• PCI NIC drivers

    From Mike Tripp@1:382/61 to Ole Juul on Sat Mar 6 22:48:28 2010
    Hello Ole!

    06 Mar 10 03:16, Ole Juul wrote to Mike Tripp:

    Interesting. Of the collection of drivers that I've found,
    very few of them actually say PCI.

    Probably because they don't care. Usually the driver builds a bridge between the OS and the ethernet chipset...regardless of whether that chipset is found an ISA/EISA/PCI card in a slot or integrated directly onto the motherboard or combinations thereof. It might help to try searching by the chipset's name/number, rather than the model# of the PCI card that contains it.

    Most of the larger vendors supplied
    setup/diagnostic/drivers with the cards (Intel, 3Com,
    SMC/Western Digital)

    Yes, I suppose some original disks contained a DOS driver.
    I haven't had much luck finding them on-line though.
    Perhaps I should look harder.

    The card vendor's site is usually where to go and they will usually have packet, ODI, and NDIS drivers even if they didn't advertise DOS compatibility or include the software in the box. Just like video drivers, they also get updated to fix bugs and the ones on the site may be newer than what was included with the card at point-of-sale.

    and/or have them online for the
    commercial network clients for Netware, MS Lan Manager/IBM
    Lan Server, TCP/IP packet drivers, etc. There are also
    third-party drivers for common chipsets that might have
    been used on the cards or integrated onto motherboards,
    like various VIA Rhine and Realtek.

    But how to use them?

    All over the map based on the vendor and product, but same as drivers for any hardware: readme, docs, setup programs, etc. Don't be surprised if you have to
    download an archive and make floppies to even be able to navigate to the right driver/readme/setup files. Very common routine back in the day for Intel and 3Com.

    and take a little more homework to be sure that there is a
    DOS driver that supports whatever protocol you need.

    I don't understand. What protocols are there? I'm using
    TCP/IP for everything locally, and that's all I use on
    the internet as well. I just load a single (aprx 12K)
    driver and everything talks to that.

    Yep...that's a protocol. So is IPX/SPX (Novell Netware) and Netbeui/Netbios (MS/IBM/etc). Some people need to use 2 or 3 of them at the same time and use NDIS or ODI drivers for multi-protocol support so that they can see their own servers and the internet at the same time with the same card.

    The compatibility list for your network client software is
    probably the best place to start.

    I've never heard of such a thing. All the software that
    I have (like ping, ssh, telnet, dhcp, ftp, htget, etc. etc.)
    are just single executables. What do you mean by
    "compatibility list"?

    Those utility executables are probably open standard and designed to work specifically with a packet driver interface. Commercial solutions like those from IBM/MS/Novell usually include their own executables as a suite (the network client package) and they may only work for a specific driver architecture (proprietary/ODI/NDIS) and not with your packet driver.

    .\\ike

    --- GoldED 2.50+
    * Origin: -=( The TechnoDrome )=- Austin,TX 512-327-8598 33.6k (1:382/61)
  • From Ole Juul@1:3634/12 to All on Mon Mar 8 03:32:00 2010
    So I went through all the PCI cards I had on hand.
    I could only get one to work with the drivers I had.
    Perhaps someone has drivers for the others. The good
    news is that the one that worked is common. It was
    a 3COM 3C905B-TX. That card is easy to find around,
    and I checked eBay just to see and there were lots
    of them from 5-15 dollars each. It is unfortunate
    that the driver I have takes up a whopping 30K,
    but of course it can be loaded high. For comparison,
    the ISA card driver I am currently using has a lower
    than 4K memory need. Anyway, if and when anybody wants
    the driver for the 3C905 I'll post it. BTW, I had
    two slightly different versions of that card and
    they both worked. The name of the driver is 3C90xPD
    so I suspect it will work with other cards in the
    3C90x series.

    The other cards were:
    DFE-530
    DFE-538TX
    SMC1211TX-50
    and a couple of Compaq cards with their own
    peculiar numbers. These were easily recognized
    with diagnostic software as having Intel chips
    but unfortunately any of my Intel drivers didn't
    work. I also had two slightly different 538s
    and the result was the same on both.

    The DFE-530 has a Via Rhine chip and the DFE-538,
    like the SMC has a Realtek RTL8139 chip. I have
    a feeling that it should be possible to find
    a DOS driver for Realtek but the ones I have didn't
    work here.

