Ok, first off I am cheap so that’s why I bought a used notebook/laptop whatever. It’s a Dell and it’s about six years old. I want it for when I am traveling and need to do work related stuff and so I can keep up with the Dope and other stuff.
My question:
The thing has a 133 mhz processor. I need an ethernet card (credit card/adapter whatever it’s called). See, the one that came with it doesn’t work anymore. It is a Xircom Credit Card CEM 33.6K Adapter. I have learned that Intel (who owns Xircom) no longer makes these adapters. Apparently it’s all 56K modems and such these days. Will that cause me problems if I buy an Ethernet Adapter that is 56K, given the age of my notebook/laptop/whatever and the size of the processor?
In case it is not yet obvious, I’m dumber than a box of rocks when it comes to this stuff and I need some hand holding. So, any advice? Need more information? Should I never touch anything more complicated than an EtchASketch?
First off, I think you’re talking about two different things. An Ethernet adaptor is a network interface card. You plug in an ethernet cable (cat-5, the kind that has the 8-pin plug that looks like an oversized phone cord plug) to connect to a network. Something labeled 33K or 56K is a modem. You plug in a phone cord so you can dial into another network. It’s possible you have a card that is both a modem and a network card, but probably not.
To answer your question directly, no, a 56K modem card will not cause you any problems if your system previously used a 33K modem. You’ll have to uninstall the old card and install some driver software that comes with the new one anyway, which will take care of the minor differences. But in my experience, any even moderately standards-compliant modem can be dropped in place of another and run fine.
A lot of this stuff is commodity hardware and you’d probably be fine with whatever brand you can find cheap, but it might be worthwhile to buy a better brand to get better documentation and support. Whether we’re talking modem or network card, some of the cheap ones can be a pain to support when there are minor configuration issues.
Another question is whether a new ethernet card or modem has drivers for the OS you’re running, since I suspect you may be running Windows 98. I’d verify that before buying the card. This can be simply a matter of checking the box to see which operating systems are listed as compatible with the card.
I bought a laptop around 1998 or so. It has a 133mHz processor. That was the second-fastest one at the time! I took it to Arizona last Thanksgiving when I went to visit my mom so that I could check my mail, read SDMB, etc. No joy. My Internet mail server now requires 128-bit encryption, and the version of Internet Explorer on the laptop wouldn’t support it. So I went to download the latest Explorer. Nope. The laptop has Windows 95 on it. The required version of IE won’t work with it.
When we went to L.A. in May, it really would have been handy to have a laptop with us. I bought a new PowerBook. Not only is it lighter than my old laptop, its processor is about ten times faster, it has a superior display, it has the latest OS (in this case, Apple OSX Tiger), and I’ve loaded it up with Final Cut Pro so that I have a mobile editing studio that I can use in the business I’m getting into.
I’d say scrap the 133mHz machine. You can get a newer, faster notebook that you’ll like better. And if you’re like me, it will give you many years of service before improvements make it necessary to replace again.
I have a 90Mhz laptop - it’ll run remote desktop to a faster machine, and I can load it with text files to read outside. The battery is dead so I have to plug it in, but if I forget it outside and it starts to rain, I can think ‘eh, who cares’ and roll over in bed.
The only problem I had with it was when I tried to replace the wireless adapter my friend lent me with one I purchased. My laptop runs 16bit pcmcia cards, whereas the newer ones are almost all 32bit. (The difference is in the plastic edges on the card. Filing them down won’t make it work, I can let you know).
Modem or ethernet card, you should be able to find one fairly cheaply. Even wireless adapters can be found for < 20$ if you look. Check ebay - there’s a stack of old 33k pcmcia modems from laptop repairs that I’m pretty sure is going to get chucked one day 'cause they’re so old.
Thanks for the replies all. I was at work when I did the OP. The adapter thingy that I’m replacing is a Xircom CreditCard Ethernet+Modem 33.6. Circuit City has one that’s 56K, so I’m going to give it a go.
Johnny L.A. ever so politely told me to quit being such a cheap bastid and go buy a decent notebook. He’s right, of course, I do need to do that eventually. Maybe next year so I can take a write off on my 2006 taxes. I just bought a new PC three months ago so there’s this year’s tax write off for computers.
It’ll either work or it won’t. If it doesn’t, I haven’t lost much. Heck, I only paid 50 bucks for the notebook/laptop/whatever anyway. It works. Now, if I can get this internet thing goin’.
Ah, no worries! Those combined network / modem cards were quite popular five or so years ago. As long as you don’t have any driver issues with the presumed Windows 98 on your laptop, you shouldn’t have much, if any, trouble and if your phone line’s up to the task, you’ll enjoy faster modem connections if you ever use dial-up.
I’m actually a little surprised CC has any left - pretty much everything that’s been made in the past handful of years has modem and LAN built into the motherboard.
Swampbear – do you really need ethernet? Sounds to me like the only time you hook your computer up to anything is over the phone. If so, then all you need is the modem, not the ethernet part. (Probably won’t cost you a huge difference, but a modem alone might be easier to find).
And good for you for being frugal. I’m sure you’ve got better things to spend money on than a hunk of plastic and silicon, when you’ve got one that already works.
I went to Circus City (it’s my lil’ pet name for it) at lunch and bought the card. We shall see if it works tonight. After an ice cold beer or two. It’s all always better after an ice cold beer or two.
Quericus I do such things as buy cars I don’t need, as in I was jonesing for a Mustang Convertible so I bought one in April even though I have a perfectly good Chevy truck and Chevy Blazer. I’m a selective cheap bastid.