FAQ

An emulator is a piece of software, a hardware device, or a combination of both that enables software applications written for one platform or operating system to execute on another. The emulators available on this web site are software emulators and most of them enable software written to run on gaming consoles (ROMs) to run on a computer or another gaming console. We host emulators for Mac OS, DOS, Windows, Unix/Linux, gaming consoles, and handheld gaming devices.

Many gaming companies have used a cartridge format for their gaming consoles. A good example of such a company would be Atari. They used the cartridge format for the 2600, 5200, and 7800 gaming consoles. These cartridges are built with an internal memory chip, or ROM Chip, which contains a raw image of the game itself. The data on this chip can only be read by the gaming console and is never altered, hence the name ROM for Read Only Memory. Special devices exist that can scan these cartridges or the chips themselves and copy (or dump) the data from the ROM chip onto a computer hard drive. Once the game is dumped, the resulting file can be played in an emulator or altered for different purposes including game hacks, foreign translations, and bug fixes. So to put it simply, ROMs are usually games.

It's also worth mentioning that internal memory chips can (and are) used to store many different types of software in countless other devices. Likewise, the term ROM can also have multiple meanings and can be used to refer to anything copied (or ripped) from an internal memory chip. A good example of this would be a system bios. Many consoles have a ROM chip inside the console itself that contains the basic software or operating system that allows the console to run. Many emulators require this bios to run and you may also see it referred to as a ROM.

Bazzie Bizzle.com is the only resource you'll ever need to locate or download emulators. We host the most current version of every emulator and commercial emulator demo we can find, as well as every port and source file available. Each gaming system has it's own emulators section, located in the left side menu. Each emulator also has it's own page containing a short description and all the available packages plus other information specific to that emulator.

To help you better chose between the many emulators for each system, we've marked the emulators that we recommend with an exclamation point. We've also instituted a voting system, so in theory the emulator with the highest rating would be the best choice for each system. An emulator that has been ported to many different operating systems or one that has a recent “last updated” date could also indicate a quality emulator. A quick search of our forums could also reveal what emulator everyone else prefers, if not feel free to ask.

There are lots of ROMs available for download on Bazzie Bizzle.com. While some of them are homebrew games, most are demos, screen savers, sideshows, and the like. They are useful for testing emulators and important to those who collect complete sets (like Goodsets for example). Unfortunately, the bottom line is that we can only host a ROM if it's in the public domain or we get permission from the copyright holder (not likely). This excludes commercial ROMS, but if you're looking for a ROM we don't have, join our forums. People post links to ROM resources there (ROM sites, IRC channels, torrents, etc). Our Links section is also a very useful tool for finding ROMs. Using these two resources you could collect virtually every known ROM, commercial or otherwise. You may also want to read Is Emulation Legal?, later in this FAQ for an explanation of certain legal issues.

The first step to playing games on an emulator is to download and install one. As always, check the documentation provided with the emulator you choose to find out how to install and configure it. Usually you only need to extract the files to the directory you choose and then you'll be ready to use the emulator. Some emulators may require support files such as plug ins, a system BIOS, or DOS Extender. Files like this must be downloaded separately and placed in the correct directory. Also some configuration may be necessary to make the emulator run properly on your system. For most emulators you'll also need ROMs, although in the case of an emulator that uses CD-ROMs (PlayStation, Dreamcast, etc.) you can simply put the CD into your CD-ROM drive and play the game on your emulator. Of course we realize that those that have never used an emulator before will need more help than this, so feel free to join our forums.

The short answer is yes, most of the time.

It should be noted however, that most emulators don't get beta tested before being released to the public. Instead, it is a more common practice for emulators to be beta tested by the public. Because of this practice some emulators could contain bugs or flaws that could render your operating system useless, damage files, or even cause hardware failure. Fortunately, this almost never happens.

It should also be noted that most emulators are released under some version of the GPL or a similar license. You can download, modify, use, and even sell or redistribute them but, there's no one to hold liable in the event of a disaster. Section 16 of the GPL deals with this limitation of liability and is similar to provisions in other licenses and our policy concerning this site's liability as a distributor of open source and free software. Because of it's overwhelming popularity we have chosen to use the GPL as an example here.

GPL V2 Section 16 - Limitation of Liability
IN NO EVENT UNLESS REQUIRED BY APPLICABLE LAW OR AGREED TO IN WRITING WILL ANY COPYRIGHT HOLDER, OR ANY OTHER PARTY WHO MODIFIES AND/OR CONVEYS THE PROGRAM AS PERMITTED ABOVE, BE LIABLE TO YOU FOR DAMAGES, INCLUDING ANY GENERAL, SPECIAL, INCIDENTAL OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES ARISING OUT OF THE USE OR INABILITY TO USE THE PROGRAM (INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO LOSS OF DATA OR DATA BEING RENDERED INACCURATE OR LOSSES SUSTAINED BY YOU OR THIRD PARTIES OR A FAILURE OF THE PROGRAM TO OPERATE WITH ANY OTHER PROGRAMS), EVEN IF SUCH HOLDER OR OTHER PARTY HAS BEEN ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES.

