How do I program the controller?
How do I do it without a kit?
I have the software, but nothing else.
Do you have the orange cable and the rectangular programming block?
Yeah.
I know how to program the robot.
I’m trying to program the buttons and joysticks on the controller though.
There has to be Data Communications between your computer and the Vex Controller… You need the Vex Programming Box, and maybe the USB-to-Serial converter to achieve this.
This is the same Hardware, no mater what Programming system you use…
You can order just the Programming Hardware from VexRobotics.com.
Could you please link me to the parts?
What software do you have (EasyC, RobotC, MPLAB)?
I have RobotC
What do you want them to do??
Write out the steps you want to accomplish.
We can then give you suggestions on what to do…
I’m actually not sure.
My team want’s to do something strange with the wheels, so I have to do something strange with the programming. 
Basically they want two different modes for the controller, so that the joysticks will do two different things. They want one of the trigger buttons to switch modes.
I think he means the transmitter, not the microcontroller; if you hold the mode button (or was it holding mode and the one below it at the same time? I’m not sure) you go into an options menu and you can flip the controls to transmit backwards (i.e. down is up) and some other stuff.
Excellent Start!!!
So, Mode #1… What Joy Sticks and What do they Do???
And Mode #2… What Joy Sticks and What do they do Differently???
I mean the things with the joystick.
Uhh I’m not sure. I know they want one joystick to make the robot move a certain way.
Once you switch modes the joystick will make the robot move a different way.
That is Not a Problem…
Are you familiar with the Terms “Tank Mode” and “Arcade Mode” and do you understand how they use the Joy Sticks differently to do the same kinds of Motion on the Robot??
You cannot program the transmitter! All the transmitter does is send values over a radio frequency. What you must do is use the programmiable microcontroller to intemperate these values.
SO, when the microcontroller detects that one of the bottons on the controller was pressed, it changes the motor outputs based on the transmitter signals.