[Elecraft] How 'bout a USB interface?

[Bill Coleman]

On 7/16/02 9:55 PM, Margaret Leber at maggie@voicenet.com wrote:

>Uh...don't you think that's how a USB interface would work too? The "S" 
>in USB stands for "serial", you know...it's not ESP.

You missed the point. Serial is just the method by which the data is 
trasferred.

The key difference is the OS infrastructure built up around USB. In the 
serial world, everyone gets direct access to the raw bytes -- which is 
exactly the problem. A skillful programmer could come up with a driver to 
share a serial port -- but then he'd have to convince the whole world to 
use his driver instead of reading and writing raw bytes.

With USB, defining and using a driver is pretty much a given, and the 
OSes allow for this. 

>Honest, this stuff isn't magic just because it's in a driver. Somebody 
>has to *write* that driver.

Yes, ONE person has to write a driver for A radio on AN operating system. 
Compare that to the situation today, where EACH person has to instill 
software for EACH program on EACH operating system for EACH radio. 

In short, a lot less software would have to be written, and it would make 
new things possible. (Like multiple programs accessing the radio 
information similtaneously.

>  And soon you'll have to worry about whether 
>Microsoft  *likes* your driver (and your company), and is willing to 
>sign it. 

Fooey. If Micrsoft gets that way, then turn your back on them. There 
already exist better alternatives.

>And the driver won't be portable to other operating systems.

Each OS that supports USB has its own infrastructure for USB drivers. The 
design of the class driver would be portable, although the exact code 
would not.

>Just get a dongle and be happy. Unless there's too much QRM from the 
>USB, of course. :-)

You folks just don't get it, do you? If this is the state of ham radio, 
to eschew anything new and cling to the old, then the hobby isn't long 
for the world.


Bill Coleman, AA4LR, PP-ASEL        Mail: aa4lr@arrl.net
Quote: "Not within a thousand years will man ever fly!"
            -- Wilbur Wright, 1901