=?iso-8859-1?Q?Cannot_install_any_debian_-_no_kernels_support_USB_net_cards??=

[<spamspamspam@grexengine.com>]

I'm not sure if this is a bug or by-design. No mention of it anywhere in
the online docs AFAICS.

It seems that the debian installer (tried both stable and testing in
pretty much every conceivable CD-based flavour) is hard-coded to not
allow people to use a USB network card.

Testing won't even install because it keeps complaining there's no
network card and refuses to continue installing beyond that point.

I know that my USB network card works fine, because before I formatted
the hard disk it was running mandrake with an unadulterated 2.4.18
kernel using the pegasus.o that comes with the linux kernel. Sadly, the
debian installers won't let me actually load my driver module :( for no
apparent reason (?).

I tried installing stable with no networking, and then compiling a
custom kernel, but the supplied 2.4.18 kernel source that came on the
stable CD (1 or 2) has all the USB network cards deleted (their section
in make menuconfig is empty, ditto in make config).

Is there a way around this? Is there some reason why USB network cards
are hard-coded out?

Thanks.