Problem When Connecting to WireLess!
Im having trooble in connecting to wireless (configuring) i was never on gnome i was always on KDE so i need help how with this.
thanks
When the chipset is supported by a free driver and a free firwmare there is normally nothing to do but clicking on the NetworkManager icon (representing two computer screens) in the panel and selecting the name of the Wifi network. If it is secured, a pop-up will prompt you for the required input.
If NeworkManager does not list the Wifi networks around, then your chipset may not be supported by a free driver and a free firmware. 'lspci' (to execute from a terminal you can launch from the "Accessories" menu) identifies, among other PCI devices, the Wifi chipset. Searching it on the Web should be enough to confirm the presence/absence of a 100% free solution to drive the card. Notice that most GNU/Linux distribution include non-free firmwares (which are part of the vanilla Linux kernel). Trisquel, as well as all other 100% free GNU/Linux distributions, uses Linux-libre and does not include those non-free firmwares.
aha ok thanks so if i download this:
"firmware-ralink" and "wireless-tools" packages.
it will work?
We do not even know what card you have! But if you want help to install non-free software, you will not find it on this forum.
The package wireless-tools is free software and is in the Trisquel repository. "firmware-ralink" is non-free software. If you read the copyright file it says you can only distribute it in binary form without modification meaning it isn't libre software. We can't recommend you install that package.
Here is some information that might help you out.
- Introduction to Trisquel GNU/Linux (has info about Free Software)
- h-node H-node a database of hardware that works/doesn't work with all Free Software
- Trisquel's setting up a wireless card documentation
When posting these sorts of questions you need to give us as much information as possible to help you out.
This includes:
- What wireless card you are using
- What version of Trisquel you are using
- What kernel you are using
- Any other relevant information related to the problem.
If it in fact turns out that your card requires a non-free driver/firmware we would recommend that you get one that doesn't. You can get one at thinkpenguin (use the link on the right). You can also find them other places as well. Check on h-node for a list of cards that will work.
Ok will post the lspci results tomorrow
I am a member!
If you are replacing the Mini PCIe card in your laptop with an N Mini PCIe card the key word is Atheros chipset. As SirGrant stated you can get them from http://libre.thinkpenguin.com/ and Trisquel will get a percentage of the money.
H-node works although here is a pretty good chart with some general information on the chipsets:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comparison_of_open-source_wireless_drivers#Linux
Ok here is the lspci results
lspci
00:00.0 Host bridge: Intel Corporation 82Q963/Q965 Memory Controller Hub (rev 02)
00:02.0 VGA compatible controller: Intel Corporation 82Q963/Q965 Integrated Graphics Controller (rev 02)
00:03.0 Communication controller: Intel Corporation 82Q963/Q965 HECI Controller (rev 02)
00:19.0 Ethernet controller: Intel Corporation 82566DM Gigabit Network Connection (rev 02)
00:1a.0 USB Controller: Intel Corporation 82801H (ICH8 Family) USB UHCI Controller #4 (rev 02)
00:1a.1 USB Controller: Intel Corporation 82801H (ICH8 Family) USB UHCI Controller #5 (rev 02)
00:1a.7 USB Controller: Intel Corporation 82801H (ICH8 Family) USB2 EHCI Controller #2 (rev 02)
00:1b.0 Audio device: Intel Corporation 82801H (ICH8 Family) HD Audio Controller (rev 02)
00:1c.0 PCI bridge: Intel Corporation 82801H (ICH8 Family) PCI Express Port 1 (rev 02)
00:1d.0 USB Controller: Intel Corporation 82801H (ICH8 Family) USB UHCI Controller #1 (rev 02)
00:1d.1 USB Controller: Intel Corporation 82801H (ICH8 Family) USB UHCI Controller #2 (rev 02)
00:1d.7 USB Controller: Intel Corporation 82801H (ICH8 Family) USB2 EHCI Controller #1 (rev 02)
00:1e.0 PCI bridge: Intel Corporation 82801 PCI Bridge (rev f2)
00:1f.0 ISA bridge: Intel Corporation 82801HO (ICH8DO) LPC Interface Controller (rev 02)
00:1f.2 IDE interface: Intel Corporation 82801H (ICH8 Family) 4 port SATA IDE Controller (rev 02)
07:09.0 Network controller: Ralink corp. RT2561/RT61 802.11g PCI
What version of Trisquel you are using: Trisquel 5.0
Any other relevant information related to the problem. : i tried debian and same problem there
Your WLan card doesn't work with free software. See http://www.h-node.com/wifi/view/en/271/RaLink-RT2561-RT61-802-11g-PCI/1/1/Ralink/undef/undef/undef/undef
so you are saying that i cant use trisquel?
