What's Hanging on Your Parallel Port? 45
CryoStasis asks: "A buddy of mine reciently stated that 'You're not a real techie unless you have some weirdo contraption hanging off your parallel port." This comming from a guy who is using his for programing some type of micro-controller (he's being rather secretive about it until he's finished). I've decided to go into a different direction however and currently have an old NES PowerGlove hooked up that I use as a game controller. It works great and brings a whole new dimention into gaming. On the side I'm also looking at getting some kind of mouse script functioning desktop applications, no more mouse for me!. So what about everyone else. Who has something odd/unique hanging out of thier parrellel port?" Call me boring, but the only thing that hangs off of my parallel port is my printer, however I'm sure that there are a few of you out there who put their parallel port to some novel uses. Care to share?
Re:Programming.. (Score:1)
That's precisely why NT/2000 don't let you address it, or any other hardware for that matter.
You see, I'm sure that you are an excellent assembly programmer and that your programs never fail. But, as your bah comment indicates, you won't take the time to learn how the system works as a whole. This means that your software might/probably won't play well with others, destabilizing the entire system. For this reason, NT makes you go through the HAL to access hardware. The HAL won't let you "bah" the system.
Works for me.
Re:Programming.. (Score:2)
Re:Programming.. (Score:1)
Though, there appear to be new /dev files in 2.4 that offer direct parallel port access. Don't know if they're portable.
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Change is inevitable.
ibutton! (Score:1)
www.ibutton.com
Telephone (Score:1)
9-pin! (Score:3)
Re:not what you're asking... (Score:1)
ObParallelPort: I had a set of LED's on mine that reported processor load, etc. I lost the stuff on a job move though. Maybe it's time to rebuild!
What is this "parallel port" of which you speak? (Score:5)
-Waldo
Webcam, scanner, sound synthesizer, ZIP drive (Score:2)
The sound thing is neat, it was intended for notebooks, and runs in wfw3.11.
I finally bought a new web cam, so I can take my PC with the webcam on it and keep it in Linux, instead of dual booting.
Re:Back in the day... (Score:2)
Anyway, I just though I'd point out the worst thing ever to get hooked up to the LPT port: The Xircom Pocket Ethernet Adapter [ebay.com]. And, gack, even one for Token Ring! [ebay.com]
It seems a general truth of PC hardware is that anything hooked into the parallel port that isn't a printer is bound to work poorly if at all.
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not what you're asking... (Score:1)
Only a CPLD programmer. (Score:2)
A paper clip (Score:2)
Xfree 4 fixed it. But I sort of liked the MacGyver factor.
Check out "The button"! (Score:3)
You push the button, and it updates the web page... It also has a row of LEDs that blink in a pattern that is settable over the web.
It's completely powered and controled by the paralel port.
'Wireless' Cameo 3 printer (Score:1)
Re:Nothing (Score:1)
Back in the day... (Score:4)
Other uses... (Score:3)
Re:Nothing (Score:1)
How about a laser pointer? (Score:2)
laser pointer.
It's hooked up through a solid-state relay so you can switch it on and off . . . it doesn't get used much now, I had it blinking net traffic on the wall at one point, but the original reason it got hooked up was for some experiments in ultra-low-cost direct datalinks between apartments. (After a fellow geek and I realized our rooms had line of sight.) We got some basic comms working with a $9 laser pointer and a simple light sensor, but it was tooo  slow for any kind of real use. Plus those 'N' batteries go quick with all that switching (and aren't cheap!) Kind of cool though.
Tap THIS, echelon! :)
JP1 Interface (Score:1)
Check out http://groups.yahoo.com/group/jp1 [yahoo.com] for more info.
Bob
Lots of Power! (Score:1)
--Mike--
Re:Programming.. (Score:1)
a maniacally flag-waving robot (Score:1)
Tape reels for wheels and darlingtons for power (one amp at 5V per coil, up to two coils active per motor at a time).
