sharing your internet connection wirelessly - part II

We left off talking about protocols and their transfer speeds… remember?

Keep in mind that the transfer rate of 11mbps will probably only come into play on transmissions from computer to computer within your LAN – say you have an MP3 on your computer that your son in the other room wants to listen to – he’ll get it at 11mbps. But if he were to try to get it through the internet from his friend on the next block, he’s not going to be able to go any faster than the slowest connection between your modem and his friend’s modem. On my cable modem system, the ISP advertises a download speed of 13mbps but I’ve never gotten anything faster than 7mbps. So in my case, even if I have the slower B protocol router, I probably won’t ever realize a speed of 11mbps except when I transfer files from one computer to another within my own LAN.

Ok, for the sake of argument, let’s say we want two desktops and a laptop to share the same internet connection (which is the number one reason for having a home LAN - sharing the internet connection). The cable modem is in the office where the “main” computer is now. The laptop moves around the house and the other desktop computer is in the kids’ room. We’re going to need a router and three adapters and we’ve decided to go with 802.11G just because we seem to transfer a lot of digital art (Photoshop files) from the main desktop to the laptop for work and we don’t have a portable USB drive so fast file transfer through our LAN will be a big plus.

We either run to the local electronics store, or hop online and look at the selection of wireless products… ok, here’s where some people get really confused. Whose stuff do you buy? Let’s see, I started working with networks in 1992 so that’s what, twelve years? In all that time I’ve used pretty much everyone’s hardware and no one’s is any better than anyone else’s… seems unreasonable but that’s how it is. They either work or they don’t work. If they don’t work, they’re defective and you take them back. It doesn’t matter if you buy D-Link, Linksys, NetGear, Microsoft, whatever… it does NOT matter. As long as all your parts speak the same language (802.11G in this case) and each adapter is approved for the operating system on the computer where you plan to install it into, they should all work and play well together. Here’s the second caveat – don’t bother trying to connect a Windows 95 or first edition Windows 98 machine to a wireless network – it won’t work. You need to have Windows 98 SE or higher in order for the OS to have the guts to work in a wireless environment.

Ok, let’s say my computers run Windows 2000, Windows 98 and Windows XP Home, so I’m safe with the OS compatibility. Let’s say on this day, Linksys has the best overall prices and product selection so I’m going with their lineup. I get an 802.11G Wireless Router (not an access point or a cable modem, a router – I already have a cable modem, remember) that also has four wired Ethernet ports in the back. Yay, this means that I only have to buy two wireless interfaces for computers – why? Remember the set-up in the office – the main computer is near the cable modem. When I install the router, I will have the internet service run from the wall outlet to the cable modem, then from the cable modem to the router (rather than to the computer like it is now), and then since it’s all sitting right there near the main computer anyway, I can connect that computer to the router using an Ethernet cable.

That means the I save about $50 since I now only have to buy two wireless LAN cards. For the desktop in the kids’ room my choices for adding wireless capability include an internal NIC (network interface card) or a portable box-looking thing that connects to the computer with a USB cable. Since my kids’ computer has about 5 USB ports and I’m not all that keen to open up a machine that they just got for Christmas, I’m going to opt for the portable USB adapter.

My choices for the laptop are between a PCMCIA card that slides into the side slot (also confusingly known as a PC card), a USB adapter device that’s about the size of a Bic lighter, and the same portable USB box thing that I chose for the kids’ computer. Since I like the idea that I can move the USB box around to find the best “reception” when I’m out on the patio with the laptop, I’m also going to chose that same device for use with my laptop. The extra benefit of using these two kinds of adapters is that they can be used on any computer with a free USB port, so if I have a friend over for a weekend and they want to plug in, they can use one of my USB adapters without any fuss. Because I got all these USB adapters, I need to be sure to get cables if they aren’t included with the adapters. Also, since the Ethernet cable that used to run from the cable modem to the computer will now go from the cable modem to the router, I still need one more Ethernet cable to connect the main computer to the new router.

With older operating systems, you might have some real fun getting this whole set up to work but if you have Windows 2000 or later, getting all this stuff working should be a breeze as long as you READ THE DIRECTIONS and follow them to the letter, especially when it comes to installing the USB adapters. I don’t have room this time around to go into the details for computer settings, but if your OS is pretty current, the networking wizards should be able to walk you through the set-up without too many second glances.

But here’s caveat number three – be sure to read the instructions for using the firewall or any other protection hardware or software that comes with your router. If you notice the neighbor kid sitting on your sidewalk every afternoon with a laptop, laughing his head off as he shoots up enemies in a MMORPG, you need to take a serious look at your security. It is possible for persons other than the obvious persons in your own home to access your wireless router if you don’t take the simple precautions suggested in the security section of your instructions manual. Some of these are no more complicated than prompting for a secret password with accessing the router – if the neighbor kid doesn’t know the password, he can’t suck up your bandwidth.

You can expect to pay between $60 and $160 for a wireless router, depending on the protocol and the brand (and the occasional rebate). The adapters can run from $40 to $100, again, depending on the protocol, the brand, and applicable rebates. A wired LAN is still cheaper, with NICs running about $20 and Ethernet hubs running about $30, but then you have all those wires to worry about. The best part is there’s no $10 a month fee for having your ISP come out and put in a wireless router for you – you can do it yourself and share the same internet connection you’ve always had. If you aren’t in the land of the LAN yet, go wireless. Installing a LAN has become so easy it seems rather silly to have a certification in LAN management anymore…