladaptor but improves handling of paddles.  Thanks

    go to Tom Hafner for a complimentary test sample of this device.



  * Added new controller types 'Paddles_IAxis', 'Paddles_IDir', and

    'Paddles_IAxDr', which invert the paddle axis, direction, and

    axis+direction, respectively.  These are used for certain ROMs

    that have the axis or direction inverted from normal (for example,

    using the paddles causes on onscreen object to move up and down vs.

    left and right).  All applicable ROMs in the internal database

    have been updated.



  * Added preliminary support for emulating ARM code to the DPC+

    bankswitching scheme (thanks to Batari).  Related to this, fatal

    errors in the DPC+ ARM code are now caught and shown in the debugger.



  * Updated internal ROM properties database to ROM-Hunter version 6

    (thanks go to RomHunter for his tireless research in this area).



  * The ROM audit dialog now automatically selects the current

    directory in the ROM launcher, and reloads the directory after

    the audit is complete.



  * Removed the 'grabmouse' functionality; the mouse is now always

    grabbed while playing a game, and released otherwise.



  * Updated built-in version of the PNG library to the latest version.





3.2.2 to 3.3: (November 12, 2010)



  * Added the following Distella 'directives', which are used to override

    and specifically tell the debugger how to treat address space (CODE,

    GFX, PGFX, DATA, ROW).  See the debugger documentation for more

    information.



  * Disassembly from the debugger is now tracked by the emulation core,

    and accented by the built-in Distella code.  Basically, the emulation

    core knows when an address is referenced as code, making for very

    accurate disassembled output.  Related to this, the emulation core now

    tracks accesses to GRPx and PFx registers, automatically marking the

    addresses as GFX or PGFX sections.  This will be improved in future

    releases, as there are many ways to store data in the graphics

    registers.



  * Improved output of graphics output in the disassembler, by marking

    such addresses with a bitmap of the data they represent.  This

    allows player graphics (GFX directive) and playfield graphics (PGFX

    directive) to really stand out in the disassembly.  Related to this,

    added ability to edit such graphics in either binary or hexidecimal.



  * Added preliminary support for Distella configuration files.  Much

    more work is required in this area, since Stella now contains

    directives that don't yet exist in the standalone Distella program.

    Configuration files are automatically loaded, and debugger commands

    now exist to load and save configuration directives directly from

    the debugger.



  * Added the following commands to the debugger prompt:

     - clearconfig, listconfig, loadconfig, saveconfig

       (used for Distella configuration files)

     - code, data, gfx, pgfx, row

       (directives used to override automatic disassembly types)

     - jump (jumps to a specific address in the disassembly)

     - type (gives detailed info for disassembly type of an address)



  * The debugger prompt commands 'trap', 'trapread' and 'trapwrite' now

    accept a range of addresses as well as a single address.



  * Added 'data source' address output for the CPU SP/A/X/Y registers.

    This is useful for quickly seeing what an operand address resolves

    into with various load commands.



  * Many commands in the debugger prompt are now case-insensitive;

    further improvements will be made in future releases.



  * Many improvements to the built-in Distella disassembler.  When passing

    a relative branch or jump, data is now disassembled as code only if

    the emulation core hasn't detected it as data.  Such 'preliminary'

    code is marked with a '*' in the disassembler, indicating that it is

    tentative code, and hasn't actually been executed yet.  This allows to

    quickly see possible code paths, and at the same time eliminate

    disassembly of addresses that are never used as code sections.



  * Program counter/instruction addresses can now be toggled in the

    disassembly.



  * Disassembled instructions involving relative branches now show only

    one byte for the operand, not two bytes.



  * Fixed bug in several text input fields, whereby binary data couldn't

    be input (a '\' was required, but the character was blocked).



  * Fixed issues with PAL ROMs on screenmodes smaller than a PAL ROM

    would require.  In this case, the image is centered and clipped to

    the screen resolution.  This prevents the message "PAL ROM not

    supported" from appearing.



  * Fixed bug in fullscreen OpenGL mode when using ATI video cards;

    the desktop background was 'bleeding through', resulting in a very

    annoying flickering.



  * Fixed crashes when opening windows larger than the desktop resolution

    in fullscreen mode; this is now allowed only in windowed mode.



  * Application window centering now also works when switching between

    video modes, not just when starting the application.



  * Added support for building a Windows version compatible with Windows

    98 and 2000 (compiled with Visual Studio 2005).  Testing is very

    limited, since I no longer have access to these systems.



  * Fixed build issues for Innosetup in Windows XP.



  * Fixed bug in OSX version where the name of the application wasn't

    being shown in Activity Monitor.



  * State files from older versions will no longer work in this release,

    because of the extensive changes to the debugger and disassembler.





3.2.1 to 3.2.2: (September 17, 2010)



  * Fixed bug with window centering; if enabled and the the window was

    larger than the desktop, the window would be moved offscreen.





3.2 to 3.2.1: (August 25, 2010)



  * Improved behaviour of joystick 'hat' movement.  This should fix bugs

    most visible in Yars' Revenge.



  * Fixed bug in debugger rewind states; bankswitching wasn't being

    performed during the rewind.  Related to this, fixed a similar issue

    with the debugger 'loadstate' and 'savestate' commands.



  * Added game properties info and snapshot for the newly released

    'Halo 2600' ROM.





3.1.2 to 3.2: (August 20, 2010)



  * NOTE: because of the many event-related changes in this release, all

    event mapping should be reset to defaults after starting Stella for

    the first time.  As well, because of other internal changes, older

    save-state files are no longer valid.



  * Many improvements to joystick handling code, particularly for analog

    axes.  Navigating the UI should be much smoother now, and remapping

    events to analog axes should be less 'twitchy'.



  * Added ability to assign and remap 'combo' events in emulation mode.

    Combo events are basically a sequence of normal events (up to 8)

    that are generated from a single event (ie, one button on a joystick

    could generate up to 8 events).  Updated Input Settings UI to

    access and modify these events.



  * Default mappings are now available in UI and emulation mode for the

    first 'hat' detected on a joystick/gamepad.  Related to this, a hat

    now works exactly like an axis in UI mode (holding down a direction

    continues that direction until the hat is released/centered).



  * Several major improvements to the debugger:

      - the disassembler can now process multiple entry points, and

        caches entry points as they're encountered (ie, the disassembly

        isn't 'reset' each time a bank change occurs or you exit and

        re-enter the debugger)

      - preliminary support for disassembling from zero-page RAM

      - re-added ability to change banks with the 'bank' debugger

        prompt command and within the ROM disassembly UI

      - user labels in disassembly are now supported again

      - 'runto' command is now case-insensitive, and shows a progressbar

        while searching through the disassembly

      - the debugger window can be resized between ROM loads (previously,

        the app had to be restarted)

      - fixed bug in Distella disassembler output, where it sometimes

        generated addresses above $FFFF

      - a vertical line separates the disassembly from the raw bytes



  * Fixed behaviour of SWCHB and SWBCNT; pins set to output now remember

    the values previously written.  Some ROMs use this functionality for

    extra storage.  Special thanks to Omegamatrix of AtariAge for advice

    and test ROMs in this area.



  * Fixed bug when reading from illegal TIA addresses; a Space Invaders

    hack was showing pink enemies instead of white ones.  Again, special

    thanks to to Omegamatrix of AtariAge for advice and test ROMs in this

    area.



  * Fixed bug in handling INPT4/INPT5 latches from VBLANK; a least one

    ROM was working in Stella when it didn't on real hardware.



  * Added 'ramrandom' commandline argument, which is used to randomize

    all RAM in the system; otherwise, the RAM is zeroed.



  * Added 'finishing touches' to some of the UI descriptions, giving a

    better explanation of the functions.  Related to this, certain

    options now show a message box explaining the option in further

    detail (particularly the ROM Audit mode).  As well, when starting

    Stella for the first time, a prompt appears to select a ROM

    directory.



  * Fixed bugs in the ROM launcher when viewing certain PNG images not

    created by Stella.  Related to this, the official PNG library is now

    included in the Stella codebase (version 1.4.3).  Also added composite

    snapshots for those ROMs which consist of several games.  Thanks go

    to Buzbard of AtariAge for these images.



  * Added several fixes for crashes on 'small' systems (those systems

    where the maximum resolution is less than 640x480).



  * Tweaked bankswitch autodetection for 0840, DPC+, E7 and UA schemes.



  * Improved F8 bankswitch autodetection for Yars Revenge in 8in1 ROM.



  * Updated DPC+ bankswitch scheme to latest specifications.



  * Snapshots taken in continuous snapshot mode are now timestamped, so

    older files are never overwritten.



  * Fixed a TIA segfault that could occur with certain ROMs.



  * The 'center' application window functionality can now be changed

    without having to restart the application.  Related to this, mouse

    positioning bugs when using the Linux version in OpenGL mode with

    SDL 1.2.14 have been fixed.



  * Reworked the manual, dividing it into 'Getting Started' and

    'Advanced Configuration' sections.  It still contains the same info

    as before, but hopefully in a better organized way.



  * Updated Help dialog; it was showing incorrect info for some OSX

    shortcuts.



  * Updated OSX build script to not crash when a previous build is

    detected, and to properly handle filenames with spaces.



  * Updated included ZLib to latest release version (1.2.5).





3.1.1 to 3.1.2: (May 3, 2010)



  * Modified 'showinfo' command to accept levels of output, where

    increasingly larger numbers provide more debug output.  Related to

    this, added UI item to modify 'showinfo'.



  * Updated DPC+ bankswitch scheme to latest specifications, including

    support for 32K ROMs with ARM code (the ARM code is ignored for now).



