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a nice little 386 board

V

vic user

Veteran Member
Joined
Sep 12, 2003
Messages
724
Location
Ottawa, Canada
i picked up a small 386 sx-33 comp at the local goodwill today.

i need another 386 like a hole in the head though, but this baord was so tiny, from what i am used to, only about 17cm by 20cm.

after haggling, i bought it for $4.32 CDN.

brought it home, slapped a video card in it, and it boots up ok... expect the cmos battery must be going, because it won't save the settings :)

once i change the battery (please be a simple battery to replace!) i will hopefully get it ready to become a x1541 slave for my vic 20.
 
Ugh, the CMOS battery is that darn soldered drum shaped battery.

it does have 4 prongs right beside it for an external battery hookup.

could i then use an external battery then, and not worry about removing that flippin' ni-cad battery?
 
how would the motherboard know which battery to use, if i successfully find an external battery?

jumper settings somewhere?
 
Most PC batteries run in parallel, so you won't have to worry about the old battery, other than it eventually splitting and leaking...

tachyon
 
Sometimes there's a jumper that has to be changed to switch batteries. I'd recomend removing the old battery before it leaks and wastes the board. You can buy the battery packs at Radio Shack. They hold 4 AA's and jack right in to the MoBo.

--T
 
sweet!

i didn't know it would be so easy.

i have to go by radio shack today anyway, and get a cr-2032 battery for my internet browsing computer.

i miss having my computer running 24/7, and never having to worry about the cmos battery ;)
 
thanks for mentioning cutting out the old battery. when i did, i noticed the beginnings of little blue crystals coming out of one of the seams for the battery!

You can buy the battery packs at Radio Shack. They hold 4 AA's and jack right in to the MoBo
Click to expand...


well, the guy at radio sahck had no idea what i was talking about sadly, but there are some battery stores very close to my house, so i wll phone them up and see what is up.

i need to get a ni-cad battery pack rebuilt, for my 386 sx-20 notebook, and i would rather have a professional do that, than me just going out and buying new rechargeables, and trying to do it myself. mind you, i am afraid to find out what they will charge me (pardon the pun ;)
 
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