Which NIC (network adapter card) should I buy for Linux?
 

Hello everyone!
I'm planning to buy a NIC (network interface card / network adapter card etc.) for my PC with one of the current popular Linux distributions installed.
I'm looking for something cheap, and my choices are close to something out of Fry's Electronics offers. I was thinking of a 10/100 model from here: http://shop2.outpost.com/search?cat=...pType=pDisplay
or a faster 10/100/1000 model from here: http://shop2.outpost.com/search?cat=...pType=pDisplay

I really don't know which one to choose, so maybe you'll be able to help me.

Here's a link to the LinuxQuestions.org Hardware Compatibility List: Network Cards

It should help. It's a very rare NIC that doesn't work these days; I've never run into one, but my experience with gigabit cards is limited.

INTEL over anything.

Hi,

The HCL is the place to look for compatibility.

You didn't say what LAN you are using 10/100/1000 except you were thinking about a 10/100. If your just a 10/100 then the Intel Based NIC would be my choice. What is your ISP? If you are going to use the LAN and not worry about Internet connection speed then the gigabit NIC would suffice. Remember that the LAN will dictate the connectivity. I've used the Intel Pro 10/100 with very low failure/error problems with DSL at 3.6Mb.

Your biggest problem for Ethernet is going to be the wire and connectors. If you use custom wiring then the cable testing will be an issue. If pre-made then the waste for the length.

As for cheap then your choice would be the Realtek based NIC.

The Linksys LNE100TX is a good alternate choice as far as cost.

The cost difference to me is not really worth it to me. But plan on paying more for the Intel NIC.

I've used a few 3Com ones and they always worked stright from the box.

On moderate/older hardware you will notice Intel cards use less resources.

i mainly use realtek cards and i have only had one not work and that was a harware problem not software..

though practically any wired card will work without hastle

I'm sorry, I should have given more details in the first post.
I'm planning to set up a linux-based Internet gateway to my Comcast ISP (through a cable modem), but the PC I have in mind (Dell Dimension 4500, which I equipped with a DVD drive) has only one NIC (an on-board one).
I already have a 50' CAT 6 UTP crossover cable (an orange one, manufactured by cablesunlimited.com; I can describe it in more detail later today if needed), so I will need to buy just one more NIC and should be ok. I'm not sure what kind of NIC to buy either; a "10/100" or a "10/100/1000" (gigabit) one.
The other PC is a HP Pavilion a1330n with Windows XP Pro on it (but I'm thinking of making it dual-bootable later on; my university relies heavily on Microsoft's software), and it also has only one on-board NIC, so I want to connect it to the Dell Dimension PC via the crossover cable.

I'm guessing that if one of the on-bard cards is 10/100 than all the LAN will be 10/100 regardless of whether I buy a regular 10/100 or a gigabit NIC. Am I correct here?

As for the NIC described by Fry's as: "TRENDnet PCITXR 32-bit 10/100/1000Mbps PCI adapter", can anyone confirm it's the one described here?
http://www.linuxquestionsrg/hcl/show...t/2753/cat/all

you are correct,

the network will run at the highest speed that both cards can support, if the on-board one in the second PC is only 10/100 then your lan will runn at 100Mb/s regardless of which card you buy,

however another option would be to buy a 4 way switch, connect both computers to it and the modem,
the rest should just fall together and then you will be able to use the second PC without the first having to be on

Yes, I know it's a little strange setup, but I wanted to stick to it anyway. But thanks for the suggestion!

After comparing the cards at HCL, I think I'll go with the one that onebuck suggested, and if they don't have it, I'll go with the Netgear FA311 model (both have 100% positive reviews).