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QUESTION

Here's my system:

• Intel Celeron 433
• 10.2GB Hard Drive
• SB Live!
• 56K modem
• 128MB RAM
• 17 inch CRT
• 32MB ATI Fury AGP
• Windows 98

Includes an LS120, Floppy, R/W CD by Acer CRW6206A (2X6), on ASUS P2B-F, with 7200RPM drive. The Modem is an USR PCI Win 56K V.90.

The object was to also leave the COM1&2 open for interface to other devices by putting the Modem on a higher IRQ.

Will the installation of the USR Win Modem on IRQ10 foul up the operation of the ATI Fury 32M AGP Video on the same IRQ?

--Dennis Y

ANSWER

I'd recommend getting an external modem. That way, you can hook it and unhook it as needed. The manual for the P2B-F claims that you have 6 free IRQ's to work with. If the SB Live! used two of them, you should have one more for the ATI, one for the modem, and two left over for each Com port. That is, unless you have a DVD decoder card.

Normally, the PCI bus will handle it's own IRQ's. I wouldn't recommend mixing PCI and ISA IRQs. Why do you want to use the Com ports anyway? Go for USB instead if you can.

You could turn off the SBLive! SB16 support if you don't use it, and free up IRQ 5 for the modem.

Also, even if the modem is on a higher IRQ, you still have to have it do the weird com port sharing thing. Com 1 and 3 are linked, as are Com 2 and 4.