Manual Driver Installation?

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genistas

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Hi!
How do you manually install a device driver in Windows 98 that Windows doesn't see?
I have an RCA DCM245 cable modem with a bad ethernet jack. I want to connect via USB instead. This works fine on my XP laptop, but I can't find a single driver anywhere that Windows 98 can recognize, even though every driver that I've downloaded (even from the RCA site) says that it works with 98. Through my research, I've discovered that many people have had this problem, and that the solution is to install it manually. Can anybody tell me how or point me to a web site that can?
Thanks for your time!
-dan
 
win 98 and usb. always fun times.
goto your control panel>system>device manager. forst thing to look for under under universal serial bus controllers is something called the usb composite device. remove it if you have it. then look for that usb cable modem to show up with yellow ? or yellow!, usually under the network adapters category.
remove the device from the list, then hit the refresh button. that should bring up the add new hardware wizard. if it doesn't, simply unplug the usb cable from your pc and plug it in. when the wizard comes up, select install from a list or specific location, then browse to the specific driver file you downloaded. install it and then reboot. that should do the trick.
good luck.
 
Thank you very much for your reply!
Unfortunately, when I browse to the driver files (.inf .cat and .sys files) Windows actually doesn't SEE them, meaning I can click on the files and say OK, but when it comes up to the list of devices that those files are supposed to support, the list is blank. Typically I would assume this means that the drivers aren't for Windows 98, but according to the description, they are.

Here's a link to the topic I'm refering to (if you feel like doing a little reading). After the first couple of irrelevent posts about remotely resetting the modem, you'll see that many many people are having the same exact problem I'm having with Windows 98 and this particular series of RCA modems. Near the bottom, somebody explains that Windows 98 doesn't see these drivers, but they can be "installed manually".


http://www.cable-modems.org/q&a/index.php?one_question=334

I'm getting really close to upgrading to XP, but it seems to me that this is indeed possible. But if it can't be done it can't be done.

Thanks again!
 
is that what happens when you use the add new hardware wizard and point exactly to those driver files? if it tells you its unable to install, ensure you have the correct and current usb files for that device. also, if you got your modem from your isp, they usually keep usb installer disks for their modems handy. call them and ask to see if they do.
 
Yeah, that is exactly what happens. Not only that, but I have already tried that driver from that Comcast page. I've also tried the drivers directly from the RCA site, one from driverguide.com, and one that came from a Google search. They're all the same. Weird huh? I think I'll be installing windows 2000 today.
 
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