Ubuntu 10.10 WPA driver

Also, it tells me "firmware missing" and won't show any networks.

Also, it tells me "firmware missing" and won't show any networks.

The drivers for your card should support WPA, it is not a matter of getting a "WPA Driver".

However, so we can guide you further, we need more specific details on your hardware. Can you open a terminal (Ctrl+Alt+T, or from applications menu) and provide the output of these commands?

lspci
lsusb

Note that institutional wireless often utilises more complex authentication mechanisms than home networks, and may also employ MAC address whitelisting. This will usually simply involve your device not connecting to the network, or not functioning after connecting.

@mycae
mac address whitelisting cannot be administered in settings such as universities because of the vast amounts of students attending, as the number can be as high as 20,000, especially in universities in north america.

@mary
the most efficent way to get your laptop working is probably going to the administration or faculty office and ask them how to set it up.

plus, do what mycae said to do.

oh. at the university i attended. all we needed to do was go to the computer department and register our student identification number and download a login program.

The univeristy help desk (the computer department) was unable to help me, and just told me to look for a driver.

Marcus:
Mary may not be a student; at some universities, they do indeed use whitelisting for staff.

Mary, you will need to provide output from the commands I previously stated, otherwise we have no idea what hardware we are running