Fresh Fish 8/FreshFishVol8-CD1.bin/useful/reviews/hardware/input-devices/cdjoy

Internet Message Format | 1993-10-19 | 9KB

Path: menudo.uh.edu!usenet
From: [e-mail] (T H Pineapple)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga.reviews
Subject: REVIEW: CD-Joy for the Commodore CDTV
Followup-To: comp.sys.amiga.hardware
Date: 19 Oct 1993 15:52:38 GMT
Organization: The Amiga Online Review Column - ed. Daniel Barrett
Lines: 204
Sender: [e-mail] (comp.sys.amiga.reviews moderator)
Distribution: world
Message-ID: <2a12g6$[e-mail]>
Reply-To: [e-mail] (T H Pineapple)
NNTP-Posting-Host: karazm.math.uh.edu
Keywords: hardware, joystick, CDTV, commercial


PRODUCT NAME

    CD-Joy for the Commodore CDTV

    Or, according to the designer, "Seedy Joy."  Hey ho.  Pun's Rn't Us.


BRIEF DESCRIPTION

    Internally-fitted hardware widget allowing use of standard joysticks,
mice and such input devices with the CDTV.


COMPANY INFORMATION

    Name:        Goldtech Computer Systems
    Address:    67 Turner Road
            Walthamstow
            London, E17 3JG
            England

    Telephone:    +44 <0>81 520 6224
    FAX:        +44 <0>81 521 6209

    E-mail:        [e-mail]


LIST PRICE

    At time of writing, 25 pounds in the UK.


HARDWARE

    CD-Joy is a small PCB (printed circuit board) that plugs into one of
the CDTV I/O chip sockets on the motherboard, the displaced chip then
plugging into a socket on CD-Joy.  The PCB is about 2 inches square, and has
a 20-way ribbon cable coming off the side which splits into two 9-way
ribbons with a standard joystick socket on each, where port 1 is the ribbon
with the coloured edge.  It's an elegant system, as it needs no extra chips
or components on its board.


DOCUMENTATION AND INSTALLATION

    The A5 instruction sheet contains assembly details as well as
installation instructions and diagrams.  Originally, GoldTech sold the things
in kit form as well as pre-assembled, but stopped this after user problems
during assembly.  *NOTE*:  due to the design, installation VOIDS THE CDTV
WARRANTY, so you MUST be reasonably comfortable with "Hacking by the seat of
your motherboard" tactics.

    Installation is straightforward enough.  Removal of the CDTV top
panel is a game of 4 side screws, 2 back screws and a couple of metal tabs
that lock under the front panel.  There's no RF shielding in the way -- the
motherboard is well-designed and easy to get at, with only one flying lead
across the board <From the PSU> and all I/O interfaces on ribbon cables that
plug in at the edges of the board.

    The instructions make no mention of static grounding, although I
earthed myself beforehand anyway.  From then on, it's a case of

    <1> removing the CSG 252609-02 (lovely memorable name) chip at the
    very front of the motherboard,

    <2> plugging it into CD-Joy's board (aligning the chip and socket
    notches as usual),

    <3> plugging the CD-Joy board into the empty motherboard socket (it
    will only fit one way - the CDTV case sees to that), and

    <4> trailing the 9-way ribbons across to the backplane of the machine
    and hanging 'em over the back edge.

    My only complaints with the fitting are the usual ones.  Every socket
extender I've seen uses circular pins.  Chip sockets are designed for flat
pins.  Wooooo.  You've got to use some force to get the board in, but you
mustn't bend the pins either.  The chip was pretty stiff to get out, too, and
a proper chip extraction/insertion tool is a must.  Gripe off.

    Because the CDTV is well packed into the box, you can't get the lid
back on unless the CD-Joy board is pushed fully home into place.  I recommend
you leave the lid off until you've tested the interface.  When you reassemble,
the 9-way ribbons won't get cut on the backplane, although I keep the lid a
little loose just for the cables' safety.


CD-JOY IN ACTION ('Back to work. Boot Lotus and fire up Angel Dust...')

