question about wi-fi

[Derick Centeno]

Hi Paul:
A clarification: Apple designed the iBooks, Powerbooks and other 
portables using Airport and Airport Extreme in such a way that if these 
portables were purchased together with the Airport or Airport Extreme 
installed then the PCMCIA slots would remain available for other 
extensions or additions.  In other words, the PCMCIA slot remains an 
extra available port for using all sorts of devices usually reserved 
for Windows or Linux.  There are tons of emulators for Linux and lots 
of drivers for these PCMCIA devices if one does the research carefully 
and decide within one's budget just what one wants to use when and for 
what.  As you have Airport, embedded in your laptop you don't need any 
other wireless device for Linux.  Just select Airport, associate it 
with eth1 from within Network config if you are within Gnome or KDE and 
you should be wireless nearly immediately.  You explained you've had 
trouble with YDL 4.0.1; you shouldn't have trouble with YDL 4.1.  A 
little experimentation will reveal to you which interface works best in 
your environment.  Airport should have no trouble linking to whatever 
nodes are available; the issue will be the interface.  As usual each 
person must judge for themselves what works best; your advantage will 
be as a student you have access to all the other students who have 
similar problems.

Use the PCMCIA slot for something cool and smooth and maybe a bit 
unheard of .... like a TV transmitter that fits into the PCMCIA slot!!  
Go ahead... bug your buddies out with how the PB or iBook is not 
supposed to be able to do that!  Remember Linux is a completely 
different universe!!  I haven't tried this myself, but hey you're the 
student... this is as good a time to cosy up with the dweebs in the 
Physics & Comp. Sci. departments listen a bit to what's hot, what's 
going on and maybe see how you fit in or learn enough electronics to 
trick out or mod your own machine.  Check out the back issues of 
various electronic, linux and similar tech magazines see what you can 
find which interests you.

By the way, because you have the Airport card installed, you will have 
lots of choices regarding which interface you choose to use within 
Linux.  KwifiManager just being one of them.

YDL is sturdier and faster than OS X.  Considering the other advantages 
of one OS or the other will vary according to your skills and needs 
(and assignments).  You may find it convenient (and practical) to 
partition your laptop such that you have both Linux and OS X available 
so that you utilize the best of what both offers.

Congratulations on pursuing a career and education.  Delve and study as 
well as you can and investigate expanding the skills you have ever 
wider.  There is no area of study in which a mathematical and 
technological/scientific foundation will not be fundamental and 
perpetually useful for the duration of one's life.  So use the time you 
have and focus.
Be innovative with the computers, technologies, research, libraries and 
whatever is there for you to utilize and explore as a developing 
professional.

Just an idea but if you want more than one firewire port or the USB 
ports provided by Apple, consider getting a PCMCIA card with those 
features ... why not??  OS X might recognize them, might not; but Linux 
most likely will.  So use the PCMCIA ports to your need and advantage.  
Otherwise, be imaginative!

Good Luck ...


On Mar 23, 2006, at 6:33 PM, Paul Higgins wrote:

> Thanks for the info.  You mention the PCMCIA cards; will these work in 
> both
> the Airport Extreme slots as well as the regular Airport slots like my 
> iBook?
> And with those drivers installed, will a machine with a PCMCIA card be 
> able
> to detect a new wireless signal without rebooting?
>
> In case you're wondering about my particular situation: I work at the 
> U of MN,
> and the entire campus is a wireless zone, not to mention all the coffee
> houses, etc.  It's really nice to be able to walk into a library, open 
> up
> your notebook, and be able to work without a reboot.  (Though to be 
> fair to
> YDL, it boots *much* faster than OS X on this machine).  There are 
> those
> little USB wireless dongles as well--do you know if they work, or is 
> that
> also an issue of having the proper drivers?
>
> I'd also be interested to hear what anyone's experience has been with 
> the new
> Kwifimanager in 4.1, and whether it's still crashing on launch like it 
> did in
> 4.0.1.
>
> -PRH