OS X Hax

They've upgraded the driver again. Now v1.06 and is downloadable from
http://tech.prolific.com.tw/visitor/fcabdl.asp?fid=20933143

Action Computer in the Bay Area sells a generic no-name USB/Serial adapter, which works with the 1.06 driver, without even editing the Info.plist .

after installing win xp sp1.UC-232A is not working.win xp sp1 does not install the driver ,1.5 & 1.6 .Is there any other solution

take a look at this page.. there is a link to a USB driver patch program which lets you use the Motorola USB cable directly from the Mac to the phone, I am using a i95cl. It works for the nextel online dial-up but I have yet to add Packetstream to test the S=2.

Why is the patch necessary? I was able to use the iDen USB cable with the mac just fine. Plug-n-play. I had to use the GUC-232A for a while because I couldn't get the USB cable.

I made the modifications to the Info.plist file and then used kextload as described, but I don't see /dev/tty.usbserial. I'm using Jaguar 10.2.4 on a 600 MHz iBook. Not sure why it didn't work on my system.

Thanks very much to Nick Sayer, who provided a solution that helped me get the IOGear device working on my iBook:

"You might try removing the kext cache files (/System/Library/Extensions.*) and rebooting."

I can't find that driver file on the prolific site. The only driver I could locate for a PL-2303 for Mac OS was for OS 8 and 9. I can't find *any* place on the web that has another driver either. I'm really trying to get my IOGear GUC232A working on my iBook with OS X.

Can anyone help me?

Thanks

I was able to find a Mac OS X PL-2303 driver but I still cannot find the info.plist, or kext.load or /dev/tty.serial or besides within the extension folder where to find these things. I was able to find the prolificusbserial.kext but that was about it. Perhaps the prolific driver doesnt download correctly.

He he forgot to give the site
http://www.ramelectronics.net/html/usb_serial.htm

You simply need to install the package, then cd to /System/Library/Extensions/Prolific*kext/Contents. The Info.plist file will be right there.

The device now work and I can see it at /dev/tty.usb
but still can't sync my plam with palm desktop and I have no idea why they can't sync. Any one have the same problem?

Thanks, Nick, for posting this! I just purchased an IOGear 232A and thought I was going to have to take it back to the store. Your instructions worked like a charm, though. I installed v106 from Prolific's website onto my 12" PB w/ 10.2.5, used the idProduct and idVendor values from your post, then deleted the kext cache file and rebooted. An ls on /dev showed tty.usbserial.

Now the challenge is to get my Kyocera Smartphone to sync...

I was able to install the device, it seems to recognize it since I have a /dev/tty.usbserial0 device under /dev, but when I try to talk to it via ckermit or Zterm, it doesn't work.

Any insights?

Unlike you I didn't need to modify the Info.plist file since the idVendor and idProduct were correct.

I have a motorola i95cl. I am not a computer guy so I am having a really hard time making it work... Please if anyone can tell me in english what to do and how to do it it would be awesome!! Thanks All!!

The driver is [back? still?] on Prolific's site, if you go to http://tech.prolific.com.tw/, go to "Download", pick the "Drivers for MacOS" category, and scroll down until you see "PL-2303 USB to Serial Bridge Controller". Perhaps they just didn't like the direct link?

i need to know if there is anyone who has the usb driver for iden-motorola for my i95 phone for windows xp, none of the drivers support xp only me and 2000.

Like Steve I my Palm won't recognise this device. Any Help would be appreciated

I've installed the package as referenced here, can locate the package "/System/Library/Extensions/ProlificUsbSerial.kext", but the contents are empty. There is no "Contents" Folder, nor Info.plist file for me to edit.

Any ideas as to how I can resolve ??

Thanks in advance.

It seems that the latest MacOSX driver from the iogear site comes with the correct vendor/product IDs set for the ATEN cable (8200 & 1367). I installed as explained above (minus the editing of Info.plist) and I have a device /dev/tty.usbserial when the device is plugged in.

The URL for the download page is:

http://www.iogear.com/support/download.php?Item_ID=154

Now if I could only successfully open the port from my tcl/tk application...

