Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Posting-Version: version B 2.10.1 6/24/83; site sdchema.UUCP Path: utzoo!watmath!clyde!bonnie!akgua!sdcsvax!sdchema!jmw From: jmw@sdchema.UUCP (John M. Wright) Newsgroups: net.micro,net.micro.cbm Subject: Re: Mac interface to commodore printer Message-ID: <290@sdchema.UUCP> Date: Mon, 12-Nov-84 16:35:30 EST Article-I.D.: sdchema.290 Posted: Mon Nov 12 16:35:30 1984 Date-Received: Wed, 14-Nov-84 04:32:59 EST References: <175@qumix.UUCP> Reply-To: jmw@sdchema.UUCP (John M. Wright) Distribution: net Organization: U.C. San Diego Chemistry Dept Lines: 27 Xref: sdcsvax net.micro:8338 net.micro.cbm:883 Summary: I think it will be more trouble than it's worth to try to interface a non-CBM machine to your CBM printer. See if you can find a copy of the July '83 issue of COMPUTE!; an article by Jim Butterfield, "How the VIC/64 Serial Bus Works", will let you know something about what you are up against (but not enough to actually solve the problem; the only sufficiently detailed info I have seen on how the serial bus and devices interact comes from a dissasembly of the actual routines that drive the bus.) Why go that way, anyway? I guess you somehow happen to have the CBM printer on hand? I haven't actually used one myself, but they seem to be widely held to be pretty poor. I find it pretty compelling that there are *dozens* of interfaces available for driving standard (either RS-232 serial, or parallel) printers from a VIC or 64, but I have never seen one for driving a CBM printer from a "standard" port. I think I saw that you had interfaced a VICMODEM to a standard RS-232 port; that was probably relatively straightforward because the VICMODEM interfaces with the 64 not through its "serial bus", but through what is intended to be and RS-232 connection (at least, that's what Commodore calls it) (except for voltage levels!). Good luck, anyway. John Wright