Re: dumb question - not sure where to begin configuring a wifi card
On Thursday 23 December 2004 05:50 pm, Rodney D. Myers wrote:
> I'm using Debian sarge, on an IBM Thinkpad 770x.
>
> I'm trying to get my pcmcia wifi card (Netgear wg511) working. It
> works under windos 98SE, needed for radio programming, but not sure
> where to start looking for coinfiguration.
>
> Debian knows it's a Netgear card, and loads the prism54 module, but
> not sure what I need to start trying to get this card configured.
>
> I'm not a newbie running Linux, nor debian. Buit I have no idea where
> to start with wifi.
>
> Thanks
I may be very wrong, I am very new to wireless.
Check this page to see if your card uses the Atheros chipset.
http://customerproducts.atheros.com/customerproducts/ResultsPageBasic.asp
it lists:
108 Mbps Wireless PC Card - Model WG511T
http://www.netgear.com/products/details/WG511T.phphttp://www.netgear.com/products/details/WG511T.php
Double 108Mbps Wireless PC Card - Model WG511U
http://www.netgear.com/products/details/WG511U.php
If you card uses the Atheros chipset, you need an Atheros driver. Does not
come with Debian.
You can get it here.
http://www.marlow.dk/site.php/tech/madwifi
This is the driver I use, and those instructions at Martin List-Petersen's web
page are what I used to get my card running.
The driver is not "finished" yet. It works, as far as I can tell it works
very well, however the people making the driver are improving it.
http://sourceforge.net/projects/madwifi/
http://www.mattfoster.clara.co.uk/madwifi-faq.htm
http://www.linux-wlan.org/docs/wlan_adapters.html.gz
The driver is not pure open source, part of it is closed.
5.3. Why is the HAL closed source?
The Atheros chipset can tune to frequencies that are out of the ISM band(s).
These frequencies are licensed by various regulatory agencies, and radar
systems thus an open HAL is disallowed by just about every regulatory
institution in existence (i.e. FCC etc). On a practical/usability note: Were
it not for the binary nature of the HAL, then the same nerds who deploy the
"power hack" for the WET11 could be generating emissions all over the
restricted bands using madwifi hardware. Ask yourself, which would you rather
have, more power, or less interference?
http://www.mattfoster.clara.co.uk/madwifi-5.htm#2
I hope I have been able to help.
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