always wanted to know this?

[SIRCOOKS]

when reinstalling xp, i sometimes encounter the problem of the ethernet generic driver not being valid, then theres that little annoying yellow flag that pops up next to it in my comoputer manager, what i wanna know is..1) is there a way i can find this driver for the ethenet card and save it to a floppy, how would i go about finding it and everything eklse thats needed with it and 2) is there something i can download or what can i do whwn my computer sees an unknown device, and in my computer manager i just see the yellow question mark, with unknown device next to it, hiow can i find out what these devices are...holla back

[ViRaL1]

Unless your components are no longer available / supported, you should be able to download and save the drivers you need to get up and running when you reinstall. I normally store mine on a separate computer and once I'm connected I just have Window$ look there when it needs drivers. Admittedly I still load my network drivers from the CD that came with my mobo since it's onboard. If I wasn't lazy I could always put them on floppy and install them during the OS install, but I don't really need the network until the OS is up and running anyway. Look at the MFRs sites and download all your drivers, load them on CD and if you so choose, you can always put the basic ones on floppies.

Not sure specifically how to identify which device you have showing up as 'Unknown Device' other than already knowing what you have in your system versus what's already showing up as a known device. Someone else may have a better idea.

[SIRCOOKS]

so even if i click on properties, adn see the driveers i need, i still cant get them, holla back

[thecoalman]

Is it onboard? If so look for the model# and name of your motherboard (it should be right on the board). The drivers will probably be on their site or if your MB came with a disc they will be on there.

If it's a pci card take it out and find out the model number, again look it up on the manufacturers site.

[ViRaL1]

I'm not sure what you're asking. Are you trying to differentiate one 'Unknown Device' from another in Device Manager? without really knowing which is which? IF you're already connected to the net (I usually install my NIC drivers 1st) you can try the 'Window$ Update' option when you tell it to search for drivers. Window$ Update MAY find a match. If it does, you can choose not to install the driver they suggest, but it at least tells you what type of device it is (sound card vs. capture card for example).

[adam]

I don't want to hijack this post, but does anyone else find it annoying that with usb devices, flash cards, zip drives, cdrs, dvdrs, etc... you STILL have to install necessary drivers during an os install via a floppy?

I mean obviously its possible to load drivers from a cd, since that's what the os is installed from. So how come when I hit F6 I am limited to a floppy? That's the only reason I even have a floppy drive any more.