PandoraPress: Featured Game of The Week

[Caine]

Games (for some unknown reason) only use joystick0, while left nub is stubbronly joystick1.

Not really. When you put a nub into joystick mode, it selects the first free one it can find. E.g. try setting only the right nub to joystick (this creates the /dev/input/js1), then set the left nub to joystick (this creates /dev/input/js2). Is anything bound to /dev/input/js0? Why is it always there?

nubs configuration dialog box certainly could solve that.

If you can give me a set of proper (and not too hackish) commands to redirect to and reset joystick0 then I will gladly add this to my nub configurator.

 

[mcobit]

well, while I don't technically own a pandora yet I know of several games that play exceptionally well on it. scummvm games and the like. would anyone be interested in reviews written by semi-initiated enthusiasts? this is a bloody-brilliant idea and I would like to help continue it if I can.

great! I think the most sensible requirement is that there is a .pnd for that game in the repo, so that it will be just click&run for people. Or if it's not in repo, then please add instructions about how to run in on pandora. If you don't have pandora, somebody will need to help you with that, and check if this game runs. Maybe I'll be able to check this, since I have pandora, but maybe also other people too. Just let us know which game you have in mind, and we will try if it runs.


Also, I discovered how to enable joystick in "word war vi" and "freedroid", that's a hacky way, and I'm sure that it can be moved into Nubs settings dialog. This is what I do:

sudo su

cd /dev/input

rm js0

ln -s js1 js0

above terminal commands make joystick1 to pretend that it is joystick0. Games (for some unknown reason) only use joystick0, while left nub is stubbronly joystick1. nubs configuration dialog box certainly could solve that.


But after this change it is possible to run "word war vi" & "freedroid" without any configuration changes., Just click & run the .pnd.


I was playing recently a little of "freedroid" and "ur quan masters", so I can try to write something about them, but not this week - this week is too hard for me. I'll try next week

Well, good, that you found that out now Would have worked perfectly for rRootage too

 

[cosurgi]

Games (for some unknown reason) only use joystick0, while left nub is stubbronly joystick1.

Not really. When you put a nub into joystick mode, it selects the first free one it can find. E.g. try setting only the right nub to joystick (this creates the /dev/input/js1), then set the left nub to joystick (this creates /dev/input/js2). Is anything bound to /dev/input/js0? Why is it always there?

In fact I never used right nub as joystick, it's always a mouse, or when I'm forced to reset (this happens when left nub stops working as scroller) - it becomes the default mouse clicks. So for me left nub always ends up as js1. Hotfix5.

nubs configuration dialog box certainly could solve that.

If you can give me a set of proper (and not too hackish) commands to redirect to and reset joystick0 then I will gladly add this to mynub configurator.

wow, your nub configurator looks great. I don't know better commands to force left nub to be js0. Maybe this could somehow be forced on kernel level by adding some config paramters to module that controls it, but that's beyond my scope - I never compiled pandora's kernel, yet (in fact I'm waiting for debianized pandora's kernel). So you will need root access anyway to do the trick above, and if you can call bash commands, then it should work. Only a check is necessery against which N in /dev/input/jsN the symlink must be made.

 

[Caine]

wow, your nub configurator looks great. I don't know better commands to force left nub to be js0. Maybe this could somehow be forced on kernel level by adding some config paramters to module that controls it, but that's beyond my scope - I never compiled pandora's kernel, yet (in fact I'm waiting for debianized pandora's kernel).

If you want to unlink it, do you need to recreate /dev/input/js0? If so, how do I do that?

 

[cosurgi]

wow, your nub configurator looks great. I don't know better commands to force left nub to be js0. Maybe this could somehow be forced on kernel level by adding some config paramters to module that controls it, but that's beyond my scope - I never compiled pandora's kernel, yet (in fact I'm waiting for debianized pandora's kernel).

If you want to unlink it, do you need to recreate /dev/input/js0? If so, how do I do that?

oh, wait. It can be simpler. Thanks for your hint

mknod -m 664 js0 c 13 0  # creates js0 pointing to right nub (last number==0)

mknod -m 664 js1 c 13 1  # creates js1 pointing to left nub (last number==1)

mknod -m 664 js2 c 13 2  # creates js2 pointing to external joystick (last number==2)

mknod -m 664 js0 c 13 1  # creates js0 pointing to right nub (last number==1)

I didn't test that fully, so please experiment a bit. But that's a manpage-educated guess.

