[NBLUG/talk] my laptop & wireless ethernet

[Rob Orsini]

At 05:23 AM 6/10/2003 -0700, you wrote:
>Rob Orsini wrote:
> > My first question: Has anyone had luck with wireless PCMCIA cards and
> > linux?
>
>i know you solved this already, but just for further edification:
>
>the way i got my PCMCIA wi-fi card to work with mandrake 9.1 was to
>install without the card in, then put the card in and run the 'Mandrake
>Control Center' tool, and navigate the the hardware section, from there
>the card should be recognized and you can configure it. configuring it
>should prompt you to install the wireless-tools package which includes
>iwconfig among others.
>
>even though my card has a prism2 chipset, the mandrake tool uses the
>orinoco module, which works fine except if you want to run kismet, but
>more on that later.
>
>augie.


So, installing Mandrake went smoothly, but I didn't learn much.  So in an 
effort to  get my hands dirty I now have Debian up and my PCMCIA wi-fi... 
down. ;-)

I looked at the SourceForge compatibility document and it looks like 
something close to my NetGear MA401 works with the orinoco_cs driver.  I 
guess at some point I need the wireless tool kit (including the 
ifconfig-like app). I also have some install docs from NetGear that state this:

     This software has currently been tested on the following configurations:
       * linux-2.4.2  + pcmcia-cs-3.1.24 + RedHat7.1
       * linux-2.4.7-10+ pcmcia-cs-3.1.27 + RedHat7.2
       * linux-2.4.18 + pcmcia-cs-3.1.27 + RedHat7.3

I'm running a 2.2.20 kernel so not sure if this is the first road to go 
down.  I'm just sort of lost and don't want to proceed until the fog clears 
a little. Can any one point me in the right direction?  I don't mind 
reading but like to read the 'right' stuff in the interest of time.