[ale] Winmodem useless or usable?

Byron A Jeff byron at cc.gatech.edu
Fri Jan 15 10:39:58 EST 1999


> 
> >I've been going nuts trying to get one to work in NT as well.
> 
> 	Does this mean that Winmodems don't work in all windows?

Correct. Usually the software driver is specifically for Windows 95/98. 
Certain Lucent Winmodems also have NT drivers.


> What
> other OS's do they not work in?

They work only for Windows 95/98. That's it.

> I don't have one (nor do I plan to ever
> get one), but my dad doesn't believe me on how bad they are. I have
> gotten my info from here and from winmodem.(org or com, can't remember
> which it was). My dad wants to see proof from an unbiased (if possible ;)
>  ) source. Does anyone know of any such URL's where I can prove it to
> him?

Well it's a matter of perspective. From what I understand they work fairly
decently under 95/98. They suck up some CPU cycles, but with the huge
speed increase in CPU speed, it doesn't affect normal operations much.
In short for 100 percent Windows people they work, so they don't see much of
a problem.

The real point you may wish to drive home is the Windows 2000 issue. There's
no gurantee that Windows 2000 will support the same driver interface as
Win 95/98. There's also no gurantee that Winmodem manufacturers will develop
new Win2000 drivers for old Winmodems. In fact it would be in their best
interest to get folks to buy new Winmodems with Win2000 drivers (maybe with
a discount if you send your old Winmodem back...) 

Just some thoughts.

BAJ






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