this post was submitted on 23 May 2025
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Finally moving to linux, need replacement hardware suggestions (self.linux)
submitted 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago) by lost_faith to c/[email protected]
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I used to use linux decades ago, then stopped for multiple reasons. Now, with win 10 eol fast approaching, I have installed Kubuntu 24.04.2 mainly for VR gaming but other gaming and normal pc use as well. I have 2 devices I would like to replace for ones with full linux support(~~drivers~~ software), unless there are ~~drivers~~ software that are easy to install not requiring compilation from source. The devices are a Microsoft Intellipoint Trackball, basically a thumb driven trackball with at least as many buttons (more is better) as the image shows.

The second device is a Logitec G13

I use this for most of my flat games, and to control my video player. Suggestions for similar hardware or easy fully functional drivers would be appreciated. ie; the g13 has game profiles, stopwatch, clock, system monitor, and a few things I don't use, the trackball has all 7 buttons programmable to anything on the kb and then some.

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[–] [email protected] 11 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago) (2 children)

Generally-speaking, USB mice/trackballs don't need drivers. USB input devices look pretty much the same to the OS. You'd want some kind of non-device-specific program to perform macros when you hit particular buttons.

I have not used it myself, but I understand that antimicrox is one such program. I use Debian Linux, and it's packaged there.

kagis

On the G13, the Arch wiki has some discussion. It sounds like the best option there is "g13d". g13d is not packaged in Debian Linux, and would need to be manually compiled and installed if your Linux distro doesn't package it.

I have no idea what the state of software is to display anything useful on the thing. The Arch page says that the g13d daemon displays a logo on it when it starts up, so it clearly can display things, but I don't see any other functionality it provides (e.g. a clock) or what other software there is that can talk to g13d. If you have any Windows games that have integration with it and can display something on it, if that's a thing, they probably won't know about g13d.

https://github.com/brittyazel/g13d

From a ten-second skim, I also don't know whether the thing is set up to modify functionality based on the particular program with a foreground window, which I don't know if is important, if you want game-specific bindings.

EDIT: The G13 also includes a 160×43 pixel monochrome LCD.

There are a couple of software packages I know of that are intended to display various sorts of system information on small, external LCD displays; these would typically be set up on the front of a desktop computer case. It might be possible, if you have the technical chops, to rig one of these up to the G13's display, as they're already intended to display a small amount of information on a low-resolution display.

This includes lcdproc, lcd4linux, and a few others. They won't be oriented towards extracting and displaying data from a running video game, though, if the G13 does that.

EDIT2: Michael Larabel, who runs the Phoronix Linux gaming site, reviewed using the G13 under Linux back in 2009, and at least at that time, it didn't have native support from lcdproc (and he also commented on how that might be useful).

https://www.phoronix.com/review/logitech_g13/3

As far as how the device worked once we got it functioning under Ubuntu Linux, well, the LCD screen is nice (though with LCDproc support it would be a lot better and more useful) and using this 22-key game pad was nicer for gaming than on a laptop keyboard.

[–] lost_faith 2 points 1 week ago (1 children)

Generally-speaking, USB mice/trackballs don’t need drivers.

Except to program the buttons

antimicrox

I will check this out

I use Debian Linux

Hopefully will work for me too

Windows games that have integration

not games, other than the profile layout, but system monitors in windows display on it.

g13d

Will check this out as well, the display stuff I could learn to live without, if it will let me program the buttons I will be happy.

if you want game-specific bindings

in windows you can also change profiles by pressing the little round button on the top left, but need the display to see what game is selected

[–] [email protected] 3 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago) (1 children)

Generally-speaking, USB mice/trackballs don’t need drivers.

Except to program the buttons

No, like...okay. How do I best put this?

"Driver" software is going to be software designed to talk directly to hardware.

In Linux, if you go looking for "driver software microsoft trackball", you probably won't generally find what you're looking for to bind things to mouse buttons.

In Windows, it's common for you to buy a device and for it to be bundled with some software written by the device vendor. That's because the device vendor is writing the software to sell their product. They're selling you a package of software and the device, and they're bundling the software specifically because they want the hardware to sell. While technically the "driver" part is only the bit that talks directly to the hardware, and often there's a lot of other software bundled, it's not uncommon to use "driver" more-colloquially to just refer to all the bundled software.

