(way OT)--Re: Semi-OT: Interesting or unusual PC Compatibles?

[Tony Duell]

> 
> Jason McBrien wrote:
> > 
> > The HP 100 series were some of the first laptop computers that could run
> > DOS. It had DOS, Basic, Lotus and a few other productivity apps in ROM, and
> > used the somewhat odd HP-IL bus to interface with peripherals, among them a
> > battery powered disk drive.
> > 
> 
> Hmmm...
> 
> 
> HPIL -> HPHIL -> + -> USB?
>                  |
>                 PCI
>           (just a dash of)
> 

Why on earth go via HP-HIL? HPIL and HP-HIL are totally different 
interfaces, I've never seen an HPIL to HP-HIL interface, 
HP-HIL interface chips are hard to find (much harder than HPIL chips), 
and so on.

If I wanted to do something like this, I'd link a 1LB3 (HPIL interface 
chip) to a microconroller with an on-chip USB interface.

-tony