On Mon, 17 Sep 2018 18:09:22 -0400, wrote:

On Mon, 17 Sep 2018 14:05:21 -0700 (PDT), trader_4
wrote:

On Monday, September 17, 2018 at 3:58:55 PM UTC-4, Tekkie® wrote:
Cheri posted for all of us...



"Ralph Mowery" wrote in message
k.net...
In article , says...

Hi, I'm sorry if this is the wrong group but hoping someone can help. I
ordered a desktop computer with Win10 that came with mouse and keyboard.
The
computer plug ins on the back of computer for these are round pin type,
but
the mouse and keyboard that came with it have the slotted flat plug ends.
I
have a man coming from Best Buy on Tuesday and wonder what type if any
adapters there are for this. Thanks to anyone who can help, I am not
computer savvy at all.

--




Does the computer have any of the flat slots on the back ? Those are
called USB ports and if there are any , you can plug the keyboard and
mouse into any of them and Win10 will find them.


They do make the adapters for this, but most computers have not used the
round plugs in years.


Thank you so much for that answer! I can now see what you mean. You have
been most helpful.

Cheri

The round type are called DIN connectors. The flat type are called USB
connectors. USB is most common these days. They sent the wrong k/b and
mouse. Are there adapters in the box?

--
Tekkie

When's the last time you saw a new PC that uses a PS2 connector for the
keyboard? Fifteen, twenty years? They didn't send anything wrong,
she's just confused or trolling.

Maybe 8-10 years. As I said my dual core Intel board has PS/2
connectors and it shipped with Windoze 7.
Just installed a new Acer Veriton - still supports PS2 Kbd and mouse
- but comes with USB

On 09/17/2018 02:58 PM, Tekkie® wrote:

[snip]

The round type are called DIN connectors. The flat type are called USB
connectors. USB is most common these days. They sent the wrong k/b and
mouse. Are there adapters in the box?

mini-DIN. Regular DIN describes the older PC keyboard (and cassette on
the original PCs) connectors.

BTW, one of the varieties of mini-DIN was used for S-video (which also
fell out too easily).

--
99 days until the winter celebration (Tue Dec 25, 2018 12:00:00 AM for 1
day).

Mark Lloyd
http://notstupid.us/

"Windows Closed. You can't look outside now."

On 09/17/2018 03:07 PM, wrote:

[snip]

Do we know this is a new machine? The MS requirements to run W/10 are
exactly the same as W/7 and I have a (shipped with) W/7 machine with
PS/2 connectors. (Intel dual core MB).

I checked my 3 recent desktop PCs. 1 has 2 PS/2 connectors. The other 2
have 1 (purple/green) each.

--
99 days until the winter celebration (Tue Dec 25, 2018 12:00:00 AM for 1
day).

Mark Lloyd
http://notstupid.us/

"Windows Closed. You can't look outside now."

[snip]

When's the last time you saw a new PC that uses a PS2 connector for the
keyboard? Fifteen, twenty years? They didn't send anything wrong,
she's just confused or trolling.

Some do have them, although it's better to use USB. Use any port
(although you might want to avoid USB3, usually with blue plastic in the
connector).

--
99 days until the winter celebration (Tue Dec 25, 2018 12:00:00 AM for 1
day).

Mark Lloyd
http://notstupid.us/

"Windows Closed. You can't look outside now."

On 09/17/2018 06:45 PM, Wayne Boatwright wrote:

[snip]

My current Dell Precision 3620 has 3 USB sockets on the front and 5
on the rear. It also has the PS/2 sockets but I have nothing to plug
into them.

My best PC has 3 on the front and 8 on the rear (2 are USB3) plus MB
headers for 3 more (2 are USB3).

I have a few PS/2 mice and keyboards, but I normally prefer to use USB
ones (or the combination ones on USB) except once when I couldn't get
USB working on a certain PC (it's fixed now).

--
99 days until the winter celebration (Tue Dec 25, 2018 12:00:00 AM for 1
day).

Mark Lloyd
http://notstupid.us/

"Windows Closed. You can't look outside now."

On 09/17/2018 07:28 PM, Clare Snyder wrote:

[snip]

Just installed a new Acer Veriton - still supports PS2 Kbd and mouse
- but comes with USB

The only computer (Dell) I have now that came without USB was made in
1996, and is seldom used. I actually bought that one used, but it's
likely to have been sold new with Windows 95.

Seldom-used computers can last a long time.

--
99 days until the winter celebration (Tue Dec 25, 2018 12:00:00 AM for 1
day).

