Controller issues on Windows?
Controller issues on Windows?
Hello
I own a Microsoft Xbox 360 Wired Controller for Windows and have found it often fails to show up in the 'safely remove' section of the Quick Launch area at the bottom right of the screen. This is inconvenient because I need to switch to Settings/Devices each time I want to unplug it—would there be a faster method? Alternatively, could I set up a keyboard shortcut or desktop shortcut to handle this?
I usually plug in the controller when using it and unplug it afterward, concerned it might keep drawing power and wear it down faster (noticing the permanently lit LED). Is there a simple way to leave it plugged in but disabled temporarily until I decide to enable it again? That would prevent it from staying 'on' and wasting energy.
Additionally, I’m curious about newer controllers with paddles underneath or extra buttons—how common are these among PC games, both current and older titles? How practical are they? Are they worth investing in if my controller is brand new?
Since I’m new to Xbox controllers and haven’t played many consoles since my SNES, any tips on using them with PC and selecting the right one would be great. To give you a sense of what I enjoy, I play a variety of games—3D and 2D, old and new. Examples include Assassin's Creed Odyssey, Tomb Raider series, FPS online/off, Portal 2, driving games, and classic platformers.
Thank you for your time
The reason it doesn't appear in "Safely remove" list is because it's not a device that needs it. Some devices
should
be shut down gracefully before it can be removed, such as storage drives where selecting one makes sure the cache is flushed from storage the whatever pending writes there were are actually completed.
So basically, just unplug it whenever you're done. There's nothing harmful about suddenly disconnecting it from the system. It's no different than if you unplugged your keyboard or mouse.
As far as newer controllers:
Modern games that have controller support will likely support controllers with any number of buttons, joysticks, whatever. The OS doesn't actually specifically label any buttons the same on the controller itself. It just sees "Button 1", "Button 2", "Joystick 1", etc. Some games do know when you've plugged in a specific controller, but that's more for UI purposes.
Whether or not using the extra buttons is worthwhile is up to you. I know people who play MMOs with those mice with 12 thumb buttons so they can map each button to a hotbar key. I don't do that, because those mice are niche and if it breaks, I worry it'll be hard to replace it, so I play MMOs in another way.
Newer Xbox controllers may have features that can be taken advantage of. For instance the Xbox One controller has force feedback in the triggers, which some games (like Forza) do use.
Just an update
I read your story, and it seems you chose to go with a wired controller because of the belief it would last longer.
In reality, I own a wireless controller that runs on two AA batteries. I recently purchased a set of four rechargeable batteries from Amazon (EBL) and have been using them without hesitation. I always keep my setup fully charged. It’s been several years now.
After getting into VR, I upgraded with more batteries. When I had kids, I added even more, and also got a storage case.
PS: AA and AAA are the only essential types, though adapters are available for D and C models.