pLauncher is a front-end that allows you to access all of your emulators and roms. I created pLauncher because I was tired of typing cryptic commands every time I wanted to play a game, and I hated having to use a different front-end for each different emulator.

The original version was actually called eLauncher, and was written in Eiffel. It has since been rewritten in PERL, making it much faster. The rewrite in PERL also makes it easier for others to contribute to the project.

The toolkit used is GTK+ made possible by the GTK/Perl module.

The latest version of pLauncher can be obtained at the SourceForge group page.

After you have downloaded the package (see Getting it), you have to unzip/untar the package. Use the following command:

   tar zxvf pLauncher-version.tar.gz

This should create a directory named pLauncher-version/   Change to this directory:

   cd pLauncher-version

To install the package, run the install.pl script as root:

   perl install.pl

When you run pLauncher for the first time, you will need to configure it. The first thing you need to do is add a system for every emulator you want to use with pLauncher. Do this be selecting the Systems... item from the Options menu.

The System Options dialog box will appear. To add a new system for pLauncher to use, click the "Add" button.

The Edit System Options dialog box will appear. All of the fields must be filled in.

Note: Wildcards are not supported in any of these fields.
Name: The name that pLauncher will use to refer to the system.

Command: The actual command that runs the emulator.

Options: Command-line options to pass to the emulator when launching a rom.

Rom Path: The directory from where pLauncher grabs the system's roms.

Extensions: The rom extensions pLauncher will use to determine whether a file is a rom or not. Do not type the dot; for example: the rom extension for xmame is "zip" not ".zip" nor "*.zip".
Note: Separate each extension by a space and/or comma.

Omit rom extension...: Check this if the emulator should be launched without providing the extension with the rom. For example, the box should be checked for xmame, which calls for a command such as:

xmame pacman

However, the box should not be checked for snes9x, which calls for a command such as:

snes9x pacman.smc

Here is an example of system options completed:

When you are done filling in the fields click OK. When you are done adding systems, click Done in the System Options dialog box. Every rom for each system is now automatically loaded by pLauncher in the main window.

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Thanks for asking! You want to be a developer? Email Dave Bilbey, and I'll set you up as a developer at the pLauncher SourceForge group site.

There are currently no questions for the FAQ. If you have one, please email the author Dave Bilbey.