Posted by Jayd177 on February 11, 2002 at 23:22:37:
Hey all,
Looks like Police Trainer is in the works, from the WIP page. This leads me to a curiosity I've had for a while. When are Mame programmers going to talk with someone from Happs and figure get light guns in the making for TV's, Comp. monitors, and arcade monitors.
Here's my ideas for anyone interested in helping this along:
1. We've got multiple mice from Analog Mame 32
"http://www.urebelscum.speedhost.com/index.html"
2. We've got usb lightpen mouse drivers (so cursor "jumps")
"Windows 98 Light Pen Drivers for USB interface
Release 1.03.0000 (Dec. 14, 1999)
ECO# 160
Fastpoint Technologies, Inc."
Note that the light pens work the same as light guns by reading scan lines. The only difference is that the optics in the light pen need to be right up on the monitor, where as the optics of the light guns can be at a distance. The basic principle is the same.
And another thing, The power needed to operate the optics is the same as the light pens, or my optical mouse for that matter, which comes through the usb.
3. Guns could be assembled for TV's (using nintendo's, playstation's, or Dreamcast's optic pcb's), computer monitors (using act lab's optic pcb's), or arcade monitors (using pcb's that Happ's already has).
If I ever get some money and a break from grad. school I plan on getting an arcade gun from happs to go with a wells-gardner monitor and hacking usb optical mice, using the light pen drivers. Sounds fanciful though, and what the Mame community really needs is some cooperation to really lock something down. After all, if it's in the spirit of preserving arcade memories, what the bloody hell good is a gun game without a friggen gun???
Please, I ask that anyone who actually took the time to read all of that and has any influence in the mame community to pass any of these ideas along, or just the general concept of cooperating to get light guns into mame.
Thanks for tolerating my rant. Jay