Seriously annoying WiFi issues (T43, intel A/B/G)

[bluefoxx]

So I have a love for thinkpads.

Most of the time.

I like using them, like the hardware, don't like dealing with the software.

I've grown in fact, to loath having to do an install on one.

Mostly it's because it can be such a PITA to dig through the Lenovo site trying to find the most recent drivers for your machine, but occasionally I find other issues.

This is my second thinkpad I've had that worked, to call my own. Same spec as my first one, which was unfortunately stolen a couple weeks after I finished upgrading everything in it.

1.86Ghz T43, 128 meg x300, 2 gigs RAM, pitifully small 40 gig hard drive. And the wireless a/b/g.

Oh the wireless, how much trouble you have caused.

First off, there's the deceivingly simple act of trying to find drivers. I got them though, and installed them.

Great, I've installed the relatively useless intel utility. Where's the card? Nobody knows.

Fine. Do some digging and manually install the driver. Does the intel utility work now? No. Oh well, I wasn't planning on using that anyhow.

The windows tool works fine for me.

Except it doesn't. I can scan, and every one out of three attempts, it shows me all the networks in my area. Which includes my own network, broadcasting on the unused channel 4 in WPA-PSK from 2' away from me. Cool, I have a full single, as I should. Double click, type in my passphrase and now does it connect? No.

The thinkpad sits there and starts to connect, than drops out. Starts to connect, than drops out. Wash, rinse, repeat.

Wonderful. Cue my exhasperated and under my breath cursing, and a reinstall of the driver. Still won't work. Install a different one, one from intel, one from the web. None of them work. Three hours in and I've pounded a nice dent into the metal side of my desk from sheer frustration. I decide screw it, I'll live with the old pcmcia 100mw 802.11b card sticking out the side of my machine.

Slap it in, it installs, and picks up my network

Brilliant! It works-oh wait.

It's still doing the same thing.

We tune in, and we drop out. One loud shout later and another wireless card is slapped in. A D-Link this time. It's yet to have failed me. Install it and it's annoying tools. Reboot and try to connect. Finally, at long last after wasting several hours in which I intended to spend with some good friends of mine, It looks like it's about to connect.

Or not. Same story as the last. Starts to connect, drops out.

I assume at this point, there's something very wrong going on here, as I was just using that card with another laptop. Shove it back in and it works fine. So does the other one for that matter. And if I slap that minipci a/b/g 2950 into another machine, and install the driver, it works fine too!

So tell me Lenovo, what on earth is wrong with my machine?
I used a Lenovo/IBM OEM install disc. I installed all your oh-so-special drivers. Why won't it work? Why have I wasted the past 4 hours now slamming my face into a brick wall?
I've ruled out any other factors. My network is working fine for 5 other wireless devices, and 3 other PCs on it. I certainly haven't forgotten my WPA passphrase. Or mistyped it innumerable times in a row. So really. Wot's uh the deal?


Oh and before I forget, Kudos on the improvements to the fingerprint software. A big part of the reason I'm moving away from the fujitsu I've been using the past few months. That, combined with the trackpoint, high res screen and sturdy build are what make me forgive all the software-akwardness.

/rant.


TL;DR:
My wireless is bork'd and I can't fix it D:

Halp! It won't connect D:

[ajkula66]

Having owned quite a few T43/p machines, I'll admit that 2915ABG is my least favourite card. I've hated it in my Panasonic CF-R4 as well. Disconnects and more disconnects...

Personally, I just take out the darn thing and replace it with 2200BG or IBM Atheros II...

This should be the latest driver:

http://www-307.ibm.com/pc/support/site. ... wc05ww.zip

After that, you must go into C>Drivers>Win>Wlanint and run the setup file from there.

Good luck.

[bluefoxx]

The problem here is I go places where there's nothing BUT wireless A networks, so it would be nice to have it.
I DO have spare wireless cards laying about, but their non-IBM, which means the 1802 issue, IIRC.
Not that I'm not planning to try and make a custom BIOS anyhow that removes all the [censored] vendor lockouts...
So is there no known fix for this than?

[RealBlackStuff]

There's a ready-made BIOS available here, compliments of Zender: http://forum.thinkpads.com/viewtopic.php?f=29&t=55837
One of my R52s runs perfectly on it (R52 = T43 in different case).

[katar83]

If the card works on other machines it might be southbridge problem which also control the pcmcia ports and few other things. Nothing you can easily fix.

[ajkula66]

Atheros II cards I was referring to come as both b/g and abg and would be a smart investment IMHO if you're intent on keeping that machine...

[bluefoxx]

Given that I sunk $340 into it, and than another $20 for a new keyboard (Old one was FILTHY, Worn to hell, and now has a stuck key after my cleaning of it), along with at least a day of my time, I'm kind of intent on keeping it.
I can probably get another card out of the guy I work for/with (depending on the job/time), as he deals in laptop repair, and I have him keeping an eye out for a T60 burner for the thing.
As for replacing the motherboard, Well, don't know if I really want to.
Depends honestly. Is there a version with the hypermemory graphics and a version without, or is it just a BIOS setting I've overlooked all the time.
Because the one I have now has the hypermemory, while the last one I owned didn't.

[RealBlackStuff]

The T43/p only came with 64/128 MB ATI Graphics (discrete graphics).
It's sibling R52 has either integrated Intel graphics or 32/64 MB ATI graphics.
Mobo's can be exchanged between them, whether 14.1" or 15" models.

[ajkula66]

If you have an ATi chip, it does have hyper memory.

ALL ATi-based T43/p machines have it, BTW...

[RealBlackStuff]

I was confused...
Correction made...