All of that aside, we've used many emulators over many years and no one on our staff has ever had a major issue or any permanent damage. In fact, Bazzie Bizzle.com uses open source and free software whenever possible because the money we save using this software far outweighs the risk of damages. Our server operating system is Linux, our site is served up by Apache, our site and forums are written in PHP, the images on our site are edited in GIMP, and the list goes on and on.

The legality of emulation is an area of great confusion. Let's discuss emulators, ROMS, and a couple myths related to the legality of emulation.

The truth is that emulators themselves are legal and so are homebrew ROMs and demos. If an emulator requires a BIOS or any other copyright protected files to function, then you must copy or dump these files from your own equipment to use the emulator legally. It is not sufficient to just own the system and download these files online because the law requires backup copies to be made from the same system that you own.

ROMs are similar to BIOS dumps in that if you own the original game (cartridge or disc), you are allowed to own a backup copy. Again, it is not sufficient to just own the game and download a copy, you must actually copy your game so that you have an exact copy of the game you own. Acquiring commercial ROM images or game disk images by any other means or making them available to others in any way is illegal, even if you own every game you share. Also, the Digital Millennium Copyright Act prohibits the circumvention of copy protection software in most situations, so if a game uses any type of DRM it is illegal to copy it in the United States, period. There are some exceptions to this rule, but none of these exceptions apply to the average user.

There are also a couple of popular myths about emulation. These deal with the online distribution of commercial game ROMS and disc images. First of all, there is no “twenty-four hour rule” that allows you to use a ROM for educational purposes. Many sites claim that this is true, but in reality no such law exists. It is more likely that this is a misinterpretation of an unrelated law. Secondly, any site saying that enforcement officials are banned from their site by the authority of the The Internet Privacy Act are almost certainly doing something illegal and no such law actually exists or was ever signed.

Please note though that it is doubtful that any users or downloaders of ROMS will ever be prosecuted. So far copyright holders have stuck to taking down sites that offer downloads or simply asking that certain downloads be removed via email. Also note that laws vary from country to country and your local laws may differ from the US based laws discussed here.

One last thing to note here is that I am not a lawyer. If you need real legal advice, please consult a professional attorney.

DirectX is a Microsoft Windows based technology designed to enable high performance graphics and high quality sound for games and video.

DirectX's core is composed of a set of APIs or Application Programming Interfaces. These APIs allow hardware and software to communicate with each other and give multimedia applications access to the advanced features of high-performance hardware including three-dimensional graphics acceleration chips and sound cards.

To put it simply, DirectX must be downloaded and installed for some emulators, games, and applications to run. Also see “What are ddraw.dll and dinput.dll?” for more information.

Microsoft's DirectX includes two DLL files (Dynamic Link Library) named ddraw.dll and dinput.dll. If an application needs DirectX and finds that it's not installed, you may see an error asking for one of these two files. Download and install DirectX to fix the problem.

The first is ddraw.dll, it handles DirectDraw allowing multimedia applications to draw 2D graphics. As of DirectX 8 DirectDraw has been merged into a new package called DirectX Graphics.

The second (dinput.dll) handles DirectInput, supporting functionality for multimedia input devices such as joysticks and game pads.

DOS extenders were developed back in the 1980s to deal with certain limitations in the DOS family of operating systems. They allow games, emulators, and other applications written to use them to run in 32-bit protected mode instead of 16-bit real mode. This results in faster execution and access to more memory. Programs running in 32-bit protected mode can access large amounts of memory much like native Windows applications can. Applications that are written to use these DOS extenders usually require you to place the executable in the same directory where the application was installed. Failure to do so will cause an application written to use a DOS extender to fail, often giving an error asking for the file by name. The next three questions deal with three of the most popular DOS extenders, DOS/4G and DOS/4GW, DOS/32, and CWSDPMI.

DOS/4G is a 32-bit DOS Extender from Tenberry Systems. DOS/4GW is a subset of DOS/4G that is specific to (and comes bundled with) the Watcom C/C++ and Fortran compilers. The following excerpt is taken directly from Tenberry Systems's web site.

DOS/4G from Tenberry Software is the most widely used 32-bit DOS extender, designed to allow 32-bit DOS programs to eliminate the inherent DOS 640KB memory limit by addressing all the memory on Intel 386 and above machines in MS-DOS, PC-DOS, DR-DOS, the DOS boxes of OS/2, Windows, Windows NT and Windows 95 and DOS clones.

Also note that DOS/4G and DOS/4GW are commercial products. If an application asks for one of these you should try DOS/32 first, it's a free and open source replacement and usually does the job just as well.

For more information read the DOS/4G and DOS/4GW FAQ at Tenberry Software's web site or What are DOS Extenders? in this FAQ.

DOS/32 is a free and open source DOS extender written by Narech K that can be used to replace Tenberry Software's DOS/4GW DOS Extender. The following excerpt is taken directly from the DOS/32 homepage.

DOS/32A is a free, open-source DOS Extender which can be used as a drop-in replacement for the popular DOS/4GW DOS Extender and compatibles. Being fast, small and flexible DOS/32A can be used in many environments, from embedded systems to DOS emulators, by both developers and end users alike.

