Hi everybody i have posted this message on another forum
Im not a Linux basher im just looking at things from a Windows user of 15 or so years trying a new system which seems overly complicated and aged and am very frustrated (The Look of Linux seems very Old and dated compared to Windows) nevertheless id still like to try it
I have an Old Dell Laptop with XP pro on obviously with the demise of Support for XP i read about Linux and thought id give it a go on a USB first so i downloaded both Mint and Ubuntu as they seem to be the ones people recommend (why are there so many versions of Linux ? to the average person its all too confusing
I have been trying for nigh on 2 days on and off to get connected to the Internet
But for me its just too hard to understand all i want to do is connect to the internet and id be happy .id probably install it alongside Windows as it does look interesting if i could just sort this problem out it doesnt seem that much of a deal but its making me feel like an idiot!! I am not overly tech savvy (Im not a complete idiot!)and to be honest i dont see in this day and age why i should be reverting to command lines etc to get things working I click network in Linux Mint or Ubuntu and all i can see is "Disconnected you are now Offline" but it seems Linux is just not that user friendly in telling me what i should do 2 days trying to figure out a connection is just ridiculous .I have a Wifi Router in my house and a card with a wireless SSD number and Wireless Key thats it In windows all i do is type these two pieces of information in and voila im on the net in 5 seconds for the life of me i cannot figure out what i am supposed to do to to get connected in Both Mint and Ubuntu which i downloaded and tried ..again with the same results ..No Internet ..It comes up with the same thing DISCONNECTED when trying to make an Internet connection i get a box coming up with all kinds of Info that i may or may not have to put in Why is it so damn complicated?! vpns and SSIDs BSIDs trying to connect up mean nothing to me or the majority of people used to Windows (i realsie you could just say stick to Windows but its honestly constructive Crticism or trying to be) i am just not skilled enough to figure out what i am supposed to put in where i have had a mate come round and looked at it and we both cannot figure out what we are supposed to do .. Linux just seems a mystery when simple problems occur as people who are using it assume everyone has knowledge of command lines etc surely Linux should be made easier more Like Windows without becoming Windows because lets face it Windows is easy and surely the idea is to make peoples lives easier you would get many more people trying Linux im sure . its just not user friendly enough when there is a simple problem like this why there isnt a box that comes up and tells you what to do i cannot understand and its extemely frustrating Anyway sorry its so long and hope someone can help!! Thankyou

Linux can be daunting when you first start out. it has taken me years to get where I am now and I still don't know half of what there is.

You do need to enter the password for the root user, the first time you connect to a new wireless network.

on my netbook I have to connect with a wire to my router as my wifi has proprietary drivers. I am not sure if this is the case for you. when I connect with a cable I get a message that drivers can be downloaded and it works from there.

what make and model laptop are you using?

Hi Thanks for taking the time to reply
i have a Dell Inspiron 6400 its an Old Laptop i know but its done well and still i think has years of service in it
As for Root User Passwords thats what i mean i dont even understand what that means and thats what irks me about Linux as a newbie User it seems very Tech orientated and as such puts people off i have asked advice from friends of mine and they say the same thing its just not friendly enough for the average user who wants to surf the net and get on with everyday tasks and not fiddle fart about with roots and command lines etc Its as though Windows users are the poor sappy relations It shouldnt be that way surely ill try connecting the router wired but i dunno its not what i wanted to do all i wanted was to connect to the net using my SSID and wireless key it just seems crazy difficult
Thanks again

Are you seeing wireless networks available? If not open terminal & check output of command there you will see your wireless device.

Eddy
Thanks for the reply i dont see any wireless networks available i have tried typing that and something does come up but again it means nothing to me as i cant seem to do anything about it in that screen

Type the command Eddy gave you into a terminal and post the output here. You may need ndiswrapper and use Windows drivers but lets see what your hardware is first.

BTW that first post is pretty unreadable for some people the way it is set out. Paragraphs serve an important function it would be really helpful, for me at least, if you could break it up.

Hi newbiegibbo.
The reason why you can't connect to the Wi-Fi in your computer is due to a missing drive for the wireless card in your computer. Its all political, you see Dell uses Broadcom brand for their wireless devices. Broadcom being a proprietary brand does not include its code in the Linux Kernel. However the driver is available you just need to find it and download it.

You need to get connected with your computer first using a wired cable from your computer to the router, then it will connect just fine, a pop up will notify you that updates are available for your computer, install these updates and chances are the missing driver will get installed it automatically . Or you will get another pop up notifying you that proprietary drivers are available for your computer.

You will just have to use your user password the same pop up will ask you there to type it.

If you don't have a pop up you still can look for the driver if you go to your applications and look for a tool that would let you search for additional drivers (You can do a search on your system just type on the search 'additional drivers')

You haven't mentioned here but I am assuming you are using the latest Ubuntu or the latest Linux Mint.


About your comment referring to Linux looking dated. That will depend on what graphical interface you are using. There are different graphical interfaces in Linux some of them are meant to be use with computers with poor graphical performance so they use very little memory and yeah these can have a dated look, very very minimalist.
but there are other graphical interfaces that can make your computer look like if they are from the future. But they use lots of memory and can make an old computer really really slow. so if your computer is from the Xp era.

Windows seems easy when you have been using it for that long. We were not born knowing windows if you have been using linux for that many years and one day decide to use Windows it would be the same.

good luck to you.

Firstly ..sorry for the non paragraphs i tend to write as i think at that moment!
Thanks for taking the time to reply its appreciated and especially thanks to TroN-0074 For explaining the problem re the Broadcom political nonsense i will try connecting via Ethernet and seeing if it works as the more i read about it the more i want to try

Anyway thanks again for the help ill post the results back

PS.

and

reveals all in a Mint thread like this.

This will not fix your connection problem but it might stop you head from exploding.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nU8SWk924lM
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VQh_GKdUPrc
http://www.zoringroup.com/forum/inde...b5f4ca12a061d9

This should be your first step into Linux