[MegletTX]

Okay my laptop is running Windows XP SP2 home. I have a wireless network card but I've been worried it was on the blink for quite some time. It absolutely refuses to show up at the present moment anywhere on my computer. It's as if it isn't even IN it. I got annoyed with that, figured the card has gone bad and moved on to our extra Netgear USB adapter.

As soon as I installed everything and saw the blue screen of death I remembered XP SP 2 has to have the special driver from the website. Thankfully I still had that driver from a previous installation probably on another computer. I restored my system back to pre-blue screen and installed the correct drivers. Now it shows in the little MA111 utility that there IS a network but for some reason it can't seem to connect.

After a little surfing I find others have the same problem and then they detail exactly what they did. Almost all of them involve removing the utility that comes with Netgear (which Netgear swears you must use) and jerry-rigging Windows to run it itself. I don't think though that I'm doing it right. Here is what I did.

I restored back to before installation of any of the Netgear stuff. I inserted the USB adapter and it popped up the box wanting to install the unknown USB device. I showed it where to find the right driver and it zipped through. As soon as it was through installing the box popped up saying there were wireless networks within range. I was very happy thinking so quickly my troubles were at an end. I tried connecting to it but it failed. At this point I can't even remember what exactly I did but I don't think I did any major goofing with anything. I then tried unplugging it and plugging it back in and when it tried to connect to the network it gave me the familiar looking "enter the WEP key" into which I carefully typed the 128bit key and then retyped in the confirm field. I clicked okay and it cranked and cranked and cranked before finally saying it couldn't connect to it. I tried rebooting and left the adapter plugged in. When it booted up the little network box wasn't even in the system tray (not even the one with the red X on it). So I unplugged the adapter and replugged again. It popped back up and said it couldn't connect because something might be stopping it. I've checked into my router to see if I've got it allowed to connect and think I do have that set up right. So then I unplugged the adapter, rebooted, THEN replugged the adapter and tried again. Still nothing.

Has anyone been able to correctly identify the proper way of using this adapter? If you want to tell me how to wipe it clean and start from scratch and go step-by-step on how to install it I'd be ever so grateful!!! Or if you just happen to know what little setting I'm missing and can tell me what to do to tweak it that would be awesome too. This whole thing is making me bonkers!!

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Hello MegletTX and welcome to G2G,

Have you already tried performing a factroy restore on your wireless router to remove all the security settings. This can sometime be very helpful in identifying whether the problem is with the hardware itself or with the hardwares ability to operate with either 64 or 128 bit encryption. If interested in this process please follow the steps below:

1. Turn off your computer.
2. Unplug power from your modem.
3. Locate the tiny button or tiny button hole on your router.
4. Hold in this button for 1 minute [may be less but all routers are different]... you can tell if it is restored by all the lights blinking rapidly for a few seconds when the restore takes effect.
5. After the lights quit going crazy let off the button
6. Wait 5 seconds and unplug power from the Router.
7. Plug power back into the modem - wait for it reach full sync.
8. Plug power back into the router - wait for it to reach full sync.
9. Turn back on your computer, wait for it to boot up.
10. Click on Start
11. Click on Run
12. Type in: ncpa.cpl and hit Ok
13. From the Network Connections Window Locate your Wireless Adapter and Right Click on it.
14. Select Properties
15. From the Wireless Network connection Properties window click on the Wireless networks Tab
16. Under Preferred Networks Remove everything in the list
17. Click the ok Button
18. From the Network Connections Window Locate your Wireless Adapter and Right Click on it.
19. Select View Available Wireless Networks
20. Locate your Broadcast and select it, Verify that there is no A. gold padlock on it and B. you have good signal strength... as shown in mine below



21. If these two conditions are met then press the connect button.
22. After it is done connecting close out all the windows
23. Click on Start
24. Click on Run
25. Type in: cmd and hit Ok
26. From the Command Prompt type in: ipconfig /all and hit enter
27. Post your results back here.

[SpaceCowboy706]

Hello MegletTX and welcome to G2G,

Have you already tried performing a factroy restore on your wireless router to remove all the security settings. This can sometime be very helpful in identifying whether the problem is with the hardware itself or with the hardwares ability to operate with either 64 or 128 bit encryption. If interested in this process please follow the steps below:

1. Turn off your computer.
2. Unplug power from your modem.
3. Locate the tiny button or tiny button hole on your router.
4. Hold in this button for 1 minute [may be less but all routers are different]... you can tell if it is restored by all the lights blinking rapidly for a few seconds when the restore takes effect.
5. After the lights quit going crazy let off the button
6. Wait 5 seconds and unplug power from the Router.
7. Plug power back into the modem - wait for it reach full sync.
8. Plug power back into the router - wait for it to reach full sync.
9. Turn back on your computer, wait for it to boot up.
10. Click on Start
11. Click on Run
12. Type in: ncpa.cpl and hit Ok
13. From the Network Connections Window Locate your Wireless Adapter and Right Click on it.
14. Select Properties
15. From the Wireless Network connection Properties window click on the Wireless networks Tab
16. Under Preferred Networks Remove everything in the list
17. Click the ok Button
18. From the Network Connections Window Locate your Wireless Adapter and Right Click on it.
19. Select View Available Wireless Networks
20. Locate your Broadcast and select it, Verify that there is no A. gold padlock on it and B. you have good signal strength... as shown in mine below



21. If these two conditions are met then press the connect button.
22. After it is done connecting close out all the windows
23. Click on Start
24. Click on Run
25. Type in: cmd and hit Ok
26. From the Command Prompt type in: ipconfig /all and hit enter
27. Post your results back here.

[MegletTX]

Okay quick question...was that to fix the Netgear adapter issue or my wireless networking card?

Oh and on a cold boot up my wireless network card is working today. Does this tell you anything? My mom suspects it's heat related. I think that's possible combined with the fact it's probably dying since I've had issues before with it. I am holding off on doing your suggestion since it's working at the moment.

[MegletTX]

Update: It (my wireless network card) appears to be connected but the connection is dropping in and out. Like it doesn't SHOW the connection dropping in and out but sometimes it loads a webpage (SLOWLY), sometimes it doesn't.

[SpaceCowboy706]

Was for the Netgear Usb adapter