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Use Xbox Controller on Mac OS X

JoeXboxer writes "I'm not sure why anyone would want to, but there's an open source driver to allow you to use your Xbox game controller on Mac OS X. In related news, McDonald's announced new Xbox-sized combos that will stretch America's bladders to the limit. One of these stories is a joke. It's hard to guess which one."

56 comments

  1. Connection Hardware? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Insightful

    I wish he'd tell us how to get the damned controller actually PLUGGED INTO the Mac...no hardware to my knowledge exists! Gold Brick for OS X, perhaps?

    1. Re:Connection Hardware? by Enrico+Pulatzo · · Score: 3, Insightful

      The XBox uses usb, all you need to do is make a cable from a usb cable and an xbox extension cable. Am unsure of the pin order, though.

    2. Re:Connection Hardware? by capmilk · · Score: 4, Informative

      The USB standard has 4 signals: +5, GND, D+, D-

      The Xbox controller connectors have 5 pins - it is assumed (but maybe not yet proven) that the extra pin is +12V for the rumble-pack-vibrator inside the controllers.

      Looking head-on at the front of your Xbox, with controller port "1" to the left, and port "4" to the right, if you look into one of the controller ports, you'll see 5 pins along the bottom half of the port (on the center piece of plastic, there's a small triangle on the left side pointing down to the first pin, which I'll call "pin 1"

      ___________
      |v |
      -----------
      1 2 3 4 5

      ("v" denotes the triangle pointing to pin 1)

      Here's what signals correspond to each pin:

      1 - +5V
      2 - D-
      3 - D+
      4 - ?? (probably +12V)
      5 - GND

      Pins "1" and "5" are longer than the other pins. This is just like standard USB connectors - the power/GND signals get connected first when you insert a connector, assuring a solid power connection before any of the other signals get connected.

      I've actually measured 5V across pins 1 & 5 while the Xbox was powered-on. NOTE: When Xbox is powered-off (but still plugged-in), I read ZERO volts across these two pins - this probably means that it would be impossible to make a remote-control that can power-up the Xbox.

      Pins 1 & 5 are common across all 4 connectors (Pin 1 on port 1 is connected to Pin 1 on ports 2/3/4, the same goes for Pin 5 across all 4 ports). This makes sense - it's just a fixed power supply.

      Pins 2&3 (USB D-/D+ differential data lines) are separate pairs to each port (this also makes sense - they have to be).

      Pin 4 (which is believed to be +12V) is NOT common across all for ports. This (along with the fact I can't measure 12V on it) probably means that it's not just a steady power-supply signal that a controller's rumble-pack can tie-into as needed, but a signal that the main CPU controls independently per port. It may be 12V that gets turned on programmatically, or it could be something else. Whatever it is, this signal seems to go out (on separate pins) off the USB daughterboard onto the main board (whereas the D+/D- pins don't - they go directly to the TI USB controller on the daughterboard).

      An additional bit of info (not helpful unless someone wants to hack at the USB daughterboard itself), here's where each ports' D+/D- signals connect onto the TI USB chip:

      Port 1's D+/D- go to TI's "DP3/DM3" pins.
      Port 2's D+/D- go to TI's "DP4/DM4" pins.
      Port 3's D+/D- go to TI's "DP1/DM1" pins.
      Port 4's D+/D- go to TI's "DP2/DM2" pins.

    3. Re:Connection Hardware? by MikeXpop · · Score: 1

      Um, that's nice. And a LOT of work. I don't know anyone who would do that much to just play with an X-Box controller with OS X.

      And besides, what for? Just about every game on OS X is better with a mouse/keyboard combo anyway! Warcraft III, SoF II, JK II, The Sims, etc. Personally, I can't even think of one game that would be enhanced with the X-Box controller. Seems to me like a case of "cuz it's there".

      --
      Etiquette is etiquette. He kills his mother but he can't wear grey trousers.
    4. Re:Connection Hardware? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Funny

      Seems to me like a case of "cuz it's there".

      So what! If you've got a Mac and an xbox controller, why not? I don't see your point. You do realize you're reading slashdot, right?

  2. not sure why anyone would want to?! by BillYak · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Think about it. The success of a console relies /completely/ on people sitting and playing their games for hours. If you ship a console with a shitty controller, no one will buy it. A lot of money, research, and development goes into making a product people feel comfortable holding for hours on end.

    Compare it to, say, a Logitech gamepad. They sell keyboards, mice, trackballs. Hey, if they can make a few bucks off a game pad, it is worth it to them. Their entire operation is not based around people holding their control for hours at a time.

