TechBlog from Sewell

So initially I thought this product was intended for loan sharks, mob bosses, and any other profession where breaking people’s thumbs was the order of the day. Turns out, it’s another iteration of the ever-popular USB to Serial Adapter, with a twist, literally. This USB to Serial Adapter (Thumbscrew Version) has the standard screws that allow you to attach the cable snugly to the serial port so it doesn’t go anywhere. I can think of a few uses for it. It’s perfect for situations where there’s a lot of traffic near the serial device. This could be because cables are being plugged and unplugged near the serial port, or because there is the possibility of the cable being kicked or pulled. It’s also nice when you’re planning on leaving the USB to serial cable attached to the device for a while, so you won’t have to worry about the cable coming loose on the serial side. This is especially useful if the serial port is in a hard-to-reach spot. Naturally, the cable also works in any situation where a standard USB to Serial cable is used.

I used this device on a Samsung Ultra ATA 133 drive. My motherboard is an Intel D945GTP. OS is XP with service pak2. Hot swapping USB devices would often cause system failure…blue screen of death. I swapped out drive to a Segate Serial drive. So far the problem seems to be gone.

tallsmartdude, thanks for the info - let us know if the problem with the blue screen comes back - nothing is more frustrating than having to reboot.