At suggestion from others I tried the following commands on a SuSE 9.0 new installation with the following results:

/bin # modprobe hermes
/bin # modprobe orinoco
/bin # modprobe orinoco_pci
/lib/modules/2.4.21-144-athlon/kernel/drivers/net/wireless/orinoco_pci.o: init_module: No such device
Hint: insmod errors can be caused by incorrect module parameters, including invalid IO or IRQ parameters.
You may find more information in syslog or the output from dmesg
/lib/modules/2.4.21-144-athlon/kernel/drivers/net/wireless/orinoco_pci.o: insmod /lib/modules/2.4.21-144-athlon/kernel/drivers/net/wireless/orinoco_pci.o failed
/lib/modules/2.4.21-144-athlon/kernel/drivers/net/wireless/orinoco_pci.o: insmod orinoco_pci failed
/bin # ifconfig eth0 up
eth0: unknown interface: No such device

dmesg produced the following (edited):

Linux version 2.4.21-144-athlon (root@i386.suse.de) (gcc version 3.3.1 (SuSE Linux)) #1 Fri Nov 14 00:01:10 UTC 2003
BIOS-provided physical RAM map:
BIOS-e820: 0000000000000000 - 000000000009fc00 (usable)
BIOS-e820: 000000000009fc00 - 00000000000a0000 (reserved)
BIOS-e820: 00000000000ec000 - 0000000000100000 (reserved)
BIOS-e820: 0000000000100000 - 000000000fff0000 (usable)
BIOS-e820: 000000000fff0000 - 000000000fff8000 (ACPI data)
BIOS-e820: 000000000fff8000 - 0000000010000000 (ACPI NVS)
BIOS-e820: 00000000fec00000 - 00000000fec01000 (reserved)
BIOS-e820: 00000000fee00000 - 00000000fee01000 (reserved)
BIOS-e820: 00000000ffff0000 - 0000000100000000 (reserved)
757MB vmalloc/ioremap area available.
0MB HIGHMEM available.
255MB LOWMEM available.
ACPI: have wakeup address 0xc0001000
On node 0 totalpages: 65520
zone(0): 4096 pages.
zone(1): 61424 pages.
zone(2): 0 pages.
ACPI: RSDP (v000 AMI ) @ 0x000fa970
ACPI: RSDT (v001 AMIINT VIA_K7 00000.00016) @ 0x0fff0000
ACPI: FADT (v001 AMIINT VIA_K7 00000.00017) @ 0x0fff0030
>>> ERROR: Invalid checksum
ACPI: DSDT (v001 VIA VT8371 00000.04096) @ 0x00000000
ACPI: Skipping APIC setup
PCI: PCI BIOS revision 2.10 entry at 0xfdb31, last bus=1
PCI: Using configuration type 1
ACPI-0196: *** Warning: Invalid checksum in table [FACP] (AE, sum A5 is not zero)
Looking for DSDT in initrd ... not found!
ACPI: Interpreter enabled
ACPI: Using PIC for interrupt routing
ACPI: System [ACPI] (supports S0 S1 S4 S5)
ACPI: PCI Root Bridge [PCI0] (00:00)
PCI: Probing PCI hardware (bus 00)
ACPI: PCI Interrupt Routing Table [\_SB_.PCI0._PRT]
ACPI: Power Resource [URP1] (off)
ACPI: Power Resource [URP2] (off)
ACPI: Power Resource [FDDP] (off)
ACPI: Power Resource [LPTP] (off)
ACPI: PCI Interrupt Link [LNKA] (IRQs 3 4 5 6 7 10 *11 12 14 15)
ACPI: PCI Interrupt Link [LNKB] (IRQs 3 4 5 6 7 10 11 12 14 15)
ACPI: PCI Interrupt Link [LNKC] (IRQs 3 4 5 6 7 10 11 12 14 15)
ACPI: PCI Interrupt Link [LNKD] (IRQs 3 4 5 6 7 *10 11 12 14 15)
PCI: Probing PCI hardware
ACPI: PCI Interrupt Link [LNKC] enabled at IRQ 5
00:00:07[C] -> IRQ 5 Mode 1 Trigger 1
ACPI: PCI Interrupt Link [LNKD] enabled at IRQ 10
00:00:07[D] -> IRQ 10 Mode 1 Trigger 1
ACPI: PCI Interrupt Link [LNKB] enabled at IRQ 9
00:00:09[A] -> IRQ 9 Mode 1 Trigger 1
PIC: IRQ (5) already programmed
PIC: IRQ (10) already programmed
ACPI: PCI Interrupt Link [LNKA] enabled at IRQ 11
00:00:09[D] -> IRQ 11 Mode 1 Trigger 1
PIC: IRQ (5) already programmed
PIC: IRQ (10) already programmed
PIC: IRQ (11) already programmed
PIC: IRQ (9) already programmed
PIC: IRQ (10) already programmed
PIC: IRQ (11) already programmed
PIC: IRQ (9) already programmed
PIC: IRQ (5) already programmed
PIC: IRQ (11) already programmed
PIC: IRQ (9) already programmed
PIC: IRQ (5) already programmed
PIC: IRQ (10) already programmed
PIC: IRQ (9) already programmed
PIC: IRQ (5) already programmed
PIC: IRQ (10) already programmed
PIC: IRQ (11) already programmed
PIC: IRQ (5) already programmed
PIC: IRQ (10) already programmed
PIC: IRQ (11) already programmed
PIC: IRQ (9) already programmed
PIC: IRQ (11) already programmed
PIC: IRQ (9) already programmed
PCI: Using ACPI for IRQ routing
PCI: if you experience problems, try using option 'pci=noacpi' or even 'acpi=off'
Applying VIA southbridge workaround.
PCI: Disabling Via external APIC routing
Linux NET4.0 for Linux 2.4
Based upon Swansea University Computer Society NET3.039
Initializing RT netlink socket
apm: BIOS version 1.2 Flags 0x03 (Driver version 1.16)
apm: overridden by ACPI.
NET4: Linux TCP/IP 1.0 for NET4.0
IP Protocols: ICMP, UDP, TCP, IGMP
IP: routing cache hash table of 2048 buckets, 16Kbytes
TCP: Hash tables configured (established 16384 bind 32768)
Linux IP multicast router 0.06 plus PIM-SM
NET4: Unix domain sockets 1.0/SMP for Linux NET4.0.
cryptoapi: loaded
hostap_crypt: registered algorithm 'NULL'
hostap_pci: 0.0.4 - 2003-07-27 (Jouni Malinen <jkmaline@cc.hut.fi> )
hostap_pci: Registered netdevice wlan0
prism2_hw_init()
prism2_hw_init: initialized in 199 ms
wlan0: NIC: id=0x8013 v1.0.0
wlan0: PRI: id=0x15 v1.0.7
wlan0: STA: id=0x1f v1.3.5
wlan0: defaulting to host-based encryption as a workaround for firmware bug in Host AP mode WEP
wlan0: defaulting to bogus WDS frame as a workaround for firmware bug in Host AP mode WDS
wlan0: Intersil Prism2.5 PCI: mem=0xdddff000, irq=9
wlan0 unsupported ioctl(0x8946)
ohci1394: $Rev: 1045 $ Ben Collins <bcollins@debian.org>
ohci1394_0: OHCI-1394 1.1 (PCI): IRQ=[11] MMIO=[dffff800-dfffffff] Max Packet=[2048]
ACPI: Power Button (FF) [PWRF]
ACPI: Sleep Button (CM) [SLPB]
ACPI: Processor [CPU1] (supports C1, 16 throttling states)
IPsec Security Association Database (SADB): initialized.
IPsec Security Policy Database (SPD): initialized.
IPsec PF_KEY V2: initialized
IPv6 v0.8 (usagi-cvs/IPsec6 based StS) for NET4.0
IPv6 over IPv4 tunneling driver
orinoco.c 0.13e (David Gibson <hermes@gibson.dropbear.id.au> and others)
orinoco_pci.c 0.13e (David Gibson <hermes@gibson.dropbear.id.au> & Jean Tourrilhes <jt@hpl.hp.com> )
orinoco_pci.c 0.13e (David Gibson <hermes@gibson.dropbear.id.au> & Jean Tourrilhes <jt@hpl.hp.com> )
wlan0 unsupported ioctl(0x8946)
wlan0 unsupported ioctl(0x8946)
orinoco_pci.c 0.13e (David Gibson <hermes@gibson.dropbear.id.au> & Jean Tourrilhes <jt@hpl.hp.com> )
orinoco_pci.c 0.13e (David Gibson <hermes@gibson.dropbear.id.au> & Jean Tourrilhes <jt@hpl.hp.com> )

