Baslinux mailing list

[sindi keesan <keesan AT sdf.lonestar.org>]

On Thu, 7 Apr 2005, David Moberg wrote:

> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "sindi keesan" <keesan AT sdf.lonestar.org>
>
> > Can the parport adaptor be used somehow with BL2 as an external
> > hard drive?  If not, DOS is fine.
>
> I bet it uses paride or a similar driver. It probably acts like a
> parallel port hard drive. Try the relevant HOWTOs for paride, or
> maybe the Parallel HOWOT.

I did not find a paride HOWTO.  I read the kernel configuration help file 
and you need paride.o and a high-level driver.  pd.o is a 'high-level 
driver for IDE-type disk devices through parallel port', a list of which 
follows not including the datafab MDCFE-SR.  Nothing else looked relevant.

BL2 had CONFIG_PARIDE_PARPORT=m and CONFIG_PARIDE not enabled.

I would need to find another kernel or compile with paride Y or M and also 
the high-level driver(s) Y or M.

In the process I ran across 'backpack' - we have an external Backpack 
cd-rom drive that works in DOS and seems usable in linux on a laptop. 
It is simpler to transfer files via a desktop with CD-ROM drive and then 
parallel transfer cable.  (Simpler than compiling a new kernel, anyway).

I searched on datafab specifically and found two people asking for help 
with it.  Both tried with modules parport, paride, epat and pd.  One could
get it to work once in a while in Win98 but ended up frying his 
motherboard, and also sometimes (?) got it working with linux but pd would 
often not install.  Someone else said pd would never install and linux 
told him his parport had no IRQ.  He was using EPP.  Datafab said to use 
ECP (faster?).  This was at the linux parport mailing list.

Datafab also mentioned you could have problems if your printer was plugged 
in via the adaptor/reader.  Maybe an IRQ conflict occurred?  I will never 
know.

I probably won't attempt to use this gadget in linux where experts failed.
The DOS software is only a 157K download.

I will try the PCMCIA approach for linux.  Thanks for steering me to 
paride - it was interesting.