Kengsington has software available for the ShareCentral 2 and 5 port devices [citation]. In considering your review, it looks like it won’t be absolutely necessary, as long as I’m careful about preventing data-loss through the device.

My laptop has most often been running Vista, mostly as a home entertainment platform. My home network gateway is running Linux. Given that it’s a really low-volume, essentially one-user network, I can easily task out the gateway box as a workstation, without really affecting anyone. There’s been an issue, though, in that the desktop’s original keyboard is rather klunky. I much more comfortable with keyboard and the mouse that I’ve been using as as external peripherals, with my laptop. With one of these ShareCentral switches, it looks like I can make use of the keyboard and the mouse, on either system, without having to manually re-plug the items.

Considering the number of USB inputs on a ShareCentral device, I expect that it wouldn’t be too much of a concern, whereas one should be able to connect a powered USB hub to the device, and so expand the number of available inputs. (I don’t suppose that a ShareCentral device could limit the natural extensibility of a USB bus, like in how one can “daisy-chain” USB connections. Who knows, though, what limitations a manufacturer may introduce into a functioning system…)

As far as video output, I notice that it’s not an issue with my current configuration. The laptop is also connected to an external monitor, through HDMI. The desktop is connected to the same monitor, through a VGA output.

The desktop also has a DVI output, and I have a DVI-to-HDMI adapter, but I’ll have to buy an HDMI switch before that’ll be useful — the monitor was designed with only one HDMI input. Having to switch monitor and keyboard configurations, separately, it could seem to be a bit ironic, I suppose — in all this brave new world, and all — but I’m sure it would work.

It looks like the ShareCentral 1, 2, and 5 input-port models all support two outputs. I guess that one could daisy-chain ShareCentral devices, if one would require additional outputs.

I think it is kind of is ironic, how simply “low tech” and non-modular all of this switching stuff could appear to be, under all the fancy covers. Electronically, is it so much different than the old rotary-dial KVM switches, this item?

I think the issue is in the necessary modularity of it. With appropriate electronics for it, it would be possible to switch keyboard input, mouse input, and video output, between multiple static configurations, with no loss of signal quality, and through a switch with exactly one button — regardless of what connections those devices would all be using, within the range of conventional connections (e.g PS/2 or USB ; VGA/DVI/HDMI/Composite/S-Video — no format conversion necessary, just output switching). Of course, if some designer out there would start with an assumption that it wouldn’t be, let’s say, an “Easy” design, then I guess the idea would be shot from the get-go, y’know? and of course, if such a simple piece of electronics ever was deigned, then inveitably, someone would be wanting the customer’s next of kin, in the bargain.

There may be some slightly more fancy-sounding options. I’ve read about networked USB hubs, which sound neat, but which don’t work with Linux — with the fault for that much belonging, in fact, with the manufacturers of the said hubs (not to mistake the right seat of responsibility, in the matter) . I don’t necessarily trust the manufacturers, anyway, as far as network-wise security features, on said hubs. It is, at least, a slightly fancier (and also more limited) switching option. I think I’ll stick with this solid-state stuff, though, and see how it goes.