If this is your first visit, be sure to check out the FAQ by clicking the link above. You may have to register before you can post: click the register link above to proceed. To start viewing messages, select the forum that you want to visit from the selection below. |
|
|
Thread Tools | Display Modes |
#1
|
|||
|
|||
Presario 1245
My 1245 laptop has a few issues. The floppy drive has died and the
battery is dead too. I can live with that (I use the 110 plug all the time anyway, probably what killed the battery anyway). I figure that a PCMCIA driven floppy will care for the drive problem.... will it???? Or should I use a USB external??? What are the pro's and con's?? The battery can be replaced without too much trouble, can it????? Can I use a lithium (that was an option when I bought it if I remember right) with the standard charger/power supply?? The hard drive is only a 3.02 gig and that is the big rub. Can I replace with a larger drive (2 1/2 inch form factor??) and if so what type is it (EIDE or scuzzy??) And if I replace it, I can use what size in its place?? With a BIOS overlay can I go up to about 20 gig or more?? I know, it is old and slow but so am I and I am still working. Thanks in advance for any and all advice, useful or not. George |
#2
|
|||
|
|||
George,
Most USB external floppy drives now available conform to the USB 2.0 specification. A USB floppy is not an option for your old computer. Alternatives include a PCMCIA floppy, which are getting hard to find nowadays, and simply installing a replacement floppy inside the laptop chassis. The latter is a viable option only if the drive itself is defective, and not the controller electronics of the laptop. Replacement batteries are still available, either from a reputable eBay seller or a battery supply company like Fedco. A replacement hard drive would have to be 2.5" form factor. Depending on the age of the computer, it may well not accept a hard drive larger than 8.4GB, one of the famous hard drive BIOS limitations that hit every so often in the last like a brick wall. What type and speed of processor is in the 1245? It sounds like you might have to spend quite a few bucks to get the laptop where you want it. A replacement, even used from a good source, may be a more cost-effective option... Ben Myers On Wed, 01 Sep 2004 16:57:43 -0500, George Vigneron wrote: My 1245 laptop has a few issues. The floppy drive has died and the battery is dead too. I can live with that (I use the 110 plug all the time anyway, probably what killed the battery anyway). I figure that a PCMCIA driven floppy will care for the drive problem.... will it???? Or should I use a USB external??? What are the pro's and con's?? The battery can be replaced without too much trouble, can it????? Can I use a lithium (that was an option when I bought it if I remember right) with the standard charger/power supply?? The hard drive is only a 3.02 gig and that is the big rub. Can I replace with a larger drive (2 1/2 inch form factor??) and if so what type is it (EIDE or scuzzy??) And if I replace it, I can use what size in its place?? With a BIOS overlay can I go up to about 20 gig or more?? I know, it is old and slow but so am I and I am still working. Thanks in advance for any and all advice, useful or not. George |
#3
|
|||
|
|||
Thanks Ben,
The processor is an AMD K6-2 333, slow but effective. I'm slow too (but some question the effective part). The floppy acts like the drive mechanism, not the electronics. That is what it seems like anyway. I have used peripherials that conform to the USB 2.0 spec with this laptop and they worked, perhaps they were backwards compatible? I was referring to the external drives that plug into the PCMCIA slot and are attached with a small cable and use power from the slot. I saw some the other day in a CDW catalog listing. Seems they would work without the drive electronics. As for the batteries, will my charger handle the lithium replacements?? Sorry for all the questions. I am trying to avoid the replacing of the laptop, perhaps that will be the most cost effective way in the end. Thanks again. George Ben Myers wrote: George, Most USB external floppy drives now available conform to the USB 2.0 specification. A USB floppy is not an option for your old computer. Alternatives include a PCMCIA floppy, which are getting hard to find nowadays, and simply installing a replacement floppy inside the laptop chassis. The latter is a viable option only if the drive itself is defective, and not the controller electronics of the laptop. Replacement batteries are still available, either from a reputable eBay seller or a battery supply company like Fedco. A replacement hard drive would have to be 2.5" form factor. Depending on the age of the computer, it may well not accept a hard drive larger than 8.4GB, one of the famous hard drive BIOS limitations that hit every so often in the last like a brick wall. What type and speed of processor is in the 1245? It sounds like you might have to spend quite a few bucks to get the laptop where you want it. A replacement, even used from a good source, may be a more cost-effective option... Ben Myers On Wed, 01 Sep 2004 16:57:43 -0500, George Vigneron wrote: My 1245 laptop has a few issues. The floppy drive has died and the battery is dead too. I can live with that (I use the 110 plug all the time anyway, probably what killed the battery anyway). I figure that a PCMCIA driven floppy will care for the drive problem.... will it???? Or should I use a USB external??? What are the pro's and con's?? The battery can be replaced without too much trouble, can it????? Can I use a lithium (that was an option when I bought it if I remember right) with the standard charger/power supply?? The hard drive is only a 3.02 gig and that is the big rub. Can I replace with a larger drive (2 1/2 inch form factor??) and if so what type is it (EIDE or scuzzy??) And if I replace it, I can use what size in its place?? With a BIOS overlay can I go up to about 20 gig or more?? I know, it is old and slow but so am I and I am still working. Thanks in advance for any and all advice, useful or not. George |