Thanx to all who have posted so far! It really got me off of a hard place...

Thank for the info, it has helped. Got mine working.

But, does any one know how i can control this port? I need to be able to open, close, read, and write. I like applescript but, can't find any serial port scripting additions for os x.

Any ideas or other options...?

Hi,
I purchased a "NoName" USB-Serial-Adapter that shows correct USB-ID/Vendor in System-Profiler (OSX 10.2.6 on PBG4-867).
It also shows the Numer $2303 - which definitly meens our chip is there!
But if I install the kext there is no device under /dev. If I do a kextload it says there´s a problem with the kext (I dont have the details here, but they could be delivered).
Does anybody have info in that case?
Thanks

I downloaded this from the iogear site [thanks, Rob Lindeman]. So far it works, at least in a passive mode where I'm just looking at the serial port. Have used it to watch the console log from a Rio mp3 player, not only with zTerm on OSX but also with Hyperterminal on WinNT4 via VPC 6! Later I'm trying the (Win only) software for my Qualcomm cell phone... I'll post back with results.

IOGear -232A is Ok from what i read but can somone advice me about one Bluetooth dongle. Thank you.

I can confirm that the driver http://www.ramelectronics.net/download/BF-810/OSX/md_pl2303_v106.zip.tgz
works with the CUR100N usb-to-serial adaptor.

The device shows up as /dev/tty.usbserial0 and works with zTerm.

No changes to the plist file were necessary.

Has anyone had success with the IOGear unit under 10.3? I've just tried to install it on my 17" PB, and neither the driver from the IOGear site or the native Prolific driver with the vendorid/productid tweeked seem to work. When I try to do a kextload I get:

dhcp-80:/System/Library/Extensions/ProlificUSBSerial.kext/Contents root# kextload ProlificUsbSerial.kext
kextload: /System/Library/Extensions/ProlificUSBSerial.kext/Contents/ProlificUsbSerial.kext: no such bundle file exists
can't add kernel extension ProlificUsbSerial.kext (file access/permissions) (run kextload on this kext with -t for diagnostic output)
dhcp-80:/System/Library/Extensions/ProlificUSBSerial.kext/Contents root# kextload -t ProlificUsbSerial.kext
kextload: repository cache problem found; scanning /System/Library/Extensions directly
kextload: /System/Library/Extensions/ProlificUSBSerial.kext/Contents/ProlificUsbSerial.kext: no such bundle file exists
can't add kernel extension ProlificUsbSerial.kext (file access/permissions) (run kextload on this kext with -t for diagnostic output)

Any thoughts? The error message seems to indicate that a bundle file is missing ... any chance things got re-arranged in the 10.2->10.3 upgrade?

Thanks!

I think this post is just for dealing with the IOGear unit. But using a non OEM usb cable for the i95, is there a way for Mac OS X to recognize the phone?

how do i edit the Info.plist file, i found the file now what? i need to change the product code and the vendor and i see nothing that lets me edit it? any help would be appreciated

The QVS UC-232A USB Serial Adaptor (http://www.qvs.com/usb/uc232a.asp) works using ProlificUSBSerialOSX1.0.6.pkg without modifications of the info.plist. The right Product and Vendor ID are already there!

Able to synch my Powerbook under 10.2 with a Garmin GPS device.

I have a USB data cable but I don't have its driver, I checked the instructions and I found that it need a driver (SER9PL.INF) and it can be found in the http://tech.prolific.com.tw/ So I cheched the link but it does not work proparly and face some error in accesing inside this link, and can not find the file. Please direct me to the right link where I can find this file.

I have problems with the prolific website, too. Can anybody provide a seperate download link? Thanks.

Thanks for the advice! That driver also works with the High-Edge HE800 serial to USB adapter. I didn't even need to edit the product or vendor codes.

Well, I need to make an update...I managed to get this to work under 10.3 and didn't have to mess with the kext files. However, the recognition is very sporadic. For an entire day, the sync worked fine. I hooked it up today and it was not recognized. I pitched all of the 'Prolific' files and reinstalled them, then it worked. I would hate to have to reinstall them every time just to do a sync! In the meantime I may try to find another USB-Serial adapter for OSX.3.