Mark Lloyd
http://notstupid.us/

"Windows Closed. You can't look outside now."

On Monday, September 17, 2018 at 9:56:22 PM UTC-4, Mark Lloyd wrote:
[snip]

When's the last time you saw a new PC that uses a PS2 connector for the
keyboard? Fifteen, twenty years? They didn't send anything wrong,
she's just confused or trolling.

Some do have them, although it's better to use USB. Use any port
(although you might want to avoid USB3, usually with blue plastic in the
connector).

--
99 days until the winter celebration (Tue Dec 25, 2018 12:00:00 AM for 1
day).

Mark Lloyd
http://notstupid.us/

"Windows Closed. You can't look outside now."

Yes, I see people are saying that even some new PCs still have PS/2.
Doesn't make any sense to me, unless there are some legacy peripherals
that need it, that I'm not aware of. In the case in point, it shipped
with USB keyboard and mouse.

On 9/17/2018 7:41 PM, Wayne Boatwright wrote:
On Sun 16 Sep 2018 06:29:14p, micky told us...

In alt.home.repair, on Sun, 16 Sep 2018 15:03:23 -0700, "Cheri"
wrote:

Hi, I'm sorry if this is the wrong group but hoping someone can
help. I ordered a desktop computer with Win10 that came with mouse
and keyboard. The computer plug ins on the back of computer for
these are round pin type, but the mouse and keyboard that came
with it have the slotted flat plug ends. I have a man coming from
Best Buy on Tuesday and wonder what type if any adapters there are
for this. Thanks to anyone who can help, I am not computer savvy
at all.
The round jacks are for people who have a favorite keyboard or
mouse that has a round plug (PS-2). Everyone else uses USB plugs
and jacks.

They are also used for flashdrives (also called disk on key, etc.)
and sometimes for headphones, external speakers, external
harddrives, external floppy drives, etc.

There are some jacks in the back and some in the front. If you
use them all up, you can get a little, cheap thing that's like an
extension cord for USB, that has 3 or more usb jacks and one usb
plug.

I have no desire for wireless. I'm sitting right here and so is
the mouse. Plus with wireless, there is a battery in the mouse
and another in the keyboard. Who needs that. If I ever decide to
sit far away, I'll get wireless, or a usb extension cord.

FWIW, the batteries in my wireless keyboard and mouse seem to last
forever. I rarely have to change them more than once a year. If I
wanted to conserve battery life even further, each unit has it's own
off/on switch.

I often move my keyboard to a sideboard when I'm not using it and
want more desktop work space. The wire is a hindrance for me.

I have a Logitech K800 back-lit keyboard and a Performance MX mouse.

The rechargeable AA battery in the mouse has a battery life of ~8 days so I have to plug the mouse in to USB cable once a week to recharge.

Oddly, the K800 back-lit keyboard lasts longer at about 14 days between charges.

On 09/17/2018 07:53 PM, Mark Lloyd wrote:
On 09/17/2018 03:07 PM, wrote:

[snip]

Do we know this is a new machine? The MS requirements to run W/10 are
exactly the same as W/7 and I have a (shipped with) W/7 machine with
PS/2 connectors. (Intel dual core MB).

I checked my 3 recent desktop PCs. 1 has 2 PS/2 connectors. The other 2
have 1 (purple/green) each.


Old mobos have to go someplace...

On 09/17/2018 12:21 PM, Mark Lloyd wrote:
On 09/16/2018 11:40 PM, rbowman wrote:

[snip]

I'm assuming it's an optical mouse. (light in the bottom instead of a
ball) I never went to wireless but optical sure are nice. No more
taking the ball out and scraping crud off the rollers.
I didn't like cleaning them either. Alcohol and cotton swabs might work
for an obsessive cleaner, but if it actually NEEDS cleaning they're
completely inadequate.

I didn't know you could buy a ball mouse now.

Probably not but I have sort of a computer museum...

On Mon, 17 Sep 2018 23:45:24 -0000 (UTC), Wayne Boatwright
wrote:

On Mon 17 Sep 2018 11:30:27a, Mark Lloyd told us...

On 09/17/2018 04:16 AM, trader_4 wrote:

[snip]

They disappeared over 15 years ago. Is that round connector even
for a keyboard? And unless it's some custom made system, all
systems from any manufacturer come with a quick start sheet,
color coded cables, etc that show how you plug it together. I
doubt you could find any new motherboard with a PS2 connector.

One reason for continuing to use PS/2 keyboard is BIOS. The first
ones didn't support USB, although that's been a long tome too.

