[DuoList] Joining secure network with OS 8.6?

[Gary F. Daught]

Greetings. I have a PowerBook 2400c, running OS 8.6. I have a Dell  
TrueMobile Gold wireless pc card (that supports 128-bit WEP  
encryption), running ORiNOCO driver v.7.2. I am successfully running  
wireless on my secure network at home.

My college, however, recently switched to a secure (closed) wireless  
network that utilizes certificates, 802.1x authentication and PEAP  
(Protected Extensible Authentication Protocol). I am no longer able  
to access the network with my current hardware/software  
configuration, and am definitely sensing the limits of my trusty 2400  
in this environment. The college is not a Mac-friendly environment in  
general, though I have successfully assisted students with PowerBooks  
and iBooks running OS X and AirPort to get on this closed network  
with little problem.

I know AirPort support was introduced with OS 9. But I don't know  
whether my TrueMobile card is supported within AirPort. It may be  
time to jump into the 21st century...once the non-Pro version of the  
Mac Book is released. But before I bail, I was wondering if there is  
a known work-around, third-party utility, firmware update, etc. that  
would enable me to join this closed network with these added layers  
of security/authentication?

Thanks for your assistance.

Gary F. Daught