Using a laptop for a MAME cab?

[javeryh]

I have a couple of old laptops from work that I was hoping to repurpose for future cabinets.  One thing that I don't quite understand is how to turn the computer on an off via an external microswitch.  With a regular PC, I always wire directly to the pins on the motherboard but I highly doubt the laptops have pins I can use.  How do you guys set these up?   

[bobbyb13]

I thought I might try this a while back but then I remembered not being able to CrtEmu the thing so I gave up.
Interested to see the solution though!

[Zebidee]

Can't you just solder two wires to the power switch contacts, and run them to a microswitch?

More difficult thing with laptops is to get them to come on automatically when you apply power.

[Phreakwars]

If the BIOS has an auto-power on after power failure function you could use that, though you would of course need to remove the battery. From there, you wire up the power cord onto a toggle switch.

[pbj]

Mount the laptop against the side of the cabinet, drill a hole through the cabinet, and use a toothpick to turn it off and on.

[leapinlew]

This was always a problem for me using laptops. Honestly, PBJ’s suggestion isn’t far off from wheat I ended up doing.

[Zebidee]

Mate of mine did a Daytona racing setup using two laptops, without batteries, and got them to startup automatically by using capacitors across the power button terminals.

To turn off, just cut the power. If using Linux-based OS and mostly just playing games (reading data), this should be fine.

No doubt there was some hacking. Unfortunately there was no writeup so I forget if there was anything else notable involved - we were just chatting and sharing photos.

The cap simulates a button press & release. Cap takes a small while to charge = switch circuit is closed (presses). Once cap is charged = switch open (released).

Larger caps take longer to charge, therefore longer delay before release. Start with electrolytic, say 10uf or 100uf cap. Cap goes on DC logic part of the switch, not any parts connected to AC power. Make sure the positive lead goes to the active, negative lead to earth.

He stole the idea from me - I use the "cap trick" sometimes to get stubborn TVs to turn on automatically. But then, I stole it from someone else a long time ago, so all's fair.

[RandyT]

Mount the laptop against the side of the cabinet, drill a hole through the cabinet, and use a toothpick to turn it off and on.

My thoughts as well.  Laptops usually suck for getting inside and modding without breaking something.

If you have a 3D printer, and some associated parts, this could be made pretty elegantly.  Just print a mount to be affixed around the power button which can accept some Bowden tubing, slide some filament into it, bring the tubing and filament to the outside of the cabinet to another mount with a button fashioned to be over the end of the filament.  Remote button pusher.

Ok, maybe it's a wash where complexity is concerned.

[javeryh]

LOL seems like this isn't something that easily done.  Can't believe there's no USB solution to wake it up or something like that.  I can find other uses for the laptops...

[gildahl]

When I first built my cabinet, I used a laptop--but ran into the same issue.  My compromise was to leave it on and use buttons to do sleep/wake as the alternative to power on/off.  Doing a full power on/off required access to the machine.  This grew to be a nuisance, of course, so next time I upgraded my main PC I built a dedicated arcade machine PC out of the spare parts on a test bed frame and wired a vandal switch to it for external power control and added a smart powerstrip to power everything else on/off.  These days I have a collection of 5 old laptops now in the house that are powerful enough to run an arcade machine, but I'd never use them for that.  In fact, I'm not sure what to use them for.  Maybe I'll give them away to someone at work who's building an arcade machine, hehe.

[leapinlew]

LOL seems like this isn't something that easily done.  Can't believe there's no USB solution to wake it up or something like that.  I can find other uses for the laptops...

You know how it is, it's about finding the easiest/cheapest solution. Pi's, all-in-ones, etc -  all make it so easy and since the cost is no longer a huge barrier, so you don't see as much labor intensive solutions nowadays.

I did the laptop option for a small jukebox and the bartop Galaga I made. I was able to rig up a power-on type solution for the Galaga because that particular laptop model had a momentary switch that was extended on the laptop already, so it was a simple matter of putting another button on it. Most other laptops don't have a AC power on option and the power switch will be integrated into the mobo, or a rocker style switch, or some other proprietary thing. My jukebox laptop was a solution like PBJ described.

