I have an IBM Thinkpad G41. The exact model is described at [link|http://www-131.ibm.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?productId=8774451&storeId=10000001&langId=-1&categoryId=2580117&dualCurrId=1000073&catalogId=-840|http://www-131.ibm.c...73&catalogId=-840] except I asked for some extra memory. I'm giving up on installing Ubuntu tonight, but will try again later. Here are details of where I got, suggestions are welcome.

I successfully booted it into Windows, and connected to a wireless network created by an Airport using the same network name as the Apple, and 1194BCBBA for the WEP key. (Oooh, insecure, I just said the password for a 40-bit WEP network. Tell you what, any of you who need to come to my house to use a wireless network are welcome to it!) Irritatingly Windows didn't give me a choice about autoconverting from fat32 to NTFS, with the whole drive reserved for itself. That may make partitioning hard.

A co-worker burned a current Ubunto 5.04 ISO for me. I inserted the Ubuntu CD and tried the install. It detected 2 network interfaces, first the eth0: Broadcom Corporation NetXtreme BCM5705M_2 Gigabit Ethernet and the ath0: Atheros Communications, Inc. AR5212 801.11abg NIC (wireless (both names got cut off). I said that I wanted to use the ath0 network. I was asked for a WEP key. I entered 1194BCBBA. It tried to configure the network with DHCP, and failed. It thinks that the network is not using DHCP (it is) or some network hardware is not working properly (that would be my guess).

From there I got dropped into a menu that allows me to Retry Network Autoconfiguration (that's the DHCP step that failed), Retry Network Autoconfiguration with a DHCP hostname (no point in trying since I know it doesn't need that and wouldn't know what DHCP hostname to try if it did), Configure network manually (again little point since the Airport is unlikely to accept that), Reconfigure the wireless network (asks for a wireless network kind, I think I am managed though I also tried Ad-hoc network, then wants a wireless ESSID which I think is just the name of the network, then searches for wireless access points, then asks for the WEP key and dumps me at the menu) or Do not configure the network at this time (um, no I don't want to wipe out a working install until I'm sure that there is going to be no need for the information and possibly the driver that it has).

I was hoping that if I can just figure out what to tell it for an ESSID and a WEP key that it would work properly. I've given up on that because I ran out of new things to try (plus I'm not going to get enough sleep). I also tried turning WEP off on the airport, but that did not appear to help.

Judging from [link|http://aaltonen.us/archive/2005/03/02/ubuntu-linux-on-the-ibm-thinkpad-t42/|http://aaltonen.us/a...ibm-thinkpad-t42/] once installed the laptop should work, so I may be OK just connecting by ethernet then upgrading the wireless drivers. [link|http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=38972|Another page] also suggests that the most current drivers are not on the CD, however that can be fixed later. But being a cautious sort, I'd prefer to not commit to that strategy until I have to.

Besides I can't do that tonight, my father-in-law is sleeping in the room I need to go to to use ethernet. :-/

Cheers,
Ben

Didn't help.

However I'm sitting here with a working Mac right next to it, so I can browse resources that way.

I've bit the bullet. There are enough reports of it working under Linux that I believe that the wireless can get configured after I finish the install. And if I'm wrong, then I can always buy a wireless bridge. It has currently reached the point where it booted from hard drive and is unpacking and setting up a ton of packages.

Cheers,
Ben

I'll be claiming that it is Ubuntu, not Mephis. :-P

Cheers,
Ben