I have a Targus PA088 which also uses this chipset. I've been trying to get it to work in 10.3 but have been unsuccessful. How do you determine what values to put into the Info.plist file? Here's what system profiler says:

Vendor Name: USB-RS232 Interface Converter
Product ID: 560 ($230)
Speed: Up to 12 Mb/sec
Serial Number: 010101
Bus Power (mA): 500

Product ID would be 560, but what would the vendor ID be? Anyone else get the Targus working?

I updated the plist.info file, but when i do a kextload, i get an error that says "kextload: cannot resolve dependencies for kernel extension /System/Library/Extensions/ProlificUSBSerial.kext"

Any suggestions?

thanks

Thank you very much for your info

I installed the driver for IOGear 232A from the above mentioned link on OS X 10.2.8 and after reinstallation and configuration of the HotSync Manager for Palm V it works just sweet.

cheers m

I've also tried to install it with a Vivanco USB-Serial converter (which shows up with VendorId 1659), but i can't get it to work.

Installing on 10.3panther it gives me:

Maarten-Moermans-Computer:~ maartenmoerman$ sudo kextload -t ProlificUsbSerial.kext
kextload: /Users/maartenmoerman/ProlificUsbSerial.kext: no such bundle file exists
can't add kernel extension ProlificUsbSerial.kext (file access/permissions) (run kextload on this kext with -t for diagnostic output)
Maarten-Moermans-Computer:~ maartenmoerman$

Seems like something is missing, I've checked Info.plist, but it shows up correct there with the correct vendorid/productid (same as in system profile) but nothing seems to work

I've got it working! this makes my previous posting obsolete... i removed the extensions.kextcache, and it showed up after a reboot as /dev/tty.usbserial0 :)

Works like a charm with Zterm and TIP (netbsd) , if anyone has a working binary download for minicom/macosx , please inform me, i personally don't like fink, so i wont' install that :) Finally i can config my cisco router from within macos X :)

Just for your information : http://www.macosxhints.com/article.php?story=200309231754060

The Prolific Tech PL2303 USB to Serial port chip is used in a lot of USB connected serial-like devices, such as GPS, cellular phones and even plain serial to USB cables (for example, the IOGear or the Wiretek devices). The latest version of the MacOS X driver (1.0.6 as I write), works almost flawlessly ... except for a very frequent message on the system log:
mach_kernel: ttyioss800000x: dequeueData ret 3
mach_kernel: 00000x: dequeueData ret 3
(x can be anything)

If you use the driver with a 56K modem, you end up with hundreds of messages per minute. I found the cause being a rather obvious programming mistake, which can be corrected "the hard way:"
Unload the driver with:
% sudo kextunload /System/Library/Extensions/ProlificUsbSerial.kext

Backup the original code with:
% cd /System/Library/Extensions/ProlificUsbSerial.kext/Contents/MacOS
% sudo cp ProlificUsbSerial ProlificUsbSerial.old

Make the driver writeable:
% chmod 0777 ProlificUsbSerial

hexdump -s 0x2288 -n 4 ProlificUsbSerial
(* it should output "4800 0008" at 0002288 *)

printf "\070\140\000\000" | dd bs=4 seek=2210 count=1 conv=notrunc of=ProlificUsbSerial

hexdump -s 0x2288 -n 4 ProlificUsbSerial
(* it should now output "3860 0000" at 0002288 *)

Change back the mode of the driver with:
% sudo chmod 0555 ProlificUsbSerial

Load the driver:
% sudo kextload -v /System/Library/Extensions/ProlificUsbSerial.kext

Someone was trying to use the Targus PA088 (vendor 0x711, device 0x230) with the Prolific driver. The PA088 seems to use a MCT chipset (based on info from the linux driver). I fetched the MCT driver from http://www.mct.com.tw/driver.html and found it works mostly fine. (OS X 10.2.8, got 'security warning' when first using the driver, clicked 'fix').

