Post #71,343
12/29/02 5:42:13 PM
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In Praise of Software Modems
I have a 56k Lucent AMR Winmodem that connects at 50-52k without fail. Of course I have a fast processor. My old 3Com PCMCIA hardware modem is pokey by comparison.
Software modems are better on fast processors, apparently. I'm glad my fast modem will soon be working under Linux.
(My old laptop had a Lucent Mars software modem. It worked much better undex Linux because later drivers were available. This was a powerful incentive to boot into Linux, if I didn't have some other need.)
-drl
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Post #71,346
12/29/02 5:49:02 PM
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And they blow chuncks even on "slow" 300 MHz x86's
which really isn't that slow IMHO.
I just had to switch a friend off a "56K" soft modem that crapped out every five minutes or so for a slower (28.8K IIRC) but much more reliable hardware modem.
Tony
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Post #71,352
12/29/02 5:59:14 PM
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Re: And they blow chuncks even on "slow" 300 MHz x86's
My Toshiba was 300 PII. The 56k software modem performance was comparible to the 56k hardware PCMCIA modem. The latter had better noise reduction technology so it tended to win by 3-6k.
-drl
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Post #71,351
12/29/02 5:59:07 PM
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In Praise of Hardware Modems
I thank the Lord for these things. I haven't got ANY "drivers" to screw around with... They just work.
Pretty much ANY Intel Machine, Any Apple, Any RISC, Any Alpha...etc...etc... works as long as they have a "Proper" serial port and you know the init strings (as you would also need these for software modems)
I have an external (formerly) USRobotics Courier "V.anything" modem. I also have an external USRobotics ISDN Modem too...
Both work as well as ANY other modem you can scrounge up.
Now, PCMCIA modems?... I've never really had ANY problem with them... as the ones I had(or dealt with) were all Full Hardware modems as well.
[link|mailto:curley95@attbi.com|greg] - Grand-Master Artist in IT
[link|http://www.iwethey.org/ed_curry/|REMEMBER ED CURRY!]
[link|http://pascal.rockford.com:8888/SSK@kQMsmc74S0Tw3KHQiRQmDem0gAIPAgM/edcurry/1//|ED'S GHOST SPEAKS!] | Your friendly Geheime Staatspolizei reminds:
[link|http://www.wired.com/news/wireless/0,1382,56742,00.html| Wi-Fi Terrorism] comes with an all inclusive
free trip to the local Hoosegow! | | I'll never tell, my *overly-red* lips are sealed! *wink* *wink* |
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Post #71,353
12/29/02 6:02:39 PM
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PCMCIA Modems
I've never had any problems to speak of, going back to Winders 3.1 and even DOS. It was much harder then. Good knowledge to have when view'ing /etc/pcmcia/config.opts :)
I'm not dissing hard modems. Just pointing out a case where the 16550A can't keep up with a P4.
-drl
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Post #71,354
12/29/02 6:04:10 PM
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Message taken ...
Thanks fer clearing that up!
[link|mailto:curley95@attbi.com|greg] - Grand-Master Artist in IT
[link|http://www.iwethey.org/ed_curry/|REMEMBER ED CURRY!]
[link|http://pascal.rockford.com:8888/SSK@kQMsmc74S0Tw3KHQiRQmDem0gAIPAgM/edcurry/1//|ED'S GHOST SPEAKS!] | Your friendly Geheime Staatspolizei reminds:
[link|http://www.wired.com/news/wireless/0,1382,56742,00.html| Wi-Fi Terrorism] comes with an all inclusive
free trip to the local Hoosegow! | | I'll never tell, my *overly-red* lips are sealed! *wink* *wink* |
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Post #71,356
12/29/02 6:13:33 PM
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Always wanted..
..to run a Netware server on a laptop :)
-drl
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Post #71,361
12/29/02 7:16:10 PM
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I like to watch the pretty lights also
will work for cash and other incentives [link|http://home.tampabay.rr.com/boxley/resume/Resume.html|skill set]
You think that you can trust the government to look after your rights? ask an Indian
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Post #71,363
12/29/02 7:17:57 PM
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For sure! That's why I like hubs/switches too. Disco lights!
