Hello, >Just for fun... I was wondering if it's possible to get an adapter that will >go
>from DB-9 to USB... I know you can get to PS/2, and then go from there to >USB.... but will this even work? >From an old thread: --- On Tue, 6/9/09, Scott Holder <[email protected]> wrote: >> The Mac Plus/etc mouse is a pretty dumb device generally >> speaking - the sensors are wired straight into a 6522 which generated an >>interrupt whenever the mouse moved a notch any direction and a line >> to sense the button. I gibbered back with: >From what I can tell, there was also a Zilog 8530 Serial Communications Chip >involved as >well. >Apparently, the Mac Plus mouse consisted of five >electromechanical components: a >button, and four >optical encoders. The mouse >button was wired to the 6522 VIA you >mentioned while the encoders were >>connected to the 8530 SCC. The above offers (or at least attempts to offer) some insight into how the Mac Plus mouse operates. If you want to read up on it yourself, all the sordid details are in "Inside Macintosh Volume III" pgs. 25-29. There was a thread on the list with the subject of "ADB --> DB-9 hack?" dating from almost exactly three years ago that sort of touched on the subject (the information above is taken from that thread) and that thread may (or may not) offer some additional insights. Please take a look for it in the list archives. However, what it all appears to come down in this particular instance is that an aspiring hardware hacker who wants to make it happen will need to find a way to take the signals from the 8530 chip (which read the rollers) and the 6522 chip (which read the mouse button) and convert those into signals that a USB controller would be able to read. Jeff Walther, at the time, said the project would involve an FPGA or microcontroller and went on to describe such an undertaking as "non-trivial." >Anybody else ever want to use their M0100 mouse with their new Mac? For myself, I'll put it this way: if someone were to offer a way to do it for less than $30 (and to be painfully honest, it would probably have to be closer to the $20 mark for me to actually be interested), I would probably purchase it. The basic problem, apart from the non-trivial hardware hacking involved, is that computer mice (unlike keyboards; don't get me started) have, for the most part, only gotten better with age. Not to sound like anyone's grandfather or anything [fiddles with false teeth], but I was using the Macintosh back when the Mac Plus mouse was the standard Apple offering. Please believe me when I tell you that when the Mac SE came along in 1987 with its ADB mouse (Model No. A9M0331), I can't recall a single person who was anxious to retain their older Mac Plus mouse. Mac Plus mice were boxy, clunky, and, while perfectly functional, decidedly unsexy. That said, I would be willing to shell out a few bucks to be able to use such a boxy, clunky mouse with a 21st century Macintosh ("a few" being the operative phrase). Who knows? Perhaps others would be willing to pay more in order to amaze and delight (or at least baffle) their friends? Best, James Fraser -- ----- You received this message because you are a member of the Vintage Macs group. The list FAQ is at http://lowendmac.com/lists/vintagemacs.shtml and our netiquette guide is at http://www.lowendmac.com/lists/netiquette.shtml To post to this group, send email to [email protected] To leave this group, send email to [email protected] For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/vintage-macs Support for older Macs: http://lowendmac.com/services/
