Laplink
Laplink(sometimes styledLapLink) was aproprietarypiece ofsoftwaredeveloped by Mark Eppley and sold by Traveling Software.[1]First available in 1983,[1]LapLink was used to synchronize, copy, or move, files between twoPCs,in an era beforelocal area networks,using theparallel portand aLapLink cableorserial portand anull modemcable orUSBand a USB adhoc network cable.[2][3][4]
Traveling Software is now known asLapLink Software, Inc.,[5]and their main software is now thePCmover.With the demise of parallel ports on PCs Laplink no longer sells the traditional cable. Instead it has USB to hard drive, USB to USB and Ethernet to Ethernet cables.[6]
Cable
[edit]LapLink typically shipped with a specialized cable, allowing two PCscomputersto be linked together via theparallel port,establishing adirect cable connection.This so-calledLapLink cableornull-parallel cableis capable of faster transfer rates than the traditionalnull modemserial cable.At the time, almost all PCs had a parallel printer port, but neitherUSBnormodern Ethernetwas available.
TheINTERSVRprogram inMS-DOS6.0 can also use a LapLink cable.
A Laplink cable can be seen as a parallel equivalent to a serialnull modemcable. Because of the higher bandwidth of the parallel port versus the serial port, a Laplink cable is able to transfer data more quickly.
Wiring
[edit]The cable used twoDB25male connectors, and was wired as below:
| D0 | 2 | 15 | Error |
| D1 | 3 | 13 | Select |
| D2 | 4 | 12 | Paper Out |
| D3 | 5 | 10 | ACK |
| D4 | 6 | 11 | Busy |
| ACK | 10 | 5 | D3 |
| Busy | 11 | 6 | D4 |
| Paper Out | 12 | 4 | D2 |
| Select | 13 | 3 | D1 |
| Error | 15 | 2 | D0 |
| Select In | 17 | 19 | GND |
| GND | 18 | 18 | GND |
| GND | 19 | 17 | Select In |
| GND | 21 | 21 | GND |
| GND | 22 | 22 | GND |
| GND | 23 | 23 | GND |
| GND | 25 | 25 | GND |
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^abLapLink Software, Inc."About LapLink Software, Inc".laplink.About Us.
- ^Traveling Software (14 February 1989)."Why Lap-Link Has Connected Over 200,000 Computers".PC Magazine.Vol. 8, no. 3. Ziff Davis, Inc. p. 92.ISSN0888-8507.
- ^Bem Cotterman (8 November 1994)."Laplink for Windows Takes Controls of Remote PC's".PC Magazine.Vol. 13, no. 19. Ziff Davis, Inc. p. 52.ISSN0888-8507.
- ^Steve Rigney (17 November 1998). "Access Your Office PC".PC Magazine.Vol. 17, no. 20. Ziff Davis. p. 73.
- ^"About us",laplink
- ^"Laplink Easy Transfer Cable For Windows® - Laplink® Software".laplink.Archived fromthe originalon 2014-11-19.
External links
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