Getting "Wireless Networking Software"

HemlockGrey · Post by **HemlockGrey** » 2004-12-05 02:07am

I recently had to nuke my harddrive and reinstall Windows. Now, my particular laptop, a Dell Inspiron 600m (which I have dubbed "Marvin" due to the fact that there's always some damn thing wrong with it) came with "Wireless networking software" installed, so basically all I had to do was point it at a wireless router and it would automatically pick up the connection and log on.

Now, however, that software is no longer on the computer, and it didn't come included with my Dell CDs. Is there anywhere I can acquire (preferably for free) that kind of software?

White Haven · Post by **White Haven** » 2004-12-05 02:20am

First choice: Go bitch at Dell. Second choice....depends on who makes the wireless adapter built into your thingy, and what OS you're running?

Praxis · Post by **Praxis** » 2004-12-05 03:52am

Do the first one, either way. They deserve it

Seggybop · Post by **Seggybop** » 2004-12-05 03:53am

If you're using XP, as long as the drivers are installed it can autoconnect to access points.

HemlockGrey · Post by **HemlockGrey** » 2004-12-05 04:06am

Yeah...there appear to be no drivers. And I have no idea how to figure out how to get the name of the hardware.

Fuck Dell. This is like the 4th time they've screwed me over on this computer alone. I hope they all fucking die.

InnocentBystander · Post by **InnocentBystander** » 2004-12-05 05:29am

If you purchased a warranty you should definatly go to the manf. for help; you paid for it after all! And just a little food for thought, the more "problems" you fix, the more you will be able to troubleshoot your machine on your own. I'm not ashamned to admit I learned about plenty of useful troubleshooting tid-bits from semi-competent tech support folks at compaq. "Invest" enough time calling tech support, and eventually you'll find that you don't even need them anymore.

Faram · Post by **Faram** » 2004-12-05 06:17am

That one might be the wireless networking support driver.

Go to windowsupdate and D/L all the optional networking stuff from there

White Haven · Post by **White Haven** » 2004-12-05 11:06am

InnocentBystander wrote:If you purchased a warranty you should definatly go to the manf. for help; you paid for it after all! And just a little food for thought, the more "problems" you fix, the more you will be able to troubleshoot your machine on your own. I'm not ashamned to admit I learned about plenty of useful troubleshooting tid-bits from semi-competent tech support folks at compaq. "Invest" enough time calling tech support, and eventually you'll find that you don't even need them anymore.

And as a tech, I can say with certainty that we really, really hate people like you.

White Haven · Post by **White Haven** » 2004-12-05 11:07am

Also: What version of XP are you running? I know they did some updates to the OS-integrated wireless stuff at least once, and maybe more. If you haven't already, snag SP2 and toss it on there, might help, might not, and even if it doesn't help, well, SP2 is good to have.

InnocentBystander · Post by **InnocentBystander** » 2004-12-05 02:37pm

White Haven wrote: And as a tech, I can say with certainty that we really, really hate people like you.

Hey, don't get me wrong; I did the phone support thing for a summer, it's an awful, thankless, job. Honestly, I hated everyone who called. But on the consumer end; you've paid for a service, make the most out of it!

White Haven · Post by **White Haven** » 2004-12-05 03:08pm

I'm a small-business retail tech. /ALL/ of our customers get shit /here/, physically, so I /HATEHATEHATE/ people with delusions of competencewho expect me to bail them out when they've fucked up a DIY.

Vertigo1 · Post by **Vertigo1** » 2004-12-05 07:43pm

HemlockGrey wrote:Yeah...there appear to be no drivers. And I have no idea how to figure out how to get the name of the hardware.

Fuck Dell. This is like the 4th time they've screwed me over on this computer alone. I hope they all fucking die.

Judging from a quick google, your laptop uses Intel's Centrino hardware.

Dell's profile page on your laptop

Networking drivers. You need to consult either your manual or device manager (right-click on "My Computer" and select properties, or hold down the windows key and press the pause key. Then select hardware and click on the Device Manager button) and see which model you have. Then just download and install the appropriate driver.

Speaking as someone that has worked on multiple Dell desktop machines, I can honestly say that they are HORRIBLE. The idiots just slap in the cheapest RAM they can find (often mis-matching it with the FSB capability of the processor, further inhibiting your performance) and have absolutely NO regard for airflow. They leave ribbon cables just dangling about, and have no intake fan at all. You only have one fan pulling air out of the case (excluding the power supply fan) and its in a shroud over the heatsink of your processor. They also have a PISS POOR plastic retention clip that holds your cards in place. I guess they're too cheap to use proper screws.

White Haven · Post by **White Haven** » 2004-12-05 10:59pm

They're crap. Their only saving grace is that their competition is, generally, even worse. Compaq, Gateway, HP...none of them are really any better. HP /occasionally/ pulls something decent out, but judging by the staggering amounts of horribly-designed and horribly-constructed HPs I have to tinker with at work, it's a rarity too.

Vertigo1 · Post by **Vertigo1** » 2004-12-06 12:25am

White Haven wrote:They're crap. Their only saving grace is that their competition is, generally, even worse. Compaq, Gateway, HP...none of them are really any better. HP /occasionally/ pulls something decent out, but judging by the staggering amounts of horribly-designed and horribly-constructed HPs I have to tinker with at work, it's a rarity too.

Oh, don't get me started on HP. The cases for their Pavilon line are so pathetically designed, its not even funny. You have to remove half a dozen damn parts of the case just to get at anything! Wiring is crammed into every nook and cranny, I'm amazed that they can even run longer than 10 seconds without overheating.

The only pre-built computer that I have ever encountered is by IBM. You pay through the nose for one of their systems, but they atleast take some pride in their work and actually wire things correctly. They even had a proper heatsink retention clip in place (UNLIKE DELL where you so much as thump the case, it'll fall off and damage anything in the way as it falls!). Every single cable is run so its all nice and tidy. Working on their systems is a fucking DREAM. Its like I built the damn thing myself! Not a single proprietary part in the system at all!

White Haven · Post by **White Haven** » 2004-12-06 02:11am

Senior System Builder, Unitek Computers, at your service. AKA the local alternative in Richmond.

We /do/ wire cases correctly.

darthdavid · Post by **darthdavid** » 2004-12-06 02:27am

I built my own computer and it's wired like crap. But atleast I have no one else to blame.

HemlockGrey · Post by **HemlockGrey** » 2004-12-06 04:19am

And as a tech, I can say with certainty that we really, really hate people like you

Understandable. And if you work for Dell Customer Service, I hope you are impaled upon a very large rock in the near future, along with the rest of your co-workers.