pcmcia-cards don't work...

Problems and successes with specific brands/models of networking hardware.
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germanix
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pcmcia-cards don't work...

#1 Post by germanix »

I've posted my pcmcia-problems here, but nobody answered.
So I try to get help/support here now.
Is there anyone who knows how to get these pcmcia-cards work?

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RetroTechGuy
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Re: pcmcia-cards don't work...

#2 Post by RetroTechGuy »

germanix wrote:I've posted my pcmcia-problems here, but nobody answered.
So I try to get help/support here now.
Is there anyone who knows how to get these pcmcia-cards work?
Is it only Wary under which they don't work? Also, have you tried 4.3.1 (which I've had very good luck with)?
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germanix
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#3 Post by germanix »

No, i didn't try 4.3.1.
Perhaps I should.
Thank you for answering.

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RetroTechGuy
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#4 Post by RetroTechGuy »

germanix wrote:No, i didn't try 4.3.1.
Perhaps I should.
Thank you for answering.
I run 4.3.1 on a "newer" laptop (1.6GHz), and have used 3 different USB2 PCMCIA cards, and 2 different PCMCIA wireless network cards (it now has an internal wireless card).

I run 4.3.1 Retro on an old laptop (333MHz), and use both a USB2 and wireless network PCMCIA card.

Some of the older hardware is better supported by older versions: http://distro.ibiblio.org/pub/linux/dis ... uppylinux/

There is also ttuuxxx's 2.14 updated version: http://www.smokey01.com/ttuuxxx/2.14X/iso-sfs/

And depending on your system, perhaps Puppeee or Fluppy

http://puppeee.com/web/

http://www.murga-linux.com/puppy/viewtopic.php?t=56156

What are the specifics of the hardware you're trying to run?
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germanix
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#5 Post by germanix »

Did you try Puppy Wary 500?
Did you get your pcmcia work with PuppyWary?
I'm interested in your experience using Puppy Wary 500.

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RetroTechGuy
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#6 Post by RetroTechGuy »

germanix wrote:Did you try Puppy Wary 500?
Did you get your pcmcia work with PuppyWary?
I'm interested in your experience using Puppy Wary 500.
Not yet. I've just downloaded it. Will probably play with it over the weekend.

BTW, what kind of computer, what kind of PCMCIA card are you having problems with?
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#7 Post by germanix »

I'll try older puppies next days.
The computer is an old CANON BN 750

One of the pcmcia-cards needs module 8139too only
It's an ethernet cardbus card

The other one is an USB 2.0 cardbus card.
I think I don't need special modules for that.

There are more informations about my system

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RetroTechGuy
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#8 Post by RetroTechGuy »

germanix wrote:I'll try older puppies next days.
The computer is an old CANON BN 750
Is this it? Whoa! That's an old critter... ;)

http://reviews.cnet.com/laptops/canon-l ... 00062.html

If those specs shown are mostly correct, I would consider 4.3.1 Retro as a first test (my 333MHz didn't like normal 4.3.1, it needed the older kernel).

The other versions that worked well on this older machine was 4.1.2 Retro (for some reason, I had trouble with 4.2.1 Retro). I think that this version is less memory intensive.

It might also be worth trying ttuuxxx's 2.14, to see if it has a lighter memory load (I haven't tried the newest one yet -- too many Puppies, too little time :lol: )

You also will almost certainly need a swap file, since those specs show a max of 96MB. I booted my 333MHz with 64 MB installed, and it worked -- albeit quite slow (it was a test, not a limit for me).

My general rule of thumb is that you need at least 512MB total (RAM+Swap). My 333MHz has 256MB RAM and 512MB swap.
One of the pcmcia-cards needs module 8139too only
It's an ethernet cardbus card

The other one is an USB 2.0 cardbus card.
I think I don't need special modules for that.

There are more informations about my system
I've run 3 different USB 2.0 cards in my laptops (I broke one, bought a new one, then repaired the old one, then finally replaced both with AKE BC168, zero-protrusion USB-2 cards...nothing to break off)

I went wireless network in all of my machine, just so I don't need wires strung everywhere, so I can't tell you much about that module.
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germanix
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#9 Post by germanix »

My general rule of thumb is that you need at least 512MB total (RAM+Swap). My 333MHz has 256MB RAM and 512MB swap.
Yes, I've installed two virtual linux swap partitions. and it works fine.
I've tried earlier puppies: no success till now ...

