May sound like at odd idea but can two computers be hooked up to a USB device like an external hard drive or even an Empeg WITHOUT the two computers being networked to each other?

You mean something like this?

Or maybe something like this USB KVM switch?

I decided to take a chance. One of the buttons on my PS/2 KVM switch is busted and I have a Thinkpad port replicator that *refuses* to see the mouse through that old KVM (so I have 2 mice on my desk...)

Soooo, I have ordered one of these IOGear USB KVMs that includes USB sharing. USB recognition seems so much better on Linux now that I have hopes of making it work for the 2 Linux boxes, 1 Win2K desktop and that pesky Linux/Win2K Thinkpad. I already have a Logitech cordless USB+PS/2 mouse and I ordered an IBM USB keyboard.

Some open questions to me are: Will I need to preconfigure BIOS to ignore "no-keyboard" errors on bootup? Also, when I switch between these machines, if I have something like my scanner or CF reader on one of the shared USB ports, Will Win2K report "device have been removed" every time I cycle the selection? Also, if I shared something like the CF reader or other storage, would I risk filesystem corruption? (I have to think the answer to this last one is yes).

Even if the hardware arrives next week, I won't have a chance to set up until end of November, but I'll report back on how this thing works.

Just to respond to myself.....I finally set up this IOGear USB KVM this afternoon (serving 2 Linux machines, a Win2K desktop and a Win2K work laptop connected to a port replicator) and it works quite well.

WRT the original subject, I have *not* tried to connect a shareed USB device yet -- I can not decide what to share! -- but everything else works well. My one criticism: there's a bit of a delay when switching -- it takes a few seconds for the USB mouse/keyuboard to be detected on the new machine.

I got an IBM compact USB keyboard to make this work. It works OK, but I would rather have a full-size 104/105 USB keyboard. OTOH, I am thrilled with my Logitech cordless optical USB mouse.

New Sun workstations have USB keyboards and mice (mouses? meece?), but they're really picky about what kind of USB KVM you use (assuming you're using one). I think this is because many USB KVMs appear to the computers as if you're removing and reinserting the keyboard and mouse when you switch away from and to the computers.

This could conceivably be why it takes so long to switch. Then again, I have very little USB experience and even less USB KVM experience, so it's easily possible that I'm talking out of my ass.

There are active USB switches (as well as active PS/2 KVM's) that provide a "ghost" device on each port so the machine's never see the disconnect. For a lot of machines it is the only way to go, as they are very picky (especially with PS/2).

Of course, you probably already knew that.

There are active USB switches (as well as active PS/2 KVM's) that provide a "ghost" device on each port so the machine's never see the disconnect. For a lot of machines it is the only way to go, as they are very picky (especially with PS/2).

Well, wicked pissah! I finally took a moment to hook a Logitech Force joystick up to 1shared port on this IOGear KVM switch and my HP 6350 USB scanner to the 2nd shared port. Both behave as you suggest -- they are detected when "new" to one of the machines, but they don't disappear when switching to another machine -- no problems with them appearing to be unplugged.

USB side note. I couldn't resist this little thing. I have 3 PCs' sound output mixed through my main desktop and I wanted a way to adjust the volume/mute without messing with the keybord and this little aluminum jobby provided the answer.