[pbj]

Find other uses for the laptops.  I would be surprised if the bios had a wake up with power option.  Would defy the entire point of being able to plug it in and charge it.

[Howard_Casto]

So people are trying to find a solution to turning on a device that can literally be pulled out of the coin door of the cabinet.   Maybe......... just pull it out of the cabinet and turn it on?  Or... *gasp*..... reach your arm inside and hit the power button?

[leapinlew]

So people are trying to find a solution to ...

Yes, as amazing as it might sound, people look for solutions to problems. What you see as a problem, someone else may not, and vice versa. So, there's that.

[Zebidee]

There are solutions beyond the toothpick - but only if you a stomach for hacking.

If the laptops are essentially zero cost, are all fairly similar, and you have rudimentary soldering skills - it is probably worth pulling one apart to investigate, even at the risk of trashing it.

[bobbyb13]

I have five here in the que for E-waste recycling.

And that is where they will go.

FAR too much effort to try to get a laptop to work for our purposes- even if free.

I really do enjoy problem solving and building ---steaming pile of meadow muffin--- from scratch, but this is too much valuable time squandered for a not really satisfactory result.

Stranded on a desert isle with only a laptop to use...?
Sure.
Live somewhere that a desktop can be had for short $$ (if not free?) and take a fraction of the time to make useable...?

Sorry, but no way do I waste time on the laptop.

[Zebidee]

Sorry, but no way do I waste time on the laptop.

Completely understand. I don't think I would bother either, given other options. In your case Bobby, you could probably knock up a basic arcade shell, paint it and have T-molding on in about 24-48hrs, and then flip it for enough cash to buy multiple PC systems or Pis or Jrok or Bitkit etc.

For some people though it could be a solution, for reasons of space or cost or convenience or because they just want to I guess.

Like, that guy I mentioned above, that did the Daytona racing setup with 2 laptops, he lives in a really small apartment with wife + 2 kids. So it all has to be able to be put away in pokey cupboards. He'll probably never even fit a bartop into his place. OTOH, is an IT and electronics guy and no stranger to hacking, he likes it, so the laptop thing wasn't so big a challenge   

[thebyter]

FAR too much effort to try to get a laptop to work

Boy, maybe I did something wrong, but I've used a laptop before.  I just took the battery out and let the cabinet power bring it up and down?  I'll concede that's some hackery, but it doesn't really seem like the hand-wringing y'all are experiencing.   

[gildahl]

I have five here in the que for E-waste recycling.

And that is where they will go.

FAR too much effort to try to get a laptop to work for our purposes- even if free.

I really do enjoy problem solving and building ---steaming pile of meadow muffin--- from scratch, but this is too much valuable time squandered for a not really satisfactory result.

Stranded on a desert isle with only a laptop to use...?
Sure.
Live somewhere that a desktop can be had for short $$ (if not free?) and take a fraction of the time to make useable...?

Sorry, but no way do I waste time on the laptop.

+10

[gildahl]

So people are trying to find a solution to turning on a device that can literally be pulled out of the coin door of the cabinet.   Maybe......... just pull it out of the cabinet and turn it on?  Or... *gasp*..... reach your arm inside and hit the power button?

That's exactly what I used to do.  There was absolutely nothing particularly difficult about it, though kind of a nuisance for others.  These days I just press a button on the back of the machine, but do have to admit that I kind of miss the old, more interactive experience of opening up the machine, futzing with the laptop, then locking up again. 

[leapinlew]

I kid proofed my machines a while back. I use 1 switch to power on/off the systems. It works great and the kids will play the arcade games. They aren't fearful of breaking anything. I can't imagine trying to tell someone how to open a machine, pull out a laptop and hit the power button.... lol, I'm pretty sure they would just opt out and not even bother.

