Being able to use Trackball and Spinner using per mouse index

drewjbx1

Hi, so I noticed in v32 batocera… retroarch uses actual device names for mouse indexes rather than 0, 1, 2 etc..

In past builds if I had a keyboard/mouse and trackball sometimes the trackball would not be the default device. So I added a line in libretroConfig.py to specify the trackball index under ‘Input Configuration’

retroarchConfig[‘input_player1_mouse_index’] = “0”

The latest build, Retroarch sees my trackball as “Barcode Reader Mouse”

So now I try to use this line -

retroarchConfig[‘input_player1_mouse_index’] = “Barcode Reader Mouse”

And now its not working, so I have to go switch it manually anytime I want to use trackball. Also is there a way to have RA load up per game .cfg to specify mouse indexes? or does Batocera disable this crucial function of RetroArch? Will be needed to configure trackball and spinner devices.

ex. /userdata/system/.config/retroarch/config/MAME 2003-Plus/centiped.cfg

file contents of centiped.cfg

input_player1_mouse_index = “barcode_reader_mouse”

drewjbx1

Ok I answered my own question. For anyone wanting to use a mouse, trackball, spinner, and lightguns will need to specify the mouse index. The following worked for me -

In RetroArch to go ->Settings->Configuration and turn ON ‘Load Override Files Automatically’

SSH into the Pi or Device and run evtest to determent event # for your mouse or trackball

Create per game cfg files to assign your spinner or trackball (centiped.cfg)

Put the following line and save.

input_player1_mouse_index = “1”

(number 1 is the event number taken from evtest)

Transfer file to - /userdata/system/.config/retroarch/config/MAME 2003-Plus

or whatever mame you are running.

This should apply to light gun games as well but have not tested. Not sure if Sinden comes up as mouse device. (still waiting on mine, ordered 10 months ago ughh)

Protip for multiple cfg files - Use notepad++ ‘Find in Files’ to mass find and replace index numbers as needed for all your spinner, trackball, and gun games

Superchooch

drewjbx1

I’m a convert from Retropie and I have a spinner and trackball and am very familiar with how this is done in Retropie and I’m learning to adapt to Batocera. The concept is the same, just the locations are different. You mentioned adding the .cfg file to /userdata/system/.config/retroarch/config/MAME 2003-Plus/, but I currently don’t have the “MAME 2003-Plus” folder. Did you have it originally or did you create it?

Atari

The device name is gained from EmulationStation telling RetroArch about it, this is how the controller configuration generator is set up to do it.

If you need to utilise advanced RetroArch settings not accessible from within EmulationStation: https://wiki.batocera.org/advanced_retroarch_settings and if you need to remap the controls for a particular emulator: https://wiki.batocera.org/remapping_controls_per_emulator

If a feature gets requested enough in #wish, I’m sure that the devs would get around to implementing it. PRs are always welcome in case you’d like to try your hand at implementing it yourself.

Atari

Superchooch Actually, I didn’t. You can easily just create the configs using RetroArch’s UI (hotkey + south), it will automatically create the files at the correct location. There’s no need for the user to even navigate there.

Superchooch

@Atari With all due respect, I don’t think performing this specific task is possible via RetroArch’s UI. I’m new to Batocera, but the way that @drewjbx1 describes it is the way that it has to be done in Retropie as well. You can change the current Mouse index in RetroArch by going to: Settings->Input->Port 1 Controllers -> Mouse Index. However, none of the saving methods that I know of (Save Controller Profile, Save Current Configuration or the Overrides) will actually save this specific setting to a game specific config file. I guess it is is a bug (or lack of feature :-) ) in RetroArch. Retropie built the “Edit Custom RetroArch Config” option into their RunCommand feature to address this in Retropie. As far as I can tell, Batocera does not currently have an equivalent feature. This feature would be valueable to any classic arcade heads like me who like to use spinners or trackballs. I’ll add it to #Wish over on Discord. @drewjbx1 - If you see this maybe you could as well. Also, BTW- I don’t think the evtest method you cited is fool proof. I think it might have just worked coincidentally for you. I might have a slightly more complex set up and when I run evtest, I have 15 events and my spinner is Event 10. However, it is the 3rd Mouse type in the list and so my mouse index is actually 2 (the counting starts a “0” vs. “1”). So maybe you can use evtest as guide to help you figure out which number in the list is the one you are targeting and use that info to figure out which Index number to use. In other words, in evtest, the first mouse type device in the list is index “0”, the second second is index “1”, third is “2” and so on.

