Tony, Most USB to parallel port adapters do not operate in the friendly way that= =20 the old ports used to. Many adaptors are only good for byte output, not bit= =20 control with flexibility allowing line direction changes. The U401 is a USB device that provides 16 lines of I/O for the PC. The U401= =20 allows any of the 16 lines to be set as input or output, and allows for=20 byte or bit reads / writes of these lines. The device supports writes to a= =20 Hitachi LCD, as well as SPI support to interface to SPI devices such as=20 EEPROM and A/D devices. The U401 does not use any special driver (just the HID component included=20 with Windows). Hopefully this device can address some of the problems of a= =20 "disappearing parallel port". The U401 documentation can be found at www.usbmicro.com and the device is=20 sold at www.dontronics.com/u401.html . -Rob More info: (long) The U401 is a USB solution that is pre-built, pre-programmed, and=20 pre-tested and will get you interfacing your PC to various devices in very= =20 little time! There is no USB device assembly, no driver development, and no= =20 firmware to write. In many cases the U401 can be plugged into an=20 experimenter's breadboard and circuit interfacing can begin immediately.=20 Demo software applications can be used "right out of the box". Features of the U401 USB Interface =B7 USB Interface to PC =B7 Uses HID Drivers Inherent in OS =B7 SimmStick(TM) Compatibility =B7 Sixteen I/O Lines =B7 SPI Master and Slave Communication =B7 LCD Interface Commands =B7 Flexible Pin Use =B7 Free Compiled Sample Applications =B7 Visual Basic Example Code Available =B7 Fully Assembled and Tested =B7 Great Replacement for Parallel Port Interfacing =B7 PC's USB Power Brought to SimBus =B7 Easy to Use with Solderless Breadboards =B7 Attached USB Cable Provided Overview of the U401 USB Interface The U401 provides a simple digital i/o interface for the PC. Sixteen i/o=20 lines from the microcontroller are provided. Commands can be sent to the=20 U401 that change the i/o lines from input to output. I/o lines can be=20 individually selected as inputs or outputs. The U401 supports commands to=20 read the ports, and if the ports are set to output, to write to the ports. The U401 is an interface to SPI (Serial Peripheral Interface) devices. SPI= =20 is a local synchronous serial bus that uses a clock line, two data lines,=20 and a device select line for communication between a serial device and a=20 host microcontroller. The firmware on the U401 provides generic access to=20 read and write SPI devices. The SPI clock rate can be adjusted to 62.5 kHz,= =20 500 kHz, 1 MHz, or 2 MHz. Because additional pins are available as generic= =20 i/o, the U401 can use these lines as slave select lines and address=20 multiple SPI devices. The SPI subsystem of the U401 can be used as a master to communicate with=20 SPI devices such as EEPROMS and A/D converters. The U401 can also be used=20 as a SPI slave to a microcontroller that uses the U401 as a gateway to the= =20 PC. A PIC, for example, can act as a SPI master to communicate data with=20 the U401, which can then transfer the data to a PC application. Most=20 microcontrollers can communicate via SPI with software-driven routines,=20 many have internal SPI hardware. SPI hardware is present on=20 microcontrollers from little 8-bit devices, like the PIC, to 32-bit=20 microcontrollers like the 680x0-based devices. The U401 is a convenient way to interface a standard Hitachi-type of=20 intelligent LCD controller to USB. The commands that support communication= =20 to the LCD module are the "standard" LCD commands. Standard commands=20 include writing characters to the display, and controlling the display. The U401 is an assembled and tested circuit card that is 3.5 inches=20 (88.9mm) long and 1.0 inches (25.4mm) wide. This is the same size as a "One= =20 Inch SimmStick". Although the U401 is not a SIMM card and will not fit into= =20 a SIMM socket, the card can still be used as a host to SimmSticks, or can=20 be used as a SimmStick when not using the SIMM sockets. The U401 is SimmStick Compatible, the PCB has compatible dimensions and=20 connector layout as a SimmStick. The U401 uses a compatible SimmStick bus=20 layout. There are no square pads (not meant to fit in the SIMM socket), but= =20 the spacing for that connector is still maintained. See the ODN Application= =20 section, App5, for examples of using the U401 with SimmSticks. The U401 interfaces to the PC via the USB port. An application on the PC=20 controls the U401. The U401 does not use any custom drivers, just the=20 drivers that are a part of the operating system. Custom software can be=20 developed to use the U401, or the applications that have been created as=20 examples here can also be used. -- http://www.piclist.com hint: To leave the PICList mailto:piclist-unsubscribe-request@mitvma.mit.edu