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GameEx Customized Controls


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All,

I have evaluated many mame front ends for my cabinet and have decided on GameEx for its features and ease of use. I have a couple questions and comments regarding customized controls and a possible bug.

I have the following setup:

HW - HP Vectra VL420 w/1 Intel 2GHz CPU, 512 MB RAM, 1 SCSI boot drive, 1 ATA drive, Ultimarc Arcade VGA AGP video card

OS - Windows 2000 SP-4 U2, all .net updates, Direct-X and updates.... latest sw and drivers from "Windows Update"

GameEx - 8.88 registered

mame - .116 command line

Game Controls - 2-Ultimarc UltraStik 360 joysticks, Ultimarc I-PAC, and Opti-PAC controllers

1. I have read the Documentation on "Default Keys and Controls" and it lists ~35 items to control GameEx. When I view the custominput.ini file, it shows only a few for [Keyboard] and even less for [Joystick]. Where can I find the full list of controls and their syntax to use in custominput.ini ??

2. With my UltraStiks attached, I tried to set the following to use Joystick buttons 1,2 and 3:

Select=0

Back=1

Home=2

When I do this, none of the buttons work at all (1-15).

I tried many combinations and the button numbers and assignments seem to move around.

Under NO circumstance can I assign Select=Joystick 1 Button 1 (tried 0, 1, etc.)

I am successfully using the following config, although I would really like Select to equal Joystick 1 Button 1:

Select=1

Back=2

Home=0

I enclosed my custominput.ini file for scrutiny. It would not let me send and ini... so I renamed to .txt. I have Keyboard and Joystick Custom Controls turned on (set to YES) as well.

Have I overlooked something / am I doing something wrong?? Is this a bug??

Overall, I am very happy with the product and it's capabilities. I am still muddling my way around the interface a bit. If at all possible, I would like to see a little better streamlined / user friendly configuration tool. Maybe Detect Game controllers and keyboards and allow a graphical interface to 'click' on the item and assign it to a GameEx Control... for us idiots. :)

Thank you.

-Alan Y.

custominput.txt

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All,

I have evaluated many mame front ends for my cabinet and have decided on GameEx for its features and ease of use. I have a couple questions and comments regarding customized controls and a possible bug.

I have the following setup:

HW - HP Vectra VL420 w/1 Intel 2GHz CPU, 512 MB RAM, 1 SCSI boot drive, 1 ATA drive, Ultimarc Arcade VGA AGP video card

OS - Windows 2000 SP-4 U2, all .net updates, Direct-X and updates.... latest sw and drivers from "Windows Update"

GameEx - 8.88 registered

mame - .116 command line

Game Controls - 2-Ultimarc UltraStik 360 joysticks, Ultimarc I-PAC, and Opti-PAC controllers

1. I have read the Documentation on "Default Keys and Controls" and it lists ~35 items to control GameEx. When I view the custominput.ini file, it shows only a few for [Keyboard] and even less for [Joystick]. Where can I find the full list of controls and their syntax to use in custominput.ini ??

2. With my UltraStiks attached, I tried to set the following to use Joystick buttons 1,2 and 3:

Select=0

Back=1

Home=2

When I do this, none of the buttons work at all (1-15).

I tried many combinations and the button numbers and assignments seem to move around.

Under NO circumstance can I assign Select=Joystick 1 Button 1 (tried 0, 1, etc.)

I am successfully using the following config, although I would really like Select to equal Joystick 1 Button 1:

Select=1

Back=2

Home=0

I enclosed my custominput.ini file for scrutiny. It would not let me send and ini... so I renamed to .txt. I have Keyboard and Joystick Custom Controls turned on (set to YES) as well.

Have I overlooked something / am I doing something wrong?? Is this a bug??

Overall, I am very happy with the product and it's capabilities. I am still muddling my way around the interface a bit. If at all possible, I would like to see a little better streamlined / user friendly configuration tool. Maybe Detect Game controllers and keyboards and allow a graphical interface to 'click' on the item and assign it to a GameEx Control... for us idiots. :)

Thank you.

-Alan Y.