    So that's my little DOS PCI NIC driver excursion.
    If anybody has anything to add it would be useful.
    To recap, the 3C905 works and I have a driver.

    Cheers,
    Ole


    * Origin: (1:3634/12)
  • From Ole Juul@1:3634/12 to Mike Tripp on Mon Mar 8 04:24:00 2010
    Hi Mike,

    motherboard or combinations thereof. It might help to try
    searching by the chipset's name/number, rather than the
    model# of the PCI card that contains it.

    I haven't found that to be helpful. Though for *nix it
    has been most fruitful.

    Most of the larger vendors supplied
    setup/diagnostic/drivers with the cards (Intel, 3Com,
    SMC/Western Digital)

    If you have any of those please let us know so we can
    list them here. That was what I was hoping would happen. :)

    The card vendor's site is usually where to go and they will
    usually have packet, ODI, and NDIS drivers even if they
    didn't advertise DOS compatibility or include the software
    in the box. Just like video drivers, they also get updated
    to fix bugs and the ones on the site may be newer than what
    was included with the card at point-of-sale.

    The thing to do is collect them so others can find them.

    All over the map based on the vendor and product, but same
    as drivers for any hardware: readme, docs, setup programs,
    etc. Don't be surprised if you have to download an archive
    and make floppies to even be able to navigate to the right driver/readme/setup files. Very common routine back in the
    day for Intel and 3Com.

    That seems like a lot of work. Hopefully someone who has
    done it can post here and share the fruits of their
    labours.

    and take a little more homework to be sure that there is a
    DOS driver that supports whatever protocol you need.

    Well the protocol we use is TCP/IP because we are trying to
    get on the internet. This is the DOS INTERNET forun so that's
    the basis of our communication as I understand it. However,
    I'm fairely new here so there are probably other ideas
    floating about. :)

    Yep...that's a protocol. So is IPX/SPX (Novell Netware)
    and Netbeui/Netbios (MS/IBM/etc). Some people need to use 2
    or 3 of them at the same time and use NDIS or ODI drivers
    for multi-protocol support so that they can see their own
    servers and the internet at the same time with the same
    card.

    I think that getting e-mail, sending and getting files with FTP,
    and particurly using telnet to connect to bulletin boards as the
    copper is disappearing, is perhaps more of a need.

    Those utility executables are probably open standard and
    designed to work specifically with a packet driver
    interface.

    I don't think you'll find much open stuff. But yes, the
    idea is to connect with the packet driver interface.

    Commercial solutions like those from
    IBM/MS/Novell usually include their own executables as a
    suite (the network client package) and they may only work
    for a specific driver architecture (proprietary/ODI/NDIS)
    and not with your packet driver.

    Like I hinted earlier, the idea with this thread is to
    help people get connected with TCP. It would be nice if
    we could put together an archive of suitable drivers for
    older machines. Everyone knows the crynwr archive, but
    that only goes so far. I found a nice collection on an
    old WATTCP networking disk and posted it temporarily at:
    http:/cgs.coalmont.net/wtnbdrv.zip
    There is a need for these things both in the vintage,
    and the Fido community, and I just wanted to help.

    Cheers,
    Ole


    * Origin: (1:3634/12)
  • From Mike Tripp@1:382/61 to Ole Juul on Mon Mar 8 13:44:46 2010
    Hello Ole!

    08 Mar 10 04:24, Ole Juul wrote to Mike Tripp:

    The card vendor's site is usually where to go and they will
    usually have packet, ODI, and NDIS drivers even if they
    didn't advertise DOS compatibility or include the software
    in the box. Just like video drivers, they also get updated
    to fix bugs and the ones on the site may be newer than what
    was included with the card at point-of-sale.

    The thing to do is collect them so others can find them.

    I find it easier to search intel.com, smc.com, or dlink.com than to Google up collections built by others and then search the collections. I spent about 15 minutes locating, downloading, and extracting the current vendors' packages for
    the 2 DLink and 1 SMC card you mentioned and verifying that they do include DOS
    packet drivers, dated late '99 - early '00. They also included the ODI and NDIS drivers for users that need or want to take those paths to TCP/IP on DOS instead.

