BMS Key File Help
-
This is a long thread, but I am having an issue with the BMS auto.key file in the AL.
For some reason the AL always puts my TWCS throttle before my TM1600 stick in the device sorter. This then causes the game to mix up the button order so that my trigger is button 34 instead of 1. End result is a cascading effect that leads all my AL mapping to be messed up, including some of the axis’.
FYI I have manually switched the order in the DeviceSorter.txt file so that the stick is first but the AL keeps reordering the throttle before the stick.
Anyone come across this before?
-
@Tobruk yes to be clear, AL overwrites DeviceSorting.txt … that is known and expected.
if you want to hand-manage that file, and your key file, etc – which is fine, that’s how everyone flew BMS for most of the past 20 years – you will need to avoid the new AL.
ie. change the desktop shortcut from
\Falcon BMS 4.37\Launcher\FalconBMS_Alternative_Launcher.exe
to
\Falcon BMS 4.37\Launcher.exe
-
Thanks Airtex, I guess I just have to figure out how to get BMS to choose the stick first. I will mess with varying USB ports or perhaps windows setting.
I did try and exclusively use the in game mapper but it still places the button priority to the throttle so that the joy stick trigger is button 34 instead of 1.
I suppose one solution would be to just use the stick and key board the throttle but that hardly seems like a suitable option.
Do you think this could be a bug for the TM1600 hotas, or just my burden alone?
-
@Tobruk seems like several people with T.16000M combo are having problems … idk if it’s because it’s popular (probably most affordable new hotas combo) or if there’s an endemic problem.
I opened a new thread to try to answer the DeviceSorting.txt question.
https://forum.falcon-bms.com/topic/24284/alt-launcher-and-devicesorting-txt-question
-
@Tobruk I think I found the problem (well, “a” problem) and have an easy workaround, if you’re game to help test it out. Sending you a DM.
-
Hi airtex, thanks again for all the assistance. Real life intervened.
I think I have the solution and it is easier and sillier than you think.
As suggested in the joystick thread, I simply plugged by stick to one of the front usb sockets and the throttle to a back one.
I fired up the game via the launcher and halleluiah, the trigger registered as button one and all the AL presets for the joystick worked.
What a silly and simple bug. I’m a bit embarrassed that I did not try that first. I still have further testing to verify that the other throttle buttons still work. Oh and I checked the DeviceSorter.txt file and the T16000 was first. -
@Tobruk Like I mentioned in that other thread, you would be well advised to set the device sorting file to read-only once the order is established. Then you can recable as you wish
-
@jayb it won’t help much … the AL is very aggressive, it will overwrite readonly files
-
@Tobruk said in BMS Key File Help:
What a silly and simple bug. I’m a bit embarrassed that I did not try that first. I still have further testing to verify that the other throttle buttons still work. Oh and I checked the DeviceSorter.txt file and the T16000 was first.
Nothing to be embarrassed about … I hesitated to even suggest you try that, it sounded so ridiculous.
There is a bug here, somewhere, and it’s not you. It really should not matter which relative USB ports they are in (unless you have 2 of exactly same device, eg. MFD button-panels, or vJoy devices, then there’s no other way to disambiguate).
And apparently it should also not matter which stick or throttle (or other) is top line in DeviceSorting. And then of course there’s the product name-ID discrepancy I msg’d about… I think there are multiple bugs at play here… two or three.
-
Is there a way to make the Key-file and AL work with having the switches go to an off state. I used to do this before AL with for example (See all the 0x42 lines) to turn of the three-way switches and not use another line to the controller. Like I said this all worked before AL. I thought maybe with AL and launch without any setup override after I make changes to the BMS - Auto.key file but it keeps changing it back no matter what. So what does “launch without any setup override” do. Is there a way to still get the 0x42 lines added with the AL or do I have to go back to the launcher.exe again? Below a snippet of my Key file where I use the falling edges of the actual signals to turn of the Arm Switch and other switches you see.
#======== I-PAC 2 ========
SimArmMasterArm 1024 -1 -2 0 0x0 0
SimSafeMasterArm 1024 -1 -2 0x42 0x0 0
SimRightAPDown 1025 -1 -2 0 0x0 0
SimRightAPMid 1025 -1 -2 0x42 0x0 0
SimRightAPUp 1026 -1 -2 0 0x0 0
SimRightAPMid 1026 -1 -2 0x42 0x0 0
SimLeftAPDown 1027 -1 -2 0 0x0 0
SimLeftAPMid 1027 -1 -2 0x42 0x0 0
SimLeftAPUp 1028 -1 -2 0 0x0 0
SimLeftAPMid 1028 -1 -2 0x42 0x0 0
SimLaserArmOn 1029 -1 -2 0 0x0 0
SimLaserArmOff 1029 -1 -2 0x42 0x0 0
SimRFNorm 1032 -1 -2 0 0x0 0
SimRFQuiet 1032 -1 -2 0x42 0x0 0
SimRFSilent 1033 -1 -2 0 0x0 0
SimRFQuiet 1033 -1 -2 0x42 0x0 0
SimSimMasterArm 1034 -1 -2 0 0x0 0
SimSafeMasterArm 1034 -1 -2 0x42 0x0 0 -
@ohommes
To my understanding, either you :- modify the BMS - Auto.key AND use AL with setup override
OR - modify the BMS - Full.key AND use AL without setup override
EDIT : the above statement works only for key binding, not DX binding.
EDIT 2 : the BMS - Auto.key is very likely to be overwritten during updates. - modify the BMS - Auto.key AND use AL with setup override
-
@ohommes the 4.37.x era AL does support separate press/release bindings (the 0x42 stuff). is it not working for you?
the UX is a little unintuitive… click the button that says “Press” and it will change to “Release”
-
@CheckPoint for keyboard bindings, you can edit the BMS-Auto.key and AL should pick it up. but for DX button bindings… those are in the XML files, and changes to BMS-Auto.key will be overwritten
I definitely don’t recommend editing BMS-Full.key (or any of the stock BMS*.key files) … those files can/will be overwritten when updates are installed.
Just make a copy of it… call it MyKeyFile.key or whatever.
-
@airtex2019 said in BMS Key File Help:
@CheckPoint for keyboard bindings, you can edit the BMS-Auto.key and AL should pick it up. but for DX button bindings… those are in the XML files, and changes to BMS-Auto.key will be overwritten
I definitely don’t recommend editing BMS-Full.key (or any of the stock BMS*.key files) … those files can/will be overwritten when updates are installed.
Just make a copy of it… call it MyKeyFile.key or whatever.
You are right, I mixed up key binding and DX binding.
I think you bring the right answer to ohommes (I am not using AL for the bindings, … so far).
-
@airtex2019
I’ll give this a try. Didn’t realize this was available. I’ll let you know . -
Good morning,
FYI I found a limitation to the ecxel sheet
it cannot correctly read the .key created by AL, which is in UTF-8-BOM
He sticks everything in box A1
I reported it on the bug section. -