Glad you enjoy the app. The forum WILL let you attach zips so please feel free to ZIP you configs and upload them.. that said.. Ultimarc IPAC is a Keboard encoder.. Therefore wouldn't be a joy pad at all it would be a keystroke. See the included SCANCODES to learn which code = which key.

If you are unsure what a button is Launch your I pac utility or OPEN NOTEPAD and press the button and see what it presses.

You will qucikly find out that gameex can do pretty much everything as long as you have patience and a little skill... If you are still stumped then check the forum as it most likely has been covered.

Happy Gaming

scancodes.zip

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Glad you enjoy the app. The forum WILL let you attach zips so please feel free to ZIP you configs and upload them.. that said.. Ultimarc IPAC is a Keboard encoder.. Therefore wouldn't be a joy pad at all it would be a keystroke. See the included SCANCODES to learn which code = which key.

If you are unsure what a button is Launch your I pac utility or OPEN NOTEPAD and press the button and see what it presses.

You will qucikly find out that gameex can do pretty much everything as long as you have patience and a little skill... If you are still stumped then check the forum as it most likely has been covered.

Happy Gaming

Brian,

zip file attachments... noted. Thanks.

Issue #2... I am sorry I do not think I was clear.... the UltraStik 360 has its own button mappings. I am not using the I-PAC or its capabilities in this dicussion. The UltraStik attaches via a USB cable and provides a native buttons 1-8 and by holding 8, you can get 9-15. These are the buttons I am trying to program. I have looked into the scan codes and that is what I used to set the [Keyboard] section of my custominput.ini file. I have successfully set the buttons I mentioned in custominput.ini, but they very unpredictable results and some of the numbers change from what I put in the custominput.ini file. I would like someone to address this issue.

I would also like someone to respond about item #1... regarding the Documentation and not showing all the control functions in the custominput.ini file.

I have not been able to find this information in the FAQ section... this is why I am reaching out to the good people in this forum.

Thank you for your response.

-Alan Y.

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Brian,

zip file attachments... noted. Thanks.

Issue #2... I am sorry I do not think I was clear.... the UltraStik 360 has its own button mappings. I am not using the I-PAC or its capabilities in this dicussion. The UltraStik attaches via a USB cable and provides a native buttons 1-8 and by holding 8, you can get 9-15. These are the buttons I am trying to program. I have looked into the scan codes and that is what I used to set the [Keyboard] section of my custominput.ini file. I have successfully set the buttons I mentioned in custominput.ini, but they very unpredictable results and some of the numbers change from what I put in the custominput.ini file. I would like someone to address this issue.

I would also like someone to respond about item #1... regarding the Documentation and not showing all the control functions in the custominput.ini file.

I have not been able to find this information in the FAQ section... this is why I am reaching out to the good people in this forum.

Thank you for your response.

-Alan Y.

1. Thats it those are the defaults... Not all of them are remappable via the custom input.ini

I will be more than happy to create a AHK script for you that will allow you to have those options availabe Via your joypad.

I believe you stated that it is essetanlly a 15 button joypad. Just tell me what buttons you want to do what and I write the script.

Or you can do it yourself.. Id suggest auto hot key..

Im not sure why the numbers change.. It works for me alright. Id disable custom controls once you get the script as I will use defualts.. This should make gameex happy.

Brian Hoffman

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1. Thats it those are the defaults... Not all of them are remappable via the custom input.ini

I will be more than happy to create a AHK script for you that will allow you to have those options availabe Via your joypad.

I believe you stated that it is essetanlly a 15 button joypad. Just tell me what buttons you want to do what and I write the script.

Or you can do it yourself.. Id suggest auto hot key..

Im not sure why the numbers change.. It works for me alright. Id disable custom controls once you get the script as I will use defualts.. This should make gameex happy.

Brian Hoffman

Brian,

Thank you for responding. So there is a limited set (for now) of what can be changed in the custominput.ini. This should be "ok", but it would be nice to have some of the other capabilities so I do not have to use all kinds of [shift] / [Ctrl] key combinations to access Volume (up / down) or Game Information. I have game info turned off, but would like to be able to access it easily to read periodically. Most likely, I will have to wire up a microprocessor relay to switch the multi-button combination. I would like to be able to set this in the custominput.ini.

