Hacking EZ-Flash IV v1.78 with BlueNight Skin (v2) (Release)

Gyron_Oldvic

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*Updated to 'Version 2' (just some minor cosmetic improvements).

EZ-Flash IV v1.78 Kernel with BlueNight Skin (v2), plus some additional patches and improvements (listed below).

The 'BlueNight' Skin contains various elements from Draxoon's Skin, Clearlooks Skin, and the Official EZ Skin.

Release Notes:
- Increased maximum displayable files per folder from 77 to 334 (Thanks EZ Team).
- Made multiple improvements to the Kernel text and help content.
- Removed unnecessary space between file-size and unit prefix.
- Renamed the "Save Mode" options to make them easier to understand (see "Help and Info" below).
- Used improved font and various text from the Clearlooks Skin (Thanks Libertyernie).
- Applied the "Reset-on-Boot" patch by Kuwanger (no need to Hold 'L' when booting troublesome games).
- Fixed 8KB save files from displaying as "8,192" (Thanks Draxoon).
- Removed unused files from the Kernel (this reduces the size to under 900KB).


Thanks to:
Draxoon (Patches and Generic Skin).
Kuwanger (Patches).
Libertyernie (Clearlooks Skin).
EZ Team (Kernel and Official Skin).


To Flash to your EZ-Flash IV:
Copy 'ezfla_up.bin' to the root of your SD card. Switch on the GBA whilst holding the 'R' trigger. When you see the update screen release 'R'. Wait until the process has completed. You should now see the BlueNight Desktop screen. Now power cycle your GBA.

Cheers
Gyron.

Help and Info (also in the 'Help' section of the Kernel):
Help and Info.
Important Note: The EZ IV (using Kernel v1.780) can display a maximum of 334 files per folder. The "334" number isn't an actual physical file limit, it's a displayable file limit when using the EZ IV's "File Browser". So if your game collection exceeds 334 games, then split them into multiple folders otherwise it will look like some of them are missing. The "Saver" directory may well contain more than 334 save files, but it doesn't really matter about this as you don't need to browse it via the EZ IV anyway, and all your saves will still work fine.

---------------------------
Options:
---------------------------

Language:
Choose between English or Chinese.

Save Mode:
Optional - Saving is optional. The save file from the last played game is written to the memory card during boot (if the SRAM contents were altered ie. you saved or changed the options during a game), but you can skip this process by holding 'L' on bootup.
Note: Save skipping is only temporary, the EZ IV will continue to try and write the save on every boot until you load another game.
Note 2: If you accidentally hold 'L' on bootup (or from an in-game reset), inadvertently skipping the saving process, just switch off, then back on again to write the save.

Always - Will always write the save from the last played game (if there is a difference from the save file (.sav) already on the memory card, this is checked during boot). This setting is basically the same as "Optional" but without the ability to skip the save writing process.

---------------------------
PSRAM Memory:
---------------------------
PSRAM is a temporary memory, so a game will only be stored until the device is powered off or reset. Games sized 16MB (32MB for EZ IV deluxe) and under can be written to PSRAM, Just press 'A' on a highlighted game to write and load from PSRAM. If you try to write a game to PSRAM which is too large, you will get the message "PSRAM Mem too small". These larger games would need to be written to the NOR memory instead (see below).

