• Welcome to OS2World OLD-STATIC-BACKUP Forum.
 

News:

This is an old OS2World backup forum for reference only. IT IS READ ONLY!!!

If you need help with OS/2 - eComStation visit http://www.os2world.com/forum

Main Menu

Dial up modems for os2 on recent laptop

Started by steve b, 2010.01.10, 20:29:46

Previous topic - Next topic

steve b

First, I'm so happy I can delete my bookmarks for Ubuntu and Hackintosh as I have been able to make WiFi work on os2.

I'm running os2/eCS on a Dell Latitude D810. On my old Toshiba I was able to use a PC card modem, but from another thread (thanks, Mr. Jinx for helping me to discover that the cardbus drivers were messing up USB) using that method is no longer realistic (no x515 driver).



So, to get dialup access on my computer, these would seem to be my options:
1) Get the Conexant modem working with some ported linuxant drivers. To my surprise I can't find any and Conexant released  linux drivers years ago. I assume this option is dead unless someone replies with a link.

2) USB 56k modem. At first glance I thought I could pick up and US Robotics, 3Com or IBM USB 56k modem and with USBcom.sys it should work. I forget what V.90 and V.92 means, but I have a feeling the road ahead is not clear. I thought I would be able to try one from a local store, but so far that is not working out. Before I buy one off ebay, what should I be looking for or be wary of?

3) A serial dialup modem, connected to the RS232 com port. This should entail simply enabling the port (BIOS, config.sys, slippm) and assigning proper IRQ?

4) I just saw a bluetooth wireless analog modem, which would have been way cool, but my search of the forums indicates no go on bluetooth anything.

So, if anyone could just briefly point me in the right direction, or tell me which options will not work, I should be able to continue using os2 for a number of years more. BTW, I have been here rarely because os2 will go for me literally years without needing  anything. TIA, Steve

Pete

Hi Steve

Not being that up on laptops and doubting the usability of USB and Bluetooth modems I think I would simply plump for a serial connected jobbie - any good serial connected modem that does not require special drivers to work with Windows would do.

Maybe this is related to your "cardbus drivers were messing up USB": Being the author of USBcfg -  http://hobbes.nmsu.edu/download/pub/os2/system/USBcfgb071.zip - I was made aware of a requirement regarding position in config.sys of some PC-Card statements. I have no idea if these are necessary for all systems but several people let me know the following after USBcfg had rearranged their config.sys files and things were not working right:-

BASEDEV=OS2PCARD.DMD  PC-Card Device Manager
<<=Attention=>> Must be in before $ICPMOS2.SYS.  If no $ICPMOS2.SYS
installed it has to be the last line in the config.sys

DEVICE=C:\OS2\$ICPMOS2.SYS /G
Power Management Driver for PCMCIA
<<=Attention=>> Must be after all other listed drivers in the config.sys


Hope some of the above is of use

Pete

DougB

QuoteBASEDEV=OS2PCARD.DMD  PC-Card Device Manager
<<=Attention=>> Must be in before $ICPMOS2.SYS.  If no $ICPMOS2.SYS
installed it has to be the last line in the config.sys

DEVICE=C:\OS2\$ICPMOS2.SYS /G
Power Management Driver for PCMCIA
<<=Attention=>> Must be after all other listed drivers in the config.sys

These statements are somewhat misleading. $ICPMOS2.SYS does not need to be the last line in CONFIG.SYS, or even after all other device driver lines. It needs to be the last PCCard/PCMCIA line in CONFIG.SYS.

Other misleading statements about positioning in CONFIG.SYS include HELPERW.EXE (GENMAC), which demands to be placed first in CONFIG.SYS (along with about  dozen other things). It does not need to be first, it must simply be before NETBIND.EXE. There is also some debate about whether USBEHCD.SYS must be before USBxHCD.SYS (x= O or U), or after them. The ACPI docs say after, and it seems to work that way, but I have never seen a case where it matters. I think that is a situation where you switch positions, if you are having trouble, to see if it makes a difference.

Pete

Hi Doug

I'm only repeating what laptop users who experienced problems after running USBcfg told me - I do not have the hardware to test myself and I have doubts that it applies to all laptops.