Since May 2002 DOS/32A and its source code have been opened to the public. Nowadays the project is being maintained by its original author and, although no active development is currently planned, patches and bug-reports are accepted and reviewed during my spare time.

For more information read the DOS/32 documentation or What are DOS Extenders? in this FAQ.

CWSDPMI is a DOS extender for applications made with DJGPP (a compiler for DOS) and was written by Charles W Sandmann. CWSDPR0.EXE is an alternate version which may be used if an application needs access to ring-0 features. Programs compiled with DJGPP require a DPMI host, which is usually CWSDPMI.EXE or CWSDPR0.EXE. The following excerpt is taken directly from the CWSDPMI homepage.

CWSDPMI was written to provide DPMI services for V2 of DJGPP. It currently does not support 16-bit DPMI applications, or DPMI applications requiring a built in extender. It does support virtual memory and hardware interrupt reflection from real mode to protected mode. DJGPP V1.1x and RSX applications will also run using this server, which can be used to provide enhanced control over hardware interrupts. Some DPMI 1.0 extensions (0x506, 0x507, 0x508) have been implemented.

For more information, read the CWSDPMI documentation or What are DOS Extenders? in this FAQ.

AmigaOS is an operating system developed for Amiga Corporation's family of personal computers including the CD32, CDTV, A500, A500+, A600, A1000, A1200, A1500, A2000, A2500, A3000, A3000T, A3000UX, A4000, A4000T and the PowerPC based A1-SE, A1-XE, and Micro-A1. Many different versions of AmigaOS exist, spanning AmigaOS 1.0 to AmigaOS 4.1. Software packages for AmigaOS may or may not be compatible with your equipment, depending on your operating system and hardware combination. Please note that some Amiga computers came with Linux or NetBSD preinstalled. If you have one of those machines, you'll need software written for variants of Linux, BSD, or other Unix-like operating systems instead.

Many unofficial Amiga compatible models were announced at one time or another, but few were released. You may have varying degrees of success running Amiga software packages on The Draco, The Access, the Pegasos PowerPC computers, or any other machine labeled Amiga-compatible. You may also have some success running Amiga software packages on machines running AmigaOS clones like MorphOS and AROS.

It is also possible, again with varying degrees of success, to run software for AmigaOS on many emulators some of which include UAE, WinUAE, MaxUAE, E-UAE, and WinFellow.

You may see the terms AmigaOS and AmigaDOS used interchangeably, but this practice isn't entirely accurate. AmigaDOS only provides the disk operating system portion of the AmigaOS, hence the name.

Atari TOS is an operating system developed for Atari Corporation's range of home and personal computers including the Atari 520ST, 520ST+, 260ST, 520ST^M, 520ST^FM, 1040ST^F, 1040ST^FM, Mega ST, 520ST^E/1040ST^E, Mega STE, STacy, STylus/STPad, and a handful of other models and unreleased prototypes. Many different versions of Atari TOS exist, spanning Atari TOS 1.0 to Atari TOS 4.92. Software packages for Atari ST may or may not be compatible with your equipment, depending on your operating system and hardware combination.

Many unofficial Atari ST compatible models were announced at one time or another, but few were released. You may have varying degrees of success running Atari ST software packages on the Medusa T40, the Hades040 & 060, the Milan040 & 060 or any machine labeled Atari-compatible. You may also have some success on machines running Atari ST clones like Aranym, EmuTOS, FreeMiNT or Debian-GNU/MiNT.

It is also possible, again with varying degrees of success, to run software for the Atari ST on many emulators some of which include, CaSTaway, Gemulator 98, Hatari, NoSTalgia, OSIS, PowerST, STonX, and The Steem Engine.

BeOS is an operating system developed for Be Inc's AT&T Hobbit-based BeBox and was later modified to run on PowerPC-based processors and finally the x86 architecture.

You may have varying degrees of success running BeOS software on BeOS clones such as Haiku, or Magnussoft ZETA.

It is also possible, again with varying degrees of success, to start BeOS from inside Windows or Linux using BeOS R5 Personal Edition, thus running BeOS software without altering or otherwise harming your Windows or Linux installation. These are very limited free editions.

Applications that are designed to run on multiple operating systems or platforms are often refered to as cross-platform or multi-platform. They're two different types of cross-platform software, those requiring individual building or compilation for each platform or operating system suported and those that can be run directly on any platform using a virtual machine (like Java).

DOS or Disk Operating System is a term used to refer to a family of operating systems for x86 IBM PC compatible computers including MS-DOS, the rebranded IBM PC DOS, and its predecessor 86-DOS.

Most software written for DOS will also run on the older DOS based versions of Microsoft Windows including Windows 1.0 - Windows 3.1x, Windows 95, Windows 98, and Windows ME.

You may have varying degrees of success running DOS software on DOS clones such as DOS Plus, DR-DOS/OpenDOS, FreeDOS, PTS-DOS, and ROM-DOS, among many others.

