MulipleMiceMame/dx8Mame

Old theory: I wonder if the serial and ps/2 mice problem is because their drivers are not fully directX compatible? See if you can follow this reasoning. It's because USB mice are HID's ("Human Interface Devices"), while ps/2 and serial mice are not HID's. Windows 98/Me can see the HID mice as separate devices, but not non-HID mice. Go figure: the normal ps/2 mouse is not a "Human Interface Device"; <sarcasm>great labeling there Microsoft</sarcasm>.

I'm throwing these pages up for you all to try/test/fix. I'll try to keep this page current, and clean it up later. ;)

Download the files from the download page.

This page is a little out-of-date. The information is still pretty good, though. I'll upgrade this page, too, at some point.

The Binary

complied mame55 (multiple USB mice+mappable mouse axes +saved settings)

complied mame55 (multiple USB mice) (old)

You need directX 8.0 or greater installed to run the binary. You need usb mice for more than one mouse to be seen.

This binary lets people with up to four USB mice connect and control different players. As compiled, if any usb mice are connected, all serial and ps/2 mice control player 4. If no usb mice are connected, all mice control player 1 (just like mame .55).

The new binary partially adds three new features: (a little more info)

The setting you input are not yet saved, but I'm working on it.

If one of your USB mice is not working correctly, just unplug and replug it. (That's what I did and it fixed it. Don't know why.)

See the what's new page and MultiMice Test Page for some more info.

To compile your own:

You need directX 8.0 or greater installed to run your compiled binary. You need all the dx8 C++ header files to compile.

I suggest having two mingw's if you try compiling: one for normal mame compiling, one for dx8 mame. My dx8 mingw directory is mingwdx8, and is written so in this notes.

Just multiple mice source

• download the earlier, smaller zip of edited files with just the mulitiple mouse changes:
  • windows/input.c: The major changes: basically changed all dInput devices to dInput8, and added an extra table to map whatever mouse to whichever player.
  • windows/sound.c, window/winddraw.c: Minor changes to fit directX 8
  • windows/dxversion.h: edit to compile with dx5 instead of dx8
  • inptport.c: includes the analog pedal fix (not needed for multiple mice)
  • makefile: needed to set -Wno-error for the windows source to compile because the MS dx8 headers redefine and other warning stuff. Looks like I edited some other areas, but only the -Wno-error change and -Werror change is needed.
  • windows/windows.mak: needed to add the dinput8 library to the linking libs.
• in that mapping table, you might want to edit lines 143-147 (old: 704 - 717) in src/windows/input.c to preset which mouse controls which player differently than the binary does. This really should be done in the: set input UI. I'll see if I can do anything about this.
• you can also set the analog joysticks on line 140.
• you need all of MS directX 8 header files, and some editing is required. MS directX8 SDK (just get the C++ SDK) has all the header files. I had to edit three of them (You still need the rest of the header files). I just copied the MS dx8 C++ SDK header files over the files in mingwdx8/include directory, and then copied the three I edited over that.
• you need Peter Puck's dx8 libs in gcc format. I'm mirroring them here because it took me about 2 months before the webserver let me download them. ;-) I just copied the lib*.a files over the files in mingwdx8/lib directory.
• you should make clean then make to make sure all old directX 5 compiled objects get erased, or have two mame55 compile dirs: one the original, one with these changes.
• You need two (or three or four) usb mice.;-)
• I am assuming you have compiled mame before, at least for now. Sorry, but you can get all the information needed lots of places. Check out mame.net message boards; and read the answers to the questions on basic compiling. I will help on questions specific to dx8 and errors compiling multiple mouse mame.

Partially implemented mouse axes features

• download the pack of files edited (mostly usrintrf.c, but others added too)
• follow above instructions.;-)

My MultiMouse Test Page lists all the combinations of mice I tested.

The What's new page lists some advantages of using the source, in addition to the what the binary does.

Old post:

Can Mame Be Rewritten for Dual Mice Input?

A link (given by xiaou2) shows a program written in java that uses two mice for two separate inputs. All they seemed to do to get the the multiple inputs was use some native directX 8.0 c function calls. The Java just was set up with multiple mice in mind and handled the user interface. Mame knows how to handle multiple mice and is a great UI; it just can't get access to the individual mouse inputs. I think if mame was re-written and compiled for directX 8.0, mame would be able to get separate multiple mouse inputs.

I don't have VC; I can't find directX 8.0 libraries to compile and link with the gcc mame uses. Anybody who can tell me where to get gcc dx8 libs? But currently I can't compile for dx8. (note: I now have PeterPuck's dx8 libs mirrored here)

But I want dual mouse inputs so badly, I rewrote the necessary files (I hope) to make mame directX 8.0 compliant. All someone has to do is download them, replace the 3 changed files, and compile with the directX 8.0 libs. I don't know if any more hacking needs to be done to compile in VC, but please, someone with VC try compiling these hacks. I can help you or do any rewriting needed to compile. Just let me know if dual USB mice work. (and post the binary if it does) I tested the files by compiling mame using gcc + MS directX 8.0 includes, but since the MS libraries are for VC, I could not link the .o files to see if the rewrite actually works, but I was able to make all mame .o files with the changes.

All changes are now between:

#if(DIRECTINPUT_VERSION >= 0x0800)
      [new code]
#else
      [original code]
#endif //#if(DIRECTINPUT_VERSION >= 0x0800)

so if you set:

• DIRECTINPUT_VERSION 0x0500, mame will compile as normal
• DIRECTINPUT_VERSION 0x0800, mame will compile with dx8 (hopefully)

download changed files (mame .55; 2001 oct 9):

• src/windows/input.c
• src/windows/sound.c
• src/windows/winddraw.c

All real changes are in the input.c file; the other two files' changes cover differences between the gcc and VC compilers, I think. If you have problems with these two files, try using the original files.

Here's a smaller program + source to test directX 8.0 vs 5.0 and dual mice. (much easier to debug) The binary is compiled with dX5.0, because as said above, I can't compile & link directX 8.0. The differences, like above, are between #if(), #else, and #endif lines.

Mame would have the same limits as the Java program:

• the computer must be running win98 or winME (not winNT or win2000)
• the computer must have directX 8.0 (or higher) installed
• the computer must have two USB mice
• (mame must call the directX 8.0 functions, i.e. be compiled for directX 8.0)

Remember, you need two usb mice.

I am trying to compile with mingw and MS dx8 headers and libs, but keep getting conflicts. I'll see what I can do, and let you know any progress.

I'll clean these pages up later. Sorry about the mess.