HI,

I've owned a T42 ThinkPad since 2004, and the wireless card has never
worked worth a hoot. It's an Intel Pro/Wireless 2200BG mini pci
device. It's there, it's alive and a couple of times while parked at
a campground or in a coffee shop I've been able to connect using it
with XP. But I soon gave up, bought a Hawking USB HWU54D adapter
which is outstanding.... using Windows XP. Can't use the USB adapter
with OS/2 - eCS.

I just thought the Intel 2200BG was a puny receiver.

Then a couple weeks ago, I picked up a refurbished T43 ThinkPad with
what XP detects as the identical Intel 2200BG card, and it works
great! I don't yet have eCS or OS/2 installed on it, but from the XP
perspective I have no trouble connecting to my municipal wireless
network here in my house. The T42 sitting 4 feet away can't do that.

Why such a difference? I know many of you own ThinkPads, and wonder
if you've seen anything similar. Is the T43 built-in antenna better
or what?

The T42 is my travel computer, runs eCS 1.2R, and I have Genmac 2.2
plus WLan 3.10 installed on it working (finally), but it can't pick up
a signal through the Intel 2200BG here at home. It detects it,
identifies it, says it's "too weak".

Would it be worth trying to replace that Intel 2200BG mini-pci card in
the T42? I would love not having to use Windows for WiFi while
traveling/camping. I know, I know... travel with the T43. It's
waiting for (sigh..) eCS 2.0 to arrive.

--
Barbara

All I can do is offer some co-miseration on this issue. I have an R50p
with some flavor of on-board Intel wireless, and it is nearly worthless.
On several occasions, I had it sitting literally directly on top of
the wireless transmitter and it still broke connection every 5 minutes
or so.

Barbara wrote:
--
[Reverse the parts of the e-mail address to reply.]

In article <DeXnHmMUzXdD-pn2-8qWCXSdVU5lH@localhost>
bcallen@nospam.attglobal.net "Barbara" writes:

WAG: differences in the antennae radiation patterns, caused by
differences in the two computers' constructions? At very high
frequencies, moving a tiny bit of metal can make a difference.
--
Andrew Stephenson

On Fri, 23 May 2008 15:10:36 UTC in comp.os.os2.misc, "Barbara"
<bcallen@nospam.attglobal.net> wrote:

Maybe you have a hardware problem!

On all the Thinkpads I've looked at, they have a plug in card with the wireless
on it and then a cable (or two) goes to that and is routed up round the outside
of the screen bezel. Maybe the cable has been disconnected or is suffering from
a partial connection. Might be worth you finding the hardware service manual for
your model and reading up on what it takes to dismantle it and re-assemble it -
it might be dead easy to get at the connection to the wireless card itself but
more tricky to track it down as it goes up round the screen.

--
Trevor Hemsley, Brighton, UK
Trevor dot Hemsley at ntlworld dot com

On Fri, 23 May 2008 15:10:36 UTC, "Barbara"
<bcallen@nospam.attglobal.net> wrote:

Run pci.exe (from pci048vkd.zip, available on Hobbes), and then install
the genmac drivers according to what it reports for the wlan card in the
thing. The IBM T42 docs, such as they are, talk only about Intel wifi
adapters. I just picked up a used T42 and tried to install the drivers
for the intel adapter. Finally, I ran pci.exe which revealed that it
uses an Atheros wlan adapter. When installed the drivers for the Atheros
adapter, it worked fine, much to my surprise. I've heard from a friend
who works at Applied Materials, which buys laptops by the thousands,
that a the employees preferred a T42 to T43 (too many security bells and
whistles).

HTH,
Pete

--

On Fri, 23 May 2008 18:40:25 UTC, "Pete"
<khadhargo@sbc...nospam.-.global.net> wrote:

Pete, I did that years ago for the T42. pci.exe reports "Vendor 8086h
Intel corporation, device 4220h PRO/Wireless 2200BG Network
Connection". Latest Genmac drivers for that card are
installed/configured.

Like I said, it's working, just too weak to be of any practical use.



--
Barbara

On Fri, 23 May 2008 18:27:16 UTC, "Trevor Hemsley"
<Trevor.Hemsley@mytrousers.ntlworld.com> wrote:

HI Trevor,

I have the hardware service manual, all 277 pages for the T42 printed
out. And I've thought exactly along the lines you suggest. But my
thinking was that it wouldn't work at all if a connection were loose.
It does work.

Sometime I may get around to removing the keyboard, the palm rest and
keyboard bezel as instructed in the manual in order to get to the
wireless card. I'm fearless when it comes to disassembly and
reassembly so long as I have the manual for instruction. I don't plan
on taking the screen apart.

If I hadn't seen the two TPs side by side, I'd never have wondered.