Ok, now about the "Auto Hot Keys" script.... I was not able to find any documentation on the GameEx site referencing this. Can you provide me with a link to read about this or an example of this AHK script so I can work on it. My intent is to understand 100% how I can use and interface with GameEx in my cabinet so I can make any mods / tweaks if needed. I do appreciate you offering to author the script for me... I would like a little knowledge / direction so I can work it out.

Lastly, the mapping / numbers do not change in the custominput.ini file, the results when I try to use the mappings in GameEx do. I have tried to set "Select", "Back" and "Home" using numbers from 0-6 (buttons 1-7) and the mappings change with somewhat unpredictable results. I think that either GameEx is not interperting the mappings correctly, or is not passing the correct codes to my UltraStik. I am willing to work with you to troubleshoot this to fix this issue. I really believe something is not working 100% correct here. Would you like me to take this item up on a different forum ??

I attached a zip file with a small screenshot from Windows, Control Pannel, Game Controllers. I pressed button 1 and took a screenshot. I want to show you what I have and that my button 1 is working properly (brighter red). I also enclosed my custominput.ini file. The joystick mapping does work, but like I mentioned, I am NOT able to get the following to work: Select=0.

Thank you.

-Alan Y.

screenshot_and_custominput.zip

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Brian,

Thank you for responding. So there is a limited set (for now) of what can be changed in the custominput.ini. This should be "ok", but it would be nice to have some of the other capabilities so I do not have to use all kinds of [shift] / [Ctrl] key combinations to access Volume (up / down) or Game Information. I have game info turned off, but would like to be able to access it easily to read periodically. Most likely, I will have to wire up a microprocessor relay to switch the multi-button combination. I would like to be able to set this in the custominput.ini.

Ok, now about the "Auto Hot Keys" script.... I was not able to find any documentation on the GameEx site referencing this. Can you provide me with a link to read about this or an example of this AHK script so I can work on it. My intent is to understand 100% how I can use and interface with GameEx in my cabinet so I can make any mods / tweaks if needed. I do appreciate you offering to author the script for me... I would like a little knowledge / direction so I can work it out.

Lastly, the mapping / numbers do not change in the custominput.ini file, the results when I try to use the mappings in GameEx do. I have tried to set "Select", "Back" and "Home" using numbers from 0-6 (buttons 1-7) and the mappings change with somewhat unpredictable results. I think that either GameEx is not interperting the mappings correctly, or is not passing the correct codes to my UltraStik. I am willing to work with you to troubleshoot this to fix this issue. I really believe something is not working 100% correct here. Would you like me to take this item up on a different forum ??

I attached a zip file with a small screenshot from Windows, Control Pannel, Game Controllers. I pressed button 1 and took a screenshot. I want to show you what I have and that my button 1 is working properly (brighter red). I also enclosed my custominput.ini file. The joystick mapping does work, but like I mentioned, I am NOT able to get the following to work: Select=0.

Thank you.

-Alan Y.

http://www.autohotkey.com/docs/misc/RemapJoystick.htm

This will let you map joy pad button 1 to say Shift+up which will control volume.

(or any other control you need it to be)

Also you can say only bind these keys when gameex is the active window... This way it works normally when you have your favorate emulator open.

By all means if something is NOT working correctly then please post here.. I'am simply offering alternitives. Maybe its not that its NOT working maybe its just NOT supported in the way you would like. But Honestly I believe we can get this going.

If after reading the documentation you are still stumped on how to write this script then just tell me what keys you want to perform which functions.

In the mean time Id suggest posting in feature requests to have the ability to remap ALL the controls you see listed on the homepage.

Brian Hoffman

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http://www.autohotkey.com/docs/misc/RemapJoystick.htm

This will let you map joy pad button 1 to say Shift+up which will control volume.

(or any other control you need it to be)

Also you can say only bind these keys when gameex is the active window... This way it works normally when you have your favorate emulator open.

By all means if something is NOT working correctly then please post here.. I'am simply offering alternitives. Maybe its not that its NOT working maybe its just NOT supported in the way you would like. But Honestly I believe we can get this going.