The recommended solution is to buy another Wifi card that works with free software only. As SirGrant and Chris mentioned earlier, those on http://libre.thinkpenguin.com (section Shop/Wireless Networking) all work out of the box with Trisquel and 25% of the profits made by ThinkPenguin are donated to the Trisquel project. This company ships to Europe.
That said, Trisquel does not technically prevent you from installing the non-free firmware. Nevertheless, you will not get any help from this forum to do so.
Well hm the problem is this. I have an "old" computer in my room and this comp is only for playing around (backtrack,...)trying new GNU/linux distros and my dad isnt going to buy me an new wifi card cuz im going to high school in an few months from now so im going to need an laptop and im buying one from thinpenguin or from http://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/2012/01/a-first-look-at-ctls-ubuntu-product-lineup/
i didnt choose yet but i like in thinkpenguin that you have an penguin key on it(instead of the windows key) and they look much more "sexy" than from ubuntu laptops.
P.S: do you know wich GNU/linux is Stallman running and wich computer does he have?
I think that my old computer will stick to openSUSE or mint for the new one i will se im going to think about it if im going to choose ubuntu or Trisquel
(suggestions are welcome)
If you're going to buy a 100% compatible laptop, run Trisquel. You'll get the exact same applications as Ubuntu, except for non-free stuff. Since your laptop will be 100% compatible, that's not a valid reason hardware-wise. The only reason I would use Ubuntu over Trisquel, all else being equal, is if I wanted a well integrated and themed Unity as default. I'm not saying Trisquel's Unity is bad, my point is just that Ubuntu's default DE is Unity whereas ours is not. Perhaps somebody who has used Unity with Trisquel can add some thoughts.
Stallman uses gNewSense on a Yeelong netbook (http://richard.stallman.usesthis.com/).
I hope that rms will switch to Trisquel (if it is not the case yet). Using gNewSense does not make much sense: the last release was more than two years ago. It probably does not even receive any more update. Thinking of security updates and rms' political involvement, that is scary.
> I hope that rms will switch to Trisquel (if it is not the case
> yet). Using gNewSense does not make much sense: the last release was
> more than two years ago. It probably does not even receive any more
> update. Thinking of security updates and rms' political involvement,
> that is scary.
gNewSense used on mipsel is metad, based on Debian Lenny which will be
supported until February, so it probably is still updated. There is not
much work needed to run gNewSense parkes (based on Squeeze) on mipsel,
except for applying freedom patches to some packages (the generally
largest problem is not currently working installer, but it doesn't
affect updating existing systems).
It would be very nice if laptops of architectures supported by Trisquel
worked completely without user-modifiable nonfree software and were sold
in such state, although now a Lemote YeeLoong with gNewSense or Parabola
is an only such machine.
The original poster should test to see if the wireless works by booting a live session off of the standard Ubuntu CD. The Ubuntu 11.04 release is what the Trisquel 5 code is based off of and can be downloaded at http://releases.ubuntu.com/11.04/. If it recognizes the chipset and goes online, then that means the wireless maybe needs a non free firmware that is offered by standard Ubuntu. If it isn't recognized, then you may have to consider that it is not Linux friendly.
Btw, I dunno why RMS uses Gnewsense either. It not only hasn't been updated in years, but the default look is not as well put together as Trisquel.
P.S. If you are using Trisquel 4, then try http://releases.ubuntu.com/10.04/. If you are using Trisquel 4.5, then http://releases.ubuntu.com/10.10/ is your equivalent.
