Resource sites to visit for more information about USB and USB product compatibility and availability:

www.usb.org

www.allusb.com

developer.intel.com/design/usb/
and
www.apple.com/usb

• What's next? USB 2.0.

• System Specifications

Windows 98 provides the most complete USB support on the PC platform. At one time there was some limited support for USB on Windows 95, but that is no longer available. If you're using Windows 98, download the free USB evaluation utility from http://www.usb.org/usbready.exe. It will examine your PC's hardware and software and inform you of your PC's USB capabilities. If your PC was made during or before 1996, it probably doesn't support USB. If it was made during 1997, it probably supports USB. If it was made during or after 1998, it almost certainly supports USB. Note that with some PCs, you may have to connect an adapter to your motherboard so you have a place to plug in your USB peripherals.

On the Apple side, the iMac, the PowerMac G3 and the new iBook, running OS 8.5 or higher (the iMac was introduced with a special USB-enhanced version of OS 8.1), all support USB. The software that supports USB devices in the Mac OS environment includes a USB Interface Module (UIM), a USB Manager, a USB Services Library (USL), and USB class drivers.

The UIM, pronounced whim, communicates with the USB controller hardware and provides a hardware abstraction layer for the USL and USB Manager. The UIM communicates directly with the USB controller hardware to set up the appropriate communication links with the USB devices on the bus. The UIM also provides root hub simulation. The USB Manager is the API provided to the Mac OS, or extensions that need to inquire about things related to the USB. The USL is the API that USB device drivers use to add device functionality to the USB on Macintosh computers. Version 1 of the USB software includes a USB compound device class driver to support USB HIDs, such as keyboards and mice, and a hub class driver to support hubs attached to the USB.

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