#4
|
|||
|
|||
I'm not an expert in most of your questions, but a USB2 floppy will work
fine. USB2 devices are backwards compatible to USB1.1 (and Ben, come on, I know you know that). Tom "George Vigneron" wrote in message ... Thanks Ben, The processor is an AMD K6-2 333, slow but effective. I'm slow too (but some question the effective part). The floppy acts like the drive mechanism, not the electronics. That is what it seems like anyway. I have used peripherials that conform to the USB 2.0 spec with this laptop and they worked, perhaps they were backwards compatible? I was referring to the external drives that plug into the PCMCIA slot and are attached with a small cable and use power from the slot. I saw some the other day in a CDW catalog listing. Seems they would work without the drive electronics. As for the batteries, will my charger handle the lithium replacements?? Sorry for all the questions. I am trying to avoid the replacing of the laptop, perhaps that will be the most cost effective way in the end. Thanks again. George Ben Myers wrote: George, Most USB external floppy drives now available conform to the USB 2.0 specification. A USB floppy is not an option for your old computer. Alternatives include a PCMCIA floppy, which are getting hard to find nowadays, and simply installing a replacement floppy inside the laptop chassis. The latter is a viable option only if the drive itself is defective, and not the controller electronics of the laptop. Replacement batteries are still available, either from a reputable eBay seller or a battery supply company like Fedco. A replacement hard drive would have to be 2.5" form factor. Depending on the age of the computer, it may well not accept a hard drive larger than 8.4GB, one of the famous hard drive BIOS limitations that hit every so often in the last like a brick wall. What type and speed of processor is in the 1245? It sounds like you might have to spend quite a few bucks to get the laptop where you want it. A replacement, even used from a good source, may be a more cost-effective option... Ben Myers On Wed, 01 Sep 2004 16:57:43 -0500, George Vigneron wrote: My 1245 laptop has a few issues. The floppy drive has died and the battery is dead too. I can live with that (I use the 110 plug all the time anyway, probably what killed the battery anyway). I figure that a PCMCIA driven floppy will care for the drive problem.... will it???? Or should I use a USB external??? What are the pro's and con's?? The battery can be replaced without too much trouble, can it????? Can I use a lithium (that was an option when I bought it if I remember right) with the standard charger/power supply?? The hard drive is only a 3.02 gig and that is the big rub. Can I replace with a larger drive (2 1/2 inch form factor??) and if so what type is it (EIDE or scuzzy??) And if I replace it, I can use what size in its place?? With a BIOS overlay can I go up to about 20 gig or more?? I know, it is old and slow but so am I and I am still working. Thanks in advance for any and all advice, useful or not. George |
#5
|
|||
|
|||
USB 2.0 devices are backwards compatible to USB1.1, unless they TAKE THEIR POWER
from the USB connector, Tom! If a USB 2.0 device has its own power supply, I agree 1000% that it will work, albeit more slowly, when plugged into a functional USB 1.1 slot. One of the fundamental and important steps taken with USB 2.0 was to supply more than nominal power (e.g. USB keyboard or mouse) via the USB connector to devices like hard drives, CD-RW drives, flash memory readers, and yes, even floppy drives which are also considered relatively high power devices. In short, a USB 2.0 floppy drive may not work when plugged into a USB 1.1 computer. Or maybe it will. Depends on its power consumption. I've had some deeply disappointed clients who tried a USB 2.0 device in a relatively new USB 1.1 notebook and found it would not work. Disappointed not by me, but by their attempts to use incompatible technology which seems to be perfectly compatible. Neither of us is 100% in stating the absolute of will or will not work. Too many variables... Ben Myers On Wed, 1 Sep 2004 20:50:13 -0400, "Tom Scales" wrote: I'm not an expert in most of your questions, but a USB2 floppy will work fine. USB2 devices are backwards compatible to USB1.1 (and Ben, come on, I know you know that). Tom "George Vigneron" wrote in message ... Thanks Ben, The processor is an AMD K6-2 333, slow but effective. I'm slow too (but some question the effective part). The floppy acts like the drive mechanism, not the electronics. That is what it seems like anyway. I have used peripherials that conform to the USB 2.0 spec with this laptop and they worked, perhaps they were backwards compatible? I was referring to the external drives that plug into the PCMCIA slot and are attached with a small cable and use power from the slot. I saw some the other day in a CDW catalog listing. Seems they would work without the drive electronics. As for the batteries, will my charger handle the lithium replacements?? Sorry for all the questions. I am trying to avoid the replacing of the laptop, perhaps that will be the most cost effective way in the end. Thanks again. George Ben Myers wrote: George, Most USB external floppy drives now available conform