Batboard

Hi there,

I have just received my polaris RIB programmer and have the RSS software, now they don't seem to "get along". I get a "Serial Bus Error #2 no acknowledgement". I have lowered the processor speed, checked the connections, made sure it's all on, checked the CMOS for the serial port being up and running (I even tried changing the IRQ's for the serial port) Still no go!

Can anyone point me in a new direction to try and figure this out?

Any help would be great.

Thanks!

Try making a DOS 6.22 bootable floppy with the RSS software on that, then boot from the floppy. You may have to change some BIOS settings to get it to do that. See if you still have the problem.

I'm running stuff on a 700/850 MHz Dell laptop with absolutely no problem, using an aftermarket RIB and cables. I just happened to have DOS 6.22 around, it's small, takes up very little room in memory, and has plenty of room on the floppy to hold other software. I'm loading NO other programs via config.sys or autoexec.bat; just plain vanilla DOS.

Some people say it won't work in a DOS box under Windows. If that's how you're trying to run it, the DOS floppy idea may be your best solution.

I was getting Serial Comm errors when the battery was not supplying enough power to the RIB. I am using a non-motoroa RIB, and it seems when the battery gets too low, it won't program anymore. Serial Comm errors do not appear to necessarily be related to the serial line to the RIB, but may be the connection from the RIB to the radio

A few other problems I have found are:
Make sure your battery for your portable is fully charged.
Keep your cabels from the rib to radio, and rib to computer
streached out, and try to keep them away from the computer
as much as possible.
Laptops seem to put out more RF than Tower computers,
so try to keep the radio and cables as far away as possible.
For the older software, the older the computer the better.
DOS boxes in windows sometimes workes, but often not.
Hope this helps.

Do you have RSS or CPS? It makes a difference. If it's RSS DOS stuff, Motorola wants a 386 or older and a clock speed of 40 Mhz or less.

Use the computer in MS-DOS; do not use a DOS "Window".

Make sure the right comm port is selected in the RSS setup.

Also go into the setup portion of the RSS and set the BAUD rate to the lowest setting.

I used Polaris ribs for five years with few problems. (Although Motorola ribs have virtually none)

Also found that the occasional laptop would not work with RSS, no explanation why though, just wouldn't work.

Advice above to keep the radio a few feet away from the computer is correct.

If you need to make a DOS boot disk, go to http://www.bootdisk.com. They have images in almost any flavor of DOS.