No my wireless works on every distro but it didnt work on debian and trisquel im going to try gnewsense when i come back from school. Well i checked distrowathc and it says for gnewsense Status: Dormant
so yes its not updated no more.
P.S: i tried ubuntu 11.04 10.10 and 10.4 and it works on every one of them
It won't work with gNewSense. You need non-free firmware and you won't find it there either.
It should have worked on Debian if you use the non-free firmware, but you'll have to research how to do that yourself.
Speaking of Debian, did you try it with the Linux Mint Debian Edition?
Mint comes with proprietary software.
ok thanks for all of your help guys!
Im on gnewsense as richard uses it. Im just going to try it abit will play around with it, and then im going to try trisquel and on the end Debian. Do you have any suggestions to wich linux to stick? I like in gnewsense that gives you 10/10 freedom but its outdated, Trisquel has an strange symbol-does the symbol show the flag of spanish city? or something else. And debian i heard that richard had something to say to debian.
anyway the wireless is working now i installed the non-free driver
gNewSense is currently being ported to Debian base in the codename of gNewSense Parkes based on Debian Squeeze. It is still in alpha stage and they did not publish any cd image yet. Stallman uses this debian-based gNewSense on a Loongson(MIPS) architecture. Trisquel's symbol is based on the Triskelion, a celtic symbol, and the releases are named after celtic gods. The GNU Project has a page explaining about Debian at http://www.gnu.org/distros/common-distros.html
Wow, that list pretty much excludes every major Linux distro from being compatible with the free software vision. Out of the box, Debian is as free software as Triquel or gNewSense. Its just that the FSF has a problem with users having the option to enable a non-free repository THAT THEY CHOOSE TO ENABLE in their sources.list. How is this any different than adding a PPA for Ubuntu? Both are done by the user like with installing Flash and/or Oracle's Java.
Do not fault Canonical and RedHat for their support of non-free blobs and software at times. They are companies that offer commercial level support and the majority of the hardware that they may be supporting in corporations comes with existing non-free hardware or their vendor only supplies them. They can either make money out of it and push the adoption of Linux or live in Stallman la-la land and lose a client because of some firmware issue that conflicts with the religious ideology of a non-profit organization.
I would love if corporations and their vendors only used hardware that played nice with free software firmware. The sad reality is that I am not making those decisions nor am I a vendor to change the world in that regard. Either the IT managers at these companies don't know about them or don't care. I'm guessing they don't give a shit as long as they get a paycheck and their work ethic locks them into a job.
PPAs are not parts of the Trisquel project. For instance, you will not find them if you browse http://packages.trisquel.info , whereas Debian's non-free repository is proposed at http://packages.debian.org .
As you were told tens of times on this forum: there exist ethical ways to make money with software (and if you cannot figure how, you can just work with something else than software). Quidam (Trisquel main developer) is not making a living from Trisquel yet but, hopefully, this will happen in a near future.
Proposing proprietary software will never advance the cause of Free software and, if nobody cares, we will soon end up with a GNU/Linux operating system that is, ethically, as bad as Windows or Mac OS. Does Adobe's Flash spy on you or open a backdoor to the system? Probably (who knows for sure but Adobe?)...
Stallman's la-la land, as you call it, does exist. Trisquel is one of its representatives. It exists thanks to the ethical (you wrongly wrote "religious") concerns that has motivated (and still motivates) the development of the GNU operating system. With your thinking, it would certainly not exist and you would write "do not fault Microsoft/Apple, they need to make money".
The same applies for drivers/firmwares: using non-free software will never help us having freedom respecting hardware. Notice that rms' decision to write a free operating system was taken after he was denied the access to the source code of a printer driver.
I do not deny that the support of Wifi networking in 100% free distributions is bad. As you wrote, it is "the sad reality". Anyway, the reality can be changed (as the GNU project has done since 1984) and you do not need to be a vendor to have some weight. As far as I know the "supply and demand" economic model has always hold and consumers/citizens have other means of influence (consumer associations, votes for candidates supporting free software, etc.).
Finally, and I write that for Mitja (I know t3g does not care), the operating system should be called GNU/Linux and not only Linux (which is only a kernel). More on that: https://www.gnu.org/gnu/why-gnu-linux.html
I am a member!
