[Coco] The BIGGEST PROBLEM with (So-Called) NEW CoCo Hardware...

[Allen Huffman]

> On Mar 5, 2017, at 8:30 PM, RETRO Innovations <go4retro at go4retro.com> wrote:
> 
> 31250bps RS232 is easy, USB is hard


This used to be true, yes.

With the $4 USB host chip, it should now be as easy, and cheap, do hook up various dedicated USB devices. It won’t be as full featured as a PC, of course, but a pack with a USB port is now easy and cheap - but for one class of device. Firmware makes it read a mouse (like using an RS232 serial mouse today), or change firmware and it’s a USB MIDI pack to hook to modern music equipment, or another firmware load and it’s a USB keyboard drive JUST for OS-9, etc.

Lots of potential there.

And likely, there is a SATA solution like this too, but I’m not sure a SATA drive (SSD or otherwise) makes sense on the CoCo anymore with the SD storage being so cheap and fast.

		— A