I also have the service manual for the T43, and they are essentially
identical hardware wise with regard to the wireless card.

--
Barbara

On Fri, 23 May 2008 18:40:25 UTC, "Pete"
<khadhargo@sbc...nospam.-.global.net> wrote:

Can this utility be run from Windows? I should go look it up, but
thought you might know.

The T43 only has XP right now, and not that I don't trust XP hardware
reporting, I'd like to see a direct comparison from pci.exe. Then I
could tell for sure if the two cards, T42 - T43, were identical. Only
os/2 related bootable thing I have right now is DFSee.

--
Barbara

On Fri, 23 May 2008 20:49:43 UTC in comp.os.os2.misc, "Barbara"
<bcallen@nospam.attglobal.net> wrote:

I've used dozens of Intel 2200 chips and they are usually very good - far better
than any of the alternatives I've tried of similar vintage. Your symptoms sound
like the aerial is not working properly. Connection is one possibility - could
be corrosion perhaps. Another one I thoguht about is that maybe the wire has
been trapped and severed - it does usually take a fairly circuitous route around
the inside of the machine to get to where it ends up.

--
Trevor Hemsley, Brighton, UK
Trevor dot Hemsley at ntlworld dot com

Trevor Hemsley wrote:

Gotta second Trevor here. I've got a couple of pcmcia wireless cards and
one of them has a provision for an external antenna - thing works fine with
no antenna up to about 2 feet from the AP <g>. All the machines I've had
with the Intel wireless installed have worked like champs.

--
Will Honea
** Posted from http://www.teranews.com **

On Fri, 23 May 2008 20:51:05 UTC in comp.os.os2.misc, "Barbara"
<bcallen@nospam.attglobal.net> wrote:

Windows alternatives from http://members.datafast.net.au/dft0802/downloads.htm

--
Trevor Hemsley, Brighton, UK
Trevor dot Hemsley at ntlworld dot com

On Fri, 23 May 2008 21:31:59 UTC, "Trevor Hemsley"
<Trevor.Hemsley@mytrousers.ntlworld.com> wrote:

Well, that was too easy! Ran pci32.exe and the wireless cards *are*
identical in both T42 and T43. (It's so much fun to inflict something
on Windows that I already know how to do.) Craig's stuff is great!

I guess the next step is to get out the screwdrivers to check
connections on the T42. I'll check the card, plus whatever I can see
in the base, but I'm not going anywhere that display antenna wiring
harness. There's a bluetooth antenna snugged in there as well, and
the assembly looks ummm... challenging. If I find a loose card
connection, it's been that way since I bought it and you'll hear me
kicking myself from wherever you are.

Thanks

--
Barbara

On Fri, 23 May 2008 22:56:55 UTC, "Barbara"
<bcallen@nospam.attglobal.net> wrote:

Just to conclude, I did take the T42 apart, reseated the wireless card
and the two connectors, inspected visible cabling and seeing no bare
wires or crimps, put it back together. It made no difference. Still
weak and puny.

--
Barbara

On Fri, 23 May 2008 20:49:43 UTC, "Barbara"
<bcallen@nospam.attglobal.net> wrote:

-> On Fri, 23 May 2008 18:27:16 UTC, "Trevor Hemsley"
-> <Trevor.Hemsley@mytrousers.ntlworld.com> wrote:
->
-> > On Fri, 23 May 2008 15:10:36 UTC in comp.os.os2.misc, "Barbara"
-> > <bcallen@nospam.attglobal.net> wrote:
-> >
-> > > The T42 is my travel computer, runs eCS 1.2R, and I have Genmac 2.2
-> > > plus WLan 3.10 installed on it working (finally), but it can't pick up
-> > > a signal through the Intel 2200BG here at home. It detects it,
-> > > identifies it, says it's "too weak".
-> >
-> > Maybe you have a hardware problem!
-> >
-> > On all the Thinkpads I've looked at, they have a plug in card with the wireless
-> > on it and then a cable (or two) goes to that and is routed up round the outside
-> > of the screen bezel. Maybe the cable has been disconnected or is suffering from
-> > a partial connection. Might be worth you finding the hardware service manual for
-> > your model and reading up on what it takes to dismantle it and re-assemble it -
-> > it might be dead easy to get at the connection to the wireless card itself but
-> > more tricky to track it down as it goes up round the screen.
-> >
->
-> HI Trevor,
->
-> I have the hardware service manual, all 277 pages for the T42 printed
-> out. And I've thought exactly along the lines you suggest. But my
-> thinking was that it wouldn't work at all if a connection were loose.
-> It does work.
->
-> Sometime I may get around to removing the keyboard, the palm rest and
-> keyboard bezel as instructed in the manual in order to get to the
-> wireless card. I'm fearless when it comes to disassembly and
-> reassembly so long as I have the manual for instruction. I don't plan
-> on taking the screen apart.
->
-> If I hadn't seen the two TPs side by side, I'd never have wondered.
->
-> I also have the service manual for the T43, and they are essentially
-> identical hardware wise with regard to the wireless card.
->

