alt.sys.pc-clone.gateway2000 FAQ Part 2 of 3
From: tbrann1@uic.edu (Timothy S. Brannan)
Newsgroups: alt.sys.pc-clone.gateway2000,alt.answers,news.answers
Subject: alt.sys.pc-clone.gateway2000 FAQ Part 2 of 3
Followup-To: poster
Date: Fri, 01 Aug 1997 14:01:39 GMT
Organization: University of Illinois at Chicago
Message-ID: <33e3e87b.4760704@news.uic.edu>
Reply-To: tbrann1@uic.edu
Summary: alt.sys.pc-clone.gateway2000 FAQ
Keywords: FAQ
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Archive-name: pc-hardware-faq/gateway2000/part2
Last-modified: August 1, 1997
Last-Posted: July 1, 1997
Next-Posting: September 1, 1997
Posting-Frequency: the first of every month
URL: http://www.uic.edu/~tbrann1/gateway.html
Maintainer: Timothy S. Brannan <tbrann1@uic.edu>
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Section 2: Hardware Information
2.1) General Hardware Questions
2.1.1) What Motherboard do I have?
2.1.2) How do I get into the CMOS setup?
2.1.3) Why does my P5-60/P5-66/PCI486 machine lock up? (UART fix)
*2.1.4) I can't access my COM 3 or COM 4 port?
2.1.5) Why do I have a long delay when exiting Windows?
2.1.6) How do I get my Bernoulli to work on the parallel port
(P90 Tower)?
2.1.7) My system doesn't recognize more than 16M of RAM
2.1.8) Why is there a 20-second delay during booting?
2.1.9) How can I upgrade my 486 to a Pentium?
2.1.9.1) I bought my 486 when it was advertised as Pentium ready.
What does/did that mean?
2.1.9.2) How can I upgrade my Pentium to a Pentium Pro?
2.1.9.3) How can I upgrade my Pentium to a MMX Pentium?
2.1.9.4) How can I upgrade my Pentium or Pro to a Pentium II?
2.2) CD-ROM Questions
2.2.1) Why does my system "pause" when playing CDs?
2.2.2) How do I get Windows 95 to access all drives on the Sanyo
3-CD CD-ROM?
2.2.2.1) Is there support for the Sanyo 3-CD CD-ROM in Windows NT?
2.2.3) My CD-ROM light blinks every few seconds under Windows 95
- Why?
2.2.4) Why does the Mitsumi FX-400 CD-ROM make grinding noises?
2.2.4.1) Where can I get Mitsumi CD-ROM drivers and information?
2.2.4.2) Is there a problem with the Mitsumi 12x CD-Rom?
2.2.5) What can I do about the Wearnes CD-ROM pauses?
2.2.5.1) What other information is there about the Wearnes CD-ROM?
2.2.6) Will my NEC 260 CD-ROM run with Windows NT?
2.2.7) Other CD Rom questions
2.3) Keyboard and Mice Questions
2.3.1) How can I disable the programmibility of the Anykey
keyboard?
2.3.2) My Anykey keyboard produces incorrect characters. How can
I fix it?
2.3.3) How can I program my AnyKey keyboard to act like a
Windows95 Keyboard?
2.4) Modem Questions
2.4.1) Why can't I connect with my (older) Telepath modem?
2.4.2) Why won't the 28.8 Telepath work with Delrina's Commsuite
95?
2.4.3) Why does my 28.8 Telepath insist on always answering?
2.4.4) Why can't I use a modem at COM4:?
2.4.9) Where can I learn more about modems and their problems?
2.5) Monitor and Video Questions
2.5.1) What about the missing 3 pixels on the left of my screen?
2.5.2) What is the bright line on the left of my monitor?
What are other common monitor problems?
2.5.3) Who makes the CrystalScan monitors?
2.5.4) What are the custom settings for the CS1572FS monitor?
2.5.5) Where can I get the latest drivers for the ATI Video
cards?
2.5.6) Who makes the Vivitron monitors?
2.5.6.1) What are the specs for the SONY Vivitron monitor made by
SONY?
2.5.6.2) What's the right way to set up a Vivitron 21 under Windows
95?
2.5.7) Where can I get drivers for the Diamond Viper cards?
2.5.7.1) Can I use the regular Matrox drivers with Gateway's
Matrox?
2.5.7.2) Where can I get Matrox BIOS and driver updates?
2.5.8) Why do I have video problems with my tower system and not
my desktop?
2.5.9) What are those horizontal black lines on my monitor?
2.5.9.9) Are there any monitor repair FAQs?
2.6) Soundcard and Speaker Questions
2.6.1) Why won't my SoundBlaster card work?
2.6.2) Why won't my Ensoniq card work with DOS games?
2.6.3) How do I setup my Aztech soundcard under Windows95?
2.6.8) Why do my Altec Lansing 450 speakers hiss so much?
2.7) Hard Drive Questions
2.7.1) How can I get my WD 540 hard drive to work correctly?
2.7.2) What is the problem with the Western Digital 1.6 Gig
drive?
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Section 2: Hardware Questions
2.1) General Hardware Questions
2.1.1) What Motherboard do I have?
Gateway has used a variety of motherboards over the years. Knowing
what
motherboard you have is helpfull when you are trying to upgrade things
like memory, cache and CPUs or overdrives.
The first thing to know is what CPU do you have now and what kind of
socket it is set in.
Gateway uses Intel CPU's exclusively, so this makes CPU identification
easier. Here are the sockets for the 486 and Pentium motherboards.
