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[Gravious]

I'm trying to find out if SDL can detect and use dual analogue sticks on a 360 controller (or any other controller with dual analogues,) but i cant find specific tutorials or evidence that it can. 

Can anyone help?

[ravuya]

Yes, I'm doing it right now.

The second stick just appears as another two axes, along with the analogue triggers.

[PoV]

Yeah, it does.  The only annoyance with it is Microsoft's driver combines the L and R triggers in to a single axis (it's not just SDL).  Especially given 3rd party drivers for the original Xbox and GameCube controllers treat them just fine as separate axes.

There's a standard controller tutorial on the SDL site.  Start there.  Axis will read as a value from either -128 to 127, or 0 to 255 (I can't remember).  It's pretty straight forward.

[ravuya]

It actually shows as a signed short, so 32767 and -32767. Or something like that.??But that is just technical pedantry. The single axis triggers annoy me too. Wonder if that's how it is on the 360.

[Ryan]

If you are on windows, go to the control panel, and then go to the controllers thingy. Double click on your 360 controller, and there will be a place where you can test out the different options. This helped me visualize what axes were what and how the buttons were numbered.

If I still had the source I would have put it up, but I didn't bother saving it after a reformat. Using what I just said + the SDL joystick example will make everything straight forward.

If you STILL can't get it after trying these things, let me know.

[PoV]

The single axis triggers annoy me too.

Really, I wonder what Microsoft was thinking.  It's quite an annoying restriction, and every non 360 controller I've tested gives L and R their own axis.  Thanks to a silly Microsoft oversight, any game that wants to support the controller correctly is going to need custom code, if you use the triggers.

What's most baffling, is I can't theoretically hold down both triggers to fire dual guns in Halo thanks to this silly implementation.  Sure, on PC you'd use mouse+keyboard, but it extra sucks from a development standpoint.

If only the PS3 controller worked properly.  Not that half ass solution without the extra axis (that I can't get to work on XP64).

[Flink]

When i used the 360 controller on the pc i use X-Input which is a nice API for using the 360 controller on  a pc, VERY easy to use!

[Ishi]

Aye, I have to hand it to Microsoft, XInput is a super sexy API. It also handles the triggers properly so you can press them at the same time (don't ask me how). Also gives you access to the 360 pad's awesome rumble.

It's just a shame you have to do extra code specifically for the 360 pad.

[JP]

A little thingy I made this weekend uses the 360 wireless controller in Linux (using the xpad driver) so yeah it's much like any other pad albeit with weird axis mappings.

[Bezzy]

Aye, I have to hand it to Microsoft, XInput is a super sexy API. It also handles the triggers properly so you can press them at the same time (don't ask me how). Also gives you access to the 360 pad's awesome rumble.

It's just a shame you have to do extra code specifically for the 360 pad.

You also have access to the headphone speaker and microphone with XInput. XInput = TrueWin.

[SplinterOfChaos]

Anyone think that maybe Microsoft was an ass on purpose (again) in order to keep control of their product and keep a feeling of self worth (again) in a world that is run by the Microsoft Monopoly while desperately hunting for refuge in third-party software, that Microsoft then tries to control (again)?

I'm honestly not sure, but is seems like something they'd do to me.

[Alex May]

Hm?