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Using the Phoenix CardManager with the PCMCIA-GPIB on Windows 3.1

Hardware: GPIB>>Plug-in Controllers>>PCMCIA-GPIB

Problem:
How do I recognize and use the Phoenix CardManager with my PCMCIA-GPIB on Windows 3.1?

Solution:
Recognizing Phoenix
Phoenix is typically installed in either a /PCMPLUS or a /PCMPLUS3 directory. If you are using /PCMPLUS, you should contact your vendor to upgrade your CS to /PCMPLUS3. Phoenix installs a variety of drivers in the "config.sys" and looks similar to the entry below:

REM BY PCM+ X=c800-c8ff X=cc00-cfff
DEVICE=C:\PCMPLUS3\CNFIGNAM.EXE /PHOENIX
DEVICE=C:\PCMPLUS3\PCMSS.EXE
DEVICE=C:\PCMPLUS3\PCMCS.EXE
DEVICE=C:\PCMPLUS3\PCMRMAN.SYS
DEVICE=C:\PCMPLUS3\PCMSCD.EXE
DEVICE=C:\PCMPLUS3\PCMATA.SYS
DEVICE=C:\PCMPLUS3\PCMFFCS.EXE
DEVICE=C:\PCMPLUS3\MS-FLASH.SYS

The Phoenix install script usually adds a message in the "config.sys" such as the REM statement shown above. This message shows what memory the CS is going to use (and thereby what memory should be excluded in the memory manager).

Reducing Memory Usage with Phoenix
Just as with the other card services, there are only four drivers that need to be loaded in order for the PCMCIA-GPIB card to function. In this case, only the PCMSS.EXE, PCMCS.EXE, PCMRMAN.SYS, and PCMSCD.EXE drivers need to be loaded.

Using Phoenix
Phoenix, by default, will automatically configure the PCMCIA-GPIB card when you insert it into your computer. The configuration is often not done correctly, and so to avoid this, create a record for the card within pcm.ini, Phoenix's initialization file.

Creating a record can be done manually by editing the pcm.ini file, but it is much easier to use the pcmwin application. pcmwin.exe will be found in the /PCMPLUS3 subdirectory and will have to be invoked using the File Manager or by using the File » Run command. Once pcmwin opens, you should see a screen similar to that in the figure below.

Use the Previous and Next buttons until you see the PCMCIA-GPIB as shown in below. At this point you should pull down on Configure and select Cards. This will result in a window similar to the one below.

On this screen it is important to make sure that the Configuration Loaded checkbox is unchecked. In this example the card has been given a particular I/O window. This tells the CS to always configure the card at a particular address. Note that for the PCMCIA-GPIB+ you have to put data in I/O Window 1 for the controller and I/O Window 2 for the analyzer. The values that you select for these I/O windows should be pre-tested using ibdiag.

As previously mentioned, Phoenix stores all of its configuration information in a file called pcm.ini. This file contains configuration information for each different multi-boot option, as well as information about particular card records. Most all of the changes that can be made in the pcm.ini file can be done using pcmwin. The file is actually quite long as it has entries for all options in the CS. Only an excerpt is shown below.

; PCM.INI - Initialization File for PCM+ Version 3.0
; Version 1.00
; Date 03/21/94

[DEFAULT]
.
.

[DEFAULT.Resources]
include_mem=
exclude_mem=
include_io=
exclude_io=
include_irq=
exclude_irq=

[INSTALL.Resources]
include_mem=
exclude_mem=0xa0-0xbf,0xf0-0xff
include_io=
exclude_io=
include_irq=0x09
exclude_irq=0x00-0x02,0x08,0x0c
.
.

[PCMCARD_002]
ID_1=National Instruments
ID_2=PCMCIA-GPIB
MAJOR=0x04
MINOR=0x01
DESCRIPTOR=0x0000
NUMBERCONFIGS=1

[PCMCARD_002.0]
LOAD=No
RESOURCES=0x01A0
IO_0=0x2C0,0x20,0x1
IRQ=0x5,0x1
CONFIGREGS=0x01

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Report Date: 10/12/2006
Last Updated: 10/24/2006
Document ID: 42BKD95N

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