Well,
all thou I know it was not his intent,
he "rightfully" use the word "religious" because we all know that "Stallman is a saint in the Church of Emacs---Saint IGNUcius."
In this same link: There is no system but GNU, and Linux is one of its kernels.
t3g,
Debian has non-free repositories. Yeah, sure, officially they are not part of Debian but that's nothing but semantics.
Adding non-free repos is not any different from adding non-free PPAs.
I really suggest you do some reading about the history of free software to properly understand the issues at hand here. You really have to first learn what Stallman and the FSF stand for before you judge them. I would recommend you read both these books http://shop.fsf.org/product/book_bundle/ for starters.
Note that the page is not working normally today (the 18th) because of the (very commendable) SOPA/PIPA protest.
i have ANOTHER PROBLEM i downloaded this http://packages.debian.org/squeeze/firmware-ralink and it worked awesome with gnewsense and now i tried the same package with trisquel and it doenst work.
Can someone link be an page where i can download an firmware-ralink that will work with Trisquel
07:09.0 Network controller: Ralink corp. RT2561/RT61 802.11g PCI
i dont want to change my os back to ubuntu or opensuse i realy started to like trisquel.
p.s: i cant buy an wifi that supports free drivers (some friend of mine complete microsoft dushbag gave me that wifi card and i dont realy have the money for buying an new one)
thanks for understanding
-mitja
You could use a wired connection (ethernet) as a workaround. That will almost always work.
Are you sure it is GNU/Linux?
I actually went back and watched Revolution OS the other day and even Linus himself says that it should not be called "GNU/Linux" unless the distro itself is totally GNU or is done by them. Falls into the same as Red Hat Linux or SuSE Linux. It would be nice if Trisquel was the official distro of the FSF, but that would take convincing of Stallman.
Stallman means well, but he is kinda on an island here in followers of his complete vision. I personally think its a great vision (even if its unrealistic) and Linus himself chuckles at the thought of "GNU/Linux" because it can be perceived as Stallman padding his ego by tacking on the GNU. I do understand that much of the software is GNU like GCC, but not every program is GNU.
As for this guy's internet problem, I ran into the same issue with a Ralink 802.11n USB dongle I got for cheap years ago from a friend that worked at Best Buy. Works in Windows, Ubuntu, and all Linux Mint (including Debian) variants. If I were to buy a totally free USB dongle now from Think Penguin, I would be paying twice the price. I ended up just using this Triquel box with ethernet.
Btw... where the hell is Hurd?
@t3g: Here's some reading homework to you (since it appears you haven't received a good education in this area):
https://www.gnu.org/gnu/linux-and-gnu.html
https://www.gnu.org/gnu/gnu-linux-faq.html
Linus himself says that it should not be called "GNU/Linux" unless the distro itself is totally GNU or is done by them.
So, it should be called "Linux" because the distro itself is totally Linux or is done by Linux developers... thanks for letting me know!
GNU/Linux distributions are not only Linux distributions, but also GNU distributions and many-other-packages distributions. Or do they ship only Linux and not GNU? How many packages distributed by these distributions are from the GNU project, and how many are the Linux kernel, and how many are from smaller projects? See https://www.gnu.org/gnu/gnu-linux-faq.html#allsmall and 7º § from https://www.gnu.org/gnu/linux-and-gnu.html
"GNU" and "Linux" come together to say the distribution is mainly of GNU and Linux software, specifying the kernel isn't from GNU Project (which appeared before in history), but Linux. If you don't like the credits to both, go there and make a whole Linux-only distro without GNU and packages from other projects, and use it. Or make it only GNU -- at least this one is possible, I think.
It would be nice if Trisquel was the official distro of the FSF, but that would take convincing of Stallman.
What are you trying to do, put Trisquel users/developers against FSF? Against Stallman, the man without whom we would be forced to use the system those people who put their power (money implied) above ethics, like you, want we to use? Shame on you!
Stallman means well, but he is kinda on an island here in followers of his complete vision.
There is fewer people concerned with user's computing sovereignty and freedom than those concerned, above all, with their power over the user, but the number of people supporting something is not the expression of the truth. Indeed, this huge "only-Linux-not-GNU" lie is very real. And this "Linux-only" island is huge, isn't it?
