6
Installing the R/F Reader with a dedicated serial port
The Base Station can be directly attached to a spare serial port as shown
below.
Your software will need to read the serial port as a separate device, unless
you're using an IBM-compatible computer and Worth Data’s PortKey
software, which makes serial-port data appear as though it had been typed at
the keyboard. See page 28 for a simple BASIC program to read the serial port
for testing purposes.
If you specified a 25-pin null-modem cable (part number F34) or a 9-pin cable
(part number F36) when you placed your order, you can cable directly from
the RF/Reader's Y-Cable port to your computer's serial port. Refer to page 8
for the details of the pin-outs of the cables.
Serial extension cables longer than 80 feet can cause system lockups in
Windows unless you make sure that pins 4,6,7 and 8 are cut on the 9-pin end
of the F36 cable, and pins 4,5,6,8, and 20 are cut on the 25-pin end of the F34
cable. All F36 and F34 cables shipped after 9/15/01 already have these pins
cut. If you are building your own cables or have questions on which pins
should be active, see page 8 for details on cable pin-outs.
Turn to page 9 to configure the Wireless Reader using the Setup Menu.