---------------------------
NOR Memory:
---------------------------
NOR is a non-volatile (but erasable) memory which will allow games up to 32MB (48MB for EZ IV deluxe) to be semi-permanently written to the EZ-Flash IV. There are some other games that also need to be run from NOR (certain beta's and homebrew). Unlike PSRAM, any game written to the NOR memory will be retained even after powering off. To write a game to NOR, press 'select' on a highlighted game. You will be prompted with "Write to NOR? Y/N". Press 'A' to write, or 'B' to cancel. If you press 'A' the game will begin to write (this can take quite a while depending on the size of the rom). You will see the message "Erasing", then "Writing". When the game has been written, you will find it in the first screen of the "File Browser". Highlight it and press 'A' to play it (you will notice it instantly boots). Note: If you get the message "Not enough free space" when attempting to write to NOR, you will need to erase a game from NOR to free up some space before you can write another game. To erase a game from NOR, highlight the NOR game in first screen of the "File Browser", then press 'select'. You will be prompted with "Delete?". Press 'A' to delete (it takes under 10 seconds to remove a game from NOR), or 'B' to cancel. You can also format the NOR memory (this can be useful if you are having any issues with the NOR). Press 'start' in the first screen of the "File Browser". You will be prompted with "Format NOR Flash? Y/N". Press 'A' to format, or 'B' to cancel. If you choose to format, you will see the message "NOR Clr" and an ascending counter. Wait until the process has completed, and you will have a clean NOR memory.

Screenshots:
bluenight1.jpg

bluenight2.jpg

bluenight3.jpg

bluenight4.jpg
 

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  • EZ-Flash IV v1.78 BlueNight (v2).zip
    277.4 KB · Views: 366
Last edited by Gyron_Oldvic,

tiduscrying

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Hey! I really like the changes you made to the menu text... Everything makes a hell of a lot more sense now. And as nice as the theme is, I really love the old Cobalt theme since it matches my cobalt blue AGS-001 perfectly. Would you mind compiling a version of this skin (with the text changes and reset patch), but with the skin assets from Cobalt? I did it on my own back in the day for Kernel 1.75, but that was awhile ago and I've since forgotten where certain files have gone and stuff. I do still have the skin assets though (attached). I also really like how you have your games sorted... Pretty good file structure, dude! I never knew about the JungleTAC games until I saw this post either, haha. Bunch of very... odd games...
 

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tiduscrying

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Is this update only working with the "new" black EZ-Flash IV, or also with the older white one?
Can confirm it works with both! I've got it running on my older white model currently. They're pretty much the same thing, I believe, so there shouldn't really be any issues.
 

Gyron_Oldvic

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Hey! I really like the changes you made to the menu text... Everything makes a hell of a lot more sense now. And as nice as the theme is, I really love the old Cobalt theme since it matches my cobalt blue AGS-001 perfectly. Would you mind compiling a version of this skin (with the text changes and reset patch), but with the skin assets from Cobalt? I did it on my own back in the day for Kernel 1.75, but that was awhile ago and I've since forgotten where certain files have gone and stuff. I do still have the skin assets though (attached). I also really like how you have your games sorted... Pretty good file structure, dude! I never knew about the JungleTAC games until I saw this post either, haha. Bunch of very... odd games...

Cheers. Yeah, those Jungle TAC games I first discovered on my Dingoo a320. They were already installed when I bought it, and even though they used the native GBA emulator on the Dingoo, they had the extension '.jgc', and you couldn't just rename them either to .gba and use them on a GBA flashcart. Then somebody uploaded the GBA versions on a Chinese forum. Rolling Cube is my favorite (just like Cuboid on the PS3). It doesn't run perfect on original GBA hardware but it's still totally playable.

I've attached the v1.78 Kernel with Carbon Fibre Skin you requested, compiled with the improvements/patches/fixes from the BlueNight and Firewatch versions.
 

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  • EZ-Flash IV v1.78 Carbon Fibre.zip
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Bonny

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Can confirm it works with both! I've got it running on my older white model currently. They're pretty much the same thing, I believe, so there shouldn't really be any issues.

Thanks for letting me know! Short question: Is the only difference between those to cards, that the black one does use microSD instead of miniSD? And of course, supports more than 2GB...
 

tiduscrying

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Thanks for letting me know! Short question: Is the only difference between those to cards, that the black one does use microSD instead of miniSD? And of course, supports more than 2GB...
I believe the black revision of the card just has the different card slot (like you said, mini SD to micro), but both of the models can use SD cards larger than 2GB actually! That feature came as a firmware update a little while back. I'm using a 4GB SD card on my white model, so I can definitely confirm that it is indeed a thing! I think they just made the black model as a sort of "reprint" of the cart, just because popularity and demand for it was pretty steady to justify it.

