ubuntu - help!

[earwigmc]

the ubuntu box can't pick up an internet conenciton atm (yeah, i'm back over on the windows pc =unsmile= but, yay for having had the opportunity to set up two/both! thanks agian to all of yous who helped to make that happen =smile=). looking around (including at help files) something is wrong. but i'm not entirely sure what. it still has the settings for hte wireless network it used to pick up (and i've chekced the password there is correct). looking further, using the admin - networks utility, its list doesnt' list all the possibilities it should. iirc there's only 'point to point' listed as an option (i think it was)(which when i explored a bit seemed ot mention modem...). no wireless. nothing else. i'm not even sure that if i acquired a network cable long enough to run from the router to the room and the pc, that it'd be able to register that.

i'm not sure why/how this happened.
it happened the day i got the router here working again. i know bunty picked up the wireless signal and was happily connecting to the internet immediatley after the connection was restored.
the only thing i can think of that happened around the same time, was downloading updates, but not having enough time to download them all before i turned off the ocmputer and before i went out.
i don't think it worked the first time i turned it on agian after that. ye,s i think i went ot download the rest, and couldn't get a conneciton to do it with...

any ideas, advice, suggestions, help??? please (&thank you).