Here it goes :-) :

Please note I never made any keyboard hack before, I'm still going to build my first! The info I provide here allows you to use the best key assignements so you can assemble the most perfect arcade-style controls ever. And done by yourself! Don't ask me prices or where to buy buttons, arcade joysticks or other arcade parts, I don't know! For these questions, go to "Build Your Own Arcade Controls", there you can find all the info you want, plus many other more simple keyboard configs.

Attention

Not all emulators are fully compatible with the keys assignements that my configs use; the most close in compatibility is MAME and even this one has little problems. Some emulators just don't allow full key remapping, and it is a basic feature in order to use the multiple key-pressing my configs offer. If your favourite emulator has problems with some keys, politely ask their authors to modify the programs so they'll be compatible. Don't complain on me, I don't make keyboards and I don't write emulators - I just want to have fun with them! To see particular problems with your favourite emulators, check The Used Keys and Known Problems sections. I didn't test it with every emulator under the sun, since I don't have them all. If you don't like it, make a more simple keyboard hack, a SideWinder hack or buy a professional state-of-the-art arcade control such as the HotRod, prices starting at US$ 179. I just want to make justice: the HotRod is a nice product, indeed.


TRUTHS AND MISCONCEPTIONS ABOUT HACKED KEYBOARDS

At Retrogames MAME message board, some people said there are two main problems with keyboard hacks. First, you'll have a computer without a keyboard plugged to it. Second, the keyboard matrix wasn't created with the objective of allowing more than 2 or 3 buttons pressed at same time. That's true: most ordinary keyboards have this limitation. Both reasons make sense, but they're not the last words. Check if your keyboard belongs to this category, doing the following: make sure the three leds in it are off (Num Lock, Caps Lock, Scroll Lock). Now press and hold down keys F and G. Keep an eye on the leds: they should still be off. While holding down the two keys, press H. In an standard keyboard, the three leds should be on. If it happened on yours, don't worry: it happens on mine also - you are not alone. You just had a spiritual experience called the "ghost-key" effect.

As for not having a keyboard connected to the PC, well, I made my configs with the necessary functions most emulators actually use, and some more for convenience. You don't have to put all the extra keys I suggest, but if you do, you won't notice any missing keyboard. Using a good frontend you can quit a game and start another one without exiting for DOS. If the keyboard is a must and you're skilled on electronics stuff, you can follow the instructions for connecting two keyboards at "Hardware tricks round the PC"- this is a very cool site, with detailed instructions on how to solve these and other issues on your PC. Plus you'll end up learning more about the "ghost-key" effect. Don't forget to visit "Build Your Own Arcade Controls"

But the real hard deal is to find many keys that won't mind if pressed together. If you own an standard keyboard, open it up - you'll see the reason. The keyboard matrix make scans using rows and columns; so there's an obvious limit on how many keys hosted by the same line or row that can actually be pressed together. Explaining better: you can put all your 20 fingers, your nose, tongue and whatever else (!) over the keyboard and push as many keys as you can - the matter is just that the PC won't recognize all of them.

The said limit is that after holding down 3 or 4 keys, the PC doesn't know the next 4th or 5th key; and if you release one of them, again the PC doesn't notice it. This is called the "ghost-key" effect. Of course, in many emulated games you gotta be able to press 3, maybe 4 buttons together in order to make a special move, gain energy or whatever special feature the game offers. And this should be made having in mind the joystick, who uses 4 more buttons and, in 4 different diagonals, uses 2 buttons at same time! If you're playing with a friend, then you both couldn't make some movements, press some keys, etc. together.

Richard Ragon (from HotRod Joystick) carefully pointed it out as the main bad reason for not using a hacked keyboard for arcade emulation. According to him, the "ghost-key" problem would be an unbeatable barrier. His exact words: "You can add all the buttons you like, but if you use a keyboard hack as your computer interface, you can only press 3 maybe 4 buttons at the same time; thus making games like SF II impossible to play." For your information, this is NOT entirely accurate.


