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["James K. Banks" <foreclosers AT gmail.com>]

On Tue, Mar 18, 2014 at 8:12 AM, sindi keesan <keesan AT sdf.org> wrote:

On Mon, 17 Mar 2014, James K. Banks wrote:

> I have a Toshiba Portege 7020CT laptop (specs available here, such as they
> are:
> http://www.toshiba-europe.com/computers/products/notebooks/portege7020/product.shtm).

We have a 300MHz model (needs fixing).  Have you upped the memory from 64
to 196MB with PC66 or PC100 RAM?

It came with 128Mb.  I thought of opening the panel to see about upgrading, but one of the screws was stripping, so I put that off (also I'd have to order more memory). 

> Questions:
> I have to use PCMCIA cards for ethernet or wifi.  What are good cards for
> that?  I've already got an Ethernet card (DYNEX DX-E202) coming in the
> mail, not sure if it'll work, might be too new.

Wifi - aironet or orinoco based cards, non-cardbus.
Ethernet - anything non-cardbus.  Check e-bay.  pcnet, 3c589, etc.
Edit /etc/pcmcia/config to match.  See the archives for how.

Do the aironet or orinoco cards work with newer wireless routers?  Wikipedia said that orinoco only does WEP.

 

> The USB port doesn't seem to work under the default 2.2.16 kernel.  I read
> that 2.4 kernels have better USB support.  So I looked at Sindi's 2.4
> kernels, but I don't know which one to pick.  I assume I should go with one
> of the bigger ones, but which one?  (Also, which one does best with Wifi
> cards?)

bzimalafb.431 if you want framebuffer support.  Insert the framebuffer
modules (fbcon etc.) to get 1024x768 text in an actual terminal (more
characters on the screen).  If no framebuffer, use bzimagla.431.
All the kernels work with wifi cards - once you install the right driver
module and edit config.

> I haven't gotten X to work, which obviously is required for a lot of my
> "nice things" list.  I might have more specific questions about it later.

Steven provides a package for Xvesa at 800x600.  You can add lines for
1024.  Framebuffer X is said to work too (Xfbdev).  Test if Xvesa works by
just typing Xvesa (to give a grey screen with an X).

I got framebuffer X to work, but not vesa.  It's ugly, (strange looking fonts and cursor) but I could live with that. I think that might be a function of being in full-screen (i.e. stretched) output.  The mouse nub doesn't work, though.  It does in Windows 3.1.  In X, it jumps around the screen and gets stuck in the upper left corner.  I tested an external mouse with the same results (both cases using /dev/mouse pointing to /dev/psaux).  

Is there a safe/effective way to guess monitor/screen settings for 1024x768?  Or should I look for official specs?  The ones I found on the Toshiba site weren't helpful for that.

 

> But if I could get the SVGALib links2 to work, that would get me Wikipedia
> (and maybe, possibly, online banking).  Also might help reviewing HTML I
> write.  The package seems to have been made for an earlier version of BL.
> Do I have to "downgrade" to that, or can I get it work in BL 3.5, if so,
> how?

Framebuffer disables svgalib, and most laptops I have tried don't work
with svgalib anyway.  (Since about 200MHz).  I posted a glibc 2.2.5
svgalib-only (no X) links2.  I also posted svgalib drivers.  Instructions
at http://keesan.freeshell.org/blfiles.htm

> Thanks.
>

Sindi Keesan
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