Are you absolutely 100% postively sure that the WEP key is correct?  Have you tried temporarily disabling encryption on the router just to make sure that it is not the security that is causing the problem.  I think if you read through the messages on the these forums that is the users that have a lot of work to do.  Instead, it is easier to blame Dell.

Steve

Yes, it is risky to turn off security.  All I am asking is that you turn off the security for a few minutes to troubleshoot the problem.  If your wireless network connection works with the security disabled, then it gives you a good starting point from which to work to solve the problem (i.e. you know that the problems lies with the way you have configured the security settings).

Steve

Thanks for your response.  I am absolutely sure that the key is correct.  Last evening I was able to connect with WPA2 enabled, but today, with the exact same settings, I am unable to connect, once again hanging at the acquiring IP address step.  I live in a nice area, is it dangerous to turn off security on the wireless network?  I have three networked computers that share some files, but no financial info, etc - just family photos, videos and downloaded files. 

My Dell laptop worked well for the first three months after purchase. It can connect the internet via D-link router using security-enabled. After that (ninety days warranty), it lost connectivity. Now it has the same problem as e1505help. It stuck on the acquiring the IP address.

The second problem is Windows cannot configure this wireless connection(Dell Wireless 1370 WLAN Mini-Pci Card) after each reboot. Each time the system comes back, I have to re-select the "Use Windows to Configure my Wireless Settings" box to view the available wireless networks. After I can view the available wireless networks, the computer still can not connect the internect,  even I tried to disable the security of the network.

Please help me if you know something. Thanks a lot!

Without reference to your particulars, I believe there is the ability to create (or edit) "Profile" and then save it permanently (for a given SSID). Have you gone through those steps of keeping a permanent copy of the Profile?

dlinkrouter1

There are two ways to manage the wireless on the computer: one is to let Windows do it, the other is special software (client). Sometimes when one will not work for me, changing to the other somehow makes it work. Have you found and tried the "Zero configuration" something or other? It helped another person with wireless problem.

My connection seems to be working better.  It still has some quirks.  For instance, I changed my Dlink connection to WPA2auto, and I connected one time to the wireless router.  The next time I tried to connect, it would not.  So, I disabled security altogether, and it worked.  Next, I used WEP instead of WPA, and it has worked for the last few days.  We'll see.  It seems to me, and I am very much a networking novice, that this is rather complicated.  I still have not been able to accomplish file sharing with my two other networked computers (which have the same OS, and on which I have established file sharing).  I'll be back if (when) trouble arises.  Thanks for your help.

As I mentioned before, the laptop worked well before.  My parents are major users. I think they installed something into the computer. So these days I cleaned the computer, such as unistalled the software which they installed, deleted the files they saved, defragment, repaired the errors, updated the windows et ac. Finally it can connect the internet via the wireless card last night. But this morning I was told that it did not work again. I will go check it up again.  If there are new problems, I will post them again. Right now, I think it's the old problem. Maybe I need to ask them stop downloading something into the computer.

Thank BBraxton for help.