Talk:FAQ

Links to review:

1. restoration --04:34, 11 December 2013 (EST)~
2. basics --Felsir Felsir (talk) 07:09, 11 December 2013 (EST)
3. Arcade_Cabinet Felsir (talk) 05:35, 12 December 2013 (EST)
4. Driving_Controls Felsir (talk) 05:39, 17 December 2013 (EST)
5. Lighting (currently only deals with marquee, should eventually include all lighting options and branch out to specialized pages) Felsir (talk) 10:17, 18 December 2013 (EST)
6. MAME the page looks messy and outdated. Felsir (talk) 07:24, 9 January 2014 (EST)
7. MAME Variants Added to go more in depth. Felsir (talk) 07:24, 9 January 2014 (EST)

The list of emulators is outdated/incomplete (new stuff has arrived since the old wiki!). Once the FAQ is done, I think the emulator section will be my top priority (as this is where I struggled the most when setting up my own cabinet).Felsir (talk) 07:44, 8 January 2014 (EST)

Topics to fix/review:

"USB gamepads/controllers" needs review.

For now it seems okay. Felsir (talk) 05:05, 13 January 2014 (EST)

Which "twin stick shooters" use analog controls? IIRC, Robotron and Smash TV use 8-way joys. Are you thinking about T-Mek or Cybersled? Other than that, looks good to me. PL1 (talk) 07:58, 13 January 2014 (EST)

I was thinking Geometry Wars and similar console shooters (much like the reason to have shoulder buttons). Felsir (talk) 08:06, 13 January 2014 (EST)

"Soldering" needs review.

Added some text. I think it is sufficient for now (no need to explain "how to solder" I think, we're not explaining how to use a router either). What do you think? Felsir (talk) 04:54, 13 January 2014 (EST)

Added link to soldering tutorial with videos/tools/links and included the #1 thing people forget to do -- clean after soldering. Looks good to me. What do you think? PL1 (talk) 07:58, 13 January 2014 (EST)

Looks great. Especially the link to the forum really adds value to the entry! Felsir (talk) 08:07, 13 January 2014 (EST)

"LED controllers" needs review.

Looks good to me. What do you think? PL1 (talk) 07:58, 13 January 2014 (EST)

Yep, I think it does warrant a wiki page of it's own, but for the FAQ it has the information needed. Felsir (talk) 08:09, 13 January 2014 (EST)

"Displays, Input lag (Not response time)" needs fix/review.

I split this one up in 'response time' in the display section and 'input lag' in the software section. My reasoning for this is: while I was typing how to deal with input lag, it dawned on me that this is essentially a software problem (the emulation adds too much to process the user input) thus I moved that to software. It did however leave a gap because the response time is probably a more well known term (incorrectly used but that's another thing) thus I used that in the display section to make the difference more obvious. Felsir (talk) 04:52, 13 January 2014 (EST)

I think this somewhat addresses the incorrect usage and common misconception, but only addresses one aspect of input lag. As rCadeGaming points out here "A lot of input lag takes place during scaling and post-processing. The signal has already been received, but there is a period of delay during processing before the screen is even told to do anything about it." Lag can come from software (emulators), firmware (some cheap encoders) or hardware. (video converters or TV circuitry) Not sure if input lag should be under software. Not sure if the CRT "after glow" (phosphor persistence) part is needed. Part of the reason that response times >16ms are unacceptable is that that 16.67ms = 1 frame @ 60 Hz refresh rate. Not sure where the 5ms part comes from. The thing I'm most worried about on this subject is getting too deep in the weeds -- maybe we can find a good BYOAC thread on the subject. (I don't trust Wikipedia very much on this topic.) PL1 (talk) 07:58, 13 January 2014 (EST)

Ah, from a display point of view it contributes to the input lag with features such as "smart color" on the TV itself (which is why some TVs have a "game mode"). I find "input lag" a bit difficult to classify, it's not a clear cut display issue and not a clear cut software issue. It could be anywhere in the chain Seeing image on screen->react by pushing button->encode sends buttonpress to pc->game processes input->game creates video image->emulator post processing->tv receives signal->tv post processing->display result.

Perhaps it should be under displays because people probably blame the display first when encountering input lag? Felsir (talk) 08:18, 13 January 2014 (EST)

"Should I update my system with each new release of MAME?" needs review.

Looks good to me. What do you think? PL1 (talk) 07:58, 13 January 2014 (EST)

Seems complete so far. Felsir (talk) 08:19, 13 January 2014 (EST)

Images to find/make/fix:

Types of Cabs (small) -- Banner with Sketchup line drawing of each sub-type with human figure for scale.

What is JAMMA/JAMMA+? -- Pic of 56-pin JAMMA connector.

Mounting joysticks -- 4-player "straight" vs. "angled" joysticks.

Mounting options -- Diagram showing Top-mount, Under-mount (non-recessed), Under-mount (recessed), Threaded inserts, and Support blocks.

How do I wire microswitches to an encoder? -- Diagram or picture showing three microswitches wired to an encoder and a daisy-chain ground.

Single-Color and RGB LED buttons -- Pic showing the lighting and switch wiring.

Requested permission to use/edit the RGB wiring diagram at http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php/topic,137025.msg1413332.html#msg1413332 PL1 (talk) 06:35, 11 January 2014 (EST)

Permission received, text on image needs to be edited. PL1 (talk) 07:05, 11 January 2014 (EST)

Screenshots of Command Line MAME and GUI MAME to illustrate different variants of MAME.

Quick disconnect size - Should we use this pic from the Wiring page to show the three common sizes?

Other than the "in your face" font-size :-), that seems suitable. Felsir (talk) 08:21, 13 January 2014 (EST)

Different build versions/variants of MAME

Car analogy

• MAME = factory original, most reliable
• NoNag/HighScore patch = putting on new rims or a spoiler
• Alternate builds = hotrods based on the factory original offering features not found on the original, but sometimes not as reliable

When you get parts (ROMs) for your car (MAME) you not only need to know the name of the part, you need to know the make/model/year -- a headlight for a 1972 Ford Mustang =/= headlight for a 2014 Ford Mustang.

As automotive technology improves year-to-year, several parts are improved, while others stay the same.

I like that analogy! Felsir (talk) 02:47, 10 January 2014 (EST)

I tried to include the analogy in the text but for some reason I struggle with the words :-( It might be an idea to write this in the MAME Variants wikipage? Felsir (talk) 05:49, 11 January 2014 (EST)

Maybe we can hammer out the wording here on the talk page then cut/paste to wherever it works. PL1 (talk) 07:21, 11 January 2014 (EST)