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USB Mouse to Serial Port

K

K Wind

Jan 1, 1970
0
I have an USB mouse and want to connect it to a serial port on an old
notebook. Money is tight so I'd like to cut the end off and solder a DB-9
connector to it. Can it be done and where may I find a pinout?

Ken
 
M

Mark Haase

Jan 1, 1970
0
K Wind said:
I have an USB mouse and want to connect it to a serial port on an old
notebook. Money is tight so I'd like to cut the end off and solder a DB-9
connector to it. Can it be done and where may I find a pinout?

Ken

The soldering can be done, but the electronics wouldn't work since two
ports work differently. Luckily, there should be cheap serial mice
around...probably get one for free if you go to the right place. (hint
hint: try a school, they dump old computer parts all the time)
 
K

K Wind

Jan 1, 1970
0
Mark Haase said:
The soldering can be done, but the electronics wouldn't work since two
ports work differently. Luckily, there should be cheap serial mice
around...probably get one for free if you go to the right place. (hint
hint: try a school, they dump old computer parts all the time)

The mouse is optical and I'd like to use it. Is there a circuit that I can
build to convert USB signals to be compatible with a serial port? Are there
any web sites that have this information?


Ken
 
D

Dana Raymond, a minor God

Jan 1, 1970
0
Not likely. Any circuit you build will be more expensive than buying a new
serial one.

One thing you may try... Look at the USB mouse. Does the cable look like
there's an in-line adapter? Some old USB mice were actually serial mice with
a cable extention that implemented the USB slave.

Serial is very simple compared to USB. USB is a high speed bus with complex
power-up and operating protocols. Many USB devices need software to be
downloaded from the PC just to work (though I don't think thats the case
with mice).

Have fun.
Dana Frank Raymond
 
D

Don Kelly

Jan 1, 1970
0
K Wind said:
The mouse is optical and I'd like to use it. Is there a circuit that I can
build to convert USB signals to be compatible with a serial port? Are there
any web sites that have this information?


Ken
There are adapters that often come with USB mice (i.e.Logitech) to convert
to a PS2 port. As I have also once had a serial /PS2 adaptor (again
Logitech) for a mouse, it seems that there should not be a problem in
making the adaptation--check junkbins at second hand computer stores.
 
K

K Wind

Jan 1, 1970
0
Dana Raymond said:
Not likely. Any circuit you build will be more expensive than buying a new
serial one.

One thing you may try... Look at the USB mouse. Does the cable look like
there's an in-line adapter? Some old USB mice were actually serial mice with
a cable extention that implemented the USB slave.

Serial is very simple compared to USB. USB is a high speed bus with complex
power-up and operating protocols. Many USB devices need software to be
downloaded from the PC just to work (though I don't think thats the case
with mice).

Have fun.
Dana Frank Raymond

This mouse is also PS/2 compatable. If there is a design out there, I'd like
to see it and decide for myself if I want to build it.

Ken
 
M

Michael A. Terrell

Jan 1, 1970
0
Chaos said:
K Wind screamed:

All optical mouses are USB, AFAIK.
There may be some PS/2 mouses that are optical, but i don't know.
--



The first optical mice were around a long time before USB. The ones I
used had a grid etched on an aluminum plate, and were regular serial
mice.
 
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