Libre Software implies user's consciousness of the relation between him and the distributor/developers. This consciousness implies the consciousness of who is each of them (given the huge number of developers, we say GNU and Linux to address most of it).
I personally think its a great vision (even if its unrealistic) [...]
Stallman himself uses that clarification to give credits to Linux developers. He doesn't call GNU/Linux distributions "GNU", calls it "GNU/Linux". Linus uses a lot of GNU and says the piece of software he created deserves the credit for it; he says GNU should not be speaked, only Linux. So, who's padding his ego -- or it's his money? Who's trying to hide the other's work to become the primadonna of his own wet, unrealistic dreams? Linus is important, but not the much he thinks.
Stop pretending Libre Software is unrealistic. It's real. It's a human being licensing the result of his efforts to another human being in a lovely, ethical way. Stop pretending power is above that. Stop pretending we should "drop the guns" only because we are not reaching your goal.
This "powerism" ("moneyism" implied) necessarily leads to exploration. That's what happens to capitalism if there is no ethics; Bill Gates et al. easily appear. Gates, Jobs and all this control-obsessed people wouldn't be nothing without a huge mass of people with this "powerist" ("moneyist" implied) mentality, which you have too.
I don't know where's Hurd, but where would be Linux without GNU GPL, without GNU packages... without GNU Project? GNU received many good things because of Linux, and so did Linux. Stallman gives credit to Linus for what he did, but Linus prefers to be a movie star.
edit: indeed, I know where's Hurd. It's here:
http://www.debian.org/ports/hurd/
https://www.gnu.org/software/hurd/hurd/running/distrib.html
I wouldn't say it would be forcing Trisquel onto the FSF and creating friction, but maybe just a nudge. They do use a screen of it on their front page but I cannot check it now due to the SOPA blackout. :-)
Here is my big dilemma on why I have posted what I have in the past: I have been building up a web business out of my home the past few months and all I get is pressure from friends and family to get it going and make sure all of it is locked in and proprietary. With that can come with a great investment on my end as I would be the only vendor and method of support. Of course it can go the other way and totally fail and I have to reconsider my life.
There is always great conflict and pressure between family members on being successful and doing it immediately. Heck, women see it as success when they are being courted and want the stability when they eventually want a family. Its just hard convincing people and I have had previous employers who only wanted to work on proprietary operating systems and paying out of the ass for proprietary software from Microsoft. If I ever brought up open source or free software, they would think that free equaled junk and that I needed to "grow up" and pretty much integrate into that mentality to grow as a programmer. They thought it was stupid to have the entire thought of giving source code for something you worked hard on so someone could "steal" it and make money off of it.
I even remembered showing a video of Stallman talking to a previous boss (it was a small company) and the response was that he was some dirty communist and I should be looking up to people like Bill Gates and Steve Jobs instead of people like Stallman because they wanted to "give everything away for free" and it was stupid to think that way. If I continued to think that way, he saw it as a threat that I didn't want to make money with his company and I should leave if that was a problem. No joke.
You really need to understand that "free software" and "making money" are not antagonist. This year, Red Hat will make more than 1 *billion* dollars of sales. Red Hat does not deliver free software only... but almost (most of its business deals with servers on which you neither need Wifi networking nor 3D acceleration). "Free" stands for freedom, not gratis.
I am a member!
I don't believe Richard Stallmans reason for calling it GNU/Linux has anything to do with credit particularly. He is not asking for people to call it Stallman/Linux. This is what some want you to believe. Some want you to believe Richard Stallman is a selfish and egotistical individual. His reasons for demanding it be called GNU/Linux go hand in hand with spreading the message of freedom. A completely respectable endeavor. If you only call it Linux it misses the point. Linus and the mainline kernel do not care about your freedom. By calling it GNU/Linux it begs the question of why. Why? Your freedom is why we call it GNU/Linux and not just Linux.
Companies like Redhat, Canonical, and others have the potential to impact chipset manufacturers just as we do. Your decision to spend a little more and get a chipset where the chipset manufacturer has respected your freedom matters.