 

[Caine]

oh, wait. It can be simpler. Thanks for your hint

mknod -m 664 js0 c 13 0  # creates js0 pointing to right nub (last number==0)

mknod -m 664 js1 c 13 1  # creates js1 pointing to left nub (last number==1)

mknod -m 664 js2 c 13 2  # creates js2 pointing to external joystick (last number==2)

mknod -m 664 js0 c 13 1  # creates js0 pointing to right nub (last number==1)

I didn't test that fully, so please experiment a bit. But that's a manpage-educated guess.

Hmm. Yes it seems that games like "word war vi" just read only /dev/input/js0 which is bound by default to joystick device 0 (which always exists on our Pandora, but it is totally unclear what is actually bound to it).


mknod <path> c 13 i assigns the i^th joystick to <path> (as described here) and joysticks are added and removed dynamically whenever a nub is put into joystick mode. I can't find a trivial way to read out which nub is which joystick device, but it seems I can predict it whenever I switch them over.


I.e. if the left nub is set into joystick mode before the right nub then it seems to always be character device 13 1 and the second joystick would then become character device 13 2 (and vice versa if we reverse the order).


Having external joysticks attached will no doubt influence this mapping, so if anyone knows how to dynamically determine which minor number belongs to which nub then please let me know.


[edit]By the way, my apologies for the off-topic sidetrack.[/edit]

 

[cosurgi]

my apologies also. Soon we will be back on track! I hope at least - anybody submitted anything?

 

[mcobit]

Did the actionbuttons still work, when you map the left nub to js0 ? I think there was some talk about the actionbuttons, that they are used as an joypad, not as keyboard, as this prevents keyghosting and blocking for them, if you press more, as 3 Buttons at once.


Maybe they are js0?

 

[Caine]

Did the actionbuttons still work, when you map the left nub to js0 ? I think there was some talk about the actionbuttons, that they are used as an joypad, not as keyboard, as this prevents keyghosting and blocking for them, if you press more, as 3 Buttons at once.


Maybe they are js0?

L,R,A,B,X,Y,d-pad,start,select,pandora all work when removing js0 and replacing it by e.g. character device 13,1 (i.e. second joystick).


[edit]Just as a heads up, the off-topic joystick configuration issues discussed here have now been integrated into the nub configurator (see here). Testing and feedback is very welcome. Please discuss further issues about this in the linked thread.[/edit]

 

[cosurgi]

I can do some writeup about vgolf. But I don't know if it is so good, if always the same people write the articles.

how is it going?

 

[mcobit]

Will work on that tomorrow.

 

[may88]

nothing in my PM box...I'll make something up. It's going to be a bit rough as my workload has taken a turn for the worse. Still not as bad as ED's but bad enough.

 

[DuckMan]

sorry about the lack of review


I've been pretty swamped at work the past couple days and just crashing when I get home.

 

[mcobit]

Just PMed Foxblock for next weeks article

 

[cosurgi]

Just PMed Foxblock for next weeks article

great!

sorry about the lack of review


I've been pretty swamped at work the past couple days and just crashing when I get home.

don't give up! Try writing this


On my side - as I said - next week will be a bit lighter for me. So I will try to write something too. It could be about ur quan masters or freedroid

 

[may88]

sorry about the lack of review


I've been pretty swamped at work the past couple days and just crashing when I get home.

Me too but someone had to write it.

 

[cosurgi]

Me too but someone had to write it.

good that we have something for tomorrow, right?


tomorrow or on friday I'll PM mine

 

[foxblock]

Yes, there will be a post tomorrow


Eagerly awaiting your article cosurgi


It seems like the series is enjoyed by the crowd although only a few have opted in to write articles (which is understandable).

 

[cosurgi]

Yes, there will be a post tomorrow


Eagerly awaiting your article cosurgi


It seems like the series is enjoyed by the crowd although only a few have opted in to write articles (which is understandable).

PM sent!

 

[cosurgi]

it's about freedroid. But I have one problem: I'm not sure if L/R buttons always work for everyone. I mapped mine as mouse buttons, and then L is "shooting", and R is "use/influence".


Would somebody without L/R mapping as mouse buttons download freedroid from PNDstore and check if L/R are working? (or maybe it would be enough to customize controls)