App

Joplin from a game controller

Download InputConfig on the Mac App StoreThe Joplin layout is built into InputConfig, free on the Mac App Store. You don't have to make an account, there are no subscriptions, and nothing is locked. Optimized for Apple silicon.

On a Mac: Joplin reads keys from this layout like a keyboard. Two rows come from another app and need Joplin's keys: Command P for Goto Anything and Command L to switch views.

Yes, Joplin works from a game controller on a Mac with the Markdown note layout, after two quick row changes. Goto Anything is Command P in Joplin, and Command L switches between the editor and the viewer. With dictation on a bumper, Joplin is a fine place to keep a journal from a chair.

The layout, control by control

Click a control. Labels:

How the layout thinks

  • Write and search. A new note (Command N) on the right face button and search across every note (Command Shift F) on the left already match Joplin.
  • Point and scroll. The left stick is the pointer, the right stick scrolls, the right trigger clicks, Escape is on Start.

Change two rows before you rely on them

Step 1: Goto Anything

  • You: Change the bottom face button's output from Command O to Command P.
  • InputConfig: Sends Joplin's Goto Anything key.
  • Check: Press it and the Goto Anything box opens.

Step 2: The view toggle

  • You: Change the top face button's output from Command E to Command L.
  • InputConfig: Sends the key that switches between the editor and the viewer. Command E would open the note in an external editor.
  • Check: Press it in a note and the view changes.

Two rows, and the pad speaks Joplin.

Tune it

  • Search in this note. Put Command F on a stick click.
  • Dictation. Add a Start Dictation row on a bumper.
  • Notebooks. Pointer work in the sidebar.

A journal you can keep from the sofa is a journal you keep.

Get it in two clicks

  1. Get InputConfig free on the Mac App Store, open it, and click Smart Preset Maker on the welcome screen.
  2. Search for Joplin and pick it. The layout is created as a preset in your sidebar, named and ready.
  3. Press Activate. Every row can be changed afterwards: the editor's Scan button rebinds any control the moment you touch it.

Every binding, as a table

The Joplin preset in InputConfig, drawn on a DualSense Edge with each control labeled with the key or action it sends.
Figure 1. The Joplin preset drawn on a DualSense Edge in InputConfig's Live Visualizer. For example, Right trigger is labeled Click, and A / Cross is labeled Quick switcher (Cmd+O). Any other controller shows the same layout on its own drawing.
ControllerSendsWhat it does
Left stick leftMouse motion left (speed 16)Cursor left
Left stick rightMouse motion right (speed 16)Cursor right
Left stick upMouse motion up (speed 16)Cursor up
Left stick downMouse motion down (speed 16)Cursor down
Right stick downScroll downScroll down
Right stick upScroll upScroll up
Right triggerLeft clickClick
A / CrossCommand (Left), OQuick switcher (Cmd+O)
B / CircleCommand (Left), NNew note (Cmd+N)
X / SquareCommand (Left), Shift (Left), FSearch (Cmd+Shift+F)
Y / TriangleCommand (Left), EToggle edit / preview (Cmd+E)
Start / OptionsEscapeClose / Esc

Button names follow the Xbox / PlayStation pair shown in the editor, so A / Cross is the bottom face button on either pad. On a Switch Pro Controller the bottom button is labeled B; the mapping still fires on position.

Questions

Does this match the Obsidian layout?

Yes, it has the same shape as the Obsidian layout. Goto Anything and the view toggle are the two keys that differ.

Download InputConfig on the Mac App StoreCompletely free. You don't have to make an account, there are no subscriptions, and nothing is locked. Optimized for Apple silicon. Open source on GitHub.

Updated