Reviving an old friend ......... CLEAR!

Accountable · Post by **Accountable** » Sun Jan 23, 2011 3:40 am

I have a laptop with Windows XP that I haven't used in a few years and want to put it back in service. Unfortunately I can't get the dang thing to access the internet. It recognizes the wireless modem but doesn't do anything else, and even plugging it in directly with the CAT 5 doesn't help.

Is there a setup-type solution? If I replaced the OS with Linux (like I'm thinking of doing anyway) would that automatically solve the problem?

Post by **spot** » Sun Jan 23, 2011 3:53 am

Re Linux, tell us the model code off the sticker and we can advise in nauseating detail.

Re the Internet. That's a configuration error, not the hardware. Did you do a factory reinstall of XP (reaction: ah, right) or is it in some herniated leftover confusion from way back when (reaction: eww, right)?

Accountable · Post by **Accountable** » Sun Jan 23, 2011 4:42 am

Sent you the info via PM. Please make public what is useful for public use. I don't know how much is too much for security purposes.

Original hard drive burned out in 20-who-cares. Replaced it myself & used the recovery CD. Crashed a year or so later & used the recovery CD again, then put it away, used my desktop & waited for a good sale. I've changed providers & hardware since then but I'm pretty sure I had wireless when I was using the laptop before.

If it's configuration, what do I need to do?

I still would like to try Linux out. Can I completely wipe out Windows & replace it?

Post by **spot** » Sun Jan 23, 2011 5:57 am

You've a detailed PM in your Inbox.

I reckon burning a linux live CD, just to see what it's like on the machine, is a good start. It ought to get your Internet on the CAT5 at least without any hesitation. Then you'll know whether you like it or not.

Once you've tried that, if you do want XP, use the recovery CD again so there's no doubt about the Internet settings. It takes less effort than fighting back to normality.

Accountable · Post by **Accountable** » Sun Jan 23, 2011 6:01 am

Thanks for that. I'm looking at Puppy Linux

Puppy Linux | Linux.com

& maybe mess around with it a bit to decide.

Accountable · Post by **Accountable** » Sun Jan 23, 2011 6:10 am

Okay, forget that. Too many missing links & such.

Now downloading Ubuntu for netbook, as you suggest in the PM. 1 1/2 hour download!

Post by **spot** » Sun Jan 23, 2011 6:12 am

Accountable;1351735 wrote: Thanks for that. I'm looking at Puppy Linux

Puppy Linux | Linux.com

& maybe mess around with it a bit to decide.Good lord. You'll only have to take the bugger out and shoot it in a few weeks if you do that.

It's slightly masochistic for a newb.

eta: ah. seen the preceding.

Good.

Post by **spot** » Sun Jan 23, 2011 6:26 am

Accountable;1351736 wrote: 1 1/2 hour download!
I checked, seeing that and thinking it odd. I reckon I'm on a medium-speed connection but it came in at a rock-solid 2.2MB/sec and it's taken 5 minutes to arrive.

When you burn it, my theory is that "verify" is well worth the extra couple of minutes, you have your CD integrity confirmed before you try booting it up.

Accountable · Post by **Accountable** » Sun Jan 23, 2011 6:40 am

The link you gave me is a 696 mb download. Still 45 min to go

Post by **spot** » Sun Jan 23, 2011 6:49 am

Accountable;1351745 wrote: The link you gave me is a 696 mb download. Still 45 min to go

The link I downloaded is a 696 mb download too. I've just checked on my ISP's control panel, there's an "upgrade me now" button that would increase my bandwidth from 20Mbit/sec to 100Mbit/sec if I pressed it. I've been very good, I've resisted ever since it appeared. They're cable, they're very consistent at providing what they charge for, and they have several million UK customers[1] with the same push-button upgrade option.

[1] - eta: To be slightly more exact, the roll-out is in progress but it's not reached their "several million UK customers" yet - their timetable extends for the next 12 months. They've done rollouts before though and they're good at keeping their word.

Accountable · Post by **Accountable** » Sun Jan 23, 2011 6:53 am

No real logic why, but I'm downloading about 160K/sec. Makes no sense, but I'm multi-tasking & can't be arsed to check it out right now.

Ahso! · Post by **Ahso!** » Sun Jan 23, 2011 7:03 am

Why Ubuntu for netbooks?

Post by **spot** » Sun Jan 23, 2011 7:06 am

Ahso!;1351751 wrote: Why Ubuntu for netbooks?

The laptop has a 1024x768 display. I reckoned it would look better.

BaghdadBob · Post by **BaghdadBob** » Wed Jan 26, 2011 6:14 am

Ahso!;1351751 wrote: Why Ubuntu for netbooks?

