Tripp lite USA-28XG User Manual

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USB Twin Serial Adapter

Owner’s Manual

Model: USA-28XG

1111 W. 35th Street, Chicago, IL 60609 USA

www.tripplite.com/support

Table of Contents

1.1 - Introduction

2.1 - Mac OS X vs 'Classic' Drivers - Important

3.1 - Installation Instructions

4.1 - Conﬁguring Your Serial Device

5.1 - Keyspan Serial Assistant

6.1 - Problem Solving

7.1 - Appendices -

7.1.

- Conﬁguration Examples for Mac OS X -

7.1.

- Palm Desktop

7.1.c - Modem/Cell Phone PPP Setup

7.1.

- VirtualPC

7.1.

- Final Cut Pro

7.1.

- Uninstalling Keyspan Software

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USB Twin Serial Adapter

Model: USA-28XG

1.1 - Introduction

The Keyspan USB Serial Adapter Software for Mac OS X allows you to add serial ports to your Mac OS X computer. Using Mac OS X native software, you can use your Keyspan USB to Serial Adapter to communicate with various serial devices via the POSIX API (for more information, Serial Ports - Mac OS X vs 'Classic' Mac OS section in this manual) .

Important Note: The Keyspan USB Serial Adapter Software for Mac OS X will add 'Mac OS X serial ports' to your computer. These 'Mac OS X serial ports' can only be used by Mac OS X native software (a program that does not require the Classic environment to run). If you are not certain if your serial device's software can access Mac OS X serial ports, please read the Serial Ports - Mac OS X vs 'Classic' Mac OS section in this manual. Examples of serial devices that use Mac OS X serial ports are modems using PPP (for internet access - congured via the Networking System Preference icon), Palm Handhelds (using Palm's HotSync Manager), and UPS devices.

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2.1 - Mac OS X vs 'Classic' Drivers - Important

Mac OS X compatible Keyspan USB to serial adapters typically also have Mac OS 8.6-9.x drivers. Depending on the serial device you intend to connect to your Mac (Palm Pilot, GPS, modem, etc.), you may need to uninstall Keyspan’s Mac OS X software.

This section is intended to help you determine which Keyspan drivers you should install.

Terms Used In This Section

Before reading this section, please familiarize yourself with the following terms:

Mac OS X

Mac OS X refers to any version of Mac OS X. This is Apple’s current operating system.

Classic (Mac OS 9.2.2 running within Mac OS X)

Classic refers to Mac OS 9.2.2 running within Mac OS X. Classic is only available on non-Intel Macs (G3, G4, G5 computers). Please note that Classic is an emulator and is not the same as booting your Mac directly into Mac OS (see below).

Mac OS

Mac OS refers to Apple’s Mac OS versions prior to Mac OS X (Mac OS 8.6 -

9.2.2). In this section, we will refer to Mac OS when referring to Macs that have been booted directly into Mac OS 8.6 - 9.x. This is not the same as running Clas- sic.

Which Keyspan Software Should I Use?

In order for a serial device (Palm Pilot, GPS, modem, etc.) to work on your Mac, all serial devices require the following:

serial device (Palm Pilot, GPS, modem, etc.).

•

oftware that communicates with that serial device (Palm software for Palm PDAs,

•

terminal software for Cisco routers, GPS software for GPS units). This is typically the software that you launch before using the device.

serial port (HARDWARE) to connect the serial device to physically (provided by

•

your Keyspan adapter).

serial port (SOFTWARE) for your serial device’s software to point to.

•

If your serial device has Mac OS X compatible software, meaning that the software DOES NOT REQUIRE CLASSIC, install Keyspan's Mac OS X software.

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If your software requires Classic and has not been updated to work with Mac OS X, install the Keyspan OS 8.6 - 9.x drivers. DO NOT INSTALL THE MAC OS X drivers. If you install the Keyspan Mac OS X drivers, Mac OS X will control your Keyspan adapter and it will not 'share' it with Classic. Uninstall the Keyspan Mac OS X drivers to resolve this issue.

IMPORTANT NOTE: There is no way to make a Keyspan adapter work in two Operating Systems at the same time (both Mac OS 9.2.2 via Classic and Mac OS X). Please make sure you only install one driver.

