Serial ports on devices are still used for many things, especially on network devices. However, most modern laptops no longer have serial (aka "COM") ports.

So what I'm curious about is: what is a good adapter, or chipset used in adapters, that people use?

Ideally it would simply be plug into a machine and Just Work(tm) without having to install any drivers. This way anyone on a sysadmin team could simply grab it and use it without having to find the software CD or going online to find drivers. Also, I guess it should Just Work(tm) on Windows XP & 7, Mac OS X (10.5?, 10.6), and preferably Linux (2.6+) as well.

From the serial end of things, connecting a light-blue Cisco cable to it should make things run for any RJ-45-type serial console found on a good portion of equipment nowadays. (Generally assuming 9600 8N1.)

Thanks for any info.