Thinkpads Forum

Hey guys,

I have an old Thinkpad 760 XL that I want to get some use out of.
THe problem with it, I can't seem to put Windows on it or any other OS because it just doesn't have the RAM or hard drive space

its got 32 mb ram, and a 2.1 GB hard drive.

I know how to replace the ram and hard drive, problem is I'm looking for a HD and ram to put in it fairly cheap.

since its max is 6 GB HD and 104 mb, can anyone sell me at least a 12.5 mm drive real cheap? or can I put a 6 gb 9.5 mm in here? I really have no idea. I was hoping you guys would know?

either that, or does anyone have a CHEAP thinkpad for sale
with at least 6 GB hard drive, and at least 64 or 128 meg of RAM in it?

this 760 XL is the only laptop I have, and I can't afford to purchase another one, not at $300+ anyway, is there any way I can get one under $200? either that or upgrade the hardware on it for $50 or something.

anything would be fine, but 32 meg won't even run win95 very well,
and esp that 2.1 GB hard drive is really pushing it.

what i really want to do is put Linux on it, but all I have is a

Linksys 802.11b wireless pcmcia card
vintech 24x pcmcia CD-ROM

which is fine, except, I can't use 2 pcmcia devices at the same time (some IRQ conflict I don't know, won't let me thats all I know)
I can use either/or but not both at the same time.

I had thought about replacing the floppy drive with a cd-rom, but I don't know if that would work or not with the 760 XL does anyone know?

otherwise does anyone have anything else for sale?

I can't help you with 760-specific stuff, but I used to run Win95 in 12MB RAM. It wasn't happy, and I wouldn't do it today, but it did work.

You should be able to buy a working 600-series for around $200, or a more capable 7-something... and you can get a few dollars from selling your 760XL.

As for Linux, I'm planning on putting it on a 750, so it should run on your 760XL, AND allow both 802.11b and cd at the same time.

Ask in the Linux forum, and people should be able to help you out. Of course, more RAM and disk will never hurt.

whizkid wrote:I can't help you with 760-specific stuff, but I used to run Win95 in 12MB RAM. It wasn't happy, and I wouldn't do it today, but it did work.

Ask in the Linux forum, and people should be able to help you out. Of course, more RAM and disk will never hurt.

I know, thats my problem, even if I spend the money to upgrade the RAM and hard drive, the max it will support is

104 mb memory
6 GB hard drive

I can put linux on a system like that, but not Windows.
so I've been trying to put Linux on it, but I can't because of the
cd- nic at the same time issue.

also I haven't been able to find a notebook of any brand cheaper then $300, not even on ebay. every time I try, I get outbid.

Again, I am not sure about 7-series,
But I was able to install 10GB HDD and 96MB Ram on even older 390E and it was running WinXP Pro. I did upgraded BIOS to latest version

I ran Windows 98 on a Thinkpad 760EL (P-133) with 64MB Ram and a 1 GB drive. Ran Microsoft Office fine. I even managed to get Windows 2000 to install on the thing after I upgraded to a 2GB drive and 80MB RAM, although you couldn't do much more than run the OS. So I don't buy the "won't run OS" argument.

I also managed to get Solaris 7 to work on a SparcStation 5 with a single 2GB drive, so I don't buy the drive being too small. In fact, I have a 560MB drive that came with another Sparcstation that also has Solaris 7 running on it. I just couldn't load all of the Development Tools on either.

In order to get your system running, you should have an internal CD drive and an external floppy, or use the internal floppy and have a Dock with an internal CD (I have done both ways).

External floppies for the 760 (or a "dock" for your floppy) show up on Ebay from time to time and run about US$20.00.

You asked whether you could upgrade your drive to a 6GB. I have done that as well. I ran a 6.4GB drive in my 765D running Windows 98SE and 104MB RAM. You have to pull the "caddy" apart to remove the old drive and install the new one, reassembling the caddy. Or you can buy a new caddy. Bill sells caddies here, or you may be able to do better on Ebay.

FWIW, a 765D is the same processor as the 760XL but with 13" display and built-in modem. 760EL is similar to the 760XL but with a P-133 processor and maximum of 80MB RAM

Hope this helps.

