cannot connect to internet on Ubuntu 10.04 LTS

[Liam Proven]

On 8 February 2012 18:27, Robert Holtzman <holtzm at cox.net> wrote:
> On Wed, Feb 08, 2012 at 04:19:08PM +0200, Ioannis Vranos wrote:
>> 2012/2/8 ahmed samir <samiros99 at hotmail.com>:
>> > Dear All,
>> >
>> > I have been using Ubuntu 10.04 for more than one year now with absolutely no
>> > problems but I recently bought the new dell xps 14z and installed Ubuntu
>> > 10.04 to it.
>> > The problem is I can't connect to the internet in any way (wireless or wired
>> > connection). This means that no wireless networks are detected (I can't even
>> > switch wireless on and off  by right clicking on the network icon on the top
>> > right). I also can't connect by plugging in a cable because the cable is not
>> > detected when plugged in. I thought this was because this new network card
>> > is not automatically installed on this version of  Ubuntu (like I probably
>> > had with my old laptop). I tried installing the driver from the dell website
>> > but they only offer windows support (only found ".exe" driver files there).
>> > Is there a way to install the driver on Ubuntu or do I have to install the
>> > latest Ubuntu release and hope this solves the problem ?  Internet is
>> > functioning perfectly on windows 7 on the same machine.
>>
>> I think you probably need a newer kernel. The easiest way to get this,
>> is with a newer version of Ubuntu.
>
> If he needs a newer kernel, how do you account for the many users of
> 10.04, me included, who are happily cavorting on the internet? Better to
> check if his card is supported.

Now now, steady on.

Wireless cards especially - but sometimes wired Ethernet too - are an
especial problem for Linux, especially in notebooks. Many notebooks
have a tiny "mezzanine PCI" card with both wired & wireless on. Lots
are essentially Windows-only & drivers are a real pain.

It is /very/ common in my experience for an initial install not to be
able to drive a WLAN controller, but after an update for it to
"miraculously" start working. This especially applies if you can get
online via some other means, e.g. a wired or external connection, &
both run the update and run the Jockey proprietary-drivers-installer
tool.

Secondly, what many people don't realise is that 10.04 LTS has
backported versions of the kernels from the next 3 versions available
in the repositories.

-- 
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