When I reworked USBcfg to position those lines as requested I was told it works fine by those who had complained - and did not get any complaints about the change from anyone else  :-)

Note: I am not arguing with you, simply stating what others told me and the result of changing USBcfg to meet those users requirements.

As regards USB controller drivers: USBcfg (and eCS installs) currently follow the original IBM positioning of controller drivers:-

USBUHCD.SYS
USBOHCD.SYS
USBEHCD.SYS

As you point out the order does not seem to matter except possibly for a few systems - in 1 case this is because the user is not using the standard USBD.SYS but is using the version available from the mmportv1.zip package on hobbes.

Regards

Pete

Fahrvenugen

#4
Hi,

As for PC Card modems and USB, I've used PC Card modems and still had working USB on OS/2.  The trick was to ensure that both USB and the PC Card modem were on separate IRQ's, and also I think I had to play around with the order of stuff in config.sys (it was several years ago when I got it working for me, and since then I havn't messed with that laptop).  So it is possible.

As for a USB modem, I've heard it is possible to get these to work (as long as they're standard Hayes / AT command set compatible modems). USB Winmodems definitely won't work, but then these won't work in Linux either.  I've never used a USB modem on OS/2, so I really have no clue if it would work.

If your computer actually has a serial port (RS232), a plain old modem is probably the best.  You can often find these for next to nothing on ebay, or if you ask around you may find someone who has several kicking around they're willing to give away (I know I've given away 56K RS232 modems in the past).  Again make sure it is a true modem, not one of those Winmodems (apparently there were a few serial port based Winmodems released about 10 years ago, and winmodems are pretty useless in the OS/2 world).  Serial port drivers have been mostly solid on OS/2 since Warp 3 FP 21, and for those machines where there's still issues if you ask around there are people with licensed copies of SIO that they're willing to sell / give away (I know I have a spare SIO disk / license kicking around somewhere from back in the day).  And for the most part the COM drivers don't really care where they are in config.sys, as long as they don't have IRQ / IO conflicts for that port.







steve b

Thanks, all. Pete, I installed your usbcfg, I like it, I didn't gain function of cardbus, I'm sure that is still issue with Intel x515 driver. You would think (as I did, to my great frustration) that x means any number 0-9. Mr. Jinx has a handle on the problem, but apparently no solution.

I do have several issues I would like some input on that I can't at present solve, and will be posting as soon as I can define and document. Steve

DougB

Okay, I have done a little more research, and some limited testing, on this matter. I am testing with my IBM ThinkPad T43 (1871-W8M) running eCS 2.0 Silver. I am not sure which version the PCCard/PCMCIA driver I have. PCMCIA.SYS is dated 11/11/2004. The following are my observations:

1) The order of loading for USB, and PCCard/PCMCIA doesn't matter, UNLESS you are using CBENABLE, which seems to want to be loaded before USB. I have no way to test this, so I guess it should be USB after PCCard/PCMCIA (which includes CBENABLE).

2) I can attach, and operate an ancient PCMCIA Ositech 5 of diamonds (33.6K modem). Testing does not include going to the phone line, since I no longer have a phone cable, but the AT commands return correct information. That works whether I load USB first, or second. I also have ACPI 3.18 installed, since there is some question about that.

3) I recommend not bothering with a USB modem. There are only a couple of models that will work, and they are very old now (of course, all modems are now old). See: http://www.os2warp.be/index2.php?name=modemshome for what is known about various modems (if anybody knows any different, please fill in the submission form).

4) An external modem, from the above list, should work fine, if you have a serial port to work with. Many newer systems don't have a serial port. I do have a Belkin USB to serial adapter model F5U109, but I have never tried it with a modem (I use it for my UPS).

5) Last, but not least, I will recommend that you seriously consider not bothering with a modem, when you have WiFi access. WiFi is far faster, much easier to use, more reliable, and much more available than phone line access anyway. The only reason to even think about using a modem, would be for sending, and receiving FAX to a real FAX machine.

RobertM

Another option seems to be a T30 modem card and the appropriate driver from IBM's site. There are two. One is a standalone modem card that goes next to the WiFi card in the bottom of the machine. The other is a combo WiFi (B) card/modem card which goes into the WiFi slot. There are drivers for at least one of those cards on IBM's site... but I did not dig to see if the modem portion was supported (I think it is on one).

Best,
Robert


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