[ILUG] serial port transient failure

[Waider]

Here's a weird and wacky problem:

I'm currently out of the country with my trusty Evo N600c laptop. When I 
tried to use the serial port to talk to my mobile phone, Linux behaved 
pretty much as if the port was fried. Bizarre, I thought, because I'd 
used it successfully while in the office. The only difference was that I 
was trying the thing in the hotel. I entertained brief notions of having 
somehow fried the serial drivers, then rebooted the laptop to Windows 
and tried again. Worked perfectly. Back to Linux. Still not talking. 
Considered that it might be flaky power, so I ran the laptop on battery. 
Nope. Tried moving the laptop to a differnet part of the room where 
there might be less bogon flux. Still not working. Eventually I gave up 
and used the IrDA port instead - which is usually the serial connection 
of doom, grief, and teeth-grinding.

This morning, in the office, the damn thing is working without a hitch.

Anyone like to suggest what mystery technology is in use in the hotel 
that prevents serial ports from working under Linux?

Cheers,
Waider.
-- 
waider at waider.ie / Yes, it /is/ very personal of me