  * Fixed bug in saving patched ROMs using DPC and DPC+ bankswitch

    schemes; the saved image didn't actually include any changes made by

    the user.



  * Removed 'uselauncher' from the UI, since disabling it will remove

    the ROM launcher on all future runs, and not allow one to enable it

    again.  It's still available from the commandline, for those that

    have a need for it.





3.1 to 3.1.1: (April 26, 2010)



  * Fixed program crash when using RIOT addresses and labels in the

    debugger console prompt.



  * Updated DPC+ bankswitch scheme to latest specifications.





3.0 to 3.1: (April 22, 2010)



  * Fixed a major bug with text drawing in software rendering mode.

    Switching between windowed and fullscreen mode while text was being

    shown could result in garbled text or even a program crash.



  * Fixed issues when using 'sleep' timing, whereby a lockup could occur

    when changing video modes, and/or Stella would consume more CPU time

    than was necessary.



  * Integrated Distella disassembler, completely replacing the previous

    disassembler.  The entire infrastructure has not been completely

    ported yet.  As a result, labels defined by the user or from a

    DASM symbol file aren't actually used in the disassembly, and almost

    all distella config options are disabled.  These will be addressed in

    a future release.



  * Completely reworked the debugger cartridge interface, so that

    the disassembly is dynamic (ie, the debugger tracks when cart address

    space has changed, and automatically performs a re-disassembly).



  * All carts with extended RAM that differentiate between read and write

    ports now behave correctly when a read from the write port occurs.



  * Added more complete support for the more esoteric bankswitch

    schemes in the debugger.  These schemes now support accurate

    disassembly and ROM patch functionality.  Related to this, fixed a

    bug in disassembler view when a failure to patch a ROM still showed

    the (incorrect) patched results.



  * Added ability to disable TIA object collisions, independent of

    enabling/disabling the objects.  Previously, one had to completely

    disable an object to avoid collisions, but now an object can be

    enabled (and seen) but still have its collisions disabled.  These

    actions are tied to the same keys as the enable ones, except the

    'Shift' key is also used.



  * Added preliminary support for 'DPC+' bankswitching scheme, thanks to

    Darrell Spice Jr and Fred Quimby.



  * Added '16in1' bankswitching scheme, which works with various

    ROMs labeled '128-in-1 ...' (the database has been updated for

    these).  Related to this, switching between multicart ROMs for 2in1,

    4in1, 8in1, 16in1 and 32in1 now shows a UI message indicating which

    ROM is active.



  * Reverted some of the TIA improvements with respect to 'starfield

    effect' as seen in "Cosmic Ark" and "Stay Frosty".  The emulation is

    now more accurate as compared to the majority of consoles in use.



  * Added debugger pseudo-register '_rwport', which traps on a read from

    the write port.  This differentiates from reads that are normally

    part of a write cycle (ie, it traps only on inadvertent reads).



  * Added 'resolvedata' commandline argument and associated UI item, used

    to set the "resolve data sections" config option in Distella

    (vs. treating all address space as code).



  * Added 'runtopc' debugger command, used to step until encountering the

    given program counter.  This is also available in the ROM disassembly

    UI from the right-click context menu.



  * Added 'listfunctions' and 'delfunction' debugger commands to

    access/remove user-defined functions.  Related to this, fixed a bug

    in 'function' command that could cause a program crash.



  * Added 'cls' debugger command, used to erase the text and history

    from the debugger prompt.



  * Removed the 'listwatches' and 'poke' debugger commands, as they

    were redundant.



  * Removed the 'loadlst' debugger command and the ability to use a

    DASM .lst file.  This code was incomplete, and no longer fits with

    the recent disassembler improvements.  Support for this may return

    in a future release.



  * Modified 'disasm' debugger command to accept a second argument

    indicating the number of lines to disassemble.



  * Improved tab-completion in the debugger prompt; it now completes

    on functions and pseudo-registers.



  * Added emulation of the "Sega Genesis" controller, with two buttons

    that are directly supported on a real system.



  * The ZLib library is now included in the core code, so Windows

    developers no longer have to track down the ZLIBWAPI archive.



  * Many changes to the MacOS X port, bringing it more in line with

    other systems:



      The application is now known as 'Stella' (instead of StellaOSX).



      Two versions are available: the first is a 32-bit Universal Binary

      for OSX 10.4 - 10.6, and the second is 32/64-bit Intel-only for

      OSX 10.6 (aka Snow Leopard).  The Intel version is compiled with the

      very latest compiler (LLVM/Clang), resulting in better performance.



      The keyboard handling is changed to match other systems in terms of

      where the keys actually are on the keyboard (ie, the OSX Command key

      corresponds to Alt, and the OSX Control key corresponds to Control).



      The application menu has been cleaned up and simplified, and it

      now shows the correct shortcuts for menu items.



      The settings file is now (according to Apple standards)

      '~/Library/Preferences/net.sourceforge.Stella.plist'.



      The base directory (where all other Stella stuff is located) is now

      '~/Library/Application Support/Stella'.



      Because of these changes, all your settings will have to be entered

      again.



  * Added 'ctrlcombo' commandline argument, which toggles the use of the

    control key as a modifier key.  This is useful if you want to press

    'Control' and 'R' in a two player game, and not have the combination

    treated as 'Control-R' (which will issue a ROM reload).



  * Added 'usemouse' commandline argument and associated UI item.  This

    toggles the use of the mouse as a controller of any type.



  * Added 'uimessages' commandline argument and associated UI item.

    This toggles showing of UI messages overlaid on the screen.

    Critical messages are still shown, though.



  * Added ability to take multiple snapshots in a given interval every

    x seconds.  This is currently tied to the 'Alt-s' key and is not

    remappable (for now).  The interval can be set with the 'ssinterval'

    commandline argument and within the UI, and defaults to 2.



  * Many changes to the FrameBuffer and UI code for 'smaller' systems.

    Stella will now scale correctly to small screens, down to 320x240

    (which is the absolute lower limit supported).  Related to this,

    added 'maxres' commandline argument, which is useful for developers

    testing on such systems.



  * The About dialog now shows the version of SDL in use, and the type

    of CPU the application is running on (i386, x86_64, etc).



  * Improved 'listrominfo' commandline argument to list all information

    from Stella's internal ROM database, including a heading.  This

    output can be imported into a spreadsheet or database program.



  * Renamed 'tiafloat' commandline argument to 'tiadriven'.  The

    emulation of the behaviour of floating TIA pins is also much more

    accurate.



  * Reworked state files so that they're associated with the cartridge

    type used, not the MD5sum of the ROM.  This is useful for developers,

    since the same state file can now be loaded from different ROMs,

    as long as the cart type stays the same.  This also fixes a bug

    where loading from a non-existent state file could cause Stella

    to crash.  Because of these changes, old state files will no longer

    work.



  * Fixed bug in certain editable text fields, where pressing Return/Enter

    would disable any further input.





2.8.4 to 3.0: (September 11, 2009)



  * Huge updates to the TIA emulation system.  Illegal HMOVEs are now

    handled correctly, resulting in improvements to many ROMs (thanks

    to Wilbert Pol for many ideas and code for these improvements).  All

    HMOVE emulation 'cheats' were removed; the emulation is now cycle-exact

    in this area.



  * Improved emulation of the Cosmic Ark 'starfield effect', also used in

    Stay Frosty; the emulation now looks very accurate.



  * Many improvements to the normal TIA rendering code, fixing problems

    when disabling certain graphical objects (certain objects were

    being misdrawn when others were enabled/disabled).



  * Improved TIA collision handling in the non-displayable area of the

    screen; this fixes problems in RAMRacer ROM.



  * Improved TIA redraw problems/graphical garbage when ROMs generate

    many more scanlines than a real TV would allow; this fixes problems

    in Q-Bert and the recent Playaround demo.



  * Added 'Fixed Debug Colors' option similar to the no$26k emulator.

    This allows each graphical object to be drawn in a fixed color,

    more clearly showing how the objects interact.  HMOVE blanks are

    also shown in a different color.  The TIA now emulates a 7-color

    register model, allowing even shared objects to show different

    colors.  This is toggled with the 'Alt Comma' key.



  * Related to 'Fixed Debug Colors', HMOVE blanks can now toggled during

    TIA display with the 'Alt-m' key.



  * Added rewind functionality to the debugger, where states are saved

    after each step/trace/scanline/frame advance.  Pressing 'Alt-r' or

    clicking the new rewind button will undo up to 100 previous

    operations.



  * Added 'electron beam indicator' to the debugger TIA output.  Basically,

    this is a visual pointer indicating the position of the electron gun

    when scanning the display.



  * Added ability to completely disable fullscreen mode, which fixes

    problems for some people where fullscreen mode was being entered

    even if it wasn't enabled.



  * Added '-joyallow4' commandline argument and associated UI item to

    allow all 4 directions to be pressed simultaneously on a joystick.



  * Improvements made to the ROM launcher: the backspace key now goes

    to the parent directory (this key can be remapped), and previously

    selected directories are now automatically selected.



  * Added support for 2IN1 bankswitching scheme, where two ROMs are

    present in one binary.  Currently supported are 2, 4, 8, and 16K

    ROMs.



  * Added bankswitch support for the 6K version of Starpath/Supercharger

    ROMS.  This allows the 6K version of Cubis to run.



  * Updated bankswitching schemes FASC and MB; they are now known as

    FA and F0, respectively.  This naming brings Stella in line with

    other emulators and programming utilities.