Can anyone give me some suggestions? I am a newbie, but want to get completely off the M$ crap...

SkittlesLA

Is the missing driver present?
Did you install the orinoco driver or are you using what came with the SuSE install?

I am using what came with SuSE.... I have noticed it is asking for the pcmcia rpm to be installed... My concern is that it is a pci card, not pcmcia... Why would it ask for this rpm, when it is a pci card?

linux:/bin # modprobe hostap_pci
linux:/bin # modprobe orinoco
linux:/bin # modprobe orinoco_pci
/lib/modules/2.4.21-144-athlon/kernel/drivers/net/wireless/orinoco_pci.o: init_m odule: No such device
Hint: insmod errors can be caused by incorrect module parameters, including inva lid IO or IRQ parameters.
You may find more information in syslog or the output from dmesg
/lib/modules/2.4.21-144-athlon/kernel/drivers/net/wireless/orinoco_pci.o: insmod /lib/modules/2.4.21-144-athlon/kernel/drivers/net/wireless/orinoco_pci.o failed
/lib/modules/2.4.21-144-athlon/kernel/drivers/net/wireless/orinoco_pci.o: insmod orinoco_pci failed

(dmesg)
hostap_crypt: registered algorithm 'NULL'
hostap_pci: 0.0.4 - 2003-07-27 (Jouni Malinen <jkmaline@cc.hut.fi>)
hostap_pci: Registered netdevice wlan0
prism2_hw_init()
prism2_hw_init: initialized in 198 ms
wlan0: NIC: id=0x8013 v1.0.0
wlan0: PRI: id=0x15 v1.0.7
wlan0: STA: id=0x1f v1.3.5
wlan0: defaulting to host-based encryption as a workaround for firmware bug in Host AP mode WEP
wlan0: defaulting to bogus WDS frame as a workaround for firmware bug in Host AP mode WDS
wlan0: Intersil Prism2.5 PCI: mem=0xdddff000, irq=9
wlan0 unsupported ioctl(0x8946)
orinoco.c 0.13e (David Gibson <hermes@gibson.dropbear.id.au> and others)
orinoco_pci.c 0.13e (David Gibson <hermes@gibson.dropbear.id.au> & Jean Tourrilhes <jt@hpl.hp.com>)

The orinoco_pci driver is part of the David Hinds driver set that also includes PCMCIA drivers and is part of the Card Services package. I compile from source, but don't know if you are up for that (kernel source, headers, compilers, etc. also need to be installed).
Source for the drivers: http://ozlabs.org/people/dgibson/dldwd/

There are some pre-compiled drivers on rpmfind.net, but I didn't see any for your distro/kernel. You might want to Google around a bit.