usb alsaconf settings not saved [PARTIALLY SOLVED]

[jpop12]

update:

additionally, i tried:
setup - multiple sound card wizard.
here is what is listed:

card 0: VT82xx [HDA VIA VT82xx], device 0: VT1708 Analog [VT1708 Analog]
card 1: default [C-Media USB Audio Device], device 0: USB Audio [USB Audio]

so i choose card 1, and i have audio through my USB audio adapter, but
no control over it- it is not listed in alsa mixer or anywhere else.
a window pops up and says: reboot for changes to take effect.
so i do, and now the usb adapter is the default and is working.

if i run alsaconf again, and choose the usb option
and reboot, alsamixer is back at hda via vt82xx.

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Puppy community-

i have a full hard drive install of Puppy 4.3.1
running on an everex gbook laptop.
alsa does not recognize my headphone jack.
i can get around this by using a usb audio adapter
and choosing the "usb-audio override: usb sound device"
option in alsaconf.
the trouble is that when i reboot, the alsaconf
and modprobe settings are not saved.
(i tried a frugal install and encountered the same problem.)

here is what modprobe looks like after startup:

# --- BEGIN: Generated by ALSACONF, do not edit. ---
# --- ALSACONF version 1.0.20 ---
alias snd-card-0 snd-hda-intel
alias sound-slot-0 snd-hda-intel
# --- END: Generated by ALSACONF, do not edit. ---

alias snd-card-0 snd-usb-audio
alias sound-slot-0 snd-usb-audio
alias snd-card-1 snd-usb-audio
alias sound-slot-1 snd-usb-audio

here is what alsamixer looks like after startup:

card: hda via vt82xx
chip: via vt1708

here is what modprobe looks like after running
"usb-audio override: usb sound device" in alsaconf:

# --- BEGIN: Generated by ALSACONF, do not edit. ---
# --- ALSACONF version 1.0.20 ---
alias snd-card-0 snd-usb-audio
alias sound-slot-0 snd-usb-audio
# --- END: Generated by ALSACONF, do not edit. ---

here is what alsamixer looks like after running
"usb-audio override: usb sound device" in alsaconf:

card: c-media usb audio device
chip: usb mixer

i tried following the info offered by Patriot
and ended up killing alsa:
http://www.murga-linux.com/puppy/viewtopic.php?t=45326

any ideas on how to make my usb settings permanent?
many thanks.