LET'S SEE THE NEWS


Here are them: while I had nothing better to do, I searched and found many simultaneous key-pressing combinations, with a total of 16 (yeah, SIXTEEN) keys pushed at same time! Every single key can be released and pressed again, it'll be recognized! There are, eventually, some "ghost-key" effects, but they don't cause any problem in MAME. Their effects in other emulators are annoying - although they can be easily solved by their authors. For better explainings, see Known Problems, Note 1. Let's check if your keyboard can perform a simultaneous 15 key-pressing now so it can be properly hacked. It must be a Win95 model, with the two Win keys and the Menu key at right. Just like the first test, make sure the three leds are off. I now you're no contortionist, so be aware it's hard :-)

Using only left hand, press and hold down the following keys: Left Shift, Left Control, X, C, S, D, E, R and 1; using right hand, Scroll Lock, Print Screen, Up Arrow, Right Arrow, Numpad 2 and Numpad 4. You probably kept an eye at the leds all the time, right? If, with these 15 keys held down together, the three leds are still off, congratulations! Chances are real big that your keyboard can be used. If the leds are on, no chance. In this case I strongly recommend that you perform this test in other keyboards until you find one that accepts. Be careful on doing it at a computer store :-) If the clerk gets you... you'll probably be throw away from the window!


THE HOTKEYBS

I've managed to create not one or two, but FOUR nasty keyboard hacks using only an ordinary keyboard, no joystick needed. The keyboard I use is a Troni, Turbo-Plus KB-8000 R+ (world-standard and cheapest Win95 keyboard). You can press all the firing buttons together, plus any combination of joysticks diagonals. Also you can press 1P/2P/3P start keys combinated with joysticks positions for some games' special features (such get a special character in King of Fighters, for example). I christened my keyboard hacks as HotKeybs (sounds familiar? :-)

Here's a resume of my configs:

HotKeyb: GameLord - for 1 player at a time: 2 sticks (side by side) plus up to TWELVE buttons. All firing keys can be pressed together, along with any combinations of the 2 sticks. Suitable for Street Fighter & Mortal Kombat series, Neo-Geo titles, and every game that needs 2 sticks such Smash T.V., Crazy Climber, Robotron, Karate Champ... The extra keys can be used on emulators that allow hotkeys such NeoRAGEx.

HotKeyb: Champion - for 2 players together: 2 sticks plus up to SIX buttons each. Great for Street Fighter, Mortal Kombat and Neo-Geo competition! All firing keys can be pressed together along with any combinations of the 2 sticks. Of course you can play two sticks games also. There are many single-keyboard hacks out there, but I don't know any as complete as this one - this is your professional arcade-style control made with ONE HACKED KEYBOARD!

HotKeyb: Survivor - for 2 players together: 2 sticks for each player plus 3 buttons for player 1. You can Smash T.V. or do a Total Carnage with a friend just like the old times! Fight Karate Champ versus your buddies - Full Point!

HotKeyb: Ul-3-mate! - for 3 players together: 1 stick plus 2 buttons for each player. Ul-3-mate fun!

In my configs YOU *CAN* PRESS ALL YOUR FIRING BUTTONS TOGETHER with any combinations of diagonals, they will be recognized. There are slight differences between my configs other than different positions of buttons and sticks. The assigned keys for left and right sticks are swapped, having in mind the first player is the one who will always get through Main Menu, change game configs, select and validate cheats in MAME with 1P start etc.


THE USED KEYS

My HotKeybs use a total of 28 keys, 20 of them for sticks and game buttons, they are: 1, 7, 9, - (minus - the key at right of '0'), E, R, S, D, X, C, Left Shift, Left Control, Left Win, Right Win, Up Arrow, Right Arrow, Numpad 2, Numpad 4, Scroll Lock and Print Screen. The other keys are: Esc, F3, Tab, Pause, P, 2, Enter and 3. To be compatible, an emulator must:

- recognize all these keys in DOS and (preferably) under Windows, without the annoying problem of calling the desktop when any Win key is pressed;

- allow full key remapping of the user keys, such 1P/2P/3P start, insert coin, and not use the F2 key (or at least allow changing its function to another key).


KNOWN PROBLEMS

Note 1: The "ghost-key" effect

I must relate it because I'm honest after all: yes, there are "ghost-key" possibilities in my configurations, 43 to be exact. Be calm: they won't interfere in your gameplay at MAME, because the generated keys are not used and they don't interfere in any way. There's two ways to happen: an isolated case is up arrow, right arrow and Scroll Lock (producing Num Lock). The other 42 harmless "ghost-key" effects happen when you press any two of the following keys: 2, 3, W, E, S, D, X, C with up arrow or Scroll Lock (like this: E, X & up / E, X & Scroll Lock). Since I don't use W key, the number of possible combinations for each key (up arrow or Scroll Lock) is 21. The generated key is F2; in MAME it doesn't do any evil if you remap Service Mode to PGDN, for example. In NeoRAGEx, F2 changes Audio Setting; in Raine, it activates SaveGame; in Callus, it is 2P start. See also Note 3.
Note 2: The Win keys and PRTSCRN (Print Screen/SysRq)

In MAME, Raine and Callus, the Win keys make the desktop show up if you play under Windows (this doesn't happen in NR). No workaround, play under pure DOS, because if you don't, they'll activate the desktop. If you developers can figure a way to prevent it, please do! At MAME, when you configure your keyboard for use of these keys, or the Menu key, it shows "Error" because they're not named yet (a mistake from MAME Team), but they work fine under DOS.

