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IBM OS/2 DRIVERS FOR IBM EQUIPMENT

Started by W3HYM, 2007.05.24, 03:32:33

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W3HYM

As I get back to using OS/2 and eCS, I recall asking, why didn't IBM make OS/2 drivers for all their peripherals?

I am reminded of this question, for the IBM ThinkPad Port Replicator with Advanced EtherJet - Files for the Thinkpad 770s, and 600s.  I now look at their site, and it lists all versions of Windows 32 bit OS, but no mention of OS/2.  I wonder if some in IBM had a death wish for OS/2. 


http://www-307.ibm.com/pc/support/site.wss/document.do?lndocid=DSHY-3YSKU9


W3HYM  --  DAVID

warpcafe

W3HYM,

I took a look at the contents of the "eportdrv.exe" which is downloadable at the URL you posted... I rembered that I also had similar questions with Thinkpad stuff... and... out of curiousity I downloaded it and - yes:
IT CONTAINS OS/2 DRIVERS! :-)

The only problem here is, that you'll need a 9x/NT etc. version of Windows to run the self-extractable file.
Or: Rename the EXE file as "ZIP" and open it that "usual" workaround way... ;-)

... and yes, someone had a death wish for OS/2. I'm sure *many* had and a lot still still have. ;-)

Greetings
Thomas
"It is not worth an intelligent man's time to be in the majority.
By definition, there are already enough people to do that"
- G.H. Hardy

W3HYM

#2


If IBM had made OS/2 an option for pre-installed software, as Micrsoft (MS) did. . . . .   Clever marketing by MS

This was one of my pet peeves. . . . .  I was a dedicated OS/2 user, and IBM PS/2 and MCA computer buyer.  I wanted pure IBM.  Not the problems with which I wresteled using Windows. 

IBM made a good product.   IBM tried to have their own proprietary MCA 32 bit system.  If I recall, MCA 32 bit was the first on the market.  But the open aschitecture caught on, and end of MCA.  I had a lot of MCA computers, and the PS/2 MCA model 95 fileserver.  The MCA fileserver lasted from 1990  till 2001.  Used Novell 3.11 on it.  Still have the Novell 3.11 netware in original box, but since have upgraded to 5.1.  Wonder if 3.11 still could be used for something?

I would like to get a copy of OS/2 server, and try it.  But that is a longer term project.

Does anyone have and use any of the MCA computers?  I even had the first set of MCA Thinkpads.  At that time, the choice was DOS with WIN 3.11, or OS/2 2.11 and maybe 3.  I still have most of the OS/2 software, and shall proceed from there.  eCS is on my radar screen.  I shall get, but may wait till v2.0 comes out.

I shall download and open that file, since I still have the dock station version III.  I gave my Thinkpad 770Z to a young man (now age 16), who uses it daily.  But I can get another on EBAY.  I also can get the boy an improvement, to a P3 or P4, and offer in exchange for the 770Z, if I wanted my original 770Z back.  He is now upgrading OS to XP, and asked me to get him the XP drivers for the 770Z.  Wait till he discovers that the 770Z is slow, due to memory cap at 320MB.

Enough history.  Thank you for feedback posts.   

W3HYM  --  DAVID

RobertM

Quote from: W3HYM on 2007.05.24, 13:58:13


If IBM had made OS/2 an option for pre-installed software, as Micrsoft (MS) did. . . . .   Clever marketing by MS

This was one of my pet peeves. . . . .  I was a dedicated OS/2 user, and IBM PS/2 and MCA computer buyer.  I wanted pure IBM.  Not the problems with which I wresteled using Windows. 

IBM made a good product.   IBM tried to have their own proprietary MCA 32 bit system.  If I recall, MCA 32 bit was the first on the market.  But the open aschitecture caught on, and end of MCA.  I had a lot of MCA computers, and the PS/2 MCA model 95 fileserver.  The MCA fileserver lasted from 1990  till 2001.  Used Novell 3.11 on it.  Still have the Novell 3.11 netware in original box, but since have upgraded to 5.1.  Wonder if 3.11 still could be used for something?

I would like to get a copy of OS/2 server, and try it.  But that is a longer term project.

Does anyone have and use any of the MCA computers?  I even had the first set of MCA Thinkpads.  At that time, the choice was DOS with WIN 3.11, or OS/2 2.11 and maybe 3.  I still have most of the OS/2 software, and shall proceed from there.  eCS is on my radar screen.  I shall get, but may wait till v2.0 comes out.

I shall download and open that file, since I still have the dock station version III.  I gave my Thinkpad 770Z to a young man (now age 16), who uses it daily.  But I can get another on EBAY.  I also can get the boy an improvement, to a P3 or P4, and offer in exchange for the 770Z, if I wanted my original 770Z back.  He is now upgrading OS to XP, and asked me to get him the XP drivers for the 770Z.  Wait till he discovers that the 770Z is slow, due to memory cap at 320MB.

