Baslinux mailing list

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> > What do you suggest for low-ram (16-32MB) laptops for internet use?
>
> links2.  I use this browser a lot.  It displays
> text *much* faster than my other browsers.  Many
> sites try to put tons of junk on the screen before
> giving you the text.  links2 cuts through the junk
> and gets the text immediately.

Links2 does not work at sites that need javascript.

Netsurf (available for Puppy and Delilinux) plans to support javascript 
some day.  It also displays text first.  Opera is annoying in that 
respect.  Puppy Netsurf is compiled for GTK2.  I have no idea how to 
compile it for framebuffer (which should use a lot less memory).

Do you know if Opera set not to load images still downloads them?
I cannot figure out what it is doing.


> > BL3 with glibc 2.2.5 runs Opera 8.54 in 24MB RAM
> > plus swap file at usable speed.
>
> That is my second choice.

Does javascript.

> > > None of my five laptops has built-in wireless.
> >
> > What do you have?

> I have one Compaq LTE, one generic no-name, and

Wikipedia says LTEs started at 9.55MHz with 640K RAM, progressed to a 286 
at 12MHz.  20MB or 40MB hard drive.  CGA backlit grayscale. 2400 bit 
Modem.  They used the same name but different architecture for a 386 and a 
486 with trackball and docking station.  Final model was a 5000 series, 
one with 150MHz cpu and floppy/CD.  Very reliable and easily upgradable.
Is yours 386, 486, or pentium?

> four Toshibas (one Tecra, the rest Satellites).

The first listed by Wikipedia is 510CDT

133Mhz (Win3.11 or Win95 - one-time option to choose operating system at 
the first bootup).  16MB EDO RAM expandable to 144MB.  2GB hard drive. 
CD-ROM or second HD or second battery.  Nice! 800x600 resolution.

Supports CardBus PC Cards.

http://www.astro.umd.edu/~teuben/linux/laptop/tecra710.html
implies that all these older Tecras have cardbus support.
But it is a Toshiba-proprietary PCMCIA controller.  A BIOS setting allows 
switching between PCMCIA (PCIC) and Cardbus operations.

Newer laptops have the BIOS setting default to "CardBus", which will 
render the PCMCIA ports useless under Linux unless the user changes the 
setting.

To make the i82365 driver use IRQ 11 ... add cs_irq=11 to insmod i82365

I will try this to get cardbus working on my Toshiba laptops.  The PCMCIA 
howto said Toshiba was screwy.

Tecra uses standard Chips and Technology or Virge video (Xvesa).  The 
older Satellites also use Chips (but my Pro uses S3 Savage, non-Xvesa).

Steven, you said none of your laptops have cardbus support.
Maybe this is because you need to set the BIOS for Cardbus?
Do you have any cardbus cards to try in the Tecra?

What three Satellite models do you have?

> That makes six laptops (not five).  None have
> built-in wireless.  None have cardbus.  None

My 133Mhz Toshiba Satellite has one USB slot.  I am lucky.

> have USB.  I have enough PCMCIA wireless cards
> for all of them.

Did you buy then on ebay?  They are getting pretty scarce.
Do you have any cardbus wireless cards to try in the Tecra?
The D-link Airplus XtremeG works out of the box in DSL and Puppy.
I was given two of them.

> > Do you buy your laptops?
>
> Yes, but none of them cost more than $20.

We get them non-working free.  Tonight an IBM Thinkpad 225MHz from a 
friend.  It won't boot because the coin battery is dead.  $3600 new in 
1998.

> Cheers,
> Steven