Quote Originally Posted by Schematicsman View Post
So magicniner yes the cable is parallel to usb one end connected to JP board in black box and the other end usb to my laptop so how and where would I be able to download the cnc6040 xml plugin that is needed to get this machine working with Mach3????
With a Parallel to USB you are on a hiding-to-nothing, no one is yanking your chain, they don't work because Art Fennerty's brilliant MACH3 Parallel Port driver cannot access the hardware through USB to read and drive the individual pins as it can on a local hardware bus Parallal Port

Plugins are bits of software which integrate with MACH3 to support hardware, XML files are configuration files containing MACH3 settings to work with a given machine configuration, ideally you would need both but in setting up MACH3 manually yo create your own configuration which MACH3 stores as a transferable (and copy-able and back-up-able) file.

You can't simply find and download a plug-in, plug-ins are not generic, they are hardware specific and must be developed and supplied by the hardware manufacturer, if they don't supply one you can't get one.

If your laptop BIOS shows parallel port settings you may be able to find a docking station with an external connector (this is the case with my HP Compaq machines although I don't use them as controllers), if so disable all power saving options for everything in BIOS while you're there before trying it.

The point of using older or Industrial market desktop PCs is that they have Parallel Ports and a Parallel Port is your only way forward with MACH3 unless you buy an external USB or Ethernet Motion Controller that does come from the manufacturer with a functional Plug-In - read around the subject well prior to purchase of USB or Ethernet motion controllers, suppliers are not above selling Lemons and shining customers on about Vapourware fixes and updates that never materialise.

John Stevenson has a shelf full of NBG controllers that were supposed to be the dog's b's if you listened to the sellers but were SNAFU and never adequately supported.