[rescue] Parallel ports [was Re: Slightly OT: ?Bad Cap Saga]

[Curious George]

--- On Thu, 8/21/08, Joshua Boyd <jdboyd at jdboyd.net> wrote:

> On Thu, Aug 21, 2008 at 11:30:05PM +0300, Geoffrey S. Mendelson wrote:
> > On Thu, Aug 21, 2008 at 04:22:02PM -0400, Ethan O'Toole wrote:
> > >The final word on Parallel ports is...
> > >
> > >We need a chip that costs $2 each, that comes in a DIP package,
> > >and has 16 DIO in and 16 DIO out. And is cheap, like the
> > >FTDI serial thingys.
> > 
> > http://www.zilog.com/products/family.asp?fam=215
> > 
> > There's got to be one of them that's close enough.
> > 
> > I'm not sure of the single chip price, but a development kit for some
> > of the versions is $40.
> 
> Those chips are quiet expensive.  In quantities of over 100
> units, they are still $4.36-$6.34 each.  

Jeez, this really is starting to sound silly!
On the one hand, people are grumbling that they don;t *have*
a parallet port (etc.).  Then, complaining that getting that
*functionality* would "cost to much" at < $10.

And, presumably, this is to implement some capability THAT
YOU CAN'T BUY (or, can't buy at an affordable price!).

A geek port is NEVER going to be something that we'll see
supported in a mainstream product nowadays.  Because the rest
of the world has no interest in it!  So, unless it is *free*,
you aren't going to have manufacturers include it in their
products!  (and, even if free, they'll only include it BY
ACCIDENT not BY DESIGN)

It's sort of like complaining that you can't buy a vehicle that
sits *12* comfortably -- and, given that you have a NEED to
seat 12, then complaining that the "solution" isn't just a
$50 add-on for a bottom-of-the-line YUGO!

Or, that the cheap approach requires too much work or
expertice to use.

<frown>

> Personally, I'd vote for giving up on DIPs.  If you want DIPs for easy
> prototyping, get a stash SMT breakout boards and solder them on.

Or, *pay* someone to do it for you!  But, don't complain that
what you want costs more than you want to spend.  That's true
of many things (why doe RFID readers cost so much?  I want them
to cost $3 in small volumes)

If you want a parallel port, keep an old machine lying around.
I have lots of old peripherals, etc. that won't work on
new hardware.  I have lots of old *software* that won't run on
new machines/OS's.  I can either give them up *or* keep the
legacy hardware/software required to make them work.  I *know*
the vendors aren't going to address my needs...

[sorry, this comes across as sounding overly harsh.  It isn't
intended as such.  Rather, a wake-up call... think about
what you're asking for and then WONDER why no one is addressing
your needs in the mainstream]