    My personal philosophy is to install the ones supplied with the card and then check the manufacturer's site for updates. Then I know that the driver came from the vendor and was tested with all of the resources available to that vendor on their own implementation of the hardware. If it doesn't work, then I
    am fairly well assured that there is something wrong with the card or I am not configuring the software correctly. I do not have to wonder if the driver I downloaded from a random repository discovered through Google is incomplete, outdated, modified, or corrupt.

    That's not to say that there aren't good drivers available from 3rd-party sources...just that I recommend starting with the vendor's solution and branch outward from there if necessary. Those vendors have also have had numerous support issues/costs due to users grabbing software from 3rd-party sources and usually have restrictions against redistributing their software to insure that they remain the definitive source of the supported versions of the software. So, often, the vendor will be the only place to legally obtain the software with the greatest odds of success.

    I think that getting e-mail, sending and getting files with FTP,
    and particurly using telnet to connect to bulletin boards as the
    copper is disappearing, is perhaps more of a need.

    Yep...was just trying to point out that there are other ways to get there that involve some other driver than a packet driver. Your original message just said you were looking to list PCI cards that work with DOS. A list of PCI cards that support the TCP/IP protocol using the packet driver interface are not necessarily the same list.<g>

    Fortunately it is practically identical for major name-brand cards and all of the ones you had on hand are name-brand, so I'd love to hear what your results are using the current software supplied by the card vendors.

    There is a need for these things both in the vintage,
    and the Fido community, and I just wanted to help.

    Me too...I'm just trying to increase my odds of success by limiting myself to the drivers =you= need for =your= cards. Be my guest to save the rest of the world after yours are working.<g>

    .\\ike

    --- GoldED 2.50+
    * Origin: -=( The TechnoDrome )=- Austin,TX 512-327-8598 33.6k (1:382/61)
  • From Ole Juul@1:3634/12 to Mike Tripp on Tue Mar 9 03:40:00 2010
    Hi Mike,

    I decided to take your advice and check out the vendors.
    I'm not trying to start any arguments here and just
    want to report what I found. :)

    The drivers advertised as DOS on the D-Link site
    for the DFE530 and DFE538 reported the usual
    "This program cannot be run in DOS mode", so that
    wasn't any good to me. I also went to the SMC site,
    and they reported that there was no DOS driver
    available for SMC1211TX. I also went to the Compaq
    site and downloaded two disk images specifically
    for the two cards I had. The DOS directory on
    them did not contain a usable driver.

    So, I probably don't have the skills needed here,
    but that "This program cannot be run in DOS mode"
    message is all too familiar. :) On the positive
    side, I did find a driver for the DFE530 in a far
    corner of my archives and got that to work.

    Again, I'm not writing all this to be argumentative,
    but just to show what happened. This experience
    is similar to what I has happened to me in the past.
    That is why I wanted to know that there was a known
    driver _available_ before I recommended a card.
    Richard BTW, was needing this, and I thought I would
    do a bit of homework for him since it would also
    benefit me, and possibley someone else in the future.

    Cheers,
    Ole


    * Origin: (1:3634/12)
  • From Ole Juul@1:3634/12 to Richard Webb on Tue Mar 9 03:52:00 2010
    Hi Richard,

    I found another card.

    I wish to find out which PCI cards will work in DOS.

    Amen brother!!! WIll be curious what you find and watching
    this thread.

    Unfortunately only two card/driver combinations from me
    but they are pretty common on old kit so if you can find
    either of them at a swap meet or ham fest or friend's
    junk box you'd be OK.

    3COM - 3C905B-TX
    D-Link - DFE-530TX

    You're in business. I have drivers for both of those
    and I _know_ it works. :) I was hoping that someone
    else would pipe up who could supply a driver for a known
    card. All they have to do is post the name of the card
    and be willing to upload the driver somewhere.


    * Origin: (1:3634/12)
  • From Mike Tripp@1:382/61 to Ole Juul on Tue Mar 9 09:10:02 2010
    Hello Ole!

    09 Mar 10 03:40, Ole Juul wrote to Mike Tripp:

    The drivers advertised as DOS on the D-Link site
    for the DFE530 and DFE538 reported the usual
    "This program cannot be run in DOS mode", so that
    wasn't any good to me.

    Did you end up with the same files I downloaded yesterday?