Socket Pins Layout Volts CPUs
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
LIF 168 17x17 PGA 5 v SX, SX2, DX, DX2*
ZIF 1 169 17x17 PGA 5 v SX, SX2, DX, DX2*
ZIF 2 238 19x19 PGA 5 v SX, SX2, DX, DX2*, POD63
ZIF 3 237 19x19 PGA 5/3.3 SX, SX2, DX, DX2, DX4, POD
60/63
ZIF 4 273 21x21 PGA 5 v Pentium 60/66, POD60/66
ZIF 5 320 37x37 SPGA 3.3v Pentium 75/90/100/120,
POD90/100
ZIF 6 235 19x19 PGA 3.3v DX4, DX4 Pentium Overdrive
ZIF 7 321 21x21 SPGA VRM Pentium
75/90/100/120/133/150/166/200
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
*DX4 also can be supported by an aftermarket voltage regulator.
PGA = Pin Grid Array
SPGA = Staggered Pin Grid Array
VRM = Voltage Regulator Module
POD = Pentium Overdrive
According to Ben Myers and to several posts to the newsgroup, all
486 motherboards made by Micronics are 5 volt only. This restricts
them to LIF, ZIF 1, 2, and 3 sockets only. This rules out the 3.3 volt
DX4 or Pentium overdrive for many users.
Gateway has used the following 486 Micronics motherboards.
(Thanks to Ben Myers for filling the blanks for me.)
Micronics Other ID Info Typical Gw2k Phoenix BIOS
TYPE 3 25/33 MHz Bus
Board # Part#
ZIF? Switch?
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
09-00192 JX30WB (none)
JX30WB-02 Y N
09-00189 JX30G MBDLOC001AxUS JX30G-12
Y Y
09-00189 JX30GP JX30GPS2 JX30GP-04
Y Y
09-00183 JX30 MLB-P24T JX30-06 Y
Y
09-00169 Gemini VL/ZIF 486DXLBP24TR GLB05 Y
Y
09-00144 Gemini VL/LIF 486DXLB GLB05 N
Y
09-00054 80486 ASIC ISA (unknown) G14
N 33MHz fixed
09-00081 Baby Gemini ISA (unknown) G22-2
N N (25 or 33MHz)
09-00117 EISA ASIC (none) 1.01.22.2
N N
09-00173 EISA VL EISA486LBW G24-2 Y
Y
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
For Pentium based computers Gateway has used Intel motherboards.
The following Pentium boards can be checked against the BIOS revison
number at boot-up. (Once again, thanks to Ben Myers.)
The BIOS revision numbers listed are the LATEST ones available from
Intel
as of it's relace date. Intel keeps revising and updating the various
BIOSes.
It is always best to check directly with Gateway or Intel.
Note: All Gateway BIOS versions have the suffix of "T". For example,
an
Intel Plato BIOS from Gateway might be 1.00.12.AX1T.
BIOS REVISION OFFICIAL INTEL NAME CODE NAME/CPU SOCKET
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1.00.19.R0 Xpress Servers
1.00.19.V0 Xpress Servers
1.00.19.AK0 Xpress Servers
1.00.19.AM0 Xpress Servers
1.00.07.S0 Professional Workstation
1.00.09.W0 Classic S-Series
1.00.08.Y3 Professional/GX
1.00.05.AB0 Classic E-Series
1.00.09.AC0 Classic R/R-Plus LPX 486)
1.00.08.AF1 Premiere/PCI Expandable Desktop Batman (Baby-AT Socket
4)
1.00.13.AF2 Premiere/PCI ED Batman's Revenge
(Baby-AT Socket 4)
1.00.10.AQ0 Classic/PCI Expandable Desktop Alfredo (Baby-AT 486)
1.00.10.AU0 Premiere/PCI Low Profile
1.00.16.AX1 Premiere/PCI II Expandable Desktop Plato (Baby-AT
Socket 5)
1.00.08.AY0 Classic/PCI ED Ninja
1.00.08.AZ0 Classic/PCI LP Entrada
1.00.08.BB0 Premiere/PCI LX Low Profile Socrates
1.00.05.BC0 Premiere/PCI LC Low Profile Robin LC
1.00.07.BG0 Xtended Xpress Servers
1.00.18.BI0 ALTServer/CS Columbus (Dual
Socket 5)
1.00.03.BJ0 LANDesk(r) Server Monitor Module
1.00.06.BR0 Advanced/ZE Aladdin
1.00.04.BS0 Advanced/ZP Zappa
(Baby-AT Socket 5)
1.00.09.BT0 Advanced/MN Morrison
(LPX Socket 5)
1.00.07.BU0 Advanced/MA Monaco
1.00.05.CB0 Advanced/EV Endeavor
(Baby-AT Socket5/7)
1.00.08.CG0 Performance/AU Aurora (ATX
Socket 8)
1.00.07.CL0 Advanced/AS Atlantis
(Baby-AT Socket 7)
1.00.06.CN0 Advanced/ATX Thor (ATX Socket
7)
1.00.09.CS1 VS440FX Venus (ATX
Socket 8)
1.00.05.CT1 AP440FX Apollo/Krakatoa
(LPX Socket 8)
1.00.09.CV2 Advanced/RH Rhinestone
(LPX Socket 7)
1.00.07.DB0 Advanced/ML Marl (ATX
Socket 7)
1.00.04.DH0 TC430HX Tuscon (ATX
Socket 7)
1.00.02.DI0 PR440FX Providence (ATX
Socket 8)
1.00.0x.CY E430VX
1.00.0x.CW0 RU430HX Ruby (LPX Socket 7)
1.00.0x.DE0 NP430HX Newport (APX
Socket 7)
1.00.0x.DK0 CU430HX Cumberland (LPX
Socket 7)
1.00.0x.DD0 AG430HX Agate (ATX
Socket 7)
???? NV430VX Orlando/Tampa
(LPX Socket 7)
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2.1.2) How do I get into the CMOS Setup?
