[Libff-devel] Re: Vegastrike and Force Feedback

[Johann D. <de...@if...>]

Alexander Rawass wrote:
> Hi,
> 
> I am a Co-Developer to Vegastrike vegastrike.sourceforge.net, a 3D space 
> fight sim.
> 
> I have written the joystick support for Vegastrike, and now I own a new 
> force-feedback joystick, so I'll do also the Force Feedback support for 
> Vegastrike.
> 
> I've already got contacts to Johann Deneux, but I'm now also on the 
> libff-devel and linuxconsole-dev mailing lists.
> 
> My job would be, to help write a high-level force feedback library, and then 
> make Vegastrike use it.
> 
> What has been done in writing such a high-level library already?
> Any concepts yet etc?
> 

We have been discussing the API. A first draft is ready, and we should 
start to implement it any time soon. Rodrigo, could you commit the 
header to CVS ?

> Currently, I've installed  kernel-2.4.12 and using Johanns patch for this 
> kernel.
> 
> I've read through the docu, and got my system to recognize the joystick.
> 
> I've got an AVB Top Shot Pegasus (connected to the serial port):
> 
> [alex@jungle vegastrike-current]$ jstest /dev/js0
> Joystick (ttyS1/serio0/input0) has 6 axes and 13 buttons. Driver version is 
> 2.1.0.
> Testing ... (interrupt to exit)
> Axes:  0:     0  1:     0  2:     0  3:     0  4:     0  5:     0 Buttons:  
> 0:off  1:off  2:off  3:off  4:off  5:on   6:off  7:off  8:off  9Axes:  0:     
> 0  1:     0  2:     0  3:     0  4:     0  5:     0 Buttons:  0:off  1:off  
> 2:off  3:off  4:off  5:on   6:off  7:off  8:off  9
> 
> Some questions:
> 
> the right 'eight way' hatswitch is recognized as axes 4&5 - why is that 
> hatswitch an axis - and not maybe a row of buttons?

Hats really are axes, aren't they ? I mean, if you see them as buttons, 
that means the left and the right positions could be enabled at the same 
time, which isn't the case. But you're right to rise the question, the 
left hatswitch should be seen as axes as well, which isn't the case for 
the moment.

> 
> The Button Nr.2 and Button Nr.3 (in terms of my joysticks manual) are somehow 
> 'swapped' - at least, 'Button 2' is button nr. 2 in jstest, and 'Button 3' is 
> button 1 in jstest.

I have a tendancy to ignore these docs (they don't say anything about 
the protocol used ;) I will fix it.

> 
> The eventtest util also works fine for me:
> [alex@jungle ff-utils]$ ./evtest /dev/input/event0
> Input driver version is 1.0.0
> Input device ID: bus 0x3 vendor 0x5ef product 0x20a version 0x0
> Input device name: "ttyS1/serio0/input0"
> Supported events:
> 
> [etc]
> 
> 
> ffset -a <whatever>
> 
> seems also to work fine - the autocenter gets set from 0 to 100.
> 
> 
> What doesn't work is fftest:

This is a more annoying issue.

> 
>  [alex@jungle ff-utils]$ ./fftest /dev/input/event0
> Force feedback test program.
> HOLD FIRMLY YOUR WHEEL OR JOYSTICK TO PREVENT DAMAGES
>  
> Device /dev/input/event0 opened
> Axes query: Axis X Axis Y
> Effects: Constant Periodic Spring Friction
> Number of simultaneous effects: 20
> Enter effect number, -1 to exit
> 1
> Enter effect number, -1 to exit
> 2
> 
> Nothing happens at all.

What about effects 0 and 3 ? Do they work ? Did you try to change the 
magnitude of effects ? Did you try with USB ?

> 
> How can I use the other ff-utils (no docu?)?

ffcfstress stresses the joystick by simulating a spring using only 
constant force effects (as explained in the source).
ffmvforce generates forces directed toward the mouse pointer. It's also 
a kind of stress test.
I don't see what kind of documentation you expect ? The only meaningful 
utilities are those to set the gain and the auto-center. Others are code 
sample, and the documentation is naturally situated inside the code.

> 
> Do I have to switch the joystick on at boot time to get it recognized by the 
> driver?
> 

No, you don't. Of course, you need to have it switched on when you load 
the driver and start inputattach. But that needn't be at boot time.

> What has stopped working is my old-analogue joystick:
> 
> [root@jungle /root]# modprobe ns558
> /lib/modules/2.4.12/kernel/drivers/char/joystick/ns558.o: init_module: No 
> such device
> Hint: insmod errors can be caused by incorrect module parameters, including 
> invalid IO or IRQ parameters
> /lib/modules/2.4.12/kernel/drivers/char/joystick/ns558.o: insmod 
> /lib/modules/2.4.12/kernel/drivers/char/joystick/ns558.o failed
> /lib/modules/2.4.12/kernel/drivers/char/joystick/ns558.o: insmod ns558 failed
> 
> Before I used 2.4.12, I tried using 2.4.2 with it's non-force-feedback 
> 'iforce' drivers.
> 
> With 2.4.2, my analogue joystick became js0 and the Pegasus was js1.
> 
> Now, with 2.4.12, the loading of ns558 doesn't work anymore - I dunno why?
> 

Me neither. Perhaps a problem with es1371 ??? But I don't think the 
I-Force driver has anything to do with that (especially as ns558 is 
loaded before the iforce stuff). My patch does not touch ns558, btw.

> I don't think that's a problem with the force-feedback-drivers - any idea why 
> it doesn't want my ns558 module (haven't changed anything in BIOS or 
> interrupts).
> 
> See here my loading script:
> 
> echo "Loading Sound modules"
>  
> modprobe es1371 joystick=0x200
>  
> echo "Loading Joystick modules"
>  
> modprobe joydev # userland interface
> modprobe ns558 # gameport driver
> modprobe analog # analog-joystick
>  
> modprobe serio
> modprobe serport
> modprobe iforce
> modprobe evdev
>  
> /usr/local/bin/inputattach --iforce /dev/ttyS1 &
> 
> 
> Any ideas or comments?
> 
> I'll hope I'll be able to update on 2.4.17 soon.
> 
> 
> 
> Alex
> 
> 

-- 
Johann Deneux

 
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