Interesting find: USB gameport converter

[Timstuff]

One of the biggest irritations about Windows XP, to me at least, was that it is incompatable with non-USB gamepads. I was thinking earlier that it's probably quite possible to hack a USB gamepad to be an interface with gameport controllers, but I just stumbled upon a product that claims to save you the effort with an easy-to-use, self contained little box.

http://www.pccables.com/70609.htm

Has anyone used one of these before? Do they actually work? I'm quite curiouse. I'm trying to get an old flight yoke of mine to work on my home-built PC, but Windows 98 apparently doesn't like recieving gamepad inputs through USB, and when I switch it over to XP I wouldn't be able to hook it up anyway. But this has me intrigued.

And no, the yoke isn't "star wars" style. It's the basic push-pull shaft design, but I felt like digging it up and seeing if I could get it to work. Maybe this device could be part of my solution though...

[spiffyshoes]

They sell some at Radio Shack.  I don't remeber how much they cost but I think they were much cheaper than that one.  I'll probably go pick one up as I just bought an old gameport flight stick yesterday at good will for $2.

[Timstuff]

I'll look into that next time I'm at the 'shack. Just bear in mind though, that there are alot of cheap USB adapters, not converters, that come with gameport joysticks and are probably buyable at Radioshack types of stores. But they do not enable Windows XP support. I may look into picking up one of these converters and see if I can breath some life into my old flight yoke and Sidewinder joystick.

It'd be really cool if they have them at Radioshack though. I really don't like being at the mercy of a potentially unstable internet buisness if I'm trying to get a product I may want more of in the future. Converters like these could have some really great potential for control projects though.

[Tailgunner]

The Rat Shack ones work under XP, but they're limited to being usable on basic joysticks. In their credit their adapter is switchable so you can use it on a stick, yoke, steering wheel, and a simple gamepad.


The problem is the gameport standard was written for a 2 axis 2 button stick, and companies like CH, Thrustmaster, ect all used different means to overcome the limitations. For instance Thrustmaster hat switches are wired up like a joystick axis, each direction sends a different resistiance and the driver interpets these into directions. CH hat switches use a combination of different button presses, which their driver interpets. The problem is XP drivers for thes old sticks don't exist so even if you hook them up through an USB adapter most of the buttons will be ignored or cause unexpected results.

[daywane]

I traded 2 joysticks for a steering wheel type yoke that was for game port. came with a game port to usb plug
works great. all my old game pads work with it.
xp pro.
I have a gravis game pad that looks like a super nes pad. All buttons work except the 2 buttons in the front of the pad (right and left buttons)
(not D pad)

[jdjuggler]

Any idea of the manufacturer of the game port to USB adapter?
JD