If a tool needs something to perform one of its functions it needs it. There isn't a "anaconda-no-wireless" package, etc.
This speaks deeply to a cultural understanding as to what the concept of networking is.
It seems obvious there are people who would like to consider wireless as "optional." as this is an historic artifact of how networking tech has developed over time. I wonder, have we reached the point where other people have started to consider a wired network "optional" as well?
-jef
This is a good question. Laptops are becoming the norm if not already so, add "smart devices" and wireless is looking more like the standard rather than exception. We are not there quite yet though.
To most (almost all) desktop users, wireless packages are superfluous. That is generally not the case with a laptop user. As long as they have the hardware to support both, they will continue to need (want) both. So no, I do not believe we've reached a point where wired would be concidered optional, not yet anyway.
I would agree, just about all NetBooks (possibly all) still come with wired ethernet ports and given their price point I would expect that that platform to be the one to drop the wired ports first. Also a nummber of other devices that have only wireless still support usb ethernet out of the box to provide wired support.
Peter