How do I connect to a wifi network with a 3-letter WEP key on an older computer?

Question

I was given access to a wireless network - I'm not the owner and I have no way to connect to the router and change the WEP password.

The WEP password is 3 characters long, let's call it "abc". When I enter "abc" on my Mac OS X machine, it connects great. When I enter "abc" on my Windows 98 machine, it tells me that the password is too short (has to be 5 characters long).

Can I get my Windows 98 machine to connect? How does the Mac do it?

Answer 1

Windows 98 has no "built-in" wireless support.  You are at the mercy of the wireless card manufacturer to provide a driver that makes the computer compatible.  Windows XP was the first Microsoft OS to offer wireless support at the OS level.

You may try updating the driver for the wireless adapter on the PC, that may fix the issue.  If that doesn't work, you up a channel without a wac so to speak.