"DoN. Nichols" wrote:
On 2014-06-13, Michael A. Terrell wrote:
Yes. In fact, they were originally controlled by HP's lab style
computers. All you need is a computer with a working HPIB/GPIB/IEEE-488
interface card and the commands for that instrument. The user manual
usually lists the commands for each instrument.
I meant could the USB to IEEE-488 interfaces be talked to with
something other than Windows systems. I actually have a PCI IEEE-488
board in one linux box, but I would like to also have some IEEE-488
communications from my Sun Blade 2000 systems.
https://github.com/Galvant/ and other people are designing USB to
IEEE-488 interfaces. You could ask if they plan on support for Sun, or
if they will give you the source code for their windows or Linux
drivers.
I've got one of the HP 9826 (Series 9000-226) machines from a
hamfest -- but much to my dismay, apparently one of the pair of ROMs
which make the system's initial boot software (this one doesn't have a
language in ROM as some of them did) is corrupted. I see on the screen
various status messages and prompts, with every other character
unintelligible -- because the ROM that it is in is damaged -- so I can't
do anything with that machine. A pity, the price was nice, and it came
with the BASIC floppy set, and a couple of IEEE-488 cables.
I've also got a couple of Tektronix 6130 systems (National
Semiconductor 32016 CPU) which have the IEEE-488 interface too, but the
system is ancient, and the programs necessary to format a SCSI disc on
it are missing. The only disc is an 80 MB MFM disc -- sort of made of
unobtanium these days. :-)
There are several Tek Yahoo groups that might help you find the
software. I might still have a small SCSI drive.
www.geeks.com had the
80 GB for $4.95 just before they shut down retail sales.
Also back it the days of the HP 9825 (a simpler machine with a
weird language called "HPL") I constructed an interface to allow the
9825 to control a Fluke HV power supply which could be commanded to
produce a voltage (up to 2048 Volts, IIRC) in pure binary. I used a
6800 CPU and a 68488 HP-IB/GPIB/IEEE-488 controller chip.
It was a good choice. A reliable connector from Canon, not something
custom from an unknown source.
Agreed.
Indeed. But interesting that the *standards* did not specify a
connector at all. :-)
Yes, but most companies picked a common connector so they could talk
to other equipment without stocking hundreds of different cables. A few
oddballs used very expensive and hard to find connectors. Some used
another cheaper connector to save a few cents, like the Heathkit H-14
printer that used a straight line molded nylon connector like those used
on switching power supplies.
That might be from their association with DEC. I bought a DEC
LA-36 dot matrix printer which had as its serial interface a flat
plastic connector with a tab which set the keying which was by default a
TTY current loop interface, and had to get an add-on board to make it
RS-232. :-)
The H-14 printer was a kit, on a cast aluminum base. It used the
printhead and motors from a cheap ATM receipt printer, and was all their
design. The original release didn't have enough drive for the paper
feed motor, and needed a mod kit installed to increase the drive current
to the stepper motor. Yes, it was compatible with their H-8 DEC clone
computer.
It was a nice printer for a while -- until a really hot day
caused the double-sided tape which held the carriage position encoder
wheel in place to soften and let the encoder go off-center. At that
point, it would crash loudly into one of the stops. :-)
--
Anyone wanting to run for any political office in the US should have to
have a DD214, and a honorable discharge.
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