In Linux, while sometimes vendors do release proprietary software with their hardware, you're more-likely to be using software from some open-source projects. Those projects don't care about how some specific piece of hardware does in the market. They just want the functionality to be available everywhere. So unless a piece of hardware is truly unique or requires some way of specially interfacing with it, you're more-likely to be using a software package that works with many different pieces of hardware. They won't call it a "driver".

In general, for things like mice, the hardware-level stuff is all in the kernel already, because the USB standard already defines how those devices need to act to present their extra buttons; it's not necessary to add additional special software to talk to the hardware. Instead, you're just looking for a piece of software that can send a series of keypresses or whatever when you click a button, something like antimicrox.

Windows games that have integration

not games, other than the profile layout, but system monitors in windows display on it.

Fair enough. Just wanted to moderate expectations. I vaguely recall that Logitech had some other full-size "gamer keyboard" in the past that had a text display with some sort of game integration. I think I remember Teamspeak integration being on the list.

kagis

I don't think that this was it; what I'm remembering was an older keyboard, but:

https://www.amazon.com/Logitech-Programmable-Gaming-Keyboard-Display/dp/B001NXDBI6

A color GamePanel LCD displays game stats, system information, VOIP communication data, video playback, image slideshows

I'm guessing that the VoIP there is talking about Teamspeak, and they mention "game stats".

And I don't think that there's an out-of-box way to have something like that running under Linux for your G13 and displaying specific-game-relevant information.

[–] lost_faith 2 points 1 week ago

So yeah, software package, I mean the trackball is working (main 3 buttons) but not the side 2 (I now have a few suggestions to try out to keep these old favs runnin tho I am willing to purchase new ones). I have been in the windows world so long now that, as you said, I use drivers and software for a device interchangeably cause that's what I've been seeing in windows, when I dl the "drivers" for my trackball the interface is part of it, same with the G13. It is amazing what you forget in 20 yrs of not thinking about it

[–] lost_faith 1 points 1 week ago

The display is mainly for time, stopwatches, which game profile is selected, system information from an app (I forget the name but I had a good free system monitor at one time and it would display on that screen) Will see if the lcdproc/lcd4linux will do what I would like, ty again

[–] [email protected] 3 points 1 week ago (1 children)

So ur saying u got no drivers for this hardware?

[–] lost_faith 4 points 1 week ago (2 children)

Only the main buttons work on the trackball, left/right/wheel, the 2 little buttons do not do what I need. The G13 does nothing, the display only shows G13, I cannot program the buttons or anything else

[–] [email protected] 8 points 1 week ago (1 children)

For my Logitech’s mouse I’ve used InputRemapper. Don’t know if it supports the G13.

https://github.com/sezanzeb/input-remapper

[–] lost_faith 4 points 1 week ago (1 children)

Will check that out, ty

[–] [email protected] 4 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago) (1 children)

Seconding input-remapper, it's fantastic

[–] lost_faith 4 points 1 week ago

Will be checking it out

[–] [email protected] 6 points 1 week ago (1 children)

For the G13 there is also a GUI tool.

https://github.com/jtgans/g13gui

[–] lost_faith 3 points 1 week ago

Will check this out, ty

[–] [email protected] 3 points 1 week ago (1 children)

That trackball is one of my favorites, I really wish someone would make a real replacement for it. I'm currently pretty happy with the ProtoArc EM01 NL though.
I didn't need any special drivers to change the forward/back buttons (on either of those mice), you just have to bind them in your system's settings. If you're talking about having program-specific bindings then xremap works well.

[–] lost_faith 2 points 1 week ago

TY. Will check that as well, and maybe your device as well.

I actually have 2 of those trackballs. First one I bought after about 4 yrs one of the 2 boards inside died so I went and bought another one (they were $99 cdn each, $35 in the states at the time of purchase), it lasted about 4 yrs as well then one of the boards died. The best part was the boards that died were different in each so I pulled em apart and combined the working boards and have been using it since, total this device is about 25 yrs old now