What to do with my PCMCIA-Slot?

[Schoppitsch Dieter <dieter.schoppitsch@uta.at>]

Hi,

on my old laptop and favorite toy (486-SX, 25 MHz, 4MB)
I have a PCMCIA-Slot (I think it is type 2).

This slot is an old type that does not support a PCMCIA-network-
card (10/100 Mbit/s) - I can't put it in fully.
A Token-Ring-Card fits exactly but is useless in our company's 
Ethernet-network.

So I have 2 questions:
* Does my Ethernet-card work if I put it in with force
('file the edge' - I'm serious)?
* If I would buy a PCMCIA-card with flash- or smart-memory -
how can linux use this memory as RAM or hard drive?

Does anyone has experience in this - thanks for any help.
Dieter