Re: Commodore joysticks on Apple II

[Rubywand <rubywand@swbell.net>]

John writes ...
> 
> Does anyone know if joysticks for a Commodore 64 will work on an Apple
> II?  I thought I remember someone saying that but have never tried it.
> Does anyone know?
> 
> Thanks,

     As already mentioned, the standard C-64 joystick is digital. It controls
four switches: Up, Down, Left, Right-- these and the corners give 8 positions
plus Center.

     The Apple II joystick uses pots to supply continuous Horizontal and
Vertical outputs: 0-255 for H and V. 256 x 256 = 65536 positions.

     An adaptor would give you a stick that can output 0 or 255 for H and V
extremes and 128 for both H and V when centered. (The adaptor would also take
care of the fire buttons and have a plug that fits the Apple II.)

     At best, you would have a joystick suitable for games like Serpentine--
i.e. games where the Apple II looks for only extreme positions to determine
movement direction, direction to fire, etc..

     The stick would be useless for Apple II graphics programs plus games like
Elite and many others which expect the joystick to output the full range of
values.



Rubywand