Before you go any further I think you should consider what your doing and
why. Trisquel is a distribution designed to ensure users freedom. If your not
trying to ensure your own freedom and/or promote users freedom there is very
little point to using Trisquel. Trisquel is basically Ubuntu minus the
non-free pieces. To install it and then add back the non-free firmware is
defeating the purpose of the distribution.
Now I don't want to discourage you from installing Trisquel. There are both
technical and ethical benefits from doing so. Most of the technical benefits
though that result are from discontinuing the use of hardware dependent on
non-free software. However you could also just as easily not buy hardware
dependent on such non-free software without using Trisquel.
Now verifying that your not dependent on non-free software where you hardware
is concerned is fairly easy if you have the hardware already. Simply boot up
Trisquel and see if it works.
If it doesn't chances are there is a non-free dependency. You've discovered
with these two wifi cards that both are dependent on non-free software and
possibly the mouse as well (although I've never seen a mouse dependent on
non-free software although the bluetooth chipset probably is- which would
explain why it doesn't work).
There is really only one good solution here from the freedom perspective.
It's to go without this hardware, use ethernet instead, or replace it.
The easiest replacement option is to get a USB wireless adapter that is free
software friendly. You can find such devices on h-node although the
reliability of it is a problem due to ever-changing chipsets, accuracy
issues, and a few other problems. Then there is the RYF list of hardware from
the FSF which is certified hardware. That is the FSF has reviewed it, checked
that it worked, and worked with companies to ensure it is and continues to be
free software friendly. It's a new program and the list of hardware is pretty
short at the moment:
fsf.org/ryf
The next option which is the easiest is to check out
http://libre.thinkpenguin.com/ and buy hardware. I'm the CEO & Founder of the
company. Basically we only ship hardware that is free software friendly (and
thus will work with Trisquel). Not everything is certified by the FSF
although we aim to increase the certified products to everything or near
everything as time goes on. The FSF program is new and certification takes
time. Our catalog alone will keep them real busy :).