If your serial device's software requires the 'Classic' environment to run under Mac OS X, please skip ahead to 'Classic' Mac OS Serial Ports & Serial Devices.

If your serial device's software is Mac OS X native software, please skip ahead to Keys-

pan Mac OS X Serial Ports & Serial Devices.

If you are not sure if your serial device has Mac OS X native software, please read the rest of this section.

'Classic' Mac OS Serial Ports & Serial Devices

Serial devices under the Mac Operating Systems (Mac OS 8.x-9.x) access serial ports via the following software:

The Chooser (printers) Applications (Palm Pilots) Control Panels (Wacom tablets)

Regardless of which software you used, your serial device was communicating with software libraries that handled the very low level communications between your serial device hardware and your serial port. These low level software libraries (speciﬁcally: Communications Resource Manager (CRM), CommToolBox (CTB), and OpenTransport) are unique to the pre-Mac OS X OSes (9.2.2 and below) and are not found on Mac OS X.

Unfortunately, 'older' serial programs cannot communicate with Mac OS X serial ports. Therefore, if your serial device's software only works on a 'older' Mac Operating Systems, installing the USB Serial Adapter software for Mac OS X will not make your serial device work under Mac OS X.

If your serial device's software only runs in 'classic' Mac Operating Systems, you have several options:

Try to get your serial device to work using your existing 'classic' hardware and software

•

(the hardware and software that ran on Mac OS 8.1 through 9.x) via Mac OS X CLAS-

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SIC environment. If this does not work, please try option 2.

Boot into Mac OS 9.x and use your serial device from there.

•

Keyspan, Mac OS X Serial Ports & Serial Devices

Serial devices that run natively on Mac OS X access serial ports via the following software:

System Preferences Mac OS X applications Terminal applications

Regardless of which method is used, your serial device communicates with a software library called POSIX (aka POSIX API).

When a Keyspan adapter is connected, the Keyspan USB Serial Adapter software for Mac OS X registers a port with the IORegistry (this is another software library). At this point, a program can get the list of available serial ports (including Keyspan serial ports) from IORegistry. Once the program has the list available serial ports, the program uses the POSIX API to communicate with the serial port.

Note: If you are a developer and need more information about using Mac OS X serial ports, please visit our Developer web page at: <http://www.keyspan.com/support/developers/

Using the Keyspan Serial Assistant application, you see which Keyspan serial ports have been added to Mac OS X. This is useful in determining which port to select in your serial device's software. Please read the Keyspan Serial Assistant section later in this manual for details about the Keyspan Serial Assistant.

Please note, the POSIX API is unique to Mac OS X and cannot be used by applications running under the Classic environment.

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3.1 - Installation Instructions

Installing the USB Serial Adapter Software

Note: Do not connect your Keyspan Serial Adapter prior to installing the driver.

Step 1 - Insert the Keyspan Serial Adapter CD-ROM

Place the CD into the CD-ROM drive. When the CD icon appears on your desktop, double click on this icon to display its contents.

Step 2 - Run the Keyspan USB Serial Software for Mac OS X Installer

Run the Keyspan USB Serial Software for your OS by double clicking the installer icon. This will start the installer. Once the installer is running, follow the instructions on screen.

Note: The installer requires that you enter an administrator password before the Keyspan software can be installed. Generally, this password will be the same as your standard password. To enter the password, click on the lock icon in the lower left-hand section in the installer window.

The Keyspan USB Serial Adapter software is now installed.

Step 3 - Software Installation Complete!

Now that you have installed the Keyspan USB Serial Adapter software, you are ready to install the Keyspan USB Serial Adapter hardware. Please proceed to the installing the Keyspan USB Serial Adapter Hardware instructions.

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Installing the Keyspan USB Serial Adapter Hardware

The following hardware installation instructions provide a basic overview on installing the Keyspan USB Serial Adapter in a USB port. For detailed instructions on how to connect USB devices your speciﬁc computer, please refer to the USB Device Install section in your computer's user's manual.

Step 4 - Connect the USB Cable to the Adapter (if necessary)

If your Keyspan adapter does not have an attached USB cable, attach the included USB cable into the Keyspan adapter's USB port.

