The NEW Build Your Own Arcade Controls
Main => Main Forum => Topic started by: rhoelsch on February 16, 2018, 06:27:57 pm
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I'm asking the guys who answer all the questions. You know who you are. The ones who know software, or hardware, or woodworking, or general arcade stuff... How did you learn what you know? Because I want to know what it is that you know too. Not that I don't enjoy asking questions here.
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Trial and error, my friend. Asking questions of people who you know have the knowledge. And not settling for taking the easy way out.
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I agree. You learn what you can from others, then dive in and get experience.
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Trial and error, my friend. Asking questions of people who you know have the knowledge. And not settling for taking the easy way out.
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20180217/112b0ffd17a199594f991f234d59a086.jpg)
That nails it lol
Everyone has different experiences giving them different knowledge in different areas.
Same as anything else though, Get stuck in, try it, fail, try again.
Dont give up and when unsure ask.
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The previous advice is spot on. I also took a woodworking class at a Woodcraft store. A grizzly old furniture maker taught the class. He had some really good knowledge and I asked a million questions. He still had all of his fingers which was a bonus.
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I'll add - Its best if you like doing it - then learning it isn't work..
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I always imagined some folks did programming for a living or worked for a couple years doing repair or something.
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I always imagined some folks did programming for a living or worked for a couple years doing repair or something.
You'll find that's a huge part of it. There are a LOT of members here with backgrounds in IT. Those members help out the members with more "hands on skill" and vice versa. We've all learned a little bit from each other along the way and our tool boxes have gotten more full because of it...
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I think a lot of it too is what your motivation is. I grew up with arcade games. I have a genuine love and passion for restoring and collecting them. So I needed to learn as many different techniques and skills as I could to be good at what I do. If I was just some random guy that was like, “Yeah man, I want to a cool video game for my man cave!!!1!!”, my motivations might be different. But because of this hobby, I’ve learned how to solder, read schematics, fix monitors and PCBs, wire and crimp harnesses, design artwork, work with wood, and so much more.
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Knowing where you want to end up helps.
For me, I don't care about original arcade hardware. I focused more on the artwork, controls and enjoying a 90% solution. I have a decent amount of DIY skills and a IT background I was able to leverage, but the arcade hobby helped me get a better understanding of Photoshop.
If you want to own arcade games with original hardware, that takes you a bit deeper down the rabbit hole. Following Yots advice, you'll collect a good amount of info as you work on various hardware from the different vendors.
If you want to own pinball machines, well, that's an entirely different animal.
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I always imagined some folks did programming for a living or worked for a couple years doing repair or something.
You'll find that's a huge part of it. There are a LOT of members here with backgrounds in IT. Those members help out the members with more "hands on skill" and vice versa. We've all learned a little bit from each other along the way and our tool boxes have gotten more full because of it...
Sooo true. I have a degree in I.T. but when it comes to woodwork... forget it. I couldn't even make a clipboard in shop class right. IKEA is my best friend. As for building arcades, I also agree, it's just getting in there and getting your hands dirty and going for it. My first build almost 2 decades ago was a simple cabinet conversion to MAME with ArcadeOS. I knew how to build PC's, but arcades... I knew NOTHING. Took all my cues from reading other people's projects, where they got the hardware/joysticks, etc. After doing the first one, the next few that I did years later were a breeze, thanks MAINLY to people like Haruman and his kits, and recroommasters and their kits. 3 decades later, my shop skillz still suck.
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Mostly by breaking ---steaming pile of meadow muffin--- and scrambling to get it working again. Same way I approach everything.
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If I was just some random guy that was like, “Yeah man, I want to a cool video game for my man cave!!!1!!”, my motivations might be different.
Actually I am that guy. I see something cool and I want to build it. And I learn quite a lot from it. I made some boomboxes and I learned quite a lot about soldering, RPis, LEDs, woodworking, SketchUp, calculating subwoofer enclosures, LiPo's, etc.. Then I thought it would cool to build a race drone. Read for about half a year on those buggers, and build one. Flew it once and sold it. And after a few other projects I decided to build an arcade cabinet. Read a good bunch on it and started over already once. Now I have quality controls, a SketchUp design and just waiting to get me some wood.
Fun thing is that what you learn from project A, you can probably use in project B and C. Every time you'll also learn something new. And Google (or the search here at the forum) is you friend. Most of the time someone had your specific problem as well and have posted about it somewhere online. You can actually find a solution for almost anything. If you can't find it, just ask. Or try something yourself. :)
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Ask opinions, not questions.... Spoon fed souls lack critical thinking.
