Free TiVo: Build a Better DVR out of an Old PC (Page 3 of 4)
Categories: Homebrew & DIY
5. Install PSX/N64 to USB Converters
In order to play emulators well, you usually need a good gamepad. For some reason, most of the gamepads for PC aren't very good, and if a PC gamepad is good, then it's usually really expensive. So a while back, I found a cool product that converts a PlayStation or Nintendo 64 controller to a USB interface. This allows a PC to see it as a regular PC gamepad. I bought two of these from http://www.lik-sang.com/info.php?category=2&products_id=93&lsaid=560852, and they work really well. I took two slightly used PlayStation controllers, plugged them in, and now I can use the controllers in any emulator which supports Windows gamepads (which is nearly all of them). This really enhances the gameplay experience, and the USB converters aren't that expensive.
These converters are also easy to install. Just plug them in, and Windows will automatically recognize them as Human Interface Devices.
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6. Install and Configure Girder
Girder is a very handy program that allows you to automate Windows. Basically, it acts as the "glue" between different programs. In my case, it acts as the glue between pressing buttons on my Hauppauge IR remote and taking actions in WinDVD and in all of the other programs on my system. This completes the home-theater-style experience. For example, Girder lets me set up commands so that pressing a button on the remote simulates pressing the "Play" button in WinDVD.
Girder also has a flexible plug-in architecture that lets third-party developers create plugins to enhance Girder's capabilities. Girder doesn't natively support my Hauppauge IR remote, so I installed a plug-in that allows Girder to receive button events from the remote.
One important thing I discovered is that it is a good idea to disable the standard IR remote application that installs by default with the Hauppauge TV card drivers, because this application makes the Girder plug-in respond less quickly. You can disable this application by going to the Startup folder in the Windows Start menu and deleting the "Autostart IR" shortcut.
I installed
another plug-in for Girder called OSD Menu, which allows me to easily create my own On Screen Menus. Using this, I created a custom menu that allows me to open and close all of my players and game emulators. This menu corresponds to a Girder configuration file (GML) I created, which talks to all of the programs: WinDVD, BeyondTV, Winamp, 1964 (Nintendo 64 emulator), Snes9x (Super Nintendo/SNES emulator), FCE Ultra (NES emulator), Visualboy Advance (Gameboy and Gameboy Advance emaultor), Kega Fusion (Sega Genesis, Master System, and Game Gear emulator) and MAME (multiple arcade machine emulator). This way, I can launch, play, and close everything from my Hauppauge remote. Note that the best SNES emulator is ZSNES, but it uses a very nonstandard Windows interface which Girder has trouble connecting to. As a result, I use the Snes9x emulator instead, which is almost as good.I'm going to leave out the part where I explain how I set up all of the functions for these different programs, because it's essentially the same process anyone would have to go through to automate a program with Girder (and because it would take me forever to type it all out). Check out the GML file to see how I did it, if you're interested. I created separate GML files for all of the different programs and then imported them into a top-level GML file, which implements a nice OSD menu and enables or disables the different programs' commands based on which program you're currently running. I've included the individual GML files (named appropriately for each program) and the top-level GML file (named toplevel.gml; clever name, eh?). And if you still want more info, check out Girder's homepage at http://promixis.com/; they have an excellent user forum where you can get pretty much any question answered by true Girder gurus.
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