    Directory of E:\dfe530tx\PKTDRV

    01/18/1999 05:30 PM 47,808 DLKFET.COM
    01/18/1999 05:30 PM 47,648 DLKFET.SYS

    This executes on my DOS box:

    === Cut ===
    Packet Driver for D-Link DFE-530TX PCI Fast Ethernet Adapter Ver 2.43(990118) === Cut ===

    Directory of E:\dfe-538tx\PKTDRV

    06/28/1999 06:49 PM 56,896 DLKPKT.COM

    Also executes on my DOS box:

    === Cut ===
    Packet driver for D-Link DFE-538TX PCI fast ethernet adapter [05/07/99] Copyright 1999(c), D-Link Corporation
    === Cut ===

    I also went to the SMC site, and they reported that there was no
    DOS driver available for SMC1211TX.

    You probably made the same mistake I did on first try and selected DOS as a search criteria and it came back blank. Try ALL as OS instead and you will be pointed to:

    http://www.smc.com/files/AR/DR_SMC1211TX_all.zip

    which contains:

    Directory of E:\smc1211tx\pktdrv

    11/20/2000 07:32 PM 10,262 SMCPKT.COM

    Also executes on my DOS box:

    === Cut ===
    Packet driver for SMC1211 Series, version 1.03
    Copyright 2000 (c), SMC Networks, Inc.
    === Cut ===

    I also went to the Compaq site and downloaded two disk images
    specifically for the two cards I had. The DOS directory on them
    did not contain a usable driver.

    Need more info to check these out for you obviously.

    Again, I'm not writing all this to be argumentative,
    but just to show what happened. This experience
    is similar to what I has happened to me in the past.

    Ditto on being argumentative, but with a little more information it is possible
    to have a more positive experience.

    FYI: You may notice from the non-DOS directory names that I downloaded and expanded the driver downloads on my XP box. I copied the files of interest over
    to my Netware server where my DOS box could access them also. The version/copyright notices are screen output redirected to files by the DOS box during execution.

    .\\ike

    --- GoldED 2.50+
    * Origin: -=( The TechnoDrome )=- Austin,TX 512-327-8598 33.6k (1:382/61)
  • From Ole Juul@1:3634/12 to Mike Tripp on Tue Mar 9 21:45:00 2010
    Hi Mike,

    The drivers advertised as DOS on the D-Link site
    for the DFE530 and DFE538 reported the usual

    Did you end up with the same files I downloaded yesterday?

    I'm not sure. They had very long names and were dot exes.
    After reading this post of yours, I went back and used
    the FTP site instead, and got different files with the
    same Windows only problem.

    I also went to the SMC site, and they reported that there was no
    DOS driver available for SMC1211TX.

    You probably made the same mistake I did on first try and
    selected DOS as a search criteria and it came back blank.
    Try ALL as OS instead and you will be pointed to:

    Yes I did! lol

    http://www.smc.com/files/AR/DR_SMC1211TX_all.zip

    Well done! I grabbed that and it worked like a charm.
    One thing though, it took up 49KB of memory. The one
    I'm using with my current card takes less than 4K.
    Still, it works and will be useful for most purposes.
    Especially considering that it is for a PCI card
    so can only be used in a modern machine where there
    is not likely to be any ram limitations.

    I also went to the Compaq site and downloaded two disk images specifically for the two cards I had. The DOS directory on them
    did not contain a usable driver.

    Need more info to check these out for you obviously.

    Compaq cards, in my experience, tend to not be labeled
    well, but these two are:
    Ethernet Pro 100
    Netelligent 10/100 TX

    FYI: You may notice from the non-DOS directory names that
    I downloaded and expanded the driver downloads on my XP
    box. I copied the files of interest over to my Netware
    server where my DOS box could access them also. The
    version/copyright notices are screen output redirected to
    files by the DOS box during execution.

    Aha! There's a difference. I don't have any MS-Windows
    machines available and lack familiarity. :( I usually
    browse with a Linux or BSD machine so when they supply
    MS-Windows specific formats, I'm left out in the cold.
    My DOS related downloads just FTP to my main DOS machine
    which I use for daily work and BBSing. I bet I could
    find a HDD with Win98 on it though, and set that up
    for processing downloaded files like this. It's a long
    way around though and I shudder at making room for yet
    another machine here. hehe Could be fun to tinker with
    a Windows system though.

    .\\ike

    I must say, that's a cool sig!