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....And imagination.
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I wasn't even aware of emulators until I came across this site while looking for info on a megatouch machine. I followed Uncle T's Mala setup guide. It's now an ancient script and not of much use, but it involved installing so many emulators that by the end of it I got the gist of setting up controls and launching things via command line.
After that, it was one case after another of wanting things to work exactly how I envisioned, then researching and experimenting to make that possible. In all honesty I like tinkering and figuring stuff out more than playing the games.
I've spent a lot of money over the years on controls I had no use for, but wanted to figure out how to get working.
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Similar to PBJ.
As a child, I didnt have much (Poverty) ...and what little I had, I often ended up breaking apart to see how it worked.
Curiosity, Passion, Drive... + Experimentation, Research, and Practice.
Most of this hobby, is very simple wiring. And the most basic of carpentry.
Dont be scared. You dont have to be a Brainiac to assemble a large box with a few connecting wires.
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I've let the blue smoke out of many components, set wood on fire with the router,burned the the chit out of things with a cutting torch accidentally, shocked myself more times than I can remember and bricked more than a few devices.
I also took a lot of things apart as a kid and when I got older I was actually able to put them back together and they mostly worked.
I learn best from my mistakes and the mistakes of others.
Also, my google-fu is strong.
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I know what I know because I learned what I learnt :) Like nitrogen_widget above me my Google-fu is strong, in fact I would say that about 50% of my work day is spent increasing my knowledge in google-fu. As for building an arcade machine, much the same, read/watch what everyone else has done then go about doing it. I watched hundreds of hours of Youtube videos on software/hardware/proper use of tools etc and still made many mistakes. But I learned most from those mistakes and should I do things again I now have a better understanding of what will and what won't work.
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Most of this hobby, is very simple wiring. And the most basic of carpentry.
I would *love* to see some of your projects!
Real Answer:
take baby steps, look at other projects, ask questions, listen to advice, don't be afraid to ---fudgesicle--- up.
Always wear your safety gear, having 10 fingers and both eyes is ---smurfing--- awesome.
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Most of this hobby, is very simple wiring. And the most basic of carpentry.
I would *love* to see some of your projects!
Real Answer:
take baby steps, look at other projects, ask questions, listen to advice, don't be afraid to ---fudgesicle--- up.
Always wear your safety gear, having 10 fingers and both eyes is ---smurfing--- awesome.
I always know, that as soon as I post... I can easily TrIgGeR Mel. I wish I could say that I enjoy it... but frankly, I just dont care.
I do enjoy the Hypocrisy though! lol
Yup, I wasnt afraid to experiment and push the envelope. Made many mistakes... but also, learned a boatload more
about mechanics and creation of complex controllers. Everything from spring types, to material strength. Also gained
an even better understanding of gears and their teeth / thickness / material types... etc.
It seems to hurt the feelings of the Bipolar / Personality Disordered... if you post photos of prototypes...
So words of wisdom, just dont bother posting photos.
If you dont follow some of the opinions and advice here, EXACTLY, and or simply disagree with some of them...
you will get a perpetual stream of Hate, every time you post... just like seen here.
Better to spend time enjoying life, rather than bathing in a hatefest from the Mentally Disordered.
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I always know, that as soon as I post... I can easily TrIgGeR Mel. I wish I could say that I enjoy it... but frankly, I just dont care.
Ive done a great jerb avoiding your rants, despite you starting another identity that still can't tell the difference between an "a" and an "e".
No hypocrisy though, I've made a myriad of mistakes and I've posted tons of projects showing the good and the bad. You claim you experimented and pushed envelopes but you never actually made anything.
It would be fantastic if you'd quit trying to diagnose board members with mental issues just because they don't see eye to eye with you though. You may also notice that even though you claim this is a hatefest, I haven't actually said anything bad about you. TIL that "as soon as pixel posts" means 2 days later.
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Oh pixel.... (Jennifer pokes him with her broomstick).... :duckhunt
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Ask opinions, not questions.... Spoon fed souls lack critical thinking.
....And imagination.
Not necessarily. They may know the fruit of someone else's labors is delectable. As well, the one watching may have insight into things those closer to the elephant may not. And so on...
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So one might think.... However that elephant might be as stupid as a sack of cans, and one might be better served by a pack of clever jackels.
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So one might think.... However that elephant might be as stupid as a sack of cans, and one might be better served by a pack of clever jackels.
