> I Need to use a standard windows pc, probably based on
> an EPIA board. Can't do Linux, and the twiddler
> thingy!
But WHYYYYYY? ;-) Seriously, Windows is probably a
very good choice for a lot of people. You've got to remember
that the participants of the wear-hard list are a bit extraordinary,
relatively speaking.
> As regards to keyboards, I meant whether there is a
> standard way of wiring any (or most) Palm or POcket pc
> keyboards, ie would a wiring hack work for ANY PALM
Assuming that by Palm, you mean Palm brand, or Palm III
series...that sort of thing, then yes, the wiring for the serial
port would be the same for all of them. Each unique brand,
i.e. Palm, Sony, Handspring, etc seem to use their own unique
connectors. They all follow the same electrical standards, but
the pinouts are different.
Palm serial port pinouts are the same for the Pilot, Professional,
III and Vseries...and then they changed the connector for the
VII and M series. (I think that's right) I think the Zire uses
something entirely incompatible, too. Handspring uses its own
connector, and I think it's USB only.
Anything you're likely to buy is just standard serial, though, and
very well documented online. Do a search on google.com and
you'll find an abundance of sites that list the pinouts for almost
anything you could want.
The drivers -- now that's a different thing. The innards of
each and every keyboard seem to speak a different language.
In my mind it would have made sense to have them output
standard ASCII, but I'm not the one who designed them.
> BTW havent seen anything regarding PPC keyboard
> interfacing, its mostly palm stuff.
Palm was first, and until recently Palm was the more common,
and MUCH more affordable choice. They're also VERY highly
standardized, and a bit easier to program in my opinion.
Regardless, EVERY pinout, most of the schematics, and dis-
assembled copies of the ROMs are available online, for anyone
to hack to their hearts content. The Palm is a useful business
tool, AND a hacker's tool. Can the same be said about anything
based on Windows? ;-)
> Would all who answer this question pls include links
> to pages with examples, schematics, drivers etc. That
> way I hope me and others can have a handy reference as
> to what to do exactly.
Let me see if I can find the Palm serial pinouts for you.
III series http://ken.bantoft.org/code/palm/palm-serial.php
All http://www.pcables.com/prod2.html
I think that should give you enough data to get started...
> Forget about the mouse for now, will think of that
> later!
> THanks for your time !
These kinds of questions are fun to answer...
-- Chuck Knight
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