The motherboard I bought 5 years ago came with one. Just one. The
color around it was purple on one side and green on the other,
indicating it could be used for either mouse or keyboard. Adapters
are available to allow both. However I chose USB since I had USB
peripherals and USB connectors don't fall out as easily.

BTW, that system has no floppy controller and no parallel ATA
(SATA only). It does have RS232 and parallel.

I wonder if new mice & keyboards work with PS/2, which uses a
completely different protocol.


My current Dell Precision 3620 has 3 USB sockets on the front and 5
on the rear. It also has the PS/2 sockets but I have nothing to plug
into them.

I need a PS/2 port for my Seeburg 3W1 juke box controller. My current
W/7 machine has one.

On Monday, September 17, 2018 at 9:10:33 AM UTC-5, Ralph Mowery wrote:
In article ,
says...

I'm assuming it's an optical mouse. (light in the bottom instead of a
ball) I never went to wireless but optical sure are nice. No more taking
the ball out and scraping crud off the rollers.




I went to the optical mouse years ago. No more cleaning the ball and
things in side of lint and such.

Now the wireless mice have a very long battery life, unlike one I had
many years ago that seemed to eat batteries. I went that way a year or
so ago on all my computers and glad I did. Still using the wired
keyboards on all but one of the computers in the house.

People looked at me funny when I told them I had to clean my mouse's balls. I had more than one computer. ^_^

[8~{} Uncle Ballsy Monster

On Mon, 17 Sep 2018 21:13:37 -0500, Mark Lloyd
wrote:

On 09/17/2018 07:28 PM, Clare Snyder wrote:

[snip]

Just installed a new Acer Veriton - still supports PS2 Kbd and mouse
- but comes with USB

The only computer (Dell) I have now that came without USB was made in
1996, and is seldom used. I actually bought that one used, but it's
likely to have been sold new with Windows 95.

Seldom-used computers can last a long time.

That sounds about right. USB was natively supported with W/98. My old
Latitude laptop shipped with W/98 and 1 USB port. It is still running
as my FAX, scanner and print server.

On 09/17/2018 09:36 PM, Wayne Boatwright wrote:
On Mon 17 Sep 2018 07:29:42p, David Nye told us...

On 9/17/2018 7:41 PM, Wayne Boatwright wrote:
On Sun 16 Sep 2018 06:29:14p, micky told us...

In alt.home.repair, on Sun, 16 Sep 2018 15:03:23 -0700, "Cheri"
wrote:

Hi, I'm sorry if this is the wrong group but hoping someone can
help. I ordered a desktop computer with Win10 that came with
mouse and keyboard. The computer plug ins on the back of
computer for these are round pin type, but the mouse and
keyboard that came with it have the slotted flat plug ends. I
have a man coming from Best Buy on Tuesday and wonder what type
if any adapters there are for this. Thanks to anyone who can
help, I am not computer savvy at all.
The round jacks are for people who have a favorite keyboard or
mouse that has a round plug (PS-2). Everyone else uses USB
plugs and jacks.

They are also used for flashdrives (also called disk on key,
etc.) and sometimes for headphones, external speakers, external
harddrives, external floppy drives, etc.

There are some jacks in the back and some in the front. If you
use them all up, you can get a little, cheap thing that's like
an extension cord for USB, that has 3 or more usb jacks and one
usb plug.

I have no desire for wireless. I'm sitting right here and so is
the mouse. Plus with wireless, there is a battery in the mouse
and another in the keyboard. Who needs that. If I ever decide
to sit far away, I'll get wireless, or a usb extension cord.

FWIW, the batteries in my wireless keyboard and mouse seem to
last forever. I rarely have to change them more than once a
year. If I wanted to conserve battery life even further, each
unit has it's own off/on switch.

I often move my keyboard to a sideboard when I'm not using it and
want more desktop work space. The wire is a hindrance for me.

I have a Logitech K800 back-lit keyboard and a Performance MX
mouse.

The rechargeable AA battery in the mouse has a battery life of ~8
days so I have to plug the mouse in to USB cable once a week to
recharge.

Oddly, the K800 back-lit keyboard lasts longer at about 14 days
between charges.


I have a Logitec K520 Keyboard that uses 2 disposabnle AA batteries
that last over a year. The Loitec M310 Mouse uses 1 disposable AA
battery and last 8-9 months. Given the short battery life of your
recharagebles, I'd much rather have my disposable batteries.


I'm thinking his rechargeables are toast.

