To: alt.windows98,microsoft.p
Pop` wrote:

wrote:
I need to network my laptop to my desktop so the laptop sees a virtual
drive letter that's actually a directory on the desktop. The laptop is
an older PIII with Serial, parallel, USB 1.1 - no ethernet. Windows
has "direct cable connection" for serial/parallel, but Mircrosoft says
"Before you can transfer files from the host to the guest computer,
the files must be in a shared directory,..."
(http://www.microsoft.com/technet/arc...mspx?mfr=true).

The desktop is a newer Athlon 1.0Ghz with XP Pro. The laptop is a PIII
500mhz with 98SE. The laptops serial port is an EIA232-E, 16550
compatible, 9-pin D; the parallel port is IEEE P1284-A, EPP, and ECP
compatible. Which connection would be faster (serial/parallel) - an
article on Wiipedia says asynchronous RS232 is actually faster than
parallel at higher CPU clock speeds due to "skew" caused by the
parallel cable. I'll probably just get a NULL serial cable, because I
expect it to be cheaper, and I won't be needing it again - if this
will work.

The reason I need this is that files were accidently deleted from the
laptop via DOS. The file recovery software can see them, and it asks
for a drive/directory to save the restored files in - so I need a
virtual drive letter - the desktop computer. I don't want to save
the restored files locally first, because that could corrupt the other
deleted files. (I don't want to buy a network card for the laptop,
because I don't want to install software for it...)

Any help appreciated.

You can do that; or, if hte machines each have an ethernet card, or you want
to spend a couple bucks (they're cheap) to outfit them, all you need is a
crossover cable between the two computers to network them without a swtich
or router even. Easier and likely a lot faster way to get it going. Then
there's no need to fiddle with drive associations either; the local and
remote drives on each machine, all available.

Pop`

I have a similar problem to this guy. I tried the direct connect and
had nothing but problems as easy as it sounds.

I tried hooking up a stand alone harddrive to the USB 1. Windows98
first version can read the drive but it doesn't recognize the driver
under dos or windows 98 first edition to copy file by any method.

I was going to buy an ethernet card for my pcmia slot but it is so
special (not standard) for my old IBM thinkpad 385 that they are almost
impossible to get and very expensive.

Could I get a stand alone ethernet card and hook it to an RS232 or
parallel port or risky USB1 port and use the internet to transfer data
to my other computer as a friend suggested or will I likely meet
failure?

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