After the system is booted to DOS, typing CTRL-ALT-ESC will bring up
the CMOS screens for Micronics motherboards with the original
Gateway or Micronics BIOS.
On Anigma motherboards (some mini-desktops and all 486-PCI systems)
use
CTRL-ALT-S. What you see on the screens varies with the motherboard
you
have but most of the general settings are on the first page. You can
use
the "page up" and "page down" keys to move between CMOS pages.
(Thanks to Albert Crosby and Ben Myers)
One common problem with the CMOS setup is that if you are using the
"highscan" option to emm386, you will not be able to enter the CMOS
setup (you will lock up the system). If this happens, you should
boot clean (i.e. hit F5 after you see the "starting MS-DOS" prompt).
Then you can enter the CMOS setup normally.
If you have a newer Phoenix or Microfirmware BIOS then pressing F2
will bring up the CMOS setup screens, but only prior to booting
into the operating system. On Microfirmware BIOS, pressing F3 will
also bring up extra information.
American Megatrends, or AMI, BIOSes on older 486 computers may be
entered by pressing DEL after booting.
2.1.3) Why does my P5-60/P5-66/PCI486 machine lock up? (UART fix)
Several people have reported this condition when using communications
programs on their P5-60 or P5-66 machines (I have also received
reports
that this has happened on PCI bus 486 machines). This problem is
caused
by a defective chip provided by Intel on their motherboards. There is
a
software "fix" that works with Windows for Workgroups 3.11 (available
from Microsoft and Gateway 2000 on their BBS), but this works only
with
WfWG.
Bob Nick (bnick@HiWAAY.NET) has written a program (uart.com) which
will
prevent the machine from locking up under DOS, Windows, and OS/2, but
it
must be run between each communications session to be effective. This
program is available from the Gateway BBS as uartfix.exe or by FTP on
ftp.sei.cmu.edu along with an accompanying text file.
Intel and SMC have admitted the problem exists and that it is generic
to many P5 machines. Recent machines (after August, 1994) probably
will
not exhibit the problem.
*2.1.4) I can't access my COM 3 or COM 4 port?
Some Gateway2000 computers do not relesase the IRQ when they are
finished
using COM1 or COM2. This prevents Windows95 from using COM3 or COM4.
To fix this Microsoft suggests that you change the IRQ on the extended
COM ports to 2, 5, or 7.
In Windows95 use the Device Manager to change the COM port settings.
2.1.5) Why do I have a long delay when exiting Windows?
This problem has been experienced by people with newer Gateway systems
that have the PS/2 style mouse connectors (i.e. the round, plug in
type
rather than the type that looks like a small RS-232 connector). If you
experience this problem, you can put this line into your SYSTEM.INI
file
in the [386enh] section:
InitPS2MouseAtExit=False
and you will see significantly faster exit time.
2.1.6) How do I get my Bernoulli to work on the parallel port(P90
Tower)?
This applies to the Gateway P90 Tower and the Bernoulli 90 --
it may give clues to other systems. Go into CMOS at bootup and
change the parallel address to 378 under peripherals -- then go
into System and change STARTUP CPU SPEED to Low. After you are
finished return both settings to the original.
(This hint is from Marilyn Shea - Thanks!)
2.1.7) My system doesn't recognize more than 16M of RAM.
This is probably the most frequently asked question in the newsgroup!
In order to use more than 16M of RAM, you need to disable shadowing
in the BIOS. Go into your CMOS setup and disable the BIOS shadowing
option. When you reboot, your system should see all the RAM.
Note that disabling the shadow RAM may slow down your system somewhat.
You may also notice that the initial "beep" at startup sounds funny.
This is normal when shadowing is disabled.
2.1.8) Why is there a 20-second delay during booting?
This is caused by a conflict between your hard drive and CD-ROM drive.
Check the jumpers on your CD-ROM drive - your CD-ROM drive should be
configured in CS (cable select) mode, rather than Master. Changing the
jumper to CS should get rid of the delay.
A couple other things to try as well:
Reboot the computer and press F1 to enter setup.
(1) Highlight Hard Disk C (the model number should be in the box).
Choose it and see if the delay options for bootup are there. It
may
be under "Boot Options", then "Hard Disk Pre-delay". If so,
set to 5 seconds.
(2) Go to boot options. Hit enter and you can now set parameters for
bootup of the machine. Make sure that boot options are set to
Turbo.
(Thanks to Ted Northrop and Bob Mitchell!)
2.1.9) How can I upgrade my 486 to a Pentium?
I think this should quallify as the second most asked question in
the newsgroup.
Make sure you know which motherboard you have and which Pentium
upgrade,
or motherboard replacement will be needed. Gateway2000 only supports
the Intel Overdrive chips for their computers. These are the only
ones they have tested. To get more information on the Intel Pentium
Overdrives, see Intel's page, http://www.intel.com.
There are also 5x86 CPUs out there that provide Pentium power for
486 users. Check out these companies,
- AMD: http://www.amd.com/products/cpg/5x86/5x86.html,
- Cyrix: http://www.cyrix.com/process/prodinfo/legacy/legacy.htm,
- Evergreen: http://www.evertech.com,
- Gainbery: http://www.gainbery.com/cpumax.htm,
- Kingston Turbo Chip:
http://www.kingston.com/prod/procesor/tc133wpa.htm.
2.1.9.1) I bought my 486 when it was advertised as Pentium ready.
What does/did that mean?
This is also an issue with quite a few Gateway owners.
Here is what I know.
The design specifications vary between the various versions of the
486 chip. It mostly because of the design difference between the LIF,
ZIF 1, ZIF 2 and ZIF 3 sockets. Check item 2.1.1. to find out which
motherboard and socket you have.