The only issue seems to be that the driver doesn't support the BREAK signal (but very few USB device drivers seem to! :-(

I have the same problem as Lauretn. I have a USB data cable but I don't have its driver, I checked the instructions and I found that it need a driver (SER9PL.INF) and it can be found in the http://tech.prolific.com.tw/ So I cheched the link but it does not work proparly and face some error in accesing inside this link, and can not find the file. Please direct me to the right link where I can find this file.

http://www.serialio.com/products/adaptors/usb_serial.htm
Or Direct access to the driver file : http://www.serialio.com/download/Drivers/md_pl2303_v106.zip

Ah success!

I just got the 1.0.6 driver working nicely with the IOgear GUC232A under OS X 10.3.3. The key for me was to remove the /System/Library/Extensions.kextcache file and reboot.

I also updated the "idProduct" and "idVendor" values as noted at the top. I changed them in both places they were listed in the file. I'm not sure if I really needed to update both, but I figured it couldn't hurt and it didn't.

I initially installed the driver that came from IOGear. The interesting thing was that I could sync my Palm Vx, but only once. If I wanted to sync again I needed to reboot (I didn't try kextunload / load as I didn't know about that at the time).

Prolific never did bring back the OS X PL-2303 driver
on their support/download website.
Fortunately, Ross Barkman provides a copy of the
experimental (pre-release) v1.0.7 PL-2303 driver
(see his website www.taniwha.org.uk) (thanks Ross!)
Larry C in San Jose, CA

http://www.ramelectronics.net/html/usb_serial.htm

That URL has a download for OS X drivers, I got that link from farther up the page but am re-posting it just so people know it's still there, contrary to popular belief.

What I did was hack the package BEFORE installing it, and saved the package. This saves you the "extensions.kextcache" deletion reboot, and makes it easier next time you need to install the driver.

I did this by using terminal to gunzip "ProlificUSBSerialOSX1.0.6.pkg/Contents/Resources/ProlificUSBSerialOSX1.0.6.pax.gz" and making the Vendor and Product ID changes, then gzipping the file back up. It installs, reboots and works like a charm! Thanks for the tips guys, this rocks! Having a serial port was one of the only reasons I needed to use windows, and now that reason's gone. :D

For what it's worth, I've sort of discovered a different way to go. It sort of stems from my work with the XMPCR. My new favorite chipset for adding serial ports comes from FTDI. If you do a google search for USBG232, you'll find them available all over the place. And the drivers are freely downloadable from www.ftdichip.com. Much less hassle than having to search the world for Prolific drivers.

Er, I'm not among the lucky ones. I got my hands on the copy of 1.0.5 at first, installed, no luck. The device productID (8963) is in the info.plist, but the module does not load automatically (tried removing kextcache, rebooting, etc). If I manually load it using kextload, the module is loaded, but the /dev/tty.usbserial will not appear.

Then I downloaded the referenced copy of 1.0.7b4 and installed it, with the same results. Besides that now, under System Profiler, the "Version" shows still up as 1.0.5, whereas the kext version is displayed as 1.0.7b4. I removed it completely (from under /System/Library/Extensions) and tried to reinstall, but the pkg says "Upgrade" on the button instead of "Install". What else should I remove for a completely clean start? Going ahead with Upgrade lead me to the same place - version number mixup, and no workie.

hi, your post is very important for me, thanks

I just got the belking model F5U409 working on my PowerBook G4 MAC OS X.3.4, after getting enough clues from the page. Bascially you have to get the beta version of the drivers for the F5U409 from www.belkin.com/beta/. I am using the 10.2 version and it works well enough to connect to a headless sun box or router. They don't work out of the box, you get some kind of message that the BelkinSerialDriver.kext driver wasn't installed correctly. I think mac might have hired out Microsoft to write the dialog box as it tells you nothing useful. At any rate, I was able to find the problem using thk kextload util I found on this list. Nice...

