Microsoft KB Archive/243981

= Flight Simulator 2000: Troubleshooting Joystick Problems (Part 1) =

Article ID: 243981

Article Last Modified on 12/18/2006

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APPLIES TO


 * Microsoft Flight Simulator 2000 Standard Edition
 * Microsoft Flight Simulator 2000 Professional Edition

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This article was previously published under Q243981



SYMPTOMS
When you run Microsoft Flight Simulator 2000, you may experience one or more of the following symptoms:
 * The joystick behaves erratically.
 * The joystick does not respond.
 * The rudder or throttle does not respond.



RESOLUTION
To resolve this issue, use the following troubleshooting methods in the order that they appear. After each method, test to see if the issue is resolved. If the issue continues to occur, continue to the next method.

Note If you use a Logitech Warrior joystick, connect it to the game port. Do not connect it to the serial port. The Logitech Warrior does not function correctly with Microsoft DirectX 5.0 or later when it is connected to a serial port.

Because the Logitech Warrior is not listed in the Devices.cfg file, Flight Simulator 2000 may not assign any actions to the buttons on the joystick, or it may configure the Logitech Warrior as a generic joystick.

Verify That Your Operating System Supports Your Game Controller
To enable support for the game port in Microsoft Windows NT 4.0, you must install Service Pack 3 (SP3) or later. Microsoft Windows NT 4.0 with SP3 or later supports most analog game controllers. However, it does not support digital game controllers.

Microsoft Windows 95 and Windows 98 support both analog and digital game controllers. For best performance, verify that the latest version of the game controller driver is installed on your computer.

The following table contains an operating system compatibility list for Microsoft SideWinder game controllers:


 * Windows NT 4.0 with Service Pack 3 or later only supports the SideWinder 3DPro joystick in analog mode.


 * You can install and run version 4.0 of the SideWinder software on a Windows 2000-based computer. However, all features may not function as expected, and the SideWinder software may not function correctly. To install the SideWinder software on Windows 2000, you must log on as an administrator.


 * To use a hybrid game port/USB game controller with a Windows 95-based computer, you must connect the game controller to the game port in your computer. Windows 95 does not support USB.

Note Unless otherwise indicated in the previous table, support for all current USB/game port and USB-only SideWinder game controllers is included in Windows 98, Windows Millennium Edition (Me), and Windows 2000.

Check the Game Controller Connection to the Game Port
If you use a game port game controller, verify that the game controller is connected directly to the game port in your computer. Daisy-chained game controllers or game port adapters can interfere with communication between the game port and the game controller.

If you use a USB game controller, verify that the game controller is connected correctly to the USB port in your computer or to a compatible USB hub that is connected to the USB port in your computer.

Note Microsoft Windows NT 4.0 does not support daisy-chained game controllers, game port adapters, or USB game controllers.

Disable the SideWinder Game Device Profiler
If you use a SideWinder game controller, disable the SideWinder Game Device Profiler or the SideWinder Game Controller software. To do this, right-click the Game Device Profiler icon or the Game Controller Software icon in the notification area on the taskbar, and then click Unload or Disable.

Confirm That Your Game Controller Is Assigned to Controller ID 1
Many games do not recognize game controllers that are not assigned to Controller ID 1. To verify that your game controller is assigned to Controller ID 1:
 * 1) Click Start, point to Settings, and then click Control Panel.
 * 2) Double-click Game Controllers.
 * 3) Click the Advanced tab.
 * 4) If the game controller that you want to use is not assigned to ID 1, click Change.

If the game controller that you want to use is assigned to ID 1, continue to the next method.
 * 1) In the Game Controllers box, click the game controller that you want to use, and then click the UP ARROW or DOWN ARROW to change the Selected ID value to 1.
 * 2) Click OK, and then click OK again.
 * 3) Close Control Panel.

Confirm the Version of SideWinder Game Controller Software
If you use a SideWinder USB-only game controller, verify that the SideWinder Game Controller Software version 4.0 is installed on your computer.

If you use a game port-only or a hybrid game port/USB game controller, verify that version 3.02 or earlier of the SideWinder Game Device Profiler or the SideWinder Game Controller software is installed on your computer.

If you use both SideWinder USB-only game controllers and SideWinder game port or hybrid game port/USB game controllers, make sure that versions 4.0 and 3.02 or earlier of the SideWinder Game Controller software are installed on your computer.

