Re: LZ: Re: $4 serial link prob


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Re: LZ: Re: $4 serial link prob



On Mon, 30 Sep 1996, Max Mansour wrote:


> HELLO!  Why do you think MAGNUS designed Connect 85 the way he did?  You
> think he made to make it look pretty??  Lets settle this.  Ask Magnus if
> the $4/$5 cables have a chance of malfunctioning and frying your calc.  If
> he can confirm that this is not true, I will make a variation of the offer
> someone esle made.  I will send you a check for $46.


Ther must be some better terminology than the "$4 cable"  vs the "$5
cable."


The "$4 cable" (which plugs into the serial port) could theoretically
damage one's calculator if during the construction of the cable the wrong
lines were hooked up (sending +15v to the calculator).


The "$5 cable" (which uses the parallel port) presents no such danger
because the parallel port uses TTL (+5v) voltages, same as the link port
itself. As someone else so astutely pointed out, the worst that could
happen is the calculator freezing up temporarily. 


I believe the Connect-85 link was designed to function identically to TI's
own discontinued LINK-85 product, thus allowing the use of the original
software. (Magnus, correct me here if I am wrong)


Now, can we move past this silly argument? Noone is forcing anyone to
build their own link cable. I personally bought mine. If I had known then
what I know now, I would not have paid $60 and waited 3 months while the
GRAPH-LINK was on back-order. 


-Isaac


<pre>
--
Isaac Salpeter
the ticalc.org project
isaac@ticalc.org
<pre>
--
</pre>


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