Can one use an Arduino Uno to make a Firewire to USB convertor? My camcorder output is Firewire but there is no Firewire port on my laptop. Did a search on Amazon and it appears the adapters they have do not convert data but just provide power from one end to another. Did a search here and could not find anything.
Too many "standards" have come and gone!
I don't know... But, if ir can be done it would probably be too slow and you might need to write a driver to make the operating system "think" it's talking to firewire rather than USB.
It's usually the driver that "gets you" in these kinds of situations because the manufacturer-supplied driver communicates directly with the manufacturer-supplied hardware... Stick some other hardware (such as USB) in there, and it just won't work...
I don't think video cameras require a special manufacturer-supplied driver, but the driver situation could be the reason you can buy the adapter you are looking for.
The best solution might be buy a cheap desktop computer and add a firewire card.
I don't think it is practical to do this with an Arduino. I think your best bet is:
An ExpressCard slot that plugs into a USB 2.0 port ($14.77):
http://www.amazon.com/SIIG-USB-to-ExpressCard-JU-EP0012-S1/dp/B001KUOW9O/ref=sr_1_1?
A Firewire adapter that plugs into an ExpressCard slot ($19.99):
http://www.amazon.com/Best-Connectivity-ExpressCard-Controller-SD-EXP30012/dp/B003GAM68U/ref=sr_1_1
Thanks, John. That looks like the way to go.
Just discovered that the old laptop I gave my wife has a FireWire port so I can use it while I'm at home but your suggestion looks like a better long-term solution.