Step by step guide to configure the Altirra 4.20 emulator
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Let's continue with the configuration of Altirra, the most popular emulator of Atari 8-bit computers, for 32 and 64-bit Windows systems.
Setting up the Altirra emulator operating system
Altirra has its own operating system, Altirra BIOS, which offers a reasonable level of compatibility; however, it is not enabled by default. To configure the emulator's operating system, follow these steps:
Step 1: Open the "System" menu and select "Configure system".
Step 2: In the side menu, choose the "Computer" option and select "Firmware".
Step 3: In the "Operating system" drop-down menu, choose "AltirraOS 3.4.1 for XL/XE/XEGS". Then, click "OK".
Download and install Atari roms on the Altirra emulator
Not all disk or tape images will work perfectly with the Altirra BIOS. For maximum compatibility, you need so-called Atari system ROMs. You can download Atari ROMs from the following link:Atari rom files
Download | 185 kBUnzip the files and place them in the same folder as the emulator, or create a folder inside Altirra called "roms".
To load ROMs into the emulator, follow these steps:
Step 1: Click "System" in the main menu, select "Firmware" and click "Firmware images...".
Step 2: Press the "Scan..." button and navigate to the "roms" folder where you placed the files.
Step 3: Select the added ROMs and click "Set as default" to set them as default.
Change the RAM memory of the Altirra emulator
In the side menu, select "Memory" to change the amount of memory the emulator has.
Choose the memory type according to your needs. For example, XL line computers have 64k RAM, while XE line computers have 128K. In this case, we recommend upgrading to 320K (Rambo). Click "OK" to apply the changes.
Uploading files with the Altirra emulator
To load files into the Altirra emulator, you have several options:Option 1: Drag a file into the emulator. Supports cassette CAS, cartridge BIN and CAR, disk image ATR, DCM, ATX, XFD and PRO files, as well as ROM files.
Option 2: Use the "File" menu to attach a disk image (Attach Disk), load a cassette (Cassette > Load), attach a cartridge (Attach Cartridge) or a special cartridge (Attach Special Cartridge).
If a game does not start immediately, restart the emulator with SHIFT+F5.
In future posts we will explain how to configure the joystick and use a USB joystick with the emulator.
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