[GTALUG] Advice -- Building Debian 8 PC To Replace Win XP PC;

[Russell Reiter]

On Jul 30, 2016 1:28 AM, "Steve Petrie, P.Eng. via talk" <talk at gtalug.org>
wrote:

<snip>
>
> So for me, HylaFAX is a cumbersome last-resort workaround, if I can't
find any easier way to get a dial-up modem working under Linux.
>

This device looks promising to me. New Old Stock is the reason I go to
Above All etc.

http://m.ebay.ca/itm/US-Robotics-56K-USB-Modem-Windows-Mac-Linux-/272305326036?nav=SEARCH

http://support.usr.com/support/5637/5637-ug/install.html

Here's a snippet from the support page.

"Linux Kernel 2.4.20 and Higher

You need a USB modem driver (CDC ACM) compiled into a Linux kernel 2.4.20
or higher or as a loadable module for your kernel. Installation of the
modem under these kernels is fully automatic provided your kernel has the
Plug and Play module enabled (default). You do not need to install any
drivers off the USRobotics installation CD-ROM. "

If you browse eBay you will find lots of OEM stuff with CD's and linux
drivers. The problem with this is twofold, kernel age and the driver
packaging. ie. might have only an rpm, in which case you'd have to repack
as dpkg and or tinker with libraries which address the older kernel.

You have to be able to access the UART or s/w emulationion used by the
device. Unfortunately even knowing the series number is not enough, there
are a number of iterations.

Here are a couple of quotes from,

https://www.freebsd.org/doc/en/articles/serial-uart/

"NS16550
    Same as NS16450 with a 16-byte send and receive buffer but the buffer
design was flawed and could not be reliably be used.

NS16550A
    Same as NS16550 with the buffer flaws corrected. The 16550A and its
successors have become the most popular UART design in the PC industry,
mainly due to its ability to reliably handle higher data rates on operating
systems with sluggish interrupt response times."

"In internal modems, the modem designer will frequently emulate the
8250A/16450 with the modem microprocessor, and the emulated UART will
frequently have a hidden buffer consisting of several hundred bytes.
Because of the size of the buffer, these emulations can be as reliable as a
16550A in their ability to handle high speed data. However, most operating
systems will still report that the UART is only a 8250A or 16450, and may
not make effective use of the extra buffering present in the emulated UART
unless special drivers are used."

> <snip>
> ---
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Russell
Sent from mobile.
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