Found New Hardware is missing

[Calli]

I have an older Compaq laptop that I recently upgraded to WIN XP Home. I was using a 2Wire 801.11G wireless card made by 2Wire. After installing XP Home, the PCMCIA doesn't show up in device manager. I downloaded the XP driver and instructions from 2Wire and followed their instructions for installation. However the found new hardware screen never comes up. I tried going to Add new hardware with no more success. Could the card "die" in the interim? No signs of life when it is plugged in.

[Sylvander]

My guess:
The BIOS needs to detect ALL connected PCI hardware...
Make new non-conflicting resorce allocations that meet the needs of ALL the connected hardware items...
Such that ALL items of hardware will work with those allocations.
And then it aught to save those new resource allocations in the ESCD...
And use those resource allocations at each startup.

Only then would ALL items of hardware be enabled and functional, and show as such in the Windows Device Manager.
[Displayed in Device Manager, and also shown to be functional]

Does your BIOS have settings to allow you to:
"Force Update the ESCD (http://www.dewassoc.com/support/bios/escd.htm)"?

Might be something like:
"PnP/PCI Configuration"->"Reset Configuration Data = Enabled".

Extended System Configuration Data (ESCD) (http://www.pcguide.com/ref/mbsys/res/pnpESCD-c.html)

[classicsoftware]

Please make sure the PCMCIA card socket is detected..... If the socket is not detected or configured correctly, no cards you plug in will be detected....

[Calli]

The card is not detected and I noticed with the install of XP Home, there is no icon in control panel for PCMCIA. I assume this means the OS doesn't detect it. How should I proceed? If I reload windows, would I have to go through the activation process again or is there a better way than reloading the OS?

[Calli]

I spent an hour doing internet research and if I am understanding it correctly, I need a driver for PCMCIA. I am not sure how that would help if XP Home doesn't see the hardware. Any ideas on that would also be appreciated.

[Sylvander]

1. "I assume this means the OS doesn't detect it"
I think you're correct in that assumption.
I believe that because the BIOS hasn't been forced to detect the new item of hardware, and hasn't made provision for its resource needs, and hasn't enabled that item...
The PCMCIA card [although connected] isn't functional, and therefore isn't seen by the Windows operating system.

2. "How should I proceed?"
You should try to get the BIOS to re-detect ALL of the PCI hardware.
There may be a problem peculiar to Compaq laptops in getting that to happen.
I notice postings out on the web about problems getting Compaq's to detect & enable certain hardware.
Search for a fix on the web.

3. "If I reload windows, would I have to go through the activation process again or is there a better way than reloading the OS?"
I think there's probably nothing wrong with Windows; the problem is with the BIOS.
Don't mess with Windows.
If you want to check whether it's an OS problem, run 1 or more distro's of Linux loaded off "live" optical disks to see if they can see the PCMCIA hardware item.
I think you'll find they can't.

4. "I am not sure how that would help if XP Home doesn't see the hardware"
It won't help.
If the OS cannot see the hardware...
It therefore won't ask you to install a driver.
It therefore won't install any settings in the registry [that would normally be used to make the hardware function].

[Fruss Tray Ted]

You probably need drivers and the likes for your Compaq from HP. What model is it?

[classicsoftware]

Sylvander, you are way off base here. This most likely has little to do with PCI segment of the bios. This is a laptop and there are most likely no PCI slots to contend with.

Calli: IF the PCMCIA slot is not detected by the OS, then nothing you plug in will be detected either.

You need to:

Check the BIOS and make sure nothing is disabled in reference to the PCMCIA slot, though i doubt that this is the issue since it worked with the previous OS. You should check any way to rule this out.

Get the motherboard drivers for your PC and install them or download the specific drivers for the PCMCIA slot from the manufacturers web site.

Another possibility is that you may need a bios update to support XP. It depends on the Model of the unit. I guess it would be best if you provided the model # of the laptop.

[Calli]

Thanks for the information. I believe this is hopeless non fix. HP support tells me to reload WIN ME which I can't do. No driver downloads are available for really old Compaqs. 1200XL500 Presario

[Sylvander]

I was assuming that this hardware uses the PCI-bus to connect, and therefore is treated by the BIOS and operating system as PCI hardware.
Am I wrong?

Is the hardware anything like this? (http://rokland.com/store/product_info.php?products_id=250)
QUOTE:
"Drivers/software for this card are included on CD-R."
"* PCI bus-powered at 3.3V, Max Power: 2.5W"

Could use more details of the hardware.

Puppy Linux is designed to work with older hardware and one or more puplets might natively work with this hardware. [No drivers needed]

[Calli]

The old laptop has been a learning tool if nothing else:) Not fixable I do believe. The BIOS is essentially non existent, just two items, Boot order and sparse system description. No choices there. Even boot order doesn't work as in my desktop, can't choose cdrom as any boot device. Oh well learned don't install a new OS on an old machine.

[classicsoftware]

This would be a great opportunity to try Linux. You can try one of the Puppy versions. If the system has USB 2.0 ports, you might even be able to get a USB ethernet or wireless adapter and connect that way.

[Calli]

I have always been deterred from Linux because there seems to be so many versions, don't know where to begin. The laptop does have USB but not USB 2.0 as I always get a message about upgrading for a faster USB connection when I plug in my mouse.

[Sylvander]

"don't know where to begin"
1. Here's where to begin:
(a) Go to the post by Lobster on 22nd May (http://www.murga-linux.com/puppy/viewtopic.php?t=42696) where you will find URL's for the ISO files for the latest official standard release of Puppy Linux 4.2.1-rc3.
Don't use the "Retro" version unless the ordinary version gives trouble.

(b) i.e.
puppy-4.2.1-k2.6.25.16-seamonkey.iso (ftp://distro.ibiblio.org/pub/linux/distributions/puppylinux/puppy-4.2.1-k2.6.25.16-seamonkey.iso)
And...
puppy-4.2.1-k2.6.25.16-seamonkey.md5.txt (ftp://distro.ibiblio.org/pub/linux/distributions/puppylinux/puppy-4.2.1-k2.6.25.16-seamonkey.md5.txt)
Or...
md5sum = 5f9febefd6ce70db1bb2d8538f4e2786 for puppy-4.2.1-k2.6.25.16-seamonkey.iso

(c) Just download the ISO file, burn it AS AN ISO to an optical disk [I like CD-RW].
I recommend you finalize the CD.
[later you might learn to NOT finalize the disk, then save session changes back to that optical disk at shut-down (DVD is best for this); great FUN!]
Then just boot the CD.

(d) As Puppy boots you will be asked to make configuration choices for mouse, keyboard, video [use Xorg], language.

(e) Once into Puppy, immediately restart, and as it shuts down [and given the choice] choose to make a "pup_save" file [it holds configurations and package installations].
Specify that it should be held on some handy partition [other than Windows, and on the internal HDD is good][choose from the list].

(f) Once back into Puppy, read the offered instruction page, then either click the "Connect" icon on the desktop, or else go to "Menu->Setup->Network Wizard" [the same thing], and set up your connection to the internet.

(g) Run an included web-browser to see if it connects OK.

2. Go to the bottom of the last page of my "Puppy Linux" thread here at the PC-Guide, and work backwards to the beginning. (http://www.pcguide.com/vb/showthread.php?t=66929&page=6)
This includes lots of interesting/useful Puppy goodies.
e.g. Post #140 includes the PDF of a small Puppy Linux booklet explaining this-n-that about Puppy. (http://www.pcguide.com/vb/showpost.php?p=433317&postcount=140)