[NTLUG:Discuss] help getting wireless working

[Kevin Hulse]

--- Stephen Davidson <gorky at freenet.carleton.ca>
wrote:

> Terry Henderson wrote:
> 
> >On Sat, 30 Oct 2004 06:36:28 -0500, Stephen
> Davidson
> ><gorky at freenet.carleton.ca> wrote:
> >>Kevin Hulse wrote:
[deletia]
> >As to the question of ease of installation of
> software?
> >"an easier solution"  than "build your own code"
> >  
> >
> I want to know the code will work before I even try
> to install it.

Get yourself a Macintosh.
  
> Trying to match drivers and hardware is a HUGE pain,
> and a task that I 
> normally fail at.
> 
> >I guess that boils down to whether a person is
> willing to use a
> >keyboard or not.  To compile from source, one has
> to type in 3
> >commands.
> >
> >./configure
> >make
> >make install
> >
> >  
> >
> That does not start the software.  And how do you
> configure?  If you do 

That's not the topic at hand.

> not already know the command line options, at this
> point, you are 
> toast.  Even with RPMs.  Nor does it tell me that I

Not at all. You just bother to read the relevant 
documentation or seek it out on Google if you don't
have it.

Alternatively, you use the wifi configuration wizards
provided by your distribution of choice. Once the
driver issues are dealt with, the rest is relatively
trivial.

> am compiling the 
> right software, let alone the right version, for a
> given piece of 
> hardware.  I have a couple of Airlink Wireless Nics
> that I bought and 
> then could not get to work because of this issue. 

That's why you need to build+install the associated
kernel mods before you buy anything. Wifi cards under
Linux are at the same point that 3D cards were ~ 6
years ago.

[deletia]
> >I realize that's pretty tough, [my fingers are
> aching already], but to
> >me, it's easier than wizards, (I'm more of a coffee
> drinker than a
> >wizard person).
>
> For techie types, command line is generally easier
> (including for me in 
> many cases, but most glaringly NOT for most config
> files).  However, 
> Linux is moving out of the techie market to the mass
> consumer-market, 
> and believe me, they NEED wizards (otherwise, they

The wizard doesn't do any more than a makefile does.

[deletia]