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Get Online
There are a number of ways to gain connection to an internet service provider (ISP) who in turn provides your connection to the internet: a traditional analog dial-up service, a DSL or cable MODEM, a satellite dish, or fibre optic run. Typically, these connections terminate in your home, office, or a public internet access point with a physical box which offers a phone line, ethernet cable, or wireless service. Let's look then at how your computer must be configured to communicate through a MODEM, ethernet cable, and wireless transceiver found within or attached to your personal computer. Ethernet is the simplest to configure, analog MODEMs the least likely to work, and in the middle are wireless cards. Ethernet. 
Ethernet just works. This is because the built-in ethernet chipset (make/model of the microchip which gives life to the
onboard physical port) is a supported standard found onboard all modern motherboards as "fast ethernet" (100 megabit)
or more commonly "gig-e" (1000 megabit or gigabit). "10 gigabit" is the new, fastest ethernet and may soon replace
gigabit as the default standard. Fortunately, computer manufacturers have complied with the ethernet standard without
wrapping it into proprietary packages which are more challenging to support. As such, the Linux kernel readily recognizes
and supports most onboard ethernet configurations.
Unless changed from default during installation, the onboard ethernet port was set to DHCP which means it will automatically detect a connection, request an IP address, and gain the required settings for communication through your internet access provider's router. If you desire to Deactivate or Activate the ethernet port use: YDL Menu --> Applications --> System Tools --> System Config --> NetworkThe function of PCI and PCMCIA ethernet cards are subject to whether or not the card vendor chose a readily supported Linux chipset or the Linux community adopted support for this device, rolling the required code into the kernel itself or making it available to the more savvy user as a kernel module. Best to review the online HOWTOs for your specific card. Wireless. Wireless, in theory, should be as simple as ethernet given the international standards for 802.11a, b, and g. At this level, wireless is supported by Linux. However, there are many means by which these wireless standards are delivered to market where the products are not always immediately supported due to the choices the vendor made in the design of the product. You may configure wireless devices using the same Network configuration utility described above. With YDL v5.0, Apple's AirPort Extreme is supported. In addition, some 3rd party external devices such as a USB wireless device or PCMCIA card are also supported. The Supported Devices pages showcases those USB and PCMCIA cards currently supported. Keep in mind that not all new product vendors bring non-supported chips to market with intent to keep them proprietary. Sometimes, leaps in performance require leaps in chip technology resulting in a gap between when the product is brought to market and when it is supported by Linux. The proactive vendors assist in this process while others seem less concerned with Linux support, but do not move to block it. Analog MODEMs. MODEMs, unfortunately, have often not worked for quite some time. This is due to a transition (early 2000s) from 'hardware' MODEMs to 'software' MODEMs which rely upon proprietary algorithms to simulate what used to be physical hardware, reducing the cost of manufacturing. However, software MODEMs are more challenging (sometimes impossible) to reverse engineer and support as they have very complex code that must be, in full, rewritten in Linux, most often without the benefit of support from the OEM. Again, you may use the Network configuration utility, but only some of the original personal computers (G3 iMacs, for instance) will function. The modems in most others will simply not activate or be recognized as available devices. |
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