Posted by Mojo2000 on 10, 2001 at 1:24 AM:
(Question #2 of 10,000)
In a nutshell, here is my rough plan for building a control panel:
1) Assorted sticks and buttons - used stuff from eBay
2) One half of a DB25M to CN36M printer cable
(cut off Centronics end; wires soldered or crimped to sticks and buttons; DB25M end plugs into printer switchbox)
3) Printer switchbox. (IN: one DB25M plug. OUT: three CN36M plugs, but just using one for now)
4) Other half of a printer cable
(Centronics end leads from switchbox; exposed wires go to I-Pac encoder)
5) I-Pac keyboard encoder. Leads to computer PS/2 keyboard port
The problem is, most diagrams I have visited on the Web don't really tell me how to identify the wires once I cut the cable in the middle! Can I find out what wire originates from (or leads to) what pin, simply using a multimeter? (which I have never done before) I have a feeling I have set myself up for a double dose of headaches.
I am a miserable newbie with big ambitions. Please help if you can, or perhaps tell me if the printer cable idea was stupid to begin with... Thanks in advance.