Bryan-Ranks-Computer:/System/Library/Extensions root# kextload -t BelkinSerialDriver.kext
kernel extension BelkinSerialDriver.kext has problems:
Authentication failures
{
"File owner/permissions are incorrect" = (
"/System/Library/Extensions/BelkinSerialDriver.kext"
"/System/Library/Extensions/BelkinSerialDriver.kext/Contents"
"/System/Library/Extensions/BelkinSerialDriver.kext/Contents/MacOS"
)
}

From there I changed the permissions on each of these files using chmod 755, then pluged it in and after some blinky lights there apeared a file called /dev/tty.USB Serial. Yes, there is a space. Oh well, I am using kermit to connect with not problem. Got it from columbia and installed in /usr/local/bin and am using it from xterm

Thanks for the BLOG it helped me a lot.

Bryan
16JUN2004

hi, your post is very important for me, thanks

Thank you for this.

Let me report that it also works with the imac-blue no-name adapters off ebay, with product 8963 and vendor 1659

there are new versions of the drivers available at http://www.viewcon.net/

http://www.viewcon.net/driver/rs11/imac.sit

for the USB1.1 to serial converters based upon the PL-2303:

X: v1.8.0
9: v1.3.0b2

For the first time the converter is now working under MacOS 9.2.2 properly. The driver s are now longer available at Prolific's site.

Thanks for all the help. Mafi

Thanks Mafi
The above driver works (if you can extract it).
There was a .sit inside the main .sit For some reason stuffit 8 has problems with the PL2303_1.0.8.sit archive
It seems to extract with stuffit 6 (if you've still got an old copy).

I recommend that you download the files from http://www.viewcon.net/driver/rs11/imac.sit

But if you don't want to go through the hassle I've put a copy of the OSX driver at http://www.serverbox.co.uk/files/PL2303_1.0.8.pkg.tgz

I found that the 1.0.6 driver wouldn't allow me to send any data but I could receive it just fine after I had made the changes in the Info.plist file and deleted the two /System/Library/Extensions.* files

On a side note, IOGear now has official OS 10.3 drivers for this adapter (though I think it's prolific's driver still, it even says so on the installer :), which needs no modifications.

i nedd driver for connect a celphone with usb cable to macosx and conect internet

I've spent a bit of time looking over the details on this page (great material by the way!) and still running into some odd errors when I connect my USB/Serial device. I'm connecting a Garmin Legend C with a direct mini-USB to big-USB connector and getting the following errors:

USBF: 1717.439 IOUSBVendorSpecificDevice[0x1d3b000]: Error (0xe00002e8) getting device config descriptor
USBF: 1717.439 IOUSBVendorSpecificDevice[0x1d3b000]::GetFullConfigurationDescriptor - Error (e00002e8) getting first 4 bytes of config descriptor

When I run any tools that would directly access the device, I get the following:

Conexant USB interface: family specific matching fails
Conexant USB interface: family specific matching fails
InternalUSBModem::setPowerState(1)
InternalModemSupport::acquirePort -- SUCCESS -- InternalUSBModem.kext loaded after 0000004.252 seconds

I'm finding a couple things odd, the device doesn't show up under network ports, and is still directly referecing the USBModem interface. Do I need to unload any kernel modules? Is there a way to watch as the modules load/accessed during this connection? Any tips for further testing/troubleshooting?

Please let me know!

Thanks.

thanks timothy
the download you posted has enabled me to sync my palm vx to my ibook running osx.3 you are a star I have a no name serial usb adapter gmus-03 so i can recomend the download if not the adapter!

man im having such a hard time trying to apply this usb cord to my desk top and i have windows xp and its a universal serial bus and can somebody post a place where i can download a program for my cord and it is for my phone which is nextel i733 cansomebody pls. help me out thank you.

Well, you're a bit more likely to get help for your Windows machine by asking on a site that isn't dedicated to MacOS X.

Dufus.

OK im looking for sum help...i recently bought a usb data cable for my audiovox cdm 8900 and i put the cd in installed wat it told me but some stuff said that certain files or w/e couldnt find a driver and now im lookin for watever i need and i cat find nething...if you could help me thanks so much...or just ne helpful ideas

man i am having hard time ttring to get my UBS data cable to work . i have samasung SCH-A650 cell phone, i bought the usb data cable fromthe net, and i have windows ME runing on my pc . will you please let me know what shall i do and what kinds of softwear i shoud used.
thanks a million .

