I'm not a serious gamer, and little did I know that one day I would actually use a wireless gaming controller actively. Most of the time it's not for playing games though - I'm using it as a partial replacement of the keyboard and mouse, by mapping custom commands to the buttons. Shortcuts without even touching the keyboard? Bringing keyboard ninja skills to the next level ;)
It all began when I started experiencing some pain in my wrist from too much mouse use. A friend loaned me a Logitech F710 wireless game controller*, and to my delight, I found that Logitech provides software to map the buttons to keystrokes and the analog sticks to the mouse. Since I use a lot a lot of keyboard shortcuts in my everyday computing, it was a great solution. Now I usually have my hands comfortably on the controller, only leaving it occasionally to type or when I need precision mousing. I even mapped Aero Flip so I could switch between different program windows easily.
It's been lots of fun using the F710, so I'll go into detail on making it work in the next section. If you're not using a Logitech controller, you can try using software such as Joystick 2 Mouse.
First of all, you need to download Logitech Gaming Software (also known as Logitech Profiler) from the product webpage. Once you've connected the controller, make sure it is in D-mode and not X-mode. Then you can fire up the software, set up a new profile, and start mapping away! Alternatively, you can copy my exported profile, save it as an XML file, and import it. You have to make the profile global (Options - > Global profiler settings -> Apply persistent profile) to fully use Aero Flip. Since the mappings only work in D-mode and the games I play use X-mode, everything works out nicely. Side note: if you're recording the keystrokes manually, you have to disable Aero in Windows before Aero Flip can be mapped.
Most of the shortcuts are for browsing, like opening and closing tabs, and the d-pad is mapped to arrow keys and used for scrolling. Backspace is used to go back while browsing. The mapped 'm', 'c' and 'i' keys are used in XBMC to bring up the relevant menus.
A couple of tips on the F710 controller: if the connection is lost, press the 'Logitech' button in middle to reconnect. And if the mappings don't work, check that it's in D-mode.
On a semi-related note, Steam rolled out a beta optimized for controllers called "Big Picture" mode. Interestingly, you can even type quite efficiently using the controller. Check it out if you're a Steam user ;)
*I like using the F710 so much that I bought my own unit. The rubber grip surface is nice to hold :)
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| The wireless controller I use - Logitech F710 |
It all began when I started experiencing some pain in my wrist from too much mouse use. A friend loaned me a Logitech F710 wireless game controller*, and to my delight, I found that Logitech provides software to map the buttons to keystrokes and the analog sticks to the mouse. Since I use a lot a lot of keyboard shortcuts in my everyday computing, it was a great solution. Now I usually have my hands comfortably on the controller, only leaving it occasionally to type or when I need precision mousing. I even mapped Aero Flip so I could switch between different program windows easily.
It's been lots of fun using the F710, so I'll go into detail on making it work in the next section. If you're not using a Logitech controller, you can try using software such as Joystick 2 Mouse.
First of all, you need to download Logitech Gaming Software (also known as Logitech Profiler) from the product webpage. Once you've connected the controller, make sure it is in D-mode and not X-mode. Then you can fire up the software, set up a new profile, and start mapping away! Alternatively, you can copy my exported profile, save it as an XML file, and import it. You have to make the profile global (Options - > Global profiler settings -> Apply persistent profile) to fully use Aero Flip. Since the mappings only work in D-mode and the games I play use X-mode, everything works out nicely. Side note: if you're recording the keystrokes manually, you have to disable Aero in Windows before Aero Flip can be mapped.
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| Logitech profiler keymap |
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| Logitech profiler keymap - shifted commands |
Most of the shortcuts are for browsing, like opening and closing tabs, and the d-pad is mapped to arrow keys and used for scrolling. Backspace is used to go back while browsing. The mapped 'm', 'c' and 'i' keys are used in XBMC to bring up the relevant menus.
A couple of tips on the F710 controller: if the connection is lost, press the 'Logitech' button in middle to reconnect. And if the mappings don't work, check that it's in D-mode.
On a semi-related note, Steam rolled out a beta optimized for controllers called "Big Picture" mode. Interestingly, you can even type quite efficiently using the controller. Check it out if you're a Steam user ;)
*I like using the F710 so much that I bought my own unit. The rubber grip surface is nice to hold :)
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