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Downloading Pics without USB???

1135 Views 11 Replies 5 Participants Last post by  avatar1, 
A
Hi Guys

Not sure if I should be asking this here or in Hardware but here goes.

I am going abroad soon for an extended period and want to take a Digital Camera. Aside from stocking up on memory cards, I would also like to d/l some pics and email them to friends etc!!!

I will have access to an oldish PC but it does not have any USB ports. Do I have any options which are simple and involve as little expense as possible?

Are there USB - Serial/Parallel port converters?????

I understand I can get a Parallel port memory card reader but the ones I have seen are pricey, bulky and I want to keep kit as small as possible - else a mains adapter/battery chargers etc would be handy too!

I don't think Internet cafes would be too keen to let me connect up to their systems either.

Any suggestions would be appreciated!

:)
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S
If the laptop supports it you could get a USB PCMCIA card, they can be had on E-bay for about $25
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K
What type of memory card does your camera use?

If it uses SmartMedia cards, you can get a Floppy Disk adapter.
It requires a small program to be loaded first, then allows the FDD to recognise up to 64 MB SmartMedia cards.

Speed is not high, but portability is. Have 1 floppy with the driver program on it, run that once and you are away.

It does not affect the normal operation of the FDD
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A
Thanks for your suggestions.

The comp is an old desktop so won't have the slot to support the PCMCIA card

The camera? - I haven't actually bought it yet! Was edging toward a Canon A200 which uses CompactFlash memory.

Will try and check out this SmartMedia type card. Am I right in assuming it is the size of a 3.5" floppy disk? If so, does anyone have a recommendation of a Camera which uses it which is: Cheapish, 2MP+, with as few moving parts to go wrong as possible and is fairly rugged?
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K
The memory itself is not the size of the floppy disk, the adapter looks just like a floppy disk.

The memory card is the size of a postage stamp, and its only 0.7 mm thick. Very small. It slides into the FDD adapter.

Don't get confused with the early Sony digicams that actually used a floppy disk.
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plejon
This picture might make things clearer
http://www.picstop.co.uk/pages/products/flashpathadapter/flashpath.htm

But in my humble opinion, your best option is probably to install a PCI card with USB in the old desktop PC. Like this one ...
http://www.usb-ware.com/usb-2-pci-card-2-port-uc151.htm
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K
The problem with the USB solution, is if the PC is running Windows 95 revision A (likely if it has no USB ports) then it does not support USB in any reliable manner.

But agreed, the add-in card is cheaper (if you are able to perform surgery on someone elses PC)
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plejon
I agree. You would need Windows 98SE, ME, 2000 or XP to add the extra USB ports. Windows 95 and NT4 don't support USB

Also, if the pc is *very* old, it might have ISA slots instead of PCI slots. I hope we're not talking 486 here ...
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hewee
Or get that sony camera that uses floppys to take pictures.
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A
Thanks Plejon for the the links and suggestion.

I like the idea of the USB PCI card - didn't realise they were so cheap.

The comp I will have use of apparently is "old" but uses WIN98 (Chinese Version the subject of another thread!!! - but I am hoping to convert to WIN98SE English!! :) ) I might gamble on there being PCI slots cos I don't think the guy I have contact with is up to finding out for me

Thanks again for all your suggestions I appreciate the help

:)
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plejon
I think you have a 99% chance of finding a PCI slot. ISA slots were common in early Pentiums(P60, P90) , 486's and older. Anything newer than that and you should be fine.

If you want to be 100% sure, have the guy open up his computer. The difference is quite easy to see: PCI slots are about 9 cm / 3.5" long and white, ISA slots are about 14 cm / 5.5" long and black

On the attached picture you can see a part of a motherboard. In the top left corner you can see two white PCI slots. Below this you can see four black ISA slots.

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A
Cheers Plejon

:up:
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