# of buttons for Trackball/Spinner?

[Witchboard]

How many buttons should I assign with my Trackball/Spinner?  The most buttons I've seen on a game is 3.  Are there other games that use more?

[mclaught]

I don't understand, are you making a mame cab with no joystick controls and buttons? If so, I can't think of any games that require more than 3 buttons for a trackball or spinner game.

I can't tell from your post if you are adding a trackball/spinner to a control panel that already has joystick controls. You have a large # of posts, so I'm sure that's not your question, but if so, you only need one dedicated button with your trackball if you are going to use it to navigate through Windows. You use that as your left click mouse button. Otherwise, just use the other buttons that are already there connected to your IPAC.

[Witchboard]

Now that I look back on the question, I can see some confusion.  Let's say for simplicity that I a panel with only a trackball and spinner.  How many buttons should I allow for games to use?  Like I said previously, I've only seen the games up to 3 buttons.  If there are other games that use more, what are they?  Thanks for the reply mclaught.

Oh, and about my post count.  I'm very new to this hobby.  I just flip my lip a lot.  

[mclaught]

Well, like I said, I can't think of any game that you would need more than 3 buttons, and that would only be for Missile Command. I'm not saying there isn't a 4-button trackball/spinner game, but if so, I don't know of it.

Here's what I would do, I'm sure others have a different (read: better) way of setting this up. I would use an IPAC for buttons 1, 2 and 3 as well as player 1 and player 2 buttons. However, you have some issues to resolve because if you're using a frontend instead of Windows, you're going to need an "ENTER" command available to select your games. Without the "SHIFT-Joystick Left" available as the ENTER command, you would have to go to non-default settings on your IPAC and program something else. Also, without a joystick, you're going to need a way to scroll through the games on your frontend's main menu.

If you don't use a frontend and just load up from Windows, you are going to need a "mouse left click button" - you can't (at least not that I'm aware of) use one of the IPAC buttons for this. Not that big of a deal I guess, just stick that button up top and out of the way somewhere.

You could set your IPAC settings so that holding down button one and button 3 at the same time equals ENTER  and holding down all three at the same time would bring up the TAB menu, or any such combination that you think would work. It just seems like a lot of programming buttons. But the bottom line is that it would work, I think it would be easiest if you use WIndows. You would need three fire buttons, two player select buttons and a mouse button.

[NoOne=NBA=]

Star Trek uses 4 buttons (Impulse/Thrust, Phaser/Fire, Warp, Photon Torpedo) and a spinner.

You NEED all four to do any good.

[Witchboard]

Sorry it's taken me so long to get back.  I've been ill.  The admin buttons won't be an issue mclaught.  I'll have other controls.  NoOne basically hit it on the head what I was looking for.  I'm not familiar with games that use more than 3 buttons with a trackball or spinner and I was wondering if there were any.  I may not play them, but if my guests request to play them, then I would be happy if my control panel would accommodate then with enough buttons.  Thanks both for your help.

[Stingray]

Thanks for pointing that out NoOne. I intend to make a swappable TB/ spinner panel for my cab and I'd hate to not have enough buttons to play Star Trek!

-S