Everyone forgive me in advance for such a mundane whine, but I am just completely flummoxed.
I am running suse 11.1 64 bit on new zetta jetbook (don’t ask).
My kernal is
Linux BlackVincentII 2.6.27.23-0.1-default #1 SMP 2009-05-26 17:02:05 -0400 x86_64 x86_64 x86_64 GNU/Linux
Box is stable and works fine, for the most part.
My wireless card is Wireless WiFi Link 5100. Chose it cause it seemed to have a good track record in Linux, lots of works fine on my machine stuff…
Yast had no trouble finding it, the driver in. Firmware is installed. The particulars:
driver is iwlagn
here is what I get from ifconfig
wlan0 IEEE 802.11abgn ESSID:“BlackVincent”
Mode:Managed Frequency:2.412 GHz Access Point: Not-Associated
Tx-Power=15 dBm
Retry min limit:7 RTS thr:off Fragment thr=2352 B
Encryption key:off
Power Management:offwh
Link Quality:0 Signal level:0 Noise level:0
Rx invalid nwid:0 Rx invalid crypt:0 Rx invalid frag:0
Tx excessive retries:0 Invalid misc:0 Missed beacon:0
Firmware is installed–
Firmware for Intel PROWireless 5100 ABGN and 5300 ABGN Wlan Cards
5.4.11-2.9
Wireless light on the box is on.
I can connect to the internet via wired with traditional method with ifup and assigning an IP,which I like to do anyway. Interestingly–another problem for another day, but perhaps related, my gnome network manager recognizes my wired connection but fails to connect me over wired when I turn it over to her. The ony way I can currently connect is to manage it myself, traditionally.
But the other clue indicating I was in trouble was that the network manager, when not connected via wire, (or by wire) always shows my wireless as disabled.
Which of course brings me to the log, which chills my heart:
Radio disabled by HW RF Kill switch:
Jul 12 13:16:42 BlackVincentII ifup-wireless: wlan0 warning: using NO encryption
Jul 12 13:16:42 BlackVincentII ifup-wireless: command ‘iwconfig wlan0 mode Master’ returned
Jul 12 13:16:42 BlackVincentII ifup-wireless: Error for wireless request “Set Mode” (8B06) :
Jul 12 13:16:42 BlackVincentII ifup-wireless: SET failed on device wlan0 ; Invalid argument.
Jul 12 13:16:42 BlackVincentII kernel: firmware: requesting iwlwifi-5000-1.ucode
Jul 12 13:16:42 BlackVincentII kernel: iwlagn: Radio disabled by HW RF Kill switch
Jul 12 13:16:42 BlackVincentII kernel: ADDRCONF(NETDEV_UP): wlan0: link is not ready
Jul 12 13:16:42 BlackVincentII ifup-dhcp: wlan0 Starting DHCP4 client
Jul 12 13:16:42 BlackVincentII dhcpcd[3796]: wlan0: dhcpcd 3.2.3 starting
Jul 12 13:16:42 BlackVincentII dhcpcd[3796]: wlan0: hardware address = 00:22:fa:38:66:12
Jul 12 13:16:43 BlackVincentII avahi-daemon[3448]: Server startup complete. Host name is BlackVincentII.local. Local service cookie is 82917566.
The radio disabled is a recurrent theme in messages:
But later, this stuff. If Radio disabled by HW RF Kill switch–
which seems plausible, since the network manager always shows it as disabled, why wlan0 broadcasting for a lease? Not that I know what that means.
Jul 12 13:17:23 BlackVincentII dhcpcd[3796]: wlan0: timed out
Jul 12 13:17:23 BlackVincentII dhcpcd[3796]: wlan0: trying to use old lease in /var/lib/dhcpcd/dhcpcd-wlan0.info' Jul 12 13:17:23 BlackVincentII dhcpcd[3796]: wlan0: broadcasting for a lease Jul 12 13:17:26 BlackVincentII python: hp-systray(init)[5740]: warning: No hp: or hpfax: devices found in any installed CUPS queue. Exiting. Jul 12 13:17:43 BlackVincentII dhcpcd[3796]: wlan0: timed out Jul 12 13:17:43 BlackVincentII dhcpcd[3796]: wlan0: trying to use old lease in /var/lib/dhcpcd/dhcpcd-wlan0.info’
Jul 12 13:17:43 BlackVincentII dhcpcd[3796]: wlan0: broadcasting for a lease
And on and on and on, for a while.
Thus as best as I can make out, the card is being disabled.
I am not a complete newbie with linux. I been goofing with Suse since 9.3, and I got my first linux box running on wireless with an ndswrapper and a completely inetpt and embarrassing hack in a script.
I would be glad to go there again, even on a laptop that might get fired up in an airport, but I am just not sure what to do next. I would be happy with a simple work around, but I don’t quite know where to start. The card is alive, the kernal thinks its not.
Any help would be much appreciated, and I apologize in advance if I have violated any of the terms of the rather stern stickies. 
Regards,
Ned