The RTL8187 range of wireless chips has been supported in Linux for a while. The exception to this rule is the RTL8187B. It's now supported in the Linux kernel but support is patchy at best.
The sad news is, the wireless chip in my laptop is the ever so wonderful RTL8187B. It works ok on Windows, so no chance of a refund on that one. However, I can (under Ubuntu 8.10) use unsecured and WPA networks. I'm still to test it on Eduroam, but the fact it works on the WPA network at home is a good sign.
Though, I do have to use the "sudo iwconfig rate 5.5M fixed" trick. For some bizare reason, letting the card do it's thing can cause packets to stop being shifted. Go figure.
However, by sheer concidence, the USB wireless dongle on my desktop uses the same chip. The dongle in question is the Belkin F5D7050. Thankfully, it's slightly more stable than the laptop card. That's as long as you don't let it overheat, which it does on a whim....
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