On Sunday, September 16, 2018 at 5:04:01 PM UTC-5, Cheri wrote:
Hi, I'm sorry if this is the wrong group but hoping someone can help. I
ordered a desktop computer with Win10 that came with mouse and keyboard. The
computer plug ins on the back of computer for these are round pin type, but
the mouse and keyboard that came with it have the slotted flat plug ends. I
have a man coming from Best Buy on Tuesday and wonder what type if any
adapters there are for this. Thanks to anyone who can help, I am not
computer savvy at all.

--
Cheri

Cheryl got the information she needed...but this thread will probably go on for several years.

In alt.home.repair, on Mon, 17 Sep 2018 23:41:01 -0000 (UTC), Wayne
Boatwright wrote:

On Sun 16 Sep 2018 06:29:14p, micky told us...

In alt.home.repair, on Sun, 16 Sep 2018 15:03:23 -0700, "Cheri"
wrote:

Hi, I'm sorry if this is the wrong group but hoping someone can
help. I ordered a desktop computer with Win10 that came with mouse
and keyboard. The computer plug ins on the back of computer for
these are round pin type, but the mouse and keyboard that came
with it have the slotted flat plug ends. I have a man coming from
Best Buy on Tuesday and wonder what type if any adapters there are
for this. Thanks to anyone who can help, I am not computer savvy
at all.

The round jacks are for people who have a favorite keyboard or
mouse that has a round plug (PS-2). Everyone else uses USB plugs
and jacks.

They are also used for flashdrives (also called disk on key, etc.)
and sometimes for headphones, external speakers, external
harddrives, external floppy drives, etc.

There are some jacks in the back and some in the front. If you
use them all up, you can get a little, cheap thing that's like an
extension cord for USB, that has 3 or more usb jacks and one usb
plug.

I have no desire for wireless. I'm sitting right here and so is
the mouse. Plus with wireless, there is a battery in the mouse
and another in the keyboard. Who needs that. If I ever decide to
sit far away, I'll get wireless, or a usb extension cord.


FWIW, the batteries in my wireless keyboard and mouse seem to last
forever. I rarely have to change them more than once a year. If I

That's too often for me.

wanted to conserve battery life even further, each unit has it's own
off/on switch.

I often move my keyboard to a sideboard when I'm not using it and
want more desktop work space. The wire is a hindrance for me.

If I were in that situation, I'd use one too, but I'm not so i don't.

More palaver omitted. ;-)

In alt.home.repair, on Mon, 17 Sep 2018 22:29:42 -0400, David Nye
wrote:


I often move my keyboard to a sideboard when I'm not using it and
want more desktop work space. The wire is a hindrance for me.

I have a Logitech K800 back-lit keyboard and a Performance MX mouse.

The rechargeable AA battery in the mouse has a battery life of ~8 days so I have to plug the mouse in to USB cable once a week to recharge.

Oddly, the K800 back-lit keyboard lasts longer at about 14 days between charges.

I got a back-lit keyboard so I coudl type in the dark, but the keyboard
itself felt strange and I couldn't even get the letters I actually knew.

So know I get up and turn the light on.

Coincidentally, the timer just turned the light on, so I'd better not
use any special characters.

On Mon, 17 Sep 2018 20:54:06 -0600, lowbrowman, the endlessly driveling,
troll-feeding, senile idiot, blabbered again:

I checked my 3 recent desktop PCs. 1 has 2 PS/2 connectors. The other 2
have 1 (purple/green) each.


Old mobos have to go someplace...

Just like old senile mofos need to go to Usenet, eh, lowbrowman? BG

On Mon, 17 Sep 2018 21:00:41 -0600, lowbrowman, the endlessly driveling,
troll-feeding, senile idiot, blabbered again:


I didn't know you could buy a ball mouse now.

Probably not but I have sort of a computer museum...

Brain dead seniles like you ARE a museum ...and about as "exciting"! tsk

On Mon, 17 Sep 2018 23:03:01 -0600, lowbrowman, the endlessly driveling,
troll-feeding, senile idiot, blabbered again:

I have a Logitec K520 Keyboard that uses 2 disposabnle AA batteries
that last over a year. The Loitec M310 Mouse uses 1 disposable AA
battery and last 8-9 months. Given the short battery life of your
recharagebles, I'd much rather have my disposable batteries.


I'm thinking his rechargeables are toast.

If they are about as old as you, definitely!