Imaginative, though I'm not sure what you're saying. Are you sure you know what you know??
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I know what Jennifer knows....Ask opinions not questions, Spoon fed souls lack critical thinking.
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.....And imagination. ;)
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For me my knowing comes from wanting to do something but because I don't know anything I use the internet and start asking Google questions. I find most of my answers via forums like this one. Once I start learning the vocabulary I am able to ask better questions. From there is a matter of looking at how to videos and reading reviews of products and tools I intend to use. Once I learn what tools I need and how to do the basics of what I'm trying to accomplish I then usually come up with a plan and get feedback from the very same forums I found when I began my search.
I'll give you a couple of examples.
Currently I'm looking to convert a classic car to electric. I have zero experience with this so I'm asking Google all sorts of questions such as "what determines the performance of an electric vehicle". This leads to many articles about various ev's and features that make them unique or better in certain areas, it also provides a starting basis for terminology that will be helpful. That's as far as I've gotten so far.
For my arcade machines, I already had a background in emulation (using the same technique as above) so it was a matter of learning how real arcade machines work and the components one would need to build their own. I also researched the types of materials used, building techniques, the proper tools and overall design. Armed with that info I then design my machines (typically I'll draw something in MS paint, some use sketchup but I haven't played with it yet) and I get feedback from forums (I used this one for my arcade project). Then it was a matter of looking at other peoples projects to see how and what they did. Finally, I started the actual build process where I usually make mistakes and have to figure out how to solve them (forums are great for this).
Using this technique I've have learned how to do construction/remodels, plumbing, electrical, building computers, intermediate level vehicle work, excel, iPhone hacking, and a lot more.
The internet has so much information that there isn't really any excuse to not learn how to do something (in theory).
Hope that helps.
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Forums are usually sensored and heavily moderated to fit an agenda, As result are stripped clean of opinion...There are suprisinly few that have the information that you seek, with any level of credibility.
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Forums are usually censored and heavily moderated to fit an agenda, As result are stripped clean of opinion...There are suprisingly few that have the information that you seek, with any level of credibility.
I really do not agree with you. I can almost find anything I want on mainly forums. You actually have to filter yourself quite a lot. But never experienced information being heavily censored. Stuff like bullying and mocking is moderated on a lot of forums, but in my opinion that's a good thing. I guess they should do that on all forums ;)
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All forums do have rules this is true., And I do agree with you. However you and I only see what others see fit....That's only if we get past the algorithms ,agenda and opinions first.
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I have never had any of my nuts and bolts comments moderated.
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All forums do have rules this is true., And I do agree with you. However you and I only see what others see fit....That's only if we get past the algorithms ,agenda and opinions first.
Thats a rather cynical POV.....
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If you really want to learn something, do something wrong then figure out how to fix it. You'll learn far more that way than following a guide step by step and never having a problem.
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If you really want to learn something, do something wrong then figure out how to fix it. You'll learn far more that way than following a guide step by step and never having a problem.
However, going through the mechanism or process mindfully and thoughtfully can reveal potential eccentricities, and without the muss and fuss.
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Everyone knows the old saying "You learn from your mistakes"
...if that's true... then I should know everything! :lol :lol :lol
just kidding, I know a little about a little, not a lot about a lot, just enough to get me into mischief.
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Sometimes I think I know what I know, but then I think, hey I dont know what I know.
;D
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So DaOldMan is the love child of Edie Brickell and Donald Rumsfeld. I suspected as much.
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5HtUnubXAO4 (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5HtUnubXAO4)
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Trying to make ---steaming pile of meadow muffin--- perfect. OCD.
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So DaOldMan is the love child of Edie Brickell and Donald Rumsfeld. I suspected as much.
That's deep.
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So DaOldMan is the love child of Edie Brickell and Donald Rumsfeld. I suspected as much.
:dizzy:
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Edie Brickell: "I know what I know if you know what I mean"
Rumsfeld: "Known knowns, known unknowns, and unknown unknowns"
Too obscure? Please don't tell me I sound like Dennis Miller.
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Edie Brickell: "I know what I know if you know what I mean"
Rumsfeld: "Known knowns, known unknowns, and unknown unknowns"
Too obscure? Please don't tell me I sound like Dennis Miller.
You might be on to something.
But I dont know about the Dennis Miller thing, if you know what I mean, :)
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You know......I looked that video up after seeing the mention here and finally understood what she meant. As a teen I thought she was just stupid.