I've been waiting for this for ages!

http://xamiga.net/index.html

X-Amiga has been released - a BETA download of an emulated Classic Amiga environment for standard PCs, all thanks to Amir Ansari (Fractallyte) who put the pack together in an easy-to-install ISO image.

Why is it special? Well, this is a very lite Linux distribution that only contains the required files to boot a PC directly into an emulated Amiga and Workbench environment (default is AmigaSYS I think).

Of course, this isn't the first of these kinds of packs, but this one sounds like it's building up to be the best.

I haven't tried it yet, but just imagine being able to use cheap PC hardware to boot directly into a Classic Amiga environment, with classic games and software compatibility. You can turn your aging PC into a nice Classic Amiga!

The main downside will be how mature the Linux version of UAE is, as it's bound to not be as polished or easy to use as WinUAE. Still, I hold high hopes for this project moving forwards.
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This is really great news!!
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This does look like a very interesting project. I'm going to test this beta later and see how good it is.

I've also now added this to the news section on the main site as it will be of great interest to a lot of classic Amiga fans. Most have an old spare PC they could use for this.

I may even be tempted to buy a CatWeasel controller if the support for it proves to work well with this project. Can you test this out DC and let us know?
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Hm, seems like a lot of work. I would also have to partition my HD which is only 2GB. And as that PC is well configured to work with the Catweasel, I don't want to screw everything up.
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What about using a Virtual Machine such as VirtualBox to test it out? You only need a 40MB virtual HD to get it working.
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You never let lose, I should know that. Perhaps I'll try it next week, as I don't have the patience to test this after 22h this week.

So if I'm right, you boot directly in an Amiga environment and you use your Catweasel as Amiga floppy drive?

And I don't know if Virtual Box supports the Catweasel drivers.
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Well, not when you are the only one here with a CatWeasel

I think Virtual Box has direct hardware access to all hardware in the host PC so it should work.
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Hmm... I've just been trying to get X-Amiga to work but so far no luck.

I didn't want to install it on a real PC until the final version is out, so just to give it a try I setup a new virtual machine using VirtualBox. The install ISO booted fine and I gave the GUI environment on the disc a try which is very nicely done as it has the look and feel of Workbench, but with Linux tools. And I proceeded with the X-Amiga install. I partitioned the virtual HD, setup everything and proceeded with the install. This all seemed to go smoothly, but then I got stuck. It completed the install and then asked if I wished to setup the Amiga files, which I did. But it wouldn't accept any of the kickstart roms I tried to load in.

This is therefore where I've got to at the moment. I will try some more later.
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In the FAQ:
Why is the display flickering?

It's a 'feature' ;-) The refresh rate is hard-set to 60Hz, so X-Amiga is currently suitable only for LCD monitors.


?? ??
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Yeah, I noticed that one too. Maybe he just hasn't got around to that part of the development yet. Would be quite annoying for any CRT monitor owners though, although it does add a certain extra "retro" element to the package.
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