Cheers. Yeah, those Jungle TAC games I first discovered on my Dingoo a320. They were already installed when I bought it, and even though they used the native GBA emulator on the Dingoo, they had the extension '.jgc', and you couldn't just rename them either to .gba and use them on a GBA flashcart. Then somebody uploaded the GBA versions on a Chinese forum. Rolling Cube is my favorite (just like Cuboid on the PS3). It doesn't run perfect on original GBA hardware but it's still totally playable.

I've attached the v1.78 Kernel with Carbon Fibre Skin you requested, compiled with the improvements/patches/fixes from the BlueNight and Firewatch versions.
Dude, yeah, Rolling Cube is actually really fun! It is near identical to this one game I played as a kid called "Bloxorz" on some flash game website. I used to be super addicted to that one, haha. It's weird that it has so many different incarnations on other systems... I wonder what the game is actually based on? It seems like a Sokoban type situation where the style/puzzles is pretty much constantly duplicated, but is on different systems under different names and everything.

Also, hell yeah! Thank you so much for building the skin for me! It looks and is working great man! Thanks!
 
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Cuelhu

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Mine is a white miniSD version as well, and I'm using a 8GB micro SDHC with a miniSD adapter after the SDHC enabling update. Just upgrading from FAT16 to FAT32 was such a relief.
 

Bonny

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OHH... more than 2 GB's are also possible with the white card? Wonderful! I'am still using an original 2GB miniSD card. Good to know!
 

Peeteris

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There was a program called 'EZ4 skin extractor' by Suanyuan which could do this, but unfortunately I don't have it, and it seems to have disappeared into the internet ether.

Would be glad if someone can upload this program again.
 

Gyron_Oldvic

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@Gyron can u take this skin and make a 1.78 with it plez idk if i used the color fix packed with it or not possible to make both?
Okay, I compiled it with the v1.78 Kernel. The text in the 'File Browser' and 'Help' is pretty hard to read. I ran the colour fix prog through python, it ran fine and did it's patching job, but it destroyed the Kernel in the process. It looks like it was designed for older Kernels. So here is just the skin compiled with the v1.78 Kernel. It is very likely it's not how it's supposed to look.
 

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  • EZ-Flash IV v1.78 Yoshi's Island.zip
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Last edited by Gyron_Oldvic,

regnad

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*Updated to 'Version 2' (just some minor cosmetic improvements).

EZ-Flash IV v1.78 Kernel with BlueNight Skin (v2), plus some additional patches and improvements (listed below).

The 'BlueNight' Skin contains various elements from Draxoon's Skin, Clearlooks Skin, and the Official EZ Skin.

Release Notes:
- Increased maximum displayable files per folder from 77 to 334 (Thanks EZ Team).
- Made multiple improvements to the Kernel text and help content.
- Removed unnecessary space between file-size and unit prefix.
- Renamed the "Save Mode" options to make them easier to understand (see "Help and Info" below).
- Used improved font and various text from the Clearlooks Skin (Thanks Libertyernie).
- Applied the "Reset-on-Boot" patch by Kuwanger (no need to Hold 'L' when booting troublesome games).
- Fixed 8KB save files from displaying as "8,192" (Thanks Draxoon).
- Removed unused files from the Kernel (this reduces the size to under 900KB).


Thanks to:
Draxoon (Patches and Generic Skin).
Kuwanger (Patches).
Libertyernie (Clearlooks Skin).
EZ Team (Kernel and Official Skin).


To Flash to your EZ-Flash IV:
Copy 'ezfla_up.bin' to the root of your SD card. Switch on the GBA whilst holding the 'R' trigger. When you see the update screen release 'R'. Wait until the process has completed. You should now see the BlueNight Desktop screen. Now power cycle your GBA.

