Could my wireless access feature be bad?

[tpcollins]

I've had my Inspiron 1525 laptop for just over 2 years and got so frustrated with Windows Vista, I had it removed last Christamas in favor of XP. For the last several months it's been very hard to log onto my router in the house. I'd click on the Internet but the Work Offline box would alternate with the Connect Now box and I would go back and forth several times before it would connect. Now I've learned to turn it on and just wait a minute or so until the status bars go green at the bottom allowing me to connect.

I tried to go thru Dell's online help and wound up getting dizzy from going in circle. Could there be a component that I could buy and replace it myself? Any help would be appreciated. Thanks.