Very cheap laptop.

[Theo Markettos]

Drivers in Windows provide 'virtual' COM ports. You configure the driver to provide COM17 or whatever, and then pick that in your software.

The usual problems are if the software is badly written and only allows a limited selection of ports (only allows COM1-4 or COM1-9), but if you don't need to drive lots of other ports at the same time you can just configure the driver to be COM3 and there's no problem.

If the program won't work on 2000 or XP you might be running into the 'needs hardware access to port' issue that others have mentioned. (Likely if they're bit-banging the control lines and not actually using it for RS232). USB won't work for that.

Theo

[Mark]

Ive got a Toshiba Satellite Pro 4270 which has a serial port, as I think all the 4200 Series did.but i think a working one is still going to fech over £70.

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[Stephen Howard]

It was sold with a docking station originally. It has usb and network ports, so that's a way to load stuff up...though it's rather more tricky loading an OS.

Well, if you have a look around your local tip you might get lucky...I get most of my machines at such places ( the Evo came in at £15 ).

Regards,

[The Natural Philosopher]

floppy disk? external ROM drive?

MM. lots of people are stuffing linux on these old machines and getting a decent portable basic machine.

its different with a giant power hungry old metal cased clone.

[Adrian C]

Erm, what are house prices down your way like. I need to move!!

[Stephen Howard]

Pricey! Which is why the local tip is full of such goodies.

Nipped down there yesterday and picked up two Binatone Dect phones, an Nvdia 256Mb fanless graphics card, a Sony power supply, a 4 port usb hub...and a Denby milk jug...two quid the lot. Passed up on the Paddy Hopkirk towbar mounted bike rack as I'd already bought one a couple of months ago for night on fifty quid ( natch ).

Regards,

[Stephen Howard]

W2000 works very well with 500Mhz and above. If you tweak the Services it goes even faster.

Regards,