Topic: Serial Port Splitter to run multiple programs from the same com port

[gfmucci]

I've been looking for ways to run 2 or more software progrms from my Davis VantageVue console through the serial/usb converter running Windows 10 and with the latest Davis WeatherLink software.  The standard many use, VirtualVP, apparently doesn't work on the latest versions of Davis firmware/software.

I came across this from Fabulatech and wonder if anyone has tried it yet.  It's billed as a "serial port splitter" and sells for $129.  Yeah, I wish it sold for $20, too.

http://www.fabulatech.com/serial-port-splitter.html

[ericfynne]

You can't use a 'dumb' splitter with a Davis station, it's a two-way protocol, so it has to be something which understands the protocol and can manage the data flow intelligently, like the Virtual VP software does.

Eric

[gfmucci]

Is the Fabulatech device classified as a "dumb" splitter?  How is that determined?

[ericfynne]

It's a 'dumb' splitter because all it does, as it says on that page, is:

"When virtual serial ports are opened by communications applications correspondingly, data from the physical COM port is sent to all opened virtual COM ports simultaneously. And vice versa, data from each communications application written to a virtual COM port is sent to the physical COM port."

It doesn't understand the Davis communication protocol. Having more than one program talking to the station at the same time will thoroughly confuse it. It would only work if only one program was controlling the protocol and the all the other software was able to just listen and recognise the responses and act on them. I don't know if there is any existing software for Davis stations that will work in a 'passive' way like that. I imagine it would be quite difficult to write software to do that.