    Cheers,
    Ole


    * Origin: (1:3634/12)
  • From Ole Juul@1:3634/12 to All on Thu Mar 4 02:18:00 2010
    I've been looking for network drivers that work with PCI.
    My main DOS machine is currently using an ISA card, but
    I wish to find out which PCI cards will work in DOS.
    Looking around my HDD, I found two PCI and one PCMCIA
    wireless driver. These:

    - 3Com EtherDisk 3C90x EtherLink 10/100 PCI NIC family.
    - D-Link DFE-530TX Fast Ethernet.
    - Lucent Agere wireless PCMCIA.

    I would like to compile a list so that I know what
    cards to look out for. Does anyone know of other
    cards that might work?

    PCI is especially useful as the old ISA cards become
    harder to find and there are all those P1 and P2 boxen
    being thrown out which are perfect for dos, but often
    don't have a lot of 16 bit slots. I was especially
    surprised to see that there was a 16 bit wireless
    card sold with a DOS driver. I found the card for
    sale on the net for $35 but unfortunately I could only
    find the driver around here. Too bad. :)


    * Origin: (1:3634/12)
  • From Mike Tripp@1:382/61 to Ole Juul on Wed Mar 10 08:54:00 2010
    Hello Ole!

    09 Mar 10 21:45, Ole Juul wrote to Mike Tripp:

    Did you end up with the same files I downloaded yesterday?

    I'm not sure. They had very long names and were dot exes.

    And now I understand that you are referring to the whole driver package archive
    and not the packet drivers within them specifically.

    After reading this post of yours, I went back and used
    the FTP site instead, and got different files with the
    same Windows only problem.

    And your OS issue here is the self-extraction code provided by WinRAR or WinZIP...and not the driver code itself. You should be able to still use your DOS-based archivers to extract from the EXE manually, as you would the ZIP or RAR filename. If you use a shell helper like SHEZ for archive handling, it might be able to identify and extract automatically. The contents of the archive itself should all be 8.3 standard paths and filenames.

    Well done! I grabbed that and it worked like a charm.
    One thing though, it took up 49KB of memory. The one
    I'm using with my current card takes less than 4K.

    Yes the vendor's drivers are usually larger...because they contain more workarounds for more issues reported by more users and are usually written in a
    more general manner so that they work on more products in more situations. A 3rd party driver can be leaner and meaner by ignoring all of that...assuming you can locate it and it actually works on your hardware/software configuration. So that's why I suggested starting at the vendor and get something that works...then branch out to see if you can improve on it elsewhere.

    Need more info to check these out for you obviously.

    Compaq cards, in my experience, tend to not be labeled
    well, but these two are:
    Ethernet Pro 100
    Netelligent 10/100 TX

    These will be trickier since Compaq is now HP, and neither actually manufactures the boards.

    I would guess that the "Pro 100" is actually Intel and will definitely support a DOS packet driver, unless perhaps it is the Pro 100 S (server) adapter. A working driver could claim to come from Compaq, HP, or Intel.

    "Netelligent" is a generic brand-name that they've applied to switches and token-ring adapters as well as ethernet cards...so this is one of those cases where the name of the chipset will be more valuable than the model name of the adapter. I would bet on it being Intel or 3Com, with solutions available for both.

    Aha! There's a difference. I don't have any MS-Windows
    machines available and lack familiarity. :( I usually
    browse with a Linux or BSD machine so when they supply
    MS-Windows specific formats, I'm left out in the cold.

    Again, only the embedded self-extraction code is probably Windows specific, and
    you should be able save to disk and manually expand the EXE archive with your DOS or Linux-based ZIP or RAR archiver.

    My DOS related downloads just FTP to my main DOS machine
    which I use for daily work and BBSing. I bet I could
    find a HDD with Win98 on it though, and set that up
    for processing downloaded files like this. It's a long
    way around though and I shudder at making room for yet
    another machine here. hehe Could be fun to tinker with
    a Windows system though.

    Another path to glory, but probably unnecessary, unless you are so inclined.<g>

    .\\ike

    I must say, that's a cool sig!

    Thanks,<g>

    .\\ike

    --- GoldED 2.50+
    * Origin: -=( The TechnoDrome )=- Austin,TX 512-327-8598 33.6k (1:382/61)
  • From Richard Webb@1:116/901 to Ole Juul on Thu Mar 4 13:34:52 2010
    HI Ole,

    On Thu 2038-Mar-04 02:18, Ole Juul (1:3634/12) wrote to All:

    I've been looking for network drivers that work with PCI.
    My main DOS machine is currently using an ISA card, but
    I wish to find out which PCI cards will work in DOS.
    Looking around my HDD, I found two PCI and one PCMCIA
    wireless driver. These:

    Amen brother!!! WIll be curious what you find and watching
    this thread.

