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From: Grumps on 5 Jun 2007 03:29
Hi All

Simple question that I haven't found an answer to yet.
I'm trying to find a simple 56k modem that has a Windows Vista driver. Every
modem I've found so far only states Win98/SE/2000/ME/XP. Would the XP driver
work, or is there a real Vista modem driver out there somewhere?
TIA


From: kony on 5 Jun 2007 03:45
On Tue, 5 Jun 2007 08:29:26 +0100, "Grumps"
<grumpsnothere(a)hotmail.com> wrote:

>Hi All
>
>Simple question that I haven't found an answer to yet.

The simple answer is don't use Vista until every last piece
of hardware is suported. Even then, it would be crazy, to
use such a crippled POS but if you're a glutton for
punishment...
From: Grumps on 5 Jun 2007 03:47
"kony" <spam(a)spam.com> wrote in message
news:i25a631ip1nka06oe79gkk0jgjprb920d4(a)4ax.com...
> On Tue, 5 Jun 2007 08:29:26 +0100, "Grumps"
> <grumpsnothere(a)hotmail.com> wrote:
>
>>Hi All
>>
>>Simple question that I haven't found an answer to yet.
>
> The simple answer is don't use Vista until every last piece
> of hardware is suported. Even then, it would be crazy, to
> use such a crippled POS but if you're a glutton for
> punishment...

Thanks.
The PC is not yet purchased. It will be a Dell, and they offer Vista or MCE.
I guess MCE would be the prefered choice then.

What makes Vista crippled?


From: kony on 5 Jun 2007 04:21
On Tue, 5 Jun 2007 08:47:54 +0100, "Grumps"
<grumpsnothere(a)hotmail.com> wrote:

>"kony" <spam(a)spam.com> wrote in message
>news:i25a631ip1nka06oe79gkk0jgjprb920d4(a)4ax.com...
>> On Tue, 5 Jun 2007 08:29:26 +0100, "Grumps"
>> <grumpsnothere(a)hotmail.com> wrote:
>>
>>>Hi All
>>>
>>>Simple question that I haven't found an answer to yet.
>>
>> The simple answer is don't use Vista until every last piece
>> of hardware is suported. Even then, it would be crazy, to
>> use such a crippled POS but if you're a glutton for
>> punishment...
>
>Thanks.
>The PC is not yet purchased. It will be a Dell, and they offer Vista or MCE.
>I guess MCE would be the prefered choice then.
>
>What makes Vista crippled?
>

Everything? It's a beta OS with substantial bugs + DRM.
Even deleting a few files is potentially thwarted by vista
with several minutes wait, which is a sad joke.

In the end, the choice is a Vista aeroglass UI which is less
productive, vs XP which is more desirable in every way
possibe besides MS deceitful advertising.

Don't use Vista untill there is a clear reason to do so that
outweighs the detriments.
From: Paul on 5 Jun 2007 04:22
Grumps wrote:
> Hi All
>
> Simple question that I haven't found an answer to yet.
> I'm trying to find a simple 56k modem that has a Windows Vista driver. Every
> modem I've found so far only states Win98/SE/2000/ME/XP. Would the XP driver
> work, or is there a real Vista modem driver out there somewhere?
> TIA
>
>

Try looking on the support page, for the products you are interested in.
I got lucky on the first try. The magic word Vista is mentioned here.

http://www.usr.com/support/product-template.asp?prod=5610b

The driver is a tiny download, and looks to be mainly an INF file.
This is the header of the file. The rest of the file appears
to modify the registry, so it isn't much of a driver in that
sense. (And that is because this modem is a hardware modem.)

*******
; USR5610.INF, version 6.22.70.03
; Copyright 2000-2006, U.S. Robotics Corporation
; Windows 95,98,2000,XP(32&64),Vista(32&64) INF Support for U.S. Robotics V92 Fax PCI (5610B).
; Modified by U.S. Robotics Corporation PQA-CF on 8/17/2001 1:55PM.
; Modified by U.S. Robotics Corporation -TS on 3/25/2003 12:03 PM
; Updated DriverVer 5.22.66.00 by U.S. Robotics Corporation -TS on 8/06/2003 2:47 PM
; Updated DriverVer 5.22.68.00 by U.S. Robotics Corporation -TS on 8/07/2003 4:48 PM
; Updated DriverVer 5.22.70.00 by U.S. Robotics Corporation -TS on 11/20/2003 5:11 PM
; Added support for XP x64 OS 5.22.70.01 modified by USR-TS on 08/04/2005 3:25 PM
; Fixed Modem response NO DIALTONE and DIAG by MS PRojects -TS on 10/04/2005 1:16 PM
; Changed .NTx86.5.1 to NT.5.1,NT.5.2 by USR-TS on 05/09/2006 11:20 AM.
; 11/15/2006, 6.22.70.03 added support Vista&fixed SourceDiskName USR-TS
*******

There are some Winmodem type designs, where the driver is
actual code (executable), and it decodes the tones on the phone line.
That is bound to be more complicated, and since that is a real driver,
it might take more work to make a Vista version.

For example, I tried looking for driver support for the USR 5699b,
which is stated to be a Winmodem. And they have a Vista driver for it!
The driver in this case, is 0.9MB in size, so the driver is a lot
larger than the tiny INF file used by the other one. (One thing that
is weird in the following links, is the driver is stored in a "5699c"
folder, even though the product is a 5699b.)

(Download page)
http://www.usr.com/support/product-template.asp?prod=5699b
(Download file)
http://www.usr.com/support/5699c/5699c-files/5699-Vista-x86-v338.zip
(Product page)
http://www.usr.com/products/home/home-product.asp?type=specs&sku=USR5699B

The reviews for that Winmodem don't look that good. It is cheaper, to be sure,
but not many people liked it.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductReview.aspx?Item=N82E16825104137

Some reviews for the 5610B are here. The design appears to be a few years old.
Since the hard part is done in hardware, on the card, it costs more, but
should be less bothered by driver issues.

http://www.amazon.com/Robotics-PERFORMANCE-V-92-56K-MODEM-USR325610B/dp/customer-reviews/B00006HU75

Actually, in some tests I did a couple years back, I got 1% more thruput
on a Winmodem, versus an external USR Courier modem. Which surprised me.
So a Winmodem can in fact, be very good. The hard part, is figuring out
which Winmodems have decent software. You can spend $10 for the Winmodem
many times over, trying to find one with good driver code. But they do
exist.

Paul
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