This seems to be a known problem with this laptop but I cant find the cure unless my NIC has simply died.
I cant get it to see any networks at all in XP Media Center. Nor will it see anything in Netstumbler under UBCD4WIN or using a LinuxMint 17.3 live DVD.
At first I didn't realise there is a Wireless switch and after checking everything and loading the newest ProSet wireless drivers and software, when I switched the hardware switch on, the whole thing suddenly sprang to life and read all the local WiFIs and logged on to mine!
But despite trying, I have never managed to get it to scan ever since. Despite having proset drivers, there is a fix out there to let windows manage the wireless connection by deleting the third party software key in regedit but that doesn't work
Does my paragraphs 2 simply mean that my formerly unreliable NIC has died? I think it is buried deep in the computer somewhere and can't simply be changed easily by taking off a cover.
The only other symptom (I dont think it is relevant) is that the USB ports dont work. There are a plethora of error messages on startup which cant find the drivers (which absolutely must be embedded in XP) and all ports show exclamation marks in device manager.