    Regards,
    Richard
    --- timEd 1.10.y2k+
    * Origin: Radio REscue net operations BBS (1:116/901)
  • From Ole Juul@1:3634/12 to Mike Tripp on Thu Mar 11 22:29:00 2010
    Hi Mike,

    And now I understand that you are referring to the whole
    driver package archive and not the packet drivers within
    them specifically.

    Yes, it is a common impediment that one is assumed to
    run or possess MS-Windows. (sigh) However, you hinted
    that I might be able to access these packages under Linux.
    Indeed, the dot exe self expanding archives "unzipped"
    like a charm! Thankyou for that suggestion, I would never
    have thought of it. Too bad the people who only run DOS
    are left out in the cold though.

    Yes the vendor's drivers are usually larger...because they
    contain more workarounds for more issues reported by more
    users and are usually written in a more general manner so
    that they work on more products in more situations. A 3rd
    party driver can be leaner and meaner by ignoring all of
    that...assuming you can locate it and it actually works on
    your hardware/software configuration. So that's why I
    suggested starting at the vendor and get something that
    works...then branch out to see if you can improve on it
    elsewhere.

    Well, I'm about done on this one. I've put way too
    much work into it already. :)

    <re: Compaq cards>
    These will be trickier since Compaq is now HP, and neither
    actually manufactures the boards.

    The Compaq site has some drivers which expand onto
    a floppy. I tried the ones for both cards but there
    was nothing older than Win95 and searching the
    directories did not come up with a working DOS driver.
    It doesn't matter about those two anyway.

    Again, only the embedded self-extraction code is probably
    Windows specific, and you should be able save to disk and
    manually expand the EXE archive with your DOS or
    Linux-based ZIP or RAR archiver.

    I was thrilled to find that it worked!

    Interestingly I couldn't get the DFE-538 to work. I found
    a driver, but neither it, nor the matching diagnostic
    worked. The cards work otherwise. I'll just save those
    cards for other uses since they are normally recognized
    by other Linux and BSD.

    So far I've got a few cards with matching drivers that
    work under DOS and that is a good thing. I also found
    that PCI is not an impediment here, so I'm a bit wiser.
    All in all, I'm happy with the results. I'll be able
    to offer somebody a card/driver combination and save
    them from this nearly impossible task if they are
    running DOS only.

    Cheers,
    Ole


    * Origin: (1:3634/12)
  • From Mike Tripp@1:382/61 to Ole Juul on Fri Mar 5 09:24:30 2010
    Hello Ole!

    04 Mar 10 02:18, Ole Juul wrote to All:

    I've been looking for network drivers that work with PCI.
    My main DOS machine is currently using an ISA card, but
    I wish to find out which PCI cards will work in DOS.

    I would like to compile a list so that I know what
    cards to look out for. Does anyone know of other
    cards that might work?

    Practically all of them, so the list of PCI cards that can't be used in DOS would be much shorter but more difficult to compile.

    Most of the larger vendors supplied setup/diagnostic/drivers with the cards (Intel, 3Com, SMC/Western Digital) and/or have them online for the commercial network clients for Netware, MS Lan Manager/IBM Lan Server, TCP/IP packet drivers, etc. There are also third-party drivers for common chipsets that might
    have been used on the cards or integrated onto motherboards, like various VIA Rhine and Realtek.

    My DOS machine is using a D-Link DFE-530TX which goes new for $9.99 at newegg now. Wireless will probably run $15-20 and take a little more homework to be sure that there is a DOS driver that supports whatever protocol you need. The compatibility list for your network client software is probably the best place to start.

    .\\ike

    --- GoldED 2.50+
    * Origin: -=( The TechnoDrome )=- Austin,TX 512-327-8598 33.6k (1:382/61)
  • From Mike Tripp@1:382/61 to Ole Juul on Fri Mar 12 07:08:50 2010
    Hello Ole!

    11 Mar 10 22:29, Ole Juul wrote to Mike Tripp:

    Indeed, the dot exe self expanding archives "unzipped"
    like a charm! Thankyou for that suggestion, I would never
    have thought of it. Too bad the people who only run DOS
    are left out in the cold though.