The design changes resulted in changes in the proposed P24T chip that
became the Pentium Overdrive. So if you have an older 486 with a LIF
or ZIF 1 or 2 socket, then you are out of luck. The 83 Mhz Pentium
Overdrive, will not work. If you have a 25 or 50 Mhz 486 with a ZIF 2,
then you can upgrade to the 63 Mhz Pentium Overdrive.
Now if you have a 33/66 Mhz 486 with a ZIF 3 Socket, then you can use
the Pentium Overdrives.
Of course the big question is, "Whose fault is this?"
Gateway2000's response is posted on their web site at
http://www.gw2k.com/corpinfo/notice.htm.
I suggest you look in to it quickly.
To recieve Gateway's legal disclosure on the matter then call
1-800-555-2070, speak quickly.
You can also write to Gateway's Legal Department at:
Gateway 2000 Legal Department
P.O. Box 2000
610 Gateway Dr.
North Souix City, SD 57049-2000
Don't call Technical Support, unless you enjoy exercises in futility.
I personally believe the problem lies with Intel, for changing the
design of the P24T Overdrive and not supporting the existing 486
design,
AND to Gateway for advertising "Vapor-Ware", when no such product
existed. However people may different ideas, so I am still
nvestigating this problem.
2.1.9.2) How can I upgrade my Pentium to a Pentium Pro?
In a word or two, you can't. Niether Gateway nor Intel has ever made
this claim. But don't let that stop you. Now you can upgrade your
Pentium to a 6x86. This is similar to the above procedures for 486
owners, save I know less about it. Currnetly the only 6x86 on the
market is by Cyrix, http://www.cyrix.com.
- Gandalf's upgrading your Pentium to a 6x86 page,
http://www.together.net/~gandalf/index.htm.
- A report on the Cyrix 6x86 chip from PC Magazine. Will your next
computer say "Cyrix Inside"?
Thanks to Cyrix guru Fuchi.
Keep in mind that Gateway does support any other CPU than Intel.
Cyrix, in fact, is now in direct compitition with Gateway for the home
PC market. If this is something you decide on doing, you could find
yourself without any tech support from Gateway.
2.1.9.3) How can I upgrade my Pentium to a MMX Pentium?
I got this information from some tech support people at Intel.
Intel plans to introduce a family of Pentium(R) OverDrive(R)
processors
with MMX(TM) technology in 1997 for upgradable Pentium processor-based
systems. There will be Pentium OverDrive processors with MMX
technology
available for Pentium processor based - systems with Socket 5 or 7
available in speeds up to 166 MHz in the first half of 1997. There
will
be Pentium OverDrive processors with MMX technology available for
Pentium processor based - systems with Socket 7 available in speeds up
to 200 MHz in the second half of 1997. There will not be a Pentium
OverDrive processor with MMX technology for 60 or 66 MHz Pentium
processor - based systems. More specific product detail or
compatibility
information is not available until product introduction. For now, see
Intel's website at
http://www.intel.com/overdrive/mmx.htm
or
http://cs.intel.com/Intel/microprocessors/overdrive_processors/
*2.1.9.4) How can I upgrade my Pentium or Pro to a Pentium II?
This one is going to be a real pain in the neck.
The motherboards for the new Pentium II are completely different.
The Pentium II uses a slot configuration instead of the Pentium's
socket style. Currently you can only do a motherboard swap. Although
it is much more desirable to get a new Pentium II system.
2.2) CD-ROM Questions
2.2.1) Why does my system "pause"when playing CDs?
Some people have noticed that when they are playing CD's there system
will pause every time the HD light blinks. This is usually found on
P5-90 systems with the NEC IDE CD-ROM drives. The answer is:
The NEC is connected to the IDE interface and this will cause the
drive
light to blink. If you are doing any hard drive accesses or reads at
the
same time as the NEC is being accessed, this can cause the "jumps."
What
you can do to check this is to make sure the CD drive and the hard
drive
are on separate interfaces. With your system, the hard drives should
be
connected to the PCI IDE interface which is the farthest toward the
back
of the system. The CD drive should be on the ISA IDE interface which
is
just behind the floppy drive interface on the motherboard.
Also, some people have noted that the AudioStation CD audio player
that
comes with the Ensoniq sound card can cause these kinds of system
problems -- you can try the CD audio player from the Corel CD-ROM
sampler or get one of the shareware players from one of the many
anonymous FTP sites and try it.
(Thanks to Seth Tisue for this additional note!)
2.2.2) How do I get Windows 95 to access all drives on the Sanyo
3-CD CD-ROM?
From Lori Nagel, Gateway 2000 tech support:
Here's the steps you need to get access to all three drives with the
3-disk changer under Windows 95:
(1) Right click on the MY COMPUTER icon. Then on PROPERTIES.
(2) Click on the DEVICE MANAGER tab.
(3) Double-click on HARD DISK CONTROLLERS.
(4) Then double-click on the SECOND listing for
"Standard IDE/ESDI Hard Disk Controller."
(5) Uncheck Original Configuration (current).
(6) Click OK until it closes and then restart Win 95.You should now be
able to use all three of the drives.
The Sanyo 3-CD Changer driver for Windows95 can be found on Frank's
Driver Page, http://windows.rust.net/sanyo.zip.
2.2.2.1) Is there support for the Sanyo 3-CD CD-ROM in Windows NT?
Using atapi.sys, you can use it as a single drive. Possibly NT 4.0
will
support the drive, but it's not known for certain now.
2.2.3) My CD-ROM light blinks every few seconds under Windows 95 -
Why?