Ubuntu is prolly the best (imho) / most used release of linux. The netbook release is kinda odd tho. In the Ubuntu regular release you can select display size.

Hey, accountable:

This sounds like a hardware problem and not software related. The first thing I'd try is is go to Control Panel>System>Hardware>Device manager and right click and delete your Network Adapters. Reboot. The OS will 'find' them and reinstall. Check for your available networks. Login to yer router and be sure your wireless portion of the router is 'on'.

If your using a pcmcia wireless adapter, look for compatibility & parameter issues especially if your machine doesn't see the adapter.

Also, take a look at the Network Setup wiard and Network Connectoin wizards in Control Panel.

CARLA · Post by **CARLA** » Wed Jan 26, 2011 7:50 am

This will only work if the driver are INSTALLED on the machine. If you reformatted the hard drive they aren't there you need to find them for the make and model of your laptop on another machine on the internet, download and install on your old friend. You can also find them on the "rescource disk" that came with it originally. If you switch operating systems and reformat it you will have the same issues can't connect to internet until you have the driver for the onboard network card installed. You need to get the drivers and have them on a thumb drive or CD so you can install them and get back up and running especially the Network card driver and wireless adapter.

Ubuntu is prolly the best (imho) / most used release of linux. The netbook release is kinda odd tho. In the Ubuntu regular release you can select display size.

Hey, accountable:

This sounds like a hardware problem and not software related. The first thing I'd try is is go to Control Panel>System>Hardware>Device manager and right click and delete your Network Adapters. Reboot. The OS will 'find' them and reinstall. Check for your available networks. Login to yer router and be sure your wireless portion of the router is 'on'.

If your using a pcmcia wireless adapter, look for compatibility & parameter issues especially if your machine doesn't see the adapter.

Also, take a look at the Network Setup wiard and Network Connectoin wizards in Control Panel.

Accountable · Post by **Accountable** » Wed Jan 26, 2011 7:05 pm

Sorry I didn't follow up on this. I downloaded Ubuntu for netbooks ... twice. Set up a bootable flash drive but the laptop's so old that using a flash drive isn't even an option. I tried to burn it onto a CD but it failed right at the end ... twice (that explains the second download).

Then I downloaded regular Ubuntu, burned the CD again (successfully this time), then tried to boot from the CD. It froze up every time I tried it.

Finally I pulled out the old factory restore disk & reloaded everything. No biggie since there wasn't any data on there anyway. Damn thing booted, but froze up every time I tried to do anything. If the body were in decent shape I might consider paying to get it checked out & fixed, but one hinge is broken completely, the battery is completely useless, and it weighs a ton. Not to mention we now have another laptop and a netbook, and my school bought all of us special ed teachers nice notebooks with the stimulus distraction. So I'm going to say goodbye to my old chum & pull the plug.

D'ya think it has any useable parts?

CARLA · Post by **CARLA** » Wed Jan 26, 2011 7:21 pm

Bummer have you tried reformatting it with a copy of windows XP or did it just come with the resource disk? Sometime the resource disk doesn't have all the window files you actually need to get a clean boot. Most likely it time to take the hard drive out and the memory and say bye bye. Spot may have some other options for you with the parts.

Post by **spot** » Thu Jan 27, 2011 12:34 am

Parts isn't really an option. Yes you could strip it to components but you've no way of telling which are good and which bad, and sticking each one on eBay for a dollar apiece is soul-destroying unless you're an environazi with hidden adequacy problems. That sounds a dead laptop to me, and I've resurrected more machines called Lazarus than most people. The laptop I take out with me these days is a 64MB 266MHz from 1998/9, goes onto the wired Internet very happily and feels faster than a cheap-end netbook straight out of a shop. It's all down to the way the machine's configured but once the hardware's lost it there's no point getting obsessive.

Acc, work out which of those others is never going to get used from one year to the next and learn Linux on that, I'm sure you'll get satisfaction from it but you really have to be on stable hardware. Once it works and it feels good and gets familiar, who knows, you might end up using it for the next eight years as your main machine. That would be a win.

BaghdadBob · Post by **BaghdadBob** » Thu Jan 27, 2011 12:38 pm

Before kissing an old machine goodbye give the Linux Puppy release a chance. Lowww memory usage which is great for old machines AND it can be used for searching winders and hardware problems.

Accountable · Post by **Accountable** » Thu Jan 27, 2011 6:42 pm

BaghdadBob;1352194 wrote: Before kissing an old machine goodbye give the Linux Puppy release a chance. Lowww memory usage which is great for old machines AND it can be used for searching winders and hardware problems.
I'll give it a shot, but it'll be a couple of weeks before I have the time. Thanks!