Conference noted::ibmpc-95

I tried to add a third disk to my GW2K VLB DX2/50.
There are two old disks on the primary, WD caviars, 250MB and 500MB.
Working fine and stable for many months. The new disk is a Maxtor,
and the jumper rules are different from the WD drives.

With the BIOS set as documented, FDISK starts by reporting it can
not access the new disk. But it obviously sees it enough to complain.

I replaced the old slave drive by the new Maxtor, properly jumpered and 
properly identified in the BIOS, and all is well. I have lots of space.
FDISK is happy.

So I tried to put the old slave drive on the secondary channel, again with
the correct jumpers and BIOS settings.  FDISK complains again, same way.

Has anyone used the secondary IDE channel on a GW2K VLB system?
Is there some additional magic needed to turn on the secondary?
A jumper, a switch, a secret BIOS incantation?

Have you heard of quality problems or design flaws in the secondary IDE 
channel?

I'm going to try a different cable as soon as I can get one. The new 
cable is too short to hook up the C drive.

Any other suggestions for things that I can try?

This not a terrible loss, the disk I can no longer use is 10% of the 
new disk.

Thanks in advance for any suggestions or insights.

update on .378

Problem solved.  I borrowed a cable.  The second channel works.
The old cable works. Apparently I managed to knock it loose when
hooking up some of the other connectors.  

Offline, I got a message that many GW2K systems have real problems with
the secondary channel.

Sorry my ignorance. Can anybody explain why TelePath 33.6 fax/modem is 
**for windows**? What does it mean? I bought the system recently without paying
much attention to that fact. The modem works ok with 95 software. However, i
heared some suggestion to get a more expencive (not for windows only) modem. Can
anybody commemt?

>> Serge

    re: Note 300.380 by CADSYS::BOGDANOV
    
    If this one's like the USR Sportster "Winmodem", then it means that
    some functionality of the modem is done in a software driver as
    opposed to being done in the firmware/hardware on the card. Because of
    this the "Winmodem" is supported on Windows 95 but not on Windows NT.
    
    There's a performance trade-off as well, which makes the "Winmodem"
    cheaper.
    
    Ken....

Serge,

The Telepath modem is wildly different from a "standard" modem.  This starts
with the fact that there is no COM port for your software to use.

Normal old DOS code wants a COM port to jam the modem commands through.
The Telepath presents no COM port so your old code is out of luck until
you get a DOS driver which spoofs the COM port. Maybe somebody in his
spare time will cobble up something but I doubt any commercial, commodity
place like Gateway is going to bother.

I found out that even some Win95 software, Netscape Lite, does not recognize
the Telepath as a "modem" although the rest of the Win95 suite works just
fine.

Chuck