You may also have varying degrees of success running software written for DOS on other Operating Systems using a DOS or Windows emulator. These emulators include DOSBox, DOSEMU, E/OS, and Virtual DOS Machine for DOS and CrossOver 7, Parallels, WINE, VMware, VirtualBox, and Win4Lin for Windows, just to name a few.

Several unrelated and “non-x86” disk operating systems had DOS in their name. They are also sometimes referred to as DOS, but these are completely incompatible with the MS-DOS API. They will not run any of the DOS software on this site. However, in some cases we make software available for these systems. These include AmigaDOS, AMSDOS, ANDOS, Apple DOS, Atari DOS, Commodore DOS, CSI-DOS, IS-DOS, ProDOS, and TRS-DOS.

Debian GNU/Linux is a computer operating system based on the Linux kernel with tools and applications from the GNU project and other free and open source software.

Most software written for Debian will also run on other distributions of Linux that are derived from Debian including Ubuntu, MEPIS, Dreamlinux, Damn Small Linux, Xandros, Knoppix, Linspire, sidux, Kanotix, Parsix, LinEx, and more.

Often, software packages written for Debian are distributed in the Debian software package format (.deb).

See the What does Linux mean? on this page for more information on Unix-like operating systems and What is a .deb file? for more information on the Debian software package format.

The Dingoo is a handheld video game console that supports video and music playback and open game development from Shenzhen Dingoo Digital.

The Dingoo (Dingoo A320) handheld device is based on a Ingenic JZ4732 at 360MHz and is said to be under clocked from 400MHz. It has has 32 mb of RAM at 133MHz and 4 gb of internal flash storage It features additional storage via MiniSD/SDHC. There's also a free SDK for developers.

The GP2X is a Linux-based handheld video game console and media player created by GamePark Holdings of South Korea. The GP2X is designed for homebrew developers and commercial developers alike and is commonly used to run emulators for game consoles, software ported from other systems, and homebrew applications.

The GP2X handheld device is based on an 200MHz ARM 920T host processor and has 64 mb of SDRAM. It uses SD cards (the latest firmware supports SDHC) instead of cartridges, making it an idea platform for amateur developers. It also features a USB port for connection with a computer and TV output.

Also see this section for more information on Game Park's GP32.

The GP32 is a Linux-based handheld video game console and media player created by the Korean company Game Park. The GamePark 32 is designed for homebrew developers and commercial developers alike and is commonly used to run emulators for game consoles, software ported from other systems, and homebrew applications.

The GP32 (GamePark 32) handheld device is based on a 124 MHz ARM CPU and has 10 mb of RAM. It uses SmartMedia cards instead of cartridges, making it an idea platform for amateur developers. It also features a USB port for connection with a computer and a serial expansion port.

Also see this section for more information on GamePark Holdings' GP2X.

Gentoo is a computer operating system based on the Linux kernel with tools and applications from the GNU project and other free and open source software.

Most software written for Gentoo will also run on other distributions of Linux that they are derived from Gentoo including Gentoox, Knopperdisk, Kororaa, Pentoo, Sabayon Linux, Tin Hat Linux, and more.

Often, software packages written for Gentoo are managed via Gentoo's Portage package management system.

See the What does Linux mean? on this page for more information on Unix-like operating systems.

The Gizmondo is a handheld gaming console from Tiger Telematics (not Tiger Electronics). Although only eight out of the fourteen games that were planned were ever released, the Gizmondo enjoys a cult following of dedicated fans. Many emulators, homebrew applications, and other software applications that have been ported from other platforms are available for it today.

The Gizmondo handheld device is based on a Samsung ARM9 processor running at 400 MHz and has 64 mb of RAM. It uses SD cards instead of cartridges. It also features a Mini-USB client.

Linux (or GNU/Linux) is a term used to refer to the family of Unix-like operating systems based on the Linux kernel and often containing GNU, X Windows, and a wide variety of other free and open source software. Often, software written to run on Linux variants must be compiled from source, although binary distributions are now also very common as well.

Applications written for Linux will often run on many different distributions including Arch Linux, CentOS, Debian, Fedora, Freespire, Gentoo, Knoppix, Mandriva Linux, Red Hat Linux, Slackware, SUSE, Ubuntu, and many, many more.

You may also have varying degrees of success running Linux applications on other Unix variants including, AIX, BSD, DragonFly BSD, FreeBSD, GNU, HP-UX, IRIX, LynxOS, Mac OS X, MINIX, NetBSD, OpenBSD, Plan 9, QNX, SCO OpenServer, Solaris, Tru64, VxWorks and many more.

For more information on specific Linux distributions please see the questions in this FAQ about Debian, Gentoo, Mandriva, and Ubuntu or search Google for any of the distrobutions from this huge list on WikiPedia.

Mac OS is a series of operating systems developed by Apple Inc for their Macintosh line of computer systems. This could mean any of the “classic” Mac OS versions including, System 1, System 2, System 3, System 4, System 5, System 6, System 7, Mac OS 7.6, Mac OS 8, and Mac OS 9. It also could refer to any of the UNIX/BSD based Mac OS X versions including, Nextstep, Public Beta, Mac OS X 10.0, Mac OS X 10.1, Mac OS X 10.2, Mac OS X 10.3, Mac OS X 10.4, Mac OS X 10.5, and Mac OS X 10.6.

