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Re: IEEE-488 Drivers For Linux

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On Mon, 15 Dec 2025 23:49:37 -0000 (UTC), Lawrence D’Oliveiro wrote:

> I wonder if this is a record for the age of a standard for which new
> drivers have been developed
> <https://www.tomshardware.com/peripherals/cables-connectors/53-years-
later-bus-standard-launched-by-hp-in-1972-gets-stable-linux-driver-
general-purpose-interface-bus-has-blistering-8-mb-s-of-bandwidth>:
> after 53 years, the mainline Linux kernel now has drivers for the
> IEEE-488 interface, called “HPIB” by its creator HP, and “GPIB” by
> everyone else.
> 
> Some PCs (e.g. Commodore, Acorn) used it as an expansion bus, but mainly
> I think it was for connecting lab equipment.
> 
> Anybody here had any experience with it?

I had one client who used Commodore PETs because it used the GPIB for its 
peripherals. iirc a PET was about $800 and a rudimentary HP computer was 
close to $3000. When you just want to read the test instrumentation cheap 
is good.

My Osborne 1 had a parallel port, primarily meant for a Centronics type 
printer cable but it did have the drivers for IEEE-488.

For its day it wasn't bad You could easily daisychain peripherals. A 
problem was IEEE-488.1 was strictly a physical standard. IEEE-488.2 
expanded on .1 and has some loose definitions of protocols but it was 
still the wild west. It was sort of like SPI. 

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IEEE-488 Drivers For Linux Lawrence D’Oliveiro <ldo@nz.invalid> - 2025-12-15 23:49 +0000
  Re: IEEE-488 Drivers For Linux rbowman <bowman@montana.com> - 2025-12-16 08:27 +0000
    Re: IEEE-488 Drivers For Linux Lars Poulsen <lars@beagle-ears.com> - 2025-12-16 13:49 +0000
      Re: IEEE-488 Drivers For Linux Lawrence D’Oliveiro <ldo@nz.invalid> - 2025-12-16 21:30 +0000
        Re: IEEE-488 Drivers For Linux Lars Poulsen <lars@beagle-ears.com> - 2025-12-16 22:06 +0000
    Re: IEEE-488 Drivers For Linux Beej Jorgensen <beej@beej.us> - 2025-12-17 02:07 +0000
      Re: IEEE-488 Drivers For Linux rbowman <bowman@montana.com> - 2025-12-17 07:49 +0000
  Re: IEEE-488 Drivers For Linux Chris Ahlstrom <OFeem1987@teleworm.us> - 2025-12-16 12:33 -0500
    Re: IEEE-488 Drivers For Linux scott@slp53.sl.home (Scott Lurndal) - 2025-12-16 18:11 +0000
      Re: IEEE-488 Drivers For Linux Chris Ahlstrom <OFeem1987@teleworm.us> - 2025-12-17 07:26 -0500
  Re: IEEE-488 Drivers For Linux never-you-mind@home.org - 2025-12-16 18:24 -0500
  Re: IEEE-488 Drivers For Linux Theo <theom+news@chiark.greenend.org.uk> - 2025-12-18 16:44 +0000
    Re: IEEE-488 Drivers For Linux rbowman <bowman@montana.com> - 2025-12-18 18:17 +0000

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