Today we respond to someone concerned about legacy parallel devices on Windows XP.

Date: June 22, 2001 12:58 PM
Subject: Re: Windows XP and old thingys

> I’ve spent forever getting my old Ditto Max Pro
> tape drive (Iomega) to be nice to the other
> devices on the sacred LPT 1, which no one wants
> to share. What will be the fate of this, and
> other devices no longer under warrenty when XP
> comes out in fall? I would like to get a new
> computer at that time, but I’m really worried
> about my peripherals. In addition to my scanner,
> three printers and a digital camera, I have an
> external ZIP drive (100) Will this stuff work on
> the new operating system?

Hi Charlotte!

Unfortunately, there is no easy answer to your question. I’m pretty positive Microsoft will continue to support the parallel port in Windows XP, however, the more difficult question is, “Will the manufacturers of my peripherals support Windows XP?”

Users of the Apple Macintosh faced a similar dilemma after Apple discontinued producing the actual hardware Serial Port. All of a sudden, Apple users who purchased a new iMac found themselves not able to use any of the legacy peripherals they had purchased. Other companies eventually discovered this out, and provided USB-to-serial interface boxes for sale. These boxes work most of the time, but as always, some experience problems with them.

Fortunately for the PC users, most motherboard manufacturers today still incorporate an on-board parallel port to support these legacy devices. Some computer manufacturers are building what are known as “Legacy-Free” PCs, and these computers usually do away with connectors that most new equipment do not need to take advantage of, such as the serial and parallel ports. Most of the industry has already moved the direction of USB, and I think it’s safe to assume that this trend will continue.

My recommendation to you would be to contact the manufacturers of the devices you own, and ask them if they intend on releasing drivers that function on Windows XP. I’ve found companies that are very good at supporting their legacy products, and others that drop support quickly for products over a year old. Embrace those companies that give a long useful life to your peripheral by supporting them. For those that don’t, new peripherals may be the only option.

Brian Klier
Forum Pro
http://kliernetwork.net

(http://www.connectedhomemag.com/Forums/thread.cfm?CFApp=80&Message_ID=186414)

I’ve been selected as an online Forum Pro for the new “Connected Home” magazine. Connected Home Media is dedicated to helping IT professionals and technically savvy users implement, maintain, and secure home networks for telecommuting, working at home, and integrating all home technology into their lives. The premiere issue of this magazine will be on the newsstand January of 2002.

Windows 95 provides a much more stable and faster operating environment than its predecessor, Windows 3.1. To get the most performance out of Windows 95, there are a few things to keep in mind whether you’re tuning your current computer or thinking about a new one in the future.

Since Windows 95 is almost entirely made of 32-bit code, your computer will benefit more from a 486 or Pentium Processor than a 386 processor. Even if a 386 and a 486 have the same clock speed, a 486 will always outperform the other computer, because the 486 is better optimized for 32-bit code.

Depending on the amount of memory you have, you will notice that your hard drive runs even if the computer itself is idle. To support many applications running at once, applications are paged out to an area on the hard drive when there is more demand for memory than what is actually available. Thus, Windows 95 performance can be greatly enhanced by installing a faster hard drive. In addition to this, adding more memory (like a total of 16 or 32 megabytes) will reduce this caching and provide better performance for your PC.

Check your hard drive to see how much space you have left. If you have less that 20 megabytes remaining, check and clean out any unneeded and temporary files. If your hard drive becomes too full, applications that need more memory will not be able to have other applications “page out” to the hard drive. The result is lockups or out of memory errors.

FAST FACT
Did you know in Windows 95 you can select more than one filename inside Explorer or “My Computer” by holding down the Control key and clicking the mouse button on each one you want selected?

Throughout the school district over the next few months, we will all witness a major change in the way our computers work. A wide-area network, or WAN, will be added between the buildings to give everyone the ability to use resources in our schools. Some of these resources will include the Internet, an electronic card catalog, CD-ROM sharing, and E-Mail capability.

