Add support for other iCade-like controllers (Submit your info here)

[lmmenge]

Many iCade-like controllers (controllers that connect to iOS devices as if they were bluetooth keyboards) have different key maps for their buttons. Take for instance the iCade 8-Bitty: it's different enough from the original iCade that some games are nearly unplayable on this controller.

So in order to add support to various iCade-like controllers, I need your help: if you have an iCade-like controller that is not currently supported by MeSNEmu and you want it supported, please follow these instructions and support for it will be added ASAP:

• Pair your bluetooth controller with an iOS device;
• Make sure your device's keyboard layout is set to US (QWERTY);
• Open Notes;
• Enter the following button sequence matching, as best as you can, the SNES button layout: Up, Right, Down, Left, Select, Start, Y, B, X, A, L, R;
• Copy the text generated (there should be 24 letters) and comment it here along with the controller make and model.

The button sequence you press is very important, since some controllers don't have the exact same layout as a SNES controller. Please try to match it as closely as possible for the best gameplay experience. Below is a picture of a SNES controller. The L and R buttons are on the shoulders of the controller:

[infernoten]

The following text string is from a SteelSeries Free gamepad: wedcxzaqoglvythrufjnimkp

I verified it is correct by replacing a previous controller's setOnStateString and offStateString in LMBTControllerView.m with the appropriate on and off character from the above string and testing it out.

[lmmenge]

Hello infernoten! Thanks for submitting. Just confirming the string that will be added to master (since you mentioned you did this before):
[self LMBT_setOnStateString:"wdxaolyhujik" offStateString:"eczqgvtrfnmp"];

That looks like a really nice gamepad, too! Comfy?

[infernoten]

That matches what I inserted.

For a small controller, the Free is surprisingly comfy. The shoulder buttons have a really audible click to them, though.

[lmmenge]

SteelSeries Free support pushed to master.

[eltonsalmeida]

The following text string is from a 8bitdo FC30 gamepad: wedcxzaqtufimkpoglvhrjnu

How I fix de buttons position?

[lmmenge]

8Bitdo FC30 support pushed to master.

[guidoscheffler]

The 8Bitdo FC30 strings currently in the code didn't work for me; I had to change it to the following:

[self LMBT_setOnStateString:"wdxazuikolhj"
             offStateString:"ecyqtfmpgvrn"];

[lmmenge]

@eltonsalmeida @guidoscheffler what kind of keyboard layout and language are you guys using? Could this difference be due to keyboard layout mismatches?

[guidoscheffler]

My system language is English; for keyboard layouts I usually switch between English and German.
The keyboard layout seems to indeed be the problem; depending on what I set the layout to before connecting the 8Bitdo FC30, the strings are:

• English: wedcxzaqytufimkpoglvhrjn
• German: wedcxyaqztufimkpoglvhrjn

Either way, there definitely is an error in @eltonsalmeida's string, because it contains two "u"s. It seems that he turned off the controller by holding down start at the end, which resulted in the second u, and somehow didn't record push select correctly, which would explain the missing z/y at position 9 when comparing it to my strings.

[lmmenge]

@guidoscheffler you are correct. I've just pushed to master your English 8Bitdo FC30 string. Thank you for correcting this.

[wiegerthefarmer]

I've built a customer snes controller using the guide from adafruit. (https://learn.adafruit.com/snes-ez-key-bluefruit-game-pad/overview) The controller works great, and I can re-map the buttons to any keys I want. However, it doesn't send the off keys, only on. Any thoughts on how I can make SiOS work with that?

[lmmenge]

@wiegerthefarmer You need the down/up events separately for the current architecture (both the iOS front-end and the SNES9X back-end use that paradigm). Otherwise, how do we know when you're still holding the button down? How do we know when you have released it?

[wiegerthefarmer]

Yah, that makes sense. On further investigation the adafruit ez-key sends
the same key with a keyUp event when its released. I know that this isn't
how iCade operates. I'll see if I can write something for SiOS to handle
this event structure.

It may end up using private members, but I have a apple dev account, so I can build it myself....
http://stackoverflow.com/questions/18747759/ios-7-hardware-keyboard-events
http://nacho4d-nacho4d.blogspot.ca/2012/01/catching-keyboard-events-in-ios.html

Looks like it might be possible using public apis...
http://blog.swilliams.me/words/2013/09/19/handling-keyboard-events-with-modifier-keys-in-ios-7/

One last thing.... can get keyups
https://developer.apple.com/library/ios/documentation/GraphicsAnimation/Conceptual/CodeExplainedAdventure/ControllingtheCharacters/ControllingtheCharacters.html

Time to see if I can get it going!

On 13 October 2014 09:09, Lucas Menge notifications@github.com wrote:

@wiegerthefarmer https://github.com/wiegerthefarmer You need the
down/up events separately for the current architecture (both the iOS
front-end and the SNES9X back-end use that paradigm). Otherwise, how do we
know when you're still holding the button down? How do we know when you
have released it?

—
Reply to this email directly or view it on GitHub
#4 (comment).

[wiegerthefarmer]

This worked! https://gist.github.com/steventroughtonsmith/7515380
-(UIKeyCommand *)_keyCommandForEvent:(UIEvent *)event // UIPhysicalKeyboardEvent
{
NSLog(@"keyCommandForEvent: %@\n
type = %i\n
keycode = %@\n
keydown = %@\n\n",
event.debugDescription,
event.type,
[event valueForKey:@"_keyCode"],
[event valueForKey:@"_isKeyDown"]);

return  [UIKeyCommand keyCommandWithInput:nil modifierFlags:nil action:@selector(processKeyInput:)];

}

Put that code in iCadeReaderView.m, and you get very clear keyup and keydown events. :)