No Cab Controls

[Beaps]

Hi,

I have a JPAC in my cab and the lead from this in my keyboard port on the back of my PC. I dont have an Ipac as I still want to switch between Jamma & MAME (PC)

The problem I have is my PC dont reconise my cab controls.

Do I have to do something else i.e something in Control Panel, Gameex, install extra software

Thanks

[bkenobi]

It should just work like a normal keyboard. You shouldn't have to do anything special. Does it work in Windows? How about GameEx? I suspect you're having problems in MAME v0.117 or newer, right?

[Beaps]

I am using the latest MAME yer but when I go to MAME and redefine keys and select up on the cab stick - nothing...

[bkenobi]

That's what I figured. There was a change in how MAME recognizes inputs when the MAMEDevs released v0.117. I could be wrong, but this is how I understand it. The old system accepted inputs that windows sent whereas the new system looks at raw inputs from machine hardware. This means that before, you could send an input from a high level script (like AHK for instance) and MAME would interpret it as user input. The new system requires that the input come from some hardware driver (keyboard, mouse, game pad, etc.). This is bad for end users that used scripts etc. to interface with MAME, but I think it's goal is to improve the accuracy of emulation (that's good).

As far as your problem (I don't use any Ultimarc products for reference)... There was a problem with using the IPAC when the raw input system was released. I don't know what the resolution was, but you might want to check either BYOAC forums or contact Andy at Ultimarc to see how to get things fixed. There might be a FAQ at Ultimarc that you should check for first though.

In the mean time, you should be able to get things working if you use an older version (like v0.116 or earlier).

[headkaze]

There should be no problem using an IPAC with the Raw Input system. The reason they use it is so they can read multiple keyboards and multiple mice. I believe it also allows higher resolution of input.

Because an IPAC is just emulating a keyboard it should work fine in Mame. I would go to the GameEx main page and download "Virtual key code lookup" from the Wrappers & Utils section and use it to see if Windows can detect your joystick.

[Beaps]

I dont have an IPAC I have a JPAC - should I do the same?

[headkaze]

I dont have an IPAC I have a JPAC - should I do the same?

I've never used a JPAC before but if your plugging a keyboard into it I assume it works the same as an IPAC but with a jamma harness instead. So in that case it should look the same to the PC as an IPAC AFAIK.

[bkenobi]

I was thinking about this again, and I believe the problem people were having with MAME was that the controller file (in the ctrl directory) needed changing. The IPAC (or any other Ultimarc product) should work fine in MAME if you hit tab and set up the controls that way. If the key press detector doesn't show anything, then you should check your wiring (the ground could have been broken somewhere and broken all controls for instance).