Currently, Denny Thompson, Dan Pautzke, and I, have been evaluating different E-Mail systems for the District. Our goal is to provide an easy-to-use, yet powerful application that both teachers and students will be able to use. We will try our best to keep it a system that will allow you to walk up to any machine and be able to get your E-Mail and personal address book right at that computer. Right now, we are evaluating QuickMail LAN, QuickMail Pro, FirstClass, and GroupWise.

Fed up with lock-ups? We are also evaluating FoolProof, which is a security application for both Macs and PCs. FoolProof lets students explore the actual Mac Finder or Windows Explorer, which will prepare the students for machines without protection, but keeps them from getting into critical areas such as the Control Panel and the Trash/Recycle Bin. Eventually, FoolProof will be installed on at least one machine in every school as a test to make sure it will suit our needs. When FoolProof was installed at the Junior High Technology Center on two Macs and two PC’s, we experienced less lock-ups on both platforms. FoolProof uses “Launcher”, which is built into Mac System, to launch applications in a way that is similiar to “At Ease”. The PC users can still use the Start Menu to launch programs.

Through our current projects, we are trying to come up with a solution that will best fulfill the needs of students and staff. It is our hope, in the Data Service Department, that everything will run smoothly and efficiently during the summer, to provide an up-to-date and speedy network for everyone. Have a great vacation, and we’ll see you back in September!

FAST FACT
Netscape 2.02 will run on a Macintosh LC with at least 8MB of RAM.

(Article originally by Denny Thompson, District Media and Technology Director, in the November 26, 1996 edition of “District Technology Highlights” newsletter from Faribault Public Schools. This event gave Faribault its first computer lab fully capable of accessing the Internet.)

Netday 96 is a nationwide effort to help schools get wired for the internet. It involves organizing volunteers to help with the wiring. Because of the large scope of our wiring project we have selected only the Senior High Media Center lab for wiring on November 16th. Faribault has been added to the Netday 96 web page. Barb Getting has contacted a number of local businesses for donations to help in purchasing the wire. If you know of anyone who may be interested in helping with this wiring project on November 16th have them contact Denny Thompson, Barb Getting, or Denny Glynn. Our web site on the internet was fired up in September.

A Review of NetDay ’96!

NetDay Minnesota was an organized grass-roots effort to get volunteers from communities to install wiring for the Internet in schools throughout Minnesota. The Faribault NetDay participation in NetDay Minnesota effort was focused towards providing Internet access to the media center computers at the Senior High School. Many volunteers (see below) helped to cable the Senior High media center for internet and EMAIL access on November 16th, 1996. Expansion plans for the Senior High include complete cabling in the building next summer. “We didn’t want to wait that long, if we did not have to, so this year’s seniors could have the advantage of using the Internet,” stated Denny Thompson*

The equipment that was installed will be reused next summer when permanent cabling and computer systems will be installed. In-service will be provided at a grant subsidized rate through the Southeast Educational Cooperative.

*source Faribault Daily Newspaper 11/18/96

Volunteers and Contributors
Sincere Thanks to:

DENNIS GLYNN
DENNIS THOMPSON
CHARLES THOMPSON
BARB GETTING
BRIAN KLIER
JOSH ARCHAMBAULT
JOE STRADCUTTER
MIKE SPINAR
CHUCK KINDGREN
LES LACROIX
CELIA LINNE
KENT RABEK
BEN JOHNSON
JOHN LINDSEY
BOB PEARCE
MARY LUBKE
RYAN BECKER
STATE BANK OF FARIBAULT
NORWEST BANK
FARIBAULT FEDERAL SAVINGS
THE PHONE STATION
POIRIER PHARMACY
CEDAR LAKE ELECTRIC
FARIBO INSURANCE CO.
JOSTENS
THE BELTZ COMPANY
NETWORKING INTEGRATION SERVICES