Atari

Oh, if it’s a bug with RetroArch then it’s probably better to wish for its support in RetroArch then.

For Batocera, you have batocera.conf to configure RetroArch’s settings, but if that too fails then it’s a problem with RetroArch.

MizterB

@Superchooch we continue to march down the same path and encounter the same problems with arcade control integrations :). I am also trying to integrate a trackball and spinner into Batocera.

For your specific concern above, I haven’t tried creating game-specific config files for Retroarch (yet). However, you can provide the game-specific override within batocera.conf with something like this:

mame["centiped.zip"].retroarch.input_player1_mouse_index=1

However, as you stated the index value could change, and in my testing, the order shown byevtest is not necessarily the same order as shown in RetroArch. I need to do some more digging to figure out what method RA is using…

But here is the other challenge I am working to solve…I’d prefer to not have to configure each game individually! My preference is to have both my trackball and spinner always active and available to use. Out of the box, you can’t do this because RA (MAME 2003-plus core) only allows you to assign a mouse single device per player. So it’s trackball or spinner via game-specific configs, but never both.

To solve for this, I just validated this following approach. In the latest v34 beta, there is a new tool called evsieve, which can combine and remap input devices into new virtual devices. Using this, I has able to combine my trackball and spinner into a single virtual device and assign it as a mouse in MAME. The trackball looks like a normal mouse, and the spinner sends x-axis events to the same mouse. Here is an example command to accomplish this.

evsieve --input /dev/input/by-id/usb-Ultimar_Opti-PAC_Trackball_Spinner_Interface-event-mouse domain=trackball grab \
        --input /dev/input/by-id/usb-GGG_TurboTwist_Spinner-event-mouse domain=spinner grab \
        --map rel:wheel@spinner rel:x \
        --block rel:wheel_hi_res@spinner \
        --map @trackball "" \
        --output name="Combined Analog Arcade Controls" create-link=/dev/input/by-id/Combined_Analog_Arcade_Controls

As an aside, this same tool could also be used to translate keypresses from your Mini-PAC into virtual Batocera controllers. I’m considering doing this as well.

MizterB

FYI - this RA issue seems to confirm that mouse enumeration continues to be challenge.

MizterB

Given that the issue I linked to above confirms that RetroArch determines its mouse index order, regardless of what the OS sees, the best interim solution appears to be querying RetroArch itself.

When RA logging is enabled, it displays the mouse input indexes. The following user script parses the log and sets the input accordingly. Edit the mouse_name variable and save this to /userdata/system/configs/emulationstation/scripts/game-start/first_script.sh. Make it executable: chmod +x /userdata/system/configs/emulationstation/scripts/game-start/first_script.sh. The first time you run a game, it will set up the logging. Exit the game. Subsequent game launches should work.

#!/bin/bash

# NAME OF DESIRED MOUSE INPUT
# Can be found via the RetroArch log file or by running 'evtest'
mouse_name="Combined Analog Arcade Controls"

# RetroArch log file must be enabled for this to work
batocera-settings-set global.retroarch.log_dir "/userdata/system/logs/retroarch"
batocera-settings-set global.retroarch.log_to_file true
batocera-settings-set global.retroarch.log_to_file_timestamp false

# Read the mouse index values from the last RetroArch log file 
# and update the config for the next time RetroArch is run
# NOTE: Using '~' as a sed delimiter as some device names include the traditional '/' delimiter
# NOTE: Pipe to 'head -1' to return the index of the first matching device, as some devices expose multiple inputs
mouse_index=$(sed -En "s~.*Mouse #(.*): \"$mouse_name\".*~\1~p" /userdata/system/logs/retroarch/retroarch.log | head -1)
if [[ -z "$mouse_index" ]]; then
    mouse_index=0
fi
batocera-settings-set global.retroarch.input_player1_mouse_index $mouse_index

