cp switching,

[dac]

Hello again all, I have a couple of more questions for the group.

1) I've made swappable control panels, One two player control panel like
  123
  456
7
and one 4 player control panel like
  234
1

I figured, at the time that the 2nd control panel would have 4 buttons / player, and reused some of the inputs to save on wiring... Specifically
1B5=3b1
1b6=3b2
1b7=3b3
and the same for player 2
2B5=4b1
2b6=4b2
2b7=4b3

now, my thought processes broke down (as the 2 player one was finished and playable) and I forgot to take into account the neo-geo games which are setup as 7456 (abcd repsectively) on the 2 player cab, and don't match the 1234 for the 4 player cab, and thus would be a pain to try to reconfigure based on what control panel I have installed.

I haven't dealt too much with the config.ini, but I'm thinking of creating 2 master control config.ini files, one for 2 player, and one for 4.  then I write a script to swap out the ini file when I switch control panels and boom.. problem solved...
Does this make sense?  Anyone have a better idea?


My other question delt with Links2003,  I saw this on the shelf at a bestbuy and noticed what looks like mouse / trackball support on the back... anyone use with a trackball, ala golden tee?   how's it work?

Thanks again

[Howard_Casto]

Ok excuse me for stateing the obvious here.....

You have two seperate panels right?  
And you are worried that the button arrangment will have to be changed on the 4 player model.  So Just swap the wires on that panel making the "neogeo" button the 1st button.  There's no such thing as a 4 player neogeo game btw.  As a matter of fact there are only two games that use 4 players, 4 buttons per player.  The two Dungeons and Dragons games are it.  

Hope that makes sense, because it's a lot easier than hunting up every 4-player game and making a ctrlr file for it.  

[dac]

Sorry, didn't think I was explaining myself clearly... the 4 player cab is huge, and the majority of games I've played so far have been NG.  We have had groups of people , however, who want to play 4 player games such as gauntlet, bomberman, etc
I want to be able to play 2 player NG games if the 4 player cp is currently on the cab.

I was thinking the default ctrlr.ini file swap, therefore only 1 swap needed vs hunting down individs, then when the cp is switched, double clicking on a script fixes it.

I was trying to avoid rewiring, but that seems the only other alternative...

[SirPoonga]

Ok, I have to chime in.

You know you could have just made a single cp, the 4 player one, and add the extra buttons to player 1 and player 2 like most people do.

Anyway, yeah, what HC said, use ctrlr.ini files (have to be running windows mame, not dos mame).  Make a neogeo.ini file with the controls setup the way you want.  Then setup the default.ini with your default controls settings.

[Howard_Casto]

Yeah if you are using your 4 player primarily for neogeo games then sirp is right.... Set it up normally inthe default.ini and then swap the buttons to make the neogeo button #1 in the neogeo.ini...

Btw once more....  

Since it's only a 4 button cp, why wouldn't you want the "neogeo" button to be button #1 all of the time?  I can't think of a single 3 button game that had the button in a straight line, (they are usualy in a triangle layout or  curved design)  so it won't effect gameplay, and the neogeo layout is definately more ergonomic.

Just trying to be helpful btw.... it sounds like you haven't given this a lot of thought

[mtd]

Speaking of CP switching.  Has anyone used a mounted and hacked jamma harness and board to make the connections between a swappable control panel and the J-Pac.


I would think that the most time consuming part of using swappable control panels would be connecting the molex connectors.  However, if you had an edge connector mounted on the cabinet and board on the CP, then it would just be a matter of sliding the control panel into place.  No need for molex connectors at all.  

Any thoughts?

[SirPoonga]

Speaking of CP switching.  Has anyone used a mounted and hacked jamma harness and board to make the connections between a swappable control panel and the J-Pac.


I would think that the most time consuming part of using swappable control panels would be connecting the molex connectors.  However, if you had an edge connector mounted on the cabinet and board on the CP, then it would just be a matter of sliding the control panel into place.  No need for molex connectors at all.  

Any thoughts?

Do just that.  Same with my panel with a 25 pin connector.

[u_rebelscum]

I haven't dealt too much with the config.ini, but I'm thinking of creating 2 master control config.ini files, one for 2 player, and one for 4.  then I write a script to swap out the ini file when I switch control panels and boom.. problem solved...
Does this make sense?  Anyone have a better idea?

Rather than swapping the files, make two folders inside the ctrlr directory (say: 2p_cp and 4p_cp).  Setup the default.ini and neogeo.ini files inside each folder, setup as you describe your buttons.  Now just change the command line -ctrlr option ("-ctrlr 2p_cp" and "-ctrlr 4p_cp") as needed (or have the script change the mame.ini ctrlr line, like above).

[SirPoonga]

I haven't dealt too much with the config.ini, but I'm thinking of creating 2 master control config.ini files, one for 2 player, and one for 4.  then I write a script to swap out the ini file when I switch control panels and boom.. problem solved...
Does this make sense?  Anyone have a better idea?

Rather than swapping the files, make two folders inside the ctrlr directory (say: 2p_cp and 4p_cp).  Setup the default.ini and neogeo.ini files inside each folder, setup as you describe your buttons.  Now just change the command line -ctrlr option ("-ctrlr 2p_cp" and "-ctrlr 4p_cp") as needed (or have the script change the mame.ini ctrlr line, like above).

You could do that OR wire both panels the same and use one ctrlr folder.