Wacom Digitizer II Help

kunglao

in desperate need of help fast as i return to Cambridge next tuesday and need to setup new pc (Dell XPS 420+Vista Ultimate)


Just got a new pc and have 2 questions-
1.New pc does not have serial ports but lots of USB,My art tablet only has serial,do i need a serial to usb connector?
2.New pc has Vista Ultimate can anyone post where i can get the right drivers for tablet to run properly?

THe Art Tablet is a Wacom Digitizer 2 Model-UD 1212 R
New pc is Dell XPS 420 with Vista Ultimate

My old pc had XP and i connected tablet with serial at back

StJoris

1. Yes you do, I have the same setup with my 1212 and 1218, works fine
2. Depends on the brand serial-to-usb, check the sites of the products for drivers

kunglao

Thanks StJoris, If you could tell me which Serial to USB you are using or offer some links i would be grateful.

I looked on Wacom website for drivers for my tablet and vista but could not find any.You say you have same setup could you please tell me how you have your tablet working on Vista (ultimate) and what you did.
Much appreciated.

thomasp

i read this up a while ago when a coworker wanted to buy a serial intuos from me - there is not support for serial tablets in vista 64 bit versions anymore, wacom is not providing drivers.

also, wacom does only recommend one (!) model of serial to usb adaptor, i think it was the only one which provided a high enough data-transfer rate. other models caused trouble according to them. check the wacom support site, got it from there.

StJoris

I meant to say same setup with wacom--->serial-to-usb-->pc

I had trouble getting the serial-to-usb cable working under a 64 bit environment though. So unless you find drivers on a product's website for 64 bit, I'm negative it will work out.

thomasp,
I found the article you mean on wacom's support site, but not where they say you might get trouble if you use another due to transfer rates. Not really having too much troubles with this, and keyspan has no resellers in my country, so I'm interested in what particular malarky it could produce.

Husch

Maybe you can use a Serial PCI card? I am using one with WinXP and a serial Intuos 1 without any problem. But Thomasp said there are no serial wacom drivers for Vista, so I guess that is no option for you.

thomasp

i'm sorry, i cannot seem to find the old things again on their site. just this regarding driver support:
[ QUOTE ]
Serial tablets are not and will not be supported under Windows XP x64. Furthermore there is currently only a 64-bit driver for Intuos and Cintiq USB tablets. A 64-bit driver for PenPartner/Volito/Graphire3/Graphire4 USB tablets is planned but not yet available.

[/ QUOTE ]

and since you mentioned it - yes, keyspan is the brand of adapter they recommended, you should have no trouble sourcing one from ebay within europe if you can't get it in a store.
i think the issue was that the tablet couldn't keep up with your input since some translator chip on these adapters is usually too slow to handle the data rate necessary for a wacom.

and i recall a blog entry from someone who fiddled around with serial tablets in 64 bit windows and got it working with a registry or config file tweak. just google around a bit with varying keywords, maybe that one i still around.

also, you are using a really old tablet model there, pre intuos 1 generation if i get that right - we are talking 10+ years old tablet model. all the info i was digging thru earlier was regarding intuos series which do not seem to have changed much through the years - you might encounter a totally different situation, support-wise.

kunglao

thanks for help guys.Still no clearer.
I have ordered a serail to usb adaptor(could not find keyspan on ebay).
I dont know about zbrush but my ver of max 9 is 32 bit,is there anyway that my tablet could work with vista.
I dont have money for new tablet(especially a4 size)and not being able to use it will be like losing an arm.

StJoris

Well look at what thomasp said,

There is a file tweak that makes it possible to use it under Vista, if you can find that and works, you can use Vista.
If not, windows XP 32 seems your best bet.

kunglao

Thanks StJoris.
I have looked for what thomasp said on google and found nothing.
In an earlier post you said you have same setup how have you managed to get yours working.
Will it run in vista through a usb input via windows xp 32 in vista,as i have noticed that my version of 3d max 9 32- bit would only work in Vista if under propertoes i checked Disable Desktop Composition and Run this program as an administrator.
I also noticed that there is a Compatibilty mode which if checked will run this program in compatibility mode for Windows XP (service pack 2).
I have contacted Wacom and posted on several sites,still awaiting replies (it has been xmas).
I guess i will know more when usb to serial adaptor arrives.
Here is link for adaptor i ordered-
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk:80/ws/eBayISAPI.dl...:B:EOIBSA:UK:11

Again i apologise for many posts but this really is important to me.