Caanoo / WIZ Wiz Software Ideas

[frozen]

Hi

I like my Wiz very much, it is a very good device, but it could be better with a stronger shell software. My ideas:

- Modern, OpenGL ES based UI
- Ability to create quick launch icons for games/apps
- Treat roms (SNES, Megadrive, etc.) as normal apps (start them with an emulator)
- Wifi hw extension (maybe it is done)
- Cradle with TV-out and USB for game controllers (to play games on your TV)
- Better UI for video player (this can be a standalone app - no multitask required)
- Better UI for mp3 player
- Better ebook reader
- Browser? (a slow and buggy browser is worse than no browser)
- Apps to access the most important services of the web (gmail, last.fm etc.)
- iPhone-like sleep mode (to send the device to sleep and continue game later -- battery life?)
- PC-side tool to upload content easily, convert videos, etc (Win, MAC, Linux -- Qt?)
- Community server for highscore charts, multiplay support etc.
- Gamedev library for common functions (e.g. save game management, access community server)
- Lots of games designed directly for The Wiz

Most of these functions could be implemented, these would make Wiz a better device. What do you think?

frozen

 

[hardyx]

- Modern, OpenGL ES based UI
Wiz supports users created menu like GMenu.
But, I think that a more complex interface like 3D give less memory to programs.

- Ability to create quick launch icons for games/apps
You can use IniMaker, scans your SD card automatically and creates icons.

- Cradle with TV-out and USB for game controllers (to play games on your TV)
Look this project from andymanone.

- Better UI for video player
I hope it will appear from the Wiz scene like in the GP2X.

- Better UI for mp3 player
Inkl player has configurable skins.

- Better ebook reader
You can try reader2x, supports many formats. More readers will come.

- Browser? (a slow and buggy browser is worse than no browser)
I'm working an advanced file manager. You can use Fx File navigator too.

- Apps to access the most important services of the web (gmail, last.fm etc.)
I hope when they release the Wifi accesory we can see internet apps.

- iPhone-like sleep mode (to send the device to sleep and continue game later -- battery life?)
This funcion is in HOLD/ON/OFF key, but the programmers need to support in the games.

- PC-side tool to upload content easily, convert videos, etc (Win, MAC, Linux -- Qt?)
To convert or reduce videos use "Badak video converter" or "Pocket Divx encoder".
To download homebrew a guy is developing a Wiz Package installer.

- Community server for highscore charts, multiplay support etc.
This is complex in a portable console, but it must be implemented in the libs and games.
I think could be an option in commercial games, in the wiz store FunGP.

- Gamedev library for common functions (e.g. save game management, access community server)
This is in the openwiz SDK of in the official SDK wich is in development. You can use Fenix or Bennu languages, they are easy but powerful.

- Lots of games designed directly for The Wiz
Many programmers are working to release the best native games for Wiz.
GPH and other distributors are making contests and the online store to atract developers.

Welcome and enjoy your Wiz.

 

[glezmen]

- Modern, OpenGL ES based UI
- Ability to create quick launch icons for games/apps
- Treat roms (SNES, Megadrive, etc.) as normal apps (start them with an emulator)

i'm working on a game lancher UI which will have these features, so please be patient

 

[frozen]

Hi

@Hardyx

> But, I think that a more complex interface like 3D give less memory to programs.

If i understand well, the menu exits when you start a program, and reloads on quiting. Maybe i'm wrong.

@glezmen

> i'm working on a game lancher UI which will have these features, so please be patient

Are you using your own gui widgets or some 3rd party one? I have been planning a project like this for a while, but i do not have the linux-side knowledge. Writing a gui is just the half of the work. Screenshots of your launcher?

A good open source gui would have several advantages:

- Makes development of little utilities easier
- Programs using it would have some standard look & ui-usage logic

frozen

 

[Jan-Nik]

Hi

@hardyx

> But, I think that a more complex interface like 3D give less memory to programs.

If i understand well, the menu exits when you start a program, and reloads on quiting. Maybe i'm wrong.

You're right, that's how it works.

 

[DaveC]

There already is a good launcher for the Wiz. It is Gmenu. The problem is that because GPH is lame they didn't provide for the re-loading of it after you exit the app. This makes third party menus basically worthless. You can load one app with them but if you want to load another after exiting the first app you basically would have to reload the menu manually then load the next app. It is kind of dumb to do that as you would be doing an extra step and be wasting more time than just loading the app directly.

 

[frozen]

Maybe i misunderstand the situation and the problem, but now developers write a little a script for their apps, that runs the application and restarts the menu when the app quits. Maybe the scripts could be a little more intelligent and it could start the right launcher after the app quits, e.g. using an environment variable or something like that.

frozen

 

[Jan-Nik]

I would be a lot easier if GPH just fixes the autorun issue in the next firmware. I hate them.

 

[DusteD]

Maybe i misunderstand the situation and the problem, but now developers write a little a script for their apps, that runs the application and restarts the menu when the app quits. Maybe the scripts could be a little more intelligent and it could start the right launcher after the app quits, e.g. using an environment variable or something like that.

frozen

Yes, I think most games are made with a "starter script" that re-launches the menu when the game exits. It wouldn't be a biggie to check if another starter-script exists, for instance something like
if [ -e "/mnt/sd/launcher.sh" ]
cd /mnt/sd
exec ./launcher
else
cd /usr/gp2x
exec ./gp2xmenu
fi

The most important thing would be that devs agreed on the name and location of said file.
Another option would be to just rename /usr/gp2x/gp2xmenu and make a symlink to the alternative menu/ui/launcher.

 

[skeezix]

Why not replace default menu with the alternate menu, or a sh script that know how to saucy based on conf or keys? Trivial I expect.. Unless firmware doesn't allow it? (checksum test?)

Ie: anyone rename gmenu over built in shell (after renaming realmenu to keep it

jeff

risk: slight
pro: works withall exising apps (not all of which use sh script, nlcudng the hard coded GPh apps. Just a trivial install script for gmenu and done!)

 

[hcf]

For my purposes, it doesn't really matter, because I am only working on the Wiz as a plaything/toy. But it does seem that the "OpenWiz" community could benefit greatly from a single and coherent set of conventions and a more friendly common operating environment (showing your apps as icons on the screen instead of the GPH launcher listing directories and ..'s and all that mess...).

The community would need to gravitate towards more or less one software development environment (that could be installed separately and all apps would know where/how to find libs etc), and would need to decide things like "which button means 'select' / 'back' / 'quit'"...or if you can't come to an agreement there, an environment where it can be user-selected and applications would be able to source that instead of having their own convention.

Basically, since GPH hasn't done it, I think first we need the "OpenWiz commuinity application environment" defined.

 

[gatekeeper]

Gmenu is nice but when I launch emu's from within gmenu they're so slow that it makes them unplayable.

 

[Mr 2X]

Maybe GMenu sets cpuclock to 200 Mhz by default.

Gmenu is nice but when I launch emu's from within gmenu they're so slow that it makes them unplayable.