Windows 2000, Atheros ar5211.sys, and AR5005G chipset

This msg also posted in Windows 2000 forum, but seeking a different angle - asking for registry location for wireless settings.

In *this* post, I ask for general ideas regarding Win2K and the Atheros AR5005G chipset on an Acer TravelMate 2310 laptop.

Here is the full problem history:

We are a small, private school with an impossibly modest budget. We purchased a number of new laptops for the teachers but had very little money, so were forced to purchase inexpensive Acer units with 40Gb hard drives and (!) 256Mb RAM, with no money to upgrade.

Obviously, Windows 2000 runs much better under this RAM configuration than XP, so we installed it and everything works... except for the Atheros wireless chip. I obtained a Windows 2000 driver for the Atheros wireless card. I have a Windows 2000 version of the Launch Manager tool (in case it controls the buttons).

1. The hardware "switch" on this laptop (Acer TravelMate 2310) is a push-button on the front of the laptop. When on, the button glows orange. There is no function key that turns the wireless on/off, only this button.

2. When booting the computer, the button is orange (wireless on). Part way through the boot process (Windows full-screen logo displayed, the progress gets to the "s" in MicroSoft, and the orange light goes out.

3. The Atheros Client Utility (troubleshoot tool) reports that the radio is installed and enabled, but turned off in hardware. Pressing the front panel button does nothing.

4. If I uninstall the Atheros driver, the orange light will come on again -- inside Windows! But then how do I locate/join a wireless network? Win2K does not have XP's "View Available Wireless Networks" feature.

5. I have tried several different versions of the Atheros driver AR5211.sys (from 2.4.2.9 thru 2.4.2.22, 3.1.1.16, 3.1.3.10, 3.3.2.4, 4.0.0.14001, up to 5.3.0.35)

This same laptop works correctly under Windows XP. Pressing the button enables/disables the wireless card.

In the Win2K forum, I wondered if perhaps there is a location in the Windows registry where this setting is turned OFF by default, and it is relying on some proprietary Acer software to allow the push-button to toggle that setting? My reasons for thinking this are:
a) button glows orange if ar5211.sys is not installed;
b) button glows orange 2/3 of the way through booting Windows, probably being turned off at the point the ar5211.sys driver is loaded.

Acer technical support is unhelpful to the point of actually mocking our efforts. (I am sure, though, that if we could ask the right person at Acer, the whole exercise could be solved in two minutes.)

Anyone?

Sorry I can't help you with getting that card to work under windows 2000 but I can tell you that it is plug n play under Ubuntu linux. Which is free and might get you by until you figure something out.

I also would suggest not setting up wireless under windows 2000 in a school since windows 2000 doesn't support wpa encryption without third party software. Your kids would have field day hacking your wireless if it's WEP.