  * Fixed editing of cheats in the Cheat Dialog; the old cheat wasn't

    being removed.





2.8.3 to 2.8.4: (July 4, 2009)



  * Fixed bug where Stella could lock up after running for ~71 minutes.

    Special thanks to Robert Tuccitto for bugtesting and feedback on this

    issue.



  * Updated UA bankswitch autodetection for Gingerbread Man ROM.



  * The smallest ROM that Stella can support is 64 bytes; this lower

    limit is now tested when loading Sub2K ROMs.





2.8.2 to 2.8.3: (June 25, 2009)



  * Fixed OpenGL bug which caused an immediate program crash if the

    available OpenGL version was less than 2.0.





2.8.1 to 2.8.2: (June 23, 2009)



  * Fixed OpenGL detection bug which could disable OpenGL support entirely

    if TV effects are not available (version < 2.0), when in fact only the

    effects should have been disabled.



  * The '\' character can now be entered in UI text fields again.

    Related to this, strings containing '\' are now properly loaded and

    saved to various config files.





2.8 to 2.8.1: (June 19, 2009)



  * NOTE: Windows users will have to reset their options or manually move

    their config folder in this release, since the location of the config

    files has changed.



  * Fixed OpenGL issue for some Windows users whereby the OpenGL TV

    effects weren't available, even if the available version of OpenGL

    was sufficient.  Related to this, the OpenGL version found by

    Stella is now reported in the TV effects dialog.



  * Added fallback to software rendering when OpenGL rendering has been

    requested, but for whatever reason fails to initialize.



  * Added native support for 4in1, 8in1 and 32in1 multicart bankswitching

    schemes.  When using these schemes, the 'Reload ROM' action

    (by default, Control-r) will switch between each game in the ROM.



  * Added bankswitch support for ROMs smaller than 2K in size.  These

    will be treated as 2K ROMs natively, without having to manually

    'pad' them to 2048 bytes.



  * Added preliminary suppport for autodetection of X07 bankswitching.



  * Tweaked PAL autodetection; it was marking some PAL ROMs as NTSC.



  * Changed default location for Stella config files in Windows to

    the users' APPDATA folder (for XP and Vista, this is

    '~/Application Data/Stella').  The '~' symbol now represents the

    users PROFILE/home directory, matching its usage in Linux and OSX.

    The ability to override this with 'basedir.txt' is still

    available, but not advised.



  * Changed '-exitlauncher' commandline argument to '-uselauncher'.

    This works as before except the launcher is never used at all if

    the option is set to false.



  * Fixed crash when launching Stella from the commandline and giving

    a directory name instead of a rom filename.





2.7.7 to 2.8: (June 9, 2009)



  * Added CRT simulation effects as described in the AtariAge posting

    'CRT emulation for Stella'.  For now, this requires OpenGL 2.0 or

    greater with support for GLSL (GL Shading Language).  This code

    will be expanded on and optimized in future releases.



  * Adding editing of extended RAM in the debugger RAM UI.  The RAM

    'spreadsheet' now shows the entire address space of RAM in the

    system, in 128 byte increments.  The first bank shown is zero-page,

    with the others following in consecutive order.  The UI takes care

    of read vs. write port differences, so you don't have to worry

    about the offsets.  For now, all SuperChip based ROMs (EFSC, F4SC,

    F6SC, F8SC) as well as 3E, CV, E7 and FASC are supported.



  * All ROMs which include SC extended RAM will now have memory erased if

    you attempt to read from the write port.  Related to this,

    entering/exiting the debugger will no longer erase the extended RAM.



  * Patching of ROM for bankswitch types 0840, SB, UA and X07 is now

    implemented, but hasn't been extensively tested.



  * Visual improvements to the CPU register UI in the debugger; the

    SP/A/X/Y registers now have separate decimal and binary views.



  * Tweaked paddle control so that all positions are reachable in game

    4 of Activision Casino in both NTSC and PAL versions.



  * SuperCharger/AR ROMs now start with a random value in the CPU

    accumulator.  This should fix issues with Dragonstomper always

    starting in exactly the same state.



  * Auto-detection for '3F' bankswitching improved; several ROMs

    previously detected as 'F8' now work correctly.



  * Updated internal ROM properties database to ROM-Hunter version 5

    (thanks go to RomHunter for his tireless research in this area).



  * Added '-exitlauncher' commandline argument and associated UI item,

    to specify what happens when you exit a ROM.  Normally, exiting a

    ROM brings up the ROM launcher, but this can be disabled for those

    using an external frontend (in which case exiting a ROM also exits

    from Stella).



  * Re-added '-fastscbios' commandline argument, and added an associated

    UI item.  When enabled, the SuperCharger load bars are now completely

    removed (and not just sped up as in previous releases).



  * The '-listrominfo' commandline argument now shows all ROM

    information built in to the internal database, taking into account

    any information in 'personal' stella.pro files.





2.7.6 to 2.7.7: (May 1, 2009)



  * Corrected emulation of CPU opcodes involving 'decimal' mode (ADC/RRA

    and SBC/ISB).  Special thanks to SeaGtGruff and others on the Stella

    mailing list for in-depth discussion and creation of test ROMs.



  * Fixed bug in F4SC bankswitching mode; writes to bankswitch addresses

    weren't triggering a bank switch.



  * Changed internal sound frequency of Pitfall 2 from 15.75KHz to 20KHz,

    as this sounds much more authentic when compared to a real cartridge.





2.7.5 to 2.7.6: (April 14, 2009)



  * Added support for 'EF' bankswitching (Paul Slocum Homestar Runner),

    as well as auto-detection of this format.



  * Added support for 'EFSC' bankswitching, as well as auto-detection of

    this format.  This is similar to the 'EF' scheme, but also includes

    128 bytes SuperChip RAM.



  * Added autodetection for '0840' and 'SB' bankswitching formats.



  * Improved autodetection for 'UA' bankswitching format.



  * Fixed bug in selecting video modes larger than the current screen;

    the resulting video mode will now be the largest one available

    (previously it selected the smallest one available).



  * The currently selected CPU register now displays its value in

    decimal and binary (in addition to hex) in the debugger.





2.7.3 to 2.7.5: (Mar. 27, 2009)



  * After about 2 years, finally fixed the infamous 'red screen' issue when

    using ATI video cards in OpenGL mode in Windows.  In the end, it was

    determined to be a bug in the ATI drivers.  Special thanks go to

    Ant (http://aqfl.net) for bugtesting and constant feedback wrt this bug.



  * Fixed bug in TIA SCORE mode emulation when the Priority bit is also

    set.  This fixes a very noticable graphical glitch in 'Swordquest

    Waterworld', as well as minor glitches in several other ROMs such

    as 'Space Shuttle'.



  * Treat spaces as normal characters in the ROM launcher.  This means

    that ROMs with spaces can be located with quick selection (ie,

    typing characters will automatically jump to a ROM with that name,

    and typing 'space' won't cause the launcher to jump back to the top

    of the list).



  * The debugger window can now have a minimum height of 620 lines

    (previously the minimum was 690), but you lose access to the TIA 'RAM'

    bytes when using this resolution.  This should allow it to work

    better on devices with small displays.





2.7.2 to 2.7.3: (Feb. 9, 2009)



  * Fixed rendering issues in software mode when using 24-bit colour depth.

    This isn't as fast as 16 or 32-bit modes, so you're recommended to use

    one of those whenever possible.



  * For the Win32 port: re-added ability to change the default location

    for storing Stella config files.  To use this, simply create a file

    named 'basedir.txt' in the application directory containing the full

    path where all Stella-related items should be stored.



  * Tweaked the TIA info statistics overlay to be smaller while still

    including all relevant information.





2.7.1 to 2.7.2: (Jan. 27, 2009)



  * Fixed major bug in ROM Audit functionality; renaming ROMs would create

    files without an extension.





2.7 to 2.7.1: (Jan. 26, 2009)



  * Partial workaround for sound not working in OpenGL video mode in

    Windows with ATI video hardware.  Sound will now work for the first ROM

    selected, but not for subsequent ones (you will have to quit and

    restart Stella for sound to work again).  Related to this, added

    '-audiofirst' commandline argument, which initializes audio before video

    when emulating a ROM.  Further work is required to completely fix

    this bug.



  * Fixed bug where volume wasn't being saved in 'Audio Settings' when

    started from the ROM launcher.



  * Fixed crash which sometimes occurred when viewing snapshots in the

    ROM Info viewer.



  * Allow setting window sizes for the ROM launcher and debugger to be larger

    than your desktop resolution.  Be careful with this feature, as switching

    to fullscreen mode may cause problems in such cases.



  * Made the ROM launcher filename filtering be case-insensitive.  This fixes

    a bug whereby ROMs with uppercase extensions were marked as invalid.



  * Added a pattern matching textbox to the ROM launcher, used to

    further filter the files shown in the listing.  For now, this filters

    files only (directories are not filtered, and are always shown).



  * The location of EEPROM files used for AtariVox/Savekey emulation can

    now be changed with the '-eepromdir' commandline argument as well as

    in the UI.



  * Added '-gl_aspectn' and '-gl_aspectp' commandline arguments (and

    associated UI items), which replace the previous '-gl_aspect' setting.

    The aspect modes can now be set separately for NTSC and PAL mode.

    Related to this, the range of values is now 80 - 120.



  * Fixed bug with hold-select/reset/button0 when overriding ROM properties;

    the checkboxes in the UI weren't actually doing anything.



  * The 'grabmouse' option is now configurable from the UI; previously

    it was only accessible from the commandline or its shortcut key.