Mandriva (formerly Mandrake), is a computer operating system based on the Linux kernel with tools and applications from the GNU project and other free and open source software.

Software packages designed for Mandriva may not be compatible with some other distributions of Linux or other Unix-like operating systems unless they are directly derived from Mandriva. Mandriva is derived from Red Hat Linux so software written for other operating systems derived from Red Hat may be compatible with Mandriva as well. Often, software packages written for Mandriva are distributed in the RPM software package format (.rpm).

See the What does Linux mean? on this page for more information on Unix-like operating systems and What is a .rpm file? for more information on the RPM software package format.

The XBox is the first gaming console from software giant Microsoft and the predecessor to the Xbox 360. Microsoft repeatedly delayed the release of the console, which was finally unveiled at the Game Developers Conference in 2000.

Emulation of the XBox isn't as far along as some of the older consoles but, you may also have a little success running games, emulators, and homebrew software packages for the XBox on Windows using one of two emulators, Xeon and Cxbx.

MorphOS is a computer operating system made up of proprietary and open source software for the Pegasos PowerPC and PPC-accelerator-equipped Amiga computers. The project was started back in 1999 and was based on the Quark microkernel.

MorphOS is considered an Amgia clone because it supports AmigaOS MC680x0 applications via emulation and most AmigaOS/PPC applications via API wrappers. Because of this, you may also have some success running Amiga software packages on machines running AmigaOS or other clones such as AROS.

Nuon was a technology that allowed extra features to be added to a DVD player and was primarily marketed as an expanded DVD format. It played CDs, DVDs, 3-D video games and used enhanced navigational tools including very smooth fast forward and rewind functionality and the ability to smoothly zoom in and out.

The Nintendo DS (or simply DS) is a dual-screen handheld game console developed, manufactured, and sold by Nintendo. Nintendo uses custom firmware to boot the DS and because this firmware is fully rewritable, there are countless emulators and homebrew applications for the DS. All of them use one of two development routes. One is running Nintendo DS programs from the Game Boy Advance port via one of (at least) five methods including PassMe, PassMe2, WiFiMe, FlashMe, and NoPass and the second involves using second-generation flashcards.

The GameCube is a video game console from Nintendo, it's the successor to the Nintendo 64 and the predecessor to the Wii. It had four separate release dates including September 14, 2001 for Japan, November 18, 2001 for North America, May 3, 2002 for Europe and May 17, 2002 for Australia.

Emulation of the GameCube isn't as far along as some of the older consoles but, you may also have a little success running games, emulators, and homebrew software packages for the GameCube using any one of a few GameCube emulators including Dolpin, Dolwin, GCEmu, Gcube, SuperGCube, WhineCube,

Many emulators, games, and homebrew applications run on the Gamecube via Linux. Check out GameCube Linux (gc-linux) for more information.

The Wii is a video game console from Nintendo, it's the successor to Nintendo's GameCube. The console's conception dates back to 2001, around the same time the GameCube was being released for the first time.

Although no Wii emulators yet exist, the GameCube emulator Dolpin has added some early Wii support.

Many emulators, games, and homebrew applications run on the Wii via Linux. Check out GameCube Linux (gc-linux) and WiiLi for more information.

OS/2 is a computer operating system created by Microsoft and IBM to be the successor to DOS. It was later developed by IBM alone with Microsoft focusing on Windows instead. This includes OS/2 1.0, 1.1, 1.2, OS/2 EE, 1.3, 2.0, 2.1, OS/2 for Windows, 2.11, 2.11 SMP, Warp 3.0, Warp Connect, Warp PowerPC Edition, and Warp 4.0. Other variations exist and software written for one version of OS/2 may or may not be compatible with another, although there's a good chance that software written for OS/2 will run on most versions.

Applications written for the DOS family of operating systems or Windows 3.x are often compatible with OS/2 without alteration, even if no indication of compatibility is implied or intended by the software developer. OS/2 versions 1.0 to 1.3 will run only one DOS application at a time, but OS/2 2.0 supports multiple DOS applications. OS/2 Warp will run virtually all DOS applications by finding and using Windows installations on the computer's hard drive or included Windows support in its own installation. Win-OS/2, an environment based on Microsoft's Windows source code, can also provide Windows 3.x support. More information can be found in this FAQ.

You may also have varying degrees of success running OS/2 applications on other OS/2 clones and variants including like eComStation or osFree.

A small handheld computer-like device capable of storing and retrieving e-mail, managing contacts, playing multimedia files and games, exchanging text messages, surfing the web, and more.

The Pocket PC specification is set by Microsoft and devices must adhere to their various hardware and software requirements to bear the “Pocket PC” label. Among other requirements, the device must run Microsoft's Windows Mobile, PocketPC edition, include a touchscreen, include a directional pad or touchpad, and be based on an ARM version 4 compatible CPU, Intel XScale CPU, MIPS CPU or SH3 CPU.

QNX is a commercial Unix-like operating system from QNX Software Systems and is mostly used in embedded systems. In September of 2007 the source of the QNX kernel was released for non-commercial use.

