--------------------------------------------
Handy/SDL v0.5 release README
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--------------
- DISCLAIMER -
--------------

Or, "O liability, I do disclaim thee!"

Ported by SDLEMU and is based upon the original work by Keith Wilkins.
For requirements please consult the INSTALL file for more information 
about supported OS's and software requirements.

The use of this software is entirely at your own risk. We can't be held
responsible for damage done to you hardware and/or software. This software
requires the use of the Atari Lynx boot ROM and/or Commercial ROM images. 
You may only use the ROM images if you own the cartridges itself. The
use of Commercial ROMs without owning the original cartridge is illegal in
most countries and could result in fines and/or legal actions.

This software is released under the GPL. For more information I direct you to
the GPL.TXT. You may hack/change the code anyway you like. You may not
commercially sell this software. If you make changes, release the source code
to the public and send the changes you made to the original authors. 

The products and brands used in these documents and/or sourcecode are owned by
their respective companies.

----------------------
- What is Handy/SDL? -
----------------------

Handy is software dedicated to emulating the Atari Lynx hardware on a standard
PC. The software was originally developed by Keith Wilkins [http://handy.sf.net]
and was released under the GPL on 14th April 2004. 

Handy/SDL is a port of the WIN32 sourcecode so that it can be used with the
GCC compiler and the Simple Directmedia Layer (SDL) library. 

Currently Handy/SDL compiles on WIN32 using mingw, and possible also on
UN*X based systems (BeOS, Linux and FreeBSD). It may run on other systems
as well but we can not guarantee that.

The port was done by the SDLEMU crew (http://sdlemu.ngemu.com) and especially
by Niels Wagenaar and Carwin Jones. You may contact us by e-mail using
sdlemu@ngemu.com or leave a message on the SDLEMU Official Forum (see the website). 
Patches and bugfixes are particularly welcome! :)

More information about SDL can be found at http://www.libsdl.org.

Note that the OpenSource release is not quite as 'advanced' as the originally
released Handy/SDL v0.82-R1. The sources have been lost and everything was
done from scratch. Please be patient for newer releases with more functionality.

-------------------
- Using Handy/SDL -
-------------------

After compiling the binary (see INSTALL) you can now run original Atari Lynx
games. These games are distributed on cartridges and can therefore cannot be
used on a PC. To use these games on Handy/SDL you need to get ROM images.
Besides the ROM images from (commercial) games you must also obtain the
Atari Lynx boot ROM which you must copy to the root directory where the binary
resides. For legal issues concerning ROM images please consult the DISCLAIMER
at the beginning of this file.

After obtaining the Atari Lynx boot ROM and several ROMs you can now use 
Handy/SDL using the following command:

./handy_sdl [romfile] [options]

The context of ROMFILE is the filename of the an Atari Lynx ROM dump (can be
either compressed or uncompressed). You can also use switches. By just typing
./vj you get an overview of the options you can use. WIN32 users should look
into the stdout.txt for that information.

This emulator also emulates the Atari Lynx gamebuttons. By using the following
keyboard settings you can (possibly) play a given game:

Atari Button A       : Z
Atari Button B       : X
Atari Button PAUSE   : RETURN
Atari Button OPT1	 : F1
Atari BUTTON OPT2    : F2
Atari UP             : UP
Atari DOWN           : DOWN
Atari LEFT           : LEFT
Atari RIGHT          : RIGHT

With ESC you can easily stop Handy/SDL which will get you back to the prompt
of your shell.


-------------------
- A note on sound -
-------------------

By default, the Lynx sound is turned on, but the quality is a bit bad
in combination with the throttle code. It's not that bad, so at least try
the sound support and test it on your system.

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- Finally -
-----------

If you find bugs, enhance the code or simply have questions, drop us an e-mail
at sdlemu AT ngemu DOT com or drop a message on the SDLEMU Official Forum. 

We hope you enjoy the emulator and will use it wisely! 

Special thanks go to guys over at ngemu.com and #ngemu (EFNET). Thanks also to
Keith Wilkins who originally developed this emulator and released the sources
to the public. We couldn't have done it without you!

SDLEMU
