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Wireless
Internet Connections
High Speed Access To The Bedroom and (among other places) The Park Bench By Phil Philcox Last week, I took the laptop outside and did some work from a park bench/table across the street and as long as I stayed within a thousand feet or so from the apartment, I was connected. If you're tripping over wires, settling for a slow speed modem connection when you're away from your main desktop or using your laptop in another room, there are solutions and they're not only convenient, but they're affordable as well. |
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As
a full-time magazine and book writer, I'm at the computer all the time:
writing and researching on the Internet. I have a desktop and a laptop, cable
and modem connections, so when I'm sitting in my office chair, I access the
Internet at high speed by cable. When I'm relaxing in my recliner or in bed
with the laptop, I use the modem connection. The only problem (Problem One) is
my laptop Internet connection needs a phone connection, so I have to (a) plug
into a phone jack behind the bed/chair or (b) use a remote connection that
sends a wireless signal from phone line to computer. I've been using one of
those Panasonic Data Links which sends a signal a couple of hundred feet so I
can hook up to the phone without wires. The only problems are (Problem Two)
the Data Link has too be recharged too often and (Problem Three) I have to use
the 56K modem connection - too slow for my needs when I'm checking and
downloading hundreds of web sites on medication (the subject of a book I'm
currently writing) and other subjects for other books. You can see the
problems.
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If
you're planning to put together a computer network in your home or small
office, you should consider going wireless. With wireless you get the freedom
to roam just about anywhere in the building and you don't have to deal with
cumbersome cables. If you're rich and have a dozen computers scattered around
the house, you can link them all into one Internet connection and eliminate
cables in the walls and other alternatives. If you're not rich like me, you
can justify the cost even with two computers if high speed access and no
wires to trip over is your goal.
What
you'll need is a wireless cable/dsl router, and a network card for the second
(or third, fourth, fifth, etc.) computer(s). I got all my stuff from
Belkin ( http://www.belkin.com ) because
I've used their electronic stuff before and never had a problem and the price
has always been right. The router will allow you to share your broadband
Internet connection with all the computers in your network. You can connect to
any cable or DSL modem that has an Ethernet port, and if you've already got a
wire-based network installed, you can use the router's integrated 3-port
10/100 Base-Tx Ethernet switch to add wireless access to your existing
network.
If
you're using a notebook computer like I am, you'll probably want to go with
the Wireless Notebook Network Card. This is a PCMCIA card that plugs in and
doesn't require you to lug around an external hardware box, like with the USB
Adapter. And for desktop PC users who want to go the traditional route, Belkin
provides the Wireless Desktop PCI Network Adapter. It doesn't make much sense
to use this device though, unless your PC doesn't have a USB port and if
you're system is that old, however, you'll probably need to upgrade it anyway.
Somewhere down the line you're going to discover that other accessories are
going to require a computer with a little more capabilities.
Connecting
your computers to the wireless network is extremely easy and can be done in a
variety of ways using the USB, Notebook Card, and Desktop PCI adapters. It
doesn't get any easier than the Wireless USB Network Adapter. Just plug it
into an available USB port, and let Windows Plug-and-Play do its thing.
There's no need to open your PC for hardware installation, and you can
connect/disconnect your computer from the network quickly and easily. Finally,
if you find that you need to cover a particularly large access area, you can
use the Wireless Network Access Point to expand your coverage. Normally, with
the wireless network running at 11Mbps, you'll get coverage over an indoor
area of up to 300 feet in radius and over an outdoor area of up to 1,800 feet
in radius. You can boost the operating range of the network by using the
Access Point as a central point of communication. Locate the Access Point in
the center of your network operating area and it will relay the data from one
computer to another thus boosting your operating range. Depending on
conditions, you can effectively double your network access area.
So
far, I've tested the hookup at home (that under 300-foot end-to-end apartment
I mentioned) and at the office and have had great performance. In the small
office, 
you
can keep the cable clutter to a minimum, and save money on equipment by
sharing a printer among all the networked PCs. At home, I could roam around to
any room (I have two) with my laptop and still have access to all my computer
data, including being able to call up information from the bedroom. Last week,
I took the laptop outside and did some work from a park bench/table across the
street and as long as I stayed within a thousand feet or so from the
apartment, I was connected. If you're tripping over wires, settling for a slow
speed modem connection when you're away from your main desktop or using your
laptop in another room, there are solutions and they're not only convenient,
but they're affordable as well.
you
can keep the cable clutter to a minimum, and save money on equipment by
sharing a printer among all the networked PCs. At home, I could roam around to
any room (I have two) with my laptop and still have access to all my computer
data, including being able to call up information from the bedroom. Last week,
I took the laptop outside and did some work from a park bench/table across the
street and as long as I stayed within a thousand feet or so from the
apartment, I was connected. If you're tripping over wires, settling for a slow
speed modem connection when you're away from your main desktop or using your
laptop in another room, there are solutions and they're not only convenient,
but they're affordable as well.
Tip:
when you're thinking about buying a computer product and need some how-to
installation and tech information, go to the company's website and download
the manual. You'll find all kinds of information in there that could help you
to decide to buy or not...and it's free! Belkin's is at http://web.belkin.com/support/download/download.asp
Phil Philcox is the Editor/Director of The Press Association and a
contributor to hundreds of magazines and newspapers. He's the author of four
books on computers. He can be contacted at pressassoc@knology.net
.