I know this isn’t perfect - it’s parsing the output from the previous time RetroArch was running. If something changed between runs, this wouldn’t capture it. Worst case is it doesn’t work, you exit, and it works the next time. But I suspect this will work 99% of the time.

jaaem

MizterB This is genius! Helped me with issues because multiple mice were making some games jittery. Now my Wii mayflash is super smooth and accurate. I tweaked your script to pick the mouse based on the rom name, as I have some games I want to use the trackball. Also had an issue where the sed was giving two indexes, so I just made it pick the first one. My version of script is below.

I also added this in my batocera.conf to force the Wii Trigger and A button to be mapped to joystick A and B button. Without that, I could not get the A button to register in a few mame games.

mame.retroarch.input_player1_a_mbtn=1

mame.retroarch.input_player1_b_mbtn=2

The wiki should be updated with your technique or integrated directly into batocera. I also found “lightgun” mode in NES works well and can still use buttons.

#!/bin/bash

#name of games that use the trackball

trackball_roms[0]="centiped.zip"

trackball_roms[1]="milliped.zip"

trackball_roms[2]="gt99.zip"

trackball_roms[3]="gtclassc.zip"

trackball_roms[4]="gt2k.zip"

trackball_roms[5]="marble.zip"

trackball_roms[6]="missile.zip"

trackball_roms[7]="trackfld.zip"

trackball_roms[8]="combasct.zip"

trackball_roms[9]="capbowl.zip"

trackball_roms[10]="shufshot.zip"

trackball_roms[11]="wcbowl.zip"

trackball_roms[12]="irrmaze.zip"

# NAME OF DESIRED MOUSE INPUT

# Can be found via the RetroArch log file or by running 'evtest'

# default to gun

mouse_name_gun="HJZ Mayflash Wiimote PC Adapter Mouse"

mouse_name_trackball="HID 0838:8918"

mouse_name=$mouse_name_gun

GAMENAME=$(basename "$1") #get rid of the path, just want the game name only

# Loop over trackball games

for trackball_game in ${trackball_roms[@]}

do

echo $trackball_game

if [ "$trackball_game" = "$GAMENAME" ]; then

mouse_name=$mouse_name_trackball

fi

done

# RetroArch log file must be enabled for this to work

batocera-settings-set global.retroarch.log_dir "/userdata/system/logs/retroarch"

batocera-settings-set global.retroarch.log_to_file true

batocera-settings-set global.retroarch.log_to_file_timestamp false

# Read the mouse index values from the last RetroArch log file

# and update the config for the next time RetroArch is run

mouse_index=$(sed -En "s/.*Mouse #(.*): \"$mouse_name\".*/\1/p" /userdata/system/logs/retroarch/retroarch.log)

if [[ -z "$mouse_index" ]]; then

mouse_index=0

fi

# Just pick the first index

first_mouse=${mouse_index:0:1}

batocera-settings-set mame.retroarch.input_player1_mouse_index $first_mouse

Superchooch

@“MizterB” wow! This is awesome! You should add this to the #wish channel on Discord, I’d be happy to second it. Having deal with this mouse index thing has always been a pain, it would great if they could work something like your script into Batocera.

Atari

Not sure if entirely related, but this is from the blogpost for the most recent release of RetroArch (not in Batocera stable yet):

Before, RetroArch allowed the input ‘libretro device type’ to be set globally per-user. This was nonsensical for a couple of reasons:

Input device type has no meaning unless a core is actually running, so the option to set it globally does nothing but confuse users

A global device type may be set that is incompatible with cores, leading to disabled input in-game. e.g. setting the global type to ‘RetroPad with Analog’ breaks Beetle PSX, since that is not a valid device type recognised by the core

1.10.2 fixes the issue by:

Removing the global option Settings > Input > Port N Controls > Device Type (device type can now only be set while a core is running, via Quick Menu > Controls > Port N Controls)

Ensuring that the ‘global’ device type is reset to the default RETRO_DEVICE_JOYPAD on startup and when closing cores (unless a device type override is set via the existing command line interface)

MizterB

Atari Seems like it could be relevant - maybe a different config setting will be needed in the future. Will keep an eye on this.

