[time-nuts] usb serial converter

[lists at lazygranch.com]

Just a side note here should it ever come up, those usb serial converters don't work in DOS. DOS doesn't support USB. You can kind of get them working in the so-called DOS window of 32 bit windows, but many DOS apps won't work because DOS allowed from direct control of the port and windows gets in the way. 

For a while, I was getting away with a Socketcom pcmcia serial port and open DOS (or maybe Free DOS, I forget. My next notebook had cardbus which I guess needs a 32 bit driver. 

Over the years I have picked up various Socketcom serial cards at flea markets or surplus shops should anyone wish to know what operating systems support them. I also have the DOS TSRs to run the cards. Socketcom never had them on their website, so I had to buy a used card on ebay to get the software. 

One of the annoying things is Dell provides a hardware serial port if you buy a docking station, but no way to just get a serial port by itself using the docking port. Well at least that I know of.