By George I Think I've Got It!

I think I've got WiFi! None of the Orinco cards I could find were the recommended Prism ones, so I got a WPC11 V.3 instead. The drivers installed with no problem and the card was found as soon as I inserted it.
The config utility opened up and started looking for a network. PocketWinc works too! Now I've just got to get to a hotspot! This is going to be great for visits to my parents 300 miles away..I can use their wireless network and I won't need my 7lb notebook! Whoever said laptops were mobile never had to lug one around!
One quick question..when I inserted the card a window popped up warning me my battery might not be charged enough for it and that many cards need AC power. At the time my battery was at 83%. Is this just a standard warning that pops up whenever you insert a PC card while on battery power?


Sue

Yes, that's a standard warning. It'll come up, too, if you soft reset your device with the card in it. SmallTweaks, a free Control Panel utility, has an option to disable that message.

Congratulations on an up-and-running network. Does your software have power management for when you're on battery?

Jake

Good news Sue. I use a wpc11 among others and rate it highly. Fact is, I use nothing but prism based cards. They are comfortable, like a pair of old slippers. They seem OK on battery draw as well, unlike some cards which draw 600ma during transmit.

I agree totally about laptops being brutish to lug around. 7lbs, 10lbs, it doesn't take long for them to feel like 100lbs.

Give me a 2lb hpc kit anyday. That's with a charger and spares to boot. I hardly even notice it when travelling.

How did we all manage pre-hpc days?

Just a small FYI - the ORiNOCO has its own driver (though there are also several non-ORiNOCO cards that use the same driver).

Does anyone have a link to that control utility? All the links i find are dead.

PM me with your email and I'll send it to you.

Jake

yay. don't even ask ... i'm still mourning the old days when i didn't have a hpc. back in 2000-2001 and before, all i needed would have been a hpc. instead of a PC! (since then my needs changed, i need alot of storage for example, so a PC is a must.)

when i got the free laptop from my uni, it was "just" around 5,6 lbs (2.6 kg), but it felt very heavy hehehe. i almost couldn't carry it with me all the way to home... and almost never use it. stiill, nice to have a laptop sitting in the corner (or drawer ) though, who knows if i ever need it... (i can imagine a life style where i'd need it - but i don't have that currently.)




woo hooo they're partially compatible. WEP isn't, but otherwise alot of prism card may be able to work with orinoco drivers, but maybe that's driver dependent too. this is the case on EPOC (psion anyone?), i've never tested this on CE. would be worth a try lol. but as i said you'll lose WEP. that's different in the orinoco's.