Solved Alt Launcher and DeviceSorting.txt question
-
This question has come up in a few support threads, and I don’t know the answer…
Does BMS require the primary joystick (ie. the thing with the pitch/roll axes) be the first line in DeviceSorting.txt? I’ve heard people say that before, but I’m not sure it’s true (maybe it used to be true, maybe no longer true)?
Certainly it has always been the convention … but I don’t know if it’s a strict requirement, to BMS – if it’s part of the semantic contract AL must adhere to, when writing out these files and numbering the buttons.
There have been a few cases here where it’s not ordered that way, with weird behavior reported, and I don’t know if DeviceSorting is a contributing cause, or not.
tagging @chihirobelmo
-
I’m aware there’s some complexity with the way pov-hats are enumerated and mapped, per DeviceSorting.txt and the related cfg values… but the problems being reported seemed to go way beyond that.
-
@airtex2019 see image below:
Left side is 4.36, right side is 4.37. The way I have my controls set up, the thumb hat on my WH throttle is mapped to cursor control, the index hat on the throttle is mapped to comms, just like in the real Viper throttle. To do this, I needed to set up two hats, one on my joystick for trim and another for the throttle (comms). I thought I would have to fix this when going to 4.37 but…
Again, left side is 4.36, right side is 4.37. You can see that device IDs in .36 is 2 and 3 and for .37 is 1 and 4. For some reason, this was done for me in 4.37 automatically where I had to figure it out and manually add it in 4.36
I’m no expert here but whatever the devs did to do this auto-magically in 4.37 is appreciated. BTW, I don’t set up through the Launcher.
-
@Atlas this isn’t what I want this thread to be about … but something looks very wrong, left vs right. (how is 1 and 4 correct?) oh well, if it works, it works.
this thread is intended to ask – whether your primary flight stick needs to be the top-line device, or not.
notably, it is, in both your examples… doesn’t seem to be sorted alphabetically or numerically by pid/vid
-
-
@airtex2019 Here’s mine I didn’t even look at until now, everything seemed to work fine for me.
-
@Kavelenko thanks, I guess that’s enough to settle that concern… back to drawing board – not sure what else is giving such trouble to some users.
-
-
@airtex2019 To be honest I stopped looking at key files when I began using the Alternative Launcher a few versions ago. Now its the last thing I want to look at because I can pretty much do most of it in AL, with one exception - the first bit.
When I install BMS I start with “BMS Full” keyfile as default, set up my joystick as the primary controller in the Set Up page, click on the Advanced Button and set my axis for Rudders, Throttles, and Avionics next and then go back to Controller page to set the AB/Idle detents. You could probably do all this in the Launcher but its an old habit so I do it that way because it works for me.
Next I exit out of BMS and reboot to get the Launcher panel up again, it would be nice to be able to exit back to the launcher (hint). Make sure the check box above the Launcher Button is unchecked because we’re about to set up the call backs in AL.
Anyway from here I access the AXISASSIGN > Flight Control & Avionics page to check whether my stick, throttle, rudder axis are still working the way I mapped them in Setup. I dont bother with ICP, Radios, Audio & View tabs, just accept the defaults.Next step is to click on the KEYMAPPING tab and map every switch on your throttle and stick, its a piece of cake in AL once you get used to it. Mapped everything? Good now Launch BMS and test everything in flight. I think you’ll find it all works.
If you really have no more adjustments to make, THEN check the box above the Launch button the next time you are on that page.
Should work every time, yer welcome! -
@Kavelenko said in Alt Launcher and DeviceSorting.txt question:
I can pretty do most of it in AL, with one exception - the first bit.
There’s a lot going on (or should be going on) that you’re missing…
Because you have a Warthog – a popular, well-known and well-supported stick and throttle combo – AL matches that against a list of stock templates, and sets up those axes for you, on first startup.
It doesn’t ever read-back from the initial changes you made within BMS Settings UI…
At least that’s the theory of how things should work. If that initial bootstrap recognition is not working for your Warthog, for some reason, it might be interesting to dive into that… but worth opening another thread.
Did you have to set all your buttons manually – or was there a good/reasonable set of defaults, provided by AL?
-
@airtex2019 No you read my post wrong, I choose to set my stick and throttle in the setup page initially purely out of habit. As I mentioned you could try to map them in the AL straight away but I dont, that’s not say it wouldn’t also work in the AL from scratch. And yes I do map everything manually inside the AL when it comes to mapping call backs to the throttle and stick. I dont use any of the given Warthog key-files because they are not the same as my own preferences, no point really.
It does not take me that long to do because I have my own template:
-
@airtex2019 said in Alt Launcher and DeviceSorting.txt question:
Did you have to set all your buttons manually – or was there a good/reasonable set of defaults, provided by AL?
From memory all or most of the joystick buttons(except DX Shifted CBs) are already assigned, idle detent switches and the throttle quadrants are already detected by AL, the rest of the switches need to be assigned. I just work my way through my profile and once I’m done, launch into BMS. No call backs are over written because I did it all in AL.
-
@airtex2019 said in Alt Launcher and DeviceSorting.txt question:
@Atlas this isn’t what I want this thread to be about … but something looks very wrong, left vs right. (how is 1 and 4 correct?) oh well, if it works, it works.
this thread is intended to ask – whether your primary flight stick needs to be the top-line device, or not.
notably, it is, in both your examples… doesn’t seem to be sorted alphabetically or numerically by pid/vid
Yes, it shouldn’t be 1 as 1 is supposed to be the keyboard, unless they changed that in 4.37… but p.163 on the Technical Manual still says 1 is keyboard. 4 is correct as the throttle is now “fourth” (keyboard being first) input device.
In earlier versions of BMS, my joystick (was a WarBRD at the time) wasn’t always first, but due to the configuration of my custom .key file, I would move it to the first line so that the resulting DirectX assignments would be correct.
-
@Kavelenko said in Alt Launcher and DeviceSorting.txt question:
No you read my post wrong, I choose to set my stick and throttle in the setup page initially purely out of habit. As I mentioned you could try to map them in the AL straight away but I dont, that’s not say it wouldn’t also work in the AL
Thanks for clarifying – I understood you ok. I’m saying, I’m stepping through the AL code… it always writes its model of AxisMapping.dat and Joystick.cal, irrespective of whether any axes were already mapped within BMS.
Presumably, the defaults it selects (at least for primary axes, not buttons) are all the same, so the question is moot.