Where is a how too for a mouse hack for a track ball

[Hawk Daddy]

I searched but everything that had the word hack and mouse in it came up.  Any idea?

Hawk

[Red 5]

The Wiki says

http://arcadecontrols.com/files/Miscellaneous/Mouse_to_Trackball_Instructions.pdf


But really, for the price, just get this.

http://groovygamegear.com/webstore/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=76_85&products_id=260


Jon

[grundle]

$15 plus shipping?  I wouldn't say it's worth it.

The mouse hack is so easy, and everyone has an old mouse laying around...

FYI, I was never able to get it to work on the two Compaq (made by Logitech) mice I tried.  Once I found a cheap generic mouse, it worked perfectly.

[ArtMAME]

http://www.willcoxonline.com/mame/controlpanel/controlpanel.htm

I tried this one and it worked great.  I used a Microsoft mouse just like the one in the pics.  The PCB was a little different though.  The trick was to find the +5Vdc from the mouse PCB and make sure it was still +5Vdc when the trackball leads were connected.  Good Luck...

[Tiger-Heli]

See links in note 49 - http://www.mameworld.net/tigerheli/encoder/main.htm#49

[grundle]

http://www.willcoxonline.com/mame/controlpanel/controlpanel.htm

I tried this one and it worked great.  I used a Microsoft mouse just like the one in the pics.  The PCB was a little different though.  The trick was to find the +5Vdc from the mouse PCB and make sure it was still +5Vdc when the trackball leads were connected.  Good Luck...

I followed that one as well.  I would not reommend taking +5VDC from the middle pin of the optical encoder (every mouse I opened had pretty much the same encoder, three pins, outside two were data/gnd and the middle was +5VDC.  I don't think they can provide the current needed though.  I picked up 5v right where the PS/2 connector comes in.  Just probe around with a meter until you find the right one.

Here's another link:
http://dacab.datplace.com/MouseHack.htm

[Kremmit]

I've hacked plenty of mice and I always pull the +5v from the middle pin of the emitter (edit, duh) receiver.  Works fine, every time.   

Also, a small note on the wire colors shown in the .pdf linked above:  on many trackball plugs, the purple wire will be brown instead.

[ChadTower]

Pulling it from that chip should be fine since the trackball isn't really introducing any type of additional current draw.  I wouldn't power trackball lighting or anything else from that spot but the trackball itself shouldn't cause a problem.

Of course, what grundle is saying actually is a better method, getting the voltage source from an earlier spot.  Clearly for this particular purpose it doesn't matter much, though.

[grundle]

Pulling it from that chip should be fine since the trackball isn't really introducing any type of additional current draw.  I wouldn't power trackball lighting or anything else from that spot but the trackball itself shouldn't cause a problem.

Of course, what grundle is saying actually is a better method, getting the voltage source from an earlier spot.  Clearly for this particular purpose it doesn't matter much, though.

Now that you mention it, I think it was the two Compaq/Logitech mice that gave me problems.  It was probably the fact that it was a Logitech mouse that it didn't work, not the 5V from the center pin.  Another thing to watch out for is removing the LED's.  If you remove them, make sure that you're still getting 5V everywhere you were expecting it.

[ChadTower]

Yeah, you can't just pop a component out.  You'd have to replace the LED with a jumper and assume that removing the LED's voltage drop isn't a problem.

[Kremmit]

I've always just left the LEDs connected- they don't seem to hurt anything.  All I remove from the PCB are the receivers and the microswitches.