Network Cards Not Working With New Linux Install on Dell Laptop
 

I have installed and tried several Linux distributions on a Dell C600 laptop for a user that is even more beginner than I am.
The network is not working. But the hardware is known to be working with Linux.

(long explanation, can be skipped)
The network was working with the integrated network card that this Dell has. It worked with Slackware, Ubuntu, and SuSE. However, we finally agreed to leave Vector Linux SOHO on this newbie's laptop (a Slackware take). Vector comes with KDE and recognised the printer, pen drives, mounts everything automatically and generally offers everything to make a Doze user more comfortable. I am saying this to run out the suggestion to install another distro - this is the only choice that works with the C600 to an acceptable extent. (end long explanation)

The problem:
1. The laptop card is not blinking and this Linux reports another card; netconfig works fine but there is no ping. The KDE eth0 taskbar monitor does not appear. It feels as if there is not LAN card to speak of.
2. Of course I thought that it may be that it does not recognise the card, so I put in another PCMCIA card to test; this is not doing anything.

Now, HOW TO MANUALLY TEST FOR CARDS, enable the integrated card and make it work?

Vector detected and supported a very whimsy printer and other things, and eventually it even made friends with the ATI card, so I have a hunch that it could do it. If only I knew how...
I am running Vector on my machine in dual boot with SuSE. and my laptop is even older and less popular and everything works fine.

Thanks!
:)

Could you give us the model of the network card in that laptop?

ok well im using a dell inspiron 1100
i used madwifi and that worked 4 me

issue solved - card not faulty, Linux good too
 

Fixed it!
The shack server that we had around here is an old PI desktop running Coyote Linux off a floppy disk. Replacing the disk that was faulty and resetting the dhcp settings and everything else solved it.
Linux is working fine, so is the laptop cards.
Just a freak problem.
Thanks guys for the answers.
Vector Linux rules :) Slack rules :)