[Mike Ellison]

I'm looking for a few people that use Windows, like to play video games, and have the time and patience to answer a ton of stupid questions from me and later help me test and perfect the resulting software.

I've recently purchased a QuadControl - the XBox/USB version - and am trying to use it for gaming under Windows. The hardware's pretty nifty, but the games I've tried so far pretty much suck at being configurable enough for me to play. I've searched, but I can't find any software I like to make this work well, either.

At anyrate, I'd like to see what I can do to make more games work with custom controllers like this. I've started an open source project called GAS at SourceForge.net that I'm pouring all my free time into right now.

My first goal for controllers is to make Half-Life 2 and Doom 3 actually playable with the QuadController. Then, I plan to make the software configurable enough for other custom controllers. After that, I'll start focusing on other games.

So, if you're interested, let me know.

If you don't want me bugging you later, but can answer a few questions now, these would help me out a bunch:
1.) What hardware do you use to control Windows?
2.) What software do you use with it?
3.) What games would you like to play, but can't because they don't work well with your hardware/software combinations?

Thanks,
Mike Ellison

p.s. In the interest of full disclosure - I'm not seriously disabled myself (I've had people assume before, and I don't want to be considered a poser later as a result). The software I'm writing is free, and anyone can even take the source code and use it in other projects (here's the license for the code).

[Scottl523]

Hi, I'm a quadriplegic C3-4 complete I to operate the computer I use what is called a headmaster it's made by Prentke Romich www.prentrom.com I wear a head set when I move my head a laser moves the mouse and I blow in a straw to click the mouse I've seen the Quad control but never tried it maybe I'll be able to try it one day my brother has a PS3 I could use it with. What are you working on?
Scott

[Mike Ellison]

Greetings Scott,
I'm working on a system to make the mappings between games and external controls a lot easier among other things. The project I'm working on is the Game Accessibility Suite. It's just getting started at the moment. The GASPilot 0.2 release has the QuadControl hardcoded for Half-Life2 and Doom 3 mappings and is also able to slow down most video games to about 1/4 speed or so if desired. It's definitely not ready for general use yet, but if you take a peek at it you can see where I'm going with it. The online help has some additional information on some of the directions I'm hoping to take it.

At anyrate - I've started talking with a couple of people on AbleGamers.com about what it would take to make the MMORPGs like Guild Wars, EQ2, and WoW more easily playable with just a trackball. I'm not finding good information on the HeadMaster right off on their website, but it sounds like the same techniques might be useful to you.

Currently the techniques I'm tossing around for making the MMORPG-style games more playable are:

1.) Create a scanning switch interface for the right button. The first time the button is pressed, an array of actions would be displayed on screen and it would start scanning through them. When the desired action is reached, you click the button again to activate it.

Some of the possible actions would be stuff like:
a.) Look mode / Walk mode (toggle)
b.) Cycle targets
c.) Toggle onscreen keyboard

But basically any key/input could be mapped to an icon, the only real issue would be how much screen it'd take up.

This would be similar in concept to the SwitchXS software for the Mac, although specifically aimed at an individual game.

2.) The second idea would display a set of icons around the current mouse position when the right button was clicked. Same set of actions, but you'd use the trackball to select which action to take rather than it being a scanning process. Probably a radial menu of some sort.


#1 would probably end up being faster to use with the least movement, but would have a steep learning curve.

#2 would seem more intuitive to me, but you're moving the trackball around a lot (although granted, at least you don't have to hold anything down).

So a few questions if you've got the time

• How do these techniques sound? Any thoughts on which might work better for you?
  
• What kinds of games do you like playing?
  
• Does the straw on the HeadMaster do a left-mouse click for puff, and right-click for sip, or does it work a different way?
  
• Do you use any voice recognition software currently?

Thanks,
Mike Ellison

[SpeedyBK]

mike sent you mail but the techniques sound good but i use a small tap button on my headmaste to right click. And the main click is left and you blow to click or keep blowing to claik and drag. I was a mis student until i hated cwding so feel free to mail or whatever whenever.


Thanks,
Brett
Aka. SpeedyBK

[knight]

I would maybe play games on my computer if i could fine how to make a controller work on my computer.