QNX is avalible on several platforms used in the embedded market including the x86 family, MIPS, PowerPC, SH-4, ARM, StrongARM and XScale CPUs.

RISC OS is a computer operating system originally developed by Acorn Computers Ltd in Cambridge, England for their ARM based computers. This includes RISC OS 2, 3, 4, 5 and RISC OS Six running on machines such as the RiscPC and A7000 computers, as well as every other Acorn computer model.

You may also have varying degrees of success running software written for RISC OS on Acorn Clones like Iyonix A9home and VirtualAcorn.

It is also possible, with varying degrees of success, to run software for RISC OS on many RISC OS emulators such as Arculator, Red Squirrel. ArcEm.

The Sega Dreamcast is a video game console from Sega and the successor to Sega's Saturn console. Emulators and homebrew software packages for the Dreamcast are burned to CD-ROM and used in the same manner as an ordinary Sega Dreamcast game.

You may also have varying degrees of success running emulators and homebrew software packages for the Dreamcast on other operating systems using any one of several Dreamcast emulators including, ChankEx, Chankast, DEmul, DreamEMU, Dreamer, Icarus, Makaron, nullDC, and Swirly.

The first handheld video game console and media player from Sony was called PSP or PlayStation Portable. The operating system, called System Software, does not allow users to run custom content or protected software, but on June 15, 2005, software crackers disassembled the code and distributed it online. When modified, the PSP allowed users to run custom code and some protected software. Sony responded to this by upgrading the software repeatedly, but many emulators and homebrew games have been developed for or ported to the PSP and continue to be updated.

You may also have varying degrees of success running emulators and homebrew software packages for the PSP on other operating systems using any one of several PSP emulators including, Potemkin, PSPE, Sam, and JPCSP.

The PlayStation 2 (or PS2) is a video game console from Sony and the successor to the original Playstation console as well as and the predecessor to the PlayStation 3. The console's development was announced in March of 1999 and was released in the Japanese market a year later.

The PlayStation 3 (or PS3) is a video game console from Sony and the successor to the Playstation 2. The PS3 released on November 11, 2006 in Japan, November 17, 2006 in North America, and March 23, 2007 in Europe and Oceania.

Ubuntu is a computer operating system based on the Linux kernel with tools and applications from the GNU project and other free and open source software.

Software packages designed for the Ubuntu Linux Distribution may not be compatible with some other Linux distros or other Unix-like operating systems. However, because Ubuntu is derived from Debian Linux, these applications may be compatible with other distributions that are also derived from Debian Linux.

See the What does Linux mean? on this page for more information on Unix-like operating systems and What is a .deb file? for more information on the Debian software package format.

Windows is a family of operating systems created by Microsoft for x86 IBM-PC compatible computers. Software written for Windows could run on any of the older DOS based versions including Windows 3.1, Windows 95, Windows 98, and Windows ME or any of the NT based versions including: Windows NT, Windows 2000, Windows Server 2003, Windows Server 2008, Windows XP, Windows Vista, and Windows 7. Other variations exist and software written for one version of Windows may or may not be compatible with another, although there's a good chance that software written for Windows will run on most versions, especially in compatibility mode under Windows XP.

It is also possible, with varying degrees of success, to run software for Windows on many windows emulators such as CrossOver 7, Parallels, WINE, VMware, VirtualBox, and Win4Lin.

A 7zip archive contains one or more files that have been compressed to reduce file size or stored as-is and then appended with the .7z extension. The first beta of the 7zip software was released in 1999 and the LZMA SDK (Software Development Kit) was placed in the public domain in December 2008.

Many popular applications exist that allow users to create, edit, and extract 7zip files including 7-Zip, ALZip, Ark, File Roller, IZArc, PowerArchiver, Squeez, StuffIt, TUGZip, WinACE, WinZip, Xarchiver, and ZipGenius.

A BZ or BZ2 file is a single file (often a TAR archive) that has been compressed with bzip2 and appended with the either the .bz or .bz2 extensions. This format is popular among Linux distributions and other Unix-like operating systems.

The bzip2 software application is used to create and extract .bz files, but because BZ2 is an open format almost all archival and compression utilities support this format. This includes 7-Zip, ALZip, Ark, File Roller, IZArc, PeaZip, PKZIP, PowerArchiver, Squeez, TUGZip, WinAce, The Unarchiver, TUGZip, WinAce, Xarchiver, and ZipGenius.

See the following questions in this FAQ if you need more information related to this format.

• What is a .gz file?
• What is a .tar file?
• What is a .tbz file?
• What is a .tgz file?

A CAB archive is a compressed archive format native to Microsoft Windows and Pocket PC and ends with a .cab extension. It is used in a variety of Microsoft installation engines, Windows Installer, and as a software distribution format for Pocket PCs, Smartphones, Windows Mobile 5.0 devices, and other Windows based devices. Usually, a CAB file contains one or more compressed files that can be extracted, in much the same way that ZIP and RAR Archives can be.

CAB files can be created and extracted using many freeware and commercial products including CabPack, cabextract, libmspack, and LCAB.