On 9/18/2018 1:09 AM, Ed60062 wrote:
On Sunday, September 16, 2018 at 5:04:01 PM UTC-5, Cheri wrote:
Hi, I'm sorry if this is the wrong group but hoping someone can help. I
ordered a desktop computer with Win10 that came with mouse and keyboard. The
computer plug ins on the back of computer for these are round pin type, but
the mouse and keyboard that came with it have the slotted flat plug ends. I
have a man coming from Best Buy on Tuesday and wonder what type if any
adapters there are for this. Thanks to anyone who can help, I am not
computer savvy at all.

--
Cheri
Cheryl got the information she needed...but this thread will probably go on for several years.

Sure, soon trayduh_fo will blame Trump for poor keyboard and mouse design.

On 9/18/2018 1:03 AM, rbowman wrote:
On 09/17/2018 09:36 PM, Wayne Boatwright wrote:
On Mon 17 Sep 2018 07:29:42p, David Nye told us...

On 9/17/2018 7:41 PM, Wayne Boatwright wrote:
On Sun 16 Sep 2018 06:29:14p, micky told us...

In alt.home.repair, on Sun, 16 Sep 2018 15:03:23 -0700, "Cheri"
wrote:

Hi, I'm sorry if this is the wrong group but hoping someone can
help. I ordered a desktop computer with Win10 that came with
mouse and keyboard. The computer plug ins on the back of
computer for these are round pin type, but the mouse and
keyboard that came with it have the slotted flat plug ends. I
have a man coming from Best Buy on Tuesday and wonder what type
if any adapters there are for this. Thanks to anyone who can
help, I am not computer savvy at all.
The round jacks are for people who have a favorite keyboard or
mouse that has a round plug (PS-2).* Everyone else uses USB
plugs and jacks.

They are also used for flashdrives (also called disk on key,
etc.) and sometimes for headphones, external speakers, external
harddrives, external floppy drives, etc.

There are some jacks in the back and some in the front. If you
use them all up, you can get a little, cheap thing that's like
an extension cord for USB, that has 3 or more usb jacks and one
usb plug.

I have no desire for wireless.* I'm sitting right here and so is
the mouse.** Plus with wireless, there is a battery in the mouse
and another in the keyboard.* Who needs that. If I ever decide
to sit far away, I'll get wireless, or a usb extension cord.

FWIW, the batteries in my wireless keyboard and mouse seem to
last forever.* I rarely have to change them more than once a
year.* If I wanted to conserve battery life even further, each
unit has it's own off/on switch.

I often move my keyboard to a sideboard when I'm not using it and
want more desktop work space.* The wire is a hindrance for me.

I have a Logitech K800 back-lit keyboard and a Performance MX
mouse.

The rechargeable AA battery in the mouse has a battery life of ~8
days so I have to plug the mouse in to USB cable once a week to
recharge.

Oddly, the K800 back-lit keyboard lasts longer at about 14 days
between charges.


I have a Logitec K520 Keyboard that uses 2 disposabnle AA batteries
that last over a year.* The Loitec M310 Mouse uses 1 disposable AA
battery and last 8-9 months.* Given the short battery life of your
recharagebles, I'd much rather have my disposable batteries.


I'm thinking his rechargeables are toast.

That's what I thought too but turns out ****-poor battery life is a known issue for the first generation version of that mouse and keyboard combo.* Too late to return them now.

I'll replace keyboard/mouse when the USB charging connectors bite the dust.

On 09/17/2018 09:20 PM, trader_4 wrote:

[snip]

Yes, I see people are saying that even some new PCs still have PS/2.
Doesn't make any sense to me, unless there are some legacy peripherals
that need it, that I'm not aware of. In the case in point, it shipped
with USB keyboard and mouse.

IIRC, the last time I used a PS/2 device (keyboard) on a new computer
was when the USB wasn't working. I still have that machine, and USB
works fine now. I never found out what happened. Possibly some bit (I
have no idea which) accidentally got flipped in non-volatile memory.

--
98 days until the winter celebration (Tue Dec 25, 2018 12:00:00 AM for 1
day).

Mark Lloyd
http://notstupid.us/

"What is the function that a clergyman performs in the world? Answer: he
gets his living by assuring idiots that he can save them from an
imaginary hell." [H. L. Mencken, "Minority Reports"]

On 09/17/2018 09:29 PM, David Nye wrote:

[snip]

The rechargeable AA battery in the mouse has a battery life of ~8 days
so I have to plug the mouse in to USB cable once a week to recharge.

I use a wireless trackball with this laptop, and the battery seems to
last a few months.

--
98 days until the winter celebration (Tue Dec 25, 2018 12:00:00 AM for 1
day).

