TIntruder,
I too am a newbster at Linux. I installed 7.3 on my laptop and it blew up. I am now using Madrake 8.2. I can't answer your questions, but this site has helped me over and over again.
http://www.linuxquestions.org/questions/index.php
I am currently trying to get Kismet on that badboy.. Ugh, what a chore
