[ILUG] Any one using a USB 802.11b dongle on a Powerbook with GNU/Linux?

[Michael Conry]

On Apr 8, 2005 11:59 AM, Liam Bedford <lbedford at lbedford.org> wrote:
> Bryan O'Donoghue wrote:
> > FRLinux wrote:
> > I wonder if it would be worthwhile to compile a list of known working
> > wireless chipsets and have some sort of subsection on the website, to
> > ease people's pain, with getting these devices to work !? !?
> 
> The list of wireless chipsets is easy to do.
> 
> It's mapping the chips to the damn products that is a pita.
> 
> For example, the netgear WG511 (I think it is). V1 is a minipci in pci
> adapter based atheros. V2 is a soldered on ACX111.
> 
> And some manufacturers aren't even that nice.
In fairness to DLink, their DWL-G650 is atheros based, and there's a
sticker on the box to say so (not much use if you're ordering on the
internet, but if you're in a shop, or talking to somebody on the phone
who has it in front of them then it's useful).  If, somehow, it turned
out that the unit you bought did not have an actual atheros chipset,
you'd be legally entitled to a refund without problem (at least in
Ireland).
Also says so on the website:
http://www.dlink.com/products/?model=DWL-G650
Though you've to be careful as sometimes the US version of a card is
different from the European one.

But finding a truly Linux compatible card (last I checked this meant
prism2 or something... but these things change rapidly) is, in my
experience, really a matter of huge amounts of reading on web,
followed by a bit of guesswork and luck.  The only tip I could offer
is to try to download the windows drivers for a likely looking card
(doing your best to ensure the driver corresponds to the actual unit
you might buy), and then to look through the provided files for
indicators of the chipset.

Michael