Network Card Issues

**NOTE: This post, along with all the posts dated August 2007, is about my first experiences using Linux on a computer I have since parted with. I installed Debian "etch" onto a hand-me-down desktop computer just to see if I could do it. I note this since all of the posts from 2008 deal with an entirely different computer!

My network card has not worked since I began the installation process. Here's what's happening: I have some connectivity, but it is slow and inconsistent. When on the web, I can view pages, but they load very slowly. This limited connectivity has been very useful, though, and I was able to download Debian package elements from the Web. Since my dad never got it to work either, this card may not work well at all, but right now I'm convinced the problem is the driver. Here's why:

1. The light on the back of the computer that indicates an active Ethernet connection is on. The light on the router is also on. This has not been consistently the case, but most of the time the lights are on.
2. The connection works, if slowly ("jerky" is a term someone had for a similar problem on a Linux discussion site - it's an accurate description), which makes me think the hardware is not the problem. The router is also working, because I'm allowed onto the Web.

Another interesting feature of the current connection is that is works faster when I am opening a program. This means that if I'm downloading a file from the Web, it works much faster if I just keep opening programs - games, apps - whatever. When I'm up and running again I will detail the processes I've gone through so far to solve the problem.

Network card problems

Well, my first attempt at using the Ethernet card in the Windows 98 Dell has not worked. My dad bought the NIC (Network Interface Card) a couple of years ago for his DSL modem, but neither he, nor the half-interested tech support guys he consulted, could make it work correctly. My dad is very interested in technology, but doesn't know or care much about its inner workings, so he just shrugged and used a USB port instead.

Since I need this card to work for this project to be successful, I have tinkered with the very frustrating Windows 98 utilities, the router's settings, and everything under the sun, and I can't seem to get it to work either. What I've decided, is that I will assume that the problem is the software, and that once I get Linux going, hopefully it will pick up the network and all will be well.

Famous last words, huh?

Setting up the network

I first got DSL a couple of years ago when I was in library school and soon after, I took a course in networking. During the break between fall and summer semesters I bought an Ethernet router and set up a network for our desktop and laptop computers, to share files, printing, and Internet. This was a lot of fun, but it involved a great deal of wiring (not to mention extra money - Ethernet cable isn't cheap!) and hours of frustration crimping twisted pair cable in exactly the right way. After I graduated last summer, we went to dial-up in an effort to cut corners.

Now my wife is entering an online program and we just got DSL again. It's like a rush of fresh water after a drought, so after a few late nights catching up on Daily Show and Fresh Air archives, I decided to set up my network again. After discovering that my router's AC adapter cord was eaten by the cat (!), I decided to upgrade to a wireless router, since we have also just acquired a wireless-enabled laptop. Setting up the network was actually quite easy this time and my wife and I spend the following evening reveling in our wireless freedom, trading iTunes songs over the network.

Now that the network is in place, I can look towards incorporating my soon-to-be-Linux desktop.