Compaq M700/7700 Notebook Group Test, Loading Linux, CardBus problems, Big Brother, Conclusion

NOTEBOOK GROUP TEST COVER FEATURE

presentations. Switching between simultaneous and purely external operation, by the way, is done by means of a little knob on the left next to the standby switch which worked under Linux without problems.

Loading Linux ...

Installation of SuSE Linux 7.0 Professional went smoothly – YaST2 configured the XF86 _SVGA- Server and then included the integrated Ether Express Pro 100 from Intel. But the installation of the sound card, an ESS 1978 Maestro 2E, was something the SuSE-Tool found too hard a nut to crack – the kernel module refused to co-operate. But with modprobe maestro the sound card was installed by hand with no further problems.

During the entire installation the display flickered noticeably. After changing to text mode it was hard to recognise anything at all, in fact. This probably stems from the mode lines in YaST2 not being quite correct. After a reboot, though, the phenomenon disappeared and was never encountered again.

The Irda chip was not recognised by findchip using irda-utilsbut could be used as /dev/ttyS1. What matters more is that in the kernel under Character devices the option CONFIG_SERIAL_DETECT has been selected and in the start script of the irmanager the second serial port is assigned to IRQ 3 via setserial.

CardBus problems

A further surprise was waiting for us. In the manual Compaq states with regard to PCMCIA and CardBus that, at least under Windows 2000, one can only exchange cards with the device switched off. Funnily enough, this also seemed to relate to Linux because after every insertion or removal of a card (with cardmgr running), the kernel promptly died.

The solution is to manually enter the irq-linesof the card services – we used IRQs 7, 9, 10 and 15 for PCMCIA and IRQ 11 for CardBus. After these entries the cards could be changed at will.

The CardBus controller from Texas Instruments PCI 1450 needed for the initialisation of our Type-III- PCMCIA hard disk a good 20 seconds to get going. During this period the whole system was paralysed. The positioning of the two Type-II CardBus slots at front right of the device may be something of a nuisance with some cards that have lots of external cable connectors, but on the other hand they remain astonishingly cool at just 30 degrees. The overheating which occurs with other notebooks will not happen to this one.

The only thing we found irksome was the dummy inserts used to cover the CardBus slots – in practice they’re bound to get lost or damaged. Spring shutters which close automatically after the cards are removed are better. Compaq also supplies

as an accessory a shutter for the drive slot so that for example on an aeroplane where built-in CD- ROM- and DVD-drives are not allowed you don’t have to sit around with a hole in the side of your notebook.

Big Brother X11

Last of all we have a piece for the Cabinet of Curiosity. As already known from the world of desktop PCs, it’s frequently the case that when restarting the X-server, you can see the old screen content for a fraction of a second. The reason is that the graphics RAM is not completely flushed at every X start or X shutdown and is only wiped when power is lost. However, this isn’t the case with the Compaq Armada – hours later the desktop from the last session is clearly visible for just under half a second.

This is perhaps not enough to spy out complex management structures, but may convict the son of his “immoral” internet activities on daddy’s laptop. So it is worthwhile restarting the X-server again before shutting down the computer or at least to close any traitorous windows.

Conclusion

The Compaq Armada M700/7700 is one of the best notebooks in our test. All the integrated hardware could be installed with minor tweaks to the standard installation. The only niggle was that the sleep mode under X11 always ended with a crash, while no report of this problem was seen on the console. It was also a bit difficult to keep the Armada on one’s lap. The main air vent lies over the left knee and warms it to just under 60 degrees. – it might help cure rheumatism but isn’t ideal for constant use. As you’d expect, the

only thing left to say is that it’s a pitty that
Compaq does not offer this device pre-installed
with Linux.	■

Compaq Armada M700/7700

(+)robust, handy case

(+)Hardware is completely supported

(+)TV-output supports high resolutions

(-)	Sleep mode under X leads to a crash
(-)	high price

By slanting the [B]-key on the upper side, there is more finger room when using the mouse.

5 · 2001

LINUX MAGAZINE 39