  * Removed 'Emulation_HmoveBlanks' ROM property and associated UI item.

    You can no longer optionally turn off HMOVE blanking; it is always

    enabled when necessary.





2.6.1 to 2.7: (Jan. 19, 2009)



  * Totally reworked the built-in UI to be font-sensitive and use higher-

    resolution fonts.  Stella now requires a minimum screen size of 640x480.

    If used in a resolution smaller than that, the fonts will be reduced

    accordingly.  Related to this, switching between software and OpenGL

    rendering now requires an application restart.



  * Added three different sized fonts (small, medium, large) which can be

    used in the ROM launcher.



  * Added ability to temporarily override ROM properties from the UI.  This

    is tied to a right mouse button context menu in the ROM launcher, and

    is very useful when you want to use a set of properties for all

    subsequent ROMs without having to manually change each one.



  * Added ability to filter the files shown in the ROM launcher.  Currently,

    the choices are 'all files', 'all roms', or 'roms ending with a certain

    extension'.  This functionality is tied to a right mouse button context

    menu in the ROM launcher.  Extensions can also be set with the

    '-launcherexts' commandline argument.



  * Added ability to reload the listing in the ROM launcher, either from

    a right mouse button context menu or pressing the Control/Cmd-R key.



  * Made the ROM info viewer in the ROM launcher configurable to show

    snapshots in 1x or 2x mode.



  * Made the delay between consecutive keys being recognized as one word

    configurable in the ROM launcher.  This is useful if you find that you

    have to press keys too quickly to jump to a specific ROM.  This can be

    set in the UI or using the '-listdelay' commandline argument.



  * Updated internal ROM properties database to ROM-Hunter version 4

    (thanks go to RomHunter for his tireless research in this area).



  * Expanded the statistics overlay for the TIA image to also show

    Display Format and Bankswitch type information.



  * Added '-ss1x' commandline argument and associated UI item, used to

    generate snapshots in 1x mode, independent of the filtering/scaling

    currently in use.



  * Various path textboxes in the UI now recognize './' (or '.\') to mean

    the current directory and '~/' (or '~\') to mean your home directory

    (for Windows, home directory will be your 'My Documents' folder).



  * Large speedup in loading directories with many files in the ROM launcher.



  * Fixed reset issue in 3E, 4A50, AR, CV, E7, F4SC, F6SC, F8SC, FASC and MC

    ROMs; the internal RAM wasn't being randomized after the initial reset.



  * M6532/RIOT RAM is now randomized at every reset, not just when the

    emulation starts.



  * Fixed bug in _diff pseudo-registers in the debugger; they were actually

    defined backwards.



  * Added fix for 'Challenge/Surfers Delight' ROM; the startup bank was

    incorrect.  Combined with the new 'Override Properties' functionality,

    you can now play both games directly from the UI (no need to use the

    commandline).



  * Fixed paddle issue with Activision Casino ROM; the last card in game 4

    can now be reached.



  * Added new pseudo-registers to the debugger, useful for conditional

    breakpoints (_fcount, _cclocks, _vsync, _vblank).



  * Added 'timing' commandline argument functionality to the UI, so you no

    longer need to use the commandline to set it.



  * Size restrictions on the TIA image are now strictly enforced.  The

    maximum height of a 1x TIA image is now 256 lines.



  * Added a new setting to the 'fullres' option named 'auto'.  Using

    'auto' will let Stella decide the best videomode to use in fullscreen.



  * Changed 'gl_fsmax' option to mean 'scale TIA image in fullscreen'.  It

    will have no effect on UI modes.



  * Changed 'gl_aspect' option to range 80-100 (previously, it was 50-100).



  * Removed 'ui_zoom' and 'tia_zoom' options, replacing them with

    'tia_filter' (which can be zoom1x, zoom2x, etc).  There is no equivalent

    for ui_zoom, since the UI can no longer be scaled.



  * Added experimental 64-bit version for Vista64 (may also work on WinXP64).

    This hasn't been extensively tested, and is probably quite a bit slower

    than the 32-bit version.



  * OSX port now requires at least 10.3 and XCode 3.0 to compile.  Sorry,

    but I no longer have access to older systems to compile for 10.2.



  * Huge updates to the documentation, particularly concerning the debugger.

    Many features that have been in Stella for a while are now documented for

    the first time.





2.6 to 2.6.1: (May 22, 2008)



  * Introduced more accurate timing for NTSC vs. PAL modes, where the

    framerate is based on the number of scanlines per frame.  This should

    eliminate 'clicking' sounds when emulating ROMs that don't follow

    the exact NTSC or PAL scanline specs.



  * Added ability to see the current number of scanlines and corresponding

    framerate to the TIA emulation.  This can be set with the '-stats'

    commandline argument, or dynamically turned on and off with the

    'Alt-l' key combo.



  * Modified '-framerate' commandline argument, where a non-zero value

    overrides the automatic framerate calculation (based on number of

    scanlines).  Setting 'framerate' to zero re-enables auto-frame

    calculation.  Also, re-enabled changing the framerate from within the

    UI.



  * Added '-timing' commandline argument, which sets the type of waiting

    between processing frames.  Setting it to 'sleep' emulates the

    previous behaviour in Stella; setting it to 'busy' emulates z26,

    and can in some cases eliminate screen tearing (at the expense of

    using all available CPU time).



  * Fixed issue with debugger disassembly and mirrored $40 TIA write

    addresses.  They were actually defined at $30, and generating incorrect

    labels.



  * Fixed issue in AtariVox and SaveKey controllers where accessing the

    EEPROM sometimes failed after the first write.



  * Changed AtariVox and SaveKey EEPROM emulation to default to $FF for

    a blank EEPROM.



  * Fixed regression in cart auto-detection logic; some F6 ROMs were being

    misdetected as E7.



  * Fixed issue with M6532/RIOT timer initialization; it was causing some

    ROMs to hang (most notably Summer Games).  Related to this, reworked

    the built-in random number generator to generate 'more' random numbers.



  * Fixed bug in CommandMenu where console buttons (Select, Reset, etc)

    weren't doing anything.





2.5.1 to 2.6: (May 16, 2008)



  * Added AtariVox support using a real AtariVox device, where Stella

    sends data directly to the AtariVox.  For now, this is supported in

    Linux/UNIX, OSX, and Win32 only.  You'll obviously need a real

    AtariVox, and a serial<->USB adaptor to connect it to your system.

    Added '-avoxport' commandline argument used to set the serial port

    to which the AtariVox is connected.  Special thanks to Al Yarusso

    and Richard H. for providing sample hardware.



  * Added AtariVox and SaveKey EEPROM emulation.  This reads/writes data

    to a 32KB file, not to the actual hardware.  Very useful for testing

    EEPROM support without actually wearing out the real device.  Special

    thanks to J. Payson for providing the EEPROM emulation code, and A.

    Herbert for answering many driver-related questions.



  * Added support for CX-22, CX-80, and AmigaMouse trackball controllers.



  * Improved debugger symfile handling so that addresses accessed as

    read-only won't use write-only labels (and vice-versa).  More work

    is still needed in this area.



  * Added M6532/RIOT tab to the debugger.  This will be expanded on in a

    future release.



  * Added TIA emulation fixes for graphical glitches in Escape from the

    Mindmaster, Mission Survive, Solaris, and SWOOPS!



  * Fixed bug where fullscreen OpenGL scaling wasn't working on 4:3 monitors.



  * Further improvements to the M6532/RIOT emulation, which unfortunately

    have broken old state files (again).



  * Added deadzone setting, for adjusting the deadzone amount for

    analog joysticks.  This can be set using the commandline argument

    '-joydeadzone' or dynamically within the UI.



  * Make ROM disassembly in debugger take advantage of a wide window.



  * Fixed bug in 6507 BCD handling introduced in the last release.



  * For the Win32 port; Win9x should be fully supported again.





2.5 to 2.5.1: (April 9, 2008)



  * Fixed M6532 RIOT timer emulation.  More testing is needed, but the

    changes so far have fixed several ROMs that didn't work before.



  * Fixed issue with weird characters in the debugger disassembly when

    loading .lst files.



  * Fixed bug where entering the debugger for 4A50 and E0 carts caused

    the ROM to be frozen afterwords.



  * Removed logic whereby starting a ROM from something other than the

    built-in launcher wouldn't allow the user to go back to the ROM launcher.



  * Fixed bug (hopefully) with the app icon not showing on the Stella window.

    Further testing is needed, since I can't duplicate the error myself.



  * Fixed default snapshot folder issues; the folder will now be

    automatically created in the same place as state folders, ini files,

    etc (whereever that may be for your platform).



  * Re-added 'lastrom' functionality, where Stella will remember and

    auto-select the last ROM that was successfully launched in the ROM

    launcher.



  * For Stella developers, fixed SpeakJet emulation so it compiles again.

    No improvements have been made to the emulation itself, though.





2.4.2 to 2.5: (March 28, 2008)



  * Added RomInfo widget to the ROM launcher, which shows properties

    information and a snapshot of the currently selected ROM.  Updated the UI

    and added '-romviewer' commandline argument to activate this setting.

    Note that the ROM launcher will have to be sized at least 640x480 for this

    to be used.  Also note that the snapshots must be in 1x mode with a

    maximum size of 320x260.  This will be expanded on in a future release.



  * Added ROM audit functionality, whereby ROMs can be physically renamed

    according to their properties' name.



  * Added bankswitching support for 0840, SB, X07 and 4A50.  A special thanks

    to Eckhard Stolberg for much help in this area.



