The upgrade to 11.1, kernel 2.6.27.29-0.1-default broke my sound setup on this machine.
Following OldCPUs update instructions, I downloaded the latest alsa and related rpms and am now back in business.
For those still setting up, here are the results of /usr/bin/alsa-info:
http://www.alsa-project.org/db/?f=53...d23859312c0682
Two items of interest
1. When first brought this laptop up on 11.1 with 2.6.27.7, I had to make a "model" entry in /etc/modprobe.d/sound. Not this time.
2. As a test, I booted this laptop with LiveCD 11.2 RC8. Sound worked right out of the (virtual)box! I still think oldcpu is optimistic to think he is out of a job.