Path: utzoo!attcan!uunet!lll-winken!lll-ncis!helios.ee.lbl.gov!pasteur!ucbvax!PCO-MULTICS.HBI.HONEYWELL.COM!Friesen
From: Friesen@PCO-MULTICS.HBI.HONEYWELL.COM
Newsgroups: comp.sys.atari.st
Subject: Barcode readers
Message-ID: <890108003518.926496@PCO-MULTICS.HBI.HONEYWELL.COM>
Date: 8 Jan 89 00:35:00 GMT
Sender: daemon@ucbvax.BERKELEY.EDU
Reply-To: Friesen%PCO@BCO-MULTICS.HBI.HONEYWELL.COM
Organization: The Internet
Lines: 25



I am interested in writing some software for barcode readers.  The hard
thing is finding the hardware.  What I would like to do is modify a
Tandy bar code reader 'pen' (for their portable 100's,102's) so it would
plug into the joystick port of the ST.  The pen has a nine pin plug, and
I have pin layouts for the ST's and the Pen's plugs, so I can make an
adapter to connect the current and ground etc.  They use the same
voltage so that is no problem, but I would like to make sure that the
type of signals the pen sends would work through the joystick port and
if this idea is feasible.  If anyone has done this, I would appreciate
any help (I'm not much of a hardware hacker so I can use all the help I
can get).  I also would like to know of any books that would be helpful
for programming the barcode reading/writing software.

Thanks in advance


Aric Friesen

Addresses:

Genie:  A.FRIESEN

ARPA:  Friesen%PCO@BCO-MULTICS.ARPA