This is due to the Windows 95 automatic CD-ROM detection. This allows
you to put in a CD and Windows 95 will automatically mount it
(if it is a data CD) or start the music player (if it is an audio CD).
If the blinking annoys you (or causes your system to pause or stutter)
you can turn it off by opening the System control panel. Open the
Device
Manager tab and select your CD-ROM device. Click Properties and under
the Settings tab turn off Auto insert notification.
That will take care of it!
2.2.4) Why does the Mitsumi FX-400 CD-ROM make grinding noises?
There have been reports of this drive making grinding noises while
accessing CDs. Some users have also reported that several key presses
were needed to eject the disks and that they sometimes came out
spinning.
The fix is to contact Gateway and ask for a replacement model FX-400D.
There have been several postings that this replacement drive does not
have these problems.
(Thanks to Alan Briggs!)
2.2.4.1) Where can I get Mitsumi CD-ROM drivers and information?
http://www.eciusa.com/cdrom.html has drivers for Mitsumi CD-ROMs, a
FAQ,
jumper settings, tech support (via a form) and guidance on determining
what driver you need.
(Thanks to Ken Salerno!)
Here are some other sites,
(a) Mitsumi's official site,
ECI,http://www.eciusa.com/mitsumiproducts.html.
(b) David Elfstrom excellent site on Mitsumi information,
http://qlink.queensu.ca/~3dre/mitsumi.html.
(c) The OS/2 fix at
ftp://ftp.sei.cmu.edu/pub/gateway2000/Mitsumi/MITFIX.EXE.
(d) and a Windows NT 3.x fix,
ftp://ftp.sei.cmu.edu/pub/gateway2000/Mitsumi/MITSU.EXE.
2.2.4.2) Is there a problem with the Mitsumi 12x CD-Rom?
There has been some discussion of late of problems with the Mitsumi
12x
CD-Rom drive. So far no one has been able to confirm these reports
with
Gateway and no one has reported a drive failure. The drives do seem to
make a loud vibrating sound.
Any more information on this subject would be very helpful.
2.2.5) What can I do about the Wearnes CD-ROM pauses?
Many have reported irritating pauses with this CD-ROM. There have been
three models vended by Gateway, AAWW, ABWW, and ACWW. The last one
will
show a great deal of improvement but will not eliminate the problem
for
everybody. Call tech support at Gateway and get a replacement and be
sure to specify the ACWW. There is no ADWW -- that's just a rumor at
this time, per Lori Nagel of Gateway. The whole part number for the
ACWW is CDRIDE011ACWW.
2.2.5.1) What other information is there about the Wearnes CD-ROM?
There is some other information on the Wearnes drive at
http://mars.asiabiz.com.sg/wtk/ Thanks to Mehul Patel.
2.2.6) Will my NEC 260 CD-ROM run with Windows NT?
The 260 is not compatible; the 260R is. The 260, which was sold by
Gateway for a while, ended up not compliant with the emerging ATAPI
1.2
standard. For a while, Gateway replaced the 260s with 260Rs for those
customers using Windows NT. You can install NT from an unsupported CD
(use winnt.exe from the install disk, type winnt /? for the list
of options). Or you can install NT from your hard drive (see the NT
installation documentation for details).
(Thanks to Walter Arnold and Edmond Underwood!)
2.2.7) Other CD ROM questions
Here are the drivers for the Hitachi and Sony CD-ROMs.
- Hitachi Download,
http://www.hitachi.com/Specs/Cdrom/Docs/download.html.
- Hitachi Data Systems, http://www.hdshq.com/.
- Sony's web page,
http://www.ita.sel.sony.com/support/storage/drivers.html.
This is the CD-ROM I have and I love it. The documentation is lacking
though.
2.3) Keyboard and Mice Questions
2.3.1) How can I disable the programmability of the Anykey keyboard?
Sometimes (especially if you have young children who like to play
with your computer) you can get the Anykey keyboard programmed into
a strange state. While you can reset the keyboard to the default
configuration by pressing the Control and Alt keys and the pressing
Suspend Macro, a better way to "fix" the problem is by disabling
the program feature. You can do this by using the command
ANYKEY T ANYKEY in your autoexec.bat, adding the path if needed.
(Thanks to Dave Grabowski for this information!)
2.3.2) My Anykey keyboard produces incorrect characters.
How can I fix it?
It may have been accidentally remapped. First try the key combination:
[Ctrl-Alt-SuspndMacro].
If that doesn't work, try this, which will destroy all macros you have
stored:
[Remap] - [Ctrl] - [Ctrl] - [Alt] - [Alt] - [Remap]
then, as before,
[Ctrl-Alt-SuspndMacro].
Note: on newer models, it may be [Ctrl-Remap] in the above
sequence instead of just [Remap].
2.3.3) How can I program my AnyKey keyboard to act like a Windows95
Keyboard?
To make your Anykey Keyboard into a Windows95 keyboard.
Program a blank key as the Windows logo key.
The windows logo key is <CTRL><ESC>
" " and e to run explorer
" " and r for run
" " and f for find
The other key is rightclick. Which can be programmed as <SHIFT><F10>
2.4) Modem Questions
2.4.1) Why can't I connect with my (older) Telepath modem?
There have been many reported problems with the older Telepath modems
shipped with Gateway 2000 systems. So many, in fact, that Gateway is
now shipping modems made by US Robotics which are much better than the
old ones. These modems are still called Telepath (the new ones are
model 550), so you have to check the exact model numbers to see if
your model is a problem one.
In general, the older Telepath modems have problems in connecting.
