Hi,

I hope this is not getting the wrong end of the stick ...

The Network Manager (Applet 0.8.1) that comes with Knoppix has a drawback that it only works if you have run up a GUI desktop. It has (as I discovered recently while trying to install Debian) the drawback that it is incompatible with the mechanisms one might expect to use when one isn't running a GUI desktop.

After a humiliating exchange of e-mails with the Debian maintainer for Network Manager, I discovered that an alternative is available from the Debian squeeze repository (which I believe is the one Knoppix uses). The advantage I saw to this alternative is that it will bring up the network in both non-GUI and the other mode. It is named wicd.

I have it running on one laptop (under Debain) and some notes scribbled on a scrap of paper somewhere that I need to go through so that I can do it properly next time.

You will definitely need to un install the current Network Manager, which could be tricky if you are dependent on your wireless to install the new one !

I got my inspiration from the following web page: http://wiki.debian.org/WiFi/HowToUse.

If you can manage to get wicd going on your own, let us know. If you can't I'll try to help but I will be ad-libbing things a bit.