The scourge of x86 emulation

(fex-emu.com)

83 points | by dagmx 4 hours ago

3 comments

  • dagmx 1 hour ago

    For reference , Fex is a translation framework for x86 to ARM much like Apple’s Rosetta2 and Microsoft’s Prism.

    Valve sponsor development as it’s also the way the new Steam Frame supports x86 games. It’s also being used (as a fork) in Crossover Beta to replace the use of Rosetta2.

    • MiroslavPokorny 26 minutes ago

      Why doesnt Stream require their binaries to be compiled to some bytecode and transpiled during the install ?

      THen they wouldnt require any emulator for any new compiles.

      • swiftcoder 8 minutes ago

        > Why doesnt Stream require their binaries to be compiled to some bytecode and transpiled during the install ?

        They still have to support the entire back-catalog. It's not reasonable to expect thousands of existing games to port to ARM

        • rwmj 10 minutes ago

          I don't know, but assumed that Valve doesn't require studios to recompile their software or use any special tooling, it's basically just packaging of existing executables. This is also why they do Windows on Linux emulation.

          • matheusmoreira 12 minutes ago

            Existing games will not be recompiled for the new bytecode target, and they want all of those games to work regardless.

        • modeless 53 minutes ago

          As noted in the article, Apple solved this problem six years ago by simply adding an x86-compatible memory ordering mode to their chip when x86 emulation became important. Yet another way Apple's chips lead the industry.

          • saagarjha 50 minutes ago

            Well well well “modeless” has decided to finally see the light of modes

          • asksomeoneelse 24 minutes ago

            Great article ! This is the kind of content I always hope to find on HN's front page.

            I really wonder how things are organized at Apple to allow for vertical integration to work so well. That feature alone must have involved so many people from so many different teams.