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POPSLoader BETA 10 — HDD Support Fixes, BOOT.ELF Exit Fix, and UI Improvements

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@NathanNeurotic NathanNeurotic released this 23 May 16:15
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Requirements

POPS Binaries

Place these in <device>:/POPS/ or hdd:/__common/POPS/:

PS1 Game Images

Place .VCD files in <device>:/POPS/ or hdd:/__.POPS/:

Box Art

Place <Title>.png alongside your VCDs (HDD uses __common/POPS/ART/).

All art must be 200×200, 8-bit, non-interlaced, RGB(A) PNG.

POPSLoader

Place PS1_POPSLOADER/ contents on any supported device (APPS/PS1_POPSLOADER/ also works).

Splash Screen

GitHub Downloads (all assets, all releases) · Video Preview

POPSLoader BETA-10

A memory card in slot 1 (mc0) is required for settings and BDMA.

Place POPSTARTER.ELF on any supported device and point POPSLoader to that path:

mc0:/POPSTARTER/POPSTARTER.ELF
mass:/POPS/POPSTARTER.ELF
mx4sio:/POPS/POPSTARTER.ELF
mmce:/POPS/POPSTARTER.ELF

Device Layouts

BDMA is required for all devices except HDD — enable it in Settings.
Only one BDMA mode can be active at a time (e.g., selecting MMCE disables USB and MX4SIO).
HDD (PFS) works regardless of BDMA status.

USB (FAT32 / exFAT) / MX4SIO / MMCE

<device>:/POPS/<Title>.VCD
<device>:/POPS/<Title>.png

HDD (PFS)

hdd:/__.POPS/<Title>.VCD
hdd:/__common/POPS/ART/<Title>.png

POPSLoader BETA 10

This release fixes several important issues with POPSLoader, especially for users launching PS1 games from HDD.

The biggest improvement is that the HDD launch path has been cleaned up and tested on real PS2 hardware. The D-10 issue that caused HDD-based POPSTARTER launching to fail has been fixed, making HDD support much more reliable.

This release also fixes the BOOT.ELF exit option, so users can return to wLaunchELF from POPSLoader again without hitting a black screen.

What's New

HDD Launching Is Fixed

HDD support is now in a much better state.

The issue that caused the D-10 HDD launch test to fail has been fixed. POPSLoader can now hand off to POPSTARTER from HDD correctly, without breaking the existing launch behavior for other devices.

This means HDD users should have a much smoother experience when launching PS1 games through POPSLoader.

BOOT.ELF Exit Works Again

The BOOT.ELF exit option has been restored.

You can now use the Exit menu to launch BOOT.ELF / wLaunchELF again. The Triangle shortcut has also been restored.

This was previously hidden because it caused a black screen on real hardware. That issue has now been fixed and tested.

UI Improvements

This release also includes interface cleanup and polish.

The Exit menu has been updated, BOOT.ELF is visible again, and the current UI improvements from the development branch are included.

Documentation Updates

Some project documentation and QA notes were also updated.

These updates help track what was fixed, what was tested, and what still needs future attention.

Fixed

  • Fixed HDD D-10 POPSTARTER launch failure.
  • Fixed BOOT.ELF / wLaunchELF exit black screen.
  • Restored BOOT.ELF in the Exit menu.
  • Restored Triangle shortcut for BOOT.ELF.
  • Improved HDD launch reliability.
  • Preserved existing USB, MMCE, MX4SIO, SMB, and non-HDD launch behavior.
  • Included GUI polish and documentation updates.

Tested

Tested on real PS2 hardware.

Confirmed working:

  • HDD POPSTARTER launching.
  • BOOT.ELF / wLaunchELF exit.
  • Triangle shortcut for BOOT.ELF.
  • Existing working launch paths remain intact.

Notes

This is being released as BETA 10.

Even though some of the development work happened on the BETA-12-PLAY branch, this release represents the current tested public build point.

Recommended for users who want the latest HDD fixes, restored BOOT.ELF exit support, and the newest UI improvements.

What's Changed

Full Changelog: BETA-9-0...release

Updates / Improvements Coming

BETA 10 fixes several major hardware-tested issues, but there is still more planned for future POPSLoader builds.

Planned areas of work include:

  • Boot speed improvements
    Reducing startup time where possible so POPSLoader reaches the game list faster.

  • Further wLaunchELF / BOOT.ELF compatibility fixes
    BOOT.ELF exit is working again, but future updates may continue improving compatibility for users who still hit black screens with certain wLaunchELF builds, memory card setups, or unusual launch environments.

  • Modchip black-screen investigation
    Some modchip setups may behave differently during launch or exit handoff. Future builds may include safer launch conditions or alternate paths for users affected by modchip-related black screens.

  • Smaller ELF / package size
    Reducing file size where possible by cleaning up unused code, old leftovers, duplicate logic, and unnecessary embedded assets.

  • Lazy loading where possible
    Investigating whether some assets, menus, images, or features can be loaded only when needed instead of all at startup.

  • POPS profile replacement / custom path cleanup
    Replacing the older POPS profile-style behavior with a cleaner custom-path system similar to the DKWDRV setup, while keeping the current defaults that already work for normal users.

  • Better device detection
    Improving how POPSLoader detects and handles devices like usb:, mx4sio:, and ata: by using their IOCTL behavior more like mass: already does.

  • DKWDRV launch-condition improvements
    Updating DKWDRV launch checks to behave more like the fixed BOOT.ELF conditions, giving it a cleaner and safer launch environment.

  • Berion graphical improvements
    Continued visual polish, cleanup, and possible graphical improvements based around Berion-style presentation work.

  • Credits update
    Updating the credits so contributors, testers, tools, and related project work are represented more accurately.

  • Optional boot-sequence skip
    Adding a setting to skip or shorten the boot sequence for users who want POPSLoader to open faster.

  • HugoPocked fixes menu
    Adding a per-game fixes/settings menu for HugoPocked-related compatibility options.

  • Cheats menu
    Adding a per-game cheats menu so cheat-related options can be managed directly from POPSLoader.

  • VMC menu
    Adding per-game VMC settings so users can manage virtual memory card behavior more easily.

  • Disc swap / multi-disc setup menu
    Adding a per-game information and setup menu for multi-disc games, including clearer instructions for disc-swap behavior.

  • IGR button-combination options
    Adding settings for in-game reset button combinations so users can choose or understand the shortcut behavior more easily.

  • Help menu
    Adding a Help page, likely as a second page near the Credits area, to explain controls, paths, setup notes, and common troubleshooting steps.

  • Cover art / asset-loading improvements
    Improving how covers and assets are loaded, especially for larger libraries and slower devices.

  • Large game-list performance cleanup
    Improving browsing performance for users with bigger PS1 collections.

  • Cleaner settings organization
    Continuing the move toward easier settings pages instead of hidden behavior, unclear profile logic, or scattered configuration options.

  • Better release packaging
    Making release ZIPs easier for new users to understand, with clearer folder structure, included files, and setup expectations.

  • More hardware testing across devices
    Continuing to test USB, HDD, MMCE, MX4SIO, SMB, BOOT.ELF, and POPSTARTER paths on real hardware before calling fixes stable.

The goal for future releases is to make POPSLoader faster, smaller, easier to configure, and more reliable across different PS2 setups.

Contributors

NathanNeurotic
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