USB2 problems between card reader and PDA

[Jeffrey Kaplan]

(Third posting, still no responses...)

WinXP Pro SP2, most MS updates. AthlonXP 2800+/1GB RAM, Asus
mainboard.

I have four USB2 ports on the back of my computer. Plugged into them I
have a USB1.1 HP all-in-one printer/scanner/copier photo printer with
built-in card slots for SD/MMC/MS/CF, the sync cable for my Treo 650,
the wireless receiver for my MS Wireless Desktop keyboard/mouse pair,
and a USB2 compatible hub mounted in my Viewsonic LCD monitor. Plugged
into the hub is a Sandisk USB2 5-in-one card reader and a mini lava
lamp.

The front of my computer has two USB1.1 ports, which are normally
unused. I plug in a CueCat barcode scanner as needed for use with my
cataloging software.

The problem is that when I use the SanDisk card reader, I can no longer
make a connection with the Treo to sync until I reboot.

I'm not exactly sure when the problem started, but it may be
coincidental with my moving the computer, which naturally means
everything was unplugged and then reconnected.

Would the specific sockets used make a difference? Also, I do not
appear to have this problem when I use the card reader in the printer
instead.

--
Jeffrey Kaplan www.gordol.org
The from userid is killfiled Send personal mail to gordol

"Take my advice and go back to the time you came from. The future isn't
what it used to be." (Amb. G'Kar, B5 "The Long Dark")

 

[Guest]

Too much power consumption on the USB ports. Your printer has its own
power source, thus it will read the cards. Any devices plugged into the
USB ports with their own power source should work without any problems
whether USB 1.1 or 2.0, but peripherals without their own power will
create too much of a drain. You can connect 128 peripherals to your
PC system if ALL have their own power source and not depend on the
power provided by the ports.

 

[Jeffrey Kaplan]

It is alleged that Byte claimed:

Too much power consumption on the USB ports. Your printer has its own
power source, thus it will read the cards. Any devices plugged into the
USB ports with their own power source should work without any problems
whether USB 1.1 or 2.0, but peripherals without their own power will
create too much of a drain. You can connect 128 peripherals to your
PC system if ALL have their own power source and not depend on the
power provided by the ports.

The problem isn't simultaneous access, it's serial access. I use the
flashcard reader and THEN I try to sync my PDA. The card has already
been removed from the reader, it's sitting idle. The reader uses USB
provided power, but the PDA provides its own power.

Well, powered USB hubs are cheap enough... I'll try moving the reader
and lamp to a powered hub instead of the unpowered one on the back of
my monitor.

--
Jeffrey Kaplan www.gordol.org
The from userid is killfiled Send personal mail to gordol

"She has brought something evil from the past, a soldier of darkness."
(Markab Ambassador, B5 "The Long Dark")

 

[Yves Leclerc]

Why would you be still using a CueCat:? The company "died" years ago!

 

[Jeffrey Kaplan]

It is alleged that Yves Leclerc claimed:

Why would you be still using a CueCat:? The company "died" years ago!

Because it works with Collectorz.com cataloging software and is a hell
of a lot cheaper on eBay than any of the current bar code scanners.

--
Jeffrey Kaplan www.gordol.org
The from userid is killfiled Send personal mail to gordol

"I'm surprised. You could have asked to be named to the royal court.
It would have put you in a position to become Emperor yourself some
day. That's what you want, isn't it?" "No. I have no desire to be
Emperor. No, I prefer to work behind the scenes. The reward is nearly
as great and the risk far, far less." (Vir Coto and Amb. Mollari, B5
"The Coming of Shadows")

 

[Jeffrey Kaplan]

It is alleged that Jeffrey Kaplan claimed:

It is alleged that Byte claimed:
Well, powered USB hubs are cheap enough... I'll try moving the reader
and lamp to a powered hub instead of the unpowered one on the back of
my monitor.

I moved the reader to a powered hub. It seems to be working now.

I accept that the power drawn by the lamp was the final straw, but I'm
still curious as to why the computer would no longer be able to even
see the PDA (self-powered) after using card reader (bus powered, always
plugged in). If it were only during simultaneous access, I could
understand that there isn't enough power being supplied to run the
communications, but this is +after+ using the card reader.

--
Jeffrey Kaplan www.gordol.org
The from userid is killfiled Send personal mail to gordol

"...The avalanche has already started. It is too late for the pebbles
to vote." (Amb. Kosh, B5 "Believers")