Colecovision Key Bindings

theroamer

So I installed the coleco emulator and it works great with one exception. The default keybinding to exit seems to be right shift + enter. The problem is my bluetooth keyboard only has a single left shift button. I want to change it in /home/pi/coolcv_mapping.txt but I'm not sure what key code needs to be in there. It looks like there are a bunch of number codes but I'm not sure what code to enter to make it left shift + enter or better yet, start and select on my controller like all the other emulators.

Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

the list of mapping is on this page:
https://github.com/RetroPie/RetroPie-Setup/wiki/Colecovision

herb_fargus

@theroamer if you install his pc version (CoolCV) you can press f7 and it will show you the key codes (it's currently broke. On the pi version) or you can look up the SDL key codes and those may work but idk I haven't tried it myself.

Rion

Like do get this solves to so I can get rid of the keyboard behind the TV.

theroamer

Making some headway, changed the following in /home/pi/coolcv_mapping.txt to

key1_1 key49 joy0_3

key_exit key1073741939 joy0_4

now I can start a game using the x button and exit with the y button on my 8bitdo NES30 Pro. Can't seem to get any of the other buttons working on the controller though, tried joy0_5, joy0_6, etc and nothing else happens. I wonder where I find the correct codes for other buttons. Oh well, at least I can play and exit games with just the controller now.

theroamer

So close yet so far. I can't for the life of me figure out what code to use to bind the dpad on my 8bitdo. The analog stick works for moving but it doesn't work well in games, if you don't move it exactly up, down, left, right there are dead spots.

Hoping the author of CoolCV gets the F7 code checker fixed for the pi.

If anyone else has any ideas on how to get the correct codes to manually enter the mappings, please let me know.

Rion

@theroamer said in Colecovision Key Bindings:

So close yet so far. I can't for the life of me figure out what code to use to bind the dpad on my 8bitdo. The analog stick works for moving but it doesn't work well in games, if you don't move it exactly up, down, left, right there are dead spots.

Hoping the author of CoolCV gets the F7 keybinding fixed for the pi.

If anyone else has any ideas on how to get the correct codes to manually enter the mappings, please let me know.

Found the official release thread for CoolCV
Some progress there on SDL mapping here.

Edit: I wonder if there is an JoyToKey program for the PI?

theroamer

@Rion Thanks, yeah those mapping are great for reconfiguring a keyboard. When it comes to the gamepad though, I'm at a loss for what to use for the codes, as there is no utility to tell you what codes your gamepad is spitting out.

mediamogul

@Rion said in Colecovision Key Bindings:

I wonder if there is an JoyToKey program for the PI?

A lot of people are surprised to learn that xboxdrv can be used for this purpose with any USB controller. It's also somewhat convenient due to it being found in RetroPie right out of the box.

Taken from: http://pingus.seul.org/~grumbel/xboxdrv/xboxdrv.html

It is also possible for xboxdrv to read input data directly from an event device, this allows the use of the configurability of xboxdrv on regular PC joysticks, keyboards and mice and thus lets xboxdrv serve a similar purpose as joy2key. See the option --evdev below for more information.

Also, here's a link to a tutorial on using xboxdrv with any USB controller:
https://steamcommunity.com/app/221410/discussions/0/558748653738497361/

I love Colecovision games and I have been looking into this same thing, off and on, for over a week now. Whenever I get some solid time to troubleshoot any problems that might come up, I plan on mapping my Wavebird using this method.

Rion

@mediamogul said in Colecovision Key Bindings:

@Rion said in Colecovision Key Bindings:

I wonder if there is an JoyToKey program for the PI?

A lot of people are surprised to learn that xboxdrv can be used for this purpose with any USB controller. It's also somewhat convenient due to it being found in RetroPie right out of the box.

Taken from: http://pingus.seul.org/~grumbel/xboxdrv/xboxdrv.html

It is also possible for xboxdrv to read input data directly from an event device, this allows the use of the configurability of xboxdrv on regular PC joysticks, keyboards and mice and thus lets xboxdrv serve a similar purpose as joy2key. See the option --evdev below for more information.

