A ha! Found the INF folder. You were right, it was hidden. I never even thought to check that. I'm not sure what you mean by the button Compaq added to make me think I have control over the device. It is a stupid design, I agree, but it's not imagined control. With the button off, I have no connection. And Knopix doesn't locate the device while it's booting, so I assume the button does give me the control it's supposed to. I think Compaq added it to conserve battery when using the laptop in a place with no wireless network. Perhaps searching for a network that isn't there uses a lot of battery power?

When I get home from work, I'll try to follow the rest of the FAQ now that I have the info to get past step 2.