  * Removed "non-browse" functionality from the ROM launcher; it now always

    uses browse/filesystem mode.  The previous 'pretty' names can now be

    seen by renaming all your ROMs with the new ROM audit feature.



  * Huge overhaul of controller handling and Stelladaptor support, making it

    much easier to add new controller types in a future release.



  * Fixed paddle issues in Night Driver; paddle emulation speed should be

    much better.



  * Fixed several 6507 emulation bugs related to BCD handling.



  * Updated ROM properties based on info from RomHunter.



  * ROM properties can now be edited from the ROM launcher; you no longer

    have to start a ROM to do so.



  * Added support for configurable font to ROM launcher (currently only

    'small' and 'large').  Updated the UI and added -launcherfont' commandline

    argument to change this setting.



  * Added SECAM, NTSC50, PAL60 and SECAM60 to the list of formats that can

    be used.  Also, switching between these modes with 'Ctrl-f' now switches

    the palette only; the number of scanlines won't change.



  * Fixed crash when switching between software and OpenGL mode with a

    Stelladaptor plugged in.



  * Added '-tiafloat' commandline argument, which determines whether or not

    the TIA pins are in a 'floating' state.  This is useful for testing on

    certain CMOS EPROM chips where the unused TIA pins on a read are not

    floating but pulled high.



  * Fixed issue in debugger where once a .sym file was loaded, it was used

    in all ROMs loaded after that.



  * Fixed issue in debugger where equate names weren't showing up in the RAM

    and CPU widgets.  Note that this still isn't perfect, and needs support

    from DASM for proper functionality.



  * Updated state file format, creating smaller files (and in preparation

    for state rewinding in a future release).  Old state saves will no longer

    work.



  * Added '-bs' commandline argument, which is an alias for '-type' (which

    is still present).



  * Removed -pXspeed' commandline arguments, and replaced them with a

    single '-pspeed'.



  * Removed '-paddle' commandline argument.  The paddle currently emulated

    by the mouse can still be changed with Ctrl-0..3 or within the UI, but

    the setting is no longer saved.



  * Reworked UI for specifying that the console ports have been swapped,

    hopefully making it easier to understand.



  * Added 'Ctrl-c' & 'Ctrl-v' to EditTextWidgets, allowing to copy and paste

    the text widget contents.  More work in this area is coming in a future

    release.



  * Added 'Ctrl-leftarrow' and 'Ctrl-rightarrow' to EditTextWidgets, to move

    to the first character of previous and next words (respectively).



  * For the Win32 port: fixed OpenGL crashes in Vista.  Graphical updates

    are still slower in Vista compared to XP, though.



  * For the Win32 port: default folder for Stella config files is now

    'My Documents\Stella'; this can be disabled if necessary.  This should

    fix issues with losing settings when launching Stella from an IDE,

    and the creation of stella.ini and 'state' directories in many

    different places.



  * For the Win32 port: several fixes to the Visual Studio project files,

    allowing building in debug or release mode, for both i386 and x86_64.

    The project files have been upgraded to Visual Studio 2008, and Stella

    can now be built and distributed without the VS runtime libraries.



  * Updated configure script for cross-compiling Win32 version in Linux.





2.4.1 to 2.4.2: (September 17, 2007)



  * Made usage of 'GL_TEXTURE_RECTANGLE_ARB' extension configurable, and

    have it default to off.  This should take care of the black/white

    screen many people were experiencing with ATI video hardware.  This

    is accessible using the 'gl_texrect' commandline argument).  Set it to

    'true' or 'false' to enable/disable the extension.





2.4 to 2.4.1: (August 27, 2007)



  * Re-added OpenGL aspect ratio setting ('gl_aspect' commandline argument).



  * Re-added non-browser mode to the ROM launcher.



  * For the Linux/UNIX port; fixed OpenGL vsync issue with Nvidia video cards.





2.3.5 to 2.4: (August 20, 2007)



  * Added new video sub-system where fullscreen and windowed modes are treated

    differently.  Windowed modes now use '-zoom_tia' and '-zoom_ui' arguments,

    while fullscreen modes can be specified by resolution using the new

    '-fullres' argument.



  * Widescreen video modes are now supported; Stella will simply center the

    image with surrounding black borders.



  * Many UI-related changes, including resizable ROM launcher and debugger

    windows, and a new UI palette (the previous 'classic' palette is still

    available).  This is still a work in progress.



  * The locations of all major config files (statedir, palette file,

    cheat file, properties file, etc) are now configurable from the

    commandline and within the UI.



  * Updates to TIA palette support.  Added SECAM support, and removed the

    built-in 'original' palette.  Standard, z26, and user are still

    available.



  * Various bugfixes to some debugger commands.  The 'run' command no

    longer causes a crash, and several others have better error-checking.



  * Added more complete cartridge auto-detection for Commavid (CV), 3E,

    3F and Activision (FE) formats.



  * Removed XStart and Width ROM properties, since the forthcoming TIA

    rework won't be using them.



  * Reworked internal storage of ROM properties to be faster and take up

    less space.



  * Added several different ways of stretching the OpenGL image to the

    '-gl_fsmax' argument, for more flexibility.



  * Removed OpenGL aspect ratio setting favour of the previously mentioned

    video changes.  We'll see how this goes.



  * Removed dirty-rect support from software rendering, since it was actually

    sub-optimal in Windows and OSX and defaulted to off in previous versions.



  * Added support for gzipped ROMs.



  * Re-added pause support.



  * Re-added support for Windows 98.



  * Removed support for 'STELLA_BASEDIR' environment variable, since each

    config file can be now configured separately.



  * Removed '-fastscbios' argument, since it must always be turned on.



  * Removed PSP support, since it hasn't been updated in over a year, and

    someone else is maintaining another port elsewhere.



  * For the Unix/Linux port; fixed 'make install' issues, and changed icon to

    PNG format.





2.3 to 2.3.5: (January 17, 2007)



  * Greatly improved cartridge bankswitch type auto-detection.  Stella

    can now (mostly) autodetect cartridge types 'E0', 'E7', '3E', '3F' and

    Superchip carts.  Obviously, this autodetection is not infallible, but

    relies on patterns in the ROM data, and how it was compiled.  Because

    of the auto-detection types already supported, almost all bankswitch

    info was removed from internal ROM properties.  Set the ROM property

    "Cartridge.Type" to "Auto-detect" for this to take effect.



  * Added auto-detection of display type (NTSC or PAL).  Currently, PAL60

    ROMs will be detected as NTSC.  This is almost 100% accurate, and fails

    in very few cases (for those that are mislabeled, the ROM properties

    can be set specifically).  Set the ROM property "Display.Format" to

    "Auto-detect" for this to take effect.



  * Improved emulation timing when exiting one ROM and starting another.

    Previously, this could result in the second ROM having its sound start

    later than it should have.



  * Removed pause functionality from the core, since it's been superceded

    by the other event states.  You can now enter one of the menus for a

    similar effect (options, command, debugger, etc).



  * Added toggle for PAL color-loss emulation, which defaults to off.

    Previous versions of Stella always used color-loss emulation.

    Related to this, added 'colorloss' commandline argument.



  * Added rudimentary support for configuring the UI palette ('uipalette'

    commandline argument) and ability to change the size of the launcher window

    ('launchersize' commandline argument).  This will be expanded on in future

    releases.



  * Reworked options menu so it's now accessible from the ROM launcher as

    well as while playing a ROM.



  * Re-added ability to change the width and height of a Console.  Related to

    this, changing XStart/YStart/Width/Height dynamically no longer resets

    the ROM.



  * Removed 'tiadefaults' commandline argument, since Stella will now default

    to using accurate positioning, and not use 'tweaks'.



  * Joystick code now allows all 4 directions; 'Bumper Bash' now works

    correctly.



  * Improved Keypad emulation; 'Alpha Beam with Ernie', 'Oscars Trash Race'

    and 'Magicard' now work correctly.



  * Reworked GUI code, so that all dialog boxes are automatically centered.



  * Added 'rominfo' commandline argument, which prints some detailed info for

    a ROM.



  * For the OSX port; fixed crashes in OpenGL mode.



  * For the GP2X port; some improvements to the sound code.



  * For the GP2X port; added vertical centering of the TIA image (when possible).





2.2 to 2.3: (December 22, 2006)



  * NOTE: Because of the many changes in this release, all settings

    will be reset to defaults.  If this doesn't happen for you, it will be

    necessary to manually delete your previous settings.



  * Potentially huge speedups in software rendering mode, both in emulation

    and UI modes.  Deactivating 'dirty rects' uses these new modes, which

    can be 2-3 times faster for many configurations.



  * For UI navigation, changed from using 'joymouse' to the more familiar

    'tabbing' functionality, where you move from object to object by use of

    some tab key.  As a result, completely removed the 'joymouse' commandline

    argument and all associated functionality.



  * Added event remapping for UI events, separate from events while in

    emulation mode.



  * Added support for PAL60 ROMs, which use the PAL palette and resolution

    but run at NTSC timing (60Hz).  Added ROM property for this, and updated

    the internal properties database for many PAL60 ROMs.



  * Added support for user-definable palettes.  For now, only one extra palette

    is supported, but in the future we may have them specified per-ROM.



  * Fixed bug in PAL colour-loss emulation, which wasn't actually being done

    for the original Stella and z26 palettes.



  * Fixed several TIA-related emulation bugs as reported on AtariAge.  More

    fixes will come with the TIA rewrite, due in the next release.



  * Added new scaler infrastructure, replacing the '-zoom' commandline argument

    with '-scale_ui' and '-scale_tia'.  This means the UI and emulation can now

    be scaled independently.