If after reading the documentation you are still stumped on how to write this script then just tell me what keys you want to perform which functions.

In the mean time Id suggest posting in feature requests to have the ability to remap ALL the controls you see listed on the homepage.

Brian Hoffman

Brian,

Excellent! I did not know it was a 3rd party product. I will go through it thoroughly! It appears to accomplish what I am looking for. If I run into trouble, I will reach out... Thanks!

I will take my enhancement requests to the other venue.

Thank you.

-Alan Y

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Well gameex starts at button 0 and I see by the snapshot you have 1-15.

Maybe gameex interpets this as 0-14

Try making 0 your select and 1(which would be button 2) the back button.

Brian,

I do realize that in custominput.ini 0=Button1, 1=Button2, 2=Button3.

What I just tried / verified (they are all on their own line like in the file I attached previously)...

Select=0, Back=1, Home=2 Select and Home do NOT work, Back=1 (my previous e-mail was incorrect)

Select=1, Back=2, Home=0 Select, Back and Home work fine.

Select=2, Back=0, Home=1 This is where the mapping changes... (after GameEx launches) Home=0, Back=N/A, Select=2 Back does NOT work on any button up to 15.

It looks like Home has to equal "0" in ALL cases and in some, Home gets re-mapped to "0".

Please advise.

Thank you.

-Alan Y

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I'm not in front of my cab, but I could have sworn that home is a combination of buttons (select and back for me). I don't remember mapping home to anything in my custominput.ini file (of course, it has been a while).

A quick search of the forum produced the following thread where Tom discusses the Button 0 problem...

Basically, make sure you haven't removed or commented out ANYTHING in the custominput.ini file. Also, don't reorder it as that might also be a problem.

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Brian,

I do realize that in custominput.ini 0=Button1, 1=Button2, 2=Button3.

What I just tried / verified (they are all on their own line like in the file I attached previously)...

Select=0, Back=1, Home=2 Select and Home do NOT work, Back=1 (my previous e-mail was incorrect)

Select=1, Back=2, Home=0 Select, Back and Home work fine.

Select=2, Back=0, Home=1 This is where the mapping changes... (after GameEx launches) Home=0, Back=N/A, Select=2 Back does NOT work on any button up to 15.

It looks like Home has to equal "0" in ALL cases and in some, Home gets re-mapped to "0".

Please advise.

Thank you.

-Alan Y

I see... That might be the BUG. By chance do you have a simple joypad to test all by itseslf... Just for fun.

Though most definatly the autohotkey script will work 100%

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I'm not in front of my cab, but I could have sworn that home is a combination of buttons (select and back for me). I don't remember mapping home to anything in my custominput.ini file (of course, it has been a while).

A quick search of the forum produced the following thread where Tom discusses the Button 0 problem...

Basically, make sure you haven't removed or commented out ANYTHING in the custominput.ini file. Also, don't reorder it as that might also be a problem.

I used the "Home" function from the keyboard area.... so I added, changed the order and deleted the items I did not want. I thought I read this thread and it was updated or resolved. I could be wrong.

I am going to replace the file to its original state, turn off the joystick controls and try to Auto Hotkey program to accomplish my tasks. It might take me a day or two, but I will post my results for closure.

I am still extremely impressed and happy with GameEx. I work for a SW company... I know the woes of SW! This is only one small unique configuration that isn't working as I "would like". So no worries.

Thanks.

-Alan Y.

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I see... That might be the BUG. By chance do you have a simple joypad to test all by itseslf... Just for fun.

Though most definatly the autohotkey script will work 100%

I read the other post about modifying the custominput.ini file.... I did a lot of that. Apparently when the custominput.ini file is parsed, GameEx is looking for fields in a certain place. I Added, Removed and Changed this information.

I unfortunately do not have a joypad... just many arcade joysticks, buttons and controllers.

-Alan Y.

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I read the other post about modifying the custominput.ini file.... I did a lot of that. Apparently when the custominput.ini file is parsed, GameEx is looking for fields in a certain place. I Added, Removed and Changed this information.

I unfortunately do not have a joypad... just many arcade joysticks, buttons and controllers.

-Alan Y.

Do you need a clean custominput.ini ?

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