I've been fumbling around trying to get my wireless USB adapter to work.

As a Newbie.... this is not fun!

It's the basic things that I do not know.... I'm told "you'll need to get your kernel source code installed".... Well, I have no idea if I do - or don't ....have it installed.....

Can we maybe start with the above question? If I get that answered, maybe I can figure out the rest myself.... If not, I'll be back.

Oh, I'm using SUSE 8.1. My adapter is a USB Netgear MA101.

Thanks in advance.

Well, by default, SuSE 8.2 doesn't install the kernel source, so I imagine that 8.1 is probably the same. You'll need to open up Yast and do a search for "kernel". I believe the kernel source is marked as something like kernel-source. Use Yast to install it onto your hard drive. Yast will also indicate whether the kernel-source has already been installed as well.

what entries do you have in /usr/src that's where it will be kept

In answer to the first reply - searching Yast for 'kernel' brought up a number of selections. I have an Athlon processor, so it it using that kernel (i guess). There is nothng else to choose. Also, there is no mention of 'kernel-source'

To answer the second response - i looked in /usr/src

- under this directory is a directory 'packages'

- under that are 5 directories - all blank. The names are : build, rpms, sources, specs, srpms

So, I'm back to ... just how to I tell if I have the kernel source loaded? and, if i do not, then how do i do it?

Please keep the suggestions coming.

I finally am using my windows PC to do the forum while I play on the Linux machine....

Doesn't sound like you have. It would probably be in /usr/src/linux if it was.

No, it wouldn't be in /usr/src/linux. It would be in /usr/src/kernel-version and a symlink "may" exist that's called /usr/src/linux that POINTS to /usr/src/kernel-version.

Use Yast to install the kernel-version or kernel-headers applicable to your currently running kernel. How do you test that? Easy:

uname -r

ok, I did the uname -r.. it came back:

2.4.19-4GB

does that mean the kernel souce is installed?

no
i don't think your source is installed

i just went thru this same thing

no, uname-r just tells you what kernel you are running, if you want to keep that kernel and just compile more support in for usb you will have to get the kernel-source for that kernel. I'm trying to do the same thing but am just a little bit further along than you (and using debian) so this is a bit of a case of the blind using the blind . You can download the kernel source for 2.4.19 from www.kernel.org if you can't get it with yast, save it to /usr/src, unpack it, and then come back here for the next step.

I'm not sure what the usb support is like in 2.4.19, I'm trying for 2.4.22 myself.

Don't download the source from kernel.org. You are using a SuSE kernel, and want their kernel-source or kernel-headers package. Use YAST and search for it.

I bow to llamakc's greater knowledge, you should be able to get it with Yast my Suse friends tell me and it will appear in /usr/src as kernel-source-2.4.19 once installed

Thanks for the info.

I haven't had any luck with the search and Yast....

In the meantime, I am downloading Slackware... maybe a little better with that. BTW, I installed Mandrake and it hung on boot...

oops.. Suse is gone - hung Mandrake is loded now..... now I have to reinstall Suse if I want to try ONCE AGAIN to get the kernel source!

As Slack is downloading, I'll do some Linux Reading!

This is amazing.... and quite frustrating!

I have figured out that there is a thing called the 'kernel-source' that everyone tells me I need to install come drivers.........

....... but I can not believe that I can not FIND the GD 'kernel-source'.

I tried the Suse site.... I looked on Google..... I looked in books.....

I did find some kernel stuff, but I have to tell you, it was a list of a lot of directories that I did not knwo what to do with. When I see the kernel-source, I will not know what it looks like, or what I should do..... i am a real newbie!!!!!

This Linux S&&^*% is quite ridiculous.

Please.... i need my hand held through this....

It's tought to switch from windoz when I have to deal with this alternative.

I'm still hanging in there, for now.

Ok.

This thread is dead. I'm off to start a new Linux thrill. I seem to have gotten out of this problem(don't know how) , now I have new ones.

Thanks to all.