    Games used for testing:  Lotus Turbo Challenge II, Llamatron
(Robotron 2048 clone on Fish 560) and DragonCave (SokoBan clone on Fish 395
-- may have been withdrawn from the Library) amongst others.

    According to the operating instructions, you can plug in 2 joysticks,
or a joystick and mouse.  To activate, you press RIGHT on the CDTV remote
control once the CDTV is switched on with program loaded.  I've never had to
do this - the ports seem to work from power-up anyway.

    Effectively, the widget gives you the normal Amiga joystick ports
OVERLAID onto the action of the CDTV mouse and remote control.  In test, the
joysticks (Zipstick Super Pro and Cheetah Mach 1+) worked normally, port 1
being combined with the CDTV mouse, port 2 being overlaid onto the IR remote.

    Of course, you can use the 'sticks or mouse normally, but if you've
got a sick and twisted mind and really want to try to confuse the system...

    In DragonCave, the mouse can be used for selecting icons and the port
1 'stick fire button for confirming, whilst the port 2 'stick or IR remote
works the fallback movement system.  (Download the game and play it, if this
isn't too clear.)

    With Lotus 2 in two-player mode (one 'stick on each knee... sad or
what?), player 1 can have the port 2 'stick for control, with button A on
the IR remote for accelerate, and for player 2, the port 1 'stick in
combination with accelerate on the left mouse button.

    There was a dodgy period when the port 2 socket played up with
constant RIGHT signal, but that was quicky cured by opening the socket up and
pressing the 9-way ribbon cable firmly onto the connection.  (It's a
press-fit, and it just got a bit loose.  I've not had any problems with it
since.)

    Because of the way CD-Joy works, you can leave the joysticks or mice
plugged in if you wish to use the CDTV's nice-but-nonstandard wired mouse.
According to Ralph at Goldtech, more than one mouse online through CD-Joy may
confuse the widget, but I've yet to give it a try.  (Anyone for 2-up Lemmings
on CD?)


OTHER COMPARABLE PRODUCTS (Or 'Take the money! Open the Box!')

    Another way to get round the joystick problem is via the Brickette,
which retails for around 50 pounds, and sits on the mouse port on the back
of the CDTV.  It's constructed more robustly, is intelligent (read:  has its
own chip for signal processing), and costs twice as much.  It acts like a
normal pair of Amiga ports, so you can't leave both sticks plugged in and
use the mouse at the same time.  And you don't lose your warranty.  The
choice is yours.  High cost, retained warranty, or low cost, high
performance.

    And finally, there's the CDTV IR Trackball, which, as well as the
trackball, has 'stick ports and genlock control and plugs into the mouse
port.  But it costs around 75 pounds.  Again, your choice.


CONCLUSION

    Pricewise, it's a great bit of kit, although the CDTV should have had
proper joystick ports as standard anyway.  Being able to leave everything
plugged in is a boon, and reduces the chance of blowing CIA chips if swapping
devices when powered up.  The joystick sockets could be a little stronger re
the ribbon cable fixing, but you can make your own holes and mount them in
the CDTV box if needed -- they've got screwholes on each side, and Ralph at
Goldtech said he'd done such modifications for a couple of customers.

    Since my first CDTV review, it seems that Goldtech and Almathera were
designing joystick dongles simultaneously, and it was Ralph's unit that went
into production.  The best dongle won?  A lesson for us all, methinks.


DISCLAIMER

    THP is not connected to Goldtech apart from being a paying,
harassing customer, listens to Faith No More a lot, and is only vaguely
connected with the real world.  So no surprises there.  Oh, sod this, I'm
off for another crack at level 85 on Llamatron....


CONTACT...

    ...'imself for more CDTV musings, falling over backwards, frightening
the general public, jokes that fall over and die, 17 more crap .signatures,
sick ways of abusing Unix, taking the piss out of Future Publishing, gigs,
wigs, figs, JOB OFFERS (<--Hint) and all the usual licks, moans and groans
AT:


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