Impulse 3604 - Manual (Page 3)

Introduction
Sealevel Systems PC-SIO-232 Page 1
Introduction
Overview
Congratulations! You have now entered the world of mobile communications via the Sealevel Systems PC-SIO-850
Serial Interface.
In the last few years, the portable and notebook market has grown by leaps and bounds. Most early laptops and
notebooks handled I/O expansion through proprietary expansion slots. These slots provided limited expansion for
specific peripherals such as modems and FAX peripherals. Mass storage peripherals were factory installed and
could not be easily changed. Interconnectivity through local area networks offered limited performance through
slow parallel port network interfaces.
During this time period two standards organizations, JEIDA and PCMCIA, were working on the standardization of
memory IC cards. These cards were designed as strictly non-volatile silicon storage. JEIDA was the first to propose
the 68-pin connector standard for memory cards. In 1989, PCMCIA adopted the JEIDA 68 pin standard and worked
with JEIDA on further developments.
As the notebook market grew, the need for a standard I/O bus was seen. The PCMCIA groups saw an opportunity to
meet this need with an expanded version of the 68-pin interface. Further development occurred and within one year,
release 2.0 of the standard was completed. Release 2.0 was a major update to Release 1.0 and included full
hardware support for I/O devices. Release 2.0 coincided with JEIDA’s 4.1 release and is identical.
The PC-SIO-850 continues the Sealevel Systems tradition of an easy to use, highly reliable, and technically
advanced serial I/O solution.
What’s Included
The PC-SIO-850 is shipped with the following items. If any of these items are missing or damaged, contact the
supplier.
• PC-SIO-850 PCMCIA Serial Interface Adapter
• DB-25 cable assembly (3604, CA164) or DB-9 cable assembly (3604-DB9)
• Impact Resistant Carrying Case (Jewel Case)
• Sealevel Systems Software CD