Unable to connect to the internet

I’ve recently upgraded the operating system on a pc from Win 98 to Win XP. I purchased a new network card (D-Link)and go through the process of connecting to the internet using a cable modem. When I try to connect I am unable to do so. The funny thing is when I take a card (A-Open)
from another PC with Win XP the internet connects with no problem. And the D-Link card will not work in the PC that the A-Open card came from. This is the second card I’ve tried, the first was a SMC card. Could it be the cards are not compatable with XP? or maybe the cards are not working? Two bad cards from two different retailers seems unlikely.