Parallel Port - Current Use

Current Use

For consumers, the USB interface — and sometimes Ethernet — has replaced the parallel printer port, for connections both to printers and to other devices.

Many manufacturers of personal computers and laptops consider parallel to be a legacy port and no longer include the parallel interface. Smaller machines have less room for large parallel port connectors. The guidelines for Microsoft's Windows Logo Program "strongly discourages" systems builders from including parallel ports. USB-to-parallel adapters are available that can make parallel-only printers work with USB-only systems. There are PCI (and PCI-express) cards that provide parallel ports. There are also some print servers provide interface to parallel port through network. USB-to-EPP chips can also allow other non-printer device to continue work on modern computers without a parallel port.

For electronics hobbyists the parallel port is still often the easiest way to connect to an external circuit board. It is faster than the other common legacy port (serial port) and requires no serial-to-parallel converter, and requires far less interface logic and software than a USB target interface. However, Microsoft operating systems later than Windows 95/98 prevent user programs from directly writing to or reading from the PrinterPort. Current CNC Milling Machines also often make use of the parallel port to directly control the mills motors and attachments.