Specifications

details.
Toshiba and T1910 are trademarks of Toshiba Corporation. Compaq and Contura Aero are trademarks of
Compaq Computer Corporation.
2.The Laptops
This section describes the laptops that I have used this procedure on, the problems faced when installing
Linux on them and the solutions to those problems (in outline).
2.1 Basic Specifications
Compaq Contura Aero
• 25MHz 486SX CPU
• 4mb RAM
• 170mb Hard Disk
• 1 PCMCIA Type II slot
• External PCMCIA 3.5" Floppy drive
The PCMCIA floppy drive has a proprietary interface which is partly handled by the
Aero's unique BIOS. The Linux PCMCIA drivers can't work with it. According to
the PCMCIA−HOWTO, if the drive is connected when the laptop boots it will work
as a standard drive and Card Services will ignore the socket but it is not
hot−swappable. However, I found that the drive becomes inaccessible as soon as
Card Services start unless there is a mounted disk in the drive. This has implications
for the installation process − these are covered at the relevant points.
Toshiba T1910
• 33MHz 486SX CPU
• 4mb RAM
• 200 mb Hard Disk
• Internal 3.5" Floppy drive
• 1 PCMCIA Type II/III slot
4mb−Laptops
2.The Laptops 4