Re: [NTLK] Connecting to a Powerbook (Bluetooth?)

From: Martin Howard (mvhoward_at_mac.com)
Date: Sun Aug 15 2004 - 00:10:09 PDT


On Aug 14, 2004, at 20:44, Sean Riddle wrote:

> Hi! I'm going to be getting a MessagePad 2100 from J&K soon, and I'm
> not exactly sure what my options are connecting it to a modern
> PowerBook.

I faced this exact situation less than a month ago. The only
difference is that I bought my MP2100 before having researched the
connection options... ;)

> I know that I can connect it with some combination of mini
> DIN connectors to USB, but I'm not sure what the details are. It would
> be difficult to track down the cables, and I was hoping rather that it
> would be possible to connect to the PowerBook and synchronize with it
> through the Bluetooth protocol.

There are two problems with this. The first is that, AFAIK,
synchronization over Bluetooth is not possible, because there is no way
to run Appletalk over a Bluetooth connection. Even if this wasn't an
issue, then the second, more damming, problem is that you need to get
the Bluetooth software onto the Newton somehow... the famous
"bootstrapping" problem.

As it is, having a serial cable is actually a pretty useful thing for
those moments when you totally fark up your Newt and have to brainwipe
it. I'm assuming that your PowerBook comes with USB ports. That means
that your options are getting some kind of USB->serial interface and
using that. There are three that I know of, you can read about them on
the WikiWikiNewt:

        http://tools.unna.org/wikiwikinewt/index.php/USBtoSerialAdapter

Depending upon which adaptor you use, you'll still need a serial cable.
  I got the SER-001 board installed in the MP2100 when I bought it, so I
built a DB9->DIN8 connector to use with the BAFO USB->serial converter.
  I don't think that the serial cables are all that hard to find: last
time I checked J&K Sales, they has the PC serial cable still in stock,
which I'm guessing is what you'd want to go with if you get the BAFO.
With the Keyspan, you're looking at $80 for the converter, plus another
$10-$20 for the cable. Ouch.

> I know for sure that you can get online with a 802.11 PC card, but I
> haven't heard about it being used to
> transfer data from another computer. Is this possible?

Yes, it is possible. Because you *can* run Appletalk over an Ethernet
connection (Ethertalk), you can run the Newton Connection Utilities
over a WiFi connection -- this is how I install packages, move data to
and from my Newt, and backup my Newt all the time. The card I use is
an Orinoco Classic Gold (available from Amazon new at least three weeks
ago -- make sure you get the one called "Classic Gold") and it works
like a charm.

While I haven't been very successful in using it, there is a program
that runs natively in OS X called "Escale" that replicates much of the
NCU functionality. It runs over TCP/IP without having to use
Appletalk, once you've installed the appropriate package in your
Newton. Under OS X you can also use "NewtSync" to sync with some of
the iApps over a TCP/IP connection. To install packages over a serial
line in OS X, use "NewTen" with one of the aforementioned USB->serial
adaptors.

Good luck!

M.

-- 
This is the NewtonTalk list - http://www.newtontalk.net/ for all inquiries
Official Newton FAQ: http://www.chuma.org/newton/faq/
WikiWikiNewt for all kinds of articles: http://tools.unna.org/wikiwikinewt/


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