Well, I'd advise either buying a Macintosh, or posting your question on a forum that doesn't have "OS X" in its name, retard.

THANK ;)

16 bit softwear wont work on xp

i'm a total no brains in the computer department. I REALLY NEED SOME HELP before i tear all my hair out!
i'm using my boyfriend's powerbook g4 and i want to use photoshop (already installed) and i'd like to scan (umax astra 610p) and print (canon bjc - 2000).
quite simple u'd think ...
i bought the usb adaptor cos the scanner and printer are old, problem solved? not quite, had to then buy a gender changer so it would all link up. again, problem solved, again not quite.
i can't get my head round all this drivers stuff and complicated things.
could someone please slowly guide this idiot through the process so she won't fail her final year at uni???!!!
i mean, all a girl wants to do is scan, design and print!!!
ps, the powerbook has mac osx
MERRY CHRISTMAS X

FYI - I notice there there is a new version:

md_pl2303h_hx_x_1.0.9b1.hqx 
PL-2303H/HX/X Driver version 1.0.9 build 1 for Mac OS X
Release Date: 02/23/2005

http://tech.prolific.com.tw/visitor/v_fileBrw.asp (click on the USB 1.1)

I have no idea if it works I haven't tried it yet. I had the old one installed and working fine then I went and got a new Mac and I lost the installer (foolish I know). If I wasn't so cheap I'd just buy a new adaptor.

Good Luck.

F

I have a USB serial port cable that comes up with Vendor code 0x0403 and Model code 0x6001. The drivers mentioned above did not work for me - but I have just gotten it working on OSX 10.3.8 using drivers from,

http://www.ftdichip.com/Drivers/FT232-FT245Drivers.htm#NoteOnMacOSX

At first it did not load the kernal extention - the fix for that was to ensure that this driver (installed into /System/Library/Extensions) is owned by the group 'wheel'.

i have data cable for nokia 2600 when we start to driver instalation computer demand file ser9pl.in file that have not please send me this file

I installed the USB2Serial driver from the IoGear website. everything went off fine. i rebooted and now my G4 waits for over 5 mins on the initial apple bootup screen (without the spinning circle). after 5-6 mins, the spinning circle starts and the machine boots up very slowly..
i remember the same thing had happend on a earlier version of OSX about couple of years back and i had forgotten about it. last week had to install the driver to get some data back from an old Palm IIIc and then i ran into this problem..
Does anyone have any ideas ??
Thanks in advance.

i've tried some PL drivers now (1.0.6 to 1.0.9b3 (the newest, came out yesterday)) but i can't get the device to work! strange thing is i've got /dev/tty.usbserial but cat'ting the devices leaves me with an empty return... doing the same on linux returns a lot of binary after a few secs! i expect the same on os-X (10.3.8)...no app works with /dev/tty.usbserial even compiled gpsd to test.. any help is welcome!

blk, Just so you don't think you're alone, I have the same problem as well. I got a GPS device and the PL2303 cable, downloaded the drivers (1.0.6 and the newest one 1.0.9b3), see the /dev/tty.usbserial but can't cat either. I'm running 10.3.8, if you get this solved, send an e-mail my way. i'll do likewise.

I'm having the exact same problem.

I found some 1.0.3 drivers on this webpage: http://theapotek.com/teknotes/archives/cat_tips.html

But the installer doesn't seem to do anything.

I do also some Tests with an Hama 49262 USB to Serial- Cable.
The Product ID is 8963
and Manufact. ID is 1659

I used the Prolific Driver 1.0.6- Version.
i just must wait on connection about 5 sec. the it is recognised.
In my Tests nearly all is working properly.

I wonder while it differs in the Programs. once it is known as /dev/tty.usbserial0 and once it is known as /dev/cu.usbserial0
but i should working.

