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FireNES Adds Tons-O-Nintendo Fun to Firefox - Time Waster
If you didn't notice from reading my last massive time waster, I love classic gaming. I'm also a Firefox user, and always on the hunt for good addons like the rest of you. Thank god for FireNES, an awesome addon for Firefox that gives you ready access to a massive repository of NES games.
After you install it, customize your toolbar and add the FireNES button to give yourself one-click access to the sidebar. The full ROMs list is massive, The toplist contains the 100-or-so most played titles, and you can add any game to your list of favorites with a simple right click.
Best of all, you don't have to hunt down ROMs on horibly cluttered, scam-laden websites. Awesome.
The only possible downside to all this: habla usted español? The developer's page is Spanish only - not a big deal, the install link is easy to find and you can always run it through your favorite translation app.
After you install it, customize your toolbar and add the FireNES button to give yourself one-click access to the sidebar. The full ROMs list is massive, The toplist contains the 100-or-so most played titles, and you can add any game to your list of favorites with a simple right click.
Best of all, you don't have to hunt down ROMs on horibly cluttered, scam-laden websites. Awesome.
The only possible downside to all this: habla usted español? The developer's page is Spanish only - not a big deal, the install link is easy to find and you can always run it through your favorite translation app.
Comments
12
Subscribe to commentsDiRTAug 18th 2008 11:58AM
"The only possible downside to all this:"
Perhaps the fact that it's completely illegal?
DiRTAug 18th 2008 11:57AM
Unless you own every ROM that you play as the original cartridge.
Lee MathewsAug 18th 2008 11:59AM
Well, technically since you're playing it off someone else's PC, THEY have to have the cartridge. At least that's how http://www.virtualnes.com/ handles it.
DanielAug 18th 2008 3:10PM
Wow, if you think this is illegal, then your wrong. It isn't because by what I read the roms aren't actually on your HD, but on the servers, therefore it isnt illegal. No different than streaming music, or even going to a friends house to play his game isnt stealing...
Some people are so easily taken in by corporate propaganda that they become so scared and lose their common sense...
emmzeeAug 18th 2008 5:38PM
First of all, do you really think the person running this server has legally purchased every ROM that he has stored on the server? No, obviously not. So by that alone this is not legal. So this argument fails.
Besides that, the premise of virtualnes.com (I applaud their efforts, don't get me wrong, they seem more legit than FireNES) is still a bit dubious. If they used the "library system" like a certain other site that I've forgotten the name of, then that would be more reasonable, but just by saying "We own a copy of the game" that doesn't mean they are legally allowed to put it on the web for anyone to play. It's analogous to lending someone the game, which is totally fine, but it's not okay to make "backups" and "lend" the game to all your friends at the same time.
(Note: I am not a lawyer, nor am I into "corporate propaganda".)
JamesAug 18th 2008 4:50PM
...but I guarantee you that the people who *do* have the ROMs on their machine are not licensed to distribute them in this manner (the same way you have to license a song to stream it over e.g. Internet radio), so you're participating in a license violation, whether you're the one doing the violating or not. I doubt you'd get into a lot of trouble, personally, but at the very least the dude hosting this can get shut down (if his home government feels compelled to do so).
SquiggyAug 18th 2008 7:02PM
Except every time you play a game with this the ROM is loaded into your RAM and cache files so it IS on your machine. Which is irrelevant anyway, you're playing games illegally no matter where the rom is.
Yeah, Nintendo will make this disappear very soon. Especially since they are currently selling these very games for the Wii virtual console.
Dah CheetAug 18th 2008 7:00PM
So I just installed it but the ROMs aren't loading in my list.... I wonder if it's because my work may have blocked the server since it doesn't allow me to go to personal storage space websites. I'll have to give it a whirl at home.
PaulAug 18th 2008 6:26PM
Couldn't play anyway; key mapping don't work. Couldn't press the start button (mapped to enter)
RahabibAug 18th 2008 6:02PM
Doesnt work for me. nothing shows up in the side panel.
zephroelectroAug 19th 2008 12:40PM
Oh yay, a interesting plugin for Firefox..oh wait, it uses roms...guess I have no need to make a comment about the application here, because everyone else's comments will just be a war about legality of using roms.
Lets keep the comments related to the actual thing thats on show guys...not the legality of what it is running.
Some roms are actually free to use now, so lets consider that eh?
ParadoXXXoNov 17th 2008 5:53AM
Piracy is a complicated subject... nobody here EVER used a pirate software?
I REALLY doubt it... some may say "I never used a pirate software"... CAN YOU SHOW PROOF?
It's the meanest hypocrisy to crucify a site or software, or whatever that's trying to democratize information. Why the hell must I pay an equivalent to US$ 350 (i live in Brazil), when i can get it for free?
"PIRACY IS THE DEMOCRATIZATION OF THE INFORMATION"