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#10 Post by RetroTechGuy »

germanix wrote:
My general rule of thumb is that you need at least 512MB total (RAM+Swap). My 333MHz has 256MB RAM and 512MB swap.
Yes, I've installed two virtual linux swap partitions. and it works fine.
I've tried earlier puppies: no success till now ...
So which one worked on your system?
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obxjerry
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#11 Post by obxjerry »

I hope I can add something useful here. I have 3 old laptops, 2 pcmcia cards and a usb dongle for wireless. I've run 421-retro, 431 and recently Wary 104 (lite version of Wary 5) and 2.14x. Wary 104 seems to be the best for running the wireless adapters.

I have found that it's not just a matter of specs the machine is running. I have a Winbook Si 800mhz, 160mb ram that tolerates 431 and the usb dongle w/ndiswrapper Windows driver. It never connects when it boots. You have to go through the connection wizard 1 to 4 times. The first time I went through dozens of times before it finally connected. It's not that you do anything different. You just have to do it multiple times.

It does connect better running Wary 104 but, Wary runs really slow on that machine. So slow it's a deal breaker. 2.14x runs even slower on that machine. I have a Thinkpad 600e 366mhz, 160mb ram that runs Wary 104 much faster than that machine. The 600e won't run 431 and I haven't gotten it to boot 2.14x either. Wary 104 might be a little quicker than 421-retro on that machine.

2.14x looks good to me but, it seems to need a lot of tweaking to get it up and running. I installed 2.14x and Wary 104 on my Thinkpad r51 1.3ghz, 375mb ram today. Wary 104 booted fine from the hard drive, 2.14 did not. Wary had no trouble with either pcmcia card, 2.14x would only work with one. Wary runs a little faster too. 2.14x comes with Firefox. I prefer Seamonkey but couldn't get one to work on 2.14x. Time will tell.
It may be that my sole purpose in life is simply to serve as a warning to others

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germanix
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#12 Post by germanix »

Thank you for your reply.
Wary 500 an Wary 104?
What's the difference?
Which one is the latest version?
Is wary 500 a special version?

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#13 Post by obxjerry »

I would say they are near the same age. It is my understanding 104 is 5.0 without Adobe Flash and some drivers you probably wouldn't need. See this http://bkhome.org/blog/?viewDetailed=02046
It is under 100mb on the CD. Mine is using 399mb on the hard drive. The 2 pcmcia cards I have both use Atheros chips. One uses the ath_pci module, the other ath5k. It is my understanding Puppy, in the past, has chosen ath_pci when presented with a Atheros chip. In 431 you have to change the preference if you are using the ath5k card. It looks like 2.14x doesn't have the ath5k module so, I haven't been able to use that card with it. Wary 104 automatically picks the right driver.

The real mystery for me is why Wary 104 and 2.14x both run so slow when full installed to the hard drive on the Winbook Si. I joke that that laptop is haunted. It does do strange things. 2.14x runs much faster from live CD, booted puppy pfix=ram on the 366mhz laptop, less than half the processor speed, same amount of memory. I also wonder why that machine will not work with either pcmcia card and why it always looks for an open network and doesn't connect to my network on boot.
It may be that my sole purpose in life is simply to serve as a warning to others

Meddle Not In The Affairs Of Dragons For You Are Crunchy And Taste Good With Ketchup

I'd rather be sailing

germanix
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#14 Post by germanix »

I've found another very interesting linux distribution.
It's a firewall distribution and called ipcop.
You can find it there.

And I've found this special ipcop-forum.
And this special pcmcia-topic.:)

germanix
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#15 Post by germanix »

And here are some older puppylinux version using kernel 2.4: puppy-1...iso

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#16 Post by RetroTechGuy »

germanix wrote:And here are some older puppylinux version using kernel 2.4: puppy-1...iso
There is also ttuuxxx's latest 2.14 (quite new -- perhaps 1-2 months old):

http://www.smokey01.com/ttuuxxx/2.14X/iso-sfs/
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germanix
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#17 Post by germanix »

No, ttuuxxx's latest 2.14 is based on kernel 2.6.
This is not kernel 2.4.

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