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Nucore 2.25 Release!

Posted: Thu Aug 10, 2017 5:40 pm
by Chuck
It’s been just shy of five years since Nucore sales were suspended. The phrase about time flying applies here. We have good news, good news and better news. First the good news:

Nucore version 2.25 is now available!

http://www.bigguyspinball.com/nucoresupport.shtml

This version has been in the works for a little over four years. The main improvements are as follows:

1) A new mode handling system. This will result in better stability and handle a rare bug.
2) There is a new switch in the Nucore config that disables all lamp errors. Great for using LEDs, no map file required.
3) Included in the distro is a bug-fixed SDL mixer library that fixes a SDL bug where the sound would become garbled after very a very long period of the machine being on.
4) A clock fix.
5) Misc. small fixes and performance optimizations.
6) Libraries that Nucore uses are now external which will aid in supporting newer versions of Linux and remove any doubt about copyright issues.

The zip file contains installation instructions. Make sure to follow them closely.

More good news:

Nucore is once again available to everyone! We know it’s been a long time. Unfortunately, many circumstances beyond our control took place and needed to be dealt with. Everything has been resolved and Nucore is available immediately.

The Best news:

This version of Nucore is FREE!

We started negotiations for licensing and WMS was purchased by a new company. This resulted in the pinball DNA being lost. In order to license Nucore we would have had to agree to do things that we were not able to do.

Now, since Don and I have created a free version we won’t be able to directly support people who are installing it or have issues. We are asking our technically advanced brethren to help support users using our forums. Don and I will participate on the forums, especially right after release. We will also still fix bugs in the code and try to address any major issues. We’ll monitor the forums and make people who participate at a high-level moderator. Also, we cannot provide ROMs. Please don’t ask us where to find them.

It’s been a long journey to this point and Don and I would like to take a minute to specifically thank everyone who has supported us throughout the years. In the final analysis, we are just hobbyist who love pinball and your positive support has been helpful in getting us through some interesting times.

Sincerely,

Chuck and Don
Big Guys Pinball

Re: Nucore 2.25 Release!

Posted: Fri Aug 11, 2017 1:16 pm
by Subarubrat
Good to hear that there is a move to get this going again! It has been a long strange trip. It does raise a few questions and since others probably have the same questions I figured it was more productive to ask here.
Nucore is once again available to everyone!
The download link indicates for existing Nucore users, and the install routine also assumes an existing NUCORE install. The obvious question is does everyone mean existing Nucore users only, or is there a version for fresh installs coming?

Is the dongle still required and if so, will there be a new retail version of Nucore for new adopters?

Re: Nucore 2.25 Release!

Posted: Fri Aug 11, 2017 5:16 pm
by Chuck
Good questions:

1) This version of Nucore does not require the NVRAM/Protection board.
2) I posted that it's for existing users as there's not an available distro for a fresh install yet.
3) I would ask the someone in the community create an install for a newer linux distro. We can help with any library dependencies if anyone needs it. Once a distro for the new version is created I encourage the creator to post a link here. If it's solid I can also create a link on the download page.

Re: Nucore 2.25 Release!

Posted: Fri Aug 11, 2017 9:10 pm
by Subarubrat
Thank you for your support of this platform, I have already gotten a glut of questions since we mentioned it to our followers. I am going to paste them here (silly or not) and relay your answers back. Might be the basis for an FAQ.

What is the barrier to posting an older distribution of Nucore so that users could install it and then update it with this distribution?

Are the older versions of Newcore still available?

If someone went with the Pinbox distribution from the web would the update function work with this update?

Do you have a Patreon or other way to fund updates or fixes?

Is this a re-release of Pinbox, were you the guys that did that?

Do you have plans to do upgrades or packages for pay, have you considered doing a Kickstarter for new game levels/modes/ that enhance the game?

What exactly happened with you and Williams?

Re: Nucore 2.25 Release!