Mark Lloyd
http://notstupid.us/

"What is the function that a clergyman performs in the world? Answer: he
gets his living by assuring idiots that he can save them from an
imaginary hell." [H. L. Mencken, "Minority Reports"]

On 09/17/2018 09:54 PM, rbowman wrote:

[snip]

Old mobos have to go someplace...

in 1998 I didn't think that "Y2K compatible" would ever mean it's old.

BTW, that MB has an AGP slot (never used), once something found only on
the newest systems.

--
98 days until the winter celebration (Tue Dec 25, 2018 12:00:00 AM for 1
day).

Mark Lloyd
http://notstupid.us/

"What is the function that a clergyman performs in the world? Answer: he
gets his living by assuring idiots that he can save them from an
imaginary hell." [H. L. Mencken, "Minority Reports"]

On Tuesday, September 18, 2018 at 7:33:57 AM UTC-4, Bob wrote:
On 9/18/2018 1:09 AM, Ed60062 wrote:
On Sunday, September 16, 2018 at 5:04:01 PM UTC-5, Cheri wrote:
Hi, I'm sorry if this is the wrong group but hoping someone can help. I
ordered a desktop computer with Win10 that came with mouse and keyboard. The
computer plug ins on the back of computer for these are round pin type, but
the mouse and keyboard that came with it have the slotted flat plug ends. I
have a man coming from Best Buy on Tuesday and wonder what type if any
adapters there are for this. Thanks to anyone who can help, I am not
computer savvy at all.

--
Cheri
Cheryl got the information she needed...but this thread will probably go on for several years.

Sure, soon trayduh_fo will blame Trump for poor keyboard and mouse design.

No, can't blame Trump for that. He doesn't even use a computer, which tells
you a lot about him, how open to learning, to adopting new and best practices,
etc. Too bad he learned how to use that damn phone to send tweets.

In alt.home.repair, on Mon, 17 Sep 2018 20:56:18 -0500, Mark Lloyd
wrote:

[snip]

When's the last time you saw a new PC that uses a PS2 connector for the
keyboard? Fifteen, twenty years? They didn't send anything wrong,
she's just confused or trolling.

Some do have them, although it's better to use USB. Use any port
(although you might want to avoid USB3, usually with blue plastic in the
connector).


For a while I thought that USB ports did't work until after Windows
started, but PS-2 ports and the larger round ports that preceded them
worked before Windows loaded. As soon as the BIOS ran.

Now I think I'm wrong, but was there ever some truth to this?

In alt.home.repair, on Tue, 18 Sep 2018 09:55:05 -0500, Mark Lloyd
wrote:

On 09/17/2018 09:20 PM, trader_4 wrote:

[snip]

Yes, I see people are saying that even some new PCs still have PS/2.
Doesn't make any sense to me, unless there are some legacy peripherals
that need it, that I'm not aware of. In the case in point, it shipped
with USB keyboard and mouse.

IIRC, the last time I used a PS/2 device (keyboard) on a new computer
was when the USB wasn't working. I still have that machine, and USB
works fine now. I never found out what happened. Possibly some bit (I
have no idea which) accidentally got flipped in non-volatile memory.

I dropped a smartphone** and after that the splash screen logo etc. was
replaced by a plain green screen with a big totally red and a big
totally orange rectangle.

Everything else worked. It's still like that years later. Did I
knock a bit out of place?


**A small huawei about 7 years old fwiw

On Tuesday, September 18, 2018 at 12:31:04 PM UTC-4, micky wrote:
In alt.home.repair, on Mon, 17 Sep 2018 20:56:18 -0500, Mark Lloyd
wrote:

[snip]

When's the last time you saw a new PC that uses a PS2 connector for the
keyboard? Fifteen, twenty years? They didn't send anything wrong,
she's just confused or trolling.

Some do have them, although it's better to use USB. Use any port
(although you might want to avoid USB3, usually with blue plastic in the
connector).


For a while I thought that USB ports did't work until after Windows
started, but PS-2 ports and the larger round ports that preceded them
worked before Windows loaded. As soon as the BIOS ran.

Now I think I'm wrong, but was there ever some truth to this?

Since you can boot from a USB drive, I'd say the answer is a definite no.

In alt.home.repair, on Mon, 17 Sep 2018 20:49:21 -0500, Mark Lloyd
wrote:

On 09/17/2018 02:58 PM, Tekkie® wrote:

[snip]

The round type are called DIN connectors. The flat type are called USB
connectors. USB is most common these days. They sent the wrong k/b and
mouse. Are there adapters in the box?

mini-DIN. Regular DIN describes the older PC keyboard (and cassette on
the original PCs) connectors.