Some people have few problems, while other people have lots. The
problem doesn't have an easy fix, but you can often connect by
fiddling with the modem init strings. One set of strings that has
been successful in connecting to many systems is this:
AT&FW1&C1&D2S7=60S11=55S95=3
(This string was provided by Tom Grelinger.) If this doesn't work,
turn off compression using AT%C0 and if the connection still fails,
turn off both error correction and compression using AT&Q6. If the
modems still fail to connect, try reducing the speed of the connection
by setting the N code to 0 (ATN0) and setting S37 to one of the
following values:
Speed S37 value
12000 10
9600 9
7200 12
4800 8
2400 6
1200 5
300 3
Obviously, you want to start at the highest speed and work down until
you find a value that allows you to connect. If you are forced to
connect at slower speeds, this indicates that you may have a noisy
phone line. You may want to contact your local telephone company to
have them check your line.
One good hint to try when using Crosstalk for Windows (the software
shipped with the modems from Gateway 2000) is to set the box to show
modem commands, and also set the S95 value to 44 on the modem
(ATS95=44).
This will display the DCE speed (the actual speed the modem connected
at), the protocol (either LAPM or alt), compression (v.42bis or MNP5)
and the DTE speed (speed between the modem and computer).
Gateway also recommends that you check the voltage between your
neutral
and ground wires on the outlet you plug the system into. Apparently
the older Telepath modems need a very good ground to work correctly.
(If anyone has more ideas, I'll include them in the FAQ - editor)
2.4.2) Why won't the 28.8 Telepath work with Delrina's Commsuite?
The 28.8 Telepath is an OEM version of the US Robotics Sportster and
as such uses the TI chipset. Delrina's Commsuite supports only with
the Rockwell chipset. Also, the 28.8 Telepath uses fax class 2.0
(different from just "2") and this is also not supported by WinFax
7.0. Talkworks will not work reliably with the Telepath, although
there is now a patch at http://www.delrina.com/ for modems
manufactured
by US Robotics (USR).
Note: Delrina has been purchased by Symantec.
This link is still active though.
2.4.3) Why does my 28.8 Telepath insist on picking up the phone?
Some of the earlier ones wouldn't accept an S0=0 command
(two zeroes there). The workaround is to type these two lines
to the modem:
ATS0=255 then [Enter] (that's a zero after the "s")
AT&W then [Enter]
The first line tells the modem to answer on the 255th ring, the
second to write the new setting to non-volatile RAM (NVRAM).
2.4.4) Why can't I use a modem at COM4:?
Most video boards, including the ATI, use the address space for COM4:.
You can't get around it, sorry.
2.4.9) Where can I learn more about modems and their problems?
Modem information about Gateway modems in Mike Lewis' most helpful
Telepath-IIv and Windows 95 FAQ.
General modem information in John Navas' excellent 28800 Modem FAQ.
2.5) Monitor and Video Questions
2.5.1) What about the missing 3 pixels on the left of my screen?
(This is the Georgh Mah memorial question)
Several people have reported that with certain versions of the ATI
Graphics Ultra Pro video board they are experiencing a condition where
3 pixels are missing from the left side of their screen. The
conditions
appear to be:
ATI GUP boards with 1MB of video memory and a certain BIOS Windows
640x480 video mode with 65K colors.
Any applications run at full screen will be missing the three pixels
from the left side of the screen. If you have this configuration and
experience this problem, you can request a fix for your ATI board at
no cost (regardless of the age of your system) through Gateway. The
best bet is to send an e-mail message to gwjohn@gw2kbbs.com with the
request - he is handling most of these reports on the Internet.
ATI has admitted this condition exists on versions of their GUP board,
and is providing support through Gateway 2000.
2.5.2) What is the bright line on the left of my monitor? What are
other common monitor problems?
This is a common problem reported with ATI boards and many different
monitors. It usually shows up as a bright line or band running along
the left side of the monitor -- if you have a light or white
background it is most visible. This problem is often caused by the
monitor overscanning on the left side of the screen.
The fix is to remove the overscanning. First you should use your
normal
monitor controls to try to center the image on the screen as best as
you can. This will often help some, but not completely remove the
problem. Next, you should use the ATI setup programs to center the
board's idea of the screen. To do this, exit to DOS and cd to your
ATI driver directory. Now run install and select Set Power-up
configuration. Select your monitor type and the resolution you
normally
run at. Now you should be in the monitor adjustment mode, and should
notice that the screen is (apparently) shifted way to the left. Use
the controls to center the screen, and save the settings. This should
fix the problem.
Other people have stated that the video extension cable provided with
the Gateway tower systems have caused this problem. You can test this
by running the monitor with just the short cable provided with the
monitor. If the bright line goes away, you've found the problem. You
can either get a new cable from Gateway, or just run the system on the
shorter one if it reaches.
There are also reports that problems with wavy displays can be caused
by the power supply of the computer. In this case, the user had
replaced
everything in the system without correcting the problem, and replacing
the power supply fixed it. One way to isolate this would be to move
the
monitor away from the system as far as the video cable will allow and
see if the problem goes away or changes. You can also try to put some
shielding between the system and monitor to see if the problem is
reduced.
2.5.3) Who makes the CrystalScan monitors?
Gateway gets the CrystalScan monitors from Samsung. Gateway did
get them from Mag Innovison. Look on the back for the letters
"SAM" in the part number. The CrystalScan 1572 DG model, however,
is made by GoldStar and has digital controls. Some of the larger
(i.e., 17") CrystalScan monitors now have tubes made by Sony.
Thanks to Rich Rauch!
2.5.4) What are the custom settings for the CS1572FS monitor?
If you want to adjust the screen position and size, you can use the
following settings in the ATI setup program:
640x48072 hz
800x60072 hz
1024x76860 hz
1280x102487 hz
2.5.5) Where can I get the latest drivers for the ATI video cards?
