#46804 - newdev - Thu Jun 30, 2005 11:41 pm
What should I use if I am just starting to try and program gba games? Which is easier to use/better for a begginer?
-Kyle
sorry for the post, I know this type of quistion is probably been posted 50 bajillion times....
#46810 - yaustar - Fri Jul 01, 2005 1:26 am
First question.. do you know how to program in C? If not read the thread below "I want to learn"
#46813 - newdev - Fri Jul 01, 2005 2:12 am
Yeah, i know enough to get me through the tutorials......
#46814 - poslundc - Fri Jul 01, 2005 2:32 am
It seems that DevkitARM is both the most popular and well-maintained choice.
HAM offers HAMlib which has less of a learning curve, but it is very limited in scope and can only be used to a point before you'll have to cast it aside and learn how to do things on your own anyway.
Dan.
#46839 - Orphean - Fri Jul 01, 2005 5:34 am
| Quote: |
| HAM offers HAMlib which has less of a learning curve, but it is very limited in scope and can only be used to a point before you'll have to cast it aside and learn how to do things on your own anyway. |
It could be argued that after using HAMlib you are ready to take the next step into coding your own Shadow OAM routines and whatnot. At the very least you can jump in and get your feet wet very very quickly.
Secondly, HAM is more than just HAMlib. You can not use HAMlib at all and still be an avid HAM user. Its more of a Click-To-Install GBA development Environment that provides one with a ready-made toolchain, a very extensive GBA header file, HAMlib if wanted, and a whole host of demo programs and various utilities.
The only downside to that route with HAM is that it is currently still using DevKitAdvance as it's toolchain. But with HAM 3.0 coming out it is being switched over to DevKitArm which will be much better.
Don't overlook HAM. I know you are the uberleet gba coder poslundc and your ray-casting mode7 demo with crono is truly impressive but I wouldn't just dismiss it out of hand because of a general purpose library that comes with it. :)
Orphean
#46847 - poslundc - Fri Jul 01, 2005 6:26 am
Okay, whatever... I was just offering my opinion. No need to get personal.
Dan.
#46856 - Orphean - Fri Jul 01, 2005 9:50 am
?
I wasn't getting personal. Your Crono demo is fantastic! I was just trying to say that someone with your skills might see things differently than one starting out.
I really respect your work, you don't see any really cool things like that on my end of the table for all to see ;)
Sorry for any confusion Dan.
Orphean
#46871 - poslundc - Fri Jul 01, 2005 3:58 pm
This isn't and never was a thread about my demo, or my being "uberleet", whatever that is. That's making it personal.
Your opinion on HAM is just as valid as mine. Your post seems to be preemptively defensive of your right to have one. Relax.
Dan.
#46909 - tepples - Fri Jul 01, 2005 11:07 pm
| Orphean wrote: |
| HAM is more than just HAMlib. You can not use HAMlib at all and still be an avid HAM user. Its more of a Click-To-Install GBA development Environment |
Moral: As long as we make sure to clarify what part of HAM we're talking about, such as "VisualHAM" (the editor) and "HAMlib" (the library), then we can actually make sense when discussing it.
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#46914 - KMcG - Fri Jul 01, 2005 11:42 pm
I started out with ham, but i didn't really like the way it was structured so I started to do tutorials that didn't use ham. It is more work that way but I have a much better understanding of how things work because of it.
As far as which way to start, It all comes down to how you like to program. Plus if you don't like doing it one way, you can always just try out the other way.
#47174 - ymalik - Wed Jul 06, 2005 4:00 am
I want to use DevkitARM, but I'm too lazy. HAM is easy to install, and you can get started immediately. You don't have to use HAMlib. In fact, I even use Pern's header files (although they do have some mistakes which I had to correct).
#47237 - solarwind__ - Wed Jul 06, 2005 6:14 pm
Well, im just a beginner and i use DEVKITADV even though its a bit old. It still works really well for me and I have never had any trouble with it so far. I use BLOODSHED DEV C++ as the text editor and i just make my own bat file to compile. I have had no trouble so far and DEVKITADV is really great although I might use DEVKITARM sometime in the future.
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#solarwind
#47303 - solarwind__ - Thu Jul 07, 2005 4:07 am
nevermind, i switched to devkitARM after a little bit of searching. seems like a lot of people prefer devkitARM because it is updated frequently.
Go with devkitARM!!!
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#solarwind
#47308 - ymalik - Thu Jul 07, 2005 4:33 am
HAM has really good makefiles, and VHAM allows easy addition of source files. I spent sometime trying to make the makefiles compatible with DevkitARM, but then I got frustrated and quit; I didn't feel like spending time on the "accidental" part of GBA development.
#47310 - solarwind__ - Thu Jul 07, 2005 4:36 am
also, Visual HAM or whatever its called, adds the "CREATED WITH HAM" logo at the start of every rom it creates. I find that annoying. Also i like the configurability of DevkitARM (aka DevkitPro, i think =D). Go with DevkitARM it owns and its updated more frequently!!
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#solarwind
#47314 - wintermute - Thu Jul 07, 2005 5:17 am
For what it's worth, Hamlib can be used with devkitARM
http://forums.ngine.de/viewtopic.php?t=1027
Tepples, if you read this, might be worth a FAQ entry?
#47326 - ymalik - Thu Jul 07, 2005 2:48 pm
| solarwind__ wrote: |
| also, Visual HAM or whatever its called, adds the "CREATED WITH HAM" logo at the start of every rom it creates. |
Just don't call the ham_init() function, and the logo won't appear. I don't even use any of HAM's header files. I use HAM as you would use DevkitARM.
#47327 - ymalik - Thu Jul 07, 2005 2:51 pm
Looks as though I will be using DevkitARM with VHAM now.
#47540 - Peter - Sun Jul 10, 2005 6:29 pm
Hi,
| solarwind__ wrote: |
| also, Visual HAM or whatever its called, adds the "CREATED WITH HAM" logo at the start of every rom it creates. I find that annoying. |
VisualHAM does not add the introscreen, HAMlib does. VisualHAM is only the texteditor.
#47541 - Peter - Sun Jul 10, 2005 6:31 pm
Hi,
| wintermute wrote: |
| For what it's worth, Hamlib can be used with devkitARM |
yeah, works pretty good with DevKitARM and compiling is so much faster :)