After well over a month of evenings and weekends devoted to trying to get my Ralink wireless USB adapter (that was reported to work with Linux) to work on my Dell Inspiron 8000 laptop running Antix 8.5, I’ve finally triumphed - by buying another USB adapter. I finally did what I should have in the first place and did a keyword search for an adapter that would work with Mepis/Antix. I actually found a reference to one; an"SMC Networks" model SMCWUSB-G, available on amazon.com for $15 (US) plus shipping (I'm sure there are other brands that would work, I just don't know what they are). It’s an 802.11g adapter that works with either 1.1 or 2.0 USB ports. It's about the size of a small candy bar, but the Ralink was larger still and had an antenna sticking out the back as well. It came as advertised - it just plain worked out of the box! I simply plugged it in, opened up CENI, hit scan, and there was my wireless net! I clicked on all the default selections, and was up and surfin’ the net! One slight caveat is that I have to unplug the adapter and plug it back in to reboot every time I start-up the Dell, but I had to do that with the old Trendnet adapter I was running with XP. Must be something peculiar to that particular computer. Note: I checked all my network managers and was able to observe my networks in all but Wicid, so I deleted that to save resources.

So, how well does it work? Does it leave a visible aura from the blazing power of the electro-magnetic energy radiating from the connection? No. Is it burning a hole in the wall between the computer and the router? No. But it works, it just flat works! I always use the home page for hotrod.com as a test for my connections as there's a lot going on there. There are multiple pop-ups that overlay the very busy home page as well as a video that automatically loads and plays. All that stuff loaded (slowly) and though the video was a little choppy, it ran without stalling and the audio was flawless. After downloading the Mozilla flash drive from synaptic, Youtube videos ran perfectly. My connection is through a 1.1 USB port to an inexpensive router that is several years old. I’m sure newer equipment would work better. Though I’ve surely used faster connections, if it was all I had I could certainly live with it. All in all, I’m a happy guy.

All of this trial and tribulation has brought me to an epiphany. When working within a given Linux distro, a device either works or it doesn't. Period. For my part as a total newb, from now on I will carefully research in advance any peripheral devices for their compatability with a specific distro before I buy. This would include printers, phones, PDA's, Mp3's, etc.I think it's fine to check to see if something you already have works, but if it doesn't I'm just going to buy what I'm told will work. I've spent far too many precious hours and endured far too many glowering looks from my wife while trying to figure this out. In my lengthy research, I scoured many, many on-line discussions, blogs, tutorials, wikis, and distro-specific forums. I would see a link that would interest me and try to parrot all the helpful suggestions listed. Many of the threads on the forums were started by people much smarter and more experienced than me, and they were often coached by the actual administrators of the forums. Some of those threads got highly technical and therefore too difficult for me to follow, but virtually every single one of them eventually petered out without the"victim" ever achieving a satisfactory resolution to his or her problem. There but for the grace of God go I. As a Newbie who wants to stay within the desktop environment as much as possible, I just don't need all the drama - life is just too short. My advice would be to save yourself all the heartache and just buy what works. If you will indulge me, I'm going to post this basic information in another post with a title that will be a beacon to all those who follow in my bloody footsteps. If I can save just one newb from coughing up a chunk of their life, I will have done my duty. The bulldog in me needs to take a nap now.

Good to hear Dan. I learned

I will carefully research in advance any peripheral devices for their compatability with a specific distro before I buy. This would include printers, phones, PDA's, Mp3's, etc

to do that long ago. 90% of my gear is wireless in Linux. Saves a lot of pain. Don't it. __{{emoticon}}__