How are you trying to connect: USB or Ethernet? Ethernet is the easiest to use because you don't need a driver for the modem. You do need an Ethernet card Knoppix can detect. To test the connection bring up your browser and try an address like 192.168.0.1 or 192.168.1.1 (the modem manual will give the correct address). Once you are connected to the modems http page follow the basic setup instructions.