Baslinux mailing list

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

> On Thu, 9 Mar 2006, David Moberg wrote:
> > Official site with source code: http://pcmcia-cs.sourceforge.net
> >
> > > what do I do with it,
> >
> > Compile and use it.


There is also a pcmcia-cs package in SW10.2 - can I use that instead if I 
don't have brand-new hardware, or is it buggy?  It comes with instructions 
for compilation (I think for any kernel).  I need to make config for the 
kernel (answering Y or M to PCMCIA things that are in the kernel source 
code) and then I unpack the pcmcia package to /usr/src/linux-2.4.31 (where 
I have the kernel source already) and make config for that.  Do I then 
make bzImage and it makes all the PCMCIA modules as well as everything 
else?  Can I make just a few PCMCIA modules instead of all of them?

I am supposed to make config on the computer where I will be using PCMCIA 
but I don't have the space or speed to compile on the laptops.  Is it okay 
to compile PCMCIA on the fast desktop and then use it on the laptop?

Do I really need to use cardmgr from the pcmcia package or can I use the 
one from Slackware 7.1 that works with BL2.1 and kernel 2.2.16?

Please correct the above if I went wrong, before I start to compile.

I manually copied over the modules from the 2.4.31 kernel that I compiled 
(which I thought was broken, but works,if I insmod ./usbcore.o 
from the directory 
where the modules are located, rather than insmod usbcore or ./usbcore, 
which uses the one in /lib/modules/2.4.31 and does not work.

I have uploaded dbzimagsy.431 and bzimagsm.431 (the latter with scsi 
support as modules) and configsy.431 and configsm.431 and 
modules-sm-431.tgz (unpack in /lib/modules/2.4.31) at

http://keesan.freeshell.org/bl/2.4.31

along with David's kernel and modules and config, which includes a lot 
more USB support for gadgets I don't have.  If you are using the sy kernel 
(if you have linux booting from scsi drive, or have lots of RAM and don't 
want to insmod the modules when you use USB-storage, which requires them) 
delete scsi_mod and sd_mod so you won't insmod them by accident - they 
will cause a crash.


Many thanks to David, who recompiled my config and confirmed that it 
worked for him despite my causing crashes through misuse.

I can now do a make clean before compiling a PCMCIA kernel without support 
for things not in our laptops such as scsi devices, sound, etc.

Is anyone else interested in a laptop kernel with PCMCIA and USB-storage 
support?  I will omit USB keyboard and mouse and framebuffer video support 
since our laptops don't have video to support it and the screens are too 
small anyway, but if anyone wants I can later attempt custom kernels for 
newer laptops.  Ours has 16MB RAM.

pcmcia-core ds i82365 serial_cs ide-cs smc91c92_cs - anything else wanted?
Adding module support for a few more PCMCIA cards probably would not make 
the kernel much larger.

David compiled the rtl8180 package which is needed by our Linksys and the 
neighbor's Netgear wireless ethernet PCMCIA cards, which I hope will work 
with the above kernel without ndiswrapper, which I am told is a real pain 
to use and probably takes up RAM.

Wish me luck.

Sindi