Debian Linux 7 and Realtek soundcards

[Bret Busby <bret@busby.net>]

Hello.

I have this weekend, managed to install Debian 7.5 amd64 xfce version 
onto a laptop computer.

However, the sound does not work.

In searching, I have found that the laptop apparently has a Realtek 
soundcard (and, an inbuilt Intel something soundcard thing).

With Debian having eliminated "non-free" stuff from the official release 
packages, I realize that, somewhere (it is not easy to find, from the 
Debian web site), "firmware" ISO's are available, that can install 
"non-free" hardware drivers.

I am therefore wondering whether, somewhere, packages exist (.deb 
packages, that make installation relatively easy for those of us not 
skilled "in the black arts"), for the hardware drivers that may be on 
the firmware ISO's.

I do not know whether the firmware ISO's allow a user to choose which 
desktop environment is installed, and the procedure that I found, for 
dealing with the .tar.bz files from the Realtek web site, seem too 
complicated.

Thank you in anticipation, for constructive assistance.

--
Bret Busby
Armadale
West Australia
..............

"So once you do know what the question actually is,
 you'll know what the answer means."
- Deep Thought,
  Chapter 28 of Book 1 of
  "The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy:
  A Trilogy In Four Parts",
  written by Douglas Adams,
  published by Pan Books, 1992
....................................................