    Next time you see a made-for-PC gamepad, look at it, think of usability, and compare it to your favorite console controller. The console controller is /almost always/ more comfortable, more intuitive, and has more buttons that are easily accessible from the "standard" playing position.

    A lot of effort goes into making a good console controller. How is it bad, or surprising for that matter, that people want to apply it elsewhere?

    1. Re:not sure why anyone would want to?! by HebrewToYou · · Score: 2, Flamebait

      Are you trying to tell me that the Xbox controller is "good?" Have you ever played a game with those awful things? The black and white buttons are nearly impossible to find when you need them and the thing is just overly large. Even the smaller version of the controller is poorly designed -- same ol' problem trying to find your buttons -- but at least there's not a huge amount of wasted plastic mass. Look at the PS2 or GameCube controllers -- they are both much more functional and easy on the hands. I think your post would be great if the article you're responding to was any system *other than* the Xbox.

      --
      I'm not popular enough to be different.

      Homer Simpson, The Simpsons

    2. Re:not sure why anyone would want to?! by roka · · Score: 1, Troll

      For me the success of a console depends on how I can sit in front of it and watch movies or have my keyboard attached to it and get rid of that bloody controller-thingie.
      But I guess you were not talking of nerdy /. readers ;)

    3. Re:not sure why anyone would want to?! by tm2b · · Score: 1, Flamebait

      Ummm...

      Acutally, Logitech makes the best damned feeling gamepads I've ever held in my hands. Both their wireless XBox and wireless PS2 controllers are a wonder to hold, hands down better than other companies' for the same platforms.

      IMO, of course. But they are definitely worth checking out and I intend to use the Logitech wireless XBox gamepad with my macs.

      --
      "It is our blasphemy which has made us great, and will sustain us, and which the gods secretly admire in us." - Zelazny
    4. Re:not sure why anyone would want to?! by ceejayoz · · Score: 3, Interesting

      Personally, I much prefer the Xbox controller to the Gamecube one (I have both). It fits my hands better, and I have no problems reaching the buttons.

      Maybe you've just got small hands, or I've got big hands?

    5. Re:not sure why anyone would want to?! by mythr · · Score: 2, Informative

      I have very large hands, and the Xbox controller rests relatively comfortably in them. I also play guitar. That doesn't stop me from having one hell of a time hitting the black and white buttons all the way at the top of the controller. Their placement is just badly engineered. Because of this, I typically use one of the "Magic Box" adapters to play Xbox games with a PS2 controller.

    6. Re:not sure why anyone would want to?! by Calmiche · · Score: 1
      You know, strangely enough, I have used a Dual Shock PS2 controller as my main gaming controller for years. I use a Yobo USB connector/adaptor that I picked up at a local gaming store about 3 years ago. (I can't seem to find a link online, but I'll go see if I can find one here.)

      Anyway, it works fantasticly. It has native plug and play support on versions of Win 98 and up, and is supported by every game I've found that uses a gamepad. I'd much rather use the Playstation controler than any other pad I've ever found on the market. In my opinion, it's the best designed controller on the market. (Though it could use a couple more buttons for some of the newer games.)

      Calmiche,

    7. Re:not sure why anyone would want to?! by dwightk · · Score: 1, Offtopic

      Have you even read the Penny arcade comics on this?

      http://www.penny-arcade.com/view.php3?date=2001- 05 -20&res=l

      http://www.penny-arcade.com/view.php3?date=2001- 11 -28&res=l

      http://www.penny-arcade.com/view.php3?date=2001- 08 -29

      And the most important one:

      http://www.penny-arcade.com/view.php3?date=2002- 03 -25&res=l

      --
      Like anyone can even know that
    8. Re:not sure why anyone would want to?! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I've got pretty big hands (heck, I love the Dreamcast controller), but the Xbox-controller is useless to me. It's just awkward. I can't reach the buttons fast enough, it starts hurting, and i always have to think about which button is which. They're all so similar. The Gamecube controller, in comparison, is perfect. Probably the best controller I've ever used.

    9. Re:not sure why anyone would want to?! by WatertonMan · · Score: 1

      After many a late night playing Halo, I can honestly say that I find the XBox controllers among the best. I've never understood the complaints with them.

    10. Re:not sure why anyone would want to?! by Trurl's+Machine · · Score: 1

      I was a Playstation afficionado for years (somehow, PS2 didn't catch my fancy - I am either too old for this, or modern consoles REALLY are too big and clumsy, compared to the natural beauty of the PSX). I loved the Playstation Dual Shock controllers. When I first heard of MacAlly iShock II game controller - which is basically a USB-equipped Dual Shock clone - I thought that this could be the game controller of my dreams.