So what is the difference between mini-DIN and PS/2?


BTW, one of the varieties of mini-DIN was used for S-video (which also
fell out too easily).

In alt.home.repair, on Tue, 18 Sep 2018 09:35:33 -0700 (PDT), trader_4
wrote:

On Tuesday, September 18, 2018 at 12:31:04 PM UTC-4, micky wrote:
In alt.home.repair, on Mon, 17 Sep 2018 20:56:18 -0500, Mark Lloyd
wrote:

[snip]

When's the last time you saw a new PC that uses a PS2 connector for the
keyboard? Fifteen, twenty years? They didn't send anything wrong,
she's just confused or trolling.

Some do have them, although it's better to use USB. Use any port
(although you might want to avoid USB3, usually with blue plastic in the
connector).


For a while I thought that USB ports did't work until after Windows
started, but PS-2 ports and the larger round ports that preceded them
worked before Windows loaded. As soon as the BIOS ran.

Now I think I'm wrong, but was there ever some truth to this?

Since you can boot from a USB drive, I'd say the answer is a definite no.

Could you always boot from a USB drive? My BIOS didn't have that
option.

On Tue, 18 Sep 2018 09:35:33 -0700 (PDT), trader_4
wrote:

On Tuesday, September 18, 2018 at 12:31:04 PM UTC-4, micky wrote:
In alt.home.repair, on Mon, 17 Sep 2018 20:56:18 -0500, Mark Lloyd
wrote:

[snip]

When's the last time you saw a new PC that uses a PS2 connector for the
keyboard? Fifteen, twenty years? They didn't send anything wrong,
she's just confused or trolling.

Some do have them, although it's better to use USB. Use any port
(although you might want to avoid USB3, usually with blue plastic in the
connector).


For a while I thought that USB ports did't work until after Windows
started, but PS-2 ports and the larger round ports that preceded them
worked before Windows loaded. As soon as the BIOS ran.

Now I think I'm wrong, but was there ever some truth to this?

Since you can boot from a USB drive, I'd say the answer is a definite no.

It works if the BIOS supports it. That was certainly not forever. The
original machines with onboard USB 1 would support a mouse before the
drivers loaded but booting a USB drive came about the time of USB 2.
With Windows 98SE, you can use a mouse with no problem but you need
the driver to run a storage device. There may have been an update that
picked that up but it is not on my Latitude lap top.

On Tue, 18 Sep 2018 12:36:04 -0400, micky
wrote:

In alt.home.repair, on Mon, 17 Sep 2018 20:49:21 -0500, Mark Lloyd
wrote:

On 09/17/2018 02:58 PM, Tekkie® wrote:

[snip]

The round type are called DIN connectors. The flat type are called USB
connectors. USB is most common these days. They sent the wrong k/b and
mouse. Are there adapters in the box?

mini-DIN. Regular DIN describes the older PC keyboard (and cassette on
the original PCs) connectors.

So what is the difference between mini-DIN and PS/2?

PSD2 uses one of the variations of MiniDIN. S-Vid uses another
variation

BTW, one of the varieties of mini-DIN was used for S-video (which also
fell out too easily).

On Tue, 18 Sep 2018 12:37:29 -0400, micky
wrote:

In alt.home.repair, on Tue, 18 Sep 2018 09:35:33 -0700 (PDT), trader_4
wrote:

On Tuesday, September 18, 2018 at 12:31:04 PM UTC-4, micky wrote:
In alt.home.repair, on Mon, 17 Sep 2018 20:56:18 -0500, Mark Lloyd
wrote:

[snip]

When's the last time you saw a new PC that uses a PS2 connector for the
keyboard? Fifteen, twenty years? They didn't send anything wrong,
she's just confused or trolling.

Some do have them, although it's better to use USB. Use any port
(although you might want to avoid USB3, usually with blue plastic in the
connector).


For a while I thought that USB ports did't work until after Windows
started, but PS-2 ports and the larger round ports that preceded them
worked before Windows loaded. As soon as the BIOS ran.

Now I think I'm wrong, but was there ever some truth to this?

Since you can boot from a USB drive, I'd say the answer is a definite no.

