Hi y'all, I have to say I've been playing LFS with KB/mouse for ages and this is the first time I have a real problem. I now use a Dual Shock 2 pad with a USB adapter and my problem is that I can't link the X axis (the vertical axis of the left analog stick, although it should logically be called the Y axis, but nevermind) to any action in the game, despite the fact that the axis is properly recognized in the game and seems to work fine. Another problem which seems linked is that I can't separate the clutch from the handbrake (which are both activated by the Z axis (the horizontal axis of the right stick) without resorting to a button for either the clutch or handbrake. I've tried NTpad etc but they don't even work, and drivers don 't seem to be the problem, since all axes are properly recognized in the game. That's really a shame, because I'd love to drive with direction and clutch on the left stick and acceleration + brakes / handbrake on the right stick, all analog, of course, so if someone has a tweak in the config or anything else to achieve that, I'd be grateful

The rumble function doesn't work either des pite my having put FF on :'(

steering wheels dont have a y axis, so there wont be y forces on your device.

lfs takes the forces from the front wheels, there are no canned effects

Well technically the signal should get to the motors all the same, except rather than pushing back on the stick they are just vibrating the whole control unit. It's possible, although unlikely, that there might be some benefit from using sending FFB signals to a rumble device, but I'd imagine it would get kinda annoying since it would be almost continually rumbling.

As for the Y axis not being detected, that is odd. I've setup joysticks for use with LFS and it has picked the lot up, x, y, throttle, twist, you name it.

So, no rumbling ? ARGH ! I thought there would be at least some vibration to mimic the car shaking, tyres skidding etc :'(

The Y axis IS detected in the game, but simply can't be used, without any reason or error message.

Again, i've used a PSX pad for many years on my PC and everything worked.
The only thing i didn't try is the PS2 pads with analog buttons. That said,
i've played LFS with FF on PSX dual-shock pads and it all worked fine.
There is no semantics to sort here, the PSX pad uses 'rumble' (vibration)
as it's FF. It doesn't differentiate rumble from shock as far as i know.

There is not much stuff between your controller and LFS, so i'll repeat.
The usual workflow when you are troubleshooting is to start from one end
and check things sequentially (step by step) :

LFS->DirectX->Driver->Adapter->GamePad
Once done, it can be usefull to repeat the other way around:
GamePad->Adapter->Driver->DirectX->LFS.

If possible, checking each step individually can pinpoint issues, like trying
another controller, driver, or game. Using another DirectX is usually not an
option and you should have 9.0c anyways. That said, there are apps like
DxTweak that can edit some usefull values like deadzones and sensitivity if
your GamePad driver doesn't provide those.

As for the FF, i use a parallel port adapter so i can't say for the USB adapter,
but i need to provide some current so the pad can 'vibrate'. The signal telling
the motors to start/stop is there (at least in DirectPadPro and WinNT
drivers..) but if the pad doesn't get sufficient current (somewhere between
6-9v) the engines wont turn, or will turn very slowly. I have one of those
translucent pads so i can SEE if the motors turn at all, but it might be difficult
if your controller is opaque. In those cases, hanging the controller by the wire
or something will quickly show any torque from the motors as the controller
starts to move (or stops).

In any case, with the limited info you've given, there's not much else i can
think of for now. Find a forum about troubleshooting your controller's adapter.
That's the FIRST place you should be looking.