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I used RS232 interface of barcode scanner (Datalogic QD2100), for my project but a problem arises. The manual given with this barcode scanner has certain barcodes for mode setting (scan mode-flashing, scan mode-always ON etc), restoring default settings, select interface. The output of the barcode scanner is a female RS232 and so i used a male RS232-usb converter cable to connect it to my laptop. I installed the driver which came with RS232-usb converter cable and also installed the software which was sent to me regarding barcode scanner. I have set the com port to COM1 and opened word. My cursor was placed in the word and when i do scan any barcode it doesn't show up on word. I used RS232 interface selection (using the barcode provided in the manual) first time and as i did not get any data in my word i used usb interface selection and that too didn't work. I have used barcode scanner with an old pc which has RS232 male pin and it does work. So my question is how can i possibly get my barcode scanner to work with my laptop which does not have any RS232 port.

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The problem is not RS232. On the contrary: RS232 ís FUN. It always WORKS! And you never run into version problems of drivers and so on because every operating system has standard RS232 support. See all the industries today where it is still in use because of the reliability. The issue here is USB: your RS232 to USB converter converter only converts data to a serial port. If you look in your hardware list of Windows, you will see that your converter simulates a serial port. A serial port is NOT a keyboard! So the data will never appear in applications (like Word) that only listen to keyboard devices! However, for barcode scanners there exist SPECIAL converters that convert RS232 to USB and behave like a keyboard. They have a double function: emulate a USB keyboard AND translate character codes from RS232 to USB because USB does not use standard ANSI.

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  • Yes, came here thinking exactly this "A serial port is NOT a keyboard! So the data will never appear in applications (like Word) that only listen to keyboard devices!" What you can do is try your barcode reader with a program that actually listens to the serial port. PUTTY is one. Windows used to come with a "Terminal" program but I can't find it now.
    – Mark Allen
    Jul 17, 2015 at 18:56
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RS232 is no fun. We use several barcode scanners like yours but had to upgrade to the newer USB style to get it to work. If that's not an option, there are some Express or PCI adapters that you could install in your computer that work. Again, not all of them work for us, you might have to try a couple.

We have had the best luck with a laptop that has a PCMCIA slot using this PCMCIA adapter and then you'll need a short ethernet to RS232: Amazon PCMCIA Adapter

If it's a desktop you might need something like this: Amazon PCI Card

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If you must use an RS232 to USB converter, be sure it uses the FTDI chipset. That's the gold standard for RS232 to USB and I've had troubles when using something cheap in the past. Here are some choices: www.amazon.com

Also, maybe something like the following is what you need to convert the serial communication into keyboard input: serial2keyboard. This is a free utility to convert a serial signal to a keyboard event.

Good luck!

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