[NTLK] USB to Newton Interconnect cables

[David Arnold]

> On 6 Feb 2016, at 13:34, Anthony Morrow <anthonydmorrow at gmail.com> wrote:
> 
> My brain is foggy on this subject, but I remember connecting my Newton 2100 to a PC to sync Outlook items using only a interconnect-to-DB-9 cable. Would that had been using RS-232 since it was a PC instead of RS-422 seen in old Macs?

Yes.  The Newton’s interface is able to work using either a differential signal (RS-422) or a single line (RS-232).

AFAIK, Apple never sold Interconnect cables — just the Newton Interconnect Adaptor (aka “dongle”) and either an old-style Mac serial MiniDIN8 to MiniDIN8 cable or a PC-style MiniDIN8 to DB9 cable.  I might be wrong though.

Enfour used to make Interconnect to DB9 cables, I think?  Perhaps some others too.  I see they’re listed on the Newtonsales.com catalog, for instance ($89).

> Update before I sent this. Someone wrote on the wiki page for RS-422 that Apple used a variant that was compatible with RS-232. Maybe that is why the Newton worked with PCs over serial. <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RS-422>.

Yes, I think it’s a feature of the line driver chip (LT-1323) in the Newtons.



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