  * Added '-gl_vsync' commandline argument and associated UI elements, which

    uses synchronization to vertical blank interrupt in OpenGL on supported

    systems.  This eliminates tearing in OpenGL rendering.



  * Changed naming of snapshots and state files.  These files are now

    named based on the names given in the properties database, and no longer

    use the 'md5sum' name.  As a result, state files from previous versions

    will no longer work unless they're manually renamed.  Related to this,

    removed the '-ssname' commandline argument.



  * Fixed bug where 'Snapshot saved' appeared when taking snapshots in

    succession.



  * Added a 'Previous directory' entry to the top of each listing while

    in ROM Browse mode, which is equivalent to the 'Go Up' button.  This makes

    it easier to navigate the filesystem, since you never have to 'tab out'

    of the ROM listing.



  * Added all sound related commandline options to the UI, so you no

    longer have to use the commandline to set those options.



  * Added new property to ROM properties specifying whether to swap paddles

    plugged into a virtual port.  This eliminates the need to manually set the

    paddle mode for those ROMs that don't use paddle zero by default.



  * Added a 'Defaults' button to the Game Properties dialog, which resets

    the ROM properties to the internal defaults, deleting that ROMs properties

    from the external properties file.



  * Fixed bug whereby modified ROM properties weren't being reloaded when

    restarting a ROM.



  * Made 'phosphor' and 'phosphor blend' a ROM property, meaning it can be

    set per-ROM.



  * Added support for relocating the base Stella directory, by setting the

    environment variable 'STELLA_BASEDIR'.  This must be done each time before

    Stella starts.



  * Added '-fastscbios' commandline argument, which speeds up loading of 

    vertical bars in Supercharger ROMs, and made it the default.



  * Added '-autoslot' commandline argument, which automatically switches

    to the next available slot after saving a state.  This defaults to off,

    and must be set from the commandline.



  * Fixed bug in debugger command 'runto', which could enter an infinite

    loop under some conditions.



  * Updated configure/build toolchain so patching is no longer required for

    Debian packages.



  * Removed dependency on PNG library (PNG snapshots are still present, but the

    actual library is no longer required).



  * For the OSX port, improved OpenGL performance on Mac Mini using Intel

    GMA950 video hardware.



  * For the GP2X port, added support for PAL ROMs, and updated SDL to use

    hardware scaling.





2.1 to 2.2: (April 7, 2006)



  * Added new ROM browser option which works like a normal filesystem

    browser, allowing navigation throughout the filesystem.

    The old mode of browsing is still present, and can be toggled at

    runtime.  Related to this, fixed bug whereby sorting in the ROM

    launcher sometimes didn't work.



  * Integrated stella.pro properties into the application, resulting in

    faster startup time.  Now Stella can be redistributed as a single

    binary; no external files are needed, but they will still be used

    if present.



  * Reworked ROM properties files once again.  The 'user.pro' file has

    been removed, and all user-defined properties are stored in

    'stella.pro' instead.  You should delete all properties files when

    upgrading to this version, to take advantage of the speed increases.



  * Reworked settings files once again.  Removed all references to a

    global settings file.  Each user now gets a user-specific settings

    file only.  If that file doesn't exist, the built-in defaults are

    used.



  * Added 'conditional saving' of the cheatcode and settings files, so

    that these files are only written to disk when absolutely

    necessary.  This doesn't really affect desktop systems, but is very

    useful for systems with flashram-based storage (GP2X, WinCE, etc).



  * Reworked Settings class, hopefully fixing a bug whereby settings

    weren't being saved in certain cases (most evident in the OSX port).



  * Added 'tiadefaults' commandline option, which can also be toggled

    from within the GUI.  This option disables all TIA positioning

    'tweaks' that typically make a game look better, and present the

    image exactly as it would appear on a real 2600.



  * Added jitter-detection code for the paddle emulation, which should

    eliminate an annoying 'jittering' effect when using paddles with

    a Stelladaptor.



  * Related to jitter-detection, added '-pthresh' commandline option

    and GUI entry, which sets a bound below which the emulation detects

    jitter.



  * Fixed crash when adding one-shot cheats.



  * Fixed bug in RAM comparitive searches in the debugger.



  * Fixed bug with setting snapshot naming type from the GUI (it was

    always being set to 'romname').



  * Re-added low compatibility CPU emulation mode, since it benefits

    some slower systems.  This is activated with the commandline argument

    '-cpu low'.



  * For the OSX port, added Universal binary support.



  * For the OSX port, reworked the menu handling, so that certain menu

    options are only enabled when it makes sense to do so.



  * For the GP2X port, fixed joystick deadzone issues and scroll bug in

    ROM launcher.



  * For the GP2X port, fixed issue with PAL ROMs causing a crash because of

    screen size.  A message is now shown indicating that PAL ROMs are not

    yet supported.





2.0.1 to 2.1: (January 29, 2006)



  * Added phosphor effect, similar to z26.  Useful on ROMs which alternate

    sprites from one frame to another, resulting in an annoying flicker.

    When using phosphor mode, a pixels colour is mixed with its previous value,

    resulting in a blended image that doesn't flicker, emulating the

    phosphoresence effect on a real television.



  * Added 'pp' developer commandline argument to set the "Display.Phosphor"

    property, and 'ppblend' to set the amount to blend pixels in phosphor

    mode.  Also added 'Alt p' key to enable/disable phosphor effect while

    ROM is emulated. By default, phosphor mode is only used when necessary,

    as specified in the stella.pro file.



  * Renamed 'cheetah' commandline argument to 'cheat'.



  * Added per-frame cheatcodes (4 characters long), which are evaluated

    each frame.



  * Added cheatcode GUI, where cheats can be named, edited, saved, etc.



  * Cheat codes are now saved to stella.cht file and are automatically

    reloaded when Stella starts.



  * Improved 'joymouse' functionality.  While in GUI mode, any axis will

    simulate mouse movement, and any button will simulate a mouse click.

    So the GUI can be completely navigated without a mouse.



  * Improved CommandDialog and LauncherDialog wrt joymouse functionality.

    These dialogs are used more than any other on devices without a mouse,

    so joystick axis movement switches between GUI objects, rather than

    simulating the mouse.  This leads to much faster selection of objects.



  * Added mapping of multiple SDL joystick axis to Event Mapping.



  * Added joystick hat support, and mapping of multiple hats to Event Mapping.



  * Added remapping of paddle emulation to the keyboard or joystick axis

    (the mouse is still used by default for paddles).  Related to this,

    use more precise analog values when analog axis are mapped to

    analog-type events (such as paddles).



  * Treat joystick events as other types of controllers based on the virtual

    port entry in stella.pro.  This means that mappings for a joystick will

    emulate other devices when necessary.



  * Added 'sp' developer commandline argument, which sets the

    "Console.SwapPorts" property and swaps the arrangement of the virtual

    ports.  Useful for games like "Raiders of the Lost Ark", where the

    joysticks are normally swapped.



  * Added ability to set which Stelladaptor device emulates which virtual

    joystick port ('sa1' and 'sa2' commandline arguments, which accept

    'left' or 'right').



  * Fixed issues with jittering joysticks/mice causing weird events when

    starting Stella.



  * Added 'freq', 'tiafreq' and 'clipvol' commandline arguments, which

    affect the sound subsystem (see manual for further info).



  * Made state files completely cross-platform, both in terms of endianness

    as well as CPU size (32 vs. 64 bit).



  * Fixed crash with using 'cheat' and 'break' from the commandline.



  * Implemented dynamic loading of OpenGL library.





2.0 to 2.0.1: (October 24, 2005)



  * Added 'dirtyrects' support, which speeds up rendering for some Windows users.



  * Fixed bug where taking snapshots would fail if the snapshot directory

    wasn't specified.



  * Made ROM launcher case-insensitive, so upper and lowercase names are now

    mixed in the correct order.



  * Fixed ZIP ROM support to search the archive for ROMs ending with either

    .bin or .a26 (case insensitive).



  * ROMs which don't have an associated properties entry are no longer named

    'Untitled' in the Stella window or when taking snapshots.  The actual

    ROM name is now used.



  * Changed minimum height of debugger to be 27 lines in the prompt, or approx.

    700 pixels high.  This should make using the debugger easier for users

    with lower resolution monitors.  Related to this, the RomWidget now uses

    all possible vertical space when changing the debugger height.



  * Fixed bug related to upgrading Stella and event mappings being incorrect.

    Stella now detects this, and uses the default mappings.  So upgrading

    to version 2.0.1 means your event mappings will be reset.



  * Fixed bug in loading debugger symbol files generated on different

    operating systems.



  * For the Windows port; added exe installer based on InnoSetup.



  * For the Windows port; compiled icon into Stella, so it now looks like

    a real Win32 application.



  * For the OSX port, reverted window resize key combos back to 'Cmd =' and

   'Cmd -' to match the 1.4.2 release.





1.4.2 to 2.0: (October 16, 2005)



  * Added integrated GUI.  Stella is now a fully graphical application, and all

    settings can be changed dynamically while the application is running.  That

    means the commandline is no longer required (but support is still there

    for those who want to use it).



  * Added ROM launcher.  You can now exit a game and start playing another one

    from directly within Stella (you no longer have to quit Stella and

    restart it).



  * Because of the integrated GUI and ROM launcher, StellaX and KStella

    (the Windows and Linux frontends) have been discontinued.  The OSX

    port now uses the launcher as well.



  * Added an integrated debugger for game developers.  This is currently

    the first version of a debugger in Stella, but it's already quite

    usable.



  * Added new sound subsystem, which is much faster and more accurate.