FIrst of all, your not understanding what my limitations are:

I have a:

IBM Thinkpad 760 XL
internal floppy
2.1 GB internal 12.5 mm hard drive (max of 6 GB which is fine)
32 mb ram (which I would like to get up to 104 mb if I can, or even another 64 would be fine too)

but the problems are:
1. no cd-rom
2. no nic, no way to connect the thing to the internet

I have a pcmcia CD-ROM,
and a linksys 802.11b wi-fi card I bought awhile back

but the problem now is:
1. can't get the CD-ROM to work in either DOS or Linux
2. can't get the linksys card to work in Linux, and in windows I can't get the linksys card to work without those crappy drivers they got, just running that program alone on 32meg of ram brings the system down to a crawl.

so what i am looking to do is:
find a larger HD for it: 6 GB is fine if I can find one someplace
find more ram: 104 mb, or even another 64 is fine, if I can find some

my problem is, I can't seem to find this stuff on ebay, or when I do I get outbid or ripped off.. I already tried buying a 64 meg EDO stick off ebay a couple of months ago, and got ripped off big time. The seller put the item back up for auction after I paid him the money, not sending me the item.

so as you can see I am NOT a big fan of ebay at all... Even if you find what your looking for on there (which is rare for this stuff) theres no guarantees that you'll get it. Thats why I'm here, was hoping someone here had the parts I'm looking for..

Trust me, right now this laptop has NO OS on it at all because I can't get one installed.. I have been trying for over a year after my dad gave me this thing to put some kind of OS on it.. I had even considered taking out the floppy and replacing it with an internal CD-ROM, but I didn't know if the floppy could be replaced with a CD-ROM or not, I don't know if laptop floppies can be replaced with cd-roms or not, I don't know if floppy cables and cd-rom cables for laptops are different or not..
Desktops I know, laptops I don't.

Hi, I have three sticks 64MB ea. that came out of the 770 that I upgraded the Processor and Ram on. The FRU is 20L0242, I believe they will work in your unit but you'll have to verify it. They ran just great in the 770.
You can have all three for $20.00 + 3.50 shipping.
Let me know , Jimmy

My LinkSys WPC11v3 802.11b card works fantastically and automatically with Red Hat 9, Fedora Core 1, 2 or 3 and with Knoppix. The v4 card is more difficult.

You might try getting a more supported card, like the WPC11v3 or some other more-specifically Linux-friendly card. Again, the Linux gurus can help.

You might also look at getting a wired NIC, which should be dirt cheap and supported very well on Linux... at least to get the OS loaded and work on the wireless.

Almost every CD-ROM drive comes with DOS drivers. What model is it? We might help you look for a DOS driver.

bubazoo wrote:FIrst of all, your not understanding what my limitations are:......

Your limitations are clear and well understood. From your description, it is assumed that you have the 9547-U9K (one of two flavors) machine which originally came with a Win NT pre-load. Pentium I-166mhz MMX, 32mb ram, 2.1gb hdd, no cdrom loads win98se, plays videos, runs office apps and with a 56k pcmcia card (cheap ~ $10 on eBay) you can surf the net.

How was it done? Use the fdd to to boot to dos and run Laplink 5. Using a Laplink cable to connect the laptop to my desktop pc (also running Laplink 5) the win98 installation files were transferred from the desktop's hd to the laptop's hd. The windows setup was then run from the laptop's hd. Same method was used for installing Office and other apps. The usual techniques of increasing your system resource overhead apply in order to gain optimum perfomance.

Since you have a pcmcia cdrom, you can do it more easily and elegantly. Install the dos cd driver in your hd and install the OS using your cdrom. Using a 32mb and 64mb 144-pin SO-DIMM EDO memory (70ns) you can can max out the ram to 104mb. Latest check at ebay listings yielded a couple of 64mb sticks at $15 Buy It Now Option.

Why stick to 12.5mm hd's? I used 9mm hd's in those caddies. Just use a spacer to fill the void. Also, depending on what drive to put, you may have to modify the drive addressing connections either by cutting tracks in the printed circuit hd connector or bending the corresponding pins at the back of the hd.

I am sure others here had tackled your limitations in several ways.

Cheers,
Rick