The best location for ATI drivers is ATI itself. You can connect to
their internet sites or bulletin board system for drivers. You can
also call ATI and the will send you floppies.
- WWW: http://www.atitech.ca/drivers/drivers.html
- FTP: ftp://ftp.atitech.ca/pub/support/
- BBS: 905-764-9404
- Fax: 905-882-2620
- Sales: 905-882-2600
- Tech Support: 905-882-2626
- Compuserve: 74740.667@compuserve.com
2.5.6) Who makes Vivitron monitors?
MAG Innovision and Sony.
MAGs are made in Taiwan by MAG Innovision (of CrystalScan fame) using
Sony Trinitron tubes. Sonys are assembled by Sony and tested by Sony
and the back panel says "Made by Sony" . You should also find a back-
panel plate with something like "Model CPD - xxxxxx", in Sony
tradition.
Both the MAG and Sony products use a Trinitron tube, which has
horizontal curvature -- but no vertical curvature. And the damper
wires are visible with some backgrounds (see 2.5.9, below).
(Thanks to John Lewis and Martin Basil for making this clear!)
2.5.6.1) What are the specs for the SONY Vivitron monitor made by
SONY?
From the SONY Vivitron 1776 CPD-17F13 user's guide:
CRT - 17-inch diagonal (16 inches visual), 0.25mm aperture grille
pitch,
90 deg deflection
Resolution - 1280 dots max horizontal; 1024 lines max vertical
Display colors - Unlimited
Scanning frequency - Horizontal 31.5 to 64 KHz; Vertical 50 to 120 Hz.
Display area - 328 x 242 mm (w/h) typical
Standard picture size - Approx 300 x 225 mm (w/h)
Power input - 100 to 120 VAC, 50/60 Hz 1.8 A; 220 to 240 VAC, 50-60 Hz
1 A
Dimensions - Approx 406 x 426.5 x 453 mm (w/h/d)
Weight - Approx 19 Kg [about 42 pounds]
Certifications - UL, CSA, DHHS, TUV, FCC Class B, BZT, MPR-II, VCCI
Power Management - Meets Energy Star requirements.
(Thanks to Bev =^.^= Parks!)
2.5.6.2) What's the right way to set up a Vivitron 21 under Windows
95?
The Vivitron 21, under Windows 95, should be set up as a Mitsubishi
DiamondScan Pro 21. So, under your Display, and Settings, click on
Change Display Type, and then on Change under the monitor settings.
Click on Show all devices and then choose Mitsubishi on the left,
and DiamondScan Pro 21 on the right.
(Thanks to Lori Nagel of Gateway 2000.)
2.5.7) Where can I get drivers for the Diamond Viper card?
ftp://ftp.diamondmm.com/pub/display/viper/
- Diamond BBS 2400/14400 baud: 408-325-7080
- Diamond BBS 9600/28800 baud: 408-325-7175
- Diamond Main number: 408-325-7000
- Diamond Tech Support: 408-325-7100
Also, if you have Internet access, the larger FTP sites such as
ftp.winsite.com (formerly CICA) and wuarchive.wustl.edu generally
have current drivers for many of the popular boards. For example, on
ftp.winsite.com, you can look in /pub/pc/win3/drivers/video. The
Diamond Viper is unsupported under Windows95. Diamond is offering a
trade in program for Viper owners.
2.5.7.1) Can I use the regular Matrox drivers with Gateway's Matrox?
According to Eanna Lennon, GW2k Sysop, Europe: "The Drivers are
Exactly the same, there is no difference whatsoever."
2.5.7.2) Where can I get Matrox BIOS and driver updates?
from the Matrox WWW site: http://www.matrox.com/mgaweb/ftp_mill.htm
2.5.8) Why do I have video problems with my tower system and not my
desktop?
Users have reported that the extension video cable provided by Gateway
with their tower systems can sometimes cause video problems such as a
wavy display. If your system is close enough to your monitor, just
take
out the extension cable and use the regular one provided with the
monitor.
If this fixes the problem, call Gateway for a new cable.
2.5.9) What are those horizontal black lines on my monitor?
This is becoming a frequent question now that Gateway is using
monitors
with Sony tubes in them. Sony monitors (and OEM monitors that use Sony
tubes) have a different way of setting up their phosphor masks. While
most monitors use a metal sheet with holes in it, Sony uses a sheet
with thin vertical slots. This allows Sony tubes to have a brighter
and
sharper picture, but this design forces them to put one (or two,
depending on the size of the tube) reinforcing wires that run
horizontally
across the mask. The shadow from these wires are what you see as black
lines across the screen.
This behavior is most noticeable when you have a light background, and
is totally normal for Sony monitors and tubes.
2.5.9.9) Are there any monitor repair FAQs?
First, a warning: There are potentially lethal voltages inside a
monitor,
even after it's been turned off for sometime. So, I am certainly not
recommending anyone open up their monitor. There is a monitor repair
FAQ written by Chris Biow that is posted to the newsgroup from time to
time and a permanent copy of which is available at
http://www2.uic.edu/~tbrann1/Gateway2000/MonitorFAQ.html
(Thanks to Chris Biow!)
A more general but very thorough one is found at
http://www.paranoia.com/~filipg/HTML/REPAIR/F_mon_repair.html
(Thanks to Clint Winstead!)
2.6) Soundcard Questions
2.6.1) Why won't my SoundBlaster card work?
The Gateway CD-ROM uses IRQ5 (interrupt 5) by default, and so does the
SoundBlaster card. Thus, you need to configure your SoundBlaster card
to use a different interrupt. Most people have had success using IRQ7
for their SoundBlaster card even though that is supposedly reserved
for the printer. Set the jumpers on the card as shown in the SB
manual,
then use the sequence [Ctrl-Alt-Esc] to go into the CMOS setup and
disable the LPT1 IRQ. Make sure you use interrupt 7 in your
AUTOEXEC.BAT
driver setup line for the SoundBlaster also.
