home *** CD-ROM | disk | FTP | other *** search
-
- Welcome to the world of analog joysticks.
-
- You may well wonder what would prompt someone to write a bunch of code
- and design some hardware to do analog joystick input. Someone had to.
- I have seen many other individuals do wonderful things in the "freeware"
- arena, and decided to do something too. This was a niche I saw that
- I thought that I could contribute to. It also really aggravated me
- to know that my Amiga could do this type of joystick support, yet few
- are willing to put the time and effort into any commercial application.
- This after what, almost four years?
-
- Well, here it is, free, ready for the taking. So get to it! I hope
- to see it used in everything it makes sense for. It's small, it's easy,
- and it's done already. There are no more excuses.
-
- Included in this distribution is a driver (part assembly, part 'C',)
- a header file for the 'C' code that calls the driver, and an example
- program that uses the driver. All this code appeared in the July 1989
- issue of Amazing Computing (sporting the freely redistributable not
- for profit, free to use in commercial application banner). Distribution
- on Fish Disks was specifically double-checked with PIM publications, but
- the intent has always been for widespread distribution and use.
-
-
-
- Enjoy,
- Dave Kinzer
-
-
-
-
- For information on how to build an IBM/Apple joystick adapter, you
- should consult the July 1989 issue of Amazing Computing (Vol. 4 No. 7).
- The theory of operation and an explanation of the driver (as well as
- listings) are there also.
-
- Part of the second paragraph below was omitted in the printing of
- the magazine (at the first page break). Far be it from me to complain
- (I don't know the first thing about publishing,) but it reads better
- as written:
-
-
- For each axis, the current flowing through the variable resistor
- (in the joystick) from +5 Volts reaches the two resistors in the adapter.
- Since the voltage on the op-amp output and the voltage on the Amiga input
- are the same, the voltage across the resistors are the same. This results
- in the current always being split in a constant ratio. The ratio of the
- resistor values control the ratio of the current split. By selecting the
- appropriate resistances, the current into the computer is reduced to the
- amount that would flow if an ideal joystick were attached.
-
- Selecting the resistance values for the design requires evaluating a
- trade-off. A higher resistance reduces the undesirable effects of the
- input offset voltage of the op-amp (in this configuration, this means that
- the voltage on the output is not exactly as what is on the positive input).
- Too high a resistance will result in the voltage not rising fast enough in
- the minimum resistance joystick position.
-
-
-
-