Just gpsd will no response. in Firewall i opened port 2749 manually but no success - will look if i can fix it.

Hi All,
Since I moved to Tiger 10.4.1 I had to update the Prolific driver to 1.0.9b3 to have my GPS connection work, and it works ! (with the HikeTech software)

This rocks!! I'm gonna connect zterm to the serial connector on a linux server to do console diagnostics. Nothing was recognizing the usb port as being a possible serial port until i follwed your instructions. now i have my usb serial device in /dev, and it sees it in zterm. thanks a million.

aaah!!! i really don't understand the whole usb to serial thing that needs the SER9PL.INF
please help me! i'm really computer illiterate and the people at customer care are completely useless...
please help me!

At least in Tiger, you need to take care to convert the output from system_profiler (hexadecimal) to decimal (what the plist expects).

My generic cable came with
Product ID 0x2303
Vendor ID 0x067b (Prolific Technology Inc.)

That translates to the following lines in the plist:

idProduct
8963
idVendor
1659

(sorry, tags get eaten, you'll figure it out.)

Using 10.4.2 and driver USBSerialOSX1.0.9b6.pkg loaded without error and produced the usbserial device.

mm

Question: With this configuration, are you able to send straight data to the serial device? Or is there still restriction of requiring a driver for the hardware. I am trying to add a serial text printer and would like to just send ASCII to the device. Currently, using KeySpan device with no luck. In Linux world, can simply send ASCII to /dev and it works just fine. No luck so far in OS X. Will purchase IO Gear device and see if that works better....

Between this page and http://forums.macosxhints.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=32225, all the mysteries of the PL-2303 based USB to Serial cable for my cell phone were solved. A little bit here and a little bit there. Learned a lot.

I thought I'd add to this excellent thread with information regarding Cables Unlimited's USB-Serial adaptor, USB-2920, $20 at Frys and also available on-line from the Cables Unlimited web site for an additional $10. Huh??

The package mentions Mac OS 8.6+ support but the supplied CD is of the mini variety that I won't load in my slot loading Powerbook. The chip is from FTDI and there is a very recent driver at the FTDI web site supporting my 10.4.4 machine. The Cables Unlimited web site had a 30 month old driver.

I've not tried it for GPS support yet but it worked well on the first try in getting my old series 1 Tivo make its schedule update via my laptop's WiFi connection after my move to VoIP made the Tivo's modem calls unreliable.

Hey gang! First of all I am new to this Forum. I am a new Mac Intel user and I came accross this forum about getting the USB-to-Serial adapter to work with OS X.



I have a new Intel Core Duo Macbook 2.0 with OS X 10.4.5 installed. I can not for the likes of me get this GUC232A adapter to work. I know this is a new beast but I welcome any sugestions to get this to work. Here is a brief summary of what I do believe t be working.



1.) System Profilter > USB detects USB-Serial Controller (Version 3, Manufacture - Prolific Technology Inc. Product ID- 0x2008 Vendor ID 0x0557



If install drivers and then try to load kext I get the following.



**************
26com_prolific_driver_PL2303 is not compatible with its superclass, 18IOSerialDriverSync superclass changed?
kextload: a link/load error occured for kernel extension /System/Library/Extensions/ProlificUsbSerial.kext
load failed for extension /System/Library/Extensions/ProlificUsbSerial.kext
(run kextload with -t for diagnostic output)
**************



If I use the mentioed -t option



**************
kernel extension /System/Library/Extensions/ProlificUsbSerial.kext has problems:
Validation failures
{
"Executable file doesn't contain kernel extension code" = true
}
**************



I have tried the driver:
PL2303_1.0.8.pkg
and
PL2303_1.1.0b1.dmg



Neither work.

You're probably running into a situation that Rosetta can't handle. You'll have to wait until (if?) they relase a universal binary version of the driver.

krotkowlosa dziewica ala

Trying to get my GPS to work with OS X. I use to just use virtual PC and the Garmin (eTrex Vista, NON-c) Mapsource program, but my windows is all messed up! (Gee, big surprise)

I have a USB->Serial bridge that says "Model: UC232A" on the back. Don't know exactly who makes it, but I cannot get it to work! The port does not show up.

