rec.autos.simulators

Is there any advantage of a USB connection for a driving wheel?
Or is a game port better? any additional load on the CPU when going
game port or USB?

Im currently comparing and hammering out all the different questions i
have before buying a new wheel.

I like the AVB so far.

In my opinion....there's no "choice" in the matter....USB is far superior to
the soundcards' gameport.  There's literally too many reasons to list them
all in this reply "post."  And, there's far more involved with a USB
controller than just the "port."  Primarily, USB controllers are fully
digital...and that's a major step up over analogue controllers....regardless
of which port is used.  Go with the USB......now the question is.....which
controller to buy?

Tom

  Well I'm having a hell of a time getting my USB wheel to reconnect after
re-installing win98se.  I got the latest LWFF drivers...but the updated
Windows installer, just doesn't finish it's task.  so I manually installed
the drivers using winzip and the device manager.  I did this several months
ago, with no problem. But NOW...the wheel won't show as connected.  grrrr.
dave henrie

controllers....regardless

I don't know of any wheel that is fully digital.  I know the LWFF does
communicate to the computer via USB (or serial) in a digital form, but it
still determines the position of the wheel and pedals via potentiometers.

If those pots are going bad the software could think the wheel isn't
connected properly.

I'm also having probs with getting my Sidewinder non-FF wheel to show up in
*** options... it happens if Win98 freezes and I have to do power off /
power on (no reset switch on the Compaq...). After that the only way to get
it connected is to plug it to another computer and then back to the
Compaq... sometimes drivers and Sidewinder software has to be reinstalled.
Very annoying and time consuming...

I have a multiboot system, and now I use Win2000 for *** when ever it is
possible... it doesn't freeze like Win98 ;)

I chose USB 'cause the Compaq doesn't even have a gameport (integrated
soundcard). USB does infact take some CPU time... atleast in FPS games there
can be some difference in performance between USB and PS/2 mice. Don't know
if this applies to game controllers, maybe gameport devices also use the
same amount of CPU...

- Igor -

Was the wheel disconnected from your PC when you originally
installed the drivers? IIRC, you should only plug the wheel
in after the drivers are installed.

VIA Chipset ?

Did you reinstall the VIA USB FilterDriver V1.08 ?

ASUS Motherboard?

Many ASUS Motherboards are having USB problems with the latest BIOS Updates.
The A7V133 is especially bad after rev 1002a, (it's up to 1004 now) and most
of us with USB requirements have had to drop back down to 1002a for reliable
USB use.

Larry

gameport 50fps usb-70fps for me

Is this the Tom Pabst from the Tom's hardware site?

Just curious, as I read that site quite a bit...

controllers....regardless

MS Sidewinder's manual says that first plug it in, and then install the
drivers... Isn't that the way USB should work? You plug it in and Windows
installs / asks for drivers...

- Igor -

    Depends on what mood Windows Plug and Play is in. If it detects the
device at all it will usually try to identify and install it from a pool
drivers and information it already has. If that pre-existing pool of
information is wrong Windows may decide that your brand new "X" is really a
"Z" and proceed to install the wrong drivers and registry entries. These
wrong drivers may***things for your new device even after you install
the correct drivers. This is what is happening when you see some folks
complain of, for example, going from a 3DFX video card to an NVidia card but
the new card does not work properly because of some small, obscure, deeply
hidden vestige of the old 3DFX driver.
     I have a Saitek X36 USB. Drivers for this MUST be installed before it
is plugged in or that screwing mentioned above will happen. After that the
X36 will never work until you go through the procedure outlined in the
instructions to dig out all the wrong stuff Plug and Play installed.