November 1st, 2005
Lost in the Ethernet
Dear Bloggie,
I have both Windows XP Pro and Redhat Linux on my notebook computer. I love using the Linksys WPC54G PCMCIA card with WiFi communications. Unfortunately, this only works out of the box with the Windows operating system. A Google search showed multiple very technical solutions that let the Linksys PCMCIA wireless card work in the Linux world. It seems that Linux support works very hard to show that it can be used as a Windows replacement, except for a few applications that haven’t migrated to Linux. Surely wireless communications isn’t one of those applications?
Would you or your colleagues have a solution that could be used to use the Linksys WPC54G PCMCIA card in the Redhat Linux world?
Tied to Ethernet; Dreaming of WiFi
Dear Tied to Ethernet:
Bloggie can sympathize with your plight.
My son and I just spent an exciting hour crawling through the dirt of our half dug-out basement, trying to run a new Ethernet cable to his PC following a lightning strike that knocked out
our home network.
We had 30 feet of cable. We should have had 50.
While my dirty son thinks about whether he’s going to talk to me again or not, here’s a funny point. Linksys wireless routers actually run Linux commands internally, interfacing with Wind River’s VxWorks. (Wind River even has a complete Linux strategy, which CEO Ken Klein described for us in April.)
UNFORTUNATELY, this doesn’t help you with your PCMCIA card problems. To make 802.11 happen under Linux with Linksys, you need an access card that works with Linux. Besides, PCMCIA access cards are dirt cheap. (Bloggie has dirt on the brain.)
Tuxmobil has a list of such cards that work with its routers. Check with Linksys on compatibility with your specific router before handing over the greenbacks. Then you just plug in the Linux card while running Linux, and the Windows card when running Windows. And don’t forget to get in touch with Card Services for Linux, a complete PCMCIA support package.
UPDATE: After hours spent in the basement pulling cable, we found the old cable does work. But the son refuses to go back downstairs. Right now Ethernet is snaking around our ceiling like Christmas lights. Help!
Sincerely,
Bloggie
Ask Bloggie is a joint production by bloggers Dana Blankenhorn, Paul Murphy, George Ou and Jason O'Grady, who need your technology and technology management questions. Please drop them a note either via the talkback section here or by email - to murph@winface.com.
