FOSSPicks
Atari ST emulator
Hatari
When it comes to emulation, the Atari ST is often overlooked in favor of the Commodore Amiga. This could be because Commodore's story is the more romantic: an underdog with superior hardware under the custodianship of an owner incapable of building on its advantage. The Atari ST was also hugely successful in the 80s, to such an extent that it became the bane of every Amiga owner as they suffered substandard game ports from its rival, the lowest common denominator. But it's still a huge chunk of many childhoods, and as a result, great fun to play with via an emulator like Hatari. What's also great about Hatari is that it has very few dependencies, it's cross-platform, and you can easily build it yourself. All you need to get rolling is a legal copy of Atari's ROM or a copy of the free EmuTOS ROM.
If the emulator locates your ROM, it will launch and present you with the old GEM desktop in all its wonderful green and gray glory. Hatari's UI is equally austere, looking like something built in the Unix/X windows/Motif era, but also totally fitting with the late 1980s. As with the Amiga emulator, UAE, you press F12 to bring up the options overlay. From here, you can insert floppy disk images, hard disks, joysticks, and upgrade the memory and CPU with a click of a checkbox, although this may break compatibility. And compatibility is brilliant. We raced through lots of old games, from Captain Blood to Midwinter, and everything seems to work faultlessly. The emulator also handles MIDI for controlling keyboards and synthesizers. This means that Hatari could be used for more than nostalgia as there's a growing trend for modern musicians to go back to old software for its simplicity and durability.
Project Website
Buy this article as PDF
(incl. VAT)
Buy Linux Magazine
Subscribe to our Linux Newsletters
Find Linux and Open Source Jobs
Subscribe to our ADMIN Newsletters
Support Our Work
Linux Magazine content is made possible with support from readers like you. Please consider contributing when you’ve found an article to be beneficial.
News
-
So Long Neofetch and Thanks for the Info
Today is a day that every Linux user who enjoys bragging about their system(s) will mourn, as Neofetch has come to an end.
-
Ubuntu 24.04 Comes with a “Flaw"
If you're thinking you might want to upgrade from your current Ubuntu release to the latest, there's something you might want to consider before doing so.
-
Canonical Releases Ubuntu 24.04
After a brief pause because of the XZ vulnerability, Ubuntu 24.04 is now available for install.
-
Linux Servers Targeted by Akira Ransomware
A group of bad actors who have already extorted $42 million have their sights set on the Linux platform.
-
TUXEDO Computers Unveils Linux Laptop Featuring AMD Ryzen CPU
This latest release is the first laptop to include the new CPU from Ryzen and Linux preinstalled.
-
XZ Gets the All-Clear
The back door xz vulnerability has been officially reverted for Fedora 40 and versions 38 and 39 were never affected.
-
Canonical Collaborates with Qualcomm on New Venture
This new joint effort is geared toward bringing Ubuntu and Ubuntu Core to Qualcomm-powered devices.
-
Kodi 21.0 Open-Source Entertainment Hub Released
After a year of development, the award-winning Kodi cross-platform, media center software is now available with many new additions and improvements.
-
Linux Usage Increases in Two Key Areas
If market share is your thing, you'll be happy to know that Linux is on the rise in two areas that, if they keep climbing, could have serious meaning for Linux's future.
-
Vulnerability Discovered in xz Libraries
An urgent alert for Fedora 40 has been posted and users should pay attention.