Can't acquire a network address

[rbcp]

I've got an old Dell that I'm trying to make connect to a wireless network.  So I put a Linksys card into it and downloaded some drivers for it.  It all seems to work.  It found the network and I put in the WEP key and it connects.  But it has a problem acquiring an IP address.  It says "acquiring network address" for about a minute, then it tells me that it couldn't get one.  The connection icon show that it's connected, but there's "limited or no connectivity."

The IP address it's giving it is 169.254.200.143 when it's supposed to be something like 192.168.1.103.  The computer is running Windows XP.  It can connect to the internet with a network cable.  Just not with the wireless card.  The router definitely works since we've got other things running on it.  The wireless card worked the last time we used it, which was about a year ago.  I've clicked on "repair connection" a few times but that never does any good.  I always get this message:

Windows could not finish repairing the problem because the following action cannot be completed:  Renewing your IP address.

Any ideas?

[mr_doc]

is dhcp on?

change gateway to 192.168.1.1

[gangals]

The last time the card worked, did you have the same encryption method?

If not, is the card able to support the type of encryption that the router is currently using?

[rbcp]

Yeah, it used WEP encryption before.  But with a different router.  It's a Linksys wireless-G card, though, and the router is a Linksys wireless-B/G.  I'll have to try it on my laptop tomorrow and see if it works.  I tried changing the gateway and it acted like it would work.  But it wouldn't.  I also tried manually entering everything, including the IP address, gateway, subnet whatever, and DNS. 

I haven't had this much trouble with a network since Windows 98.

[gangals]

Did you disable any services since XP was installed?

[trevelyn]

are you using the "windows wireless zero" (or whatever its called) software or the linksys software for the card? The IP 169.254.200.143 is what the card assigns to itself, i found that out while trying to get into gangals vina router.  If you cant ping the routers own address (in your case would be 192.168.1.1) then you arent connected to anything at all.   

[gangals]

I think trevelyn is trying to say that if you are connecting a wireless AP and not a wireless router, then you need a device behind the AP that is acting as a DHCP server.

[Zazen]

That's not what he's trying to say.

169.254.xxx.xxx is what windows gives you when it can't find a DHCP server. But if rbcp tried using manual settings already then DHCP is not to blame, rather the card is failing.