to the USB 2.0 specification. A USB floppy is not an option for your old computer. Alternatives include a PCMCIA floppy, which are getting hard to find nowadays, and simply installing a replacement floppy inside the laptop chassis. The latter is a viable option only if the drive itself is defective, and not the controller electronics of the laptop. Replacement batteries are still available, either from a reputable eBay seller or a battery supply company like Fedco. A replacement hard drive would have to be 2.5" form factor. Depending on the age of the computer, it may well not accept a hard drive larger than 8.4GB, one of the famous hard drive BIOS limitations that hit every so often in the last like a brick wall. What type and speed of processor is in the 1245? It sounds like you might have to spend quite a few bucks to get the laptop where you want it. A replacement, even used from a good source, may be a more cost-effective option... Ben Myers On Wed, 01 Sep 2004 16:57:43 -0500, George Vigneron wrote: My 1245 laptop has a few issues. The floppy drive has died and the battery is dead too. I can live with that (I use the 110 plug all the time anyway, probably what killed the battery anyway). I figure that a PCMCIA driven floppy will care for the drive problem.... will it???? Or should I use a USB external??? What are the pro's and con's?? The battery can be replaced without too much trouble, can it????? Can I use a lithium (that was an option when I bought it if I remember right) with the standard charger/power supply?? The hard drive is only a 3.02 gig and that is the big rub. Can I replace with a larger drive (2 1/2 inch form factor??) and if so what type is it (EIDE or scuzzy??) And if I replace it, I can use what size in its place?? With a BIOS overlay can I go up to about 20 gig or more?? I know, it is old and slow but so am I and I am still working. Thanks in advance for any and all advice, useful or not. George |
#6
|
|||
|
|||
Thanks guys, I am considering what I should do about this. Now I have
some information to act on. Tom Scales wrote: I'm not an expert in most of your questions, but a USB2 floppy will work fine. USB2 devices are backwards compatible to USB1.1 (and Ben, come on, I know you know that). Tom "George Vigneron" wrote in message ... Thanks Ben, The processor is an AMD K6-2 333, slow but effective. I'm slow too (but some question the effective part). The floppy acts like the drive mechanism, not the electronics. That is what it seems like anyway. I have used peripherials that conform to the USB 2.0 spec with this laptop and they worked, perhaps they were backwards compatible? I was referring to the external drives that plug into the PCMCIA slot and are attached with a small cable and use power from the slot. I saw some the other day in a CDW catalog listing. Seems they would work without the drive electronics. As for the batteries, will my charger handle the lithium replacements?? Sorry for all the questions. I am trying to avoid the replacing of the laptop, perhaps that will be the most cost effective way in the end. Thanks again. George Ben Myers wrote: George, Most USB external floppy drives now available conform to the USB 2.0 specification. A USB floppy is not an option for your old computer. Alternatives include a PCMCIA floppy, which are getting hard to find nowadays, and simply installing a replacement floppy inside the laptop chassis. The latter is a viable option only if the drive itself is defective, and not the controller electronics of the laptop. Replacement batteries are still available, either from a reputable eBay seller or a battery supply company like Fedco. A replacement hard drive would have to be 2.5" form factor. Depending on the age of the computer, it may well not accept a hard drive larger than 8.4GB, one of the famous hard drive BIOS limitations that hit every so often in the last like a brick wall. What type and speed of processor is in the 1245? It sounds like you might have to spend quite a few bucks to get the laptop where you want it. A replacement, even used from a good source, may be a more cost-effective option... Ben Myers On Wed, 01 Sep 2004 16:57:43 -0500, George Vigneron wrote: My 1245 laptop has a few issues. The floppy drive has died and the battery is dead too. I can live with that (I use the 110 plug all the time anyway, probably what killed the battery anyway). I figure that a PCMCIA driven floppy will care for the drive problem.... will it???? Or should I use a USB external??? What are the pro's and con's?? The battery can be replaced without too much trouble, can it????? Can I use a lithium (that was an option when I bought it if I remember right) with the standard charger/power supply?? The hard drive is only a 3.02 gig and that is the big rub. Can I replace with a larger drive (2 1/2 inch form factor??) and if so what type is it (EIDE or scuzzy??) And if I replace it, I can use what size in its place?? With a BIOS overlay can I go up to about 20 gig or more?? I know, it is old and slow but so am I and I am still working. Thanks in advance for any and all advice, useful or not. George |
Thread Tools | |
Display Modes | |
|
|
Similar Threads | ||||
Thread | Thread Starter | Forum | Replies | Last Post |
compaq presario 1245 | me | Compaq Computers | 3 | December 15th 05 04:32 AM |
Compaq Presario 5446 into Presario 5440 Case | Grocus | Compaq Computers | 0 | September 4th 03 02:41 PM |
Presario 524 Maxfax software | Mike Calkins | Compaq Computers | 1 | August 12th 03 12:59 AM |
Problems with Presario 700 (711AU) | SFR | Compaq Computers | 1 | July 8th 03 10:34 AM |
Presario 1250 monitor in Presario 1200? | Jaban | Compaq Computers | 0 | July 5th 03 12:10 AM |