MAME Path Handling ================== MAME has a specific order it uses when checking for user files such as ROM sets and cheat files. Order of Path Loading --------------------- Let's use an example of the cheat file for AfterBurner 2 for Sega Genesis/MegaDrive (aburner2 in the megadrive softlist), and your cheatpath is set to "cheat" (as per the default) -- this is how MAME will search for that cheat file: 1. cheat/megadriv/aburner2.xml 2. cheat/megadriv.zip -> aburner2.xml Notice that it checks for a .ZIP file first before a .7Z file. 3. cheat/megadriv.zip -> /aburner2.xml It will look for the first (if any) aburner2.xml file it can find inside that zip, no matter what the path is. 4. cheat.zip -> megadriv/aburner2.xml Now it is specifically looking for the file and folder combination, but inside the cheat.zip file. 5. cheat.zip -> /megadriv/aburner2.xml Like before, except looking for the first (if any) aburner2.xml inside a megadriv folder inside the zip. 6. cheat/megadriv.7z -> aburner2.xml Now we start checking 7ZIP files. 7. cheat/megadriv.7z -> /aburner2.xml 8. cheat.7z -> megadriv/aburner2.xml 9. cheat.7z -> /megadriv/aburner2.xml Similar to zip, except now 7ZIP files. [todo: ROM set loading is slightly more complicated, adding CRC. Get that documented in the next day or two.]