We (libre.thinkpenguin.com) do have 'high' prices for some items at the moment. Nothing is astronomically priced though. Everything should generally be in line with retail pricing.
If you are financially unable to pay feel free to send us an offer using the contact link on the site. We can and will generally accept less. Please mention *why* you are after our products (freedom, libre).
ok ok duds this is way to offtopic now.
I just need help installing non-free software on trisquel cuz i realy want to try trisquel
if anyone can help me pleas do.
No offense, but the fact that you keep on asking here about tainting a Free system with something non-Free makes me believe that you just don't understand the goal of this project.
Trisquel is not just another distro out there that just happens to be 100% Free. This Freedom is the whole basis of this endeavour. We cannot and will not help you with getting non-free software onto Trisquel because then we will be providing a guide of how to sabotage your freedom using our official communication channels. This will have various implications for the Freedom movement we are a part of. Given your situation you will either have to figure it out yourself or use another distro. I hope you understand?
I have sympathy with your dilemma. My laptop needs non-free firmware for its built-in wifi so I ended up not using wifi for almost a year. In my situation it was possible. I don't know yours. Do you absolutely need to use wifi on that system? You certainly do not need wireless "to try trisquel".
i respect the freedom that you support and im an big supporter of FSF but if i want to do something with my computer i need internet. And im not the one who putted an wifi that is so hatefull to GNU. that is my "friends" fault-he works behind an computer totaly windows noob,and he realy realy hates gnu/linux.I also had problem when i first heard of GNU/linux installing cuz he blocked my bios boot system. And he blocked some ports (i needet them when i was in rats(remote admin tools). But i unblocked all of them. He aslo refuses to install gnu/linux at my dads comp.Saying that is unstable,useless,....
So as i was trying to say im going to high school from 4 months from now and i need an laptop and i have two computer in mind ubuntu laptop or trisquel laptop i already know how ubuntu is but i dont like that it has many many close-source packages on it. And know that trisquel is GNU100% and i love that about it but i dont know how it is cuz i dont have interent connection (i tried it from cd i installed it,...) but computer without internet is like as,....
anyway
its your choose to help me or not.
I am a member!
If you've got friends with laptops you can research the model numbers and find one that has a compatible mini-PCIe card in it then ask them to let you swap cards. Assuming the manufacturer hasn't locked the system to only accept that one wireless card, it should work without an issue. I did this with a friend's AMD based laptop and my girlfriend's Centrino laptop a couple of years back.
edit - some of the Eee netbooks have compatible cards, I'd start there.
well as i said before im not buying an new wifi
I am a member!
I know, I'm proposing you find someone you know who has a laptop or netbook and check to see if their particular model has a wifi adapter that is libre supported. If so, open the chassis, and swap your non-free card for their libre card. Unless you've got mean friends who'd charge you for that or the 2 cards aren't both g/n you shouldn't pay a dime.
Well, I'd then suggest that you try out Fedora. They include only free software in the default install but with a blobbed kernel. There is also Debian. Although they ship with the libre kernel the installer scans your hardware and check what needs non-free firmware and gently asks you if you want to enable them.
Mitja -
I am glad that you have enthusiasm for getting this card to work on your system, but the reality is that you will not get it working on a Trisquel system unless you force non-free firmware or buy a new card. No one here on this forum is going to help you jerry rig your system to make it work with non-free components.
Since you said that buying a new card is not an option for you, then you may be stuck. If it is critical to have a Linux OS on your system, I suggest just installing Ubuntu or one of its variants for now and consider Trisquel down the road if/when you get a new wifi card. You can continue to only use free software on an Ubuntu system and say active in the communities. I've noticed with the newest Ubuntu that non-free "restricted" and "multiverse" repositories are not enabled by default and you can keep it at that for as long as you like.
What I am saying conflicts with the ideologies around here, but it is better that he uses Linux in general instead of going back to Windows. Even if he only uses 1 non-free wireless firmware to get online and continues to support free software with it, then kudos for him. I've been in his situation before with wireless and it would be nice to know that that he doesn't get discouraged in the long run and continues to support free software and Linux in general.