The following table lists the SideWinder game controllers that are supported by each version of the SideWinder Game Controller software:

If you are using one of these SideWinder game controllers, visit the following Microsoft Web site to see if a software update is available for your game controller:

http://www.microsoft.com/hardware/sidewinder/default.mspx

Calibrate the Game Controller
If you use a digital Microsoft SideWinder game controller with version 2.0 or later of the Microsoft SideWinder Game Device software or the Microsoft SideWinder Game Controller software, the software calibrates the game controller automatically.

To use version 2.0 of the Microsoft SideWinder Game Device software to test the calibration for your digital SideWinder game controller:
 * 1) Click Start, point to Settings, and then click Control Panel.
 * 2) Double-click Game Controllers.
 * 3) On the Test tab, test all the functions for your digital SideWinder game controller, and then click OK.
 * 4) Close Control Panel.

To use version 3.x or 4.0 of the Microsoft SideWinder Game Controller software to test the calibration for your digital SideWinder game controller:
 * 1) Click Start, point to Settings, and then click Control Panel.
 * 2) Double-click Game Controllers.
 * 3) On the General tab, click the game controller that you want to test in the Game Controllers box, and then click Properties.
 * 4) On the Test tab, test all the functions for your digital SideWinder game controller, click OK, and then click OK again.
 * 5) Close Control Panel.

If you use an analog game controller, or if you use a Microsoft SideWinder 3D Pro or a Microsoft SideWinder game pad with version 1.5 of the SideWinder Game Device software, you may have to calibrate the game controller manually. To do this:
 * 1) Click Start, point to Settings, and then click Control Panel.
 * 2) Double-click Game Controllers.
 * 3) Select the gaming device that you want to calibrate in the Controller column, and then click Properties.
 * 4) Click Calibrate, and then follow the instructions that appear on the screen to calibrate the game controller. If you use a SideWinder 3D Pro with version 1.0 of the SideWinder software, when you are prompted to press a button on the controller, press a button on the joystick, not on the joystick base.

Note Because of differences between analog game controllers, you may notice a certain amount of deviation between the graphic display for the joystick position and the actual joystick movement. This is normal and does not affect the calibration of the game controller.
 * 1) When you receive the "You have successfully calibrated your device" message, click Finish.
 * 2) On the Test tab, test all the functions for your game controller, and then click OK.
 * 3) Close Control Panel.

Note No calibration option is available in version 1.5 of the SideWinder Game Device software unless you install Flight Simulator 98 with DirectX 5.0.

If you cannot calibrate your game controller, or if your game controller does not function correctly when you test it, Microsoft Windows may not be able to communicate correctly with the game controller. If this is true, contact the manufacturer of your game controller for information about how to configure the device correctly in Windows. You may also have to obtain and install the latest version of the game controller device driver.

If you calibrate and test the game controller successfully, start Flight Simulator 2000 to test the game controller in the game. If the issue continues to occur, calibrate the device in Flight Simulator 2000. To do this:
 * 1) Start a new flight in Flight Simulator 2000.
 * 2) On the Options menu, point to Controls, and then click Calibrate Joystick.

Note If Calibrate Joystick is unavailable, click Enable Joystick, and then repeat this step.
 * 1) In the Game Controllers box on the General tab, click the game controller that you want to use, and then click Properties.
 * 2) On the Settings tab, move the sliders to the settings that you want.
 * 3) Click OK, and then click OK again.

Reset the Default Actions
To reset the default actions assigned to the game controller:  Start a new flight in Flight Simulator 2000. On the Options menu, point to Controls, and then click Assignments. In the Joystick type box on the Buttons/Keys tab, click the game controller you want to use, and then click Reset Defaults. Click the Joystick axes tab. In the Joystick type box, click the game controller that you want to use, and then click Reset Defaults. To see if the default events are selected for your 4-axis game controller, verify that the Axis settings for each Event match the settings in the following table:

If the default events are not selected, continue to the "Manually Assign Actions" method in part 2 of this article to assign the default events manually.

To view part 2 of this article, click the following article number:

244515 Flight Simulator 2000: Troubleshooting Joystick Problems (Part 2)

If the default event is assigned to an axis, but the event behaves in reverse (for example, up instead of down, or right instead of left), click to select or clear the check box under the Reverse column for that axis.</ol>

If the issue continues to occur, continue to the next method.

Rebuild the Fs2000.cfg File
To rebuild the Fs2000.cfg file, press and hold down CTRL+SHIFT as you start Flight Simulator 2000 and start a new flight. Continue to hold down CTRL+SHIFT until you are in Cockpit view.

Note When you rebuild the Fs2000.cfg file, some of your joystick settings may change.

