#Hardware Lock and 486 66
9 messages in this thread
I have real problems with the hardware lock for 3-D Studio – it stinks!
I can't get the hardware lock to work on the FAST machines in our office. I've
tried it on our new Dell 486 66 machines, on our Gateway 486 33 and 50 mhz
machines, and the message "Sentinel pro not installed" always pops up. I can
get 3DS to successfully run on an older PS/2 486 machine and a Dell 486P50 PC
(which is rather slow), but not ANY of the PCs that I'd like to be able to run
3DS on…
What kind of work around is it buy another parallel port card and use up a
slot? Not only does that cost more money, but it takes up slot space which I
don't have.
Are there any other options for me?
Who came up with the hardware lock idea in the first place? I do understand
its purpose, but frankly, the headaches it has caused me will make NEVER ever
buy another product with a hardware lock again, and it causes me to hesitate in
recommending 3DS to any of our clients.
– "I Hate Dongles" Dan
Nicholas,
<< hating that lock.. >>
download hwlock.txt from the what's new section (#9)
for all we know about the issue.
jonas[adesk]
Autodesk/Yost Group was essentially FORCED to add the hardware lock
because of overseas sales pressures. Yes, the existing locks rarely
work with the "enhanced" or "fast" parallel ports. MAny machines
(including my Gateway P5-60) allow you to set the parallel prot from
"enhanced" to "normal". Other than this, the 3DS dongle is very
stable, compared to many. I'm hoping that one of these days,
Sentinel will have a dongle that will work with the new ports, and
that Autodesk will allow a swap for those of us with the older
models. As far as hesitating to recommend 3DS based on the dongle,
most here would say that is ridiculous. The advantage 3DS gives you
in allowing non-dongled machines to "render" (but not edit) in a
render-farm set-up is invaluable, not to mention it's many other fine
features. I'm hoping that was just your frustration talking.
Yes, part of my ranting about not recommending 3DS was frustration. I do like
the product, but it is the first I own that has a hardware lock. Another
problem I have with it is that it takes up physical space. I have my PC
against the back of a cubicle, and have just enough room to plug in the
parallel cable to my printer. Adding the dongle before the printer takes up an
extra 2 inches of my deskspace by pushing my computer away from the wall.
That's not cool at all.
Also, on the DELL 486/66 machines we have, there is no way to set the parallel
port from "enhanced" to "normal". We just can't run 3DS on the machines we
want to, and that stinks.
-Dan
Nicholas,
<< can't run it on the machines we want..>>
download hwlock.txt from section #9 of the libs.
jonas[adesk]
>>Adding the dongle before the printer takes up an extra 2 inches of my
deskspace by pushing my computer away from the wall.
My plotter is far from my desk so I use 2 parallel cables hooked end to end,
however since I need both my 3ds and asurf locks, I put them both between the
first and second cable. I know it's not the best solution, but it works great.
Yann Bertaud – VPG, Autodesk.
Is the Dell computer one of the series L? That computer is specificly mentioned
in HWLOCK.TXT. Also, so is something called a "Hydra" cable which will solve
your problem with space when attaching to the back of the computer.
-Brian
One way to get more space is to buy a parallel cable and plug it into
the back of your machine, then plug the hardware lock(s) into the
cable, and then whatever parallell device plugs into the hardware
lock. This will put less stress on both the parallel port and the
hardware lock, plus, you'll probably be seeing a lot more hardware
locks if you're getting into "limited market" professional grade
(read: expensive <g>) software, so this'll make things more
manageable all around.
>>dongle distance…
Unless you go with the "Hydra" or mount the dongle inline between
cables, there is another solution with a several additional
advantages. I mounted the dongle inside the PC case attached to one
of the DB-25 cutouts on the back. Then I ran a short ribbon cable
from the parallel port, back inside the case, and into the dongle.
Besides solving the clearance problem, this method 1) does not stress
the computer/dongle connection, 2) gives a much sturdier attachment
point for the dongle/printer cable connection, and 3) hides the silly
thing and helps prevent it from "accidentally" walking away if the
computer is sometimes unprotected. The only potential problem is
feeding the short ribbon cable back into the PC.
For your info: the dongle on this Gateway P5-60 occasionally decides
to wander off into the Twilight Zone. This condition persists for a
few hours, then it decides to sneak back into this dimension. Setting
the parallel port to "normal" in the setup does not help. When it
quits working, I find that if I turn the printer on, it works fine.
Strange, but 99% of the time it does not need the printer on. I have
a new Pentium comming shortly – I'll have to see how that does.
J K J (charter member of MAD, "Modelers Against Dongles")
PS: Brian Rudolph Adesk – perhaps consider including the "Hydra" cable
with the 3DS package as a problem solver and customer conciliatory
gesture.