Also, here's a link to a tutorial on using xboxdrv with any USB controller:
https://steamcommunity.com/app/221410/discussions/0/558748653738497361/

I love Colecovision games and I have been looking into this same thing, off and on, for over a week now. Whenever I get some solid time to troubleshoot any problems that might come up, I plan on mapping my Wavebird using this method.

Will it work with an BT controller for example 8bitdo?

mediamogul

It should have no problem. After I get it all worked out myself, I plan on posting a full tutorial here that will cover these types of advanced controller setups.

Rion

@mediamogul said in Colecovision Key Bindings:

It should have no problem. After I get it all worked out myself, I plan on posting a full tutorial here that will cover these types of advanced controller setups.

How's the guide coming along?
Plan on posting it here and on the wiki?

mediamogul

@Rion

It really all depends on what I find once I fully kick the tires and light the fires. I expect it to come with some frustration in the experimentation process as there is very little documentation to rely on in using it as a universal driver. However, I've checked off everything I personally want to get done with my RetroPie install for now other than this, so I will start messing with it soon.

Once in a while, I do like to sit back and enjoy the fruits of labor, so tonight I plan to play a bit of "Cave Story" and "Retro City Rampage 486" as well as looking at the recent input layer in Kodi. All I have is time for the next few days as I am layed up with the lovely combination of sunburn and poison oak, so I'll probably use xboxdrv to divert my mind off of it over the weekend.

mediamogul

I wanted to post a quick update. With all that I want to accomplish with a guide to advance controller setup, it has become clear that it will involve a few different pieces of software that, while readily available, will require a bit of research and experimentation before I will feel confident in speaking authoritatively about them. However, it is highest on my list of things to do with my RetroPie install, so I don't imagine it will be too far off.

Having said that, here is a listing of the top controller-related issues I hope to alleviate in the guide:

Using multiple controllers of the same make and model
Using different controllers that share a GUID name
Adding keymap controller support
Mapping analog triggers as buttons
Mapping events to jsX slots
Mapping isolated event groupings to multiple jsX slots

In the mean time, here is a previous thread I dug up that should ultimately act as a full keymap solution for emulators like CoolCV for those who might want to jump ahead. The guide is for KODI, but the information can be extrapolated to just about anything. I believe it will be a much more elegant approach than using xboxdrv, as it is specifically tailored for this kind of activity. Also, the mapper is only called when the emulator is launched and killed as it exits.

http://blog.petrockblock.com/forums/topic/mapping-a-game-controller-in-kodi/

My next comment on this will probably require it's own thread, but I'll keep an eye on this one as well.

Rion

@mediamogul

Very interesting research you have done. I'm going to push the follow button on you right now so I don't miss out on anything!

Great Work!

theroamer

Just an update.

I went ahead and went back to firmware 1.69 on the nes30 pro, When I pair it in joystick mode (r1+power) both the analog sticks and dpad work in Colecovision!

now if I could just get them both working in retroarch (just the dpad works now).

mediamogul

I've been making some progress myself. One of the things holding me back is a way to launch the mapping software when the need arises that can be recommended without question. I figure 'Linux Joystick Mapper' can be added to a game system's launch routine from the launch script. However, xboxdrv needs a little more consideration. There's a bug preventing it from being launched as a universal driver in the default way that RetroPie uses it as an XBox driver. I'm exploring the possibility of having it launch via a script when the controller is first detected, using a udev rule. The toughest part is trying to find time to do all the necessary experimentation that is required.

mediamogul

@theroamer said in Colecovision Key Bindings:

@Rion Thanks, yeah those mapping are great for reconfiguring a keyboard. When it comes to the gamepad though, I'm at a loss for what to use for the codes, as there is no utility to tell you what codes your gamepad is spitting out.

This comment was made about two months ago, to which I responded with the possible solution of mapping keyboard input to a controller. With as much time as I could spare here and there, I ultimately learned how to universally do that throughout the whole system. Today, I was going to post a guide that allowed a full mapping that would launch and exit alongside CoolCV.

