Hi,

I'm under win95 and I've added a second parallel port to my PC. My question is: how can I configure it as a standard parallel port (SPP)? The main parallel port can be configured using BIOS, but I don't know what to do with the new one.

Thanks in advance.

Hello thekoookooo [strange name!]

I have a parallel port card fitted in an ISA slot.

The first thing was to make certain that "Plug-and-Play" was enabled by having the on-card jumper set correctly.
Then I had to go into the "BIOS setup", "Integrated Peripherals Setup Menu", "Onboard Parallel Mode" and change the single setting
:SPP
to two settings
:ECP/EPP
:Parallel Port EPP Type: EPP1.9

The second setting [and DMA = 03 (with my BIOS)] appears automatically when you select "ECP/EPP". I'm not sure if or how you can determine which which connection is which type. I'd like to know how.

The ECP Printer Port (LPT1) was allocated DMA 03 & IRQ 07.
The Printer Port (LPT2) was not allocated any DMA or IRQ.

ECP/EPP = supports both ECP & EPP
ECP = Enhaced Capabilities Port [as EPP but faster]
EPP = Enhanced Parallel Port [supports two way communication]
SPP = Standard Parallel Port?

Do you have an older BIOS that does not support this?

Read the documentation:

Usually when installing an ISA card like that, it has been my experience, the jumper settings on the card determine the settings for the card.

Hello classicsoftware

I read the documentation very carefully.
In my case the card could be either jumpered to manually select the IRQ setting or "plug and play" could be enabled in which case the operating system allocated the resources.

I decided to enable "plug and play" and it seems to work fine.