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Stepmania Autoboot CD


Windows2k

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Hi, Im new to the forums but a 10 year vetran with windows, but that doesnt mean I know everything :D

I recently stumbled on the WinPE/WinAIK system and was wondering.

I have a decently built computer that I have converted to a multimedia PC (Arcade games, movies, DDR), but I have found that at the local Animethon people were dissapointed that there was no Dance Dance Revolution machine, so I hauled in my entire computer in a large backpack and hooked it up to a projector with some dance pads, executed stepmania and asked for donations before I started the game for them and sat at a table and pressed a keyboard button. But Sometimes I had to leave to do my buisiness (Go check on the DVD's, go be a teenager.) and come back and I found my machine slightly moved around.

I was wondering if there is a way to have Stepmania on one CD/DVD with a few hundred songs (about 600mb tops) and a cut down windows WITHOUT the ability to access any part besides stepmania?

I Currently Have Windows Automated Installation Kit, Windows XPH, XPP and XPe and 2000 SP4

That way, I Could leave my computer intact without messing with the administrator settings.

I Have 3 to 7 650mb Sony CD-RW's (CDRW-650HS), A spindle of Sony DVD-RW's and 2 Sony DVD-RW-HS drives.

I could use the CD-RW's for semi-permenant song storage (ability to change songs when needed.) and DVD's for permanant storage (for Stepmania/Windows)

On a side note, I might want the ability to boot the system with a USB key as a security key, like the actual DDR machine.

Domo Arigato

Windows2k.

Edited by Windows2k
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This sounds like a job for an embedded system type O/S. It might be possible to use something like Bart-PE but this may not support the APIs needed by stepmania and would still allow access to your hard disks etc.

Alternately, have you considered using the Linux version with a LiveCD? In addition to the technical aspects there would also be a psychological barrier to tampering simply because it's not windows :)

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This sounds like a job for an embedded system type O/S. It might be possible to use something like Bart-PE but this may not support the APIs needed by stepmania and would still allow access to your hard disks etc.

Alternately, have you considered using the Linux version with a LiveCD? In addition to the technical aspects there would also be a psychological barrier to tampering simply because it's not windows :)

Ive seen it done before in a way with a game called "Beach Head 2000", where the system boots off of a customised copy of XP Pro with a GLOBAL VR logo. (not embedded, as its a full blown PC in an arcade machine playing a PC game) It loads the entire windows environment into memory and starts a watchdog and loads the game off of CD.

This is similar to the way I would like it.

In My setup...

Ive found that by deleting EXPLORER.EXE nothing loads, but my background picture, and the only way to load something is Ctrl-Alt-Del and Stepmania doesnt require EXPLORER.EXE to run.

The Way I Would like it:

Boot, runs a cut down windows system that runs stepmania on the first CD, then when somebody goes to select a song, the second CD drive runs the audio/background graphics. Since its a cut down version of windows, it only needs to run the game itself, nothing else, which means I only need the following things.

USB Memory card drivers (All Of them)

DirectX 9

Video, Sound, Chipset, Input Drivers

In sort, Ill have 2 CD/DVD's, one for Windows/Stepmania, one for streamed data, and my computer will be reduced to the functionality of an XBOX game. Its on Read Only Media so no fragmentation and no way to pick up viri from memory cards, and nobody can tamper with the settings because there are none to tamper with.

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The generic definition for an embedded system is a dedicated/single purpose computer system. The hardware on which it is based is largely irrelevant. In the case you mention the base operating system was probably XP Embedded but I would advise you to avoid this as it's pretty nasty even by Microsoft's appalling standards.

For the requirements you give at the end, (2 CD/DVDs etc.), the best solution would be a Linux LiveCD + Stepmania. This won't be perfect but as I said earlier, most people simply won't tamper with it because it isn't windows.

Even so, any solution is going to expose your system to tampering regardless of what you do but the threat of "viri from memory cards" is media hype. There is a much greater threat from email and hostile websites.

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I cut W2K down to the basics and ran it that way, which worked suprisingly well, it just booted into stepmania with the settings I put up, but it didnt read memorycards untill rebooted.

If I can cut down Windows XP Professional (Because of its administrator support like 2k) I could have automatic memory cards and have the same stuff running, the only thing is I dont have any copys of WXPP on me at the moment, just 2000 and home edition.

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