The PCMCIA card is used as a form factor to create peripheral interfaces for the laptops. It was formed by a group of companies in the United States of America. Though it was initially designed to serve as a computer memory expansion device, the availability of the standard usable notebook peripherals devices such as the hard disks, modems and networking cards were behind it not being used as an expandable memory device. The card comes in three different thickness and are generally referred as to Types I, II and III thought they have some compatibility especially from the smaller ones to the thicker ones as they can share the same port though the vice versa cannot work. The use of the card has been outmoded by the superior ExpressCard interface being faster though those which are compatible with modems are still in use.
To be able to install and use the PCMCIA card easily you will be required to have the manual that accompanies it and peruse through it. The card comes with its support software which helps it to be used easily and will enable your computer to detect it and install it once it has been plugged into its right port. In addition to that, the card comes with a set of three or four drivers which are the socket, the card service, and the super client and finally the resource manager drivers. Most computers have internal drivers for the card and you will not be required to install them again.
Some people have trouble with knowing if the PCMCIA card software is already installed, it is quite easy, you could read on your screen as it is booting up. Usually, it indicates that a Card Service or sometimes the Socket Service message which means it is installed and if not installed it will not have the messages. Another way to know is by checking whether your computer has the software in the manufacturer’s manual or alternatively contacts them to tell you whether you will be required to install it or if is not necessary.

You need to know that sometimes, the

PCMCIA card

may come with some proprietary drivers which include the networking, sound and the SCSI cards which have their secondary drivers; you will be required to install all of the secondary drivers. The drivers are installed in the PCs CONFIG.SYS and you will be required to follow the instructions which are provided in the user manual. Once you realize that the installation process is done, you will have to reboot your computer however, you should ensure that your card is inserted to the slot. This will enable the card to be run in the CONFIG.SYS of your computer and if it is detected you will hear a single beep this will certainly mean it was correctly installed. If you however, hear two beeps, it was not well installed and the CONFIG.SYS has not been recognized it. You will have to repeat the whole process.

If you are lucky to complete the process, the final step towards using your

PCMCIA card

is to install the application software. This is only possible if the card has been detected and you will afterwards enjoy all the services for which you installed your PCMCIA Card!

The PCMCIA Card came into existence in 1989 to help promote the standards for the integrated circuit cards I/O as well as the memory. In 1993, another standard 2.1 card was developed thus PC users could get the attachment of any the related peripheral devices that came after that. The card, which looks as a credit card, comes with 68 pins with which it is connected to its slot in the in a PC. The common example is the 28.8 Kbps modem card which is used in most notebook computers. Though the card is commonly used in laptops, it can also be used for the desktops and it could be easily confused with other electronic cards.

The PCMCIA card comes it three sizes which are of different thicknesses ranging from the 3.3mm to 10.5mm. To begin with, the 3.3mm used as memory and it commonly referred to the type I card. It is compatible with the slots of the other two types. The type II, is a 5.0mm card that is used for modems, LANs, Sound as well as SCSI. Finally, the type III card which is largest with a thickness of 10.5mm is used for ATA hard drive. While assembling them, you will notice that a thicker cards cannot fit in the smaller slots while the vice versa is true.
Since they are commonly used with laptops, it is easy to mount them on your PC if it has the compatible slot. Some recent computers do not come with the slot. To be able to use the PCMCIA card you will have to use a special adapter which will be able to link the card to your computer’s USB port. In addition to the adapter, you will be required to have the installation CD for the card and the process of connecting is easy.
To begin with, you will connect one end of the USB to PCMCIA adapter to any of the functional USB ports in your PC and the other end to the adapter. You should not connect the PCMCIA card yet as its time to be connected has not come. Let your windows explorer detect the new device. After a short while, the Add a New Hardware Wizard will prompt you that it has found a new device and will guide you all though the process of installation and configuration. Afterwards, it many require you to reboot the computer once the configuration has been finished.
Finally, you will be required to push the

PCMCIA card

to the USB to PCMCIA adapter and wait for windows to direct you through. It may require you to insert the installation CD and you will do that, as it guides you while you continue with the device installation. During the process of installation, the installation wizard will be asking you what you ought to do. In addition to that, the wizard will search and automatically install the drives for your card and thus it will be detected. Your installation process will then be finished with the computer prompting you to reboot it again for the second time. The process is quite simple and easy to do. It does not require an expert to do a

PCMCIA Card

installation.