As it turns out, none of that is even necessary. Beside each SDL keyboard code found in /opt/retropie/configs/coleco/coolcv_mapping.txt you are able to input a SDL joystick code directly. I saw this early on and it is mentioned above, but quite frankly didn't know enough about the formatting at the time to understand it. When I looked at it again today, it immediately made sense. There are two examples used for the main action buttons. the first example is joy0_0which is referring to joystick 0, button 0, or what would commonly be thought of as the first button on the first joystick. joy0_1 would then of course be referencing the second button on the first joystick.

All that is really needed to map any controller occupying a /dev/input/js* from here is to know your controller's js* number and then run jstestto get the proper button number codes for that controller. From there you would just add the properly formatted codes, such as joy0_0 mentioned above, to where you want them in /opt/retropie/configs/coleco/coolcv_mapping.txt and it should be good to go. I've tested it myself and it works very well.

I don't feel like my research was wasted though. I've learned to map a controller in some really amazing ways as a result of this. For example, I have an optional mapping that is solely for the purpose of restricting directional input to four directions from an analog stick or directional pad. This makes all the difference in the world when trying to do well at a game like 'Pac-Man' or 'Ms Pac-man'. Some of you might have noticed that those characters can become unresponsive for a microsecond around corners when the analog stick hits a diagonal. Having a restricted directional mapping solves that and allows those and similar games to play as they did in arcades.

I'll fold over what I was going to post here for more of an all-encompassing guide on mapping that I want to post in a day or two, but for now, I hope this helps and I'm sorry it took so long to make good on my word to post something for this.

Edit: If I need to elaborate on using jstest, I'll be happy to do so.

Rion

@mediamogul said in Colecovision Key Bindings:

@theroamer said in Colecovision Key Bindings:
@Rion Thanks, yeah those mapping are great for reconfiguring a keyboard. When it comes to the gamepad though, I'm at a loss for what to use for the codes, as there is no utility to tell you what codes your gamepad is spitting out.
This comment was made about two months ago, to which I responded with the possible solution of mapping keyboard input to a controller. With as much time as I could spare here and there, I ultimately learned how to universally do that throughout the whole system. Today, I was going to post a guide that allowed a full mapping that would launch and exit alongside CoolCV.

As it turns out, none of that is even necessary. Beside each SDL keyboard code found in /opt/retropie/configs/coleco/coolcv_mapping.txt you are able to input a SDL joystick code directly. I saw this early on and it is mentioned above, but quite frankly didn't know enough about the formatting at the time to understand it. When I looked at it again today, it immediately made sense. There are two examples used for the main action buttons. the first example is joy0_0which is referring to joystick 0, button 0, or what would commonly be thought of as the first button on the first joystick. joy0_1 would then of course be referencing the second button on the first joystick.

All that is really needed to map any controller occupying a /dev/input/js* from here is to know your controller's js* number and then run jstestto get the proper button number codes for that controller. From there you would just add the properly formatted codes, such as joy0_0 mentioned above, to where you want them in /opt/retropie/configs/coleco/coolcv_mapping.txt and it should be good to go. I've tested it myself and it works very well.

I don't feel like my research was wasted though. I've learned to map a controller in some really amazing ways as a result of this. For example, I have an optional mapping that is solely for the purpose of restricting directional input to four directions from an analog stick or directional pad. This makes all the difference in the world when trying to do well at a game like 'Pac-Man' or 'Ms Pac-man'. Some of you might have noticed that those characters can become unresponsive for a microsecond around corners when the analog stick hits a diagonal. Having a restricted directional mapping solves that and allows those and similar games to play as they did in arcades.

I'll fold over what I was going to post here for more of an all-encompassing guide on mapping that I want to post in a day or two, but for now, I hope this helps and I'm sorry it took so long to make good on my word to post something for this.

Edit: If I need to elaborate on using jstest, I'll be happy to do so.

Thank you for taking you're free time to figure all this out. Looking forward to your guide. This is going to help out a lot of people!

edmaul69

post deleted

mediamogul

@edmaul69

I've looked closely and all CoolCV mappings are single key. However, it is possible to add an outside mapping that will send whatever key is mapped to exit by pressing two buttons. Using xboxdrv, a working example would look like:

--ui-buttonmap start+back=KEY_F24

Seeing as how 'back' is usually analogous with 'select' in these situations, this mapping would allow CoolCV to exit using the same button combination that all the RetroArch cores use.