Step 5 - Connect the Adapter to Your USB Port

Attach the Adapter to your computer by connecting the Adapter's USB cable into any built-in USB port on your computer or USB Hub. It is not necessary to turn off your computer when attaching the Adapter.

Step 6 - Hardware Installation Complete!

Your Keyspan USB Serial Adapter is ready for use now that you have installed hardware and software. Please proceed to the Keyspan Serial Assistant section in this manual for instructions on what to do next.

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4.1 - Conﬁguring Your Serial Device

Prior to using your serial device (modem,UPS, etc.) with the Keyspan USB Serial Adapter, you must:

1. Connect your serial device (hardware) to the Keyspan port.

2. Conﬁgure your serial device's software to use the Keyspan port.

The following instructions provide a general overview of this process.

Connecting Your Serial Device (Hardware)

If your Keyspan adapter is not connected, please do so NOW.

Step 1 - Connect Your Serial Device to the Keyspan Adapter

Attach your serial device's serial cable to the serial port on your Keyspan USB Serial Adapter.

Step 2 - Determine which Keyspan Port Your Serial Device is Connected To

If you have a Keyspan product that has more than one serial port, please note which Keyspan serial port your serial device is connected to (the serial port on the Keyspan product, not your USB ports on your computer or USB hub). This information will become useful as we start Con ﬁguring Your Serial Device's Software

Conﬁguring Your Serial Device's Software

The following conﬁguration instructions provide a basic overview of how to conﬁgure your software to use your Keyspan serial port(s). For speciﬁc instructions on how to operate your serial device, please refer to that device's user's manual for detailed instructions.

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Step 3 - Determine Where to Select/Conﬁgure the Keyspan Serial Port(s)

Prior to using your serial device with a Keyspan serial port, you must ﬁrst tell that serial device's software which Keyspan serial port your device is connected to.

Most serial devices will have software that will allow you to select which serial port the device is connected to. Depending on your serial device and its software, you may have to conﬁgure: a System Preference item (modems accessing ISPs), an application (UPSes), or some combination of these (modems accessing terminals using Zterm).

Please refer to your serial device's documentation on which method your serial device uses and how to access that software's serial port "conﬁguration" screen.

Step 4 - Determine Which Serial Port to Select in Your Serial Device's Software

When you've found the port selection screen in your serial device's software, you may be presented with a list of serial port names.

If you have a Keyspan device that only has one serial port, simply select the port name that starts with the letters USA.

If you have a Keyspan device that has two or more serial ports, you will have more than one choice in your list of ports. Depending on the software, you should be able to see several ports with the letters USA. These ports will end with a number that corresponds to the port number on the adapter.

For example, a port named " Twin Serial Adapter (part number USA-28X). The numbers before the last number refer to location of that adapter on the USB bus. In this case, "913" is reporting that the adapter is on USB bus # 9, host hub port # 1 and external hub port # 3.

USA28X9132 " is referencing to the second port on a Keyspan USB

Step 5 - Use Your Serial Device

Once you've conﬁgured your serial software to use the Keyspan serial port, you're ready to start using your serial device.

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5.1 - Keyspan Serial Assistant

Besides the required drivers, the Keyspan USB Serial Adapter software installer installs an application called Keyspan Serial Assistant. This application is used to:

Show the names of the installed serial ports

Show which Keyspan adapters are connected

Determine the status of the adapter software and hardware

Assist in problem solving

Launching the Keyspan Serial Assistant

To launch the Assistant, double click the "Keyspan Serial Assistant" icon in your Applications folder. This will open the Keyspan Serial Assistant window.

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The Keyspan Serial Assistant will display any Keyspan USB Serial Adapters connected to your

The Settings Menu

Uninstalling Keyspan software

computer. You can also see the names of the Keyspan serial ports by clicking on the TRIANGLE next to Adapter icon as shown below:

Once you know the names of the Keyspan ports, you can then select the appropriate port name in your serial device's software.

The Keyspan Serial Assistant's Settings menu is located in the Menu bar and provides access to the following command(s):

The Un-install USB Serial Extension command un-installs the Keyspan USB

Serial extension. For speciﬁc instructions on how to use this feature, please read the

section in this guide.

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