luxATOM » Development

A new project

Apollolux — Tue, 22 Sep 2009 04:31:53 +0000

I’ll be starting a new project and will be documenting it here. The plan is to mod a PlayStation (aka PSX) controller (the classic one, pre-analog/Dual-Shock) to become an arcade-style joystick for not only PlayStation use but also MAME use on the computer (with a controller converter I already have).

I’ve ordered the following arcade parts online from GroovyGameGear.com:

Happ “Competition” joystick
8 Happ concave pushbuttons (2 yellow, 2 orange, 1 red for O, purple for ☐, blue for X, green for Δ)
1 white w/black “player 1″ imprint Happ pushbutton (probably for the “Start” button)
Total cost (after shipping & tax): US$28.36

Unfortunately, they don’t have a black w/white “player 1″ imprint Happ pushbutton. I’ll have to get it somewhere else, but if I do get it it’ll be the “Start” and the white will be “Select.” Either way, I should be receiving my parts soon and can get started. I’ll be using 22-gauge stranded wire (from RadioShack) and I have to find a place that sells female crimp-on quick-disconnects in bulk (at least a pack of 30); worst comes to worst I’ll get it directly from Happ’s website. I’ll also need solder (I forgot to pick that up when I bought the wire :P ).

To start, I already have a classic PSX controller that works and ready to mod. When I actually start the procedure I’ll take many pics. I also have a Domino’s pizza box which I’ll use as a temporary case for the setup (got the idea from this XBox 360 controller mod project); the shape of the box is VERY conducive to stability. I’ll be following the work of this guy who had successfully modded a classic PSX controller to an arcade joystick; where his work only allows 6 of the 8 action buttons to be used, however, I plan to use EVERY button (which is why I’m starting w/a classic PSX controller, and not going straight to a Dual-Shock; Dual-Shock joystick will be the NEXT project ;) ). I’ve also been practicing gripping my soldering iron to see what’s comfortable for me.

So to sum up, at writing I have in my possession the original controller, a small pizza box, a soldering iron, and a total of abt 75 feet of wire (25 red, 50 black). On their way are a bunch of buttons and a joystick. I’ll still need solder (no prob) & female quick-disconnects (should be no prob), but otherwise I’ll be pretty much ready to go! I’ll keep y’all posted as I go through the process.

Site design update!

Apollolux — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 02:38:54 +0000

I’ve finally updated the design of the main site! It looks a lot cleaner, the HTML is more streamlined, and the CSS has been updated to take advantage of features found in more modern browsers (that means no IE 6 or 7, y’all). Should now be easier to add stuff. Graphics have also been changed as well.

IconBuffet

Apollolux — Fri, 08 Aug 2008 20:51:41 +0000

I’ve been a member of IconBuffet for quite some time now, and I feel I’ve amassed a decent number of icon sets. IconBuffet is like an Internet swap meet for icons; people have icons, want icons, and can trade icons for other icons. All the icons are royalty-free stock icons created by the members of IB, and many of them come in multiple dimensions. Some are grouped into “families,” where there’s a very similar style of pixel art between icons to go along with the name. There are a few other features I haven’t yet explored, but once I have time I can’t wait to do it!

Fonts

Apollolux — Tue, 15 Jul 2008 19:02:17 +0000

Anyone else besides myself know how to draw the font but not how to add OpenType features to it properly? I want to add contextual alternates so that if the word ATOM appears the regular M is replaced with an alternate M (basically the same glyph but mirrored). Should be easy, right? For some reason my font doesn’t want to cooperate.

In theory, the following should work:

feature calt {
	sub A T O M' by M.alt;
}

And yet, it doesn’t change in Photoshop. What gives??