NR & MAME don't recognize PRTSCRN at all, and Raine & Callus only recognize it under DOS. NR has a little bug in the way it scans the keyboard: left & right Win keys are allowed in the keyboard config, but not in game. If you try to assign another key after assigning a Win key, the Win key will be repeated. The keys Esc, Tab & Pause should not be accepted in key redefining because they have specific functions in the emulator.

Note 3: Key remapping

My configs aren't fully compatible yet with NeoRAGEx, Raine & Callus because these emulators don't allow *full* key remapping just like MAME does. Some common keys are fixed: my configs use buttons 1 & 9 (both used by NR) and I couldn't change keys for 1P start (1), 2P start (3) coin insert (2) and Audio Setting (F2) in NR. Raine uses F2 (the "ghosted" key) to save game data. Callus uses F1 as 1P start, F2 as 2P start and F3 as coin insert. Also in this last one, when a number key is pressed, some information is showed on screen. When these emulators' authors provide a way for the user to change these keys, then my HotKeybs will be fully compatible with them. There is no other way to do it - the necessary combinations are only possible using the keys I related :-(

Note 4: The numpad keys

NeoRAGEx doesn't recognize numpad keys if Num Lock is off; this is a bug in the emulator. MAME allows using either the arrow keys or the numpad to go across the menu options; but a little bug in the cheat system doesn't allow using the numpad keys, only the arrows, and my configs use keys from the numpad. If you're a MAMEDEV, please tell JCK about this matter, so it'll be possible to go through the cheat system, pick up any cheat and validate it. 1P stick is arrow-based, and the assigned key for 1P start is Enter - so you press Tab, go through the Main Menu and select any cheat, validating it with 1P start.

Making fully-compatible key configs with the available emulators is not up to me only - I did what I could to find working combinated keys and I can't be held responsible if some combinations create a "ghosted" reserved key or if some emulators don't have full key remapping available. This is not a unsolvable problem, but it is, now, away from my range - and to be fully successful, I need help from the interested parts in convincing the MAME, Raine, Callus and NeoRAGEx teams to do the necessary changes to their emulators. Antiriad, Nicola, Anders & Janne are good guys and hopefully they'll want to, I think the same about people at Bloodlust. If you gotta close contact with them, please do a help!

Hey, I'm just suggesting that it could be up to the user to change the keys if he/she wanted to. You, who are interested in having a complete and bug-free HotKeyb, help me in asking these emulators authors to modify their programs. Just be nice, telling them the reasons, and as comprehensible people, they might agree with the arguments (well, in order to have my work recognized, I just hope so). I'm sure they are aware of how hard is to hack a keyboard in the conditions I got to do. They depends on our feedback to see their hard work worth it, same with my HotKeybs now. Please Antiriad, Anders & Janne, Bloodlust, please MAME Team, help HotKeybs become a true bug-free reality!


GIVE ME SOME FEEDBACK

What do you think about the HotKeybs? Did you contact Bloodlust, the MAME, Raine or NeoRAGEx teams, what did they say? Did you test with your own keyboard? If so, what happened? Wich brand are you using, I'd like to know others brands/models who work and the ones who don't. Suggestions and commendations are welcomed. Mail me here

Now, let's work!


Bugfinder




WARNING

I took too much time to find these hacks, so I deserve at least some credit. You can freely put *unmodified* HotKeyb configs with all necessary info in your webpage as long as you give me the due credit - just like this site does. You are *not* allowed to earn money from assembling and selling HotKeybs. I made this info available for free. Go find your own keyboard hacks, good luck.

If your company is interested in producing HotKeybs, you must contact me first, in order to negotiate a reasonable settlement (read: pay me for it). HotKeyb, HotKeyb: GameLord, HotKeyb: Champion, HotKeyb: Survivor, HotKeyb: Ul-3-Mate!, their combinated/designed keys and layouts are Copyright (C) 1999 by Filipe de Vasconcellos Estima. All cited trademarks are properties of their respective owners.

Contacts: afe99@uol.com.br

Thank you and have fun!