Someday can we please get USB supported by SheepShaver?

Stevamundo · Post by **Stevamundo** » Sun Mar 25, 2007 6:19 pm

I'm just wondering.

Stevamundo · Post by **Stevamundo** » Wed May 16, 2007 6:04 pm

I would really appreciate it if somebody answers this please.

It would so sweet if yes. Then I can use my old USB hardware too. You know, the pre-OSX USB hardware.

Wed May 16, 2007 9:33 pm

Maybe there will be USB support one day, but I wouldn't count on it. And if there will be some sort of USB support, I suppose it will need hardware for which drivers for the host system are available. In other words, on a modern (Intel) Mac with MacOSX you may not be able to use your legacy pre-MacOSX USB hardware with SheepShaver, even if it has USB support.

Post by **Cat_7** » Wed May 16, 2007 11:47 pm

At least we can dream and speculate on how USB would be supported. If it would be anything like USB support for current virtulization programs like Parallels, it would punch through the USB interface and perhaps leave us with the option of connecting legacy hardware.

Cat_7

Stevamundo · Post by **Stevamundo** » Thu May 17, 2007 4:51 am

Cat_7 wrote:At least we can dream and speculate on how USB would be supported. If it would be anything like USB support for current virtulization programs like Parallels, it would punch through the USB interface and perhaps leave us with the option of connecting legacy hardware.

Cat_7

That's EXACTLY what I was thinking.

The great program Parallels already has USB 2.0 support through its virtulization software. So we know that this technology is already here.

Also I don't think that USB ports have changed that much in 20 years.

I think that it would be an AWESOME added feature to have USB 1.1 support at least.

Was USB 2.0 here when OS 9 was in its prime?

Thu May 17, 2007 10:44 am

Cat_7 wrote:At least we can dream and speculate on how USB would be supported. If it would be anything like USB support for current virtulization programs like Parallels, it would punch through the USB interface and perhaps leave us with the option of connecting legacy hardware.

Yes, we can dream. I am pretty sure it will never be more than a dream. There is a world of difference between virtualization and emulation. MacOS needs emulation on a Intel machine, Windows can do with virtualization.

Thu May 17, 2007 10:52 am

Stevamundo wrote:Also I don't think that USB ports have changed that much in 20 years.

20 years? The earliest Mac to have a USB port, was the first (Bondi Blue) iMac, introduced this month 9 years ago. Producing a consumer model with standard USB port, Apple was at the time ahead of other PC manufacturers. In the beginning Apple was highly criticized for this move, because there were hardly USB peripherals available. In fact, as I remember, one Epson printer was the only existing device that could be connected to the iMac.

Was USB 2.0 here when OS 9 was in its prime?

The last Macs that could boot MacOS 9.2.2 did not yet have USB 2.0.

Stevamundo · Post by **Stevamundo** » Thu May 17, 2007 6:17 pm

Ronald P. Regensburg wrote:The last Macs that could boot MacOS 9.2.2 did not yet have USB 2.0.

Well then only build USB 1.1 support in the next version of SheepShaver.

Also, this is NOT a dream! SheepShaver already works with OS 7,8,9 on Intel Macs.

Unless there's a difference in the USB ports between PPC Macs and Intel Macs.

At least I've heard there's no difference in USB ports in no matter what computer you have.

If that's true, it's very possible to build USB 1.1 support in SheepShaver.

Stevamundo · Post by **Stevamundo** » Fri May 18, 2007 5:36 pm

I really want to know if I heard right.

That all USB ports are basically the same no matter what computer you have.

Post by **Cat_7** » Fri May 18, 2007 10:39 pm

I guess in an ideal world that would be true. The USB Universal Serial Bus specification is something all manufacturers should adhere to. But you never know....

The only difference should be that some manufacturers of peripherals
would not create drivers for other then the intended platforms.

Cat_7

Stevamundo · Post by **Stevamundo** » Sat May 19, 2007 5:41 am

Cat_7 wrote:The only difference should be that some manufacturers of peripherals
would not create drivers for other then the intended platforms.

Cat_7

This could be fairly easy "I think."

As Ronald said that Apple pretty much started using USB around OS 9. So you need to find the old OS 9 USB drivers and build the USB 1.1 support off of them, right?

At least this makes sense to me.