Motors bolted together back to back with shorter bolts at top and longer bolts at bottom, so axles are slanted and center of gravity is below center of wheels (and thus balances on two wheels, tho it rocks back and forth a bit when it starts or stops).
Programmed (in Forth [forth.org] of course) to do a series of military maneuver farces.
Had to build my own parallel port when I first built it, but a PC-clone port works fine. (Original machine was a Sanyo Z80 CP/M box with ribbon cable for a bus: I stuck a Z80-PIO on it).
The thing was so goofy/hilarious I entered it into the annual student art show/contest and had it on display for a couple weeks. I used to love to sit in the lounge and see people come around the corner and confront it. They would walk in when it was pausing between performances and jump two feet in the air a couple of minutes later when it started to wave its flag like a maniac, turn in place, and do zig zags. Poor art-lovers didn't know what to think.
Back in college (Score:4)
Re:NS (Score:3)
I wonder if dog hair conducts electricity? Hmm...
Lots of common uses (Score:3)
Dongles! a hiaku (Score:2)
check out my new dongle, word!
Hung like elephant.
Word Nick, good karma hording story.
The chuckster
Re:Lots of common uses (Score:1)
Some day I hope to do just that. I got as far as streaming live video out over the internet from a wireless camera mounted to an R/C car. My next step was to hook the controller up to a webserver and setup controls on a website. But I never got around to doing this. Maybe I'll do it someday. The streaming video was neat though!
As for what's hanging off my parallel port right now? An old laptop sans a NIC, using PLIP to route a connection to the net. And my other boring parallel devices are a CD burner, a scanner and a printer. Unfortunately nothing out of the ordianary.
Programming.. (Score:1)
GameBoy Advance (Score:1)
check out http://www.devrs.com/gba/files/mbv2faqs.php
various things... (Score:2)
Cryptnotic
I've seen... (Score:2)
My mac has a parallel port (Score:1)
Too bad most mac printer drivers aren't parallel port savvy
Nothing (Score:1)
I usually wish my notebook didn't even have a parallel port. It does nothing but take up space.
Call me boring, but of all the desktops I have, just one has a printer hanging off its parallel port. I think a more interesting question to ask would be how many terminals do you have hanging off the Vax in your closet? (2/8) ;-)
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home brew drums (Score:1)
PIC Programming (Score:1)
Sad part is that I'll probably only ever use it once to program the chip needed for the *BIG LOUD VOICE* Universal Infrared Reciever! [geocities.com]
NS (Score:1)
A huge Radio Telescope (Score:2)
Is that a dongle in your pocket... (Score:1)
Well does a cofeemachine or a toaster count? (Score:2)
I only got to the testing phase, as i lost interest (plus the small problem with toasters and such turning on when i was not at home..) It only cost me a burned out parallelport, as i forgot some resistors in the first model.. a.k.a. Ooops!
Well at least learnt to include protective resistors between computers and home made stuff..
Yours Yazeran
Plan: To go to Mars one day with a hammer.
i have nothing (Score:1)
m.kelley
www.mkelley.net
Re:Riiing (Score:1)
It is actually a BBC Micro that is pre-programmed in BBC Basic to ring the school bells by switching on the tape motor for a few seconds then back off again.
The cool thing is, we can set our clocks to synchronise with the BBC and can be all set to leave class at exactly the right moment.
Back to Something totally boring, I only have a Zip drive running of my ppa port BUT i do have this strange old "Portable Hard Disk" that is ment to connect somehow. How? I have no Idea.
Everything+more (Score:1)
By the way I'm a double-E at Rose-Hulman Inst. of Tech [rose-hulman.edu], great school. Check it out if you think you're smart, and still have the chance to go to school. I chose it over MIT and Cal Tech.
About a quarter inch of dust, that's what (Score:2)
I don't have a printer--I'drather recycle an electron than kill a tree... Just ~1/4" of dust (~6mm for you folks @ NASA).