Please note that there are two types of CAB files, InstallShield cabinet files and Microsoft cabinet files. This applies to the Microsoft format only.

Debian software packages, or DEB files are archives used for distribution and installation on systems running Debian GNU/Linux or a derivative such as Ubuntu, MEPIS, Dreamlinux, Damn Small Linux, Xandros, Knoppix, Linspire, sidux, Kanotix, Parsix and LinEx, and more.. The format consists of a standard Unix AR archive containing two gzipped or bzipped TAR archives, one holding control information while another contains the data.

Debian's program for handling deb packages is dpkg and can be used with several front ends including APT, aptitude, and dselect. DEBs can also be converted into other packages and vice versa using Alien.

A DMG or Apple Disk Image, is a file format found on Mac OS X that uses a .dmg extension; When opened, they are mounted as a drive in much the same way as an ISO or other disc images.

DMG files can be created using the Disk Utility in Mac OS X 10.3 and later or Disk Copy in earlier versions and allow DMG files to be burned to CDs and DVDs. They may also be managed via the command line using the hdiutil utility.

The term EXE refers to an executable binary ending with the .exe extension and usually indicates a software installer, self extracting archive, or (less frequently) an entire binary software package contained within a single file. The exe extension is used in many operating systems including the DOS family, the Windows family, OpenVMS, ReactOS, and OS/2 operating systems.

You don't need special software to run most executables, although some require that you download other support files like DOS extenders and DLL files. Frontends also exist to add a GUI to software that must normally be executed via the command prompt or terminal window. EXE files are created by compiling code in a compiler like the GNU compiler, Bloodshed Dev-C++, OpenWatcom and countless others. They can be written in a variety of programming languages including assembly, C, C++, etc.

A GZ file is a single file (often a TAR archive) that has been compressed with gzip and appended with the .gz extension. This format is popular among Linux distributions and other Unix-like operating systems.

The gzip, or GNU Zip software application is used to create and extract .gz filemanipulation, but because GZ is an open format almost all archival and compression utilities support this format. This includes 7-Zip, ALZip, Ark, File Roller, Filzip, IZArc, PeaZip, PKZIP, PowerArchiver, Squeez, TUGZip, WinAce, Xarchiver, and ZipGenius.

See the following questions in this FAQ if you need more information related to this format.

• What is a .bz2 file?
• What is a .tar file?
• What is a .tbz file?
• What is a .tgz file?

A Macintosh BinHex 4 Compressed Archive is a binary file that has been compressed, encoded from 8-bit into a 6-bit ASCII text format, and appended with a .hqx extension. The BinHex 4 file format was developed in 1985 by Yves Lempereur to help maintain file integrity for Internet downloads and other file transfers and was based on previous work by Tim Mann and William Davis.

A JAR archive contains one or more files that have been compressed (same compression as ZIP files) to reduce file size or stored as-is and then appended with the .jar extension, however unlike most archive formats JAR files are intended to be executed as standalone programs. The Java platform was developed by Sun Microsystems in the early 1990s with the goal of allowing programs to run on virtually any device or platform.

Java is available (and often comes with) all major operating systems.

An LHA archive contains one or more files that have been compressed to reduce file size and then appended with the .lha extension. This data compression and archive format was originally created in 1988 by Haruyasu Yoshizaki. Originally named LHarc, it was completely rewritten and eventually released as LH. It was later renamed to LHA to avoid confusion with the unrelated LH DOS command. Although not widely used in the US, it remains popular in Japan and is the main archiving format on the Commodore Amiga computer.

The Commodore Amiga computer has native LHA support and Microsoft has released the Microsoft Compressed (LZH) Folder Add-on to add support to the Japanese version of the Windows XP. Many popular applications exist that allow users to create, edit, and extract LZH files including Filzip, IZArc, PowerArchiver, Squeez, TUGZip, WinAce, WinZip, and ZipGenius.

An LZX archive is a compressed archive format native to AmigaOS using a .lzx extension. Usually, a LZX file contains one or more compressed files that can be extracted, in much the same way that ZIP and RAR Archives can be. The LZX format and the file archiver by the same name were both created by Jonathan Forbes and Tomi Poutanen as a shareware application for AmigaOS. In 1997 the authors discontinued work on LZX (file archiver) and gave away a free registration key, essentially making it freeware.

LZX files can be created and extracted using LZX and unlzx.

As a side note, the LZX compression method was also included in Microsoft's cabinet archiver in 1997 when Forbes went to work for the operating system giant.

The term Windows Installer (formerly Microsoft Installer) refers to an engine for installing, maintaining, and removing software on Windows based computers. The distributable installation files based on this engine end with the extension .msi and are intended to install, repair, or remove one or more software products. Simply double click the file and follow the prompts, it's mostly a lot of clicking next.

You need a fairly recent Windows based operating system with some version of Windows Installer to run .msi files. Windows Installer comes pre-installed on new Windows based systems, but if you want to download the latest version go to the Windows Installer page at the Microsoft Download Center.

This is a document in the Portable Document Format (PDF) created by Adobe Systems in 1993 and intended for document exchange via print and internet.

