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ROUBLESHOOTING
Notebook compatibility
Notebook compatibility is usually determined by the
notebook’s CardBus controller. Most notebooks
use controllers made by Texas Instruments, which
are fully compatible with our SideCar products.
Toshiba controllers are also compatible.
CardBus controllers made by Ricoh and O2Micro
have consistently caused compatibility problems in
our tests. Sony VAIO notebooks as well as
selected IBM ThinkPad notebooks use Ricoh
controllers.
To determine the CardBus controller used by
your notebook:
Go to Device Manager (right-click on My
Computer, select Hardware tab, then Device
Manager)
Expand the “PCMCIA adapters” entry
Note the brand (and model) of the CardBus
Controller
(
s
)
listed
Chapter 13 - Troubleshooting
Most major installation and “dead hardware” problems are traceable to
one of the following causes:
Hardware not plugged in and powered on.
Resolution: ensure that all cables are securely attached per directions in Chapter 3.
Ensure that all monitors and SideCar are powered on.
“Bad” PC Card slot
.
Many notebook computers have two PC Card slots (aka PCMCIA or CardBus slots).
Sometimes the SideCar PC Card interface works only in one slot, but not the other. Try
using the second slot. (IBM ThinkPad computers seem to prefer the bottom slot.)
Wrong operating system
.
This SideCar supports only Windows XP and Windows 2000. (Macintosh is supported
with different hardware.) Other Windows operating systems are not supported.
Failure to follow installation directions.
The SideCar chassis and display controller drivers must be installed according to our
precise instructions.
Incompatible notebook.
Not all notebook computers are
compatible with the SideCar. See
the support section of the Digital
Tigers Web site
(http://digitaltigers.com
) for
approved notebooks, or call Digital
Tigers for clarification. (See note at
right for more information.)
Bent cable pins.
During the
course of our testing we have
observed the unfortunate fragility
inherent in high-density LFH
connectors. LFH connectors are the
industry-standard connector for
multi-monitor breakout cables. The
SideCar MMS series uses LFH
connectors to attach the two Y-cable
(dual monitor) display breakout