Problems connecting macbook to school network

I am having trouble conecting to my school internet. i have the white macbook that i bought about a month ago. The school network does not require a password. you would just connect to the internet then when you open a browser it would redirect you to a page where you would enter personal information to gain access to the internet. But when i use my macbook it sees the network but when i try to join it says "connection timeout". when i run diagnostics it asks me for a WEP password even though the network does not require one. I connect fine to the internet at home and other networks that both require and dont require a password but its just this one thats giving me problems. My girlfriend has the same computer as me that we bought at the same time and she had problems connecting to the internet the first day of class but now she is able to connect and everything works fine. she also said that i shouldnt be getting the window where it says to enter a WEP password because she didnt see that window when she did diagnostics. I talked to the school technical support and they werent able to figure it out and i even called apple and the guy guided me through some troubleshooting processes that did not work as well. What should I do? does anyone know how to fix this problem?

First, make sure you're trying to log on to the correct network provided by your school and not some other network they sponsor that is password protected by WEP. Also double check all your airport settings - which I'm sure you've already done.

It sounds like your airport settings have gotten corrupted somehow. Airport "thinks" you're trying to log on to a WEP protected network when you're not. Click on the link below, read through the thread, and follow the procedure given by the original poster. I don't know for sure if that will help but it's certainly worth a try. Your problem sounds related to what he experienced in that there may be a hidden setting that's keeping you from logging on. Perhaps a password that shouldn't be there.

http://forums.macrumors.com/showthread.php?t=518958

Regards.

i tried the procedure and I am still not able to connect to my school network. i bought the warranty for the computer at best buy. should i take my computer back to apple or best buy? I really need to get this problem fixed because i need this computer for school. what would they do if they are not able to fix this problem?

I took my macbook over to the apple store so i could have them take a look at it and hopefully fix the problem. The genius did something to it but im not sure exactly what he did. something about deleting all the computers memory of networks. This still did not fix the problem. So last night I used the cds that came with the macbook and completely reinstalled OS X. I tried connecting to the internet again after this but it still did not work. I have no trouble connecting to any other networks. and i am sure there are no problems with the schools network because my girlfriend is able to use her macbook on it just fine. what are my options now?

Hi again:

Sorry to hear you're still having problems.

I'm assuming your school's network is an open broadcast - in other words you are not going through a router, correct? And you can receive the signal while in class, library, dorm, and so forth? From what you posted before, logging on takes you to the school's gateway where you are further required to enter personal information before it allows you to access the internet.

You also state your machine works fine at home and at other places whether or not access is encrypted. That would eliminate any hardware problems with your machine.

Have you compared your airport settings to that of your girl friend's machine to see if there's something that's different about yours? There has to be a reason other than hardware that's keeping you from gaining access.

Regards.

I am having the EXACT same issue. Suddenly can't connect to my school's network (University of Florida) but can connect fine to any other unlocked wireless that doesn't take you to a "gateway" login page.

I have a huge law review note to write and I HAVE to be at school and online very often for the next few weeks.

If anyone has any suggestions, you have no clue how much this would help. I'm very upset.

I have a black macbook.

Also, the wireless school network works totally FINE from the windows partition (that's how I'm posting this thread now).