Superchooch

So, I haven’t tried the script yet, but I wanted to take one step closer by moving to a Batocera.conf config, rather than having a bunch of GameName.cfg's. So I added the following to Batocera.conf as a test:

mame["centiped.zip"].retroarch.input_player1_mouse_index=1

fbneo["centiped.zip"].retroarch.input_player1_mouse_index=1

The MAME one worked, the FBNeo one did not. So then I tried copying the centipede.cfg to the FBNeo configs folder and that didn’t work either. Huh. FBNeo is a Libretro core, so I thought it would work….. Any ideas on that?

FYI- I’m evaluating a move to FBNeo vs. MAME due to its support of RetroAchievements

MizterB

Superchooch Not sure, as I’ve never actually used FBNeo. My config is only verified for MAME 2003-plus, which appears to support the mouse “out of the box”. I suspect there is an additional config needed to pass the global mouse setting into the FBNeo core?

Cisek88

don’t want to make a new thread - could You figure out the way to operate trackball in standalone mame? I managed only to move the cursor when in game menu, but can’t do nothing in games. Trackball is set to mouse in mame.ini

MizterB

As I was applying this solution to a new machine with different mouse devices, I discovered a couple of bugs in the original logic.

It failed if the mouse name contained a forward slash (/)
It failed if the mouse device exposed multiple inputs containing the same device name

To fix this, I have updated the logic as follows:

# Read the mouse index values from the last RetroArch log file 
# and update the config for the next time RetroArch is run
# NOTE: Using '~' as a sed delimiter as some device names include the traditional '/' delimiter
# NOTE: Pipe to 'head -1' to return the index of the first matching device, as some devices expose multiple inputs
mouse_index=$(sed -En "s~.*Mouse #(.*): \"$mouse_name\".*~\1~p" /userdata/system/logs/retroarch/retroarch.log | head -1)

The change is now reflected in the wiki, and in my original solution earlier in this thread.

moddergamer

Hello, you can check this page and see the steps:

https://www.gamegear.net/blogs/how-to-video-instructions-on-emulation/how-to-set-up-trackball-in-the-emuson-os-and-batocera-for-emuson-board-and-raspberry-pi

chaggydawg

Hello all!

So I’m trying to combine/merge my spinner and trackball into a virtual device via evsieve

I’ve actually had success as far as getting it to work when I run the command via putty and test on the machine, RA sees the virtual device and using either physical devices is reflected properly in the game.

The issue I’m having, no doubt due to lack of knowing exactly how batocera works behind the scenes, is when I run the script (which I will include soon) it then will just stay until I hit ctrl-c and break out of it. In regular linux, there is a way to run it as a service apparently, but batocera is either lacking that or I just don’t understand it (could be either lol)

Anyways, what I would like to do, is have this run at boot, or before a game runs, so that it is “active” while game runs.

This is what I run for command/script:

#!/bin/bash
evsieve --input /dev/input/event4 grab \
        --input /dev/input/event5 grab \
        --output name="Combined Analog Arcade Controls" create-link=/dev/input/by-id/Combined_Analog_Arcade_Controls

Batocera Version:
36o 2023/03/03 17:16

Batocera Info: (This is an Atomic Pi)
Disk format: vfat
Temperature: 0°C
Architecture: x86_64
Model: MF_001
System: Linux 6.1.14
Available memory: 672/1891 MB
Cpu model: Intel® Atom™ x5-Z8350 CPU @ 1.44GHz
Cpu number: 4
Cpu max frequency: 1920 MHz

chaggydawg

Actually Figured it out, if anyone else is curious, just had to save the script as

/userdata/system/custom.sh