Elan Mira USB connection?

[Scoon]

Hi everyone,

I've searched the group and couldn't find an answer.

Basically, I've got an Elan Mira hooked up via direct USB connection (ie no serial to USB converter necessary).

However, Plover seems to come up blank when I click 'search' to find the port, and there's no options in the drop down list. Yes, I have installed all the drivers - it's currently working with digitalCAT. 

I've tried all the settings listed under stenograph machine.

Can anyone help me get it connected?

Thanks,

Scoon

[Hesky Fisher]

Hi Scoon,

Plover only supports the serial protocol for Stentura. It does not support the USB protocol.

Some Stenograph machines expose a virtual serial port via the USB connection and some don't. I don't know what the Mira does. If it had a virtual serial port then you should be able to see the port in the drop down while the machine is plugged into your computer.

Hesky

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[Scoon]

Hi Hesky,

Thanks for your response and apologies for my incredibly late reply.

Are there any plans to support a USB protocol? I was really hoping to use plover with my machine in order to use it to boost my speed by using it exclusively to type out everything I need to write on my laptop.

Is it difficult to support, or just not high on the priority list?

Thanks,

Scoon

[Glen Warner]

Hi, Soon.

I'm not Heskey, but I suspect the problem is getting Stenograph to provide the specs for the USB protocol.

When the Mira first came out, one of the folks at Advantage Software (of "Eclipse" and "Passport" fame) asked for the specs on the USB communications protocol, but were refused.

When he asked, "Well, what am I supposed to do?", the reply was, "Make your own writer."

... which is why the Passport exists today ... but before the Passport was released, their programmers reverse engineered Stenograph's USB protocol, which say why Eclipse now works with the Mira, as well as the Diamante.

Not much help, but that's my guess as to why there's no support for Stenograph's USB protocol in Plover.

--gdw

[Scoon]

Hey everyone in this thread, there is an update.

I was cleaning up the other day and found that my machine came with a serial port converter. However, rather than converting from serial to USB, it seems to convert from serial to what looks like an ethernet connection.

I tried hooking it up but got no response. However, I kind of suspect that this may be the secret sauce in getting my Mira recognised by Plover. Hesky / Glen do you know what I have to do in windows to make this work? Or do I just have to buy a serial / USB converter to give the right output from my machine to the computer in order for it to work with plover?

I really, really, want to use plover because I believe that if I use steno whenever I'm writing on my laptop that I'm going to learn way faster.

Cheers,

Adrian

[Hesky Fisher]

If your machine has a serial port (and your computer doesn't) then all
you need is a serial to USB converter and that should work.

[Leah Hunt]

I have a Cybra and it connects with plover via the serial to USB. It only works in transmit only mode, though.