Enough history.  Thank you for feedback posts.   

W3HYM  --  DAVID


I've used MCA machines (though dont own any anymore). They were amazing machines, with improvements being made to MCA that took a decade for PCI to catch up to. And OS/2 flies on them, designed to take full advantage of their multitaskable, busmastered busses and shared IRQ capabilities (which is something else that the current computer busses took just recently to handle properly without sharing conflicts).

Currently, my prize and joy is an IBM Netfinity M10 7000 Quad CPU machine - and I am looking at an 8 way e-Series (Netfinity replacement line - in name change only) that Warp also runs on. They are also beautiful machines, each years ahead of the competition... though my only problem/gripe is I cannot get a PCI video card to properly work in the M10 - it is either not recognized as a video card or the BIOS cannot assign resources to it when it is recognized (the onboard is a sucky 1024x768x16bit max - and I kinda wanna show off dual status displays running with every vital - and not so vital bit of server and machine info on them - see screenshot of a work in progress that shows our clients' servers reporting back in the right half of the top window, and time and date in the left half. Drive, CPU and temperature info are soon to be added, as well as server daemon and TCPIP info and statuses - soon the whole screen will be filled and I will be working on screen 2... the results in the blinky Star Trek TOS like display are all in binary - the red are results, and the yellow are just random blinks so that something is always blinking or flashing).

Either way, I am always thrilled when I can grab a slightly older IBM server (which are true servers - not just a PC built to be a server) and watch OS/2 miraculously run better than on comparable other brand hardware. My Thinkpad 600 runs so well with Warp, people cant believe it is only 300MHz (was 233 when I got it, but I upgraded it). Our old (but not nearly as old as the TP600) T23 outperforms our AMD 3200+ machines by a factor of 2, running the same version of eCS, the same web server and SQL engine, and the same web scripts and apps. 1/3 the hardware, running twice as fast. Go figure. When IBM did choose to support OS/2 on one of their machines, usually that seemed to be the results - though there were plenty of exceptions. You want a great OS/2 machine, look at a Netfinity or Intellistation (which were often the same as their Netfinity couterparts) or a slightly older e-Series... and someplace online there are compatibility charts for many of those machines with IBM's own test results for OS/2 on them. Keep in mind, many of the Netfinity's, Intellistations, and e-Series are multiple CPU machines and you need either Warp Server with SMP support, or eCS and the SMP upgrade pack.


-Robert


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Kirk's 5 Year Mission Continues at:
Star Trek New Voyages
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W3HYM



Robert,


Thank you for great reply!


You may have answered the quesiton that I had on Thinkpads.  I believe it was the 600, or so, that was MCA.  Is this correct?  Were there other MCA Thinkpads? 


I believe I had one of the very first 600s off the production line.   I definitely remember having MCA Thinkpad.  I ordered almost the day they came out. 


Just curious, and maybe if 600 is MCA, then mabe I shall find one on EBAY, or at the computer and hamfest in  Manassas VA, Sunday, June 3, 2007.


DAVID  --  W3HYM

RobertM

I dont think the 600 is MCA, but I am not sure...

-Rob


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Kirk's 5 Year Mission Continues at:
Star Trek New Voyages
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W3HYM

I did some research since last post.  The MCA Laptops  were 700 to 720.  After 720, IBM dropped MCA.

DAVID
W3HYM

RobertM

#7
Quote from: W3HYM on 2007.05.25, 22:39:27
I did some research since last post.  The MCA Laptops  were 700 to 720.  After 720, IBM dropped MCA.

DAVID
W3HYM


I wonder if that included the 701 Series then... it unfortunately only handled 24MB of RAM (if memory serves), but was a beautiful machine and engineering feat. One day soon I plan to buy another one and try to find the Warp 3 install for it. It was unfortunately only a 486 DX4-100 or 75 depending on configuration with the chips made by IBM, but at the time, and running Warp 3 it was pretty blazingly fast.

-Rob


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Kirk's 5 Year Mission Continues at:
Star Trek New Voyages
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Blonde Guy

Quote from: W3HYM on 2007.05.24, 03:32:33


I am reminded of this question, for the IBM ThinkPad Port Replicator with Advanced EtherJet - Files for the Thinkpad 770s, and 600s.  I now look at their site, and it lists all versions of Windows 32 bit OS, but no mention of OS/2.  I wonder if some in IBM had a death wish for OS/2. 


This question comes up from time to time. An interesting answer is from Louis V. Gerstner Jr., CEO of IBM and author of the book "Who Says Elephants Can't Dance? Inside IBM's Historic Turnaround".

http://www.amazon.com/Elephants-Dance-Inside-Historic-Turnaround/dp/0060523794/ref=sr_1_1/104-3139484-8663109?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1180289637&sr=8-1

The short version is that Gerstner takes responsibility for killing OS/2, and states that it was an important component of IBM's turnaround.

Gerstner started as CEO in 1993. OS/2 was dead within 18 months of that.
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