geekhack
geekhack Community => Keyboards => Topic started by: bettablue on Fri, 13 January 2012, 12:41:25
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I hope someone will find this useful.
I know about the "Blue Cube" adapter for connecting older PS2 keyboards like the IBM model M to a USB port, but I just saw something else today that I am definitely going to order in preparation for a new computer build. It is a PS2 expansion card! The nice thing is that it will give a new computer 2 PS2 ports for connecting older style keyboards and mice. This one at New Egg looks good. In fact I may order an extra "just in case":
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16815124045
Secondly, there is this one: I don't know just how useful this one would be. It will only connect via internal USB so I doubt it would power the keyboard sufficiently. I would definitely stay away from this one, or others like it. Funny that of all places, Sears.com sells them:
http://www.sears.com/shc/s/p_10153_12605_SPM5857864601P?sid=IDx20101019x00001a&ci_src=14110944&ci_sku=SPM5857864601
I just personally don't like having that blue cube, or really any other adapter, plugged into my computer. I guess to me, there is just one more connection to worry about. I have never has a ps2 come lose, where I have had multiple USB devices come unplugged, so I thought I would throw this out there as one more option.
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http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16815124045
According to the reviews, this is simply an internal PS/2-to-USB adapter hanging off one of its USB ports, and according to the reviews, it's not as good as many external PS/2-to-USB adapters.
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Yeah, I think these have been brought up before and mostly rejected for the same reasons.
Besides laptops where you have to use an adapter anyway, I think I'll personally just stick to gigabyte mobos as they seem to still have ps2 ports on all of them.
I also have no idea how you had usb stuff just fall out like that, I've never seen it before. Were I to use a bluecube in the back though, I'd definitely have it attached to an extension cord long enough that the blue cube itself is on the ground or whatever the computer is sitting on.
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I think that's one reason I stick with Gigabyte mother boards too. I find it funny too that the Gigabye board I'm using with my Windows 7 machine has absolutely no provision for floppy drives, parallel, nor serial ports. There are no headers for these anywhere on the Mobo, yet, it still has PS2 connections.
The hell of it is that due to my vintage computer hobby, I really need these ports to connect various things, including my all original IBM 5150 Personal Computer via laplink3 cables. So instead of adding the ports to my Windows 7 machine, I rebuilt an old 1988 Compaq running Windows 98 over an updated version of DOS 2000, replacing the original underlying DOS 7.0. The Compaq came to me with a 233MGH processor, 16 Megs of RAM, 4 Gig hard drive and all of the forementioned ports. I even had to remove the original 3.5" floppy drive, add in a 100 Meg zip drive, and finally install a 5.25" DSDD 360Kb floppy disk drive so I can write floppies to use in my old IBM computer.
Back on topic: I just thought it was still a good idea to re-post the PS2 PCI card, so others, like me, can add that option to our systems. It seems like a good idea to every once in a while remind some people, that there are options out there. And because they add the PS2 using a PCI slot, there is no need for a USB keyboard to get into the BIOS, as someone had mentioned. (I suppose that would really be determined by the computer and it's version of BIOS though, wouldn't it?) I am using one of these cards on a somewhat older computer (The previously mentioned Compaq 5304) whose PS2 ports are dead. So I added them using one of these cards as a replacement. It works fine. Yeah, I did have to go into the Device Manager to disable the original PS2, but when I rebooted, the model M keyboard I use on that system didn't have any problems.
The other adapter sold by Sears.com is just plain worthless. It connects using a single internal USB connection, so there is no way it can supply the PS2 ports with enough power to drive many old keyboards.
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I hope someone will find this useful.
I know about the "Blue Cube" adapter for connecting older PS2 keyboards like the IBM model M to a USB port, but I just saw something else today that I am definitely going to order in preparation for a new computer build. It is a PS2 expansion card! The nice thing is that it will give a new computer 2 PS2 ports for connecting older style keyboards and mice. This one at New Egg looks good. In fact I may order an extra "just in case":
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16815124045
Secondly, there is this one: I don't know just how useful this one would be. It will only connect via internal USB so I doubt it would power the keyboard sufficiently. I would definitely stay away from this one, or others like it. Funny that of all places, Sears.com sells them:
http://www.sears.com/shc/s/p_10153_12605_SPM5857864601P?sid=IDx20101019x00001a&ci_src=14110944&ci_sku=SPM5857864601
I just personally don't like having that blue cube, or really any other adapter, plugged into my computer. I guess to me, there is just one more connection to worry about. I have never has a ps2 come lose, where I have had multiple USB devices come unplugged, so I thought I would throw this out there as one more option.
that probably does the same thing as the blue cube
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I just thought it was still a good idea to re-post the PS2 PCI card, so others, like me, can add that option to our systems. It seems like a good idea to every once in a while remind some people, that there are options out there. And because they add the PS2 using a PCI slot, there is no need for a USB keyboard to get into the BIOS, as someone had mentioned. (I suppose that would really be determined by the computer and it's version of BIOS though, wouldn't it?) I am using one of these cards on a somewhat older computer (The previously mentioned Compaq 5304) whose PS2 ports are dead. So I added them using one of these cards as a replacement. It works fine. Yeah, I did have to go into the Device Manager to disable the original PS2, but when I rebooted, the model M keyboard I use on that system didn't have any problems.
The other adapter sold by Sears.com is just plain worthless. It connects using a single internal USB connection, so there is no way it can supply the PS2 ports with enough power to drive many old keyboards.
From the comments on the Newegg page for that "PCI" PS/2 card. A reply straight from the manufacturer:
Thank you for purchasing our Syba products. This product can only emulate PS2 port through USB. So it does not give you a real PS2 port, which why it does not allow you to get access to the BIOS.
That card has a USB hub on it, with PS/2 -> USB adapter(s) hanging off the hub.
It's functionally no different from a Blue Cube.
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Yeah, that. He said you better have a USB one to get in because there were other reports that until the drivers for that card loaded they were dead. Obviously you have to be booted in your OS before it works, and thereby you might as well have nothing plugged into it when you're attempting to do BIOS stuff.
I just don't get why multiboot menus can't seem to use USB. I hate if I happen to have one of those plugged in and I'm dead in the water and can't do anything because the one I am using is USB.