Which Router and Network Adapter to buy?

[shebang]

Hi!
I need to buy a router to connect my RH 9 (Debian as well) laptop to a XP Home PC. I went to buy a Linksys router at Best Buy and they told me that my network adapter is not going to work with Linux. what do i do and which one do I buy then?

[Compunuts]

Which modle router? Which Network adapter that won't work?

Why you need a router? Share Internet? For home LAN (just to share files among computers), you DO NOT need a router but a switch or HUB would do the trick.

[shebang]

[quote author=Compunuts link=board=4;threadid=8818;start=0#msg79593 date=1078694885]
Which modle router? Which Network adapter that won't work?

Why you need a router? Share Internet? For home LAN (just to share files among computers), you DO NOT need a router but a switch or HUB would do the trick.
[/quote]

LinkSys 802.11b Router with it's own Network Card (They are a pack) . I thought it would work but the guy at BestBuy said it won't work.

What is a switch or a hub?

[countach44]

"A concentrator that joins multiple clients by means of a single link to the rest of the LAN" --not my definition
A hub also sends packets of data to every computer, and only the machine with the correct destination address actually receives the data, when it gets sent to the wrong machine, this results in a ollisions.
A switch is like a hub, except it only sends data to the right computer, resulting in no collisions, thereby giving you a faster, more reliable connection that a hub. A switch costs more.

[shebang]

[quote author=countach44 link=board=4;threadid=8818;start=0#msg79596 date=1078702648]
"A concentrator that joins multiple clients by means of a single link to the rest of the LAN" --not my definition
A hub also sends packets of data to every computer, and only the machine with the correct destination address actually receives the data, when it gets sent to the wrong machine, this results in a ollisions.
A switch is like a hub, except it only sends data to the right computer, resulting in no collisions, thereby giving you a faster, more reliable connection that a hub. A switch costs more.
[/quote]

Thanks but can you help me with my problem of which router i can buy and make sure it is compatible with Linux

[countach44]

Routers shouldn't be system dependent, so long as they have DHCP. Nics may be,
nics I'm using that are linux compatible:
Intel eepro100
3Com 3C920
3com 374-TX (pcmcia card)

[shebang]

[quote author=countach44 link=board=4;threadid=8818;start=0#msg79599 date=1078708813]
Routers shouldn't be system dependent, so long as they have DHCP. Nics may be,
nics I'm using that are linux compatible:
Intel eepro100
3Com 3C920
3com 374-TX (pcmcia card)
[/quote]
It is the network adapter that wasn't compatible. observing your post tells me that it is compatible. is that true?

[countach44]

Which card do you have?
P.S.
NIC stands for Network Interface Card, another name for Network Adapter

[Kernel_Killer]

Most likely it is compatible. Most if not all Linksys are Prism2.x based. Even 802.11g Wi-fi cards are beginning to be supported under Linux (Check prism54.org ).

[coltrane]

I have 2 Linksys NICs on my boxes at home, no probs there...