    And should work for PKUNZIP on DOS as well.

    It does get uglier if the archive contains long filenames/pathnames though, but
    the vendors have enough sense to stick with 8.3 conventions for these files.

    So far I've got a few cards with matching drivers that
    work under DOS and that is a good thing. I also found
    that PCI is not an impediment here, so I'm a bit wiser.

    Good deal. Networking DOS was a challenge even when it was the only PC OS around. It only gets more so, the further it falls back in the rearview...

    .\\ike

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  • From Ole Juul@1:3634/12 to Mike Tripp on Sat Mar 6 03:16:00 2010
    Hi Mike,

    Thanks for answering!

    Practically all of them, so the list of PCI cards that
    can't be used in DOS would be much shorter but more
    difficult to compile.

    Interesting. Of the collection of drivers that I've found,
    very few of them actually say PCI. I don't have time right now
    (getting visitors) but in a few days, perhaps I should
    set up a test box and check out all the PCI cards I have
    and see what I can get to work. From what I've gathered
    though, other people have had trouble getting more
    modern cards to work because of the unavailability of
    drivers.

    Most of the larger vendors supplied
    setup/diagnostic/drivers with the cards (Intel, 3Com,
    SMC/Western Digital)

    Yes, I suppose some original disks contained a DOS driver.
    I haven't had much luck finding them on-line though.
    Perhaps I should look harder.

    and/or have them online for the
    commercial network clients for Netware, MS Lan Manager/IBM
    Lan Server, TCP/IP packet drivers, etc. There are also
    third-party drivers for common chipsets that might have
    been used on the cards or integrated onto motherboards,
    like various VIA Rhine and Realtek.

    But how to use them?

    My DOS machine is using a D-Link DFE-530TX which goes new
    for $9.99 at newegg now.

    Of course I can't look now <g> but I think that's what my
    current one is. I've got a few of those and the driver that
    I found is a decent size too.

    Wireless will probably run $15-20

    Wow! I had no idea. I've not heard of anybody using
    wireless with DOS. Although the PCMCIA card I mentioned
    is advertised as comming with a DOS driver.

    and take a little more homework to be sure that there is a
    DOS driver that supports whatever protocol you need.

    I don't understand. What protocols are there? I'm using
    TCP/IP for everything locally, and that's all I use on
    the internet as well. I just load a single (aprx 12K)
    driver and everything talks to that.

    The compatibility list for your network client software is
    probably the best place to start.

    I've never heard of such a thing. All the software that
    I have (like ping, ssh, telnet, dhcp, ftp, htget, etc. etc.)
    are just single executables. What do you mean by
    "compatibility list"?

    Cheers,
    Ole


    * Origin: (1:3634/12)
  • From bob klahn@1:124/311 to OLE JUUL on Sat Mar 13 04:01:00 2010

    Of course I can't look now <g> but I think that's what my
    current one is. I've got a few of those and the driver that
    I found is a decent size too.

    Wireless will probably run $15-20

    Wow! I had no idea. I've not heard of anybody using
    wireless with DOS. Although the PCMCIA card I mentioned
    is advertised as comming with a DOS driver.

    The Lucent technology Orinoco Gold wireless card comes with dos
    drivers. It is a 16 bit card. I have one working with a Pentium
    133mhz w/win98. I have a 486dx100 running Win 98 I plan to set
    up for the Orinoco Gold. I am working my way up to running
    wireless with DOS as my final step in this progression.

    and take a little more homework to be sure that there is a
    DOS driver that supports whatever protocol you need.

    I don't understand. What protocols are there? I'm using
    TCP/IP for everything locally, and that's all I use on
    the internet as well. I just load a single (aprx 12K)
    driver and everything talks to that.



    BOB KLAHN bob.klahn@sev.org http://home.toltbbs.com/bobklahn

    ... "Oh bother," said Pooh, as J. Caesar gasped. "Et tu, Poote?"
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  • From ED VANCE@1:123/140 to OLE JUUL on Sat Mar 13 08:18:00 2010
    So far I've got a few cards with matching drivers that
    work under DOS and that is a good thing. I also found
    that PCI is not an impediment here, so I'm a bit wiser.
    All in all, I'm happy with the results. I'll be able
    to offer somebody a card/driver combination and save
    them from this nearly impossible task if they are
    running DOS only.

    Congratulations on your success Ole.


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