    Related to this, added stereo sound output (used by some homebrew games).



  * Added ZIP support.  Stella can now open ROM's compressed in zip

    format.



  * Added cartridge 'frying', thanks to Fred "batari" Quimby.  This

    emulates the action of turning the power button on and off on a

    real Atari, often resulting in some strange effects.



  * Added ability to edit current ROM properties from directly within

    Stella, which can then be saved directly into the 'user.pro' file.

    So creating a properties entry for a new ROM can be done without

    any external tools.



  * Added initial support for using Stella in an 'arcade-box'

    environment without a keyboard.  This consists of an in-game

    menu for choosing common actions in Stella, as well as using the

    joystick navigate the mouse pointer.



  * Reworked properties system to use both a system-wide 'stella.pro' and

    a per-user 'user.pro' properties files.  Changes made by the user

    and stored in 'user.pro' are no longer erased when upgrading Stella.



  * Added support for cartridges with 3E bankswitching format.



  * Added preliminary Cheat support.



  * Added 'Alt/Shift-Cmd' z, x, c, v, b, n keys to enable/disable the

    P0, P1, M0, M1, BL, PL bits in the TIA, respectively.



  * Added 'Alt/Shift-Cmd .' key to disable all bits in the TIA.



  * Added 'Alt/Shift-Cmd /' key to enable all bits in the TIA.



  * Added 'Alt/Shift-Cmd g' key to switch dynamically switch between

    software and OpenGL modes while Stella is running.



  * Added 'Ctrl/Cmd r' key to reload the ROM currently being emulated.



  * Added 'Alt/Shift-Cmd s' key to merge the current game properties

    into the properties file.



  * Added 'help' commandline argument.  Launching Stella from the

    commandline with no options now starts Stella in ROM launcher mode,

    instead of showing help (as in previous versions).



  * Added the following commandline arguments for developers:

    "pro, type, ld, rd, tv, lc, rc, bc, format, xstart, ystart, width

    height, cpu, hmove".  Developers can consult the manual for

    further details.



  * Removed 'mergeprops' commandline argument, since there are now

    dedicated keys to either save or merge game properties.



  * Removed 'hidecursor' commandline argument.  Stella will now

    automatically decide when to use this setting.



  * Fixed framerate when switching between NTSC and PAL modes.  Stella

    now uses the correct framerate based on the format of the ROM,

    in terms of both video and audio.



  * Added 'configure' support to the build process for both Linux and

    Win32 (using MinGW).  Developers can now use the familiar 'configure;

    make; make install' commands to compile Stella.



  * Further consolidation and integration of SDL.  This should lead to

    faster operation and a more consistent look for all ports.



  * Fixed some 64-bit issues.  Stella now compiles and runs correctly

    on AMD64 and PPC64 Linux systems.



  * Updated the Stella manual with pictures of the new integrated GUI.





1.4.2a to 1.4.2b: MacOSX version only (February 27, 2005)



  * Added fix to mute sound while user is loading a new cartridge, or using

    the Preferences window.





1.4.2 to 1.4.2a: MacOSX version only (February 21, 2005)



  * Fixed problem in timing loop which was causing crashes after 15-30

    minutes.



  * Turned optimization on in compiler settings, which had somehow gotten

    turned off.





1.4.1 to 1.4.2: (February 19, 2005)



  * Updated the sound system. All popping and cracking sounds that previously

    occurred at program start/stop and when entering/exiting menu or pause

    mode have been eliminated.

 

  * Fixed the gl_fsmax argument to mean "switch to desktop resolution on

    fullscreen OpenGL", instead of to the maximum possible resolution (the two

    are not always the same).

 

  * Added Alt [ and Alt ] keys to dynamically adjust the sound volume during

    emulation.

 

  * Added Control 0, Control 1, Control 2, Control 3 keys to dynamically change

    which paddle the mouse should emulate.

 

  * Added video_driver argument. This accepts the different options that can be

    specified for SDL_VIDEODRIVER (see SDL homepage for more information).

    Basically, it eliminates the need to set the SDL_VIDEODRIVER environment

    variable.

 

  * Made sure screen is refreshed before taking a snapshot.  This eliminates

    the problem with new snapshots containing the text "Snapshot saved".



  * For the Windows port; added windib and directx as options for

    'video_driver' when using software rendering. The 'windib' option is now

    the default, and in many cases it's up to 10 times faster than using

    'directx'.



  * For the OSX port; added 'Cmd-R' key to reload the currently loaded ROM.





1.4 to 1.4.1: (August 15, 2004)



  * Fixed PAL sound issues.  PAL games now should sound correct (no distortion

    or missing sounds), but some games may still run too fast.  This is still

    a work-in-progress, and will be fixed in Stella 1.5.



  * Cleaned up the SDL event gathering loop.  This should hopefully fix the

    problems with "double-pumping events" reported by some Windows users.

    Event gathering and dispatching is now much faster as well.



  * Fixed a bug where the Control or Alt keys could be assigned to some event,

    but they could never be used.  Control/Alt can now be used for any event.



  * Updated stella.pro file to work with the latest Good2600 ROMset release

    (Thanks go to Voch for helping to maintain the stella.pro file).



  * For the Windows port; removed requirement for ROM files to be named *.bin

    in the StellaX frontend.  The ROM's can now have any name, but ZIP-files are

    not yet supported.



  * For the Windows port; fixed the problems with the included modified SDL

    library and Windows 98 users.  Stella should now run in Windows 98.



  * For the OSX port; added preference to allow user to select the directory

    in which ROM images are stored.  This sets the default directory to start

    the browsing for a ROM in, and doesn't preclude the user from selecting a 

    file outside that directory.



  * For the OSX port; fixed preferences bug where Preferences changed before

    a game was opened were not being saved.



  * For the OSX port; fixed an issue which would prevent the program from

    working with OSX 10.1.





1.3 to 1.4: (July 17, 2004)



  * Codebase ported to SDL. The DOS and X11 ports have been discontinued.



  * Sound code ported to SDL. For the Linux versions, ALSA and OSS sound

    support has been discontinued.



  * The Linux, MacOSX and Windows ports are now based on the same codebase

    and are actively maintained. That means simultaneous (and hopefully more

    frequent) releases.



  * A new Windows port has been created, with the GUI based on StellaX.

    This is the first new release for Windows since Stella 1.2.

    (software mode is not yet optimized; OpenGL mode works much better)



  * A new Mac OSX port has been created by Mark Grebe. This is the first new

    release for Mac OSX since Stella 1.2.



  * Added OpenGL rendering support.



  * Added more refined in-game GUI.



  * Added event remapping. Emulation keys can now be remapped to the keyboard

    or up to 4 joysticks.



  * Added native Stelladaptor support. Joysticks, paddles, and driving

    controllers have been tested.



  * Digital sound support (used in games like Quadrun and Pitfall2) has been

    greatly improved. Sound generation is now more tightly synchronized with

    video updates.



  * Added support for switchable palettes. Currently you can switch between

    the current Stella palette, original Stella palette (pre-1.2 versions),

    and the z26 palette.



  * Added support for UA Limited style bankswitching (Funky Fish and Pleiades).



  * Switched to using high compatibility M6502 mode by default. This means

    old state saves from previous Stella versions will no longer work.



  * The meaning of the "-sound" command line option has been changed. This

    option now accepts either 'true' or 'false (1 or 0) to enable/disable

    sound.



  * Changed sound mixer functionality. The system volume/mixer settings will

    never be changed; volume changes in Stella will only affect the

    emulation itself.



  * Added "-video" command line option. This option accepts either 'soft' or

    'gl', to use software/OpenGL rendering.



  * Added "-gl_filter" command line option. This option accepts either

    'nearest' or 'linear', to use GL_NEAREST or GL_LINEAR filtering.



  * Added "-gl_aspect" command line option. This option accepts a decimal

    value specifying how much to scale the width of the emulation image

    (useful for giving an authentic 'square-looking' 4:3 mode).



  * Added "-gl_fsmax" command line option. This option accepts either

    'true' or 'false, and specifies to use the maximum possible resolution

    when in fullscreen OpenGL mode (useful for Linux and for Windows on

    laptops).



  * Added "-fragsize" command line option. This option accepts the size to

    use for sound fragments. Linux/MacOSX works well with 512, Windows seems

    to need 2048. This value must be a power of two.



  * Modified "-volume" command line option. If you specify '-1', Stella will

    use the system volume.



  * Renamed the "-pro" command line option to "-altpro".



  * Renamed the "-fps" command line option to "-framerate".



  * Removed the "-center" command line option. Stella now automatically

    centers the window when possible.



  * Removed the "-paddle real" command line option, since it never really

    worked correctly (and Stelladaptor support adds that functionality

    anyway).



  * Removed all command line options relating to the X11 port

    (owncmap, display).





1.2 to 1.3: (February 17, 2003)



  * Improved TIA sound system so that games with digitized audio work



  * Added saving and loading of game state to the core; X11, SDL, and DOS

    versions current support saving and loading game state



  * Added support for F4 bankswitching method



  * Pitfall II DPC sound emulation completed



  * Fixed a bug which caused the difficulty switches to operate backwards



  * Changed DPC auto-detection to use file size so that Pitfall II mods work



  * Modified RIOT timer emulation so that startup values are random



  * Added 3F bankswitching auto-detection routine so that homebrews and

    demos work without a stella.pro entry



  * Updated the TIA message boxes so they look a little nicer 



  * Latest stella.pro file included in distribution



  * Added some developer options to the core, and the ability to change game

    width, height, xstart, ystart, and others while the emulation is running.