A PDF file contains a complete description of a document that includes the text, fonts, images, and graphics which make up the document and allows users to exchange and view the document regardless of the environment in which it is viewed or printed.

Many applications for converting, creating, editing, and viewing PDF documents are available and are too numerous to list here. If you need to view a PDF document from Bazzie Bizzle.com, then try Adobe Reader, CutePDF, Foxit Reader, or one of the many applications listed in this article.

.pkg is a file format used by Apple, Inc. on its Macintosh line of computers, and the iPhone. It's also used by Sony's PS3. Not much is known about the format, although it is known that the files are very compressed. The format is opened by Apple's Installer application, which reads the .pkg file and installs the software it contains. The .pkg file format allows easy installation of software by end users, and is commonly used by both Apple and third-party developers.

An RAR archive contains one or more files that have been compressed to reduce file size and appended with a .rar extension. This data compression and archive format was originally developed by Eugene Roshal and is currently licensed by the makers of WinRAR. The RAR format is widely used to distribute software, archive and compress files. This format also supports error recovery and file spanning with the optional recovery volume set using the extension .rev, while files spanning multiple volumes are named using two different conventions:

• file.rar, file.r00, file.r01 etc. (early versions)
• file.part001.rar, file.part002.rar, file.part003.rar etc. (version 3 and later)

Only two applications exist that allow users to create, edit, and extract RAR files, Squeez and WinRAR.

Red Hat Package Manager files, or RPM files are normally used for distribution and installation on systems running Red Hat Linux or a derivative such as Fedora, Mandriva, or SUSE. RPM is a binary format that consists of four sections including the lead, signature, header, and a compressed file archive. Other ports of the Red Hat Package Manager are also available for other operating systems including Novell NetWare and IBM's AIX.

Red Hat's program for the handling of RPM files (also called rpm) can be used with several front ends including Synaptic Package Manager, yum, YaST, urpmi, apt-rpm, and Smart Package Manager. RPMs can also be converted into other packages and vice versa using Alien.

A StuffIt archive contains one or more files that have been compressed to reduce file size and then appended with the .sit extension. StuffIt and the .sit file format was originally developed in the summer months of 1987 by a high school student at Stuyvesant High School in New York City named Raymond Lau.

StuffIt archive files can be created and extracted using StuffIt and can be extracted by File Roller, The Unarchiver, and XAD.

A TAR archive is a collection of files merged into one and appended with the .tar extension. This format is popular among Linux distributions and other Unix-like operating systems.

TAR files are usually handled with the GNU TAR application which has the ability to create TAR archives, extract files from them, store additional files, update files, list files which were already stored, and other kinds of manipulation, but because TAR is an open format almost all other archival and compression utilities support this format. This includes 7-Zip, ALZip, Ark, File Roller, Filzip, IZArc, PeaZip, PKZIP, PowerArchiver, Squeez, TUGZip, WinAce, Xarchiver, and ZipGenius.

TAR archives are normally compressed with GNU Zip or bzip2.

See the following questions in this FAQ if you need more information related to this format.

• What is a .bz2 file?
• What is a .gz file?
• What is a .tbz file?
• What is a .tgz file?

A TBZ file is a TAR archive that has been compressed with bzip2 and ussually ends in .tar.bz or .tar.bz2, although the extension is sometimes shortened to .tgz to achieve compatibility with operating systems that are limited to 8.3 filenames. This format is popular among Linux distributions and other Unix-like operating systems.

Because both TAR and BZ2 are both open formats, almost all archival and compression utilities support the this format.

See the following questions in this FAQ if you need more information related to this format.

• What is a .bz2 file?
• What is a .gz file?
• What is a .tbz file?
• What is a .tgz file?

A TGZ file is a TAR archive that has been compressed with gzip and usually ends in .tar.gz, although the extension is sometimes shortened to .tgz to achieve compatibility with operating systems that are limited to 8.3 filenames. This format is popular among Linux distributions and other Unix-like operating systems.

Because both TAR and GZ are open formats, almost all archival and compression utilities support this format.

See the following questions in this FAQ if you need more information related to this format.

• What is a .bz2 file?
• What is a .gz file?
• What is a .tar file?
• What is a .tbz file?

TrueType is a font in a digital font format originally designed by Apple Computer, Inc and used in many operating systems including those by Apple and Microsoft.

Often, the author of a software product will require the user to find, download, and install these fonts themselves to side-step copyright issues. Bazzie Bizzle.com often provides downloads of these files alongside the packages that require them for your convenience.

A zip archive contains one or more files that have been compressed to reduce file size or stored as-is and then appended with the .zip extension. This data compression and archive format was originally created in 1989 by Phil Katz for PKZIP. The ZIP format is widely used to distribute software, archive and compress files.

Many operating systems and major desktop environments provide native ZIP support including Windows 98 Plus!, Windows ME, Windows XP, Mac OS X, GNOME, and KDE. Many popular applications exist that allow users to create, edit, and extract ZIP files including WinZip, StuffIt, KGB Archive, PicoZip, Info-ZIP, WinRAR, IZArc, 7-Zip, ALZip, TUGZip, PeaZip, ZipGenius, and Universal Extractor.