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FAQ Part 6: Serial Plug-in questions

By December 1, 2017January 16th, 2019FAQ

Can I still use Troi Serial Plug-in on a 32-bit system?

On 32-bit Windows you can still use the current version of Troi Serial Plug-in. On macOS please use version 5.5. You can download version 5.5 here.

Do any of your plug-ins support USB?

Not directly. USB is a bus protocol that can be used from various purposes and devices, like keyboards, harddisks, CD-ROM drives, adaptors, cameras. All these devices need specific drivers. We have currently no plans to create a USB plug-in. Note, however, that our Serial Plug-in is reported to be working with the USB to Serial adapters.

Does your Troi Serial Plug-in work with USB to serial adapters?

Yes, we have had reports that the Keyspan USB-Serial adapters works well with Troi Serial Plug-in. See the Tripplite web site for some possible devices.

Do you have a plug-in that can access a dongle?

We don’t have a plug-in that can access a dongle. If you want to use the dongle on a serial port the Serial plug-in might be able to work with it. We have not tested this. You need to know what to send and receive from the dongle. We don’t have information about that.

Do you have a plug-in that can access the Parallel port?

We don’t have a plug-in that can access the Parallel port.

Using the Serial plug-in I can't get CallerID to work. How come?

Parsing out the CallerID is dependent on the exact string that the modem returns and can be different across modems, countries etc. In the CallerID.fmp12 file we have provided two different situations, but you may need to change that for your own use. Usually a return character can be used to mark the end of the incoming data. If this is not the case you need to analyse what delimits your CallerID data. Note: not all modems support callerID. See also the caller ID page at our web site.

What are the funny square characters I get from serial data import?

The squares are control characters (lower ASCII, 0-31) for which no denotation exists in the font. Therefore you cannot distinguish one from the other. However, if you want to use one you can copy it and paste it in a global field for example. Take a look at ASCII.fmp12 in the download of the Serial plug-in for all the ASCII chars.

How can we use Troi Serial Plug-In with Optical serial interfaces using OPTO-RS Flow Control?

You need to experiment with the Advanced Handshaking Options available through the Serial_Open script. Other users have had succes with “No Flow Control” and “RTS=disabled”.

How can I use the Serial plug-in with a credit card swipe machine to enter the card number?

You need a credit card swipe machine that has a serial (RS232) interface. Also it should produce ASCII characters (bytes). Note that this does not authorize the credit card.

Do you have a ready-made solution for telephony integration?

No, we don’t and we don’t have any plans to make this in the near future. Note that Troi Serial Plug-in can communicate with any device that has a serial interface and produces ASCII characters (bytes). Some PABX have a serial interface and some users have used this plug-in for transmitting data to and from the PABX. The exact commands to do this is not standardized, so you need to find that out for yourself. Note that Troi Serial Plug-in is not TAPI compliant. We don’t have a TAPI plug-in. More info on our Serial plug-in can be found here.
BTW: If you have information on how to couple a PABX and want to share your results we are happy to put it on our web site.

How can I get access to more than 4 serial ports on Windows?

With the release of Troi Serial Plug-in 3.0 all serial ports are detected automatically!

Other questions?

If your question is not answered here, please look in the documentation that comes with the plug-in. If you have suggestions please email a FAQ suggestion.