There are two antenna leads on the 2200bg, main and Aux. Perhaps only
one is connected, or one is corroded. It is easy enough to check.
Just unscrew all the screws on the back labelled 1 and 2, then lift up
the keyboard. There is one connector in the middle of the keyboard
that you have to gently pry off, then the keyboard should lift up
revealing the Intel 2200bg mini-PCI card. There is a picture of the
card in an old article I wrote a couple years ago -
http://www.os2voice.org/VNL/past_iss...feature_4.html

Make sure the two wires are connected. Or perhaps the leads are
switched, which might be another thing which might cause a problem. I
don't recall if the wires are labelled, but I am always careful to
reattach them the way I found them and the 2200 has worked well on my
T42p for several years now.

Mark
--
From the eComStation of Mark Dodel

Warpstock 2008 - Santa Cruz, California: http://www.warpstock.org
Warpstock Europe 2008 - Düsseldorf, Germany: http://www.warpstock.eu

On Sat, 24 May 2008 01:34:25 UTC, "Mark Dodel" <madodelNOSPAM@ptd.net>
wrote:

Thanks Mark. I did exactly that. (See my 19:23 post to myself.) I
saw no corrosion or breaks in the wiring. Reseated everything and it
made no difference.

Unless there's something wrong with the wiring inside the display or
hinge area going to the antenna, I don't know what's wrong and I'm
just not up to taking the display apart. It really does act like it
has a very weak antenna. I'd think I had the Genmac driver configured
wrong or something if it didn't act exactly the same way with XP.
That's why I bought the HWU54D Hawking adapter at least three years
ago. The difference between the USB Hawking and the internal Intel is
like night and day. I thought they were all that way until I bought
the T43. I didn't know enough about WiFi in 2004 when the T42 was
brand new to complain.

What I'd really like is a Genmac driver for the Hawking USB adapter.
I know that means two drivers, a USB one and a Genmac one. I doubt
that will ever happen.

--
Barbara

Barbara wrote:

Since you're in the play-with-it mode at the moment, why not tack about 6 -
12 inches of fine wire onto one of the connectors (just jam it in the back
of the connector once it's on the header if nothing else is available to
wrap it around) and see what happens. Might help identify a broken antenna
lead w/o getting into the display rat's nest.

--
Will Honea
** Posted from http://www.teranews.com **

Hi Barbara

Barbara wrote:
----- big snip -----


You do not know unless you ask - and provide the necessary windows drivers.

Some time ago I asked for nVidia nForce4 nic support and supplied the
drivers.

They got included in the next release.

I accept that maybe the nForce4 driver has a larger target group of
users but, as stated above, you do not know unless you contact the
genmac people and ask.

Regards

Pete

On May 23, 10:10 am, "Barbara" <bcal...@nospam.attglobal.net> wrote:
Hi Barbara

Although I don't have a T42, I do have a Toshiba statellite notebook
with the same 2200BG. It works fine under Windows XP, however, it has
never worked under eCS although the docs say it is supported and the
drivers load just fine. However, when I try to access the internet in
any way when in eCS with it, it doesn't happen.

David

On Sat, 24 May 2008 16:10:59 UTC, Peter Brown
<losepeteSPAM-ME-NOT@ntlworld.com> wrote:

I made the effort to collect all information on this adapter a couple
years ago. Then it occurred to me that the Hawking USB adapter I use
with XP is no longer available. It was replaced by a newer model that
many think was not much of an improvement, and there's a chance I'm
the only OS/2 user who ever bought the HWU54D. That didn't set up a
likely scenario for serious driver effort, so I gave it up.

Then there's the issue of getting it recognised as an appropriate USB
device. It's funny... When plugged into eCS 1.2, I think the Hawking
WiFi adapter is recognised as some kind of mouse or gaming device.
USB Device monitor proudly displays it as "4 Either Hand". Looking
at the device list, way down at the bottom there's "0 Not applicable",
"1 Right Hand", "2 Left Hand", "3 Both Hands", and the oh so popular
"4 Either Hand". On second thought, maybe it thinks it's an adult's
only entertainment device.


--
Barbara

On Sat, 24 May 2008 17:18:15 UTC, dwgras@swbell.net wrote:

Hi David,

Well, mine goes one step further and doesn't work well with either eCS
or XP unless I'm right on top of a router/transmitter/access point.
Interesting, however. I use a USB adapter for XP.

--
Barbara