John. Busy lad.
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Post #71,462
12/30/02 10:22:12 AM
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So who makes good hardware modems these days?
I'm getting more headaches by the day with the Winmodem that came installed in a Dell PII 400 box. I'd love to replace it and get a little of my sanity back.
lincoln
"Four score and seven years ago, I had a better sig"
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Post #71,475
12/30/02 10:41:04 AM
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USR has been trouble-free for me. Pricey though.
e.g. the [link|http://www.usr.com/products/home/home-product.asp?sku=USR5686E|external V.92 modem]. Around $95.
After being bought by 3Com, USR was sold off. I don't have any experience with the post-sale products (I've got an external V.90 Voice/Faxmodem), but I've not heard anything bad about USR modems in a long time.
You might want to check eBay. Zoom and Supra are other brands to consider, but just about any external modem should work equivalently.
Cheers,
Scott.
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Post #71,501
12/30/02 11:30:28 AM
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USR still makes great modems...
[link|http://www.usr.com/products/business/p-business-menu.asp|These] are the ones I always use to this day.
But, as the saying goes I'd go with the one that [link|/forums/render/user?username=lincoln|lincoln] [link|http://www.usr.com/products/home/home-product.asp?sku=USR5686E|pointed out]. Or maybe the [link|http://www.usr.com/products/home/home-product.asp?sku=USR5610B|Internal version].
[link|mailto:curley95@attbi.com|greg] - Grand-Master Artist in IT
[link|http://www.iwethey.org/ed_curry/|REMEMBER ED CURRY!]
[link|http://pascal.rockford.com:8888/SSK@kQMsmc74S0Tw3KHQiRQmDem0gAIPAgM/edcurry/1//|ED'S GHOST SPEAKS!] | Your friendly Geheime Staatspolizei reminds:
[link|http://www.wired.com/news/wireless/0,1382,56742,00.html| Wi-Fi Terrorism] comes with an all inclusive
free trip to the local Hoosegow! | | I'll never tell, my *overly-red* lips are sealed! *wink* *wink* |
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Post #71,505
12/30/02 11:40:08 AM
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We use the ActionTech "Call Waiting" PCI modem . .
. . or any convenient external (mostly MultiTech). The ActionTech even has OS/2 drivers that work, but their drivers support only one modem in a machine, which is a real drag.
[link|http://www.aaxnet.com|AAx]
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Post #71,648
12/30/02 11:30:55 PM
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Re: So who makes good hardware modems these days?
Microtech and Microcom for two of them. USR is also good, but very pricy. Microcom is about the best as far as I can tell, but not as easy to get as a USR modem. I have an old Microcom 28.8K BPS modem that was upgraded to 33.6BPS V.34 with just a single chip. This was back in 1996, but I assume they still make hardware modems. Mine is an external, but I lost the power supply to it in a move in 1998. But it always was reliable, and cost effective and upgradable. MNP Level 10 as well, something that other modems did not have at that time, they only had MNP Level 5.
For an Alternative Nearly To Imitate IWETHEY please visit [link|http://pub75.ezboard.com/bantiiwethey|the ANTIIWETHEY Board]
providing an alternative to IWETHEY since December 2002
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Post #71,807
12/31/02 9:40:45 PM
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Mo
dem? /thinking thinking thinking
Oh, you mean those old things that actually *dialed* to reach an ISP? Forgot about those.
And yes, I *am* just yanking your chain. :)
Many fears are born of stupidity and ignorance -
Which you should be feeding with rumour and generalisation.
BOfH, 2002 "Episode" 10
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Post #71,825
1/1/03 12:50:52 AM
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One of the more significant inventions
Of course, bank transactions have been over modems for a long time - synchronous modems. (The 'frame world is really completely different than the UNIX world, all the way down to the bare idea of a global clock. I sort of miss 'frames.)
-drl
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