Network Newbie...

Question

Hi. I have a three-year-old Dimension 4100 running WinME. I just ordered a 2400 w/ WinXP Home for the Mrs. I have Cable Internet and I want to network the two. I've read a bit about wireless and it sounds like the route I want to go if the cost isn't prohibitive. I've Googled a bit of info but I haven't found a step-by-step that's really clear to me ( I wasn't the swiftest guy in shop class)

Anyway, what I was hoping is that someone could point me to a source where I'd find detailed set-up info including the equipment I would need and some approximate cost comparisons.

I'd surely appreciate any advice.

Dimension 4100
P3 800 mhz
512 mb SDRAM @133 mhz
Windows ME
Comcast Cable Internet
NEC DV-5700A DVD ROM
TDK CDRW 161040x
19" Dell M990 monitor
32 mb NVidia TNT2
20 gb Ultra ATA @7200 rpm h/d
60 gb Maxtor h/d
Norton a/v for WinME
Office 97 Pro
Zone Alarm Pro
Spybot Search & Destroy 1.2
Xteq X-Setup 6.5
Tweak UI

volcano11 · Answer

Try www.homenethelp.com then post back with any questions you have. Steve

-0O0-Richard Ra · Answer

If you are looking to set up a wireless LAN with cable internet acess i suggest you buy a wireless router to connect to the actual cable internet instead of connecting it straight to a computer.  D-Link is what I use. (It is good, unless you have a Vtech or other wireless phone working on the same freuency, then it temperarorly disconnects you if the phone rings)  If you get the D-Link router you can hardwire up to 4 machines.  Also you will obviousy want to use its wireless capibilities.  All the wireless requires is a free usb slot, and the usb adaptor they sell seperatly.  If you do buy from D-Link they help you set it up over the phone and in the manual.  D-Link has good t-support, so you will be able to turn to them if you get stuck.  Hope this helps!

mccdaddy · Answer

Thanks Steve & Richard. A couple of questions though; I read that wireless NICs are needed for each machine on the network. Is that so? I also read that I should go with 802.11g capable connections as opposed to 802.11b. Is that something I should really be concerned about? I understand 802.11g is faster, does that mean faster uploads & downloads? My cable speeds are pretty good & I wouldn't want to do anything that would degrade that. The computers will be in adjacent rooms, does that impact on their ability to share connections & hardware?

Thanks again.

volcano11 · Answer

With a wireless router, not all machines need to connect wirelessly. Indeed, it is best if one of the machines connects through one of the wired ethernet ports, especially to set up and configure the router to connect to the other machines by wireless.

As for g versus b, it will make absolutely no difference for your internet connection. The broadband internet connection will have a maximum speed of about 2 Mbps. Wireless b speed is 11 Mbps and g is 54 Mbps, thus both are much faster than the internet, so you will not see a difference. If you transfer lots of large files between the computers on the network, then you will want the faster speed of wireless g, otherwise you can save money by sticking with wireless b.

Steve

-0O0-Richard Ra · Answer

I don't know the specs of the two, but yes g is indeed much faster than b is.  I have a 2800 kbps cable hookup, very good no?, and my wireless linked computer(using b) is much faster than the hard wired computer downstairs.(probibly because it is a poopy[instead of another *edited* four letter word] e-machine) anyway, unless you have a great need for HUGE file uploads, or you want really really fast downloads you might just want to go with the b system.  G is faster yes but it costs more.  ALSO if you have 'money is no obstical'(oh how i wish) then you might want to go with the more up to date g... if it is, as in my (wow all those two letter words in a row) case then go with the b, its really not that bad.  Unfortunatly yes you do need a NIC for any wireless coumpters.  Keep in mind that if you have the router in the same room as one of the computers you will just hard wire that computer, so do not buy 2 NIC's unless you have 3 computers.  Idealy a netword will work so that you can access almost any file on either computer from just one.  So if you want to print a word file that you wrote on one machine (and dont want to go through the hassel of installing the shared printer onto the new machine that it was not previously installed on) you can always access the file from the computer that has the printer alrady installed, and print if from there.  This makes floppys and data cds almost wothless to you, as you can transfer much faster, and more, than on either of those to ways.  hope that answered all the Q's you asked, if i didnt post again and i will cover anything i missed, or any new q's you have.

jwatt · Answer

mccdaddy,

Wireless NICs aren't required for each machine. If one of the machines is close enough to the proposed location of the wireless router, it can be attached with standard Ethernet. It will need an Ethernet adapter if it doesn't already have one.

As far as speeds are concerned, 802.11b is 11 mbits/second, and 802.11g is 54 mbits per second. Of that, expect between fifty to seventy-five percent of the rated speed to be available as network throughput.

Note that wireless bandwidth is shared. So if you were to have several wireless machines accessing the Web, or files and printers on another wireless machine, all that traffic comes from the same 11 mbits or 54 mbits of bandwidth.

Linksys has an excellent "Introduction to Networking" tutorial. Naturally, the product bias is towards their products, but the concepts and details are well-presented.

(edit) volcano11 seems to agree! Sorry, Steve, I got interrupted and didn't notice your reply!

Jim

Message Edited by jimw on 03-10-2004 06:17 PM

-0O0-Richard Ra · Answer

Keep in mind that if you have the router in the same room as one of the computers you will just hard wire that computer, so do not buy 2 NIC's unless you have 3 computers.

*seems* rather similar to

Wireless NICs aren't required for each machine. If one of the machines is close enough to the proposed location of the wireless router, it can be attached with standard Ethernet. It will need an Ethernet adapter if it doesn't already have one.

but maybe not lol sorry just wanted to show that i did say that incase no one read my OVERLY LONG post

~also want to point out that i did mention that the g was useful for huge transfers, and recommended the b to him

Message Edited by -0O0-Richard Rahl on 03-10-2004 09:41 PM

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