The players: A Dell Inspiron 4150, a 3com 11Mbps WiFi PCMCIA (3crshpw196) and Mandrake 10.

The goal: To connect to the internet wirelessly.

The assumption: Assume I barely know enough to blink and breathe simultaneously.

I'm looking for a solution that will specifically solve the problem with this particular kit however, it would be nice if it were also applicable generally so I can get another laptop up and running.

I've bled over this issue for yonkers, always running out of steam before succeeding - and I'm sure I've been close - I can get the MAC address listed...

Anyway, if anyone can piece a guide together, it's you guys.

I'm a dunce on this subject, but if I can be tasked to do anything - I'm willing (within the scope of the project of course!).

what chipset is the card ?

Uh, atmel? when I try to install it, the machine keeps bleating 'Atmel! Atmel! Feed me!

Ok, now I've got a Dell Inspiron 4150, 3com 3crshpw196 wifi pcmcia and a fresh copy of Fedora Core 3. KDE 3.3 includes a lush 'Kwifi monitor' I need! I need!