    Added ability to switch between NTSC and PAL at runtime, and the ability

    to save the current properties to a file or to merge the changes into the

    stella.pro file; X11 and SDL versions supported for now (compile option)



  * External sound server for the X11 and SDL versions no longer required, as

    all sound code is now integrated into the core 



  * Changed locations of the user's config files for the X11 and SDL versions;

    the user's stellarc file is now located in $HOME/.stella/stellarc, state

    files are located in $HOME/.stella/state/ and the stella.pro file is

    located in $HOME/.stella/stella.pro



  * Changed the way options are supplied on the commandline for the X11 and

    SDL versions. Now all commandline options take exactly the same arguments

    as in the INI file.



  * Added "-accurate" command line option to choose between accurate

    (CPU-intensive) timing or less accurate (CPU-friendly) timing to X11

    and SDL versions. This is the final version of what was considered

    experimental timing code in Stella 1.2.



  * Added "-sound" command line option to choose which sound backend to

    use (alsa, oss, sdl) with the X11 and SDL versions.



  * Added the developer command line options to the X11 and SDL versions,

    which are only activated in developer builds: -Dformat, -Dwidth,

    -Dheight, -Dxstart, -Dystart, -Dmerge 



  * Fixed window resize bug in the X11 port



  * Added "-nosound" command line option to the DOS port to disable audio



  * DOS port supports a "-vsync" option to synchronize emulation with the

    video blank of the video card



  * Changed VGA code in the DOS port to use a 60Hz 320x200 and a 60Hz

    320x240 graphics mode



  * DOS port has been updated to run better under Windows NT, 2000, and XP.

    There are still issues with the sound, however, it is usable.



  * DOS port is using a new Sound Blaster driver created by Matt Conte which

    supports auto-detection of sound cards.



  * DOS port supports a STELLA_HOME environment variable that defines 

    the location of config files.

 

  * In the DOS port the stella.pro file is searched for first in the

    current working director and then in the $STELLA_HOME directory



  * In the DOS port the ROM image is searched for first using the

    specified path, then in $STELLA_HOME/ROMS, and finally in $STELLA_HOME

  



Cyberstella 1.2.1 (May 16, 2002)



  * Removed the built-in games until some legal stuff is sorted out





Cyberstella 1.2 (May 10, 2002)



  * Initial release of a new WIN 32 port of Stella





DOS 1.2 to DOS 1.2.1: (April 28, 2002)



  * Fixed a bug with control keys being confused with the pause key



  * Fixed a bug with the pause key causing the application to lockup





1.1 to 1.2: (April 21, 2002)



  * Improved illegal CPU instruction support. Thrust and Qb will now operate

    correctly.



  * Improved emulation of undefined TIA reads. The ball in Video Pinball

    finally bounces off of the paddles!



  * More accurate NTSC and PAL palettes. These palettes should be much more

    like the colors displayed on a real TV.



  * PAL color loss is now emulated. If a PAL game displays an odd number

    of scanlines then the next frame will be displayed in black & white.



  * TIA emulation improved to fix some problems with Pole Position,

    Fatal Run, Dolphin, Decathlon, Robot Tank, and Hole Hunter.



  * Support for Pitfall II has been added, however, the enhanced sound

    provided by the DPC chip found in the Pitfall II cartridge isn't

    currently emulated.



  * Support added for the Commavid (CV) bankswitching method.



  * Support added for the Megaboy cartridge.



  * Improved Supercharger emulation including a new BIOS that shows the

    vertical blue progress bars like the real thing.



  * Code for the emulation core has been updated to work with newer C++

    compilers compliant with the C++ standard.



  * Basic message support added to the TIA emulation. This allows a short

    message to overlay the TIA frame. Currently, it's used when switching

    color modes and difficulty settings.

 

  * The internal data structure for the stella.pro file was changed from

    a resizable array to a binary search tree. This results in quicker

    startup times.



  * An SDL port of Stella is available (requires SDL 1.2.0 or greater)



  * Added option to not load in the whole stella.pro file when starting 

    Stella. This option is enabled on the X11, SDL, and DOS versions. Win32 

    version is left alone since it's needed for loading multiple games from 

    the UI. Saves on memory usage.



  * Added INI file option to the X11 and SDL versions. Options can be 

    specified in this file instead of entering them on the commandline. Any 

    options entered on the commandline override options in the INI file.  

    File is called stellarc. For the X11 and SDL versions, it can be in

    either $HOME (as $HOME/.stellarc) or in /etc (as /etc/stellarc).  The

    one in $HOME has higher priority than the one in /etc.



  * Added snapshot support to the X11 and SDL versions. Pressing F12 saves 

    the current screen in PNG format. Requires PNG library.



  * Removed stella.pro file from the binary, resulting in large space

    savings. The stella.pro file is no longer optional.  For the X11 and

    SDL versions, it can be in either $HOME (as $HOME/.stella.pro) or in

    /etc (as /etc/stella.pro). The one in $HOME has higher priority than

    the one in /etc. For DOS and Win32 versions, the stella.pro file must

    be in the same directory as the executable.



  * Added pause functionality to the core. Implemented in DOS, X11, and

    SDL versions for now.





1.0 to 1.1: (February 26, 1999)



  * DOS and Linux versions support real Atari 2600 paddles using a 

    special PC game port adaptor



  * Linux version uses the new 1.2.x joystick driver API



  * Added support for the "-display" option to the X Window version



  * Added support for private colormaps to the X Window version



  * Fixed a few bugs in the Supercharger emulation



    - A major bug in the ROM loading routine was fixed



    - Multi-loading in "Escape from the Mindmaster" works correctly



    - All Supercharger games load and execute at this point



  * Added a small hack to the TIA code to fix a display problem in "Escape 

    from the Mindmaster"



  * Improved TIA emulation to support the RESPx multi-sprite trick





1.0b1 to 1.0: (October 7, 1998)



  * DOS version supports 320x200 and 320x240 graphics modes



  * Several portability issues have been resolved 



  * Preliminary support for Chris Wilkson's Megacart bank-switching scheme



  * BSDI target included in makefile 



  * Improved Users Manual in several "popular" formats





0.7 to 1.0b1: (July 25, 1998)



  * Supports the following controllers:



      Joysticks, Paddles, Booster-Grip, Keyboard and Driving



  * Supports the following bank switching methods:



      2K, 3F, 4K, AR, E0, E7, F4SC, F6, F8, F8SC, FASC, FE



  * Properties are associated with games using their MD5 checksum

    calculated on the entire ROM image



  * Uses the new 'stella.pro' file format for game properties



  * Includes Erik's latest stella.pro properties file



  * New frame rate throttle code for X windows GUI



  * Based on the new and improved M6502 CPU emulation



  * Improvements to TIA emulation



    - Support HMOVE blanks



    - Improved Cosmic Ark star field effect



    - Some support for the RESPx multiple sprite trick



    - Support NTSC and PAL palettes



  * Improvements to PIA emulation (timing)



  * Improved Supercharger emulation





0.6 to 0.7: (June 7, 1997)



  * Improved emulation speed of TIA and 6507



  * Added Starpath Supercharger support



  * Added Tigervision bank-switching support (3F bank-switching)



  * Added pause game feature for Unix and DOS



  * VCS files combined into a single builtin property file



  * Added TIA HMOVE "feature" to support Cosmic Ark stars



  * Improved TIA VSYNC code so that it works more like the real

    thing (0.6 VSYNC code caused the graphics of some games to

    be off such as Alien and Battle Zone)



  * Added two 6507 emulators: one is designed to act more like

    the real thing, while the other is designed to be as fast as

    possible (required for Supercharger support)



  * Changed TIA peeking so lower nibble of byte read is the same

    as the TIA address being accessed (Warlords now works)

  



0.5 to 0.6: (January 18, 1997)



  * Fixed collision detection problem (Freeway works)



  * Changed PIA timing code to fix screen jitters



  * Added new bank-switching methods: F4SC (Fatal Run), E7 (Burgertime)



  * Fixed some code in the TIA emulation that caused SEGFAULTS



  * Improved frame rate throttling code to work better on fast machines



  * Improved TIA emulation (missle graphics are fully emulated now)



  * Included Bob Colbert's "Okie Dokie" game



  * Uses version 1.1 of the TIA Sound library by Ron Fries





0.4 to 0.5: (November 17, 1996)



  * Added sound support



  * Added new bank-switching methods: F8SC (Defender II), FASC (CBS RAM+)



  * Changed TIA so peeking $E and $F return $F not $0 for Haunted House



  * Changed PIA timing code to fix screen jitters in Frogger



  * Addressing scheme rewritten



  * Optimized 6507 memory accesses



  * Randomized memory in PIA upon startup



  * Removed auto-disabling of objects at the start of a frame

    so you can't walk through walls in Adventure



  * Changed the X windows terminal update method to make it faster and

    easier to understand





0.3 to 0.4 (August 28, 1996):



  * TIA code has been optimized some



  * Some games can be played with just a ROM image



  * New search method for ROM images (no more STELLA_PATH)



  * Delta screen update supported



  * Better error handling added to the "core"





0.2 to 0.3 (July 12, 1996):



  * Keyboard joystick support is much better (Daniel Marks)



  * Paddles are now supported via the mouse (Bradford Mott)



  * Many portability issues have been resolved (Keith Wilkins)



  * Fixed a problem with the 6507 ADC and SBC instructions that caused

    some games (Enduro) not to work correctly (Bradford Mott)



  * Power Macintosh port (Aaron Giles)



  * Windows 95 & NT port (Jeff Miller)