Posted: Fri Aug 11, 2017 11:02 pm
by Chuck
1) I could repost the old distro. It's based on Linux 8.04 which is hard to get libs for. I'll see if I still have it and post it later.
2) Since pinbox is Nucore it should work fine.
3) We're not taking money at this point but appreciate you asking.
4) No, pinbox is really Nucore renamed. We did not release it.
5) We may do things in the future. We're just super busy in our day jobs right now.

Re: Nucore 2.25 Release!

Posted: Fri Aug 11, 2017 11:13 pm
by Chuck
Oh, WMS. Nothing happened actually. We may talk at Expo this year and we could certainly discuss most of what happened in the last 5 years.

Re: Nucore 2.25 Release!

Posted: Wed Aug 23, 2017 1:17 am
by gamera9
I bought the whole system years ago and I love it. Will new modes for revenge be released?

Re: Nucore 2.25 Release!

Posted: Wed Aug 23, 2017 5:51 am
by TazDevl
Great to see that you guys are back!

I did not do an installation yet but read through the installation instructions and have the following questions re. section 5:

On page 25 you state:
You now need to download the Nucore ROM package from www.pinball.com. Run the Firefox browser (click on the globe with fire next to the System option on the top bar.) Enter the following address into the browser http://www.bigguyspinball.com/roms and press ENTER. When the save dialog box pops up click Save File and the click the OK button (fig 32.)
These do not exist at the specified links. I also could not find them in the Nucore archive. Where can we get these / can you please explain how to work around that step? Thanks a lot in advance!

Re: Nucore 2.25 Release!

Posted: Wed Aug 23, 2017 6:52 pm
by jumperger
Hi Chuck, Hi Nucore Users,

I'm the lucky owner of an all original working SWE1.
I would like to build a new PC based on your software solution to be somewhat future proof.
You say:
Also, we cannot provide ROMs. Please don’t ask us where to find them.
In my original PC, I have the original Roms, is there a possibility to extract the Roms from my own SWE1 to use them with your software in my SWE1?

Kind regards
jumperger

Re: Nucore 2.25 Release!

Posted: Wed Aug 23, 2017 8:22 pm
by Chuck
You could read the existing roms with a special rom reader. i can't provide any advice on how to obtain the roms past that.

Re: Nucore 2.25 Release!

Posted: Fri Aug 25, 2017 9:58 pm
by Chuck
I want to set the record straight on a few things regarding the re-release of Nucore.

Once the lawsuit was finalized over the theft of Nucore, Don and I were ready to resume sales. We have spent the last year or so trying to decide how best to handle the new version. We went through every option and in the end decided to give this version away. No one made a lot of money from Nucore sales and it was a tremendous amount of work supporting customers. Remember, since a year before launch it's just been Don and me supporting this effort. We both have full time jobs that keep us very busy and families we like to spend time with when we can sneak it in.

The following are facts:

We could sell this version of Nucore if we wanted to go that route.
The fact that we're giving it away has nothing to do with the lawsuit or any baseless claims of copyright issues.
Nucore does not violate any copyright and the group who manages QEMU has never approached us with any concerns.

Ignore anything you hear to the contrary. Oddly enough free isn't cheap enough for some =)

Again, we appreciate all of your support and hope you are enjoying the new version.

Re: Nucore 2.25 Release!

Posted: Wed Sep 20, 2017 1:38 pm
by mdeslaur
I'd like to create an installer for Nucore for a recent version of Ubuntu. Working on Ubuntu itself is my day job and I own a RFM and a SWE1 kit.

The tarball available is just an upgrade though, would it be possible for me to get the previous complete installation media to get the other components/scripts?

Thanks!

Marc.

Re: Nucore 2.25 Release!

Posted: Wed Sep 20, 2017 9:10 pm
by Chuck
No problem. I have an ISO of the original install disc. What's a good free service for hosting? Dropbox?

Re: Nucore 2.25 Release!

Posted: Thu Sep 21, 2017 9:05 am
by mdeslaur
Yeah, dropbox should work.

Re: Nucore 2.25 Release!

Posted: Thu Sep 21, 2017 12:51 pm
by Chuck
These are the files from the install disc.

https://www.dropbox.com/s/u3s5j7iul7juj ... ll.7z?dl=0