Hi.
I've read that PCI parallel port cards are more or less useless but printing..
I'm about to write an interface prog for controlling a preety old equipment which takes input by a parallel port, but from what I've heard other people before me failed. I suspect that it has to do with it.
IS this true? Should I search for a specific brand of PCI Parallel card or is there any other equipment I could use?
Thanks in advance.
If you dance barefoot on the broken glass of undefined behaviour, you've got to expect the occasional cut.
If at first you don't succeed, try writing your phone number on the exam paper.
It doesn't say anything about the problem. My initial question is from thisOriginally Posted by Salem
So if you know, or encountered problems with interfacing on pci plz let me knowUnfortunately, as of today parallel port is a completely deprecated interfacing standard. It is impossible finding a new laptop with parallel port these days. Even almost all branded PCs already shead Parallel Ports from their back panels. Other alternative available in market such as PCI parallel port expansion cards and USB to Parallel Port converters aren't good for anything other than connecting your old printer because of their architectural difference.
A tutorial on Parallel port Interfacing
> Other alternative available in market such as PCI parallel port expansion cards and USB to Parallel Port converters aren't good for anything other than connecting your old printer because of their architectural difference.
Well that really depends on the quality of the PCI/USB device that you bought.
Buy something cheap, which only implements the handful of pins necessary to drive a printer, or go up-market a bit and find something that implements the full interface.
If you dance barefoot on the broken glass of undefined behaviour, you've got to expect the occasional cut.
If at first you don't succeed, try writing your phone number on the exam paper.
I have never had a problem with a pci parallel port. In order to work for a printer they must properly emulate the original printer port so they should work without problems.
Jim
THanks guys!
Most/all USB adapters DO NOT emulate the whole parallel port, so they only work with printers. I found that out after buying USB-parallel adapters to try to flash an FPGA.
For USB I recommend using one of the many USB digital input/output modules, similar to this link. Note: I haven't tried using the product, but there are quite a few different USB based IO boards available with different specs and prices. For the PCI there are probably also cards that don't follow the complete specification, always check the specs before you purchase the board.
Jim
