CLK VS ShellNewHandler

• Wide range of emulated systems
  Clock Signal (CLK) emulates a remarkably broad collection of vintage computers and consoles, including the Amiga, Atari ST, Macintosh, ZX Spectrum, MSX, Commodore VIC-20, Apple II, Sega Master System, ColecoVision, and many more, making it a versatile multi-system emulator.
• Accuracy-focused emulation
  The project emphasizes cycle-accurate emulation and correct hardware behavior. The developer prioritizes faithfulness to original hardware over performance shortcuts, resulting in high compatibility and accurate reproduction of subtle hardware quirks.
• Clean, well-structured C++ codebase
  The source code is well-organized with clear separation of concerns, using modern C++ practices. Machine definitions, processors, and components are modularly structured, making it relatively easy to understand the architecture and contribute.
• Cross-platform support
  CLK supports macOS (with a native Cocoa UI) and SDL-based builds for Linux and other platforms, giving users flexibility in how they run the emulator across different operating systems.
• Automatic machine detection
  The emulator features a static analyser that can automatically detect the target machine from a provided ROM or disk image, simplifying the user experience by removing the need to manually select the system type before loading software.

Possible disadvantages

• Limited community and documentation
  Compared to more popular emulators, CLK has a relatively small user community and limited end-user documentation. New users may find it challenging to get started without digging into the source code or existing issues for guidance.
• Niche project with single primary developer
  The project is largely maintained by a single developer (Tom Harte), which means development pace is dependent on one person's availability and priorities. This poses sustainability risks and can slow feature requests or bug fixes.
• macOS-centric UI experience
  The most polished and feature-complete user interface is the native macOS version. The SDL-based interface for Linux and other platforms is more utilitarian and lacks some of the refinements of the macOS build.
• No debugger or advanced tooling
  CLK lacks built-in debugging tools such as memory viewers, disassemblers, or breakpoint support that some competing emulators offer. This makes it less suitable for homebrew developers or those wanting to inspect emulated system internals.
• Incomplete emulation for some systems
  While many systems are well-emulated, some machines in the supported list have incomplete or work-in-progress emulation. Certain peripherals, edge-case hardware behaviors, or advanced features of specific systems may not yet be fully implemented.

No features have been listed yet.

Tracking CLK since Jun 2026.

• I recently got libreoffice, but now the new option in right click looks like a mess. Can someone help me get rid of them please?

  Use Shell New Handler. Run the portable app and simply untick the items you don't want to appear in your new context menu. Source: about 4 years ago

• This menu should be easy to add/remove programs to... Who is really creating Access Databases from this menu often enough to keep it here? (Not me!) Is there an easy way to edit this?

  I've always used ShellNewHandler for this. It's a really simple portable utility that allows you to remove most of the items from that menu. Tested it out on Windows 11 and it's still compatible. Source: over 5 years ago