Serial ports on laptop

[USAPatriot]

Generally speaking, will a laptop handle two serial ports? My system has one built in and I could in theory add another via a PCMCIA card. I'm using WinXP Home. Could the second port be added or will it choke? Thx. -Rod-

 

[Dank]

usb

Would it be easier to get a hub? Or whatever the correct name is for a usb cable that you can plug multiple connectors into?

 

[USAPatriot]

This is DB9 serial, not USB. -Rod-

 

[DonS]

Generally speaking, will a laptop handle two serial ports? My system has one built in and I could in theory add another via a PCMCIA card. I'm using WinXP Home. Could the second port be added or will it choke? Thx. -Rod-

XP will handle more serial ports than you're likely to ever add. I have run XP with 50 COMxxx ports.

The more important question is: "will the software I want to run work with arbitrary COMxxx ports, or is it for some reason limited to COM1-COMn?".

 

[USAPatriot]

Well, the scanner software seems to handle multiple ports, at least in theory. Not sure about a future purchase of an HF receiver and it's software, but if ARC250 or whatever will work on something other than Com1, then the new software would likely be fine. In theory -Rod-

 

[loumaag]

Generally speaking, will a laptop handle two serial ports?

The simple answer is, generally yes. Since you already have one RS232 port, then the BIOS can probably handle at least two and probably four. For all you "experts" out there, the RS232 port is OS independent, it has nothing to do with what OS you are using and there is no such thing as a "hub" for RS232. :wink:

 

[bsavery]

Actually Lou.....

An Equinox 4 port RS-232 Hub

Don't know how well it would work for radio comms, but it does work well for other applications.

Equinox has more different ways of doing RS-232 then you can shake a stick at!

Bob

 

[DonS]

For all you "experts" out there, the RS232 port is OS independent, it has nothing to do with what OS you are using

Unless, of course, you're using an OS that limits access to hardware - like the OP's Windows XP. If the OS doesn't support the hardware and/or its driver, user-mode programs don't get to use the serial port. Even with such support, applications must use the correct OS facilities (e.g. Windows' "CreateFile" API) to use arbitrarily-named serial ports.

 

[poltergeisty]

I have a couple older laptops and will be using a port replicator on one that already has a RS232 port. Will I have two independent ports or not? Just not sure.

I don't have the replicator yet otherwise I would try it out.Boo!-Poltergeisty :-0

 

[USAPatriot]

I have a couple older laptops and will be using a port replicator on one that already has a RS232 port. Will I have two independent ports or not? Just not sure.

I don't have the replicator yet otherwise I would try it out.Boo!-Poltergeisty :-0

Let us know.

 

[Al42]

Actually Lou.....

An Equinox 4 port RS-232 Hub

It's not really an RS-232 hub. ("Hub" normally means that it plugs into a port of the type it's replicating.) This is more properly an RS-232, or serial, server. A hub would plug into an old XT with a serial port and give you more serial ports - this wouldn't.

 

[MacombMonitor]

It should work just fine, providing you have XP drivers for the serial card.

 

[loumaag]

It's not really an RS-232 hub. ("Hub" normally means that it plugs into a port of the type it's replicating.) This is more properly an RS-232, or serial, server. A hub would plug into an old XT with a serial port and give you more serial ports - this wouldn't.

Right. You beat me to the comment.

Unless, of course, you're using an OS that limits access to hardware - like the OP's Windows XP. If the OS doesn't support the hardware and/or its driver, user-mode programs don't get to use the serial port. Even with such support, applications must use the correct OS facilities (e.g. Windows' "CreateFile" API) to use arbitrarily-named serial ports.

This is true, but if you think about it, that is a limitation of the OS, not a funciton of the hardware I/O. Since NT was introduced, the idea was to place a "buffer" between the different hardware elements of that box we call a computer and software programs designed to run on the box. Sometimes it is an advantage and many times it is a hinderance.

 

[poltergeisty]

Let us know.

I sure will.

I hope it does allow for two com ports. If it does, I will grab the other replicators I have at work.Boo!-Poltergeisty :-0

 

[USAPatriot]

It probably doesn't matter. I'm not sure I see the need to keep two or more receivers hooked to the laptop's ports at all times whether it's doable or not. It probably makes more sense to stick with the single port and simply swap the cable from radio to radio as needed. A hassle, but it uses fewer computer resources too. Plus would save me the cost of having to buy a PCMCIA - -> Serial card. Still, ya never know. It's nice to have options. -Rod-