Could you always boot from a USB drive? My BIOS didn't have that
option.
Most oftodays computers no longer use a "bios"

On Tue, 18 Sep 2018 16:19:48 -0400, Clare Snyder
wrote:

On Tue, 18 Sep 2018 12:37:29 -0400, micky
wrote:

In alt.home.repair, on Tue, 18 Sep 2018 09:35:33 -0700 (PDT), trader_4
wrote:

On Tuesday, September 18, 2018 at 12:31:04 PM UTC-4, micky wrote:
In alt.home.repair, on Mon, 17 Sep 2018 20:56:18 -0500, Mark Lloyd
wrote:

[snip]

When's the last time you saw a new PC that uses a PS2 connector for the
keyboard? Fifteen, twenty years? They didn't send anything wrong,
she's just confused or trolling.

Some do have them, although it's better to use USB. Use any port
(although you might want to avoid USB3, usually with blue plastic in the
connector).


For a while I thought that USB ports did't work until after Windows
started, but PS-2 ports and the larger round ports that preceded them
worked before Windows loaded. As soon as the BIOS ran.

Now I think I'm wrong, but was there ever some truth to this?

Since you can boot from a USB drive, I'd say the answer is a definite no.

Could you always boot from a USB drive? My BIOS didn't have that
option.
Most of todays computers no longer use a "bios"

That has still become the buzz word for the firmware that turns a
bunch of random chips into a computer.

In article , NONONOmisc07
@bigfoot.com says...

For a while I thought that USB ports did't work until after Windows
started, but PS-2 ports and the larger round ports that preceded them
worked before Windows loaded. As soon as the BIOS ran.

Now I think I'm wrong, but was there ever some truth to this?



I am thinking the first version of either win 95 or 98 had computers
with the USB port,but it would not work. Then there was an update that
would load a driver for the USB port.

Could be that win 95B was the first one that even used the usb.

Been a long time, so could be way off.

On Monday, September 17, 2018 at 9:13:41 PM UTC-5, Mark Lloyd wrote:
On 09/17/2018 07:28 PM, Clare Snyder wrote:

[snip]

Just installed a new Acer Veriton - still supports PS2 Kbd and mouse
- but comes with USB

The only computer (Dell) I have now that came without USB was made in
1996, and is seldom used. I actually bought that one used, but it's
likely to have been sold new with Windows 95.

Seldom-used computers can last a long time.
--

I've found that computers that are cleaned last a lot longer. I try to keep the dust cleaned out of them. I have some that died because of the capacitor plague that hit all electronics a while back. GRRRRRR! o_O

[8~{} Uncle Clean Monster

In article ,
says...
Could you always boot from a USB drive? My BIOS didn't have that
option.
Most of todays computers no longer use a "bios"

That has still become the buzz word for the firmware that turns a
bunch of random chips into a computer.



If not, what takes the place of the BIOS ? Maybe something like it by a
different name ? The Microsoft type computers I know of need something
in the hardware/firmware to tell the processor how to start up the hard
drive to load an operating system of some sort and where the video and
key board/mouse is.

Maybe something like the Chrome Book does not use it as such.

On Tue, 18 Sep 2018 18:00:42 -0400, Ralph Mowery wrote:

In article ,
says...
Could you always boot from a USB drive? My BIOS didn't have that
option.
Most of todays computers no longer use a "bios"

That has still become the buzz word for the firmware that turns a
bunch of random chips into a computer.



If not, what takes the place of the BIOS ? Maybe something like it by a
different name ? The Microsoft type computers I know of need something
in the hardware/firmware to tell the processor how to start up the hard
drive to load an operating system of some sort and where the video and
key board/mouse is.


I use UEFI on my latest PC, although the MB supports legacy BIOS too.
UEFI has advantages. But AFAIK I haven't used them.

On Tue, 18 Sep 2018 18:00:42 -0400, Ralph Mowery
wrote:

In article ,
says...
Could you always boot from a USB drive? My BIOS didn't have that
option.
Most of todays computers no longer use a "bios"

That has still become the buzz word for the firmware that turns a
bunch of random chips into a computer.



If not, what takes the place of the BIOS ? Maybe something like it by a
different name ? The Microsoft type computers I know of need something
in the hardware/firmware to tell the processor how to start up the hard
drive to load an operating system of some sort and where the video and
key board/mouse is.

Maybe something like the Chrome Book does not use it as such.


They all need some kind of firmware to match each chip set to the
instruction set and to establish the environment. This probably traces
it back to the IBM 360 system where there was a vast difference in the
hardware under the covers of the various models but they all ran the
same instruction set because of the firmware loaded. At that time it
was called microcode but it had the same function. In fact the ones
with reloadable code could actually emulate other types of computer.