rjo@uunet.UU.NET (robert olivier) (04/26/91)
This is my first posting to the net so forgive me if my header is screwed up. I just spoke to Donald Vastlake (I think), d2002@applelink.apple.com, AKA the guy who designed the software for the Goldbrick at Transfinite Systems in Cambridge. The Goldbrick is a device which allows any Nintendo device to be connected to a Mac via the Apple Desktop Bus (ADB). The device will detect the presence of the powerpad, U-force, powerglove, as well as standard joysticks. It appears the Transfinite uses the box to develop software for physically impaired children. He cited an example where some speach impaired kids used a powerpad to make menu choices which would trigger a voice synthesizer for them. The Goldbrick does read the high-rez mode with full x,y,z,roll analog finger data being reported. He seemed to think that IF he were to develop an RS-232 version, it wouldn't be ready for at least 6 months. The ADB is real bizzare and Apple licenses firms to develop for it. The docs on the Mac (Inside Macintosh ...) don't give detailed treatments on it and apparently Apple deals with those who it finds distributing devices for the ADB if they aren't licensed. I don't know what the legal implications are if a device is built that isn't intended to connect to the Mac but rather to the peripheral but it seems to me that the powerglove problem would be solved if someone were to come up with that device. The Goldbrick comes in two flavors. The model 1 is a programmer's development box which you can take apart to make firmware updates or whatever. It costs $245. The model 2 is a little box that just sits inline between the glove and the ADB in an injection molded case. IT runs for about $160. I know, we can all buy Macs and use them to hook the glove up to our PCs!
dee (Donald Eastlake) (04/27/91)
Well, its fairly easy to get a license from Apple to build a device to go onto
the Apple Desktop Bus (ADB )like we did and I think the license is only about
$50 a year. Apple assigns you a unique "device handler ID" if you are not
going to emulate a standard device. The problem is that if you wanted to
convert ADB to RS-232 you would not just be an ADB device but would have to be
an ADB master and as far as I know Apple has never licensed anyone to produce
an ADB master device. Apple has some sort of patent(s) on ADB.
Also, while there is a lot on interest in our Gold Brick Nintendo controller
to ADB interface in the handicapped commuity, we don't write any software
particularly oriented towards that. We just provide some simple demo
software, including a wire frame hand display primarily intended to be run
from a glove. In fact, to encourage other to write more software, we have
announced a $1,000 first prize for software using Gold Brick submitted by
sometime towards the end of this year. If you are interested, call us at
617-969-9570 or send EMail. Details are in our standard info packet.
Donald
+1 617-969-9570 Donald E. Eastlake, III
ARPA: dee@XAIT.Xerox.COM usenet: {cbosg,decvax,linus}!cca!dee
AppleLink: D2002 Box N, MIT Branch PO, Cambridge, MA 02139 USA