And the lower level, which had a large number of booths last year, this year had none. Interesting display-related developments were few and far between, but there were some to be found. Keyspan was showing its new USB 2.0 PCI card for Wintel and Mac PCs, which also supports the old USB Ver. Even though USB 2.0 devices are not yet available, the major players are coming out with cards now. Keyspan's president Mike Ridenhour explained that this is because the introduction of NEC's USB 2.0 chip has made it easy to make cards.
Drivers are the hold-up now.
Microsoft had just put beta drivers on its website in the week preceding PC Expo, but only for Windows ME and 2000. Microsoft will not be providing driver support for Windows 98 and earlier versions, Ridenhour said, but Keyspan and other companies will license privately developed drivers and make them available. UMAX will have a USB 2.0 scanner in the fall, and confirmed that they need the time to test drivers. A UMAX representative said that developmental USB 2.0 models are significantly faster than existing Firewire models, even though the rated speeds are similar. This card comes with your choice of standard VGA, DVI, or DFP connector cable.