I installed the latest the latest prolific nightmare (which we are up to v1.1.0b1) on my Mac OS X ver 10.4.5 PowerMac G4. I changed the product id and vendor id (2008 / 0557 for me) in the info.plist, kextloaded, trashed the Library/Extensions.*, and nothing! Am I doing something wrong?

I was frustrated, bitter and thinking of taking someone's life; but now I'm smug and happy and the birds are singing outside my window. What finally worked for me: PB G4, OSX 10.3.9, IOGear-232A (model GUC232A), various Garmin GPSs', and http://www.ftdichip.com/Drivers/VCP/MacOSX/FTDIUSBSerialDriver_v2_1_0.dmg.

I've tried every other revision of every other driver, newer and older, including v1.1.0b1, and although PL2303_1.0.8 showed a tty.usbserial0 in the /dev list, nothing was talking (that I could determine).
Not http://www.prolific.com.tw/eng/Download-2.asp?ID=17
Not http://www.ramelectronics.net/download/BF-810/OSX/

I edited my /System/Library/Extensions/ProlificUsbSerial.kext/Contents/Info.plist to reflect my System Profiler:USB-Serial Controller:Product ID of 8200, however it does not indicate a Vendor ID at all (so I tried 1367 and any others on this list). I deleted the two /System/Library/Extensions.* files, reloaded (sudo kextload -v /System/Library/Extensions/ProlificUsbSerial.kext) and rebooted. Still nothing!!! I even tried cursing and praying (but may have done those out of order).

Then I:
1. Downloaded and installed FTDIUSBSerialDriver_v2_1_0,
2. Deleted the ../Extensions.* files for good measure,
3. sudo kextload -v /System/Library/Extensions/FTDIUSBSerialDriver.kext (no editing),
4. Rebooted for good measure,
5. and now I'm singing in the sunshine. A glimpse into the new /System/Library/Extensions/FTDIUSBSerialDriver/Contents/Info.plist shows a plethora of supported devices. Apparently if a rifle doesn't work, try a shotgun.

I had earlier gotten my Garmin to talk with VPC7 WinXP Pro. Now I want to try to get it to work with System 9 so I can use http://www.gpsy.com/. Whoops! It's gone native too! Guess I was too late. Life is sweet.

Thanks to everyone who has posted on this string and encouragement to everyone who follows.Those with determination shall persevere!

I've contacted IOGear and they are working on a driver for the GUC232A USB to Serial adaptor but would not give any idea of when it would be out.

i, i have just get a generic version or a DCU 11 data cable for my sony ericsson, but i can't find a driver to make it works on Mac OS X 10.3.9 using the PL 2303, Prolific USB serial and FTDISUBSerial drivers.

The information on System Profiler is:

usb data cable:

Vendor Name: Silicon Labs
Product ID: 4293 ($10c5)
Speed: Up to 12 Mb/sec
Serial Number: 0001
Bus Power (mA): 500
I've tried to change the Product ID on de info.plist using the FTDIUSBSerial, but nothing works.

Help me, please!!!

To those of you who need to send a break using the Prolific serial driver (e.g., to access the console on a Sun box), here is a way to simulate a break:

set your baud to 1200
send about 10-20 characters
set the speed back to your console speed

Here is a macro for doing this using kermit under Mac OS X:

define CONSOLESPEED 9600
define SBREAK {
SET SPEED 1200
OUTPUT \N\N\N\N\N\N\N\N\N\N\N\N
SET SPEED \m(CONSOLESPEED)
CONNECT
}

If you are having issues with the IOGear/ATEN/Prolific/Other USB-to-Serial Adapter/Cable while using MacBook Pro 10.4.x please use the following driver located here:

http://sourceforge.net/projects/osx-pl2303/

Trust me after preforming hacks, ontop of hacks.. Nothing worked. After hours of searching i found this.

Give it a shot and hopefully it resolves your problem.

Necesito el controlador para el cable USb ser9pl.inf