[Zebidee]

I kid proofed my machines a while back. I use 1 switch to power on/off the systems. It works great and the kids will play the arcade games. They aren't fearful of breaking anything. I can't imagine trying to tell someone how to open a machine, pull out a laptop and hit the power button.... lol, I'm pretty sure they would just opt out and not even bother.

Same here. I love it when my kids, wife, bro turn on my machines themselves by pressing the magic button. How it should be.

But asking them to open a door and press a button seems too many steps for some people 

When I'm sleeping in etc., I don't want anybody asking me to get up and turn on the arcade for them    zzzzzzz

[javeryh]

I kid proofed my machines a while back. I use 1 switch to power on/off the systems. It works great and the kids will play the arcade games. They aren't fearful of breaking anything. I can't imagine trying to tell someone how to open a machine, pull out a laptop and hit the power button.... lol, I'm pretty sure they would just opt out and not even bother.

This is really the reason.  Of course I could open a coin door and hit a button but my builds are not 100% for me.  My kids and their friends and the wife all need to be able to turn things on and off and if it is more complicated than a button press, it's not happening.

[Phreakwars]

BTW, you never mentioned what model of laptop you have. Some DO have removeable/changeable power buttons on them not attached to the motherboard. If this is the case, then figuring it out will be no sweat at all.

[fwiler]

I've used several methods for this scenario.

A power strip with autoswitching. If you aren't using the laptops screen and using an external monitor, turning on the monitor turns of the laptop.  You can use any other device that requires power to do the same thing if you don't want to access the monitor's power button.

Remote power switch.  There are many inexpensive options here.  The included remotes are easy to take apart and you can use any button of your choice to activate it.  Or just leave the remote next to cab if you don't want an extra button on your cab.

Remote control outlet is also an option.  Mine are set to turn on in the morning and automatically turn off after bedtime.

The point is, I don't need to access the laptop from inside the cab.  Any changes I need to make I just remote in from a different computer.

[peteclarkez]

thanks this pushed me to try and get the info I had up on a wiki page.

https://peteclarkez.github.io/Arcade/MameBuild/#donor-laptop

I used a donor laptop to build a cab & to handle power, I soldered a couple of wires to the power button and then connected this up to an arcade button mounted on the back of the cab.
The laptop is setup to hibernate on the power button, but if it hangs/get's stuck I can also hold it down for 5 seconds to power off the laptop and then power back on to power cycle.

Typically the cab is in hibernate mode when not used, but doesn't need power so can be moved etc, and then is able to power back up when it's ready to be played (and opens back up to where it was).
Occasionally the inputs aren't getting picked up when i restart from hibernation, but in that case I just power cycle the machine and its back in business.

It's also easy enough for the family to use, which is half the battle (as already mentioned)

[Zebidee]

Very cool. I was hoping it would be this easy.

Thanks for putting your sketchup plans (pics showing dimensions anyway) and photos up. It looks good!

It may a too late, but I wanted to suggest this LED power button for you. I'm about to fit one into my own cab, so snapped of some pics. Little bit smaller than standard button size though.

There are various styles and different LED colours available (I'm just decided to replace this one with a blue LED button). This one is 16mm (the hole you have to drill) and 12v. The button action is momentary (like a PC power button, doesn't lock in place when you press it).

 

[slybunda]

i got a laptop today with busted screen but works with hdmi tv so could be a good option if you have something lying around.

[thomas_surles]

Both my Tully cabs have an old laptop inside. I didn't do anything special. So it's a 3 step process to turn them on. Through the coin door I have to flip a power strip switch, then power my crt on, snd press the power button on the laptop. It works I just don't let the kids turn it on lol.

[Zebidee]

Heh, that's ironic.

For me, simple one-button-press on/off solutions mean that kids (or wives) don't wake you up while you are sleeping in 

[drfrancky]

1. Set in BIOS to power up when detects AC. Should be in "Power Settings" or something similar. Look for " "Wake on AC" or "Power on AC".
2. Remove battery.
3. Add a switch to cut the power from the outlet.

The only downside is that in order to properly shut down the Windows/Linux/OS you will have to use OS Shutdown function and then cut the power via switch.