How to assign FS controls to 256 joystick buttons (GammaRay)

[Steku]

I’m planning to buy Beta Innovations (Leo Lacava’s) Gamma Ray 256 USB Card http://www.betainnovations.com/

which is an USB card allowing to connect 256 switches for homemade cockpit. These switches are presented to Windows as 256 HID buttons on one joystick (if I understand). Somewhere in FSUIPC user guide I’ve read that FSUIPC can recognize only 39 buttons.

My question is: Can I have 256 buttons with FS controls assigned by FSUIPC? If not – is there any other possibility to assign FS controls to such number of buttons (maybe in can write control names directly to fs9.cfg file)?

If it’s possible to assign FS controls to buttons directly in fs9.cfg why should I use FSUPIC buttons page at all? Are there any advantages?

Steku

[Pete Dowson]

I’m planning to buy Beta Innovations (Leo Lacava’s) Gamma Ray 256 USB Card http://www.betainnovations.com/

which is an USB card allowing to connect 256 switches for homemade cockpit. These switches are presented to Windows as 256 HID buttons on one joystick (if I understand). Somewhere in FSUIPC user guide I’ve read that FSUIPC can recognize only 39 buttons.

No, 32 buttons. There are 8 extra "buttons" which are derived from 8 cardinal directions of a hat -- this is following an old convention in FS to number the 8 driections 33-40 (32-39 counting from 0).

The restiction is not FSUIPC's, but the Joystick API it uses. That only provides one 32-bit value to indicate button settings.

DirectInput (used in FS since FS2002) allows up to 64 buttons per joystick as far as I know.

A device providing 256 buttons won't be usable in that way on FS or FSUIPC. In fact I don't see how it could be used unless either they split it into 4 or 8 "virtual" joysticks, or only allow it to be programmed by their own drivers.

If it’s possible to assign FS controls to buttons directly in fs9.cfg why should I use FSUPIC buttons page at all? Are there any advantages?

Please read the discussion on this exact question in the FSUIPC User Guide.

Regards,

Pete

[Nobster]

I do pgram an interface for the GR256 from BetaInnovation right now.

All you need is a registered version from FSUIPC, the rest will be freeware.

For those who are interested, please email me: nobster@gmx.de

Cheers

Nobbi