[kyle_godfrey]

I have a new Dell Inspiron with XP. I also have a Compaq in which I had installed Linksys wireless software on and with a wireless card, connected to the wireless network in my apartment. My Dell now won't connect, even after installing the software before inserting the card. Is there something I have to change on a Dell or "turn on" the card slot?

[office politics]

first check to make sure the card was installed properly. You can confirm this by right clicking my computer, click properties, click hardware, click device manager. You want to look for any exclaimation points inside a yellow circle, which indicates a problem with the driver for the device.

If its not there, then the computer doesn't know the card is installed. Take it out, put it back in, and reboot. Still not there? What type of port does it connect to? pcmcia? usb? the box should tell you. check your bios, look for the key for setup when you first start the laptop, to make sure the port is enabled.

If the device is installed properly, then we want to see if its connected to a network. Click Start | Run, type cmd, and press enter. Next, type ipconfig /all; this will show you information about all your network adapters running tcpip. Do you have a valid ip address? 0.0.0.0 and 169.254.x.x ip addresses are invalid. If so continue otherwise next paragraph. Type in ipconfig /renew and see if you can pull an address from your router. It will prolly fail, giving an error like could not contact dhcp server. Check your cables, try new ones if you got em.

your ip address should prolly be like 192.168.0.1; a typical default ip. Reread your manual for the router. The problem here could be that it cant connect to the inet. im sorry, i have to cut this short now. please reply back with your results