where in Mandrake 9.1 do i setup these properties like SSID, encryption key for WEP, etc...?
Thanks for any help, Im new to linux and trying to get the hang of it.

Go to www.linux-wlan.com and download the 0.2.0 files.

Install, then run
modprobe prism2_usb prism2_doreset=1
wlanctl-ng wlan0 lnxreq_ifstate ifstate=enable
wlanctl-ng wlan0 lnxreq_autojoin ssid=<Your SSID> authtype=opensystem
ifconfig wlan0 <Your IP> netmask 255.255.255.0 broadcast <xxx.xxx.xxx.255>
route add default gw <Your gateway, generally the router>

Note that this is for USB, which looks like your model number, otherwise, just run modprobe prism2_cs,plx,pci for the appropriate NIC type.

The xes for broadcast should be the same as the first 3 strings of your IP.

And you should be good to go.

where exactly do I do all this, I am a real noobie at Mandrake 9.1 and just recently installed. have never used linux before. Can someone help me in more detail (before i end up giving up on linux due to not being user friendly to me) or is there a web site where it explains how to do these tasks line by line or step by step?
thanks.

You could also, alternatively use the orinoco_cs driver or the hostap_cs driver, they're both rather good too. Offhand, I think Mandrake shipped with the wlan-ng modules from above, so check to see if you have the module loaded already with the command:

/sbin/lsmod

there should be a few, one particularly with the name, prism2_cs

Then just edit the file mentioned above with the proper info and invoke dhcp manually with:

dhcpcd wlan0

And it should work.

Cheers,

Finegan

Great command, I typed /sbin/lsmod and it showed quite a few devices.
well I have these entires regarding PCMCIA cards:
===================================
Module Size Used Not Tainted

orinoco_cs 5652 1
orinoco 36972 0 [orinoco_cs]
hermes 7524 0 [orinoco_cs orinoco]
ds 8456 2 [orinoco_cs]
yenta_socket 13056 2
pcmcia_core 57184 0 [orinoco_cs ds yenta_socket]

===================================
Does this look normal?
If so which file is the one I edit with my wireless access point settings, for like SSID, encryption, channel, infrastructure, etc?

I've had issues using WEP in Linux, but it looks like Mandrake autodetected and installed the orinoco_cs driver. The iwconfig utility will do all that for you, just run "man iwconfig" and it should tell you how to use it. Not sure if Mandrake comes with it, tho'.

I would recommend turning off WEP, unless you're really worried about wardriving, or mooching neighbors, and run dhcpd wlan0 (or whatever your interface will be), then run iwconfig (your interface) and see if it has your ssid, etc set properly.

Thanks for the great advice everyone, but Im such a newbie at Linux, what i really need is step by step instructions ( and where to start these steps). Im as green as they come.
Can anyone help me with Mandrake 9.1?