If your game controller is installed correctly and the Devices.cfg file contains the default settings for your game controller, Flight Simulator 2000 adds the appropriate entries for your game controller to the Fs2000.cfg file.

The Devices.cfg file contains the following joystick headings:

[Generic_4] [Generic_4 SLEW] [Generic_3] [Generic_3 RUDDER] [Generic_3 SLEW] [Generic_3 RUDDER SLEW] [Generic_2] [Generic_2 RUDDER] [Generic_2 SLEW] [Generic_2 RUDDER SLEW] [Mad Catz Panther XL] [Mad Catz Panther XL SLEW] [Gravis GrIP MultiPort] [Gravis GrIP MultiPort SLEW] [Logitech ThunderPad Digital] [Logitech ThunderPad Digital SLEW] [Microsoft SideWinder Freestyle Pro] [Microsoft SideWinder Freestyle Pro SLEW] [Microsoft USB SideWinder Game Pad] [Microsoft USB SideWinder Game Pad SLEW] [Microsoft SideWinder Force Feedback Wheel] [Microsoft SideWinder Force Feedback Wheel SLEW] [INTERACT Vortex 3D (General 2)] [INTERACT Vortex 3D (General 2) SLEW] [Logitech CyberMan 2] [Logitech CyberMan 2 SLEW] [Thrustmaster NASCAR Pro w/combined pedals] [Thrustmaster NASCAR Pro w/separate pedals SLEW] [Logitech WingMan Warrior] [Logitech WingMan Warrior SLEW] [Logitech WingMan Extreme Digital] [Logitech WingMan Extreme Digital SLEW] [INTERACT Vortex 3D (Flight Simulation)] [INTERACT Vortex 3D (Flight Simulation) SLEW] [Spacetec SpaceOrb 360] [Spacetec SpaceOrb 360 SLEW] [Creative GamePad] [Creative GamePad SLEW] [Gravis Gamepad] [Gravis Gamepad SLEW] [Gravis GrIP] [Gravis GrIP SLEW] [Gravis Analog Joystick] [Gravis Analog Joystick RUDDER] [Gravis Analog Joystick SLEW] [Gravis Analog Joystick RUDDER SLEW] [Gravis Analog Pro Joystick] [Gravis Analog Pro Joystick RUDDER] [Gravis Analog Pro Joystick SLEW] [Gravis Analog Pro Joystick RUDDER SLEW] [Thrustmaster Formula T1/T2 without adapter] [Thrustmaster Formula T1/T2 without adapter SLEW] [Thrustmaster Formula T1/T2 with adapter] [Thrustmaster Formula T1/T2 with adapter SLEW] [Thrustmaster Flight Control System] [Thrustmaster Flight Control System RUDDER] [Thrustmaster Flight Control System SLEW] [Thrustmaster Flight Control System RUDDER SLEW] [ThrustMaster Attack Throttle] [ThrustMaster Attack Throttle RUDDER] [ThrustMaster Attack Throttle SLEW] [ThrustMaster Attack Throttle RUDDER SLEW] [Logitech WingMan Light] [Logitech WingMan Light RUDDER] [Logitech WingMan Light SLEW] [Logitech WingMan Light RUDDER SLEW] [Logitech WingMan Extreme] [Logitech WingMan Extreme SLEW] [Logitech WingMan] [Logitech WingMan RUDDER] [Logitech WingMan SLEW] [Logitech WingMan RUDDER SLEW] [Logitech ThunderPad] [Logitech ThunderPad SLEW]

The settings under the SLEW headings determine how the game controller behaves in Slew mode. The settings under the RUDDER headings determine how the game controller behaves when the rudder is enabled. To enable the rudder settings, click to select the Rudder check box on the Settings tab in the Game Controllers tool in Control Panel.

Note If your game controller is not defined in the Devices.cfg file, Flight Simulator 2000 may not assign any actions to the buttons on your game controller. To manually assign actions to the buttons on your game control device, continue to the "Manually Assign Actions" method in part 2 of this article.

This article is continued in the following article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base. To view part 2 of this article, click the following article number:

244515 Flight Simulator 2000: Troubleshooting Joystick Problems (Part 2)

Install the Latest Version of Microsoft DirectX
To download and install the latest version of DirectX, visit the following Microsoft Web site:

http://www.microsoft.com/windows/directx/default.mspx

For additional information about how to obtain and install the latest version of DirectX, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

179113 How to Download and Install DirectX

Additional query words: fsim2k fsim2000 fs2k fs2000 flightsim wheel yoke pedals t-shoot tshoot game controller gaming device

Keywords: kbhardware kbprb KB243981

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