      And guess what? I don't use it. There is something about the body position (console: you sit on the floor or sofa and watch the TV; computer: you sit in front of sone desk) that facilitates the use of gamepads/controllers with console, but makes the same game controllers awkward when you try to use it with a computer. On a computer, notching matches a good mouse. Period.

    11. Re:not sure why anyone would want to?! by dwightk · · Score: 1

      sorry, you have to take the spaces out of the addresses

      --
      Like anyone can even know that
    12. Re:not sure why anyone would want to?! by tm2b · · Score: 1

      Flamebait? WTF??!?

      Honestly, try out the Logitech wireless controllers. I love mine, they feel much better in my hands than either the vendor's controllers or the MadCatz, both for the PS2 and the XBox.

      --
      "It is our blasphemy which has made us great, and will sustain us, and which the gods secretly admire in us." - Zelazny
  3. Fun fact by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Interesting

    There's controller drivers for NES,SNES,PSX and much more in some branches of the development linux kernel. Offtopic - yes. Interesting - sort of.

  4. Re:Which is the joke? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Yep... the immense number of calories and fat, and the immense number of bugs respectively.

  5. ok, admit it.. by roka · · Score: 0, Troll

    so who of you fell for that ridiculous Mac OS X oss drivers story?
    Anyways, I'm off carryin' some burgers.

    1. Re:ok, admit it.. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I'm still searching for the troll in this, someone care to explain?

  6. REAL mac users by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Don't use M$ products. Away with the kludgy Xbox controller.

    Cool that this guy hacked up some drivers for it though. Although... isn't the XBox the worst controller? PS2 is obviously the favorite, but I like my GameCube controller a lot too. I touched an xbox in a store once. No way it is getting in my car or house without a fight and bill paying me for it.

    1. Re:REAL mac users by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      REAL mac users don't use M$ products.

      Except for Office v.X. Which rocks the Haus.

    2. Re:REAL mac users by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Naw; just use BBEdit. It's not even a word processor per se, but it still is ten times better then Office.

      Who needs pretty formatting anyway?

    3. Re:REAL mac users by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Who needs pretty formatting anyway?

      Everybody.

  7. Re:Dear Apple by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0, Funny

    You know, you almost have to respect this troll. He sure has commitment written all over himself. Quite impressive. I know he has missed a few stories here and there, but he has pretty much posted this letter to every Apple related story.

    Its almost as if he Steve Jobs or Pudge raped his mother or something.

    Like I said... "almost"

  8. Slow day @ ./ check list by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0
    Requirements for wasted filler /. post v0.1
    • Microsoft reference: xbox--check
    • Food reference: McDonald's--check
    • Overweight American reference: pudge--check
    • Obligatory OSS reference--check
    • Urination reference--check
    • OS X reference--check
    • /. readers eat it up as a great topic--check
    Business as usual...
  9. Which One? by General+Sherman · · Score: 3, Interesting

    It's really hard to tell which one is the Joke.
    I'd say the McDonalds one is, but they've gone for much more obscene things.
    I'd say the XBox controller thing because there's no way to connect the propreitary port to the mac, but people have done more useless things, such as put Linux on an iPod. (Sorry /.ers, but it doesn't help you that much unless you desperately need to play ogg files.)

    In the end, I think I'll go with the XBox Controller thing. MacAlley makes this great USB gamepad that looks exactly like a PS2 DualShock controller, rumble, analog sticks, X, O, Square, and Triangle. Useful thing for a PS emulator. XBox controller, because it sucks and if you're going to do that, do it with a GC or PS2 controller, not that terrible piece of molded plastic.

    --
    - Sherman
  10. XBox-PS2 controller adapters by Lachrymite · · Score: 4, Interesting

    This is good news for me, but not because I like the XBox controllers. I actually can't stand them, they're way too big and clunky for me. As a big fan of the PS2 controllers though, this is great because you can buy adapters that let you use the PS2 controllers on the XBox. I don't use a single regular XBox controller, just PS2 ones now. These are the ones I have, and I've never had any problems with them. I'd test them out with this driver, but I'm currently out of the country on business. Anyone have an adapter and interested in checking out if they work?

  11. Damn... by theWrkncacnter · · Score: 1

    There's a driver for the dang XBox controler yet there's still no OS X driver for my Kennsington USB webcam. Go figure.

    --
    -1 (Troll) is antihammer
    1. Re:Damn... by Kerouassady · · Score: 3, Informative

      Yes there is. Go to http://webcam-osx.sourceforge.net/. Then get ohphone at http://xmeeting.sourceforge.net/ for teleconferencing. Then try Bt Cam (http://ilearnat.com/MWebCam.html) for webcamming.

