Tom Messenger <krist@THEGRID.NET> wrote:
> We have a software ap running on a notebook computer with Windows2000
> system. There is a pcmcia card with a serial port stuck in to interface to
> external hardware. The customer has it setup to startup automatically into
> the application program.
>
> The problem is that about 10% of the time, the program starts up and either
> hasn't found the plugin card yet or it somehow gets configured wrong. Then
> the program runs but won't allow comms. The user must exit the program and
> restart it.
>
> It appears to be simply due to how windows starts up and how/when/where it
> recognizes the plugin card. If this is so, does anyone know how to control
> this behavior so the card is found 100% of the time?

Is there another program that runs to configure the PCMCIA serial card?
If so, then there's probably a simple fix, if you're comfortable with
editing the registry.

Look in the registry for the key
  HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run

See if there's an entry for the PCMCIA serial card. (I assume you'll also
find an entry for the application program here.)

If so, move the entry for the PCMCIA card to the following key:
  HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\RunOnce

The difference is that the programs in ...\RunOnce are guaranteed to run
to completion before all the programs in ...\Run start. The latter programs
multitask normally and are not guaranteed to run in any particular sequence.

This may cure your problem.

-- Dave Tweed

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