Cheers
Gyron.

Help and Info (also in the 'Help' section of the Kernel):
Help and Info.
Important Note: The EZ IV (using Kernel v1.780) can display a maximum of 334 files per folder. The "334" number isn't an actual physical file limit, it's a displayable file limit when using the EZ IV's "File Browser". So if your game collection exceeds 334 games, then split them into multiple folders otherwise it will look like some of them are missing. The "Saver" directory may well contain more than 334 save files, but it doesn't really matter about this as you don't need to browse it via the EZ IV anyway, and all your saves will still work fine.

---------------------------
Options:
---------------------------

Language:
Choose between English or Chinese.

Save Mode:
Optional - Saving is optional. The save file from the last played game is written to the memory card during boot (if the SRAM contents were altered ie. you saved or changed the options during a game), but you can skip this process by holding 'L' on bootup.
Note: Save skipping is only temporary, the EZ IV will continue to try and write the save on every boot until you load another game.
Note 2: If you accidentally hold 'L' on bootup (or from an in-game reset), inadvertently skipping the saving process, just switch off, then back on again to write the save.

Always - Will always write the save from the last played game (if there is a difference from the save file (.sav) already on the memory card, this is checked during boot). This setting is basically the same as "Optional" but without the ability to skip the save writing process.

---------------------------
PSRAM Memory:
---------------------------
PSRAM is a temporary memory, so a game will only be stored until the device is powered off or reset. Games sized 16MB (32MB for EZ IV deluxe) and under can be written to PSRAM, Just press 'A' on a highlighted game to write and load from PSRAM. If you try to write a game to PSRAM which is too large, you will get the message "PSRAM Mem too small". These larger games would need to be written to the NOR memory instead (see below).

---------------------------
NOR Memory:
---------------------------
NOR is a non-volatile (but erasable) memory which will allow games up to 32MB (48MB for EZ IV deluxe) to be semi-permanently written to the EZ-Flash IV. There are some other games that also need to be run from NOR (certain beta's and homebrew). Unlike PSRAM, any game written to the NOR memory will be retained even after powering off. To write a game to NOR, press 'select' on a highlighted game. You will be prompted with "Write to NOR? Y/N". Press 'A' to write, or 'B' to cancel. If you press 'A' the game will begin to write (this can take quite a while depending on the size of the rom). You will see the message "Erasing", then "Writing". When the game has been written, you will find it in the first screen of the "File Browser". Highlight it and press 'A' to play it (you will notice it instantly boots). Note: If you get the message "Not enough free space" when attempting to write to NOR, you will need to erase a game from NOR to free up some space before you can write another game. To erase a game from NOR, highlight the NOR game in first screen of the "File Browser", then press 'select'. You will be prompted with "Delete?". Press 'A' to delete (it takes under 10 seconds to remove a game from NOR), or 'B' to cancel. You can also format the NOR memory (this can be useful if you are having any issues with the NOR). Press 'start' in the first screen of the "File Browser". You will be prompted with "Format NOR Flash? Y/N". Press 'A' to format, or 'B' to cancel. If you choose to format, you will see the message "NOR Clr" and an ascending counter. Wait until the process has completed, and you will have a clean NOR memory.

Screenshots:
View attachment 87281
View attachment 86639
View attachment 86640
View attachment 86641

EZ Flash just released a new 2.0 kernel that automatically patches ROMs.

Is there any way you can add your great skin to the new kernel?
 

Shadow#1

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Okay, I compiled it with the v1.78 Kernel. The text in the 'File Browser' and 'Help' is pretty hard to read. I ran the colour fix prog through python, it ran fine and did it's patching job, but it destroyed the Kernel in the process. It looks like it was designed for older Kernels. So here is just the skin compiled with the v1.78 Kernel. It is very likely it's not how it's supposed to look.
@Gyron Can u make EZ Flash IV v2.0.0 with the yoshi's Island theme plez?
 
Last edited by Shadow#1,

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