      Join the open source revolution. Woo-hoo!

    2. Re:Damn... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Yes there is. Go to http://webcam-osx.sourceforge.net/. Then get ohphone at [...]

      Hey, Kero, while you're in the kitchen, my ISP sent me a free cheapo Logitech webcam that's useless under OS9. Get at it, chop chop!

  12. better yet... by DrStrangeLoop · · Score: 4, Interesting

    buy an usb adapter for the game cube controller from lik-sang [they need money for the lawsuit vs microsoft, so its the slashdot-correct option, too]. the gc pad is recognized as a HID device, and it works with mame right out of the box.

    --strangeloop

  13. Easiest way to access gamepad data via console? by Onnimikki · · Score: 1

    Hi,

    I just got the idea in my head that it would be very interesting to obtain data from a gamepad via an OS X terminal. Does anyone know where I could get started trying to figure out how to do this?

  14. Missing the point by jeblucas · · Score: 3, Funny
    Don't you see that this will make me the world's greatest Unreal Tournament 2003 player? After all, it was written with XBox's heinous controller in mind (I heard this somewhere--linkage?). With this, and my Macintosh getting the UT2003 GotY GOLD edition sometime in 2005, I will never be killed!

    Anyone want to play UT1999 GotY GOLD edition with me until then?

    --
    blarg.
  15. just following the rules? by bjpirt · · Score: 1

    good to see you're playing by the rules, particularly point number 5 :-)

  16. OS X drivers for PSX Controller by bedouin · · Score: 2, Informative

    With a PSX > USB adapter and this free driver I can use my PSX controller with any game. Gamepad Companion also will let you use a PSX controller, though it's not free.

  17. Xbox to USB by serialdj · · Score: 0, Redundant

    If you are looking for an adapter to connect the Xbox controller to your Mac, goto http://www.lik-sang.com and click on the Developer Tools, and they have the hardware necessary.

  18. Re:Won't help declining market share by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    The driver isn't from Apple. It was written by some really bored programmer, and I'm not sure where you got the impression his intent was to get Apple more market share.

    ?
    And it's not an xbox hack... If anything, it's an OS X hack.

    Say something when you have something intelligent to say.

  19. Get yo connection HW here by TJ6581 · · Score: 0, Redundant

    lik-sang appears to have a connector for sale. Here you go!

    http://www.lik-sang.com/info.php?category=83&produ cts_id=2701&

    --
    "Freedom of speech has always been the abstract red-headed stepchild of the Constitution"
    -Suck
  20. Seen it in action... by heXXXen · · Score: 1

    Interesting I should see this post today...

    I was at a friend's house last night and he was making a converter to use his Xbox controller on his Dual G4. He couldn't get it to work correctly so he had me test it on my laptop. His pins were in the reverse order, but after he fixed it I was playing GTA Vice City with a Xbox controller! Neat! Perhaps he'll be able to play some Oni on his Mac with that controller now...I think I want to make a converter myself, too.

  21. X-Box Mickey D's by emo+boy · · Score: 0


    I've said it once I'll say it again. If someone could please write some drivers so that I can hook up my X-Box Controller to a McChickenHead Nugget so I can manipulate like a frankenstein-ish marionette I would appreciate it.

  22. Interestingly enough... by Trillan · · Score: 1

    The fries included with McDonald's combos are quite a bit smaller in Canada than in the US. Canadian also has a significantly healthier menu. Or, at least, it has more low-fat options (such as my favorite sandwhich, a grilled chicken on whole wheat with light BBQ sauce instead of mayo, or a veggie burger which I'm afraid to try but I'm told by a vegetarian friend is very good).

    (This might be considered mildly OT, but I iamgine a few people would be somewhat interested in it and there aren't many stories relating to McDonald's combos on slashdot!)

    1. Re:Interestingly enough... by jsd06 · · Score: 1

      Lol....good to know.... I have a friend who works at McDonald's... you wouldn't believe some of the horror stories she tells me...

  23. Re:Which is the joke? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Redundant? Twice? Hardly seems accurate, when I was the second or third post in the whole thread...

  24. C'est tr�s gai by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0
    Macintosh, feel the word sliding over your lips. Do you feel the rhythm, sure you do. It's definitely gay.

    Safari, feel the word sliding over your lips. Do you feel the rhythm, sure you do. It's definitely gay.

    IPod, feel the word sliding over your lips. Do you feel the rhythm, sure you do. It's definitely gay.

    Gay, feel the word sliding over your lips. Do you feel the rhythm, sure you do. It's definitely Apple.