(Thanks to Mike Doel for this information!)
Also note that if you are using a program such as LapLink, using IRQ7
for the SoundBlaster will force LapLink into polling mode. You can get
around this problem by turning the IRQ on just before using LapLink
and then turning it back off when you are done. Since you probably
won't
be using LapLink and the SoundBlaster at the same time, this shouldn't
cause problems, but it is inconvenient.
(Thanks to Chaim Frenkel for the information on disabling IRQ7 and
LapLink!)
Creative Labs also has an FTP site on the Internet which has
information
about SoundBlaster Cards and other Creative Labs products. The
addresses are
- ftp://ftp.creaf.com/
- ftp://creative.creaf.com/
There is also a WWW site at http://www.creaf.com/.
2.6.2 Why won't my Ensoniq card work with DOS games?
Win95 set up will REM the lines for the sound card in the
AUTOEXEC.BAT file. Open the file with a text editor or Notepad and
delete REM to activate them again.
Thanks to Ed Pawlowski!
2.6.3) How do I setup my Aztech soundcard under Windows95?
After you install the support software for a Gateway 2000 Aztech sound
card, the installation program displays a message stating that it is
restarting Windows 95. The installation program then reports that it
can be installed only in Windows 3.1, and restarts the computer. You
may also receive an error message concerning the DMA channel used by
the sound card.
The support software for this sound card was designed for Windows 3.1
and fails to correctly identify Windows 95.
The drivers for the sound card should be installed correctly, even
though you received the error message stated above. If you received an
error message concerning the DMA channel, follow these steps to verify
or adjust the DMA setting:
(1) In Control Panel, double-click the System icon.
(2) On the Device Manager tab, double-click the Sound, Video, And Game
Controllers branch.
(3) Click the Aztech sound card, and then click Properties.
(4) On the Resources tab, check the DMA setting. If you think the
setting may be incorrect for the sound card, consult the sound card's
documentation for the correct setting.
2.6.8) Why do my Altec Lansing 450 speakers hiss so much?
There is a known defect with some of the 450s. You can call Altec
Lansing at 1-800-258-3288 and make arrangements for them to add more
shielding which will help some or you can call Gateway and get a
downgrade to other speakers plus a small rebate or get an RMA to
return the speakers.
2.6) Hard Drive Questions
2.7.1) How can I get my WD 540 hard drive to work correctly?
(This section mainly refers to people who have older (i.e., 486)
systems
with a BIOS that does not allow for disks with more than 1023
cylinders.
If you have a later system (i.e. Pentium) you probably want to look
into
the section on setting up 32-bit disk access.)
Many people with the new WD 540 Meg hard drives are experiencing
problems when configuring their drives. The basic problem is that
almost
all pre-1994 BIOSs do not allow drives with a number of cylinders >=
1024.
If you use the auto configure BIOS settings for a WD 540 drive, it
will
autoconfigure to a value > 1023 cylinders, which will cause format and
other DOS programs to fail. The "solution" is to manually configure
your
drive as follows:
Cyl = 1023 Hd = 16 Sec = 63
You will not be able to use the entire 540 meg capacity of your drive,
but it will be usable under DOS and Windows. Note that OS/2 versions
before Warp 3.0 probably ARE affected by this problem as well. Also,
you probably won't run into this problem if your drive is preformatted
and pre-configured (i.e., you don't need to run fdisk or format on the
drive). You will, however, not be able to have 32bit disk and file
access
enabled in Windows if your drive is > 1023 Cylinders.
Thanks to Richard Leonetti of Micro Firmware for pointing out that the
problematic limitation is in the older BIOSs, not DOS itself!
2.7.2) What is the problem with the Western Digital 1.6 Gig drive?
Western Digital has announced that there is a problem with some of the
WDC AC31600H 1.6 Gig EIDE hard drives. They provide a test utility,
WD31600.EXE, to test your drive, but it is currently not availible at
their site. It still is (was) on AOL's Western Digital site and it can
be found on David S. Eitelbach's FTP site. Just FTP to
ftp.crl.com/users/ds/dseitel/gateway/wd_diag.exe, use at your own risk
of course!
It can also be found in England, courtesy of Michael Humberston at
http://www.philomel.demon.co.uk/Diagnostic/wd31600.exe
The official information can be found at
http://www.wdc.com/products/ac31600-quality.html
The techincal specs for this drive are at
http://www.wdc.com/products/drives/drive-specs/AC31600.html
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
This Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) is Copyright © 1997 Timothy S.
Brannan.
All rights reserved.
Information has been checked to the best of my ability, but is not
guarantied
or warrantied in any manner. Unless specificly noted all information
has
been authored by Tod Pike, David S. Eitelbach, or Timothy S. Brannan.
Gateway 2000 is Copyright © 1997 Gateway 2000 Inc. All rights
reserved.
All other images are copyrights owned by their respective companies.
This page does not represent the opinions of Gateway2000 or the
University of Illinois at Chicago.
All other names and logos are trademarked by thier respective
companies.
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Timothy S. Brannan tbrann1@uic.edu
Dept. of Educational Psychology TBrannan@usa.net
College of Education tbrannan@iname.com
University of Illinois at Chicago
http://www2.uic.edu/depts/educ/oss/ossofec.html
Maintainer of the alt.sys.pc-clone.gateway2000 newsgroup FAQ.
http://www2.uic.edu/~tbrann1/gateway.html
"The unexamined life is not worth living." - Socrates
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